One of the biggest complaints about Smash Bros. (and many Nintendo titles in general) is the fact that it’s exclusive to Nintendo consoles. Gamers have been requesting Playstation, Xbox and computer-friendly Smash Bros. for years. Unfortunately, Nintendo appears to be disinterested in branching out to different platforms. This has generated a demand in the PC and console markets for similar titles. One such title which is gaining popularity pretty steadily is Brawlhalla.
How does Brawlhalla compare?
Unlike Super Smash – limited to Nintendo consoles only – Brawlhalla will be available soon on most major platforms. It’s currently available for both PC and Mac, with a port to Playstation 4 coming soon. The greater accessibility of the game has a huge potential for players to dive in and start brawling. The first major difference Brawlhalla has is its more user-friendly gameplay. Movesets and controls are very easy to pick up while retaining some depth. Different skills and abilities are available based on spawned weapons. This ensures a considerably more balanced experience while still allowing for diversity among its 17 different heroes. Brawlhalla assigns different stats to its heroes, and also different weapons. This gives players a nice array of options, letting them pick the hero that feels just right to brawl with.
What’s new in Brawlhalla
Brawlhalla has a ton of game modes to offer, each with a considerably different experience:
- Online ranked 1v1 – Square off against another player online
- Local free-for-all – Up to four players play in free for all on the same computer
- 4 Player FFA – Available in both ranked or casual modes, four fighters fight one another until there’s only one left standing
- 8 Player 4v4 – Two teams of four players face off against each other
- 8 Player FFA – Eight (!) players fight on one map until only one remains
- Online ranked 2v2 – Join up with a friend – or make a new one – and face two other online opponents
- Local custom teams – Fight up to 4 advanced AI bots in your living room by yourself or with friends
- Local single player – Do battle against bots in a tournament of three consecutive games
Plenty of casual fun as well
In addition to many competitive modes, Brawlhalla also features a ton of party-like game modes:
- Brawlball – Two teams compete to hold a ball in the enemy’s zone to score points
- Bombsketball – The objective is to launch bombs into the enemy’s goal for points
- Snowbrall – Players hit each other with snowballs. The player with the most points wins
- Strikeout – Players try to knock one another out until they run out of stock
- Dodgebomb – Try to deplete the enemy’s stock with bombs. The last player with stock is victorious
- Beachbrawl – Similar to the other modes, players hit a ball into the other team’s zone to earn points
Brawl on a budget
On top of everything else, Brawlhalla is free to play. For those looking to get into the brawler genre, that makes it infinitely less expensive than Smash, which requires both a purchase of the game and a Nintendo console to play it on. The devs have stated that it will also not be ‘pay2win’ – as in when a game hinders a player’s ability to succeed without spending real money. Brawlhalla will make its revenue off of ‘vanity items’ such as different player costumes, weapon skins and realm packs.
There is no better time than the present to peruse the halls of Brawlhalla, as it’s available, free-of-charge, right now.
