Super Smash Bros. Brawl did a lot of things right and a lot of things wrong. Something it got wrong was the Masterpiece section of the Vault. It’s a great concept that allows newer gamers to play the games that made the characters famous, but was poorly executed.

The problem lies in the time limits on the games. They might have been okay if the time limits actually allowed for you to complete something, but how far can a new player get in The Legend of Zelda in two minutes? I think they’ll managed to find the sword and kill a few Octoroks.

For some reason, I doubt that two minutes with The Legend of Zelda is going to make a young gamer appreciate what makes Link special. I think it’s much more likely that it will make that same young gamer say “Link’s game sucks.”

Fortunately, I’ve come up with a really simple way to make Masterpieces better: remove the time limit. Continue reading →