Since the last entry I re-downloaded “N+” (more on that in another entry. And I waded through a couple more levels of “Super Smash Bros. Brawl”’s Subspace Emissary.

Waded through.

I like it for nostalgia. I don’t like it for gameplay. Is there anyone who feels differently? I enjoy bringing “Fire Emblem” heroes Ike and Marth into a team-up with Metaknight to fight… puppets? I do wish they were fighting enemies I also had nostalgia for. Anything but puppets, really. But it never gets old arming them with a “Donkey Kong” hammer or a “Metroid” screw attack.

I enjoy the Subspace Emissary until I think about what I’m doing: playing my favorite characters in something other than their best games. It’s like wearing your favorite sweater to the beach or bringing a good book to a rollercoaster. Why am I doing this again?

But I still haven’t gotten to Sonic and Snake, and I’m eager to have them team-up. I need to see that. So I will press on.

Next: I will press on. And I will face the likely disappointment of having no new handheld games to bring with me on my Sunday flight to E3.

While I was walking around in Paris on break from the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, I noticed a lot of advertisements for “Super Smash Bros. Brawl.”

Why? Because it was just released across Europe on Friday. When I walked into a Virgin Megastore earlier today, I saw that they had plenty of copies.

European readers, I’m curious. Did you already get your copy of “Super Smash Bros. Brawl”? Was it torturous waiting this long? Or has the release lost its thunder by coming out in Japan and North America a few months ago?

Since the last entry, I…

*Played a ridiculous amount of games.

*At Friday’s PlayStation event alone I played “Resistance 2,” “Killzone 2,” “Little Big Planet,” “SOCOM: Confrontation,” “Linger In Shadows,” “PixelJunk Eden,” “MotorStorm: Pacific Rim,” “Siren: Blood Curse,” and “Buzz” for PS3 and PSP. I’ll write blog posts about many of those games throughout the week, but I should record here that two games brought me back for a second-helping: “Linger” and “Eden.” The first one because I wanted to understand it more. The second because it’s the most fun I had with a co-op game this year.

*Also played some “Secret Agent Clank” on the flight home.

Then, over the weekend, I binged. Scary details follow…

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Nintendo’s biggest attempt at radical transparency came to an end earlier this week.

On Monday, the “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” Dojo posted its final entry. Was it worth it?

With more than 300 entries, the game’s lead developer Masahiro Sakurai covered every inch of “Brawl.” Since last May readers have been frantically checking the site every weekday updates, hoping that it would reveal a new character or stage that would be included in the game. Each new post brought gamers closer to the release of the Wii’s crowning achievement.

But now the game is out, the Dojo is nothing more than an archive of content and, in retrospect, a resounding success. (It’s likely to keep doing well, considering that the cheats page for the GameCube’s “Super Smash Bros. Melee,” has continually topped Gamespot’s most popular pages list since its release.)

At its peak, the Dojo topped out at over seven million page views in one week - which is astounding for a video game website. Those numbers, coupled with the sales of the game, prove that gamers appreciated the level of transparency.

So why isn’t Nintendo doing more stuff like this?

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Do you think Nintendo’s recent releases are lacking something … like new characters?

“Super Smash Bros. Brawl” director Masahiro Sakurai seems to. At the end of today’s post on his game’s official Dojo site he had this to say about the past twelve years of Nintendo-developed games:

It’s an incredible number of characters and a group of really well-known series. And to think that they all had their beginnings in Japan…wow!

When they’re all lined up like this, it becomes obvious that there is roughly 6-year blank before and after Pikmin. While there have been big series since then like “Animal Crossing,” “Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day,” and “Wii Sports” it does seem that coming up with a completely new character-driven series has gotten more difficult recently.

Is he right? Have the gaps that surround “Pikmin” upset any gamers out there? It doesn’t appear to have effected Nintendo’s business too much, at least as of late.

I know… I thought my achievement quest was over once I hit 25,000 Achievement points, and “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” was released.

I was wrong.

I’ve developed the same unlocking fervor for “Smash Bros” challenges that I once had for Xbox Achievements. I didn’t see this coming, even though I knew full well that I have no problems performing arbitrary tasks to unlock virtually meaningless content. In fact, I have six months’ proof in case I ever forget again.

At least I’ve been unlocking some fun stuff while playing through “Smash Bros.” I’ve been rewarded with characters, levels, trophies, classic game demos, music and stickers for performing the same futile tasks that I had during my Achievements quest. For example, I received a Super Scope trophy for clearing Target Smash Level 1 with all the characters, which, in terms of “Smash Bros.” is awesome, but in the grand scheme of life… it’s not so much.

Here I am chasing trivial rewards all over again. I really think it’s a personality flaw.

There are 128 challenges in “Smash Bros. Brawl” to unlock, and after almost two weeks I’ve unlocked 75. That’s pretty good progress, in my opinion. But it still leaves me 53 to go. I’m certain there are some I won’t ever get around to, like collecting Final Smash trophies for all characters. The Final Smash trophies are awarded for completing All-Star mode, and this means I literally need to beat every character with every other character.

It’s just never going to happen, but every day I’m chipping away at the easier ones.

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“Wii Sports” was the first video game my mom played after obsessing, years earlier, over “Tetris” on the original, green-tinted Game Boy. It was the first time we’d shared a game experience together since then.

According to Nintendo, the upcoming “Mario Kart Wii” should allow us to have another. In a press release late yesterday touting sales of “Super Smash Bros. Brawl,” Nintendo classified “Wii Sports” and the next “Mario Kart” as a new type of kind of experience: “bridge games.”

“Bridge games,” reads the release, “let video game novices and veterans play and have fun together.”

A few weeks ago, “BioShock”’s Ken Levine called “Wii Bowling” “the ultimate gateway drug.”

But is it? Bridging casual and hardcore gamers implies each is approaching a game from opposite directions — but having fun on a common ground. That doesn’t mean the “novice” will ever end up crossing to the other side. “Gateway games” and “bridge games” may not be one and the same.

Nintendo’s announced definition of a “bridge” game isn’t necessarily Wii specific, either. Does a “bridge” game mean another player has to be a part of the action? I had several friends watch me play through “Resident Evil,“ simply because the game was so immersive, even to a viewer. They never played it, but they experienced it.

So far, the gameplay of “bridge games” falls on the simpler side. Could Nintendo make a “bridge game” out of “Pikmin”? And how would you make a more accessible version of “The Legend of Zelda?” without scaring off the hardcore?

Do they need to?

Readers, I need advice.

My girlfriend is wiping the floor with me at “Super Smash Bros. Brawl.”

I’ve been able to convert my girlfriend into digging most of my nerdy habits, be it “X-Files,” “Lost,” or comic books (she just finished Frank Miller’s “The Dark Knight Returns”) — but not games. Yet she has an obsession with the “Super Smash Bros.” series. I had no idea this passion existed, but she counts the brawlers among her favorite games of all-time, right next to “Tetris.”

When I was in middle school, none of my friends were much into “Smash Bros.” “GoldenEye 007″ always dominated our time, so the N64 and GameCube “Smash” games mostly passed me by. Thanks to my girlfriend’s surprise interest, that’s changed with the Wii’s “Brawl.”

My girlfriend is a formidable opponent with the pink puffball of doom, also known as Kirby. Most of the time it seems like she doesn’t know what she’s actually doing, but there’s a method to her button smashing madness.

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“Super Smash Bros. Brawl” is great, near-perfect even… but it’s not. There are still a few things missing from it that keep it from being among my favorite games of all time.

In fact, there are 10 things missing.

I have played the game all the way through. I have unlocked all the modes, characters and almost 150 trophies. I’ve seen the best and the worst the game has to offer.

Here’s what’s missing, the 10 things that must be in the sequel. Hopefully someone will take note.

1. Worldwide Simultaneous Release
This one is key. Once the game hit store shelves a month ago in Japan, “Smash Bros.” fans like myself found it almost impossible to avoid being exposed to any of the the game’s secrets. I can just imagine what it’s like for fans in Europe who have to wait even longer. Leveling the playing field for all fans and keeping all the secrets secret until the game is actually released would be a dream come true next time around.

2. Increase the Multiplayer Number
“Resistance 2” will have 60 players online at once playing the same game, and “Smash Bros.” only has four. Even off-line, “Smash Bros.” still only has four. While it may break from the “Smash Bros.” mold, upping the overall players per game would just add to the fun. Think about playing with eight of your friends all at once on one screen. It would be crazy, hectic, and awesome. Read more…

If you are playing “Super Smash Brothers: Brawl” alone — you are not alone.

I’m with you.

If you have ever bought a multiplayer game of any kind before without the intention of playing it against other people, I’ve been there too.

Are you like me? Are you playing “Smash” as a solo gamer? I’ve played the coin launcher, looked at the trophies, played a few brawls against the computer. I did a couple of the target levels, whacked the punching bag and am a whole 2% into the side-scrolling mode, the Subspace Emissary (which could be played by two people, but not when I’m involved). I’m playing this game solo, because, well, that’s how I play games.

It’s not that I hate playing games against other people (spot the telling denial!). And I know I edit a blog called Multiplayer. But I just don’t game against other people that much. Back in the old days I didn’t because I liked to settle in with adventure-driven games, games with a table that seated only one. These days, I also don’t, because my Internet connection is slow. “Halo 3“’s matchmaking service will only match my Level 4 skills to a Level 30-something, because it can’t find a closer match suited to my inferior Internet connection. So, solo-play it is.

Did you just say I should have people over and play games with them? Not happening.

Yes, my friends, I have played more “Halo 3″ single-player than I have played “Halo 3″ multiplayer. Swap in “Call of Duty 4” and the same holds true. I suspect it will for “Brawl” as well. Like I said, it’s not just my Internet connection that’s to blame. I bought “Mario Kart 64” years ago, unlocked every track, but I don’t know if I ever played it against anyone. Yes, my friends, I have friends. I just don’t play games with them.

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I waited in line for an hour and a half on Saturday night to get “Super Smash Bros. Brawl,” and the first thing I did when I got home was boot up new adventure mode - the Subspace Emissary (SSE).

Five hours later on Sunday morning I was only slightly more than halfway through the biggest crossover story that Nintendo has ever told, and I was loving every second of it, even with all of its faults.

I finished it later in the day on Sunday and realized that it was over, and, it did what any game should do, it left me wanting more.

The question is: how long will I have to wait for the Subspace Emissary to get its own sequel?

The Subspace Emissary story tells the story of a mysterious invasion that takes place in the world of “Smash Bros.,” where all the characters involved must band together to combat the invading forces in order to avoid the imminent (but unknown) danger. Yes, it has a fairly generic plot, but the gameplay holds up. It’s a 2D side scrolling adventure the feels like it came from the days of old. It starts most of the characters in “Brawl.” Link and Mario team up like never before. Samus and Pikachu fight one of Samus’ biggest enemies. In the end, you all fight the omnipotent evil together.

It’s a really great premise, but, by the end a few things hold it back from really reaching the pedestal worthy of its star power. The SSE mode is a really great addition to “Brawl,” and an impressive evolution of the adventure mode from “Melee,” but some glaring problems stand out.

Nevertheless, I want a sequel. I’ll explain why.

WARNING: SPOILERS ABOUND… Read more…

We don’t normally review games here at Multiplayer, but this time we made an exception.

On Friday, I dealt with a moral dilemma: should I lend my early copy of “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” to a co-worker, whose nine year-old was having a Saturday night birthday/slumber party? Or should I take it home for myself and finally enjoy the game we’ve all been waiting years for?

While there were many comments arguing for both options (as well as a few inventive ones, like replacing the “Brawl” disc with the “Melee” one), I decided to lend the game to my co-worker for his kid. The only condition? I wanted photographic proof (see above) that they played the game, as well as a brief review from said birthday boy.

Here it is…

The review:

“This game is awesome because you get to play as cool characters and the arenas rock. My favorite part has so far been fighting the hand. I love the graphics and the fact that you can pause, zoom and take photos of the screens. There are a lot of characters, it’s great fun. You can play for a long time without getting bored.”

From my co-worker:

“Thank you so much. I am officially the coolest dad. They all called their friends to tell them that they were playing the game a day earlier.”