Tendo City

Isn't Battleground even better? Final Destination doesn't allow for things like someone using a platform to avoid Pikachu's Thunder attack. Battleground seems as basic as it can get without giving certain characters a distinct advantage.

That said, I play with items on and "random" stage. I think that skill IS still involved. You need to be good at the game to avoid the Ultimate Chimera, the deadly rainbow of doom, or account for slowed time.

I admit the game is more fun with items in non-basic stages, so I usually play on "random" as well and with items on. From what I understand, though, items are usually turned off during SSB tournaments. I've never competed in a tournament, though I did see one going on at Ohayocon back in January (a Melee tournament, obviously, since Brawl had not yet been released).

Being able to fight people online is one of the best things about Brawl, although the lag is horrible. Maybe it's just my connection, I don't know. I never really thought I had a bad connection. Some battles lag more than others, so it might be dependent on other players' connections as well. Still, the fact that I'll always have opponents readily available will certainly help keep my interest long after I've unlocked every secret.

Tournaments are really boring. Not only do a lot of them turn off all items and force "final destination" in the name of some high ideal of "evening the playing field", a lot of them force everyone to use Fox. I'm not sure who the "new Fox" will be, but what's the point in joining a tournament that removes the majority of the game from the game? What am I testing here? My ability to play ONE scenario?

Oh yes, then there's the issue of how it's just "one on one". They could set up 4 player matches there, the games support that, but apparently they don't like the idea of someone doing the "sitting out and waiting" technique. That's a valid strategy, which fails if the others decide to focus on you.

No, I hate the average tournament mentality. They pick Fox because "he's the best in the game" (and they have legitimate reasons for saying so) but if you allow someone to play as, say, Ness, and they win, that's not because of cheating is it? Isn't it more like they are so good they can win with "lesser tier" characters?

That guy hates everything.

Ahahaha, I love the Escapist.