Super Smashing Great!
The original Super Smash Bros. arrived on Nintendo 64 in 1999 and was an instant hit. The 12 iconic Nintendo characters included Mario, Peach, Samus, Link and Fox, and the nine playable stages were based on some of the company's most beloved games, from Metroid's Zebes to Mario's Mushroom Kingdom. A short one-player adventure mode and a series of minigames made it a great starting point for the series.
But what defined Smash Bros. was its multiplayer. Completely different to normal beat-em-ups, the object here was not to deplete your opponent's energy bar, but to knock them off the screen; which got easier the more damage they'd taken. Unique abilities for each character, simple controls, colourful visuals and great gameplay packed with bonkers power-ups made Super Smash Bros. insanely fun with four players.
The 2002 GameCube sequel Super Smash Bros. Melee made everything bigger and better. 26 classic characters and 29 stages, brand new singleplayer modes and trophies to collect made this a universally acclaimed success, paving the way for the highly-awaited Wii follow-up, Super Smash Bros. Brawl!
