Analysis: A race to find the strategies in Brawl

What I like about watching a new game unfold in the tournament realm is that it becomes a race to see who can find the winning techniques.

One player, participating in his first Brawl tournament (Saturday at the University of California, Irvine) said he was practicing for hours on end, hoping to dominate with his Wolf. For the most part, he did really well ...

... except he couldn't escape the chain throwing of King Dedede. The Wolf player lost to the Dedede player twice in the double-elimination tournament (seems like my cry for preventing double jeopardy has fallen on deaf ears) leaving the Wolf player to beg for the move to be disallowed in tournament play.

But that wasn't the only tactic being discussed at Saturday's UCI tournament. Bowser, as big and mean as he/it is, can grab a character, somersault in the air, and land belly down ... hard ... giving the opponent some good-sized damage.

I'll get back to Bowser later on. First, let me show you the Dedede chain grab. Fast forward to 2:34



Please excuse me because I laugh every time I see it. Also, it should be noted that the stage used in this video I believe has not been allowed in any California tournaments so far. Finally, it seems as if this player does it with about a frame left to spare; the people I've seen do the chain grab do it much quicker.

OK, you can obviously see why some people are looking at this chain grab as a problem. If your character is up against a pillar or wall, the Dedede can do an infinite chain grab.

Should the move be banned? Absolutely not.

* -- The game isn't even out in the United States, so we don't know if the game is going to play differently (I always make note of the Melee-Roy factor). In the three Brawl tournaments held in Southern California, a Dedede user has not cracked the top eight. If the move was so powerful, more players would go with the king.

* -- Players are still learning the game. I'm sure there are going to be other infinites out there that will be exposed.

* -- The move does not guarantee a win. The stage you saw in the video has not been allowed so far. Most of the stages allowed in tournaments have a drop point, so Dedede can chain grab only so far before running out of room.

* -- It is also up to the Dedede user to execute the move perfectly, much like how a Melee Ice Climbers player has to time it right to perform the "Wobbles" technique.

= = =

The Bowser grab can also bring laughter. However, there's a problem that can occur. Fast forward to 1:05.



Should this move be banned? Again, no. This time, there's a little bit more technical aspect to this. According to Tony "Gimpyfish" Dennis (who won the tournament), both players can influence exactly where Bowser lands thanks to the D.I. (directional influence). So if you know it's coming, then make sure to go in the direction that provides a landing instead of open air. The Bowser will sail left, sail right or straight down.

Also, you saw that it had to go to sudden death. The normal tournament settings regarding tie breakers (in order) are:

* -- Most stock remaining
* -- Lower percentage if stock is even
* -- If it's still even, then sudden death is played out

Technically, in a case like the one above, the sudden death has to be played out because they're tied in stock (zero) and percentage (zero). I'm hoping that the Tournament Powers that Be do not amend the rule for this situation when Brawl tournaments become frequent. Also, players should learn how to create the "safe landing" if they are grabbed and thrown down.