There are five ways in which the victor can be determined, depending on the game type. CPU characters' AI difficulty is ranked from one to nine in an ascending order of difficulty. All characters may be controlled either by humans or the computer. In the multiplayer mode, up to four characters of players or computer players may fight, either in a free-for-all or teams.
Like the battle stages in the game, they also make references to some conventions of particular series, for example, in a stage based on the Metroid series, the player has a time limit to evacuate a building-a recurring theme in the Metroid series. Adventure mode takes the player to several predefined universes of characters in the Nintendo franchise. These areas may include references to that particular character's past and legacy. Some of these modes are personalized for the character, for example, the Target Test sets out a specialized area for a character in which they aim to destroy ten targets within the given time limit. The applicable modes range from Classic Mode, which involves the player battling against opponents in multiple stages until he or she reaches the boss character, to the Home Run Contest, which is a minigame involving the player trying to launch a sandbag as far as possible with a Home Run Bat. Single-player mode provides the player with a variety of different fighting and side-scrolling challenges. Some stages have to be obtained by the player by meeting particular requirements. Although rendered in the third-dimension, players cannot move along the Z-axis in any of the stages. As well as this, most stages have a theme relating to a Nintendo franchise or a specific Nintendo game and are interactive to the player. These items have different purposes such as inflicting damage on the opponent and restoring health. Unlike other games of the same genre, almost every single move in the game can be accessed via one-button presses and a joystick direction.ĭuring battles, items related to Nintendo games or merchandise fall onto the game field (e.g., Super Mushrooms, Heart Containers, Poké Balls and Screw Attacks). However, he or she may be able to jump back to the stage (recover) using multiple "mid-air" jumps and special moves, and continue to fight. The higher the percent value, the weaker the player is, and the easier they are to knock off the stage.
Each character's health is measured by a percentage damage counter. Most attacks both inflict damage and can-if enough damage is dealt-knock back the enemy inflicted damage increases that distance, so sufficient damage must be accumulated before attempting a "KO". In normal play, a player must force the opponent beyond the stage's boundaries, referred to as a "Knock-Off" and abbreviated in the game as a KO. Melee is different from most traditional fighting games in that simply inflicting damage does not always mean victory.