Genre: Fighting
Year: 2001
Developed by: HAL Laboratory
Published by: Nintendo
Platforms: GameCube
#13
Feeling Like: Wanna fight?
Kazuhiro had a GameCube, before any of us did.
Kazuhiro had Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Kazuhiro wanted to know if he should come over to my place and bring his GameCube and Super Smash Bros. Melee during the Christmas holidays.
Fuck yes, Kazuhiro. Get your ass over here.
We were spellbound. Sometimes characters would hit the screen on their way to perishing. The item selection was far more expansive and explosive. More stages, better stages. From 12 fighters to 25. Characters could transform. The environments were now as big a threat as your opponents. This was like going from slow pitch to the major leagues.
In terms of hours played, there’s DOTA 2, World of Warcraft, and Slay the Spire at the top. Games that go beyond a regular playthroughs and manage to keep me interesting months, or even years after I’ve “completed” them. That’s a loose term, by the way – you can’t really complete any of those games. But if you combine all the time I spent playing the Smash Bros. games, Melee especially, it might top them all.
Melee was always on, whether it was my room in Bigelow, the living room at 36A King or the Oliver St. basement, Melee was a mainstay for a period of approximately six years. Every single time we had an excuse, or time to play a quick match, we indulged. Everybody knew what characters to pick, what stages we want, what the mode should be in. You’re in, you’re out. You’re smiling. Or screaming.
I’m convinced the GameCube controller was made for Melee. The C-stick could be snapped in any direction for an immediate smash attack. The L and R buttons used for the shield and rolling felt natural. The odd layout of the X / Y jump buttons, coinciding with the giant A and small B buttons, worked surprisingly well. It was like butter in your hands. Newcomers picked up the basics in a match or two. Since matches typically lasted only a few minutes, the barrier to entry was low.
This was the one. Out of all the Smashes, this was the one that transcended coasts and lives for me. Eric, Dob, Kaz, Aslam and Dave were back home waiting to challenge me as Link, Pikachu, Samus, Fox and Yoshi, respectively. Out east, it was Randy, Dave R. and Fuzz, with the occasional part-timers like Jobber, Walker, Jeff, Carlo and Vance. My poor GameCube, it definitely got a workout in those times.
To say it was an improvement over Super Smash Bros. would be a massive understatement. For one, the framerate didn’t chug when things were happening on the screen – that’s a big deal when you’re attempting precise dodges or timing attacks. Everything was smooth and fast, I mean really fast. There’s a reason professional tournaments still prefer Melee over newer iterations. There are advanced techniques like Wave Dashing or Jump Cancelling that elevate this from a chaotic distraction to legitimate 1 on 1 fighting game. Despite playing an embarrassing amount, I was never privy to these moves. I do recall the speed, however. Before, it always seemed like you had a few moments to gather your thoughts, dust yourself off and get back into the fray. Here, you’ll have an opponent on you at all times. Be ready.
In the summer, Eric was working at a day camp at the junior campus of GNS. My house was on his way home (I wasn’t, but we always took advantage of even remote proximity), so he’d rush to Oliver St and we’d get in a best of 5. I typically won the first two, then he’d sweep me in the next three. It really depended on the maps – I don’t know if it was a self-fulfilling prophecy, but I always tended to win on Kirby’s home turfs and he’d win on the Link stages. It was always such a satisfying duel, we knew each other’s tendencies a dozen times over. Sometimes the only chance to get a hit in was when we did something completely unpredictable. It was a blast, even if Kirby was a battered, bruised little puffball by the end.
There were so few multiplayer options like this. I mean, it’s possible developers took one look at this and thought better of trying to compete with Nintendo. Part of the appeal was the giant library of characters to pull from, and what company can compete with this kind of star power? As we’d see in later iterations, companies completely unrelated to Nintendo would start lending their stars to the party. Whether it was fear of missing out, or the potential of several million eyeballs on their cash cow, I’ll never know but what I do know is that in a game like this, more is always better.
Every character plays so differently, it was so easy for people to latch onto a playstyle and go from there. Because the moves are uniform, it only takes time to get used to the style of your fighter, not figure out what the moves or combos are. Jump is still jump, throw is still throw. Weight, height, power and speed are all major factors, however. You can’t play Pichu or Fox the same way you’d play Donkey Kong or Bowser. And you certainly don’t have a lot of time to figure that out, since two other players are about to throw a bomb, or a box, or a fire flower your way. Duck!
I can still feel the weight of Kirby’s movements. I know how far to tilt the joystick to get him to do a mad sprint, or when to do his triple sideways kick. Or the slight delay for the downward spike twirl, or when to float up and stone the enemies below (the answer as to when to do that is always). The game eventually became synonymous with my friends. It was like our little secret – Dave R may have looked like a junior librarian aspiring to be Mr. Rogers (and he’s almost as nice), but in the arena he was a bloodthirsty, calculating murderer. Fuzz’s Jigglypuff looks like an even more cutesy version of Kirby, but once he starts juggling you mid-air for five seconds straight, you’ll soon associate the color pink with having a psychotic episode. Dobbo remained quiet, until his “PIKA!” lightning shot you off the side of a cliff. His little giggle reminded you that he was winning, and to seek vengeance on that electrified yellow rodent.
Once we learned that the game kept track of certain stats for bonuses and trophies, it was full speed ahead. I think we finally finished up with the 5,000 matches and put the GameCube to rest. The Wii had just come out, after all, and we were all about to graduate. As fun as Smash is, it’s nothing without a group of like-minded nerds surrounding you. Time and a place.
I was lucky to have Dave R. as a roommate, and a friend. He was far more responsible and studios, so when we joined in for a Smash session, we knew there wasn’t anything to be done around the house, or exams anytime soon. I’m thrilled he offered his thoughts.
(Dave R.)
I didn’t get into the Smash Bros franchise until late when Fuzzy, Henry, and Randy introduced me to Melee. It’s not the greatest game, but it’s definitely a strong contender for my favourite. It was brought into my life at the perfect time, with lots of time to play while sharing an apartment with my best friends. It was so easy to just go to the living room and someone would be there or be along soon. No trying to coordinate schedules like when life gets busy. It was so simple to lose the better part of a weekend playing match after match. The running gag was to say “last match” an hour before actually leaving because there’d inevitably be several more games. The great thing was that there was enough variation in the game that we never got bored with it but not so much that it was too complex.
We all had our favourite characters – Randy with Link or Zelda, Fuzzy with Jigglypuff, Henry with Kirby, and me with Fox or Pikachu. If you ever wanted to switch it up though, there were lots of other characters to use. The items were well balanced, in general, which added to the game, instead of taking away from it. It’s not difficult to connect with others online now but nothing beats playing games with friends in the same room. The shared experience that extended beyond software and headsets was unparalleled. Henry trying to psych out his opponent (be it one of us, or a little kid at a tournament) with a little yell is something that just doesn’t have the same effect from across the country. Seeing the look on your friend’s face when you hit them with a perfectly timed smash or a clever trick is something that can’t be beat. I’ve bought other Smash games since, and they’re good, but just not the same. I mean, they’re similar, but my life has changed so much. More responsibilities and sadly, we all live in different time zones now. Maybe someday we’ll all end up in the same old folks home and Henry will try and psych us out there. It won’t matter though because we won’t wear our hearing aids.
(Dave R’s writeup finished)
Sorry, what did you say Dave? (seriously, thank you!)
Even the menus and music were exciting. The introduction FMV, which served as a trailer, got me so excited I must have watched it 50 times. The variety of challenges, both in solo and multiplayer, was unparalleled at the time. It was if Nintendo dared us to be bored. It should probably be higher on the 500, I’m not sure if it deserves the unlucky #13 spot, but when you’re this high on the Almighty Spreadsheet, I have to take the tiniest nitpick and blow it out of proportion. Smash Bros. Ultimate is, in every way, the best Smash and I’m lucky enough to have the odd Smash night with coworkers or friends.
But not my friends from high school, or university. Those memories and camaraderie and competition will forever live on, on the 500 and in my memory. Thanks for the Smashing, bros.
The 500 