The most exciting thing about E3 2018 was easily Super Smash Bros. Everyone knew it was coming after the initial announcement, but it’s insane how fast the development process has been. Sakurai is being incredibly ambitious, including all characters from every Smash game in existence, along with some new ones along the way. Players could either play “For Glory”, which was a competitive mode, or non-competitive play. I haven’t played Smash in a while, but I went with “For Glory”. My two mains in the previous entries were Zelda and Link. Zelda’s Din’s Fire, when used correctly, is amazing. Can I mention how much I love Zelda’s design? I would love Skyward Sword Zelda, but, A Link Between Worlds Zelda is one of the best. She is also inspired by ALttP Zelda, which gives her brownie points. Link’s new look is also fantastic, though I wish he had better alt appearances. Link feels much stronger in
So how did I do?
Competitive Smash
Ironically, my first match in Smash Bros. Ultimate, I completely dominated with Link. I had 7 KOs and only 2 deaths. At first, there are two rounds, and the winner of each round moves on to the second round (there were three). My second try I went with Zelda. She did well and I was one KO from being in a three-way tie, but as I already won there was no reason to put my all into it; I was experimenting. Zelda is better to play with than ever before. Her Din’s Fire is amazing, her attacks are incredibly powerful; the only thing is her speed, but she more than makes up for it with the devastating blows she delivers.
Link, on the other hand, is more powerful than ever. Equipped with the Master Sword, a bow-and-arrow, and remote bombs from Breath of the Wild, he is a force to be reconned with. It is a shame that Link has lost his Hookshot, but I always had problems with it anyway. Moving onto the second round was a real honor and the game plays amazing.
Think of a mix between Melee and Smash Wii U. It’s the perfect balance. And air dodging is back.
Unfortunately, I lost the second round (placed in second). I decided to use Zelda, and as excellent as she is, the Punchout stage is infuriating. It was very enjoyable though, even if I didn’t receive the Smash Bros. hat and be able to play on the main stage. That’s OK though, as I was able to experience four matches.
Gameplay
Smash Ultimate plays better than any other Super Smash Bros. game, period. As stated earlier, it’s a mix of Melee and Smash Wii U, something fans will be very happy about. Air dashing is back! Which is awesome. There are also so many hidden subtleties with regards to various techniques that I’m sure players will find upon release.
As I only played as Link and Zelda, I was somewhat limited. Link’s Smash Attacks are out of this world. Zelda is still working her magic, Din’s Fire, Nayru’s Love, and Farore’s Courage. They are more potent this time around but the game is very well balanced. Sakurai has achieved a marvel with this title, which has been kept under wraps for quite some time. Air dodging is great and you have a momentary glide in order to evade the enemy.
The game is also compatible with Smash amiibo, so, you can use your amiibo in order to train and level your amiibo up like in Smash Wii U, which could be quite a challenge but makes you a much better player.
This game is a love letter to fans of all eras, and Sakurai has created his masterpiece.
Characters
Currently, there are at least 65 playable characters in the game from every iteration of the series, but there could be more. Ridley, a long-time fan favorite, was recently announced as being playable. Given Sakurai’s praise of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, I honestly would not be surprised to see Rex or Homura and Hikari (Pyra and Mythra in English). I would also love to see Toon Zelda/Tetra. At this point there, there aren’t too many characters to add. The game already has almost 70 playable characters and they are all fantastic. Among newcomers to the franchise is the Inkling from Splatoon and Ridley from Metroid, although Sakurai always has something up his sleeves.
Final Smashes are back and it seems like Link and Zelda actually switched (no pun intended) with Link, as Link now uses his bow and Zelda uses the Triforce. Given how overpowered Link’s previous Final Smash was, I’m surprised they gave it to Zelda. Ganondorf also has both a new look and a new Final Smash. He even uses his sword! He has reverted back his Ocarina of Time look, which suits him so well, and his Final Smash is Ganon from the end of the classic title.
What To Look Forward To?
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is the ultimate fighting game. It’s a day one purchase. I still have my three GameCube controllers from the Wii U iteration of the title.I still have my GameCube adapter for the Wii U. This is a game that needs to be played docked. The GameCube controller is the only way to go.
Coming out on December 7, this masterpiece in the making is going to dominate the holidays along with Pokemon Let’s Go. While this year hasn’t been great for Nintendo software-wise, think of this: within a year and a half, Nintendo will have released a new Zelda, Mario, Pokemon, and Smash Bros. title, on top of other wonderful IPs such as ARMS and Splatoon 2.
Smash Ultimate is ready to take the world by storm on December 7, 2017.