I tried so hard to like Brawl, but went back to play Melee and the first version instead.
The less technical slowed down gameplay took out most of the fun for me. It never felt intense. Even with added moves, the diversity in ways to control the characters felt lacking.
I get that a lot of people like the single player experience, but that was never a reason for me to play smash.
The final smashes was a nice aesthetic touch that expanded on the characters lore.
Is it a bad game? No, not really. It is packed with content and polished to the creators intent.
Do I like it? Not one bit. No other game comes close to the number of hours played not enjoying the experience.
This game, in combination with the Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass, is the reason I no longer give games a chance if I do not enjoy them the first few hours.