Super Smash Bros. Brawl Character Guides: Mr. Game & Watch

At the request of...one of our frequent Game Night visitors, I'm proud to present a playing guide to one of Brawl's more eccentric playable characters: Mr. Game & Watch. If you guys like these, I'll write plenty more of them for any character you want! I'll be covering the following aspects of the character: an overview, A-button attacks and tilts, aerials, smashes, special moves, his final smash, and an overall "how you should play him" section. Well, here we go!

Overview:

Mr. Game and Watch is a versatile short-range character, and he's significantly stronger than his Melee incarnation. Unfortunately, he's also incredibly light and lacks any real projectile moves, excluding Chef, which is really just an up-close randomized projectile, which sort of negates the point of HAVING a projectile. His KO moves are very strong, though, his recovery is fantastic, and he can pretty much shut down any character that uses projectile moves made of "energy", like Pit's arrow, Fox's, Falco's, and Wolf's blasters, and Pikachu's electric-themed moves. For an up-close character, though, his grab reach is pretty short. Additionally, his recovery move is sometimes blocked by the lips of stages, giving him a similar weakness to the recovery moves of the aforementioned Starfox characters.

A-Button Attacks and Tilts:

Jab and neutral combo: 3% for the first hit and 1% for every subsequent hit. -- It's a good combo, but better ones exist in the game. After repeated hits, it produces a slightly upwards knockback, making it impossible to corner someone with this move for long. Also, it has a terrible ending lag. Once you stop smashing the A button, expect to be hit back...hard. Try not to rely on this move too much.

Forward tilt: 10% -- This move comes out quickly, but if you miss with it, it also comes with a bit of lag as you just stand there with a chair in your hands. Save this move for on-the-ground edgeguarding, but it's not advisable to use it elsewhere, since it opens you up to a lot of counterattacking if you whiff with it.

Upward tilt: 8% -- G&W lifts a flag above him, hitting everything within a 45 degree angle to the front and back of him, as well as slightly above him. The knockback isn't great, but the lag isn't bad, and it's useful for creating a little distance between you and your opponent.

Downward tilt: 6% -- The lag isn't terrible on this move, either, and it comes out rather fast. It's a good combo starter at middle damage percentages, but this move really shines when used on people that are trying to climb back up from the edge of the stage.

Dash attack: 11% -- His dash attack isn't quite as good as most, forcing him to actually slow down to initiate it, making it that much easier to dodge successfully. The only practical application of the move is to use it against opponents that are hanging onto the ledge, since it acts as a powerful spike. Bear in mind, though, that the speed of the attack will probably clue them in on what you're trying to do.

Ledge attack: 8% -- G&W climbs back onto the stage and attacks with his bell for minimal damage and knockback. There's a lot of delay when using this move, so don't even think about doing it at high damage percentages.

Smash Attacks:

Forward smash: 18-25% (fully charged) -- This is G&W's second best smash attack, believe it or not. The knockback is incredible, and sends opponents flying away at a 45 degree angle. The startup lag is a little noticeable, but the range on it can't be beat. Not a lot of people know this, but the hitbox for the move actually extends a little bit beyond the tip of the flame.

Upward smash: 18-25% (fully charged) -- G&W has a lot of good moves, but this isn't one of them. The range of the move is pitiful and doesn't extend outside of his hitbox. The damage might be fair, but it's just too slow to have any practical value in a match. You're much better off taking to the air to score a knockout than relying on this move while waiting on the ground.

Downward smash: 13-21% (fully charged tipper) -- Without a doubt, G&W's best smash is his down smash. The range of the move is very long, it hits both sides of him simultaneously, does good damage, and can deliver knockback in any direction you choose, depending on how the opponent is hit. If you hit with this move point-blank, it delivers an incredible amount of horizontal knockback, but if you connect with the tip of the hammers, they'll fly in a directly vertical direction, making it easy to score KOs on stages with low ceilings.

Aerial Attacks:

Neutral air: 4-17% -- G&W's neutral air consists of four hits that likely won't score any knockouts, but sets up your opponent for other combos. The range of this move is incredible, and can hit in any direction except for directly below you.

Forward air: 16% and 6% -- This move is good or bad, depending on when you land it. If you connect with an opponent as soon as this move comes out, it'll deal 16% damage and incredible horizontal knockback. If you launch the move early and only get a glancing blow, it'll deal 6% damage and barely any knockback whatsoever. Be warned that, although it's a powerful KO move, it has a very long ending delay that will be taken advantage of if you miss. Aim carefully and stay close to the ground for quick recovery if you're attempting this one.

Backward air: 3-15% -- Believe it or not, the seldom used turtle is one of G&W's best moves. It's quick, well outside of his hitbox, eats shields likes crazy, and has an impressive amount of knockback. Even the priority beats most other aeriel moves, since G&W's reach often won't beat most sword-using characters or projectilists. Use this move whenever you can, because it's beautiful in every regard.

Downward air: 13-14% and 6% -- A favorite of most G&W players, the downward air is incredibly versatile. When first used in the air, it deals 13-14% damage when connecting with an enemy, but if used a second time and close to the ground, the area that he collides with once he touches the ground has a small, additional hitbox that deals 6% to anyone too close and minor knockback. There's virtually no lag time after you hit the ground with this move, unlike Link and Toon Link's similar moves, too. If you hold down after you launch this move, you'll actually fall slower than you would if you didn't press anything. It also has spiking capabilities, but only if you initiate the move as soon as you're very close to and above your opponent.

Upward air: 7% and 9% -- Since you can't rely on G&W's up smash, his upward air is the best move to use to score vertical KOs. It hits twice if pulled off properly. The first hit deals moderate damage, while the second deals slightly more and an impressive amount of knockback. The only drawback to this move is that it's very short-range. G&W seems to be played best when relying on horizontal knockouts, since aside from a tipped down smash, his upward-directed moves are average, at best. If it's near, but doesn't connect with your opponent, a small gust of wind will blow them upwards slightly, at least setting you up for another attempt at an aerial knockout.

Special Moves:

Neutral B: 9% (pan) and 4% (food) -- G&W's neutral B move has some interesting applications. If you're fighting an aerial attacker, hitting your opponent with any of the food produced by this move will instantly stop them in their tracks. It's a good defensive manuever, but don't spam it too much against ground attackers, since the ending delay is pretty huge. The pan itself has a downward knockback at roughly a 40% angle, making it very useful to use against people grabbing onto the ledge.
Forward B: If you've played G&W before, you know that the effects of this move are randomized. If you manage to secure a "9", then you're probably going to score a knockout. Other than that, though, the effects of the other attacks just aren't that great. It's funny to see what you'll get sometimes, but very unreliable. If you're trying to win a match, don't waste your time pressing your luck with this one.

Downward B: Various amounts of damage -- Ah, the infamous bucket. Nothing strikes fear into the heart of a player (except for Super Sonic) quite like this tool of destruction. It deals damage equivalent to the combined damage that the collected energy moves would have dealt multiplied by 2.8, and the knockback is incredible. Since the effectiveness of this move is circumstantial, though, don't count on it all the time. Eventually, projectilist characters will see what you're doing and try a new approach.

Upward B: 6% -- As an offensive move, G&W's Up-B is terrible. As a recovery method and means to spike people without worrying about dying, though, it's amazing. G&W has one of the absolute best recoveries in the game, considering the sheer amount of upward and horizontal recovery it provides. What's nice is that you can even launch attacks after using it, just like Snake's recovery. It's a little easy to get caught under the lips of stages, though, so aim very carefully when initiating it.

Final Smash:

Octopus: For seventeen seconds, G&W turns into an octopus and wreaks havoc while invincible. Touching any part of G&W during his Final Smash deals 16% damage and relatively minor knockback at low levels. Though he may appear to be flying, he needs to have land beneath him, or he'll fall through the bottom of the stage, resulting in a self-destruct. Opponents can take advantage of his relatively slow movement through platforms and the Final Smash is more easily avoidable on large stages.

How You Should Play Him:

Mr. Game & Watch is, first and foremost, a melee character. He's outranged by a lot of characters, so you need to accurately determine which of your moves work best against your opponent's moves. For instance, Marth's upward smash outranges G&W's downward aerial due to the length of Marth's sword. G&W's backward aerial outranges Marth's forward aerial, though, so you'd want to take advantage of it.

Against projectilists, the bucket is your best friend. Don't hold on to a stored bucket for too long, though, as you won't have a defense for their energy moves, since it can only hold three shots. Anticipate their laggy moves and empty the bucket on them when they miss and can't recover in time, not just randomly.

Against heavyweights, use your fastest moves, play defensively, and take advantage of their easy-to-dodge laggy moves. G&W is a light character, so he can't afford to take much punishment before he flies off the screen. Play smart, and don't leave yourself too open by trying to use lag-causing moves.

Against other melee users, it all comes down to gauging lag and taking the fight to the air. G&W can beat a lot of characters in terms of move priority when he's airborne, and his ground smashes are brutal as edge-guarders due to their ridiculous amounts of knockback.

Experiment with the guy a bit and see which moves work best for you. He's really powerful and hard to anticipate, but tough to completely master. Hope this guide helped, and good luck with your Brawling!

Remember, I'm always up for writing more character guides, so if you want more tips and tricks, just let me know!

GNC Reviews: Contra

Another one of our Game Night Crew members has written up a review for a timeless game that brought gamers of the NES generation years of enjoyment: Contra. Someone asked me to write up a character guide to a certain Super Smash Bros. Brawl character, by the way, but I'm still working on it. It'll be the next thing I post up, though, so hang tough until it's ready!

Taken right from the back of the box: “The universe teeters on the brink of total annihilation at the hands of the vile alien warmonger, Red Falcon. Earth's only hope rests with you, a courageous member of the Special Forces elite commando squad. Your mission: Battle deep into the deadly Amazon jungle, where the Red Falcon and his galactic henchmen have transformed ancient Mayan temples into awesome monuments dedicated to mass destruction. A multitude of weapons, from rapid-fire machine guns to high-tech lasers are at your disposal as you sweat blood, fighting past 3-D mazes, underground security systems, and tropical forests surrounded by giant waterfalls and alien cannons. This is the ultimate test for the ultimate guerilla warrior. And if you survive, Earth survives!”

Ahh Contra. The great old NES game where you’re some dude with a bandana and a huge gun and your mission is to run left and right and shoot what I think are aliens. They look like aliens. Wait…they may be robots. Nonetheless, you shoot them and they go bye bye.

It sounds so simple and stupid, but those two things it is not. Contra is a beautiful game that, despite its age, stands up as a gem amongst the crop of new games out there. It’s challenging, well crafted, and best of all, it controls really well. I seem to remember a lot of NES games having very clunky controls where if you hit the direction pad up you’d go down and usually that would mean shark infested waters and death. Not with Contra. The game controls like…butter? I guess so.

So yes, where was I? You’re one of two tough looking guys and you have a big gun. You use this big gun (which you can get many power-ups for, such as a flame thrower, spread shot, and much more) to kill stuff. Alien stuff. Robots. Who knows. You go through a bunch of stages doing this. Does it get old? Not at all. Not only do you have the typical left to right type stages, you also have these pseudo 3-D stages where you’re running through a base dodging lasers beams, electrical fields, and of course, aliens and/or robots.

In the end….Contra rules. Track it down, any way you can, and have some fun. But let me give you a little hint first.

Press Start after this, and you've got the famous Konami Code. Type in this code before the title screen fully loads up and you’ll get 30 lives. You’ll need them unless you’re some kind of mega Contra genius.

--Justin.

GNC Reviews: I Wanna Be The Guy

Back when I was first playing video games, no strategy guides existed. Unless you were lucky enough to have a Nintendo Power subscription or a friend who was a master of the exact same game that you were playing, you were on your own. I remember fondly all of the difficult challenges that game designers inserted into their games, and how many puzzles were just unsolvable except by random guessing or luck. Platformers were usually unforgiving and punished players for making the tiniest mistake. Everything was trial and error back then, except for a few lenient series like Kirby titles.

Last year, Mike "Kayin" O'Reilly released a beta version of a game which is notorious for its difficulty. Entitled "I Wanna Be The Guy: The Movie: The Game" or IWBTG for short, it pays homage to those ridiculously difficult challenges that so many familiar NES and Atari games used to provide. Since it's a freeware title, it doesn't cost anything to play it, and you can download it at the following address: http://kayin.pyoko.org/iwbtg/downloads.php

IWBTG is a 2-D platformer that puts you in control of "The Kid", who embarks on a quest to defeat "The Guy", in order to claim the title for himself. The story is quite simple, and like most NES titles, making sense wasn't a requirement. "The Kid" isn't able to do much in the game, save for jumping, running, wall-climbing, and shooting a tiny pistol which is insignificant against almost every obstacle in the game. The bosses in the game all reference old-school video game adversaries, and should be familiar to anyone who grew up while games were still being produced for the NES. Among them are such known player-killers as Mike Tyson from Mike Tyson's Punch-Out, Mecha-Birdo from the Super Mario Bros. series, and Dracula from just about every Castlevania game.

IWBTG is filled with tricks and traps on every screen, and although seemingly impossible to overcome, can technically be beaten. Even though just about everything can destroy "The Kid" in one hit, the player is provided with infinite lives and some save points with which to record your progress. Truly, it's the kind of game that exaggerates all of the hours of mind-numbing aggravation we've all felt while playing difficult games, but I can't recommend it enough.

Give it a try sometime and see how far you can get. Don't say I didn't tell you it was really hard, though!

Final score: 8.8/10.

--Chris.

Labor Day Game Night Cancellation!

Well, we're through all five days of our Games on Tour event at the other library branches, and it's been a hit! People of all ages were eager to try their hand at Wii Sports, Rock Band, and even Brawl... What's even cooler is that a lot of our Game Night regulars showed up at just about every branch and let everyone know just how Brawl is supposed to be played! Game Night Chronicles (our flickr account) has been updated with some new photos from quite a few branches, and we've even set up a youtube account now for a few videos we were taking while talking with some familiar faces... Check out those videos now on the right.

Now on to the bad news... On September 1st, the library will be closed since it's Labor Day. That means no Game Night next Monday. But don't worry. We'll be back on Monday, September 8th from 4:30 - 6:30 PM like usual.

Here are some more Super Smash Bros. Brawl tips:

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Tips and Tricks: Item Throwing

If you're using a character that's small (like Olimar) that doesn't have as much knockout potential as middle- or heavyweights like Donkey Kong or Ike, you should probably rely on thrown items whenever possible to score easy knockouts. You can throw items in any cardinal direction, or drop it while in the air or on the ground.

Each item, when thrown, has a different effect when it makes contact with an enemy, so weigh your needs before it fly into the face of your adversaries. Below is a list of the items that will randomly appear in a stage, as well as their effects when thrown:

Barrels: 18-22% damage and good knockback. These have incredible knockout potential when hitting opponents with high damage percentages, but are usually difficult to hit with. If they explode on impact, the knockback is much greater.
Beam Swords: 15% damage and good knockback. It can be thrown with ease in any direction and bounces quite a bit when it hits a wall, ceiling, or floor. This is one of the preferred weapons to throw for easy knockouts.
Capsules: 15-18% damage and mild knockback when thrown. Capsules are good for racking up easy amounts of damage and potentially scoring knockouts if they're explosive. There is a 12.5% chance that they'll explode on impact.
Crates: 18-22% damage and good knockpack. Very similar to Barrels, Crates are somewhat unwieldy to use, but can score knockouts very easy, especially if they're explosive. There's a 1 in 8 chance of a Crate exploding when thrown.
Fans: 9-12% damage, high shield damage, and high vertical knockback when thrown. Unless a character is at a very high amount of damage, it's unlikely that a Fan will knock them out when thrown. The knockpack is always straight up, though, so it sets them up for an aerial knockout.
Fire Flower: 4-12% fire damage when thrown and very little knockback. Throwing a fire flower should never really be used as a knockout tactic. It's pretty much just a last resort move when the flower's fire is depleted.
Hammer head: 29-39% damage when thrown and incredible knockback. It's rare to see this item, but few throwable items contain as much power as the hammer head. It can be thrown as easily as a Capsule can, despite its weight.
Home-run Bat: 19-22% damage and very high knockback. The Home-run Bat is your best bet for thrown-item knockouts. It's more common than the hammer head, deals more damage than the Beam Sword, and also inflicts more knockback.
Lip's Stick: Random flower damage. Lip's Stick is really only useful for racking up "poison" damage on your opponents, though it does inflict a slight amount of knockback. It's good for getting their damage percentages higher, but I wouldn't recommend it for anything more than that.
Motion-Sensor Bomb: 12-15% damage when thrown with minimal knockback. This item, while being able to inflict a fair amount of damage when thrown, should probably be used more subtly.
Mr. Saturn: 8-11% damage when thrown, significant shield damage, and minimal knockback. Where knockouts are concerned, Mr. Saturn just doesn't cut it. Leave the poor guy alone and pick up a bat.
Party Ball: 16-19% damage unless explosive and fair knockback. Another unwieldy weapon, the Party Ball should only be used as a weapon for racking up damage. It has a 1 in 10 chance of exploding, in which case it would deal 41% damage and a large amount of knockback.
Poké Balls: Small amount of damage and fair knockback. These items make good thrown weapons, as long as you aren't facing anyone with a reflecting move. When Poké Balls are reflected, the Pokémon that's produced from it becomes owned by the reflector's owner. It's best to throw this item near an opponent, but not directly at them.
Ray Gun: 9-13% damage and fair knockback. Once all of the shots have been fired, you might as well throw it. It's possible to score knockouts with this weapon when throwing it, but only against opponents with fairly high damage percentages.
Star Rod: Moderate damage and excellent knockback. The Star Rod's knockback potential is second to very few items. It's best to use it for knocking opponents outside of the left or right boundaries of a stage, though, since its lateral knockback is much greater than it's upward or downward knockback.
Super Scope: Negligible damage and fair knockback. This item isn't really a great tool for scoring thrown item kills, but if your opponent is at high percentages, you may luck out.
Banana Peel: Very slight damage, trip effect, and minor knockback. There are far better items to use for knockouts. Ignore this as an option.
Bumper: 8-9% damage when first thrown and great knockback. A Bumper in the hands of any skilled player can easily result in multiple knockouts at once. Use it for everything from edgeguarding to high percentage knockouts in just about any direction.
Cracker Launcher: Moderate damage and fair knockback. It's very similar to the Super Scope in terms of knockback.
Deku Nut: Great damage and excellent knockback. If it connects directly with an opponent, this item has as much potential for knockouts as a hammer head. It's significantly harder to aim with, though, given its small size.
Hothead: Various amounts of damage and knockback. Depending on the Hothead's size, it can be incredibly damaging to opponents or simply slightly annoying. Power it up with fire and lightning attacks before you throw it, and it can be a devastating tool.
Pitfall: Zero damage, no knockback. If thrown at an opponent with no land beneath them, it's the same thing as Meteor Smashing them. Very useful indeed, if you can hit with it.
Smart Bomb: Various amounts of damage and good knockback. If used against opponents with roughly 45% damage, it can easily lead to knockouts on smaller stages. It's unreliable, though, as it often doesn't explode when you expect it to.

To be continued in the next GNC post...

--Chris.

GNC Updates + Brawl Tips!

First of all, thanks to all of you gamers out there, we hit a record number of people at our Monday Game Night this week... I know we don't say it enough, but you guys rock out loud! Keep coming and we'll keep providing your weekly source of video entertainment. Just a heads-up, but we've also got four new pictures in Game Night Chronicles, so check 'em out and leave a comment if you want.

Next, we've had some people asking us to order in certain games for Monday Game Nights... We've gotten a lot of suggestions, though, but we can't get all of 'em! If you have an idea for a game we should play on Mondays, leave a comment at this post (click on the link that says "0 Comments") and we'll put it to a vote.

Lastly, I don't know about you guys, but I can't stop talking about gaming. Super Smash Bros. Brawl in particular is one of my favorite titles, and apparently SETH's going to review it pretty soon. So in the meantime, I'll leave some of you newer players with just a few tips and tricks...


Super Smash Bros. Brawl Tips and Tricks: Smash Attacks


Okay, today I'm going to cover one-on-one smash attack strategies in SSBB. As you all know, the best way for most characters to score a knockout is to use a smash attack (A + a direction). That's common knowledge, sure, but which one you use (down smash, up smash, or forward smash) is something you've got to think about... If you really pay close attention, a lot of smash attacks leave you completely open if you miss with them, or don't knock the enemy far away. Beyond that, a lot of smash attacks have really small hitboxes or require precise accuracy...



Take Marth's up smash, for instance. It's a fast and powerful move, sure, but the hitbox is tiny! He lifts his sword straight up, so unless your target is right above you, you're pretty likely to miss...



On the other hand, Donkey Kong's up smash has massive range and very little ending lag. It's even a really fast move to execute, too, so most newer players never see it coming and can't dodge fast enough once it starts!

A lot of players neglect their down smashes, too, but don't forget that most of them actually hit to the left AND the right of your character, so it's a great alternative to turning around and forward smashing. The knockback is usually vertical, too, so it sets up people perfectly for air-juggling. Meta Knight can really take advantage of this... Also note that a lot of these down smashes hit one side first, pause, then hit the other side, so memorize which direction they strike first, so you can dodge it and hit them when they're finishing up the move!

In summary, find your character's most balanced smashes. You want speed, reach, and very little delay if you miss. What's the point of a powerful move if you can't hit with it?

If there's something you want tips and tricks for, just let me know! More coming soon...

--Chris.

Monday's Game Night and GNC's Future!

First of all, Mike, Jesse, and I would like to apologize to all of you for not being able to host our August 11th Game Night. A schedule conflict we'd forgotten about between the Game Night Crew and the Children's Department forced us to cancel it at the last minute, but we'll stay on top of things like this in the future. So please forgive us and make sure to come next time! The next scheduled Game Night is on Monday, August 18th. I'll see if I can put up a calendar somewhere around here, so you'll know in advance about any cancellations...

Now, on to more fun matters... Before too long, Game Night Central's going to have a sleek new look! Instead of just being a Blogger site, it's actually going to be a fully-functional multi-paged site devoted to gaming and all of our Game Night programs! Trust me, it's going to rock.

Now, this new Game Night Central is going to be so much more than just a place to learn about program info. We actually want to get you involved! Write FAQs to games you know everything about, review new or old titles, or listen to game-related podcasts and walkthroughs! We want this new Game Night Central to be a source of reference for your every gaming need, but we've got to ask...

What should we have on the new site? Post a comment below, telling us what you want to see on the new website, and we'll probably make it happen!

August 2nd Tournament Results!

Sorry for the delay in getting it to you, but here are the results of the dual tournament held on August 2nd!

Even in the very first round, there were some ridiculously epic matches. In fact, the current Team Brawl Tournament champions SETH and MFFNS had to fight each other right off the bat! A slew of new faces and returning competitors attended this time, but sadly, there could be only one victor...



...And it was RAVEN playing as Zelda! SETH came in second with Marth and PLACE took third with Link.

The winners of our very first Halo 3 Team Tournament were DAN and MFFNS, so congratulations to them as well! Thanks to everyone who took part, and you can find some pictures of the event on our rotating gallery to the right. A new addition, you'll find, are Player Profiles! If you want yours added, just let me know at one of the Game Nights or tournaments and I'll take care of it.

--Chris.