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Hello everyone. I'm here to pop in and present my final set of essays:
The Second Set of Characters to Look Out For in Ultimate DLC
This collection of short essays serves a dual purpose:
1. To argue for the chances of characters not conventionally talked about and provide a break in the current flow of speculation, the same as the essays before, and
2. To serve as a goodbye piece for my time on Smashboards. After posting a final repository of my essays, including this collection, I will be changing the password of this account to a random combination that I will not memorize, and I will furthermore be asking the moderation team of this site to act within their power to further restrict my access to this account.
To put it short, I've grown a lot as a person since first coming back here over two years ago, and I think it's time that I put this chapter of my life behind me to move on to other pursuits. I'll reflect more on my time here in the conclusion of this essay.
Before leaving, however, I'd like to wrap up some loose ends, primarily being to cover some characters I've been meaning to write on for a while now. I won't waste any further time delving into the essays.This was included in all of the my previous Characters to look out for Ultimate DLC essay. As I believe it's still pertinent to this series, I'll be including it here with minor edits.
Smash Bros. is a celebration of gaming. Having grown beyond its humble origins as a Nintendo crossover, it's scope extends far beyond one single company, drawing in famous characters from a variety of companies.
"But tehponycorn!" you say, "Smash Bros. is about Nintendo first!" To which I respond with this 2018 statement from Sakurai:
With this established, in regards to Smash speculation, the sky is the limit. So long as they originate from a video game, they could realistically be in Smash Bros. So then the question I pose is: why do we stick to the same old echoed characters? Time and time again the Smash fanbase has speculated around characters only to be blindsided by picks like Joker, Hero, and Terry. These picks make sense in hindsight, yet prior to their inclusion were supported by a certain few who were laughed off until they were right, at which point these characters were seen as "obvious." In writing these essays I hope to pop the Smash Bubble for a bit and broaden the horizons of speculation. While these essays will surely be lost in the void that is current speculation, I hope the effort is appreciated regardless.View attachment 284538
Farmer (also known as Pete) is, in my opinion, is the likeliest character nobody talks about. While people are quick to mention Travis Touchdown in regards to Marvelous characters, no one ever really considers the Farmer.
To begin with, Story of Seasons (known as Harvest Moon in the West until 2012–it's a long story) is a long-running series with prominent ties to Nintendo. It began on the SNES and has continued to this day, with the most recent release, Friends of Mineral Town, releasing a little under two months ago on the Switch. The series is most notable for its influence on the farming genre of gaming, which has seen a notable resurgence with games such as Stardew Valley achieving incredible success with the same premise. The farming genre is surprisingly popular as of late with Stardew Valley selling a staggering 10 million copies as of 2020. Story of Seasons as a whole is no slouch either when it comes to sales. As of 2011, the series had reached a lifetime sales of almost 1 million units (counting titles in the Rune Factory spinoff series it launched), which it has surely passed by now. Story of Seasons games were the fastest selling game of all time for XSEED (Marvelous' Western publishing brand) not just once, but twice. The most recent release has sold at least 300,000 copies as of July between Japan and North America (with most of those sales being from Japan), meaning that the series still sees prominent success.
Another interesting point for Farmer is Sakurai's acknowledgement of the farming genre itself. In his Famitsu Column titled "Man, Farming is Dangerous," he says exactly what the title says, citing the addictive nature of the simple tasks and the "sense of liberation when you start to get powered up" as positive traits for the genre. I think his focus on the gameplay is interesting, because it provides a basic framework of how a Story of Seasons character could work. Thing something like Frank West in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, except instead of miscellaneous weapons it's farming tools that continually power up and make the Farmer stronger as the match goes on. Moveset potential is far from an argument against Farmer, considering the presence of Villager, and I believe that he could provide a unique edge moveset-wise compared to Villager by focusing on farming actions and a continually strengthening tool set per stock.
Finally, it ought to be noted that Marvelous has with the Smash team to bring Daemon x Machina Spirits to Smash ought to be noted, as it sets a precedent of communication between the two. While many cite this in favor of Travis, I would just as much cite it in favor of Farmer. At the very least, I would consider him a real contender when considering Marvelous characters.View attachment 284540
Sakura got discussion here for like, one week, and then never got talked about again really. Besides that one period and discussion on some surprisingly convincing fake "leaks" Sakura sees little to no discussion, which is rather odd considering how popular the Sakura Wars series is. I suppose it makes sense given that most of the series' popularity stems from Japan, and it's only just now seeing a large push into the West, but regardless Sakura is another one of the likeliest characters that nobody talks about.
Before the release of the 2019 reboot, the series had sold 3.8 million units, and has since sold upwards of 4 million units as of December 2019. This does not factor in continued sales of the reboot as well as sales of the reboot in America, so the series has surely surpassed that number by now. (This figure exists that says the series has sold a lifetime 4.5 million units, but this seems to be in the context of the original series so this may not be an accurate indicator of the series' lifetime sales, especially when compared to official Sega reports.) Prior to the series falling dormant in 2010, Sakura Wars was one of the largest gaming series in Japan, period. Three of the first four games in the series placed among the best selling Sega Saturn and Dreamcast games of all time, and the fourth, the first Sakura Wars game, placed thirtheenth, and also sold out several stores near hours after its release. Considering how popular Sega consoles were in Japan, this is significant. The series also spawned a variety of other popular media, including anime, manga, stage shows, light novels, concerts, CD releases, and a cafe/merchandise store that successfully ran from 1998-2008. The series also received mass critical acclaim at the time, with both journalists and fans praising the game in various ways, be it acclaim or awards. To provide two (of many) examples, the original Sakura Wars was the second most-wanted game in a 1996 Famitsu poll, only after Final Fantasy VII, and in another 2009 Famitsu poll Sakura was rated as the 17th best Japanese video game character, placing ahead of other prominent characters such as Luigi, Sephiroth, Mega Man, and Dante among others. The series has also crossed over with multiple other franchises, including Granblue Fantasy, To Aru Majutsu no Index, Star Ocean (twice), and most notably, multiple Capcom and Namco series as a part of Project X Zone and Project X Zone 2.
Most recently, the series was revived due to large fan demand (with Sakura Wars topping a Sega series revival fan poll in a landslide by a little under 1000 votes). The reboot has done incredibly well sales wise, most recently placing in the top 1/3 (Rank 32) of the Top 100 best-selling games of 2019 according to Famitsu, making it the third best selling Sega title only behind Persona 5 Royal and Mario and Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games. For reference, both of the former games have playable representation in Smash Brothers Ultimate.
The reboot has marked a significant revival of the series, bringing its own manga series, anime series (which was picked up for a simulcast by Funimation), and a stage play (which was unfortunately canceled due to COVID complications). And the developers of the reboot want to keep the momentum going as much as possible, with them stating in a recent interview that they're "actively researching to see where there is high demand and determine what actions will be feasible" and "pushing to make it (a continuation of the new series) happen." Even during its lull, the series was popular within Sega, with the devs stating in an earlier interview that ideas for the series' continuation were being pitched yearly. Sakura Wars is an incredibly popular both within and outside of Sega. Considering the close relationship that Nintendo and Sega share alongside the strong precedent that they have working on Smash together, I could definitely see Sega suggesting Sakura to represent the Sakura Wars series, and Nintendo/Sakurai adding her to the game due to the massive popularity and acclaim surrounding the series.
You know, the image of a series that's incredibly popular in Japan but just recently seeing a push into the West almost makes me think of another series currently in Smash. I swear I talked about it in-depth, but I just can't remember...
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Beats me.
Regardless, I'd say Sakura is one of, if not the most likely Sega characters if we get another one.View attachment 284541
Another viable character often overlooked in favor of a much more popular peer from the same company, in this case Ryu Hayabusa. While I wouldn't say Ryza is as likely as the previous two characters, I would still say she still has a very real chance and is underestimated in common speculation.
To start, the Atelier series is long-running series, with the first game, Atelier Marie, releasing in 1997 for the original Playstation. The series has just recently seen a slew of releases on the Nintendo Switch, with the Arland and Dusk trilogies being ported alongside Ateliers of the World, Lylie and Sadie, Lulua, Ryza, and now Ryza 2 all seeing releases on the system. That's 10 games released on the Switch in the past two years, with an additional one being released in later this year. That's a significant amount of games to release in such a short amount of time, and at the very least shows significant support of the Switch.
Ryza has been a breakout success for Gust (a subsidiary of Koei Tecmo), having the strongest launch for an Atelier game and quickly making pace to become the best-selling game in the series as of this August, blowing the previous best seller out of the water by over 100,000 units. For a typically niche series like Atelier, this is a very big deal. It seems that for some reason or another, Ryza is a stand-out star for Koei, as evidenced by the significant attention she and the first Atelier Ryza received significant attention before release, Ryza has been cross-promoted in other notable Koei series Dead or Alive and Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and having been planned by Gust to headline two mainline Atelier games, of which she is the first Atelier protagonist to do so. Her overwhelming popularity certainly doesn't hurt either.
It should go without saying that the Koei Tecmo has one of, if not the strongest relationship with Nintendo as a third party company. Koei Tecmo has handled two of Nintendo's first party IPs in Hyrule Warriors (which received an improved port on the Nintendo Switch) and Fire Emblem Warriors, and played an integral role in the development of Fire Emblem: Three Houses. In the past, they've also worked together with Nintendo on two of titles in the Fatal Frame series, which has notably received representation in the form of Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water protagonist Yuri Kozukata as an assist trophy. Based on Ryza's prominence and the seeming push for her games within the company, I could definitely see Koei suggest Ryza as a character, and her addition being based on the long-running nature of the Atelier series and the recent, significant support of the Switch system.
Now, I hear you say, "BUT TEHPONYCORN! RYZA ISN'T FOR GOOD BOYS AND GIRLS! THIGHS!!!" to which I respond:
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In an interview discussing Ryza and the wider Atelier series, producer Junzo Hosoi said this in regards to Ryza's design:
Furthermore, Atelier Ryza received a CERO B (Ages 12+) rating, with the sequel receiving a CERO C (Ages 15+) rating due to the addition of water making clothes wet. Ryza's design would barely be a problem, if at all.
Additionally, if it means anything, @Scoliosis Jones had this to say about Atelier Ryza when interviewed:
So there's that too.
Is Ryza the most likely character? No. However, I believe that she's a viable contender for a Koei Tecmo spot if we get one, and has a real place in the conversation pertaining to potential newcomers.View attachment 284543
This is an essay I've been meaning to write since my first set of essays in January, if not earlier. It was actually meant to end my first series series before my school life picked up and prematurely ended it. I think it's fitting that this be my last essay here. I'm sure this could've been better, but as things are I'm happy to end things here.
Despite its prominence in the genre and Riot's large attempt to branch the series out from its PC origins, League doesn't see much mention if any here.
To put it lightly, League of Legends is absolutely massive. As of September 2019 the game drew in 8 million concurrent players every day, and reached more than 100 million people in December 2019 with the League of Legends World Championship. It's one of, if not the most popular PC game, and it is most definitely the most popular eSports game. There is a massive market to draw in to the Nintendo Switch ecosystem by adding a League of Legends character, especially if paired with one or multiple of Riot Game's upcoming console game efforts, such as Wild Rift, Ruined King, and/or CONV/RGENCE among others. While no specific consoles have been announced for any of these projects, I would say it's incredibly likely that at least one, if not all of them end up on the Nintendo Switch, given the system's large success in all markets, which knocks out the flimsy prerequisite of having to appear on a Nintendo console.
I think another thing that ought to be considered here is Tencent, who own 100% stake in Riot Games, the makers of League. Say what you will about them, but they are the world's biggest game company, and Nintendo's partner in trying to bring the Switch to China (which has been unsuccessful so far). If Nintendo were to make another, successful break into China and were trying to appeal to the Chinese market among others, a League of Legends character would be an amazing to do so, given the game's prominence there. A League character would, in general, be a good pick to appeal to a wide variety of demographics given the ubiquitous popularity of League worldwide, and negotiations for one would be relatively simple, given the solid business relationship between Nintendo and Tencent. As for who that character would be, I'll leave that discussion to fans of the series, because I have no clue who's the most popular/widely marketed champion, what with all the movies, music groups and songs, merchandise, and more that the series has spawned. I could spend an entire essay just talking about all of the media this series has spawned, it's ridiculous.
Sakurai has previously stated that the language barrier isn't as significant of a concern as previously thought, and that support from the partner company is seemingly more important. Riot Games did make a League of Legends mod for Smash Bros. Brawl, so it seems like they'd be open to the idea of a League character in Smash. All that would need to happen would be for Nintendo to go for it, which I honestly feel is more likely than people think given League's worldwide popularity and the massive potential Nintendo has to break into new demographics and draw people into the Switch ecosystem.
A League character is one of those characters I feel in my gut is likely, and I honestly believe that people should be aware of the possibility, along with the possibility of all the characters written about in this collection, lest they get surprised like we did with a majority of Fighters Pass 1.That's all folks.
I think there are a lot of characters out there that people don't really consider, and are quick to dismiss when brought up. A majority of my career here has been spent advocating for these characters, and I think I've had the most fun here constructing arguments like these. More than when I was in the leaks group for Smash For speculation, more than when I was the resident mr. leakerman collecting obviously fake 4chan and Twitter "leaks," and definitely more than when I was engaged in petty debates about fictional characters potentially getting into a fun fighting/party game.
Because at the end of the day, that's all I've done. Used my teachings in English and Philosophy to construct arguments and debate for fictional characters in a video game. When put like that, I kind of wonder what the point of it all was. Why type out almost 40,000 words worth of essays for what, in the grand scheme of things, means nothing, especially when the choices have been made far before I even thought to write an essay in the first place? I gain little to nothing from doing so, other than the preservation of skills that I'd naturally retain through my schoolwork otherwise. And yet, I kept coming back to to argue for characters and ****post, and I kept writing longform speculation pieces. Why?
Because of the community.
I'd be lying if I said I didn't care about this community. In the past I never took the concept of online friends seriously, nor did I think I could gain anything from friendships online. And yet, I've been proven wrong on both fronts through my interactions in this community, and subsequent communities that I've been introduced to from here. I've made real friends and learned real lessons from people I met here, and I'll forever be thankful for this website because of that.
But I've outgrown this website, and I've outgrown speculation. I find that as time goes on, I feel more disillusioned and jaded about speculation. It's become more and more combative, and more and more based on the hearsay of insiders. A friend of mine put it best in that, at times, this feels less like a speculation thread and more of a waiting thread. It's stifling, and the knowledge that my attempts at speculation will be drowned out by the wait is disheartening.
Furthermore, my real life continues to become busier as time goes on. On top of classes I have jobs and extracurricular responsibilities. I have assignments, presentations, projects, events, and more that I all have to work on, I have books to read and self-improvement to work on, and I have a massive backlog of video games and shows to go through, and the truth is that I'd much rather put effort into those than trying to swim upstream of speculation like I often feel I'm doing.
I've always felt like my days in speculation were numbered, and now that day has come. It's time for me hang up my mantle and move on. I'll leave this account and my essays as a testament to the time I spent here, and the memories I made along the way.
I wish you all the best of luck in whatever endeavors you pursue, and thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving a nerd like me a place of his own here.
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I’ll miss ya for sure. You and Scoliosis Jones were the two people who really put effort into making these long winded essays and putting your thoughts out in a big manner, and you definitely have been a big part of this community.
Godspeed, you magnificent *******.
