Super Smash Bros.: Melee

aka: Dairantou Smash Brothers DX, SSB:M, Smash
Moby ID: 5575
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Description official descriptions

The sequel to HAL Laboratory's Super Smash Bros., which pitted Nintendo characters against each other, ups the ante by including more levels, more characters, and more game modes.

The game is a Nintendo fighting game with different rules to it. Instead of knocking your opponent's health down, you knock him or her out of the battle field. You choose from the wealth of Nintendo characters like Mario, Bowser, Yoshi, different Pokémon, and even Link and then either fight through the single-player portion, featuring modes like Classic, Adventure, and Event Mode or battle it out with your friends in a four-player frenzy. More characters and stages are unlocked as hidden objectives are met, and coins rewarded for playing in all modes can be spent on a capsule toy machine. The toys in the machine represent games from Nintendo's entire video game history, and each can be viewed in 3D with a brief description. Also, with the simplified fighting controls, it's pretty easy for even your non-gaming friends to just pick-up and play.

Playable characters come from the following games:

Spellings

  • 大乱闘スマッシュブラザーズDX - Japanese spelling
  • 대난투 스매시 브라더스 DX - Korean spelling

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Credits (GameCube version)

293 People (261 developers, 32 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 87% (based on 43 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.2 out of 5 (based on 177 ratings with 14 reviews)

A great sequel that left creativity in the 90's.

The Good
Did you think that SSB was an awesome game? Well, just wait until you play this, because this will blow your freakin' mind!!!

The gameplay for SSBM is basically like SSB: fight as and against your favorite Nintendo characters. Simple, but very well pulled off. What is different in this game, though, is there is twice as much in it. Not just more characters and stages, but new modes such as "Adventure", which is basically Classic but a scripted version. You know, like an action movie. lol But there is much more than that, such as "Multi-man Melee" and "Homerun Contest".

The music in the game is, in one word, good. When I say that, I mean that some tracks are freakin' awesome (such as the Fire Emblem track) and some I don't really care for (such as Green Greens). But over all, the sound track in this game is something I would definitely buy, a feat that most games can't make me want to do.

The graphics, I have to say, are amazing. What makes them even better is that SSBM was one of the first GC games (I think). I love how detailed some stages are. For instance, in the background of Rainbow Cruise, you can see a small town on the cliff. It even has a dirt path in it! Now THAT is attention to detail in my book.

The Bad
Despite how awesome this game is, there are a few problems. For example, in the camera mode, if you use NPC's, you will NOT get a good picture!

Also, on a small note, I don't like the announcer in SSBM as much as the SSB one. And I don't like how the match is started with "Ready? GO!" instead of "3...2...1...GO!". But these is only a small complaint.

Finally, something kind "personal" I guess is the fact that this game isn't as creative as the first title in the series (IMO). When I say that, I don't mean the graphics. They're excellent. What I mean is how "unique" the original was compared to this. Think about it for a sec:

SSB: The characters were literately stuffed dolls from a toy chest. The stages were supposedly made from common house hold objects (cardboard, pencil holders, blocks). Almost every stage is supposed to be taking place in the sky and/or is floating. Also, if you completed the 1-player mode, when the camera blacks out, you here a door slam, implying that the whole time, the fighting and violence was controlled by a child! And Master Hand was the child's hand!

The main point is that the original showed a child playing with their toys from their point of view. But in SSBM, they are clearly trophies coming to life. Even the intros of the characters are kind of lame. To me, it all seems slightly lazy.

The Bottom Line
Despite the fact that I think this game heavily lacks in creativity, this is a great addition to your GameCube collection.

GameCube · by Deleted (197) · 2010

Crack on a 3-inch DVD

The Good
Above all other things, this is quite possibly the greatest multiplayer game ever conceived. I have a group of friends that meet regularly for sessions, and we are always up until insane hours of the night, and have logged hundreds of hours. Between the huge number of characters and levels, and the sheer chaos of the game, it never grows stale. (Even as we've burned out on other "party" games within a couple days)

The play dynamics, as invented in the original Smash Bros, are still highly unique. Instead of simply playing "last man standing," the point is to knock as many players out of the ring as many times as possible. No one is removed from gameplay at any point for more than a few seconds, and last second comebacks are quite plausible. Furthermore, the game seems to almost equally reward skill and button-mashing - unless you're up against a Grand Master player, even newcomers will be able to hold their own while learning the ropes.

The one-player games are nearly as good. There are a multitude of different adventures, tournaments, and various challenges you can engage in. The "adventure" mode turns into an odd homage to side-scrolling adventures, with your character of choice running through levels inspired by all the games represented, along with certain important battles that come along. And there's always the option of simply playing battles against the computer - whose AI is quite good at the high levels.

The graphics, while not the best the Gamecube has seen, are pretty much as good as this sort of game would allow. Some of the levels are QUITE huge, and all the character animations are spot on. There's never any slowdown no matter how much is happening. Sound is similarly great - around half of the soundtrack is comprised of orchestral arrangements or classic game themes, performed by a full orchestra. And the various sound effects for the characters are spot-on as well. (I take great demented glee in the pathetic "Piikkkkaaaaaaaaaaaaa" when Pikachu sails into the sunset)

The Bad
My one big complaint is how they make you jump through hoops to unlock the hidden characters and levels. I hate that, and some of the trials they put you through are nearly impossible. You will be made to log a lot of hours with the game, some of them very frustrating (cough15 minute battlecough) to open up all the secrets.

Also, the game can be unforgiving to players with smaller TV sets. Some of the battlegrounds are so large that, if the camera pulls back all the way, it's virtually impossible to tell what's going on, or even who is who. (this effect is especially bad on the Hyrule castle level, leading to the occasional called truce as we move back to the center of the field)

The Bottom Line
In terms of entertainment and hours spent relative to cost, this is quite possibly the best game purchase I've ever made. Cannot be recommended strongly enough.

GameCube · by WizardX (116) · 2003

Gaming at its finest.

The Good
Taking characters from the Nintendo franchise and controlling them as they punch the hell out of each other is still one of my favorite concepts for a game ever. It allows for a lot of fun, revenge and memorable moments and at a party it will always prove to be everybody's favorite. This time around we expanded ourselves a bit further by adding characters from Fire Emblem and some retro titles, as well as adding several fighters from games that were already on the list (Peach and Bowser from the Mario series for example).

Despite of this expansion, the designers at least knew where to stop and this is where Brawl went wrong. The list of fighters in Brawl was indeed huge, but it features so many copies and complete unknowns that it was a bit overwhelming and a waste of space. I excuse Dr. Mario for been a very good reference, Young Link for the fact that Wind Waker was riding high on this system and Falco for just been a badass. That leaves Pichu as the only character that was genuinely a copy of another one. All the other new (and old) characters have their own moves and fighting styles and it compliments them much better.

The new trophies section is a giant Nostalgia trip for Nintendo fans of all ages, a whole gallery filled with information on classic characters that couldn't make it into the game. I would even go as far as to say that it is quite a museum, but it's kinda sad that there are only 300 trophies or so to collect. It's an impressive number, but dear god, you just never want to stop collecting these prizes.

The fighting is a huge improvement over the original Super Smash Bros.. The reason for this is that the controls are now 100% fluent and responsive, you have complete control over the characters you are playing as and you'll never run into a situation where you'll be justified to complain about the controls leading to your death. While this is hardly the game that absolutely required it, it is still nice to have and it makes the game great for tournaments with more serious friends.

All the fighters are really balanced and they all have their own advantages and disadvantages. For example: Sheik is a very fast and flexible damage dealer that can run at high speed and do a lot of damage, but at the same time he is rather fragile and lacks the power to perform the actual attacks that would launch you out of the map. Even the characters that you may find completely useless, like in my case the Ice Climbers and Pichu, are really effective when given to the right people.

The level design is simply gorgeous and there is a nice variety of maps to play in. Almost all the maps are based on locations from the games Super Smash draws its fighters from and compared to the original title these are a huge update both in terms of gameplay and graphics. Some of the maps look breathtaking and many of them have special rules that you need to keep in mind, for example Mute City has cars race over the course that you are fighting one.

The soundtrack is also fittingly awesome to hear and most of it consists once again of tracks from the games we all know and love.

The Bad
It is kind of a shame that the game doesn't feature any of the old maps from the original with a graphical update. It seems like a small task to put them in and they were genuinely entertaining to play (Pokémon stage!!!). There are some unlockable stages I believe, but that is not going to cut it, we want the full package.

The new story mode (or adventure mode) is pretty fun to play, but it lacks context. An adventure would imply you are on some kind of quest, but due to the lack of narration or even a few messages throughout the span of the hour-long trip, you just do the same thing as in the Classic mode. That's not to say that it isn't a lot of fun, but when you make your way through a cave filled with monsters from the Zelda universe in search of the Triforce, it would be at least fair to give us a little explanations as to why. (P.S. that is a pretty good idea for the next Zelda game, I liked that part a lot.)

If I am absolutely forced to come up with another argument, it would be that it's very hard to figure out which character you are playing when there is two copies of that character on the screen (an NPC might have picked it or another human player). It's okay in Free-For-All due to the difference in color, but when you go in teams the second player will have a lighter version of the character which is almost impossible to notice during hectic moments.

The Bottom Line
Melee is by far the best installment in this franchise, which also happens to be my second-favorite Nintendo franchise, so you can see why I am rather fond off this game. The combat is fun and due to the fluent controls it is great for parties, newcomers and even tournaments, all of these situations will come with great laughter due to the great concept this franchise has going. A few very minor issues can't ruin the experience for anybody.

Who can I not recommend this game to? If you have something against Nintendo than this is not really anything for you, it might be a good fighter, but you'll most likely be unable to put up with the premise.

GameCube · by Asinine (957) · 2011

[ View all 14 player reviews ]

Discussion

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Colon (or, rather, lack thereof) in title Michael Cassidy (21326) Dec 13, 2015

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Super Smash Bros. Melee appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Fire Emblem

Prior to this game's release, no game in Nintendo's Fire Emblem series had ever received an official North American release, which caused some confusion among western gamers who were introduced to Marth and Roy (two Fire Emblem characters) via Super Smash Bros. Melee. Initially they were going to be exclusive to the Japanese version of the game. However, when the developers were working on the North American version, they received favorable attention, so they were kept in the Western version.

Mr. Game and Watch

Even though the secret character Mr. Game and Watch is stylized as a 2D character, he is actually a 3D model of his 2D form. The Mr. Game and Watch model is flattened and his shading is different. This can be especially noticed when he's thrown or picking up an item box.

Ness

The character Ness was going to be replaced by Lucas, the main protagonist of Mother 3. However, due to the delay of Mother 3, the developers kept Ness.

Ratings

This was Mario's very first appearance in a game with an ESRB rating higher than E (Everyone).

Snake

Apparently, Hideo Kojima, director of the Metal Gear Solid series, "begged" Nintendo to include Solid Snake as playable character in Melee. However, the game was too into development for this to happen, but Snake appears in Brawl.

Soundtrack

  • There exists a re-recorded soundtrack for this game, released solely as a bonus for Nintendo Power readers. It features all of the "arranged" tracks as played in a concert. Unfortunately, the orchestra is poor, and virtually none of the renditions are as good as the ones within the game.
  • The Final Destination's sound track, if you listen closely enough, has some arrangements from the original Smash Bros. theme near the end.

Trophies

A trophy from the Japanese version of the game was removed for the US release: The trophy of Tamagon, a character from the Japanese-only Famicom (NES) title, Devil World was taken out due to the use of the word "Devil" in the game's title. His description read:

Tamagon

This is the main character of a Japanese NES game never released in North America. In this quirky maze game, your goal was to work your way through a series of scrolling mazes while battling the cyclopean henchmen of a large, winged demon. Tamagon not only had to worry about the evil creatures, but also the walls, which were extremely harmful.

Demon World

Japan Only

Some of the trophies have a few oddities when examined up close. The Barrel Cannon trophy reads "2L84ME" on the bottom. The Daisy trophy also has a third eye if you zoom in and rotate until you clip through her hair on the back of her head.

In addition, two trophies were changed for the US release. Topi was changed from a Seal (as he appears in the Japanese version of Ice Climber) to the Yeti-like creature in the Amercian version. The Proximity Mine was also changed from the Perfect Dark version in the Japanese release to the Goldeneye version (which was also used in the original Super Smash Bros.) for the US release with the game title mysteriously labeled "TOP SECRET."

Awards

  • 4Players
    • 2002 – #8 Best GameCube Game of the Year (Readers' Vote)
  • EGM
    • February 2006 (Issue 200) - #92 on the "Greatest Games of Their Time" list
  • GameSpy
    • 2001 – GameCube Fighting Game of the Year

Information also contributed by Big John WV, Bob the Stickman, colm52, Mark Ennis, Nelson340, Tiago Jaques and WizardX

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by JPaterson.

Additional contributors: Terok Nor, Warlock, BigJKO, Guy Chapman, Exodia85, FloodSpectre, LordRM, Patrick Bregger, Rik Hideto, FatherJack.

Game added January 11, 2002. Last modified March 27, 2024.