Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a fighting game for the Wii. This is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series and the follow-up to Super Smash Bros. Melee for the Nintendo GameCube. It was designed by Masahiro Sakurai, who also made the preceding Super Smash Bros. games, and developed by a team that was specifically created for it. The game uses a game engine called Havok that mainly focuses on the game physics, which was provided by an Irish company of the same name. After a planned release date of December 3, 2007 in North America, all regions had their release dates pushed back. It was then slated for release on February 10, 2008 in North America, and January 24, 2008 for Japan. However, on January 15, 2008, it was then delayed to January 31, 2008 for Japan and March 9, 2008 for North America. It was released in Oceania on June 26, 2008 and in Europe on June 27, 2008.

Gameplay
Super Smash Bros. Brawl shares the same basic controls as its predecessors. Players attack their opponent to increase the opponent's percentage. The higher the percentage, the faster players will be sent flying. The objective is to knock opponents off the blast line to score a KO. Again, this game employs simple button inputs to perform various moves. performs basic moves on the ground or in midair while has the character perform special moves. Players can do several moves depending on where is tilted. If players are knocked from the stage, they can use their midair jump and special moves, typically and tilting up on  to recover.

Another basic, yet vital move players can do is to shield, which blocks most attacks. The shield shrinks the longer the player holds the button or if the shield blocks attacks. If the shield is too small, the player is vulnerable to attacks, the process of which is known as shield stabbing. If the shield breaks, the player is momentarily stunned. Grabs can also circumvent the shield. Once the player has grabbed an opponent, she can either pummel the opponent with the attack button or throw the opponent with. Opponents can break free of grabs by moving the control stick and mashing buttons, but the higher the percentage, the longer it takes for opponents to be released.

A new battle mechanic is the Final Smash that was originally intended to be featured in the first game of the series, but was scrapped for technical reasons, which can be used only by collecting a Smash Ball. Final Smashes are extremely powerful attacks, character transformations or stage hazards that normally guarantee a KO on the opponent. Players are now able to walk and jump while using projectile-shooting items, like the Super Scope, where in Melee, this wasn't possible.

As a new feature in the game, certain characters can crawl. Such characters are Bowser, Diddy Kong, Ivysaur, Lucario, Luigi, Pikachu, Sheik, Solid Snake, Squirtle, Wario, Yoshi, and Zero Suit Samus.

A new technique called the Footstool Jump is introduced. It allows players to jump on an another player's head up to five times and spring up by pressing the jump button at the right time. Players are be able to perform Meteor Smashes by doing this as well. The tether recovery is a returning tactic in the game. It allows players to grab onto ledges using chain-like items, such as a Plasma Whip or a Link's Hookshot. Gliding is also a technique in this game, available only to winged characters. When gliding is used, players are able to glide across the stage and be able to control the way they fly. They can direct themselves upwards or downwards, depending on the direction the or the  is pointed in.

Another feature not present in the past two games is slipping. Any character can slip. The feature has no upside for the players that slip other than the invincibility frames that are granted to them when they get up. Players can slip when trying to run suddenly, go down slopes, turn around or walking on a Banana Peel.

The game also features three different Taunts for each character, while the past games only feature one taunt. Snake is the only character that has all identical taunts.

The game can be controlled with one of the four controlling methods: There are a few differences between the controller methods. The Wii Remote and the Nunchuk Attachment has a special feature, the Shake Smash, allowing the players to execute smash attacks in the direction they shake the controller to. The Classic Controller, Wii Remote + Nunchuk Attachment, and the GameCube controller also have a function which disables the jump by tapping the control stick upwards.

The execution of standard combos has been made simpler; for many characters, the attack button no longer has to be hit repeatedly, but it is enough to hold it down for the character to start a combo attack. The effects, however, usually differ.

Players are able to set their own button configuration rather than have to play with the default configuration. The configuration can be saved on the Wii Remote's internal memory, allowing to take it to a friend's and play with one's own button configuration there. The Players are able to insert names with up to five letters, as in Super Smash Bros. Melee. In the previous game, names are only a gimmick. In this game, they now also save the players' controlling options to avoid having to select the control method each time.

Playable characters
With 35 playable characters (39, if Sheik, Zero Suit Samus, and the Pokémon Trainer's three Pokémon without including Pokémon Trainer are counted), Super Smash Bros. Brawl has 10 more characters than the previous installment. 21 characters (25, if Sheik, Zero Suit Samus, and the Pokémon Trainer's three Pokémon without including Pokémon Trainer are counted) are available directly from the start, while the other 14 need to be unlocked to become playable. Only five of the characters from the previous game aren't playable in this game, which are Roy, Dr. Mario, Young Link, Pichu, and Mewtwo, while 15 brand new characters (18 counting Zero Suit Samus and only the individual Pokémon) have been added. Additionally, Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the first game in the series to feature third-party characters as playable characters, in this case being Sonic and Solid Snake. The Special Moves and Final Smash for each character are listed on the right-side column.

Of the roster, eight characters are from the Mario universe and its sub-universes: Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Yoshi, and Wario.

Unlockable characters
In addition to the characters listed above, the following characters can be unlocked when certain requirements are met. Additionally, as new characters are unlocked, they are added to the group of fighters at the beginning intro of the game.

Stages
There are 41 total stages in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. 10 of these stages are returning stages from Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Unlockable stages
In addition to the above stages, there are several stages that must be unlocked to play on.

Items
Items randomly appear on any stage in the game, and in standard Brawl mode, the player can choose to ban certain items from appearing or increase/decrease the frequency of items appearing. In Classic and All Star mode, these options cannot be modified. Certain items from particular game series appear more frequently than they would on other stages, such as Banana Peels on Donkey Kong stages, Poké Balls on Pokémon stages, etc.

The Subspace Emissary
The Subspace Emissary is the equivalent to Adventure Mode of Super Smash Bros. Melee, but with a much more complex plot and more gameplay time. Subspace Emissary is set in the World of Trophies. There are five difficulties to choose from: Easy, Medium, Hard, Very Hard, and Intense. The player has a choice to save game progress after completing each level.

The Subspace Emissary uses a team system. Two players can play in the Subspace Emissary at one time, with second player being an optional supporting character. Due to the camera following the main character, if the second character cannot follow the scroll and becomes off-screen, they are automatically warped. If Player 1 is defeated, and Player 2 is not, the game will still be over. Also, by pressing the Start or Plus Button, Player 2 can always warp to wherever Player 1 is. This, however, does not work during boss battles in the Emissary. The main screen shows where to go next, and the character selection screen allows the player to choose their team. In single player, teams are still available. However, the second character is akin to an extra life, and if the main character is defeated, the player takes control of the second character, until it, too, is defeated.

The player is able to use Sticker power-ups for the mode. The stickers are arranging on the character's Trophy Stand and give bonuses on Launch Power, Launch Resistance, and powers and resistances to several attacks like Arm, Weapon, Slash, Electric and Flame. The effects vary from sticker to sticker. When the player loses all of their lives, they can be asked to continue but stickers and enemy turned trophies will be cut in half, if they decide to quit, they will get a Game Over and lose half of their stickers, but they may keep the trophies.

All unlockable characters can be unlocked by playing Subspace Emissary mode, but three of them can only be unlocked after the mode has been completed, and which then they must be beaten.

Plot


"The Subspace Emissary" is the adventure and story mode of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, taking place in the World of Trophies, where being defeated in battle turns a character into a trophy. The story begins with the Subspace Army, riding the Halberd, interrupting a fight between Mario and Kirby, while Peach and Zelda watch from the stands. The mysterious Ancient Minister deploys a Subspace Bomb controlled by two R.O.B.s, and while Mario tries to intercept it, he is knocked away by Petey Piranha, who has captured both princesses. Kirby defeats Petey and rescues one princess, while Wario steals the other, and after they all leave, the bomb detonates and the arena is consumed by Subspace.

Fox attempts to fight the Halberd in his Arwing but is struck down by the larger vessel and crashes in a jungle, where he joins forces with Diddy, who has been separated from Donkey Kong earlier by Bowser. They are joined by Falco and eventually Captain Falcon and Olimar, and together they save Donkey Kong from the Subspace Army, at which point Fox and Falco leave to resume their battle with the Halberd, now assisted by their carrier ship, the Great Fox.

Elsewhere, King Dedede captures Luigi and uses him as bait for Wario, stealing his transport and all his trophies (including Luigi himself) when he is distracted. Wario is then defeated by Lucas and Pokémon Trainer in retaliation for capturing Ness earlier. After Pokémon Trainer catches Charizard, he and Lucas meet up with Marth, Meta Knight and Ike, who has already joined forces against the Subspace Army. They witness the Halberd battling the Great Fox, prompting Meta Knight to scale the cliffs in an attempt to reclaim his ship. On the way up, he is joined by the Ice Climbers and on the summit he teams with Lucario after an initial duel. The Ice Climbers fall when the Halberd smashes the tethered Great Fox against the mountain, but Meta Knight and Lucario take the opportunity to board the ship.

Meanwhile, Pit finds and revives Mario, while Link and Yoshi join forces against the Subspace Army. When Kirby wanders off, the second princess is captured by Bowser, who makes a clone of her. If the clone is of Peach, it attacks and is defeated by Link, which is witnessed by Mario, who retaliates; if the clone is of Zelda, it is defeated by Mario and Link attacks him instead. Either way, the combatants realize the misunderstanding when Dedede drives by with the other princess statue, spurring them to team up against their common enemy. They tail him back to his castle but are unable to stop Bowser from crashing in and taking the princess, leaving behind a badge that King Dedede had put on his three stolen statues. The heroes then meet up with the Ice Climbers, Lucas, Pokémon Trainer, Marth, and Ike.

While all that is happening, Zero Suit Samus infiltrates the Subspace Army's base on the floating Isle of the Ancients, rescues Pikachu, recovers her Power Suit and battles Ridley. She and Pikachu make their way to the Subspace Bomb depot at the same time as Diddy, Donkey Kong, Captain Falcon, and Olimar, who has ridden an enemy barge to the island. They are confronted by the Ancient Minister, but after sacrificing so many R.O.B.s to detonate numerous Subspace Bombs by that point, he is unwilling to fight the Smashers. His commander Ganondorf then takes control of the robots and they shoot the Ancient Minister, burning away his clothes to reveal that he is also an R.O.B. The controlled robots all activate bombs, and unable to stop them, the heroes flee on the Falcon Flyer.

Back on the Halberd, Meta Knight and Lucario team up with Snake, free the captured princesses and kick a crew of Mr. Game & Watch clones out of the cockpit. Peach and Zelda (in her Sheik disguise) make their way onto the deck as Fox and Falco attack in their Arwings, and when the exchange of shots nearly hurts Peach, Sheik retaliates and forces Fox to eject from his Arwing. Peach diffuses the tense situation by offering both Sheik and Fox tea, however, and along with Snake, Lucario and Falco, the trio defeat the Duon robot that forms from the Mr. Game & Watch clones, freeing the real Mr. Game & Watch. Meta Knight then takes the helm and flies the Halberd to shore at the same time as the Falcon Flyer lands, uniting the three groups of combatants.

Ganondorf and Bowser use the massive sphere of Subspace that had engulfed the Isle of the Ancients to bring a giant gunship into the World of Trophies and use it to fire larger Subspace blasts. The Halberd attacks and is destroyed, but this was cover to allow a group of the Smashers' smaller ships to get in close and infiltrate Subspace. Kirby also destroys the gunship with the Dragoon. The villains retreat, but Ganondorf betrays Bowser, transforming him into a trophy as he alone visits Master Hand, only to find he has been under the control of Tabuu all along. Tabuu immediately defeats Master Hand and transforms Ganondorf and all the protagonists into trophies.

King Dedede's badges, however, revive Ness, Luigi, and Kirby, who has eaten the dropped one, and they rescue everyone else, both allies and former enemies. Banded together against Tabuu, the group head through The Great Maze, defeating all the bosses and dark versions of themselves. Once they reach Tabuu, Sonic arrives and destroys his wings, preventing him from transforming the group back into trophies again, and together, the Smashers defeat Tabuu and restore the World of Trophies.

Classic mode
Classic mode returns from Super Smash Bros. Melee, acting the same way. Players pick a character, and then go through a barrage of fights. Each stage appears in a certain order, with a Legend of Zelda stage appearing first, and a Pokémon stage appearing third. Like the last game, certain conditions are set in a few matches. A few examples are the player fighting a giant version of an opponent, either with two allies (only against Giant Yoshi), one ally, or none, or the player fighting a metal version of another player. A small heart appears next to a teammate's logo in the matches with allies. When a level is finished, the score is added up, and coins are earned. These can be used in the Coin Launcher. Clearing this mode will give the player a trophy of the character used to complete it.

Bosses
Sometimes both Hands will appear at one time.

All-Star mode
All-Star mode returns from Melee, while basically the same it has had some slight modifications. It can now be played with two players and opponents are now sorted by Series rather than in a random order. No more than two foes appear at the time. The Pokémon Level has the most enemies as Pokémon Trainer uses each Pokémon separately. It is unlocked by unlocking all the characters. Beating rewards the player with a trophy of the current character performing their Final Smash. Also, if All-Star is beaten with Co-op mode, Final Smash Trophies of both characters are rewarded. The order of the fights are also the order the games came out. Also, in Co-Op mode, the players must fight two Olimars in the last level.

Events
Events are an updated version of Super Smash Bros. Melee's Event Matches. They are pre-defined missions to be completed by the player; most of them have the objective of defeating certain opponents. Each event is represented by a small preview screenshot on the event list, and a difficulty (Easy - Normal - Hard) can be selected. Several events are also available in the co-op mode, which allows two players at a time to play. In this mode, they cooperate, thus cannot fight each other. The events are:

Co-Op mode
This mode requires two human players, and has different events from the single-player mode (excluding one which was also an event in Single-Player Mode).

Stadium
The Stadium offers several mini-games, as previously in Super Smash Bros. Melee and one new mode.

Target Smash!!
Also available in the Stadium mode is Target Smash!!, a slightly altered mode of the Target Test from the previous games. There are five different levels that all characters can play on, and the replays can be sent to other players via the Wi-Fi Connection. It is also possible to play Target Smash!! with two players simultaneously.

Home-Run Contest
The Home-Run Contest returns with quite a few differences. A shield surrounds the platform, preventing players from accidentally pushing Sandbag off the platform. However, the shield shatters if it is knocked around by the Sandbag too much. The shield disappears when the ten seconds are up. Two players can work together in cooperative play, with the two having to work together in order to set a good record. Two players can also challenge each other in two player alternating play, which features two characters taking turns to see who can punch Sandbag the farthest. Both of these modes can be played in Wi-Fi Connection mode, under the With Friends mode.

Multi-Man Brawl
Another returning feature is the Multi-Man Brawl, known as Multi-Man Melee in the previous game. In this mode, players fight the enormous Fighting Alloy Team. Objectives include defeating a certain number of Alloys, fighting them off for a set period of time, or fighting endlessly for a high score. 10 Man, 100 Man, 3 Minute, 15 minute, Endless, and Cruel Settings all return. Various rewards from the challenges section are obtained in this mode.

New additions to the mode include its inclusion in two-player mode, whereas in Melee the mode was strictly single player. The Fighting Wire Frames have been replaced by the Alloys. While there were only two types of Wire Frames, there are four types of Alloys. All alloys resemble and act like a certain character. Red Alloys act like Captain Falcon, Blue Alloys act like Zelda, Yellow Alloys act like Mario, and Green Alloys act like Kirby.

There are a variety of modes in Multi-Man /Brawl: Additionally in Cruel Brawl the Fighting Alloys are stronger, and are capable of making one hit KOs, while no items appear.
 * 10-Man Brawl - KO 10 enemies.
 * 100-Man Brawl - KO 100 enemies.
 * 3-Minute Brawl - Fight for 3 minutes.
 * 15-Minute Brawl - Fight for 15 minutes.
 * Endless Brawl - Fight until the player gets KO'd.
 * Cruel Brawl - Fight until the player gets KO'd.

Boss Battles
This mode is similar to All-Star mode, except the player must fight all of the bosses that appear in the game. The player is provided only with three Heart Containers that heal all damage, and they only have one life. Unlike All-Star, however, enemies are in random order (except for the final boss, Tabuu), and there is no option to continue after being defeated; players are instead taken directly back to the Character Select Screen. If the mode is cleared, the time taken is recorded for the high score. If not, the number of bosses defeated will be. Players can set the difficultly level to the same ones as other modes: Easy, Normal, Hard, Very Hard, or Intense. The difficulty levels will affect how fast the bosses will move, along with how much damage their attacks will inflict.

It is unlocked by clearing Subspace Emissary for the first time, and by defeating Classic Mode at least once. Crazy Hand does not have to be fought to unlock the game mode. Also, like All-Star mode, Boss Battles mode can be played with two players simultaneously. If done so, there will be six Heart Containers total instead of three at the healing area.

Training
The Training mode returns from Super Smash Bros. Melee. It allows the player to learn to play the game properly, or to experiment with certain functions and items. The player fights one to three characters, which can be controlled by the CPU, the player, or not move at all. The player can create any item to test it, as well as the Smash Ball to practice Final Smashes. The hit damage of the CPU can be predefined, and the game can be put in slow or quick motion.

Brawl
Very similar to the previous games, in which 2-4 players or computers may battle. The players can select their characters, who also have alternate costumes, and choose the stage to play on. As the battle begins, while the announcer is counting down, each character appears with their specific entrance. For example, Samus comes out of a teleporter and Mario out of a Warp Pipe. These entrances were present in the original Super Smash Bros., but not in Super Smash Bros. Melee, for unknown reasons.

As in the last two games, Super Smash Bros. Brawl has handicaps to help beginners in battles. However, this time, handicaps do not affect the player's attack strength and knockback resistance, but instead, changes a player's starting damage percentage. The handicap can be from 0% to 300%. For example, one player can start at 0% damage, but the other starts at 50%, even after that player has been knocked out. This allows players to test their skills, or just to give them a challenge, as well as helping beginners learn the basics.

For characters with multiple forms, the character selection screen allows the player to choose which character they will start with, by clicking the alternate form (i.e. Sheik). This means characters like Zelda can be used to select Sheik. Depending on the choice, that will be the character the player starts as in the beginning of the match.

Rules
This feature allows the player to control a wide variety of settings for Group mode. These settings do not affect any other mode. These three settings are the most basic rules players can change:

Default rules
Players can also set handicap and damage ratio. With handicap, fighters can start matches and respawn with automatic damage. Damage ratio adjusts the total knockback. It can be set from 0.5 to 2.0 at intervals of 0.1. By default, it is set at 1.0. The higher the number, the higher the knockback. Players can also determine what chooses stages. They can freely choose the stage, for instance, or have the loser of the match pick the stage. Players also have the ability to determine which items appear and how often.
 * Time: In these matches, fighters will score a point for each KO and lose a point for each fall or self-destruct. The fighter with the most points when time runs out wins the match. If there is a tie, the match will go into Sudden Death. In this situation, there is no time limit, but each fighter has only a single life and starts with 300% damage. The last one standing wins.
 * Stock: Each fighter has a set number of lives. They lose one each time they fall off the stage. When a fighter loses their last life, they obviously do not reappear. The last fighter standing wins.
 * Coin: Fighters collect Smash Coins to increase their score, which is displayed above their damage gauge. Bronze coins are worth one point, silver coins are worth three points, and gold coins are worth six. There are also bills, which adds ten points to their total. Coins are created when a fighter receives damage. The value of the coins corresponds to the strength of the attack. However, these coins are not subtracted from the victim's score. Fighters have unlimited lives, but their score is cut in half when they fall off the stage (100 if they have 200 coins or more). Whoever has the highest score when time runs out wins the match, but if there is a tie, a Sudden Death match will occur.

More rules
These additional rules can be unlocked by players score 200 KOs in Group mode. Players can set time limit for a stock match, turn on team attack, turn off pausing, enable score display, or hide percentages. When all stages are unlocked, players can adjust which stage is allowed to be selected at random.

Special Brawl
A new feature is the Special Brawl. Using this, players are able to customize the battle themselves. This means they can attach items, set stats, and add appearance differences to all the players, right from the start of the battle, without having to collect the items themselves. The Special Brawl, thus, allows players to try a variety of settings such as Invisible Bunny Brawl, instead of the settings given on a certain type of battle, as seen in previous with the Special Melee modes in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Records involving Special Brawl are not saved. Also, in Stamina Mode, unlike in Super Smash Bros. Melee, players can choose how much HP they'll start with; from 1 HP, all the way up to 300 HP.

Rotation
The Rotation mode is an enhanced version of the Winner Out/Loser Out Tournament modes of Super Smash Bros. Melee. It allows more than four players to play at the same system, by passing the controllers on after each battle. Up to sixteen players can be put into the queue, with each given the possibility to use their name and their personal controller configuration. However, this is not required. There is still the option between Winner Out and Loser Out, where the winner or the loser of the match pass the controller on to the next player after the match, respectively. Additionally, players have the option to pause, i.e. moving themselves at the end of the queue. The mode is available when two or more controllers are connected to the Wii. Players can change their character in the middle of the Rotation Mode, like in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Tourney
The Tourney mode from Super Smash Bros. Melee (then "Tournament Mode") is in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, acting the exact same way as it did in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Players are able to brawl in a tourney, that can have up to thirty-two players, and must fight their way to the championship, eventually earning a cup if they win. It is possible to play with friends, or battle CPU characters. Apart from decreasing the total number of players from sixty-four to thirty-two and letting players put in more characters on stage than controllers (such as four characters when there are only two controllers connected), nothing has changed compared to Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was a new feature in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. However, similar to what happened with Mario Strikers Charged, the game tended to slow down and fail when the players were playing far away. The further away the players were from each other, the more the problem worsened. So, playing a game from Japan to America would slow the game down, and cause some problems in the battle. Regardless, the game is still capable of connecting overseas. The two modes are With Friends and With Anyone.

When playing with friends, players used friend codes in order to brawl with each other. They could choose an emblem to represent themselves. Emblems could be the games' series emblems, the characters' icons, or Miis. In this mode, players were able to send messages to each other in-game, using the Taunts. Players could send four different kinds of messages, one for each direction: up, down, left, and right. Results were recorded only in this mode. The Home-run Contest and Multi-Man Brawl are also playable in this mode.

When brawling in the With Anyone setting, players were unable to send messages to each other in-game, and neither could they see the name or details of their opponent. Also, the results of the battle were not recorded in the With Anyone mode. There were several modes in the With Anyone setting. In the Basic Brawl, players played against each other in a free for all. However, the rules were set to 2-Minute Brawl and cannot be changed, but players could individually change their item settings. The game would randomly use the item setting of one of the combatants. If there were less than four players, CPUs would be added to make there be four characters. When a player disconnected from the Wi-Fi connection while battling, a CPU took over their character.

Unlockable characters were also available in this setting for a player who has unlocked them. Because of this, Nintendo recommended players not to use the Basic Brawl setting if one did not want to get the unlockable characters spoiled. A different mode in the With Anyone setting was the Team Brawl. While the game was loading, or while the players were waiting for other opponents, they could practice the game by attacking the Sandbag from Super Smash Bros. Melee. Players could choose to be spectators of the battle, and even bet coins on who will win.

The Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was shut down on May 20, 2014, making it no longer possible to play this game online.

Vault
Here, various content can be found, such as content that is received when players achieve certain tasks.

Trophies
Trophies return in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. They act the same way, some being collected the same way, but there are now new trophies, and they are more easily stored, as an image of the trophy will be seen when players select a trophy. They can also be displayed the same way they were in Super Smash Bros. Melee. When a trophy is selected, a description of the character or object portrayed will be displayed. There are a total of 544 different trophies to collect. In the Subspace Emissary if the finds a Trophy Stand and throws it at an enemy it turns it into a trophy. Many trophies can be placed as a part of dioramas. There are also more backgrounds that can add to this new feature.

Stickers
Throughout the game, players can find Stickers, which show up at random points during Brawls. Unlike trophies, however, the items will be much easier to find and are simply pieces of 2D game artwork rather than 3D models. Stickers are stored in an album. They can be used to power up characters in the Subspace Emissary. Stickers however have one use and once used, the player cannot acquire them back unless they happen to collect the same kind of sticker again.

Similar to the Trophy Hoard, stickers can be used to decorate a screen. Different backgrounds can be selected, and pictures can be taken.

Coin Launcher
The Coin Launcher is a mini-game available in the Vault, replacing the Lottery mode from Super Smash Bros. Melee. In this game, the player uses the coins which they have won in the Classic Mode, the Subspace Emissary, the Group mode or by betting on the winner in the Wi-Fi connection's Spectator Mode, to get trophies and stickers. The player controls the Coin Launcher, a cannon that shoots the coins the player has collected. Several moving objects appear at regular intervals, of which there are a few different types. Each different type moves in a different formation and direction across the screen. If the player shoots all the enemies in a particular group formation, the player will often gain a sticker as a reward. However, the main aim of this game is to hit the Trophies to win them. These appear quite regularly, and move across the screen in a random path, although these are predetermined. A trophy must be hit with two to four coins to be collected. There are some hazards in this game; mainly the missiles which appear and aim for the Coin Launcher. Each one takes two hits to destroy, but some move much faster than others, and occasionally a large group will appear all at once. If a missile hits the Coin Launcher, the player loses ten coins, and a special green gauge decreases. This gauge, located on the bottom left corner of the screen, if filled up completely, allows the player to rapid-fire coins for a short time when it is filled. It is filled slightly whenever a missile is destroyed, or a certain number of moving objects.

Stage Builder
Players create custom stages using this mode. When making the stage, players first pick the size of the stage, and then creating a background pattern, as well as the music from the game that will play on the stage. Once done, the player can start adding pieces to the stage, whether it be simple platforms to ladders to spikes. However, each of the four control types have different ways to move the pieces, however, they are all able to flip, resize, zoom, swap palettes and erase pieces of the stage.

After building a fraction of the stage, it can be tested out before being saved. This can be done several times, if it is necessary. After the stage is finished, the name and comment can be chosen, as well as an option to change the music of the stage. It can be sent to other players via Wi-Fi Connection, but cannot ever be played on using the Wi-Fi connection. At one point, it could have been sent directly to Nintendo using the "Submit" option on the Stage Builder screen. Every day, Nintendo would send a selected stage to every player with Wi-Fi and Super Smash Bros. Brawl, so they could try out the stages that other people have made. The stage was removed after a day had passed, and a new one was brought in the next day. This allowed players to make and try out new stages for themselves every day. However, this ability to send vault data to Nintendo was discontinued.

Challenges
All three kinds of collectibles in Super Smash Bros. Brawl - trophies, stickers and CDs - can be alternatively won in the Challenges mode. Stages, Masterpieces, and Stage Builder parts can also be unlocked. The Challenge mode has many closed windows which contain the prizes. When the player unlocks an item by winning a challenge, for example playing the Target Smash level 1 with 10 different characters for the Stafy trophy, the collectibles left and right to Stafy's trophy, which are currently not won and invisible, appear in a red silhouette, and their method of unlocking is displayed. The player can also win Golden Hammers, which they can use to automatically get any window of their choice open, getting the item inside. However, not all windows can be destroyed with a hammer; objectives related to the Boss Battles mode cannot be opened. There are a total of 128 objectives in the Challenges Mode.

Album
Throughout the game, the player is able to take screenshots while pausing the game. In contrast to Super Smash Bros. Melee, there is no special camera mode needed. The screenshots can be either saved on the Wii's internal memory or an SD card.

Replays
A new feature in Super Smash Bros. Brawl is Replays. This can be used on a single Brawl in Group Mode, Target Smash!!, Home-Run Contest, and Multi-Man Brawl. They can be recorded by pressing Z after the brawl or the challenge has ended. The maximum time for a replay to be recorded is three minutes. They can later be accessed and replayed from the Vault, or be sent to an SD Card. Players could also submit Target Smash!! and Home-Run Contest records to Nintendo, via WiiConnect24. However, the service was discontinued after June 30th, 2009.

Masterpieces
In this mode, the player can play restricted demo versions of classical Nintendo games via the Virtual Console. The player does not have to connect to the Wi-Fi connection for that. The available demos are the following: Some must be unlocked. These games include the following: All titles have a restricted time they can be played in. However, some, like Super Metroid, come with save data.
 * Super Mario Bros. (1:00)
 * Ice Climber (0:40)
 * The Legend of Zelda (NES) (2:00)
 * Kid Icarus (1:00)
 * Kirby's Adventure (2:00)
 * Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem (Japanese version only) (3:00)
 * Super Metroid (3:00)
 * EarthBound (Japanese version only) (5:00)
 * Star Fox 64 (3:00)
 * Donkey Kong (0:30) (Play for 10 hours or more total.)
 * Super Mario World (2:00) (Play on Yoshi's Island (Melee) three times.)
 * Super Mario Bros. 2 (1:30) (Play as Peach and win five matches in VS Mode.)
 * The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (5:00) (Play as Toon Link ten times in VS Mode.)
 * F-Zero (0:45) (Get Captain Falcon to join the party in The Subspace Emissary.)

Chronicle
Here, the player can view a list of many video game titles that have been released by Nintendo and when they were released. The titles are sorted and separated by which system they were for (e.g. Game & Watch, Game Boy Advance, Wii). More titles are added as trophies and Stickers from those games are collected.

Options
Players can toggle with various settings and features. For instance, they can adjust the aspect ratio of their screen, or set the graphics appearance. They can also adjust the rumble feature and set control schemes to save on names. They can also adjust the music and sound effect volume while having quick access to the Sound Test. Finally, players can erase certain records of their data or erase everything.

My Music
Rather than restricting each stage to one music track, as in the previous games stages have a selection of music tracks usually from the game series the stage is from, and players can choose which music track they want to play on the stage using the My Music mode. For example, on the Delfino Plaza stage (image shown on the right), players can choose between the Delfino Plaza theme from Super Mario Sunshine, the title/ending theme of Super Mario World, the main theme to New Super Mario Bros., and many more. Players can set how commonly the track may appear on the stage. To add more music to the collection, the player must collect CDs, which randomly appear across the entire game, in many of the numerous modes of play. They can also be earned by completing challenges and certain game modes. After all music tracks have been collected, the CD will appear no more.

Data
A variety of content is stored here including records from group matches. This section of Gameplay records has 4 different pages. The first page is a chart showing the total number of KO's each fighter has performed on each fighter. The second page shows the top 5 fighters for each of several stats, such as KO's, falls, self-destructs, victories, losses, peak damage, walking distance, swim time, drownings, etc. The third page lists all the same stats for each individual character. The fourth and final page similarly lists all the same stats for each name; as well as the fighter used most, second-most, and least.

Players can view also various gameplay records of gameplay; including, but not limited to total time playing this game, matches played, total damage, trophy count, and fighter most used. Notices, special messages that congratulate the player and appear when certain accomplishments are done, such as unlocking important things and clearing game modes for the first time, are saved in the order that they appeared.

When cutscenes are viewed in The Subspace Emissary, they can viewed again. There are also five pre-installed videos: a How to Play video, the E3 trailer, another introductory video, and videos that each focus on a new third-party character. Songs and sound effects in the game also can be listened to here. Some songs need to be unlocked by completing challenges or picking up CD's. The game that each song originated from is displayed when the song is selected.

Staff


Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of the Kirby and the Super Smash Bros. series, is heavily involved during this production, being the director. Masahiro Sakurai is also a former member of the HAL Laboratory game company, and he is now part of the Sora company. The game also uses the Havok game engine, a trait shared by various other non-Nintendo games, making it the first Super Smash Bros. game and the only Nintendo game to do so. Other companies have been involved in Super Smash Bros. Brawl's development, especially for its extensive soundtrack, including Camelot Co., Ltd., Namco Bandai Games Inc., and Monolith Software Inc.

Pre-release and unused content
Early in development, a damage system would have been implemented that would cause characters to shown signs of visible damage and strain during prolonged battles. Among those found included Meta Knight's mask that would develop large cracks, or Captain Falcon's helmet whose visor would crack to reveal a part of his face.

Play as a giant Jigglypuff
First, the player must select the Bridge of Eldin stage. The player should also have a Final Smash prepared. King Bulbin will eventually come and destroy part of the bridge with a bomb. Soon after, a portal will restore that part of the bridge. When the matter begins to rebuild the bridge, the player has to use the Final Smash in midair in the gap. Jigglypuff will begin to inflate while the bridge is getting mended. When the bridge is completely fixed, Jigglypuff should bounce up onto the bridge and remain giant. Its attacks are completely the same, only that they have a much longer reach. Its movement seems to have slowed somewhat as well. It also becomes a very easy target and is simple to KO, as the slightest touch of the KO range will take it out. With this glitch activated, having Yoshi perform his Egg Lay attack will make Jigglypuff grow even bigger.

Infinite lightning glitch
First, the player must choose Zelda/Sheik. The other player must use a lightning bolt to make them either shrink or grow. Once the player has changed size, they must use their Down+B special move to transform to Sheik/Zelda. The player can transform back to who they were before; this is optional. By doing this very simple glitch, Zelda/Sheik will stay at their size forever. However, this glitch will only keep working until Zelda/Sheik is affected by another size-changing item.

This glitch will work with any mode, any color, any size (Mini or Mega Brawl) and any rule. As long as items are turned on and lightning bolts are able to spawn.

References to other games

 * Donkey Kong: 75m appears as a stage, where Donkey Kong in his original sprite form appears as a major stage hazard; 25m's theme appears as a song in this stage. Mario's red-and-blue costume also originates from this game. One of Wario's alternate costumes is based on Mario's original outfit from this game. One of Peach's alternate costumes is based on Pauline's artwork from this game.
 * Donkey Kong Jr.: When Diddy Kong, Fox, and Falco arrive at the barge taking the recently-trophified Donkey Kong to the Ancient Island, Donkey Kong's trophy is shown in chains on the arms and legs, referring to Donkey Kong's (or, technically, Cranky Kong's) captive status in the game, particularly the final stage of the game.
 * Mario Bros.: A stage based off this game appears, complete with the POW Block in the center and obstacles such as Shellcreepers and Sidesteppers. The Mario Bros. title theme is arranged for this stage. Two of Wario's alternate costumes is based on Mario's outfit and Luigi's outfit on the Japanese cover.
 * Wrecking Crew: The Golden Hammer appears as an item. One of Luigi's alternate costumes is based on his in-game sprite. One of Wario's alternate costumes is based on Foreman Spike.
 * Super Mario Bros.: Mushroomy Kingdom appears as a stage, taking the forms of World 1-1 and World 1-2 from the said game. The ground, underground, and underwater themes from this game are rearranged.
 * Super Mario Bros. 3: The Airship theme from this game is rearranged; additionally, the middle portion of "Castle / Boss Fortress (Super Mario World / SMB 3)" is an arrangement of the boss battle theme. Ludwig's artwork from this game appears as a sticker.
 * Super Mario Land: An arrangement of this game's dungeon theme appears as a song in the World 1-2 portion of Mushroomy Kingdom.
 * Super Mario World: On the Delfino Plaza stage, a medley of the title and ending themes from this game appears as a song. The beginning and ending portion of "Castle / Boss Fortress (Super Mario World / SMB 3)" are an arrangement of the Castle theme from this game.
 * Mario Kart series: A stage based off of Figure-8 Circuit from Mario Kart DS appears, while several music pieces across the Mario Kart games are rearranged. Shy Guys appear as racers / stage hazards, with a lone one previously appearing as a playable racer in Mario Kart DS.
 * Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3: The Dash Attack appears as Wario's forward smash, while his down throw somewhat resembles his Ground Pound. One of Wario's alternate costumes is based on his in-game sprite.
 * Donkey Kong Country series: Songs from the first two games have been rearranged or directly ported in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Diddy Kong's moveset is inspired from these games, including his signature cartwheel which appears as his dash attack.
 * Super Mario 64: The main theme from this game is directly ported, and appears as a song on Delfino Plaza.
 * Donkey Kong 64: The Peanut Popgun and Rocket Barrel appear as Diddy Kong's standard and up specials; both moves are combined for Diddy's Final Smash, Rocketbarrel Barrage.
 * Luigi's Mansion: Luigi's Mansion appears as a stage. An arrangement of the main theme for the game plays as one of the songs on said stage.
 * Super Mario Sunshine: Delfino Plaza appears as a stage, with songs directly ported from Super Mario Sunshine. F.L.U.D.D. appears as Mario's new down special.
 * WarioWare series: A stage based off the WarioWare games appears, featuring snippets of various microgames. Several songs from the WarioWare games are featured, including Ashley's Song and Mona Pizza's Song. Additionally, the Wario Bike is featured as Wario's side special, while Wario-Man appears as his Final Smash.
 * Wario World: The Wild Swing Ding appears as Wario's forward throw.
 * Donkey Kong Jungle Beat: Rumble Falls appears as a stage. The song "Battle for Storm Hill" is directly ported from this game.
 * Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time: An arrangement of Gritzy Desert's theme is featured as a song in Mushroomy Kingdom.
 * New Super Mario Bros.: An arrangement of the game's ground theme appears as a song in Delfino Plaza.

References in later games

 * Super Mario 3D World: One of the Mystery Houses is known as Mystery House Brawl, which is found in World Mushroom.
 * Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U: A handful of enemies originating from the Subspace Emissary return in the former game's Smash Run mode, while many arrangements of Super Smash Bros. Brawl's theme song reappear in both games.
 * Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: When Petey Piranha appears in Piranha Plant's Final Smash in this game, he uses his appearance from Super Smash Bros. Brawl and holds cages. A Primid, Shadow Bug, the Ancient Minister, the Fighting Alloy Team, Duon, and Tabuu also make appearances as spirits, while Galleom reprises his role as a boss in the World of Light Adventure Mode.

Reception
Super Smash Bros. Brawl received critical acclaim from most publications; receiving praise for its amount of play modes and its extensive soundtrack. Many songs in the game would be reused in future Super Smash Bros. installments. As of March 31, 2020, the game sold 13.32 million units worldwide.

Trivia

 * If the player is using a Nintendo GameCube controller or a Classic Controller, tilting or  while on the main menu will change the camera angle.
 * This is the first and so far the only Super Smash Bros. installment to not feature stages or music stage themes from the original Super Smash Bros.
 * This is one of the few Mario games given a T rating by the ESRB, the others being Donkey Konga 2 and Super Smash Bros. Melee.
 * Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the first Super Smash Bros. game not to have the announcer shout the title of the game.
 * When not counting sub-universes, this is the only Super Smash Bros. game not to introduce any Mario newcomers.
 * Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the first Super Smash Bros. game to have Spanish, Italian, and Korean announcers, voiced by Carlos Lobo, Luigi Fantino, and, respectively, with the first two reprising their roles in future games while the Korean announcer is replaced by , the announcer in the English and Japanese versions.