Collection essentials #429: Super Smash Bros. (N64)

Nintendo, as everyone knows, is the creator and/or owner of a variety of iconic franchises such as Mario, Zelda and Pokémon. These series are all quite distinct from each other and generally don’t overlap aside from occasional cameos. But in 1999, for the first time, characters and worlds from these different franchises would be equally featured in the same game. What is perhaps amusing was that this game wasn’t originally planned to feature any of these franchises, as that idea was conceived after the basic premise of the gameplay was already established.

Super Smash Bros. is a fighting game, but it is very different from something like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat. There are platforming elements involved in Smash Bros., as your characters can move freely around a level (albeit on a 2D plane) that has various platforms that can be jumped on, in contrast with a regular fighting game where every battle takes place on a flat and limited space. All characters can execute a “double jump”, meaning they can defy the laws of physics and jump a second time while in midair, and most characters also have a special move that functions as a third jump too. This is important, because the goal of Smash Bros. is not to beat up the opponent(s) until their health bar is reduced to zero, but rather to knock them off the stage. As characters take more and more damage, they will fly further when hit, making them easier to knock off. This style of fighting game is sometimes called an “arena fighter” or a “platformer fighter”. Another defining feature that sets it apart from typical fighting games is that it allows for up to four combatants at once, not just two. 

Smash Bros. is more accessible and easier to jump into for casual fans when compared to regular fighting games, too. All characters have three special moves in this game, but the button inputs to execute them are always the same for each character and they are very simple. The game also features many items which randomly appear as fights play out, and these have a wide variety of effects that sometimes can swing an entire match. The items can serve as a way to give players an upper hand when they are perhaps behind in the match or of a lower skill level and unable to win otherwise.  

This game wasn’t developed on a big budget, so there isn’t a ton of content here. There is a 1P mode in which a player goes through a series of battles and bonus levels that are more or less the same every time (aside from difficulty level chosen beforehand), and that typically takes 20 minutes or less to get through a given session. Two of the bonus minigames in the 1P mode can be played at any time in a separate menu as players can try and beat their best times. Four unlockable characters can be accessed by playing these modes, too. The only other feature is the multiplayer versus mode, which has a variety of options that players can use to tweak their experience, such as the ability to play with teams, to play with a stock of lives or see whoever can get the most KOs within a time limit, and the ability to turn items on or off. Multiplayer was clearly intended to be the main attraction of this game, and rightfully so.

There are a total of 12 playable characters including the unlockables, and 9 stages to play on in versus mode representing different locations from Nintendo games. The series represented in this game include Mario, Pokémon, Zelda, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Star Fox, and more. Characters from less-famous games, Ness from EarthBound and Captain Falcon from F-Zero, became more well-known by the general public as characters from Super Smash Bros. rather than for their actual titles of origin. 

As a kid, I first learned about Smash Bros. from TV commercials. Namely, I remember the one where a few people dressed up in costumes of Nintendo characters are skipping together merrily along in a meadow, until they randomly break out in a fight after Mario kicks Yoshi’s leg. The game immediately seemed super awesome to me, and I absolutely loved the concept of different Nintendo characters and their worlds clashing. A while later, my cousins PJ and Eric got the game, and I was able to try it for the first time. I distinctly remember my first time playing it, and I picked Pikachu and the Pokémon-themed stage as I was newly obsessed with Pokémon at the time. Before long I got the game for myself, and the cartridge shown in the photo is my original (but not the box, and I don’t remember if the manual is my original or not). It instantly became one of my favorite go-to multiplayer games with family and friends. The delightful chaos of four-player Smash Bros. matches is something that never seems to get old.

As you likely know, Smash Bros. went on to become a big series. This game set a great foundation, though realistically you probably aren’t going to revisit this game very much in modern times as the sequels have far more to offer. Still, for me this game is an absolute quintessential essential.