Nintendo is a game developer with a long history of beloved franchises under its belt. From Mario and Metroid, to Pokémon, and The Legend of Zelda series, the sheer plethora of characters the Japan based developer has is staggering, to say the least. In 1999, one man, Masahiro Sakurai, thought it would be a good idea to cram several of these iconic faces into a fighting game series that is well-known by many: Super Smash Bros.

Nineteen years later, on Dec. 7th, 2018, the newest installment is here. It promised to include every character from each game prior, most of the stages, and a virtually limitless supply of music to listen to while playing. This is easily one of the biggest games of all time, and it has a title to fit: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

The moment you start up the
game, you’ll have several game-play options to pick from, and the number of characters you can select is a measly eight. There are several ways to unlock them, all stemming from four main options: Smash, Spirits, Games and More. Characters will be unlocked as the player progresses in the game, and the player select screen will jump from eight to 70. For anyone who wants to master all of them, the sheer number of them will have their work cut out.

Being a fighting game, most players will use the mode Smash. This mode allows friends to play with and against each other or a computer. The classic damage percentage that rises with each hit to a character still exists. The gameplay is as smooth and fast paced as ever, and each character, aside from a handful of exceptions known as Echo Fighters, all feel distinct with their own sets of attacks and specialties. It’s easy to say that, with all of the options and fun to be had, Smash
Ultimate is easily the best in the series thus far in terms of game-play, offering hundreds of hours of enjoyment just from this game mode alone.

However, Smash Mode isn’t the only thing Ultimate offers. For anyone looking for a way to play solo, there is Spirits mode. While the effects vary, Spirits are special items based off of characters from around Nintendo’s varied history. These effects can be added to a player’s fighters to offer different bonuses, like increasing attack power, speed and character size.While this mode might seem to have no real point to exist, accept to collect pictures of fan favorite characters, the main draw of Spirits mode is the eye-catching “Adventure” option.

Titled World of Light, this mode is the true single player experience, allowing players to traverse a large map in an effort to take on the evil Galeem, the main antagonist of the story.

Traveling across the map will lead to battles with possessed fighters accompanied by spirits. Ingenious references based on whatever spirit is present is a fun nod for fans, and some franchises even have entire areas based on them. However, this simple battle-to-battle progression system can become tedious after a while, so it’s a mode best enjoyed in short bursts.
The final mode, or rather collection of modes, is Games and More. First up is Classic Mode,

which gives each character a set of thematic battles. For example, choosing the character Mario will pit him against some of Nintendo’s oldest franchises before taking on Bowser himself. In addition, if a player chooses the character Link, they will be faced with every villain in the game. In Games and More, it’s also possible to do basic training to refine skills and techniques, and create custom fighters called Mii Fighters.

Two more, much less prevalent selectable options, are also present on the main screen as well. Vault is where voice lines and music can be listened to, as well as watch any recorded replays, look at tips and more. The final mode is Online, where players can pit themselves against other players around the world. It’s important to note that Nintendo Switch Online, a $20 service, is required to play online.

Smash has always been a great game for parties small or large, and of varying skill levels with it’s easy pick-up-and-play nature and familiar faces. If there was at least one game to buy for a party, it would most definitely be Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: A game full of options, fun and quality content. It will be a constant and popular mainstay for Nintendo Switch owners for years to come.