APC99
Smash Master
NINTENDOG 4 SMASH!
With the unleashing of the Villager, I did some research in order to see if Sakurai left any cryptic hints in development statements. Kind of a Gravity Falls/ Doctor Who thing in the fact that I looked through previous games and interviews. And accompanying the Villager was THIS:
Hmm... It does not seem plausible, huh? Since WHEN was Smash plausible? It's the game where you play as an overweight plumber addicted to 'shrooms, a time-traveling fairy boy, an electric rat forced to live inside of a plastic child's toy and a saddled dinosaur who can stuff innocent creatures into eggs and poop them out to use as ammo, forcing them all to fight against a floating hand. I'm pretty sure that the Villager isn't too strange. But that got me thinking... What if Sakurai was predicting? What if Nintendog was going to join his brother to prove they can fight? Therefore, I am predicting that such character could appear in Smash. Not stating that it's a 100% thing, matching the likes of Ridley, Little Mac, King K. Rool or Mewtwo, but it could happen. Did we expect Game & Watch? NO. Did we expect R.O.B.? NO. Did we expect Wii Fit Trainer? NO. I'm pretty sure even those who weren't meant to be WTF characters, like Pokemon Trainer, Ice Climbers, Jigglypuff and even NESS, made people go "What?" so there's that reason. I'll update a moveset later.
The moment you've all been waiting for...
NINTENDOG AND OWNER MOVESET
by StaffofSmashing, Keybladeguy and APC99
OVERVIEW:
"Wat. Nintendog can't fight. He iz a dawg. PETA would kill Sakurai." is a statement I hear often. So, I thought about it. How could Nintendog fight while not getting hurt but still be a balanced character? I came up with the idea of making a moveset based off the owner taking hits for the dog and using toys as attacks during my time making my first few movesets in Make Your Move. Then I came across two kindred spirits: StaffofSmashing and Keybladeguy, both very new to the Smashboards scene. They were among the people who ACTUALLY liked the idea of Nintendog, and were fellow movesetters. So, back all the way on July 22nd, 2013, we started planning the moveset and adding or removing or tweaking moves. Eventually, on August 13, 2013, we finished it. So, without further ado, here it is!
STANDARDS:
Jab: Scratch-Scratch-Bite. Nintendog paws with opposing arms and then chomps forward. The damage goes 2%, 3%, 5%.
F-Tilt: Bark. Nintendog barks and a small soundwave goes out. Deals 5%.
U-Tilt: Pounce. Nintendog jumps up and then meteor smashes. Deals 9%.
D-Tilt: Talking Bird. The hand points it in front of Nintendog and it reflects any incoming projectiles. Deals half as much damage as the projectile normally would, however.
Dash Attack: Tail Swipe. Nintendog skids and turns around to "chase his tail" as the tail smacks the opponent. Deals 5%.
SMASHES:
F-Smash: Sic 'Em. The hand points forward and the dog lunges forward baring it's teeth. Deals 15%.
U-Smash: Pull Rope. The hand and dog start playing tug-of-war, but the hand accidentally sends the dog flying into the air. Deals 14% if you hit Nintendog, but 10% if you hit the Pull Rope itself.
D-Smash: Jump Rope. The hand and dog each grab an end of the jump rope and start skipping it. If caught in the jump rope, it deals 12%, but if you touch either of the two, it will deal 17%.
AERIALS:
N-Air: Bubbles. The hand swishes a bubble wand as about 5 bubbles surround Nintendog and then spread out. Each bubble deals 2%.
F-Air: Piggy Bank. The hand throws a piggy bank in an arc similar to Yoshi's Egg Throw. It deals 4% if hit in the air, and 7% if it hits the ground and shatters near an opponent.
B-Air: Toys. Nintendog drops one of his toys, whether it be a Stuffed Dog, Dumbbell Toy, Soft Cube or a bouncing Squeaky Ball. Deals 8%.
U-Air: RC Helicopter. The hand holds a RC controller as he can now aim in 8 different directions for Nintendog to fly to while riding on the RC helicopter. They only go a small distance (about the width of Bowser) but will deal 6% to anyone hit by the RC helicopter.
D-Air: Balloon. The hand blows up a balloon and throws it as Nintendog pounces on it, pops it, and effectively meteor-smashes. Deals 4% if hit by the balloon during the pop, but 9% if hit by Nintendog.
GRAB GAME:
Grab: Tethering Leash. The hand pulls out a leash and uses it as a lasso to pull in opponents, and the dog then grabs them with it's jaws.
Pummel: Paws of Steel. Nintendog paws it opponents. Deals 2% each hit.
U-Throw: Combat Copter. The hand throws the opponent onto the Combat Copter as they fly up and then the hand punches them. Deals 12%.
F-Throw: Wind-Up Toys. The hand winds up a toy and Nintendog throws the opponent onto it. Deals 6% and if the wind-up comes in contact with anything it will explode and deal 10%.
B-Throw: Backflip. The dog backflips with the opponent still in it's jaws and slams onto them, returning to it's owner. Deals 9%.
D-Throw: Tail Chase: Nintendog chases it's tail while spinning it's opponent. Deals 7%.
SPECIALS:
N-Special: Tennis Ball. The hand starts throwing tennis balls, or the dog will catch them and throw them in back of him. Each tennis ball deals 12%.
F-Special: Frisbee. The hand throws a boomerang or frisbee and the dog chases it, acting much like Fox Illusion. However, the boomerang returns to the original spot. If hit by the toy, it will deal 8%, but if hit by the dog, it will deal 11%.
U-Special: Puppy Pounce. A trampoline spawns underneath Nintendog and he jumps off of it and pounces in whatever direction you point it in. The trampoline deals 3% if it hits an opponent, but Nintendog deals 13%.
D-Special: Doggie Treat. The hand feeds Nintendog a dog treat, which has a 10 second cooldown until you use it again. 50% of the time, you'll get a brown treat that heals 3%. 30% of the time you get a yellow or green treat that heals 4%. 15% of the time you'll get a red or pink treat that heals 5%. Finally, 5% of the time, you'll get a golden dog biscuit, which will heal 10%.
MISC.
Final Smash: Robo-Dog's Stampede. Nintendog turns into the invincible Robo-Dog and summons hundreds of Nintendogs and Nintencats to attack. They stampede through the bottom of the stage as the Robo-Dog can move anywhere and attack with double the damage of any move. The stampede deals 20% per hit.
Series Logo: The paw print from the Nintendogs logo.
Alternate Costumes: Nintencat
Dash: The hand holds a lure in front of the dog and it chases after it.
Idle Pose: Nintendog lowers into a playful pose, or lifts it's paw and licks it.
U-Taunt: A lightbulb spawns above it's head.
F-Taunt: Nintendog tries to lick it's nose as the hands do Master Hand poses.
D-Taunt: Nintendog dances while the hands clap.
Arguments:
1. Nintendog can't fight, unlike Villager! Villager has tools, Nintendog has nothing!
Oh really? Come here, and let APC99 explain. Who said that you had to control the Nintendog directly? In the game, you bathe, feed, train and play with your puppy. The moves could simply be the hand used (Master Hand? DUH DUH DUH MAJOR PLOT POINT DUH DUH!) to make the puppy fight. For instance, the had could throw a frisbee and the dog could chase after it similar to Fox Illusion. A Smash Attack could involve the hand cleaning the dog and the dog shakes to dry off, leading in opponents getting the water effect.
2. Nintendog is DS-exclusive! He'd only ever get on if there were console-exclusives!
Mr. Game & Watch. Pikachu. Lucas. All were exclusive to the handheld when they were introduced in Smash. Why should Nintendog be any different?
3. Nintendog isn't an important franchise to represent in Smash!
Nintendogs sold 23.94 million copies worldwide, the second best-selling Nintendo DS game, only losing to New Super Mario Bros. There's plenty of merchandise, a sequel for the 3DS (which was the first platinum title for the system) and they even appeared in Brawl as an assist trophy and a stage in Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS, bringing up the next counter-point...
4. There's a Nintendogs stage with a Nintendog so he can't be playable!
Let me guess, if this was your point you also think that Toon Link won't return... Look, yes, it is a Nintendog, but it's a certain breed. Just because a breed of Nintendog appears in a stage doesn't mean that a different breed won't appear as a "fighter"... NO! There can be more than one Nintendog. There's more than one Yoshi. More than one Toad. More than one Link
4. You can't fight with a realistic-looking dog! PETA would shut down Smash Bros!
Well, you have a point there. That's where the owner comes in. The owner would protect the dog, but it would still take damage. The only real place that takes damage is the hand, making it harder to hit him. The hand cringes, but the dog doesn't show any signs of pain or damage. For KOing, the hand goes into the distance with the stylus dragging it down, and the dog just runs off into the background. The hand can slam into the foreground for the Screen KO, and the dog does the same usual thing. As for KOs off-screen, the dog always jumps back onto the battlefield and follows other players and licks them. The hand regenerates and the dog returns to him. It reappears alongside it's owner for the other KOs with a present which it breaks and gives an item to the hand.
Does Nintendogs fit Sakurai's criteria?
Masahiro Sakurai said:What is the uniqueness of this character?
Nintendog uses dog tricks and help from his "owner" to win the battle. If the dog performs the trick (special attack/ smash attack) correctly, the owner will give him a doggie treat, which heals 1%. The more often you use the special attack, the more damage it performs since the dog has "learned it"
Masahiro Sakurai said:What does this character bring to the Super Smash Bros. universe?
Nintendog represents a more casual gaming community in the same vein as Wii Fit Trainer and the Villager, and life-simulation games as a whole, since I cannot see a SimCity character getting in.
The dogs have a buddy-like system with their masters assisting them, having the master's hand take the damage for the dog, protects him and gives him treats for when he does the trick right.Masahiro Sakurai said:What do they have that other characters don't?
He stands out because he's not an actual fighter, and fits in a fight alongside Mario, Villager and Pikachu.Masahiro Sakurai said:How do they complement or contrast other characters?
EVENT MATCH IDEAS!
Title: Porky's Pet
Character: Nintendog
Ally: Lucas
Enemies: Porky, Ultimate Chimera
Stock: 1 each
Description: Where's Boney? Oh well, I guess this stray dog could help protect Lucas from Porky's evil...