When you're in a brawl, a friend's help can be very valuable. Remember those fighting games where you can call on another character to help you during times of need? Well, that same feature will be available in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl via an item called the Assist Trophy.

Unlike other fighting video games, Super Smash Bros. Brawl's assist mechanic showcases characters that aren't in the fighters roster of the game. So you might want to think about them as special summoned characters. Players won't be able to choose who they summon and the summoned fighters can't be controlled either. So far, only three assist characters have been revealed in the latest Smash Bros. DOJO! update: Hammer Bro, Samurai Goro, and Nintendog (yes, a nintendog).

Hammer Bro from the Super Mario Bros. series can be pretty nifty as he does utilize his proverbial throwing hammers while Samurai Goro from the F-Zero series uses his blade to take a swipe at your enemies. The Nintendog, however, might not be as useful as the other two since it does come up to the screen and will block your view of the ongoing battle (but hopefully, it will block your opponent's screen, too). Think about it as an uber cute distraction from all the fighting.

Anyway, players will get to summon the said Assist Trophy characters by first getting an assist trophy. The fun thing is that most of the summoned fighters are invincible during battle, so they're best when they are on your side of the fence.

You're probably planning the best tactics you can employ using the Assist Trophy and while you're doing that, you might as well check out the rest of the screenshots for further reference. More Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii news and updates when they happen.