Character Discussion Thread

[BKupa666]

They should announce White Circle at E3.

Just wait and see! The Almighty Sakurai will pull it off! He adds characters you don't know you want!

 

[FlareHabanero]

Also, I don't think Pac-Man will be nearly as bad as people will say.

I know it's a controversial opinion, but options are still there to make something original and whatever annoyances may come up will have some sort of work around.

 

[Substitution]

They should announce White Circle at E3.

Just wait and see! The Almighty Sakurai will pull it off! He adds characters you don't know you want!

Really?
That guy has no potential whatsoever!
I could never get why he's so loved!

Blue Square however! Now that's a character I can get behind!

 

[Gunla]

Nope, King of the Fighters.

Nope, Blazblue?

Also, I don't think Pac-Man will be nearly as bad as people will say.

I know it's a controversial opinion, but options are still there to make something original and whatever annoyances may come up will have some sort of work around.

I think if he's added, he will be unique. But his reception will not be taken too greatly by some people.

 

[BluePikmin11]

You sure love to create examples that aren't even Nintendo nor videogame characters.

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

Pac-Man and Layton would mean 2 third parties.
Pac-Man is bound to be poorly received. Most people watching won't know who Layton is.
Miis are also bound to be poorly received. Nintendo will be heavily criticized.

Please just let Blue have hope.

 

[Louie G.]

Blue, an E3 with Miis, Pac-Man, and Layton is hype to YOU.
But to everyone else Mewtwo, K. Rool, and Ridley sound great.
At E3 it's best to go with everyone else.

 

[False Sense]

Well, if we're talking about E3 character reveals...

I think any other third party characters that are in the game, whether they be Snake or Pac-Man or both, would be revealed at that time. This especially goes for third party newcomers, considering how big a deal those characters are. Also, assuming Miis are in the game, that would be a likely time for their reveal as well, considering how they're kind of their own kind of character that brings something entirely new to Smash.

Aside from that, I imagine that the most likely character reveals for E3 would be the really BIG ones. By that, I mean characters like Mewtwo, K. Rool, Ridley, maybe Palutena. Characters like these are the best way to generate hype for the game and live up to the high expectations fans set for E3. Some of the less huge, but still notable newcomers like Chrom, Takamaru, or some other representative of a new series in Smash, would probably be better saved for Nintendo Directs.

 

[FlareHabanero]

I think if he's added, he will be unique. But his reception will not be taken too greatly by some people.

Well, it will be greatly influenced by how the execution is handled.

The main one that would cause an annoyance is if Pac-Man is heavily based on the Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures continuity. Among people that is probably the biggest base breaker, and if it's heavily influenced for the character people won't enjoy it due to it being a departure from the familiar icon form the arcade games. This includes such factors like Pac-Man having the voice actor from the cartoon (Erin Matthews) and certain factors like the iconic maze and power pellets being omitted. It may sound minor, but trust me when fanbases can easily get angered over change.

I can guarantee that it won't be so brutally harsh if Pac-Man does emphasis his strongest and most familiar points, while at the same time giving it the adjustments it needs in order to fit in yet stand out.

 

[Parmite]

I

Also, I don't think Pac-Man will be nearly as bad as people will say.

I know it's a controversial opinion, but options are still there to make something original and whatever annoyances may come up will have some sort of work around.

I love the idea of Pac-Man, I just hate his new design. Like, HATE! It might have to do that I grew up with a mute cute looking Pac-Man, and then he got a voice in Pac-Man World 3, which wasn't too bad. Then in the new one, they gave him a Tidus sounding voice and a stupid design (I do love the shoes, though.) It's just my opinion though. A lot of people seem okay with Pac-Man's new design.

 

[BluePikmin11]

Blue, an E3 with Miis, Pac-Man, and Layton is hype to YOU.
But to everyone else Mewtwo, K. Rool, and Ridley sound great.
At E3 it's best to go with everyone else.

M,K,R is a possibility but I doubt we'll see a reveal like this.
It's bound to not be and be something different.

 

[BKupa666]

Pacman is a perfectly acceptable reveal, and the only reason there's all that much stigma around him is because, if he's in, it's entirely because Namco happened to be developing the right game at the right time. There's also all of that crappy Ghostly Adventures shovelware to worry about, but after how faithfully Mega Man was recreated, I don't think there's all that much to worry about as far as him resembling much from that game.

The Mii, however, will always be the worst possible character that could be added into Smash. No number of Sakurai sycophants crowing about how unique it'd be and how we're just blinded cave-dwellers who will grow to appreciate it can change that.

 

[False Sense]

M,K,R is a possibility but I doubt we'll see a reveal like this.
It's bound to not be and be something different.

What exactly makes it bound to be something different? Sure, it's probably not exactly going to happen like that, but why is something similar to that out of the question?

Please don't say Layton.

 

[Gunla]

It may sound minor, but trust me when fanbases can easily get angered over change.

I think this will be what their dealbreaker is. It doesn't sound minor at all compared to what I've heard about things. People get very specific about characters and if they did taken to recency instead of what's iconic overall, many would not be pleased. Conservative values in characters, eh?

I can guarantee that it won't be so brutally harsh if Pac-Man does emphasis his strongest and most familiar points, while at the same time giving it the adjustments it needs in order to fit in yet stand out.

I personally hope that they don't actually take one incarnation, but rather a global mix of everything. It's unfaithful to any group to ignore any specific incarnation of Pac-Man.

The Mii, however, will always be the worst possible character that could be added into Smash. No number of Sakurai sycophants crowing about how unique it'd be and how we're just blinded cave-dwellers who will grow to appreciate it can change that.

Of course, less people will care about Pac-Man as others will care far more about Miis. And by care, I mean total hatred.

 

[Louie G.]

M,K,R is a possibility but I doubt we'll see a reveal like this.
It's bound to not be and be something different.

Not too sure about that.
Last E3 was "something different".
We have Villager and WFT, plus an extremely hyped character in the form of Mega Man.
We have quite a few "unexpected" characters as is. I'd be surprised if Sakurai didn't go the hype route this time, especially since this year is likely to be the game's release.

 

[BluePikmin11]

What exactly makes it bound to be something different? Sure, it's probably not exactly going to happen like that, but why is something similar to that out of the question?

Please don't say Layton.

Because we had reveals like Villager and Wii Fit Trainer last year, whom would have been called poorly received characters pre-E3. I feel like were bound to get someone else. Especially Pac-Man whom would be the given combo breaker of the M,K,R combo.

 

[Gunla]

Because we had reveals like Villager and Wii Fit Trainer last year, whom would have been called poorly received characters pre-E3.

Honestly, I think that even Pre-E3, Villager and WFT would have been good reveals along with a character people want (I didn't think Megaman). This is a best of both worlds game, as Sakurai has put it, so adding characters of each side of Nintendo, Casual Consumer and Hardcore, specifically, would have been fantastic.

I think what they will do is reveal characters that either appeal to one side or the other, or characters that are moreso globally requested by both sides at E3. Not too sure where Pac-Man could fit, to be honest.

 

[FlareHabanero]

I personally hope that they don't actually take one incarnation, but rather a global mix of everything. It's unfaithful to any group to ignore any specific incarnation of Pac-Man.

Fatal problem with that is that the Pac-Man franchise is highly inconsistent.

Besides, only a few incarnations of Pac-Man hold any interest. His arcade days and the Pac-Man World trilogy (arguably).

 

[Louie G.]

The problem with your Pac-Man, Mii, Layton lineup Blue is that none of them are hard-hitting hype characters.
That's CRUCIAL for E3.

 

[ChikoLad]

I'll just repeat what I always say about Pac-Man - he's not Mario, Mega Man, and Sonic tier. He doesn't deserve to be in because "IT WILL COMPLETE THE CIRCLE". The circle is already complete. Or rather, the Triforce of Platforming, as I like to call it. That's why the only third parties I care about are Layton and Snake. Layton because he deserves it and has enough popularity, charm, AND potential moveset to warrant it, giving him lots of appeal to a bunch of different crowds. Snake because he is a veteran, a very fun and unexpected addition in Brawl, and it would be a shame to see him go.

And Layton is a hard hitting hype character, I see requests for him everywhere, and tons of people went crazy over that recent ONM article.

 

[False Sense]

I'll just repeat what I always say about Pac-Man - he's not Mario, Mega Man, and Sonic tier. He doesn't deserve to be in because "IT WILL COMPLETE THE CIRCLE". The circle is already complete. Or rather, the Triforce of Platforming, as I like to call it. That's why the only third parties I care about are Layton and Snake. Layton because he deserves it and has enough popularity, charm, AND potential moveset to warrant it, giving him lots of appeal to a bunch of different crowds. Snake because he is a veteran, a very fun and unexpected addition in Brawl, and it would be a shame to see him go.

And Layton is a hard hitting hype character, I see requests for him everywhere, and tons of people went crazy over that recent ONM article.

I'm not quite sure you can say that Pac-Man, one of the biggest icons of video games to ever exist, is not on the same level as Mario, Mega Man, and Sonic, and then say that Layton, the protagonist of a small but popular DS series, is.

And this is coming from a guy with a Professor Layton based avatar.

 

[Louie G.]

I'll just repeat what I always say about Pac-Man - he's not Mario, Mega Man, and Sonic tier.

Yeah, he is.
New design or old, Pac-Man is Pac-Man. EVERYONE has played the original Pac-Man at least once.
Everyone knows Pac-Man, arguably more people than Mega Man and Sonic to an extent.
He may not be as hype worthy but he certainly is at their level. Whoever says otherwise is biased.

 

[Gunla]

Fatal problem with that is that the Pac-Man franchise is highly inconsistent.

Besides, only a few incarnations of Pac-Man hold any interest. His arcade days and the Pac-Man World trilogy (arguably).

Probably should have been moreso specific. The World and Arcade incarnations are the most iconic and well recieved, yet his latest ones are not at all. I'd rather see a mix of the most accepted globally and most well known versions of him than what's recent.

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

Pacman, I'm still not sure, I think they should just keep Snake playable for the 4 star roster. Smash can survive without him, I'd have more hope for PacMan if Snake was absolutely positively sure not to come back.

 

[BluePikmin11]

The problem with your Pac-Man, Mii, Layton lineup Blue is that none of them are hard-hitting hype characters.
That's CRUCIAL for E3.

Ok then I'll put Ridley or Mewtwo in the mix then.
That's a good E3 as last years.

 

[FlareHabanero]

I have no clue on the Professor Layton series, so I cannot say why people want Layton nor do I have a single clue as to how he'd work.

(Seriously how the hell do I know so little about the Professor Layont series but knows extensively of Nazo no Murasame Jo)

 

[NickerBocker]

As far as classic video game characters go, Pacman is undeniably one of the most recognizable and famous icons. He's still part of pop culture, and the classic "waka waka" noise stirs up nothing but nostalgia for most.

There's not many IP's that can compare to the level of Mario and Sonic, but if anyone does it is certainly Pacman. He definitely holds a legendary status and is a perfect example of a potential "special case."

As far as uniqueness goes, I don't think that will be a problem. None of us have the creative mind of Sakurai and if he were to be included, he would certainly have something different from everyone else. It happened with Rosalina, we all thought she would be a Peach clone, and it happened with Little Mac, where some of us thought he would be dull because he "just punches." We can't jump to conclusions.

I'm also very confident that the visual design of Pacman will be well received. After seeing the classic version of Megaman appear with the old sound effects, I firmly believe that Sakurai and Namco, if they include Pacman, would try his hardest to create either a unique appearance for Smash or maintain a more classic look, that is the one he's well known for (such as the one that appears on the side of the original arcade machine, for example.)

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

EVERYONE has played the original Pac-Man at least once.

I HAVEN'T

 

[BKupa666]

It's not so much that Pacman isn't on the level of Mario, Sonic, or Mega Man (he's the single most recognizable gaming character, according to one poll someone posted in his thread awhile back), it's that there's no obligation that he has to be added, just to round out some imaginary grouping of those four characters, a "Big Four" that doesn't actually exist outside of fans' minds. And it'd be preferable to have him added after a period of signifiant support, like what happened with Sonic and Mega Man, instead of just him lucking into a spot thanks to Namco's development, but whatever...I'll be okay with seeing him, solely based on how absolutely awful some of the anti-Pacman people have been to his fans.

 

[ChikoLad]

I'm not quite sure you can say that Pac-Man, one of the biggest icons of video games to ever exist, is not on the same level as Mario, Mega Man, and Sonic, and then say that Layton, the protagonist of a small but popular DS series, is.

And this is coming from a guy with a Professor Layton based avatar.

Pac-man was a revolutionary game, but only the original game actually meant anything (the only other Pac-man games with wide critical acclaim are remakes like Ms. Pac-Man and Championship Edition). And most importantly - it had NOTHING to do with the character.

And while this applies to Mario too, he later developed a recognisable image beyond his original sprite. Pac-Man didn't. The Pac-Man everyone recognises is the original sprite. And not because he was jolly like Mario, cool, rebellious and expressive like Sonic, or relatively stoic and bad*** like Mega Man.

Pac-Man is not iconic based on his merits as a character, he is iconic because there were hardly any other games around at the time. It's much less the character that is iconic than it is the game. I know literally one person (on the INTERNET no less) who claims to care about Pac-Man as a character. Anyone else just plays Pac-Man for five minutes on their phone while they are taking a dump. If not that, they play it competitively. But they don't give a crap about the character and aesthetics.

And before it's argued "well Pac-Man could represent the dawn of video games", Mr. Game & Watch says hi.

I'd also like to point out that Ghostly Adventures is Namco's desperate attempt to make Pac-Man relevant as a character and as a franchise. If he was really such a relevant character, why would he need this treatment (and why would it have failed)?

If we really needed a third party mascot to fit in with Mario, Sonic, and Mega Man, to complete some kind of circle, it'd be Crash Bandicoot. He's the only third party platforming mascot that I feel would DESERVE the place in Smash. He's bascially like Sonic, in the sense that he used to be competition for Mario.

 

[False Sense]

I have no clue on the Professor Layton series, so I cannot say why people want Layton nor do I have a single clue as to how he'd work.

Well, he's the star of a popular series of puzzle video games, for one. In the series he's an archeologist that rarely does anything related to archeology and instead gets called in to do detective work. On the side, he enjoys hobbies like tea making, puzzle solving, and fencing with metal rods.

 

[Deleted member]

"The Pac-Man everyone recognizes is the original sprite".

People would have to be really dense to not recognize Pac-Man outside of his sprite-form.

 

[IsmaR]

Regardless of impact or legacy, I prefer a vast assortment of Bamco reps before Pac-kun.

And Snake infinitely more before any single one of those.

 

[NickerBocker]

"The Pac-Man everyone recognizes is the original sprite".

People would have to be really dense to not recognize Pac-Man outside of his sprite-form.

That's the design I would expect. The sprite design would likely be very limited, and people may not be able to relate the newer style.

 

[ChikoLad]

"The Pac-Man everyone recognizes is the original sprite".

People would have to be really dense to not recognize Pac-Man outside of his sprite-form.

Note the "everyone" in my post. I was being literal.

Because not everyone was born when those machines were around. I know I wasn't.

Wanna know how I know about the "modern" Pac-Man design?

Mario Kart Arcade GP.

No, really. If it weren't for that game, I wouldn't have known about it until I hit the internet. Before that, I only recognised the original sprite, and didn't immediately make the connection. I played a version or two of Pac-Man before this, but I played it in situations where I would not end up seeing the artwork.

 

[Louie G.]

@ ChikoLad
The key word in that is MARIO Kart Arcade GP.
Pac has more relations with Nintendo than Snake.

 

[Gunla]

"The Pac-Man everyone recognizes is the original sprite".

People would have to be really dense to not recognize Pac-Man outside of his sprite-form.

This is the style I'd like to see. Or the very frightening blood shot eye version.

As @ NickerBocker stated, I find it hard to really relate to the newer style. It feels like they tried too hard to make him relateable to people and it had an inverse effect.

 

[NickerBocker]

Note the "everyone" in my post. I was being literal.

Because not everyone was born when those machines were around. I know I wasn't.

Wanna know how I know about the "modern" Pac-Man design?

Mario Kart Arcade GP.

No, really. If it weren't for that game, I wouldn't have known about it until I hit the internet. Before that, I only recognised the original sprite, and didn't immediately make the connection.

Ya, but if a trailer shows up for Pacman, a yellow ball with a giant mouth and red shoes, I'm sure most people would be able to tell, without much hesitation, "Oh, that's Pacman," regardless of whether or not they have actually seen that version of the character. It's pretty distinct.

 

[ChikoLad]

@ ChikoLad
The key word in that is MARIO Kart Arcade GP.
Pac has more relations with Nintendo than Snake.

You can play as a freaking Tamogatchi in that game.

So I guess you're gonna ask for him now?

@ NickerBocker : Recongnisability should not be the deciding factor to a characters inclusion.

 

[Yomi's Biggest Fan]

Nah, Guilty Gear.

Bridget for Smash!