6. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Believe it or not, this is the first game in the Smash series that I ever bought. I played it a handful of times throughout high school and college at friends' houses and sleepovers, but I never really understood the grammar and mechanics of the game, and with my exposure to it being limited to those specific instances and my not making any effort to learn how it worked, I just never had any interest in it. I was a Mortal Kombat kid anyway; I understood the concept of button combinations to fire off special moves, and didn't understand Smash's bizarre setup of having only one attack button.
Something clicked, though, when SSB Ultimate was announced. Having become a much more focused gamer as an adult, and having close friends who also got excited about gaming, the prospect of playing 8-player Smash with friends and having a 70+ character roster to unlock and master had me positively foaming at the mouth. I was all in on the hype.
Sakurai himself noted that this series is - at its core - about collaboration, the joining of universes in whimsical and exciting ways. And with the introduction of more and more beloved characters all in this one place, he's remained true to that mantra. I mean where the hell else will you ever get the chance to send metal King K Rool flying into a Super Mario Galaxy star with a swift kick delivered by Isabelle from Animal Crossing?
And believe you me: The loudest noise that has ever emanated from my apartment was when that jiggy flew across the screen during a certain Nintendo Direct.
I'm not even sure how many hours I've clocked in SSB Ultimate at this point, but I'd guess it's over the 200 mark. I love playing the Spirit Board and trying to collect all 1,300+ spirits. The single-player World Of Light mode was a gargantuan blast of a challenge. And (once you get a hard-wired ethernet adapter for your Switch) the online play is great too!
I feel so happy that I finally get Smash. I actually took the time to learn its mechanics and quirks, and even though I'm still a very novice player, I always always always have fun with it.
