Great multiplayer is what makes Melee what it is; a solid fighter for Gamecube.
The multiplayer though offers a vastly different experience. You can customize almost anything. Special versus is available; such as, making all four characters metal, small, big, or even make everything in slow motion. There is an option to make the game team based or free for all. How to end the game depends on you, you can make it based on number of lives or time limit. Melee has a great cast of characters; from Mario to Link to Samus, they are pretty much all here. The gameplay is fairly well done, although the controls feel kind of stiff from time to time. However, this is a fighting game so that is somewhat expected. All-Star mode is quite possibly the best mode available, you play against every single enemy in the game throughout the course of several stages, while trying not to die. The soundtrack in this game is also superb, featuring music from all of the characters respected franchises.
This game is also refreshing compared to other traditional fighting games. It is unique in that respect because it is faster paced and in order to KO an enemy you must knock him off the stage rather than depleting them of their set amount of life. In the end Melee has very well done multiplayer, but the single player leaves much to be desired and could have been done so much better. However, the sheer amount of gameplay hours available in multiplayer are what makes this game a blast to play.