Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as Dairantō Smash Brothers X (大乱闘 スマッシュ ブラザーズ X, Dairantō Sumasshu Burazāzu Ekkusu, roughly "Great Fray Smash Brothers X"), is the third game in the Super Smash Bros. series, and is currently available for Nintendo's Wii console. It was first announced at E3 2005, but no solid information or images were revealed until E3 2006. Once again being helmed by Masahiro Sakurai, the game is notable for being the first to incorporate a non-Nintendo character, Konami's famous Solid Snake. Sonic the Hedgehog was also confirmed as a playable character.

Also notable is that the main theme was composed by Nobuo Uematsu, best known for his iconic work on the Final Fantasy series. Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be compatible with GameCube controller, the Wii remote, the Wii remote and nunchuk, and the Wii Virtual Console controller.

Gameplay
Super Smash Bros. Brawl is compatible with four different types of controllers: the Wii remote, Wii remote and nunchuk, the GameCube Controller, and the Classic controller. The player is able to name the character he chooses. New combat features that have been added include Tether Recovery and Final Smash. The player can use Tether Recovery to recover from falls during combat. Final Smash is a strong skill that can be performed multiple times (per match) after obtaining the Smash Ball. The player can also play adventure mode titled "The Subspace Emissary" which is a side scrolling action game that features a storyline. Special Brawl is a game mode in which the player can apply special rules such as "equip every character with flowers or bunny ears". Players can also choose classic single player mode in which his objective is to clear the stage. Target Smash is another mode of play in which players smash target signs.

Development
The trailer reveals a number of things about the game, such as new items like a Nintendog that obscures the whole screen, and an item that allows a super attack. These super attacks range from a giant, screen-spanning fireball from Mario and to multiple Triforce slashes from Link.

On May 24 Nintendo shows off the gooey bomb and on May 31 the Cracker launcher debuted. On May 29 Nintendo shows off the Smash ball item.

On June 5, 2007 Groudon was announced to be one of the Pokémon that can be summoned from the Pokéballs and the basic controls to the game were shown off. On Monday, June 4, the Yoshi's Story ending theme was added to the soundtrack. On June 14, the new features of the crates and barrels were shown. The features include the different art for the crates on each level and their abilities to roll off slanted surfaces. On June 25 Nintendo announced that Princess Zelda would be returning to Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The banana peel was shown on June 27.

On July 2, 2007 The Assist Trophies debuted. On July 3 it was announced that Bowser was returning to Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

On August 13 the Pokémon Trainer debuted for SSBB, and on August 15, Stickers were added to the game. Stickers are similar to trophies from Super Smash Bros., but you can arrange them and create various images. Tether Recovery was introduced on August 16. It allows a certain characters to latch on to a cliff when they fall off. On August 17 Princess Peach was officially confirmed.

Diddy Kong was added to SSBB on August 22 to the list of playable characters. A Video of Pit's Descent was shown for the adventure mode of SSBB on Monday September 3. The main theme for SSBB debut on September 7, 2007. On September 14 it was confirmed that the Ice Climbers would be returning and on September 13, a new game feature known as Special Brawl was shown. On September 18, 2007, online play over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was confirmed. The enemies in the adventure mode was debut on the 19th of September and the details on Solid Snake appeared on September 21.

On October 3, Excitebike assist trophy debuted and on October 4 shielding and dodging techniques were explained. On October 6, team play was announced for the adventure mode. At Nintendo's fall conference a video of the gameplay was shown. On October 10 Sonic the Hedgehog made his debut. Sonic is the second third-party character to be in the Brawl. On October 11 Nintendo announced that the SSBB would not be release on December 3, 2007 and the release date is delayed to February 10, 2008. On October 13 the box art, which was leaked October 6 on amazon.com, was confirmed to be the real box art for SSBB.

On October 23 a video was released which features Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong against the a hammer brother stealing bananas. On October 24 Target Smash gameplay was shown off and on October 25, King Dedede made his debut. On October 29 the stage builder for SSBB was shown off. On the 30th the Classic gameplay mode was featured on the Super Smash Bros. site. On game screen appearances have been added on November 2, 2007.

Gray fox debut on November 7 as an assist trophy and the returning items were shown on November 6. On November 13 it was revealed that each character has three different taunts. The spectator mode was shown off on November 16. The item smart bomb was shown off on November 20 and training mode. On November 22 Saki Amamiya from Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth debut as an assist trophy.

On December 4 the Pokémon returning from Super Smash Bros. Melee were shown. Waluigi and Stafy assist trophies were added on December 14. On December 17 Nintendo explained the Co-op Events matches. The team healer item was introduced on December 19 and Kirby's different special moves were shown on December 20. A movie featuring the subspace emissary was shown on December 21. On December 26 trophy stands of the subspace emissary debut and a coin launching game was shown on December 27. The Dragoon was shown on December 28.

On January 7, 2008 Nintendo showed off the returning stages from Super Smash Bros. Melee and on January 8 they described the Multi-Man Brawl game mode. On January 9 Pikmin and Captain Olimar appeared as new challengers. On January 15 it was announced that the game will be delayed from February 10 to March 9.

Returning

 * Mario
 * Link
 * Pikachu
 * Kirby
 * Samus Aran
 * Fox McCloud
 * Princess Zelda/Sheik
 * Bowser
 * Yoshi
 * Donkey Kong
 * Princess Peach
 * Ice Climbers
 * Jigglypuff
 * Ness
 * Marth
 * Luigi
 * Falco Lombardi
 * Captain Falcon
 * Mr. Game & Watch
 * Ganondorf

New characters

 * Meta Knight from the Kirby series.
 * Zero Suit Samus, as seen in Metroid Zero Mission.
 * Wario wearing his outfit from the WarioWare series.
 * Pit from Kid Icarus.
 * Solid Snake the first third party character to debut in the Super Smash Bros. series from the Metal Gear series.
 * Ike from Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance.
 * Pokémon Trainer from Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. He doesn't fight directly, but instead summons Squirtle, Ivysaur, or Charizard to fight for him. The Pokémon in battle can be switched at any time (they share the damage meter), and frequent (but not too frequent) switching may be necessary to prevent fatigue.
 * Diddy Kong from the Donkey Kong series.
 * Lucas from Mother 3.
 * Sonic the Hedgehog.
 * King Dedede from the Kirby series.
 * Captain Olimar and Pikmin from the Pikmin games. Olimar can be accompanied by up to five colours of Pikmin. He must pluck them from the ground and cannot do a smash attack without them.
 * Lucario from Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl. From what has been said, some of his moves are similar to Mewtwo.
 * R.O.B., aka, the Robotic Operating Buddy, originally an accessory for games like Stack-up and Gyromite.
 * Toon Link, or Link based on his The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker appearance. For the most part, a clone of the original Link with several visual differences, replacing Young Link.
 * Wolf O'Donnell from the Star Fox series.

Pokémon

 * Groudon - When Groudon is summoned from the Pokéball, it will burn any enemy player that touches it.
 * Deoxys - When Deoxys appears from the Pokéball, it will fly towards the top of the screen, turn around and blast a "hyper beam" towards the bottom of the screen, damaging any enemy players it touches.
 * Munchlax - Munchlax will walk around and eat items that are in its way.
 * Piplup - Piplup will slide around using "surf". Anyone caught up in this will be washed off the stage along with Piplup.
 * Meowth - Meowth will throw coins using its "payday" attack.
 * Suicune - Fires an "aurora beam". Suicune is one of the few returning Pokémon that use a completely different attack than in Super Smash Bros. Melee.
 * Lugia - Flies behind the stage, then uses "aeroblast".
 * Entei - Stands in one spot, using "fire spin" to cause large amounts of damage to anyone it touches. It also incapacitates anyone it hits.
 * Staryu - Follows a random player, then uses "swift" multiple times on them.
 * Bellossom - Stands in one spot, releasing "sleep powder" that can put anyone that comes in contact with it to sleep.
 * Ho-Oh - Flies behind the stage, then uses "sacred fire".
 * Wobbuffet - If Wobbuffet gets hit, it will bob back and forth, damaging anyone that touches it.
 * Togepi - Uses "metronome" to produce various effects.
 * Snorlax - Will jump off the top of the stage, then come crashing down with a "body slam".
 * Celebi - When it appears it drops a few trophies. It's rare, though.
 * Mew - When it appears, it drops a CD that will unlock stage music. Mew also appears only rarely.
 * Bonsly - Bonsly can be picked up and thrown.
 * Manaphy - Uses Heart Swap, forcing two of the combatants to control each other's character for a while. However, each character's actions still count for the person playing as them.
 * Chikorita - Stands in one spot, using "razor leaf".
 * Electrode - Charges up, then uses "explosion". Electrode can sometimes fail to explode, however.
 * Gardevoir - Reflects any projectiles aimed at it.
 * Goldeen - Does its best imitation of Magikarp, using its "Splash" attack for no effect.
 * Gulpin - Engulfs enemies and damages them.
 * Jirachi - When it appears, it drops a bunch of stickers. However, it doesn't often show up.
 * Kyogre - Uses "Hydro Pump".
 * Latias & Latios - They fly in together, and the wind currents generated by their passing causes problems for the combatants.
 * Metagross - Slams its legs into the ground, causing an earthquake that hurts all players that get too close.
 * Torchic - Uses "Fire Spin" for constant damage.
 * Weavile - Does "False Swipe" for 1% damage.
 * Moltres - A Legendary Pokémon that rarely appears. Slowly flies upward.

Assist Trophies
Assist Trophies are a new feature in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. When held up, the Assist Trophy summons a guest character that assists the player. The majority of Assist Trophy characters are invincible.
 * Nintendogs - Blocks screen
 * Hammer Brother - Jumps around throwing hammers
 * Samurai Goroh - From F-Zero. When summoned he slices one opponent with his sword.
 * Dr. Wright - From The Sims and the SNES version of SimCity. He causes a skyscraper to grow out of the ground that can cause high damage to near by opponents.
 * Knuckle Joe - Rapidly attacks one foe and finishes with an uppercut
 * Devil - The main character in the game Devil World for the NES. When summoned, he will cause the screen to shift in the direction that he is pointing.
 * Andross - Andross is the villain from the Star Fox series. When he is summoned, he inhales and shoots out polygonal panels.
 * Lyn - Lyn is a character from Fire Emblem. When summoned, she will disappear, then re-appear in front of one of the enemies and slash them.
 * Mr. Resetti - Mr. Resetti comes from Animal Crossing. He just stands around and lectures, distracting everyone and blocking the screen.
 * Excite Bike - Excitebikes are pixelated bikers that will move back and forth on the platform, knocking anyone in the way
 * Little Mac - From Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, he will chase after an opponent and punch them, causing damage and possibly knocking them out of the arena.
 * Gray Fox - a cybernetic ninja seen in Metal Gear Solid, he proceeds to attack the opponent with his sword.
 * Saki Amamiya - From Sin and Punishment: Successor to the Earth
 * Stafy - From Densetsu no Stafy. Does a spin attack, but is not invincible like most Assist Trophies
 * Waluigi - Stomps a foe into the dirt and then strikes with a powerful kick or his tennis racket
 * Metroid - From the Metroid series, follows opponent and drains their health, increasing the damage percentage.
 * Tingle - From the Legend of Zelda series, Tingle summons random affects while chanting Tingle! Tingle! Kooloo-limpah!.
 * Kat and Ana - From the WarioWare series
 * Jeff - From EarthBound. Uses a Multi-Bottle Rocket 5
 * Helirin - From Kuru Kuru Kururin
 * Jill & Drill Dozer - She travels across the ground.  Anyone who touches her becomes caught as she runs them off the edge of the platform.
 * Lakitu - As in Super Mario Bros.
 * Ray Mk III - From Custom Robo Arena
 * Isaac - From the Golden Sun series - He launches large hands that travel horizontally and push people towards the edges of the screen.
 * Infantry and Tanks - From the Wars series
 * Barbara - From Daigassou! Band Brothers and Master of Illusion
 * Shadow the Hedgehog - Also from the Sonic series, he will use "Chaos Control" to slow down opponets

Stages
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, like its predecessors, contains a variety of stages hailing from various video game series. However, it should be notable that Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the first in its series to contain stages that do not have a fighter to represent them, such as the Animal Crossing stage, among others. There is also an option to create levels.

New Stages

 * Battlefield
 * Delfino Plaza
 * Yoshi's Island
 * Lylat Cruise
 * Bridge of Eldin
 * Smashville
 * Rumble Falls
 * Skyworld
 * Castle Siege
 * WarioWare
 * Pokémon Stadium 2
 * Battleship Halberd
 * Shadow Moses Island
 * New Pork City
 * PictoChat
 * The Summit
 * Norfair
 * Mario Circuit
 * Frigate Orpheon
 * Distant Planet
 * Mushroomy Kingdom
 * Port Town Aero Dive
 * Final Destination

Hidden Stages

 * Mario Bros. (stage)
 * Green Hill Zone
 * Luigi's Mansion
 * Elektroplankton
 * Flat Zone 2
 * Pirate ship (legend of zelda)
 * Mt. Coronet Spear Pillar
 * 75M

Melee Stages

 * Temple
 * Yoshi's Island
 * Corneria
 * Onett
 * Brinstar

Hidden Melee Stages

 * Big Blue
 * Green Greens

Criticism

 * Zero Punctuation