My main thought is that if it's not Pokemon related, the "star" aspect is probably important. When it comes to Nintendo franchises, the main two where stars are noteworthy iconography are Mario and Kirby. My next thought following that is, if it's a Mario or Kirby game, why did it miss E3? Both are huge franchises for Nintendo so it's weird that they'd miss the boat entirely, especially now that the 3DS is essentially "retired." I also feel like it's kind of early for a new big Kirby and especially Mario game so it kind of hits a dead end here... Yes, there's also "Star" Fox but there's so many better ways to hint at that (there's literally four specific animals as immediate go tos) and it touches on the exact same thing, why did it miss E3?
One of the most prevalent theories I've heard regarding Smash aside from Geno is that it's S.T.A.R.S from Resident Evil but we have to remember that supposedly the hint is meant to be deliberate. If that's the case, it's not a catch all for Resident Evil but rather the specific team. Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield, major reoccuring characters in the series, are the most important members of this team. It's unlikely that it would be a composite character. Unlike male and female Corrin/Robin, they have very different body types so it would have to be one or the other and I have a hard time seeing this. This would honestly be kind of weird because Leon is significantly more popular and, again, him being an ALT of Chris really wouldn't work. Either way, I think it's a roundabout way to hint at this. I feel like there would be better hints for Resident Evil that aren't dead giveaways while having some knowledge of Resident Evil. A heart used in a Valentine, for example, would still be ambiguous while not being as spoon on nose obvious as, say, a zombie. While esoteric, the blue crab was a specific thing in Link's Awakening. Yes, Geno would be simple wordplay but it's still pretty straightforward in my opinion. Starling ---- Star ---- Geno's literally a star. Like I said weeks ago, it's wordplay to a smirk worthy degree but, again, this is the same guy who posted a literal bird and bear for Banjo Kazooie. Just some lingering thoughts on how it COULD be Geno, not that it necessarily is.
