This game is strange to try to rate since I want to try to be objective but this game has a lot of nostalgia for me. First off, this was the first Smash game that I ever played. Because of that and the fact that my gaming knowledge was quite limited when I first played it, I was introduced to several game franchises through this game, which was pretty much everything outside of Mario, Pokemon, DK, Zelda, and Kirby. I'm also aware now that this was the first game in the series to feature the final smash, which is really cool to see.

The controls are ok compared to today's standards. I've likely been spoiled using pro controllers and similar products for so long now that it feels strange to go back to the wiimote. The physics don't really hold up to today with a lot being very floaty and slow in this game compared to something like Ultimate.

For the time, I think the character roster was pretty good and there was a lot of diversity in play styles and move sets. One feature that I really miss from this game (and smash 4) is the trophy system. I enjoyed trying to grow my trophy collection by capturing enemies with the trophy stand and completing different game modes for them. Speaking of other game modes, I remember them being fun and expected. Classic was fun since it challenged you to get good as each specific character and experience what each one had to offer, and seeing the whole collection of characters you've cleared it as with their trophies at the end was always great to see. All star was similar to Classic but turned up in difficulty, but completing it would provide you with a trophy of your character's final smash. I remember keeping a list of each trophy collected from both All star and Classic in order to see which ones I still needed. Also, target smash was probably the second-greatest game mode to ever be in a smash game and I'm really sad that it isn't in Ultimate since I remember having a ton of fun on that game mode. I don't really remember much else from the rest of the game modes except that the coin shooter minigame was pretty fun to get stickers and trophies from.

And of course, the Subspace Emissary. This is the greatest game mode in any smash game, maybe not for the game play, but for the story alone. Sure, the levels were fun to play and the bosses were fun to fight, but there is a lot that could be improved in the game play. The levels are pretty linear for the most part, but that can be difficult to change since every level needs to accommodate every character's mobility. They are also pretty easy for the same reason, with any changes in difficulty simply just changing the attack strength of the enemies. The enemies were all fun to see since they used existing enemies from known franchises as well as mostly original enemies to fight. The bosses were all fun since they were mostly known characters from other franchises, such as Petey Piranha and Rayquaza. Of course the Great Maze was the part that required the most grinding and became pretty tedious, but the final boss actually offered a pretty good challenge. I also liked how some actions you take in the game play sections can affect parts of the story.

The story of Subspace was the major selling point, and for good reason. All of the characters meeting each other seemed very organic and natural in the world and didn't feel forced at all. There is absolutely no dialogue or anything to follow other than how the characters acted and their body language. The story is very engaging and I love it so much that I tried to write another story for the characters in Ultimate, but gave up pretty early due to lack of motivation and creativity. I really wish they could bring back this style of an actual story mode.

Also, just as a side note, this realistic and dark artstyle has to be my favorite in the series and I can't really explain why. The music made for this game is also extremely well made and nostalgic, especially the intro song.

All in all, the gameplay doesn't really hold up very well today, but the story mode is pretty fun to experience.