10 Days Remaining
Joker: We didn't see it coming.
Appeared at the Game Awards 2018 when everyone didn't expect a smash announcement.
Ah yes, arguably the biggest "winner" of the DLC characters. Not only did Joker's and P5's popularity surge as a result of the inclusion, but Joker also had a surprising amount of staying power. The fact that well known players / streamers like MKLeo and Zackray picked the character up helped a lot, since it put the character in the spotlight even more and caused him to be associated with Ultimate much the same way as
is coupled to Melee's image. MKLeo needs no introduction, Zackray's one of the most-viewed Smashers on YouTube and Japan's most well known Smasher period. I'm mentioning those two in particular since their influence have probably reached the casual side of things.
The Specials stand out and give Joker something of a distance game. Gun doesn't hurt much but can discombobulate and harass - especially aerial opponents. Eiha's another really useful projectile, especially if it hits and annoys opponents with the DoT. Rebel's Guard is a unique counter that gives incentive towards picking right moments. Ditto with Tetrakarn / Makarakarn, even if those are some huge counters and extremely safe it requires Arsene. While Up B is more standard tether / winged recovery, it nevertheless has a couple applications akin to the Grappling Hook in 5R.
The character himself is intentionally built around the ebb and flow of P5's combat: starting the battle with nickle-and-diming the opposition, but with enough time and damage Arsene makes his appearance. Then **** gets real. As a general rule of thumb, if Joker gets to Arsene two times a stock or even more the match's generally going favorably for the Joker player since he's surviving a while.
Casually this character is not that easy to pick up compared to more straightforward ones IMHO. Sure, the Smashes and specials are relatively straightforward, but then a couple of aerials are difficult to properly land and the tilts don't offer that much in terms of raw damage. A lot of his power comes from combos and more complicated setups into Smashes, like drag down U-Air into F-Smash / D-Smash. Arsene does paper over the cracks and give some obviously strong attacks, but he's not going to be always around. (Really late edit: Misremembered things a bit, although both F-Air and U-Air can play a part in complicated kill confirms.)
His weaknesses prevent him from being outright overwhelming: Not only does he deal little damage without Arsene, but both his Up Bs are susceptible to being gimped / attacked at certain points. Arsene does come with some caveats - Eigaon is laggier than Eiha and his time out in the sun can be reduced a lot if Joker's taking a lot of damage during Arsene.
As for the first Challenger Pack (Stage, music):
Mementos is a fine stage - its effects can be a bit janky, but the walls and trains do add some spice and carnage to the stage. I just find one thing odd with it, and it's that the P3 / P4 victory themes are exclusive to those colors. Consistency I suppose? That said, I wouldn't mind if the themes were used more often.
The Spirits are good too - it's a good call to focus on the Phantom Thieves. The only missing ones are stuff like monsters and most bosses
(excl. Igor) - but then again Sakurai might have been wary about including guys like Kamoshida in a family-friendly game, so it's understandable.
(Unusual character interactions sidenote: Sure, Joker can run circles around
, but Incin doesn't give a **** about Rebel's Guard thanks to Alolan Whip, and Gun / Eiha can be counter-acted with Revenge. The cat's a surprisingly difficult opponent for Joker
damnit I don't have a good Morgana joke.)
I see this is starting to float around on Twitter. Smashboards….. do your thing that you do best (discredit this if you can)
Call me skeptical, it looks like a typical monkeys on typewriter scenario. The date is the only thing making it slightly credible and even then I'm leaning on "lucky guess".
That said, Sora would be a welcome addition to the roster with or without Disney characters as NPCs - and not just because I personally love his trademark style of combat. He's one of the most charismatic characters out there and I'll gladly die on that hill.
Nah, they'll probably expose their hypocrisy if it is Sora...
They'd find a way to complain - especially if a Sora player hits them with an Air Combo Plus chain that carries them to the blastzone.
