Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Guynamednelson]

But with the nature of R.O.B. that may be excusable.

At the same time, when it comes to dormant IPs this wall seems to focused on either A. Stuff Miyamoto worked on, or B. Stuff from the NES era.

ROB may not be A but he is definitely B.

 

[MBRedboy31]

Enlight me about the NASB2's campaign mode, please.

So, it consists of a series of fights, some being against regular characters, some against hordes of mooks, and occasionally a boss fight. The fights are listed on a mostly linear track with some branching paths (kinda like Smash 3DS classic mode.) Every so often you meet an NPC that gives you an upgrade that lasts the rest of the run, or sells you upgrades for currency that you collect from doing fights. If you run out of stocks, you game over, lose your upgrades and currency, and must start over, but you retain a different type of currency to buy permanent upgrades for your next attempt. You start with only SpongeBob unlocked in this mode, but defeating a character in a fight that you haven’t defeated before unlocks that character for you to use.

 

[fogbadge]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

what a shame chibi doesn't seem to have made the mural, i don't think.

important thing is toad, toadette and cap are there

 

[dream1ng]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Nice little extra small spot for Waluigi lol

That's a wall made by Nintendo alright

 

[chinkuru]

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?
[/QUOTE]
Tingle is in , so OK!




I thinking that Nintendo should create a walk of fame around the museum to honor personalities such as Iwata, Miyamoto, Yokoi, Sakurai, Tajiri, Itoi, Yamauchi, Sakamoto, Koizumi, Kondo, Aonuma, Imamura, Sugimori, Masuda, Nishida...

 

[HyperSomari64]

I thinking that Nintendo should create a walk of fame around the museum to honor personalities such as Iwata, Miyamoto, Yokoi, Sakurai, Tajiri, Itoi, Yamauchi, Sakamoto, Koizumi, Kondo, Aonuma, Imamura, Sugimori, Masuda, Nishida...

Praying if they acknowledge people that work(ed) on Third Party companies (Ōshima, Iwatani, Kojima) due to their connections and legacy with Nintendo. But that's very unlikely

 

[Guynamednelson]

Nice little extra small spot for Waluigi lol

That's a wall made by Nintendo alright

That joke would work better if there weren't characters who are in Smash as fighters who only got a 1x1 tile too.

Speaking of tile sizes, isn't it kind of odd that Star Fox was one of the IPs they thought was worthy of a 2x2 tile? All the other IPs that got 2x2 or 3x3 tiles make perfect sense for modern Nintendo, even DK makes more sense to get one nowadays than Star Fox.

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

I suspect Miyamoto and other prominent Nintendo figures do genuinely love Star Fox even if they struggle to know what to do with it.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Yooooo my boy Dr. Lobe in Smash?

I do think this mural is kinda funny for one specific reason, tbh. Donbe from Shin Onigashima is underneath Pikachu, but also two down from the MK8 Mario render in the bottom right is Donbe again alongside Hikari in their appearances from Shin Onigashima Kouhen (which I believe is their upgraded Spirit in Ultimate).

I dunno, it's just kinda funny to me to see Donbe there twice lol

 

[Hypercat-Z]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Let me be as clear as I can:

 

[Laniv]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

The Triforce is such a broken overpowered character, it needs to be nerfed

 

[fogbadge]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

 

[Swamp Sensei]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Who is the guy on the far right side next to Peach, Link's Crossbow Training and Super Mario Wonder Mario?

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

Pikmin's a distinct franchise and it so uniquely Nintendo it makes complete sense to be highlighted but it's got ways to go before being a more significant IP than Donkey Kong, Metroid, or Fire Emblem.

 

[HyperSomari64]

Who is the guy on the far right side next to Peach, Link's Crossbow Training and Super Mario Wonder Mario?

A Famicom Detective Club dude

 

[Swamp Sensei]

I find it really interesting that Another Code / Trace Memory of all things in on there.

Maybe the remake sold better than we thought? Or maybe someone in Nintendo loves the franchise.

 

[NotGenerico]

Decided to try my hand at next game's base roster newcomers and this is what I came up with. Detailed explanation for each character below:

Spoiler: Reasoning

Waluigi: He's an extremely popular character in general and I'm sure the negative reaction to his Assist Trophy confirmation reached Nintendo. I can see him being the Ridley of the next game, as in one of the first newcomers announced to get people hyped for the game. His moveset could be used as a way to showcase all of the Mario spinoffs like Mario Party, Mario Kart and all of the sport games.

Dixie Kong: Dixie has had bad luck getting into Smash Bros. She was planned to be paired with Diddy back in Brawl, but that didn't happen for one reason or another. In Ultimate, the Donkey Kong series finally got a new character, but unfortunately for Dixie, it came in the form of King K. Rool. Now, she's put in the position as the most logical Donkey Kong newcomer. It just makes sense to me for her to finally be added in the next game. As for her moveset, at worse she could be a semi-clone similar to Isabelle, but I think she could be made to be more unique than that.

Sidon: The Zelda Series hasn't had a newcomer since Brawl and it feels like it's about time for it to get one. While I'd like to see Skull Kid or Midna, I feel like a BotW/TotK character is what Nintendo would go for. Out of those characters, Sidon has been the most consistently popular out of all them. As a Zora, he'd stand out among all the Zelda characters, too. He'd also be Smash's first trident user and I think that's pretty neat.

Bandana Waddle Dee: Like Zelda, the Kirby series hasn't gotten a new character since Brawl. It feels even more egregious somehow to me. Maybe it's because unlike Zelda, Kirby hasn't gotten stages that represent the newer games in the series? Whatever the reason, I feel like it's time for the Kirby series to get a new character and Bandana Waddle Dee has essentially become the fourth main character after the trio already in Smash. He'd be the second spear user after Byleth, too.

Isaac: Fun fact: Golden Sun is now older than the Ice Climbers when they got into Melee. While this qualifies Isaac as a retro rep, that's not my reasoning for his inclusion. Golden Sun somehow got 8 spirits in Ultimate, the most out of all non-playable series in Ultimate. It makes me think that Nintendo knows people have fond memories of Golden Sun and I truly believe that Isaac would have gotten in Ultimate if the base roster had more newcomers. While Isaac does wield a sword, I think he'd easily stand out compared to other sword users thanks to his use of Psynergy. There's no character in Smash who uses Earth magic and Isaac could fill that niche, alongside some other non-Earth based Psynergy like Move. Felix can come along as an echo, too.

Octoling: I haven't played Splatoon yet and I still know that it has become a massive franchise, so much so that only having one character in the next Smash would seem strange to me. From what I understand, Inkling's moveset is currently only based on weapons from Splatoon 1. Keeping that in mind, weapons from Splatoon 2 and 3 could be used to give the Octolings a unique moveset.

Meowscarada: This could be any Pokemon from the latest Pokemon generation at the time the roster is decided, I just used Meowscarada as something of a placeholder. Every Smash Bros has at least one Pokemon newcomer and the next one won't be an exception. I do think Meowscarada makes a lot of sense as a Gen IX rep, though. The way it's been pushed reminds me of the push Incineroar got back in their debut generation. Liko from the Pokemon Horizons anime even has Sprigatito as her starter.

Takamaru: I like NES retro characters and I like Takamaru the most out of all possible retro reps. Only Star Man from Pro Wrestling comes close. Takamaru was considered before, but didn't make it because of his game's obscurity. This was mostly due to the lack of an international release, but it has now released outside of Japan and is even part of the NES games offered by the Nintendo Switch Online service, improving Takamaru's chances a bit. He's still a little obscure, but I just like the idea of a samurai character in Smash.

Ayumi: Ayumi is a very interesting case. As many people know, she was once briefly considered as a playable character for Melee, but was decided against due to lack of relevance outside of Japan. More than 20 years later and the Famicom Detective Club games have not only gotten localized remakes, but an actual sequel. Ayumi is now relevant and her inclusion could finally get Smash Bros a chance to do a Visual Novel character.

Legionis: Astral Chain was a fairly succesful game and Nintendo bought the rights to it from Platinum. This makes me think that Nintendo probably plans on turning it into a series and if that's the case, getting a Smash Bros character makes too much sense. The moveset for the Legionis is oozing with potential, too. A puppet fighter that can attack from afar with a Stand is such a cool concept and is what I thought we'd get when Joker was announced.

Ring Fit Trainee: Never played Ring Fit Adventure, but I know it sold extremely well. As one of the biggest successes on the Switch, it'd make sense for it to get playable representation in the next Smash Bros. From the gameplay I've seen, the Ring Fit Trainee could probably have a fun moveset that differs from the Wii Fit Trainer.

Geno: Yeah, I think he's happening next game. I'm not the biggest Super Mario RPG fan, preferring the other Mario RPGs, but the remake has sold very well, even better than the original release, making me think that it's finally Geno's time. In my eyes, his lack of relevance has always been one of his biggest obstacles, alongside competition from other Square Enix properties. He's now relevant again and Square's biggest franchises are already in the game. Nier Automata and Chrono Trigger are the Square Enix series that I feel are missing, but they seem like something that'd be reserved for DLC, if they even happen. In contrast to those two, Geno could easily be a base game character, only needing a couple of songs from SMRPG added to older Mario stages. His moveset could probably have a timed hit mechanic, dealing more damage if timed correctly.

Shadow: The Sonic franchise is overdue for a second rep and Shadow has been popping off lately, what with the Sonic 3 movie and Sonic x Shadow Generations. He wouldn't be a clone at all, either. That new game has given him some really cool moves, but even without them, he could be very different than Sonic.

Ryu Hayabusa: Koei Tecmo and Nintendo have a very good relationship that hasn't resulted in a character yet and I feel it's time for them to get in. Hayabusa could play a similar role to Simon Belmont as a sort of retro NES third party character. His moveset potential is huge, too. The only thing I'm absolutely sure is that the Izuna drop must be a command grab so he's able to use it midair.

 

[Shinuto]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Heeey! Ayumi is on there. AND Wii Fit!

 

[fogbadge]

Who is the guy on the far right side next to Peach, Link's Crossbow Training and Super Mario Wonder Mario?

A Famicom Detective Club dude

his name is Taro btw

I find it really interesting that Another Code / Trace Memory of all things in on there.

Maybe the remake sold better than we thought? Or maybe someone in Nintendo loves the franchise.

Hey let’s not question a good thing

 

[HyperSomari64]

Found nothing from XC3 in the mural.
Or maybe there's a second one with Noah, Mio and SNES/N64/GCN/GBA/DS era characters (plus some characters from obscure/one-off Wii/3DS/Wii U games, this also includes Tokyo Mirage Sessions)

 

[Laniv]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

Notably, the second largest images are characters from Mario Kart, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Metroid, and Star Fox

 

[HyperSomari64]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

Notably, the second largest images are characters from Mario Kart, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Metroid, and Star Fox

So, the Original Eight?
and the Secret Four are Inkling, Villager, Olimar and... Toadette? (she was a Mario Kart character first)

 

[Opossum]

For fun, here's a tally.

First Party characters in Smash that AREN'T on the wall:


In addition there's also the Koopalings and Alph. Of note, Popo also isn't there, but that's because only Nana has official art from Ice Climber, so that makes sense. The same is true for R.O.B. as well.

And also, First Party Characters (or "Characters" in some cases) on the wall that aren't playable in Smash:

Spoiler

Waluigi
Captain Toad
Toadette
Toad
Paper Mario
Pauline
Kamek
Cappy
Sidestepper
Dry Bones
Koopa Troopa
Goomba
Boo
Hammer Bro
Chain Chomp
Lakitu
Lumalee
Professor E. Gadd
Polterpup
Talking Flower
Mushroom
Nabbit
Foreman Spike
Spike
Shy Guy
Baby Mario
Poochy
Ashley
Jimmy T.
DK Jr.
Stanley the Bug Man
Marin
Epona
Midna and Wolf Link
Tetra
Tingle
Guardian
Majora's Mask like just the mask
Triforce
Metroid
Zebesian
EMMI
Bandana Waddle Dee
Slippy Toad
Peppy Hare
Arwing
Venusaur
Blastoise
Ho-oh
Lugia
Mr. Saturn
Octopus
Oatchi with Rock, Ice, and Glow Pikmin
Bulborb
Tom Nook
K.K. Slider
Timmy and Tommy
Lloid
Lottie
Mr. Sandman
Bald Bull
Super Macho Man
Squid Sisters
Octoling
Pearl
Marina
Deep Cut
Spring Man
Ribbon Girl
Balloon Fighter
Pitcher
Golfer
Ice Hockey Team
Tennis Player
Urban Champion
ExciteBiker
Gangster, Lady, and Policeman
Wild Gunman
Donbe and Hikari
Ayumi Tachibana
Taro
Stunt Race FX Car
Dr. Kawashima
Ashley Robins
Dr. Lobe
Nintendog
Barbara the Bat
Snip and Clip
Ring Fit Trainee

 

[ninjahmos]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Unfortunately, I didn't see Takamaru, which makes me question Nintendo's interest in the IP.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

Maybe to an extent except for Pikmin, since all of those franchises are kinda huge deals to the brand, and Pikmin sort of tags along in that camp even if they hadn't been super successful until like 3 Deluxe and 4. Like they show up in those images of the other brand cornerstones (the ones with like Mario, Link, Villager/Isabelle, and Inkling walking in a line) and they appeared in the Wii U system if you did a transfer of your Wii's save data, carrying your stuff to its destination, so even if they've only been hugely successful as of recent, they've been a decent part of the brand for a good bit.

 

[HyperSomari64]

Spoiler

Waluigi
Captain Toad
Toadette
Toad
Paper Mario
Pauline
Kamek
Cappy
Sidestepper
Dry Bones
Koopa Troopa
Goomba
Boo
Hammer Bro
Chain Chomp
Lakitu
Lumalee
Professor E. Gadd
Polterpup
Talking Flower
Mushroom
Nabbit
Foreman Spike
Spike
Shy Guy
Baby Mario
Poochy
Ashley
Jimmy T.
DK Jr.
Stanley the Bug Man
Marin
Epona
Midna and Wolf Link
Tetra
Tingle
Guardian
Majora's Mask like just the mask
Triforce
Metroid
Zebesian
EMMI
Bandana Waddle Dee
Slippy Toad
Peppy Hare
Arwing
Venusaur
Blastoise
Ho-oh
Lugia
Mr. Saturn
Octopus
Oatchi with Rock, Ice, and Glow Pikmin
Bulborb
Tom Nook
K.K. Slider
Timmy and Tommy
Lloid
Lottie
Mr. Sandman
Bald Bull
Super Macho Man
Squid Sisters
Octoling
Pearl
Marina
Deep Cut
Spring Man
Ribbon Girl
Balloon Fighter
Pitcher
Golfer
Ice Hockey Team
Tennis Player
Urban Champion
ExciteBiker
Gangster, Lady, and Policeman
Wild Gunman
Donbe and Hikari
Ayumi Tachibana
Taro
Stunt Race FX Car
Dr. Kawashima
Ashley Robins
Dr. Lobe
Nintendog
Barbara the Bat
Snip and Clip
Ring Fit Trainee

Xenoblade 3 is not present in the wall btw.
Maybe Noah and Mio are behind the mountain. yeah that was a dunkey reference, don't judge me!

 

[fogbadge]

For fun, here's a tally.

First Party characters in Smash that AREN'T on the wall:


In addition there's also the Koopalings and Alph. Of note, Popo also isn't there, but that's because only Nana has official art from Ice Climber, so that makes sense. The same is true for R.O.B. as well.

And also, First Party Characters (or "Characters" in some cases) on the wall that aren't playable in Smash:

Spoiler

Waluigi
Captain Toad
Toadette
Toad
Paper Mario
Pauline
Kamek
Cappy
Sidestepper
Dry Bones
Koopa Troopa
Goomba
Boo
Hammer Bro
Chain Chomp
Lakitu
Lumalee
Professor E. Gadd
Polterpup
Talking Flower
Mushroom
Nabbit
Foreman Spike
Spike
Shy Guy
Baby Mario
Poochy
Ashley
Jimmy T.
DK Jr.
Stanley the Bug Man
Marin
Epona
Midna and Wolf Link
Tetra
Tingle
Guardian
Majora's Mask like just the mask
Triforce
Metroid
Zebesian
EMMI
Bandana Waddle Dee
Slippy Toad
Peppy Hare
Arwing
Venusaur
Blastoise
Ho-oh
Lugia
Mr. Saturn
Octopus
Oatchi with Rock, Ice, and Glow Pikmin
Bulborb
Tom Nook
K.K. Slider
Timmy and Tommy
Lloid
Lottie
Mr. Sandman
Bald Bull
Super Macho Man
Squid Sisters
Octoling
Pearl
Marina
Deep Cut
Spring Man
Ribbon Girl
Balloon Fighter
Pitcher
Golfer
Ice Hockey Team
Tennis Player
Urban Champion
ExciteBiker
Gangster, Lady, and Policeman
Wild Gunman
Donbe and Hikari
Ayumi Tachibana
Taro
Stunt Race FX Car
Dr. Kawashima
Ashley Robins
Dr. Lobe
Nintendog
Barbara the Bat
Snip and Clip
Ring Fit Trainee

young link is on the wall he’s above majoras mask, bellow double dash Mario and Luigi, between deep cut and giga cat mario

 

[RileyXY1]

For fun, here's a tally.

First Party characters in Smash that AREN'T on the wall:


In addition there's also the Koopalings and Alph. Of note, Popo also isn't there, but that's because only Nana has official art from Ice Climber, so that makes sense. The same is true for R.O.B. as well.

And also, First Party Characters (or "Characters" in some cases) on the wall that aren't playable in Smash:

Spoiler

Waluigi
Captain Toad
Toadette
Toad
Paper Mario
Pauline
Kamek
Cappy
Sidestepper
Dry Bones
Koopa Troopa
Goomba
Boo
Hammer Bro
Chain Chomp
Lakitu
Lumalee
Professor E. Gadd
Polterpup
Talking Flower
Mushroom
Nabbit
Foreman Spike
Spike
Shy Guy
Baby Mario
Poochy
Ashley
Jimmy T.
DK Jr.
Stanley the Bug Man
Marin
Epona
Midna and Wolf Link
Tetra
Tingle
Guardian
Majora's Mask like just the mask
Triforce
Metroid
Zebesian
EMMI
Bandana Waddle Dee
Slippy Toad
Peppy Hare
Arwing
Venusaur
Blastoise
Ho-oh
Lugia
Mr. Saturn
Octopus
Oatchi with Rock, Ice, and Glow Pikmin
Bulborb
Tom Nook
K.K. Slider
Timmy and Tommy
Lloid
Lottie
Mr. Sandman
Bald Bull
Super Macho Man
Squid Sisters
Octoling
Pearl
Marina
Deep Cut
Spring Man
Ribbon Girl
Balloon Fighter
Pitcher
Golfer
Ice Hockey Team
Tennis Player
Urban Champion
ExciteBiker
Gangster, Lady, and Policeman
Wild Gunman
Donbe and Hikari
Ayumi Tachibana
Taro
Stunt Race FX Car
Dr. Kawashima
Ashley Robins
Dr. Lobe
Nintendog
Barbara the Bat
Snip and Clip
Ring Fit Trainee

Is Lucas on there? I don't see him.

 

[Opossum]

young link is on the wall he’s above majoras mask, bellow double dash Mario and Luigi, between deep cut and giga cat mario

Thanks, missed that. Edited to remove Young Link.

Is Lucas on there? I don't see him.

Lucas is not there.

 

[Gorgonzales]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

Bulborb, Poochy, Oatchi, Balloon Fighter, E. Gadd, and Goomba.
I won.

 

[NintenRob]

Looking through this, I can't find any Nintendo franchise in Smash (with characters) that aren't on this wall, with one exception.

R.O.B.

But with the nature of R.O.B. that may be excusable.

I'm hoping he has his own section in like hardware or something

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

Dixie Kong is also there, albeit sharing a picture with DK and Diddy just southwest of the center.

 

[HyperSomari64]

Dixie Kong is also there, albeit sharing a picture with DK and Diddy just southwest of the center.

Don't ignore Cranky

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

I also just noticed that right next to the big picture of Link is the Paper Mario image from the box art of the remake (basically the same as the original JP box art but slightly different). This is almost certainly just because it's the newest one, but I will still be thriving with the knowledge that TTYD is immortalized in the Nintendo Museum wall mural.

EDIT now that I've looked it over closer: Also really happy to see both the original Superstar Saga render of Mario and Luigi and the one of the Bros. and Starlow from the Bowser's Inside Story remake. Seeing RPG Mario and Bowser there too is neat.

 

[NintenRob]

I have to say, I'm very very pleased to see Kirby get a whopping 3x3 image. That puts him on the same level as Mario, Link and Pikachu. Also bandana Dee is there all ready for battle

But perhaps more surprising. Samus is there with two separate 2x2 images. Which puts Metroid above Splatoon of all things, which I can only spot a single 2x2 image, being deep cut

Nevermind that last bit, some how missed the 3x3 giant inkling. Still pleased with the amount of Metroid here



Edit: Also Rosalina is there twice. That's very nice

 

[YeppersPeppers]

Seeing both of the main Famicom Detective Cub duo there is very nice. Funny enough, despite Smash Ultimate's insane list of spirits referencing a pretty huge list of Nintendo properties and characters, there are actually a couple of characters there that have zero presence in Ultimate, notably Taro (Famicom Detective Club) and Foreman Spike (Wrecking Crew).

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

I have to say, I'm very very pleased to see Kirby get a whopping 3x3 image. That puts him on the same level as Mario, Link and Pikachu. Also bandana Dee is there all ready for battle

I looked through it and was surprised that outside of a few extra Kirby pieces like his Adventure sprite and the render from Dream Buffet, Kirby is basically just himself, Meta Knight (just above the big Pikachu), Dedede (just to the left of Deep Cut), and Bandana Dee (down at the bottom underneath Timmy and Tommy Nook). I honestly kind of expected Magolor somewhere on there, but I'm 100% okay with giving my boy Bandana Dee the respect he deserves lol

 

[SharkLord]

So the 7 biggest characters are Mario, Link, Pikachu, Kirby, Pikmin, Isabelle & Inkling

could this be indicative of what Nintendo thinks of as their biggest franchises? what could this mean for the future of smash? not a thing I imagine

Maybe to an extent except for Pikmin, since all of those franchises are kinda huge deals to the brand, and Pikmin sort of tags along in that camp even if they hadn't been super successful until like 3 Deluxe and 4. Like they show up in those images of the other brand cornerstones (the ones with like Mario, Link, Villager/Isabelle, and Inkling walking in a line) and they appeared in the Wii U system if you did a transfer of your Wii's save data, carrying your stuff to its destination, so even if they've only been hugely successful as of recent, they've been a decent part of the brand for a good bit.

As far as raw sales in the Switch era, we got six out of seven covered. Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon are still system sellers, with multiple games selling over 20 million copies. Splatoon isn't quite as big, but both games have still sold over 10 million copies, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons alone sold over 40 million copies. Kirby hasn't hit the +10mil range with a single game, but his games still sell consistently well, totalling over 13 million copies; This puts him head and shoulders over Fire Emblem, Xenoblade, and Metroid, with Forgotten Land alone outselling each of those series' total output. This is likely helped by him being a very cute and marketable character in Japan.

This leaves Pikmin as a major outlier. Pikmin's sold pretty well on the Switch, but is still roughly around the same level as Metroid, FE, and XBC, and isn't at the same level as the other six series mentioned above. I suspect it has something to do with the series being Miyamoto's passion project (I think?). The Pikmin are also strange marketable creatures so it's also probably easy to paste them everywhere

 

[DarthEnderX]

The Nintendo Museum was open to press today and we have photos of this character wall

Pikmin, Pokemon, Mario, Zelda, Splatoon, Animal Crossing and Kirby got the BIG pictures. They must be what Nintendo considers the flagships.

 

[Ivander]

This is now our list of First Party fighters, how are we feelin'?

I wonder why only Marth and Chrom are there for Fire Emblem. And with how they show off a lot of the recent entries, I wonder why Three Houses(especially when alot of the other highest sellers of their series are there) and Engage aren't there. Also, the only sign of Kid Icarus is the NES Pit art, but there's no art of Kid Icarus Uprising.