CREDIT: STEPHANIE LAI
Super Smash Bros. is finally available for hand-held devices like the Nintendo 3DS, and it will be available for WiiU later in November.

In 1999, Nintendo released a simple little title to the Nintendo 64 where the company took 12 of its historic characters and threw them into a ring with one purpose only – to beat the ever-loving crap out of each other until there is only one left standing.

That title, of course, is Super Smash Bros., and in the last 15 years it has become a staple of living rooms, dorms and official tournaments all over the world.

Two sequels later, one of which is considered the absolute peak of the series and the other the absolute low, Nintendo has finally set out to release the fourth edition of its mascot fighter, with the main event hitting the Wii U on November 21.

In the meantime, however, the game has made the transition to handhelds, allowing 3DS owners to take Super Smash Bros. and all its glory on the go, something that was never possible before, and to be quite honest, not something many people ever expected to see.

So does it hold up on its own or is it merely a taster for the main event?

The most important thing to Smash veterans is the pacing of the game, the slower version of the last iteration drawing the ire of many and directly contributing to the low regard in which it is held, and it would seem that Nintendo listened closely to their customers in this regard. The new edition is much quicker than Brawl without quite hitting the frantic pace of Melee, and impressively, the action all runs at a silky smooth 60 frames per second despite the limited power of the handheld console. Character models are fabulously detailed and animated, especially when paused and zoomed in, and the various 3DS offered maps are serviceable, with both returning and new stages providing a wide variety of areas to set your fight in.

As with any fighter though, the aspect that is the most picked apart and analyzed is the character roster, which is often met with more scrutiny than usual, solely due to the fact that these fighters are peoples’ favourite characters, and everyone has someone they wanted to see make an appearance.

Thankfully, the sizeable roster – 36 starters, 12 unlockable – offers a wide variety of characters, so everyone can find somebody that matches their tastes, favourite games and play style, often to the point where it’s hard to choose just who you’d like to play as. The returning veterans are all there, with the exception of the Ice Climbers (RIP), and when looking at the newcomers, there is not a dud among them, some bringing some truly unique twists and skills to the Smash formula. Third-party characters such as Mega Man and Pac-Man join in with Mario, Pikachu and Link to give players what is easily the best roster seen in a Smash Bros. game yet.

It may be seen as just a teaser until the main event this November, but Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS is a worthy entry to the series on its own merit, and is easily one of the best games on the console. The feel of the classic game has translated well to handheld, the graphics and gameplay hold up and most importantly, it’s more Smash Bros., and that is never a bad thing.