Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[DarthEnderX]

What do you guys think a mobile Smash would look like?

Smash Kart Tour

 

[Noipoi]

We’re gonna be having this same discussion for at least the next year, huh? Perhaps even longer?

…

Aw well, these in between Smash games days have their merit too. May as well enjoy it while it lasts.

 

[Guynamednelson]

We’re gonna be having this same discussion for at least the next year, huh? Perhaps even longer?

I'll at least firmly be on the "Sora is absolutely the final SSBU fighter and there is nothing you can do about it" train if nothing Smash is announced in the February Direct. Or if Smash 6 is announced there.

I'm already on the "SSBU Deluxe/EIH2.0 can't happen or will require there to be even less base game newcomers" train.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

Just wait until a Smash mobile is announced this year for the 25th anniversary.

 

[Ivander]

Just wait until a Smash mobile is announced this year for the 25th anniversary.

"Do you guys not have phones?"

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

"Do you guys not have phones?"

.....you just made me realize how interesting a mobile WarioWare could be.

 

[Noipoi]

Super Smash Bros for Super Nintendo Switch/IOS/Android

 

[chocolatejr9]

Actually, since this keeps getting brought up.

What do you guys think a mobile Smash would look like? Could it even work?

I think it COULD work, but it would depend on what kind of game it is. My idea involved a single player mode with a story and an emphasis on platforming a la Subspace, with the main Smash stuff being saved for the multiplayer. Problem is, being a mobile game, it'd likely have gacha elements, and I haven't quite figured out the best way to implement them...

 

[Guynamednelson]

.....you just made me realize how interesting a mobile WarioWare could be.

You say microtransactions in F2P games are greedy? Well, too bad! WARIO GREEDY! Now pay up, chumps!

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

You say microtransactions in F2P games are greedy? Well, too bad! WARIO GREEDY! Now pay up, chumps!

The return of the Wario Bucks from WL4's website.

 

[CannonStreak]

Speaking of Smash on the phone, I can see another Wii U/3DS situation in the future where the same game has two versions, one on the next Nintendo console and the other on phones. There would be sacrifices that would have to be made though, maybe.

 

[DarthEnderX]

I'll at least firmly be on the "Sora is absolutely the final SSBU fighter and there is nothing you can do about it" train if nothing Smash is announced in the February Direct. Or if Smash 6 is announced there.

Lol, well yeah. If Smash 6 is announced, then I will also move into the 'Sora is absolutely the final SSBU fighter' camp.

But that's literally what it would take to move me there.

 

[CannonStreak]

I should note, the team behind Mario Kart 8 and Sakurai being in charge of Smash; those are two different developers. With that, I can imagine that Sakurai would be less likely to do a third Fighters' Pass than the Mario Kart 8 team had wanted to expand on the game with the Booster Pass.

 

[drewber2635]

Came back in here to say that I'm in the boat of people who want a reboot of the franchise. A smaller, but balanced roster with a lot of new comers and redesigned kits for returning characters. Then DLC support for at least a solid 5 years

 

[RileyXY1]

Came back in here to say that I'm in the boat of people who want a reboot of the franchise. A smaller, but balanced roster with a lot of new comers and redesigned kits for returning characters. Then DLC support for at least a solid 5 years

I happen to support this too. I want to see something different for the franchise and the next game not having to one up its predecessor, but instead offer a completely different experience to stand alongside it.

 

[CannonStreak]

I am not so keen on a reboot for Smash Bros. happening, but if I had to guess, if they continued with Smash as it is, a lot more cuts would have to happen in future games if the roster becomes very big, or have fewer newcomers per game. I mean, even with reusable veterans and all that, I can imagine making, say, 129-150 fighters for one game be a lot of work, with or without doing "Everyone is Here" again. I mean, can you imagine having to work through all that?

 

[Ivander]

Actually, since this keeps getting brought up.

What do you guys think a mobile Smash would look like? Could it even work?

Honestly.....it would need to be very careful with how it does things. Especially with the problems that people really put the emphasis on with games like early access Multiversus and Street Fighter VI. Particularly when money gets involved.

I think there is potential, but it needs to handle it with caution and finesse. Probably one of the best things you can do at the beginning is making sure that every character is playable from the start, much like what the first Overwatch did before Overwatch 2 happened. Because the characters themselves are the biggest part of the game and you would get more better publicity if the characters people want to play as when they first see them and think, "Oh, okay, I'll give the game a try." are available immediately.
And I'm not against the Overwatch 1 method where in favor of the characters being available immediately, the money is used for getting cosmetics for the characters rather than paying for the characters and other things. And for that, the best option would be if there were two options that players can do. Either pay money to get a currency used for the cosmetics or allow the players to do specific things in the game to slowly rise up that special currency to allow them to get a cosmetic.

Like that's where it can either make or break an F2P game. It's absolutely possible to make a game that is both favourable for Paying Players and F2P Players. When I used to play Overwatch 1, I was a full-on F2P Player that didn't pay a single cent and actually managed to get almost every cosmetic, aside from the ones that involved actual money(although with that one feature involving watching the Overwatch league, I managed to get a few of the OWLeague cosmetics). Giving players a decent option to allow them to get what they want without paying if they are willing to put in the time playing it is not a bad thing.
But unfortunately, many games with Paying Options are specifically designed to trigger that urge to pay and as what has been happening to some latest games, lots of companies have been going disgustingly hard on those tactics. It's why while I would be willing to give a Smash Bros. mobile game a try, but man I'd be afraid of what they could do that could potentially sour it.

 

[RileyXY1]

I am not so keen on a reboot for Smash Bros. happening, but if I had to guess, if they continued with Smash as it is, a lot more cuts would have to happen in future games if the roster becomes very big, or have fewer newcomers per game. I mean, even with reusable veterans and all that, I can imagine making, say, 129-150 fighters for one game be a lot of work, with or without doing "Everyone is Here" again. I mean, can you imagine having to work through all that?

Especially when more and more companies get involved, exacerbating the problem of licensing hell.

 

[CannonStreak]

Especially when more and more companies get involved, exacerbating the problem of licensing hell.

Not to mention the thing where aside from the lots of old characters Nintendo has, they may not have that much left in terms of popular mainline characters from their own games, aside from Dixie Kong and Bandana Waddle Dee and especially in comparison to third party characters. I mean, I could be wrong on the lack of characters from Nintendo with bigger roles and all being a problem, but you all may know what I mean.

 

[CapitaineCrash]

Speaking of Smash on the phone, I can see another Wii U/3DS situation in the future where the same game has two versions, one on the next Nintendo console and the other on phones. There would be sacrifices that would have to be made though, maybe.

I could maybe see Smash having a mobile game eventually, but no way they used the mobile game and used it for the next Smash on their next console. There would be way too many sacrifices, and that's not even considering the fact that the team would be pretty much separated in two for the whole development process (because mobile development is way too differents from console). I don't think people realise that Smash 3ds and Wii U releasing almost at the same time is a damn miracle in the first place, no way they're doing that a second time but with a mobile games of all thing.

 

[CannonStreak]

I just had another thought about a potential reboot for Smash; a potential flaw; I can see some characters not getting in at all due to being old or not having a game in years. If they were playable in Smash but did not have a game in years (Ness and Captain Falcon, for example), they may not return in a reboot. It would be even worse for characters who were not playable in Smash AND are old/did not have a game in years (Golden Sun's Isaac comes to mind here). I mean, with a reboot, I can personally see that happening.

You all see what I am trying to say?

 

[Louie G.]

I'm conceptually okay with a "reboot" but it never feels like anyone knows quite what that is. The gameplay is fundamentally still working and Ultimate was the best selling game in the series, so I don't think there would be much reason to overhaul that aspect. Scaling down the roster only accomplishes something if movesets are to be drastically altered, which is justified for some characters but would be doing way too much for others. We don't need to update Fox or Captain Falcon just 'cuz. And other fighters have iconic moves that need to stick around, where their moveset would at most be getting half reworked and keeping the other half. Most characters who need major updates aren't in need of as drastic an operation as people seem to think.

Like, how do we reboot Mario? He needs to remain an easy pick up and play character, he has to have fireballs and upward punches because that's his shtick, certain moves like Fair are foundational for outright teaching important Smash Bros techniques. Without a major alteration of gameplay, Mario needs to remain fundamentally similar. Maybe we don't need FLUDD and if you wanna be cheeky we can do away with Cape, but that isn't a reboot. That's just an update, comparable to those that we've already seen with Pit or Sheik.

Other fighting games "reboot" with brand new casts. Street Fighter III was intended to be the "new generation" for example. We just can't do that with Smash Bros, the roster is the way it is for a reason. Who gets replaced, and who gets added? That exchange may work for a cast of unique characters, but since Smash is a crossover title it has some faces that kind of just need to be here. If you're getting to a point where you're just swapping out say, Meta Knight or King Dedede for Bandana Dee just because it's fresh and new then that is going to sting for a lot of people. It just does not work in this context, so that's another reboot option disqualified.

I'm fine with a sliced down roster, with sufficient changes and better balancing and the whole shebang. But that's not a reboot. If the gameplay is gonna stay about the same, if characters are only getting some of their movesets updated and will play fundamentally similar, if the roster will still have the same iconic and essential faces on it that it always does, then it will still be the same Smash Bros we already know and love. With the success of Ultimate, and the presumed introduction of a new generation of fans, Nintendo is likely not looking to alienate them immediately.

can see some characters not getting in at all due to being old or not having a game in years. If they were playable in Smash but did not have a game in years (Ness and Captain Falcon, for example), they may not return in a reboot.

Captain Falcon is going to be in Smash until the day the series burns to the ground and dies. I wish we stopped humoring the possibility of potentially the most emblematic character of the series getting cut literally ever, even in the most drastic scenario where the roster is like 25 characters.

 

[HyperSomari64]

I just had another thought about a potential reboot for Smash; a potential flaw; I can see some characters not getting in at all due to being old or not having a game in years. If they were playable in Smash but did not have a game in years (Ness and Captain Falcon, for example), they may not return in a reboot. It would be even worse for characters who were not playable in Smash AND are old/did not have a game in years (Golden Sun's Isaac comes to mind here). I mean, with a reboot, I can personally see that happening.

You all see what I am trying to say?

Cutting Captain Falcon is like what happened to Scorpion in vanilla Mortal Kombat 3.
Cutting the most popular character is gonna have consequences.

 

[CannonStreak]

Cutting Captain Falcon is like what happened to Scorpion in vanilla Mortal Kombat 3.
Cutting the most popular character is gonna have consequences.

Yeah, that wouldn't be good. At all. And a reboot making it harder for older characters to get in Smash would be not so good.

I'm conceptually okay with a "reboot" but it never feels like anyone knows quite what that is. The gameplay is fundamentally still working and Ultimate was the best selling game in the series, so I don't think there would be much reason to overhaul that aspect. Scaling down the roster only accomplishes something if movesets are to be drastically altered, which is justified for some characters but would be doing way too much for others. We don't need to update Fox or Captain Falcon just 'cuz. And other fighters have iconic moves that need to stick around, where their moveset would at most be getting half reworked and keeping the other half. Most characters who need major updates aren't in need of as drastic an operation as people seem to think.

Like, how do we reboot Mario? He needs to remain an easy pick up and play character, he has to have fireballs and upward punches because that's his shtick, certain moves like Fair are foundational for outright teaching important Smash Bros techniques. Without a major alteration of gameplay, Mario needs to remain fundamentally similar. Maybe we don't need FLUDD and if you wanna be cheeky we can do away with Cape, but that isn't a reboot. That's just an update, comparable to those that we've already seen with Pit or Sheik.

Other fighting games "reboot" with brand new casts. Street Fighter III was intended to be the "new generation". We just can't do that with Smash Bros, the roster is the way it is for a reason. Who gets replaced, and who gets added? That exchange may work for a cast of unique characters, but since Smash is a crossover title it has some faces that kind of just need to be here. If you're getting to a point where you're just swapping out say, Meta Knight or King Dedede for Bandana Dee just because it's fresh and new then that is going to sting for a lot of people. It just does not work in this context, so that's another reboot option disqualified.

I'm fine with a sliced down roster, with sufficient changes and better balancing and the whole shebang. But that's not a reboot. If the gameplay is gonna stay about the same, if characters are only getting some of their movesets updated and will play fundamentally similar, if the roster will still have the same iconic and essential faces on it that it always does, then it will still be the same Smash Bros we already know and love. With the success of Ultimate, and the presumed introduction of a new generation of fans, Nintendo is likely not looking to alienate them immediately.

Oh, trust me, I know what a reboot is, and that a sliced down roster is not what makes a reboot and all. I was just posting what I said about characters and a reboot as an attempt to point out what I thought was a flaw in rebooting Smash Bros.

I know they would have to do a lot more with the gameplay than trimming the roster to really reboot it.

 

[Noipoi]

Like, how do we reboot Mario? He needs to remain an easy pick up and play character, he has to have fireballs and upward punches because that's his shtick, certain moves like Fair are foundational for outright teaching important Smash Bros techniques. Without a major alteration of gameplay, Mario needs to remain fundamentally similar. Maybe we don't need FLUDD and if you wanna be cheeky we can do away with Cape, but that isn't a reboot. That's just an update, comparable to those that we've already seen with Pit or Sheik.

I always felt like he could use more power ups, like the tanuki leaf or the boomerang flower.

And I know some people like them and that’s all well and good, but I never got much use out of the cape and FLUDD.

 

[Ivander]

I guess if there was another reason why I would be okay with a Smash F2P Mobile game, it's the possibility of bringing in characters from lesser known franchises to a more bigger audience. Not just with playable characters, but like...if I wanted to give one of my ideas for an F2P Smash Bros. Mobile game, I think one of the things that could really give it it's own identity is if it were to bring back the Trophy aspect, as collectables it encourages you to get, and they give a good amount of detail and history on the character/stage/item/etc.
So in a sense, it would be like working towards completing a Pokedex, but with various Nintendo characters, stages and items as well as whatever 3rd Party franchises are involved as well.

Like one of Nintendo's strongest aspects has always been it's characters and I think the idea of a Nintendo F2P game that encourages players to find trophies and biographies of it's characters and open up F2P players to many different games, characters and franchises they possibly didn't know existed could not just generate interest and marketing in it's games and franchises, but also help give the F2P game it's own identity as a game that brings attention to Nintendo's many characters.

 

[NintenRob]

F2P Smash Bros is just Smash Ultimate except 99% of the roster locked behind a Paywall along with half the alternate costumes and reskins. Also you only have 5 stages you can play at time for two week periods and certain characters have special buffs depending on the stage.

 

[Sucumbio]

You ran out of moves please wait at least

==FIVE MINUTES==

Before your next attack.

No!

inputs debit card to buy 100 moves

Aw yeah we got this now!

 

[Hadokeyblade]

Especially when more and more companies get involved, exacerbating the problem of licensing hell.

I assume that's partially why they chose to collab with Bandai Namco to make these games.

Granted i dont know how much that company actually does with the game outside of the development side of things but if any company can navigate the legal minefield that Smash has gotten itself into it's them.

 

[Scrimblo Bimblo]

I believe a reboot only really makes sense if that's what the term really means: a total reimagining of all the main mechanics. Things like going 3d, or introducing lanes Fatal Fury style, or ditching the "more % = more knockback" mechanic, or adding a third button so that everyone has normal, special and superspecial moves... This kind of stuff.
That way every character needs to be redesigned from the ground up and starting over makes sense, while the final experience becomes completely different from traditional Smash. A reboot!
Personally, I don't think the series needs it, though if Sakurai has some absurd idea that's very very fun I'd be open to it.

But otherwise? Smash is just incredibly fun and it's also extremely detached from a normal fighting game. People love the way it plays and the series just had its most successful entry. No change is exactly needed here.
What's more, the engine is so flexible that even radical gameplay innovations happen on a character by character basis. Just in FP2, Min Min, Steve and Kazuya all play a different game - one ditches the normal/special moves distinction, one lets you alter the battlefield and one alters the control scheme in order to let you use 4x the usual amount of moves.
But even before them, Ryu introduced command inputs, Cloud introduced powered-up special moves, not to mention Little Mac's "incorporated final smash" thing and the various different types of resource management with Robin, Hero, Inkling, Banjo; Terry's desperation moves that only unlock past a certain %, etc. etc...
In theory, you could extend any of these mechanics to every character in the roster, and that would already be enough of a shake-up on the standard gameplay.
But for the kind of crossover Smash is, I think it works better to have these on an individual basis. The characters already exist and they all come from different games; this format lets you introduce all kind of stuff while mantaining a simple foundation. Plus I don't see a reboot reaching the kind of variety Ultimate has achieved any time soon, and also I don't feel like the formula has become old.
If anything, I want to see more! Bring in FPS mechanics with the Doom Slayer, make Bomberman playable and make him bring the chaos of his games with him, add the Dark Souls guy and let him swap weapon and armor to "change your build" on the fly. There's a ton of stuff the series can still do.

Also I don't really think a smaller roster equals a higher-quality one? If anything, character design and general balancing have only improved over time. I can't be the only one to remember how Mewtwo and Bowser were barely functional in Melee, or how uninspired Pit's special moves felt in Brawl. But there's many other examples.

 

[DarthEnderX]

I happen to support this too. I want to see something different for the franchise and the next game not having to one up its predecessor, but instead offer a completely different experience to stand alongside it.

I'm the complete opposite. Smash Ultimate is practically perfect. Just give me more of it.

If I wanted a different experience, I'd play a different series.

 

[Sucumbio]

the next game not having to one up its predecessor

Wait isn't that the point of a sequel?

 

[NintenRob]

I'm the complete opposite. Smash Ultimate is practically perfect. Just give me more of it.

If I wanted a different experience, I'd play a different series.

Honestly, Same. Give me new characters and new stages and let me play my old favourites and I'm set (though I always appreciate the collectibles and single player modes)

 

[Swamp Sensei]

I'm the complete opposite. Smash Ultimate is practically perfect. Just give me more of it.

If I wanted a different experience, I'd play a different series.

Personally this is where I'm at. I don't see a traditional Smash being better than Ultimate content wise.

Sure balance and netcode would be veeeeeery much appreciated, but for sheer content? This is the peak.

 

[Ivander]

I'm the complete opposite. Smash Ultimate is practically perfect. Just give me more of it.

If I wanted a different experience, I'd play a different series.

For me, it's "Almost Perfect." How to make it Perfect:

 

[cashregister9]

I've mentioned this before but It would be kinda cool to Keep ultimate as a separate special event series and make the next smash game a more traditional sequel to 4 and then make another Ultimate years down the line like Tekken Tag Tournament.

But other than that I am all for both extremes, either Ultimate 2 or a complete reboot with a new team, So basically I am okay with any outcome and I am just here for the ride.

 

[Sucumbio]

If I wanted a different experience, I'd play a different series.

This for sure!

Say how many of you all played Melee or even 64? I didn't get hit with the impact of the Melee to Brawl transition like my friends did. Some of them ended up abandoning Smash after that but yeah I think that much of a difference was already enough I can't imagine it going over well if they drastically changed it.

 

[Verde Coeden Scalesworth]

This for sure!

Say how many of you all played Melee or even 64? I didn't get hit with the impact of the Melee to Brawl transition like my friends did. Some of them ended up abandoning Smash after that but yeah I think that much of a difference was already enough I can't imagine it going over well if they drastically changed it.

I played every Smash game from release order. Up until 4, I rated them in the order of release. Now I'm not so sure where to put 4(both versions, as they have separate merits) and Ultimate, heh.

Either way, I really enjoy them all for what they bring. It's a fun blast. Some of Single Player can get frustrating, sure. Some are just unfair, etc. But still, it's fun with all the crazy stuff you can do~

 

[Deleted member]

Just wait until a Smash mobile is announced this year for the 25th anniversary.

Smash mobile for the 25th anniversary will be a very good idea.

 

[Will]

Actually, since this keeps getting brought up.

What do you guys think a mobile Smash would look like? Could it even work?

StreetSmash.

Do any of you remember StreetSmash?