The Gaming Journal: A Smash Hit
Hello readers. Its been a few months since youve heard from me. Im back even though I never really left. Just the same, this is my new project with GCAdvanced. I like to think of this as my Gaming Journal, where I share thoughts and feelings about the games Im playing right now. Its kind of an open-ended project that strays from the current debacles in the industry. The project is meant to be more of a reflection on what makes gaming worthy of our time. So, rather than treading the same old path that everyone else deems as a hot topic, Ill be paying more attention to what gaming is really about.
For instance, its been almost three years since Super Smash Brothers: Melee hit the shelves. I bought it when I bought my GameCube at Christmas. I still play it for hours on end. When I take my Cube to parties and friends houses, Super Smash Brothers: Melee is the game that always eats up the most time. It never seems to matter whats going on or what games or game consoles are available, it is GameCube time if Super Smash Brothers is in the house.
In my opinion, this is one of the benchmarks for a truly great game. There are many graphical masterpieces on the market these days, and there are a lot of good games that are fun for the moment, but there arent many attention stealers like Smash Brothers: Melee. Its a unique game with a wide variety of game modes. Its no surprise to me when I see it listed at GameFaqs in the Best. Game. Ever. poll. Super Smash Brothers: Melee has lasting appeal even for a solo gamer. The game is flat out great.
In all its glory, Smash Brothers: Melee will be remembered as a classic, but what I havent forgotten is all the hoopla about the GameCube launching without a killer app. The GameCube wasnt even two months old, and gamers were being pretty harsh toward the lineup of gamesdespite the fact that the lineup was considerably better than in previous generations. At the time, the console war was still a hot topic, and the GameCube had just won the holiday season against the Xbox. The industry was heading into the drought (the period after the rush to launch where few games are released) when it became clear that Halo was pretty much single-handedly carrying the sales burden for the Xboxand, as a matter of fact, the Xbox leads the GameCube in sales to this day. Discouraged fans of Nintendo looked at the GameCubes lineup and saw only Super Smash Brothers: Melee as a comparable seller.
It was during the gloom and doom phase of this generation that I saw some of the harshest judgment Ive ever seen on a video game. People complained about it not being a true Mario titleits not the sequel to Mario 64. Others put it down for not being graphically impressive, which I completely disagree withfour-player combat never looked better. Some thought that the game didnt cut it in terms of being the main launch title, which is debatable. Others accused it of being a childish button masher, which makes me wonder about the age of the people making these comments. The point is that the game was unfairly scrutinized for not being more than it isan exciting button masher!
Luckily, the majority of GameCube owners shared the same opinion I have about the game. Super Smash Brothers: Melee has sold over 4 million copies worldwide. Thats more than Halo for the Xbox! That sales figure lands Smash Brothers: Melee on the top sellers list. The game has remained a constant success for the three years of the GameCubes life. I would even venture to say that it has outsold any other GameCube title, which is tough to do against the likes of Super Mario, Legend of Zelda, and Mario Kart. Its safe to say that the Smash Brothers series has become a staple in the collection of great Nintendo franchises. It may even be more recognizable than Mario Kart now. The game has really elevated itself as a fighter and collection type of game. Its much more than a button-mashing fighter, though, its a game with many styles of gameplay.
The funny thing is that I wasnt a believer in Super Smash Brothers, either, until I played it. I still remember my skepticism when a friend of mine, Jeff, recommended Super Smash Brothers: Melee to me. I was busy digging through game reviews and impressions (aka: I was frantically trying to avoid buying utter garbage) while trying to pick out three games to buy with my Cube. I looked at Smash Brothers: Melee with hesitation. I was hesitant because I had just moved and was preparing to go to a new school (translation: I had no friends or life). But Jeff reassured me it was the best title for the GameCube. I wasnt too sure if this was the type of game for me because I was going to be playing it solo for quite a few months, and I never saw fighting games as being that much fun without other people to play against.
