i am by no means a fighting game connoisseur, but brawl was my first smash game and thus holds a special place in my heart. the elephant in the room is obviously that the game wasn't patched, so for competitive players, it's a downright mess. but for mere casuals like me, it still holds up as a fun party game and overall solid entry in the series despite how messy wii controls can be.

the main reason it scores as high as it does is subspace emissary. smash has never had anything else like subspace across its 5 installations and i'm pretty sure it never will again, especially if ultimate is the last entry in the franchise. the attempt to make a story line for all of these characters, including third parties like snake, paid off. the scrawling levels are crazy and fun, the boss fights are addictive, and the cutscenes are entertaining. play this game for subspace emissary, and then play it again. what the fuck.