E3 2014: Surviving the Smash Run in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS

While making my rounds on the E3 2014 show floor, I had the opportunity to try out a new game mode exclusive to Super Smash Bros. for 3DS: Smash Run. Much like the Subspace Emissary in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Smash Run has you fight your way through a massive dungeon populated by enemies from various corners of Nintendo lore. Each one you defeat drops stickers, which you collect to upgrade one of six character stats: speed, jump, attack, special, arms, and defense. After a few minutes in the dungeon, your powered-up character is transported to a four-player brawl against three powered-up opponents to see who was the most efficient with their time.

I actually had a lot of fun in this mode. As someone who didn’t really enjoy Brawl’s Subspace Emissary campaign, I found the bite-sized forays into the dungeon to be just the right length, and having the secondary objective of powering up your character is a welcome addition. It was also quite easy to get overwhelmed in the dungeon if I didn’t keep defeating enemies at a fast pace. Thankfully, there are six generic items you can use while exploring to dungeon to give your fighter an added advantage, such as a burst attack that will push all enemies away or a massive, horizontal energy beam.

When my time in the dungeon was over, I received plenty of coins for my efforts, as well as some trophies and other items as pick-ups in the dungeon. Dying seems to have little consequence in the dungeon, other than wasting your time, and the game will push little notifications to your screen when other characters get knocked out. Of course, there is still plenty more to explore in both versions of the new Smash Bros., so keep it locked to GameSpot for all the latest E3 2014 coverage.

See more coverage of E3 2014 →