Thursday, November 12, 2015

TOP TEN WORST SMASH BROS.


Plenty of people have played Super Smash Bros. at this point right? I don't think it's hard to imagine why I love it so much, or why anyone does for that matter, it's the perfect party game. Since I am a huge fan, I've decided to compile a top ten character list, but I'm not talking about the best, I'm talking about the worst "Smash" has to offer. I'd like to point out that obviously this is my opinion, so don't get whiny if you disagree, especially considering that these aren't ranked by which fighters lose the most, rather it is ranked by which ones are lackluster to me as characters in the roster, because the best thing about "Smash" is the insane roster. Here are my picks for the TOP TEN WORST SMASH BROS. I hope you enjoy.

10-JIGGLYPUFF

I don't even hate this character, within or out of this franchise, not by a long shot, but if we're being honest, Jigglypuff is a bit pointless. As a character who only seems to stay because she was in the original game, I just can't muster up any interest for her every time she comes back, she just isn't really special to me. I put Jigglypuff on the lowest spot, largely because she doesn't have anything too bad going for her, but that won't excuse her from having little reason to stay in the franchise. I don't think anyone rushes to this series to play as her, nor do I think she'd be remembered much if she wasn't in this series, so there's really not much to make Jigglypuff that special, or desired here. It's understandable if you love the character and their presence in the franchise, I mean I basically like Jigglypuff and have used her in multiple fights, but she just doesn't register as a favorite character, let alone one that's worth being in the franchise at all. To me, Jigglypuff is the definition of a nothing character, I'm not mad that she's here, but I also wouldn't be mad if she was given the boot, with feelings like that it shouldn't be a surprise why I feel she deserves a spot on here.

9-THE LINKS

Much like the previous character, I don't hate Link, but I'll include him with his clones (Young Link and Toon Link) because I don't see any reason why we need more than one Link. I love the various incarnations of Link as I am a big fan of his series, but we seriously don't need the variations as their own characters. I hated Young Link, while Toon Link was surprisingly better then his original counterpart, the original Link, who is just sort of average, and always has been when compared to the rosters of each game. Personally, Toon Link is my favorite of the three Links, as well as from the Zelda franchise, so if they decided to cut everyone and make him the official Link here, I just wouldn't mind, but that's likely not going to happen, so please just keep it to Link in the future. This one may be a bit of a nitpick, but then again it's my list and I feel the multiple Links are unnecessary, especially when they could just bring another character from his franchise to be a representative.

8-MII FIGHTERS

I'm sure the Mii Fighters are special for a lot of people, but they barely register as actual characters for me. I wouldn't want them cut out, but the Mii Fighters just mean so little to me; since they are completely custom made characters, they mainly feel like simplified versions of other characters in the franchise. The biggest problem I have with the Mii's isn't that they can't be used competitively online (which to be fair is a big problem), the biggest problem is that I would rather play as anyone else. I like the concept of these characters, don't get me wrong, but "Smash" is more about the joys of playing characters from established franchise in one game, while the Mii Fighters are mostly original, sure they're based on a Nintendo concept, but there's no brand of uniqueness to them beyond what they look like, and even that has it's limits. I love the concept, but it's too much of a gimmick for my tastes.

7-MARTH

Oh boy the pitchforks are already at my door aren't they? I am not a Fire Emblem fan okay?  I don't care much for the series, so it's not like I'm afraid of pulling this one, that being said, Marth was not originally planned for this list, no, originally I wanted this spot for Roy, until I realized one important thing, I actually prefer playing as Roy over Marth. I know Roy is technically the clone, but given that he is a better choice where it counts, Marth just feels more appropriate on here. I might've felt differently about the choice had Roy not premiered on the same game ("Melee") as Marth, but as it stands Marth's main downfall is just being the lesser of the two, why play Marth, when you can play an identical, yet better fighter? Marth just doesn't have the same charm that Roy does, had Roy been equal or lesser to Marth, I would've definitely avoided this choice, but as it stands, Marth may be the original, but the clone is superior. As with the choices before, this is purely my opinion, so please don't take it too harsh, I just don't see much reason for Marth being in the roster.

6-ZELDA

Pissed again? Look I almost didn't want to put Zelda here, let alone this high, but then I realized, how many people (myself included) often transformed into Sheik as soon as the fight started, well pretty much everyone. In the most recent game ("Smash 4"), Zelda was separated from Sheik, a fact many were angered about, but realistically, shouldn't have been considering most played Zelda, just to play Sheik. I get that most people love the unpredictability of switching between characters in a match, but if we're honest, who actually played equally as both Zelda and Sheik? No one, and for that reason Zelda deserves a spot on this list, she's the character we picked, just to be someone else.

5-DR. MARIO

Here's where I really start hating the characters, sure I have issues with the characters mentioned before, but aside from Young Link, I don't hate any of them, I just don't like them as much as the other characters. Dr. Mario shouldn't be a character, he's a costume, yeah he's heavier, but why? He shoots pills instead of fireballs, but in the recent game(s) we had custom moves, and yes he no longer shares his down special with Mario, but that's not enough to give him his own slot. I might've given him some credit if he were better than regular Mario, but the added weight and slower speed do little to help, more often than not it actually hinders him. I'll admit I love Mario enough to give a clone of his a lower spot, but that still doesn't excuse the good doctor from being in my worst list. I just hope he gets demoted to costume at some point in the future, as he is now, Dr. Mario is just useless filler.

4-LUCINA

Yet another clone, and once again it's one of the three that people complained about in the most recent entry. Lucina should have been left as a costume, it would have made for a nice nod to the games (from what I've heard she poses as Marth in her game) and wouldn't have felt as random in terms of character choices. In Lucina's case, I barely notice a difference between her and the character she was a clone of, I know there are differences, I just don't see it enough to feel much reason to play as her often, in other words, I have less reason to play as her when I have a better choice waiting inside the game, who happens to be the lesser choice of another character (hooray for Roy DLC). One thing that feels insulting here is that according to Sakurai, the mind behind these games, the choice for Robin's inclusion came from wanting to bring a unique character from that series, someone who wasn't just a Sword user, yet Lucina still got added. I'm willing to admit I felt there were already too many representatives of that series, a feeling shared by many, but that's a minor reason as to why she's on this list, at least for me it is. She might not have taken much time to be added in, but that's no reason to be excused, Lucina is just another useless clone, and the third option amongst that set, she is one of the worst.

3-DARK PIT

Surprise! It's him, the third member of the most hated characters from "Smash 4", Dark Pit is actually the most insulting of the three, at least to me. Dr. Mario was a mistake from an earlier game, while Lucina is at least a completely different character, but Dark Pit is a clone by nature, even in his first official appearance, "Pittoo" here was a clone, it's his origin, so he plays incredibly similar to his original counterpart, that was never going to be a surprise. I think what mainly adds to the insult here is that in "Brawl", Pit had a costume that looked very similar to Dark Pit, so compared to the prior choices, Dark Pit feels like a costume who was given a bump to character for no real reason. I get that Sakurai wanted him (as well as Dr. Mario and Lucina) to feel like an extra treat in the game, but sorry, I would've preferred them as costumes, padding out a roster isn't worth it if you're not going to put that effort all across. Dark Pit, more so than the other two, was never, (and most likely never will be) his own character, he will always be a clone, what a waste. The worst part here though, is that Dark Pit isn't even the worst character in the franchise, which I assume makes you wonder how any character could be worse.

2-PICHU

I HATE PICHU! I'm not just talking about this franchise though, I'm talking about the character in general. Unlike any other character in this list (even my number one worst) I just hate Pichu as a whole, he's not useful in his own franchise, his TV appearances were annoying and as a "cute" version of Pikachu he fails, Pikachu is still more adorable than this loser. Beyond the "Smash" franchise, I actually enjoy most of these characters in their respective franchises, or at least tolerate them (Fire Emblem), but Pichu is the exception, I have never liked Pichu as a character or concept, so his departure from the series as actually been a blessing for me. What really brings him down here for me, is that he's quite possibly the weakest fighter in Smash history, he's so weak that his own attacks hurt him, why would anyone want to play a fighter like that? I wouldn't, that's just a joke, a sad one. I honestly believe Pichu is the biggest joke in the franchise, a clone, in fact an incredibly weak clone with nothing exciting to offer, beyond it being the fighter who does nothing but hit itself. As bad as he is though, Pichu is still just the second worst fighter in the franchise, second only to...

1-GANONDORF

I love Ganondorf, he's a great villain, but in "Smash" he is just the worst. Three games in a row, and Ganondorf is still just a Captain Falcon clone, there is no excuse for that, yet they keep bringing him back in that style. While the previous character listed is technically a worse character, Ganondorf manages to steal the top spot for having stayed in the roster since his first appearance without being his own character. While various clone characters exist, Ganondorf here, is the most puzzling of the bunch, largely because there is no reason why he is one, let alone one who happens to steal all of his moves from a character not associated at all with his franchise. While not the worst/weakest fighter to handle in the series, Ganondorf embodies the worst traits in a character, he's a clone, a character who lacks reason to be in the roster, someone with better options readily available that put his move set to better use and the most bothersome reason of all, he is a veteran who will likely keep coming back in the same way for no reason, but because he fills an important void for The Legend of Zelda representatives, Ganondorf will forever be the worst crime in the franchise, I am so disappointed. He could be a better character, but I guess catering to "Melee" fans who might be pissed if his moveset is completely changed is more important than bringing him a unique flavor, Ganondorf is simply the worst representation the franchise has ever done.

Additional Notes
*As mentioned before, I love, or at least tolerate most of these characters, except for Pichu, so my choices aren't based on who they are outside of this franchise.
*I am disappointed to have "Zelda" characters make up so much of the list, I love that franchise, it's among my top five Nintendo franchises, easily, but that doesn't excuse their poor treatment in this series.
*I perfectly understand if you disagree with this list, despite being a "worst" list, most characters here aren't even the weakest/worst to handle, but my decisions were based on which characters stood out the least, offered the least amount of reason to play, or just felt too repetitive to even deserve a spot on the roster. "Smash" to me is about the wild, odd, unique gameplay styles of various franchises coming together, to see characters who act too similar to other ones just bores me.
*I have a soft spot for Luigi, Falco, and Wolf, they may be clones to an extent, but they offer enough of their own flavors to their styles.
*Lucas was almost on this list, but missed out by having just enough differences to make me enjoy him as his own charcter.
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*Here's my Amiibo collection in case you were wondering.


Written By Octaviano Macias

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