Super Smash Bros. The Next Generation - Day 26

The Angel and the Temptress! Sin and Punishment!

  I just wanted to give a shout out to one of my fellow Giant Bombers, RockmanBionics, for showing me this awesome collection of Game and Watch (and Russian rip offs) in fully playable form: http://pica-pic.com/#/zelda/ Check it out if you've got a few minutes to kill, it's awesome.

The Newcomer Turned Veteran - Pit

  The hero of Kid Icarus: Uprising is in an interesting position. For starters, his most recent title was made by Smash creator Mashahiro Sakurai, putting him in a sort of "Founder's Favorite" category. More interestingly, however, is the sheer vast array of abilities he had in that game, giving him the most literal arsenal to bring to Smash I've ever seen.

  If you're unfamiliar with Kid Icarus: Uprising, the player has the ability to customize Pit with a series of "perks," as well as a bevy of weapons of varying qualities and stats ranging over 7 types. Claws, cannons, bows, and Orbitars make up just a few of the weapons he could bring to Smash. So the  question is: what does he bring? I think for starters, we kill off the Forward+B spinning blades. I've always thought that move to be extraordinarily cheap, especially since it can deflect (which his Down+B Mirror Shield is for). So instead, replace it with one or many of his weapons.

  Which brings me to a sort of broader idea for a new Smash Bros.: perks and weapons. Customizing your characters with a bevy of perks like better jumping, or stat boosting items. Similar to the sticker system in Brawl's single player, but designed for the full multi-player experience. Now, as Capcom X Tekken might show, that kind of deal can get game-breaky really fast, so I don't know how much we can look into it. But the idea of at least starting off with weapons could be fun.

  In either case, I expect that we'll see at least a couple of Pit's weapons, like the Tiger Claw or Eyetrack Orbitars as pick-up weapons, and a large cannon attack as a Final Smash for Pit. I'd say an alternate costume should be Dark Pit, but that's just a palette swap (and was in Smash Bros. Brawl), so instead I move to an original costume being in store. Perhaps something more casual, like a celebrational Japanese robe, or something more heavily armored?

The Newcomer I Don't Want - Krystal

  I've been dreading this. It was inevitable that I would have to type it, but I had hoped that perhaps I would be struck dead before I did. I'm going to level with you, dear reader: I don't like Krystal. I think she's a dull-as-nails character riding on a sex appeal to be popular. Now mind you, I don't mind that she's a sexy fox lady. I mean, I've got my own... types, shall we say. But there's something that borders on exploitative here; it's -all- she is. I don't really have anything against Krystal herself, it's just the way she's portrayed, and worst, the way she's been... accepted into the fanbase.

  But then, the entire StarFox team has this problem. I'm trying -really- hard not to share the dark recesses of the internet with you.

  I will say, if there is anything kid to the implementation of Krystal into the Star Fox cast, it's that we don't yet have a staff fighter, and she would be a tremendous speed character. Pack her with a laser pistol at her hip and you do have the makings of a great fighter. Her alternate costume could be the more tasteful (by a margin) space suit she wears in newer games. And her Final Smash could be a triceratops that stampedes around the stage for a while. Or we could just have a fourth Landmaster because fuck you.

The Stage - Sin and Punishment

  Simple enough, there needs to be a stage for Sin and Punishment: Star Successor. It's a great game with some amazing locals ranging from the scene above, to floating temples, to awesome dreary future locals. Any one of these would make for a great stage. In most cases, the platforms of the stage itself could be floating through the course, similar to Captain Falcon's Mute City and Port Town: Aero Dive.

Music from a Sin and Punishment Level

Sin and Punishment - Within Earshot

  Swanky music for a distopian future, but that's the Treasure way.

Sin and Punishment - Blood Infactor

  They don't make awesome music like this anymore. Makes me want to go fire up some Darius Twin on the SNES.

Sin and Punishment: Star Successor - Menu

  Best menu theme or BEST menu theme?

Sin and Punishment: Star Successor - Fukuoka

  It gets the blood ready for a fight, I think.

Kirby: Return to Dreamland - Another Dimension

  A song dedicated to the exact same kind of game that Sin and Punishment is (a scrolling shooter), it's a great fit for this kind of level. Yes, it's not something I would expect in this kind of stage, but it fits, and it's a great little "teehee" moment.

  So did I miss any of your favorite Sin and Punishment tracks? Have I offended you, the delicate Krystal lover? Which of Pit's weapons would you like to see most in Smash and why? So many topics to speak on, I'm sure I"ll get all sorts of comics.

-Make it a nice day.

Super Smash Bros. The Next Generation - Day 16

Of Mice and Wolves! Knocking on Death's Door!

  I deeply apologize for the interruption, even if nobody but me noticed it. I've been stressed to the bone lately with work. That's not an excuse, just an explanation with a hope that you won't mind. This may be a silly pet project that I owe to nobody, but I still take it seriously. Thank you. Here's an amazing Kirby tribute I found to make up for it.

Veteran'd - Wolf

    I was a huge fan of Falco in Melee, and Wolf was equally welcome in Brawl. I love that he's a powerful character without being heavier than a sack of steel bricks. I feel like his specials were a tad derivative of Fox's without being as awesome. I appreciate the gritty, low-tech style of his equipment, but overall I think he's due for a few new moves in whatever we get for a new Smash.
  Alternate costumes, I'm thinking something more battle damaged, reminiscent of how he looked at the end of StarFox 64.

Newcomer'd - Daroach

  I might be shooting a tad obscure with this one, but Daroach is the leader of the titular villains in Kirby's Squeek Squad. He's yet another not-always-bad guy, starting off as a thief of Kirby's believed cake and treasures. What he could bring to the Smash Bros. table is an array of roguish magic-tricks. Borrowing a little from Kirby's Ninja and Magic Hat powers, and combined with the few moves he displayed in the game, there's a lot of potential here to craft a unique character in the Smash roster. And a Final Smash summoning The Squeak Squad sounds delightfully dangerous.
   His alternate costume could feature him dressed up like another Kirby villain, or even decked out in his own Epic Yarn attire. What would be really neat is if he had a Poppy Bros Jr. style bomb-throw, and he his alternate costume was Mouser from Super Mario Bros. 2 (Super Mario USA for our overseas friends).

Staged - Kid Icarus: Uprising

  Sakurai basically created a new franchise in Kid Icarus: Uprising. Sure it's got some modern representations of those old sprite critters, but it's otherwise unrecognizable. It plays like Sin and Punishment, it looks like Smash Bros. Brawl, and sounds amazing. But we'll get to that last part. My idea for a stage takes place in the level with the Reaper's Castle as seen in "The Reaper's Line of Sight" It was one of the major shots shown off in trailers, and it makes an impact visually. If this entire stage was re-enacted, with a floating platform set-up instead of Pit actually flying, you'd have an amazing view while combating. Throw in laser beams and/or monster stage hazards, and you've got a fast-paced, frantic stage... perfect for Smash. And at the end of Palutena's 5 minutes of flight, the stage lands atop the castle to finish out any time it still has.

Music'd - Kid Icarus: Uprising

Kid Icarus: Uprising - The Reaper's Line of Sight

  Dat opening... A fast-action, perilous, thunderous rendition of the Underworld theme, it's a great setting to the stage.

Kid Icarus: Uprising - Opening

  It's so puppy-frolicking cheery, followed by a sweet guitar solo. I don't. This song is too good. My ears are unworthy! Sakurai really outdid himself with this game's soundtrack.

Kid Icarus: Uprising - Magnus and the Dark Lord

  This is actually my favorite track in the game. It has this stormy weather vibe to it, combined with a 70's Anime sound, wrapped up in a delicious fully-orchestrated caramel that goes straight to the thighs of my brain. My brain thighs.

Kid Icarus: Uprising - Pandora's Labyrinth of Deceit

  One of the more interesting levels, Pandora's Labyrinth was the moment I realized just how amazing this game was going to be. I wasn't on some sort of "this first level is awesome!" Mirror's Edge kick, this was the real deal. The soundtrack is... I'm just going to say reflective of the nature of this stage and leave it at that!

Kid Icarus: Uprising - Dark Pit's Theme

  God yes, that Spanish guitar fills me with feelings. Dancing feelings that I want to shake, shake, shake out of my system. Dark Pit's kind of destined to be one of those uncommonly favored characters like Wolf, I think. Combined with the fact that this track was just amazing, I figured I'd leave it here.

  I'm going to stop there. Not because I think it's a good point, but because I'd otherwise be just posting the whole soundtrack. Kid Icarus: Uprising may or may not be the most fun to play, but my God is that game just an absolute delight in every way, shape, and form. The story, the banter, the music, the visuals.. Sakurai is one of my favorite development leads for a reason.

  What do you think, kids? Drop me a comment; I love to chat.

-Make it a good one.

Super Smash Bros. The Next Generation - Day 10

Psychic Warriors and the Towering Fortress!

  This one's going to be kind of short. I'll be frank: I'm not dealing with subjects of my expertise. I've never had a chance to play Earthbound, I haven't had time to finish Kid Icarus: Uprising, and I've never finished a game of Fire Emblem. That said I've got something I feel is insightful on all 3, but what I would really love to see is some input from other fans of the respective items. I know you're out there, give me some advice here!

Ness

  The PSi-Boy Wonder will be making an obvious return, but at this point, I'm kind of stumped as to what we want to do with him. I honestly cannot come up with a thing, so if any of you hardcore tourney types want to pitch in with some balance issues, I'd love to hear about them!

  What I can do is talk about an alternate costume idea: Mike Jones from StarTropics. I've pondered putting Jones on here as a character himself, but in retrospect, he fights exactly like Ness; with a baseball bat, a yo-yo, and even the occasional psychic power. Rather than throwing a clone out there, I think it just makes more sense to go this path.

Magnus

  The hero of the human realm in Kid Icarus: Uprising, Magnus is an imposing figure. The obvious problem we run into is that he's "just another big sword fighter." True, and honestly there's not a lot to go off of in terms of super specific signature moves. But as I occasionally do: remember that Captain Falcon was a head in a car before Smash Bros. developer Masahiro Sakurai transformed him into the Falcon Punching, Falcon Kicking tour-de-force that he is now. Plus, he is one of Sakurai's characters... so... You know, I'm just tossing out here that it's actually kind of likely.

  You've got me on a Final Smash, but hey, they pulled Luigi's out of damned nowhere, so sky's the limits etc. etc. A cool alternate costume would see him dressed up as a warrior of Palutena; that being either some paladin armor or something with flowing robes like Pit.

Fire Emblem - Begnion

  Look at that tower concept art. That sounds like a perfect level design. I love the coloring. Throw in a dramatic scene like a dragon attacking, warrior's clashing on the roof. Sounds like a perfect Fire Emblem stage to me.

Fire Emblem Stage Soundtrack

Fire Emblem - All Normal Battle Themes

  The Fire Emblem franchise has some amazing battle themes. So to kind of mix it up again this time around, I found a video that I thought would be a more perfect representation of what I want to see out of a stage themed around all these swords and dragons. Featured in this video is the battle theme from every Fire Emblem game lined up back to back for 15 minutes. It's quite an interesting journey through some really unique sounds. If you have any favorite Emblem tracks, leave them below, I'd love to hear them!


-Make it a good one!