Heir to the Monado. Shulk General Discussion/Social Thread

[BluePikmin11]

The Gaur Plains… beautiful area, amazing music, lovely enemies with random levels that can go up to 88.
I don't think that I am far into the game at all. I am going into Colony 6.


I heard that they are doing this and I believe that it is true.
My copy of Xenoblade looked brand new. No scratches on the disk, the game's cover or casing wasn't shown to be broken or anything, and I have the manual and Club Nintendo stuff. Did I also mention that I paid $70 for this game?
I think that GameStop is definitely scamming and exploiting the fanbase that wants this game. It actually makes me feel bad that I have this amazing game that I absolutely love and yet my money isn't going to Monolith Soft. I also recently saw a used copy of Metroid Prime Trilogy at my GameStop.

Thank god I got my Xenoblade used copy with Club Nintendo included for only $40.

 

[Pega-pony Princess]

As for a stage, many people expect Gaur Plains Bionis' Leg.

As for me however, I MUCH prefer it would be Eryth Sea.

Almost exactly like in this picture.

Oooh. That would be wonderful and beautiful as well. How would the stage move about though? Maybe start there and go to Alcamoth? Then Prison Island, perhaps with

Spoiler

Zanza as a giant in the background

...

Gaur plains wouldn't be too bad either though. Especially with the Mechonis looming nearby with its red eyes.

 

[SmashChu]

Well actually, there is a controversy that the supposed "used copies" are actually brand new, but are masqueraded as used in order to jack up the price.

That's not exactly supply and demand, sounds more like a scam.

Amazon and EBay are selling for around the same price. Again, supply and demand.

As for a stage, many people expect Gaur Plains Bionis' Leg.

As for me however, I MUCH prefer it would be Eryth Sea.

Almost exactly like in this picture.

Thataboy!

 

[jaytalks]

Bionis' Leg seems like the iconic location of the game for me. It's the same reason I wanted Mario Kart to have Rainbow Road (which it does for the 3DS). If it's not Bionis' Leg, then I would like something that would show some Mechons from the game. Maybe a Colony 9 when its under attack?

 

[FlareHabanero]

Regardless of the location, one detail I would like is the stage in question cycles through night and day with weather occasionally changing.

 

[foolssigma]

Regardless of the location, one detail I would like is the stage in question cycles through night and day with weather occasionally changing.

Best idea for a Xenoblade stage I have heard. Do you guys think a stage is guaranteed if Shulk is playable?

 

[Pega-pony Princess]

Best idea for a Xenoblade stage I have heard. Do you guys think a stage is guaranteed if Shulk is playable?

I would say so. Characters like Pit, Sonic, and Wario got stages as playable characters, so why not? :D

 

[Mirron]

I'd imagine that Shulk would get one. If you have a playable character in chances are you'll get a stage. Fire Emblem seemed to have one planned for Melee, even if it wasn't finished in time, and other than that it seems pretty applicable.

 

[foolssigma]

That's true, most series do have their own stages. Actually I'm struggling to think of one that does not…. ROB? Anyone else? Some stages do not relate to playable characters but that is of course different.

 

[Deleted member]

Best idea for a Xenoblade stage I have heard. Do you guys think a stage is guaranteed if Shulk is playable?

I believe that he would get a stage based on Xenoblade Chronicles. I don't see why not. It would be a giant shame too as I would love to see what the world of Xenoblade Chronicles would look like in HD.

That's true, most series do have their own stages. Actually I'm struggling to think of one that does not…. ROB? Anyone else? Some stages do not relate to playable characters but that is of course different.

These characters did not get a stage based on their series:
SSB:
-Ness
-Captain Falcon
SSBM:
-Marth
-Roy
A Fire Emblem stage was planned, but got scrapped.
SSBB:
-R.O.B.

 

[jaytalks]

That's true, most series do have their own stages. Actually I'm struggling to think of one that does not…. ROB? Anyone else? Some stages do not relate to playable characters but that is of course different.

In Melee, Marth and Fire Emblem series did not have a stage.

 

[Mirron]

I mentioned Fire Emblem. And kind of forgot about Ness/C. Falcon. For some reason I thought Onett was in Smash 64. I'm not saying it's a guarantee, but I'd say odds are better than not that if he was in he'd get one. Especially as he has a ton of options, unlike, say, R.O.B.

 

[BluePikmin11]

The stage should be a big platform with Bionis and Mechonic fighting in a big battle.

 

[Vintage Creep]

There are so many amazing places in Xenoblade Chronicles that I'm starting to think that a cruise stage à là Delfino Island is the only way to fit them all in...

Eryth Sea, Bionis' Leg, Satorl Marsh, Valak Mountain... They're all too good, simply too good.

 

[yoonb]

I hated Valak Mountain. But that's only because Mumkhar was one of the only bosses that gave me trouble. Not being able to do much damage to Faced Mechon yet was a huge pain in the butt.

But other than Eryth Sea, I think using a Secret Area would be really nice to have as a stage. Believer's Paradise, for example.

Spoiler

 

[ChibiIceClimberz]

Regardless of the location, one detail I would like is the stage in question cycles through night and day with weather occasionally changing.

Brawl's Battlefield had some of this, but it didn't have weather effects, so it'd be really nice.

There are so many amazing places in Xenoblade Chronicles that I'm starting to think that a cruise stage à là Delfino Island is the only way to fit them all in...

Eryth Sea, Bionis' Leg, Satorl Marsh, Valak Mountain... They're all too good, simply too good.

Yep. Having the camera pan around the Bionis and then zooming in the parts of it would be really cool. Like start from the Bionis' Leg first, and zoom out to see what comes next, and then zoom in through Satorl Marsh, and so forth up until you go to Eryth Sea.

 

[Kon]

There is one thing which would increase Shulk's chance of getting in the roster dramatically: If Monolith Soft said the protagonist from the upcoming WiiU title X would be Shulk and the game being a sequel of Xenoblade Chronicles. It's not impossible and if so, Sakurai would of course know this already for some time. Don't get me wrong, I believe Shulk is an interesting character. However one game after all isn't enough to say he'll be in for sure.

 

[Deleted member]

However one game after all isn't enough to say he'll be in for sure.

While you do have a point, I don't think having a single appearance shouldn't affect his chances too much. Ness and Lucas appeared in only one game prior to their Smash Bros. debuts (I should also mention that Mother isn't a really big series too).

 

[Guybrush20X6]

While you do have a point, I don't think having a single appearance shouldn't affect his chances too much. Ness and Lucas appeared in only one game prior to their Smash Bros. debuts (I should also mention that Mother isn't a really big series too).

Not to mention Ice Climbers and Sheik (who was unplayable no less). And then there's Roy...

 

[Scoliosis Jones]

Doesn't/Shouldn't matter if the character has only been in one game if they provide something interesting to be put into the game. That's apparently what Sakurai has been looking for, so it should no doubt be helpful for Shulk.

Granted, while the roster has several swordsmen, Shulk can do things the rest of them can't. This is why I think he's got a pretty good chance to get in. Even if he doesn't appear in "X", that's about as important as Marth not appearing in the second Fire Emblem. So basically, unimportant.

 

[Kon]

Not to mention Ice Climbers and Sheik (who was unplayable no less). And then there's Roy...

While you do have a point, I don't think having a single appearance shouldn't affect his chances too much. Ness and Lucas appeared in only one game prior to their Smash Bros. debuts (I should also mention that Mother isn't a really big series too).

Maybe I've expressed myself in a way that could be misunderstood. Xenoblades isn't a real franchise until we have at least 2 games of the series. Mother/Earthbound is a franchise counting 3 games. Especially Earthbound and Mother 3 were related having both an appearance of Porky.

Ice Climbers can't be considered as "franchise" in my opinion as Ice Climbers count as retro characters.

Fire Emblem is a franchise which has one character being in every Smash Bros game since Melee, Marth and then there is the second spot most likely used to represent the latest FE game(Roy in Melee, Ike in Brawl, probably Chrom in SSB4)

Doesn't/Shouldn't matter if the character has only been in one game if they provide something interesting to be put into the game. That's apparently what Sakurai has been looking for, so it should no doubt be helpful for Shulk.

Granted, while the roster has several swordsmen, Shulk can do things the rest of them can't. This is why I think he's got a pretty good chance to get in. Even if he doesn't appear in "X", that's about as important as Marth not appearing in the second Fire Emblem. So basically, unimportant.

Marth is however the lord of Fire Emblem having the most appearances in the series by far because most of the lords have only one or perhaps two appearances. So Marth has some iconic status nowadays.

My point is that Xenoblade isn't a franchise yet. If X would be considered as a second Xenoblade game with a setting after Xenoblade Chronicles, you would have a good reason. Otherwise you would have a JRPG with only one game being represented by a character who won't be important after Xenoblade Chronicles anymore. Until now, Sakurai never intended to cut a franchise. Cuts only affected series with more representative characters. Don't get me wrong: The Mother games may have different protagonists, but, at least as far as my knowledge goes(Mother2&3), they play in a similar universe.
If Monolith Soft were to say that X is a sequel to Xenoblade Chronicles, then we could at least speak of a franchise/series. Shulk is obviously no retro such as Ice Climbers & Co, but isn't part yet of a series. However Nintendo represents series in Super Smash Bros and that's my point.

 

[FlareHabanero]

Where the hell is this "must be a franchise" criteria anyway?

 

[8-peacock-8]

Where the hell is this "must be a franchise" criteria anyway?

Dream Land

 

[Kon]

Where the hell is this "must be a franchise" criteria anyway?

Let's look on it the other way around: Which characters aren't part of a series? Retrocharacters are the only exception for not being necessary part of a franchise. Even 3rd parties are part of series. So until now, we don't have an example working against this whole "must be a franchise".

 

[Pega-pony Princess]

This is completely irrelevant to the conversation, but I thought I'd post this:

 

[jaytalks]

If I'm reading Kon right, all he is saying is that X being a part of the Xenoblade franchise would increase Shulk's chances. I myself don't think Shulk needs to a protagonist in X or even appear, but I dont think that is a controversial statement. He's hasnt said it's a criteria, so you all should probably stop saying (or assuming) that.

As for Mother, Mother is a franchise. It doesnt matter that Ness and Lucas star in only one game in said franchise. The key is that they are a part of that franchise. Mother 1 and Mother 2 share the Gigyas villain btw. It's fuzzy how they are connected, but there is a time travel theory. However, they really dont need to be much like the FE universe really doesnt have one timeline.

Not to mention Ice Climbers and Sheik (who was unplayable no less). And then there's Roy...

Sheik = Zelda Franchise

 

[Scoliosis Jones]

I probably speak for others when I say this, but we're not denying that as an observation.

Thing is that it probably doesn't mean much, and secondly, even if it did, we're at the point where it shouldn't matter.

There are few characters left from series that hold much significance, and personally I find it possible that Isaac may be overlooked again.

Also, couldn't Xenoblade be lumped in with Xenogears and such? I'm not understanding that too much. Not that they are directly connected, but more like they're a...sub series or something.

 

[jaytalks]

Also, couldn't Xenoblade be lumped in with Xenogears and such? I'm not understanding that too much. Not that they are directly connected, but more like they're a...sub series or something.

Xenoblade and Xenogears are connected in what as known as a meta-series. This means that they are separate games, but are connect in non-canonical way. The "meta" meaning "connecting beyond the normal series." Like Metacritic is aggregation of scores and reviews beyond one critic. The way the Xeno series connects would be it shares the monolith soft team, similar themes, and the Xeno prefix. It's different than a series because a series usually indicate one IP owner, while the Xeno series has three IP owners, with Square Enix, Namco, and Nintendo each owning Xenogears, Xenosage, and Xenoblade separately. Additionally, most series share a canon universe, with IPs like Final Fantasy and Fire Emblem being the exception.

This distinction is important because the IP ownership, in theory, is what Nintendo cares about. For example, if Shulk were to make it in the game, there would be no mention of the preceding Xeno games. Nor would there be any Xenogears music. Because they cant use any of that material. Nor would they want to, because they would have to pay for it. So to my knowledge being connected in a meta series to another game is very different than their normal series inclusions. Now if Nintendo were to own any of the other IPs, that would be a different,

 

[FlareHabanero]

Shulk's infinite sandwich for taunt?

 

[Mirron]

I kind of agree that X being a sequel would definitely help Shulk's case. Also, while they may not share a prefix, Xenoblade somewhat reminded me of Baten Kaitos, though I never played the latter something about it seemed similar. It being made by the same company surprised me a bit. Kind of an unrelated thing all in all though.

Also separate tangent, but Fire Emblem's all do seem to take place in the same world, just separate continents. Awakening kind of confirms this more or less.

Just got Riki, he's pretty cute, but not sure if I'll be able to find room for him in my party. Wish there could be four in a party, just too many neat characters. I haven't had this issue before, usually it's a bit easier to make a party I like. But yeah, lots of unrelated. I think Shulk has good odds to get in, and X being related to Xenoblade could only help it. They're pushing Smash as advertisement a lot more now, so if he can be an ad then he'll be someone Nintendo may push more.

 

[jaytalks]

I kind of agree that X being a sequel would definitely help Shulk's case. Also, while they may not share a prefix, Xenoblade somewhat reminded me of Baten Kaitos, though I never played the latter something about it seemed similar. It being made by the same company surprised me a bit. Kind of an unrelated thing all in all though.

Also separate tangent, but Fire Emblem's all do seem to take place in the same world, just separate continents. Awakening kind of confirms this more or less.

Just got Riki, he's pretty cute, but not sure if I'll be able to find room for him in my party. Wish there could be four in a party, just too many neat characters. I haven't had this issue before, usually it's a bit easier to make a party I like. But yeah, lots of unrelated. I think Shulk has good odds to get in, and X being related to Xenoblade could only help it. They're pushing Smash as advertisement a lot more now, so if he can be an ad then he'll be someone Nintendo may push more.

I've played both Xenoblade and Baten Kaitos and I do see some similarities. The main similarity being the tone, as the battle systems and everything else is completely different.

It's still a bit fuzzy with Fire Emblem. You have to consider that all the continents have different living and interacting gods or goddesses, as well as different origins. There is a reason they connect via the outrealm as opposed to by boat. I think they mostly take place on parallel worlds.

 

[Weedy Spyze]

I hated Valak Mountain. But that's only because Mumkhar was one of the only bosses that gave me trouble. Not being able to do much damage to Faced Mechon yet was a huge pain in the butt.

Ha, Valak Mountain. That's up there for me as worst Xenoblade areas as well--have a lot of horrifying memories about that place. Ever looked for an Ice Cabbage? -___-

A "tour of Bionis" sounds nice I guess, but unpractical. How would it even work? You don't need five or so different areas for one stage. That's why I think the only real choice for a stage has to be Bionis' Leg--it's the most iconic area in the game, and would translate to a stage in Smash quite easily.

 

[SmashChu]

Ha, Valak Mountain. That's up there for me as worst Xenoblade areas as well--have a lot of horrifying memories about that place. Ever looked for an Ice Cabbage? -___-

You take that back

 

[Weedy Spyze]

You take that back

Nah I think I'll leave them there, you're free to disagree though of course. It has fine elevator music but it's not even one of my personal favorite tracks in the game.

 

[Mirron]

Someone from Tellius appears in Awakening. While a sidequest, he isn't from the Outrealm, so those two are connected. There are also the Legendary weapons of FE4/5 which appear in the game (not as major things though, but not from the Outrealm). So far, it seems more likely they just take place on different continents. Them having different gods doesn't seem like an issue, not like our own continents and such don't have different ones. And if I recall right Naga crosses over between 4/5 and Marth's continent as well. That leaves 6, 7, and 8 as the outliers, and I believe something tied 6/7 to the rest as well. But all this is off-topic.

And while I like Bionis Leg, I would probably like Eryth Sea more. I haven't gotten to it yet, but it looks really pretty to me.

 

[Guybrush20X6]

In related news Monolith put out urgent job postings for X so methinks they've entered the final crunch. Either the game is nearly finished or they need to but out a press demo.

 

[Deleted member]

Beyond representing Xenoblade (and yet-to-confirm-to-be-connected-X), I also see Shulk as a way to represent Monolith Soft, aka Nintendo's newest first party subsidiary.

EDIT : Not to mention Monolith has co-developed a lot of games like AC: New Leaf, Pikmin 3, Zelda: ALBW and Brawl.

Since Monolith's purchase by Nintendo, Xenoblade is by far their most iconic game as a first party Nintendo team, and Shulk would represent them just like Kirby and Mother characters represent HAL Labs., Marth and Co. represent Intelligent System, Pikachu and Co. represent Pokémon Company, etc.

I can't wait to see Monolith Soft's name included in the list of companies owning characters at the bottom of SSB4's official website/title screen.

 

[ZelDan]

I guess I'll be one of the very people to say that I'm not really crazy about Shulk being in Smash 4. That's not to say I'm AGAINST it, and if Shulk got in that'd be kind of neat-o. But personally I found Shulk to be pretty meh, and nothing about his personality stood out for me. The one thing that did make him interesting to me at first, his desire for revenge even was for nothing when:

Spoiler

Fiona ended up (somehow) being alive and later when Shulk decided to make some compassionate speech for ****ing metal face of all people and wanted to defend a psychopathic mass murder, who would likely continue to want to murder innocent people had he lived after that point

If Shulk DID make it into Smash, I would only be slightly glad for the reason that he would be representing Xenoblade, though even then I don't care if that happens all that much to be honest, as I wasn't THAT huge a fan of the game. I mean, I think Xenoblade was a good game and all, and it probably was one of the better JRPG's released in the 7th generation, but I still honestly did not find it as great or amazing as others made it out to be.

As for Shulk's Chances of getting into the game, I do not think they are entirely all that high. I'll say that after reading what others reasonings on Xenoblade's importance are, I do not think that Shulk's chances are as low as I previously thought, though I still do not think they are high enough to the point of being able to confidently say he will be in the game. I still think they are kind of iffy.

Personally, I would much rather see Isaac than Shulk in Smash 4, as it is probably my favorite JRPG series (well, 1 and 2 anyways). Even then though I don't see Isaac being in Smash 4 happening at all, based on the fact that the last game he was in was made in 2003, not including his adult form in Dark Dawn because I would not want that version in a Smash game and i did not really care for Dark Dawn much anyways. Despite loving Golden Sun, I just am not really excited for Isaac to be in Smash, considering the situation his series is in, the fact he hasn't been hugely relevant in a long while, and I guess I still feel burned after he was put into assist trophy status in Brawl.

All in all, While I would find it pretty cool to see either Shulk or Isaac in Smash 4, I am not expecting either, and would not really bat an eyelid if neither were present.

 

[foolssigma]

How likely do you guys think it is that Smash will release after X? With how little has been shown of the title, we can speculate that they're going to release it towards the later part of the year, definitely past spring. The same can be said for Smash because of the denied rumor. If X releases prior to Smash, Sakurai will likely have to show something to acknowledge the game.

 

[Deleted member]

How likely do you guys think it is that Smash will release after X? With how little has been shown of the title, we can speculate that they're going to release it towards the later part of the year, definitely past spring. The same can be said for Smash because of the denied rumor. If X releases prior to Smash, Sakurai will likely have to show something to acknowledge the game.

X will definitely be released after SSB4, no doubt about that.

If there is a new trailer shown for X in a Nintendo Direct, then I bet that there is a possibility that they would reveal Shulk before the X trailer.