Meele Pros i have Questions! (as a non casual but also non pro)

[Oracle Link]

Question 1: Are non of you disatisfied with the viable characters (i pick characters i like) most of them are relativly low on the Popularity Skala i mean neither Mario, the two links nor Kirby are Viable isnt this Dumb?

 

[CAUP]

Are you asking why aren't the most popular characters outside of smash top tier?

Besides 64, no smash game has had mainline Nintendo characters as top tier. Make of that as you will.

If you're commenting on the more limited number of viable characters in melee, this is often perceived as a flaw by people who don't play the game, and doesn't matter as much to people who do. The fact is, even with a limited roster of top tiers, the experience playing melee is still very diverse. Characters can be played in a wider range of styles than the more modern smash games. Melee is more about being familiar (very familiar) with a few key matchups, not about having a relatively shallow understanding of many matchups, as is the case with the modern smash games. I don't think any approach is necessarily better than the other, but I definitely prefer the smaller cast of melee.

 

[BIG D Was Taken]

Are you asking why aren't the most popular characters outside of smash top tier?

Besides 64, no smash game has had mainline Nintendo characters as top tier. Make of that as you will.

If you're commenting on the more limited number of viable characters in melee, this is often perceived as a flaw by people who don't play the game, and doesn't matter as much to people who do. The fact is, even with a limited roster of top tiers, the experience playing melee is still very diverse. Characters can be played in a wider range of styles than the more modern smash games. Melee is more about being familiar (very familiar) with a few key matchups, not about having a relatively shallow understanding of many matchups, as is the case with the modern smash games. I don't think any approach is necessarily better than the other, but I definitely prefer the smaller cast of melee.

yeah, melee has so much more room for self expression than other smash games since the gameplay isn't limiting. ( like ultimate and the fact that just being on platforms is a disavantage )

 

[SUNGJINN]

Are you asking why aren't the most popular characters outside of smash top tier?

Besides 64, no smash game has had mainline Nintendo characters as top tier. Make of that as you will.

If you're commenting on the more limited number of viable characters in melee, this is often perceived as a flaw by people who don't play the game, and doesn't matter as much to people who do. The fact is, even with a limited roster of top tiers, the experience playing melee is still very diverse. Characters can be played in a wider range of styles than the more modern smash games. Melee is more about being familiar (very familiar) with a few key matchups, not about having a relatively shallow understanding of many matchups, as is the case with the modern smash games. I don't think any approach is necessarily better than the other, but I definitely prefer the smaller cast of melee.

I like to think that Melee is very similar to a lot of other games that I play where the player base ranges from insanely casual all the way up to a professional level. At the highest tier, there is always going to be a high saturation of high tier characters played, but as skill level drops, more and more characters become viable because a lot of high tiers are such because their ceilings are so high and leave a lot of room for skill expression. While this may make for a bit of a disappointing viewing experience of pro play, since there is a chance you won't see your main played if you don't play a high tier, it doesn't necessarily mean that you can't play and enjoy success with your main if they aren't the top 4 or 5 that you see the most amongst pros.

The point that there are a wider range of styles is a really good one considering the top 3 Falcons in Melee all play different styles with the character, and it does seem like the difference in playstyle doesn't mean it's always a 50-50 if they match up against one another.

Personally, I find the idea of having a higher skill ceiling more exciting than the idea of playing a character I have a nostalgic affinity to, but everyone is going to have a different opinion on that.