They've already said it, but the combat system SOUNDS broken from the get-go. The only feasible way I can think of to get it to work would be to have the meter build up as you hit others, and then the finisher becomes available- this leads to trying to hit enemies, but can still miss, and the person that gets the most in a time limit, or gets to a certain amount first, wins. I imagine this is probably the way it's going to go, but it still leaves us with one problem: The fastest character wins. Always. In fighters, you've always got three classes: The fast-but-weak guys, the strong-but-slow guys, and those in between. But when you take away health bars, you get the fast winners, the medium have-a-chancers, and the slow not-a-chancers. Which would, theoretically, make around a third of that 'awesome' roster completely useless. I'd love to play it, I really would- I don't normally like arcade-style fighters, but I did enjoy brawl- and the inclusion of Dante, Raiden and Sly get me REALLY pumped, especially with their alternate costumes- but the game just sounds SO FLAWED. I mean, seriously- WHO came up with this system, and WHO the F*CK said YES to it!?

Well brotha, if you truly are excited for this game and are not just complaining for the sake of it, I'm pleased to tell you that you have absolutely nothing to worry about. I'm was part of the beta and this game is awesome. I'm glad to inform you that your theory is wrong as well. The fastest characters don't always win. As a matter of fact it's not even close to being that way. Superbot really did an amazing job in balancing the way each character builds their meters. For example Radec is by no means fast, and he gets most of his points by using range attacks, but he still is able to hold his own against the likes of kratos and sweet tooth. People keep saying that without health bars you don't have to try in this game to succeed, but that's far from the case. This game takes a lot of skills. You want to hit your opponent to build your meter, the more combos you can dish out without getting hit yourself the faster your meters build up. At the same time your also watching all of your opponents meters to make sure that they aren't going up. You also have to analyze and try and predict when your opponent is about to use their supers. You never know if they'll use their level ones, twos, or if their waiting for their level three. When someone uses their supers against you you have to try and dodge it, which is possible to do when get more skilled at the game. And theres no better feeling than countering a super with your own and hearing everyone on your headset cheer and laugh at how awesome it looked. This game is nothing short of amazing and I believe you'll enjoy it as much as I have once you get it. I love Smash as much as the next guy and I was one of the skeptics when this game was first announced, and I really do hate to compare the two because I feel that they are both great games, but having playing both, I think I may just like Playstation Battle Royal better than Smash. And I feel that's a good thing giving the fact that this game is newer. And to comment on your last question, I don't know who came up with this system and who approved of it, but I'm glad they did. I can't wait for the finished product. Add me on PSN if you ever get this game btw Username: FII I'd love to play you and see what you think about it when you get a chance to play.

Huh, that's somewhat alleviated my concern. Admittedly, I still remain skeptical, but it's nice to hear that someone who's played it says it works OK. Hopefully at some point soon there'll be a demo or something so we can get a chance to play it. I don't suppose you know if there's one coming?

Like a poster below said, none of the reasons above counter or address the most worrying, and crippling concern for this game: The lack of Health bars and winning basically on the basis of pressing a button and unleashing a special. I don't care how you slice it, but if the game comes out with taht system still in place, it won't be as enjoyable as it could be. At best, the system could be "playable" But it won't feel nearly as fair or as intense as any other health based fighter. (Smash-bros included.) And at worst, the entire thing will be completely unbalance, and quickly devolve into bore-fest of one character hitting the other with no real consequence before the other simply pulls out a special and one shots the attacker. I still cannot wrap my head around how could anyone think that such a mechanic would be a good idea. As it stands, I'm still mildly curious about the game, but I just can't get excited about it, even with Dante, Big Daddy and Raiden in it.

Bro I have the beta and it's an amazing game. Again Idk why everyone is complaining about the lack of a health bar. This game takes a lot of skill and people will really start to realize this when it comes out and they get their hands on it. But let me break it down for you to the best of my ability. Your trying to build up your meter so you have to hit your opponent. You build up your meter faster when you pull off combos without getting hit yourself, so your trying your hardest to block and dodge others attacks while dishing out combos. You're also constantly making sure your watching your opponents meter and making sure they aren't building up their meters as well, so in theory there meters are your health bar. The more it builds up the higher the chances of you losing a life. Also using supers don't guaranty you a kill. You have to time and place it right or else you can waist it. I remember spending a whole match saving up for a level three for Kratos and when I finally used it because the guys I was playing were pretty skilled, I only got one kill. You dont just win by pressing a button, you have to know what your doing and have a strategy in mind. Each character is so different that you literally build up a strategy for each one, it's pretty amazing. And there are no balance issues either (I'm looking at you Meta Knight lol). You have a high chance of winning with whoever you play with if you know how to use them because of how different they all are. I not that great with Radec, but my roommate kicks so much ass with him. And I can really dish it out with Parappa, Kratos, and Fat Princess. There's a character out there for everyone and winning depends on how well you know how to use them. Be excited for this game bro. It's really that good and i truly can't wait for it to come out. I'm a huge gaming fan and love all systems and with the likes of games like halo, metal of honor, cod, 2k, resident evil, forza, and even the Wii U, This game has made it's way to the top of my list for 2012 (Right under Assassin's Creed lol) It's just so fresh and will definitely be something I will be playing for years to come. I've been a huge fan of Nintendo since the super nintendo, but I have to admit, I think I'm beginning to love Battle Royal more than Smash. X}

Well, I haven't played the Beta, so I'm at a disadvantage there XD But well, the way you describe it does sound a bit more reasonable, so I'll try to keep a more open mind about it. That being said, there just a personal issue i have with the lack of a health bar. i mean, I understand the idea that in a sense your super meter is your health bar... but it isn't quite the same. Perhaps I'm just old-school minded like that, and perhaps this game will prove me wrong, but I just prefer the idea of when I successfully kick the crap out of my opponent with a combo, the damage is reflected on THEM, If you get my idea.

I'm in the same boat. Coming from someone who loves the randomness of items in the super smash games and yet still elects to turn off super smash balls when playing brawl, I don't see myself liking this system at all. It all comes down to how well you can use a single execution move and some characters will inevitably have better ones than others. That is asinine to me.

I actually had a good think about this, and I have in fact thought of ONE good thing about this super move system. No kill steals. In Smash, you'd very often spend a while trading blows with someone only to have another player finish off your intended target, and since your own % would've got pretty high in the scrap, they'll probably kill you too. In All Stars, every player is at mercy to your super with the deciding factor being how crafty you are when using it. So what I'm trying to say is both games "reward" you for getting in the thick of things, but at least in All Stars you won't get cheated out of any hard-earned points (presumably), and since that's the core of the scoring system, it's a pretty important difference. The supers are the payoff for fighting a good match as it were. I still have no idea why the All Star fighters get "smashed" around though when all the stages have (sometimes invisible) walls.

Like fidiga, I was part of the beta, and trust me on this: It works. SuperBot said a few times that you have to play it to "get" it, and though I understood the Super System before I played it, you really do have to play it first. A public beta's allegedly soon, so you should be able to get your hands on it and discover it for yourself soon.

The link on the second page just links directly to this same article... What is the entire roster?

Fixing.

Thanks!

I'm excited for this game, but I'm still equally concerned too, and this list didn't really do a lot to alleviate any of said concern. I think it has a few things going for it (the stage mashups, and costumes choices rather than JUST palette-swaps are cool which is something I think Smash shoulda had ages ago) but the combat system still looks kind of shaky and I haven't seen enough mode diversity as of yet to put it on par with Brawl's huge amount of choice (or fun asides like Target Smash). I can see myself playing it a while if the online is better than Brawl's (such as custom lobbies etc), but it better have a truckload of unlockables and actual single-player depth beyond simply a classic fight-progression thing leading up to a cheap boss fight. Still, I'm going to enjoy using it as a outlet to prove how much better Ratchet has always been compared to Jak anyway (joke, they're both amazing). All Stars has a lot to prove either way though, but I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised.

In the winning screen of a game, there are two pages of unlockables that you can unlock, which are: minions, backings ( stages ), costumes , intros, outros, music, and another thing i cant remeber. I have not see the second page.