Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Sucumbio]

I thought it was supposed to be Ash lol so he's called Red eh? Cool!

 

[osby]

I thought it was supposed to be Ash lol so he's called Red eh? Cool!

That's a common misconception but no, Ash is actually the name of the princess.

 

[Gengar84]

That's a common misconception but no, Ash is actually the name of the princess.

Lol. To be fair though, her name is actually Ashe if you’re referring to the same person.

 

[fogbadge]

Lol. To be fair though, her name is actually Ashe if you’re referring to the same person.

View attachment 389021

and she has even less personality than the silent protags i really don't like 12

 

[Gengar84]

and she has even less personality than the silent protags i really don't like 12

I liked it enough to finish it. It was actually the last numbered mainline Final Fantasy I ever completed. I do agree that I wasn’t really feeling the story or characters much though. I did like Balthier quite a lot and Basche and Fraan were pretty cool too but that’s about it for me. FFX was the last truly amazing mainline FF in my opinion, which is funny because it was also my first.

Dunban was my favorite Xenoblade 1 character and he reminded me quite a bit of Balthier. In a lot of ways, Xenoblade Chronicles kind of felt like a better version of Finsl Fantasy XII.

 

[fogbadge]

I liked it enough to beat it. It was actually the last numbered mainline Final Fantasy I ever finished. I do agree that I wasn’t really feeling the story or characters much though. I did like Balthier quite a lot and Basche and Fraan was pretty cool too but that’s about it for me. FFX was the last truly amazing mainline FF in my opinion, which is funny because it was also my first.

Dunban was my favorite Xenoblade 1 character and he reminded me quite a bit of Balthier. In a lot of ways, Xenoblade Chronicles kind of felt like a better version of Finsl Fantasy XII.

really, balthier is like dunban? there’s a curious comparison

 

[Gengar84]

really, balthier is like dunban? there’s a curious comparison

Yeah, both Balthier and Dunban remind me a bit of James Bond. They both have a similar type of charm and humor as Bond. They both act as a sort of mentor for the main character.

 

[chocolatejr9]

Yeah, both Balthier and Dunban remind me a bit of James Bond. They both have a similar type of charm and humor as Bond. They both act as a sort of mentor for the main character.

So THIS is how we get James Bond in Smash...

 

[Gengar84]

So THIS is how we get James Bond in Smash...

Lol that works for me. I don’t really have any evidence to back this up but I feel like both characters probably took at least some inspiration from James Bond. Thats just a gut feeling and I could be way off but they’ve both always reminded me of him.

 

[Geno Boost]

View attachment 388985

I would be a lot more satisfied with a stage lineup like this.

Edit: Forgot that the Windy Hill replacement technically needed to be from Lost World. I'd choose that honeycomb-looking stage, I guess, but if I were on the team I'd just push for a non LW stage to begin with lol

huh i would like cookie stage but i personally would go with Yoshi kind of stage to kinda present Yoshi's Cookie

A SmashTuber called Thundeluxe just released a video on representing new genres in Smash.

surprised no mention of 2d spaceship shooter genre which hasnt been represented beside boss galaga item despite being the genre was one of main foundation video games did start on in early history
like there is many iconic games that can be represented it such
-space invaders
-galaga
-zero wing
-gradius
-fantasy zone
and it would be really unique to see how a character can fight from this genre

 

[fogbadge]

Yeah, both Balthier and Dunban remind me a bit of James Bond. They both have a similar type of charm and humor as Bond. They both act as a sort of mentor for the main character.

Ugh I hate bond. Don’t ruin dunban for me

 

[Opossum]

huh i would like cookie stage but i personally would go with Yoshi kind of stage to kinda present Yoshi's Cookie

surprised no mention of 2d spaceship genre which is hasnt been represented beside boss galaga item despite being one of the genre was one of main foundation video games did start on in early history
like there is many iconic games that have represented it such
-space invaders
-galaga
-zero wing
-gradius
-fantasy zone

"Spaceship" isn't a genre. It's a theme. Space Invaders and Galaga are completely different types of games than Gradius and Fantasy Zone.

 

[osby]

-fantasy zone

Speed Weed is typing furiously...

(Jokes aside, Opa-Opa would be a really fun character to see in Smash. It's a long shot even for an AT role but a man can dream.)

 

[Gengar84]

Ugh I hate bond. Don’t ruin dunban for me

I feel like he’s slightly different depending on what actor is playing him. I actually really liked Pierce Brosnan’s Bond. I’ll agree that there are certain aspects of his character that are problematic but on the whole I’ve always thought he was cool.

 

[Mamboo07]

We're now in the era where AI generation slop exists

Speculation and fake stuff for a new game is going to be insufferable, nothing but warfare

 

[Verde Coeden Scalesworth]

We're now in the era where AI generation slop exists

Speculation and fake stuff for a new game is going to be insufferable, nothing but warfare

So nothing has changed?

That's a common misconception but no, Ash is actually the name of the princess.

Don't you mean Ashley?

https://archives.bulbagarden.net/media/upload/thumb/b/b2/Ashley.png/278px-Ashley.png

Image randomly broke, so here's the url. XD

 

[Gengar84]

We're now in the era where AI generation slop exists

Speculation and fake stuff for a new game is going to be insufferable, nothing but warfare

I think some of the AI stuff is actually really cool. Very fascinating if nothing else. I watch a lot of YouTube creators to keep up with all the news and advancements with AI. I totally agree with the criticism that many people have about big corporations using AI as a means to cut costs and fire staff. That does suck. It’s also potentially dangerous for spreading misinformation and scamming people. There’s definitely a lot of potential downside to the technology.

However, I think there’s just as many positives as negatives. In my opinion, if normal every day people want to use it and are open and honest about when they are, I have absolutely no issues with it. I’ve actually been using some of it myself to create music with Udio, make different versions of our own character artwork with Stable Diffusion, generate art for minor characters that never really had any fan art with Dall-E 3, or just asking questions to Claude or Chat GPT.

 

[Speed Weed]

That's a common misconception but no, Ash is actually the name of the princess.

His name is actually Pokémon's Monster

 

[DarthEnderX]

Lol that works for me. I don’t really have any evidence to back this up but I feel like both characters probably took at least some inspiration from James Bond.

Balthier is 100% inspired by Han Solo.

He even has the tall furry companion.

 

[Sucumbio]

I liked it enough to finish it. It was actually the last numbered mainline Final Fantasy I ever completed. I do agree that I wasn’t really feeling the story or characters much though. I did like Balthier quite a lot and Basche and Fraan were pretty cool too but that’s about it for me. FFX was the last truly amazing mainline FF in my opinion, which is funny because it was also my first.

Dunban was my favorite Xenoblade 1 character and he reminded me quite a bit of Balthier. In a lot of ways, Xenoblade Chronicles kind of felt like a better version of Finsl Fantasy XII.

Wow FF10 was your first Final Fantasy? I know for many of my peers age-wise FF7 was the big title that got everyone into Square (and subsequently funded their movie studio for better or worse) though in particular circle FF6 and FF4 were popular and well me my first was the OG Final Fantasy. 6 is still my favorite followed by 13, 12, 4, 9, 1, 8, 7. Haven't played 2, 3 or 5...

 

[Gengar84]

Balthier is 100% inspired by Han Solo.

He even has the tall furry companion.

I can see that too. Solo and Bond both have that charming suave personality. Good point on the Fraan Chewbacca comparison.

Wow FF10 was your first Final Fantasy? I know for many of my peers age-wise FF7 was the big title that got everyone into Square (and subsequently funded their movie studio for better or worse) though in particular circle FF6 and FF4 were popular and well me my first was the OG Final Fantasy. 6 is still my favorite followed by 13, 12, 4, 9, 1, 8, 7. Haven't played 2, 3 or 5...

I technically played a couple of hours of Finsl Fantasy VII before that when my friend let me borrow it. I also played a couple hours of Super Mario RPG on the SNES but couldn’t get very far because I didn’t understand that you had to battle enemies for experience at the time and I ran from every encounter lol.

For some reason I didn’t really get into JRPG’s until the very end of PS1 with Chrono Cross. After I enjoyed Chrono Cross and FFX so much, I went backwards to play the older games.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Wow FF10 was your first Final Fantasy? I know for many of my peers age-wise FF7 was the big title that got everyone into Square (and subsequently funded their movie studio for better or worse) though in particular circle FF6 and FF4 were popular and well me my first was the OG Final Fantasy.

My first FF was FF1 on NES. Because I am a crumbling dust mummy.

 

[TheQuester]

I know it's unlikely because 1) We got Ridley and 2) Dread will be irrelevant by the time a potential next Smash comes out, but I'm hoping for Raven Beak as a newcomer.

If Switch 2 releases in 2025, then we might get a hypotetical Smash 6 by like late 2027/early 2028, will Metroid Dread really be THAT irrelevant by then? The game will be 6 years old by then and it's a praised metroid entry.
I still think Raven Beak has a decent chance (No high, mind you, but decent enough to be considered)

 

[chocolatejr9]

My first FF was FF1 on NES. Because I am a crumbling dust mummy.

Speaking of crumbling dust mummies:

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

His name is actually Pokémon's Monster

Pocket Monster's Monster.

 

[fogbadge]

Wow FF10 was your first Final Fantasy?

is it really that odd?

 

[Gengar84]

I think I’ve shared this before but if I were going to rank the mainline Final Fantasy games I’ve played in terms of my own personal enjoyment with them, it would probably be something like this:

FFIX > FFX > FFVII > FFVI > FFVIII > FFIV > FFXII > FFXIII > FFXV > FFIII

I’ve only played about an hour of FFV so I don’t think that’s enough to judge it but it was hard to get into for some reason. I’ve never played the first two games or FFXVI and I don’t really count FFXI or FFXIV because they’re kind of their own thing. I’ve played a bit of each but I never liked paying the monthly fees for MMOs so I only played a bit when my friend let me play his game.

 

[SMAASH! Puppy]

I liked it enough to finish it. It was actually the last numbered mainline Final Fantasy I ever completed. I do agree that I wasn’t really feeling the story or characters much though. I did like Balthier quite a lot and Basche and Fraan were pretty cool too but that’s about it for me. FFX was the last truly amazing mainline FF in my opinion, which is funny because it was also my first.

Dunban was my favorite Xenoblade 1 character and he reminded me quite a bit of Balthier. In a lot of ways, Xenoblade Chronicles kind of felt like a better version of Finsl Fantasy XII.

I couldn't get into its grid system. It instills too much FOMO in me so I get somewhat overwhelmed. I also remember getting fed up with some kind of chicken boss and quitting because I used all my healing items, died, then saved like an idiot.

I do like the idea of coding your party member's AI though.

https://archives.bulbagarden.net/media/upload/thumb/b/b2/Ashley.png/278px-Ashley.png
Image randomly broke, so here's the url. XD

I have more bad news...
EDIT: Never mind. The link not working seems to have been a problem on my end.

Wow FF10 was your first Final Fantasy? I know for many of my peers age-wise FF7 was the big title that got everyone into Square (and subsequently funded their movie studio for better or worse) though in particular circle FF6 and FF4 were popular and well me my first was the OG Final Fantasy. 6 is still my favorite followed by 13, 12, 4, 9, 1, 8, 7. Haven't played 2, 3 or 5...

Mine was...I think it was Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. But after that I played some of Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age, Final Fantasy X, and Final Fantasy VI.

Got to the point where you're supposed to ride the air ship in XII, but screwed myself over (as mentioned earlier in the post) and quit. Final Fantasy X I liked a lot more, but there were a few things that confused me and made me think I might be doing something wrong. Also Tidus is a pretty good protagonist, I don't know why people hate him. As for Final Fantasy VI, it was fun, but it was on my collage's SNES Mini, so I didn't really have enough time for a full playthrough, especially with every other game on there competing for my attention.

 

[Gengar84]

I couldn't get into its grid system. It instills too much FOMO in me so I get somewhat overwhelmed. I also remember getting fed up with some kind of chicken boss and quitting because I used all my healing items, died, then saved like an idiot.

I do like the idea of coding your party member's AI though.


I have more bad news...
EDIT: Never mind. The link not working seems to have been a problem on my end.


Mine was...I think it was Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. But after that I played some of Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age, Final Fantasy X, and Final Fantasy VI.

Got to the point where you're supposed to ride the air ship in XII, but screwed myself over (as mentioned earlier in the post) and quit. Final Fantasy X I liked a lot more, but there were a few things that confused me and made me think I might be doing something wrong. Also Tidus is a pretty good protagonist, I don't know why people hate him. As for Final Fantasy VI, it was fun, but it was on my collage's SNES Mini, so I didn't really have enough time for a full playthrough, especially with every other game on there competing for my attention.

Yeah, I agree that Tidus was a good protagonist. He and Zidane were a good change of pace from the brooding Cloud and Squall. I liked them too but it’s fun to have a more cheerful hero every now and then to change things up.

 

[Sucumbio]

is it really that odd?

Yeah, at least to me! Jumping into a series by starting with such a late sequel and being in their 40s and never having played the NES, SNES or PSX games first yah very surprising. Not a bad thing obv just not what I'd expect. I felt pretty off with Brawl being my first Smash when everyone around here were Melee fans haha imagine being 10 games deep...

 

[Gengar84]

Yeah, at least to me! Jumping into a series by starting with such a late sequel and being in their 40s and never having played the NES, SNES or PSX games first yah very surprising. Not a bad thing obv just not what I'd expect. I felt pretty off with Brawl being my first Smash when everyone around here were Melee fans haha imagine being 10 games deep...

Smash I actually started with the very first game. The concept of a huge crossover fighter featuring many of Nintendo’s biggest characters that had never interacted before was just too cool to pass up.

 

[fogbadge]

Yeah, at least to me! Jumping into a series by starting with such a late sequel and being in their 40s and never having played the NES, SNES or PSX games first yah very surprising. Not a bad thing obv just not what I'd expect. I felt pretty off with Brawl being my first Smash when everyone around here were Melee fans haha imagine being 10 games deep...

well 10 was my first game as well but then I am 7 years younger than gengar so that may not be as odd

 

[SpecterFlower]

I just want to say, it's too bad he didn't mention beat'em ups. I wonder why didn't he didn't mention that?

I would just imagine they’re pretty small overall

you got streets of rage.
River city girls
That awful battle roads game
And a new tmnt recently.

you get tons of virtual novels and rhythm games every year. Rhythm games are pretty huge too so them being missing really feels off in smash

 

[Gengar84]

I would just imagine they’re pretty small overall

you got streets of rage.
River city girls
That awful battle roads game
And a new tmnt recently.

you get tons of virtual novels and rhythm games every year. Rhythm games are pretty huge too so them being missing really feels off in smash

The actual gameplay of the Battletoads reboot was fun. I just wasn’t as big on the art style and some of the humor. It felt like they were trying to play off the style of the Rise of the TMNT cartoon. Maybe it’s just because I’m old but I do miss the style of the older Battletoads and TMNT designs. I never really clicked with many of their modern designs too much. At least TMNT has an amazing modern comic with the best storytelling the franchise has ever had even if the main designs for the turtles themselves aren’t my favorite. The Rise of the TMNT movie was actually surprisingly really enjoyable.

 

[ninjahmos]

FF10 was also my first… but I've never actually beaten it.

 

[fogbadge]

FF10 was also my first… but I've never actually beaten it.

Yeah it gets tough in quite a few places

 

[Gengar84]

The trick is to store up every character’s and summon’s overdrives before a tough boss fight and just use them all at the start of the battle. This didn’t work with every boss fight though. Yunalesca was a particularly tough fight where she somebodies your whole team to reverse the effect of healing magic. That one took several tries and I really had to come up with a strategy through trial and error to win.

 

[fogbadge]

The trick is to store up every character’s and summon’s overdrives before a tough boss fight and just use them all at the start of the battle. This didn’t work with every boss fight though. Yunalesca was a particularly tough fight where she somebodies your whole team to reverse the effect of healing magic. That one took several tries and I really had to come up with a strategy through trial and error to win.

or yojimbo the lot of them

 

[HyperSomari64]

The actual gameplay of the Battletoads reboot was fun. I just wasn’t as big on the art style and some of the humor. It felt like they were trying to play off the style of the Rise of the TMNT cartoon. Maybe it’s just because I’m old but I do miss the style of the older Battletoads and TMNT designs. I never really clicked with many of their modern designs too much. At least TMNT has an amazing modern comic with the best storytelling the franchise has ever had even if the main designs for the turtles themselves aren’t my favorite. The Rise of the TMNT movie was actually surprisingly really enjoyable.

The problem with Rise of TMNT is that it was announced in the wrong time.
It was after the Thundercats Roar drama.
I'm happy that the show would be vindicated when it premiered (Even if the show got screwed up by Nickelodeon)

 

[DarthEnderX]

I think I’ve shared this before but if I were going to rank the mainline Final Fantasy games I’ve played in terms of my own personal enjoyment with them, it would probably be something like this:

1. FF6
2. FF7
3. FF4
4. FF5
5. FF10
6. FF1
7. FF9
8. FF3
9. FF8
10. FF12
11. FF13
12. FF2