Venom

Venom
File:StarFoxSymbol.png
Universe	Star Fox
Appears in	SSBM
Availability	Starter
Tournament legality Melee Singles: Banned Doubles: Banned

Venom (Japanese: ベノム, Benomu) is a starter stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

In All-Star Mode, this is where Falco and his teammates are fought.

Origin

Venom as seen in Star Fox 64.

This stage is based off of Star Fox 64's Venom. Venom is the first planet in the Lylat System. It is also the largest planet. While Venom first appeared in the SNES game Star Fox, this stage looks more like the Venom seen in Star Fox 64. Star Fox 64 describes Venom as a barren deserted planet. In Star Fox, Venom has bare ground with yellows clouds which have lightning going through them. Star Fox 64 features Venom similarly except there is no lightning. Also in Star Fox 64 the player has to fly through deep valleys of rock and at some points the player can choose which path they want to take. In this stage the Great Fox traverses through deep valleys of rock like in Star Fox 64. Also the clouds and the ground looks similar to the ones seen in this stage, but this stage features volcanic activity from the ground. In Star Fox 64's Venom there are holes in the sides of the rock and in the ground where enemy's ships dock before they attack the player. This stage also feature these holes. Both Star Fox games feature obstacles in the air which the player would have to try to dodge. These obstacles can be seen once in awhile in this stage. One of the paths a player can choose to take in Venom has giant stone pillars that shoot from the ground and there. Those pillars can be seen in this stage.

Ever since the first Star Fox, the Star Fox team's main aircraft that they pilot are Arwings. In this stage, Arwings can be seen flying over the Great Fox. The design of the Arwing is the same as the design used in Star Fox 64. In Star Fox 64, there is a mercenary group called Star Wolf (who can be battled on Venom in Star Fox 64) and they have aircraft similar to Arwings called Wolfens. The design of the Wolfens in this stage resemble how they were designed in Star Fox 64. [1]

The music for this stage in is an orchestrated version of Star Fox 64's main theme. [2]

Description

The battle takes place on the Great Fox. Unlike the Corneria stage, the battle is fought on the front view of the ship, in contrast to the side view. Characters can fight on either 4 wings of the ship, and somewhat on the tailpiece in the center of the stage. This tailpiece is also a hazard that makes it hard to go to the other side. The top two wings of the ship slope inwards while the bottom two wings slope outwards. Items tend to roll off the two bottom wings of the ship.

Every now and then, an Arwing or Wolfen will appear and start firing at the ship then will fly off. Any character that gets hit by the shots will take damage. Also, when the ship flies into the cave, sometimes characters hit the walls of the caves when smacked upwards or towards the sides, which might save one from getting KO'd.

In Brawl, its music returns, but not the stage itself. The song plays on Corneria, which did make it into Brawl.

Like many stages, this stage can be recreated in Brawl via hacking, as seen here.

Tournament legality

Venom is banned in tournaments, primarily due to the fin in the centre of the stage, which can easily cause infinite combos; the bottom wings also promote camping, and the blastlines are considered to be too close to the stage.