The Salt, the Cheese, and the Tiers: On Super Smash Bros. -The Concept and Falsity of Tiers

I remember being at a Super Smash Bros. Brawl tournament awhile back. Before the actual matches began, there was friendlies being done. I was utilizing Mario and holding my own against two others. One onlooker told his friends something along the tines of, "You guys are letting a Mario survive all this?" That statement always bothered me, but I knew it was a joke since Mario is typically not known as one of the better characters in that particular game. This is the concept of "tiers," which in a nutshell states who the best characters in a game are and the worst. But what makes a character better than another? This concept is especially popular with the latest installment in the Smash series, but is it a really true concept and something that should be followed?

In video games, often there's such a thing has characters having unfair advantages. In Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 for example some characters literally have far inferior heath bars and nothing backing them up. Krillin for example has so little health in comparison to Goku it gives the latter an extremely unfair advantage. It's games like this when the disadvantage is so obvious that one simply has no reason to play characters like Krillin or Yajirobe, even if the player likes them a lot. This type of stuff doesn't exist in Super Smash Bros. Yet, many will say that there's such a thing as bad characters in the game. Sheik at the moment is known as the best character. So, a much lower tier character such as Dr. Mario should have no shot against her. As evidenced here, this is simply not the case...

Some might say that a single battle isn't enough to gauge this type of thing, since "flukes" can happen according to many. Well, let's pit Pac-Man, whom has never been known to be a fantastic character, against someone whom is constantly being put up in the tier list: Zero Suit Samus, in 3 battles back-to-back.

My opponent obviously knew what he was doing, but my Pac-Man was just simply better here. Stuff like this tell me that that people really think too much about tier lists and the like. Players abandon their characters to play as top tiers just because many claim they're the best. Isn't that just a little disappointing? Let's say for example you've been playing with Samus throughout all the games. And when the new one comes out, you're still playing as her. You enjoy her moveset, and find yourself mastering all the different things she can achieve. You've even beaten quite a few Sheiks, according to many the best character in the game. Then someone comes along and tells you Samus is actually the worst character in the game. You're great with her, but because you find out that most agree she's the worst, you abandon her. Sound fishy? That's because it is.

Let's take two characters: Pac-Man and Sheik. They have vastly different movesets and can achieve quite a bit. On their own however, they can't do anything. They are immobile; they need a person controlling them. All characters are equal in that sense. Then we grab two people. An expert Pac-Man will almost always beat a rookie Shiek, and vice versa. What if you pit two people whom know their characters pretty well? I was listening to the narration for EVO, and one of the broadcasters made the statement of this match-up as "unwinnable for Pac-Man." As we can see, this is simply not the case...

A person can train their character to beat anyone. For example, just a few days I managed to beat the word champion of the game, ZeRo, in a match on tourney mode.

Many will be quick to point out that he wasn't using Sheik, his main, rather he was using Little Mac. Would the battle have gone differently? Let's hypothetically say it would have. That wouldn't be because Sheik is inherently a better character than Little Mac. Rather, it'd be because ZeRo has mastered Sheik so well that it's just supremely difficult to overcome him.

There is such a thing as bad match-ups. Mega Man against Rosalina is a fight in the latter's favor due to her being able to absorb whatever Mega shoots at her. This doesn't make her a better character than Mega Man, she just has the advantage. A classic example is the original Pokemon anime. Near the finale before Advanced started, Ash had his Charaizard battle Blastoise. Both Pokemon are equals; they are the final form of their species and both trainers have been on similar journeys with them. But Blastoise has the edge due to being a water type. Does this mean he is better than Charizard? Not at all. Then in a surprise turn of events, Charizard takes the win, showing that even having the advantage doesn't guarantee a win.

Sheik, Rosalina, and Zero Samus are great characters, but I believe every character in the game has the capability of being the best. Unlike many other fighting games, there isn't an obvious unbalance here. And when an anomaly seemingly appears, Nintendo has been quick to fix it. (Meta Knight being much less over-powered, Robin becoming slightly faster, etc.) If you find yourself doing well with say Duck Hunt and like the way he plays, don't feel like you should switch just because many say your character is more on the average side.

Of course, if you find yourself liking Sheik's moveset for example, by all means grab the character. The problem is that people give up on their mains just because many say certain characters are superior. Then there's this illusion that losing to certain characters means the player isn't quite that good. If say Luigi lost to Mewtwo, many would question Luigi's player skills, no matter how impressive Mewtwo looked, simply because Mewtwo is known as one of the worst characters in the game. This kind of thinking hurts the competitive landscape as less and less diversity is seen since everybody is flocking to characters people claim are the best. Then the other characters aren't taken seriously when in actuality they can be equally impressive.

Here's a saying to remember, "Tier power is all in the head. It's really all about the person playing the character, building a connection, learning their moveset, and being creative. Every character has the potential to be the best. You just have to make them the best."

Pokemon Origins Review

2013 was a big year for the Pokemon franchise. If you're even just a casual gamer, you know what I'm talking about. Pokemon X & Y debuted. Not only did it revolutionize the gamplay, it also brought in a lot of newcomers to the series, such as myself. Like a lot of people, I grew up watching the early seasons of the Pokemon anime. I believe I stopped at around Diamond and Pearl. The problem with the anime is that after the Johto Region Tournament, the show didn't really go anywhere. Worst, Ash seemed to have lost all his character development from the past seasons. After Advanced, the show was just a turnoff to longtime fans. Enter Origins. a one-shot being a new adaption from square one. Yes, 'Red' from Pokemon Red Version is the star. For the first time in a long while, a Pokemon anime looks epic. Origins is definitely a great watch. It's a testament to how a Pokemon show should be done.

The story is adapted from the franchise's first game. The main character Red wants to become Pokemon Champion. Along the way he's sidetracked with other things and constantly running into his rival, Gary Oak Blue. A very cook gimmick about this special is that it actually uses the classic battle theme and gaming screens, as if this was the actual game you were playing. It's a nice touch, especially for longtime players. Lets's dive into the meat of things. Since this is based on the very first game, you see a lot of the same characters from the anime's first season. Professor Oak is pretty much the same. Brock is a vast improvement over his comic relief anime self, I enjoyed his many great lines. Sadly Misty doesn't do much or get any lines.

And that's perhaps the only major problem with this special, the pacing. You can't fit a whole game with 8 gym battles in just 90 minutes, or four episodes. You need at least a season of 13. Honestly, this would have been better as a show than one-shot OVA. Red tells us by narration in-between episodes all of his accomplishments. It feels rushed, even his battle with the Elite Four we couldn't see in all its glory. We also didn't get to see how Red's first encounter with Giovanni went down. A lot of the good stuff is just simply done by quick narration.

It's hard to nail down the personality of a silent protagonist from a black and white video game from the 90's. Red pretty much is the same as Ash Ketchum from the earlier seasons, a trainer that loves his Pokemon and does the right thing. Blue is a big jerk throughout, which is expected. But wow, walking away from helping the secretary? He goes from being cool rival to unlikable antagonist. Giovanni is very similar to his anime self, except he's actually less Dr. Eggman and more like a villain. His turnover to disbanding Team Rocket was kinda sudden, (again, this plot development would have benefited from being a series) but nonetheless he was solid.

One of the best things this OVA generates is genuine emotion. In 90 minutes, it showed more emotion than the entire 17 season anime! Cubone's story was incredibly done. But, easily the best thing is that the fights are utterly fantastic. Actual punches are seen on screen and there's a sense of epic-ness the anime fails to portray. This is a testament to how battles in Pokemon should be done. And finally, one of the biggest hyped things was the inclusion of Mewtwo and Mega Charizard. Once again, the fact that it's only 90 minutes doesn't give Mewtwo enough time to have a proper story. But, Mega Charziard was definitely awesome and the fight between the two was just as good as a Dragon Ball Z battle.

Overall, Pokemon Origins is a refreshing new take on the classic game. There's no denying that the anime has turned into a repetitive mess, (at least the current XY anime is so far solid) so it's nice to see a more mature and 'epic' thing. The only real problem is there isn't enough time to invest in a lot of the plot points. Most of the gym battles are done through 5 second narrations. But despite that it's a great watch. Finally Pokemon fights are epic and on par with high-tier anime battles. It's a shame it's a one-shot, hopefully we'll get more down the road.

4/5

Pokemon X Review

Aside from Super Mario, Pokemon is the Nintendo series. First appearing in 1996, it has spawned many games, spin-offs, manga, and a successful anime that is still going today. (And all the movies!) Like many, when I was younger I used to watch the show back when it was actually good. Unlike most however, I've actually never sat down and played a game straight through. I corrected this mistake with the latest release in the series, X/Y. These games when first unveiled received a lot of hype. Pokemon always does, but this was going to shake up the formula. Instead of sprites, CGI would be used, with a fully realized 3D world. There was going to be a new evolution called 'Mega Evolution.' And finally, a new Pokemon type, Fairy, was unveiled. X doesn't disappoint in the slightest. It's the perfect gateway into the addictive Pokemon world.

The story follows a trainer you name and his/her journey to becoming a Pokemon master. (Officially their names are Calem and Serena.) It's the same thing for every game, but what I like about this one is that there's also a story happening alongside it. Team Flare (basically the Kalos region's version of Team Rocket) led by a man named Lysandre has a plan to make the world 'right again.' Lysandre is the only real character of the bunch, the rest are just minions with some of the cheesiest lines in existence. The writing makes an attempt at making him a compelling character, he even sheds tears at one point. So I give props to the team for having this story within a story. Ultimately however, the most interesting thing is the emotional flashback with the Pokemon war. Now there's something that should get an anime adaption.

The main story ultimately however is the journey to becoming a Pokemon master, and it's a satisfying one. It's an 18 hour journey, and you'll be hard-pressed to put down your 3DS. Unlike Final Fantasy where leveling up is a chore, here you actually want to see your Pokemon become stronger. There is no greater feeling than watching them evolve, you develop an attachment to your starter and main team. Some might find it too easy, since it's a piece of cake to stock on items. The Elite Four isn't really as challenging as they're made out to be. The only real major difficulty I had was getting passed the final battle against the Champion's pokemon Gardevoir. But, it's still a fantastic journey no other game series can replicate.

Arguably the biggest thing that got fans excited about X and Y was that along with the Kalos region starter, you were going to get a second starter. The choices would be Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle, the original three. This was pretty exciting, especially for people like me that grew up with those characters. As you go through the game along the way you'll run into many of the classics such as Pidgey and Caterpie. So while being a whole new thing, these games grab some of the old, which is great. This brings us to the factor that will revolutionize Pokemon for years to come, the Mega Evolution.

Mega Evolution on paper is a pretty awesome concept. Basically select Pokemon have a fourth transformation where they unleash their true power once every battle. The results are quite impressive. Sadly, even though the trailers made a big deal out of it, you can go through the whole main part of the game without encountering Mewtwo, which is definitely disappointing. But, let's talk about the new Legendary from the X version, Xerneas. He has a very majestic and awe-inspiring design. He doesn't get to do much in the story, but his scene with destroying the Ultimate Weapon was pretty great. Xerneas easily has one of the best designs in recent years. Hopefully the anime will capture this deer's grace and power.

Overall, Pokemon X is a fantastic game. There's so much heart put into the journey. Sure, a lot of the dialogue between the main character and his friends is pretty cheesy, but it doesn't bring down the experience. There's not really anything negative. Sure, I could point out little things, such as the Pokemon themselves having very generic sounds. (Seriously, they couldn't use the sounds from the anime or create more unique ones?) And for some reason, the frame rate drops sometimes and the battle becomes a little choppy. But ultimately it succeeds in giving the player a journey of a lifetime.There is no satisfaction greater than watching your Pokemon evolve and earning the title Pokemon Master.

5/5