Official DLC Speculation Discussion Volume II

[N3ON]

My 2021 predictions were a mid-range character, a megaton, and a polarizing pick (not necessarily in that order), and I'm sticking by it.
Pyra could be either the former or the latter, really.

I mean to me it's pretty obvious that if covid didn't happen, and we got two reveals at E3 2020, it would've been Min Min and Steve, not Steve and Sephiroth.

Agreed. I really don't think the release schedule changed much. I think the biggest change was Steve in Oct instead of Sept.

I think it was the reveal schedule that experienced more profound shifts, in line with all of Nintendo's marketing being thrown for a loop.

 

[Idon]

Niche and lowkey is good for me because I'd roll right back to sleep for Crash and Chief but I'd be hype as hell for double A niche JRPG gal from historically PC exclusive developer Falcom LLC.

 

[Adrianette Bromide]

Hmmmm, I've been thinking a Gen 8 starter Pokemon, but after your comment, I'm not so sure anymore.

I guess the only Ninty shill picks I could think of are Ayumi and King Boo, though for some reason they don't really bother me that much (maybe I'm just being a hypocrite?).

Eyyyy someone who stands for the potential of King Boo.

 

[Technomage]

Eyyyy someone who stands for the potential of King Boo.

Yeah, the guy would fit into the Loose-Ends theory; plus, he'd have plenty of potential for a unique moveset (and wouldn't be yet another starter Pokemon or Fire Emblem swordy, for a comparison).

 

[UltimateCyborgOverlord]

I'm fully expecting a Gen 8 Pokemon, despite people pointing to the spirit event as proof it won't happen. Everything is a rule until it isn't. Plus that event covered like... six Pokemon out of the 40+ new ones? There's plenty to add to a spirit board.

Hmmmm, I've been thinking a Gen 8 starter Pokemon, but after your comment, I'm not so sure anymore.

Galarian Pokemon Trainer. Swap between Rillaboom, Cinderace and Inteleon.

TECHNICALLY an Isle of Armor fighter vs a SwSh PROPER fighter since "the gimmick" is that all 3 Pokemon have a Final Smash that sees them assuming their Gigantamax form, so much like how Pyra/Mythra had a Final Smash for both Pyra and Mythra, Galarian Trainer would have 3 FS moves.

Throw in SwSh music and a Dynamax Pokemon Stadium stage or whatever and you've got a Fighter Pack.

 

[Noipoi]

I’m not going into E3 expecting a big boy, but I do think it’s possible.

And if not a big boy, it’s gotta be at least a decently sized boy. They’re not gonna have Cinderace at E3.

 

[Gengar84]

Hmmmm, I've been thinking a Gen 8 starter Pokemon, but after your comment, I'm not so sure anymore.

I guess the only Ninty shill picks I could think of are Ayumi and King Boo, though for some reason they don't really bother me that much (maybe I'm just being a hypocrite?).

Edit: Then again, my only problems with another Pokemon rep are another lame-old starter.

Nah, I think it’s fine to just want characters you like. You don’t really need a better reason than that. It’s totally understandable to be bored with the idea of another starter Pokémon but still want someone like King Boo. Boo would definitely be a really unique and interesting character.

I’m probably in a rare situation where I’d actually be more hyped for a character like Impa or Medusa than Crash or Master Chief but it’s cool that everyone has their own opinions and I don’t want to be too greedy so I’m fine with anything at this point.

 

[Technomage]

I’m not going into E3 expecting a big boy, but I do think it’s possible.

And if not a big boy, it’s gotta be at least a decently sized boy. They’re not gonna have Cinderace at E3.

Or it could be either a big girl or a decently-sized girl.

 

[CyberHyperPhoenix]

I think it's a good idea to keep expectations in check, it always is.


But I think there's a difference between keeping them in check and "Nope, it's all downhill from here."

Optimism >>>

Being cynical in Smash speculation is so boring.

 

[Phoenix Douchebag]

Being cynical in Smash speculation is so boring.

Imagine talking about characters when Box Theory was around.

 

[GoodGrief741]

So for those who are expecting something more low key, who do you think we’ll get? Who would you like to see from a smaller series? I’ve already mentioned my favorites enough times so I won’t bore everyone with talking about them too much but pretty much all of them would be viewed that way by the general public.

My expectation is that we'll get a character that's popular with the hardcore fandom but that maybe wouldn't make a splash with the mainstream. Something along the lines of Banjo I guess but with less of a "holy **** I thought this was impossible" factor. I'm thinking something along the lines of Bandana Dee for first parties, or Prof. Layton for third parties (these are just two that come to mind, I usually don't speculate with specific characters).

Another possibility is that we get a third party from a represented franchise, which would by default be less surprising after Sephiroth. And there's always the wildcard of "game that gets a trailer in the Nintendo Direct".

So yeah that's more or less what I expect.

 

[PeridotGX]

Well, lemme quit with the jokes and try to get real with the whole Amy thing. Potentially faulty theory incoming:

SO. LET'S ASSUME that, for reasons ONLY understood by Sakurai, that Assist Trophies and background characters are NOT getting upgraded to playable fighters for whatever reason. We can go back and forth all day about how there's precedent for shutting off background characters with the whole Alfonso/Toon Link thing and various Assist Trophy functions on various stages (Knuckles on Green Hill, Alucard on Wii Fit Studio, etc), but for the sake of the conversation, let's say that for WHATEVER REASON, they're off the table.

That removes Sonic (since he's already playable), Tails, Knuckles, Shadow, and weirdly enough Silver (plus the little animals on Windy Hill if you wanna get technical). Go down the line, who's the next most prominent Sonic character?

Doctor Eggman of course! HOWEVER... that guy's kind of an embarrassment of riches. SO MANY MECHS at his disposal, how do you just pick ONE? That would take a lot of time to whittle down a moveset that they can all agree upon, MUCH LESS actually program and implement it within the constraints of the DLC time and budget, and those are the magic words right there: time and budget. If I remember right, Bowser Jr was a little tricky to get working when he was introduced in Smash 3DS/Wii U and they had to stick their nose to the grindstone to make it work. And HERO they had to settle for FOUR Dragon Quest heroes as alts instead of 8 on the grounds that they did not have the time and budget for 8. Time and budget are very real enemies for DLC choices, and Doctor Eggman and his embarrassment of riches and potential difficulty in actually implementing in a timely and budget friendly manner may very well be enough to foil Eggman's plans once again.

SO. Who's the NEXT most prominent character? Well... that could very well be Amy Rose. And she's easy enough to implement too, nothing too crazy with her.

And that's how you get to Amy Rose chasing Sonic into Smash Ultimate.

I think Metal Sonic would be an option in this hypothetical. Both of the frontrunners are from Sonic CD. Strange, isn't it?

 

[Noipoi]

Imagine talking about characters when Box Theory was around.

The good ol days

 

[Garteam]

I’m not going into E3 expecting a big boy, but I do think it’s possible.

And if not a big boy, it’s gotta be at least a decently sized boy. They’re not gonna have Cinderace at E3.

To be fair, Cinderace is bigger than, like, 90% of options available simply because he's a Pokemon.

To put things in perspective, Sword/Shield has sold about 2 million copies less than the lifetime sales of both Devil May Cry and Tales of, while many would say a character from either of those series is big enough to be a fitting E3 reveal.

 

[UltimateCyborgOverlord]

I think Metal Sonic would be an option in this hypothetical. Both of the frontrunners are from Sonic CD. Strange, isn't it?

True, but he could also be an echo for Sonic as well. "YOU MIGHT KNOW EVERYTHING I'M GOING TO DO, BUT THAT'S NOT GOING TO HELP YOU BECAUSE I KNOW EVERYTHING YOU'RE GOING TO DO! STRRRRRRRRANGE ISN'T IT? GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

Of course, if Metal wants to be a non-echo fighter, I wouldn't complain. Bring "What I'm Made Of" with him and things will be complete hahaha that song being missing is criminal.

 

[CyberHyperPhoenix]

Imagine talking about characters when Box Theory was around.

Icl, as a Ken Enjoyer, I remember finding it funny seeing people despair about box theory despite it being obvious DLC was going to happen in light of Smash 4's success with DLC.

That said, it did put a bit of a damper on the mood surrounding speculation, to say the least.

 

[NonSpecificGuy]

I mean as long as you don’t lash out for no reason when you’re wrong or when someone has a discerning opinion, optimism is preferable but if you can’t handle the disappointment then by all means please temper your expectations.

 

[Phoenix Douchebag]

Niche and lowkey is good for me because I'd roll right back to sleep for Crash and Chief but I'd be hype as hell for double A niche JRPG gal from historically PC exclusive developer Falcom LLC.

Who cares about that when you can have an Indie Action Sidescroller Teenage Mutant (maybe) Mega Man Zero expy that originated from the 3DS Eshop?

GUNVOLT SHILLING TIME BABY!

 

[Noipoi]

Gonna be a fun 10 days!

 

[Technomage]

I just realized another possible option for a lower-key E3 reveal: A lower key indie. I'm talking about less noteworthy than Freddy (as much as I'd love for him to enter the roster) and Sans. Any indie chars (whether lowkey or midkey) that could fit that bill?

 

[GilTheGreat19]

I'll throw in an interesting question, along with a comment of my own
1) Do y'all think we could get more Warframe content? Maybe an Excalibir Mii Costume?

Comment:
I personally would love for CP10 to be a third party, especially from a new IP and series. Would love to see what left-field picks we could get or whether a fan favorite finally shows up.
Maybe we'll finally get Crash or any big name mascot character
Maybe we'll get a left-field pick (as seen by the majority), like Ezio or Scorpion or whatever
Maybe another indie will join Steve in Smash's glory like the Knight or Freddy 0_o
Maybe we'll get double dipped for a company, i.e. Microsoft gives us the Chief or Square gives us good ol Lara Croft (SLEEPER PICK BTW)
Maybe Sony and Nintendo were buddy buddy after all...
Maybe a big mobile game character or Flash games character will show up

 

[Gengar84]

I mean as long as you don’t lash out for no reason when you’re wrong or when someone has a discerning opinion, optimism is preferable but if you can’t handle the disappointment then by all means please temper your expectations.

Yeah, I like that line of thinking. I think it’s great to be hopeful but at the same time open to other options. It’s fun to share my thoughts on my favorite characters and I always try to be respectful because everyone has their own tastes. That’s one thing I like about this place is pretty much everyone seems cool and I enjoy hearing about characters I might not have considered before.

 

[Noipoi]

I just realized another possible option for a lower-key E3 reveal: A lower key indie. I'm talking about less noteworthy than Freddy (as much as I'd love for him to enter the roster) and Sans. Any indie chars (whether lowkey or midkey) that could fit that bill?

Quote time baybee

 

[Perkilator]

The latter just gives the impression that some people care far more about being right than they do the actual characters tbh.

The same could be said for some people still hoping for an AT character to be DLC, I'd say.

 

[Paraster]

I just realized another possible option for a lower-key E3 reveal: A lower key indie. I'm talking about less noteworthy than Freddy (as much as I'd love for him to enter the roster) and Sans. Any indie chars (whether lowkey or midkey) that could fit that bill?

I second Quote. He's somehow both extremely important and rather lowkey in the modern scene.

 

[Garteam]

Fun fact: if everyone in this thread eats a tangerine every day between now and the 15th, Bandana Waddle Dee is legally obligated to be the next challenger/

 

[GilTheGreat19]

Lots of people think Freddy will get Deluxe Mii'd like Sans and Cuphead

But what if..

Just saying, dude's become a staple in the horror game genre AND Indie game realm

 

[Gengar84]

I just realized another possible option for a lower-key E3 reveal: A lower key indie. I'm talking about less noteworthy than Freddy (as much as I'd love for him to enter the roster) and Sans. Any indie chars (whether lowkey or midkey) that could fit that bill?

I’m not all that knowledgeable about indie characters but I think a Brawlhala or Nexomon character could be fun. Both games had some pretty cool character/monster designs that would make for fun Smash characters.

 

[Icedragonadam]

Here's all of the discourse for the next two characters to get it over with.

"It's totally Crash this time!"
"It's going to be another promotional character like a gen 8 Pokemon."
"It better not be another generic JRPG animu swordsman!"
"It better not be another Scrimblo Brimbo!"
"Master Chief!"
"Sora!"
"Ray Man!"
"I think it won't be one of them, but rather a pick no one suggested."
"Waste of a slot!"
"HOES MAD!"
"4 Bayonetta 2.0!"
"I'M YELLING WORDS!"

 

[Adrianette Bromide]

And here he goes again...



Also that's why I don't like popping off when a character I don't like gets counted out because it is entirely selfish in like a bad way. You're basically celebrating that a group of people aren't gonna be happy lol. And I don't wanna hear it from anyone that says X character's fanbase is toxic and deserves it. That's a faulty argument that narrows down a select cell of people as the sole representatives. For every grotesque Steveposter, there was someone who'd draw Banjo and Steve together fanart.

 

[GilTheGreat19]

I’m not all that knowledgeable about indie characters but I think a Brawlhala or Nexomon character could be fun. Both games had some pretty cool character/monster designs that would make for fun Smash characters.

If we get a character from another platform fighter, that'd be awesome

Rivals of Aether characters are there, too

 

[CyberHyperPhoenix]

Lots of people think Freddy will get Deluxe Mii'd like Sans and Cuphead

But what if..

Just saying, dude's become a staple in the horror game genre AND Indie game realm

Sans and Vault Boy got in as mii costumes, so anything is possible.

 

[Noipoi]

If we get a character from another platform fighter, that'd be awesome

Rivals of Aether characters are there, too

That’s a Pokémon. You can’t convince me otherwise.

 

[Guynamednelson]

That’s a Pokémon. You can’t convince me otherwise.

Orcane literally exists so the RoA creator's Vaporeon moveset can be added to RoA without dealing with The Pokemon Company.

 

[Gengar84]

I don’t know if anyone else played Nexomon but this is probably my favorite monster design from that game (probably because it reminds me a lot of Haunter).

Mako from Brawlhalla also has a really fun design that would be really unique in Smash.

 

[Noler_Mass]

I feel it’s very unlikely smash reveals a character at E3 that they don’t consider a heavy hitter. Now whether that “heavy hitter” is someone people were strictly expecting, that’s a different question entirely.

 

[GoodGrief741]

The same could be said for some people still hoping for an AT character to be DLC, I'd say.

Why would someone hope for ATs wanting to be right? That seems counterintuitive, most people are set on them not being a thing. If anything, I'd say the person who just wants to be right would be one who hates on all Assist Trophies.

****, if there is someone out there who's backing the AT horse just for bragging rights, then they totally deserve to dunk on everyone if they're right. These past years can't have been easy.

 

[Noler_Mass]

Like kratos or some crazy crossover like that

 

[Schnee117]

The same could be said for some people still hoping for an AT character to be DLC, I'd say.

That wasn't an invitation for you to go on your 34782874th rant about ATs and how they won't get in

 

[Paraster]

I recently listed out analytics for the newcomers of each Smash game and their respective franchises to make comparisons with my own hypothetical Smash concept (comparing my current ratio of newcomers to franchises represented by newcomers, mostly). I thought it'd be fun to list my findings.

Note that I count base games and DLC as separate, though I do specify how my findings at the end would be different if they were grouped together.
Also, transformations and Echo Fighters are counted separately.

Spoiler: Analytics / Findings

Bold = franchise added in this game.

64 (12)

• Mario: 2
• Donkey Kong: 1
• The Legend of Zelda: 1
• Metroid: 1
• Yoshi: 1
• Kirby: 1
• Star Fox: 1
• Pokemon: 2
• EarthBound: 1
• F-Zero: 1

Melee (14)

• Mario: 3
• The Legend of Zelda: 4
• Star Fox: 1
• Pokemon: 2
• Ice Climber: 1
• Fire Emblem: 2
• Game & Watch: 1

Brawl (18)

• Donkey Kong: 1
• The Legend of Zelda: 1
• Metroid: 1
• Kirby: 2
• Star Fox: 1
• Pokemon: 4
• EarthBound: 1
• Fire Emblem: 1
• Kid Icarus: 1
• WarioWare: 1
• Metal Gear: 1
• Sonic the Hedgehog: 1
• Pikmin: 1
• R.O.B.: 1

4 (17)

• Mario: 2
• Pokemon: 1
• Fire Emblem: 2
• Kid Icarus: 2
• Animal Crossing: 1
• Mega Man: 1
• Wii Fit: 1
• Punch-Out: 1
• Mii: 3
• Pac-Man: 1
• Xenoblade: 1
• Duck Hunt: 1

4 DLC (4)

• Fire Emblem: 1
• Street Fighter: 1
• Final Fantasy: 1
• Bayonetta: 1

Ultimate (11)

• Mario: 1
• Donkey Kong: 1
• Metroid: 2
• Pokemon: 1
• Fire Emblem: 1
• Animal Crossing: 1
• Street Fighter: 1
• Splatoon: 1
• Castlevania: 2

Ultimate DLC (11+)

• Mario: 1
• Fire Emblem: 1
• Xenoblade: 2
• Final Fantasy: 1
• Persona: 1
• Dragon Quest: 1
• Banjo-Kazooie: 1
• Fatal Fury: 1
• ARMS: 1
• Minecraft: 1

Findings

• Most characters from one franchise added in a single game: tie between Zelda in Melee and Pokemon in Brawl (4 newcomers each).
• Most new franchises added in a single game: Smash 4 base (8 new franchises).
  • (Boosted to 11 if DLC is grouped in.)
• Least new franchises added in a single game: Ultimate base (2 new franchises).
  • (Boosted to 8 (thus far) if DLC is grouped in; least new franchises then goes to Melee at 3.)
• Most franchises with newcomers: Brawl (14 franchises received newcomers).
  • (If base games and DLC are grouped together, winner is Ultimate with 19 thus far.)
• Least franchises with newcomers: 4 DLC (4 franchises received newcomers).
  • (If base games and DLC are grouped together, least is Melee with 7.)

The whole "Zelda got 4 newcomers in Melee" stuck out to me; I wonder if people would be less upset about the drought of Zelda newcomers if they were stretched out over the series more?