It's forever going to be remembered as 'that naff PlayStation version of Super Smash Bros.' and that's not fair, because PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale is actually very good - even if it does have a ridiculous name. No, it's not up there with Nintendo's system-selling brawler, but Battle Royale hasn't had the luxury of having four iterations to perfect the formula, and it probably never will, considering the mixed reception the first game received. It lacks content in the form of characters, story and game modes, but the content it has is undeniably well-made. A collaborative effort between multiple studios, Battle Royale did just enough with its core gameplay to set it apart from its obvious inspiration. The characters that are present are all unique, the health system is markedly different and the requirement of pulling off a flashy super attack to seal a win adds a layer of tactical awareness to each battle. Still though, one has to wonder how different the final product would have looked had Naughty Dog developed the title as they were originally slated to.
Joe is a freelance games journalist who, while not spending every waking minute selling himself to websites around the world, spends his free time writing. Most of it makes no sense, but when it does, he treats each article as if it were his Magnum Opus - with varying results.
