Hungry Headcrab
Smash Ace
Vote (+1)
Isaac - I love Golden Sun, and I believe that Isaac, with a mix of psynergy and sword play, could be a very unique character for the PMBR to include. That being said, to do Isaac correctly would require a lot of work, especially if psynergy was as integral to his moveset as I believe it would/should be.
King K. Rool - While he hasn't gotten any time in the spotlight for a while, the king of the Kremlings deserves a slot in the game, despite the fact that he wouldn't be easily cloned. As an added bonus, this would give the DK series more representation.
Dixie Kong - Because the DK series should have as much representation as possible. In addition to the reasoning listed in the original post, a cloned Diddy with elements of Donkey (and unique elements utilizing the ponytails and such) would make for an interesting character.
Ridley - Because he's Ridley and Metroid needs more representation.
Dark Samus - I like the idea of a fast Samus, and I see no reason to not have two slots go to Metroid. Dark Samus wouldn't even have to be that much of a clone of Samus, given the amount of source material in the Prime series to work off of.
Half-Vote (+1/2)
Lyn - Lyn is cool, but we probably have enough Fire Emblem representation as well as sword characters, though I'm sure she could be made unique enough that if she got a slot I would be happy.
Gray Fox - I'm not sure how willing the PMBR would be to include more third party characters (and I agree that they should receive less consideration than Nintendo characters), but if they were to include anybody, this is the guy.
Down-Vote (-1)
Plusle and/or Minun - On top of having enough Pokemon in the game as it is, Plusle and Minun seem, in my mind, among the worst choices for a slot that I could think of. We already have one electric mouse Pokemon, and while it would be interesting to see a pair like the Ice Climbers, there are literally hundreds of Pokemon I would rather see included before those two.
Toad - Just... no. On top of the simple fact that there are plenty of other Mario characters that are better choices, Mario has enough representation.
Tetra/Toon Zelda - While this could be interesting, Zelda has enough Smash representation in my opinion. Also, and this may simply be my own narrow viewpoint or lack of imagination, I have trouble picturing a tiny Zelda and a tiny Sheik cloned Tetra or whatever people are suggesting.
Black Shadow/Ganondorf Swap - While I doubt the PMBR would ever actually go through with this, I still feel the need to defend Ganondorf. I'm going to go a little more in depth with this one so, please, bear with me.
Ganondorf is a character that is tricky to represent in Smash Bros. He has three games to take inspiration from (Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess). In each of these games, Ganondorf adopts wildly different fighting styles.
In Ocarina of Time, he almost exclusively uses magic in the form of projectiles (as seen in the bridge scene before Link goes forward in time and, of course, the penultimate boss battle), magic force (before the boss battle against Ganondorf, he shoots a wave of purple magic at Link and Navi), in the form of magically infused physical attacks (Ganondorf begins the battle in his throne room by punching the ground with enough force to rock the foundation of the castle), and in his ability to transform into beast form. In addition, Ganondorf can fly, or at least hover, at will.
From Ocarina of Time, it can easily be seen that Ganondorf does use magically infused physical attacks, ranging from pure darkness to electricity. Both are elements that he uses in Ocarina of Time. As for flying/hovering, it could be argued that his recovery embodies that particular aspect of the character, though it is clearly not an exact match given his abilities displayed in the boss battle in OoT.
In Wind Waker, Ganondorf adopts a different style of fighting altogether. Seemingly forgoing magic in this particular attempt to take over the world, Ganondorf is content to simply punch everything in his path with as much force as possible (this is especially evident before the final battle, where he unleashes a rather terrifying flurry of blows at Link, and during the final battle when he backhands Zelda). In addition, he wields two swords in the final battle. The only uses of magic still evident are his ability to create monsters such as Puppet Ganon and possibly his dash towards Link before the final boss battle (which may or may not be an extension of his ability to fly/hover).
From Wind Waker, the only thing that truly carries over is, again, Ganondorf's terrifying physical power. His entire moveset as it stands now represents this very well, as all of his moves possess bewildering amounts of knockback and convey a very impressive sense of power. What is missing in his Smash incarnation, however, is a sword. The two swords Ganondorf wields in the final battle are used for a variety of moves that seem sloppy. It can be plainly seen that he lacks any true form of swordsmanship and mostly just swings the swords in Link's general direction, though he does block fairly well. In my mind, this shows that Ganondorf is not truly a swordsman or, at the very least, he is a very poor one (afterall, he was overpowered by a child with a short sword).
Lastly, in Twilight Princess, Ganondorf adopts a style of combat more similar to his Wind Waker incarnation, though he does still utilize magic to an extent. His physical power may be seen in this game in the execution scene, where he manages to break free from his shackles and annihilate a sage with a single punch, all with a sword in his chest. He uses that same sword during the final boss battle in another attempt to defeat Link. Ganondorf utilizes magic in the form of possession and transformation. His ability to possess other individuals is seemingly derived from his time in the realm of Twilight, as he temporarily enters that same square, bitty form used by the Twilight creatures throughout the game. While possessing Zelda, he utilizes magic very much in the same way as Ocarina of Time, though it is unclear if he is using Zelda's magic prowess or his own. Ganondorf again has the ability to transform into a beast in this game as well.
From Twilight Princess, Ganondorf doesn't really gain anything he doesn't already have from Ocarina of Time or Wind Waker, as both games lend themselves to his overpowering physical style. From his use of magic, possession and transformation are essentially unusable for Smash (outside of a Final Smash at least). Ganondorf, in using a sword, runs into the same troubles as his Wind Waker incarnation during the last boss battle. He is again seen to have no real form, with his most dangerous attacks really being his mixups with his free hand. Ganondorf is also shown to be physically overpowered by Link when their swords clash. It should be clear at this point that Ganondorf should be nowhere near a sword.
So where does this leave Super Smash Bros. Ganondorf? Every game shows him using a very physical fighting style, which the game conveys very well. Every move in his arsenal is a hard hitting physical attack or grab that could very easily be used by any of his in-game incarnations. In addition, Ocarina of Time shows him infuse magic into physical attacks, which is also supported by his moveset. Moves such as Flame Choke and Wizard's Foot are moves that seem possible for any of his incarnations that would utilize magic in this way.
As far as magic use aside from physical attacks goes, Smash Ganondorf is definitely less representative of himself. It should be noted, however, that Ganondorf has become less magic focused in every subsequent portrayal of the character, with Smash Ganondorf utilizing more magic in combat than his Wind Waker or Twilight Princess forms.
Lastly, on the subject of implementing a sword into his Smash moveset, Ganondorf has shown himself to be awkward, sloppy, and overall just plain incompetent with a blade the few times he has used a sword in the Legend of Zelda series. If anything, I would say that the Legend of Zelda series does a poor job of displaying the raw power and terror of Ganondorf in Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, as whenever he picks up a sword he immediately becomes less of a threat. Adding a sword into his Smash moveset now just seems odd given that he rarely uses swords, and when he does it goes abysmally.
Despite all of this, I would support decloning Ganondorf a little more in the form of a new animation or two, or replacing an attack here or there. Moves such as his neutral air and up smash in particular seem the least likely for Ganondorf to perform, for example, and could be reasonably removed in my opinion. In addition, the "True" series of PSAs gives Ganondorf a glide animation for dashing that would support his abilities in the Legend of Zelda series as well. These changes are not too drastic, and could easily be done in a manner that does not change the style in which Ganondorf plays, while also making the character a little more representative of his in-game self, though in my mind he is already more representative than a large number of characters in the cast. Also, a projectile would be nice, but issues with giving characters projectiles may not let that idea come to fruition.
Replacing Ganondorf for Black Shadow would be a mistake. Not only because Ganondorf is already fairly representative of himself, but also because, with just a few minor tweaks, he could be perfect. In addition, F-Zero has enough representation as it is, especially considering the fact that it is just a racing game with no actions performed outside of driving vehicles. Other characters could be represented instead, and they would be much more deserving of a slot than a second F-Zero racer.
In conclusion, Ganondorf is a character that is already fairly representative of himself as a character. While he lacks the projectiles he uses in Ocarina of Time, he incorporates magic in other ways as well, which can be seen in OoT and in Smash. His character has used less and less magic over time, though a common thread of physical power remains, which is, again, represented by his moveset. Ganondorf does indeed use a sword in two games, but his abilities with it are questionable at best, and often just lead to a pathetic showing of his incompetence. Also, Ganondorf becomes less of a clone with every update, even in 3.0 some of his aerial attacks are receiving new animations that further separate him from Captain Falcon. In addition, I find Black Shadow to be a poor choice, as other characters that actually go outside of a vehicle could be represented. Lastly, alienating the fans of a character is just a bad idea.
To those of you who actually read this, thank you.
Isaac - I love Golden Sun, and I believe that Isaac, with a mix of psynergy and sword play, could be a very unique character for the PMBR to include. That being said, to do Isaac correctly would require a lot of work, especially if psynergy was as integral to his moveset as I believe it would/should be.
King K. Rool - While he hasn't gotten any time in the spotlight for a while, the king of the Kremlings deserves a slot in the game, despite the fact that he wouldn't be easily cloned. As an added bonus, this would give the DK series more representation.
Dixie Kong - Because the DK series should have as much representation as possible. In addition to the reasoning listed in the original post, a cloned Diddy with elements of Donkey (and unique elements utilizing the ponytails and such) would make for an interesting character.
Ridley - Because he's Ridley and Metroid needs more representation.
Dark Samus - I like the idea of a fast Samus, and I see no reason to not have two slots go to Metroid. Dark Samus wouldn't even have to be that much of a clone of Samus, given the amount of source material in the Prime series to work off of.
Half-Vote (+1/2)
Lyn - Lyn is cool, but we probably have enough Fire Emblem representation as well as sword characters, though I'm sure she could be made unique enough that if she got a slot I would be happy.
Gray Fox - I'm not sure how willing the PMBR would be to include more third party characters (and I agree that they should receive less consideration than Nintendo characters), but if they were to include anybody, this is the guy.
Down-Vote (-1)
Plusle and/or Minun - On top of having enough Pokemon in the game as it is, Plusle and Minun seem, in my mind, among the worst choices for a slot that I could think of. We already have one electric mouse Pokemon, and while it would be interesting to see a pair like the Ice Climbers, there are literally hundreds of Pokemon I would rather see included before those two.
Toad - Just... no. On top of the simple fact that there are plenty of other Mario characters that are better choices, Mario has enough representation.
Tetra/Toon Zelda - While this could be interesting, Zelda has enough Smash representation in my opinion. Also, and this may simply be my own narrow viewpoint or lack of imagination, I have trouble picturing a tiny Zelda and a tiny Sheik cloned Tetra or whatever people are suggesting.
Black Shadow/Ganondorf Swap - While I doubt the PMBR would ever actually go through with this, I still feel the need to defend Ganondorf. I'm going to go a little more in depth with this one so, please, bear with me.
Ganondorf is a character that is tricky to represent in Smash Bros. He has three games to take inspiration from (Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess). In each of these games, Ganondorf adopts wildly different fighting styles.
In Ocarina of Time, he almost exclusively uses magic in the form of projectiles (as seen in the bridge scene before Link goes forward in time and, of course, the penultimate boss battle), magic force (before the boss battle against Ganondorf, he shoots a wave of purple magic at Link and Navi), in the form of magically infused physical attacks (Ganondorf begins the battle in his throne room by punching the ground with enough force to rock the foundation of the castle), and in his ability to transform into beast form. In addition, Ganondorf can fly, or at least hover, at will.
From Ocarina of Time, it can easily be seen that Ganondorf does use magically infused physical attacks, ranging from pure darkness to electricity. Both are elements that he uses in Ocarina of Time. As for flying/hovering, it could be argued that his recovery embodies that particular aspect of the character, though it is clearly not an exact match given his abilities displayed in the boss battle in OoT.
In Wind Waker, Ganondorf adopts a different style of fighting altogether. Seemingly forgoing magic in this particular attempt to take over the world, Ganondorf is content to simply punch everything in his path with as much force as possible (this is especially evident before the final battle, where he unleashes a rather terrifying flurry of blows at Link, and during the final battle when he backhands Zelda). In addition, he wields two swords in the final battle. The only uses of magic still evident are his ability to create monsters such as Puppet Ganon and possibly his dash towards Link before the final boss battle (which may or may not be an extension of his ability to fly/hover).
From Wind Waker, the only thing that truly carries over is, again, Ganondorf's terrifying physical power. His entire moveset as it stands now represents this very well, as all of his moves possess bewildering amounts of knockback and convey a very impressive sense of power. What is missing in his Smash incarnation, however, is a sword. The two swords Ganondorf wields in the final battle are used for a variety of moves that seem sloppy. It can be plainly seen that he lacks any true form of swordsmanship and mostly just swings the swords in Link's general direction, though he does block fairly well. In my mind, this shows that Ganondorf is not truly a swordsman or, at the very least, he is a very poor one (afterall, he was overpowered by a child with a short sword).
Lastly, in Twilight Princess, Ganondorf adopts a style of combat more similar to his Wind Waker incarnation, though he does still utilize magic to an extent. His physical power may be seen in this game in the execution scene, where he manages to break free from his shackles and annihilate a sage with a single punch, all with a sword in his chest. He uses that same sword during the final boss battle in another attempt to defeat Link. Ganondorf utilizes magic in the form of possession and transformation. His ability to possess other individuals is seemingly derived from his time in the realm of Twilight, as he temporarily enters that same square, bitty form used by the Twilight creatures throughout the game. While possessing Zelda, he utilizes magic very much in the same way as Ocarina of Time, though it is unclear if he is using Zelda's magic prowess or his own. Ganondorf again has the ability to transform into a beast in this game as well.
From Twilight Princess, Ganondorf doesn't really gain anything he doesn't already have from Ocarina of Time or Wind Waker, as both games lend themselves to his overpowering physical style. From his use of magic, possession and transformation are essentially unusable for Smash (outside of a Final Smash at least). Ganondorf, in using a sword, runs into the same troubles as his Wind Waker incarnation during the last boss battle. He is again seen to have no real form, with his most dangerous attacks really being his mixups with his free hand. Ganondorf is also shown to be physically overpowered by Link when their swords clash. It should be clear at this point that Ganondorf should be nowhere near a sword.
So where does this leave Super Smash Bros. Ganondorf? Every game shows him using a very physical fighting style, which the game conveys very well. Every move in his arsenal is a hard hitting physical attack or grab that could very easily be used by any of his in-game incarnations. In addition, Ocarina of Time shows him infuse magic into physical attacks, which is also supported by his moveset. Moves such as Flame Choke and Wizard's Foot are moves that seem possible for any of his incarnations that would utilize magic in this way.
As far as magic use aside from physical attacks goes, Smash Ganondorf is definitely less representative of himself. It should be noted, however, that Ganondorf has become less magic focused in every subsequent portrayal of the character, with Smash Ganondorf utilizing more magic in combat than his Wind Waker or Twilight Princess forms.
Lastly, on the subject of implementing a sword into his Smash moveset, Ganondorf has shown himself to be awkward, sloppy, and overall just plain incompetent with a blade the few times he has used a sword in the Legend of Zelda series. If anything, I would say that the Legend of Zelda series does a poor job of displaying the raw power and terror of Ganondorf in Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, as whenever he picks up a sword he immediately becomes less of a threat. Adding a sword into his Smash moveset now just seems odd given that he rarely uses swords, and when he does it goes abysmally.
Despite all of this, I would support decloning Ganondorf a little more in the form of a new animation or two, or replacing an attack here or there. Moves such as his neutral air and up smash in particular seem the least likely for Ganondorf to perform, for example, and could be reasonably removed in my opinion. In addition, the "True" series of PSAs gives Ganondorf a glide animation for dashing that would support his abilities in the Legend of Zelda series as well. These changes are not too drastic, and could easily be done in a manner that does not change the style in which Ganondorf plays, while also making the character a little more representative of his in-game self, though in my mind he is already more representative than a large number of characters in the cast. Also, a projectile would be nice, but issues with giving characters projectiles may not let that idea come to fruition.
Replacing Ganondorf for Black Shadow would be a mistake. Not only because Ganondorf is already fairly representative of himself, but also because, with just a few minor tweaks, he could be perfect. In addition, F-Zero has enough representation as it is, especially considering the fact that it is just a racing game with no actions performed outside of driving vehicles. Other characters could be represented instead, and they would be much more deserving of a slot than a second F-Zero racer.
In conclusion, Ganondorf is a character that is already fairly representative of himself as a character. While he lacks the projectiles he uses in Ocarina of Time, he incorporates magic in other ways as well, which can be seen in OoT and in Smash. His character has used less and less magic over time, though a common thread of physical power remains, which is, again, represented by his moveset. Ganondorf does indeed use a sword in two games, but his abilities with it are questionable at best, and often just lead to a pathetic showing of his incompetence. Also, Ganondorf becomes less of a clone with every update, even in 3.0 some of his aerial attacks are receiving new animations that further separate him from Captain Falcon. In addition, I find Black Shadow to be a poor choice, as other characters that actually go outside of a vehicle could be represented. Lastly, alienating the fans of a character is just a bad idea.
To those of you who actually read this, thank you.
