Is this them trying to get the gamer community to actually WATCH survivor? , I wonder if they realize people who play video games hate people who play video games better than them, not idolize them like other activities.

K-Squad! (Badass Edition)

I stopped watching Survivor when I saw the first commercial for it.

Quicksilver4648

Wow. I stopped watching survivor a long time ago..I did get to see the All Star season finale at Madison square Garden a few years back..There was an incredible amount of hot chicks there, which surprised the hell out of me.

I've been to many live TV shows before and it never ceases to amaze me how it's done and how different it is from just sitting on your ass and watching it at home...

heretrix

No reward challenges. No immunities. Ken only. Final destination.

DylanGallagher

I take it you never played Smash Bros before captainapplesauce, there is some skill involved.

aulzon

Champion of Smash Bros? Whoop-de-freakin'-do... Let me know when they get a "champion" from a game that actually takes more skill than a dead blind monkey hooked up to a car battery has. Anybody can button mash.

captainapplesauce

Once he finishes the show, i hope he mentions his adoration for the Kotaku blog, and more specifically, the greatness of the Strong Arms comments.

Strong Arm

I know I couldn't survive that long without video games. Is he strong enough?
Here's hoping that the foxes out there in the "wilderness" don't have lasers they can shoot at you from far away to build up your percentage...

JuiceKup

@Humpski:

You must be the one reason why it's now at Season 17.

Ignatius

@Kankel: *contestants

Kankel

He should cosplay as his favorite Smash bros characters and challenge other constants to fights.

Kankel

Go Ken! Go Ken! Go!!!!!!!!

Chrinkster

I love Survivor. It's one of the only TV shows I watch.

I have to go to my parent's house every week to see it though since I don't have cable.

I can't wait to see the new season. It's in HD!

Humpski

Damn, I wants me some Melee tourney action. Captain Falcon FTW!!!

Notsogr8one

Dan Vasser FTW

WordMan

@peAr nectAr: Agree. This kind of things just make people think being good at one game is important, and we know how that usually ends. Just look at Fatal1ty...

Daisuash

BRAWL FTW!

Parkington

he must have strong thumbs for all that competitive button mashing, ho ho ho etc

NecronomiconUK

I saw his little intro video for the show... made me want to hide my copy of Brawl out of shame...

Demonbird

@Modus_Operandi: Ike.

@kagebutsu: Oh, Kenshin... how I miss thee...

dae_giovanni

@ThursdayNext: Ooops, didn't see it was melee. My comment referred to Brawl...nevermind...:)

ThursdayNext

" . . . the current international champion of Nintendo's Super Smash Brothers Melee . . ."

How would one go about quantifying something like that? Is there some official "Melee" tournament every year, or is it more like if someone challenged him, he was obligated--by a blood oath he swore many years ago--to duel that opponent in a battle, and whoever came away from that was crowned champ?

And, while I'm asking questions, who's the Brawl "champion"?

And on top of that, who gives a crap?

peAr nectAr

@Rubezh: My thoughts exactly. You know that theory that if you had an infinite amount of monkeys typing for eternity they would produce the entire works of Shakespeare? It's like that, but one monkey could win an SSB tourney, after five minutes.

ThursdayNext

ah.. the type of kid who just peeves me off.. assuming he's the best.. when theres alternative competitions out there for the same game that arn't popularized

poke50uk

Ya I gave up on TV after cartoon network canceled the weekly toonami block.

kagebutsu

@Rask: gonna come back for Joss Whedon's Dollhouse? It's gonna be some good ol Joss Whedon awesomness!

Grumpz®

Competitive Smash Bros, heh...hehehe.....hahahahha.

Rubezh

Sorry, Fahey, Journeyman was a pretty terrible Quantum Leap ripoff.

zegota

@RyuriTatsujin:

I like him because of that. Nothing like running across the screen and bitch slapping people. And that win animation you get at the end where he lies on his stomach? Priceless. "Letsa go" indeed.

Modus_Operandi

I gave up on TV after they cancelled Firefly.

Rask

Reality TV is just funny, if you don't take it too serious it's quite entertaining. I give a lot of credit to the editors of these shows, they do it very well. I'll watch survivor if I can ever remember it's on, usually i'm deeply involved in gaming around that time.

Probed

The last sentence made me laugh... It deserves a prize.

SaanZ

so are they trying 2 get gamers into survivor? or did he sign up by himself. the way i see it a random fox will come and try to eat him while falco goes and pokes at his head.

kilikafinal

@Modus_Operandi: Coincidence, mine too. Everyone thinks he is a queer until you tell them they got pwned by a queer.

RyuriTatsujin

I can say with some pride that I've never watched a full episode of any reality TV show, ever.

I don't watch much TV to begin with, and when I do it's usually comedy central or the history channel.

siempre

Anyone else want to beat him over the head with a burlap sack full of rotten oranges?

That pictures sends a wave of anger over me and I don't even know who the heck he is until now.

RyuriTatsujin

Gaming celebrity. There's an oxymoron.

This comment section is now about which Supersmash character is your fav. Mine? Luigi.

Modus_Operandi

Did he just happen to make it on Survivor the standard audition way? Or was he chosen because of his "game fame" which I'm sure doesn't stretch to the masses of Survivor watchers.

Notsogr8one

@kojirodensetsu: +1
after the first season it went downhill.

AssassinTRIP

huh, gaming celebrities in reality shows, I wonder how that works.

PAULINK

I stopped watching survivor a long time ago.

kojirodensetsu

@Parkington:

Except he still plays MELEE, because Nintendo basically took anything that made Melee semi-competitive and raped the hell out of it for Brawl.

Which is sad, because Melee does the 4 player FFA item crap almost as good as Brawl does. Except Melee is also more flexible and can make a case as a competitive fighting game.

Oh Nintendo. How I hate you for dumbing down everything for casual gamers, even removing the ability for the community itself to make it competitive. No wonder I don't use my Wii.

jbiller

@captainapplesauce

Melee was on the roster for MLG for a long time until it got removed. It is going to be replaced with Brawl.

Do your homework. That game is anything but button mashing. I used to play Melee competitively for a few years. Ken, Aizen and whats his face from New York are the top Smashers in the country. I played Aizen a few times during Katsucon. Yay for being good!

But yes. Like SFII hardcore players....in Melee, everything comes down to the last frame.

Gnutslinger

Survivor: Fanboy
I'd watch.

NotoriousJnX

He might stand a chance. Mentally being a competitive gamer is very hard on you, he'd definitely be able to keep his head together.

Finally, a reason to watch the show...

NeonLight

Oh shit, you liked Journeyman too. I thought I was the only one.

AFreak3000

I'm glad because he actually looks physically capable -- he's slender, he's not obese, and he isn't packed with a bunch of muscles (which often serves as a liability on a show like that).

GAMBATTE!

wordzworth

I'm with you Fahey I thought Journeyman was awesome and it was a shame do see it get canned like that, sure it was like Quantum Leap but Quantum Leap was awesome too.

Now on topic I may actually watch one episode of this seasons Survivor to see what horrible fate befalls our pal Ken.

Tzero7

I laugh because Smash really is one of the only fighters around where button mashing dosnt work. A 5 year old could win a soul caliber match with some luck, but not smash.

Also, while almost all reality tv sucks, survivor being the original is teh awesome no matter what you people say.

Neon

Hurry up and do "C, DOWN + A"

Playstation

@captainapplesauce: LOL.
smash bros is probably the one game where button mashing WON'T work.

Superlocke

SSB is probably the game to be champion at in terms of competitive thinking. Every time a challenge comes up he'll demand that items be turned off and they only use final destination, and then get to wavedashing.

mhlaxp

Oh man Fahey I to feel your pain, I too loved 'Journeyman', it was awesome. It pisses me off so much that they left that piece of dog shit 'Life' on there, but canceled 'Journeyman'. I mean WTF, why do we need another sarcastic jackass cop show? I am so fucking tired of that shit, whoever watches that shit should be shot right in the fucking head... by a sarcastic jackass cop no less.

WPack911

@DasKonstruct:LOL, Sephirothken is a fucking awful gaming name. Getting eaten alive by animals might be a bit drastic but with a name like that, whatever animal eats him, I might have to call Cloudryu for sheer entertainment value.

Eviscerate

Ken is legit. He was dominant at Smash tourneys everywhere, and just finished second in EVO a few weeks ago. He is also a totally cool guy in person.

Maybe Smash isn't for everyone, but it's a serious game with real competition, and IMO people that put their money where their mouths are and compete deserve 1000x more respect than even the world's most hilarious internet troll (well, at least 10x more respect).

Take cheap shots from behind your keyboards all you like, but Ken has now done at least two things cooler than anything you have done in your entire life + I'll be pulling for him on Survivor (unless he's up against someone really hot I don't want to see eliminated).

capcomseth

I hope he dies. Seriously, this guy made me consider physical violence against him at MOAST 2003. Such a douchebag.

itsgreylolol

I hope he gets eaten by something. He deserves it for playing under the name of "Sephirothken"

DasKonstruct

lol, this might actually be interesting to watch until he gets voted off.

Ashura

I effing loved Journeyman

Qalbert

@Superlocke:

No. If you've played a lot of melee, you'll see that the mechanics are so fundamentally different that it takes hours of getting used to.

concerning

that dude is from my home town, probably lives down the street from me too, hahaha. TAKE HOME THE DOUGH FOR WESTMINSTER, KEN HOANG!!!

Genocyde

@jbiller:

Oh my god, you just spoke exactly what I was thinking. Bravo.

concerning

@Superlocke:
here's what kdj said about it yesterday:

me: i haven't really kept up with brawl - how's the community doing
kdj: very divided
kdj: people who are good at Melee hate Brawl
kdj: people who suck at Melee love Brawl
me: haha
kdj: and then there are the neutrals
kdj: I'm more of a neutral
kdj: but I like Melee more
me: yeah
me: i remember you told me it wasn't so bad
kdj: it's gotten worse
kdj: but more interesting

traced

which is.... RIGHT HERE! [en.wikipedia.org]

Superlocke

maybe he linked them to his wikipedia page

traced

@jbiller:
what? where are you getting all this from? Brawl is totally playable as a competitive game.

It's a tough call as to which you prefer, but they're both so ridiculously similar where it counts that it hardly matters.

Superlocke

@Notsogr8one: He was likely selected through the normal process, where his title as Smash Bros. Champ likely added an interesting element to his "character".

Expect him to be portrayed as a nerd/strategist type character.

TRT-X

another former competitive smash player here

motherfuckin' KEN HOANG LOLOL ON NATIONAL TV god i'm so excited to see his goofy ass

traced

@capcomseth:

Tottally agreed!

I'm a competitive smash player myself and it annoys me to see the trolls of kotaku come out in full force over something like this. I really hope he stays on the show for a long time to keep it interesting otherwise I won't continue to watch.

P.S
To all those who claim smash is a button mashing game get your head out of your ass and get another opinion besides the one you obviously got from Yahtzee. Not to mention to those that know how legitimately Smash is, you look like a complete moron.

lifeinthefridge

@zegota: Spoken like someone who didn't watch it. Journeyman was tits.

humperdinck

The guy who beat the crap out of the Japanese with Isai? holy shiet. The creator of the "ken combo" is def going to need more than that to survive on this show.

I like mew2king's marth more now anyway. haha

dcaoko

@jbiller: exactly what all my friends that play smash competitively play.

I guess you could compare it to the counter-strike -> counter-strike: source change.

jookie

Unless the next one's gonna be 'Survivor: FINAL DESTINATION', I don't think any of that's gonna help him. :(

DarkTetsuya

Yeah you know, because playing fighting videogames with guys dressed as wrestlers, karate guys, darth vader, sexy biatches is SO much more serious.

*Rolls eyes*

I never watch survivor, but I'll be checking the news to see how a gamer geek handles "reality tv*

BigBooBuddy

YEAHHHH KEN
and the former smashers come out of the woodwork!
too bad he's West Coast :(

ZinkO: USA WE DA BEST

@concerning: well I've only got 1400 or so matches clocked in on melee... but I guess I'm just one of the more neutral competitive people.

I don't care, I'll play either.. but I like Lucas the best out of both games.

Superlocke

@Superlocke:
"It's a tough call as to which you prefer, but they're both so ridiculously similar where it counts that it hardly matters."

No, you're wrong. They are not ridiculously similar AT ALL. Do you play either? Have you played either competitively?

Brawl slows down the game play mechanics immensley, powers down the throws, over powers the items, ridiculously auto-sweet spots your ledge grabs and nerfs almost every character off the SSBM roster, as well as throwing in a bunch of generic air attacks that are mimicked by multiple characters.

Don't talk smash if you don't know what you're talking about.

NeoAkira

@AssassinTRIP: It did? I remember the first season and they all seem the same to me.

Dalren

@BigBooBuddy: wrong game..

Superlocke

I heard he lost to a 12-year-old who had never played in a tournament before.

Schmatz

@Schmatz:

It was an items tournament at EVO. He got second, btw.

Without items, there's not doubt he would have won.

DRaGZ

@NeoAkira: I know exactly what I'm talking about, and yes they are. It didn't "nerf everyone", they got more balanced. So they got rid of wavedashing and other techniques, who cares. Learn new methods. I adapt.

But I'm not getting into an argument about smash on the kotaku comments section, tell it to someone else if you prefer melee.

Superlocke

@Superlocke:
lol more balanced. snake and metaknight are not balanced. If for some reason you use them, the items are not balanced. The smash ball attacks are not balanced. At least fox takes actual skill to use in melee and he can still get destroyed by other characters

Mrobinson587

@Superlocke:

u obviously dont have much of a grasp on fighters outside of brawl. ever heard of 3s or ggac?

smash did NOT get more balanced. u have meta knight who dominates like the old marth. u have snake with his silly snake dashing. lets also not forget about the fact that he can ko around the same percentage as ike wit lots of moves (d. air sweet spot comes to mind). i agree u cant button mash in brawl and that it takes skill to be good at, but it is NOT balanced. not even remotely.

@dcaoko:

plz call him m2k. mew2king sounds as lame as sephirothken, which is why most ppl call him ken. man wut were these ppl thinking when they made their names.

maraxusofk

what I hate bout normal torney rules: taking out the randomness, having 1v1, too much like other beat them ups

what I love about NORMAL DEFULT match - the randomness, the equality (as in great party game if your a n00b, may get a kill off etc), the skilled are great at combating the randomness, the manic 4 player timed match

whats better in brawl for me - ike <3, more even randomness (good mix of item drops), much more interesting level design - alot more unpredictable, n00b control method, slight [ace change makes it less about frame watching than it used to be (as in less experiance can have a rough idea whats happening), smash ball (most go for it.. its a great way to lure people into walking into your smashes :P ), more charictors with previous weekneses taken out (ie marth/roy quick power smash, pikachus stunned time after he does an attack)

guess Im looking for a gae that not only do very experianced players can defet n00bs frequently - but one where the n00bs can catch the frame watchers out

poke50uk

To all those who claim smash is a button mashing game get your head out of your ass and get another opinion besides the one you obviously got from Yahtzee.

Or I don't know, maybe I played the game on Gamecube (I admit I haven't played the one on Wii) and decided for myself that it was a horrid pile of crap.

captainapplesauce

@Rubezh: @captainapplesauce:

I'm laughing at the ignorance going on here

Mrobinson587

"Or I don't know, maybe I played the game on Gamecube (I admit I haven't played the one on Wii) and decided for myself that it was a horrid pile of crap."

Well, that's your opinion -- unfortunately, it's about as sound as any other random noob's. Melee is a proven competitive game and Brawl is following in its footsteps. (Might get **** for this, but I actually prefer Brawl's slower, more methodical pace, and emphasis on defense and mindgames.)

Whether you personally enjoyed them or not doesn't make your claim that they're button-mashers any less demonstrably (even hilariously) wrong. Case in point: try button-mashing in Street Fighter and see how far it takes you; now try doing the same thing in Smash as you're plummeting to your death off-stage and then tell me its a button-masher.

As for Ken on Survivor... uh, cool? I'm sure his particular skillset will translate perfectly...

thepintobeaner

"the current international champion of Nintendo's Super Smash Brothers Melee."

Ken = M2K? Ken used to be the best but now M2K is generally considered #1.

@captainapplesauce: Button mashing? Lol we're not talking about playing against level 1 CPUs here. We're talking about playing against people who aren't completely horrible at the game.

Ghar

@Modus_Operandi: Oh god, I love the winning luigi taunt when he goes 'bang, bang' and keeps on pointing with his fingers gun style switching directions every second!

excel_excel

@captainapplesauce: so your saying you won a match in melee by button mashing? Ha I'd like to see that, Melee is even less of a button masher than Brawl.

excel_excel

Oh for fucksake, OKAY people, just cause Yathzee says Brawl was a button masher doesn't make it true.

If you button mash in brawl your more likely to throw yourself off the stage then even come close to damaging someone.

excel_excel

Whether you personally enjoyed them or not doesn't make your claim that they're button-mashers any less demonstrably (even hilariously) wrong. Case in point: try button-mashing in Street Fighter and see how far it takes you; now try doing the same thing in Smash as you're plummeting to your death off-stage and then tell me its a button-masher.

Well, it sounds like you just aren't very good at button mashing then if that's the result you had. I'm sorry I didn't specifically state that from my experience I found it to be a button mashing festival, I assumed that the implication would be obvious. I guess I gave Nintendo fanboys too much credit.

captainapplesauce

Super Smash Brothers has international championships?
What a sad state the fighting game genre has become...

opt2not

"Well, it sounds like you just aren't very good at button mashing then if that's the result you had. I'm sorry I didn't specifically state that from my experience I found it to be a button mashing festival, I assumed that the implication would be obvious. I guess I gave Nintendo fanboys too much credit."

Wow.

You are aware that what you just said is completely contradictory right? Smash is a button-masher because it takes no skill; but it takes skill to button-mash? Unless that was an attempt at humor, in which case you've succeeded.

The only thing you've made obvious is that your distaste for the games likely has more to do with your dislike of Nintendo than the actual games themselves. Nowhere in my post did I say, "Smash is awesome cuz it haz teh kid icaruz;" so I don't see where the fanboy thing came from.

Now, excuse me while I go practice my button-mashing skillz.

thepintobeaner

"Super Smash Brothers has international championships?
What a sad state the fighting game genre has become..."

It's not like the other fighting game communities have up and vanished just cuz Smash is popular :\

I'll never understand people's irrational hatred for this series. The only thing I can think of is... Jigglypuff. It's Jigglypuff, isn't it? I ****ing knew -- WHY DOES NO ONE LOVE THE PUFF!

thepintobeaner

Journeyman was fucking awesome. NBC totally got it wrong when they canceled it.

Korby

@captainapplesauce: Whether or not you like Melee does not mean it suddenly became a button-masher. I would venture that the millions of dollars sunk by thousands of people into the competitive scene trump your incredibly biased opinion.

From an objective point of view, Melee is a highly technical fighter in which button-mashing is effectively suicide, whether you like it or not.

Troll elsewhere.

zgrowler2

@opt2not: You must live under a rock.

@zgrowler2: Completely true.

@thepintobeaner: True, and lol.

Mik_el

Oh boy, a tournament player...

NO FOOD
NO WATER
NO SHELTER
FINAL DESTINATION

Altima NEO

Major FAIL @ anyone who thinks that being good at smash doesn't take skill.

It sounds like all you did was play it w/your younger brother, got beat, and declared it to be a button masher.

phinehas

@Mik_el: If by rock, you mean a tranquil place where the hilarity of SSBB being a real fighting game can be cut with a proverbial knife, then yes...I live there.

opt2not

Unless that was an attempt at humor, in which case you've succeeded.

It was.

captainapplesauce

since when were there so many noobs on kotaku

also i feel like watching this show just to see how far ken gets

Tatsujinken

@phinehas: Sounds about right. I'd challenge anyone of these people to go to a smash tourney (even a local one) and record their experiences owning the "tourney ****" with their awesome button-mashing skills... if I actually believed anyone of them could actually stay on the stage for more than 2 minutes. LOL

@captainapplesauce: Well, in that case, bravo.

thepintobeaner

Seeing as how the comment section says little about Ken in Survivor...

I have to agree with those who said Melee has more skills involved. Brawl could have been such an amazing game that would've been an example of a 'easy to play, hard to master' game. Sadly it only delivered on 'easy to play', and while the added content made the game nice overall there was very little reason to stick to the game. And I know there are those who like the Smash series for its randomness than competitiveness (?), but that shouldn't excuse Brawl for having very little in competitive play. In Melee if you want a competitive match it was just a matter of changing some settings. Brawl forces randomness on you (tripping...wtf), adds even more broken characters, and removes some advance moves (Wavedash, L-cancel, and to an extent dash-dancing) all with no way to get around these issues in ANY match.

But to give Brawl some credit, I do play it with my friends if I'm in a large group since it is such an easy game to pick up and have fun with. Its probably the best party game on the Wii, but isn't even close to being a good fighting game.

InvaderGirJr

I'm not disputing whether it takes skill or not to be good. Every game you play more or less takes skill to be "good" at. SSBB just doesn't merit have tournaments over IMO. I mean, having an tourney for SSBB is like having a tourney for Hungry-hungry-hippos.

I'm not saying it's a complete masher, I'm sure a couple D-pad + A button combinations they threw in there is enough for them to claim a "deep-move-set"...but surely it should not be lumped into the same categories as the Virtua Fighters, Tekkens, and Soul Caliburs out there.

Its funny (and sad) to me that SSBB drags along such a rampant-nintendo-fanboy-following, that any mention of it's short-comings in the genre of fighters tend to end up in name calling and crying for recognition among the hardcore fighter genre.

Just because the game is accessible to every lowest-common-denominator, fighting-game-wannabe-player out there that is too lazy or casual to dive into deep-end of full fletched fighting games, doesn't condone it merit as being something to brag about being a champion for...let alone a claim to fame.

@thepintobeaner: I'll meet you at your daycare to "mix it up" with the rest of the kiddies over happy meals.

opt2not

@opt2not: The only ones resorting to name-calling here are people like you who are all too willing to pass judgment on a game they clearly know nothing about. You're also a hypocrite, as your post is filled to the brim with cries of "fanboys" and blatant condescension and contempt towards people who disagree with you. (The hallmarks of a childish mind.)

Plus, you assume to much. I -- and many, many others in the Smash community -- love traditional fighting games and are proficient at them. Personally, I love Street Fighter, Soul Calibur, and am in the midst of picking up Virtua Fighter. Doesn't mean I can't appreciate (and prefer) Smash on its own terms.

"SSBB just doesn't merit have tournaments over IMO."

And what is your basis for this. List five specific reasons why this is the case. After that, go on to explain how the series could already have a well-developed tournament scene offering up thousands in prize money, and that is represented at both EVO and MLG? Let me guess, "Teh fanboyz!!1!"

"I'm not saying it's a complete masher, I'm sure a couple D-pad + A button combinations they threw in there is enough for them to claim a 'deep-move-set'..."

And here once again, you show that you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. True, Smash doesn't require complex button combinations in order to perform attacks, but each fighter is capable of a myriad of moves based off of stick orientation as well as general positioning -- neutrals, tilts, smashes, aerials, dashing attacks, gliding attacks, wall attacks, grabs/throws-- the list of attacks, maneuvers, meta tactics is breathtaking. In any case, it's certainly enough to allow for the advanced strategies and mix-ups necessary in any competitive fighter.

Of course, the true genius of Smash, and what sets it apart from other fighters, is its emphasis on movement (fighters can run, walk, jump, glide, swim, and bounce off walls) and diverse environments, and the myriad tactics associated with them.

"Just because the game is accessible to every lowest-common-denominator, fighting-game-wannabe-player out there that is too lazy or casual to dive into deep-end of full fletched fighting games, doesn't condone it merit as being something to brag about being a champion for...let alone a claim to fame."

Again, back up your argument. I've never seen a casual or newbie player jump in and own an experienced player. NEVER. It just doesn't happen -- the game is far too complex. (And that goes especially for Melee with its plethora of thumb-destroying advanced techniques.)

The opposite is true, however, isn't it? In health-based games, random, unrelenting flurries of attacks can actually take you pretty far, even against a proficient player. If anything, traditional fighters are much more accessible to new players than Smash. (Remember we're talking about actual competition here -- playing to win -- not casual play, in which Smash obviously has the advantage because of stuff like items, which are banned at tourneys.)

thepintobeaner

MY OH MY, why the hell did they make brawl such a terrible game in comparison, although its fun its so gimped, and wth where they thinking making snake like they did, i think hal labs put alot less effort into this title.

Bboy_Slik

@thepintobeaner: @thepintobeaner: Wow, you had some good points there till your last paragraph, which basically sums up your delusion, thank you. If you think VF or SC has the same accessibility of Smash, then debating with you is a complete waste of life.

opt2not

@InvaderGirJr: Actually, you'd be surprised. The Brawl scene is developing quite nicely -- they've even figured out a way to disable random tripping!

[smashboards.com]

IMO Melee was way more technical, but Brawl rewards deep, strategic thinking to a greater degree, as consecutive hits are largely not guaranteed and thus require high level prediction and mindgames. (Both of which were prerequisites for Melee as well, of course) It's all about which of those you prefer, I guess. (MetaKnight is broken, though.)

Oh, and before I forget:

@opt2not: "@thepintobeaner: I'll meet you at your daycare to "mix it up" with the rest of the kiddies over happy meals."

It's easy to make challenges like these over the net -- especially when you probably don't own the game, thus making it impossible to play. But how about this: Get a copy of Brawl and post your friend code here. Then you can show me just how "accessible" the game is.

thepintobeaner

LoL, how bizarre. I went to EVO this year and saw this guy lose the Brawl championship to a 14 year old. Granted that 14 year old was a genius... But anyway.

I think I might just watch Survivor for this.

I support GAMERS! X3

Reinbach

5 dollars says he first off. any bets???

mackattack93

@Bboy_Slik: Yeah, agreed, although Snake is becoming more manageable as time goes by. Unfortunately, Metaknight isn't :(

@opt2not: Easy cop out.

I will give you one thing (and only one): Smash is more accessible than VF. That game is absurdly deep... which is why I love it, coincidentally.

Put simply, in a traditional fighter, to win one must avoid damage while inflicting it on the opponent. This is true in Smash, except he must also worry about knocking the opponent off the stage, kepeing him off (edgeguarding), all the while avoiding plummeting to their own death. Much harder to grasp for new players.

Soul Caliburs a good example of this. While deep, its much easier to pick up and play than Smash if simply for the fact that you don't have to worry about falling to your death right off the bat. And once you do, there's literally nothing to worry about 'cuz you can't get back anyway!

thepintobeaner

@Superlocke: "It didn't "nerf everyone", they got more balanced."

Just with that you've proven how little you know about the game.

"But I'm not getting into an argument about smash on the kotaku comments section, tell it to someone else if you prefer melee. "

I'm not surprised that you wouldn't want to argue a point you're wrong about. But your excuse is not wanting to talk about a game on a VIDEO GAME BLOG!? LOL try harder at least to cover your ass.

NeoAkira

First they canceled Surface, then they cancelled Jericho. I don't watch network television anymore. Too damn bitter. Now, I really only watch the History and Discovery channels.

I really hope this guy wins, but I won't be watching it.

Bremen142

@thepintobeaner: Cheers, good luck with the crazy.

opt2not

The King of mindgames in Smash goes to mind game the survivor cast? He might make it through the first tribal council! :D

Lyner

@opt2not: Meh, it's been working for me so far.

thepintobeaner

too many people are critical of him, he plays tournament rules against serious opponents who *should* know almost everything about melee. people who are bitching about wavedashing obviously dont know how to play(competitively).

Smashking0

Oh, and who dictates officially exactly that some people can't have fun playing a game on more than a casual level? I don't play competitively myself really, but obviously based off of what I've seen out of Melee all these years there is an obvious gap between people who just lol through it and people who really get good at it, it's as valid a game to get good at as the next. No argument against that I've read over the years has really disproven that as much as just should profanities and orders for other people to play their video game differently, or play a "better" game (that lo and behold, tends to be a game they personally hold in high regard.)

So in other words, whatever.

Kiyosuki

The host apparently likes Ken a lot so who knows.

Kiyosuki

Journeyman... D':
I miss that show. It was so awesome...

wildfire759

LMAO, Melee is one of the last button masher competitive games out there. Maybe you've never seen a good player before, but I assure you mashing the buttons doesn't automatically throw 5 attacks that chain together in Melee. You'd be lucky to even land a hit with button mashing.

GENERAL: People that hate the series just don't really understand how certain competitive games works and why they're popular. Simply put, the most important thing is that they must be popular obviously, and secondly, the game has to have some sort of skill depth in order for it to remain entertaining, but the again.. that's completely subjective. Just because your brain can't comprehend why a certain game is popular doesn't make it a joke of a game.

cHaNg-sTa

These comments make me LOL. I don't know why other Smashers are bothering to make our scene seem legitimate to posters on Kotaku. Let them think whatever they want to, it doesn't matter to us.

In other news, Ken being on Survivor was awesome news when I first found out awhile ago. I'm a Survivor junkie as well as a competitive Smasher, so its an incredible mix of my two favorite things.

SamuraiPanda

Guys, guys, let's take this back to Smashboards, shall we? At least there SamuraiPanda and I can moderate and leave Brian and friends out of the competitive Smash scene ;)

Kokichi

@Genocyde: Genocyde from TCL?

Anyway, saw Ken at Evo 3 weeks ago and he was very tan, and now I know why.

Vicko

I don't think Ken was chosen because of his video game championship fame. Because that doesn't really give you much fame except to the people of the VERY avid gaming community. Even then he's not all that famous. Heck, before this little news bit I saw, I didn't even know Ken Hoang was the smash bros. champ, but I remember someone told me about it before. So I believe it was coincidence that he was picked for survivor. Either way, I think I might start watching it again, not because of Ken, just because I was reminded of that show.

12345randomguy

+ Watch video

Button mash your out of that monkey boy.

infernovia

Button mash your way out of this monkey boy:

+ Watch video

infernovia