My initial impressions of Super Smash Bros. for 3DS

Last week we got special access to an early demo of Super Smash Bros. on the 3DS, which allowed us to play as four characters; Mario, Link, Pikachu, Villager and Mega Man. It was probably the best appetizer to what's going to be a massive meal of punches, fireballs, sword slashes, and thunderbolts to the face of your opponents.

While the exclusive demo (now available to everyone) only had one stage and five characters, the past week has been filled with re-learning the nuances of Smash Bros. again, as well as some great head-to-head action.

Right off the bat, I can tell you that this Smash Bros. is fast. While I personally didn't mind the slower moving characters in Brawl, those looking for the more competitive aspect of Super Smash were a bit disappointed. The speed of each character is back, and they certainly don't feel as floaty as they did before.

The characters in the demo all felt very much different, with of course Villager and Mega Man highlighting the two newcomers to the series. Mega Man was a strange character in particular, since his moves still relied mostly on ranged attacks, even his standard attack. His charge move became a charge shot, dealing some impressive damage, and has the ability to travel across half the level, giving him quite a big advantage.

Villager on the other hand was a tricky character. His Tree sapling requires him to first plant it, then water it for it to grow, and then chop it down to deal crazy damage. It's a tricky move that requires not only patience but some skillful dodging in order to pull off, but boy is it satisfying.

I was actually very impressed with Pikachu. His fast movement coupled with his lightning-quick attacks makes him hard to hit, especially when used by a player with superior dodging skills.

Where I had a tough time, even after a full week's of play, were the controls. Somehow I don't see the analog nub being a great replacement for a traditional analog stick. What's more, aggressive Super Smash players are reporting that the analog nub has a hard time keeping up, and actually breaking off the 3DS. While my analog nub was ripped off by my two year old daughter, and not as a result of hardcore Super Smash Bros. playtime, I can see how this might be an issue, specifically when the game requires twitch reactions.

The demo also required my brain to accept the odd control scheme that I wasn't able to switch yet. The A and B buttons were used for light and special attacks respectively, while the X and Y button were used for jumping. Coming from action platformers, this control scheme basically flips everything my brain was used to upside down. Now given the franchise's past, it makes sense considering the odd cotnrols necessary to play the game before, however, it just doesn't make sense here. But, reports stated that you can indeed customize your controls, so this shouldn't be that much of an issue for folks that hate it.

We just got our hands on the full version so expect a lot more coverage before the official Review drops.