Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Wonder Smash]

Although I'm mostly expecting the Dragonborn from Skyrim to get in if we do get a Bethesda rep at all. I'm not expecting the FPS genre to ever be repped at all, due to the genre's lack of popularity in Japan.

You just got told that a Smash Mii costume based on a FPS icon did really well in Japan. So clearly that's not a problem.

 

[CannonStreak]

I wonder...I mean there is no confirmation for any of this, since the next Smash is not even out yet, but in Ultimate, Sakurai said that Nintendo was choosing the DLC characters. I wonder if that will happen again or if he will be able to choose the DLC himself next game, if he is working on the next game, that is.

 

[Speed Weed]

I was thinking actually about Konami getting a SHMUP rep because that's one of the game genres that the Japanese will kiss the ground it walks on, and Konami pretty much birthed the side-scrolling SHMUP genre with Gradius and had a LOT of SHMUPs to their name in general when they were still focusing on arcades.
Though I was specifically thinking about Tako from Parodius, because he'd be actually be able to animate like a fighter unlike the Vic Viper, while still representing the Gradius franchise as a whole even beyond his home spinoff, since his weapon configuration is based off of Type D from Gradius II.
Sure, Bomberman has like hundreds of games, but Gradius and its spinoffs have been referenced and homaged so many times, and I'm sure Sakurai loves them quite a bit considering the Galactic Nova sequence in Kirby Super Star. I could see Bomberman getting the shaft again in favor of Gradius and Parodius.

I would love to see something like that but I do think Bomberman has a stronger sort of icon status that gives him the edge. Like don't get me wrong, Gradius is mega influential and Konami's shmups are an essential part of their catalog, but....how do I put this? if you're comparing the two pitches of "we're adding Bomberman" and "we're adding a character to represent Konami's shmups" I think the former holds more....weight? Bomberman has that edge of being not just an iconic series but an iconic character, which I think gives him strength in this fight. Glad you brought up Gradius/Parodius though, would be lovely and deserving

It helps that Bomberman would be our first character from Hudson, who used to be extremely close to Nintendo and had their own console that was rather successful in Japan. Would be neat to see him for that reason as well, though it doesn't really factor into his actual chances

 

[Geno Boost]

here is who i think are currently the top 5 most likely square-enix newcomers for next smash game

1. Geno: SMRPG got remake recently and Sakurai considered adding him as playable before and still have high demand since brawl and also have gotten mii costume
2. Zack Fair as Cloud echo fighter: has alot of fans and would be an easy addition for base game and his game got a remake recently
3. 2B: her creator wants her to be included in Smash and that's a big advantage and Nier popularity is increasing alongside her fan request
4. Space Invaders or any Taito rep: Space Invaders is currently the 6th highest grossing video game franchise even more so than final fantasy https://res.cloudinary.com/tmxfoc/i...st-grossing-video-game-franchises-5.png?_i=AA and its also the grandfather of video game and Taito is currently the only missing piece of square-enix in smash which the company consist of Squaresoft and Enix and Taito however its a slept on pick that if its get added it would be due to its legacy in the gaming industry rather than fan request
5. Crono: Chrono series is somehow still active and Crono still got demand not high however a remake of Chrono Trigger would increase his chances as his game is still memorable to many to this day

 

[Speed Weed]

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

 

[CannonStreak]

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

Aw, that sucks. I was, and still am hoping for a Virtua Fighter character to make it in as a playable in the next Smash Bros.

 

[Wonder Smash]

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

But on the bright side, at least Akira is an assist trophy.

 

[Ivander]

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

looks at Goemon being top 5 lowest each time, with one time being the very bottom
feelsbadman

 

[Geno Boost]

pretty sure deluxe mii costumes sells well because they dont have ugly mii face you have to insert and they feel closer to being the actual character that you are playing

 

[Perkilator]

I just remembered that Slime was going to be the DQ rep in case Sakurai failed to get the Hero. After thinking about it some more, what if that was the case?

Spoiler: Slime moveset

Intro: Slime bounces into battle after using Zoom.

Stance/Idle 1: Slime bobs up and down.
Idle 2: Slime jiggles a bit.
Idle 3: Slime stretches a bit.

Notable Palette Swaps:

1. Regular Slime
   • Blue Slime (default)
   • She-Slime (orange)
   • Metal Slime (gray)
   • Lime Slime (green)
   • Lemon Slime (yellow)
   • Pink Slime (pink)
   • Dark Slime (purple)
   • Marble Slime (brown)
   • Cureslime (red)
   • Mottle Slime (spotted yellow / black)
   • Mottle She-Slime (spotted blue / pink)
   • Mottle Mendslime (spotted green / orange)
   • Tree Slime (lavender)
   • Cream Slime (white)
   • Dracky (black)
   • Man o’ War (turquoise)
2. King Slime’s crown (special costume)
   • The above colors are reused for the King Slime’s crown alt

Walk: Slime oozes across the ground.
Dash: Slime hops along the ground.
Damage: Slime recoils with a surprised expression.
Jump: Slime hops up into the air.
Crouch: Slime squishes down to avoid danger.

Normal Attacks
Jab: The Slime Knight performs two slashes (2% each) and a flurry (.5% each hit), finishing with a horizontal slash (7%, small knockback)
Forward+A: Elasto Blast; Slime elongates its face to attack (7%, small knockback)
Up+A: Slime points it pointy head upward (9%, OK knockback)
Down+A: Slime plays the Warrior’s Flute (8%, small knockback)

Aerial Attacks
Air+A: Slime turns into Healslime and spins its tentacles around (11%, OK knockback)
Air Forward+A: Slime turns into Healslime and jabs forward with its tentacles (13%, OK knockback)
Air Back + A: Slime turns into Healslime and performs a swinging uppercut with its tentacles (9%, small knockback)
Air Up+A: Slime turns into Healslime and infuses its tentacles with magic energy (11%, OK knockback)
Air Down+A: Slime turns into Healslime and jabs downward with its tentacles (13%, with a meteor effect, OK knockback)

Dash Attack: Slime dashes forward with a Shellmet (10%, OK knockback)
Edge Attack: the Slime Knight helps Slime get back up, performing a downward slash afterward (9%, OK knockback
Get-Up Attack: Slime hops up and creates a small shockwave of magma (8%, small knockback)

Smash Attacks
Forward+A: Helm Splitter; The Slime Knight performs a mighty slash (21%, medium knockback)
Up+A: Slime Stack; two smaller Slimes appear above Slime’s head (18%, OK knockback)
Down+A: Poison Attack: Slime hops up and slams down to create a poisonous shockwave (18%, OK knockback)

Grab Game
Grab: Slime hops up and sticks to the opponent.
Pummel: Slime attacks the opponent while sticking to them (2%)
Forwards+Throw & Back + Throw: Slime bends over to either the left or right (9%, small knockback)
Up+Throw: Slime hops down and jabs upward with a Shellmet (12%, OK knockback)
Down+Throw: Puff Puff; Slime nuzzles the opponent on the ground (9%, OK knockback)

Special Moves
B : Command Menu; Slime chooses a spell out of 4 randomly picked from the list below (with a visual indication of each spell to get around language barriers)

1. Sizzle (20MP) is indicated by a flame
2. Kaboom (37MP) is indicated by a bomb
3. Snooze (16MP) is indicated by a “ZZZ” symbol
4. Thwack (30MP) is indicated by an X
5. Magic Burst (All MP) is indicated by a wizard’s hat
6. Kamikazee (1MP) is indicated by a flash
7. Psyche Up (14MP) is indicated by an electrified fist
8. Oomph (16MP) is indicated by a sword
9. Accelerate (13MP) is indicated by a speeding shoe
10. Bounce (14MP) is indicated by a hexagon

You can cancel out of the Command Menu by pressing Shield.
B + Forwards : Frizz / Frizzle / Kafrizz; Slime charges a fireball with three levels of power

• Frizz (6MP) is a small fireball that deals a single hit (11%, small knockback)
• Frizzle (16MP) breaks off into two slightly larger fireballs (15% each, OK knockback)
• Kafrizz (36MP) breaks off into a large fireball (18%, OK knockback) and two slightly smaller fireballs (15% each, OK knockback)

B + Up : Woosh / Swoosh / Kaswoosh; Slime charges a tornado with three levels of power

• Woosh (5MP) is a gust of wind that propels Slime into the air and deals no damage
• Swoosh (9MP) is a tornado that propels Slime even higher into the air and, when on the ground, goes in the direction Slime was facing and propels opponents into the air (14%, medium knockback)
• Kaswoosh (18MP) is a stronger tornado that propels Slime even higher into the air and, when on the ground, traps a single opponent and attacks them (19%, medium knockback)

B + Down : Zap / Zapple / Kazap; Slime charges a lightning bolt with three levels of power

• Zap (8MP) is a simple lightning bolt (12%, OK knockback)
• Zapple (18MP)summons two lightning bolts around Slime (16% each, OK knockback)
• Kazap (42MP) is a mighty AOE bolt that explodes and hits opponents multiple times (35%, medium knockback)

Final Smash: Slime-pede!; a King Slime crashes down and hits four opponents (20%). Any opponents hit are taken into a cutscene where multiple types of Slimes form a stampede loosely based on the Yoshi stampede from Melee’s intro (43%, far knockback).

Gimmick: MP Gauge; starting at 100MP, Slime’s special moves require a certain amount of MP to use, and cannot be used if Slime’s current MP is lower than the required amount. The gauge slowly refills over time, but Slime can regain MP faster by taking or dealing damage; the refill is paused when the Command Menu is open.

Taunts
Up: Slime jumps in the air and gives an armless wave.
Side: Slime begins scooting on the ground in a circle, then shivers.
Down: Slime hops around in the air, making a "wheeeeeee" expression.

Winposes
1: Three Slimes stack together to form a Slime Stack.
2: The Slime Knight rides valiantly before making a pose resembling its official artwork.
3: A group of multi-colored Slimes look at the camera and jump towards it playfully.

Applause: Slime jumps up, trying to stay within the camera’s line of sight.
Icon: Erdrick’s symbol
Boxing Ring Title: Good to Goo!
Star K.O.: N/A
Victory Music: Overture
Kirby Hat: A Slime hat

 

[Dukefire]

I just wonder HOW did nintendo managed to slip in an adult joke with.......The Vibe Scepter. This was for Super Princess Peach.

 

[chocolatejr9]

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

Blame Sega for letting the series DIE, along with all the other series they've left in a vault somewhere...

 

[toonito]

Geno fans bout to launch into space lol

fun direct

 

[dream1ng]

Alright, so, everyone. I think the DLC sales list is impacted by recency. As in, it's not ordered by all-time best sellers.

Instead of Smash DLC, type in Zelda. Instead of DLC, select software, and sort by best sellers.

TotK is ahead of BotW. TotK no doubt has sold fantastically, but BotW, from the last estimate last month, was tens of millions of units away. There's no way TotK has caught up to it yet, even if just digitally. But, recently, it would've sold more.

Or instead of Zelda, keep the rest the same, and type Pikmin.
Pikmin 1+2 is ahead of Pikmin 3 Deluxe, despite the fact that it dropped today, and Pikmin 3DX has sold over 2.2 mil. I know 1+2 is digital only, but it's been less than twelve hours. However, recently, it would've sold more.

Go to Xenoblade. XC3, XC3 + Expansion pass, and XC:DE are all ahead of XC2, despite XC2 being the best selling title. I mean, XC3 and XC3 + Expansion Pass are counted separately, and they're both still ahead of the other two.

M+R Sparks of Hope (and the Gold Edition) are both, separately, ahead of Kingdom Battle, when we know the sequel didn't do that well and the original was highly successful, with five extra years on the market.

Or you could look at how, for FIFA or NBA or something, the best sellers are typically content from the most current game/year, and gradually get older as you go down the list.

At least, all of this is true for my region. But the fact that it's true in any region should be a big red flag.

 

[Opossum]

Alright, so, everyone. I think the DLC sales list is impacted by recency. As in, it's not ordered by all-time best sellers.

Instead of Smash DLC, type in Zelda. Instead of DLC, select software, and sort by best sellers.

TotK is ahead of BotW. TotK no doubt has sold fantastically, but BotW, from the last estimate last month, was tens of millions of units away. There's no way TotK has caught up to it yet, even if just digitally. But, recently, it would've sold more.

Or instead of Zelda, keep the rest the same, and type Pikmin.
Pikmin 1+2 is ahead of Pikmin 3 Deluxe, despite the fact that it dropped today, and Pikmin 3DX has sold over 2.2 mil. I know 1+2 is digital only, but it's been less than twelve hours. However, recently, it would've sold more.

Go to Xenoblade. XC3, XC3 + Expansion pass, and XC:DE are all ahead of XC2, despite XC2 being the best selling title. I mean, XC3 and XC3 + Expansion Pass are counted separately, and they're both still ahead of the other two.

M+R Sparks of Hope (and the Gold Edition) are both, separately, ahead of Kingdom Battle, when we know the sequel didn't do that well and the original was highly successful, with five extra years on the market.

Or you could look at how, for FIFA or NBA or something, the best sellers are typically content from the most current game/year, and gradually get older as you go down the list.

At least, all of this is true for my region. But the fact that it's true in any region should be a big red flag.

I think the issue there is that you're looking at it across different games in a series, instead of one game.

 

[dream1ng]

I think the issue there is that you're looking at it across different games in a series, instead of one game.

I don't see the distinction here.

Yes I'm looking at whole games versus DLC, but I'm still sorting by the best seller category, and it's giving me results that are pretty incredulous unless recency is taken into account.

Why would the 'best seller' category work differently between the two?

And btw, I had it set to 'all' for the sports titles, and the DLC was still stacked (more or less) from newest to oldest despite being categorized by sales.

 

[CannonStreak]

You know, someone here said that Nintendo would have to be interested if they wanted to buy all things Super Mario RPG from Square Enix. Well, honestly, I can see that happening. Maybe this isn't 100 percent certain, but with Paper Mario games being the only Mario RPG game Nintendo has, and with the Mario and Luigi games dead due to AlphaDream being defunct, I can see Nintendo buying what comes with Super Mario RPG since they could use it as another Mario RPG series to have that they could make themselves.

...Or they could just continue to let Square Enix own the content and make sequels for Super Mario RPG if the remake is successful. Yeah, I know.

 

[Garteam]

I'm kind of hesitant to give the E-Shop sales data much weight for a number of reasons:

• 1. We don't know how much the two Fighters Passes skewed the data here. Characters that appealed more to a more general audience unlikely to buy the pass before knowing who is included, like Steve, probably did better than characters that were aimed as Nintendo diehards that would have bought the pass no matter what, like Hero (outside of Japan) and Banjo.
• 2. Sales have never been the sole determining factor for deciding who does and doesn't make it to Smash. Sure, Nintendo almost certainly wants newcomers to entice people to play the game. However, there's room for unmarketable weirdos like Duck Hunt and Wii Fit Trainer.
• 3. Even for DLC characters, we don't know how much of a role marketability played in their selection. This is especially true for the first parties. Min Min and Pythra's inclusion wasn't to market Smash, it was to include cut character ideas from the base game.
• 4. We don't know if there's any correlation between the success of Mii Costumes in Smash 4 and who got which role in Ultimate. Did K. Rool, Isabelle, the Inklings, and Chrom sell particularly well? We have no idea. Did Zero, the Black Knight, Knuckles, and Akira sell well too but not well enough to make it to playable status? We have no idea.

Also, congrats to all the Geno fans today. I'm happy to see your enthusiasm for the character be rewarded.

 

[Aaayei]

Ignore

I think I misread

 

[StrangeKitten]

I've seen a lot of people, in this site and outside, focusing way too hard on how Geno fans would act in the next Smash speculation cycle lol

Just let them have this win, they were unnecessarily treated as a punching bag in the last speculation cycle.

Thank you so much for saying this! Completely agree.

I am absolutely over the moon! SMRPG remake! Yessss!! It feels like, just maybe, us Geno fans did make an impact and were heard. I could also see S-E having prioritized Cloud, Sephiroth, and Hero for Smash, which makes sense. Hopefully Geno will be playable for the next game.

Also, I don't see why Doomguy and Master Chief can't both get into the next Smash. Yes, they're both green space marines... so what? 2 characters with that similarity, with plenty that can be done to differentiate them, out of what will likely be 20ish newcomers is hardly too many. We've infamously gotten many anime swordfighters as newcomers. An FGC character has been in all of the past roster addition cycles (Ryu as DLC for 4, Ken as base for Ultimate, then Terry and Kazuya for their respective Fighter's Passes) and they're all up-close style fighters with command inputs. If the developers aren't considering things like this redundant (and they shouldn't, because these characters all have plenty to differentiate them), then I don't see why they'd view Doomguy and Chief as redundant either. Doom and Halo are both among the most influential games of all time and easily deserve spots in Smash.

 

[SPEN18]

Super late, but the Direct was fine. They did a good job with the stuff that was a given to be there, i.e. Pikmin 4 and the various DLCs. They also did a good job continuing to build on the Mario branding momentum. Still, a bit disappointed that none of Metroid, DK, F-Zero, Kid Icarus, Star Fox showed up. Also we still have no news on Camelot's next project.

But as I said before, we will probably still get a September Direct, no?

 

[TCT~Phantom]

Super late, but the Direct was fine. They did a good job with the stuff that was a given to be there, i.e. Pikmin 4 and the various DLCs. They also did a good job continuing to build on the Mario branding momentum. Still, a bit disappointed that none of Metroid, DK, F-Zero, Kid Icarus, Star Fox showed up. Also we still have no news on Camelot's next project.

But as I said before, we will probably still get a September Direct, no?

Maybe? Nintendo’s September directs tend to focus on early next year and give a little more info on their holiday season. It wouldn’t be shocking to see a Fall direct with TotK DLC, Mario Wonder, and one or two titles coming out early next year as the focuses.

 

[NotGenerico]

So this talk of the E-Shop best-sellers got me interested about my own country's results. Here's Mexico's results for anyone who's curious:
1.Steve/Alex
2.Terry
3.Joker
4.Piranha Plant
5.Kazuya
6.Pyra/Mythra
7.Sora
8.Sephiroth
9.Fighters Pass 2
10.Fighters Pass 1
11.Banjo
12.Min Min
13.Byleth
14.Hero

As for the Mii Costumes, here's the top 10:
1.Cuphead
2.Sans
3.Doom Slayer
4.Creeper
5.Diamond Armor
6.Pig Outfit
7.Bomberman
8.Dante
9.Iori Yagami
10.Rathalos

As a Mexican, I have to say this list makes complete sense, particularly Terry and Iori being so high, but I have to say I'm a bit surprised Banjo is so low.

 

[RodNutTakin]

I would love to see something like that but I do think Bomberman has a stronger sort of icon status that gives him the edge. Like don't get me wrong, Gradius is mega influential and Konami's shmups are an essential part of their catalog, but....how do I put this? if you're comparing the two pitches of "we're adding Bomberman" and "we're adding a character to represent Konami's shmups" I think the former holds more....weight? Bomberman has that edge of being not just an iconic series but an iconic character, which I think gives him strength in this fight. Glad you brought up Gradius/Parodius though, would be lovely and deserving

It helps that Bomberman would be our first character from Hudson, who used to be extremely close to Nintendo and had their own console that was rather successful in Japan. Would be neat to see him for that reason as well, though it doesn't really factor into his actual chances

You're right in that Bomberman has the edge as a character. That comment about Hudson's proximity to Nintendo does make me think, I feel like Bomberman could've been in much earlier if things were different with Smash.
I feel like Melee's rushed devcycle had an important impact on how Brawl turned out, roster-wise--and I mainly point towards a good number of popular Melee requests having to be saved for Brawl because of the game's short devtime--Wario, Diddy, King Dedede, and definitely some guests like Sonic as well. Had some of these characters appeared in Melee, I'd imagine Brawl's newcomer lineup could've probably had some "available space", so to speak.
As for Bomberman himself, I can't see him as being anything but a base game addition, while I could see Tako (and perhaps his sons from Fantastic Journey and Live Chatting) be DLC, especially if you go the Terry route and stuff in a bunch of tracks from both the Parodius saga, its parent series, and other shooting games like Thunder Cross and Xexex. It might be hopeful thinking to expect so much from Konami next game, but on the other hand, they've got the most influential shooting games that aren't represented in Smash yet (since Namco already has a Galaga item).
Only other thing that comes to mind right now is that I don't know if they'd be able to refer to Sexy Parodius by name (i.e. if they used any tracks from it in a hypothetical DLC pack), I forgot if that word alone being in the game could get Nintendo in trouble with CERO and/or the ESRB.

The most depressing part of this news for me was consistently seeing the Virtua Fighter gang in the absolute bottom rungs of Mii rankings, even in Japan where the series was most popular. feelsbadman

also you talking about this reminds me of how shallow Sega content was in Smash beyond this and the three series that have playable characters, hope that gets remedied next game

 

[Garteam]

I'd honestly love to see more minor franchises from the third-party companies that already have content in Smash join in non-playable roles. The Bomberman, Rathalos, and Akira assists were a nice start, but I want to see them go crazy. Vic Viper as an item? **** yeah. Morrigan as an assist trophy? **** yeah. A Streets of Rage stage? **** yeah. IMO, the addition of relatively small fries in minor roles does a lot more to make Smash truly feel like a celebration of gaming as a whole than just adding big names as playable characters, which feels more like adding another name to an ever-increasing guest list to the foundation of a Nintendo crossover.

 

[chocolatejr9]

You know, someone here said that Nintendo would have to be interested if they wanted to buy all things Super Mario RPG from Square Enix. Well, honestly, I can see that happening. Maybe this isn't 100 percent certain, but with Paper Mario games being the only Mario RPG game Nintendo has, and with the Mario and Luigi games dead due to AlphaDream being defunct, I can see Nintendo buying what comes with Super Mario RPG since they could use it as another Mario RPG series to have that they could make themselves.

...Or they could just continue to let Square Enix own the content and make sequels for Super Mario RPG if the remake is successful. Yeah, I know.

Random late night thought: what if we had an Astral Chain situation where the game is so successful it prompts Nintendo to buy full ownership?

 

[Perkilator]

I'd honestly love to see more minor franchises from the third-party companies that already have content in Smash join in non-playable roles. The Bomberman, Rathalos, and Akira assists were a nice start, but I want to see them go crazy. Vic Viper as an item? ** yeah. Morrigan as an assist trophy? ** yeah. A Streets of Rage stage? **** yeah. IMO, the addition of relatively small fries in minor roles does a lot more to make Smash truly feel like a celebration of gaming as a whole than just adding big names as playable characters, which feels more like adding another name to an ever-increasing guest list to the foundation of a Nintendo crossover.

That’s what I’ve been saying since 2022! It’s stuff like this that would’ve made SSBU feel even more like a celebration of gaming.

 

[Wonder Smash]

On the subject of Bomberman, with him not only having alternate colors as a Mii costume but also Sakurai giving people a slight idea of how he would fight if he was playable, it almost seems like they're toying around with the idea on how to make him playable in the future. I wouldn't doubt his chances when he has that much going for him already.

 

[dream1ng]

You're right in that Bomberman has the edge as a character. That comment about Hudson's proximity to Nintendo does make me think, I feel like Bomberman could've been in much earlier if things were different with Smash.
I feel like Melee's rushed devcycle had an important impact on how Brawl turned out, roster-wise--and I mainly point towards a good number of popular Melee requests having to be saved for Brawl because of the game's short devtime--Wario, Diddy, King Dedede, and definitely some guests like Sonic as well. Had some of these characters appeared in Melee, I'd imagine Brawl's newcomer lineup could've probably had some "available space", so to speak.

Well Brawl is when he seemed the likeliest. Back then he seemed like the pick after Sonic and Mega Man.

I'd honestly love to see more minor franchises from the third-party companies that already have content in Smash join in non-playable roles. The Bomberman, Rathalos, and Akira assists were a nice start, but I want to see them go crazy. Vic Viper as an item? ** yeah. Morrigan as an assist trophy? yeah. A Streets of Rage stage? ** yeah. IMO, the addition of relatively small fries in minor roles does a lot more to make Smash truly feel like a celebration of gaming as a whole than just adding big names as playable characters, which feels more like adding another name to an ever-increasing guest list to the foundation of a Nintendo crossover.

Seems like the direction we're going in, which is nice.

Though that will also lead to more base game deconfirmations of third-parties. Which I don't fret over, but some will.

Random late night thought: what if we had an Astral Chain situation where the game is so successful it prompts Nintendo to buy full ownership?

I think there's more to the Astral Chain situation than that, since around the time they gained full ownership of that IP, Platinum also seemed to gain full ownership of the W101 IP.

But I think buying the original cast is probably the only way we'd get them in anything other than potential follow-ups and Smash. And Mallow and Geno really deserve to start showing up in other Mario spin-offs, they've both proven to be pretty popular.

That’s what I’ve been saying since 2022! It’s stuff like this that would’ve made SSBU feel even more like a celebration of gaming.

To be fair, it did get the ball rolling on this stuff. Smash doesn't always leap in headfirst. First game with third-parties, there were only two.

On the subject of Bomberman, with him not only having alternate colors as a Mii costume but also Sakurai giving people a slight idea of how he would fight if he was playable, it almost seems like they're toying around with the idea on how to make him playable in the future. I wouldn't doubt his chances when he has that much going for him already.

People kind of forget that when the topic of a Konami character came up, for a while things were kind of split between Castlevania and Bomberman (after Snake). Wouldn't surprise me if Sakurai mulled over that decision as well, for at least a bit.

If Bomberman wasn't dormant during the ballot and had the popularity continue from the Brawl era, things may have played out differently.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Haven't watched the whole Direct. In fact didn't even watch much of it. But there where some highlights, mainly the SMRPG remake. Even if I stated I preferred other remakes of the SNES era in particular DKC trilogy, Super Metroid, Earthbound and FE4 (which will come regardless I feel) this is still hype. Geno might have a serious shot now for Smash, which is cool. Congrats to this fanbase.

New Mario 2D game doesn't look all that impressive to me yet truth to be told. It's a given one was coming however. I feel the fast paced and free run sort of style is taken a little from DK Jungle Beat. Certainly reminds me of it. I almost sort of expected DK to be shown in this as a playable character due to the Mario Movie, but alas.

Speaking of DK, with the Switch being alive and well I feel a new game for this series is saved for a little later. Might be a whole Direct based on it even, with announcement of a game, Diddy, Funky and Dixie as Mario Kart 8 racers and a DK themed track, and announcement of a DK Movie even. Seems like good marketing to do this all at once.

 

[Metal Shop X]

Haven't seen it mentionned, but I got a feeling that the soundtrack that came with Sans and Cuphead helped them sales wise.

Not to say it's the only reason they got popular. Nah, it probably was a small-to-medium boost to their sales, but its still noteworthy imo.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Gotta admit though, if there's another Smash on the Switch, it'll be much better since it's a late console release rather than early console. That way, it can showcase and promote things already on the console.

There's no way they make another separate Smash on Switch.

If Switch gets more Smash, it'll be more DLC for Ultimate.

Doom is practically anti-satanic though. The demons are the bad guys you kill.

Yeah, sorry. That argument doesn't fly with actual religious groups. Steeping your game in demonic imagery is still considered to be glorifying it. Even if they're the badguys, you're still making them look cool.

looks at Goemon being top 5 lowest each time, with one time being the very bottom
feelsbadman

...well I bought him.

they were unnecessarily treated as a punching bag in the last speculation cycle.

I think they invited that treatment with their behavior.

Here's Mexico's results for anyone who's curious:

2.Terry

That checks out.

Vic ViperGradius Option as an item? **** yeah.

Fixed.

 

[Wonder Smash]

Yeah, sorry. That argument doesn't fly with actual religious groups. Steeping your game in demonic imagery is still considered to be glorifying it. Even if they're the badguys, you're still making them look cool.

Which is pretty unfortunate. Though I'm glad it's not much of a controversy these days.

It's a weak argument to be used against Doom Slayer for Smash, though. Doom could still easily be represented without those heavy religious references. Demons could still appear (since they already do in Smash anyway) but not locations like Tower of Babel or Hell. Instead, all they need is Mars as the stage and that location doesn't feature any of those religious references like the other two I mentioned.

 

[StrangeKitten]

Remember the CacoMallow "leak"? Cacodemon is a pretty funky lookin' little dude, not really like anything typically associated with the imagery of Christian demons. If they wanted to steer clear of religious references, there are probably more designs like that they could use. Though I'd be surprised for that sort of thing to even be considered an issue. We have playable angels, dudes who use crosses and holy water for attacks, and Devilman is an assist trophy. If someone/their parents are so deep in religious fundamentalism as to not allow Smash to be played, I would think that would be the case regardless and Doom content wouldn't be the sole deciding factor there.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Remember the CacoMallow "leak"? Cacodemon is a pretty funky lookin' little dude, not really like anything typically associated with the imagery of Christian demons. If they wanted to steer clear of religious references, there are probably more designs like that they could use. Though I'd be surprised for that sort of thing to even be considered an issue. We have playable angels, dudes who use crosses and holy water for attacks, and Devilman is an assist trophy. If someone/their parents are so deep in religious fundamentalism as to not allow Smash to be played, I would think that would be the case regardless and Doom content wouldn't be the sole deciding factor there.

Orthodox and other deep fundamentalist faiths don't even allow for entertainment in general. Or TVs. I also am not comfortable with things in gaming that seem to glorify demons , but I trust most modern people of faith can use their discernment in these things.

 

[True Blue Warrior]

Alright, so, everyone. I think the DLC sales list is impacted by recency. As in, it's not ordered by all-time best sellers.

Instead of Smash DLC, type in Zelda. Instead of DLC, select software, and sort by best sellers.

TotK is ahead of BotW. TotK no doubt has sold fantastically, but BotW, from the last estimate last month, was tens of millions of units away. There's no way TotK has caught up to it yet, even if just digitally. But, recently, it would've sold more.

Or instead of Zelda, keep the rest the same, and type Pikmin.
Pikmin 1+2 is ahead of Pikmin 3 Deluxe, despite the fact that it dropped today, and Pikmin 3DX has sold over 2.2 mil. I know 1+2 is digital only, but it's been less than twelve hours. However, recently, it would've sold more.

Go to Xenoblade. XC3, XC3 + Expansion pass, and XC:DE are all ahead of XC2, despite XC2 being the best selling title. I mean, XC3 and XC3 + Expansion Pass are counted separately, and they're both still ahead of the other two.

M+R Sparks of Hope (and the Gold Edition) are both, separately, ahead of Kingdom Battle, when we know the sequel didn't do that well and the original was highly successful, with five extra years on the market.

Or you could look at how, for FIFA or NBA or something, the best sellers are typically content from the most current game/year, and gradually get older as you go down the list.

At least, all of this is true for my region. But the fact that it's true in any region should be a big red flag.

I somewhat suspected this possibility.

 

[fogbadge]

You know, someone here said that Nintendo would have to be interested if they wanted to buy all things Super Mario RPG from Square Enix. Well, honestly, I can see that happening. Maybe this isn't 100 percent certain, but with Paper Mario games being the only Mario RPG game Nintendo has, and with the Mario and Luigi games dead due to AlphaDream being defunct, I can see Nintendo buying what comes with Super Mario RPG since they could use it as another Mario RPG series to have that they could make themselves.

...Or they could just continue to let Square Enix own the content and make sequels for Super Mario RPG if the remake is successful. Yeah, I know.

i can't see SE being willing to sell

 

[Oracle Link]

Spoiler: ZElda TOTK Vague final dungeon spoilers

God the final Dungeon was terrifiyng not that it was long or hard (atleast if you have the telport medalion really get it its great)
But the music, the atmosphere, the miasma Damage AHHHHHH I think im in front of the G man now but i dont know?

On a lighter note (and with no spoilers) After a extended mid game break my BOI Returns fully aka i can now finnaly use the full outfit again and not just the head (I patched it up with green/ White Hylian Tunic Pieces)!

 

[Nabbitfan730]

I feel like most people here are underselling Piranha Plant greatly.

I know he wasn't the best-recieved of picks but we still need to remember that it's still an iconic monk from gaming's biggest franchise: Mario

He has relevancy and appeal even more than arguably 80% roster even including DLC.

To say he only sold well due to being a reebie is bit disingenuous especially when he was only free for relatively short while.

Guarantee lot more people are going to resonate a lot more with Piranha Plant than characters like Terry, Min Min or Banjo despite some people wouldn't want to believe otherwise.

 

[Oracle Link]

I feel like most people here are underselling Piranha Plant greatly.

I know he wasn't the best-recieved of picks but we still need to remember that it's still an iconic monk from gaming's biggest franchise: Mario

He has relevancy and appeal even more than arguably 80% roster even including DLC.

To say he only sold well due to being a reebie is bit disingenuous especially when he was only free for relatively short while.

Guarantee lot more people are going to resonate a lot more with Piranha Plant than characters like Terry, Min Min or Banjo despite some people wouldn't want to believe otherwise.

I do agree with Pirahna Plant being more Known/liked than the 3 you mentioned but 80% of the roster i cant see pirahna plant being more loved than the pokemon, other mario chars, kirby, The links, zelda and Ganondorf and thats just a few!