Super Smash Bros.

Can Link beat up Mario? Can Yoshi deck Donkey Kong? Can Kirby punch out Pikachu?

Before Super Smash Bros Melee for Nintendo Gamecube, these and other age-old questions were first answered with Super Smash Bros, the original all-star Nintendo tournament fighter for Nintendo 64. Crossing multiple universes and alternate dimensions, the most popular of Nintendo's characters grace this bare-knuckle Pak.

The 12 superstars are Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, Yoshi, Kirby, Fox McCloud, Jigglypuff, Ness, Captain Falcon and Pikachu. Each has a specific 3-D fighting arena, with power-ups and obstacles scattered throughout the areas.

Two to four players can fight simultaneously on the same screen, or one player can battle through the tournament ladder to reach a secret boss at the summit. The goal is to knock your opponent out of the playing field as many times as possible within a specified time limit. If you dominate the competition, you can kick them so hard they fly into the sky and turn into a constellation. Link hacks away with his Master Sword, Yoshi slurps up enemies and turns them into eggs, and Fox McCloud is strapped with his trusty Blaster.

If you get into trouble, any character can take advantage of classic special attack items like Fire Flowers and Bob-ombs. Super Smash Bros. is extremely easy to learn, but to become a true master takes many hours of practice. Subtle technique can mean the difference between victory and defeat, and each character has unique strengths and weaknesses to learn and put to use.

Super Smash Bros. is also full of surprises - in Pikachu's arena, for example, random Pokémon are always popping up to help and hinder the combatants. It's strange seeing two good guys like Mario and Fox McCloud butting heads - but don't worry. When the battle is over, you'll discover that all of the characters are actually good friends.