Board 8 > ITT I Rate The Best Playable Appearance Of Every Smash Character

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Kamekguy
08/17/22 2:00:51 PM
#1:


Pretty straightforward, nominate one Smash Bros character and I'll give their best playable appearance with a (hopefully) fair bit of reasoning. This can include actual Smash Bros games as well as any other spin-off series, if they happen to be done particularly well in Smash Bros. This is mainly based on gameplay; story & characterization will factor in only as they reflect gameplay (ex. Old Snake Vs Liquid Ocelot in MGS4 will be taken at full value if Snake is evaluated as there's constant gameplay repercussions, but not the story of Old Snake as a whole).

The following characters I guarantee you I will do a crap job analyzing, as I just do not have familiarity with the full breadth of what they have to offer:

Shulk
Corrin
Steve
Pyra/Mythra

Otherwise, everyone's fair game. If you're bored and would like to predict what you think the character's best appearance is with your nom... idk I guess I'll give you a point for that if you wanna be competitive? Enjoy the free point for Ridley, I guess?

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Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
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hylianknight3
08/17/22 2:06:15 PM
#2:


Mr. Game & Watch

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The azuarc of the contest universe is long, but it bends toward Guruship.
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Anagram
08/17/22 2:07:38 PM
#3:


Link

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Not changing this sig until I decide to change this sig.
Started: July 6, 2005
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Bane_Of_Despair
08/17/22 2:08:07 PM
#4:


Wolf O'Donnell

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You were the cancer, that's all you'll ever be
I really messed up this contest, but azuarc gave it a Breath of fresh air
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KommunistKoala
08/17/22 2:10:13 PM
#5:


Samus

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does anyone even read this
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Hbthebattle
08/17/22 2:10:13 PM
#6:


Incineroar

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:)
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Zigzagoon
08/17/22 2:45:32 PM
#7:


Duck Hunt

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~Silver_Ermine~
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m9r5hhXQbJ1rbct63o1_500.gif
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PrinceKaro
08/17/22 2:47:08 PM
#8:


Isabelle

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https://i.imgtc.com/a6iBg1Y.jpg
Congrats to azuarc on being really good at predicting stuff
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#9
Post #9 was unavailable or deleted.
Mewtwo59
08/17/22 2:50:18 PM
#10:


Lucas

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""Love" is making a shot to the knees of a target 120 kilometers away using an Aratech sniper rifle with a tri-light scope." HK-47
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HanOfTheNekos
08/17/22 2:59:32 PM
#11:


Play Xenoblade

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SSBM_Guy
08/17/22 3:30:10 PM
#12:


Donkey Kong

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Bitto
"[Freud] started his scientific career by trying to explain the sexuality of a fish. And he failed."
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Kamekguy
08/17/22 5:03:15 PM
#13:


Mr. Game & Watch - Greenhouse

Technically Mr. Game & Watch is a Smash exclusive character - the individual protags of the Game & Watch games are just random dudes, unless you wanna say that Mr. Game & Watch starred in games called "Mario Bombs Away" and "Zelda", and his only actual appearance as "Mr. Game & Watch" in a Game and Watch game is Gallery 4. But that's not interesting.

Anyway, Greenhouse is the best Game & Watch. Takes very solid games like Egg and Manhole and elevates them to a more active element. The former games are a great test of reflexes, but are generally passive - you're waiting for the egg to fall or the man to need a cover, makes them very slow to start. Greenhouse has you actively going after those plants and allows for great split-second decision making - do I leave the plant to maybe get hurt by the bug to get the one further away, or do I take care of it now? It skips the 'slow start' issue and isn't TOO janky. Good stuff.

Best Smash Appearance: Smash 4 - It took until Smash 4 to really get Game & Watch right. Melee and Brawl were a bunch of fun ideas that never really came together outside of fishing for 9's, but 3DS and Wii U let Game and Watch's kit come together for a weirdly cohesive hit-and-run glass cannon. Ultimate I think gets him a bit overcentralized with Fire into Key - I love his aesthetic changes, but I miss having the credit card as an approach option instead of bomb as yet another running away tool. Still, funny little guy, always happy to see him. A-

Link - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

I really want to put Oracle of Seasons here. It's my favorite 2D version of Link, I really prefer top-down Zelda to 3D Zelda, he's got a really fun set of items in that game (magnetic glove just needs better sound design and it's an all-timer of an item along with Roc's Cape) and I love the heavier emphasis on combat. But, ultimately, Breath of the Wild solves so many issues with Link on a base level that it's uncanny. Zelda is a game of limitations - you can go to these few areas with your limited toolset, then you get an item which lets you comb all those old areas to get new things with. It's a very enjoyable loop, but it makes Link feel pretty limited as a protagonist, more a collection of items than a character. Breath of the Wild does an amazing job at making Link feel like he matters as a protag. EVERYTHING that you see is conquerable - between your stamina, sailcloth, and Sheikah Slate, you have all the tools you need at any given time to bust traversal wide open. It's up to you, then, to figure out how to use your resources to overcome challenges, rather than which key opens which hole. And if you don't feel capable or find the task too great, you can always grind up shrines or find equipment to make it more manageable, growth directly tied to your stamina meter going up to show how experienced you are. It is a FABULOUS design that finally untethers Link from his bag of tricks and makes him the daring explorer, plundering Hyrule for all of its secrets, that he's always portrayed as. It's a shame he only really has the Lionels to test his combat prowess on in a meaningful way (Bokoblins, Blights, and the big boys are just not engaging), but that's more a criticism of BotW's enemy design than Link. The base of this character is SO GOOD, and if BotW's sequel delivers in a meaningful way, it's got a great chance to shine.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Link probably gets the award for "most improved" out of any Smash character. It feels like, since the beginning, they've wanted to make him a set-up character, cleverly using his items to tie together into big brain combos. Attempts like the Gale Boomerang were tossed in, but it never really clicked until Ultimate. The trigger bombs finally let Link actually use tools to solve puzzles (see: limiting movement or having creative set-ups) and finally BE Link in a Smash game. This is a design I'd love to see continue evolve - you have enough Links to always have a "classic" playstyle, have fun with it and see how you can make a more interesting variant! Already the best foot forward he's had in decades. A-

Wolf - Star Fox Assault

Multiplayer Wolf go brrrrrrrr. Assault's multiplayer is big, dumb fun, and Wolf is the secret character you unlock at the end with max stats in everything. And damn he just SPRINTS across battlefields to look everything and kill everyone. He feels like playing a shooter with all the cheats enabled, and showdowns with him as everyone desperately tries to throw rockets at you and he just weaves through them is the most brainless, incredible fun. The moment in the Assault storyline where you ride on the wing of the Wolfen while flying through a destroyed Corneria to fight a borg'd up General Pepper is also incredible, I wish Star Fox would do more cool sci-fi set pieces like that rather than trying to retread 64's ground. 64 worked BECAUSE it was a bunch of cool sci-fi set pieces, not because the path it took was iconic on its own!

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Both of Wolf's Smash designs are great. You've got the almost unfinished design he has in Brawl, which feels weird and janky but in a lot of unique ways that no other character in series history plays like (that forward smash I will miss every day), and then you have 'feral spacie' in Ultimate. And I think Ulti Wolf feels REALLY great, probably a more solid 'all around' character than Mario's stubby limbs make up for! Everything feels dynamic, he weaves through platforms insanely well, all of his moves feel like they have the right amount of oomph, his personality is on-point. If I had to pick a 'generically good Smash Bros character' who just kind of excels in every area for every other design to branch off of, Wolf would probably be it. You play him, you get it, everything feels great. A

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/17/22 5:04:09 PM
#14:


Samus - Metroid Dread

The one thing that's always kept me at arm's length from Samus is her jump. It's weird, floaty, you have a LOT of horizontal momentum that swaps on a dime during the entire thing. It takes very specific environments to make it really feel good, and until last year, I really thought only Zero Mission nailed the landing. Lots of tight corridors and vertical shafts due to the NES's limitations in how big you could make the rooms, but not TOO claustrophobic like a lot of Fusion's environments. And then the GBA controls, y'know, actually making it feel good. Prime's a bit more fine, the multiplayer of Prime 2 is actually really fun with Samus being able to escape firefights as a Morph Ball, but she feels REALLY slow and clunky compared to her 2D counterpart. Thought that Zero Mission and AM2R would really be the last word on how to make Samus feel agile, yet grounded and powerful.

But then Dread came out and... I think this is the first time Samus has actually felt GOOD against bosses? Like, Samus Returns was a fun proof of concept, but now there's this fantastic dynamism to Samus where she obviously feels like a threat at close range, but when enemies are finally closing in and lurching at her, she's able to strike back with a perfect turnabout. It gives her this element of survivor's tenacity that she didn't have before, always getting overwhelmed by anything that clung too close to her and melted her energy tanks.

Best Smash Appearance: Melee - Like I guess? Honestly, Samus has never felt great to me in Smash - she doesnt commit to any of the athleticism and movement she has in-game outside of a throwaway wall jump, and she rarely feels like a great projectile spam character because her options are all obnoxiously straightforward. Shes not a walking arsenal, shes a bunch of basic harrassment tools on the horizontal plane; Mii Gunner is a better Samus than Samus is. Melee at least allows Samus to have some level of speed and use her projectiles as either proper cover for them or a finishing touch, but Id REALLY like to see her get a redesign. This is one of the oldest designs that I think has a lot of unnecessary rust on it, and seeing how Link has evolved with time, Samus is just kinda sad. F

Incineroar - Super Smash Bros Ultimate

I wish he was the wrestler from Rhythm Heaven Fever.

With that aside out of the way, man oh man is Incineroar fantastic. Little things like his expressive taunting after every move to play up his role as a heel, Darkest Lariat actually working as a get off me tool, Revenge being such a fun mechanic that makes him devastating as a tag team partner, Alolan Whip forcing his opponents to obey kayfabe and run the ropes - Incineroar is such a fun, personality-filled design that salvages him from being just another Pokemon. He fits that grappler archetype perfectly, where you feel really dumb for losing to his limited options, but those options feel so GOOD to hit. I know hes a bit too slow to be used competitively and can be camped out pretty easily, but I find him a blast to play in almost any game mode as a send a message kind of character. Plus the Big the Cat skin is just brilliant. A-

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Pokemon Sun/Moon - I guess? I skipped out on Sword and Shield because Im just a bit tired of Pokemon, Ive played a lot of them I dont need a new fix every two or three years, seven or eight is fine by me now. Anyway, uh, hes fine? Im really not a fan of Intimidate users in general, its a very brain go off force you to make a move for no cost kind of ability, but at least he looks funny. I liked playing through SuMo well enough with my good friend John Cenya, and thats well and good enough for me.

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Arti
08/17/22 5:05:13 PM
#15:


Hero

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Great_Paul
08/17/22 5:06:27 PM
#16:


King Dedede

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Bear Bro
https://backloggery.com/frausky
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Xeybozn
08/17/22 5:11:59 PM
#17:


Mii

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Congrats to 2020 GotD Guru champ azuarc!
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Not_an_Owl
08/17/22 5:21:10 PM
#18:


Mario

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Besides, marijuana is far more harmful than steroids. - BlitzBomb
I headbang to Bruckner.
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pjbasis
08/17/22 5:21:28 PM
#19:


cloud

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changmas
08/17/22 6:11:43 PM
#20:


Zelda

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The Artist Formerly Known as Hannyabal
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ctesjbuvf
08/17/22 6:21:55 PM
#21:


Snake

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Guinness Book of World Records is the name of the diary that belongs to azuarc, the winner of the Game of the Decade II guru contest.
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LuisSera
08/17/22 6:27:31 PM
#22:


Byleth

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"Eet's game time..."
https://soundcloud.com/luissera/intro/s-VvkMJ
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Johnbobb
08/17/22 6:34:04 PM
#23:


Kazuya Mishima

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Khal Kirby, warlord of the Super Star Khalasar
PSN/Steam: CheddarBBQ https://goo.gl/Diw2hs
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Evillordexdeath
08/17/22 6:49:38 PM
#24:


Ness

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I'm playing every game from GotD 2020! Games Completed: 20/129
(Currently on Hiatus)
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GavsEvans123
08/17/22 7:12:40 PM
#25:


Sephiroth

Ehrgeiz has novelty factor, but Dissidia is less jank, so I'll guess that. Unless World of Final Fantasy counts...
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Anagram
08/17/22 7:56:56 PM
#26:


Do non-player characters count? If so, Waluigi.

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Started: July 6, 2005
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Kamekguy
08/17/22 11:20:53 PM
#27:


Duck Hunt - Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

I cant say Ive had enough time with Duck Hunt to perfectly justify whether I prefer their Smash 4 or Ultimate incarnation. Both are simply a style of zoner that I do not have the patience for. I think the big thing holding me back are their Smash Attacks - its a great concept, bringing in the zapper to do the heavy lifting, but I always feel the triple shot forward smash lacks a lot of impact and oomph. I know that doesnt always have to be the case, but even looking at Mii Gunner, theres a really satisfying oomph to the end of that Forward Smash that Duck Hunt is missing. You either have to be really dedicated to the can-target-gunman game and link off of stuff or the character doesnt land. But dang, its a fun idea. I LOVE the use of Hogans Alley as Duck Hunts stand, combining for a Final Smash thats just everything and the kitchen sink. Its a very peculiar niche, but its done really well, with the dog and duck cute enough to make up for their annoying history (that sound they make when you Star KO them is so sad). With that said, theyre missing THE LAUGH as a taunt. I understand not wanting to bully kids online with it, but youre already banning taunts online so give me THE LAUGH in THE POSE. None of this victory screen or on their side stuff either, I want to mock kids with a shame that transcends generations. B-

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Duck Hunt - I think it is cool that the second player can control the ducks. Makes more sense than controlling the other boxers in Punch-Out (which is still really cool, dont get me wrong), keeps for a fun little mini-game of trying to out-juke your opponent. Slightly inferior version of a couple Mario Party mini-games of a similar nature.

Isabelle - Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Honestly, I think Isabelle wears the Animal Crossing moveset a lot better than Villager. Theres nothing necessarily wrong with Villagers moveset, and they have the funny tree and bowling ball so thats fun, but everything feels so incidental with Isabelle. She gives off the same feel as a B.B. Hood or Roll - kind of just incidentally causing harm with innocent moves that you HAPPEN to get caught in the middle of, just with less secret firearms. Stage control just makes sense as an archetype for Animal Crossing, and fishing rod is a braindead easy move to throw out and catch new players with. Even a dummy to zoning like me is able to pick her up and play her as a yeah Elite Smash isnt too hard to get level with her, and she has that great gloating factor of winning with cute dog that was just trying to do gardening and direct traffic. Id prefer her to come back over Villager, as I think everything fits her super well, and theres really little I would change about her. Cute dog does cute things good. A

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - I mean when your other options are Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival and a Taiko no Tatsujin game, you might as well settle for the 3rd best kart racing series in recent years (not even shade on MK8, its really solid, but Crash Team Racing and Sonic All-Stars are just ridiculously good at both their fanservice elements and elevating their turbo boost systems). Apparently shes low tier because of her weight class? Thats too bad. Some day, a Mario spin-off will come out with a roster thatll make me go wow, so many cool characters, I wont play as Donkey Kong every time this time! That hasnt happened since Mario Kart Wii had Funky Kong and Dry Bowser as rad pulls, but it could happen! Tennis Aces was close!

Steve - Super Smash Bros Ultimate

As far back as the start of this year, I wouldve told you Steve was one of the best characters in Ultimate. A ridiculous amount of work went into the guy, and it absolutely shows in the best of ways. Steve has a ridiculous amount of creativity thrown into him, from figuring out nasty set-ups with anvil and minecart to giving your opponent an L or middle finger to send a message. There is a joy to the possibilities that Steve gives off that is so strong. But most importantly, he just has the spirit of a true shitter. Like, Steve feels WRONG in how he animates, so carefully crafted to look janky and awkward. His moves never really deviate from the idea of slash, slightly stronger slash, and slash but Im running at you, and it looks like the guy is giving 20% of an effort every time. There is real kusoge energy coming from Steve in the best of ways, and his insane contrast to the high polish of every other character on the roster makes him stand out even more. Hes a character that SHOULD be upsetting to lose to, and I do, sincerely, think that every cast needs one of those.

the issue is that hes really good. And thats a problem. The joke only really lands if youre making a statement with him. Imagine if Steve were an incredibly rare character, and someone brought out some ridiculous tech with blocks that upset a favorite and made a deep cinderella run, and they kept Minecraft t-bagging on them. Would be one of the most delightful, disrespectful things in the world. Instead, hes tuned so that block isnt even a game changer in his moveset - its, like, his 10th best tool or something. Optimal Steve play does not exude the BM energy or creativity of his design, its just kind of straightforward and works too well for how little set-up is required? And due to the difference in animation, well, you dont have to have me tell you that Steve combos are a lot less impactful than Falcon, or Fox, or even someone like Joker or Diddy. Like, Steve is, conceptually, similar to Phoenix Wright in Marvel 3, but compensates for his weaknesses WAY too well, gets his resources easily enough in a way that naturally creates pressure, and then he gets to just win.

So I dont know where I land with Steve. It took a solid year and a half to really wreck the character, and at a casual level, I think that kusoge elements are incredibly strong. But the fact that this character is as good as he is, rather than a rogue strategy, is really frustrating and goes against the spirit of the thing. But hes not SO ridiculously good at the moment as to be immediately banworthy, like a Tekken 3 Gon situation. I am VERY interested to see where the meta develops with Steve, if he ends up getting banned, if some other playstyle will eventually emerge if he ends up staying that ends up better. But his current optimal playstyle is a poison to interest, and even his players seem to know it. I dont think hes as damaging as characters like Bayonetta and Meta Knight were, hes not dominating representation yet, and I do think that his natural for fun tools are tempting that hes not ruined at his base like, say, Sonic. Consider this a temporary rating that could go up or down depending on decisions made in the future. B

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Minecraft?? - Like I guess? Is it not the point to immediately remove Steve and replace him with Vegeta or Conker or a Vtuber? I feel like the character exists more in memes of Minecraft than he does in Minecraft itself. Im not a huge fan of pure survival games to begin with, and I got past my modding phase by the time Minecraft came out. Smash is kind of emblematic of that memetic personality, so I guess that's gotta be the best use of him AS Steve?

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 1:09:34 AM
#28:


Lucas - Mother 3

Man, the little kid really goes through it, huh? I really love the tendency for Mother series protagonists to be the support units of their squads - really helps solidify the themes of kindness and friendship that bring others together, and being thankful for those forged bonds. I think its especially poignant for Lucas, the crybaby who saw his world be ripped away from him, both quickly and agonizing slowly, doing everything he can to hold onto the found family he has left. Really a beautiful expression of propping up others through gameplay, capped off with a beautiful final boss sequence that says so much about all the characters involved. What he does as a gameplay function isnt special, but how it reflects on him man thats good stuff. And hey, the rhythm gameplay keeps the actual combat a lot more engaging! So he gets that as a boost.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Honestly the best thing that happened to Lucas was the cleaning of his particle effects. Very clearly establishing the PK Love effects to define his strongest Smash attacks goes a very long way toward representing his character. I think of the Mothers boys, Lucas gets out a lot better than Ness. I dont feel either moveset really represents the characters incredibly well, but Lucas has a lot of moves that send the opponent away and cover a large area around him, rather than Ness keeping them in place and WOW COOL YOYO. Plus the addition of the Rope Snake makes him feel like hes taking from his friends all giving him their strength rather than we couldnt really think of moves for a healer. I really wish he had a move representing Boney, though, would really complete the overall theme. I think Lucas gets to actually use most of his moveset fairly effectively, but I do find hes missing a few key elements to make him much more than solid. B-

HanOfTheNekos posted...
Play Xenoblade

Really awful at MMO-styled combat. Like it is just not for me. I went through about half of a Xenoblade Chronicles Let's Play back in the day, enjoyed a lot of the beats, but I feel like I missed some team bonding stuff that would have really invested me. Inter-character stuff like Persona's Social Links or Tales' Skits are candy for me. I am interested in Xeno 3, though, feels like that has a lot of more aggressive innovations I liked from 2 without being TOO trope-based (as I also felt from 2).

Donkey Kong - Mario + Rabbids: Donkey Kong Adventure

Yeah, for real.

The big issue with Donkey Kong as a character is that hes often just a template. Hes the least interesting Kong to play as in the original Donkey Kong Country trilogy, least interesting to play as in Donkey Kong 64, and has absolutely no frills compared to every other Kong in the Retro Studios games. Spin-offs usually play him as the nice strongman compared to Warios evil strongman and Bowsers was criminal strongman, which tends to have the big guy standing out as the least interesting power character as he just doesnt get to do anything besides be strong and banana. There are two major exceptions to that, though: Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, where DK feels great and gets to combo his platforming with combat in an almost Devil May Cry-esque way to beat the crap out of anything in front of him. And then Mario + Rabbids, where he becomes perhaps the best turn-based strategy unit ever made.

Donkey Kong feels like a playble boss character. He has an AoE shockwave that hits everyone immediately around him, as well as a banana boomerang that can hit multiple far away opponents and occasionally bounce them out of position. However, where he really excels are his movement tools. DK can throw ANYTHING he wants during his turn, scooping it up and tossing it as soon as he finishes moving. Allies, enemies, pieces of the terrain - DK can chuck them as far as his arms can carry, even into other enemies for bonus damage. This then combos with his ability to swing off of vines and travel through pipes, which increases his effective movement range to almost the entire map at some points, AND he can play his bongos to attract an entire group of enemies on a cooldown. Playing as Donkey Kong is playing as a boss character, able to go wherever he wants, messing up the enemy ranks as much as he wants, and carrying the momentum hes so good at bringing forward while breaking a wall to set up his teammates perfectly. Hes a better grappler here than he is in Smash, gets to represent his whole patriarch of the Kong family schtick better than any other game, and gets to represent his mischievous but laid-back, fun-loving attitude that so, so often gets forgotten. And as all of DK Adventures stages have a locked party, maps are designed explicitly around DKs capabilities, giving him every opportunity to use his abilities to the fullest rather than needing to compensate for dozens, if not hundreds, of possible party permutations. It is a shame that this content is walled behind the first world of Kingdom Battle, which is fine enough, but suffers from a lack of direction in more than a few maps and Mario not being half as compelling of an anchor as DK is.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Ive mained DK for every single Smash game up to Ultimate, and let me tell you, being DK is suffering. Through Brawl he was a weird, janky heavy who got combod by everything and could not do anything unless he managed to get a back air in but man is his advantage state fun. So many spikes, so many moves that are just fun to hit with, the mindgames of where youre going with the Cargo Throw, when youre winning as DK, he feels amazing. Getting him to that state is utterly miserable. Smash 4 fixed this, actually gave him his DKC roll which he desperately needed, and boiled him down to getting cargo up throw into up air. Ultimate finally put the big ape in a healthy spot, and well, hes still suffering, but hes got a lot more tools to get to the fun part. Four spikes, one of which is a fun combo starter, grounded Spinning Kong as a fabulous newbie killer, Giant Punch can be used in the air without SDing, FINALLY a functional dash attack, DK could use a better approach move in the air other than his back air, but otherwise hes in a good spot! The issue is, that still only solves half of his puzzle. DK is devoid of any of Donkey Kong Countrys personality, essentially just being big monkey who hit good. And I like that, its fun, but hes a needlessly angry character for someone whos such a laid-back and fun-loving dude - just compare his expressiveness in Smash to his in Punch-Out! Hes got great shocked expressions, but everything else is just a bit off and a bit aggro plus as the premiere grappler archetype he kinda sucks at grappling, my man needs some kind of air throw. Im not demanding you strap the coconut gun on the guy, but something reminiscent of the Country series forward momentum to let him actually play like his games would be a nice start. C

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 1:11:07 AM
#29:


Hero - Dragon Quest V

Im not a huge fan of Heros spellset. Big Oof Ouch Lighting Damage combined with scattered useful spells from other classes - its functional, it fits the role of hero really well, but I find it very devoid of personality unless youre tossing it with DQXIs Pep Powers or DQ8s Tension or something. Which is why I find the DQV hero so damn refreshing among them! He will be the hard carry through the start of the game, but focuses on the Woosh line rather than the Zap line, which is a neat bit of flavor. And as the game progresses, your character gets to settle more and more into a role as a support unit just as in-story theyre becoming more and more of a support unit to their allies and family. And they get a staff that can cast BeDragon for free! Its a really elegant little system that gives a stronger gameplay identity to the Heros spells than you need to do the Hero thing, here is the Hero magic so you can do the Hero thing. If I had to pick of those in Smash, Id probably go with DQ3s Hero just because the variable party kind of needs Erdrick to be the unchanging bedrock on which the class-changing losers around them can build off of, but I really do think far more highly of the DQ5 hero than the rest.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - I see Hero conversations going one of two ways: liking him for his zaniness or hating him for the exact same reason. And to that I will say: there are a lot of characters that I dont play that I would be disappointed to get if selected randomly. I will never be disappointed to get Hero. Hero dittos are some of the most stupid, ridiculously fun matches you can have in Ultimate, desperately trying to get the right buffs before your opponent can do the same and ALWAYS fishing for Bounce. He adds so much chaos to free-for-alls, too - Hero really is a fabulous addition for a party environment. I think hes designed about as well as he could be while keeping all his bells and whistles intact - dull, serviceable swordplay that occasionally will hit a crit leading into the real fun of zany spells with wacky effects. If youre not a fan of the randomness, I can understand that, but I find it a rather fun and flavorful balancing act to bridge his underwhelming generic options and his incredible potential. I do think the UI is inherently flawed, and they should at least add symbols to the Command Menu for the sake of readability and accessibility (your character should not be made even more of a guessing game because your screen is small or your glasses are dirty or something), but I would change very little about the guy, his feel and flavor is on point for who he is. A-

King Dedede - Kirby Star Allies

Dededes weird in the Kirby series. More often than not, if hes playable, youre just getting Hammer with a few bells and whistles. And Hammers great, dont get me wrong, I love playing around with Hammer. But that often doesnt compensate for his bulkier hitbox and slower feel, at least when it comes to Return to Dreamland or Triple Deluxe. Hes a weird, stiff heavy of a character.

Star Allies somehow completely remedies this with the Super Dedede Jump. Executed with a charge input so its not spammable, the move has total invincibility from the ascent to the landing, and has active hitboxes allll the way through. This thing is a hilarious panic option against bosses, melting guys like Kracko by Dedede flexing in midair on them, and its fabulous. This gives the king an actual niche over just picking Hammer Kirby or Bonkers, as it gives him an escape option that isnt as spammable, but is much better at actually moving the fight along than just dodging. Add in Star Allies element system, and Dedede is actually one of the more fair and fun Dream Friends to take on the Ultimate Choice with. Hes not pathetically easy like Marx or the Mage Sisters are, but he still feels powerful and like he always has an option against most bosses, in spite of his bulk and the natural drawbacks of hammer. Its a good balance

Best Smash Appearance: Brawl - I miss Waddle Dee Toss. A lot. I know that Gordos are more flexible and have become a cornerstone of his kit, but I liked weird summoner Dedede putting a meat shield in front of himself so he could extend his hitlag and get his long, laggy attacks out. Brawl is really the game made for Dedede - slow, multiple air dodges he could abuse, chaingrabs galore, lots of slow pokes leading to deaths from a thousand weak trades. Hes never really found his footing competitively outside of that environment, and while I do find his current design to be a lot healthier, I also think that playing as Dedede is a painful experience where you just dont feel like you can do anything more than half of the time. And his advantage state isnt as fun as DKs or K Rools or Bowsers. I do think hes the most expressive character in the game - no one does expressions like Dedede - and him suffering and getting hit by his own attacks IS incredibly in-character, but I think they just never really figured out what to do with Dedede after Brawl. They obviously tried, and hes got a lot of fun tools to mess around with, but I dont think they ever coalesce into a full kit that actually DOES anything other than eat hits and launch Gordos. B-

That feels good for today, I'll rest now. Assist Trophies, cameos, and the like are fine, I know that I'll have a lot less to say on them as there are a lot more I just haven't gotten the chance to play, but at the very least I'm confident in Waluigi.

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 1:05:04 PM
#30:


Mii - Tomodachi Life

I feel like there are only two places where Miis really work - that feeling of haha, look at the funny interaction, this person would never act like this with other person or if you feel picking Mario in Mario Kart is just a little too zany for you and want some stability. Tomodachi Life capitalizes on the former better than any game other than perhaps Miitopia, but something about the surreality of the text-to-speech combined with incredibly Japanese humor stylings and delivery (the amount of camera pans to sudden reaction shots in this game, I swear) gives it an almost otherworldly vibe that best sums up the Miis and their continued existence. Theyre weird, their obtrusive, but having this kind of mundane comedy aspect to them and having Hulk Hogan jump out of the ocean to ruin a proposal between Jesse Pinkman and Jessie from Pokemon based on a bunch of life sim RNG factors actually gives the Miis some life beyond simply being base-level caricature comedy.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Really its just Gunners costumes propping this one up. The Miis werent allowed in tournaments in Smash 4 because it wouldve taken a little bit of work to figure out how to justify their weights and movesets, and no one cared enough to do that. Should say a lot when global interest is so low that no one wants to bother! In Ultimate, at least sans and Cuphead and whatever exist so people actually definitely PLAYED Gunner, which leads to the other two getting attention as well. The concept is cute enough, but nothing is really done with it - its just other characters moves in special slots and then some weird stuff like Swordfighters chakrams. Its serviceable, but its not capitalizing on any of the Miis personality shown in their own series, its just for the guy who doesnt want to pick Mario in Mario Kart or wants to say I beat up Cloud Strife. Me. Which is the wrong side of the equation to appeal to methinks. D

Mario - Super Mario Odyssey

Mario is really frustrating. His 2D moveset was run into the ground by the New Super Mario Bros. series to the point of feeling like a base template in Mario Maker, and his nearest competition to it is basically crediting the Cape Feather to carry him. Meanwhile, you have 3D outings where he controls absolutely fantastically (Sunshine, Odyssey), but level design is incredibly open and very rarely backs him up and lets him reach the peak of what hes capable of. Then the Galaxy and 3D Land/World games limit his movement to feel less free than those other titles, but the level design is immaculate, perfectly considering Marios limitations and building around it. And then theres 64, which has been broken open in so many ways that Marios accidentally become a free-form expression of dominance over and defilement of basic geometry. Theres not a single game that I dont have a caveat of yeah Mario controls really well, BUT for other than, like, Paper Mario 64, and that doesnt begin to express the full breadth of what Mario is capable of.

I guess I will settle for Odyssey as just the best freeform expression of Marios movement. Sunshine does have it beat in pure verticality - adjusting from a spin or side jump into the water pack to barely cling to a ledge feels like a great cheat - and the Cape Feather does have a better sense of horizontal dominance, but Odyssey comes the closest in marrying the two. It just feels GOOD to be Mario, chaining together different jumps and leaps, using Cappy as a called shot and then performing it. I think Odyssey and Sunshine are the only Mario games out there where Balloon World as a concept could actually work, simply celebrating the joy of Marios movement (and being able to clip out of bounds, I guess). And the moments where youre going from Cappy Possession to Cappy Possession to combine different forms of movement together is blissful. It doesnt get there often, but when it does, Odysseys able to capture the apex of jumping around beautifully.

Best Smash Appearance: Smash 4 - Marios the most interesting when hes gross. I know OH NO, LADDER COMBO, UP TILTS FOR DAYS, but theres something blissful to me about seeing a Mario combo in action compared to a Bayonetta. Mario is explicitly designed to be the Ryu of Smash Bros, a shoto made to interact with platforms (hence why the fireball bounces across the ground - thats more valuable when youve got different levels of elevation). Mario ladders require platforms in order to make them work - you gotta jump with jumpman and do actual platforming to make Mario be Mario. And I feel like Smash 4 capitalized the best on that idea, as well as the simple risk of trying to approach Mario and beat him at his own platforming game. Due to his stubby limbs, youve gotta work harder to get enemies into your effective range as Mario, he just doesnt have the basic boxing options others do. Making him extra threatening when he finally manages to get you in his effective range just makes sense to me. I dont think Mario ever quite captures everything he could be - the guy needs to be a little more bing bing wahoo and less constantly pissed off, I want to feel the gleeful love of murder he gives off in his games - but its a good base overall. B

Cloud - Final Fantasy VII Remake

Only took Cloud about 20 years to get a playable appearance where he feels great. FFVII has everyone feel like red mages with interchangeable parts and their only big deviations being limits and that Barret hits flying enemies real good, Dissidia is a fine enough translation of his Advent Children flying around I guess but I find lacks oomph and finality as a fighter, and God Bless the Ring speaks for itself. But then boom, finally get him in Smash and he feels great, and he decides to follow that up with actually feeling good and unique in one of his own games, too! With FFVIIR limiting the party to only four featuring Red XIII from the Hojo Wet Dreams series, it gives each member of the playable cast a reason to stand out. Having Cloud as the reliable anchor of the team actually props him up to his Shinra First Class billing - hes your most reliable member, the one whos gonna bring out consistent damage and be able to take hits pretty damn well. They really needed to nail Cloud in order to sell FF7Rs combat at all, and they actually manage to do a solid job both differentiating him from your other rushdown specialist in Tifa, but making him fit his story role. Also theres the rhythm mini-game and that gives him extra points, he is beautiful enough to transcend gender and flaunts it without meaning to.

Best Smash Appearance: Smash 4 - Yknow, the one where his swords hitbox actually matches up with the sword. I know Cloud was oppressive in Smash 4, killed the Doubles scene singlehandedly, but damn he felt good INSTANTLY. Theres such a crunch to Clouds attacks, something a bit more elegant than Ikes raw power but definitely bone-breaking whenever something meaty lands. Every single one of Clouds attacks feels purposeful, part of a stronger kit where Cloud can deftly follow up, and hes given just enough anime flourishes to feel like a toned-down version of his Advent Children appearance. I do wish there were a couple more bells and whistles to reference Final Fantasy a bit better - outside of the Limit UI and sounds hes basically purely an Advent Children rep in style and function - but hes got all of the individual pieces of a truly great character. And his impact, oh man, cant be overstated how strong of a reveal he was for the time he came out in. B+

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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hombad46
08/18/22 1:13:58 PM
#31:


Joker

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It's tempting to linger in this moment, while every possibility still exists. But unless collapsed by an observer, they will never be more than possibilities.
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KommunistKoala
08/18/22 1:24:00 PM
#32:


Rosalina

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does anyone even read this
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Bane_Of_Despair
08/18/22 1:24:10 PM
#33:


Ike

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You were the cancer, that's all you'll ever be
I really messed up this contest, but azuarc gave it a Breath of fresh air
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 3:22:04 PM
#34:


Zelda - Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Okay, the way theyve remixed Zelda in this game is super cute. After three games of the very prim and proper chosen-by-the-goddess princess, we get a much spunkier one with elements of Skyward Sword tossed in with her LttP base, and its a fun change of pace! I no longer think the moveset fits the character, and I didnt think it was very good to begin with, but neat that shes got some flair! Ive never really liked the idea of representing wisdom through giving Zelda really precise hitboxes; surely a trapping moveset would work better than literal lightning legs for the same purpose, yes? And while giving her all of the goddess powers is a cute touch, theyre shown off in such a dull and uninteresting way. Like, Hero has better versions of all three of these spells in his Command Menu that more closely resemble their OoT inspirations! The only thing that really ends up fitting Zelda is Phantom, which is a great move, helps her make a lot of set-ups, fits in with her character as a neat reference, everything about it works. But this is a character Id really like to see taken back to the drawing board and evaluated on how the Hell to make her kit work together and what, exactly, shes supposed to DO as a fighting game character besides rely on some good specials. Cause it took us until Ultimate to even have this discussion of theres SOMETHING here rather than just dismissing her outright! D-

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity - Still have never really had a Zelda appearance Im totally satisfied with! Theres always some kind of supporting role shes shunted in, and while some of them are great (I have a good fondness for the Wind Waker and Skyward Sword variations of the character), I always find that when Zelda has to take up her duty as the voice of the goddess, she loses the agency that made her character fun and quirky. Spirit Tracks is the only real exception to this, and I find hulking Darknut Zelda only a cute distraction rather than any sort of solid foundation. Breath of the Wild tries to be a bit more interesting with the character by having her be really bad at the communicating with the holy bit and overcompensating with the tech side, buuut ultimately she gets there and ends up in the same place as the other Zeldas. I suppose Age of Calamity shows off what this Zelda can do in a sort of set-up, get off me kind of way. Usopp tends to be my favorite of the Straw Hats in the Pirate Warriors games, so the weird, awkward, disjointed way Zelda fights with her tech in AoC speaks to be. Its just not my favorite. Thinking on it now, I actually never went back to try Tetra in Hyrule Warriors 1. Might go back to it, she might give me a fun bit of kinetic enjoyment! Considering how mundane regular HW Zelda and awkward AoC Zelda feel, that might be the best one, I dunno, well see eventually Im sure.

Snake - Metal Gear Solid 2

This is specifically considering Solid; if you wanna count Naked, MGS3 might be in the conversation, but I was always bad at CQC so I dunno how that pans out in full. With that said, Snake controls like an absolute dream in MGS2, perfectly fluid, first person aiming feels great, everything just works fantastic. And then you have the Tanker, which is maybe one of the best levels to marry a characters controls to, and its absolutely blissful. Everything about the tanker is meant to get the most out of Snakes tools - tight corridors to try and snipe down that scale in difficulty with the guards vision ranges expanding, constant escape routes if you end up getting caught, easter eggs everywhere, the whole INTRUDER TO THE LEFT INTRUDER TO THE RIGHT sequence screwing with you as you sneak around Marinefest 2007, the doors all taking an eternity to open - its one of the best opening levels out there. And it even contrasts with how dull and rote a lot of the Big Shell is, to prop up how cool Snake was. MGS4 might control a bit better, but level design is far less dynamic than MGS2s, often taking place on a single level of elevation or go up this tight building corridor; that house from Act 2 and the single room in Act 5 when you land on Outer Haven are the only real times that system gets to flex. But man, Tanker is such an immaculate level.

Best Smash Appearance: Brawl - I see a lot of criticism of Snake being too loud for a stealth character, that he should be focused around sneak attacks and never getting caught and not constant explosions. These are criticisms from people who think Metal Gear is Hitman; Snake gets caught, like, at LEAST three times per game, without fail! INCLUDING in Smash Bros cutscenes! What Snake is, then, is a master of improvisation, thinking on his feet and making the most out of a hopeless situation. That is Snake in Smash to me; he feels bad jumping around and boxing with other characters, and though his tools are strong, he will lose most straight-up fights. Thus, his kit is designed around getting him out of those fights, always having a chance to make a comeback, and setting up traps to bait his much stronger opponents into as he dances in and out of their range. Snake handles every fight in Smash Bros like he would Vulcan Raven or Metal Gear REX, and only ever wins if he gets in his opponents head and makes them unable to execute their plans. And that is absolutely brilliant; I LOVE fighting Snakes, as it makes me confront the weaknesses of whatever character Im playing head-on and try to overcome them. Snake is one of the most brilliant Smash characters out there in both of his appearances, and I only put Brawl above Ultimate because I miss the landmine and the DACUS a lot, zooming around with Snake and having that ridiculous a level of stage control was way too much fun. Legitimately my only complaint is that his taunt selection is limited, and when THATS as far as Im willing to go, weve got a winner. A+

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 3:22:27 PM
#35:


Byleth - Fire Emblem: Three Houses

I have not played Three Hopes as of yet, and probably will not for some time, it just does not appeal to me outside of what support conversations I can look up online. With that said, Byleths a fine Framblum unit. I do always find the issue with Three Houses characters that they tend to lose their sense of identity outside of supports due to their flexibility, unless youre just having fun with it and trying to make Marianne a Brawler, but Byleths alright. I think their unique classes give them a little bit more than Robin, at least. Im not a fan of them so clearly leaning toward swords, as their base class gives them an advantage with gauntlets but NOPE DONT YOU WANT THE COOL BONE DRAGON SWORD, TEACH?! Theyre serviceable in their role and Ive certainly had worse Lords and Lord Surrogates in the past.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Byleth feels insecure to me. They feel like a gut reaction to the feedback of TOO MANY SWORD USERS and TOO MANY FIRE EMBLEMS, and knowing that Everyone Is Here would only make that matter worse, their whole moveset is based on LOOK FIRE EMBLEM ISNT ALL SWORDS, SEE ALL THE UNIQUE THINGS! WEAPON TRIANGLE, AM I RIGHT FELLAS?! As such, you have a character who is functionally fine, based on keeping opponents at arms reach and doing a pretty good job of it, who represents none of their unique character or gameplay elements outside of a Final Smash that is a very pretty .png telling you you did great, sweetie. Each is a very shallow representation of what Fire Emblem is, and represents a sample of what a more interesting moveset COULD be with an actual spear/bow/axe user, with all the Sword of the Creator stuff being better served by the Belmonts. Byleth is weird to me, as they dont feel like a character added with their series unique features in mind like Robin, but as a direct response to the Smash fanbase that ignores character or gameplay. And they play fine, but I think theyre just shallow? Wasted potential? The end result of poor forethought? All of that? Yeah. D

Kazuya Mishima - Tekken 7

Let me just state that I very, very rarely play as Kazuya. I think the man is the least interesting member of his entire family, including his dad, wife, two pet bears, son, adopted children, angel wife, and zombie mom. I have always found Heihachis more solid strikes and Jins more fluid gameplay to easily outclass Kazuya in feel every single time, and then Kasumi had a literal Tiger Uppercut when she was introduced in T7 and Kazuya has no chance of being cooler than that. OH NO FOREHEAD LASER is rarely enough to make up for any kind of deficit, let alone tiger stands. But the mans got the Mishima style, that ALWAYS feels super good and crunchy, and Tekken 7 is my favorite Tekken system since 3 and Kazuya wasnt in that one. He is good-ass Tekken, but not great-ass Tekken.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Smash, however, frees Kazuya from the shackles of his much cooler family. He just gets to be a horrible person and break the rules of the game, and it gives him a unique feel thats handled Id say the 2nd best out of the fighting game transplants in Smash. Fighting against Kazuya feels wrong in a way that no other character properly captures, and creates a disconnect where if you open up someone with some crazy garbage theyve never seen before, it feels amazing. I do think that he suffers at a base level at a lot of the party game aspects of Smash, his Special Moves being the only real things he has to throw out in a free-for-all, but I appreciate the mans dedication to the fight and making it feel like Melee with how early hes killing you! Time will tell if the guy becomes oppressive, but I also feel that the competitive scene might just, like, need to learn how fighting game characters work and not just rely on platform fundamentals? I dont think competitives found the way to fight Kazuya yet, as the answer isnt gonna be found in traditional Smash Bros solutions. Until then, I think Kazuyas a bold experiment that does a lot for the game but admittedly yeah, my mans feels a lot better in actual Tekken than this diet version. B+

---
Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Johnbobb
08/18/22 7:01:50 PM
#36:


Kirby

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Khal Kirby, warlord of the Super Star Khalasar
PSN/Steam: CheddarBBQ https://goo.gl/Diw2hs
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Kamekguy
08/18/22 7:39:23 PM
#37:


Ness - Earthbound

See what I said about Lucas, but replace being lonely crybaby child with cool hat. Ness is just a good ol slice of picturesque childhood through the lens of Americana; hes the nostalgic wistfulness of growing up put into the form of an RPG character whose best trait is propping up others and Makin Friends. I adore the idea of him finding strength within himself via Magicant and that directly correlating to a huge stat increase to make him an incredible tank. Mother does a great job in general at making its characters reflective of their core values as RPG characters, Ness is no exception.

Best Smash Appearance: 64 - I think that the novelty of WOAH ITS NESS FROM WHAT NOW was probably his best role. Ness outright didnt have a fully functional kit until Smash 4, and he really only stuck the landing with it in Ultimate. And that role is usually boiled down to people cursing the name of PK Fire! I love the effects used on Ness moves, I hate the application of PK Flash not being a weird status move with a chance to do massive knockback, like thats just not the move at all. Ness is too nice of a kid to be as annoying as he is to fight, and while I do generally like his air game, I feel the way he uses it is pretty lame. Add in that hes not reflective of his character at all and yeah, the more I think about it, the more I like his Smash 64 appearance. Hes just a kid from nowhere smacking you with baseball bats and having weird, unexpected moves with Smash 64s incredibly punchy sound design. Its humble and weird and unexpected, and is the most Earthbound hes really ever been. Remake him. D

Sephiroth - Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

One of the best Smash Bros designs ever put out. This really feels like the coolest version of Sephiroth, and they absolutely nail the guys implementation. Rarely does Sephiroth feel like hes a constant threat when hes playable, often just being wow long sword thats lame. Smash Bros takes the basic idea of that and makes it into Sephiroths entire kit. Sephiroth is huge. he WILL hurt you, you WILL come to him because he can WALK to you and make your death effortless, and hes scary. Theres this genuine sense of menace when you approach Sephiroth, as his effective range is just so huge and his moves so versatile that if he picks the right callout, you will lose. Yet its so neatly balanced by the oomph he puts into each swing - everything that could be considered a killing blow has this palpable sense of delay and impact that feels incredible to hit with. Anything thats instant is him toying with you, snaps of power, light swings of the sword, spreading the worlds thinnest laser to haunt you, repelling your pitiful efforts with a barrier. Sephiroth simultaneously nails how ethereal and untouchable his character is with the power and menace that his presence in FFVII gives off, AND some Advent Children lip service without making that rushdown style his entire identity. Little things like his One Winged form serving as a mid-battle phase shift that works a lot better here than it does on Joker, or the way the screen dims when Gigaflare is fully charged just make him a truly special encounter. If you told someone who had no idea who Sephi was this is the villain of video games, this portrayal would make em believe it. A+

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Dissidia NT

It really is slim pickings, huh? World of Final Fantasy is admittedly pretty funny, having the pomp and circumstance of his intimidating summon and then cute little boy is there, but I am somewhat of a fan of whats done to him in NT. Sephiroth operates best in his mid range where he can lash you with his sword, and his whole moveset is designed around pressuring the opponent into that ideal range, hunting them down from afar with Black Materia so that they have to chase after them. Its not nearly as effective as Smash, but its functional and he has good voice lines, so thats nice.

Waluigi - Mario Superstar Baseball

Oh man I am THRILLED I get to talk about the Superstar Baseball meta. Okay, so Waluigi is propped up as the premiere pitcher in the game, like his pitching stat is as close to max as you can get. For a long time, the guy was seen as invaluable; one team has Boo for a pitcher, the other team has Waluigi. However, it was discovered that Waluigi actually pitches faster than most on average, giving him a great fastball, but meaning that he has less time to play with his amazing curveball. Diddy and Dixie were revealed to have an equal curve stat, but much gentler pitching arms, completely knocking Waluigi - whose only niche was pitching as his batting was terrible - out of the meta. BUT THEN, people started experimenting with Waluigis bat. Now, at a starting level, Waluigi is the worst slugger in the game, his power actually bottoming out to a score of 1/100 if you have him charge his swing and aim for the fences (which is amazing flavor - Waluigi is doomed to fail if hes actually trying). His singles slap hit was thought to be junk, HOWEVER, it was discovered that if he pulls the ball, he can land it in no mans land fairly consistently. Additionally, Waluigi is very tall and has the Super Jump ability, AND he has chemistry with Wario, one of the premiere 2nd Basemen in the game, giving them a boost when they throw the ball to each other or if one is on base and the others up to bat. This revolutionized Waluigi, making him a premium 1st Baseman who isnt even used for his best qualities, because what limited support options he offers are just good enough and help take Wario from a purely defensive player to a home run threat. Now instead of being Boos rival in pitching, he often is paired WITH Boo as a way of giving Wario a double chemistry boost to make him a Home Run threat. Waluigi failed at all he was good at, and somehow people stuck with him and found him a niche. And that is the most Waluigi thing I could possibly imagine.

(The netplay scene for Superstar Baseball is actually pretty rad, look up Project Rio if you want to play a 2005 Gamecube Mario Sports game with better online than Nintendos offering with its current titles. By far my favorite Mario spin-off title.)

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Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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hylianknight3
08/18/22 8:51:41 PM
#38:


Bomberman

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The azuarc of the contest universe is long, but it bends toward Guruship.
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Anagram
08/18/22 9:23:40 PM
#39:


Alucard

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Not changing this sig until I decide to change this sig.
Started: July 6, 2005
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Anagram
08/18/22 9:26:04 PM
#40:


Also, that was way more Mario Superstar Baseball lore than I expected.

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Not changing this sig until I decide to change this sig.
Started: July 6, 2005
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SSBM_Guy
08/18/22 10:09:12 PM
#41:


Luigi

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Bitto
"[Freud] started his scientific career by trying to explain the sexuality of a fish. And he failed."
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BlueCrystalTear
08/18/22 10:12:12 PM
#42:


Lucina

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[This post adds nothing to the discussion but for whatever reason I felt the need to say it anyway.]
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LeonhartFour
08/18/22 10:13:10 PM
#43:


Diddy Kong

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http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/080/145/638.png
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Mewtwo59
08/18/22 10:19:29 PM
#44:


Ridley

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""Love" is making a shot to the knees of a target 120 kilometers away using an Aratech sniper rifle with a tri-light scope." HK-47
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Kamekguy
08/19/22 12:31:01 AM
#45:


Joker - Persona 5 Royal

In my experience, there are three total Persona party members - the MC, the healer, and they do damage sometimes and are my friends = ). The only exception Ive seen to this is Naoto, who manages to be a jack of all trades and master of either none or everything depending on the game. Joker is not an exception to this, pretty much playing the game by himself, occasionally passing off the baton to friends but mostly just weakness sniping. And its a really soothing pattern! Sometimes its fun to just be the entire Pokemon team all in one, and with all the style and added negotiation and role-playing aspects, Jokers a really fun character to be. I do hope Persona gets a bit of a stronger identity in gameplay, though - ever since they gave you the ability to choose what spells you inherit in fusion, the games become WAY too easy to make, like, three totally busted personas for the next 20 levels and then an array of fodder, making most encounters past the first dungeon totally trivial. Im not saying bring back the clunky mechanic, but something to compensate for how much easier the change makes the games would be nice. SMT at least still has the decency to spit in your face with press turns!

Best Smash Bros Appearance: Ultimate - If Joker were representing himself as he appears in the Persona 5 intro or Dancing In Starlight, hed be flawless. Effortlessly weaving through attacks, adding in flourishes to make certain moves very spinny and stylish, the grappling hook is probably the most snappy and enjoyable tether recovery in the game. However, as a representation of Persona, power of bonds, wild card, hitting weaknesses with a wide array of tools hes pretty crap. Joker hyper-fixates on the style and themes of Persona 5 to the point of neglecting a lot of the gameplay application that makes the Wild Card so interesting. And that CAN be fine - Yu is a fabulous rushdown character in Persona 4 Arena - but Arsene just isnt an interesting enough substitute. He functions a lot more like a Jojo stand than a Persona, and lacks the flourishes that Joker has. Part of this is likely that hes just a much weaker presence in P5 than Thanatos/Messiah in P3 and especially Izanagi in P4, but hes just a big red man who hits things rather than any sort of trickster god. Theres a lot of potential thats been left on the table to cash everything in with Jokers style, and I cant help but miss what isnt there. Everything is fine, its really flashy, but its just unexceptional for the wide breadth of what Joker could bring in. C+

Rosalina - Mario Tennis Aces

For a hot second, Mario Tennis Aces was gonna be one of the best fighting games on the Switch. Theres such a beautiful back-and-forth rhythm to the game, waiting to build up meter, considering whether your opponent has the nerve to survive a potentially racquet-shattering super with a perfectly timed counter, or whether to use your zone shots to really wear them down as you whittle away their positioning and zone time. It is an incredible back and forth until you realize that everyone plays the same with just a few key differences, so its like you got 10 Ryus, 10 Kens, 10 Sakuras, and 10 Ryus But From Alpha This Time hanging out on the roster. Gets old real quick. Rosalina is one of the few exceptions to this, being one of the Tricky characters who floats rather than walks. This gives her a really nice game feel amongst the cast, gracefully gliding to balls and feeling very ephemeral, almost maddeningly difficult to break through as she seems to change momentum on a dime. Its a really fun appearance for her where she feels as overwhelming as her goddess maybe? stature would imply.

Best Smash Appearance: Smash 4 - As a base concept, I like Rosalina & Luma. The idea is that Rosalina is the mother of the lumas, bringing out their potential until they form new stars and galaxies. Having Luma be the main fighter of the two makes sense - its the powerhouse here, Rosalina is just the caregiver meant to direct it. However, I find the actual caregiving aspect of the moveset a bit lacking. If Rosalina were able to buff Luma somehow, (perhaps with Star Bits - that attack that for some reason LUMA shoots out??) make it grow and increase its survivability, I think it would go a long way to furthering the bond between the two. As-is, Ultimate especially makes the lumas incredibly dispensable, which I feel is a pretty big disservice to what the character is all about. I like a majority of Rosalinas floaty moves and weird, galaxy and halo-themed attacks coming off her body, it gives her a unique feel that mixes in with the Galaxy games really nicely. I just think the dynamic of her and Luma, while not incorrect, is a lot weaker than it should be. At least Luma was really strong in Smash 4 and worked properly instead of just purely annoyingly! C-

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Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/19/22 12:31:29 AM
#46:


Ike - Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance

Really, either of Ikes main game appearances could qualify, he is an absolutely fantastic lord for the entirety of the Tellius games. I just think the Black Knight showdown in FE9 edges out the significantly easier and oh boy a Hammer! one from FE10, and Ashnard tends to be a bit more engaging than Ashera for me. And also Haar isnt hogging his spotlight. As straightforward and overpowered of a unit as Ike is, I really do like that in a Lord. Hes a person that people gravitate toward because hes uncomplicated, earnest, and has incredible strength to back up his convictions, and he plays in pretty much the same way. Always nice to have the guy who needs to talk to people to recruit them not have the potential to die horribly in the process! Plus Ragnell just always feels great to use whenever you finally pull it out in each game. Sometimes seeing you point him at enemy, they die steadily grow into you point them at enemy, they were already dead from the moment they went onto the field is a fun feeling all unto itself.

Best Smash Appearance: Brawl - I fight for my friends. That disinterested, dorky delivery couldnt have been a better tone-setter for Ike, a man whos slow of tongue but great of deeds. No Fire Emblem character so effectively gets off their personality and feel as Ike, and I think that really does set him apart from the rest of the FE squad. Ike hits like a truck that has been taped to another, larger truck, and the sound design on Ragnell crashing in is absolutely immaculate in Brawl. One of the biggest nerfs was having those dull thuds of destruction swapped out for the Fire Emblem sword swinging sounds, and its a crying shame! Like, I dont have to tell you Ike feels good to play at any level, right? He swing sword, things die, anyone can feel how simple and intuitive he is to use, you get better at basic positioning you get better at Ike. Hes great in all regards, definitely the lord Id want to see stick around the most. A

Kirby - Kirby and the Forgotten Land

Kirby Super Star was the game that introduced me to the language of video games. It is the game that I compare every other games controls to, and hold up to the lofty ambition of are you better than Kirby Super Star? To which the answer is almost always, no, Kirby Super Star is a perfect game, they had no chance. Kirby doesnt always control immaculately in every game, but when he really dives into beat em up and fighting game fundamentals, he absolutely shines as a consistent great. So when I say his best-controlling game is Forgotten Land, I say it with the absolute highest praise I can possibly offer. This game makes a real believer out of Kirby being able to take down dark gods in just his base form, as there is SO much being constantly thrown at the little guy that he can roll through so carefully. Every consideration is made to ensure that Kirby in 3D feels as smooth of a transition as possible, while adding more options and flexibility for him to indulge in, and it feels GREAT. Almost every single power (sorry Cutter) gets some level of utility that makes it feel awesome to use, with Sword in particular going from a meh power Id usually pass over into one of the most flexible, intense, and enjoyable combat styles Kirby has access to. And Ranger! Ranger wouldnt work in any other Kirby game, but I LOVE that power here! I feel like the Challenge Roads especially highlight just how good every individual power and mouthful mode feels to control, and how every single one was given such great consideration in how to get the most out of it. I think Robobot has my absolute favorite power set of all Kirby games, I know Poison is never coming back and I will cherish that power until the day I die, but damn. They REALLY nailed Forgotten Land. I am so, so impressed.

Best Smash Appearance: 64 - Yknow, the only one where Kirby isnt bad. Its really hard to be critical of Kirby - hes the perfect beginner character, everyone enjoys playing as him, EVERYONE uses Stone as their kill move of choice to start out with. Hes all the elements of Smash Bros merged into a simple, easy to understand form with infinite potential. I know many will say that he should utilize his Copy Abilities all through his moveset, and while I wouldnt mind Final Cutter being replaced as that moves always been garbage, I like the simplicity that base Kirby offers. I like that his visual design is mostly just relying on kicks and his body, that hes really putting in his all as a base-level fighter, it keeps him from being too muddy visually and lets his inhaled abilities really get the chance to shine. With that said Id like Inhale reworked. Its too important of an ability to be as passive of a novelty as it is. Either figure out a way to combo into the move better so Kirby has easier access to it, or change it up so its a different special on a per-character basis that helps him counter that character in specific. Youre already putting in the word to model the Neutral Special of everyone, changing it to their Side Special if itd help him win the match-up shouldnt be too big a stretch. A-

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Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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Kamekguy
08/19/22 1:28:58 PM
#47:


Bomberman - Super Bomberman R

Im not super familiar with the Bomberman series. Its always a good time when I play it, but Hell if I can tell you major differences other than this is the one with Wario. This is the one that has the Tokimeki Memorial Girl, Naked Snake, and Xavier Woods in it, though, and I like that. Of the N64 Bomberman games, which one is the one I should play? Ive heard good things about all of 64, Second Attack, and Hero, and wasnt sure which one was THE one.

Alucard - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

Like, its gotta be, right? SotN is almost entirely defined by its style, conveyed through its music, and its movement. Alucard is one of the most fun, flexible, and ultimately broken characters in a side scroller. Every single time you get a new power or weapon, it doesnt just feel like a key, it feels like an excuse to tear through enemies like wet tissue paper, completely dominating them in a gleeful spree of destruction until you accidentally run into a Nova Skeleton because you werent paying attention. And then you get something like the Gravity Boots and you realize oh wait, I can become even MORE broken. Its like if a game asked you what build you wanted to take, and Alucard calmly replied all and stacked himself with every single possibility that fit into the teams mind simultaneously. Alucard, at his best, is an unmatched power fantasy of a character, only Zero from MMX4 even getting a taste of how utterly dominant a character can be over their domain.

Luigi - Super Smash Bros. Melee

Luigi is so weird. Before 99, if you could tell me three personality traits that Luigi had that werent based on the cartoon or comic, Id call you a liar. Luigi existed to be a Player 2, and was rightfully regulated to oh yeah hes there I guess roles as characters like Tails and Diddy Kong supplanted him by far as a sidekick. Then Smash Bros came out and kind of wholesale invented Luigis cowardly traits on accident? The flailing dash attack, getting overly excited and tired in victory, the title of Eternal Understudy - the entire living in Marios shadow bit started BECAUSE of Smash Bros. And while Luigis Mansion would run with it and up his cowardice and bond with his brother, Melee would focus on Luigi being Mario, but weird and unbound. And hes awesome.

Luigi feels like hes just making up the fight as he goes along. Hes based off of Marios kit, but hes far too clumsy and slippery to capitalize on combos in the same way, so he has to slip slide around, almost incidentally moving across the stage as his terrible traction takes him where he needs to go. Two of his specials have a chance to tap into some repressed, unbridled potential, and the other half of the time are almost entirely useless. Wavedashing makes the character insanely fun to use on any surface, gliding along the ground without a care in the world. Luigi in Melee is a weird performance art of a character, playing like no one else and settling on a style all his own, and is one of my favorite interpretations of a character in the entire Smash series.

and the more they give him of his actual series and personality, the more that takes away from him. Luigi is the weirdest damn character in this series, with Smash inventing his personality wholesale, then other games go and run with it, and then they come back years later and tell him no this is how youre acting now, taking away from the established core of wacky Mario that made him feel so great to play. I love how Luigi is animated in recent Smash games, one of the best, but the more focus is put on stuff like the Poltergust and his grab game, the less Luigi gets to be that original, freeform, explode-at-any-minute character. I honestly dont know where you go with this character, hes kind of sabotaged himself. I think his current incarnation being entirely based on landing a grab totally sucks, makes most of his tools worthless, but I cant say its good for business to go yeah, ditch Luigis Mansion, go back to wacky coward-fu Luigi. Like his Melee designs an easy A, his current is as low as a D- uhhhh as an average, C+ ???

Best Non-Smash Appearance: Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga - You could make any of the M&L games qualify here, I just really like the solo Luigi segment in this one and am not the biggest fan of Dreamy Luigi, feels more like a gimmick than the babies or Bowser did. Luigi is potentially at his best in these games, (though I love his TTYD portrayal, actively dunking on his brother in his own memoirs) constantly bumbling through everything and being dragged along for the ride against his will. Bros Moves and their variants are always really fun to pull off, the defensive nature of the games and how you avoid enemy attacks are always going to make them more engaging than your average RPG protag from a gameplay perspective, and I like the balance Luigi offers as an equal to Mario, the two supporting each other in tandem very nicely.

Lucina - Fire Emblem: Awakening

Lucina is the poster child for all of Awakenings systems. Shes the introduction to the whole child mechanic, inheriting all the skills of her father, plus all the flexibility that her mother will allow (unless Chrom marries a village girl, in which case, sucks to be Lucy). This puts the strengths of reclassing her right into the forefront, giving her such a wide range of possibilities that itd be foolish to not dive into them. AND her Falchion is stronger than Chroms when you get her, incentivizing her use? If Lucina were the only instance of this kind of mechanic, she would be absolutely sterling as a unit, perfectly placed in the story at just the right point to be a character worth replaying the game over and over to see how she changes. Unfortunately, theres also the rest of the kids next door joining her, which does dull her shine somewhat and look, Im never a fan of Fire Emblem games that give you the opportunity to grind. Adding on bonus units as a reward FOR that grinding sort of trivializes the whole experience for me. Its about two chapters after Lucina joins that I fall off of Awakening pretty hard, but I dont blame Lucina for that entirely. The character, set-up, growth, and payoff all work really well in an isolated concept.

Best Smash Appearance: Ultimate - Lucinas probably the best character to use as an introduction to competitive. Everything feels good with the character, not having to worry about the tipper means that you can be a bit more reckless in your approach and just kind of zone people out with disjoints. Lucinas a nice, mindless time.

She shouldnt be a Marth echo. She should be Chroms echo.

Like, I get WHY shes Marths echo, plot reasons, obviously. But when the guy she learned swordplay from is RIGHT THERE and hes using a more aggressive style, and shes naturally a more aggressive character than Marth ever was, having Lucina act as this finesse-based-,but-not-really character feels wrong. More a victim of circumstance than anything (as usual), theres not really a way everything works out neatly in this timeline with the work done on Roy as a Smash 4 DLC and Lucina being tossed in as a bonus for that game, but I sincerely hope if she ever comes back, she doesnt have Marths shell again. Would be totally fine if she just took Chroms attributes and shunted him to the side again - itd be mean, but itd be accurate. I think the character plays fine, if a bit boring, but we took some wacky gaps in logic to get here. D

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Mario Vs Cloud 2002: A Video Retrospective - https://youtu.be/1dx4t6H_K9Y
Full Channel Available Here!: https://www.youtube.com/c/designingfor
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SSBM_Guy
08/19/22 1:40:05 PM
#48:


Mega Man

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Bitto
"[Freud] started his scientific career by trying to explain the sexuality of a fish. And he failed."
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KamikazePotato
08/19/22 1:48:01 PM
#49:


Ike hits like a truck that has been taped to another, larger truck, and the sound design on Ragnell crashing in is absolutely immaculate in Brawl. One of the biggest nerfs was having those dull thuds of destruction swapped out for the Fire Emblem sword swinging sounds, and its a crying shame!

Preach

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It's Reyn Time.
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Kenri
08/19/22 2:58:51 PM
#50:


Ganondorf

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Congrats to BKSheikah, who knows more about years than anyone else.
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