Can we make Mario feel more happy for the next smash game?
I'm starting to feel that he is gonna murder us all.
Mario's always been mental tho. XD
JOKES ASIDE, thugh, I actually am not all that bothered by gritty Mario, or gritty Smash in general.
Why? I just feel it to be.... kinda refreshing in a way.
Now prepare for me to go on an extremely boring tangent about "tone", "identity" and all that stupid stuff, to defend my position.
As bad as Brawl's gameplay was (seriously, mention Wolf's matchup against King Dedede and I WILL LOSE ALL MY ****ING ****), there was one thing Brawl did right IMO; it was when the franchise gained some identity beyond "game where Nintendo characters beat the crap out of each other".
Brawl was the first Smash game to have a true tone/identity. There were serious character designs (like the Twilight Princess Designs getting introduced), a storyline with drastic stakes, globally desaturated colour palette, heroes working together and the villains being, and an ultra big-baddie that was an enigma. There was a real impact to it all, and there was a subtle shock factor to it all (like, it feels like there's some dark ulterior motive behind all the fighting, and it isn't just for fun). The promotional media and the game alike both used an orchestrated choir, designs were more serious overall, and it really felt like an ultimate battle royale (even if, again, the gameplay left much to be desired). In general, that gritty feel was something that made Brawl feel really unique to me, especially after having been told many times in my youth that Nintendo couldn't be anything but happy go lucky.
Not to say I don't see any merit in Smash 4's artstyle/identity. It harkens more to the Smash 64 days of "Settle it in Smash!" compared to the grittier Melee and Brawl, and it feels in general like some great adventure is about to happen. It certiantly does suit many characters well, and I do like the neutral tone they went for. I wouldn't mind all that much if they kept it. But I still really hope this Switch game goes back to the general Brawl style. (with some adjustments; some characters look more cartoony than others, like Kirby, but the standard is Brawl's realism) This is because I feel that Brawl's gritty and dark undertones really offered a fresh take on these Nintendo icons we all know and love, and it was a really great idea with admittedly somewhat faulty execution in some parts, which I could imagine turning off a few people, and this concept was dropped too soon. So basically, A more mature Smash has plenty of potential to me. I'd like them to also include the scrapped mechanic of visible battle scars (like Meta Knight's mask cracking, Falcon's visor cracking, Samus's armor cracking, fizzing and sparking, etc). So far, though, the Smash Switch trailer appears more abstractingly Gothic than anything from Smash 4, portraying the logo and the music as something horrifying, and the Inklings looking nervous as hell, which, when contrasted with Smash 4's first trailer starting with Villager happily getting an invitation to participate in Smash, comes off as feeling more like an alien invasion of sorts, so maybe, just maybe, this is at least a partial return to SSBB's style.... but I don't want to hold my breath and get disappointed.
Just felt like, with some people acting like dark Smash is some sort of alien concept, I just felt like defending this stance and help explaining just what it is in Brawl's artstyle that makes people consider revisiting it to be worthwhile.
Also, woah, that was a stupid long post.