Hmm...assuming that the sound files that were datamined are indeed true, something is a little strange about them. Both songs are from the 16 bit era. And in particular, the victory theme doesn't have any modern sounds in it.
This is strange to me, because even the most classic of classic characters have modern sounds in their victory themes. Pac-Man and Duck Hunt, in particular, have modern sounds in their victory themes despite also having chip tunes in them as well. So, why is Ryu's victory theme different? It is purely chip tune/16 bit. Could there perhaps be a reason for this?
1) Placeholder songs until more modernized ones are made?
2) Nostalgia?
3) Easy to implement as DLC because it is more space-conservative?
All of these would make sense, especially the last one. But at the same time, Sakurai is a very detail-centric person. Take Kid Icarus: Uprising for example. 108 different weapons with their own trophies, descriptions, bullet animations, and etc. Tons of music and items in the game as well. A pretty staggering amount of content, that is also very detailed. And Smash Bros is the same. Sakurai is very meticulous when it comes to his creations.
So if Sakurai is that kind of person, then the above three reasons begin to make a little bit less sense. Why would Sakurai, of all people, do this? If Duck Hunt, Mega Man, Pac-Man, and other characters all get remixed themes, then why not Ryu? Reason 1 still stands, as the character files themselves are placeholders right now (Extra "Mario" files). Reason 2 doesn't make as much sense on the surface, because Sakurai would want to expand upon nostalgia like he did with Duck Hunt's theme. And Reason 3 makes a little sense, if they are adding 7 stages with 14 potential new songs to be added. With 5 new characters and 7 new stages (14 if you count Omegas), they clearly have enough room to do these things.
After all, this was stated before, when people speculated that DLC would happen in Smash Bros because of unused extra space. And lo and behold? Mewtwo, Mii Costumes, Lucas, and the Smash Ballot did absolutely everything to prove that we indeed eventually got DLC.
http://nintendonews.com/2014/09/smash-bros-3ds-dlc-download-card/
Where am I going with this, you are probably asking? Well, what if there is another reason we haven't explored yet? What if there is another reason why these sound files are chip tunes, that's NOT one of the three reasons above? If that is the case, then I have a conclusion that would be a very unexpected answer to this mystery:
4) Ryu, as a character in Smash Bros, is going to be 16-bit. A sprite.
But wait, that doesn't make any sense. Why would they do something like this?
Well, a couple of things lead me to believe that this can happen. The biggest reason to me would be from the big man himself, as to why characters who already exist in a fighting game would be weird in Smash.
“The biggest feature we look at in Smash Bros. is, ‘What does this character bring to Smash Bros. that other characters don’t?’ If you look at… someone from a fighting game already, and people like fighting with this character, from my point of view, it’s like ‘this guy does what this guy already does. He fills the role that this character already has. So while you may like this character and he’s interesting, that doesn’t really merge well, here.”
http://nintendoeverything.com/why-sakurai-isnt-keen-on-adding-fighting-characters-to-smash-bros/
http://wiiudaily.com/2013/07/sakurai-on-fighting-characters-in-smash/
Of course, this could also be him just talking about worrying about "clones" (which are in the game anyways). And besides, Sakurai has went back on his word a LOT of times in the past, as well. But at the same time, we shouldn't discredit what he says either, at least until there is enough proof to discredit it. And at the time being, there isn't much to discredit the statements that he has made above.
The second biggest reason to me as to why Ryu could potentially be a 16 bit character in Smash Bros is this: When people think of Ryu, as a fighting game character, what do they see them as? That answer is easy. They see Ryu like this:
This is the look that most people associate Ryu with today. Definitely looks badass...but also like a "fighting game character" in Sakurai's eyes, probably. A character who "Is a guy who does what he already does. He fills the role that he already has. So while you may like this character and he’s interesting, that doesn’t really merge well, here".
In other words, he already fulfills his niche in fighting video games. Everyone knows what he does, and in some people's eyes, he doesn't bring many new things to the table. Why? Because a lot of people have already played as Ryu in other fighting games, specifically Street Fighter (for obvious reasons).
And this somewhat contrasts with Sakurai's desires when it comes to making characters. What does Sakurai like, and want? He likes quirky, and weird characters and mechanics. Villager, Wii Fit Trainer, Duck Hunt, Bowser Jr in the clown car, Mega Man, Pac-Man, Robin, Shulk, and even Little Mac with how he can't fight well in the air but is amazing on the ground. Sakurai likes characters with a niche that no other character can perfectly replicate. He wants these characters to do something different, more than just having different attacks. But also having unique mechanics, and being truly unique at what they do (even if what they do isn't always great competitively). But what does this mean for Ryu? Other than being popular, does he really stand out as much as these other characters when it comes to a gameplay perspective?
To Sakurai, it might not be enough. He might not be quirky enough for his tastes, especially when the character already has a "defined role" like Ryu does. And if that's the case, Sakurai would probably want to try to do something to make the character "stand out" more. Something to make the character have a "niche" that no other character can fill. It is in Sakurai's very nature to do things that nobody expects. That's just the kind of guy he likes to be. Unpredictable.
Anyways, I have gone off on a tangent. So my new question is this: When people think of Ryu
in correlation with Nintendo, what do they see him as? What does
Nintendo's version of Ryu look like? The image that comes to people's minds would be none other than this:
Street Fighter 2's Ryu. The very game in which Ryu's hidden sound files come from. Both his stage theme, and his victory theme. This is the version of Ryu that most people think of when they think of him being from Nintendo.
If Sakurai were to add in 16-bit Ryu as opposed to his modern design, the character who is commonly seen as a "fighting game character" would suddenly become very quirky. Despite how this very same sprite was in one of the most popular fighting games of all time. It's quirky, because it contrasts people's expectations. It goes against what as seen as the norm today. And suddenly, Ryu becomes a lot more interesting than what people initially anticipated.
This is the kind of thing that Sakurai likes to have.
Not only is this image associated with Nintendo consoles, it also makes Ryu look less of a serious fighting game character. Additionally, it is something that no other character can lay claim to as part of their "niche". Not even Game & Watch, despite his own unusualness on the roster. And despite still most likely having everything you would expect from Ryu when it comes to a moveset, Sakurai would still be able to blow people's minds with a move like this. To him, I am betting it would be a perfect solution for the "problems" he would otherwise have with a character like Ryu. And despite being the same character, 16 bit Ryu would have his own "identity" in comparison to the modern Ryu. And this is something that Sakurai could use to make him feel unique again, and "fit into Smash Bros better", despite being the same character.
Of course, I am looking way too deeply into this. This most likely won't happen. The sound files are probably how they are because of being placeholders, for nostalgic reasons, or because they were easy to add because they save space. Those are still the most likely reasons, by a large margin. So everything I said just now is probably all for naught. Speculation without concrete proof.
Even so, I wouldn't put it past Sakurai to try to do unexpected things. He has done so many, many times before. So the possibility of this happening could very well still exist, even if it is a chance that is lower than 10%. Even if Ryu isn't a 16 bit character, I still anticipate him to try to do something unexpected for Ryu, even if it is something way smaller than I am imagining.
Plus, people have stated that they wanted to play as the Flying Man on Magicant despite not being an important character at all in comparison to every other character on the roster. How cool would it be to play an 8 to 16 bit character, even if it isn't Ryu? To some people, this idea would sound very appealing. Because, despite how old 8 bit/16 bit sprites are, they still capture a sense of uniqueness and nostalgia that not many other things can lay claim to. People still really like sprites. Just ask Shovel Knight. (whom I would also REALLY love to see in Smash Bros as well).
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Disregarding everything else I have said though, I would love to see Ryu in Smash Bros, no matter what form he is in. And I am entirely expecting him to have a 3D model. He is one of my main characters in Street Fighter (T.Hawk/Zangief/Q being three of my other favorites), and one of my favorite video game icons of all besides Mario/Mega Man/Mewtwo/etc.
So, here's hoping that he truly is in Smash Bros. And I wish good luck to all of his other fans here.
tl;dr just wanted something fun to talk about and speculate~
