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Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Super Smash Bros. 4's Free Four All in Ultimate

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Or, an excuse to look back at Super Smash Bros. 4.

Last weekend, when I wasn't competing in a massive tournament for a game more adrenaline-pumping than the subject of tonight's article, there was the lackadaisical Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Event Tournament called Free Four All, where the stages and fighters were based on those originating in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. For Wii U, collectively known as Super Smash Bros. 4. (By the way, this confirms what I've figured all along, that the seemingly uncreative title Super Smash Bros. for “console name” is supposed to read as Super Smash Bros. 4 “console name”.)

It was so lackadaisical that I actually won it. Here's proof:

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Free Four All event tourney tournament winner Ludwig Von Koopa
Just a reminder: I was added to the Super Smash Bros. series with Super Smash Bros. 4, though Sakurai was very rude about it.
...Well, I was a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.


One other bit about the tournament name: Super Smash Bros. For Wii U and Super Smash Bros. For 3DS definitely weren't “free” for anyone. Buying two games is more expensive than buying one, which is especially a problem because Super Smash Bros. For 3DS preceded the better version by a couple of months, and should've never been made since it hampered how good Super Smash Bros. For Wii U could have been, as evidenced by resource constraints and design decisions that had to occur across both versions, like the removal of the Ice Climbers.

Back in 2015, I actually considered Super Smash Bros. For Wii U to be my favourite game ever made. This is going to seem really inconsistent, but the existence of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has not only topped my best game rankings, but Super Smash Bros. For Wii U isn't sitting at #2 instead. It's somewhere... else, further down on the list. It's like Ultimate's existence retroactively makes a bunch of flaws in Super Smash Bros. 4 readily apparent, and I can't just keep it at the top anymore.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Free Four All event tourney Little Mac pocket Cloud
Just like in the actual Super Smash Bros. 4, everyone uses Cloud and has a “pocket Cloud.”
(I had one of those, too.)


There were a lot of newcomers in the Super Smash Bros. 4 base game, as well as in the downloadable content. Their quality ranged wildly, though some downloadable characters ended up dominating the metagame as a pay-to-win environment (Cloud... BAYONETTA). But then you look at the possible stages you could've gotten in this tournament... Palutena's Temple, The Great Cave Offensive, Gaur Plain, PAC-LAND... these are all awful stages, and I did get some of them. Why did they feel the need to have so many Temple-esque “big” stages? Why would anyone think they're fun? When I ended up in Palutena's Temple, everyone just spammed crouching or they circle-camped everyone else. Terrible. And why did the 3DS version add so many scrolling stages like 3D Land, Golden Plains, and Dream Land GB? These are all so bad. Don't forget that Mute City SNES is a disgusting unplayable ugly mess. Why can't we have Mute City from Super Smash Bros. Melee in this game instead?

I actually still occasionally (or rarely) play Super Smash Bros. For 3DS, but only for Smash Run in, say, the bathroom or something. Super Smash Bros. For Wii U, by comparison, has absolutely no reason for anyone to go back to it, especially without Miiverse support. It's one of the biggest falls from grace I've ever seen a game experience.


Ludwig once said he wouldn't keep dedicating articles to these event tourneys in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but things have changed since then. There are a lot of things that are now permanently (?) part of the Super Smash Bros. series thanks to Super Smash Bros. 4, and some of those are good (like Ludwig being a playable character), and some are really bad (like literally everything associated with PAC-MAN). What fond (or non-fond) things do you remember about Super Smash Bros. 4? Let Ludwig know in the comments section. It's pretty likely the only reason this article exists is BECAUSE Ludwig is playable and he thinks the tournament is all about him.


You can compare this article looking back at Super Smash Bros. 4 to a similar one for Super Smash Bros. Melee, which also got an event tourney.
The last event tourney article was from June where Ludwig did battle with Zoomers. And won.
Cloud being widely used lines up with the most recent set of fighter usage stats KoopaTV has aggregated.

The next event tourney tackles whether or not Ludwig is really a prince of Koopa Kingdom.

8 comments :

  1. I wonder how many of the 800-whatever people in this thing hadn't even successfully completed the story mode? I mean...I was having trouble with it but I could have gotten there eventually. It's just that, between the new energy mechanic and the direction the boss fights were heading, it just felt like I wasn't even playing tennis anymore so I got so POed that I immediately traded the game back in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You totally commented this in the wrong article.

      But here's a message from someone who isn't me on the tournament Discord...

      "Just replayed Adventure mode, it is a ton of fun! I found it mostly decently challenging (even tho mostly easy, every normal match ended in a KO, lol)
      However... the bosses...
      THE BOSSES!
      MY GOD THE BOSSES!
      The bosses are simply amazing!"

      Delete
    2. Yyyyyyyeah meant to comment on the Mario Tennis Aces results article. Sorry! XD But as long as we're on the subject anyway, the bosses were the worst, non-tennis part of the whole thing. :P

      Delete
    3. Don't say such horrible things about BOWSER STATUE!

      And to such great music.

      Delete
    4. Bowser statue? I don't think I even got there. The last boss I faced before Ultimate Ragequitting was some ice themed thing, I think.

      Delete
    5. Ice boss kinda sucks.
      Ghost boss sucks more.

      But Petey is fine, Gooper Blooper is fantastic, and BOWSER STATUE IS THE BEST.

      Delete
  2. When are you going to join the big leagues? With some of the biggest Smash players stepping down, there has to be somebody to take their place.

    ReplyDelete

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