I prayed for a sequel to Smash Bros. right after I mastered it. I love that game so much, so I practically had an orgasm when I got Melee and watched the opening sequence for the first time. This is a must-have for the GameCube. Die-hard Smash fans like myself will be amazed at how many upgrades have been made to the game. There are more moves, more chracters (over 20!), more stages (Hyrule Temple is HUGE), more modes, and more smashing! This is the coolest game yet! (Golden Sun excluded). The 1-player modes were improved the most. They're still a bit boring, but in a better way from the old one. And collecting all of the trophies may well take years. I've been pounding on this game since I got it, and I have almost 150 of them, but there are many more where that came from! But with a game this fun, who cares how long it takes to master it?
Since the game play is so awesome and the controls so slick (a much better setup from Luigi's Mansion), I need to point out the thing that's making me the most giddy--the graphics (I'm kicking myself for saying that). Since Melee is a launch title, I'm looking at this as a "preview" of what all of Nintendo's greats will look like in their own 'Cube games when they come out (which they will in time). They look so real! You can see the tiny stitches on Mario's denim overalls and each of his fingers when he punches. Peach's new dress ripples in the wind on the Coneria stage, and Bowser looks scarier than ever. I swear his flame breath looks like real fire! But the character that was the most radically transformed is Fox McCloud. Though StarFox 64 was a good game, Fox and crew looked a bit blocky and didn't have much texture to their furry exteriors. Fox looks really good on the GameCube, as you can see all the fine details of his fur and the sheen of his boots and jacket. Imagine what he'll look like when the new StarFox game comes out later this year! And my favorite Smash character of all looks even better now than he did on the N64. I swear that if Link gets any more real, I'll be able to physically touch him. He looks so good--right down to the creases in his green tunic, the shiny tip of his Master Sword, and his expressive blue eyes. *Sigh* Zelda is so lucky...
Ahem...anyway, this is the game of games. If you don't get Melee (yeah right), consider yourself a pathetic loser. This is the first must-have GameCube title, and I'm sure it won't be the last!
Midnight's Grade: A
Written January 2002
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