I see some people have been doing a retrospective of the DLC fighters so far, so I'll do a quick overview of the ones I missed to catch up:
: This character is such an anomaly to me. The reveal had me laughing, but they're in this weird limbo where I don't associate them with the base roster because Plant isn't base roster, but I don't really associate them with DLC because they don't have a full Challenger Pack. Still, Plant is a decent pick when I want to do something wacky, even if I don't really know how to use them or make their moveset connect properly.
: Unless CP11 tops this by being one of my most wanted with a crazy reveal (Phoenix, Neku, Estelle, etc.), Joker will easily be my favorite reveal. I popped off watching the Game Awards live -- Joker wasn't even on my radar as a possibility for Smash Ultimate at the time, but if I had considered him, he'd have been near the top of my list in terms of hype. So I was absolutely blown away when that envelope turned around to show the Smash seal. I like the video presentation with all the Phantom Thieves chiming in, but I do wish he got a proper Sakurai Presents.
Gameplay-wise, I enjoy zipping around with his mobility, and Gun is a fun move to use to mess with people. I played him for a while alongside ROB, but I found that the ebb and flow of taking advantage of Arsene when he shows up could get a bit too stressful for me to use him as a main, especially after the nerfs to the meter. Still, I'm thrilled with how stylish they made him and his stage, and I like to play him every now and again.
: I will never get over the fact that in a game with goofy characters like Game & Watch, ROB, and Wii Fit, the character with the goofiest shenanigans is from friggin Dragon Quest, one of the most traditional RPG franchises out there. I didn't really get hyped over the reveal since the only DQ game I played beforehand was IX on the DS, but his bonkers moveset alone makes the challenger pack worthwhile for the fun factor.
I played on Yggdrasil's Altar a lot when I focused on ROB, since it gives him a big playground to use his projectiles. It's fallen to the wayside a bit in favor of stages like Minecraft World, Spring Stadium, and Northern Cave, though. Still, it's a nice stage, even if the music selection is my least favorite of the Challenger Packs.
: A summary of my thoughts on Banjo's Challenger Pack would probably be "Neat pack, but not for me." I didn't grow up with Banjo, so I don't have that emotional connection. His moveset is okay I guess. I have to always keep the possibility of a Wonderwing at the forefront of my mind when I fight against him, but he's not as annoying to deal with as I thought he'd be initially. His stage is the only one I actively dislike though -- the rotating disorients me, and even with hazards off there's that little corner where people can camp and this big gaping empty space on the other side.
Still, the fact that Nintendo and Microsoft were able to make an agreement for Banjo was super cool from a crossover standpoint. Maybe now that Banjo-Kazooie will be on the Switch Online Expansion Pack, I can give it a shot and see what all the hype's about.
