When the original Super Smash Bros. was released for the N64 in 1999, I couldn't really decide whether I loved it or hated it.  On one hand, its chaotic battles made for great multiplayer, but on the other, SSB's limited depth made it quickly lose its luster.

 

Based on this knowledge, I went into Super Smash Bros. Melee not expecting much, but now I can't really figure out what I was worried about.  This is one of the most refreshing sequels ever made.

 

SSBM is, for the most part, a Nintendo fanatic's dream.  Basically, 'The Big N' decided to take virtually all of their big name stars (Mario, Link, Donkey Kong, etc.) and let players beat the crap out of each other with them.  Instead of the typical life bar set up of past fighting games such as Tekken or Street Fighter, Melee assigns each player a percentage counter, which rises as you are hit.  If your damage level gets too high, you're more prone to being easily knocked out of the battle arena, which causes you to lose a life.  This means that mastering powerful 'smash' attacks is the key to defeating your enemies.

 

Once again, if Melee had just been a fighting game, it would have fallen victim to the same problem as the original.  Thankfully, Nintendo decided to add several extra modes that give individual players something to do when their friends aren't around. 

 

First up we have Event Mode.  This is easily the best part of the game.  As you progress through the game more special event battles are opened.  Most of these have some sort of gimmick to them, such as fighting 128 tiny Marios or protecting Yoshi's last egg from being destroyed.  They're usually pretty hard, but you'll feel very satisfied once you beat a tough event.  Stadium Mode gives you the option of breaking a bunch of strategically placed targets, depending on your character's abilities, or seeing just how far you can hit a sandbag with a baseball bat (my record is 1892.4 feet with Yoshi).  There's a lot of strategy involved in hitting a sandbag that far, let me tell you.

 

I didn't even mention the trophies.  Nintendo decided to add in 300+ trophies for players to collect as they go along.  These trophies can range from well known (the Metroid alien) to extremely obscure (Ayumi Tachibana, star of Famicom Detective Clum Part II?).  Each of these trophies is lovingly rendered into fully 3D models that can be viewed from any angle or zoom level.  They also come with a bit of documentation, should you be unfamiliar with the source material.

 

Overall, this game is a great reason to own a Gamecube.  It's the one thing that's keeping me busy until Super Mario Sunshine is released in a couple of weeks, and it'll probably keep me entertained for a long time after that. 

 

-James Napier