The Chronic Consumer

My six-year-old son loves all the Mario games we’ve ever gotten him, including Mario Kart DS, Mario Kart Wii, Mario Party, Super Mario Galaxy, and Super Mario Bros. So it was pretty much a no-brainer that he would enjoy Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl at first looks like a standard fighting game, but upon closer inspection there are some differences. First of all, one of the most appealing aspects of the game is the sheer variety of characters to choose from. Along with Mario, Luigi, and their friends, you can also play as Kirby, Sonic the Hedgehog, a Pokemon trainer, Zelda, Fox, Lucas, and a bunch of other characters that I’d never even heard of before.

Second, in most fighting games, characters have a Damage or Life bar that starts at 100%, and then dwindles with every blow you take. But Super Smash Bros. Brawl goes the other way, with everyone starting at zero and accumulating higher damage scores with each hit. Plus, the object of the fighting mode is to send your opponent flying off the screen, rather than just knock him down or out.

And finally, unlike most regular fighting games, Super Smash Bros. Brawl also has a side-scrolling story mode that you can play to change things up. This is particularly great for kids, as they often get bored with games pretty quickly and want something different once in a while.

To be perfectly honest, I personally haven’t played Super Smash Bros. Brawl all that much. I have never been very good at fighting games because there are just too many different moves and controller combos to remember. So I can’t tell you firsthand how good the game is. But my son absolutely loves it, and enjoys playing with a couple of his friends from the neighborhood. I think all the cool characters, the variety of game modes, and multiplayer capabilities makes this one a winner for kids.

Overall, Super Smash Bros. Brawl has quickly become one of my son’s favorite Mario games. He chooses this one over every other title now, and has been enjoying it since getting it for his birthday four months ago. In that regard, I think this was money well spent!