Perfect? No. Pretty close though.
Before we get into the bad sides of the game(which there are very few) let's look at what makes this game near perfect.
Content........there is LOTS of it. All of the staples you remember are back: Classic mode, target test, event mode, home run derby, multi man brawl, and of course the multiplayer brawl complete with several different way to play, different rule sets, item selection and so on. If you have played melee than you are familiar with the trophies. They make their return, and like before there are many to find. Gone however is the ol' toss in the coin in the dispenser. Taking it's place is a shoot em up type of mini game where you fire coins at various ships for extras and shoot down trophies to acquire them. This new way to get trophies is quite welcome, as it doesnt seem as random as before and gives you a better chance to acquire new trophies by skill rather than luck.
Stickers are also a new addition to brawl. Much like trophies you obtain them in many different ways, the aforementioned shooter mini game, in classic mode, the Subspace emmisary(which I'll get to), and even in standard brawls you can find them.
Onto the game play itself. If you are a veteran of Smash Bors., you'll get into this one pretty quickly. The controls have not changed, but depending on what controllers you have available to you, how those controls are used may differ. Nintendo played the controls right by giving you several different ways to play. You can use the Wiimote, Wii/nunchuck combo, the classic controller, or even the GC controller and/or wavebird controller. If you have one available I would encourage players to use a GC controller, as it seems easier to use and more effective. If thats not possible then the classic controller gets my second pick......but I would customize the buttons on the controller for better ease of use.
Again if you have played melee, you know what to do. Batter other players until their damage percentage gets high and whack them off the stage. The feel of this one and the pace it moves feels like melee did, although it is a hair slower. Not too slow, but slow enough to notice. That being said, this is still as frantic and fun as it's predecessors and even more so with the addition of a new item: The smash ball. The smash ball is an item that will appear on the stage at random either through capsules and crates or it will sometimes just appear on it's own. This item gives each character the ability to do a "final smash" which is typically very destructive and has a strong potential to knock one or possibly even all other competitors off the stage. Once one is spotted(sometimes you can know one has appear before even seeing it, as a very subtle flash occurs on screen when it appears) it can become a very frantic race between all players to obtain it and release their fury.
With the addition of the smash ball there are also assist trophies that appear. These assist trophies are often nintendo characters who will assist you(duh) in your battles. Whether it is a legion of excitebikes running your opponents over or Little Mac trying to deliver a KO, the assist trophies can quickly turn the tide of battle much like the smash balls do. What comes out of assist trophies are random though and will sometimes hinder everyone on stage, like the nintendog that blocks the screen or Mr. Resetti who essentialy does the same thing. Still, never pass up an assist trophy in a match as they have the ability to help you gain ground or further your lead in battles.
Stages and Characters.......much like everything else the magic word is more. The count of characters has been increased from 26 to 35, with 2 particular non-nintendo characters making their debut: Sonic and Solid Snake. The great news is that despite the massive number of playable characters, everyone is pretty well balanced. Sure there may be a character than seems a bit too strong(*cough* DeDeDe *cough*) but even those can be beaten with a little strategy. For a game that only uses a handful of buttons, this game can be deceptively strategic if you dig into a little. One you learn the timing of characters and master your own attacks, strategic battles can be found here.........and it is great fun. Stages are also plentiful and offer their own uniqueness in environmental challenges. The stage itself can be a threat at times, which only makes the brawls more frantic, more challenging......and more fun.
Finally, the multiplayer. I wont say much here because anyone who has played this already knows. This is a great romp for you and your friends. The sheer chaos and crazy gameplay makes this a must for Wii owners who have buddies who like game nights. This is one of those type of games where you can lose complete track of time and not care. Players and even those just watching will have a good time with this game. What if you don't have any friends nearby that play games? Thankfully, Brawl can be played online so you will never have a shortage of people to play. You can use the play anyone feature or play with friends(friend code required, and it's a different code than is on your Wii.......ugh) so game night is whenever you want it to be.
Now with all the things that are great about this game.............which are plentiful, what does it have going against it? Well there are a few things.
1. The Subspace emmisary: While this is a nice alternative to taking EVERY character through adventure mode in Melee, I felt that SSE had worn out it's welcome about half of the way in. It is enjoyable enough at first, but after a while you may feel it being rather tedious and dull. After about 5 hours in the only reason I wanted to complete it was to unlock the rest of the characters.
2. Online play: One of the games best features also has some flaws. Fighting random matches against anyone can at times be frustrating to outright impossible. Oftentimes I would be searching for competitors only to be booted before I find someone or worse yet, booted just before a match starts. This will hopefully change or improve but at the time that I am writing this, I can consider the play anyone mode to be unplayable. Play with friends worst FAR better most often as most you will experience is lag which for the most part is not bad. Be prepared to have pen and paper handy for friend mode though, as you will have to write down everyone's 12 digit code before you can play them.
In the end, Brawl is a fantastic addition to the Wii, and to the gaming world itself. You could easily sink hundreds of hours into this game either by trying to collect everything, or playing online.....or a combination of both. It has fantastic replay value, can be enjoyed by almost everyone, and most importantly it's a lot of fun.