Super Smash Bros. 3DS Preview
by Oliver Layco
The time is almost upon us when we can take the beloved Super Smash Bros. franchise on the road with us. This will be the games first iteration on their 3DS system, and the demo just became public today. At its core, the game is everything we’ve come to love ever since first playing it on the N64. The characters in the demo include Mario, Pikachu, Link, Villager, and Mega Man. The first three play pretty much like the previous versions with some minor refinements. As of this writing I haven’t played with the Villager that long, but from my initial impressions he’s an average character. Not slow and heavy like Bowser but not quick like Pikachu. There’s a good balance of long and close range attacks. As for Mega Man, I really enjoy playing with him. Most of his attacks are long range attacks so players will have to adjust accordingly. I especially like the details they put in his attacks that draw from his long history. His specials include Leaf Man, Metal Man, Crash Man, and Rush Coil. As for the overall gameplay, I can understand why some users have actually broken their 3DS’ from overly aggressive playing. With that in mind, I tried to remember to play with a softer touch. I also like the addition of a running lunge attack. That adds a different dynamic than just running and doing a basic attack. Then graphically, it looks clean for a 3DS game. I’m not sure how it will compare to the Wii U version, but it works for the handheld system. The little touch I liked was how when your character gets to a high damage percentage, smoke starts coming out of them like their engine is about to blow. It’s a good indication to see who you should attack since percentages are on the bottom screen and you aren’t always looking there. The full version is due out in 2 weeks so we don’t have to wait much longer for the complete experience. But in the meantime, get to downloading the demo!