Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[DarthEnderX]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Shadow as an Echo.

 

[SharkLord]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

No offense to Tails, Knuckles, or Amy, but Shadow's the only one who gets an entire year to himself, on top of being the second most popular character in the series. Hell, he practically became the other main character by the mid 2000's, and he was the only Assist Trophy featured in Smash 4's intro (To my knowledge). In the late 2010s I wouldn't be so sure, since the franchise had shoved everyone outside of the core classic cast to the side, and even Shadow didn't get many appearances (Though even then he was popular enough to hype up as DLC for Forces). But Sonic's no longer at risk of dying out (Frontiers could've ended the series if it didn't do well enough, mind you), Shadow's getting a much-hyped movie appearance, and Sega made an entire marketing campaign and a new game just to promote that. Shadow's just the guy, y'know?

I actually have a frame of reference from being at the Sonic Symphony last night.

A lot of Shadow-themed memorabilia was among the crowd and there were relatively more uproars whenever something Shadow related was featured.

There was even a Maria in the row in front of us lol.

If we're being pedantic the most uproar was the two or three times they showed the clip of Maria getting shot

I'm sure there's a good few parents dragged over by their kids to see the Sonic hedgehog and were completely lost regarding. Well. Everything, really

 

[toonito]

My Ideal Smash Roster
no roster limit
Bold are my most wanted characters

Spoiler: Smash

Toad Waluigi Paper Mario
Dixie
Toy Link Impa (Age of Calamity)
Sylux
Bandana Waddle Dee

Meowscarada



( alt) Lyn


Raiden
Tails


Tom Nook
Zero

Mii Spellcaster

Noah/Mio

Chun-Li
Tifa

Octoling


(all 4 return)

Nakoruru

Jin

Bomberman
Sol Badguy
Doom Slayer
Crash Bandicoot
Dante
Leon/Jill
Ryu Hayabusa
2B
Lute/Sophie (Monster Hunter Stories)
Ray MK III
Alphen & Shionne (or Lloyd Irving)
Alex & Blaze
Nightmare (Soul Calibur)
Scorpion (Sub-Zero as echo)

 

[ninjahmos]

Speaking of Shadow, and I may or may not have asked this before, but which of these four songs do you think would be the best one for his reveal trailer?

Throw It All Away
Supporting Me
I Am (All Of Me)
All Hail Shadow

 

[Jave]

I guess another reason to expect so many cuts is the assumption that the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with Switch 1 games, meaning Ultimate will still be playable on the Switch 2, meaning any characters who get cut in the next Smash game will still be playable in Ultimate.

This made me decide to do a bingo card of my own. Out of the characters I picked for my card, which line would you pick?

Alear​	Aigis​	Ayumi Tachibana​	Alucard​	Bandana Waddle Dee​
Chun-Li​	Dixie Kong​	Crash Bandicoot​	Marina ft. Pearl Drone​	Estelle Bright​
Meowscarada​	Kratos​	FREE SPACE​	Lloyd Irving​	Noah & Mio​
Nakoruru​	Oatchi​	Shadow the Hedgehog​	Raven Beak​	Shantae​
Ring Fit Trainee​	Sol Badguy​	Tom Nook​	Master Chief​	Waluigi​

B-column for me. Alear and Chun-Li are big wants, and I'm cool with Meowscarada and RFT. Also Nakoruru is pretty iconic and I like her.

 

[jamesster445]

Speaking of Shadow, and I may or may not have asked this before, but which of these four songs do you think would be the best one for his reveal trailer?

Throw It All Away
Supporting Me
I Am (All Of Me)
All Hail Shadow

Radical Highway

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

If we're being pedantic the most uproar was the two or three times they showed the clip of Maria getting shot

It's scary how accurate the memes are about the fandom in regards to a child getting shot, to be honest. :v

 

[Lionfranky]

I guess another reason to expect so many cuts is the assumption that the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with Switch 1 games, meaning Ultimate will still be playable on the Switch 2, meaning any characters who get cut in the next Smash game will still be playable in Ultimate.

This made me decide to do a bingo card of my own. Out of the characters I picked for my card, which line would you pick?

Alear​	Aigis​	Ayumi Tachibana​	Alucard​	Bandana Waddle Dee​
Chun-Li​	Dixie Kong​	Crash Bandicoot​	Marina ft. Pearl Drone​	Estelle Bright​
Meowscarada​	Kratos​	FREE SPACE​	Lloyd Irving​	Noah & Mio​
Nakoruru​	Oatchi​	Shadow the Hedgehog​	Raven Beak​	Shantae​
Ring Fit Trainee​	Sol Badguy​	Tom Nook​	Master Chief​	Waluigi​

I take bottom row.

 

[fogbadge]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

I would hope it'd be Tails or Eggman. I think I'd be ok with Knuckles or Amy

 

[Diddy Kong]

With just how varied Link has become in the games and spin-offs the close resemblance various versions of him have to each other in Smash does start to feel a bit limiting after a while.

In some ways even more than the lack of a non Tri-force trio fighter, it still seems like a shame that there's loads one can do with Link that don't rely on the notion of neutral special - arrow, forward special boomerang, down special - bomb, up special - sword spin, yet that sort of variance hasn't really happened. Maybe to many that seems intrinsic to every version, but for me with so many tools and weapons Link has had in the last 35 years, there has to be more that can be done with him.

Best Sakurai could do was a Gale Boomerang and Remote Bombs.

I hear you here but, these move sets are almost set in stone and I feel they represent Link well up till today. It's classic, it's relevant, it works.

 

[Potted Plant]

I guess another reason to expect so many cuts is the assumption that the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with Switch 1 games, meaning Ultimate will still be playable on the Switch 2, meaning any characters who get cut in the next Smash game will still be playable in Ultimate.

This made me decide to do a bingo card of my own. Out of the characters I picked for my card, which line would you pick?

Alear​	Aigis​	Ayumi Tachibana​	Alucard​	Bandana Waddle Dee​
Chun-Li​	Dixie Kong​	Crash Bandicoot​	Marina ft. Pearl Drone​	Estelle Bright​
Meowscarada​	Kratos​	FREE SPACE​	Lloyd Irving​	Noah & Mio​
Nakoruru​	Oatchi​	Shadow the Hedgehog​	Raven Beak​	Shantae​
Ring Fit Trainee​	Sol Badguy​	Tom Nook​	Master Chief​	Waluigi​

Alucard to Master Chief

 

[BritishGuy54]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

In terms of Sonic, it’s been between Eggman and Shadow for me for a while. I think Shadow right now seems like the preferred choice, and the one who Sega would want to push.

Eggman is next in line, but I think technical difficulties might keep him out for a while longer.

Then there’s Tails, who has a good claim as Sonic’s sidekick.

I don’t think Knuckles stands a good chance here. He’s gotten less and less focus as time has gone on, and Shadow might fill the role of the rival archetype.

And if Knuckles has slim chances, Amy doesn’t fare much better.

 

[Gengar84]

In terms of Sonic, it’s been between Eggman and Shadow for me for a while. I think Shadow right now seems like the preferred choice, and the one who Sega would want to push.

Eggman is next in line, but I think technical difficulties might keep him out for a while longer.

Then there’s Tails, who has a good claim as Sonic’s sidekick.

I don’t think Knuckles stands a good chance here. He’s gotten less and less focus as time has gone on, and Shadow might fill the role of the rival archetype.

And if Knuckles has slim chances, Amy doesn’t fare much better.

I think Knuckles is being underestimated a bit here. I don’t think he’s the clear favorite but I do think he has a decent chance. Knuckles has his own spinoff show and has historically been really popular with fans. He and Shadow were the ones chosen for an Assist Trophies over both Tails and Eggman as well so that’s another point in his favor. I think Shadow is probably still the most likely but I’d put Eggman, Tails, and Knuckles all in the same boat right beneath him. I could easily see any one of the four being chosen as the next Sonic rep.

 

[Cyberfire]

I hope Shadow would be semi-echo, he has unique abilities and it'd be a waste if he was a 1-for-1 Sonic clone.

In terms of Sonic character probability I'd say it's maybe;
Shadow > Tails/Eggman > Knuckles >>>> Amy

As a Knuckles fan it pains me to think he's so low in the pecking order, but no way would he be the first choice. I could see a scenario he gets in if Tails was there, to complete the trio.

 

[Nabbitfan730]

And I wouldn't want dev time and resources wasted on Single-player content along with Trophies coming back because the former is overwhelmingly not as replayable as the Multiplayer content inherent of Smash (and it goes without saying it's not even close in comparison) and the latter is literally unplayable. I also think Spirits were just a cooler/better collectible overall in how they worked to augment the actual play and feel of the game itself rather than simply as some strict viewable reward collectible.

Late Response but

I don't agree on Ult 2 but do appreciate you saying this. People who wax on about Single-Player is fine and dandy but always forget to realize that Smash is Multiplayer game first and foremost and the single stuff is meant to an extra, not the main focus

Many people clamouring for EiH to return never realize the sacrifice with make to make it him. Something will have to compromise and those want EiH are probably going to be people who Subspace Emissary 2 with everyone, all cutscenes and stages and every mode under the sun which is not possible.

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

Shadow. Especially if this year is any indication with it possibly conceding with Sakurai's Project Plan.

Not only would be the easiest to implement, he is also one of the most popular. Also I want him.

If not him then Eggman.

 

[Gorgonzales]

I don't want Sonic getting an echo in his current state.

 

[Gengar84]

This is just a gut feeling and I’m not actually sure about the specifics of development but I feel like EiH 2 would be significantly easier this time around. In Ultimate, some of those characters hadn’t been around since Melee so they likely required a lot more work updating them for modern times. The same goes with all the graphical updates for returning stages. If the next Smash has roughly equivalent graphics and gameplay, this should be a lot easier this time around. Bringing back the classic characters this time would be as easy as bringing anyone back from the previous entry. Of course, it’s still a lot of work but I think people are overlooking that aspect. That’s one reason I still believe EiH can be done again.

 

[pitchfulprocessing]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

I'd like it to be Eggman, but I think Shadow is definitely the likeliest for all the reasons everybody else has said. I also think it's probably not likely he'd be an echo, on a base level I don't think SEGA would approve unless his animations were completely overhauled to give him his own personality as opposed to copying Sonic, and given Sonic's moveset that itself is a pretty drastic overhaul.

 

[Hypercat-Z]

So, if Sonic were to get a second character, who do you think it would be?

Eggman? Shadow? Tails? Knuckles? Amy?

Nobody talking about Trip The Sungazer:

It would be interesting to have two dragonmorphing characters from different games in the same crossover.

 

[Oracle Link]

There was even a Maria in the row in front of us lol.

We have to shoot her!
Maria has to be shot!
Zats the universal sonic fan rule!
(Please dont shoot real people!)

 

[Gengar84]

Great news for any other Battletoads supporters out there (If I’m not the only one lol). Battletoads & Double Dragon was just released for Nintendo’s online service It’s actually my favorite game from either franchise. It also has one of my all time favorite soundtracks of any game ever. I’d highly recommend anyone here remotely interested give it a try. It can be beaten in less than an hour if you’re good enough so it’s not a huge commitment either. I never expected this to be ported due to its crossover nature from multiple companies. I think this is why it was left off RARE Replay on the X-Box.

I fully realize that the Battletoads are still pretty distant long shots for Smash but this is yet another promising sign. I could actually see them getting chosen if Smash wants a throwback surprise character with a really unique design and moveset.

 

[Hadokeyblade]

Personally i always thought Eggman would fit better as a boss battle in one of his bigger robots

Nobody talking about Trip The Sungazer:
View attachment 394580
It would be interesting to have two dragonmorphing characters from different games in the same crossover.

Nobody talks about her because she's a one off character from a game not many people liked.

Personally i really liked Sonic Superstars dont understand the hatred it got online when it came out but thats just me.

 

[Gengar84]

If we got Zero, would you prefer his Megaman X design or his Zero design? I’m partial to his original MMX design but either could be fun. Could they be made to work as alts of each other?

I’ve been looking into trying out the Zero games and waiting for a sale on the collection. Some of the Mavericks in those games have awesome designs.

 

[fogbadge]

If we got Zero, would you prefer his Megaman X design or his Zero design? I’m partial to his original MMX design but either could be fun. Could they be made to work as alts of each other?

I’ve been looking into trying out the Zero games and waiting for a sale on the collection. Some of the Mavericks in those games have awesome designs.

I like the classic look of a floating sheet with a dog’s head and a pumpkin nose

 

[DarthEnderX]

My Ideal Smash Roster

'busa approved.

In terms of Sonic, it’s been between Eggman and Shadow for me for a while. I think Shadow right now seems like the preferred choice, and the one who Sega would want to push.

Eggman is next in line, but I think technical difficulties might keep him out for a while longer.

Eggman should be a Boss piloting the Death Egg Robot. Not a Fighter.

Knuckles has his own spinoff show

That was absolute dog****.

You know how everyone was expecting the Sonic movies to be terrible, but then they turned out to be surprisingly good?

Well the Knuckles show is exactly as bad as people thought the Sonic movies were going to be.

This is just a gut feeling and I’m not actually sure about the specifics of development but I feel like EiH 2 would be significantly easier this time around.

I'd like to this so, but it would really depend on how much of an upgrade Smash 6 is over Ultimate. Ultimate was pretty much built directly on top of 4, so they were able to reuse a lot of their work.

Great news for any other Battletoads supporters out there (If I’m not the only one lol). Battletoads & Double Dragon was just released for Nintendo’s online service It’s actually my favorite game from either franchise.

Ooh, and Super Dodgeball! It's an ArcSys double feature!

If we got Zero, would you prefer his Megaman X design or his Zero design?

X. More specifically, Command Mission.

 

[Gengar84]

I like the classic look of a floating sheet with a dog’s head and a pumpkin nose

Or the one with the futuristic black helmet and cape with the power to control people’s minds with his eye. Funny enough, both the Code Geass Zero and the Mega Man X Zero are voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch.

 

[MBRedboy31]

I think Shadow would be more like what Wolf is to Fox; he has a few similar special moves to Sonic (such as Homing Attack and at least one of the two rolling moves,) but his normals are completely different.

 

[Laniv]

I like the classic look of a floating sheet with a dog’s head and a pumpkin nose

...is that what his name was? Huh.

Or the one with the futuristic black helmet and cape with the power to control people’s minds with his eye. Funny enough, both the Code Geass Zero and the Mega Man X Zero are voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch.

I prefer the giant white ball with a single blood-red eye

 

[fogbadge]

Or the one with the futuristic black helmet and cape with the power to control people’s minds with his eye. Funny enough, both the Code Geass Zero and the Mega Man X Zero are voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch.

to me he’ll always be Nate Adams

...is that what his name was? Huh.

im a bit of a Disney fan so I just know these things

 

[HyperSomari64]

How about the problematic World War 2-themed rodent?
(Related to a circus bat)

 

[ninjahmos]

If we got Zero, would you prefer his Megaman X design or his Zero design?

Definitely X, but I'd be glad if they gave us both.

 

[Gengar84]

There’s also the ninja from Borderlands 2. If we’re just talking about characters with Zero somewhere in their name, there’s also Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat. I guess Zero is just a really common character name.

 

[ninjahmos]

Let's not forget Major Zero (Metal Gear)

Ain't no way he's getting in.

 

[Ivander]

Nobody talks about her because she's a one off character from a game not many people liked.

Personally i really liked Sonic Superstars dont understand the hatred it got online when it came out but thats just me.

The main consensus I hear is that it's a decent game single-player wise, but it's multiplayer is far from decent and desperately needed more testing and tuning. Also, some of the very notable issues like during the final boss' second phase cutscene, if you are standing in the wrong place when it starts, when the boss comes down and breaks part of the platform, you will die guaranteed.

 

[Gengar84]

Speaking of multiplayer, you know what modern gaming trend that’s really been bothering me? The lack of local co-op play in games. Even historically multiplayer franchises like Dynasty Warriors and Tales of have been dropping their local multiplayer in recent entries. I just enjoy playing games in person with my brother and friends. World of Light in Ultimate wasn’t even multiplayer if I remember correctly. Thats one reason I’m hoping for a mode like Subspace Emissary to come back.

 

[Ivander]

Speaking of multiplayer, you know what modern gaming trend that’s really been bothering me? The lack of local co-op play in games. Even historically multiplayer franchises like Dynasty Warriors and Tales of have been dropping their local multiplayer in recent entries. I just enjoy playing games in person with my brother and friends. World of Light in Ultimate wasn’t even multiplayer if I remember correctly. Thats one reason I’m hoping for a mode like Subspace Emissary to come back.

I can't remember World of Light, but Spirits and Classic Mode had a Local Co-op/2-player option.

 

[Kirby Dragons]

I think Shadow is naturally the next Sonic pick. He's popular and would have an interesting moveset involving manipulation of time and space.

 

[92MilesPrower]

Speaking of Shadow, and I may or may not have asked this before, but which of these four songs do you think would be the best one for his reveal trailer?

Throw It All Away
Supporting Me
I Am (All Of Me)
All Hail Shadow

Supporting Me is Biolizard's theme, rather than really being one of Shadow's. As for the 3 remaining, All Hail Shadow I've always felt is the best fit for a reveal trailer.

 

[SharkLord]

I don't want Sonic getting an echo in his current state.

Yeah, Sonic as he is now is just kinda weird. He has goofy, somewhat awkward moves like the wind-up punch, the donkey kick, and the scissor kick, on top of his millions of spinballs. It kinda sorta works for Sonic and doesn't really work for anyone else. Shadow could easily bring over the Homing Attack and the Spin Dash, but I have a hard time seeing him as an Echo.

Then again we got Dark Samus with none of her cool Phazon powers beyond some surface-level aesthetics so it's not impossible, unfortunately

Personally i always thought Eggman would fit better as a boss battle in one of his bigger robots


Nobody talks about her because she's a one off character from a game not many people liked.

Personally i really liked Sonic Superstars dont understand the hatred it got online when it came out but thats just me.

For me, the problem was that Superstars had two big gimmicks - Multiplayer and the Chaos Powers - And they just didn't really work well together. No multiplayer and the screen's unconfortably zoomed in, go multiplayer and it's just one player everyone else around with the fireball. Also, the bosses weren't nearly as memorable as Mania, and a lot of the songs were just... Weirdly bland for a Sonic game. Jun Senoe's usually a great composer, but he just doesn't work well with Genesis-soundfont synths

 

[ninjahmos]

I'm still hoping Snake makes it into the next game, so that they not only add in his MGS1 design, but also Naked Snake and Old Snake as alts. And the Tuxedo. In fact, I think it may be possible with the Metal Gear franchise getting back on track (somewhat).