Official DLC Speculation Discussion Volume II

[Rie Sonomura]

I, too, will put some of my chips down for Chief, since he has a decent chance at an E3 fighter reveal.



Well, we got quite a bit of animal characters already, even if you don't label humans as "animals." That said, Smash has mammals, birds, reptiles, an amphibian, and a mollusk in its roster. We're still missing fish, as well as arachnids, insects, crustaceans, and other invertebrates.

For non-animal characters, we got amoebae (Kirby and Meta Knight; yes, I consider the Kirby species to be an amoeba, due to what game Theory said about him), plants (Piranha Plant, Pikmin, and (half-way) Ivysaur), robots (R.O.B. and Mega Man).

For unclassified fighters, we got Luma and Jigglypuff; I don't know what kind of animal or organism kingdom they're a part of. On a similar note, I'm pretty sure that Pac-Man and Mr. Game & Watch are mammals.

What other non-animal characters would people here like to see? My picks are Freddy Fazbear, Zero (from Mega Man), and YoRHa 2B.

I mean like 99% of my MWs aren’t animals or furries lmao

one is I guess a demihuman with some animalistic features but that’s it

say, which robotic characters would you want? Including cyborgs and androids

 

[SKX31]

Wait so why do you guys think Lara is so unlikely as a potential next Square Enix character (I'm just curious, ain't trying to throw a fit lmao)?

I don't think she's entirely unlikely to be the next S-E character - if anything, she might be a dark horse in my eyes. While she's not obviously connected to Nintendo she still has quite a lot going for her in her own right, such as having a lot of moveset potential and her having a lot of different games to pull from. I do think it helps that she's known in Japan, even if she might not be Steve-tier famous.

Then again, S-E has a lot of options, so it's difficult to say who'd be the next S-E character.

A bit random, but I WAS RIGHT!!!!!!

.hack is a thing we can talk about now!

My only exposure to .hack is the PXZ games, but Kite would probably the pick if they decided to go with that series. Which I'm in favor of since there's not a lot of double knife users and the .hack shenaningas would diffuse some of the "anime swordsman" criticisms (even if he's hit with debates regarding "4th party or not?").

Also:

Calculator has a 9.1 user rating on metacritic.

One of the top rated third party software releases. pic.twitter.com/GAQGcV1f11

— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) May 19, 2021

 

[Rie Sonomura]

I don't think she's entirely unlikely to be the next S-E character - if anything, she might be a dark horse in my eyes. While she's not obviously connected to Nintendo she still has quite a lot going for her in her own right, such as having a lot of moveset potential and her having a lot of different games to pull from. I do think it helps that she's known in Japan, even if she might not be Steve-tier famous.

Then again, S-E has a lot of options, so it's difficult to say who'd be the next S-E character.



My only exposure to .hack is the PXZ games, but Kite would probably the pick if they decided to go with that series. Which I'm in favor of since there's not a lot of double knife users and the .hack shenaningas would diffuse some of the "anime swordsman" criticisms (even if he's hit with debates regarding "4th party or not?").

Also:

Calculator has a 9.1 user rating on metacritic.

One of the top rated third party software releases. pic.twitter.com/GAQGcV1f11

— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) May 19, 2021

Imagine paying $10 for an app that’s free on your smartphone

 

[Technomage]

I mean like 99% of my MWs aren’t animals or furries lmao

one is I guess a demihuman with some animalistic features but that’s it

say, which robotic characters would you want? Including cyborgs and androids

Well, the ones I mentioned in my previous post.

 

[Mushroomguy12]

What other non-animal characters would people here like to see? My picks are Freddy Fazbear, Zero (from Mega Man), and YoRHa 2B.

non-animal

Freddy Fazbear

I mean I know he's technically an animatronic robot but still......

 

[Technomage]

View attachment 315772

I mean I know he's technically an animatronic robot but still......

Well, he still counts as non-animal due to being a robot. Also, when I asked about "non-animal characters," I was also including humans; so you might wanna put Zero and 2B in bold, too.

 

[rychu_supadude]

Because she isn't that demanded and overshadowed by the likes of Sora (Disney), Geno, other Final Fantasy characters like Lightning, and other Square reps like 2B.

This factoring in because folks finds her "normal".

It's well past time that people put the energy they use to ask "why aren't you talking about Lara?" to... talk about Lara. People bring that up regarding her more often than many other characters get discussed. Just have the conversation.
Being owned by a parent company that has flashier characters with vocal fanbases is part of the story, it doesn't have to be the whole story.

 

[Garteam]

Regarding Master Chief, while I certainly think he has a shot, I also think the excitement of the idea is making some people neglect certain aspects of his character that may make him less likely than he may be at a first glance.

Even ignoring that double-dipping in a single wave of newcomers is unprecedented, Master Chief is also a character owned by an English-speaking company and would require consultation with a group of English-speaking devs, which is problematic given that Sakurai said language barriers during negotiations were a legitimate issue. Likewise, we're most likely past the point where big names would be revealed and are now working with smaller characters, although perhaps an exception could be made for E3. There's also the fact that Halo doesn't carry the same legacy and weight in Japan that it does in the West.

 

[Technomage]

Because she isn't that demanded and overshadowed by the likes of Sora (Disney), Geno, other Final Fantasy characters like Lightning, and other Square reps like 2B.

This factoring in because folks finds her "normal".

What if Sakurai chose Lara (alongside Sephiroth) as a more curveball choice?

It's well past time that people put the energy they use to ask "why aren't you talking about Lara?" to... talk about Lara. People bring that up regarding her more often than many other characters get discussed. Just have the conversation.
Being owned by a parent company that has flashier characters with vocal fanbases is part of the story, it doesn't have to be the whole story.

Maybe Lara could have a survivalist gimmick in her moveset? I guess Steve already got that, but maybe she could still have a different kind of survivalist gimmick? I don't know what, though...

 

[Paraster]

say, which robotic characters would you want? Including cyborgs and androids

Literally my most wanted is a robot.

Porky sort of half-counts, since he pilots a big robot. Recently came around to DJ Octavio, who's in the same boat.

 

[Rie Sonomura]

Well, the ones I mentioned in my previous post.

Me; I guess it’d be KOS-MOS, T-elos, Mecha-Fiora and I GUESS Elma in her mimeosome body counts as this

 

[Mushroomguy12]

Well, he still counts as non-animal due to being a robot. Also, when I asked about "non-animal characters," I was also including humans; so you might wanna put Zero and 2B in bold, too.

I mean if you were going to pick all robot characters you might as have just said robots.

 

[SNEKeater]

I can very confidently assure you that said game is not viewed negatively in certain message boards (ahem reddit) and that people don't look at it critically enough, especially when it comes to the plot/themes/pacing. (oh gosh especially the story), although they will absolutely go ham on the similar issues pointed out in the other games. Just go to any of the message boards and you'll see what i mean.

Everyone has a preference to whatever they like, of course! But maybe instead of going off bombastic and vague statements, just saying you like it although it has its issues is perfectly fine. I wouldn't dare to call my favorite games "the best the series has to offer" because despite of my personal feelings, its still very important to try to look at it clearly, warts and all.

I didn't mean the game was negatively considered everywhere, overall I'd agree most people is usually positive about the game, but still you can find quite a lot of people bringing up the bad or flawed parts of the game. Sometimes, in my experience, said people didn't even played the game, and are just repeating what they have either read on the internet or heard in some Youtube video about "how outdated are older FE games" or something like that.

I don't see anything bad with the story, while maybe not perfect, it's definitely the best or most interesting one in the series alongside the Tellius games. I think you're forgetting we're talking about a SNES game. While some other JRPGs were already aiming for big stories, FE4 was basically the first entry on the series to make a considerable jump in terms of ambition, story-wise.

As for your second paragraph... I think you're being kinda dramatic here? As I already said in my previous message, it was kinda of a joke, regardless of me actually thinking it's the best FE or not. These kinda comments are everywhere on the internet: "Oh look people, news about the best game in the world!" and so on.

I feel like you're taking this too seriously. You don't need to go and react everytime someone says something positive about it, because it definitely feels like you're not precisely fond of FE4, which is completely fine, but that is making you to take my previous comment, a harmless and simple joke, as something bigger... when it definitely isn't worth this "drama".
Like, I can understand you to an extent, because there are some games I definitely feel that are not as good as most people say, but I'm not going to go out of my way and quote or answer every message that says something good about said game, and specially when said message was in the line of a joke.

Haha, no no it has nothing to do with gore. If that was an issue, Bayonetta would NOT be playable, lmao. I'm talking about translating the gameplay of RE into a Smash moveset.

Like, you can make it where the character always has extremely limited resources but they might not be very fun to play due to that. Then again, Hero, Banjo, K. Rool and Robin all have "resources" that deplete over time (all in different ways). I just don't know how you would make a Smash moveset work for them while making it fun (yes, I know fun is very subjective).

As you said, fun is subjective.

I personally don't think it's a problem. It might be admittedly hard to translate it, but anyone could have argued the same, I feel, about Snake. The difference is that he probably wasn't even considered once by Smash fans until he got in.

I know Marvel vs Capcom games are very different from Smash, but MvC proves you can have RE protagonists with cool and interesting playstyles. For Smash, maybe a Resident Evil character would be a bit harder to pull off, but if Nintendo wants it, I'm really sure Sakurai would be able to make it work, even if it's difficult. As you said, the character would probably bring a resource mechanic, which is something I always have found very interesting, so maybe that's why I'm very into the idea of a RE character, not gonna lie.

 

[PacificFun]

It's well past time that people put the energy they use to ask "why aren't you talking about Lara?" to... talk about Lara. People bring that up regarding her more often than many other characters get discussed. Just have the conversation.
Being owned by a parent company that has flashier characters with vocal fanbases is part of the story, it doesn't have to be the whole story.

I think a lot of people still forget that she's Square Enix. Some think she's owned by Playstation.

Also, a lot of people also don't realize that the 2010s was the most successful era of the series and its about to surpass DQ in sales (though, that's not really a fair comparison).

People just see her as "Oh yeah, she exists". Which sucks but I get it if you look at TR from a face value.

She looks like a sore thumb in comparison to the rest of the SE cast (even her classic form). RPG powerhouse adopted shooty shooty British lady and SE fans said "what?"

 

[Technomage]

I mean if you were going to pick all robot characters you might as have just said robots.

Yeah, I was thinking I might end up adding living creatures like plants, fungi, protozoa, bacteria, and viruses, but I couldn't come up with any at the time. Though I would be interested in a Shroob entering the roster (even though that's not very likely to happen).

 

[Mushroomguy12]

Yeah, I was thinking I might end up adding living creatures like plants, fungi, protozoa, bacteria, and viruses, but I couldn't come up with any at the time. Though I would be interested in a Shroob entering the roster (even though that's not very likely to happen).

Paging Shroob , someone's interested in adding you to Smash.

 

[Technomage]

Paging Shroob , someone's interested in adding you to Smash.

Oh yeah, add THAT Shroob, too!

 

[DarthEnderX]

which robotic characters would you want? Including cyborgs and androids

Fighters:
SV-001 Metal Slug [Metal Slug] (mechanical at least)
Nathan Spencer [Bionic Commando]
Zero [Mega Man X]
Raiden [Metal Gear]
Bass [Megaman echo]

Bosses:
Mother Brain [Metroid]
Andross(N64 version) [Star Fox]
Porky [Earthbound]
Liquid Snake piloting Metal Gear REX [Metal Gear]
Eggman piloting Death Egg Robot [Sonic the Hedgehog]
Wily Machine piloted by Dr. Wily[Mega Man]

 

[Mamboo07]

Because she isn't that demanded and overshadowed by the likes of Sora (Disney), Geno, other Final Fantasy characters like Lightning, and other Square reps like 2B.

This factoring in because folks finds her "normal".

Ah yes, because of guns which most find boring.

 

[PacificFun]

Heh, if we're talking about robotic characters...

 

[Yoshi-Thomas]

Regarding Master Chief, while I certainly think he has a shot, I also think the excitement of the idea is making some people neglect certain aspects of his character that may make him less likely than he may be at a first glance.

Even ignoring that double-dipping in a single wave of newcomers is unprecedented, Master Chief is also a character owned by an English-speaking company and would require consultation with a group of English-speaking devs, which is problematic given that Sakurai said language barriers during negotiations were a legitimate issue. Likewise, we're most likely past the point where big names would be revealed and are now working with smaller characters, although perhaps an exception could be made for E3. There's also the fact that Halo doesn't carry the same legacy and weight in Japan that it does in the West.

I don't think Master Chief being owned by an English speaking company is an issue anymore, when Nintendo took the matter with their own hands and Microsoft did allow two of their characters.
For E3 having a big name or not, we will see.
But I agree that the big issue is his popularity in Japan. It's not like Ryu who is popular worldwide, or Banjo and Hero who satisfied the whole world.
If Master Chief was revealed at E3, it would be a pure Western-oriented character. And not that exciting for Japan. It would actually be a first.
Only way to balance it is if they actually reveal another character with him that would please Japan. That assumes two reveals at once, which is not impossible, but at the point we are in, might not happen and instead the last character shall be kept for September.
Another solution is simply not him being the E3 reveal and instead put a character that's popular everywhere, like Crash.

I really expect Master Chief, but the bolded text is the biggest obstacle for him in my opinion, where he would absolutely not be wanted by Japan.

 

[SharkLord]

I've more or less given up on trying to make accurate guesses, but as always I'm still paranoid about investing in the latest "big picks." We've had so many of the big, seemingly obvious characters taken out, and I'm really hesitant about hopping on the train for someone like Crash or Master Chief.

Well, it's that or confirmation bias stemming from all my most wanteds being fairly niche and under-the-radar to some degree

 

[Cosmic77]

A lot of the Master Chief talk is being fueled by the talks of Nintendo and Microsoft's alleged partnership. Keep in mind that it supposedly took nearly five years to get Steve in Smash. Getting Master Chief as a character isn't a simple as, "Sure, we'll let you use him! Just sign these papers and let's make this magic happen!" This is still going to be a lengthy process even with Microsoft on board, which is why I think Nintendo is probably content with finally getting Steve.

There's also the "mascot of the Xbox" title people are giving him, but that reasoning can be used with a number of characters. "Insert character is the mascot of insert company, and that's why Nintendo would want them."

I could easily end up eating my words next month, but Master Chief comes across as another, "Who makes the most sense at this exact moment in time?" character. The promise of Nintendo and Microsoft having something notable to reveal is making him more relevant to the conversation, which in turn is making him seem more likely.

 

[Louie G.]

I really expect Master Chief, but the bolded text is the biggest obstacle for him in my opinion, where he would absolutely not be wanted by Japan.

On the flipside of this, Master Chief is a character who at least harbors some sort of worldwide notoriety among dedicated gamers. People in Japan know what Halo is and a number of them have maybe even played Halo 3 when it dropped. According to A Ayumi Tachibana , IIRC, Master Chief is received fairly well when brought up in Japanese circles and through my own research I’ve seen him brought up a few times in some Japanese comment sections on YouTube Smash vids.

And this justification will double if MCC really is coming to Switch and Nintendo / Microsoft see an opportunity to get Japanese players invested in Halo on a console they actually own. It’s a shortcoming no doubt, but I don’t think it’s that much of an issue.

N3ON put my thoughts to words the other day when she said that Halo is like, the western Dragon Quest. And I think that’s an apt justification in and of itself. Halo’s influence is just so massive where it hardly matters.

(For what it’s worth though, my ideal situation and current ‘prediction’ has both Arle and Master Chief, so that comfortable balance is achieved)

that reasoning can be used with a number of characters. "Insert character is the mascot of insert company, and that's why Nintendo would want them."

All of those characters are already in, though. For the companies already in Smash, at least. If we had two Sega characters without Sonic, two Capcom characters without Mega Man... people would surely point that out.

Microsoft is a company who has been consistently involved with Ultimate DLC and rubbing shoulders with Nintendo for as long as Minecraft crossplay was established (who says Chief talks had to start this late? MCC has been rumored for like, two or three years). It’s not the crux of why Chief is worth keeping an eye on but his mascot status for one of Nintendo’s close partners is something that should be acknowledged.

Certainly not the same as pointing out mascots from companies like say, Ubisoft or Activision who are not present on the roster yet.

 

[Rie Sonomura]

Ok but if y’all want a MS rep that’s really slept on:

Ori

sadly they were deconfirmed for Ultimate by an interview, but maybe next game?

 

[PacificFun]

What if Master Chief and Lara Croft were our E3 reveals? I think I would faint.

 

[Yoshi-Thomas]

There's also the "mascot of the Xbox" title people are giving him, but that reasoning can be used with a number of characters. "Insert character is the mascot of insert company, and that's why Nintendo would want them."

But we already got all the mascots of the major companies that already got a character in Smash, except Microsoft.

And I'm willing to die on the hill that, yes, Master Chief is the mascot of Microsoft. Not Steve or Banjo.

 

[Schnee117]

There's also the "mascot of the Xbox" title people are giving him

People aren't giving it to him, Chief being Xbox's mascot is a plain and simple truth.

 

[PacificFun]

How is Master Chief not the mascot of Xbox? Yeah, he's not great mascot material but he's definitely the face of the company.

Calling Banjo a mascot of Xbox is like calling Kat a mascot of Playstation.

 

[Yoshi-Thomas]

People aren't giving it to him, Chief being Xbox's mascot is a plain and simple truth.

At least until 2020.



https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1289312287094747136?s=20

 

[Schnee117]

At least until 2020.



https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1289312287094747136?s=20

Reject reclaimer
Return to monke

 

[RGFS]

Regarding Master Chief, while I certainly think he has a shot, I also think the excitement of the idea is making some people neglect certain aspects of his character that may make him less likely than he may be at a first glance.

Even ignoring that double-dipping in a single wave of newcomers is unprecedented, Master Chief is also a character owned by an English-speaking company and would require consultation with a group of English-speaking devs, which is problematic given that Sakurai said language barriers during negotiations were a legitimate issue. Likewise, we're most likely past the point where big names would be revealed and are now working with smaller characters, although perhaps an exception could be made for E3. There's also the fact that Halo doesn't carry the same legacy and weight in Japan that it does in the West.

Even though I'm not really feeling Master Chief showing up, I feel that people mistake keeping expectations in check with assuming Nintendo is lazy and wouldn't go the extra mile if they needed to. Whether they pick a big name is where you keep your expectations in check. Nintendo and Sakurai put in the effort when it comes to Smash whether it's the character you want or not.

You're ignoring how many spirits, assist trophies, Mii Costumes, and even fighters now are from English-speaking companies that likely required consultation. If Sakurai or Nintendo want a character, they will go above and beyond for it no matter the challenge. From Sonic in Brawl allegedly delaying the whole game to Steve requiring all stages to be reworked. Nintendo isn't some small Japanese company that literally can't put in the effort. They're like the biggest company in Japan and have a strong North American department. They've had to deal with English and Japanese versions of World of Light, they've has to deal with translating the entire game to multiple different languages and making sure the voice actors and recordings in those many other languages are acceptable.

I don't think it's likely that both of the last two are smaller characters this time. Smash never is as anti-climactic as people say it is and we're coming into E3. If you're coming to the end of your DLC run (not just halfway through like Fighter Pass 1) and are trying to sell people on the DLC, and have multiple big events through the two years of the final wave of DLC, you don't just put the best two characters two months or so apart in the first half. This is usually why Nintendo's DLC reveals wain down as it goes along. They mostly only have had one E3 per DLC round. This would've been the second E3 for Fighter Pass 2 and it's actually the only E3 for Fighter Pass 2 now coming right at the end of anything Smash related. I bet they would've saved something eyecatching for this chunk. Both final characters revealed at E3 being big deals is not as likely IMO. I think this is enough to be reasonably optimistic.

There's also the fact that Halo doesn't carry the same legacy and weight in Japan that it does in the West.

Yeah, that's a big issue I personally agree with and makes me feel he's less likely along with me not believing a double-dip tbh. He isn't impossible though, It's not like fighters like Little Mac or Samus carried much legacy at all in Japan either. Someone like Terry is a third party that didn't carry much legacy in many parts of the world yet he still got in on his own merits. Again, I'm not feeling Master Chief is too likely either but I don't really personally agree with some of the points you brought up.

 

[Michael the Spikester]

What if Master Chief and Lara Croft were our E3 reveals? I think I would faint.

No complaints. Those are two characters I want anyways. Master Chief especially since Doom Slayer is pretty much deconfirmed at this point.

 

[Gengar84]

I mean like 99% of my MWs aren’t animals or furries lmao

one is I guess a demihuman with some animalistic features but that’s it

say, which robotic characters would you want? Including cyborgs and androids

My most wanted robot/android is Fulgore from Killer Instinct but others would be cool too. I’d love to see Zero, X, Bass.EXE, and lots of other more minor Megaman characters like Pharaoh Man. I think Aigis and Fiora would be pretty cool too. Others I’d be hyped for are Cyrax, Sektor, and Genesect. I’m sure there are lots of others but that’s what I got off the top of my head.

 

[SNEKeater]

I don't think Master Chief being owned by an English speaking company is an issue anymore, when Nintendo took the matter with their own hands and Microsoft did allow two of their characters.
For E3 having a big name or not, we will see.
But I agree that the big issue is his popularity in Japan. It's not like Ryu who is popular worldwide, or Banjo and Hero who satisfied the whole world.
If Master Chief was revealed at E3, it would be a pure Western-oriented character. And not that exciting for Japan. It would actually be a first.
Only way to balance it is if they actually reveal another character with him that would please Japan. That assumes two reveals at once, which is not impossible, but at the point we are in, might not happen and instead the last character shall be kept for September.
Another solution is simply not him being the E3 reveal and instead put a character that's popular everywhere, like Crash.

I really expect Master Chief, but the bolded text is the biggest obstacle for him in my opinion, where he would absolutely not be wanted by Japan.

To be fair E3 is usually more aimed towards the western audience. But yeah, it would be a first to have a character that leans so much towards us, without a second reveal to please the japanese fans. It's not impossible, of course, but it's kinda unlikely in my eyes.

Ok but if y’all want a MS rep that’s really slept on:

Ori

sadly they were deconfirmed for Ultimate by an interview, but maybe next game?

I mean... Ori it's not defintely slept on

It's a cool option, but Chief is clearly the next one. Maybe they could surprise us and the third Microsoft rep is a different character, but that's not the likely scenario. Under normal circumstances he would have been the first character people would considerate from Microsoft, but Banjo and Steve were special for different reasons.

 

[Cutie Gwen]

A bit random, but I WAS RIGHT!!!!!!

Welcome to our #NostalgiaWeek! Every day at 16:30 CEST we'll reminisce about past golden & hidden gems from our repertoire of games.

'Heard about this crazy MMO? It's called "The World" or something, seems really great & fun!'

Or was it?🤔

👇Today, we're talking about .hack👇 pic.twitter.com/yZaH3jwwHy

— BANDAI NAMCO NORDICS (@BandaiNamcoNO) May 19, 2021

You made it to the bottom of the thread - congratulations!🥳

Now, we would like to know: What do you think of the .hack series now that you've learnt a bit more? Would you like to see more of 'The World', explore the secrets of what's causing the comas & save everyone again?🤔

— BANDAI NAMCO NORDICS (@BandaiNamcoNO) May 19, 2021

.hack is a thing we can talk about now!

Y'know, I know nothing about .hack beyond that it's good apparantly, anyone up for a sales pitch? Especially if it's about Rebirth, Reminisce, and Redemption as I can get those on Steam

Regarding Master Chief, while I certainly think he has a shot, I also think the excitement of the idea is making some people neglect certain aspects of his character that may make him less likely than he may be at a first glance.

Even ignoring that double-dipping in a single wave of newcomers is unprecedented, Master Chief is also a character owned by an English-speaking company and would require consultation with a group of English-speaking devs, which is problematic given that Sakurai said language barriers during negotiations were a legitimate issue. Likewise, we're most likely past the point where big names would be revealed and are now working with smaller characters, although perhaps an exception could be made for E3. There's also the fact that Halo doesn't carry the same legacy and weight in Japan that it does in the West.

I really don't buy language barriers as a legit argument when we've already had 2 characters from a Western owned company and surprise surprise, Chief's from the same one. Is there a relatively recent Sakurai quote about this because it sounds more like a "It sounds like a bit more work than for other characters so I'd rather go for someone else" than a major issue

 

[SharkLord]

How is Master Chief not the mascot of Xbox? Yeah, he's not great mascot material but he's definitely the face of the company.

It's because of the "Hot Stuff Pushback" cycle. Basically:

1. Character starts gaining popularity and gets a lot of attention
2. Sudden surge of support and discussion is met with skepticism
3. Skepticism goes too far and people start denying any perks they have just to make their chances seem worse

It happened with Crash, it's happening again

 

[Gengar84]

To be fair E3 is usually more aimed towards the western audience. But yeah, it would be a first to have a character that leans so much towards us, without a second reveal to please the japanese fans. It's not impossible, of course, but it's kinda unlikely in my eyes.



I mean... Ori it's not defintely slept on

It's a cool option, but Chief is clearly the next one. Maybe they could surprise us and the third Microsoft rep is a different character, but that's not the likely scenario. Under normal circumstances he would have been the first character people would considerate from Microsoft, but Banjo and Steve were special for different reasons.

I know Master Chief is a lot more iconic, but I’m personally pulling for the Battletoads as the third Microsoft character. The Toads are my brother’s absolute favorite video game characters ever and they actually have a history with Nintendo. I wouldn’t really mind Chief, but I’ve never been an X-Box or FPS guy so I have no real connection with him. Growing up with the NES and SNES, characters like the Battletoads were a huge part of my childhood. I’m glad to see they have at least started to make a small comeback with a new game and cameo appearances in Killer Instinct and Shovel Knight so it’s not as impossible a dream as it once seemed.

 

[Louie G.]

I’d agree with the language barrier being a potential issue for a character this late in the game had Microsoft not already gotten two characters and been on record saying the process was very smooth. Microsoft seems like the exception to this concern in many ways, it helps to have your foot in the door and I’d imagine it’s even easier the third time.

 

[PacificFun]

It's because of the "Hot Stuff Pushback" cycle. Basically:

1. Character starts gaining popularity and gets a lot of attention
2. Sudden surge of support and discussion is met with skepticism
3. Skepticism goes too far and people start denying any perks they have just to make their chances seem worse

It happened with Crash, it's happening again

Wait, what? I'm talking purely about Xbox. Not Smash.