So you instantly start out with the **** measuring contest-- seriously, why in the grand scheme of things does it matter that FE has "7" characters (really just 5 because two of them are Echoes, and one of the remainders is a semi-clone)?
Smash has generally only added recent and/or currently marketable characters-- the few exceptions being the outright retro choices and K. Rool from the Ballot. Jigglypuff's sole reason for inclusion was because it was popular in Japan.
FE fans are torn on it's Smash representation, just like Zelda fans are for Zelda's representation-- Roy's relative unpopularity, coupled with other more popular GBA lords with different weapons (Hector and Ephraim) makes him an easy target. Awakening having 3 characters (even though two of them are Echoes) also is rather controversial. And really, it only makes sense to want your most wanted character; because someone's most wanted is an FE character, it's somehow an issue?
Oh look, devaluing Awakening's success. There were two major factors: casual mode removing the biggest (though largely psychological) barrier of entry to the series/cutting down the learning curve and getting an existent marketing budget. That, on top of word of mouth, is what lead to its success and longer legs than expected.
And that's... incredibly subjective. The vast majority of characters in Smash have a very similar cartoon styling to them; complaining when characters go against that because "it's less unique" is ironic and hypocritical because, in terms of Smash's roster, it's the distinct minority-- i.e. they're more unique in context.
...Oh, I thought people were looking forward to Simon because he was a classic character from an older series; apparently it was only because of his design. At least Richter's coming with him and looks a deal more handsome. And hilariously, from what I saw of Castlevania fans Alcuard and Soma had plenty of vocal support but Simon was bandwaggoned due to him being the classic one and, therefore, most likely.
And there's the biggest issue: people take Smash representation way too seriously. If anything, Ultimate's combatted that with Ridley and K. Rool-- the only thing FE's got is an Echo out of all this, and one who's tied with Young Link for the worst looking model in the game at that. A lot of the complaints, at this point, is either just Zelda fans making it into a ****-measuring contest (99% of FE fans are either completely apathetic about Zelda or agree that it should get more characters) or people who want more obscure characters going after it. Pokemon's representation is painfully skewed towards Gen 1, it's taken DK and Metroid forever to get their villain... you can either complain about it all, or accept that Smash's roster isn't the most balanced thing and move on.
The next game after Ultimate is likely going to be a reboot, anyway-- so it'll be something of a blank slate.
Calling it a "****-measuring contest" is missing the point. Some people might take it that way, but that's not the issue. This isn't about "Who's the biggest," it's about "Why have some of Nintendo's longest-running and most popular franchises gotten snubbed for two Smash entries in a row, but Fire Emblem keeps getting more and more characters? Especially when half of those characters are from just one recent game/from a game
that isn't even released yet?"
There's nothing wrong with characters getting added only because of recent appearances, of course. Not every character needs to be a certain age in order to in the game. Recent characters can be exciting and keep things fresh. Link's new outfit and move changes have people excited. People are hype for Inklings, too. Ike was added to Brawl shortly after his game released, too, and no one minded because he was cool.
It was Smash 4 that went over the line. If it was just Robin, no one would've complained, but Lucina was what made people grumble. It was mostly unreasonable, since she didn't "take a slot" because she was what we now call an Echo Fighter. But then Roy got added back (instead of, say, Wolf), and then Corrin was added before the game he/she was from was even localized. Corrin was the straw that broke the camel's back, since by that point the game had gotten two newcomers, an Echo Fighter, and a extra veteran fighter, surpassing Legend of Zelda in characters and tying it with Pokémon, the most profitable media franchise in history. All because one game was fairly successful. It doesn't help that Fates, the game that got special treatment, apparently got a mixed response when it did eventually release.
So when people who have been asking for, say, Ridley, King K. Rool, Geno, and other characters for about a decade are let down, while Fire Emblem is continuing to get more characters from games that are super recent, it's kind of frustrating.
Not that I'm trying to downplay the success of Awakening. It successfully revitalized a franchise that was on the brink of death and brought it into the mainstream. That's commendable, given how many games with better odds manage to fail in one way or another. And it's a good franchise to have in Nintendo's repertoire, since it fills a niche that they don't really have otherwise. I'm glad the franchise has become successful and has given Nintendo another leg to stand on.
But Awakening is just one game, and suddenly it becomes the most prioritized franchise in the series. Legend of Zelda has had a variety of characters from different entries that would make for great fighters, but we've been stuck with the same setup since Melee; Star Fox had three characters and then lost one; it took Donkey Kong, one of Nintendo's most popular and historic franchises, 19 years to reach three characters; and Kirby still hasn't gotten any newcomers since Brawl. And even if you're talking raw success, it's not even like the game was a monumental success--it sold ~2 million units. More successful than a lot of games, but that puts it about on par with some of the best-selling Metroid games. Animal Crossing: New Leaf, released the same year as Awakening, sold about 12 million units. Splatoon is also way more successful and recent, but it's only getting one fighter.
It's not hard to see that Fire Emblem's representation is less about its success and position among Nintendo's franchises and more about how much favoritism Sakurai and his team are showing the series. When not one but two characters are added before their games are even released (either internationally or just in the West) it's not even an argument.
It's not a "****-measuring contest." It's more like when your teacher favors a student in your class and gives them high marks and praise just because the did pretty well on one recent project, when there's other students that have consistently made outstanding projects for years, but they're being treated as nothing special. That'd annoy anyone. No one's really complaining that Mario and Pokémon get a bunch of fighters. Most people that see that just go "Yeah, that makes sense." Anyone who doesn't is just bitter. It's when people are hoping for other characters from games/franchises they've loved for potentially decades, and a bunch of recent Fire Emblem characters keep showing up, it makes sense that people would be asking "WTF?" Corrin getting in the game early would be like that teacher giving the student an A before their project is fully graded.
Not that showing favoritism here and there is always a bad thing. It gives the game a little more personality and soul than if it was just a raw by-the-numbers popularity contest. Some of the weird and wacky characters that have shown up over the years wouldn't be possible if Sakurai was just going by what was exclusively popular. Marth and Roy's inclusion in Melee was also a fun introduction to the characters for many. But most people would agree that the Fire Emblem favoritism went too far in Smash 4.
I do feel bad for Fire Emblem fans that are hoping for other characters who would be more unique (like the ones you mentioned), but instead keep getting Marth clones.
Of course aesthetic preferences are subjective, and determining a character's worth on their looks alone is stupid. Smash's cast is already pretty eclectic, so anime-styled characters aren't really a problem. Again, it's moreso Smash 4 messing with things, because of not only all the Fire Emblem characters, but also Shulk, Cloud, and I guess Dark Pit adding to the "anime swordfighter" negativity. I don't think "anime swordfighters" are inherently bad, since Cloud and Shulk both come from unique franchises and bring something different to the table. The problem is that Fire Emblem is the main contributor to the issue, and unnecessarily so.
Simon's main merit is that he's a classic and long-requested character. I didn't mean to insinuate otherwise; I should have said "Part of the reason why" instead. My actual point about his appearance was that it's a bonus that I've seen some people point out. They could've gone with
his more recent, much more anime-styled appearance, but instead they went with his classic look that's more distinct by comparison. Simon also made more sense than Alucard because he's mostly tied to Nintendo consoles.
You're right that some people do take Smash characters too seriously. The friggin' morons who were harassing Sakurai over Waluigi are the worst of it. And people who belittle other characters' inclusions because they can't separate what they want from what's reasonable are also a problem. A lot of people have trouble keeping their expectations in check.
For example, one of my top two wanted characters, Chibi-Robo is by no means someone I'd say has to be in the game. He had one really good game on the GameCube, a not-as-good game on the DS, a minor, gimmicky camera game on 3DS, and an above-average platformer game on 3DS, none of which were really commercial successes. On top of that, unsurprisingly, he's not a very requested character. So I'm not going to act like he really deserves to be given a character slot, even though I really want him. I'm not going to begrudge Fire Emblem characters getting added from successful and popular games and say "Chibi-Robo should've gotten in instead of them." That'd be unreasonable. I'd love to see him in the game, but it's one of the longest shots there is. Just because I want him doesn't mean it's reasonable to expect/demand him. It's important to think objectively and put things into context.
Which is why when Fire Emblem fans ask for more characters, it's rather baffling to everyone else. The series is already the third-most represented in the series, even if many of its characters are Marth derivatives. At that point you might as well lobby for Nintendo vs. Fire Emblem and get basically every character from Fire Emblem: Heroes just to settle it once and for all.
My other most wanted character, Dark Samus, was one I didn't fully consider reasonable after Ridley was revealed. Metroid finally got a true second character, so I didn't think another one would ever happen. Dark Samus is the luckiest character to ever make it into Smash. And at this point, Metroid doesn't need any more characters. It's good as is. Many other franchises would be good as is if they just got one or two more characters as well. Fire Emblem seems to be one of the only franchises where few people are satisfied, despite its consistently growing representation.
Also I'm sure Chrom and other characters' models will get touched up by release. There's already observable graphical improvements between the E3 demo and more recent footage. Wolf looks a little unfinished, too.
...Hm, this is longer than I anticipated. I get bored while I'm at work. Not much else to do.
