AUDI FAMAM ILLIUS. thoughts on SuperSsmash Bros. Brawl
I have heard legends of that person.
Last night, I unintentionally played Brawl for a marathon length of time. I played from about 1 am to 8 am. Wow, did i really play that long?? At first, I was just gonna play an hour or two on on-line matches, but I soon got sucked into the Subspace Emissary. At 68 % completion, there was no holding back anymore. It felt like th end of the story, so I kept playing until I reached it. Twenty percent later, or about 4 to 5 hours, and i had beaten adventure mode. The sun had come up by the time I was done, my eyes were shutting those last few hours, and I was starving, but I finished. Not that it's that big of an achievement or anything... hey! the great maze was pretty difficult to finish. Just like I heard it was. Irritating, not difficult. But how was I supposed to know you could only beat it by tracking down every shadow version of every fighter you had? And imagine if I played the game on a harder setting than medium? Probably a lot more continues would have been used.
The best part of SE, and of the entire game in my opinion, isn't the gameplay, but the story. I am so happy i had no idea there would be such an involved story present in the game. Written by Kazushiga Nojima, famed author of the story for Final Fantasy VII. Nojima really brought out the spirit of Smash. He created something that wasn't there in the previous games, but this potential awe-inspiring feeling was always there. With a game like Smash that combines characters from so many Nintendo universes, it has always been possible to produce a unique feeling of cute, funny, dark, adventurous... Nojima truly set the standard for mixing these elements.
Like the computer generated scenes of FFVII, the scenes in Brawl had no dialogue whatsoever. They are animated characters, after all. These Nintendo characters had strong personalities already well-known by the fans. Consequently, Nojima was able to tell a great story that moved with action, not words. I think that was a wise choice. Some of these characters, like Link, don't speak at all anyways. So it would be unusual for Snake to be talking up a storm as he does in MGS, to Link, who could only really use facial expression. Pantomiming, if that's the correct word to use here, was just a really appealing and enjoyable way to see all these beloved characters interact. I don't know how else to describe it.
Since the story has no dialogue, you could say Brawl has a pretty simplistic plot. The great forces of evil in the Nintendo universe, namely Bowser and Ganondorf, are working together to capture all the heroes in trophy form and conquer the entire world. Bit by bit, the world is consumed by Subspace. Our heroes rally together from all over to prevent further destruction. However, they arrive too late to stop these Subspace explosions almost every time. Throughout the story, characters are introduced, both to the gamer, and to the heroes already involved in the story. So for example, when Diddy Kong, near the jungle, is about to blown away by a giant sea pokemon, Star Fox intervenes in his arwing and saves Diddy. These meetings between characters are the catalyst that really moves the story forward. Stage-wise, you move through different environments, basically from each character's corresponding world, fighting Subspace enemies. Eventually, all the forces of good are united. A whopping 30-or-so fighters from all over the Nintendo-verse. Once together, they finally use all their resources for a full-scale attack on Bowser and Ganondorf. This scene, aptly titled the Invasion, is definitely the best scene in the story. One of the best cinematics in all of gaming.
The operatic Brawl theme song blaring in the background is pivotal in making it so. I love that song soooo much. From when I first really heard it way back in 06 in the game's E3 debut, it's always given me goosebumps. Composed by Nobuo Uematsu, the same man who composes the epic scores of Final Fantasy. To me, this song is up there with the greats, like the soundtracks from the Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy VII, and Metal Gear Solid. I would love to hear it played live by a full symphony. Indeed, as Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of Smash, says, "It's such an important song, you can even call it the core of this game." After beating the game, I looked up the song and was impressed to learn that Sakurai wrote the Latin lyrics himself. I never guessed (although I should have) that there were actually meaningful and inspiring lyrics behind the composition.
Another great moment in the story that touched me was when the Ancient Minister was fired on by all the ROBs. I thought the Minister was killed in the fire, but it was still alive. And with the garments burned away, the Minister was revealed to be the original ROB!
The final boss was a fun surprise, too. Throughout the story, you figure you'll just end up fighting the Master Hand. But a new character is introduced. Tabuu. He's a pretty bad-ass boss. He has like a dozen fighting moves. I love it. My list of six fighters who I chose to battle him were Sonic, Snake, and four of the Smash verterans: Samus, Pikahcu, Link, and Mario. It really came down to my final fighter. Mario for the win! A fitting way to beat the game.
The final fight cinematic, which was cool, but came out of the blue (pun intended), was the appearance of Sonic zooming by and attacking Tabuu. I feel like Sonic was tacked on last minute. You never even see him interact with other characters in Smash. I had a feeling they would save Sonic for last since so many fans have been crying for years to get him in the game. But it still felt weird seeing him come out of nowhere in Subspace. Another small gripe I had about the story was that there was no cinematic ending. We see all our heroes on a cliff over the ocean stare off into the sunset. It's beautiful, but there was definitely room for more here. Once again, I think maybe the developers just ran out of time. There could have been a huge celebration between all the characters. That would have been rad.
Still, it was a great gaming experience. Perhaps it was so great because it was so unexpected. The Smash series is already beloved by millions because of it's fun fighting and Nintendo fan service. So to go that step further and bring depth to this amalgamation is really satisfying to me. Also, I think it's great that almost all the hidden characters in the game can be earned in adventure mode. It's more meaningful to earn them that way, rather than through beating the story-less classic mode a million times. That's how I was originally trying to earn characters, and I'm glad I didn't. Especially Snake, ROB, and Sonic. Surprisingly, there are still a couple characters to earn: Toon Link and Starwolf. Not having two Links in the story I can understand, but I think they could have put in Starwolf, or whatever his name is. I wonder how I'll end up earning them...
In conclusion, there really is no improving on the story for Smash. Gamers will obviously hunger for another sequel. But if it happens, what more can Sakurai and Nojima write about? The forces of good coming together to take on the ultimate unstoppable evil was a perfect tale. It really reminds me of the Infinity Gauntlet story, which is probably why I like SE so much. There's really nothing you could add to this storyline that we haven't seen now. There are a couple possibilities. You could have the characters enter the real world a la Toy Story. We would finally see the person behind the Master Hand, if there is one. However, this doesn't solve the problem of introducing characters one by one. That's the real challenge. Plus, it'd be hard to figure out how to make humans look in this world of cartoon characters.
So what could the future of Smash possibly hold? I think this one was really the masterpiece of the series, much like Ocarina is to the Legend of Zelda. I was thinking it's possible to make the gameplay 3D, but I don't think that would really add to the story either. It will definitely be hard to improve on perfection.
There's no better way to end this paper, (yeah, I realize I'm writing in a very academic fashion), than with the lyrics to Sakurai's masterpiece. Bravo, good sir.
Audi famam illius.
Solus in hostes ruit
et patriam servavit.
Audi famam illius.
Cucurrit quaeque tetigit destruens.
Audi famam illius.
Audi famam illius.
Spes omnibus, mihi quoque.
Terror omnibus, mihi quoque.
Ille
iuxta me.
Ille iuxta me.
Socii sunt mihi.
qui olim viri fortes
rivalesque erant.
Saeve certando pugnandoque
sprendor crescit.
I've heard legends of that person.
How he plunged into enemy territory.
How he saved his homeland.
I've heard legends of that person.
How he traveled the breadth of the land, reducing all he touched to rubble.
I've heard legends of that person.
I've heard legends of that person.
Revered by many--I too, revere him.
Feared by many--I too, fear him.
Now, that person
Stands by my side.
Now that person stands by my side.
Now my friends are with me.
Some of them were once heroes.
Some, my moral enemies.
And as we face each other in battle, locked in combat.
We shine ever brighter.
Last night, I unintentionally played Brawl for a marathon length of time. I played from about 1 am to 8 am. Wow, did i really play that long?? At first, I was just gonna play an hour or two on on-line matches, but I soon got sucked into the Subspace Emissary. At 68 % completion, there was no holding back anymore. It felt like th end of the story, so I kept playing until I reached it. Twenty percent later, or about 4 to 5 hours, and i had beaten adventure mode. The sun had come up by the time I was done, my eyes were shutting those last few hours, and I was starving, but I finished. Not that it's that big of an achievement or anything... hey! the great maze was pretty difficult to finish. Just like I heard it was. Irritating, not difficult. But how was I supposed to know you could only beat it by tracking down every shadow version of every fighter you had? And imagine if I played the game on a harder setting than medium? Probably a lot more continues would have been used.
The best part of SE, and of the entire game in my opinion, isn't the gameplay, but the story. I am so happy i had no idea there would be such an involved story present in the game. Written by Kazushiga Nojima, famed author of the story for Final Fantasy VII. Nojima really brought out the spirit of Smash. He created something that wasn't there in the previous games, but this potential awe-inspiring feeling was always there. With a game like Smash that combines characters from so many Nintendo universes, it has always been possible to produce a unique feeling of cute, funny, dark, adventurous... Nojima truly set the standard for mixing these elements.
Like the computer generated scenes of FFVII, the scenes in Brawl had no dialogue whatsoever. They are animated characters, after all. These Nintendo characters had strong personalities already well-known by the fans. Consequently, Nojima was able to tell a great story that moved with action, not words. I think that was a wise choice. Some of these characters, like Link, don't speak at all anyways. So it would be unusual for Snake to be talking up a storm as he does in MGS, to Link, who could only really use facial expression. Pantomiming, if that's the correct word to use here, was just a really appealing and enjoyable way to see all these beloved characters interact. I don't know how else to describe it.
Since the story has no dialogue, you could say Brawl has a pretty simplistic plot. The great forces of evil in the Nintendo universe, namely Bowser and Ganondorf, are working together to capture all the heroes in trophy form and conquer the entire world. Bit by bit, the world is consumed by Subspace. Our heroes rally together from all over to prevent further destruction. However, they arrive too late to stop these Subspace explosions almost every time. Throughout the story, characters are introduced, both to the gamer, and to the heroes already involved in the story. So for example, when Diddy Kong, near the jungle, is about to blown away by a giant sea pokemon, Star Fox intervenes in his arwing and saves Diddy. These meetings between characters are the catalyst that really moves the story forward. Stage-wise, you move through different environments, basically from each character's corresponding world, fighting Subspace enemies. Eventually, all the forces of good are united. A whopping 30-or-so fighters from all over the Nintendo-verse. Once together, they finally use all their resources for a full-scale attack on Bowser and Ganondorf. This scene, aptly titled the Invasion, is definitely the best scene in the story. One of the best cinematics in all of gaming.
The operatic Brawl theme song blaring in the background is pivotal in making it so. I love that song soooo much. From when I first really heard it way back in 06 in the game's E3 debut, it's always given me goosebumps. Composed by Nobuo Uematsu, the same man who composes the epic scores of Final Fantasy. To me, this song is up there with the greats, like the soundtracks from the Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy VII, and Metal Gear Solid. I would love to hear it played live by a full symphony. Indeed, as Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of Smash, says, "It's such an important song, you can even call it the core of this game." After beating the game, I looked up the song and was impressed to learn that Sakurai wrote the Latin lyrics himself. I never guessed (although I should have) that there were actually meaningful and inspiring lyrics behind the composition.
Another great moment in the story that touched me was when the Ancient Minister was fired on by all the ROBs. I thought the Minister was killed in the fire, but it was still alive. And with the garments burned away, the Minister was revealed to be the original ROB!
The final boss was a fun surprise, too. Throughout the story, you figure you'll just end up fighting the Master Hand. But a new character is introduced. Tabuu. He's a pretty bad-ass boss. He has like a dozen fighting moves. I love it. My list of six fighters who I chose to battle him were Sonic, Snake, and four of the Smash verterans: Samus, Pikahcu, Link, and Mario. It really came down to my final fighter. Mario for the win! A fitting way to beat the game.
The final fight cinematic, which was cool, but came out of the blue (pun intended), was the appearance of Sonic zooming by and attacking Tabuu. I feel like Sonic was tacked on last minute. You never even see him interact with other characters in Smash. I had a feeling they would save Sonic for last since so many fans have been crying for years to get him in the game. But it still felt weird seeing him come out of nowhere in Subspace. Another small gripe I had about the story was that there was no cinematic ending. We see all our heroes on a cliff over the ocean stare off into the sunset. It's beautiful, but there was definitely room for more here. Once again, I think maybe the developers just ran out of time. There could have been a huge celebration between all the characters. That would have been rad.
Still, it was a great gaming experience. Perhaps it was so great because it was so unexpected. The Smash series is already beloved by millions because of it's fun fighting and Nintendo fan service. So to go that step further and bring depth to this amalgamation is really satisfying to me. Also, I think it's great that almost all the hidden characters in the game can be earned in adventure mode. It's more meaningful to earn them that way, rather than through beating the story-less classic mode a million times. That's how I was originally trying to earn characters, and I'm glad I didn't. Especially Snake, ROB, and Sonic. Surprisingly, there are still a couple characters to earn: Toon Link and Starwolf. Not having two Links in the story I can understand, but I think they could have put in Starwolf, or whatever his name is. I wonder how I'll end up earning them...
In conclusion, there really is no improving on the story for Smash. Gamers will obviously hunger for another sequel. But if it happens, what more can Sakurai and Nojima write about? The forces of good coming together to take on the ultimate unstoppable evil was a perfect tale. It really reminds me of the Infinity Gauntlet story, which is probably why I like SE so much. There's really nothing you could add to this storyline that we haven't seen now. There are a couple possibilities. You could have the characters enter the real world a la Toy Story. We would finally see the person behind the Master Hand, if there is one. However, this doesn't solve the problem of introducing characters one by one. That's the real challenge. Plus, it'd be hard to figure out how to make humans look in this world of cartoon characters.
So what could the future of Smash possibly hold? I think this one was really the masterpiece of the series, much like Ocarina is to the Legend of Zelda. I was thinking it's possible to make the gameplay 3D, but I don't think that would really add to the story either. It will definitely be hard to improve on perfection.
There's no better way to end this paper, (yeah, I realize I'm writing in a very academic fashion), than with the lyrics to Sakurai's masterpiece. Bravo, good sir.
Audi famam illius.
Solus in hostes ruit
et patriam servavit.
Audi famam illius.
Cucurrit quaeque tetigit destruens.
Audi famam illius.
Audi famam illius.
Spes omnibus, mihi quoque.
Terror omnibus, mihi quoque.
Ille
iuxta me.
Ille iuxta me.
Socii sunt mihi.
qui olim viri fortes
rivalesque erant.
Saeve certando pugnandoque
sprendor crescit.
I've heard legends of that person.
How he plunged into enemy territory.
How he saved his homeland.
I've heard legends of that person.
How he traveled the breadth of the land, reducing all he touched to rubble.
I've heard legends of that person.
I've heard legends of that person.
Revered by many--I too, revere him.
Feared by many--I too, fear him.
Now, that person
Stands by my side.
Now that person stands by my side.
Now my friends are with me.
Some of them were once heroes.
Some, my moral enemies.
And as we face each other in battle, locked in combat.
We shine ever brighter.