New user, need help deciding which game to play

[Talenheim]

Basically, I just decided to try out playing competitive Smash casually, as it looks incredibly fun, challenging, and rewarding, but as I don't own any smash games of my own as of yet, I am at a loss at which game to buy/download and start to play.

SSB64 is where I have most of my current small personal experience with the game, as my cousins are blessed with having it in cartridge. I already play a decent Jiggly and an okay Pika, and passable technical skill with the N64 controller (and Mad Catz no less). However, I'm worried that the game's simplicity and resulting shallowness compared to the other games will leave me lacking later on.

SSBM has the largest consistent playerbase, but I'm worried that the hypercompetitive nature will be too hostile to my slightly more casual approach, and that the game will be a bit too technical for me to be able to have much fun with it for a while.

Not really interested in Brawl.

Sm4sh has one of the biggest communities, isn't as technical as Melee, has a lot of depth, and is a lot more inviting. I'm mostly worried about most of the community leaving when the next smash game comes out, that most people are only playing it since it's the most recent.

tl;dr:

SSB64 - most experience with game + controller, but worried about simplicity

SSBM - most consistent community, but worried about technicality and hypercompetitiveness

Sm4sh - Appears to be the best choice for me personally, but worried about a potentially unstable community

 

[Cyn]

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[~Skelly~]

Welcome! We hope you enjoy it here.

Yeah, I'd go with Sm4sh if you're looking into competitive Smash. It's a lot more welcoming to newcomers than Melee and not nearly as technical.

 

[Deleted member]

Welcome to the boards!

 

[Talenheim]

Forgot to mention, another worry I have about Sm4sh is that as updates roll out, the overall viability of each character is in constant flux, meaning that I don't have the stability of at least SOME kind of tier list. At least for the other games I know I can get away with bringing a B or higher to a hypercompetitive tournament, for Sm4sh I can't tell what's SS or what's J.

Also, with the amount of time I'll be dedicating towards Smash, I think I only really have the time for one game. I can't, for example, start with Sm4sh and transfer to Melee once I have a strong grasp on things and can handle the technical skill floor. If I choose Sm4sh, I'm riding it all the way through. That's the main reason I haven't already decided to go for Sm4sh.

EDIT: I also don't own a Wii U, so I would have to play Sm4sh exclusively through 3DS, which I think is problematic when you try to factor in controller compatibility.

 

[Kadae]

Out of the three, which do you have the most fun playing?

 

[Talenheim]

Here's the problem: I've only actually played SSB64, and a touch of Brawl. It was mostly my 64 experience as well as watching a few videos that made me decide to get into it. So I don't have much in the way of experience.

 

[FoxE]

It's actually not hard getting into Melee, it only took me a few months to get all the techniques down. More people play smash WiiU so I'd recommend either getting used to using only 3DS controller on WiiU or playing Melee. Or you can try sm4sh with GC controller if you have one..

 

[>Metα<]

Welcome!

I'd recommend getting into Sm4sh as it is really good for newcomers. Once you get a feel for sm4sh and the competitive scene, maybe try out Melee! It isn't that hard to get into if you're willing to give it time.