Dixie Kong's Barrel Of Support Spirits. Farewell Everyone, Thank You ALL For Making This Thread An Excellent Place For DK Fans!

[StormC]

I'm cautiously optimistic about Dixie again. I also agree that Banjo is still very much in the running, especially with a potential N64 classic tie-in.

Let's get the first announcement and see where this goes.

 

[RetrogamerMax]

I don't know where Dixie stands with this recent tweet from Sakurai's, but I hope it increases her chances by a mile if any.

 

[cybersai]

This also makes me think far less third party characters. I was expecting at least 3 out of 5 to be third party like last time, but now I'm thinking maybe only one due to Vergeben's Square rep rumor.

I think Dixie Kong and Captain Toad/Toadette's chances just shot way up. They're among the few first party reps without Assist trophies. If Rex and Spring Man are still out due to being "too new" I can't see a Fire Emblem character even further off making it. Gen 8 pokemon is possibly only because Gamefreak would likely reveal a design to Sakurai ahead of time, but I dunno.

This is a game changer. Sakurai not choosing the roster means by default, "Sakurai bias" is kinda gone now. On the other hand this does make me think characters from older franchises or one-offs like Geno probably aren't happening now...but oh well.

 

[TheYungLink]

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s DLC line-up is now complete. This time the selection was made entirely by Nintendo. I decide if we can create a fighter based on their selection, then come up with the plan.

— 桜井 政博 / Masahiro Sakurai (@Sora_Sakurai) November 6, 2018

Sakurai is still a factor. Of the characters Nintendo chose, Sakurai got the 5 that he could envision a moveset for. But as we all know, he can make a moveset for practically anything now that Piranha Plant is in.

Also, since it's been confirmed that the 5 DLC characters are chosen...it may be time to seriously discuss whether we even want to start a campaign for Dixie Kong awareness or not. BirthNote already expressed that they want to move onto the next thing in their life, and it might be fruitless and unwise to campaign for a character that may or may not already be decided upon.

I'm perfectly fine with visiting this thread as a general hang-out space, but we may want to reconsider if we should really campaign or not.

 

[DeniroSerafim]

Man I really don't know anymore. It seems to me like Dixie's chances as DLC could go either way. Let's just hope a new DK game is coming soon guys.

 

[Sabertooth]

I always thought we were just trying to spread the word about how great and beloved Dixie Kong is as a character, with an obvious Smash tint to get people talking more. That's what I've been aiming for at least. By the way if anyone has any cool fanart to donate to the Twitter account, please send it my way. In particular, I need a banner (and more followers!).

Again, the Twitter handle is @dixieforsmash

 

[Ryan.]

Hmm initially I was happy with this and now I just don't know how to feel. I really hope she is one of those five already decided.

 

[SenSx]

I actually think this tweet could mean quite the contrary.
Nintendo might just want to market the game more to massive audiences with the DLC.
That means big names people know, not necesseraly from Nintendo games.
Character from other franchises, just to bring new players not used to play Smash Bros or Nintendo games, OR obscure new characters from new games (probably Nintendo games), hoping it will make people buy them.

The alwready leaked DLC characters kind of confirm this tendancy.
Katalina is the definition of marketing character, just like Corrin was.
I suspect Corrin was chosen by Nintendo as well at that time, I don't really see Sakurai pushing her into the game.

That tweet does not really give me hope for Dixie :/
Unless there is a new Donkey Kong Country game on the way with her being playable.
But hey, maybe that means finally Rayman in the game !

 

[cybersai]

Vergeben said Katalina wasn't something confirmed, and it's probably not going to happen. If anything Nintendo choosing the roster makes me think less third party reps, and more first party reps. They'll want to advertise their franchises rather than free advertising for other companies.

To be honest I wonder if Nintendo reigned in the DLC after Sakurai went with Piranha Plant and some of the internet backlash over certain characters not making it (they have to be aware of it, Sakurai flat out implied it). Sakurai seemed free to choose whatever character he wanted in the past, as we can see by all the random WTF choices he made, all the retro NES characters, some of the questionable third party choices (Snake at the time of Brawl, Cloud, etc.), or random stuff like Wii Fit Trainer which nobody but him would have been able to make a character out of.

I don't know, the way that tweet reads is if Sakurai's bosses at Nintendo more or less told him, "We're going to give you a few picks we want, choose from these" rather than let Sakurai freely do whatever he wants like usual. Just a theory, but something about Nintendo choosing all 5 DLC's makes me think that. Maybe Sakurai bit off more than he could chew this time? He still has to answer to his bosses at Nintendo.

 

[Vez]

To be honest I wonder if Nintendo reigned in the DLC after Sakurai went with Piranha Plant and some of the internet backlash over certain characters not making it (they have to be aware of it, Sakurai flat out implied it).

...No.

People will whine about a character not getting in regardless. At the end of the day Sakurai can't satisfy everyone and a lot of the popular choices this time around like Skull Kid and Shadow became popular far too late in the cycle for it to really matter. Newcomer wise I think aside from maybe Incineroar (who is fine, but I probably would have chosen Isaac or something instead) he did a good job. It's obvious that bringing back everyone and almost all of the stages took a huge toll on how many characters, and what characters, the team could add.

Piranha Plant is dumb, but I get what Sakurai was going for and I expect it will be a one-off character, so I'm not too bothered by it.

 

[osby]

I actually think this tweet could mean quite the contrary.
Nintendo might just want to market the game more to massive audiences with the DLC.
That means big names people know, not necesseraly from Nintendo games.
Character from other franchises, just to bring new players not used to play Smash Bros or Nintendo games, OR obscure new characters from new games (probably Nintendo games), hoping it will make people buy them.

The alwready leaked DLC characters kind of confirm this tendancy.
Katalina is the definition of marketing character, just like Corrin was.
I suspect Corrin was chosen by Nintendo as well at that time, I don't really see Sakurai pushing her into the game.

That tweet does not really give me hope for Dixie :/
Unless there is a new Donkey Kong Country game on the way with her being playable.
But hey, maybe that means finally Rayman in the game !

What? Corrin was chosen by DLC development team staff, did you read the Sakurai's column about them?

 

[Juliusaurus]

I don't think Dixie's chances change much with this news, since under Sakurai's direction, we never got Dixie anyway. And under Nintendo, well, Nintendo barely advertises the DK franchise, and when they advertise with their characters or make merch, it's almost always just DK and Diddy... There aren't even any Dixie plushes out there.

That is, if this "Nintendo" is the general marketing and branding departments that would only make decisions based on business. Banjo-Kazooie and Minecraft would be big business, working with Microsoft kinda requires that, so I think their chances may have risen... But Dixie? Really hard to say, because she wasn't in a great spot to begin with under Sakurai. But at least Dixie has Tropical Freeze and its recent Switch port from this year, which could help things from Nintendo's perspective. Hard to say.

 

[SethTheMage]

https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/software/index.html

Something I dug up and might be a long shot, but it makes a bit of sense to me. This is the list of top 10 best selling Switch games as of September 30 from Nintendo's Japanese site. Kirby SA is 8th, and TF is 9th. If Ninty looked at sales figures for potential 1st party candidates, we might be able to make a case for both a Kirby or a DK DLC pack being possible as Spring Man is an AT, Rex seems to be out of the running, and Odyssey/BotW/MK8 already have stages. Splatoon 2 was also big, but is there another character with moveset potential to represent it more?

I think it's entirely possible that Nintendo passed on a XBC2 pack in favor of other franchises and left Rex as a consolation prize. Sakurai's justification applies in reference to the base game instead of DLC, as he straight up wouldn't say if Rex didn't make the final cut for DLC.

EDIT: Link broke. I'll fix it in a sec.
EDIT 2: There we go.

 

[Sabertooth]

I love Rex, but even I will freely admit that he would have been yet another anime swordfighter, moveset-wise. The real blow from lack of Xenoblade 2 representation is that stage potential! Torigoth would have been a wonderful battleground! But I digress.

Have you guys ever made a Dixie Kong Mii fighter? If so, has it worked out at all?

 

[cybersai]

Reason I think Dixie is possible is for a Tropical Freeze stage too. Remember we only have 3 DKC stages now. It's very odd.

And besides that so many other requests are Assist trophies, or came too late, etc. Really curious what's going to happen with Geno and/or Banjo-Kazooie. Because they're third party they're still in the running, would be happy to see either of them make it, and if one or both does...it would seem like Nintendo is listening to fan requests. But I guess we'll see.

Beyond that would love Captain Toad/Toadette, since it's game got ported to Switch I think they're possible as well. Toadette is a huge star now in her own right.

 

[Bodacious66]

I'm normally pretty pessimistic and thought Dixie had no chance as DLC, but now that we know that Nintendo is picking the DLC characters I think Dixie still has a real shot.

Especially if they would hurry up and start making a new DKC game already.

 

[Maxoxpower]

that tropical freeze was removed cause of the morph stage but DK still need a "more recent" stage
im not sure this is a top priority for Nintendo or Sakurai but if we still got a new DK game... they are hope! :-)

 

[MoonlitIllusion]

I'm pretty optimistic about her chances tbh, given how successful tropical freeze on switch was and how there's likely another DKC game on the way it's in nintendo's best interest to add her. Especially since she probably did decently on the ballot so they know there's a fanbase for her that would be willing to buy her.

 

[VeemonTamer]

Well, now we will know for sure if it's really Sakurai or Nintendo with the "DK Bias" if Dixie doesn't make it

 

[SethTheMage]

My only concern with Tropical Freeze being a potential focus game in DLC is that Nintendo might want to push Funky over Dixie, as he is the headline act in the Switch version. I don't doubt Sakurai has enough creativity to make a unique moveset for both of them, but I'm concerned about Nintendo's angle.

 

[RetrogamerMax]

My only concern with Tropical Freeze being a potential focus game in DLC is that Nintendo might want to push Funky over Dixie, as he is the headline act in the Switch version. I don't doubt Sakurai has enough creativity to make a unique moveset for both of them, but I'm concerned about Nintendo's angle.

Dixie Kong is getting in before Funky obviously. But Funky could very well be our 5th DK rep though after her.

 

[OptimisticStrifer]

I think Dixie has the advantage of having Diddy's basic model to work over. She's a fan favorite AND would be less taxing to implement than any other candidate right now, IE more cost efficient. Less Dev Time Required + Fan Favorite = Maximum Profit

 

[ChronoBound]

Nintendo choosing the newcomers does not change much in my opinion as to who the slots are. I still think a Square-Enix newcomer, Banjo-Kazooie, and Bandanna Dee are likely (the last one might now actually have a greater chance since Sakurai himself seems to have a bias against modern Kirby). However, my original prediction had a second Namco-Bandai character and Elma. I think of the remaining two slots, one is definitely going to be third-party. The last one still has a good chance to be Elma, but now could go to something like a Generation 8 Pokemon, Fire Emblem Three Houses, etc.

Dixie Kong's best hope is if another DK title is in development and Dixie Kong has a major playable role in it. Unfortunately, that is information that is unknown to all of us. As I said before, I think I will have a much better understanding of Dixie Kong's prospects after Ultimate's release when we know all the actual content to the game (namely the spirits and songs).

 

[Guybrush20X6]

Well let's hope that Tropical Freeze's re-release is worth promoting in Nintendo's eyes.

Certainly, DK needs a stage based on a game made after the mid 90's after the last two were dropped so it'd be two neckies with one barrel.

 

[Justin Little]

I think people have greatly underestimated her chances. While it's unclear if we'll be getting a new DK game anytime soon, people have forgotten we have a new DK attraction coming to Universal Theme Parks in the near future where we will probably see some Dixie merch. I'm sure we'll be seeing a new game by then and, in the meantime, what better way to advertise it than to introduce Dixie Kong to Smash Bros. I can't see her being absent in her own series which by virtue means she will have the most staying power than most of the characters I have seen suggested on these boards. I have no doubt in my mind Dixie was part of the list of names suggested to Sakurai and team. The problem lies solely on Sakurai and whether or not he thinks a chimp that can use her hair to float in the air and grab things with, something no other playable character can do in the game, is worthy and unique enough for a spot in the roster.

I, honestly, feel pretty good about her chances.

 

[SeashoreWar]

I think people have greatly underestimated her chances. While it's unclear if we'll be getting a new DK game anytime soon, people have forgotten we have a new DK attraction coming to Universal Theme Parks in the near future where we will probably see some Dixie merch.

Let's not forget the Rabbids DLC and New Donk City. Nintendo seems to be putting more emphasis on DK lately!

 

[Sabertooth]

What if our new DK rep is Rabbid Cranky?

 

[Mariomaniac45213]

What if our new DK rep is Rabbid Cranky?

Rabbid Cranky over regular Cranky!? Pass! Now Rabbid Cranky as THE Rabbid pick after Rabbid Peach then YES!

 

[Sabertooth]

Nintendo should release a DLC-Themed Fighter Pack based around all the DLC from the Switch's biggest games. For $15 you'd get Daruk, Rabbid Cranky, Lora, and Octoling with stages based on Donkey Kong Island from Mario + Rabbids and Torna Plains from the Xenoblade expansion.

I'm currently bored in class, in case you haven't noticed.

 

[Arymle Roseanne]

Let's not forget the Rabbids DLC and New Donk City. Nintendo seems to be putting more emphasis on DK lately!

I'm not sure if this really counts but Diddy has been appearing in a lot more in merchandises lately too(I own a hat with him on it which had a "Donkey Kong" tag with it, not "Super Mario" tag though he also appeared in some Mario merchandise too) it could be a sign that they are giving Dk a bit more appreciation nowadays.

I also saw a plush doll of him as well but I oddly enough I didn't see one of Dk though.

 

[cybersai]

If we're to assume none of the Assist trophy characters were "on the table" so to speak for DLC, it really does narrow the 1st party picks down. That means Waluigi, Ashley, Skull Kid, Spring Man, etc. would be unlikely for DLC. Same for certain Mii outfits for characters signaled out like Rex.

I assume Captain Toad is still available because he's just in the background of a stage and not an assist. Bandana Dee is possible, as is Dixe. If there's less third party picks than expected, just a Square rep and maybe one more (Banjo?), we do have a pretty good chance at Dixie. Not a guarantee obviously.

 

[New_Dumal]

I don't know if Nintendo chosing the DLC raises or lower Dixie Kong chances. I think it pretty much comes to Dk series future, more than anything. Our best chance is that a new Donkey Kong is in production and will launch next year.
If that's the case then DIxie would be the perfect newcomer to advertise.
If not... then we come to a dead end, I suppose, because Nintendo doesn't seem to care that much about her.
It's possible to see that since she was gone for so long, and Diddy is always present in Mario-games, while she is not.

One thing we now know is that we can't change anything, anymore. Let's hope it's enough.

 

[Sabertooth]

It's pretty lame that Dixie has never had any sort of role in Smash whatsoever. Yeah, I guess I'm glad she's not an Assist Trophy, but it's pretty absurd that such a big character never gets to show her face in any capacity. At least Toad, Slippy, Waluigi, and all the others get to do something.

In fact I could pretty much lodge the same complaint with the rest of the extended DK cast. I'm not asking for them all to be playable, but Cranky and Rambi should absolutely have some role in Smash.

 

[YoshiandToad]

It's pretty lame that Dixie has never had any sort of role in Smash whatsoever. Yeah, I guess I'm glad she's not an Assist Trophy, but it's pretty absurd that such a big character never gets to show her face in any capacity. At least Toad, Slippy, Waluigi, and all the others get to do something.

In fact I could pretty much lodge the same complaint with the rest of the extended DK cast. I'm not asking for them all to be playable, but Cranky and Rambi should absolutely have some role in Smash.

Well Cranky is technically a stage element in Jungle Japes...and I guess again in 75m since he's the original DK.

I'm still weirded out Rambi wasn't the go to DK assist trophy choice.

 

[BirthNote]

Sabertooth thanks for making the account. I recommend using the OP for fanart and such as a start, like VeemonTamer's full Dixie moveset, SeashoreWar's DLC Banner and the various recolors to name a few. Also if you come across artwork on other sites I'd contact the artist and ask if they're fine with you putting it on twitter. If they don't reply, I'd post it anyway, but be sure to credit them and link to their page no matter what.

It's better not to spread the fanbase too thin. I think we should concentrate the fans on one platform instead.
In fact, instead of Facebook, Youtube would be better. But it's not entirely necessary.

THAT'S a relief, but I wouldn't say just those 2-3 sites. Reddit seems to be a huge avenue that shouldn't be missed and one other image-based site. After that we're golden.

Can you add me to that support list as well if I'm not already on it? I fully support Dixie Kong! She was my third most wanted newcomer behind King K. Rool and Ridley.

YES, you are now on the list. Welcome to the Barrel; we've got tons of members and good vibes for days.

Future reference for future supporters: Liking the OP is the quickest way for me to add you; I usually lurk to stay up-to-date and re-read the comments starting with the ones after my last big post, so if you wanna quicken the time it takes for your name to appear simply give the OP a like. If there's more people who posted their wish to be on the list, fear no for I'll get to you soon.

I can't believe that after five games an important character like dixie is still not playable.... I was almost sure that she would finally make it in ultimate
(Dixie supporter from Italy, so sorry for my bad english)

Your English is fine! Welcome aboard!

 

[Sabertooth]

Thank you Birthnote. I spruced up the Twitter page a good bit. If anyone here hasn't followed the page yet, get on it asap! @dixieforsmash! I want 500 followers by tomorrow morning, and pictures of Spiderman!

YoshiandToad , yeah, I guess Cranky does technically show up on Jungle Japes. Dang, does this mean he can never be playable? /s

 

[Justin Little]

I'm not sure if this really counts but Diddy has been appearing in a lot more in merchandises lately too(I own a hat with him on it which had a "Donkey Kong" tag with it, not "Super Mario" tag though he also appeared in some Mario merchandise too) it could be a sign that they are giving Dk a bit more appreciation nowadays.

I also saw a plush doll of him as well but I oddly enough I didn't see one of Dk though.

If you don't mind me asking, where did you buy his hat at? I always wanted one. I've purchased the plush doll which was the happiest purchase I have ever made, strangely. I get unnatural Giddy for Diddy, lol!

 

[Arymle Roseanne]

If you don't mind me asking, where did you buy his hat at? I always wanted one. I've purchased the plush doll which was the happiest purchase I have ever made, strangely. I get unnatural Giddy for Diddy, lol!

I bought it from Target, they have a decent amount of video game merchandise, Best buy and GameStop also might have similar stuff as well in relation with video game merchandise.

 

[ZeroJanitor]

if the dlc is planned in advance this time around, i wonder if maybe there's a (slim) possibility that they get their own cgi trailers? just imagining how wicked it would be to see dixie introduced with her own high-quality cinematic...

 

[YoshiandToad]

YoshiandToad , yeah, I guess Cranky does technically show up on Jungle Japes. Dang, does this mean he can never be playable? /s

Not at all, I'd be down with Cranky after Dixie but you did say he should have some sort of role in Smash even if not playable. Technically he does!