TheMisterManGuy
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2015
- Messages
- 138
Smash Bros. isn't just great party fighter for newcomers, it's also got plenty of technical nuance underneath to satisfy veteran fighting game fans too. It's a big reason why the series is so successful. However, many Smash fans tend to only box Smash or certain parts of the game in either one of two categories. "Casual and Competitive" Casual means all items, wacky stages, most KOs wins. Competitive is no items, no hazards, 1v1, last fighter standing. Massahiro Sakurai seems to think in a way, that both answers are incorrect.
Reading the various interviews, his explanations of characters and stages, and the mechanics and techniques in the game, Sakurai seems to feel that the two styles aren't mutually exclusive. No, that doesn't mean he's begging pro players to turn all items, hazards, and Final Smashes on in their tournaments, rather he doesn't view Smash from such one-dimensional perspectives like some players tend to do. Smash was designed to have depth to master, regardless of play-style, and this is reflected in the mechanics of the game.
Items are usually the first to go in competitive play, but they're actually pretty technical when you think about it. Not only in terms of the sheer amount of items, but the options you have with you pick one up (Drop, Z-Drop, Throwing, Smash Throwing, Catching, Juggling, using them in Combos). As we see with character spawned items, item play can get pretty deep when you start experimenting. Stage Hazards, while can sometimes seemingly be chaos, also have nuanced structure to them. Midgar for example I think is possibly one of the most technical stages in the game. Mainly because of the summon mechanic it has, if you're skilled, you could be racking up summons and using those hazards to score obscene amounts of KOs.
Even the way Ultimate orders Stage Selection and Character Selection, was a deliberate choice not just for competitive play, but also casual play with Sakurai stating that it was done so that the player can put more thought into their character selection based on how good they are with the stage. There's also subtle things like sneaking in a last hit on an opponent after another player already launched them to steal the KO point, or how Assist Trophies can now be killed.
So I don't feel Sakurai views Smash as having a Casual or Competitive rule-set, rather as a simple fighter that's easy for newcomers, but deep for veterans period. It was designed in a way that it requires skill and knowledge to truly master regardless of what play-style you choose. Of course Sakurai also mentions that having all the items and hazards on means the better player doesn't always win. But that's also what he thinks is part of the fun of Smash, a loss you can brush off learn what went wrong, and hope for the next win. In Sakurai's eyes, there can be such a thing as high level casual play. Granted, it'd take a lot of skill and intuition to muscle through and master all that RNG, but it's probably possible.
Reading the various interviews, his explanations of characters and stages, and the mechanics and techniques in the game, Sakurai seems to feel that the two styles aren't mutually exclusive. No, that doesn't mean he's begging pro players to turn all items, hazards, and Final Smashes on in their tournaments, rather he doesn't view Smash from such one-dimensional perspectives like some players tend to do. Smash was designed to have depth to master, regardless of play-style, and this is reflected in the mechanics of the game.
Items are usually the first to go in competitive play, but they're actually pretty technical when you think about it. Not only in terms of the sheer amount of items, but the options you have with you pick one up (Drop, Z-Drop, Throwing, Smash Throwing, Catching, Juggling, using them in Combos). As we see with character spawned items, item play can get pretty deep when you start experimenting. Stage Hazards, while can sometimes seemingly be chaos, also have nuanced structure to them. Midgar for example I think is possibly one of the most technical stages in the game. Mainly because of the summon mechanic it has, if you're skilled, you could be racking up summons and using those hazards to score obscene amounts of KOs.
Even the way Ultimate orders Stage Selection and Character Selection, was a deliberate choice not just for competitive play, but also casual play with Sakurai stating that it was done so that the player can put more thought into their character selection based on how good they are with the stage. There's also subtle things like sneaking in a last hit on an opponent after another player already launched them to steal the KO point, or how Assist Trophies can now be killed.
So I don't feel Sakurai views Smash as having a Casual or Competitive rule-set, rather as a simple fighter that's easy for newcomers, but deep for veterans period. It was designed in a way that it requires skill and knowledge to truly master regardless of what play-style you choose. Of course Sakurai also mentions that having all the items and hazards on means the better player doesn't always win. But that's also what he thinks is part of the fun of Smash, a loss you can brush off learn what went wrong, and hope for the next win. In Sakurai's eyes, there can be such a thing as high level casual play. Granted, it'd take a lot of skill and intuition to muscle through and master all that RNG, but it's probably possible.
