I'm a bit torn. On the one hand, I really enjoyed Three Houses and am a FE fan, but on the other I understand the frustration at the number of characters now represented in Smash. That said, in a vacuum there are a couple things I really like about Byleth. They remind me of Robin in that while Robin represented the Physical/Magic split in FE games, Byleth represents the Weapon Triangle + Bows, which was something sorely needed in a FE rep. I also think that Sakurai & co really nailed the representation of 3H with the heroes relics, stage, colors, cameos, etc.
A few other observations I had:
- Geno and Chocobo costumes are still missing
- Sothis providing the snarky self-deprecating humor of "Too many sword fighters" was hilarious
- Western games are gaining even more representation via Mii Costume, so further Western reps could be more likely (Bethesda? Master Chief? Crash?)
- Rayman was suspiciously missing from an array of Ubisoft costumes, hmmmmm
- Cuphead looks awesome and Mii Costume + Song is a trend now
- It's another fighters pass, and Sakurai left it open IMO for a third pass. Doesn't mean it's guaranteed or likely, but I think sales could drive a third pass
- First party characters are possible
- Byleth had been missing as a costume and spirit for a while come to think of it
- Sakurai mentioned that they are "Moving ahead with development" on FP2. How does that impact CacoMallow?
Overall, I'd say I'm pretty excited! I'm mixed on Byleth as a reveal but love how they and 3H were portrayed. Cuphead looks awesome, and Altair is a really interesting Mii Costume addition. Six more fighters is amazing news and I can't wait to see how it plays out!