Zaradi's Prized Debate Tournament Quarterfinal - TN05 vs. Valkrin

As this is the rebuttal round, I will primarily be refuting comments that my opponent has made; I will also be raising some issues I did not have time to discuss in round 1. To begin, my opponent asserts that Super Smash Bros for Melee is better, saying "If a game is harder than another, it won't ease you into its gameplay. It'll give you the challenge and tell you to overcome it. Many players then want to train harder to become better and better at the game". This argument falters as it assumes that games that are harder are, on balance, better than games that are easier. In this case, it simply isn't true - Melee, as my opponent notes, is an extremely complex game. For most people, this means the game is much too hard. Going from too hard to reasonably hard is not a downside, it is actually a benefit. Some of the strategies my opponent notes (like wavedashing) weren't really intentional, but were only there because the game engine was very, very slippery - they were removed in later games. [1] To tout these as 'benefits' really overplays their importance to the designers and non-tournament players. Super Smash Bros. for 3DS may be less difficult than Melee, but that's a good thing. My opponent also notes the controller difference - that the GameCube controller is better than the 3DS controller. I don't actually contest this point - however, the New Nintendo 3DS that is being released in February has a c-stick and two Z buttons (as opposed to the one Z button on the GameCube controller), and I personally think the 3DS works just fine as a controller as-is once you get used to it. My opponent also notes that some 3DS users have found their circle pads broke while playing it. This concern is overblown - I've played over 100 hours of Smash 3DS and circle pad has no damage. These cases can likely be attributed to poor treatment of the circle pad than a basic defect of the 3DS. Next, my opponent decides to take on graphics. He asserts that the graphics of SSBM are superior because they were ahead of the times. To his argument, he notes (correctly) that the GameCube was a very powerful system in its day, second only to Xbox. In comparison he notes the 3DS is weaker graphically than current home consoles. This is a silly argument - handheld consoles are always weaker than home consoles, at least one or two generations behind. The Game Boy (1990) was far weaker than the SNES (released the same year) and was black and white; the DS (2004) was roughly on par with the N64 (1996). Even the most powerful handheld, the PS Vita, is less powerful than a PS3. This is why I focused on art design - not graphical power. This is not a debate on whether the 3DS or GameCube is more powerful, is it on which Smash is better. My opponent notes the strength of the Melee competitive community; there are many tournaments going on, the game is (remarkably) still evolving, and it remains the focal point of the competitive community. I don't contest that this is the case, and will likely stay the same for the forseeable future. Still, I think the competitive scene for 3DS will develop and will grow to occupy it's own niche. One reason for this is the stages - the 3DS version generally has a focus on smaller stages, several of which are originally from Melee. Some stages, like Jungle Japes, Paper Mario, Yoshi's Island, Tortimer Island, and Gaur Plain, are very well suited for competitive smash. Moreover, the customization of character movesets is something that I think will grow in the competitive community - Nintendo held an official National Tournament back in October 2014 for Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, and it was open to customizations. [2] These include the custom special moves as well as special bonus equipment moves I mentioned in the first round. These upgrades can really allow for interesting tournaments and unique matchups for any character, and allow players to really show their personality and create a fighter that works for them, and is something Melee cannot provide. One thing I also want to touch on is my opponent's mention of online Melee - while it is indeed possible, it isn't exactly legal because it uses emulation, and it also requires a reasonably powerful computer. Whereas you can go out and buy a 2DS and Smash for $120, you might have to pay $500-1000 just to get the compter needed to play Melee online, and even then it's a very limited community. In comparison, there are over 3 million people who own Super Smash Bros. for 3DS. [3] My opponent's remarks on critical approval are a rather clear appeal to authority, a logical fallacy; just because a game has a higher score on Metacritic or GameRankings does not mean it is better, especially when it is 13 years difference between the two, and over time some games are regarded as better or worse than their initial reviews were. In particular, there are a number of factors that cannot be accounted for, including different publications reviewing, different reviewers, changes in grading scales, etc. For example, Smash Bros for 3DS has roughly twice as many reviews on Metacritic as Melee. Also, who is to say modern reviews wouldn't be lower? In terms of soundtrack, my opponent makes a fair point in terms of quality, not quantity, mattering. However, I hold to the claim 3DS has a better soundtrack. In regards to gameplay, my opponent is absolutely correct in saying Melee is faster. It is very, very fast - too fast. Almost nauseatingly fast. Take a look at this top-tier tournament match. [4] Sure, it takes a lot of skill - but can anyone really comprehend what's going on there? Moreover, as my opponent notes, the best characters in the game - Fox, Falco, Shiek, and Captain Falcon - are miles better than other characters. Not only are these characters the only really good ones, but all good players fall into their archetype - fast. Slower, more powerful fighters are, ironically, nearly useless. This unbalanced character lineup is not ideal for a fighting game, and is resolved in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS. GamesRadar notes that "At the moment, no character in Smash 4 is in a class above the rest. .. Seemingly any character from the A to C tiers could potentially take the winning spot in a tournament". [5] This is a great thing, not just for tournament players, but for casuals as well. Who wants to watch a tournament where 95% of matches are Fox only? Now you have to worry about more powerful characters like Bowser or Rosalina and Luma, as well as more quirky characters like Duck Hunt Dog. [5] A more balanced character roster means more excitement as players need to plan for maybe 10 or 15 characters, not just 3 or 4. Finally, my opponent attempts to argue that Super Smash Bros. Melee has a better lifespan, because there is a larger tournament scene. While I don't disagree here, as I said above, competitive smash is admittedly a niche market. For the average Smash player, they will undoubtedly find a more expansive and content-rich experience on the 3DS, especially if they utilize the online play and StreetPass functionality. The amount of trophies, equipment drops, custom moves, and smash run powers is so expansive I haven't fully unlocked everything, even after owning the game since launch. The online play and leaderboards alone are enough to push 3DS over the edge - being able to see how many players you are better than in any given category (for myself, I'm better than 2,733,828 players in Smash Run as a whole) is immensely rewarding. In most games, it's been a chore to go for high scores in Classic mode - in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, the leaderboard gives you an incentive to not just complete classic mode with all characters, but to boost your status on the leaderboard. It's a rich, immensely satisfying experience with no parallel in Melee. With rebuttals out of the way, I want to briefly go over something both me and my opponent have touched on: unique characters. In Melee, most characters fall within one of three archetypes - fast players like Fox and Sheik (who are on balance the best in the game), balanced characters like Mario and Samus (who are roughly average), and power characters like Bowser and Ganondorf (who suck). There is very little variation here - in fact many characters are outright clones. The most unique character may well be Pichu, a clone of Pikachu whose gimmicks are that his attacks are worse than Pikachu and every attack he makes damage himself. That sucks. In Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, however, there are many unique characters, like:*Little Mac, a powerhouse who is weak in the air but strong on the ground. While fighting there is a meter which when full, allows him to attempt a one-hit KO. *Robin, a fighter who wields a powerful spellbook. (S)he only has a certain amount of magic, however, and can thus only use attacks a certain number of times before having to wait for them to recharge. *Shulk, a powerhouse whose neutral B attack, Montado Arts, can temporarily boost stats of his like power, shield, and jump at the expense of another stat. *Mega Man, a fighter who almost exclusively relies on projectiles and has a powerful side-A blaster. *Duck Hunt, fighter who relies on speed and close-range projectile attacks. *Rosalina and Luma, who are like a puppet-master and puppet; Rosalina controls Luma, who can be sent to fight at distance. *Bowser Jr. , who employs a zany mix of projectile attacks from his Koopa car. These sort of fighters just don't exist in Melee. With that, I turn the debate back over to my opponent. I highly look forward to his rebuttal round. References:1. . http://kotaku.com...2. 3. . http://www.nintendo.co.jp...4. 5. . http://www.gamesradar.com...