All-Star Brawl: There’s no denying that Nintendo owns the most influential gaming franchises, which have set trends in the industry since the days of the NES. Just as Mario Kart represents a revolution for racing titles, Super Smash Bros. was a game changer in fighting games, placing its iconic pets in small battle arenas whose objective is not just to reduce the life bar of opponents, but to knock them off the stage.
While Street Fighter, Tekken, Mortal Kombat and Dead or Alive required complex combinations from the player, Super Smash Bros. reinvented the wheel with accessible combat, that is, less technical, in which you can deliver neat combos with just a few buttons, thus eliminating the arduous task (for me at least) of memorizing moves. At a time when fighting game developers prided themselves on their difficult-to-digest mechanics, Nintendo’s brawler went against the grain in order to bring a balanced experience, inviting both novices and hard-nosed virtual brawlers.
True to Smash’s premise, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is, for better or for worse, a “xerox” of the franchise that influenced him, putting the characters of his brand, one of the mainstays of entertainment, to take a beating. Overall, All-Star Brawl works well, but its many limitations — the result of a lower production value — as well as its need to replicate Smash down to the smallest detail, prevent it from taking higher flights. Similarities to Smash, by the way, are everywhere, from the voice of the narrator and the way he presents events to menus and visual snippets. Check out the full review.
