Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[SPEN18]

I mean, is it not?

I meant that it should focus on being good at being a Nintendo crossover, which it largely is but has some rough patches and sloppy design due to "Everyone is Here" and too many strange third party picks.

I just explained above how it fails at representing all of gaming.

 

[Shroob]

I meant that it should focus on being good at being a Nintendo crossover, which it largely is but has some rough patches and sloppy design due to "Everyone is Here" and too many strange third party picks.

I just explained above how it fails at representing all of gaming.

I mean, it never touted itself to celebrate "All" of gaming.

It's a celebration of gaming. There's no all there anywhere.

 

[SPEN18]

I mean, it never touted itself to celebrate "All" of gaming.

It's a celebration of gaming. There's no all there anywhere.

The "all" is implicit. If it's not "all," then what is it? It would then have no discernible identity if it's not "all."

 

[NonSpecificGuy]

Man is this what this thread is going to spiral into on a daily basis?

 

[Shroob]

The "all" is implicit. If it's not "all," then what is it? It would then have no discernible identity if it's not "all."

It's good enough.

And that's all it needs to be.

 

[CosmicQuark]

I can't tell if I'm supposed to take Sakurai super literally, or if I'm supposed to read between the lines. I'm so conflicted, pick one!

Still better than the Grinch era (I do seem to drop in at the worst times, I have to fight myself not to respond)

 

[SPEN18]

Man is this what this thread is going to spiral into on a daily basis?

Haha hopefully not.

It's all in good fun, though, I hope everyone understands. Nothing personal, just differing opinions.

It's good enough.

And that's all it needs to be.

If you're content with it, then okay, be content because a new game won't change what's in Ultimate. It would be nice if I could sit back and stare at the roster screen and say that I'm happy with it, say that I'm confident in the direction things have gone and are likely to go in the near future. Personally, though, it's not "good enough" for me or else I'd probably just be done speculating. It will probably never be "good enough," but hoping and rooting for it to be better is all part of the fun. Like rooting for a sports team, you have to be willing to take it but not give up when it doesn't go your way.

 

[CosmicQuark]

Haha hopefully not.

It's all in good fun, though, I hope everyone understands. Nothing personal, just differing opinions.



If you're content with it, then okay, be content because a new game won't change what's in Ultimate. It would be nice if I could sit back and stare at the roster screen and say that I'm happy with it, say that I'm confident in the direction things have gone and are likely to go in the near future. Personally, though, it's not "good enough" for me or else I'd probably just be done speculating. It will probably never be "good enough," but hoping and rooting for it to be better is all part of the fun. Like rooting for a sports team, you have to be willing to take it but not give up when it doesn't go your way.

I'm in a similar way, but different. While I've moved on to Crash for speculation, I'm more content with the roster we have and would be fine if that was it (but, I also think, the more the better). Probably wouldn't be saying that if Ultimate went in a different direction, in all honesty. I experimented with deleting DLC so I could have a CSS and SSS that was perfectly square because it was messing with me. And it was fine, until I was like, "Oh yeah, I can't play One-Winged Angel on this stage," and "Yeah, Kazuya was much more fun than Ryu". Even the characters I was less okay with, I felt like something was missing after playing them, and just immediately re-downloaded them. It does make me wonder what else I'm missing if characters a, b, and c got in, but won't know for a very long time.

So, while I'm content, I can definitely see areas of improvement, and in terms of gameplay, lots of areas of improvement. But luckily for me, Ultimate sparked a passion that most other Smash games didn't. Hope whatever the next Smash game is, it does the same for many others.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Man is this what this thread is going to spiral into on a daily basis?

Like a duck's penis, baby!

 

[Wonder Smash]

If Billy and Jimmy get in Smash, it'd be cool if they bring some Kunio music with them.

 

[DarthEnderX]

If Billy Kunio and Jimmy Riki get in Smash, it'd be cool if they bring some Kunio Double Dragon music with them.

Fixed!

Especially since River City games already feature Double Dragon music.

 

[Wonder Smash]

Fixed!

Especially since River City games already feature Double Dragon music.

"Fixed"? You messed it up. lol

Yeah, River City features the Double Dragon theme...when the Double Dragons appear. Having that theme without them would just be so wrong.

 

[Geno Boost]

Smash can’t cant be celebration of gaming without Boogerman where is our stinky gaming icon
Wario isn’t stinky enough

 

[DarthEnderX]

Yeah, River City features the Double Dragon theme...when the Double Dragons appear.

Ryuji and Ryuichi Hattori are not Billy and Jimmy Lee.

 

[Opossum]

They already GOT the treatment they deserve. That's why every 1st party that matters is already IN Smash.

Every first party that matters to you.

This is the exact issue I was talking about. Just because you don't care about a character doesn't mean others don't. You're not the arbiter of worth. You never were and never will be. It's entirely subjective.

This is the sort of toxicity that makes it so unenjoyable to talk about a lot of characters some folks want. There's always someone who is gonna come in and make a comment like this.

You can talk about who you want without trying to diminish who other people want.

 

[Ivander]

Man is this what this thread is going to spiral into on a daily basis?

Aside from the speculations that happen with a new game releasing, like with Metroid Dread, it's going to be feeling like Groundhog Day in here for a long time....

 

[Diddy Kong]

Well, I'll bite into this discussion. I was always quite known as a "Nintendo purist". I'm around for a while, I choose this username as Diddy Kong wasn't included in Melee and he's my favorite character. When Brawl was announced and Snake was revealed , I didn't initially like it.

Brawl had a satisfying roster to me. A perfect mix of newcomers I felt where very worthy additions, even if I'd like to see some added as say, Isaac from Golden Sun, King K.Rool and / or Dixie and I felt the reason Mewtwo was cut was weird. But I was fine with the roster. I got my most wanted after all.

Smash 4 came around and I basically felt I didn't feel much for all of the newcomers in that game. First of third party. DLC is where I felt things became more interesting, and DLC is of course more limited in delivery than base game (even if Ultimate challenged this!). I was "upset" about Mega Man cause well, MY most wanted was just as popular as him for a base game addition. I felt Bayonetta didn't deserve a addition, "because K.Rool was voted more on the ballot (this is probably very true)". I was mad as a angry ape when Cloud was revealed too, 'A SONY ONLY CHARACTER BEFORE K.ROOL!!!?' ... Do you get the pattern?

I think Mega Man, Bayonetta and Cloud are all wonderful additions now. I bought FF7 on the Switch even cause I felt Sephiroth was cool as ****. Bayonetta is still a series I might look into, and I can't say I didn't enjoy the bits of Mega Man I played (the games are just... frustratingly hard!).

Am feeling that certain entitlement surrounding a particular character that has any personal value, and has a legitimate "claim" to be in Smash will automatically make people seem upset when they feel another character "cheated" their way in before their most wanted. It's attachment to these characters, mixed with maybe some nostalgia or at least emotional responses, that make us lose control a bit. And make us look like a childish bunch at times.

Only times I feel this had any sort legitimacy was when a character from a specific franchise was chosen over another choice. For example, Wolf over Krystal, or Greninja over the return of Mewtwo (which was later rectified), Incineroar over Decidueye, but yeah... Rare cases.

I do think that Smash has grown to be way too much of a third party crossover festival, but. Seeing as many of these newcomers where highly requested, maybe that's logical..? I mean, there's a lot of third party support for Nintendo now too. Wouldn't this therefore be logical? Retrospectively speaking, I can see why it all happened like this. But that took some maturity and self reflection.

I can now laugh at these responses, cause even after all these cycles of speculations from one Smash Bros. game to another, one thing that will never change with this fan base is the extreme emotional responses and loud outcries of why one character is more entitled than another. I find it amusing, so many things are changing in this world since this pandemic, but Smash speculation doesn't. It's somewhat comforting.

 

[DarthEnderX]

This is the exact issue I was talking about. Just because you don't care about a character doesn't mean others don't. You're not the arbiter of worth. You never were and never will be. It's entirely subjective.

It would be entirely subjective...except for the fact that interest and awareness in a population or specific fanbase is something that can be observed, gauged and measured.

If your counter to the argument is always going to be "I can find ONE person that actually cares about this, therefor they matter!" then that's equally disingenuous, just in the other direction.

Obviously there's NOTHING that matters to everyone, and there's nothing that matters to nobody. But there are ways of knowing how much something matters to how many people. And pretending that everything matters equally to everyone is just knowingly arguing in bad faith.

You can talk about who you want without trying to diminish who other people want.

So someone can be like "Little Samson matters!", and they can be like "Waluigi matters!", but they can't be like "Little Samson doesn't matter as much as Waluigi"? Then what's the point of even having character speculation? The entire exercise just becomes people naming characters, with no weighing of the merits of those characters, because any comparison with another character is somehow diminishing the character.

Everyone's equally important, everyone's equally likely, so let's all just stop talking!

 

[Wonder Smash]

I can't tell if I'm supposed to take Sakurai super literally, or if I'm supposed to read between the lines. I'm so conflicted, pick one!

It's both. You're not reading between the lines because you're taking it too literally.

Ryuji and Ryuichi Hattori are not Billy and Jimmy Lee.

They kinda are. They're based on Billy and Jimmy. That's why they're called Double Dragons.

 

[DarthEnderX]

They kinda are. They're based on Billy and Jimmy. That's why they're called Double Dragons.

They're actually called the Dragon Twins in RCR games. And that's really because they're twins, and they both have Ryu in their name.

And while one is obviously referencing the other, they aren't exactly similar as characters. One is a pair of Japanese high school students. The other are a pair of post-apocalyptic road warriors.

 

[Diddy Kong]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

 

[Garteam]

Every NES character that matters is in Smash already. Ryu Hayabusa, Kunio, and Arthur are never-evers that were never actually popular.

 

[CureParfait]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

I think Octolings, a Pokemon, and probably some indie titles would be included.

 

[TCT~Phantom]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

Ignoring the low hanging fruit that is a new Pokémon, FE, or Xenoblade, here are a few that I think are likely. I could link my final RTC post on this for my arguments for them.

• Octolings
• Tom Nook
• Ring Fit Trainee
• Officer Howard
• Ashley
• Waluigi
• Bandana Dee
• Isaac
• Master Chief
• Alucard
• Lara Croft
• Ryu Hayabusa
• Crash
• Adol
• Dante
• Lloyd Irving

 

[7NATOR]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

I think it's gonna be 3rd party Dominated personally, since I actually do think that's gonna be the Natural evolution of the Series due to Ultimate's Success, whether it be an Ultimate Continuation or just a Regular Smash game (I doubt a Reboot would be done Unless Something unexpected happens).

The Whole point of Ultimate was to Give back to the Fans and what they have Requested, which is Seen with Sora, Banjo, K.Rool, Ridley, all the Veterans, etc, So I think trying to Expand Smash to Include as Much as possible is the move, especially since that's also what the fans want these days also. So I see characters like

-Master Chief
-Fortnite Jonsey (and then some)
-Apex Legends Character
-League of Legends Character
-Scorpion
-Crash
-2B
-Ryu Hayabusa
-Crash Bandicoot
-Resident Evil Character (If they can manage)
-Rayman
-Sol Badguy
-Reimu
-Mickey Mouse (Only a Matter of Time)

These are just examples and not the full Package, and Western I.Ps are the most Listed here because that is the Biggest source of Expansion in terms of Reach at this current Moment.

Of course there will be Expansion of what's already in the game, but on the 1st Party Side and 3rd Party Side, and I think New Successful Nintendo I.Ps like Ring Fit and Astral Chain would be included. The thing Is that I actually doubt 1st Party characters are gonna dominate the Base game even, since I think the 3rd Party characters are gonna be the Biggest Priority.

 

[Opossum]

It would be entirely subjective...except for the fact that interest and awareness in a population or specific fanbase is something that can be observed, gauged and measured.

If your counter to the argument is always going to be "I can find ONE person that actually cares about this, therefor they matter!" then that's equally disingenuous, just in the other direction.

Obviously there's NOTHING that matters to everyone, and there's nothing that matters to nobody. But there are ways of knowing how much something matters to how many people. And pretending that everything matters equally to everyone is just knowingly arguing in bad faith.

So someone can be like "Little Samon matters!", and they can be like "Waluigi matters!", but they can't be like
"Little Samson doesn't matter as much as Waluigi"? Then what's the point of even having character speculation? The entire exercise just becomes people naming characters, with no weighing of the merits of those characters, because any comparison with another character is somehow diminishing the character.

Everyone's equally important, everyone's equally likely, so let's all just stop talking!

Please let me know who is forcing you to say those things then. As far as I'm aware, you still have the choice over how you form your posts. Instead you're choosing to bring down the mood for others instead of holding your tongue. "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

You don't see me calling Kunio a never-was every time you bring him up. And that's because I don't want to bring things down for others. If you see someone bringing up a character you think is a never-ever, just ignore it and move on!

It's just like, basic politeness.

 

[Wunderwaft]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

I'm not gonna bother saying new Pokemon since that one is pretty much guaranteed, or the next wtf surprise character since it's literally whatever the hell is on Sakurai's mind assuming he's still the director. I also don't feel like guessing for games that we don't know are coming so instead I'll just go based on what games have released or are releasing so far.

• Waluigi
• Ashley
• Big Bird from Metroid Dread (I wonder when it will become okay to say his name lol)
• Isaac
• Officer Howard
• Ring Fit Trainee
• Andy/Sami (will depend on how the reboot sells and if it releases in Japan)
• Sans (Don't sleep on the skeleton, it's very likely he'll make the jump from Mii costume to playable fighter next time)
• Monster Hunter
• Dante
• Ryu Hayabusa
• Master Chief
• Doom Slayer
• Sol Badguy
• Adol

Some are more likely than the others, and there might be a couple of characters that I missed or forgot about, but this is about who I'm eyeing and think have a good shot for the next Smash game. I would've put Bandana Dee as well, but that relies on whether Sakurai is still the director.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Ignoring the low hanging fruit that is a new Pokémon, FE, or Xenoblade, here are a few that I think are likely. I could link my final RTC post on this for my arguments for them.

• Octolings
• Tom Nook
• Ring Fit Trainee
• Officer Howard
• Ashley
• Waluigi
• Bandana Dee
• Isaac
• Master Chief
• Alucard
• Lara Croft
• Ryu Hayabusa
• Crash
• Adol
• Dante
• Lloyd Irving

Strong list! I admit I forgot a few of them that I feel are likely too, as the Ring Fit Trainer, or that buff demon guy from that series. The buff demon could have a shot, seeing as with this last batch of DLC I felt the 'obvious pick' wasn't chosen. Rex would've been more obvious than Pyra and Mythra, Hiachi over Kazuya, and Spring Man over Min Min.

I have hopes for Isaac yeah, but I'm thinking he's entirely dependant on a new or remake of Golden Sun coming out or not. Chances for this are reasonable, as Advance Wars got the exact same thing.

 

[MarioRaccoon]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

• Octolings (using splat 3 weapons) is likely to be in next game, Splatoon has grown a lot and will continue with the 3rd entry releasing on 2022.
• Ring Fit Adventure was a huge success, so for the trainer getting into smash is also another big possibility.
• Surely next game will have more Pokémon content, either a gen 8 or 9 rep and more pokémon as items.
• Fire Emblem and Xenoblade have good chances to get new fighters from their future games, as base game or DLC content.
• Its possible to get a new platinium rep or something from Astral Chain or Bayonetta 3 (like a stage).
• TLOZ series has been extremely successful on switch, so I can see them adding a stage based on BOTW2. Also for Mario Kart (if we will ever get a MK9)
• Other popular titles like Luigis Mansion 3 (it has sold more than 10 million copies) and AC New Horizons getting a stage, re-using assets make things quicker.
• I can see Nintendo trying to get more Monster Hunter content. If not a character, another AT/boss like Magnamalo and a proper stage, music, spirits, etc.
• I think it possible to get one more fan favorite first party character like BWD, Krystal, Waluigi, Isaac, Dixie, etc. But I would say it will be only 1.
• I always liked the idea of fighting game characters on smash, so hopefully they will continue adding more (Chun-Li, Akira Yuki, Sol Badguy, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Nightmare, Kasumi, etc)
• As for other third party guests. It’s difficult to guess whats on Nintendo’s mind. Its true that Master Chief and Crash has increased their popularity (both smash centric and general gamer fans) and they are relevant in modern gaming, but well, these things aren’t 100% linear.

 

[Wonder Smash]

They're actually called the Dragon Twins in RCR games. And that's really because they're twins, and they both have Ryu in their name.

And while one is obviously referencing the other, they aren't exactly similar as characters. One is a pair of Japanese high school students. The other are a pair of post-apocalyptic road warriors.

Yeah but you can pretty much tell who they're supposed to be. Not only do they share the same theme and moves, but even the same sprites in the games they all appear in. They're sometimes called Dragon Twins in the River City games but there have been times they are called the Double Dragons.

But people aren't fooled. We know that's Billy and Jimmy re-created as bad guys!

 

[osby]

Strong list! I admit I forgot a few of them that I feel are likely too, as the Ring Fit Trainer, or that buff demon guy from that series. The buff demon could have a shot, seeing as with this last batch of DLC I felt the 'obvious pick' wasn't chosen. Rex would've been more obvious than Pyra and Mythra, Hiachi over Kazuya, and Spring Man over Min Min.

That's not really a logical comparison.

None of these characters were picked because they weren't the obvious pick. Min Min and Kazuya represent their game's core just as well as Spring Man and Heihachi, and Pyra and Mythra are the literal sources of Rex's abilities.

Meanwhile, Ring Fit Adventure entirely revolves around the titular Ring and how it contributes to fit skills. Sure, you can give Dragaux a complete Smash moveset without forcing it too much but that entirely misses the point of what the game is about. I don't think there's a good reason not to choose Trainee if they want to give that game a playable fighter in Smash.

 

[Garteam]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

For the base game:

• Ring Fit Adventurer
• Octoling
• Tom Nook
• Waluigi
• Bandana Waddle Dee
• Issac
• Ayumi Tachibana
• Takamaru
• Akira Howard
• Andy/Sami
• Obligatory Pokemon from the most recent gen
• Maybe Spring Man (if ARMS gets a sequel)

For the DLC:

• Altair/Ezio
• Master Chief
• Doom Marine
• Dovahkinn
• Kiryu
• Arle
• Demifiend
• Lloyd Irving
• Dante
• Maybe Geno (if the fanbase made a big enough impression during Ultimate to justify negotiating for him)
• Maybe Kratos (if relations between Sony and Nintendo warm-up)
• Maybe CJ/Michael/Franklin/Trevor (if Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy does well on Switch and Rockstar puts more games on the Switch and its successor)
• Obligatory characters from first-party releases that were too early for the base game.

For either the base game or DLC:

• Crash Bandicoot
• Jill/Chris/Leon/Maybe Claire (if they pull a Hero/Steve)
• Monster Hunter
• Phoenix Wright
• Bomberman
• Tails or Knuckles or Dr. Eggman and/or Shadow (if they include him as an echo in addition to one of the beforementioned three)
• X and/or Zero
• Alucard or Soma Cruz
• Obligatory Fire Emblem lord/avatar
• Obligatory Xenoblade Chronicles 3 character

I know that's a lot of characters (and I obviously don't expect all of them to get in), but this is who I think will be worth looking at and when in the next game's life.

 

[SKX31]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I say , Octolings are a pretty big contender, Tom Nook, I do hope Dixie and Impa make it but am 50/50 on them... Monster Hunter am quite certain about. For some reason I see Pauline making it too. Cranky Kong for the sole reason he's gonna be in the Mario movie, and we could argue he has a chance of being "more unique" than Dixie (who could be a semi clone, even if I feel she should be unique). Spoilers guy from Metroid Dread maybe ? And honestly, if there are cuts in the Fire Emblem roster I see Dimitri and Edelgard be included, and Byleth get a sort of moveset redo.

• I kinda think we'll see at least 5-6 first / second parties. Could see up to 10 if they have the time.
• Besides the low hanging fruit, one character being a surprise or representing hiherto unexplored gameplay territory is not out of the question. Besides generalities, it's going to really difficult to say what would qualify because we won't know which direction Smash 6 takes. Officer Howard could perhaps be helped by this?
• Likewise, the timing of the next consoles and how certain games do the coming years will likely influence the selection. It feels somewhat likely that Smash 6 includes one or two characters who's a "Late-era Switch" (the next few years) representative.
• At least one of Ultimate's Mii costumes / post-launch Spirits getting upgraded feels decently likely since it happened in the 4-to-Ultimate transition. Ring Fit and Dante could both get in this way.
• They'll likely want to mitigate cuts with at least a couple widely requested characters, that might be a boon to characters like Isaac and Hayabusa.
• Bethesda has a foot in the door now, wouldn't be surprised if they get a character. If so, it's most likely Doomguy / Dovachkiin getting upgraded.
• Tencent is a major wildcard and will remain so as long as Nintendo continues to work with them on multiple fronts. If LoL games do well on the Switch I could see them getting a rep.

 

[osby]

• Tencent is a major wildcard and will remain so as long as Nintendo continues to work with them on multiple fronts. If LoL games do well on the Switch I could see them getting a rep.

Tangentially related to this but I wonder how likely it is for next Smash to have a character from a company based somewhere other than Japan/USA.

Ubisoft is definitely a contender and as you said, I can see Tencent being one, though I'm not sure how much overlap they have with Smash fandom, as big as their share of the industry is.

 

[Ivander]

To avoid speaking about whichever character "deserves" inclusion more, what characters do you think are most likely to be included next Smash ?

I think the only ones that feel the most likely to me are the Ring Fit Trainer and the Octolings, with Ring Fit being one of the new biggest sellers and Splatoon still being quite popular, with the Octolings as either an easy Echo Fighter or having a new moveset having the new weapons from Splatoon 2's updates and Splatoon 3.
For others:

• As much as I would like to say that Waluigi should be frickin' obvious at this point, I really don't know how they feel about him or their willingness on adding him.
• Isaac really depends on if they want to add him. A new Golden Sun game or remake could be the key to helping him get in, but otherwise, it will really depend on his popularity and the team's willingness to add him.
• Dixie Kong, Bandana Dee, Ashley and Tom Nook are in the same scenario in that they are popular and recent, but do they want to add them?
• For some like Akira Howard and Ayumi Tachibana, it really depends on how they view them. Are they still in the range of relevance? Are they too early too late?
• Raven Beak from Metroid Dread is quite a possible contender with how Metroid Dread is doing. But they may get a possible competitor in whoever the main focus from Metroid Prime 4 is and how well MP4 possibly does if and when it finally releases.
• Advance Wars will really depend on how Reboot Camp does.
• Obviously, the new Pokemon and Fire Emblem reps will depend on timing and the next games.
• And whether Zelda does get a new rep or not is up in the air.

As for 3rd Parties:

• Monster Hunter does feel like a when. Whether or not when is the next game is a different story.
• Another one that feels like a when is Dark Souls, with it being a very popular game and sprouting a very popular genre of games.
• Dante is definitely another likely contender with Sakurai acknowledging his popularity.
• The Tales of series is definitely up in the air on who the rep will be. Will it be Lloyd Irving? Yuri Lowell? Or the new guy from Tales of Arise with how well that game is doing?
• Master Chief is definitely a likely possibility if Microsoft keeps their relationship strong with Nintendo and if Banjo and Steve come back.
• If Nintendo still has a good relationship with Ubisoft by the time the next Smash comes out, Rayman and Ezio are good possibilities.
• Ryu Hayabusa is another good possibility with how much Nintendo and Koei Tecmo have been working together.
• Sans from Undertale or Kris from Deltarune are good possibilities.
• If Wayforward keeps working with Nintendo after Advance Wars, Shantae could be possible.
• As for some others, to me, it's up in the air at the moment.

 

[DarthEnderX]

You don't see me calling Kunio a never-was every time you bring him up.

But I wouldn't treat it as some kind of personal attack if you did. Because I'm not a child who doesn't understand that I am not the fictional characters I request.

(also, you're not entirely wrong)

Every NES character that matters is in Smash already. Ryu Hayabusa, Kunio, and Arthur are never-evers that were never actually popular.

Oh ****! I'm physically wounded by this, and I demand you be banned from saying it!

 

[TCT~Phantom]

Please let me know who is forcing you to say those things then. As far as I'm aware, you still have the choice over how you form your posts. Instead you're choosing to bring down the mood for others instead of holding your tongue. "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

You don't see me calling Kunio a never-was every time you bring him up. And that's because I don't want to bring things down for others. If you see someone bringing up a character you think is a never-ever, just ignore it and move on!

It's just like, basic politeness.

Would you rather people just have the freedom to act like their most wanted is a shoe in? Having a reality check is helpful and I am gonna be honest brutally necessary.

Look at how the Geno fanbase or Rayman fanbase acted when you gave any criticism that their most wanted was not a lock. I literally had Rayman fans harass me and throw shade at me for months because I dared to say that a character that had a series that bombed in Japan and his series was more or less on hiatus was not exactly a lock. Geno's fans let a false prophet tell them Geno was coming, and many did not listen to potential warning signs that Geno was not 100% a lock. Look where that got them.

Just because someone says a character you do like is unlikely, it does not mean that you have to cry about it. Literally, Smash fans take it like a personal attack if you think that their most wanted is not likely.

Oh no, someone is using Gematsu to stifle any discussion about anyone else because Chrom Chorus Kids and Shulk are totally the last few characters? Guess I have to cry about it and stop talking about characters I think are cool. Oh wait, no one did that. People still talked about characters they thought were cool and tried to show off why they loved characters.

Grow up. Just because someone is saying your most wanted is unlikely does not give you the right to complain. Show why you love them. Make a case for them. Sure, others will inevitably disagree, but you will help your character get new fans. I can name plenty of people who stuck with their characters through thick and thin without whining that its so unfair that people dare say their niche pick is unlikely.

Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and make a case for your character. I made cases for Sephiroth and Rean when no one else was, saying that he was a dark horse. Did I let people saying it was unlikely stop me? No. Because it does not matter. If you honestly get so hurt that someone says something you think is cool is unlikely, Smash speculation is not for you. Because Smash Speculation has always been like this.

Make a case for whoever you want, sell people on it. Don't throw a fit and grumble when someone tells you that your niche pick is unlikely. If we look at what we got in Brawl, Smash 4, and Ultimate, niche picks are the exception, not the norm. Does that mean your pick is a never ever? Who knows, people are often wrong. Does that mean you get to cry about it and while about someone daring to challenge you and help you stay realistic in your expectations? No.

Speculate on whoever you want, make counter arguments for the arguments about why someone might not think your idea is unlikely. But don't treat yourself like a victim because someone said something like Starfy and Kyle Hyde are probably not going to happen for the next smash.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

But I wouldn't treat it as some kind of personal attack if you did. Because I'm not a child who doesn't understand that I am not the fictional characters I request.

(also, you're not entirely wrong)

Oh ****! I'm physically wounded by this, and I demand you be banned from saying it!

Would you rather people just have the freedom to act like their most wanted is a shoe in? Having a reality check is helpful and I am gonna be honest brutally necessary.

Look at how the Geno fanbase or Rayman fanbase acted when you gave any criticism that their most wanted was not a lock. I literally had Rayman fans harass me and throw shade at me for months because I dared to say that a character that had a series that bombed in Japan and his series was more or less on hiatus was not exactly a lock. Geno's fans let a false prophet tell them Geno was coming, and many did not listen to potential warning signs that Geno was not 100% a lock. Look where that got them.

Just because someone says a character you do like is unlikely, it does not mean that you have to cry about it. Literally, Smash fans take it like a personal attack if you think that their most wanted is not likely.

Oh no, someone is using Gematsu to stifle any discussion about anyone else because Chrom Chorus Kids and Shulk are totally the last few characters? Guess I have to cry about it and stop talking about characters I think are cool. Oh wait, no one did that. People still talked about characters they thought were cool and tried to show off why they loved characters.

Grow up. Just because someone is saying your most wanted is unlikely does not give you the right to complain. Show why you love them. Make a case for them. Sure, others will inevitably disagree, but you will help your character get new fans. I can name plenty of people who stuck with their characters through thick and thin without whining that its so unfair that people dare say their niche pick is unlikely.

Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and make a case for your character. I made cases for Sephiroth and Rean when no one else was, saying that he was a dark horse. Did I let people saying it was unlikely stop me? No. Because it does not matter. If you honestly get so hurt that someone says something you think is cool is unlikely, Smash speculation is not for you. Because Smash Speculation has always been like this.

Make a case for whoever you want, sell people on it. Don't throw a fit and grumble when someone tells you that your niche pick is unlikely. If we look at what we got in Brawl, Smash 4, and Ultimate, niche picks are the exception, not the norm. Does that mean your pick is a never ever? Who knows, people are often wrong. Does that mean you get to cry about it and while about someone daring to challenge you and help you stay realistic in your expectations? No.

Speculate on whoever you want, make counter arguments for the arguments about why someone might not think your idea is unlikely. But don't treat yourself like a victim because someone said something like Starfy and Kyle Hyde are probably not going to happen for the next smash.

I'll be blunt.

You two are missing the point by a country mile. And to be honest, remember how the thread jumped on Guy because he was arguing his point in a mean way? You two are doing that as well.

This conversation should probably end. No good can come of it it at this point.

So, to change conversation, why do you all think we haven't had a new Zelda character since Brawl? There have been lots of popular characters and tons of landmark titles since then.

 

[Guynamednelson]

Guy

Please, refer to me as Nelson.

Anyway, about your Zelda question...I dunno. I guess for Ultimate, there wasn't a demanded enough Zelda character on the ballot? I do think one reason why Isaac was stuck as an AT was due to having to make a GS stage for him, but...Zelda characters wouldn't have that excuse.

 

[KillerCage]

How are all of you? I'm bored right now so I was just wondering what your thoughts would be on the following characters if they made it into Smash:

• Crash
• Master Chief
• Kratos
• Crypto (Destroy All Humans)
• Bill Rizer
• Dragonborn
• Doomguy
• Agumon
• Nightmare
• Phoenix Wright
• Monokuma

Crash- Congrat on making it into Smash; hope you're happy.

Master Chief- YYYEEEESSSSSS!!!! MY DREAM CHARACTER MADE IT!!!

Kratos- HOW THE ACTUAL 4@(% DID SONY AGREED TO THIS!? HOW!?!?

Crypto- Huh. I would have thought you would be too obscure and western to make it into Smash.

Bill Rizer- Yo, Bill! Did running on top those helicopter blades paid off?

Dragonborn- Meh. See why you deserve it, but I'm not that interested.

Doomguy- Hey Isabelle! Your best friend/pen pal just arrived! Ready to rip and tear?

Agumon- MY CHILDHOOOOOOOODDD!!!! POKEMON VS DIGIMON! LETS GOOOOOOOO!!!!

Nightmare- Oh Liiiiiink! Your best buddy Nightmare just joined the fight!

Phoenix Wright- Poor Phoenix! He's just a lawyer! Now watch him demolish Sephiroth with evidence!

Monokuma- Meh. I prefer Phoenix.