Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Swamp Sensei]

I don't think Snake is getting cut. He is one of the few characters that had their ballot placement revealed and he placed higher than Bayonetta. He's a very popular character in general and I think he'll stay along with the Belmonts as long as Konami and Nintendo keep a good relationship. I believe this to be the case as Power Pros, a Konami series, was part of those extra Spirits that were added to Ultimate earlier this year.

Do we actually have proof that Snake places higher than Bayonetta?

 

[Hydreigonfan01]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance? Here’s some of mine:

Magus (Chrono Trigger)

While Crono is the most obvious choice, I personally find Magus more compelling for a few reasons. First, I just love him as a character, both in design and in personality and story. He stands out more mechanically and visually from Hero and has a unique weapon to Smash. Magus also seems to have a larger role in the broader series as a whole compared to Crono who was just the face of the first game.

Alphen/Shionne as a transform duo (Tales of Arise)

I just loved Shionne as a character and she had amazing character growth throughout the game. She provides Alphen with the ability to use his flame sword in the game so the two are mechanically and narratively linked. Alphen can power up his sword attacks by sacrificing his own health and Shionne is a ranged fighter with healing abilities that compliment Alphen’s style really well.

Zegram Ghart (Rogue Galaxy)

Zegram admittedly has nearly no chance at all but he’s one of my favorite gaming characters ever. Zegram’s a badass space pirate that fights with a huge sword and shuriken. He’s got one of the coolest looking designs and is voiced by one of my favorite actors in Steve Blum. He also had a really unique and compelling story in the game where he shifts between ally and enemy.

Etna (Disgaea)

Another seemingly odd choice where Laharl would be the more obvious pick. Again, this is partly out of bias but I think the fact that she heavily uses the series mascots in her moveset helps her out a lot. She’s also a spear wielder which is unique to Smash other than Byleth. Disgaea has a ton of crazy attack animations that would be awesome to see in Smash.

H’aanit (Octopath Traveller)

H’aanit is a huntress and beast tamer which is really unique to Smash. She uses both an axe and a bow and summons creatures she captures for various effects or attacks. I love the two Octopath games and H’aanit is my favorite character in them. She’s also also is the most unique compared to other Smash characters.

Noah or Mio.

 

[Will]

At this point imo, the only reason a third-party character doesn’t return would be if Nintendo themselves were not interested in continuing the crossover, or time constraints. I can’t imagine a company actively refusing to have their character represented in Smash today.

That’s why I believe Sora is the least likely third party to return. If anyone can make an idiotic decision like that and afford it, it’s the revolving door of leadership at Disney!

 

[NotGenerico]

Do we actually have proof that Snake places higher than Bayonetta?

We do actually. Sakurai released a book back in 2019 where he discussed several things regarding Smash. Here's a post that summarizes the content of the book:

Official - Newcomer/DLC Speculation Discussion

The only thing I hope out of this pass is that there's a character from a game I actually play.

smashboards.com

Bayonetta was the first pick among realisable characters. Above her, there were old veterans like Snake and other characters that were already tried negotiating but got rejected. (p63)

Snake is specifically mentioned as placing higher than Bayonetta. As for characters they tried negotiating but got rejected, in hindsight, he's probably talking about Sora and Banjo.

 

[Slime Scholar]

Eh. Ocarina of Time, Link's Awakening and Majora's Mask have more compelling stories than the vast majority of RPGs.
Those games were made a long time ago, though.

Biggest problem IMO is that Zelda has lost a lot of its original fairytale charm in the process of repeatedly modernizing and reinventing itself.

As an aside, if anyone was looking for an RPG series that doesn’t go off the rails in the third act, I can’t recommend Dragon Quest enough. Although, it’s less about its main plot and more about the overall adventure and its multiple little vignettes within; simple but emotionally-resonant episodic tales that make the games essentially playable bedtime stories.

 

[PersonAngelo53]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance? Here’s some of mine:

Magus (Chrono Trigger)

While Crono is the most obvious choice, I personally find Magus more compelling for a few reasons. First, I just love him as a character, both in design and in personality and story. He stands out more mechanically and visually from Hero and has a unique weapon to Smash. Magus also seems to have a larger role in the broader series as a whole compared to Crono who was just the face of the first game.

Alphen/Shionne as a transform duo (Tales of Arise)

I just loved Shionne as a character and she had amazing character growth throughout the game. She provides Alphen with the ability to use his flame sword in the game so the two are mechanically and narratively linked. Alphen can power up his sword attacks by sacrificing his own health and Shionne is a ranged fighter with healing abilities that compliment Alphen’s style really well.

Zegram Ghart (Rogue Galaxy)

Zegram admittedly has nearly no chance at all but he’s one of my favorite gaming characters ever. Zegram’s a badass space pirate that fights with a huge sword and shuriken. He’s got one of the coolest looking designs and is voiced by one of my favorite actors in Steve Blum. He also had a really unique and compelling story in the game where he shifts between ally and enemy.

Etna (Disgaea)

Another seemingly odd choice where Laharl would be the more obvious pick. Again, this is partly out of bias but I think the fact that she heavily uses the series mascots in her moveset helps her out a lot. She’s also a spear wielder which is unique to Smash other than Byleth. Disgaea has a ton of crazy attack animations that would be awesome to see in Smash.

H’aanit (Octopath Traveller)

H’aanit is a huntress and beast tamer which is really unique to Smash. She uses both an axe and a bow and summons creatures she captures for various effects or attacks. I love the two Octopath games and H’aanit is my favorite character in them. She’s also also is the most unique compared to other Smash characters.

Long post incoming from me lol I have quite a bit to talk about.
Estelle Bright (Trails in the sky)
Her game is getting a big remake next year and she is the first protagonist from the Trails of series so I say her chances are better than they where before cause of the remake. Also she fights with a Bo Staff which is a weapon not used in smash yet. She probably have some big hit boxes on most of her attacks only balanced by some decent ending lag.

Rean Schwarzer: (Trails of cold steel)
He doesn’t have the privilege of being the first main character in the series but he is arguably the most popular protagonist in the fanbase of this series. He might look just like another anime sword fighter at first sight but his attacks are actually quite flashy compared to the other sword fighters we have in smash. And he has multiple unique gimmicks like an install transformation power up and a giant mech he can summon, plus has like more then 5 potential final smashes. I show some of his skills and variations of the same attacks below

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music that you love, upload original content and share it all with friends, family and the world on YouTube.

youtu.be

Kosmos (Xenosaga)

I haven’t played the Xenosaga games yet but I seen her move set and learned about her in the Project X zone games where she appears in plus she was somehow my first Blade I got in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 lol.
Plus I just like her design and like we spoke before we need more Robot female characters in smash.

A Shin Megami tensei character

I think Sakurai probably choose between Nahobino from Shin megami tensei 5 or Demi-Fiend from 3. Nonetheless after getting a Persona character in smash I just feel like Shin Megami tensei itself needs some representation in the roster, specially after most of their games been on Nintendo consoles. And their move sets probably would make good use of all the demons in the series as different attacks plus a bit of their own abilities.

Adol Christin (Ys series)

Another character with a huge legacy comparable to Dragon quest in a way but for Action JRPG’s and the other big Nihon Falcom character besides the Trails of characters. Adol’s moveset could be very on your face giving pressure to the opponent with fast sword strikes and with a high combo game only balanced with lack of kill power. I been getting in the Ys games recently and each game usually has some sort of new gimmick or magic technique besides Adol’s sword combat, I imagine Sakurai probably would want to include a bit of this gimmicks to make Adol even more unique gameplay wise. But nonetheless Adol’s big legacy for JRPG’s is the main reason for him to deserve an inclusion in smash.

2b (Nier automata)

2B is probably highly likely to join the next smash game with how many crossovers she has been getting recently. And that aside her move set would fit smash very well and I don’t think I need to go into detail why 2B is deserving to join smash.

 

[Kirbeh]

Eh. Ocarina of Time, Link's Awakening and Majora's Mask have more compelling stories than the vast majority of RPGs.
Those games were made a long time ago, though.

Anyways turning Zelda into an RPG is the quickest way to finally ruin the series imo.

I think you might have taken my comment the wrong way.

Don't get me wrong, I adore the stories of most Zelda games, especially MM, WW and TP, but it's not what the Zelda team likes to focus on.

I'm not saying that the Zelda team can't or hasn't already made compelling lore and stories, (we wouldn't have dedicated channels like Zeltik or NBC otherwise,) but it's a project that might be considered too limiting or restrictive if they have to adhere to more conventional genre standards.

An RPG where they have less room for gameplay experimentation and have to put a big focus on story just doesn't seem like something for their team when they can just continue to focus on the core titles.

An RPG would have to be a spin off handled by another studio much like the Mario RPGs.

As for the rest of your post, hard disagree on both cases.

Making a spin off RPG would definitely be more niche, but it's not going to ruin the franchise.

 

[Louie G.]

what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash?

Mostly just Sans, or I guess Porky in terms of characters I have any attachment toward. I unfortunately have a great backlog of JRPGs but no time to sit down and play them, so there are probably a dozen other characters I’d quite enjoy evading my line of sight.

But as I expressed earlier, I would like someone like Aigis or KOS-MOS because I enjoy the archetype a lot. Think it’d be pretty neat to see an SNES RPG character like Terra / Kefka or Crono as well. Frankly I think Kefka is kinda slept on, that would be pretty insane and I think he’s probably got the cred to justify himself.

Aaaaand I still think an SMT character would be cool. Probably as more of a dedicated summoner character, I wonder how we’d go about that. Raidou would be the coolest pick IMO but it’d probably be Demifiend or Nahobino.

Which ones do you think have the highest chance?

Isaac is the only one I feel particularly confident about, my gut keeps telling me it will be his time. Obviously someone like Noah or Mio deserves a nod but I’ve consistently been a bit of a skeptic.

Third party wise… next up is probably Tales or Dark Souls if you want to count it. Can see us getting 2B or Estelle Bright as well… feels like we covered a lot of ground in Ultimate already.

 

[Noipoi]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance?

Aside from Pokemon, because there’s always a Pokemon and I’m always interested in seeing who they choose, my answer is simple:

 

[PersonAngelo53]

This and the Merkava mod are to this day some of my favorite things to come out of the Brawl modding scene.

I know it'd never happen, but I'd like for all the ArcSys/French Bread/Type Moon fighters to get a character. GG, BB, UN, MB and BG (the latter two by technicality I suppose.)

Honestly, I'd extend that to other smaller fighters as well like Arcana Heart, Nitroplus/Koihime Enbu/AquaPazza/Million Arhtur (more VN/other genre source fighters,) maybe even stuff like Vanguard Princess or Yatagarasu (though I know these last two have some dev/pub/rights issues iirc)

I couldn’t agree more same. That Merkava mod specially is so dang well done and cool.

And yeah there is plenty of cool characters in those nicher fighting games.

 

[Gengar84]

I really need to try the Trails series. I’ve heard all kinds of great things about it but it’s one of the few major JRPGs I never really got around to trying. I did finish the demo of Trails through Daybreak and enjoyed it. It was surprisingly long for a demo so I did get a decent feel for the game. I’m just not really sure what game makes sense to start with for someone that hasn’t really played any of them beyond that demo.

 

[PersonAngelo53]

I really need to try the Trails series. I’ve heard all kinds of great things about it but it’s one of the few major JRPGs I never really got around to trying. I did finish the demo of Trails through Daybreak and enjoyed it. It was surprisingly long for a demo so I did get a decent feel for the game. I’m just not really sure what game makes sense to start with for someone that hasn’t really played any of them beyond that demo.

Ok so basically you have two options. If you have a PC or laptop you should start with Trails in the Sky FC. Is the first game in the whole series. For this series is recommended to start at the beginning since unlike other JRPG’s this series has a story where events and characters connect through out the whole series.
But if for whatever reason you can’t play the first game in the series than your next best option is to start with the first Trails of cold steel game. Is the easiest game to get into without prior knowledge of what happened on the earlier games of the series. Tho just a warning that after Trails of cold steel 1 the games become more and more depending of you knowing what happened in the earlier games for a full enjoyment.

Just a shame that the first two Trails of cold steel games aren’t on switch. They are only on PlayStation systems or on PC.

 

[Speed Weed]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance? Here’s some of mine:

Magus (Chrono Trigger)

While Crono is the most obvious choice, I personally find Magus more compelling for a few reasons. First, I just love him as a character, both in design and in personality and story. He stands out more mechanically and visually from Hero and has a unique weapon to Smash. Magus also seems to have a larger role in the broader series as a whole compared to Crono who was just the face of the first game.

Alphen/Shionne as a transform duo (Tales of Arise)

I just loved Shionne as a character and she had amazing character growth throughout the game. She provides Alphen with the ability to use his flame sword in the game so the two are mechanically and narratively linked. Alphen can power up his sword attacks by sacrificing his own health and Shionne is a ranged fighter with healing abilities that compliment Alphen’s style really well.

Zegram Ghart (Rogue Galaxy)

Zegram admittedly has nearly no chance at all but he’s one of my favorite gaming characters ever. Zegram’s a badass space pirate that fights with a huge sword and shuriken. He’s got one of the coolest looking designs and is voiced by one of my favorite actors in Steve Blum. He also had a really unique and compelling story in the game where he shifts between ally and enemy.

Etna (Disgaea)

Another seemingly odd choice where Laharl would be the more obvious pick. Again, this is partly out of bias but I think the fact that she heavily uses the series mascots in her moveset helps her out a lot. She’s also a spear wielder which is unique to Smash other than Byleth. Disgaea has a ton of crazy attack animations that would be awesome to see in Smash.

H’aanit (Octopath Traveller)

H’aanit is a huntress and beast tamer which is really unique to Smash. She uses both an axe and a bow and summons creatures she captures for various effects or attacks. I love the two Octopath games and H’aanit is my favorite character in them. She’s also also is the most unique compared to other Smash characters.

Alis Landale, Nei, Rika, Elenor (Phantasy Star)
Sakura Shinguji (Sakura Wars)
Selvaria Bles (Valkyria Chronicles)
Raidou Kuzunoha (Devil Summoner)
KOS-MOS (Xenosaga)
Nina (Breath of Fire)
Dragon Quest V Hero (or any second DQ rep, really)
Shiren the Wanderer
Valkyrie (the Namco character)
Manjimaru (Far East of Eden)
Metabee (Medabots)

and yknow what, **** it, let's throw Dela Delon from Brandish in there too. Also I gotta play Linda Cube to see if anyone from there could be in Smash lol

 

[Gengar84]

Ok so basically you have two options. If you have a PC or laptop you should start with Trails in the Sky FC. Is the first game in the whole series. For this series is recommended to start at the beginning since unlike other JRPG’s this series has a story where events and characters connect through out the whole series.
But if for whatever reason you can’t play the first game in the series than your next best option is to start with the first Trails of cold steel game. Is the easiest game to get into without prior knowledge of what happened on the earlier games of the series. Tho just a warning that after Trails of cold steel 1 the games become more and more depending of you knowing what happened in the earlier games for a full enjoyment.

Just a shame that the first two Trails of cold steel games aren’t on switch. They are only on PlayStation systems or on PC.

Thankfully, I have a PS4 and a decent PC so I should be okay. I see that they were remaking one of the Trails games with Estelle in it. Was that a remake of the first game? That might be the easiest way to jump in if so.

 

[PersonAngelo53]

Thankfully, I have a PS4 and a decent PC so I should be okay. I see that they were remaking one of the Trails games with Estelle in it. Was that a remake of the first game? That might be the easiest way to jump in if so.

Alright that’s good. Yeah with that you are good to play the whole series basically.

And yes is a remake of the first game. You can decide for yourself if you think is better to wait for the remake or just play the original.

 

[Borskaboska]

Raidou Kuzunoha (Devil Summoner)

I had once tried to come up with a sega crossover roster and had considered raidou. However, adding him would basically make world wide releases impossible since he wears a japanese military uniform and those are touchy in a lost of east asian countries.

 

[Gengar84]

Alright that’s good. Yeah with that you are good to play the whole series basically.

And yes is a remake of the first game. You can decide for yourself if you think is better to wait for the remake or just play the original.

I’ve got a huge backlog of games right now so I don’t mind waiting a bit. I think I’ll pick up the remake and try to get into the series when it comes out. I haven’t tried the mainline Shin Megami Tensei games yet either but I bought SMTV and it’s one of the games on my backlog.

Since a lot of people seem to speculate about Estelle when talking about potential RPG characters in Smash, it will be nice to have some frame of reference to what everyone is talking about. Who knows, maybe she’ll end up on my own most wanted list if I enjoy the games or character enough. Smash got me into Fire Emblem so it would be cool to have the Smash speculation scene introduce me to another favorite series.

 

[Speed Weed]

I had once tried to come up with a sega crossover roster and had considered raidou. However, adding him would basically make world wide releases impossible since he wears a japanese military uniform and those are touchy in a lost of east asian countries.

Eeeeeeeyup, it's unfortunate

 

[fogbadge]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash?

good question, let me see who I can think of

Obviously there are plenty of pokemon I'd like to see but as I've mentioned before I don't anticipated my preferred pokemon getting in

Rex (XC2) and Noah (XC3) - I also don't anticipate my XC wants getting in either

Euden (Dragalia Lost) - Mobile games haven't done well in smash so far but you never know. he'd be fun

Neku (TWEWY) - a great game which would be really fun to see in smash

Tiz (Bravely Default) - probably quite unlikely

Isaac (Golden Sun) - If you'll forgive me for being obvious

Cecil (FF4) - There are many FF characters who'd be neat but he's my top choice. although I'd prefer he was just a paladin rather than switch between his two classes as in dissidia

Kairi/Riku (KH) - don't fancy the odds of another KH character but I'd still like one of these two

and someone from Yo-Kai Watch

 

[Gengar84]

I’ve got three top choices for Final Fantasy. The first is Princess Garnet from FFIX because she’s my favorite character from my favorite game. She’s also got a unique playstyle as a summoner. The second is Yuna. I prefer Garnet as a character but Yuna has the cooler summons and I think she’s generally more popular. The last is Vincent Valentine. He was my favorite playable party member in FFVII and maybe the whole series. He’s just got a cool factor that’s above almost everyone else in the series for me. His weapons and monster transformations would be really unique for Smash too.

Regarding smaller Square-Enix series, if any get in at all, do we think Bravely has an edge over Octopath? I enjoyed both but I like Octopath better between the two. There’s also Triangle Strategy, which I really enjoyed and there are some great characters, but that only has one game so I doubt it’s as likely. Star Ocean has some characters I really like, particularly Nel Zelpher and Albel Nox from SO3 but that series is probably a bit too small too.

 

[PersonAngelo53]

I’ve got a huge backlog of games right now so I don’t mind waiting a bit. I think I’ll pick up the remake and try to get into the series when it comes out. I haven’t tried the mainline Shin Megami Tensei games yet either but I bought SMTV and it’s one of the games on my backlog.

Since a lot of people seem to speculate about Estelle when talking about potential RPG characters in Smash, it will be nice to have some frame of reference to what everyone is talking about. Who knows, maybe she’ll end up on my own most wanted list if I enjoy the games or character enough. Smash got me into Fire Emblem so it would be cool to have the Smash speculation scene introduce me to another favorite series.

Alright sounds good. Just glad to see more people get interested to try out the series. It’s such a great series for how underapreciated/niche it it is.

 

[Idon]

I had once tried to come up with a sega crossover roster and had considered raidou. However, adding him would basically make world wide releases impossible since he wears a japanese military uniform and those are touchy in a lost of east asian countries.

The solution of course, is to simply do what SMT3 did and replace him with Dante from the Devil May Cry series.

 

[fogbadge]

I’ve got three top choices for Final Fantasy. The first is Princess Garnet from FFIX because she’s my favorite character from my favorite game. She’s also got a unique playstyle as a summoner. The second is Yuna. I prefer Garnet as a character but Yuna has the cooler summons and I think she’s generally more popular. The last is Vincent Valentine. He was my favorite playable party member in FFVII and maybe the whole series. He’s just got a cool factor that’s above almost everyone else in the series for me. His weapons and monster transformations would be really unique for Smash too.

Regarding smaller Square-Enix series, if any get in at all, do we think Bravely has an edge over Octopath? I enjoyed both but I like Octopath better between the two. There’s also Triangle Strategy, which I really enjoyed and there are some great characters, but that only has one game so I doubt it’s as likely. Star Ocean has some characters I really like, particularly Nel Zelpher and Albel Nox from SO3 but that series is probably a bit too small too.

garnet and yuna could be fun

as for octopath vs bravely. hmm in the past I would have said bravely had the edge but I don't think the last game did to well and i'm not sure how octopath 2 did. now I liked the bravely games more than octopath, although the last one had a few problems, so that'd be my pick. part of me still wants to say bravely still has the edge but who knows for sure. we smash fans are wrong all the time.

 

[Gengar84]

garnet and yuna could be fun

as for octopath vs bravely. hmm in the past I would have said bravely had the edge but I don't think the last game did to well and i'm not sure how octopath 2 did. now I liked the bravely games more than octopath, although the last one had a few problems, so that'd be my pick. part of me still wants to say bravely still has the edge but who knows for sure. we smash fans are wrong all the time.

I think Octopath 2 reviewed amazingly critically but struggled to meet sales expectations. It’s a shame because I really loved the game and felt it was an overall improvement over the first game. My only real gripe with the Octopath games is the limited interaction between your party members. The sequel helped with that but they still mostly felt like eight separate stories.

 

[fogbadge]

I think Octopath 2 reviewed amazingly critically but struggled to meet sales expectations. It’s a shame because I really loved the game and felt it was an overall improvement over the first game. My only real gripe with the Octopath games is the limited interaction between your party members. The sequel helped with that but they still mostly felt like eight separate stories.

my problem was the characters in the first game didn’t feel like they rose above their tropes. I still liked them but when 2 seemed to have the same set of tropes it was off putting

 

[Gengar84]

my problem was the characters in the first game didn’t feel like they rose above their tropes. I still liked them but when 2 seemed to have the same set of tropes it was off putting

Yeah, I can see that. The stories themselves were good and I did like the characters but I suppose they can feel a bit tropey. I had that criticism about the Xenoblade 2 cast but for some reason, Octopath’s didn’t make me feel that way at the time. The characters in Octopath 2 felt very different from their class counterparts from the first game but some characters between classes felt similar. Like Primrose and Throne remind me of each other. I really enjoyed both characters though.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

It is once again time for me to shill Lloyd Irving.

He'd be amazing and he's my favorite.

 

[Gengar84]

It is once again time for me to shill Lloyd Irving.

He'd be amazing and he's my favorite.

I loved Tales of Symphonia and it was my first Tales game but Lloyd never really resonated with me much as a character. My favorite character from that game was Sheena. Lloyd would definitely have a fun Smash moveset though with his dual blades. My top three most wanted Tales characters are Alphen/Shionne (tag duo), Velvet Crowe, and Zaveid.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

okay but like can I get HAL making a traditional Kirby RPG sometime since Kirby has all sorts of spin-offs? like make Kirby the resident Blue Mage archetype or something, I think it would be fun

As for RPG characters in Smash, a Pokemon is obvious, I really love Xenoblade 3 so I'd like to add Noah or Mio, Alear since I like Engage, Isaac since I feel like Ultimate was setting something up for him (he went from pretty limited stuff in Brawl and basically nothing in 4 to the return of the AT, a Mii Costume, and like 9 Spirits, the most of any series not already in Smash), and my little wishlist had Undertale and Digimon on it, so I'll include those.

 

[fogbadge]

Yeah, I can see that. The stories themselves were good and I did like the characters but I suppose they can feel a bit tropey. I had that criticism about the Xenoblade 2 cast but for some reason, Octopath’s didn’t make me feel that way at the time. The characters in Octopath 2 felt very different from their class counterparts from the first game but some characters between classes felt similar. Like Primrose and Throne remind me of each other. I really enjoyed both characters though.

see I’m pretty much the opposite. I think the XC2 cast did a better job. although I think that may have been in part due to the voice cast just having fun with it

 

[Kirby Dragons]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance?

• Isaac
• Dragapult
• Hatterene
• Shadowheart
• V-Raptor
• Primrose

Of these, Isaac has the best chance.

 

[Potted Plant]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance? Here’s some of mine:

Magus (Chrono Trigger)

While Crono is the most obvious choice, I personally find Magus more compelling for a few reasons. First, I just love him as a character, both in design and in personality and story. He stands out more mechanically and visually from Hero and has a unique weapon to Smash. Magus also seems to have a larger role in the broader series as a whole compared to Crono who was just the face of the first game.

Alphen/Shionne as a transform duo (Tales of Arise)

I just loved Shionne as a character and she had amazing character growth throughout the game. She provides Alphen with the ability to use his flame sword in the game so the two are mechanically and narratively linked. Alphen can power up his sword attacks by sacrificing his own health and Shionne is a ranged fighter with healing abilities that compliment Alphen’s style really well.

Zegram Ghart (Rogue Galaxy)

Zegram admittedly has nearly no chance at all but he’s one of my favorite gaming characters ever. Zegram’s a badass space pirate that fights with a huge sword and shuriken. He’s got one of the coolest looking designs and is voiced by one of my favorite actors in Steve Blum. He also had a really unique and compelling story in the game where he shifts between ally and enemy.

Etna (Disgaea)

Another seemingly odd choice where Laharl would be the more obvious pick. Again, this is partly out of bias but I think the fact that she heavily uses the series mascots in her moveset helps her out a lot. She’s also a spear wielder which is unique to Smash other than Byleth. Disgaea has a ton of crazy attack animations that would be awesome to see in Smash.

H’aanit (Octopath Traveller)

H’aanit is a huntress and beast tamer which is really unique to Smash. She uses both an axe and a bow and summons creatures she captures for various effects or attacks. I love the two Octopath games and H’aanit is my favorite character in them. She’s also also is the most unique compared to other Smash characters.

Agnes from Bravely Default is definitely up there for me. She has a ton of moveset potential afforded to her thanks to Bravely Defaults job/skill systems (to say nothing of how interesting the Brave/Default mechanic itself being applied to Smash could be). Her stats also point her to being the most magic-focused member of the party, and Smash is ... shockingly short on dedicated magic users (Zelda, Robin ... Sephiroth ig ... Sora is just one move...). The various classes would make for the easiest alt costumes ever, too.

A travelling stage across the whole of Luxendarc a la Yggdrasil's Altar would be sweet, too.

 

[Gengar84]

Agnes from Bravely Default is definitely up there for me. She has a ton of moveset potential afforded to her thanks to Bravely Defaults job/skill systems (to say nothing of how interesting the Brave/Default mechanic itself being applied to Smash could be). Her stats also point her to being the most magic-focused member of the party, and Smash is ... shockingly short on dedicated magic users (Zelda, Robin ... Sephiroth ig ... Sora is just one move...). The various classes would make for the easiest alt costumes ever, too.

A travelling stage across the whole of Luxendarc a la Yggdrasil's Altar would be sweet, too.

I wonder if she’d keep the Chibi look of her in game model or if they’d try to make her more realistically proportioned like her official artwork? The painterly look of her stage would be awesome for Smash. Same goes for the HD-2D look of a potential Octopath stage.

 

[SMAASH! Puppy]

I think Octopath 2 reviewed amazingly critically but struggled to meet sales expectations. It’s a shame because I really loved the game and felt it was an overall improvement over the first game. My only real gripe with the Octopath games is the limited interaction between your party members. The sequel helped with that but they still mostly felt like eight separate stories.

My problem with Octopath Traveler is that all of the bosses are HP sponges that periodically decimate your entire party, and completely flip out when you finally get them down to critical health.

You're...probably not supposed to rotate out your party so that you can tackle everyone's story with them being on level, but the alternative is grinding, and I hate that. Also I've probably reached the point where I have to grind anyway so eh. Also also, the more you do the more OP your chosen character gets because they can't leave the party while you grind which makes the whole level situation more annoying. Honestly the game's premise of having 8 stories to deal with could do with a battle system that doesn't rely on numbers going up with level so you don't have to worry about being over or underpowered depending on how you decide to tackle the order.

see I’m pretty much the opposite. I think the XC2 cast did a better job. although I think that may have been in part due to the voice cast just having fun with it

I think both games manage their tropes well (aside from the one that shouldn't exist), it's just that Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has some less palletable ones for wider audiences:

• Rex is kind of standard for an anime protagonist, which can make people find him boring.
  • Pyra is kind of standard for a love interest. Again, seen as boring.
  • Mythra's a tsundere, and some of her early scenes show the bad aspects of the trope.
  • Gramps is a mascot character mixed with a mentor character who kind of ends up doing neither due to mostly taking a backseat.
• Nia is actually pretty normal. Her first scenes make her unlikeable, but she steps up once stuff hits the fan at the end of the intro, and is fine from there.
  • Dromarch is a butler. That's it. Nothing is ever done with his character.
• Tora is a mascot character in a similar vein to Ricky, which isn't inherently offputting but uh...
  • Poppi is a lolly that Tora is attracted to...Just. Why?

In my experience, most people that dislike Xenoblade Chronicles 2's writing (or battle system) drop the game before leaving Gormott, which means Nia is probably the only character who starts developing before then, as Gormott's story arc is all about establishing the party's status quo.

I wonder if she’d keep the Chibi look of her in game model or if they’d try to make her more realistically proportioned like her official artwork? The painterly look of her stage would be awesome for Smash. Same goes for the HD-2D look of a potential Octopath stage.

That's an interesting question actually. With how they handled Robin I'm inclined to say that they'd pick the official art, but they could easily get hung up on the style (or find it makes them stand out more) and do that instead. They could also split the difference and go with Bravely Second's artstyle.

 

[ninjahmos]

Speaking of RPGs and Smash, what are some of your most wanted RPG characters for Smash? Which ones do you think have the highest chance?

Isaac, Crono, Tidus and Lloyd might be my most wanted RPG characters, but I think another Fire Emblem and/or Xenoblade character probably has the highest chance.

 

[Gengar84]

My problem with Octopath Traveler is that all of the bosses are HP sponges that periodically decimate your entire party, and completely flip out when you finally get them down to critical health.

You're...probably not supposed to rotate out your party so that you can tackle everyone's story with them being on level, but the alternative is grinding, and I hate that. Also I've probably reached the point where I have to grind anyway so eh. Also also, the more you do the more OP your chosen character gets because they can't leave the party while you grind which makes the whole level situation more annoying. Honestly the game's premise of having 8 stories to deal with could do with a battle system that doesn't rely on numbers going up with level so you don't have to worry about being over or underpowered depending on how you decide to tackle the order.


I think both games manage their tropes well (aside from the one that shouldn't exist), it's just that Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has some less palletable ones for wider audiences:

• Rex is kind of standard for an anime protagonist, which can make people find him boring.
  • Pyra is kind of standard for a love interest. Again, seen as boring.
  • Mythra's a tsundere, and some of her early scenes show the bad aspects of the trope.
  • Gramps is a mascot character mixed with a mentor character who kind of ends up doing neither due to mostly taking a backseat.
• Nia is actually pretty normal. Her first scenes make her unlikeable, but she steps up once stuff hits the fan at the end of the intro, and is fine from there.
  • Dromarch is a butler. That's it. Nothing is ever done with his character.
• Tora is a mascot character in a similar vein to Ricky, which isn't inherently offputting but uh...
  • Poppi is a lolly that Tora is attracted to...Just. Why?

In my experience, most people that dislike Xenoblade Chronicles 2's writing (or battle system) drop the game before leaving Gormott, which means Nia is probably the only character who starts developing before then, as Gormott's story arc is all about establishing the party's status quo.


That's an interesting question actually. With how they handled Robin I'm inclined to say that they'd pick the official art, but they could easily get hung up on the style (or find it makes them stand out more) and do that instead. They could also split the difference and go with Bravely Second's artstyle.

I actually like a lot of characters in the tsundere archetype if they’re handled well. I think Kaguya Shinomiya from Love is War and Taiga from Toradora are really entertaining characters. Kaname Chidori was really funny in Full Metal Panic and was my favorite character in the show. I’m not sure she quite fits the trope but I really liked Makise Kurisu from Steins;Gate too. I just feel like Mythra feels more forced as the archetype compared to the others that feel more natural to me. Tora and Poppy were the main characters that bothered me though. It’s cool for people that like them, but they didn’t really appeal to me.

I felt like Nia was a genuinely great character though. She never really felt like a trope to me and had a really funny personality. Despite not liking Cenoblade 2 as much as the other games as a whole, Nia actually became my favorite character in the whole series. I tend to like characters that start off putting at first but grow with the party over time and develop as a character. That’s one thing I liked so much about Shionne. It just feels more rewarding at the end when the character starts off flawed and has to grow.

 

[fogbadge]

I think both games manage their tropes well (aside from the one that shouldn't exist), it's just that Xenoblade Chronicles 2 has some less palletable ones for wider audiences:

• Rex is kind of standard for an anime protagonist, which can make people find him boring.
  • Pyra is kind of standard for a love interest. Again, seen as boring.
  • Mythra's a tsundere, and some of her early scenes show the bad aspects of the trope.
  • Gramps is a mascot character mixed with a mentor character who kind of ends up doing neither due to mostly taking a backseat.
• Nia is actually pretty normal. Her first scenes make her unlikeable, but she steps up once stuff hits the fan at the end of the intro, and is fine from there.
  • Dromarch is a butler. That's it. Nothing is ever done with his character.
• Tora is a mascot character in a similar vein to Ricky, which isn't inherently offputting but uh...
  • Poppi is a lolly that Tora is attracted to...Just. Why?

In my experience, most people that dislike Xenoblade Chronicles 2's writing (or battle system) drop the game before leaving Gormott, which means Nia is probably the only character who starts developing before then, as Gormott's story arc is all about establishing the party's status quo.

like I said, I think a fair bit of it is the voice acting. you have no idea how refreshing it was to hear a Scottish accent that wasn't Glaswegian in a video game. In recent times I have found myself getting tired of a fair amount of the jrpg tropes but I do find ways to put up with them.

 

[Gengar84]

like I said, I think a fair bit of it is the voice acting. you have no idea how refreshing it was to hear a Scottish accent that wasn't Glaswegian in a video game. In recent times I have found myself getting tired of a fair amount of the jrpg tropes but I do find ways to put up with them.

Yeah, Nia’s voice was awesome and was probably a big part of why I liked her so much. The actress that played her really did a great job.

I know she’s a bit of a long shot but Nia’s definitely my most wanted Xenoblade character. I think Noah was a good protagonist even if he did feel a bit plain and Mio was really good but lacked the same fun charm as Nia. Still very enjoyable and one scene with Mio in the game actually got me pretty emotional, which is rare for games. I loved Dunban in the first game but I don’t think his moveset brings anything too compelling to Smash that isn’t already done by Marth. Nia’s got a few interesting movesets they could work with and all of them are pretty unique.

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

As an outsider to Xenoblade I have to admit I was intrigued at how immensely improved Rex's general reputation was from 2 to 3. I know many will point to his more mature age and change in English voice actor, though I do wonder if now having pants that many didn't find stupid looking might have helped.

In regard to RPG characters, while I've got my obvious favorites (Geno, Terra, Vivi) I have to admit getting Team Snakemouth from Bug Fables would a wonderful sight to see.

 

[fogbadge]

good question, let me see who I can think of

Obviously there are plenty of pokemon I'd like to see but as I've mentioned before I don't anticipated my preferred pokemon getting in

Rex (XC2) and Noah (XC3) - I also don't anticipate my XC wants getting in either

Euden (Dragalia Lost) - Mobile games haven't done well in smash so far but you never know. he'd be fun

Neku (TWEWY) - a great game which would be really fun to see in smash

Tiz (Bravely Default) - probably quite unlikely

Isaac (Golden Sun) - If you'll forgive me for being obvious

Cecil (FF4) - There are many FF characters who'd be neat but he's my top choice. although I'd prefer he was just a paladin rather than switch between his two classes as in dissidia

Kairi/Riku (KH) - don't fancy the odds of another KH character but I'd still like one of these two

and someone from Yo-Kai Watch

oh yeah and Cube from Live a Live

Yeah, Nia’s voice was awesome and was probably a big part of why I liked her so much. The actress that played her really did a great job.

I know she’s a bit of a long shot but Nia’s definitely my most wanted Xenoblade character. I think Noah was a good protagonist even if he did feel a bit plain and Mio was really good but lacked the same fun charm as Nia. Still very enjoyable and one scene with Mio in the game actually got me pretty emotional, which is rare for games. I loved Dunban in the first game but I don’t think his moveset brings anything too compelling to Smash that isn’t already done by Marth. Nia’s got a few interesting movesets they could work with and all of them are pretty unique.

Nia's Welsh. Morag is who I was referring to