tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1662140190218708863.post7892079465828130941..comments2023-08-03T04:54:13.975-05:00Comments on Critical-Gaming: Third Impressions: Lots of ListsKirbyKidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866037458298228815noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1662140190218708863.post-68043137786190078162008-03-19T22:38:00.000-05:002008-03-19T22:38:00.000-05:00Yo Kyle: Thanks for the comment...Now about that f...Yo Kyle: <BR/><BR/>Thanks for the comment...<BR/><BR/>Now about that future metagame:<BR/><BR/>Toning down the tiers and buffing the losers was a great start to making all the character viable. Speed will always be good, but Sakurai and team have found some clever ways to not make it so dominant. <BR/><BR/>Take the new C.Falcon. Sure he's still fast and therefore very aggressive, however, because his air approach is mainly limited to the neutral air, up air, and back air to maintain speed, his approach options are limited. The knee and down air are harder to hit, and from a short hop, can have a lot of lag on the end. Because you can't waveslide around, there's a sweet spot to using the speedy jumps now accurately. <BR/><BR/>Because the general speed of the game has been unified among the characters, perfect shielding is a highly versatile counter, and everyone has an air dodge, things should be much better this time around.<BR/><BR/>It has also been about player skill. Even when playing low tiers against high tiers. It's just that the high tiers have many more, sometimes absolute advantages. But there's more skill to fighting than just crunching the numbers. <BR/><BR/>The more unique the characters are, the harder it is to balance the game. But as long as the characters stick to the rules, things should be ok. <BR/>Some jokers seem to already be breaking the rules. Game and Watch and Snake. Watch out for these guys. I'm not too worried now because it took me 4-6 months to figure out that Mario Strikers Charged for the Wii was actually balanced. <BR/><BR/>Oh and L canceling and wave dashing were simply the use of the game's mechanics. It was unfortunate that they also allowed many characters to circumvent the structure and balance as well.KirbyKidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13866037458298228815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1662140190218708863.post-65516021797656293092008-03-17T20:20:00.000-05:002008-03-17T20:20:00.000-05:00Hello, KirbyKid! I'm a fairly new reader, but I t...Hello, KirbyKid! I'm a fairly new reader, but I thoroughly enjoy your blog. I have been an avid gamer from a very early age, and the transition from passive player to critical analyzer seems natural to me. I hope to one day enter the video game industry myself, hopefully as a game designer or producer, and your blog offers some great insight into game design and balance. Now, on to the topic at hand!<BR/><BR/>I, like yourself, cannot understand why people consider Melee the superior installment in the Smash franchise. Having played Melee extensively (not at a competitive level, but thoroughly nonetheless), it is painfully obvious that Brawl is better in... basically, every regard. L-Canceling, Wave Dashing, and all those other techniques don't seem like intentional aspects of gameplay, but rather circumvention of the game's mechanics. The fact that they no longer exist in Brawl is no cause for disappointment.<BR/><BR/>Brawl is more friendly towards casual players, but I fail to see how strategy or depth has been sacrificed in the process. There are thirty-five completely unique characters, a multitude of stages, and the same Smash gameplay as always, albeit more balanced and less reliant on frantic button mashing. The changes made in Brawl have made the overall experience much more enjoyable.<BR/><BR/>I am curious as to your opinion regarding the future metagame. Will competitive Brawl see the dominance of fast, "guerilla" characters, as in Melee? Or will the modifications and additions made to the other character "classes" ensure that player skill will be the sole determining factor in victory? Is it even possible to create such a situation while providing different styles of play? I am very eager for your input. <BR/><BR/>I look foward to your response, and I eagerly await your next blog post. Critical-game on!Kylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02120934092168861842noreply@blogger.com