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The hotly anticipated Super Smash Bros. for Wii U joins its 3DS counterpart at last, where a jaw-dropping visual overhaul, plus new control options, stages and modes give the home console a deserved spotlight. Both platforms offer unique tech bullet-points: the Wii U turning in a true 1080p presentation, while the handheld brings an inimitable stereoscopic 3D effect. But with such a wide chasm in core visual setups, are the fundamentals of gameplay at all different between the two - and indeed, does performance hold up for each?Before we start, the massive elephant in the room here is the disparity in resolutions. To cover off each in turn, we're looking at a native 1920x1080 output on Wii U, a figure even Mario Kart 8 couldn't achieve with its conservative 1280x720. This picture is also kept clear of any manner of anti-aliasing, leaving us with a raw, but pleasingly sharp image at all points. For most titles this would incur a distracting pixel crawl or jagged edges, but due to the fixed, parallel position of the Super Smash Bros. camera, this issue rarely flags up during play.
The game looks gorgeous as a result, but crucially, the 1080p jump also opens up new gameplay avenues on Wii U. For one, it can't be overstated how much this resolution boost aids visibility when compared with Smash Bros. Brawl's 640x480 last-gen output. Characters now appear clearly defined across huge stages, such as fan favourite Hyrule Temple, even when the camera draws back to reveal its entire layout. Where before smash balls and banana peels appeared as specks in the distance, the 1080p image now clarifies every detail.
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