Every day this month I'll be posting about a character in the new Smash Bros. - whether confirmed or speculative. I'll talk about how veterans should change, who should return and which newcomers could make the transition to fighting game star!
I think it's fair to start the month off with the most famous plumber in the world, Mario. As soon as a new Smash is announced, it's as certain you'll see this guy pop up as it's certain that Ryu will be in the next Street Fighter or that Zelda Wii U might star a blonde bloke with a pointy green hat.
He's the most standard fighter of the lot in every iteration, but that's no bad thing - playing with Mario offers juicy attacks that feel powerful to perform, meaty grabs with some small combo potential whilst all the while teaching you fundamental properties of the game without being too bizarre. No, he doesn't offer gimmick moves or transformations but he doesn't need them. All his smashes are lethal and easy to use, his speed matches his strength and he has basic versions of every tool you'll need; a slow but effective fireball and a counter in the form of a cape help him go from "bog-standard" to "Jack of all trades".
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| The "Shinku Fireball" says it all, really. |
But Nintendo, there's one qualm I have with Mario. What happened to his Down+B attack? I never used it much in Melee personally, but it was a wildcard move that had some damage to give out and maybe even score a lucky kill with. But in Brawl, we were instead given... FLUDD? Don't get me wrong, it's a great idea in principle and done right could add a lot to the character but in combat it just offered nothing. Once you were done with the monstrous charge time, it just squirted water. Not even fast. Not even damaging. It just pushed an opponent back slightly, a trick an opponent could easily counter after the first time seeing it. It wasn't even powerful enough to do anything drastic to Mario's edge guard game - it was certainly no better than just giving chase with a punch or kick.
Early gameplay for Smash 4 suggests that FLUDD made the transition. Did it really have to, guys? Imagine Down_B instead replaced with Mario's signature spin attack from galaxy - it could be an unpredictable move similar in function to Link's Up+B but with less power. If FLUDD is truly going to stick, let's just hope that the range is improved, the charge time is reduced and perhaps allow it to easily be cancelled to prevent a horrible counter move. Perhaps even allow it to deal some minor damage? It would give our mustached friend a new lease of life at mid-range.
What do you guys think about Mario? Let me know what new moves he could do with, what worked for him in previous games and just generally if you enjoy playing with him. Leave a comment below or leave a wall post over on my facebook page.
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