Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Pupp135]

I'm sure this has been discussed before I joined this thread but I'd like to here y'all's opinions on something.

Most speculators in the Smash community really don't seem to understand what a reboot is. I see a lot of "reboot" roster suggestions with like, forty to sixty fighters. And that's just not how that works? You can't "reboot" the franchise and retain fifty or so characters while adding new ones on top. If there was ever a reboot, I doubt they'd go with a "middle of the road" approach and just keep whatever remnants there would be of past Smash Bros.

What I'm basically saying is... Smash should either keep going where it left off, with as little cuts as possible, or go completely scorched earth and start from the ground up, like SF6 and MK1. The middle of the road approach would just be unremarkable because it would just be Smash 4/Ultimate-tier content (60ish fighters, lots of stages presumably, lacking singleplayer modes, and a general lack of new content overall) without what made those games special: the fact that they were even bigger than before. Doing a "reboot" (which is just a regressive sequel going by Smash fans' definition) but not committing to the idea just doesn't seem appealing. Either keep building atop the already existing formula or flip it completely on its head.

I'm imagining a "Smash reboot" with like... 18 characters. That's a pitiful amount compared to Ultimate but imagine all the other content that could be included. Basically a "what if" scenario where Smash was first made in 2024 with no prior past.

I'm aware this is unrealistic and that most people would rather Smash continues with its "quantity comes first" approach, but yeah.

I don’t know what direction the next game will take, but a reboot could be an interesting direction to see where we reimagine the SSB series from the ground up. If we do have a full on reboot with a Melee sized roster, I’d honestly rather have no newcomers on the base roster given the huge number of cuts. Here are some things that I think could help set the reboot apart: an expanded Smash Run with boss fights and a cooperative/competitive option, an expanded Squad Strike, Custom Moves, and improved online (e.g. rank/unranked options, the ability to swap fighters between matches, and permanent tourneys for 1v1/ffa).

I don’t love the number of cuts a reboot would make, but I think this roster could work if we’re really going this route.



While there are a ton of glaring omissions caused by the very limited roster size, my aim with this small roster was to still have a diverse set of franchises, provide unique gameplay mechanics, and maintain third parties.

 

[Garteam]

So, how safe do you think the Ice Climbers are?

They're the only first party franchise to ever be cut (although they were only cut due to limitations). Ice Climber as a game doesn't have the acclaim as other NES games and they aren't the most popular vet. They do provide something completely unique and they are well liked and have some competitive history.

Do you think Popo and Nana are safe?

I'd say that they're moderately safe but could be cut in the event we see something like probably 30+ cuts between Ultimate and the new game. The Icies generally have a lot of legacy in Smash and a one-of-a-kind moveset, but they've historically been a pain in the ass to develop and balance, Ice Climber isn't as notable as the likes of Gyromite, Duck Hunt, or the various Game & Watch games, and they seem to amass players because of the screwy things you can do with having two characters rather than because they're particularly fun to play as or against.

I don't think Popo and Nana would out-prioritize and , but I do think they would likely beat out if it came down to one or the other.

When it comes to ninja-like characters in Smash, a lot of people would ask for Ryu Hayabusa. Hayabusa would be pretty cool, but I kind of would also like to see Joe Musashi (Shinobi) and Strider Hiryu in Smash as well.

On a mostly unrelated note, I also think Arthur (Ghosts 'n Goblins) would be perfect for Smash

I think a lot of people sleep hard on having another third party serve as the next Smash's "retro rep", similar to how was the closest thing Ultimate had to a dedicated NES newcomer. Most of Nintendo's major releases from the '80s are in Smash and those that aren't, like Excitebiker, Takamaru, or Ayumi, are obscure and/or conceptually outlandish enough to work better as a "WTF" curveball than a general retro rep at this point. Someone like Bomberman may be more nostalgic and recognizable to serve as a follow-up to , , and .

I think the aforementioned Bomberman and Ryu Hayabusa are the most likely of this bunch for the base game, but both Arthur and Strider Hiryu would be incredibly fun and make a lot of sense. I do think it's interesting that Sakurai highlighted Arthur's costume and his interest in hearing a new Ghost n' Goblins would be released in Pythra's presentation. I know, I know, this is "Sakurai talked about a thing therefore it is in Smash" logic, but it's also clear Ghost n' Goblins is a series he thinks very highly of.

 

[Louie G.]

I like Arthur a lot, honestly he’d probably win me over very quickly, but I would just be a bit remiss if he got in over some other compelling or more fresh picks from Capcom. It’s one of those cases where there are just too many good options but with Arthur I feel like it’s kinda triple dipping on a niche that Mega Man or Simon are already tackling whereas something like Resident Evil (just the first, most practical example I could think of) would diversify a lot more. Especially within a company with such rich potential.

I wouldn’t extend that criticism to Hayabusa mostly because he’s obviously “the guy” for Koei Tecmo. Capcom has a lot of “the guy”s and there are a handful available that stand out a lot more, are from different genres and eras and fulfill different fighter archetypes and all that stuff. If you’re weighing them all out Arthur lags a bit behind but I think he’d be a fantastic assist trophy.

 

[Noipoi]

Arthur’s great

Just don’t **** with his plane

 

[ninjahmos]

If Dante ever gets into Smash, they should not only include music from Devil May Cry 1 & 3, especially Lock & Load and Devils Never Cry, but also use his designs from both of those games.

Viewtiful Joe would also be pretty fun.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Everyone is Here is a poison on Smash speculation and what's expected of platform fighters.

When it comes to ninja-like characters in Smash, a lot of people would ask for Ryu Hayabusa. Hayabusa would be pretty cool, but I kind of would also like to see Joe Musashi (Shinobi) and Strider Hiryu in Smash as well.

We need a Mii Ninja.

Altaïr [Assassin’s Creed] (converted from Swordfighter)
Goemon [Mystical Ninja] (converted from Swordfighter)
Nakoruru [Samurai Shodown] (converted from Swordfighter)
Ninjara [ARMS] (converted from Brawler)
FF Ninja [Mario Sports Mix]
Joe Musashi [Shinobi]
Rikimaru [Tenchu]
Guy [Final Fight]
Ibuki [Street Fighter]
Taki [SoulCalibur]
Kasumi [Dead or Alive]
Corvo Attano [Dishonored]

 

[HyperSomari64]

We need a Mii Ninja.

Altaïr [Assassin’s Creed] (converted from Swordfighter)
Goemon [Mystical Ninja] (converted from Swordfighter)
Nakoruru [Samurai Shodown] (converted from Swordfighter)
Ninjara [ARMS] (converted from Brawler)
FF Ninja [Mario Sports Mix]
Joe Musashi [Shinobi]
Rikimaru [Tenchu]
Guy [Final Fight]
Ibuki [Street Fighter]
Taki [SoulCalibur]
Kasumi [Dead or Alive]
Corvo Attano [Dishonored]

Add Asuka Senran Kagura the list and i accept it.

 

[RileyXY1]

I don’t know what direction the next game will take, but a reboot could be an interesting direction to see where we reimagine the SSB series from the ground up. If we do have a full on reboot with a Melee sized roster, I’d honestly rather have no newcomers on the base roster given the huge number of cuts. Here are some things that I think could help set the reboot apart: an expanded Smash Run with boss fights and a cooperative/competitive option, an expanded Squad Strike, Custom Moves, and improved online (e.g. rank/unranked options, the ability to swap fighters between matches, and permanent tourneys for 1v1/ffa).

I don’t love the number of cuts a reboot would make, but I think this roster could work if we’re really going this route.



While there are a ton of glaring omissions caused by the very limited roster size, my aim with this small roster was to still have a diverse set of franchises, provide unique gameplay mechanics, and maintain third parties.

I think Lucario or Mewtwo are more likely to come back in such a scenario than Pokémon Trainer.

 

[superprincess]

I don’t know what direction the next game will take, but a reboot could be an interesting direction to see where we reimagine the SSB series from the ground up. If we do have a full on reboot with a Melee sized roster, I’d honestly rather have no newcomers on the base roster given the huge number of cuts. Here are some things that I think could help set the reboot apart: an expanded Smash Run with boss fights and a cooperative/competitive option, an expanded Squad Strike, Custom Moves, and improved online (e.g. rank/unranked options, the ability to swap fighters between matches, and permanent tourneys for 1v1/ffa).

I don’t love the number of cuts a reboot would make, but I think this roster could work if we’re really going this route.



While there are a ton of glaring omissions caused by the very limited roster size, my aim with this small roster was to still have a diverse set of franchises, provide unique gameplay mechanics, and maintain third parties.

This is an interesting take, I do like that you preserved all of the relevant Nintendo series, but I don't know if third parties would stay in this scenario. If the next game were being developed as if it was the first, I think third parties would be on the back burner again and the focus would be on "Nintendo All-Stars".

This is my concept:

Spoiler: Long image

18-character roster, would of course add Mii and a random button at the bottom (Under Charizard).

 

[CapitaineCrash]

I'm sure this has been discussed before I joined this thread but I'd like to hear y'all's opinions on something.

Most speculators in the Smash community really don't seem to understand what a reboot is. I see a lot of "reboot" roster suggestions with like, forty to sixty fighters. And that's just not how that works? You can't "reboot" the franchise and retain fifty or so characters while adding new ones on top. If there was ever a reboot, I doubt they'd go with a "middle of the road" approach and just keep whatever remnants there would be of past Smash Bros.

What I'm basically saying is... Smash should either keep going where it left off, with as little cuts as possible, or go completely scorched earth and start from the ground up, like SF6 and MK1. The middle of the road approach would just be unremarkable because it would just be Smash 4/Ultimate-tier content (60ish fighters, lots of stages presumably, lacking singleplayer modes, and a general lack of new content overall) without what made those games special: the fact that they were even bigger than before. Doing a "reboot" (which is just a regressive sequel going by Smash fans' definition) but not committing to the idea just doesn't seem appealing. Either keep building atop the already existing formula or flip it completely on its head.

I'm imagining a "Smash reboot" with like... 18 characters. That's a pitiful amount compared to Ultimate but imagine all the other content that could be included. Basically a "what if" scenario where Smash was first made in 2024 with no prior past.

I'm aware this is unrealistic and that most people would rather Smash continues with its "quantity comes first" approach, but yeah.

I get where you coming from, but even if we're talking huge reboot, 18 characters is awfully small. The Nickelodeon all star brawl games get more characters than that and they're done in 18 month on a awfully small budget and by a very small team. The sequel even had a small story mode with dialogues and characters interactions. I don't see Smash roster getting smaller than Brawl, and even that is fairly pessimistic I would say. Realistically, I think even a huge reboot would have more or less a Smash 4 roster size.

I'd say that they're moderately safe but could be cut in the event we see something like probably 30+ cuts between Ultimate and the new game. The Icies generally have a lot of legacy in Smash and a one-of-a-kind moveset, but they've historically been a pain in the ass to develop and balance, Ice Climber isn't as notable as the likes of Gyromite, Duck Hunt, or the various Game & Watch games, and they seem to amass players because of the screwy things you can do with having two characters rather than because they're particularly fun to play as or against.

I don't think Popo and Nana would out-prioritize and , but I do think they would likely beat out if it came down to one or the other.

I don't really see how Gyromite is more notable than Ice climber. Ice climber sold more on the NES, and that's not even counting the numerous re-releases and the fact that the game had an arcade version. I also don't get why you say that Ice climber would be higher priority than Duck hunt despite saying that Duck hunt nes game was more notable than Ice climber. Imo Rob would be very low priority, and Ice climber mid priority, and Duck hunt and G&W would always be high priority.

 

[Perkilator]

Oh hey, speaking of cuts…again

 

[RileyXY1]

Here's my roster for such a scenario.



This assumes that it's going back to just Nintendo All-Stars only. It's 28 characters, only slightly bigger than Melee's roster. Isabelle stayed because she's too big of a fixture of modern Nintendo to cut, Captain Falcon and Ness are still actively promoted despite their franchises not getting any new games in over a decade so they get to stay, and Robin stayed because I wanted to rep Awakening due to its very important role in FE's history.

 

[Megadoomer]

I'm not a fan of the idea of an 18 character roster, but if I had to trim it down...





Not thrilled with how it turned out (it sucks a lot of the fun/interesting choices out of the line-up - Captain Falcon, Fox, Ness, and that's just from the original 12), and I'm working under the assumption that with such a small roster, Namco-Bandai wouldn't be needed to help with development. (I figure they'd still try to get some third party characters back, either in the base game or in DLC, since their inclusion helps to forge bonds between Nintendo and other companies)

I'll put my reasoning under a spoiler tag:

Spoiler

Mario, Pikachu, Link - they go without saying; they're the faces of Nintendo's biggest franchises.

Bowser, Ganondorf - we could use some heavyweights for gameplay variety, and they're the villains of those aforementioned biggest franchises.

Peach, Zelda - if any series is going to have three characters, it's going to be Mario, and I had a tough time with leaving out the namesake of the Zelda series.

Greninja - I haven't followed Pokemon for a while (stopped after Ruby; only got back into it with Violet), but by my understanding, Greninja is the most popular Pokemon. Plus, for the sake of variety, I wanted to avoid having two gen. 1 Pokemon.

Samus - Metroid had a resurgence with Metroid Dread; I had to cut a bunch of the original 12, but Dread alone seems to justify bringing Samus back.

Ridley - I had to cut a lot, and I mean A LOT of characters that got in due to sheer fan demand - Mega Man, K. Rool, Sora, Banjo... I figured I should keep at least one of them.

Marth - while I don't know much about pre-Awakening Fire Emblem, Marth is the face of the franchise.

Robin - Awakening saved Fire Emblem, and Robin has the most unique gameplay of the FE cast. (I suppose I could have combined both of these points by having Lucina in here instead of Marth and Robin, but cutting seven Fire Emblem characters seemed excessive)

Inkling - Splatoon was a massive hit on the Wii U, of all consoles, and it's gotten two sequels. (I could have brought back Shulk, or Pyra and Mythra, since Xenoblade had a similar trajectory, but I'm very quickly running out of space)

Donkey Kong - another heavyweight, a historic Nintendo franchise, and an extremely popular yet surprisingly neglected series. Out of any Mario-adjacent series, I feel like people would be the most furious if the entire Donkey Kong franchise was cut.

Isabelle - the new face of Animal Crossing - if I had to trim AC down to one character, I'd go with her.

Kirby - to be honest, I almost forgot about him, but it feels like he has to be here given how much of Kirby is in Smash Bros.' DNA - it's a shame that I couldn't fit Meta Knight or Dedede as well.

Sonic - the way I see it, unless third party content is getting cut from Smash entirely, Sonic's staying. (and it doesn't seem to make business sense to cut third party content entirely)

Ryu - Capcom seems to have no problem with including as much content from their games as possible in Smash, and if they had to choose one character, I feel like they'd go with Ryu over Mega Man.

After typing all of that out, I'm tempted to replace Marth with Lucina and include Shulk instead of Robin, though I feel like that might be going too far in terms of trimming down the Fire Emblem line-up.

Like I said, not really a fan of this many cuts, and realistically, I don't think Nintendo would ever go that far unless they're actively trying to kill the series, but I figure it's an interesting experiment to see who I can justify with such limited space.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

I don't really see how Gyromite is more notable than Ice climber. Ice climber sold more on the NES, and that's not even counting the numerous re-releases and the fact that the game had an arcade version. I also don't get why you say that Ice climber would be higher priority than Duck hunt despite saying that Duck hunt nes game was more notable than Ice climber. Imo Rob would be very low priority, and Ice climber mid priority, and Duck hunt and G&W would always be high priority.

R.O.B. has more historical significance in contributing to saving the video game market after the Video Game Crash of '83 by being a Trojan horse getting the NES in households by being disguised as an interactive toy.

Nintendo also puts R.O.B. in many other games as cameo, far more than what Ice Climbers got.

 

[waddledeeonredyoshi]

Oh hey, speaking of cuts…again

Even with Delz purging the roster all the way down to 12 he still keeps Yoshi of all characters. And in comparison to Thorgi just casually cutting him like it's no big deal that's kind of funny.

 

[ninjahmos]

I wouldn't be opposed to having some more first-party characters. (E.G. Takamaru, Ayumi Tachibana, Skull Kid, Ryota Hayami, Ricky Winterborn, Saki Amamiya, Isaac)

 

[KingofPhantoms]

R..O.B. has more historical significance in contributing to saving the video game market after the Video Game Crash of '83 by being a Trojan horse getting the NES in households by being disguised as an interactive toy.

Nintendo also puts R.O.B. in many other games as cameo, far more than what Ice Climbers got.

As a Pikmin fan, I can confirm:

(That's not to mention that the blocks from Stack-Up also show up among the game's treasures.)

 

[Zerp]

Cuts are always going to cause conflict. So it got me wondering, hey, if I was in Nintendo's shoes, how would I ever tackle this? And then it struck me, there's actually a way I could cut characters without taking any of the blame for it. See, I've got the best idea ever: Every veteran reveal should show off two characters, with a small catch.

What's the catch? It's simple, the audience gets to vote on who they want more. That way, only one character stays, and the other just goes bye-bye forever. Now, people would stop accusing us of bias, they'd just all fight each other. And the best part is, it cuts on marketing costs too! People's hate for the rest of the fandom and their choices will fuel interaction perpetually. If it's always trending on social media, then there's no need to spend money on making the trailers pretty, it hypes itself. Truly, this is a foolproof plan and can only bring good things for Smash. /s

 

[kylexv]

Oh hey, speaking of cuts…again

At the point in the video where he's cut half of the roster.
Honestly, this might be the least offensive of these "Cut the roster in half" hypotheticals I've seen, as only a few choices bug me.

Spoilers for the vid, obviously:

Spoiler: My Qualms

Probably the most surprising one from an outsider perspective is the cutting of the Miis, but honestly, these characters aren't guaranteed to come back in my book. It all depends on if the Switch successor has support for Miis, which I don't think is guaranteed given how much the Switch has sidelined Miis compared to the previous two consoles. Then again, if the next console does have Miis, I think it's a safe bet that they come back.

Keeping R.O.B. over Game and Watch is strange, but I understand it. I'd personally give G&W seniority here.

Cutting Mega Man and Bayonetta also irks me slightly, given how popular of inclusions those two characters are. Especially Bayonetta since she had two Switch-exclusive games published by Nintendo - she's essentially third-party due to a technicality.

Out of the first party characters remaining, I feel that Rosalina and Aegis are the ones that really shouldn't be there. Here's the changes I'd make from what Delzethin had:

• -->
• -->
• -->
• --> or [Maybe...]

Not bad right? Usually I have more issues with these types of rosters, but this one I mostly agree with.

Seems like we're about to go even further beyond, though. I'll be back soon with more thoughts.

 

[Noipoi]

Cuts are always going to cause conflict. So it got me wondering, hey, if I was in Nintendo's shoes, how would I ever tackle this? And then it struck me, there's actually a way I could cut characters without taking any of the blame for it. See, I've got the best idea ever: Every veteran reveal should show off two characters, with a small catch.

What's the catch? It's simple, the audience gets to vote on who they want more. That way, only one character stays, and the other just goes bye-bye forever. Now, people would stop accusing us of bias, they'd just all fight each other. And the best part is, it cuts on marketing costs too! People's hate for the rest of the fandom and their choices will fuel interaction perpetually. If it's always trending on social media, then there's no need to spend money on making the trailers pretty, it hypes itself. Truly, this is a foolproof plan and can only bring good things for Smash. /s

People would just actually die. There would be murders.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

Cuts are always going to cause conflict. So it got me wondering, hey, if I was in Nintendo's shoes, how would I ever tackle this? And then it struck me, there's actually a way I could cut characters without taking any of the blame for it. See, I've got the best idea ever: Every veteran reveal should show off two characters, with a small catch.

What's the catch? It's simple, the audience gets to vote on who they want more. That way, only one character stays, and the other just goes bye-bye forever. Now, people would stop accusing us of bias, they'd just all fight each other. And the best part is, it cuts on marketing costs too! People's hate for the rest of the fandom and their choices will fuel interaction perpetually. If it's always trending on social media, then there's no need to spend money on making the trailers pretty, it hypes itself. Truly, this is a foolproof plan and can only bring good things for Smash. /s

It's not appropriate for admins to post terrorism like this.

 

[KingofPhantoms]

Cuts are always going to cause conflict. So it got me wondering, hey, if I was in Nintendo's shoes, how would I ever tackle this? And then it struck me, there's actually a way I could cut characters without taking any of the blame for it. See, I've got the best idea ever: Every veteran reveal should show off two characters, with a small catch.

What's the catch? It's simple, the audience gets to vote on who they want more. That way, only one character stays, and the other just goes bye-bye forever. Now, people would stop accusing us of bias, they'd just all fight each other. And the best part is, it cuts on marketing costs too! People's hate for the rest of the fandom and their choices will fuel interaction perpetually. If it's always trending on social media, then there's no need to spend money on making the trailers pretty, it hypes itself. Truly, this is a foolproof plan and can only bring good things for Smash. /s

Breaking news: video game world shaken by Mario being cut from the latest installment of Super Smash Bros. because people wanted Luigi more.

 

[MBRedboy31]

As a Pikmin fan, I can confirm:

(That's not to mention that the blocks from Stack-Up also show up among the game's treasures.)

For the record, Ice Climber also appeared as a Pikmin treasure.

(I get that pretty much everyone cares way more about Pikmin 2 than Hey Pikmin, but I thought it was worth pointing out anyway, for anyone who didn’t know.)

 

[kylexv]

At the point in the video where he's cut half of the roster.
Honestly, this might be the least offensive of these "Cut the roster in half" hypotheticals I've seen, as only a few choices bug me.

Spoilers for the vid, obviously:

Spoiler: My Qualms

Probably the most surprising one from an outsider perspective is the cutting of the Miis, but honestly, these characters aren't guaranteed to come back in my book. It all depends on if the Switch successor has support for Miis, which I don't think is guaranteed given how much the Switch has sidelined Miis compared to the previous two consoles. Then again, if the next console does have Miis, I think it's a safe bet that they come back.

Keeping R.O.B. over Game and Watch is strange, but I understand it. I'd personally give G&W seniority here.

Cutting Mega Man and Bayonetta also irks me slightly, given how popular of inclusions those two characters are. Especially Bayonetta since she had two Switch-exclusive games published by Nintendo - she's essentially third-party due to a technicality.

Out of the first party characters remaining, I feel that Rosalina and Aegis are the ones that really shouldn't be there. Here's the changes I'd make from what Delzethin had:

• -->
• -->
• -->
• --> or [Maybe...]

Not bad right? Usually I have more issues with these types of rosters, but this one I mostly agree with.

Seems like we're about to go even further beyond, though. I'll be back soon with more thoughts.

Finished the vid.

Actually don't have much else to say other than wondering why the hell he kept Greninja around for so long. I think people put too much stock in that poll from 2020.

 

[WeirdChillFever]

18 characters?








Some honorable mentions to:
-Alear as the Fire Emblem rep with the Engage “stands” being different Fire Emblem characters.
-Takamaru or Excitebiker as a “re-imagined” retro similar to Pit. Eventually gave the role to Captain Falcon.

Spoiler: Character Breakdown

• Mario would mostly be rebalanced to be the very basic fighter, paring down more gimmicky moves like Cape in favor of giving him solid all-round tools by buffing his Fireballs, giving him a burst movement option in a Mario Kart Side Special and a strong all-round basic button in Star Spin.
• Luigi is the first grappler on the roster, now fully armed with the Poltergust to weave his way in with windboxes combined with his usual freaky-deaky physics
• Yoshi gets a bit of a sniping role with his Eggs, which are an all-round tool that give Yoshi a ranged tool that can hinder opponents from all angles in order to lure them closer for his combo game to be effective in a bait-and-punish playstyle.
• Link remains the general projectile spacing character, with a few simple, but multi-purpose tools to give people a taste of stage control, but with more meaningful synergy between his projectiles and his sword strikes than someone like Yoshi.
• Zelda, now as her Tears of the Kingdom reincarnation, becomes a very technical character with the Rewind and Stasis ability, giving her the ability to blip her Bow of Light arrows back and forth. Link focusses more on keep-away and spacing, when Zelda is more of a trapper.
• Marth remains the spacer of the bunch, but gets a Flashing Blade ability that allows him to repeat moves by buffering them at the cost of more end lag.
• Pikachu remains the tiny, lightweight rushdown fighter he is, now armed with more “stun” type moves that allow him to go for devastating blasts once the opponent is stunned.
• Pokémon Trainer stays as he is, giving him a focus on bringing three archetypical playstyles to the table at once.
• DK is the second grappler on the roster and also serves as the de facto heavyweight on the roster, taking the Tough Guy spiel from Bowser.
• Samus is the heavyweight zoner, combining heavy artillery with strong physical strikes akin to Snake.
• Kirby is the aerial ace now that Jigglypuff is out of the picture. With faster air speed and multiple jumps, Kirby never has to touch solid ground, but has trouble landing hits due to his range, and landing because of his fall speed.
• Shulk keeps his Monado Arts, making him an adaptable fighter.
• Olimar retains his Pikmin as an overwhelming swarming fighter.
• Isabelle once again falls in the stage control category together with Link, Zelda, Samus and Yoshi, but Isabelle focusses more on stationary traps rather than projectile keepaway.
• Inkling also focusses on stage control, but not to keep-away, instead controlling turf in order to boost their own mobility to turn into a terrifying rushdown fighter if they have stage control.
• Captain Falcon lives and dies by burst mobility, strongarming himself through defenses with armored rushes
• Miis are customizable, being able to mix-and-match between Brawler, Swordfighter and Gunner moves
• Sonic is fast

 

[Zerp]

Out of the retros, I honestly think the priority order would go something like:
> > =

Duck Hunt is Duck Hunt, don't need to explain that. Nintendo loves and I mean LOVES R.O.B.. Game and Watch and Icies both got in before the other two but I feel like their legacy isn't as strong and they don't get referenced as often as R.O.B. and Duck Hunt Dog. Would be shocked if any of them get cut on a normal roster though, feels like the kinda thing that'd only come up if we're getting like, idk, 30+ cuts or so?

People would just actually die. There would be murders.

I doubt it'd go that far but yeah, in all seriousness it'd be really bad for the community. And it wouldn't be a sound way to decide characters at all. Aannnnddd making your community so divisive on purpose would be damaging for the brand too. The good news is it's such a bad idea they probably wouldn't ever do that, unless Nintendo actually went insane or something lol

Breaking news: video game world shaken by Mario being cut from the latest installment of Super Smash Bros. because people wanted Luigi more.

I wonder if they'd have to change the title to "Super Smash Bro." considering there's only one brother now.

 

[Schnee117]

Breaking news: video game world shaken by Mario being cut from the latest installment of Super Smash Bros. because people wanted Luigi more.

Chaos ensues when Dr Mario is, however, kept in.

 

[kylexv]

Chaos ensues when Dr Mario is, however, kept in.

That's...kind of what Smash 4 speculation felt like after the ESRB leak lol

 

[KingofPhantoms]

That's...kind of what Smash 4 speculation felt like after the ESRB leak lol

I particularly remember the very brief days of "Shulk's render is just a photoshopped Little Mac."

 

[smashkirby]

I wouldn't be opposed to having some more first-party characters. (E.G. Takamaru, Ayumi Tachibana, Skull Kid, Ryota Hayami, Ricky Winterborn, Saki Amamiya, Isaac)

You and me both, pal. I mean... Kensuke Kimachi, Akari Hayami, Fighter Hayabusa, Starman, Lark, Captain Rainbow, Andy, Sami, Yuka, Karate Joe, Excitebiker, Goku, Donbe and Hikari, Barbara, Kururin, Ray, etc..

I legit wouldn't mind any of them.

 

[ninjahmos]

Oh hey, speaking of cuts…again

Just watched the whole video.

I'm not sure what to say...

 

[Ivander]

I do hope the next Smash Bros. has at least 3 new 1st Party franchises. I can understand Ultimate getting only 2 due to Everyone is Here and focusing alot on 3rd Parties for the DLC, but new 1st Parties, especially new franchises/games, have always been exciting for me. Between:

• New franchises like Ring Fit Adventure and Astral Chain
• A revitalisation of some old franchises like Famicom Detective Club, Advance Wars and Another Code
• Golden Sun still being a notable fan favorite franchise
• and a bunch of classics still not in yet like Mysterious Murasame Castle, Mach Rider and Balloon Fighter

I'm hoping that Sakurai and Nintendo will still be open to and surprise us with a decent amount of new arrivals.

 

[ninjahmos]

You know who I think would be an interesting (though rather obscure) first-party pick? Mike Jones from StarTropics.

Imagine a Smash remix of the Dungeon Theme...

 

[SubspaceJigglypuff]

Cuts are always going to cause conflict. So it got me wondering, hey, if I was in Nintendo's shoes, how would I ever tackle this? And then it struck me, there's actually a way I could cut characters without taking any of the blame for it. See, I've got the best idea ever: Every veteran reveal should show off two characters, with a small catch.

What's the catch? It's simple, the audience gets to vote on who they want more. That way, only one character stays, and the other just goes bye-bye forever. Now, people would stop accusing us of bias, they'd just all fight each other. And the best part is, it cuts on marketing costs too! People's hate for the rest of the fandom and their choices will fuel interaction perpetually. If it's always trending on social media, then there's no need to spend money on making the trailers pretty, it hypes itself. Truly, this is a foolproof plan and can only bring good things for Smash. /s

...I was about to go really in depth on how insane this idea is, and then after a bunch of typing, only then I saw the /s. You ****in got me man.

 

[Godzillathewonderdog]

I don’t like heavily cutting down the Smash roster, it’s always unsatisfying, so instead I just made a tier list from most likely to return to most likely to be cut. This is not taking DLC into account.

Some tough choices were made, some of which I may not even fully agree with, but I spent enough time debating myself already, so it is what it is.

Also hi! It’s been a while!

 

[CapitaineCrash]

Probably the most surprising one from an outsider perspective is the cutting of the Miis, but honestly, these characters aren't guaranteed to come back in my book. It all depends on if the Switch successor has support for Miis, which I don't think is guaranteed given how much the Switch has sidelined Miis compared to the previous two consoles. Then again, if the next console does have Miis, I think it's a safe bet that they come back.

Tbh I feel like at this point the only thing the Miis have going for them is the fact that they can sell dlc costume. The fact that Miis weren't even the main character of the Switch sports game really makes me think that Nintendo does not really care about them anymore.

 

[Hadokeyblade]

I do hope the next Smash Bros. has at least 3 new 1st Party franchises. I can understand Ultimate getting only 2 due to Everyone is Here and focusing alot on 3rd Parties for the DLC, but new 1st Parties, especially new franchises/games, have always been exciting for me. Between:

• New franchises like Ring Fit Adventure and Astral Chain
• A revitalisation of some old franchises like Famicom Detective Club, Advance Wars and Another Code
• Golden Sun still being a notable fan favorite franchise
• and a bunch of classics still not in yet like Mysterious Murasame Castle, Mach Rider and Balloon Fighter

I'm hoping that Sakurai and Nintendo will still be open to and surprise us with a decent amount of new arrivals.

In the current age of Smash newcomers i really dont know how they would go about putting a Detective Club character in there.

The main cast of the series arent as goofy or unique as something like say Ace Attorney or Professor Layton, they are just teenaged detectives, i dont know what you could do with them.

 

[DarthEnderX]

If forced to do cuts, my methodology is "one character per series".

 

[CannonStreak]

If forced to do cuts, my methodology is "one character per series".

View attachment 387250

Um...

Is that Luigi, as in the guy who is from the same series as Mario? What's going on?

 

[Noipoi]

Um...

Is that Luigi, as in the guy who is from the same series as Mario? What's going on?

Actually before being put into the Super Mario franchise as Mario’s brother, Luigi was the star of the obscure Nintendo arcade classic (Luigi’s Divorce Lawyer Simulator)