Super Smash Flash 2

Super Smash Flash 2, commonly abbreviated as SSF2, is a nonprofit fighting fan game developed by the Super Smash Flash 2 Team, led by Gregory Cleod9 McLeod, and published by McLeodGaming. Although initially referred to as a sequel, Super Smash Flash 2 is a reboot of the critically received fan game Super Smash Flash.

The game is based on the  series, featuring many of its gameplay mechanics and characters. However, this Flash game does not aim to clone the Super Smash Bros. games, as the content inclusion criteria has been loosened to include content from any series that has ever appeared on a Nintendo console, allowing the roster access to other third and fourth-party characters including, but not limited to Lloyd, Rayman, Goku, and Ichigo.

The game is currently available as a demo, which is periodically updated with new content for players to test before the game's completion. It is released as both a web browser game and a downloadable game for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. The first demo, version 0.1a, was released on December 25, 2007. The most recent demo, Beta 1.3.1, was released on August 12, 2021.

Gameplay
Super Smash Flash 2 ' s gameplay is very similar to the official Super Smash Bros. games. Unlike most traditional fighting games, a character's health is measured by a damage percentage counter. As the character is attacked, damage accumulates, and the percent value increases. The higher the percentage, the easier it is for a character to be knocked off the stage.

The controls are also different from its predecessor. The W, A, S, and D keys are now assigned to Player 1's movement, while the arrow keys move a second player. The O and P keys still remain in P-1's possession, however, as the O key is used for special moves (or activating a Final Smash), the P key for s, the I key for shield, and the 1 key for taunting. P-2 uses the 1 key on the numpad for special moves (or activating a Final Smash), numpad 2 for standard attacks, numpad 3 for shield and numpad 4 for taunt. Players can customize their controls in the menu.

Matches can be played in either Time, Stock mode, or a combination of the two. In Time Mode, each player receives a point when they KO an opponent, and loses a point if they are KO'd, or if they self-destruct. At the end of the designated time limit, the player with the most points wins. Should two or more players accumulate the same amount of points, there will be a Sudden Death match to determine the winner. In Stock mode, each player is given a chosen amount of lives, and every time they are KO'd or self-destruct, they lose a life. When a player loses all of their lives, they are "defeated", and the match concludes when there is only one player, or one team left standing.

Playable characters
The characters are the fighters which represent the universe they belong to. Each character has a number of special attacks, neutral attacks and a unique special move called a Final Smash. There are two types of characters: starter characters, which are available for use from the beginning, and unlockable characters, which are accessible only after being unlocked.

This list is a compilation of the characters that have been confirmed playable for Super Smash Flash 2, with a total of 47 as of the current demo. They are listed here by series.

Starter characters
These are the characters available when turning on the game for the first time:

Unlockable characters
These are the characters that have to be encountered and defeated in a match in order for them to become available:

Stages
A stage is an arena where battles take place. Some stages have hazards to add uniqueness and complexity, though these changes can be disabled with the hazard switch for more relaxed battles. As with playable characters, stages are also sorted into starters and unlockables to determinate their availability.

Starter stages
These stages are available immediately after starting the game for the first time:

Unlockable stages
To access the following stages, certain criteria must be met in order to unlock them:

Items
Items fall from random places on stages, and characters can grab from the foreground and use them to attack, affect their status, or protect them. Below is a list of all items in the demo. They appear randomly in the stages or inside of containers, such as capsules. These items have been confirmed and are featured in the current version of SSF2:

Assist Trophy characters
These are the characters that have been confirmed to be summoned with the Assist Trophy:

Pokémon
These are the Pokémon that have been confirmed to be released from Poké Balls:

Group
The Group menu focuses on local multiplayer game modes. It has been expanded from SSF ' s VS. Mode to include a plethora of new modes.

Smash is the standard fighting mode for the game. Up to four players can select their characters by dragging their respective tokens on the character selection screen to their characters' mugshots. To add variety, players are also able to select one of 12 differently colored costumes for the character. Each character may be controlled by either a human player or an artificial intelligence, with players being able to select how difficult they will be. Once all characters are selected, players can then select the stage to fight the match on, and the match begins once selected.

The Rules menu can be accessed from either the Group menu or the top of the character selection screen. This allows players to change various settings for the match, such as the match time or how many stocks players will start at. Players can also turn on settings such as stage hazards, stamina (in which damage percentages are replaced with traditional health points), or the Final Smash Meter (which allows players to use their Final Smashes by dealing damage to fill a meter). There are also sub-menus to select which items appear during a match and their frequency to appear, as well as which stages appear when selecting a random stage.

Special Smash allows players to select up to eight special modifiers to play a match with. These include making characters bigger, freezing characters with each hit, making characters take more knockback, or even mimicking the flawed physics of the original Super Smash Flash, among other modifiers.

Arena is game mode where players can participate in various action-oriented, multiplayer sub-games using the Sandbag. In Sandbag Soccer, players are sorted into two teams and must knock the aforementioned Sandbag in the opposing player's goal to score points. Similarly, Sandbag Basketball has the players launch the Sandbag and pass it through the opposing player's hoop net. As the Sandbag takes more and more damage, it can be difficult to stop it once it is launched.

Solo
The Solo menu focuses on single-player game modes. Many of these game modes are return from the original SSF with various updates, while others are original to this game.

In Classic, the player fights CPU-controlled opponents in a series of levels, with bonus rounds at certain intervals. The amount of stocks is determined by the difficulty selected for the mode, and higher difficulties also allow the player to fight the Metal Bros. as a mini-boss. The mode ends with the traditional fight against on Final Destination. Points are awarded based on bonuses received for performing certain tasks during a match, with higher difficulties awarding higher bonuses after the final round.

All-Star lets the player, with one stock, fight the entire roster, separated in nine rounds of up to six fighters per round, with the tenth and final round being against 25 Sandbags on Final Destination. Between rounds, the player is given a moment to heal themselves with healing items that may change depending on the difficulty. Like in Classic, points are awarded based on bonuses.

Training allows the player to freely test characters on any stage without the restrictions of a Group match. By pausing, the player can access a menu where they can alter and change the surroundings of the battle, such as adding or removing opponent characters, spawning items, changing the speed of the match, changing the behavior of the opponents, or fixing the camera in a different position.

Events is a game mode containing 57 specifically designed matches for the player to complete. These matches normally consist of special scenarios with unique objectives to be met, and some contain gimmicks not present elsewhere in the game. Clearing an event awards a player a ranking from S to F, with the criteria often depending on the particular event, such as the time it takes to complete or the amount of KOs scored.

Stadium is a series of sub-games that generally have more unique objectives compared to other game modes. In Break the Targets, the player must destroy 10 targets around a large stage as quickly as possible. There are four levels available to all characters, as well as character-exclusive levels often requiring the player to exploit the respective character's unique attributes. Home-Run Contest requires the player to launch the Sandbag as far away as possible using the Home-Run Bat, or by any other means necessary. The player has 10 seconds to rack up its damage to launch it farther away. Multi-Man Smash challenges the player to fight the Fighting Silhouette Team and defeat as many opponents as possible, under various pretenses, without falling from the stage. Crystal Smash requires the player to destroy 14 crystals around a stage as quickly as possible which, unlike in Break the Targets, often require multiple hits to break.

Online
Online is a game mode that allows multiple players to fight each other via an Internet connection through the proprietary infrastructure McLeodGaming Network. Players can create lobby rooms with their preferred rulesets for other to join through the lobby menu. Standard matches, Special Smash, and Arena game modes can all be played online.

Vault
The Vault menu allows players to view replays of previous matches or watch the opening movies from the current or previous demos.

Data
The Data menu allows players to manage save data and records by importing or exporting files. Data may also be deleted or restored from a previous version of the game.

Development
Following the release of the first Super Smash Flash in 2006, when Nintendo first announced Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it enjoyed a huge popularity and demand for a sequel suddenly grew. The game's creator, Gregory McLeod, decided to make a new Super Smash Flash game loosely based on Super Smash Bros. Brawl, crowning it the appropriate name of Super Smash Flash 2.

On September 23, 2007, Gregory McLeod made this announcement on the McLeodGaming Forums, so its members could provide him with sprites, effects, and sounds to make his new game. In seeing how open the development of the game was, this soon also led to the creation of a usergroup called the Super Smash Flash 2 developers, which keeps track of users with major contributions to the development for the game, and hiding the majority of the content from the public.

Super Smash Flash 2 is released to public by Gregory McLeod in a demo format that gives the public a sneak peek of the progress that is being made on the game. Newer versions are periodically released with many enhancements, such as character improvements, bug fixes, new stages, etc. In doing this, everything is tested before the final release, the public stays excited for the game, and no unlockable content is spoiled in doing so. The first ever playable demo, version 0.1a, was released on Christmas Day of 2007. Since Super Smash Bros. Brawl had not been released as of that moment, Gregory McLeod developed his own game mechanisms, such as the grounded, pick-up-able Smash Ball. Many other mechanisms were implemented with the release of newer and improved demos after Super Smash Bros. Brawl was released.

Some of the promotion for the game is in the hands of the developers. A teaser trailer was released to project the game's existence to non-McLeodGaming Forums members. A DOJO!!! was also released to provide info on characters, stages, and many other things relating to Super Smash Flash 2.

In 2010, Super Smash Flash 2 received a major overhaul after the codebase was upgraded from Macromedia Flash 8 to Flash 10 AS3. The demo released that year, version 0.6, was the last demo where Gregory McLeod handled all the coding by himself. All the progress that was done at that point was scrapped and developers began working fresh on the game, Gregory McLeod now received more help in the coding by other developers. The planned rosters was changed and is kept in secret by developers since, from that point onwards, Super Smash Flash 2 would be called a reboot to Super Smash Flash rather than a sequel.

In 2013, Super Smash Flash 2 began attending at major tournament events, particularly the APEX tournament series, but only as a guest game. These events are used by McLeodGaming to showcase the newest version of the game and let attendants to play it. New content is also revealed there.

On May 29, 2017, Super Smash Flash 2 finally reached its Beta state.

Differences from Super Smash Flash
Super Smash Flash 2 also improved many qualms and errors from the first Super Smash Flash retaining few mechanisms but fixing some others.


 * Characters have gained several different attacks, expanding and improving the five attack moveset; this includes a combo, three tilt attacks, three smash attacks, a dash attack, a floor attack, five aerial attacks, four special moves, a unique Final Smash, etc..
 * Characters can grab, pummel and throw in four different directions.
 * Characters can protect themselves by shielding.
 * Air dodging and sidestep dodging have been implemented.
 * Characters can perform three different taunts.
 * Characters can grab onto stages, ledges, and use ledge attacks.
 * Characters' attack can no longer deal massive damage and multiple hits with one attack unless specifically coded to do so.
 * Certain characters can now use tether recoveries. Ex.: Link, Samus.
 * Costumes have been implemented.
 * On-screen appearances have been added.
 * Revival platforms have been added.
 * The camera is no longer in a single angle and follows all players, rather than just player 1.
 * The camera can be panned and zoomed while paused, and can take pictures.
 * The game contains exclusive and/or edited sprites' by the SSF2 Devs. Ex. Mario, Kirby, Ness, etc.
 * The skip glitch, along with many other glitches, have been remedied.
 * More single-player and multiplayer modes have been added, existing ones have been improved.
 * A completely new Adventure Mode mechanism may be implemented.

Reception and impact
Super Smash Flash 2 has received a very positive response from players, greatly overshadowing its predecessor. From the view of the demos, Super Smash Flash 2 is considered a large departure from Super Smash Flash thanks to its improvements on the gameplay, controls and interface that were widely criticized from the first game, being more similar to those from the official Super Smash Bros. games. The sprites and tileset from the stages have received praise for their unique design, edits, and complexity, which gives the game a unique polish; despite this, some sprites were ripped from other official games, with minor complaints focusing on the origin of the rips.

New items and game modes introduced in Super Smash Flash 2, not present in any the official Smash Bros. games, have also met a positive reaction, with critics citing them as original and clever, comparing them with the actual modes and items from the official games. Criticism for the game is focused on the bugs and lag found in the demos, making the game uncomfortable and tiring to play, but most are ultimately fixed in timely demo updates. The sound effects have also been criticized due the tone changes and unfitting clips on the voices of some characters, such as Wario's dash attack. While, according to Gregory McLeod, it is still under development, the improper looping of background music on menus and stages has also been criticized.

When compared to similar Super Smash Bros. fan games, Super Smash Flash 2 is considered a very advanced product thanks to its constant progress and attention given to it from its developers, while many other fan games are simply left in development or are abandoned without any notice. GamesRadar+ listed Super Smash Flash 2 fifth on its list of "10 Fan Games That Shouldn't Be Ceased or Desisted" citing the improvements and characters added from the first game. In 2012, it was said to have over 400,000 plays a day on McLeodGaming alone, making it by far one of the most popular Flash games around the Internet. It has also been compared to other similarly successful Smash-oriented fan projects that, much like Super Smash Flash 2, have constant development, such as Super Smash Bros. Crusade and Super Smash Land.

External link

 * Play Super Smash Flash 2 Beta.