Call it a sub-genre
No one is indifferent to nostalgia, but people certainly can get riled up over branding. Even those with a soft spot for Sony’s signature mascots are vocally upset byPlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale’s similarities to Nintendo’sSuper Smash Bros. Funny enough, some beta players were even more upset that Sony’s four-player party brawler doesn’t play likeSuper Smash Bros.
Maybe all of this confusion and animosity has something to do with detractors not being familiar with the party fighters that came before and afterSuper Smash Bros.All-Starsbears many similarities to Nintendo’s hit series, but it’s not the only one. CallingAll-StarsaSmashclone is no different than calling first-person shooters “Doomclones” or kart racers “Mario Kartclones” in this day and age.
The difference is thatSuper Smash Bros. is the only successful and popular game of its ilk, so it’s easy to forget that other games like it ever existed. Well, let’s try to remember and callAll-Starswhat it is: A four-player fighter that owes as much toSuper Smash Bros. as it does to the games that inspired Nintendo’s series.
Technos was a pioneer of the 2D beat-’em-up with classics likeDouble DragonandRiver City Ransom. The later of which is part of theKunio-Kunseries in Japan that included various sports games and the very first four-player fighting game.Densetsuincluded a story mode with the fighting and RPG mechanics ofRiver City Ransom, but it was the innovative four-player Battle Mode that made Famicom owners want to purchase a Multitap. The controls are responsive but primitive. While seven stages don’t include weapons, there are environmental hazards, a staple in the genre. Though mostly forgotten,Densetsu‘s influence on the genre is massive.
After establishingHeberekeas one of the great Famicom platformers (known asUfouria: The Sagain the West), Sunsoft cemented the series on the Super Famicom as a solid falling-block puzzle franchise. Sunsoft must have grown tired of that, because it threw out the rule book withSugoi. LikeDensetsu,Sugoifeatures four-player arenas filled with hazards. UnlikeDensetsu, the game is played from aBomberman-esque top-down view and the goal is to push a character off the stage (sound familiar?). The result is a much more hectic fighting game that paved the way forSuper Smash Bros.
Jonathan Holmes calledOufoxiesthe bestSuper Smash Bros. alternative and I can’t argue against that. Though limited to two players, the arenas, chaotic combat, and eccentric presentation feel similarSuper Smash Bros.Outfoxiesmay have made the biggest contribution to the genre in moving it to a 2D side-scrolling perspective. The levels are far more complex and imaginative than anything the genre had seen before it. The cargo plane level that shakes players around will be hard to top inAll-Stars‘Unchartedstage.Outfoxiesalso made a progressive step by including weapons you can pick up and unload on an opponent.
At first glance,Super Tekkyu Fight!appears to be aBombermanclone — of which there were many in Japan, at the time. LikeAll-Stars, there is more toTekkyuthan meets the eye. Though the visuals are clearly indebted to Hudson’s series,Tekkyuputs a ball-and-chain, instead of bombs, in the hands of its pint-size fighters. LikeSugoi Hebereke, players beat each other mercilessly until three ring outs occur. Pick-ups modify and improve your ball-and-chain, but the big innovation is the ability to stun opponents. Like inSmash Bros., dealing more damage makes a ring out more likely to happen. There is more toTekkyuthan just pushing an enemy near the edge.
Keriotosse!is like a primitivePower Stonewith an emphasis on ring outs. It’s bright, crisp visuals were very impressive for the system and it was one of the few four-player party games of its year. Like the above titles, you battle it out until there is only one player left standing on the platform. The 3D models and focus on hand-to-hand combat inch the genre closer toSmash.Keriotosse!was also the first game to include special moves. It’s a very obscure and rare import, but one worth checking out.
When I wasn’t playingSuper Smash Bros.with my friends, I was playingPower Stoneon the Dreamcast. By the timePower Stone 2was released, it was impossible not to compare the two series. However, the original owes a lot to the above games. Environmental hazards, item pickups, large interactive arenas — you can trace most of these things back to earlier titles in the genre. Capcom cherry picked ideas and slapped on a layer of polish to its visuals and combat. Since it was released only a month afterSuper Smash Bros., you can’t call it a clone.
Before rebranding the company and developingHeavenly Sword, Ninja Theory (then known as Just Add Monsters) made one of the first non-Nintendo four-player party brawlers in a long time. The genre had been hijacked bySuper Smash Bros.and its sequel was selling like hot cakes.Kung Fu Chaoswas an attempt to bring the same wacky combat and personality to Xbox. Instead of featuring Nintendo mascots, the game played upon Hong Kong cinema tropes with the premise that players are starring in an upcoming kung fu film with aliens in it. The multi-arena stages and emphasis on platforming owe a lot toPower Stone 2.
I had to do a double take when I came acrossDreamMix TV, earlier this year. Simon Belmont, Solid Snake, Bomberman, and Optimus Prime all in a fighting game? And it never came to the West? WHY!? Despite having a lukewarm reception,DreamMix’s cast of Konami, Hudson, and toy manufacturer Takara characters givesSmash Bros.‘ cast a run for its money. As cool as it is to see Solid Snake kicking Hudson characters in the face on top ofMGS2’s oil rig,DreamMix’s awkward animation and controls leave something to be desired.DreamMixresemblesSuper Smash Bros.in nearly every way except win conditions. Once given a proper beating, players shrink in size and float around the stage. If another player retrieves their soul, the shrunken player loses the match but can still interfere. And you thoughtAll-Starswas obtuse!
In what is one of the oddest genre jumps of all time, Capcom took its survival-horror action-RPG — strange enough in itself — and made it into a four-player fighting game. The character models are much larger than those ofSuper Smash Bros.andPower Stone, and the focus is on combos. Though four people can play together,Blade Warriorsplays best with two. The HP bar, low frequency of item pick-ups, and fighting system makesBlade Warriorsa much slower, methodical arena brawler. It’s not exactly deep but its mechanics should make fighting game fans feel more at home than similar titles.
Now here’s a game for the two people who complain thatSuper Smash Bros.is too slow and boring.Red Hot Rumbletakes the amiable aesthetic, characters, and move set ofViewtiful Joeand adds a heaping shit ton of crazy on top of it. Mini-games and side objectives constantly appear during matches, changing a free-for-all fight into a button-mashing contest.Red Hot Rumblecan’t be knocked for not putting a unique spin on the four-player brawler, but its busy visuals and combat may be too much for some. It certainly makes for goodResident Evil 6QTE practice!
Shonen Jump made anime fans’ dreams come true when it combinedDragon Ball Z,One Piece, andNarutofor a four-player fighting game that finally settled arguments on which character would win in a fight. Namco never releasedD.O.N.outside of Japan but its influence onPlayStation All-Starsis hard to overlook. This comes from two primary changes that developer Eighting brought to the genre. Instead of having stock lives, players have an energy meter that lets them stay in the game even after death. Enough damage will cause a player’s energy to come out in the form of collectible balls. There are also special moves that players can perform for extra damage. This closely mirrors how a match ofAll-Starsis played.
In 2006, Xbox Live Arcade didn’t have many original games to download.Small Armswas among the very few titles available and it was a peculiar game. BasicallySuper Smash Bros.with guns, it was an obvious combination that hadn’t been attempted, excludingOutfoxies. Unfortunately, the controls, arena, and net code left a lot to be desired. The small developer was never to be heard from again, but I had a couple good nights withSmall Armsin the early days of the 360.
TakeBattle Stadium D.O.N.and multiply it by 13 or so and you got yourselfJump Ultimate Stars: an exercise in excess. With 300+ characters spread across 41 franchises, it’s pretty much the end-all, be-all anime fighting game.Jump Ultimate Starsrefined the elements of its predecessor by improving the graphics and giving stages more interactive elements. Both games feature a heavy element of strategy and role-playing, since you are building a deck of support characters that can help in a match. It’s easy to get lost in the game’s menus, even if you have an understanding of Japanese (this series never came West). If you are a fan ofDissidia Final Fantasy,Jump Ultimate Starsshares a lot of similar elements.
It’s hard to not callSmash-Upa cheap clone since it’s made on theSuper Smash Bros. Brawlengine and made by some of that game’s team, along with ex-Team Ninja staff. Despite having a high pedigree,Smash-Updidn’t do much to innovate on the genre. Fighters can interact with the environment in some interesting ways, like cutting down logs that fall on an opponent. Other than that, this is a bland re-skin ofBrawl.
So, yeah, feel free to call this game a blatantSmash Bros.clone. One so blatant that Ubisoft broughtBrawl’s staff on board. Just don’t say the same ofPlayStation All-Stars. Call it aBattle Stadium D.O.N.clone, if you must.
