KneeOfJustice99
Smash Champion
A few people have done their take on Brawl DLC, so I may as well take a stab at it! I want to take a realistic look, imagining how it could have actually looked if the Wii were capable of handling DLC at all.
First things first, there'd likely be some kind of DLC-specific aspect to the Wii Shop Channel that would allow you to view DLC for Brawl, similar to its iteration in the Sm4sh page on Wii U - however, given you couldn't download Brawl, it'd be a menu that you could access through presumably a DLC tab of some kind. Also, DLC wouldn't just be characters or "packs". Whilst there would naturally be some "packs" of content that would all come out at once, I'd like to imagine you would also get the option to download them seperately. Also, unless explicitly stated otherwise: music is downloaded for free to your system. Also, note that retroactive additions aren't added into the Subspace Emissary.
I'm probably going to come back to this at some point. Right now, I think I need some sleep. It's 4am.
First things first, there'd likely be some kind of DLC-specific aspect to the Wii Shop Channel that would allow you to view DLC for Brawl, similar to its iteration in the Sm4sh page on Wii U - however, given you couldn't download Brawl, it'd be a menu that you could access through presumably a DLC tab of some kind. Also, DLC wouldn't just be characters or "packs". Whilst there would naturally be some "packs" of content that would all come out at once, I'd like to imagine you would also get the option to download them seperately. Also, unless explicitly stated otherwise: music is downloaded for free to your system. Also, note that retroactive additions aren't added into the Subspace Emissary.
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As for when DLC would start up, I think doing so immediately after release would be a bad look. As such, I'm postulating the first DLC content would come out on August 8th, 2008. This places the first DLC content several months after JP release and at a time when the game is accessible in all regions, giving the development team time for a brief break before the DLC-specific team needs to start work. The date is also because it's a Friday - giving you a whole weekend to sink your teeth into it! The August DLC would be a bit like a "batch" of sorts, intended to be a big showing for the first release overall.
The first DLC content update would release alongside a patch intended to sort out some bugs and glitches here and there, likely including a variety of infamous aspects, but notably not changing balancing aside from simply removing glitches. Remember, Brawl was a party game first and foremost, and thus it wouldn't really make a lot of sense to have "character balancing" be a key component of how the game was altered. But, now for the fun stuff! What new content is going to be included in our first big DLC release? Well...
Whilst the first DLC batch lacks a new playable character, there's still plenty of content here to get people talking and keep them excited for what's to come. A healthy mix of promotion, fan-favourite content, and plenty of unlockables, it's a good starting show to get people invested. I'll note this much: with the recent release of Dr. Mario Online Rx on WiiWare at the time, I came really close to justifying Dr. Mario getting in - but I think it's too soon to throw in a whole new playable character. Whilst there's plenty of content here, a lot of it is designed to be reused from other sources where possible, mostly because of the fact that this update's focus is on fixing bugs and making sure things are in good shape. Bear in mind that not every update is a "big, singular content update" of some kind - some are smaller and a bit unexpected.
The first DLC content update would release alongside a patch intended to sort out some bugs and glitches here and there, likely including a variety of infamous aspects, but notably not changing balancing aside from simply removing glitches. Remember, Brawl was a party game first and foremost, and thus it wouldn't really make a lot of sense to have "character balancing" be a key component of how the game was altered. But, now for the fun stuff! What new content is going to be included in our first big DLC release? Well...
The first (and headlining) addition is Comet Observatory, a stage based on the location of the same name in Super Mario Galaxy, and a completely new inclusion. Comet Observatory also comes with the music track Super Mario Galaxy, a direct gamerip. As for the stage itself, you fight on a stylised platform which floats around the observatory, occasionally coming to land on certain areas of the arena. Various NPCs and characters, such as Captain Toad, Rosalina, and numerous Lumas can be seen throughout the stage.
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There's a few reasons I'm considering this to be the headlining inclusion of DLC Batch 1 - firstly, Galaxy was still a reasonably recent (November 2007) release to promote, and it'd make sense to include some sort of cross-promotion for the game in your big headlining crossover. We did, after all, see Rosalina get into Mario Kart Wii, so it makes a lot of sense. Secondly, I'd say that they'll pull a similar stunt to how Delfino Plaza was handled - the models and textures for the stage can be pulled almost directly from Galaxy with only a bit of editing and cutting down to make into an effective Smash stage, and you could easily pull from similar code used for the Halberd stage to have a floating platform moving around. Thirdly - it's fresh and unique. It'd give a completely unique feel to the game as a stage whilst simultaneously working well as an interesting curiosity, and honestly, I think it'd be pretty fun to see.
However, Comet Observatory isn't the only stage coming in this release. There's a second stage too - this one being the returning Melee stage Fountain of Dreams. I think taking the opportunity to bring back content from older games is a special one with Brawl - and this is a good example of exactly that. Fountain of Dreams also brings along the song of the same name from Melee, just for good measure. Again, direct gamerip, nothing too special.
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There's a few reasons I'm considering this to be the headlining inclusion of DLC Batch 1 - firstly, Galaxy was still a reasonably recent (November 2007) release to promote, and it'd make sense to include some sort of cross-promotion for the game in your big headlining crossover. We did, after all, see Rosalina get into Mario Kart Wii, so it makes a lot of sense. Secondly, I'd say that they'll pull a similar stunt to how Delfino Plaza was handled - the models and textures for the stage can be pulled almost directly from Galaxy with only a bit of editing and cutting down to make into an effective Smash stage, and you could easily pull from similar code used for the Halberd stage to have a floating platform moving around. Thirdly - it's fresh and unique. It'd give a completely unique feel to the game as a stage whilst simultaneously working well as an interesting curiosity, and honestly, I think it'd be pretty fun to see.
However, Comet Observatory isn't the only stage coming in this release. There's a second stage too - this one being the returning Melee stage Fountain of Dreams. I think taking the opportunity to bring back content from older games is a special one with Brawl - and this is a good example of exactly that. Fountain of Dreams also brings along the song of the same name from Melee, just for good measure. Again, direct gamerip, nothing too special.
As it happens, collectables were also a big part of Brawl, and a part we're gonna keep around! Firstly, trophies. These would consist of:
- Rosalina (Mario series, representing Super Mario Galaxy)
- Toad Ship (Mario series, again representing Super Mario Galaxy)
- Mega Mushroom (Mario series, technically representing the recent Mario Kart Wii)
- POW Block (Mario series, again sort of representing Mario Kart Wii by technicality)
- Wild Wing (Mario series, this time more directly representing Mario Kart Wii)
- Crossbow (Zelda series, representing Link's Crossbow Training)
- PED Suit Samus (Metroid series, representing the recent Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)
- Rhundas (Metroid series, again representing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)
- Ghor (Metroid series, once again representing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)
- Gandrayda (Metroid series, yet again representing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)
- Balance Board (Other series, representing the reasonably recent Wii Fit)
Whilst the first DLC batch lacks a new playable character, there's still plenty of content here to get people talking and keep them excited for what's to come. A healthy mix of promotion, fan-favourite content, and plenty of unlockables, it's a good starting show to get people invested. I'll note this much: with the recent release of Dr. Mario Online Rx on WiiWare at the time, I came really close to justifying Dr. Mario getting in - but I think it's too soon to throw in a whole new playable character. Whilst there's plenty of content here, a lot of it is designed to be reused from other sources where possible, mostly because of the fact that this update's focus is on fixing bugs and making sure things are in good shape. Bear in mind that not every update is a "big, singular content update" of some kind - some are smaller and a bit unexpected.
Acting primarily in reaction to a pretty solid reception across the board of the first batch of DLC, Update 2 is a basic bug fix for the most part, though does bring some new content at the same time. It releases six weeks after the first update, on September 19th, 2008. What does it consist of?
Update 2 is intended to keep people talking, but also to slide in some extra content that wasn't quite ready the first time around. It's primarily, again, centred on bug-fixes - Dr. Mario's been in development in this form since shortly before the game's release, after all. Nonetheless, Update 2 is intended to be primarily promotional in nature.
That's right! Finally, a new character joins the fray, and it's Dr. Mario! Despite having less work already done in the final release than Mewtwo or Roy, Doc felt like an important inclusion as a representative of the reasonably recent WiiWare service, bringing to the table something to slide in a wink and a nod to Dr. Mario Online Rx with. Not only that, but being a clone of both Mario and Luigi with a few unique properties and animations, he felt like he'd be easier to pick back up as opposed to having to start from scratch. He isn't intended to be Melee-accurate, though - there's going to be a few moves changed purely so it's easier to nab them from other sources here and there. As a side note, Dr. Mario also brings with him a single song, being a direct gamerip of Fever. It's placed in the "Other" category alongside Chill.
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- Viruses (Mario series, intended as a rep for Dr. Mario Online Rx)
- Megavitamin Pill (Mario series, again a Dr. Mario rep)
- Poppy Bros. Jr. (Kirby series, intended as a rep for Kirby Super Star Ultra)
- Giratina (Pokémon series, as a rep for the upcoming Pokémon Platinum)
- Captain Syrup (WarioWare series, specifically intended to represent Wario Land: Shake It!, a reasonably recent release for the time.)
Update 2 is intended to keep people talking, but also to slide in some extra content that wasn't quite ready the first time around. It's primarily, again, centred on bug-fixes - Dr. Mario's been in development in this form since shortly before the game's release, after all. Nonetheless, Update 2 is intended to be primarily promotional in nature.
I'm probably going to come back to this at some point. Right now, I think I need some sleep. It's 4am.
