“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” is a game series almost everyone knows. I have played each of these games except for the Nintendo 64 iteration, and they have made memories for fans around the world across multiple consoles.

Started in 1999 on the Nintendo 64, the series has had multiple versions across Gamecube, the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo 3DS and the Nintendo WiiU up until 2014. And now with Ultimate for Nintendo Switch released in 2018, it’s the newest crossover fighting game in the collection, and sold 3 million copies in its first 11 days.

Gameplay

“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” is a simple pickup for any level of gamer. You select your favorite character from your favorite Nintendo title — or in some rare cases characters from other companies — punch or throw your opponents to stack up damage percentage and launch them off the stage. It’s a lot of fun with friends, and up to eight players can fight at once. There are countless game modes to choose from, such as regular matchmaking; squad strike, a 3-on-3 or 5-on-5 tag-team showdown; Smash Down, which eliminates a selected character from the roster; Super Sudden Death; and many more.

Currently the game has 75 characters, with five more characters and five stages on the way — including Joker from Playstation’s hit-game Persona 5 — as downloadable content, 108 stages, and 900 tracks of music. Because of the music, the developers even set a “sleep mode” so you can listen to music from your Switch.

The roster has characters from renowned video game titles, including “Super Mario,” “The Legend of Zelda,” “Donkey Kong,” “Metroid,” “Yoshi,” “Kirby,” and “Starfox.” Nintendo is dubbing the title the biggest video game crossover of all time. You start off with a small roster of eight, but it grows into a roster of 75. The best part about the game is the grind to unlock characters, which is so much fun.     

Story

There’s not much of a story in the game, but that is where adventure mode comes in. The mode can get repetitive, but once you get to the end of adventure mode there’s a special surprise that is worth the grind. To complement the story and quick play modes, the game also boasts challenges for the player to complete and a training mode to sharpen one’s skills.

Conclusion

“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” is the latest iteration in one of the most iconic video game series in the world and one of the best fighting crossover games of all time. However, the only gripe I have is the adventure mode, which does get tiresome. But it is a must have for the Nintendo Switch. Thank you, Masahiro Sakurai.

4.7/5