Crikey, I thought this thread was dead. Apparently I missed...Sandbag, huh? Okay I can live with this.
Thanks for the Tag, KingShadow.
Greninja: Undecided(??)
Does he deserve a playable slot? This one's a toughie. He is undeniably amongst the most popular Gen 6 Pokemon, easily outranking Chesnaught and Delphox in overall popularity...but is he...ya know...an All Star?
Well...yes and no. On the one hand he's so new it's hard to tell if he'll stand the test of time. On the other, he is a starter. Starters are never truly forgotten and thus he's far more likely to continue to keep his strong fanbase when we hit Gen 7 than say...Pangoro or Hawlucha. Or Jigglypuff.
I'll be honest, as much as I like Greninja, I don't think his inclusion was vital and certainly not at Charizard or Mewtwo's level. He seems slightly less random than Lucario did at the time of his Smash debut, but still smells eerily of the "Promotional shoehorn" that I tend to smell on the likes of Rosalina.
Overall, I'm not disappointed with his inclusion(far from it; Brawl + Mewtwo was the dull outcome I was dreading), but he was by no means vital. I'm split between Pokeball and Playable for him.
Charizard: PLAYABLE(without a doubt)
The most popular Pokemon on the entire planet; has two mega forms, most popular starter of all time, most popular ANIME Pokemon of all time. Has TWO versions named after him; Red and Fire Red.
I didn't like the cutting of Squirtle or Ivysaur, personally I preferred both to Zard both in Smash and in Pokemon, but I know I'm in the minority. Due to sheer presence, popularity and importance overall to the Pokemon series Charizard is probably the most worthwhile Pokemon to be included in Smash after Pikachu...yep, even over Mewtwo.
Zero Suit Samus: Playable
When Sakurai trolled us in the Direct by stating she would not be returning, I honestly said "Yes". I always felt the forced transformation gimmick on Samus to be a pain in the rear end. Then she returned, and I realised I didn't mind her being there as a solo. She plays different from Samus enough, and she IS the main protagonist of Metroid. Admittedly in a different outfit, but still the main protagonist.
It's going to be REALLY weird seeing Zero Suit Samus and Samus face off in their correct colours.
Sheik: Assist Trophy(controversial!)
Sheik is a character I've always felt out of place in Smash. Originally added as a way to make Zelda more unique, Sheik's roles within the Zelda series have been limited and now Sheik's been separated from Zelda, it makes me wonder if she really stands up on her own merits, taking up a character slot on one of Nintendo's most popular franchises.
Simple answer; she doesn't. She's not important at all overall to Zelda. Yes, she is Zelda in ONE game, but Tetra was also Zelda in one game...a ghost was once Zelda in a game. Hilda was once alternative universe Zelda in ONE game, and yet I don't see any of these characters getting a fast pass to playable status. This isn't quite the same situation as Zero Suit Samus, where she is always Samus' under the suit...Sheik is Ocarina of Time Zelda's disguise and no others.
Squirtle and Ivysaur are technically more important to their series, and yet they appear to have been cut whilst Sheik, a one time NPC whose moveset was mostly made up for Smash, returns. Sakurai obviously likes the character a lot. That much is obvious; Toon Sheik was found in Brawl's data for goodness sake, and that character didn't even exist in an actual Zelda game.
Now, I'm not exactly an Impa fan, but I feel out of the two Impa's reoccurring status and ACTUAL sheikah blood should allow her the upper hand to represent this sort of moveset over (Ocarina of Time) Zelda's crossdressing form. Sheik's moveset is great, don't get me wrong, but the character herself doesn't really deserve more than an Assist Trophy role.
Outside of the Smash she's just another non-reoccurring Zelda NPC amongst many.
I'll probably never think she deserves it honestly unless she appears in future Zelda titles.
