Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Diddy Kong]

Who is the most likely character to be in Smash 6. Like the ones that feel almost guaranteed.

Specific characters rather then just statements like Gen 9/10 Pokemon or New FE main character.

Octolings indeed. Also Noah from Xenoblade 3. Quite confident in these two.

I keep bringing up Kohga for a reason.

He may not be one of the ones that gets the requests or discussion, but I do feel his concept and what can be done with him for not just moveset but personality in his animations is enough to win Sakurai/the fanbase over.

The more I think of it, the more it makes sense. I just hope Impa can be included alongside , but then we have 3 Sheikah on the roster, provided Sheik stays of course.

But indeed, Kohga is a underrated choice.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

The more I think of it, the more it makes sense. I just hope Impa can be included alongside , but then we have 3 Sheikah on the roster, provided Sheik stays of course.

But indeed, Kohga is a underrated choice.

Would Kohga count as a Sheikah? Because the Yiga are the anti-Sheikah, no?

 

[Diddy Kong]

Would Kohga count as a Sheikah? Because the Yiga are the anti-Sheikah, no?

Well, would Dark Link count as another Link? Because he's anti-Link

I think he would count yeah. But fair point regardless. I wouldn't be upset with Kohga at all. He might even have a chance to have some sort of continuity in the Zelda series.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

Well, would Dark Link count as another Link? Because he's anti-Link

I think he would count yeah. But fair point regardless. I wouldn't be upset with Kohga at all. He might even have a chance to have some sort of continuity in the Zelda series.

I'm legitimately not aware if Yiga are or are not their own race that have beef with the Sheikah.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

I'm legitimately not aware if Yiga are or are not their own race that have beef with the Sheikah.

From what I understand, they're all Sheikah, but after the first Great Calamity and the Sheikah getting exiled, some of them splintered off into a militant group that allied itself with Calamity Ganon and hated the other Sheikah and officially became known as the Yiga Clan just over 100 years before the main chunk of BotW (which I think places it right before Link has to do the long healing sleep?)

My source is wikis though, so I might not have all the details right.

 

[smashkirby]

Yeah I feel you, I just don't see Bandana Dee and Dixie Kong as characters that would appeal to Capcom all that much. They feel more like "Smash" characters than "Vs Capcom" characters, if you see where I'm coming from. But I could be off the mark on that one.

If Diddy was added, I feel like their next step would be Cranky or K. Rool for further variety sake. They usually try to maximize pretty diverse playstyles, and those two bleed a bit more dynamic "character" - same with Dee getting passed over for Meta Knight, or some rando like Magolor or whatever instead.

...yknow, I realize through this I'm also projecting my own biases on what I believe makes a compelling fighting game character, but I think it's moreso syncing up here where I kind of prefer MVC's approach to character selection these days.

No, I understand. I guess I was just curious about the idea. My God, if Capcom was nuts enough to add Cranky into a Vs. game...

Frankly, I'm starting to realize I should have expanded my earlier question to encompass the 20/21 characters who were highly rated on Swamp Sensei 's 1st party poll and asked what would we all think of any of those guys making it into Nintendo vs. Capcom before Smash Bros....

So I made a wallpaper for each of Ultimate's characters, and they cycle through each hour. The first character of the year: Alph.

Maybe this year's the year he finally gets his own character slot?

Honestly, I'm just glad to see little Alph already get such a shout-out. Personally, I'm not holding out TOO much hope over him getting separated from Olimar, but never say never.

If nothing else, I just wish Alph would appear in, like, a newcomer character reveal trailer or something. I feel like that alone would get a lot more eyes on him if getting his own character slot just isn't in the cards come next Smash Bros. game.

...also, unrelated, but while I guess y'all have been asked this before, what would you argue your "dark-horse" picks for the next Smash would be? That is to say, picks you think would be feasible or realistic, but go massively underdiscussed across the board for one reason or another.

Would a Nintendo Wars character count? Just throwing them out there, as I've seen MANY a person on this site pretty abandon all hope on THAT front.

 

[NintenRob]

I'm not 100% confident in any character, not even Octoling or Noah

While I would consider Octoling decently likely. But there are other things I see happening. Like they would generally considered to be an echo. But is there much about them that would warrant echo over alt? They're basically just an alternate version of the avatar character. Like Daisy is an echo because she has a different personality and being an echo lets her show that off. I don't think Octoling has that benefit. And for unique characters, Splatoon has other options. And I especially think people are sleeping on Squid Sisters.

As for Noah. Xenoblade 3 is complicated. Doing the character justice might be difficult that could result in going for a different character. Like how Pyra got in over Rex

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

From what I understand, they're all Sheikah, but after the first Great Calamity and the Sheikah getting exiled, some of them splintered off into a militant group that allied itself with Calamity Ganon and hated the other Sheikah and officially became known as the Yiga Clan just over 100 years before the main chunk of BotW (which I think places it right before Link has to do the long healing sleep?)

My source is wikis though, so I might not have all the details right.

So they at least got Sheikah blood, but not necessarily a lot of it as generations pass. Got it.

 

[NintenRob]

Actually fun fact about Yiga, so you know how they all love bananas? To the point you can them to distract them in stealth missions? Well sheikah seems to have that in common as monk maz koshia can also be distracted by bananas in his boss fight

 

[Watuna4343]

First comment here! So, as we're talking about the next Smash, one thing I find interesting (not in a bad way, promise) in this last question about which newcomers are considered locks, is how people are not putting Waluigi up there. The thing is, personally, I will be shocked if he is not added in the next game. I personally can't imagine a character that has been more requested (heck, there were articles about him being requested, I don't think any other character - not even King K. Rool and Ridley - has had that distinction). I think along with the Octoling, Waluigi is a lock for the next game along with a 3rd shoe-in in my opinion... Meowscarada.

I read opinions about how 'the ship will have sailed' by the time Smash 6 comes out but imo Meowscarada has stood the test of Gen 9 enough to warrant a spot in the roster (better than Incineroar in its own Gen I'd say). Not to mention that there's the anime to consider too, which will increase its prominence by a lot and its overall popularity, plus, let's be real, it's Pokémon, a newcomer is absolutely coming, I think Meowscarada fits that slot perfectly and completes the trio of characters I would bet money on seeing in the next game.

 

[SMAASH! Puppy]

I think Noah and Mio are pretty equally likely:

Aside from Interlink, Noah's big X factor mechanic is Lucky 7, a blade he draws from his greatsword that is also a sheath. This could allow for an iado character design, something that Smash (and platform fighters in general) haven't had before. I could easily see that potential rocketing him up the list of characters to include.

However novel a concept as that is, he's still a Xeno Swordfighter with a big red blade, something that Mio dodges entirely. Instead, Mio would make for an agile close ranged fighter with just a bit of disjoint thanks to her Twin Rings. Due to the disjoints and being a defensive character in the source material, I'd imagine she'd end up being a pixie; a character that uses their speed to whiff punish opponents to death rather than blitzing them down like other close range fighters. This isn't a new concept, but I'd imagine Mio's take on it would be a bit different to the other characters, perhaps being able to abuse her disjoints (and maybe intangibility frames on her special moves?) in order to weave in and out of close range like a dance.

They could both be added as a tag team and/or swap fighter, perhaps with the mentality of using their abilities in tandem to protect eath other. I can't quite wrap my head around how that would work though, and regardless of how it's done, it would require adding two new fighters that don't Echo each other, which is difficult to justify, especially with less roster space to work with in general.

 

[Louie G.]

First comment here! So, as we're talking about the next Smash, one thing I find interesting (not in a bad way, promise) in this last question about which newcomers are considered locks, is how people are not putting Waluigi up there.

Welcome! I feel similarly confident about Waluigi, but I think there’s always a degree of skepticism knowing he has a lot of competition within his series. I think his popularity kind of puts him a cut above right now, but Mario has a lot of viable choices who may be deemed more interesting, more important, etc.

That’s just to why he’s not a “lock” at least. I think they will want a big first party fan favorite next game and nobody comes close to Waluigi right now… but “lock” does carry a lot of weight, and a lot of people take it literally to mean 100% certainty. Operating on that wave I can’t call him an absolute lock myself, but I’m feeling good about him and consider him one of the most likely characters (along with Tom Nook).

Same concerns can be said of Meowscarada with several other big asterisks. Biggest one is if Gen 9 is the go-to for representation by that point, or if Gen 10 is on the horizon? And within Gen 9, is Meowscarada the one that would catch Sakurai’s eye anyway? I think they would be a strong candidate, but many of us were behind the similarly popular Decidueye at the time and Sakurai saw inspiration elsewhere. I think there’s just too many variables / competition here for Meowscarada to be the definitive pick.

 

[SMAASH! Puppy]

I think along with the Octoling, Waluigi is a lock for the next game along with a 3rd shoe-in in my opinion... Meowscarada.

I read opinions about how 'the ship will have sailed' by the time Smash 6 comes out but imo Meowscarada has stood the test of Gen 9 enough to warrant a spot in the roster (better than Incineroar in its own Gen I'd say). Not to mention that there's the anime to consider too, which will increase its prominence by a lot and its overall popularity, plus, let's be real, it's Pokémon, a newcomer is absolutely coming, I think Meowscarada fits that slot perfectly and completes the trio of characters I would bet money on seeing in the next game.

There's a few things about this: The first is that Pokémon picks are proactive, so if Sakurai was able to pick from Gen 10 or has decided to pick from Pokémon Legends Z-A, Meowscarada has no chance. Now, I think both are unlikely, so that doesn't matter too much, but what does matter IMO is that this is the first time we've had a Pokémon game be out for at least a year before Sakurai picks from it, meaning his options are a lot wider than just playing it safe with a starter. The box legendaries aren't as anitomically similar enough as their vehicle forms suggest, so they probably can't Echo each other, which I think kinda rules them out, but there are fan favorite designs such as Tinkaton and Ceruledge, characters from the story that resonated with people like Arvin and Nemona, and the DLC legendaries that stole the spotlight for a while in Ogrepon and to a lesser extent, Terapagos. Who wins is anyone's guess.

There's also just...a reasonable chance he doesn't go with Meowscarada. I mean, the whole community lazered in on Decidueye when Sakurai was more interested in Incineroar for the character archetype he filled. We could easily get jumpscared by "Quaquaval's dancing/Skeledirge's songbird spoke to me creatively so I decided to go with them". The precedents in place just don't strongly implicate Meowscarada specifically; just that whoever they pick has to be likely to be seen by anyone with a passing interest in modern Pokémon.

All that and the fact that staying power is almost meaningless for Pokémon since the cream of the crop in this regard is still like, 50 characters. Way too many to add.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Welcome! I feel similarly confident about Waluigi, but I think there’s always a degree of skepticism knowing he has a lot of competition within his series. I think his popularity kind of puts him a cut above right now, but Mario has a lot of viable choices who may be deemed more interesting, more important, etc.

That’s just to why he’s not a “lock” at least. I think they will want a big first party fan favorite next game and nobody comes close to Waluigi right now… but “lock” does carry a lot of weight, and a lot of people take it literally to mean 100% certainty. Operating on that wave I can’t call him an absolute lock myself, but I’m feeling good about him and consider him one of the most likely characters (along with Tom Nook).

This isn't like an objective thing but I also wouldn't entirely be shocked if Waluigi got snubbed again, even if he really probably should be in by next game, but of course this is coming from a Paper Mario fan so I'm biased for other options anyway lmao

Same concerns can be said of Meowscarada with several other big asterisks. Biggest one is if Gen 9 is the go-to for representation by that point, or if Gen 10 is on the horizon? And within Gen 9, is Meowscarada the one that would catch Sakurai’s eye anyway? I think they would be a strong candidate, but many of us were behind the similarly popular Decidueye at the time and Sakurai saw inspiration elsewhere. I think there’s just too many variables / competition here for Meowscarada to be the definitive pick.

I think Gen 9 will definitely be the go-to for next Smash unless they announce Gen 10 next month at Pokemon Day for a Holiday this year release tbh.

I'm currently of the opinion that since ZA is coming out this year, Gen 10 will probably hold off until next year since Pokemon Company seems to be taking a bit more time as of late, and assuming Smash comes out the same year (2026, since it'd be year 2 of the Switch 2) and Pokemon is a holiday release like it has been since Gen 7 (technically Gen 6 as well, but that was October not November), the two would be WAY too close together. Always possible since Sakurai gets pre-release info from Pokemon, but I'm talking like NECK AND NECK close potentially. Either that or Smash would come out earlier than Gen 10, which means Gen 10 couldn't possibly happen anyway, OR Smash ends up releasing in like early 2027.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

along with a 3rd shoe-in in my opinion... Meowscarada.

I read opinions about how 'the ship will have sailed' by the time Smash 6 comes out but imo Meowscarada has stood the test of Gen 9 enough to warrant a spot in the roster (better than Incineroar in its own Gen I'd say). Not to mention that there's the anime to consider too, which will increase its prominence by a lot and its overall popularity, plus, let's be real, it's Pokémon, a newcomer is absolutely coming, I think Meowscarada fits that slot perfectly and completes the trio of characters I would bet money on seeing in the next game.

For Gen 9 to even have a chance, the next Smash would have to had its roster mapped out before Scarlet and Violet had been released and a slot reserved for a Pokémon from the next upcoming Generation, to which Gen 9 would be the upcoming one.

This is literally what happened with Gen 4 (with the added bonus that Lucario's movie would be airing in theaters within weeks of when Brawl's roster would be drafted).
This is what happened with Gen 6, with Sakurai even requiring concept art for a Pokémon that hadn't been even given an OFFICIAL NAME yet.
And this is what happened with Gen 7, this time with pre-release videos showcasing new Pokémon being readily available before he made his final decision closer to Sun & Moon's release.

With that in mind, a hypothetical Gen 9 Pokémon would have been decided on well before any "test of time". Based solely on their concept as a fighter.

Meowscarada is only but a single possible option in this scenario. It having "popularity" or "anime prominence" or "marketing" (which isn't exclusive to it by any means) is ultimately irrelevant since none of it would play any factor when a Gen 9 Pokémon would be hypothetically picked.

Meowscarada needs:
-for Smash to have its design document finalized before Scarlet and Violet (which may or may not be the case because we know Sakurai has an undisclosed project that had its design document drafted in July of 2021, but there's no guarantee it's Smash)
-to appeal to Sakurai the most on a conceptual level, with the likes of Quaquaval, Tinkaton, and Ceruledge being just a few examples of very stiff competition



So no, Meowscarada is not a "shoo-in" by any stretch.
It is a possible option (if timing is right), but not the only option.

 

[Shinuto]

It's going to be quite a shocker when people actually play Xenoblade X for the first time and realize you don't play as Elma ever and at a certain point, barely fight on the ground when most combat is relegated to the giant robots you paid money to upgrade with parts.

uhh you can play as her whenever you want and can actually continue to play as her for the rest of the game.

 

[Idon]

I think Noah and Mio are pretty equally likely:

Aside from Interlink, Noah's big X factor mechanic is Lucky 7, a blade he draws from his greatsword that is also a sheath. This could allow for an iado character design, something that Smash (and platform fighters in general) haven't had before. I could easily see that potential rocketing him up the list of characters to include.

However novel a concept as that is, he's still a Xeno Swordfighter with a big red blade, something that Mio dodges entirely. Instead, Mio would make for an agile close ranged fighter with just a bit of disjoint thanks to her Twin Rings. Due to the disjoints and being a defensive character in the source material, I'd imagine she'd end up being a pixie; a character that uses their speed to whiff punish opponents to death rather than blitzing them down like other close range fighters. This isn't a new concept, but I'd imagine Mio's take on it would be a bit different to the other characters, perhaps being able to abuse her disjoints (and maybe intangibility frames on her special moves?) in order to weave in and out of close range like a dance.

They could both be added as a tag team and/or swap fighter, perhaps with the mentality of using their abilities in tandem to protect eath other. I can't quite wrap my head around how that would work though, and regardless of how it's done, it would require adding two new fighters that don't Echo each other, which is difficult to justify, especially with less roster space to work with in general.

In addition to all those reasons, adding 2 wholly unique characters also brings back another issue of the Zelda/Sheik, Samus/Zero Suit variety in where there balancing it so that it's worthwhile to actually swap (not that you really could with the Samuses) and one not completely overriding the other in terms of usage.

For a transformation character to truly function, switching needs to not just be an arbitrary swapping of characters, but swapping in a way that actually covers each others weaknesses.
They attempted this with Zelda having stronger and longer-range attacks vs Sheik's quick nimble close-ranged high-mobility weak attack focus, but the way Smash works as a game doesn't really incentivize swapping back to Zelda more than it does learning to use the key kill moves Sheik has.
They also attempted to make it worthwhile to switch with Brawl PT's stamina mechanic and that was godawful.
Even Pyra/Mythra, probably the most successful version of this, inevitably leans most on Mythra while Pyra only comes out to fish for kills or attempt to extend a stock life, and conveniently those 2 movesets are identical animation-wise outside the specials, an aspect not feasible for Noah + Mio.

So even beyond the resource hoarding, I dunno if Sakurai and co. would even go to the design doc and put down "This same concept from Melee but for actual realsies this time."

 

[Kirby Dragons]

Okay, let’s flip the “sauce” question around. Who do you think could be a fun surprise pick that not many people are asking for right now that could really win people over thanks to their “sauce” in gameplay, design, and personality? I personally believe a lot of characters I recently named in my last post would fit that bill really well but what do you think? It’s always fun to discover new and exciting characters through Smash you might not have been as familiar with otherwise.

Amazon Pandora. She'd have a playful personality and a tricky moveset, tripping up opponents with illusions and traps.

 

[Thegameandwatch]

Do you guys think another generic Mario enemy has a chance after Piranha Plant?

Lot of them would have moveset potential for the same reason as Plant such as Koopa and Shy Guy (could be also be a Yoshi Rep).

 

[Diddy Kong]

I'm legitimately not aware if Yiga are or are not their own race that have beef with the Sheikah.

Oh in that case, technically they are separate yeah. But the Yiga defected from the Sheikah 'ages ago' according to BOTW lore. They still... dress and fight functionally the same however. With Yiga being more emphasised cause they're enemies to Link of course and the Sheikah aren't.

In Tears of the Kingdom, they suddenly become super invested and interested in the ancient Zonai technology too. Kohga using these during his fights too. And you fight him quite a few times in TOTK.

So ideally he can use certain abilities from both games which Link would never use in his kit. That's a definite plus. As people often claim the only option for this is either Rauru for TOTK related abilities or BOTW Zelda for Sheikah Slate abilities from BOTW (a thing she also does in Hyrule Warriors Age of Calamity btw, and Kohga is also playable there).

 

[Idon]

Do you guys think another generic Mario enemy has a chance after Piranha Plant?

Lot of them would have moveset potential for the same reason as Plant such as Koopa and Shy Guy (could be also be a Yoshi Rep).

Ab-
solutely
not.

Piranha Plant's inclusion is entirely justified around the novelty and uniqueness of its specific circumstances.

Putting in another generic enemy would be about as well received as saying the same joke twice.

 

[Royaru]

Who is the most likely character to be in Smash 6. Like the ones that feel almost guaranteed.

Specific characters rather then just statements like Gen 9/10 Pokemon or New FE main character.

As many of you have commented, I think the most likely ones are Noah/Mio and the Octolings/Agent 8, and at this point I would also add Oatchi and the character from Ring Fit Adventure.
As Thegameandwatch has commented, RFA has sold VERY well, and even has a theme on Alarmo.

On the other hand, since we are back on the subject of characters guaranteed for the next Smash, at the last shareholders meeting, Nintendo shared a graphic about some of the franchaise that had grown the most in the Switch era, where Metroid, Xenoblade, Kirby and Pikmin stood out.

Spoiler: Nintendo franchaise

It's obvious that they're going to support these franchises in the coming years, including Smash. Not to mention the absurdly large growth that Animal Crossing has had, so I'd say that Tom Nook has a much better chance than we give him credit for - in fact, he's even on the cover of Nintendo Music alongside Isabelle. With that said, I think Bandana Dee and Raven Beak would also be in that select group of guaranteed ones, maybe at 95% but I would find it very strange if we didn't see them.

On the subject of Elma, I don't think she can compete with Noah/Mio BUT if Xeno X is going to have more installments I wouldn't see it strange if she was one of the first DLC characters to arrive.

 

[SMAASH! Puppy]

In addition to all those reasons, adding 2 wholly unique characters also brings back another issue of the Zelda/Sheik, Samus/Zero Suit variety in where there balancing it so that it's worthwhile to actually swap (not that you really could with the Samuses) and one not completely overriding the other in terms of usage.

For a transformation character to truly function, switching needs to not just be an arbitrary swapping of characters, but swapping in a way that actually covers each others weaknesses.
They attempted this with Zelda having stronger and longer-range attacks vs Sheik's quick nimble close-ranged high-mobility weak attack focus, but the way Smash works as a game doesn't really incentivize swapping back to Zelda more than it does learning to use the key kill moves Sheik has.
They also attempted to make it worthwhile to switch with Brawl PT's stamina mechanic and that was godawful.
Even Pyra/Mythra, probably the most successful version of this, inevitably leans most on Mythra while Pyra only comes out to fish for kills or attempt to extend a stock life, and conveniently those 2 movesets are identical animation-wise outside the specials, an aspect not feasible for Noah + Mio.

So even beyond the resource hoarding, I dunno if Sakurai and co. would even go to the design doc and put down "This same concept from Melee but for actual realsies this time."

I don't think Noah/Mio would have the same attempted dynamic as Zelda/Sheik or Pyra/Mythra. For one, as you said, we literally just did Pyra/Mythra, so even if they don't return, they aren't a novel concept. It also doesn't really make sense for Noah to be "the one that gets the kills". I mean, yeah, he's the DPS character of the two, but in terms of his personality and his whole character ark where he's leery about using Lucky 7 because of how strong it is, it's a weird fit. If they were a standard swap character like Pyra/Mythra, I think the dynamic would be a more nuanced "Mio has speed and can deal with CQC fiarly easy, but struggles against projectiles while Noah...also probably struggles against projectiles, but has beeg sword range and can fight at a safer distance than Mio can."

As for their previous attempts...yeah Sakurai does seem to kinda miss the point. Zelda is such an unsuccessful character design that I almost feel like it doesn't even count, but there is definitely the lessen learned there that high K.O. power doesn't matter if you can't actually hit your opponent.

Pokémon Trainer juggles 3, which probably saved the concept since it required a more nuanced direction on account of the third character. Going with a rushdown, zoner, and a heavyweight was a pretty good basic concept, but in excecution it does seem to be a knife's edge since it's just a few balance tweaks away from Ivysaur running the show and not needing the others, and Charizard is still considered dead weight except when recovering, and he can edge guard in a pinch because if you're already playing as him it takes too long to switch to Ivysaur who is better at it.

Pyra/Mythra are fine as is, but would very much benefit from a bit more nuance added, especially since Pyra gets used right now because her down air is really silly and it combined with her other big strong hitboxes allows her to play neutral enough for her K.O. power to be worth it. If you nerf that (which they probably will), you'll need to replace it with clear strengths and weaknesses in neutral for both of them or Pyra will just be bad...which is easier said than done since speed is everything and Mythra has a lot of it.

So TLDR: I agree with you, but I think by necessity a hypothetical Noah/Mio swap character would sidestep the issue because they'd require a more nuanced approach than "Noah kills and Mio does neutral".

 

[Gengar84]

I think transformation characters can work great as long as each character has a defined role and can actually perform that role effectively. I believe Pyra/Mythra’s approach generally works well where one character is the powerhouse with high KO potential and the other is more focused on racking up damage or providing support. It does require some careful balancing to ensure each character feels useful and doesn’t overshadow the other.

I think Alphen and Shionne from Tales of Arise fit this pretty perfectly. Alphen is a powerful sword user that can power up his attacks at the cost of his own health and Shionne is a gunner and mage with access to healing spells. Alphen and Shionne have a strong story and mechanical reason for being a pair since Shionne is who allows Alphen to use his flame sword abilities and the two are deeply connected in the story.

Jinx and Vi from League of Legends could be another fun pairing where Vi serves the role of a Melee powerhouse similar to Little Mac and Jinx focuses on ranged attacks and quick movement. Jinx has more than enough to work with on her own so she doesn’t really need Vi but it could be a fun option to emphasize League of Legends’ teamwork in the main game and 2XKO.

One more pairing I think could work great is Dixie and Kiddy Kong, where Kiddy serves as the heavy hitter and Dixie focuses more on speed and mobility. The two could perform team attacks like throwing the inactive Kong to attack opponents or as an additional recovery to reach a higher ledge. As with Jinx, Dixie has enough moveset potential herself to work standalone but this could be a fun alternative as well.

All of these pairings could add fun combination attacks that emphasize their teamwork rather than two unconnected characters like in past pairings. Alphen/Shionne and Jinx/Vi could perform a combo attack upon switching and Dixie/Kiddy could throw each other like I mentioned before. I think these things could help the pairings feel more connected as one cohesive character.

 

[BuckleyTim]

Tickled pink at the idea of Gormless Kong being completely ignored and forgotten about after DKC3 only to be brought back for Smash of all things 25 years later. Could you imagine Kiddy at the graphical fidelity of switch 2, much less what he'd look like in a CGI cutscene?

 

[Gengar84]

Tickled pink at the idea of Gormless Kong being completely ignored and forgotten about after DKC3 only to be brought back for Smash of all things 25 years later. Could you imagine Kiddy at the graphical fidelity of switch 2, much less what he'd look like in a CGI cutscene?

Lol yeah I’d love to see that. Honestly, I never really disliked Kiddy Kong that much. I actually prefer him to all of DK64’s new Kongs. He also contrasts with Dixie better than Diddy would have so they’d probably make a more interesting transform duo mechanically than Diddy/Dixie would have.

Do you guys think another generic Mario enemy has a chance after Piranha Plant?

Lot of them would have moveset potential for the same reason as Plant such as Koopa and Shy Guy (could be also be a Yoshi Rep).

Should they add another generic Mario enemy? Probably not.

Do I really want Goomba anyways? Absolutely.

I’ll be happy with Goombella too if we want to stick to actual individual characters rather than generic enemies. She was by far my favorite character in any of the Mario RPG games.

 

[BuckleyTim]

1. add Paper Mario
2. Add Rougeport as a stage
3. Have goombella tattle on the opponents if you taunt as paper Mario
4. Watch the box office explode

 

[Gengar84]

1. add Paper Mario
2. Add Rougeport as a stage
3. Have goombella tattle on the opponents if you taunt as paper Mario
4. Watch the box office explode

I could live with that. Paper Mario himself doesn’t excite me too much since we already have two Marios and I generally prefer unique characters to alternate versions of the same ones but he could be fun mechanically and it’s probably the most logical way of getting Goombella in some way.

 

[Diddy Kong]

I could live with that. Paper Mario himself doesn’t excite me too much since we already have two Marios and I generally prefer unique characters to alternate versions of the same ones but he could be fun mechanically and it’s probably the most logical way of getting Goombella in some way.

I say we sacrifice Dr.Mario for Paper Mario. Now it all works!

 

[ScrubReborn]

Do you guys think another generic Mario enemy has a chance after Piranha Plant?

No, and I don't want more either. One mook taking up roster space is bad enough.

...tbf I actually woulda accepted Goomba or Koopa if they were in Ult. instead of Plant. They're the most iconic mooks so at least it woulda made a little sense, but that ship's sailed so please no more.

I generally prefer unique characters to alternate versions of the same ones

Same. It's one thing if they're just a cheap clone, but a full unique character that's just a pre-existing one is lame af. If they add a Paper Mario character, I hope Sakurai pulls a Min-Min. Mario again as our first Mario RPG rep =.

 

[Gengar84]

The only problem is that Goombella has a very limited move pool. A generic Goomba actually has a lot more to pull from with all the variants they’ve had over the years. Maybe Goombella could borrow some normal Goomba abilities to flesh out a full moveset. I just really found her personality and character enjoyable.

 

[dezeray112]

Who is the most likely character to be in Smash 6. Like the ones that feel almost guaranteed.

That is a good question.

I could see Noah and Mio of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 as one of those considered as a possible guarantee.

In terms of third party characters, if it were someone from Street Fighter, I could possibly see someone like Chun-Li as a guarantee and if it were someone from the Sonic franchise, possibly between Shadow or Dr. Eggman.

 

[Gengar84]

As far as third party goes, I feel the most confident about Shadow. He’s been historically really popular and he’s got a ton of momentum right now. If anyone used to follow the Brawl modding scene, you’d know just how popular he is with Smash fans. It seemed like every week someone was making their own version of a Shadow mod. I think Zero is an underrated character that has a pretty good chance as well thanks to his existing appearances in Smash and other crossovers.

 

[RileyXY1]

Based on the past track record I'm not sure if Sonic is even getting another rep. Sega might decide to throw in yet another new franchise rep (especially with all the old franchises they've been reviving lately).

 

[Gengar84]

Based on the past track record I'm not sure if Sonic is even getting another rep. Sega might decide to throw in yet another new franchise rep (especially with all the old franchises they've been reviving lately).

I’m not sure about that. Sephiroth is the only unique secondary character from an existing third party guest IP. Ken and Richter are the only other ones and they’re both echoes. I think it’s too early to say that Sonic is in much worse a position than any other third party in terms of getting another fighter.

 

[BuckleyTim]

The Virtua Fighter stocks are at an all-time high, really. Given that the team's found excuses to reference Akira in the last two smashes, I wouldn't be surprised if Akira gets promoted to playable (though admittedly making a moveset for him will be hard given virtua's... Not exactly realistic but much more realistic than say, Tekken take on fighting)

 

[CannonStreak]

I am all for Akira getting into Smash as a playable. Still…

Would you all rather have his polygon look he has as an Assist Trophy in Ultimate or a more detailed look?

 

[Gengar84]

Since Akira uses a much more grounded and realistic fighting style, I wonder if Sakurai will run into the same problems he did with Heihachi. He’s had plenty of time to think about it so there’s still a decent chance he’ll figure out a way to make him work where he wasn’t able to with Heihachi.

 

[dezeray112]

The Virtua Fighter stocks are at an all-time high, really. Given that the team's found excuses to reference Akira in the last two smashes, I wouldn't be surprised if Akira gets promoted to playable (though admittedly making a moveset for him will be hard given virtua's... Not exactly realistic but much more realistic than say, Tekken take on fighting)

There is still not much information in regards to their new Virtua Fighter project other than the teaser trailer which certainly lives up to the hype (this is coming from someone who had long waited for a new VF entry since the fifth game.)

Hopefully once there is further information within this year, we will learn a lot more on their new project as well as further gameplay for their characters Akira and Stella.

 

[Louie G.]

I am all for Akira getting into Smash as a playable. Still…

Would you all rather have his polygon look he has as an Assist Trophy in Ultimate or a more detailed look?

I’d personally much rather him use the polygonal look since it would just stand out a lot more - I find Akira to look a bit unremarkable otherwise, and I like the idea of a low poly fighter. But I recognize that the series is being revitalized right now, and it would make a lot less sense than before to go for the “retro” look as the default when he’ll have a brand new appearance to take inspiration from which Sega would probably like to market over framing the character as a sort of throwback.

But with luck it would still be an alternate costume, knowing Sakurai I’d be shocked if he didn’t go for that.