POLL: How many characters do you expect in SSB4's roster?

[Neanderthal]

How many characters do you expect to be in the SSB4 final roster?

(For the purposes of this poll, let's go by how many character slots appear in the final character selection screen ignoring transformations).

SSB 64 = 12

SSB Melee = 25

SSB Brawl = 35

SSB 4 = ?



The topic has come up in recent discussion in the roster thread due to a Sakurai quote and has sparked some curiosity since there does not seem to be a current consensus on what the average SmashBoards reader expects.

Hopefully this poll does not get closed as it is unique to other character roster polls.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

Anywhere from 42-45 seems the most likely to me.

 

[PsychoIncarnate]

Totally going with the 69 option

 

[FalKoopa]

I guess 45-47 characters, ignoring transformations.

 

[final lap]

Melee added 13, Brawl added 10, so logically SSB4 will add around 7

it's simple math really. come on guys step it up

 

[FalKoopa]

Melee added 13, Brawl added 10, so logically SSB4 will add around 7

A list of Brawl newcomers:
Wolf
Meta Knight
King Dedede
Diddy Kong
Sonic
Snake
R.O.B.
Lucario
Ike
ZSS
Wario
Pit
Lucas
Olimar
Pokemon Trainer (three here)

That makes 17. Note that I did not include Toon Link, who probably was meant to replace Young Link.

 

[final lap]

I was just going by the OP's post. When I said Brawl added 10 I simply meant that the roster size was 10 chars larger than Melee's.

 

[FalKoopa]

I was just going by the OP's post. When I said Brawl added 10 I simply meant that the roster size was 10 chars larger than Melee's.

Oh, I see. My apologies for calling you a troll.

Well, the OP isn't entirely correct either. 35 includes the Random Select as well, lol.

 

[Diddy Kong]

45-47 was my vote.

 

[SmashShadow]

I think it's safe to say we'll get less characters but I also feel we'll get less transformations this time leading to more characters having their own roster slot. I pick 45-47 although I feel it could also be 48-50.

 

[Banjodorf]

I'm going with 48-50. My personal roster, with a couple of questionable choices comes to 49 without considering transformations. It still seems like a relatively conservative number, although slightly less is probably more likely. We'll see.

 

[Vintage Creep]

I would be slightly disappointed if we don't reach 50 (counting transformations). We are at 39 with Brawl, at least 11 newcomers are expected from me. At least.

 

[BluePikmin11]

48-50 would really bring up something new.

 

[Curious Villager]

It's funny how some smash fans never count transformations whenever discussing rosters when Sakurai actually does.

Oh Well I'm hoping somewhere around 40 to 50 characters, transformations included. Especially if that new Mewtwo is going to be included and if he's actually going to be a transformation of the original Mewtwo.

 

[volbound1700]

Totally going with the 69 option

Haha game wouldn't come out until 2015 at least under that scenario. Iwata would have a fit.

 

[Deleted member]

I'm thinking somewhere between 51-53 characters is the most likely scenario, transformations included. 47-49 slots.

 

[Tetra's Tracker]

I'm going for 47 although 50 isn't unreasonable considering Nintendo is now embracing DLC. When making a sequel to a fighting game increasing the roster size is something that always must be done, you'd think that anything less than an increase of 10 would be unreasonable even for Sakurai.

 

[CalumG]

Anywhere near 45 seems the safest bet, given that Sakurai suggested there'd be less Newcomers added this time around than there were last time.

Of course, whilst that only outwardly appears to be 10 more characters than Brawl had, there are a few factors to take into account - firstly, Pokemon will probably have at least one rep removed to make way for a newer one. I like to think the same will probably apply to Fire Emblem, if the transition between Melee to Brawl is anything to go by (although comparing Roy to Ike isn't quite the same thing). I could potentially see Toon Link or Wolf getting removed although that's more my personal preference than something I consider likely. Assuming Toon Link doesn't get removed, I could picture him getting given a new moveset, as with Ganondorf who quite frankly is long overdue. And then of course, when counting characters, there's potential transformations to keep in mind a la Zero Suit Samus, Sheik and Pokemon Trainer; there's every chance we'll get new characters with transforming/swapping functions, or a new transformation added to an old character like how Samus was handled in Brawl.

So yeah, 45 sounds pretty good. In terms of pure numbers on the roster screen it looks like only 10 more characters than Brawl had, but logically I assume we'd be getting anywhere between 12 and 18 new movesets.

 

[Scoliosis Jones]

Anywhere near 45 seems the safest bet, given that Sakurai suggested there'd be less Newcomers added this time around than there were last time.

Of course, whilst that only outwardly appears to be 10 more characters than Brawl had, there are a few factors to take into account - firstly, Pokemon will probably have at least one rep removed to make way for a newer one. I like to think the same will probably apply to Fire Emblem, if the transition between Melee to Brawl is anything to go by (although comparing Roy to Ike isn't quite the same thing). I could potentially see Toon Link or Wolf getting removed although that's more my personal preference than something I consider likely. Assuming Toon Link doesn't get removed, I could picture him getting given a new moveset, as with Ganondorf who quite frankly is long overdue. And then of course, when counting characters, there's potential transformations to keep in mind a la Zero Suit Samus, Sheik and Pokemon Trainer; there's every chance we'll get new characters with transforming/swapping functions, or a new transformation added to an old character like how Samus was handled in Brawl.

So yeah, 45 sounds pretty good. In terms of pure numbers on the roster screen it looks like only 10 more characters than Brawl had, but logically I assume we'd be getting anywhere between 12 and 18 new movesets.

The way I see it, Brawls roster could have been larger than it turned out to be. Mind you, the only reason Doc, Mewtwo, and Roy were cut was because of Sonic.

Because of Roy and Mewtwo, I feel as if there doesn't need to be a cut in each respective series. Doc, not so much. I just don't see him coming back in general.

As far as the roster size, characters are the biggest selling point. Gameplay changes and balancing are nice, but characters make the game. So anything less than 10 even is a bit of a stretch. because of this, I propose anywhere from 10 to 15 characters added. I doubt 15 would actually happen, but I also doubt only 10.

Sakurai has also mentioned that while he is focusing on gameplay, that isn't going to stop him from adding a decent amount of characters. So like I said, between 10-15 is a solid choice. So in total, i'd say roster spots total to 45-50, or a little over 50 counting transformations.

 

[CalumG]

The way I see it, Brawls roster could have been larger than it turned out to be. Mind you, the only reason Doc, Mewtwo, and Roy were cut was because of Sonic.

Because of Roy and Mewtwo, I feel as if there doesn't need to be a cut in each respective series. Doc, not so much. I just don't see him coming back in general.

As far as the roster size, characters are the biggest selling point. Gameplay changes and balancing are nice, but characters make the game. So anything less than 10 even is a bit of a stretch. because of this, I propose anywhere from 10 to 15 characters added. I doubt 15 would actually happen, but I also doubt only 10.

Sakurai has also mentioned that while he is focusing on gameplay, that isn't going to stop him from adding a decent amount of characters. So like I said, between 10-15 is a solid choice. So in total, i'd say roster spots total to 45-50, or a little over 50 counting transformations.

Source? I know there was evidence of the characters' inclusion in the Brawl code, and it's been said that Sonic was the last added character, but is there anything to suggest that Sonic was the direct reason for their lack of inclusion? It's entirely possible Sakurai just didn't include them because he didn't see fit (in Doc and Roy's case), though Mewtwo, as a unique character, is a bit more up for debate.

 

[Scoliosis Jones]

I don't remember where I read it/saw it (take that for what you will. I'm not making this up though) but Sonic was added late into the development process, and Mewtwo and Roy were nearly completed.

Not to mention they already delayed it and wanted to get the game out. They supposedly "didn't have enough time".

 

[Wario Bros.]

As most know, a big problem with a large roster there will be worry if the game will be reasonably balanced. But since Namco Bandai Games (who have a lot of fighting game experience) will be doing the balancing rather than Sakurai doing it all by himself like he did for the last 3 game, my hopes for a larger than Brawl roster seem more in reach. I will have to say somewhere of 45 to anything higher than that for the roster size (but I have a hunch that the 3DS game could/will have a slightly smaller roster count than the Wii U game.)

 

[CalumG]

I don't remember where I read it/saw it (take that for what you will. I'm not making this up though) but Sonic was added late into the development process, and Mewtwo and Roy were nearly completed.

Not to mention they already delayed it and wanted to get the game out. They supposedly "didn't have enough time".

There's not really any evidence that Mewtwo and Roy were 'nearly' completed though - just that they got far enough to have a few pointers and reference images in the game. I can't blame most people for putting 2 and 2 together to assume that Sonic's inclusion probably affected it, but there's not any solid proof of that fact.

 

[Knight Dude]

I went with 42-44. Anyway, good poll idea.

 

[Jimnymebob]

Realistically anything over 40 would be great, or over 40 whatever if you're counting transformations as characters.
I doubt they'd top 50, and I doubt the amount of characters added in each game have any official correlation so to say.
They've covered a good majority of the main franchises now as characters, I'd be happy with a character for the non represented bigger franchises, ala Punch Out! etc., then more obscure/non-localised characters if there's room.

 

[final lap]

My apologies for calling you a troll.

Apology accepted.

 

[Gene]

45-47 is my vote. Why can't E3 be tomorrow?

 

[DragonSniperNintendo]

Voted for 45-47 (although I see it as more of 45-48)

Could we get up to 50? Possibly, but not entirely likely

 

[Dark Phazon]

45-47 voted

 

[Neanderthal]

After fourty votes the stats look like this:
Mode = 48-50
Average = 47
Median = 46

I definitely think people have definitely got their expectations up a little too high. Especially when you consider Sakurai's quote:

“It isn’t a matter of ‘if the next game has 50 characters, that’ll be enough.’ There is a certain charm to games that have huge casts of playable characters, but they tend to have issues with game balance and it becomes very difficult to fine-tune each character and have them all feel distinctive…. In terms of quantity, we’ve probably already reached the limit of what’s feasible. I think a change of direction may be what’s needed.”

But I guess it depends on your interpretation of it.

Honestly though, even 40 is a ridiculously large roster for a fighting game, especially one where each character is so different and balancing is so important.

I'm only going to allow myself to expect about 42 characters, but hopefully better balanced.

 

[Ember Reaper]

50. Please??? 48 would be okay too

 

[wqqqqwrt]

500
500char

 

[Deleted member]

I thought nintendo confirmed they weren't going over 40?

 

[peeup]

Picked 69 or more because 69.

But I actually think it'll be closer to 48-50.

 

[Parasite eveNZ]

Imo if you have to many characters the main problem is balance but it can still be done right like changing movesets of clone characters e.g toon link and gannondorf lets just hope

 

[Max Ketchum]

Expecting 40, hoping for 50.

 

[Lilio]

I went 48-50, but I have no clue who they'd use to fill all those spots.

 

[---]

Just noticed this poll on the SWF Facebook page. lol

Anyway including transformations I'd say around 54 characters total, with 49 slots.

 

[hamyojo]

“It isn’t a matter of ‘if the next game has 50 characters, that’ll be enough.’ There is a certain charm to games that have huge casts of playable characters, but they tend to have issues with game balance and it becomes very difficult to fine-tune each character and have them all feel distinctive…. In terms of quantity, we’ve probably already reached the limit of what’s feasible. I think a change of direction may be what’s needed.”
About the same as Brawl, apparently.
Hope for the change of direction is to make it more like NBA Street. That's what I need from my Smash Bros.

 

[TaichiYaegashi]

I think 45-47 is a pretty safe bet.