I have always loved Super Smash Bros. From the first time my babysitter brought the game over to keep us quiet, I dreamed of the day that I myself would own this glorious tribute to mascots pummeling each other.
That day has long since passed, from buying my own Gamecube with Melee to this very day picking up the new game for the 3DS. Though I have not gotten a chance to really delve into each individual character, I think I've played it enough at this point to give you all a general feel for the game's functionality.
First off, there are a TON of characters and settings unlocked right of the bat. Worried that you'll have to spend hours of play time to unlock Little Mac or Mega Man? Worry no more, because they're all there right from the start. Final Destination is also an option right from the get-go, and I can see a lot of people feeling that this removes the incentive to play the single-player game.
Darn.
Super Smash Bros is not meant to be single player. Half the reason I got this version was because of the online capacity to play friends. Let's be honest, making the most desirable characters and maps in this instance, that is to say for a party game, is actively detrimental to the cause. Nintendo, as one of the few game companies that remembers video games are about FUN, realized this and gave the people the capacity to enjoy the game how they choose right from the get-go.
That's not to say there aren't unlockables, because boy are there. Challenges, Mii accessories, trophies, a few special characters, but nothing that would feel like you have an incomplete game without.
The single player functions that do exist are mainly series of challenge modes. The classic single-player campaign from the N64 days is there, though it's updated, as well as multi-enemy challenge modes. They're all decent and pretty standard fun-wise for what we've come to expect from the series.
As far as the feel of the controls go, I'm certainly impressed. While this is a game that would be easier to player with a 3DS XL, it's certainly approachable. It's clear that they went for emulating the console controls as closely as possible, but there is the option to switch the buttons around. This is good, because, at least in my experience, there are more comfortable configurations than the default. That said, however, the controls are responsive, and it really does feel as though you're playing a Smash Bros. game.
As far as downsides go, the biggest complaint I have are some of the larger maps. The limited size of a 3DS screen means that when the camera zooms out too much, it becomes hard to follow where you are. Second, while it does feel like a Smash Bros. game, so far in my experience it's not quite different enough from Brawl to feel like a new version, new characters aside.
But, this is just a very first impression. I'm sure there will be plenty more ups and downs to figure out as I keep trying out new characters and getting more unlockables.
For now though, good job on Little Mac, guys. You did not disappoint there.
Comics, Video Games, Movies and More
10/3/14
8/24/14
The Fat Kid Road Trip part 4: The Search for Spock
Call me Ishmael.
Okay, don't actually do that, but finding the Moonshine Store was
like our white whale. We crossed what felt like an endless sea of
green fields, spying the waves of corn and hearing only our stomachs
rumble in anticipation for something we were only mostly sure
existed. Joey's epic road trip play list (which consisted of two
techno remixes and the entire Ronnie James Dio cover album) did
little to cure our impatience as the GPS led us deeper and deeper
into the exact middle of nowhere.
My point is, if you ever feel like going to the Moonshine Store
yourself, don't be discouraged by the absolute lack of anything
anywhere. Likewise, don't be daunted by what looks like an old
farmhouse, because that's exactly what this place is.
STOP FOUR
Name: Moonshine Store
Locations: Martinsville, IL
Suggested by: Joel
 |
| Some say he's written works that would put Chaucer to shame. All we know is, he's Joel. |
Despite
the extremely remote location the Moonshine Store is a crowded place.
Located at 6017 E. 300th
Rd in Martinsville, the store is open from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m., and
you'd best not wait until the last minute to get there, because once
they run out of beef, they close up shop for the day on the spot.
The inside of the facility is like if all the nick-knacks of a
hundred Cracker Barrels were swept in by a tornado of charmingly
quaint antiquities. There are no tables, no chairs, just a counter to
order, a table of condiments a rack of chips and some coolers of
drinks. Memorabilia aside, it's probably the most straightforward and
least gimmicky establishment I've ever experienced. When you sit down
at the picnic tables outside the building though, you aren't worried
about that. No, you've trekked through some of the most barren
stretches of Illinois to get here, and you're only worry is whether
the food in front of you is up to par.
Did it ever exceed my expectations. To have a place this far from any
town, this far from what could reasonably be called your target
buyers, and to have it be so crowded, you have to be doing something
right, and what the Moonshine Store does right are the burgers. I
have no idea what they do, I don't know what kind of beef they use,
but something about the way these things are cooked makes for a
wonderful slab of meat on a bun.
Whether or not the food is worth the trip probably depends entirely on how much you like hamburger, or beef in general. If you like it as much as I do, then this one is a no-brainer.
7/18/14
7/15/14
The Fat Kid Road Trip part 3: The Revenge
After our stop at Chicago's most
unusual hot dog venue, we departed to the magical land of Portland,
Wisconsin...I mean Milwaukee, Oregon...I mean...
Maybe it was just the district we were
in. Maybe it was because Summerfest was happening in roughly the same
area. Maybe we were just being judgmental. There was no denying,
however, that there were a lot of people who's legs were apparently
uncomfortably hot while their heads were apparently uncomfortably
cold.
 |
| If you or someone you know is afflicted with being a hipster, seek professional help |
Hipster's aside, Milwaukee is a
pleasant place during the summer (which I understand lasts roughly
two days). It has more of a small-town vibe than a big city feel, and
getting around is nowhere near as harrowing an experience as
somewhere like Chicago.
We hadn't come to wonder at the
population of hipsters or the scenery, however. We came for the Comet
Cafe.
STOP THREE
Name: Comet Cafe
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Suggested by: Joemiroquoi
Despite the extensive vegan menu and soda menu consisting of things
“you've probably never heard of”, Comet Cafe and I can find
common ground in one way: we love bacon. Few non-vegan dishes on the
menu are without this champion of meat, and that alone is something I
can appreciate. With that in mind, Joel and I ordered different
variations of the bacon-wrapped meatloaf.
 |
| More like the MEAT TOWER |
Before a meatloaf at Comet Cafe is cooked, the entire pan is covered
with bacon. Once the beef is prepared and added, the bacon is wrapped
around the entire block, giving every slice an outer shell of pure
goodness.
Joey had come for one thing though, and strangely enough it was one
of the few non-bacon dishes. He had come for the “Thanksgiving in a
Ball”.
 |
| A dish so American I just saluted thinking about it |
Turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes all rolled up into balls larger
than baseballs and deep fried to perfection. The picture does not do
justice to the magnitude of this dish. Joey looked as one who had
achieved Nirvana, but there was a problem: there was too much food.
He plowed through a ball and a half out of three, and although he
said the food was just as good as the first bite, there was only so
much his system could take. There was no way, however, that we were
going to have driven that far just for him to give up halfway
through. Joey needed inspiration, and we had just the thing.
The previous night we had been playing the fighting game Dead or
Alive 4. There were four catagories of characters in that game for
Joey: Ones he likes, ones that were okay, ones that were bad, and
Akira.
 |
| Try not to get my gi dirty...my mom just bleached it |
For those who haven't played the game, Dead or Alive relies heavily
on a counter system, meaning you have to be good at predicting the
kind of move your opponent is attempting. Akira's off-tempo style
makes this very, very difficult. Oh the rage, oh the ranting, oh the
insults towards to a set of animations. Joey's loathing of Akira and
everything he does in that game was as passionate as it was
hilarious, and it just might have saved the day. Turning to Joel, I
said the magic words.
“You know, I bet Akira could finish that.”
 |
| (artist's rendition of the reaction) |
That lit a fire in Joey's eyes. It wasn't pretty, he wasn't in good
shape after, but he conquered the Thanksgiving in a Balls. I'm not
saying we had to get a wheelbarrow to get him out of the
establishment, but I'm not going to formally go on record to say we
didn't.
It was early in the trip for a meal to be so difficult to put down,
and it would only get harder from there. Would the trip south bring
greater challengers? Would we be able to finish everything on our
plates? The quest continues in Martinsville.
7/12/14
7/11/14
7/10/14
7/8/14
7/6/14
The Fat Kid Road Trip part 2: Electric Boogaloo
The first full day of our journey for a
larger waistline took us northwards, and as the northernmost resident
of Illinois, I got to be behind the wheel. I can't speak for how many
readers regularly travel the city of Chicago, but for those who
haven't gotten the chance, let me be the first to congratulate you.
It's not fun.
If you adhere to the tenants of
defensive driving and general
“not-feeling-like-you're-an-inch-from-death” then the Windy City
is not the place for you to commute. Want to change lanes? Well,
you're more or less forced to cut someone off to do so. Don't worry
though, because odds are you'd have been cut off with
brake-slammingly little warning about three times by that point. And
make no mistake, you will certainly have to contend with this. Unless
you've memorized the highway layout, figuring out what lane to be in
at what time is going to be like a sodoku puzzle locked in a Rubik’s
Cube given to a color-blind man.
But I digress. We made it to our
destination with surprisingly little hassle and surprisingly large
chunks of our car intact, just in time to enjoy some Hot Doug's.
STOP TWO
Name: Hot Doug's Meat Emporium
Location: Chicago, IL
Suggested by: Geekasaurus Mike
I like hot dogs, and I'm sure as a red-blooded American, so do you
(all of what google tells me is a surprisingly large Russian audience
can ignore that statement). In my humble opinion, there are few
better places to enjoy encased meats than Hot Doug's.
Located at 3324 N. California Ave in Chicago, the establishment is
well known for its high-quality product, it's unique atmosphere and
staff (more on that in a moment) and it's creative dish naming. Every
one of the regular menu items is named after a celebrity, and those
names change on a regular basis. The Bo Derek, an Andouille Sausage,
for example, has been formerly called the Brigette Bardot, the Salma
Hayek, the Madonna, the Raquel Welch and the Ann-Margret.
 |
| None of which are pictured here |
Hot Doug's major claim to fame, however, is the Game of the Week, or
a hot dog made with a different unusual animal meat every week. These
have included yak, rattlesnake, wild boar and kangaroo in the past.
Every Friday and Saturday, the restaurant also offers “duck fat”
cooked fries.
If you're looking to eat at a decent hour, you'd better get there
early. We had a half-hour wait outside just to get inside the
building, let alone to the cash register. Doug himself was working
the till when we arrived, and that's when their unusual take on
customer service began. Upon learning that we were eating in, Joey
was implicitly told to order a small drink, but just take a large cup
so he didn't have to keep refilling it. I can't name many places that
would argue with someone trying to pay more, but there you are.
The second unusual thing was, as we were sitting outside due to
space, a voice rang out from behind me.
“Hey! Joey!”
From the tone, I expected a miracle coincidence had occurred where
someone Joey knew had run into us. I was wrong. The voice belonged to
our server. The third unusual thing was that it was a Chicago hot dog
store that had ketchup bottles.
What we hadn't realized upon leaving, sadly, was that the
establishment was cash-only. We were somewhat limited in our choices
therefore, but although we had simple Chicago-dogs, corndogs (the
Shirley Hardman) and a Bo Derek between us, Hot Doug's certainly
managed to live up to its reputation.
If you want to eat at Hot Doug's, you'd best hurry. Sadly, Doug will
be retiring, and closing his shop on October fourth. Until then, I
highly recommend giving it at least one shot before it's gone
forever.
6/30/14
The Fat Kid Road Trip Part 1: The Beginning
Between start of the World Cup, and the
coming of Independence day, there was an age undreamed of. Hither
came three men, destined to consume the greatest dishes in all of
Illinois (and some in other states). It is I alone who can tell you
of our story.
Let me tell you of the days of the Fat
Kid Road Trip.
 |
| Hey, it's still better than this one. |
We mapped out our course, and invited
our third friend, Joel “The unGoogleable Man” to aid us in this
mighty deed.
 |
| Some say he hasn't eaten anything he didn't kill with his bare hands. All we know is, he's Joel. |
STOP ONE
Name:
Alehouse Pub
Location:
Kankakee, IL
Suggested
by: Geekasaurus Mike
They say that the journey of 10,000
miles begins with a single step. In our case, the journey of
significantly fewer miles began with a trip down the street, to the
Alehouse Pub. I had been there once before, and the moment my food
was brought out I knew it had to be a stop on the Fat Kid Road Trip.
Though from the outside it may advertise itself as a bar for craft
beers, the burgers are some of the best you're likely to find.
Take for example, the Tennessean (show
picture) ordered by Joey. That's a kobe beef patty topped with pulled
pork and deep-fried Mac N' Cheese.
 |
| BEHOLD |
I will take a moment to allow your
heart to stop freaking out at the idea.
I myself got a burger called
“The Cheesehead”, a Bison beef burger smothered in cheese with
cheese curds on the top.
 |
| Dangerously cheesy |
When you order a burger at the Alehouse, you select your type of burger, your meat (angus, kobe, bison or veggie) the type of bun (regular or pretzel) and toppings. There is no way I know of to go wrong with any combination, but I'd be more than willing to do some experimenting to find out.
The pub also boasts an extensive beer
menu, one that changes all the time to fit the season. If you're like
me and love your beer as black as the night, or if you walk on the
lighter side, Alehouse Pub in Kankakee has you covered.
Unfortunately, we had just missed the
bluegrass band that had been performing, but local musicians are a
regular commodity at the Alehouse, and it's free admission to all of
them.
The Alehouse Pub provided some of the
best burgers, fries and beer that any of us had experienced, but it was not being compared
to McDonald's and Burger King. To hold it's place, it would have to
contend with some of the best beef in the State. Would it hold that
title? Find out next time.
3/27/14
3/25/14
Awesome Comic Tuesday: D-D-D-DEADPOOL
I had a similar, though largely downgrade, reaction to The Last Airbender.
3/20/14
3/18/14
Awesome Comic Tuesday
3/11/14
Awesome Comic Tuesday: The Hectic Life of Batman
Fun Fact: "What's Opera Doc" is one of the two Loony Toons shorts currently preserved by the Smithsonian.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)