Leaks and Rumors Compilation

[Parasol]

I'll be keeping quotes of all leaks and rumors within this thread. That way it'll be easier to manage the heaps of supposed outside information we're bound to get with the game's approaching release. By comparing rumors with others, either coinciding or contradicting, we'll hopefully be able to filter out the nonsense and speculation. Of course, if I'm missing any rumors, you can post in this thread or send me a PM, and I'll attach it to the front page.

Be sure to read ChronoBound's posts regarding civilized skepticism: first post, second post.

Last week, Gematsu was tipped off about Nintendo’s E3 character reveals for Super Smash Bros. But since we were unable to confirm the validity of our source, we refrained from posting the information. Of the six characters we were told would be revealed, three have been confirmed: Mega Man, Animal Crossing Villager, and Wii Fit Trainer. The three left remaining are Little Mac, Pac-Man, and your Mii.

Source: Gematsu, NeoGAF

The Anniversary of Brawl's release in Japan will have a special Nintendo Direct focused on Smash 4. (Jan. 31)

Little Mac and Takamaru were two of the first characters chosen for Smash 4, both being classic characters that have since experienced a revival via Punch Out Wii/Nintendo Land and are fan favorites. They also represent West vs. East, which Sakurai is aiming for after the previous series strayed too much towards Eastern characters like Fire Emblem and Mother.

King K. Rool and Ridley are also two characters that are being given priority as they too have a lot of requests. King K. Rool's design is said to have a new design that Retro contributed to (perhaps a new Donkey Kong Country is on the horizon?), and Ridley will apparently have a style of game-play that involves the evolution seen in Other M.

Shulk, Dillon, and Ghirahim are currently set to be included, but they haven't been finalized like the four above.

Platinum Games is interested in including a character, yet nothing has been finalized yet. Will probably be from Wonderful 101, but nothing is decided upon.

Starship Mario, Giant Chasm (Pokemon BW2), Pushmo Park, and Cookie Country (Kirby) are levels that have been worked on.

There's a second Yoshi representative who has yet to be introduced and will apparently be appearing in a new game coming out soon that Nintendo asked to be included.

The rumored Yoshi Land Wii U? It's apparently Yoshi's new partner another dinosaur character. The name "Debu" has been thrown around, but I'm not sure if that's it's name or a nickname since that just means "fat" in Japanese.

Source: Examiner

This is an old GameFAQs account which I reactivated today. I don't believe I've posted often around here, but I want to clarify that I didn't just create this account all willy-nilly. I am close friends with a developer in Namco Bandai, the team which is helping develop the new Super Smash Bros. game to be released on Nintendo 3DS and Wii U next year. Super Smash Bros. has always held a special place in my heart for nostalgic reasons, so I made an effort to pry some information. Unfortunately, I don't have very much on characters, but what I was able to find out, I will share. Do not expect any form of validation or proof from my end, as that will put my friend's career at considerable risk.

I approached by asking if the wide-spread rumor regarding Little Mac, Mii, and Pac-Man was true; despite my repeated asking, he was only able to tell me that Little Mac is a definite playable character. He kept laughing and sighing when I asked about the other two. (This wasn't an in-person conversation, so I wasn't able to infer any non-verbal hints or clues.) Sorry, but I don't have any more on characters than that. I do, however, have a bit about some single player modes: Break the Targets will be making a comeback, and it will be handled in a compromised fashion to that of Brawl's style and its predecessors. What I mean by this is that the level designs will be broken up by franchise, and each character within that franchise will share that stage. He gave me the following example: "For instance, the Super Mario Bros. series might have a stage based on the Mushroom Kingdom, and both he and Bowser would share that stage." I asked him about characters who were stand-alone representatives for their games, and his only response was that he "couldn't say". I also asked if these stages would have varying levels of difficulty like in Brawl, to which he said, "At this point, there is only one difficulty setting."

Home-Run Contest, Event Matches, and Adventure Mode will also be returning. He had little to say about the first two (they will stay relatively the same as in previous installments), and he could not share much on Adventure Mode other than it leans closer to the style of Melee's version. Part of the reason he couldn't elaborate much on Adventure Mode--disregarding an obvious need for subtlety--is because the roster is "still being tweaked", implying much heavier character involvement as far as the story goes. Also, Adventure Mode will hold more importance on the 3DS version than on the home console. Not too sure what that entails, but I did get confirmation that it can still be accessed on both versions.

That's pretty much all the information I have. I don't have any confirmation on veteran characters, even the obvious ones. I asked him, "Why didn't they show Yoshi in the reveal trailer?" to which he only said, "I wonder!" Please keep in mind that my friend isn't exactly a high-up in the development team, but he's definitely in a position to where he'd be in the know. That said--judging from his tone of voice and scrupulous phrasing--I'd say there's still quite some bit that is unknown even to him. Take from that what you will. (I won't be making any replies, because I know how hectic topics like this can get. I'll post sometime later if I learn more, although that probably won't be for quite some time, if at all.)

Previously, I made a post on this board containing some new information I learned from a close friend in the know: http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/633202-super-smash-bros-for-wii-u/66540992.(I am posting this here as to make it easier on you fellas to keep track of what's been said.) I promised that any new information I get I would share with you guys. Although I don't expect to be consistently fed information, as my friend and I rarely keep in touch, I managed to arrange a Skype call with him today, and I have some news.

Apparently the development team was just very recently given the go to start work on Mewtwo. Concept designs involve both his original and Awakened forms, the latter of which not being set as his Final Smash, contrary to popular speculation. (Right now, they are throwing around the idea of Psystrike being his Final Smash--a single-targeting attack.) Changing forms will not alter his moveset but rather his speed, weight, mobility, and damage. This concept is not finalized, as the development team is still seeking approval/counsel from GameFreak.

My friend finished our discussion on Mewtwo by saying, "His inclusion has nothing to do with Lucario being a playable character." I took that to mean thatLucario will be a returning character, despite both his and Mewtwo's neutral specials being the same. In hindsight, I probably should have nudged for some definite in-or-out clarification, but from the way things sound, Lucario will most likely stay for the new game.

Considering all of this, I asked if he could help me try and prove my credibility to you fellas. I thought a good way to do this would be for him to tell me the upcoming Miiverse photo to be revealed by Sakurai, but he said that Sakurai usually takes the photos the night before or the morning of, and so it usually cannot be predicted. Character updates, however, are all planned ahead of time: he said that a Pokemon representative would be the next character update on the Smash Bros. website. For some reason, he wouldn't tell me who, which leads me to believe that it is neither Lucario nor Mewtwo who will be the upcoming reveal. "Just wait and see!"

That's all that I have for the time being. As I mentioned beforehand, I'm not expecting to learn more on a frequent basis, but whenever I do manage to get a slice of information here and there, I will be sure to post. Like before, I will not be making any replies, because I know how posts like this are viewed in these kinds of communities.

Source: GameFAQs

So don't kill me if this doesn't turn out to be true. Buddy of mine is interning at a company that is involved with the next Smash (can't say which one or else he'd totally get fired for this.) Now, this particular company is based stateside, so it's not directly involved in the development of SSB4. HOWEVER, he was invited to sit in on a conference call with the development team so he could take care of some administrative stuff for them. Basically, here's what he got out of it:

-There's no way in hell this game is getting delayed. Brawl got delayed twice and they're doing whatever they can do avoid that. Q3/Q4 2014.
-The roster is actually not 100% finalized. The way they're doing it this time is the development team has a list of characters they would like to include in the game prioritized from most wanted to least wanted. They have a hard deadline in which there are no more characters to be added and however many are in the game at that point, they keep it that number. Supposedly that deadline is approaching pretty soon.
-Someone made a passing joke about "rights issues," which my friend interpreted as a Namco character being in Smash Bros.....

The rest is pretty business-y stuff he says. Again, if any of this is untrue, really sorry about this--I hated prophets and trolls for the hype leading up to Brawl. Thought I'd share it though--very interesting stuff.

Source: Smashboards

 

[TewnLeenk]

I made a thread on the "Smash 4 E3 and Nintendo Direct" forum called "The UPDATED Big Dirty SSB4 Pre E3 Greasy rumor thread".

Feel free to take the rumors from mine and add them onto your compilation, if ya want.

 

[Neanderthal]

The first one is probably legit.

The second one is just an attention seeker trying to seem special by saying a bunch of things we already know or can safely guess. Guarantee this guy is full of it.

The third one is just a clever troll but his story about the teleconference with the Japanese developers doesn't make any sense. Also full of it.



Rule of thumb: If there are any leaks, they will be from our Japanese friends. Not american teenagers on GameFAQS who have a "friend" at Namco.
The first leak only came out in English because E3 was being held in LA. E3 is always high risk for leaks anyway since more outsiders have to get involved.
Any new leaks in the future would more likely come from a Japanese source.

 

[memememe]

Oh mine was totally false, get that off there before people start thinking it's real
I also read in a Japanese magazine that Mario is being cut so add that

 

[Chauzu]

Oh mine was totally false, get that off there before people start thinking it's real
I also read in a Japanese magazine that Mario is being cut so add that

Go away you troll.

 

[Banjodorf]

Yeah the first one's the only one with any weight right now. As it stands it's at 3/6 correct, and it's a pretty specific 3/6...

In addition, now that we have a Punch-Out!! stage, Little Mac's odds are through the roof. And Sakurai recently confirmed a transferable, customizable character. If that's not Mii's, I'm going to eat my shoe.

All that's left is Pac-Man as a "maybe" factor in my mind really. Only time will tell.

The others though? **** em. The third one doesn't even LEAK anything.

 

[Guybrush20X6]

Only thing that strikes me odd about the Mii is both the new characters take some inspiration from the Wii series so I wonder if the Mii's attacks are completely customizable.

 

[Tree Gelbman]

If they are I wonder what the Mii's system for customization will be, will there be built in moves you can change out on a fly in a separate menu of the game. Will they be unique to Mii or will they be moves similar to other characters in the game? With Mii's basically being Smash Brothers equal of Sword Master.

 

[Artsy Omni]

Lots of people jumping the gun on how Miis would work...

 

[Tree Gelbman]

Not really any jumping the gun in speculation of how they'd work. Speculation is just that.

No one is claiming to know how they'd work and I don't think anyone on this board could ever accurately guess what Sakurai would do with them.

 

[TheTuninator]

Didn't Sakurai confirm customizable, transferable characters, not character, singular? While customization certainly doesn't hurt the Mii's odds, there is no way Sakurai would limit his planned customization to only one character. From what he has been saying, it is something you will be able to do with any character.

Looks like the BS rumors are already coming out of the woodwork. This should be a fun ride.

 

[Wario Bros.]

Didn't Sakurai confirm customizable, transferable characters, not character, singular? While customization certainly doesn't hurt the Mii's odds, there is no way Sakurai would limit his planned customization to only one character. From what he has been saying, it is something you will be able to do with any character.

Looks like the BS rumors are already coming out of the woodwork. This should be a fun ride.

This articles does says customizable character in plural form so it's starting to look that way. Too bad Sakurai isn't going into any details what exactly this customization thing is as it's been buggin' me for 2 years now.

 

[Banjodorf]

Didn't Sakurai confirm customizable, transferable characters, not character, singular? While customization certainly doesn't hurt the Mii's odds, there is no way Sakurai would limit his planned customization to only one character. From what he has been saying, it is something you will be able to do with any character.

Looks like the BS rumors are already coming out of the woodwork. This should be a fun ride.

Huh. I read it as singular, but if anyone really thinks Mii's are unlikely at this point given that, as the best candidate for customizable anything, they're probably going to be sorely mistaken. (And I hate Mii's. I REALLY do.

Although I do find the concept of Jesus punching out Kanye West hilarious.

 

[TheTuninator]

Huh. I read it as singular, but if anyone really thinks Mii's are unlikely at this point given that, as the best candidate for customizable anything, they're probably going to be sorely mistaken. (And I hate Mii's. I REALLY do.

I think Miis are a likely inclusion, but we definitely should not take that quote by Sakurai as confirmation of Miis. Sakurai's words seem to indicate a desire to make every character customizable, not just one.

This articles does says customizable character in plural form so it's starting to look that way. Too bad Sakurai isn't going into any details what exactly this customization thing is as it's been buggin' me for 2 years now.

Yeah, the notion of customization is probably the only thing about SSB4 which actually worries me.

 

[BADGRAPHICS]

Can anybody confirm if information regarding Retro's involvement with the new DK was available when #2 was posted (Dec 17th)? It's a nugget of truth that gives it some possible weight.

 

[TheTuninator]

Can anybody confirm if information regarding Retro's involvement with the new DK was available when #2 was posted (Dec 17th)? It's a nugget of truth that gives it some possible weight.

Wouldn't the fact that it predicted a Smash-focused Direct on Jan 31st which did not happen confirm that rumor as a load of bull?

 

[IntelliHeath1]

Source: Examiner

The source from Examiner is fake, since he said that we were supposed to get Smash Direct on Jan 31, 2012. Obviously, It never happened.

 

[memememe]

The source from Examiner is fake, since he said that we were supposed to get Smash Direct on Jan 31, 2012. Obviously, It never happened.

Examiner is one of the worst publications I have ever read.
I have never heard of an outlet that quotes NeoGAF forums as an official source as much as they do.

 

[grizby2]

what about the rumor of mewtwo getting back into smash?

quote is in the spoiler

Spoiler

“Can you go into more detail on how Mewtwo changes forms, and would you like this new form to appear in the new Smash Bros.?”
Upon asking this question the audience burst into laughter. Both Tsunekazu Ishihara and Junichi Masuda also had a surprised look on their face and appeared to not know how to safely answer the question. Sakurai was also in the audience and looked as if he were thinking, “Oh man, not this again!” after the question was asked.
After a brief moment of silence, Ishihara and Masuda answered by saying they don’t have anything to announce about the new Pokémon (Mewtwo’s new form) today, and that they can’t speak on its appearance in other games. Sakurai then shouted out, from the audience, “We are thinking about it.”

 

[IntelliHeath1]

Examiner is one of the worst publications I have ever read.
I have never heard of an outlet that quotes NeoGAF forums as an official source as much as they do.

NeoGAF? Read again. Examiner's source is from this board, not NeoGAF. However smashboard's source is from GameFaqs which is nothing news.

 

[IntelliHeath1]

double post

 

[Curmudgeon]

Can anybody confirm if information regarding Retro's involvement with the new DK was available when #2 was posted (Dec 17th)? It's a nugget of truth that gives it some possible weight.

No, the new DKC game and Retro's involvement were announced earlier this month.

 

[ImaClubYou]

Not sure about Mii since Villager would be almost the same concept moveset wise. We also have a Game n' Watch.

 

[ImaClubYou]

Not sure about Mii since Villager would be almost the same concept moveset wise. We also have a Game n' Watch.

 

[BADGRAPHICS]

No, the new DKC game and Retro's involvement were announced earlier this month.

Yeah, that's pretty interesting. Granted, the poster could have had a source regarding Retro and DK, and the rest could be bull, but this is a rumour to watch.

The 31st of January Nintendo Direct is neither here nor there. If it was planned, they could have just cancelled it or whatever.

 

[Parasol]

Original post updated in response to this thread. Pretty soon I will try to find the original dates on these rumors, organize and format a little better, and highlight any rumors that have been confirmed as false.