Super Smash Bros. 3DS Review

Chances are, if you are a 3DS owner, you have already purchased Super Smash Bros. for the handheld by the time you read this review, but there is still some skepticism amongst the gaming community as to the state of Nintendo’s fighting juggernaut on the portable system. I am happy to report that Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS is a fully-fledged Smash experience that pushes the boundaries and capabilities of its hardware, and, surprisingly enough, creates the definitive fighting game experience on-the-go by being more than just a simple filler version until Super Smash Bros. for Wii U releases later this year.

Super Smash Bros. 3DS works the same way as the previous entries in Nintendo’s fighting game series; you fight for supremacy against other beloved video game characters. Over 40 characters are within Smash 3DS’s roster, including Nintendo veterans such as Mario, Link, Samus and Marth, newcomers like Rosalina, Shulk, Little Mac and Wii Fit Trainer, but also characters from other video game companies that have partnered up with the Big N such as Sonic, Pac-Man and Mega Man. Needless to say, this is Smash’s biggest roster to date and rightfully so with the ever-growing popularity of the franchise. This leads to constant experimentation with the different fighters to see which one is the best of the gang, especially now because the game allows you to create your own Mii Fighter and customize existing characters.

The Mii Fighters have 3 different fighting styles in Brawler, Swordfighter and Gunner, which you can modify their equipment, special moves and appearances that make for truly unique combinations. The same thing goes for the existing fighters, except their appearance cannot be changed. It’s a great feature because it allows you to create a fighter that matches your play style and test it out with the single press of a button. Moreover, these customizable traits can be unlocked by continuously playing the game, so you’ll be switching equipment and moves constantly to see the ones you prefer.

As surprising as this may sound, Super Smash Bros. controls great on the 3DS. Sure, there is a small learning curve because the player will have to adapt to the switch from a controller to a handheld device, but all the elements are there to make it feel like a real Smash experience. It all comes together nicely after about an hour of practice as you’ll be pulling off combos and Smashes constantly to crush your opponents. Plus, you can customize the button layout to your liking if you don’t feel comfortable with the default settings.

The game is simply gorgeous-looking for a handheld experience, offering tons of detail on the characters and running at 60 frames per second. It’s astonishing to see that the 3DS can display all of the action on-screen without a single technical hiccup. However, the shift from the big screen to the small screen does not come without its cost; it is extremely hard to keep up with the fast-paced action at multiple occasions. Though this mostly occurs in four player Smash games, I was constantly losing sight of my character as the camera pulled back to display all of the action on-screen. Plus, I was playing on a 3DS XL, so I cannot imagine how struggling it must be on a standard 3DS.

As far as game modes go, Super Smash Bros. 3DS is packed with a wide variety of game modes that are all tweaked and designed for the appeal of a portable video game experience. For example, the Classic Solo mode, which has been in every single Super Smash Bros. game so far, plays exactly the same, but is now shorter by having only six fights to take on with each character. This small tweak is appreciated because, with the vast roster of characters, it’s less of a chore to go through it to unlock all of the new challengers  and character trophies, which is really the entire single player replay value around Super Smash Bros. 3DS. Plus, you can now choose the path you want to take to fight your opponents, which adds great variety in each of your runs.

Other modes include traditional Smash with up to four players controlled by the AI or in Wireless Multiplayer across the many new and old Smash Bros. stages, training mode to brush up on your skills, Multi-Man Smash where you fight a vast array of Mii Characters, Trophy Mode to unlock various trophies and equipment, the beloved Home-Run Contest and Target Blast, which works just like an Angry Birds-type game now. In addition to all those modes is All-Star Mode, which is a trip down memory lane as you’ll take on fighters in accordance to the year they were introduced in. It’s a great look back at some of Nintendo’s history, but, in the end, it ends up being just another mode where you fight more characters in a different order.

One of the major selling points with Super Smash Bros. 3DS is with its exclusive mode called Smash Run. Needless to say, it is a huge disappointment as it sounds good on paper, but doesn’t translate itself well into the game. The way it works is that the first five minutes of the match are a grind for stats as you fight random enemies across a maze-like level. After the time runs out, you get to take these acquired stats with you in a randomly selected battle that can be Smash fights or race-type scenarios. In the end, the constant stat grind is tedious and meaningless because it barely changes anything once you go into the second portion of the mode.

There is a ton of content beyond Smash 3DS’ single player features. First off, there is the obvious choice of playing Online Multiplayer For Fun or For Glory, the latter being the game’s highly competitive playlist. You’ll be able to take on four player, team and one on one Smashes with random people around the world for hours on end. However, take note that, at the time of this review, Online Multiplayer was very unstable with choppiness, disconnects and massive lags occurring throughout most of the matches. Though these problems were less frequent in 1v1 type games, it was very annoying and hard to enjoy a fundamental mode of the game when it has that many issues. Hopefully, this will all sort itself out within the next days/weeks following the release.

I cannot forget to mention the amount of replay value that is present within Smash 3DS. As stated earlier, trophies are a big part of Smash’s collectibles, which you’ll be able to collect across all of the game modes. Just like their predecessors in Melee and Brawl, each trophy has its own description regarding the history of the character or item displayed on-screen. I found myself spending a lot of time reading those descriptions because they provide interesting backgrounds and information regarding the specific trophy. The same thing happened with game’s music where I would just go into the Sound Menu and listen to many of the greatly remastered tracks while I was doing something else. All of this, plus the challenges and extra stuff located in the Vault, only enhance the entire value of the $40 package, which is highly appreciated and incredible if you think about it.

Despite all of the awesome elements that were just listed previously, Super Smash Bros. 3DS suffers from the same problem as any Smash game, or any Fighting game for the fact of the matter; there isn’t quite much else to do after you have tried out every single mode. Now, this may be strictly personal because I am not the biggest Fighting game enthusiast, but I must admit that I got a little bored of the game after playing it for about 15 hours, all while unlocking every character, stage, and getting crushed in Multiplayer. Repetition is always present in fighting games, and Super Smash Bros. 3DS cannot escape from it, even with its multiple modes and wide lineup of characters that simply mask the fact that you are doing the same thing over and over again.

VERDICT

Super Smash Bros. 3DS is, hands down, the best portable fighting game ever created. Just the simple thought of it working on a handheld is absolutely crazy and it’s a true achievement that Bandai Namco and Project Sora successfully delivered a functioning Smash experience on a handheld platform. With its vast lineup of characters and modes that encourage experimentation and increase the replay value of the experience, it goes beyond simply being a filler Smash game until the Wii U version comes out. It has all the key components of a console Smash experience that will make fans of the series enjoy the game for dozens, if not hundreds of hours.  However, keep in mind that it can become boring quickly as it becomes very tedious and repetitive once you have experienced the gist of what the game has to offer. In the end, Super Smash Bros. 3DS is the perfect game to take care of your Smash needs on-the-go and simply proves that Nintendo’s fighting franchise is a force to be reckoned with, even after 15 years of existence.