If they, instead, are going for "highly requested first party", I don't see a lot of them too. I don't see Bandana Waddle Dee and Dixie bringing much to the table. Waluigi is a mixed bag (maybe if they are giving him some kind of "cheating" mechanic). I'm certainly biased, but if there are first party newcomers, I see first and foremost
Elma, Isaac, Advance Wars rep, Rhythm Heaven rep and Paper Mario coming in, and for all of these, only if they are tied with a
new unannounced game. All these five contenders can bring a gimmick:
- Elma: weapon switching and skells
- Isaac: elemental attunement and/or djinn management
- Advance Wars: like @Cheezey Bites said here, it could be a "summoner" character, summoning somewhat independant units to control the battlefield
- Rhythm Heaven: rhythm can mean precised inputs
- Paper Mario: the "paper" thing is full of potential for gimmicks
You will have understood that I believe in assist trophy upgrade in this second pass (I didn't believe it at all for the first one), and mostly for Isaac
if a Golden Sun game is on its way (which is still within the realm of the possible considering we don't know what are doing the developers Camelot Software). I seriously can't understand how people forget that easily about Isaac when talking about AT upgrade when he was and is still one of the most requested of the "old guard" that didn't get in in the base roster like K-Rool and Ridley, or by DLC like Banjo; tied with Geno; and despite the objective fact that he has what can be asked of a DLC character: fan support (including outcry and buzz before the launch of the game), new gameplay potential, great stage potential, great musics, spirits and, for first-party, the potential to be a promotional pick.