Super Smash Bros. Brawl Smacks the Wii

The latest Smash Bros. installment adds online play, plus throws new Nintendo characters like Sonic the Hedgehog and Solid Snake into the fray.

Some folks like cerebral video games with stories, puzzles, cyphers, and complicated scenarios to decypher…and some prefer the “Itchy and Scratchy” school of video games: they fight and fight, fight fight fight!

The new Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Nintendo Wii definitely aims at the latter group, bringing together diverse characters from the Nintendo gaming universe into one giant, action-filled free-for-all. Ever wonder what would happen if Zelda took on Pokémon’s Pikachu? Or how ‘about Donkey Kong going head to head with Metal Gear Solid’s Solid Snake? Super Smash Bros. Brawl is your chance to find out.

“The excitement around Super Smash Bros. Brawl is contagious,” said Nintendo America’s VP of sales and marketing Cammie Dunaway, in a statement. “It’s a delight to see how the creators have taken an already irresistible series and made it even deeper and more fun for Wii. We’re just as thrilled as the fans are.”

Super Smash Bros. Brawl adds several new characters to the Super Smash Bros. lineup, including Solid Snake, Wario, Diddy Kong, Sonic the Hedgehog, Samus, Meta Knight, annd Pokémon trainer (with his Pokémon Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard). Players can also batter other Super Smash Bros. Brawl owners over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection (players can also share photos and replays), and a massive “Subspace Emissary” lets players brawl through side-scrolling, enemy-filled levels in either solo or two-player modes. The game also features an extensive single-player mode where brawlers can hone their skills, and a level designer lets players craft their own adventures and even submit their own stages to Nintendo.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is available now for a suggested retail price of $49.99. It’s rated T for “Teen” by the ESRB.