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Digital Foundry Compares Super Smash Bros On Nintendo 3DS And Wii U

Valued tech analysis site Digital Foundry have unveiled their latest analysis and this time they’ve compared the Nintendo 3DS version of Super Smash Bros with the Wii U version. Clearly there’s going to be some differences, but both versions stand up pretty well. If you’re interested in reading the comparison then you can check it out right here, but by all accounts Sakurai has done a sterling job on both.

Whether or not this is the definitive release for the competitive scene, its technical faculties have to be admired. Smash Bros. on 3DS and Wii U is a labour of love from Sakurai and his team, realising characters from all corners of the industry at previously unseen levels of detail. Presented with stereoscopic 3D in your hands, or at a crisp 1080p for couch play, it’s a success for Nintendo fans of either persuasion.

81 thoughts on “Digital Foundry Compares Super Smash Bros On Nintendo 3DS And Wii U”

  1. Idk if you guys agree with me, probably, but the 3DS version looks much better. It’s more artistic, and even if its sort of pixely, the fact it shows some pixels is a work of art itself. The Wii U version looks kinda…grudgy and pooey, like it’s molded with Brawlness…idk it, looks generic in other words. The 3DS version’s sound is also better. It’s a bit more screechy, but still, reminds me of the gameboy era with tthat sound.

    1. I don’t know about all that. The only things I’d say the 3DS version has over the Wii U version, would be the 3D and the portability.

      1. Better Smash mode “Smash Run”, connectivity to share custom fighters as well as acting as another Wii U controller option which surprisingly works and cheaper pricing. lol

        But Wii U has the HD visuals, steady overall 60FPS frame-rate, improved online that doesn’t lag as horribly as 3DS/Brawl, has shit tons more content, Master Orders modes, voice chat and more controller options with custom command changes (which 3DS doesn’t)

      1. Well, my brother owns one, I went to his house to play while he was in the kitchen and smacked my face when he saw me play it…he’s very serious about his Wii U. He told me not to touch it but I wanted to see how it was.

        1. Lol he is like me, no one touch my gamepad except me.My friends broke 2 wiimotes,1 gamecube controller and my brother broke my pro controller.I had them buy a bew one so we can still play multiplayer but the gamepad with wii u is different and you nmcant buy it which sucks.

    2. No. It’s just you. 3Ds looks impressive on its own level but let’s be frank here, Wii U blows that game far out of the water and beyond the world in sense of visual style and handling of much content. What I mean is Wii U have and does so much more and the 3DS is altered to have just enough content it can handle and run at a certain graphical level so it won’t lag as much but I can’t say the same for online on 3DS which is a pitifully painful reminder of how shitty Brawl’s online was.

    3. I prefer the 3DS version, and have buyers remorse for buying the WiiU version. My reasons are totally different.

      I much prefer the game modes in the 3DS version. Game play far more important to me than Graphics… Now, if you are a competitive smash gamer, I totally understand why you’d buy the WiiU version, but I’m not. I want to have fun and collect my trophies. Doing this twice is just repetitive and boring to me.

      If you enjoy the WiiU version, good for you, but I prefer the 3DS.

      1. You know all the trophies are different right? The only ones it shares are the classic campaign and even then it is HD version of them. I grew bored with the 3ds version because of just how few if things there were to do. The wii u version has special orders which is perfect for unlocking things and it’s challenging. I mean I like the 3ds version but saying it is better than the wii u one just boggles mind. Unless you are a person on the go all the time.

    4. perhaps your preference is not in line with what ppl would consider “modern” lol because objectively speaking the sound design, and graphics are way better realized on the wiiu than the 3ds it’s not even close

  2. Very awesome! Both versions are really technical marvels and showcase each system’s potential, and in some ways (especially 3DS) are capable of more than maxing out the system!

      1. After playing Smash Wii U, I can safely say that PS All Stars and Smash are totally different beasts. You have to play it to understand, don’t judge a book by its cover is what they say?

        1. Excuse me but one of them are “beasts”? The other is a balant direct ripoff of the orher. All they did was remove the screen edge death boxes, turn the core mode into stamina, slap in Sony’s own characters which half of them either suck or no one cares about and give it the most generic ass video game title I have ever seen or heard of. There you go. Sony’s own next classic Nintendo knockoff that didn’t even sell more than 5% of all Smash Bros. total sold copies of every game release and became the pinnacle joke of Sony’s glorified Nintendo knockoffs since their dildo shaped Wii Remote ripoff with a glowing ball…

          “Make. Believe..that we can be Nintendo but better in every way” MY ASS. lol

          1. If you haven’t played the game, you shouldn’t be trying to act like you did. It makes you look really stupid

            1. I played the demo. Its a straight up knockoff at its worst. Its name is stupid, its gameplay is ripped off the Smash Bros. playbook and its changes are minimum to nothing compare to Smash Bros. in familiarity.

              1. It’s more complicated, nuanced and technical than Smash Bros. Except for Good Cole MacGrath and Evil Cole MacGrath, there aren’t any clones. All-Stars has surprising depth, one of the major things that helps it stand out. PS All Stars’ online is also one of the best parts of the game. It puts players through roving seasons, where statistics are kept only for a short time before they’re reset. This lets everyone start on the same playing field and keeps competition perpetual and fair. And if you want to play online but don’t want to get crazy competitive, you can always stick to unranked matches.

                PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale isn’t perfect, and it clearly owes its existence to something very special that came before it. But it’s also special in its own right. You can see for yourself that the two games are as different as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. I know it’ll be hard for some skeptics to believe, but PlayStation All-Stars is its own game, and it even happens to do some things better than what inspired it. Give it a try and see for yourself.

                1. Its a garbage ripoff that’s too familiar. Knowing Sony, they dont even try to make their copycats “different” anyway and its hilarious that you’re seriously defending this shit which BTW, HAS THE MOST GENERIC ASS TITLE EVER! XD

        1. I would’ve prefer both versions to switch those single player mode around and have Smash Run on Wii U with online play, making it the superior version while 3DS has more of a party game going on because the fanbase count is higher and suitable for Tour.

          1. Smash tour is fun lol, I won all the times without knowing what we do.Now no1 likes it except me, all want regular smash.

            1. Its a stupid ass Mario Party mode that has no fitting in the tone of Smash Bros. fighting genre. I didnt pay full price for a fucking Mario Party mini game mode. I paid for a fighting game with all segments related to FIGHTING. Plus compare to all Smash Bros. single player modes, this one is the stupidest and most boring of all modes.

  3. No Adventure style mode
    No Board the platforms
    No Break the targets
    No Race to the finish
    Watered down Classic mode
    Watered down All Star mode
    Watered down trophy collection
    Too many reused stages.

    The only improvements are the balancing and the online. Tons of stuff has been removed for no reason over the years.

    1. I’m fine with the exclusion of an adventure mode since events mode is much more enjoyable and difficult at times. Board the platforms really only existed in the first smash game, so I don’t really see why that would be EXPECTED or anything… Break the targets – I can see why you miss it, but it felt way too tedious trying to complete those challenges in Brawl. Race to the finish suffered the same fate as board the platforms. Classic is actually much more in-depth now, but it’s not really “Classic”. All-Star is also more in depth now, because they are ordered in reverse chronological order or regular order. Trophy collection is about the same in this game as in Brawl, but with less tediousness. And the stages they did reuse are all stages I liked, so I’m fine with the ones they picked.

    2. more modes
      classic is much better
      all star mode is better
      race to the finish is still in
      break the target still in
      board the platforms sucked hard
      smash run is adventure mode
      more trophies than ever
      more stages then ever
      master orders
      crazy orders
      amiibo training
      move customization
      best character roster yet
      smash run and tour
      it looks amazing and plays better than melee and brawl
      trophy shops and master core
      classic mode is actually a threat again
      more fucking events <3
      hilarious sonic voice actor

      any questions?

    1. They’re full of shit and always make irrelevant garbage like this. Why compare both games at all when they’re radically different besides the core gameplay and roster? lol So much fail in DF.

  4. The Wii u verison should had a race mode in a side scrolling format where you fight to reach the finish line. For an example like super mario bros, but instead you fuck each other up trying to reach the finish line. Would have been so much better than damn smash tour.

      1. Yes but with other players, hazards ( like fucking ridley), items and a finish line like Mario kart but in a side scrolling style. Smash run is just fuck up enemies than fight.

        1. Yeah, I agree with what you say, I’d like that too…not sure if you know about this, but take a look at this link: Skip to 13:30

          1. Yes something just like that but with other players and items. Never played melee, Didn’t know it had that.

            1. Well, I’m glad I was able to introduce it to you, and I agree. Though, Michelle did bring up a valid point. She said that it wouldn’t be unfair since characters have much different speeds. The solution I see in this is to make all speeds equal and in the middle for the special occasion. Then, it would be perfect. Hopefully the next Smash.

        2. You don’t always fight, it’s a mix of things. There is something kinda similar like that, the horizontal race and it has hazards, although nothing like ridley or anything.

          I get what you want, just throwing that out there.

          The only problem I see with this and clearly what I’ve observed from playing the horizontal race a couple times, is that it’s completely unfair. Unless they were to limit some of the characters moves, since some characters have moves that make them much faster or able to fly upwards.

          On top of some characters naturally being faster runners than others. Imagine trying to race with Ganondorf or any of the dead slow characters, it would just be pointless. The horizontal race in smash run kinda of is already, if you get paired with Shulk who can use Monado jump or any of the other characters with moves that boost them through the air like Pit, it defeats the purpose if you chose a character who can’t do anything like that.

          1. You could have each character start off at the same speed somehow than collect those items that boost stats to increase speed. But idk its just a fucking wild idea that poped in my head. Didn’t really think this out

      1. Dude smash dash just rolls off the tough. I thought of smash race but smash dash is even better. But yeah I think my idea would have been way better than smash tour. Another damn messed opportunity. Oh well.

        1. I swear, IDK where the fuck Sakurai got the idea of turning Smash Bros. into Mario Party with that BS mode knowing damn well people buy Smash Bros. TO FIGHT and Mario Party 10 is coming.

          1. That’s because Sakurai is a casual. And what game pops in your mind when you think of casual? Why of course, Mario Party.

  5. Both are incredible addition to ANYONE WHO CALL HIMSELF A GAMER. True hardcore mechanics it has improve all that brawl screw back them i feel that ill play this as much as i played melee (i played melee till 2012 so… Yea ten years are enough for a game)
    Anyway i have a question why the gamer girls barely play smash brothers : ( where i live you can see tons of girls on lol and cod tournaments but you rarely see anyone in smash bros tournaments and i thinl thats sad my best friend (who is a girl>im not am english native speakers so i dont know if its apropiate ti say my girlfriend if we arent on a relationship) can kick my butt hardly on street fighters IV but she never likes smash bros ill love to see a growing smash girls scene to be honest.
    Tell me what you think! Amd i also apretiate if any girls reply me!

          1. Don’t you know what is comparing Green apples to Red apples? They are the same fruit but different tastes….that is the example that I trying to make with Smash 3DS and Wii U.

  6. JTZ from tribe of Judah

    After playing Smash wii u with the 3DS controller, the 3ds is a better controller for Smash Wii U than the handheld is for Smash 3Ds. It feel different playing it with Wii U for some strange reason.

  7. Here’s my pros and cons of both games:

    Super Smash Bros. 3DS

    Pros:

    * Maximized 3DS Performance
    * Equal Roster count to Wii U
    * Exclusive contents and modes like my favorite “Smash Run”
    * Wii U Connectivity to share customs and act as a controller which it works wonders
    * Good use and amount of 3D effects
    * Great soundtrack
    * DLC possibility

    Cons:

    * Choice of subtitle is pretty stupid and obvious
    * Online play is as terribly laggy as Brawl
    * Smash Run is offline only which is a colossal disappointment
    * No Miiverse posting, at least on the original 3DS models
    * Assist Trophies animation at 30FPS looks kinda awkward at times
    * No 3DS controller command change options
    * Playing on the smaller 3DS screen can be tiring and confusing when trying to spot yourself
    * Can’t change Menu music like Smash Bros. 4 on Wii U
    * Not sure if it has Amiibo feature but if not, then that’s disappointing
    * Not sure if 3DS has voice chat but if doesn’t, then that sucks as well

    Super Smash Bros. 4 (Wii U)

    Pros:

    * HD Native 1080p/60FPS Performance (Idiots say this isn’t possible on Wii U because it’s “weak”. Well, there you go haters. Nintendo has proved you wrong AGAIN!)
    * Tons more contents
    * Exclusive Master/Crazy Orders modes
    * Exclusive Classic mode enemy on higher difficulty called “Master Core” (and boy that scary dude is a giant pain in my ass. lol)
    * Miiverse support
    * Amiibo support
    * GameCube Controller Revival
    * Improved Online play
    * Voice Chat with friends (only)
    * DLC possibility
    * Multiple controller options with changeable button commands

    Cons:

    * Again, choice of subtitle is stupid and obvious
    * Smash Tour mode..SUCKS BALLS! I didn’t buy Super Smash Bros. 4, a fighting game, to play Mario Party. Both of those games don’t mix and should stay separated
    * Online, although greatly improved from Brawl, still lags at times
    * Voice chat limited to lobbies…again? lol Come on Nintendo. Cut the BS with limiting communication with trusted friends just because of what happened with Swapnote
    * Sometimes the challenging segments of the game can be quite frustrating to deal with (both 3DS & SSB4)
    * No direct Miiverse posting of text messages or images
    * No replay Miiverse sharing or posting to YouTube; a missed opportunity for the community to upload full gameplay for their respective channels for their viewers unlike MK8 which severely limit it to certain gameplay segments in 2nd person point of view and up to 30-60 seconds
    * Gamepad usage is disappointingly limited to Amiibo scanning, Off-TV Play, Stage Builder and voice chat. At least give the Gamepad touch screen some use for selecting menu options
    * Stage Builder is severely lacking compare to Brawl. No preset block floor pieces, no true erasing function to accurately reshape terrains instead of just erasing the whole thing completely, no spikes, no elevated platforms, no icy terrains, only 4 types of stage pieces and draw only mode? Come on. Brawl had a lot more to offer in Stage Builder than this

    Both games:

    Pros:

    * THANK GOD for the removal of “tripping” from Brawl.
    * Great value for their respectful class of content offerings and gameplay purposes (one on the go and one for home)
    * Greatly optimized to their best and fullest potential on their platforms
    * Customization of characters adds a whole new depth to the game even though it’s for friend matchmaking only..for obvious reasons in terms of fairness for online play

    Cons:

    * Online still needs improvement
    * No Ice Climbers…*Cries*
    * No Dark Samus…*pissed off*
    * Dark Pit, Lucina and Dr. Mario (CLONES) are playable?! Seriously? One is a waste of space since Pit already has a black recolor, one should’ve been an alternate costume of Mario since Dr. Mario has no difference at all and instead of Lucina, Chrome should’ve made the cut or bring back Roy who is loved by many who played Melee
    * GET RID OF WII FIT TRAINER! I have never seen the most pathetic, the most pointless and weakest POS SSB character in my life and especially one that never teaches self defense outside of fitness and health instructions in its own game to fit in the SSB universe
    * Mii Swordsman & Gunner feels SO SLOW no matter how much you customize
    * Little Mac, which I despise and fear, is TOO OVERPOWERED AND OVERUSED BY NOOBS! His damage and speed ratio is too high for a boxer, his recovery move is pathetic and I hate the fact that your attacks on him while he charges a move can’t do shit because he’s not even using a counter or knows one and yet when you hit him, it does nothing but he sends your ass flying off even around 50-60% which is fucking BULLSHIT! And people say Meta Knight was overpowered. Meta Knight fights the same damn way in Smash 4 like in Brawl except he can’t fly in the air after using his recovery which is what most people were pointlessly bitching about because they get mad when they can’t reach him. That’s the point of Meta Knight you idiots; the dude HAS WINGS and CAN FLY as what he’s suppose to do
    * I wish Amiibo were used to unlock more hidden content like what was done in Mario Kart 8 and Hyrule Warriors with costumes

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