Super Smash Bros for the Wii U

It’s hard not to like Super Smash Bros. There’s just something amazing about sitting down on the couch with friends and family to frantically button mash and watching your favorite characters from a mix of video games fight each other.

Super Smash Bros for the Wii U has no plot. You just start playing. But you quickly learn what to do and how to do it. Super Smash Bros is a classic brawling game. You select a character from a wide cast from a ton of different games, for example Pikachu, Samus, Shulk, etc. You can also create custom characters from your Mii selection. Additional characters are also available from the Nintendo E-shop.

Now in the main screen, you can see multiple buttons on-screen. Some of these buttons lead you to a selection of different types of battles, some of them just lead to another screen with more selections, some lead you to places where you can purchase collectibles etc. I am going to try to explain it all.

The biggest button that you see is labeled Smash. Smash is the basic fighting mode, where you can fight against a computer or against other players via co-op. There are three types of Smash: Regular Smash, Eight Player Smash and Special Smash. Regular Smash is when you can have up to four players and/or computers fighting each other. In Eight Player Smash, you can have up to eight players/computers, but the stage selection is limited to a small amount of big stages, unlike Regular Smash, so that all the players/computers have some breathing room. And Special Smash is, well, special. You can make your own rules. Occasionally, in Smash, a new character appears. But in order to unlock that character you have to fight it. These battles get increasingly challenging. Smash is the classic battle mode. It’s a great, simple way to have some quick fun with your friends and family, or challenge yourself against CPUs.

The second biggest button is Nintendo Online. If you go there and hit A, a screen appears showing the different things you can do. You can do a battle online, where you can fight other players. You can also watch other live matches and place bets on who’s gonna win. Then there’s the tourneys. Tourneys are massive online tournaments that last a long time. Rules are made by the creator of the tourney and you can be in up to three tourneys simultaneously. Nintendo Online is good for experienced players wishing to show off their skills in large scale battles, or for people who simply want the enjoyment of fighting other players online. However, be advised that sometimes Nintendo Online is populated by only hard core players.

There’s also the Smash Tour option on the main screen, which is basically Super Smash Bros’ edition of the London Party from Mario and Sonic at the 2012 Olympic Games. This time around, instead of Olympic events there are fights and other activities. Smash Tour is a good little twist, and can pack some additional fun, although it can be confusing at times.

Then there’s also the Games and More section on the home screen. In that screen, there is the option to go to the Vault, to create Mii fighters and/or custom fighters, and to create custom stages. In the Vault, you can see replays of your favorite battles, snapshots taken mid battle, other videos, and you can select to view trophies. Trophies are these little figures, similar to amiibos, that are collected during the game. In lots of modes you can collect in-game currency, which you can spend in the shop on the trophies screen. You can also see your massive trophy hoard all at once, or activate a gallery where you can select a trophy and learn about it. Trophies are fun to collect, and are a rewarding little feature for playing Super Smash Bros.

In the Games and More Screen, there is also a selection that says Solo and Group. In those modes, you can play a bunch of different mini games that are related to Super Smash Bros. The main attraction is Classic mode. In Classic mode, you select a fighter, and then you travel around the board fighting computers. The game gets progressively harder along with the three difficulty options. Eventually you fight bosses of some sort. Another mode is All Star. In All Star, you select a fighter, then you fight all the other fighters in reverse chronological order. This may sound sort of easy, but the damage you take in one battle carries over to the next, and you have limited healing items, so All Star is pretty hard. There are also other activities. In Group, you can do all the activities that you can do solo, except Special Orders, a mode in Solo. Solo and Group modes provide enjoyment for everyone, with really fun new mini games. These mini games aren’t cheap, though. To play certain game modes, you have to pay a significant amount of the in-game currency, which limits the experience somewhat.

Well, that basically covers the basics of all of the things you can do in Super Smash Bros. There’s always something fun to do in Super Smash Bros, and it is a must have if you love laughing with your friends and family, or if you simply like watching diferent characters from your favorite games fight.

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