95% - I have played very little of Splatoon 1 and 2 and have enjoyed the core gameplay, but haven't gotten into either since they're so multiplayer focused. Still, Inkling to me feels like a character who would just be weird not to include, even if we all saw it coming. I like the moveset as well, it's very fun. I just hope Splat3 will have more single player content for folks like me who refuse to pay for NSO
EVERYONE IS
HERE!
100% - I never thought this would happen and I'm so glad to be wrong. I may have not been a huge advocate of Young Link and Pichu returning but I'm still glad they're here, especially the latter as it's one of my favorite characters to play as. Having the entire cast of the previous game is amazing as well and honestly? Sakurai could've easily stopped after this and the Inklings. The fact that he didn't bumps it up to a 100000%.
65% - Daisy was a character that I actively did not want due to a certain fan of hers who will not be named, plus having her in without Waluigi kinda rubbed me the wrong way. Still, I can only get so upset at a low effort clone, plus she's grown on me overtime. I actually like her more than Peach.
100% - I still remember when this guy was an impossibility. There was constant arguing over whether or not he's too big, and yet here he is. I wasn't a huge Ridley supporter, but I still wanted him for his fans and I'm thrilled for them that their character actually made it in. His playstyle is also right up my alley as he feels great to control.
90% - I've been a casual Castlevania fan since before Belmonts' inclusions (only played the classic games so far though the later games are on my backlog) so I was naturally happy to see them get in, even if part of me thinks Alucard would've been the better choice. The Castlevania stage is one of my favorites in the game with an amazing music selection, and I think Simon looks really good in Ultimate, plus I love playing as him. However...
100% - Richter's inclusion makes Simon redundant in my opinion. I usually pick a random character but if I want to pick a Belmont, I'll pick Richter - I just like his design and personality way more. I've never played Rondo of Blood but I've been wanting to for the longest time, and Richter being in makes me want to play it even more. I don't even care that they're nearly identical.
95% - I like Chrom as a character and even though I didn't actively want him, he definitely got snubbed in Sm4sh, so I'm happy he finally got his chance. I already like Roy so the transition to playing as him was natural, terrible recovery be damned.
75% - When she was revealed, I rolled my eyes since she was an extremely overspeculated character at the time, which rubs me the wrong way, and she doesn't feel to different compared to playing Samus (who I rather enjoy playing as). Still, she's really well animated and the fact Metroid went from just having Samus playable to having four characters is really cool.
100% - Yes. Just yes. He was one of my most wanted and when Ridley was revealed, I knew he was probably coming, but like Ridley it still feels surreal to seem him on the CSS. For the longest time the Smash roster had a massive fat kremling shaped hole and I'm so happy it got filled. He's also one of my favorite characters to play as hands down, I just feel so damn powerful landing those hits. And that's without even mentioning the godlike remix of Gangplank Galleon he came with. Easily my favorite newcomer for this game.
80% - Like Inkling, this is another one that would've been kind of weird if she wasn't in, but on a smaller scale. I'm not an Animal Crossing fan as I like having an actual end goal in my games (I've played New Leaf back in the day and dropped it after realizing this), but I do think Isabelle is a cute character and I don't mind her presence. Her playstyle is pretty fun, but I don't know if I prefer her over Villager.
75% - Not a fan of Street Fighter (I've played 2 and hated it, hopefully I can find a good starting point since I do want to get into the series), but I can appreciate his inclusion. I like his personality more than Ryu but I can't really get a good grasp on how to play either of them since I'm not used to command inputs. He also loses points for getting revealed alongside...
1% - was legitimately going to go for a 0% here but I don't think that's fair considering I can get some enjoyment out of playing as them, but not overly since they're so slow and their recovery is garbage. It's weird, because before they got into Smash I genuinely liked Incineroar due to their fun personality and animations in the games, but there were so many factors that just led my opinion to take a sudden 180.
The first and most obvious one is that I supported another gen 7 Pokemon for the roster, that being Decidueye. And it wasn't just in passing or just because they're a grass type like with most people, no, Decidueye was legitimately my most wanted character. They still are. I genuinely think there was potential for an archery focused moveset and yeah, I genuinely like the Pokemon as it's my third favorite overall - first being the one in my avatar, Chandelure, and the second being my Smash main, Greninja. And it wasn't easy being a Decidueye supporter - before E3 2018, they were popular, you had to argue that you didn't just want them because "muh grass" and explain why they're a genuinely good choice without that factor, only for E3 to reveal that every Pokemon is returning, including Ivysaur, causing a good chunk of their supporter to stop caring since there's already a lot of playable Pokemon and a grass rep is there, but Decidueye still had some push. Then Vergeben disconfirmed Decidueye (along with Mimikyu and Lycanroc, which I didn't want personally), and after Simon was confirmed and gave him more credibility, Decidueye discussion pretty much died out and everyone turned to Incineroar. At this point I left Smashboards altogether since no one would take discussion of my MW seriously, and overspeculation soured me on the concept of Incineroar making it in. What fueled the fire even more is that one time on Twitter when I expressed hope that Decidueye will make it in over Incineroar, I got harassed and spammed by an Incineroar fan.
Then, the grinch leak happened. At that point I already lost hope for Decidueye, but the grinch leak had Isaac, another character I really wanted to see, Geno, who I was warming up to and saw as the "good timeline" since I believed the box theory and believed we will only be getting two characters, and several other fan favorites who while I didn't personally care for, were much more enticing options than Incineroar, who I was actively dreading at this point. So despite the fact I should've probably known better since Sakurai said not to expect too many newcomers, I believed it, and that was the absolute worst setup for disappointment I could've ever done to myself.
Come November 1st, the trailer opened with Ken, which gave me hope, only for Tony the tiger to show up midway through shatter my hopes and dreams into pieces. It legitimately ruined the rest of my day. I actually cried the day afterwards. It took me two months to fully get over the disappointment only to learn that Decidueye was actually considered and nearly got in instead, which just made my distate for Incineroar start anew. Almost 3 years later, I still can't fully come to terms with it. I don't understand why Incineroar's "wrestler" shtick was more unique than Decidueye's full archer set. Especially considering we have several characters that already perform the wrestling moves that Incineroar does, including newcomer K. Rool, but much fewer projectile focused characters. Incineroar's command grab is pretty fun to use, I'll admit, but I don't think it justifies Incineroar's spot on the roster over the much more unique Decidueye. The fact last year's popularity poll had Decidueye rank higher than Incineroar just goes to show how poorly this decision has aged, in my opinion.
I'm sorry if this sounds petty, but Incineroar's inclusion over Decidueye will forever be the sticking point of Ultimate's roster to me personally, and the only thing holding this roster back from being absolutely perfect in my eyes. I admire Sakurai a lot, but this to me is just the one thing I will never agree with him on. Doesn't help that unlike my other MWs, Decidueye absolutely does not have another chance, and will never get in. This was his one chance. I was this close to getting my MW but lost out to the damn cereal mascot. I'm sorry if you like Incineroar, but he just doesn't do it for me.
70% - So Plant's inclusion was initially the one bright spot about that November 1st Smash direct where the worst case scenario happened and most of my MWs were disconfirmed. Still, as time went on I kinda soured on him due to all the Plant gang memes rubbing me the wrong way. Still, I do enjoy playing as him and find him a very inspired choice for a newcomer, even if he's probably my least favorite DLC character.
100% - I watched The Game Awards 2018 live for some reason. This was back when I watched nearly every gaming related thing that came out because there was a chance for Nintendo news, It was mostly unremarkable, until that legendary moment where Joker grabbed the invitation. I was only a little familiar with P5 since I had friends who talked about it a whole bunch so I - pun fully intended -
never saw it coming. The best thing about that reveal is that it wan't even framed as a Smash reveal and for all I knew could've been just a Persona 5 spinoff that I wouldn't give a rat's ass about since I wasn't into Persona at the time, and it came completely out of left field. As of now I still haven't played a Persona game, but I bought Persona 4 Golden on Steam and have definite plans to play it as well as 5 Royal as soon as I get a PS5. Also I ****ing love playing as Joker, I actually managed to pull of a combo with him the other day which is something I rarely do and it felt so damn good. Not to mention the Mementos stage and Persona OST were amazing additions to Smash.
85% - To me, Dragon Quest feels like a third-party series that was kind of a given for Smash considering its history and impact, but wasn't exciting for me personally since I have never played a DQ game. I feel the same way about Street Fighter in hindsight. Still, Hero's inclusion makes sense from that perspective and I'm definitely happy for DQ fans, and seeing Akira Toriyama's art style in Smash is the closest we'll ever get to having Goku. I don't really play as Hero a whole lot but he's somewhat fun, albeit janky as hell. Docking 5% for the music selection though. #RipBozo, hopefully this will be rectified next game now that he's gone.
90% - Banjo to me was a character I had a lowkey desire to see for his fan's sake, but didn't care for personally as I haven't played their game. So naturally I was happy that they got in. Their trailer felt like a true homecoming for the character and was really heartwarming. Their playstyle may not be anything special, but I still enjoy them well enough. I don't love Spiral Mountain as a stage, but I love the music, especially the Spiral Mountain remix by Grant Kirkhope.
90% - I have seen the names "Terry Bogard" and "SNK" mentioned in Smash speculation exactly once before the leak happened, so this was one character I was almost completely unfamiliar with, but at that point I already stopped caring about who gets in and accepted Terry, even if I wasn't big on traditional fighting games at the time. I only recently picked up Terry himself and he was surprisingly easy to use as his inputs are simpler than the SF shotos, and he's really fun too. The stage he comes with is one of my favorites as well, and the music selection is objectively the best in terms of pure quantity and variety. The Psycho Soldier remix is a jam, and his challenger pack overall feels like a huge love letter to SNK as a whole rather than just Fatal Fury to the point I want to play a KOF game one day.
100% - A very polarizing inclusion, but at the point they were revealed I stopped caring for Smash speculation too much. However, their inclusion made me pick up FE3H which was one of the best decisions I've made this past 2 years as it became possibly my most played Switch game, and one of my favorites of all time. Seriously, it's so damn good you guys. I love playing as Byleth as well since landing their Side B feels incredibly satisfying, and the music selection they came with is great despite the lack of God Shattering Star.
Pass 1 ranking - 100%
75% - While I think the inclusion of an ARMS character is well deserved, I just don't care for ARMS. I do think if we had to have an ARMS rep, she's the best choice (I never liked Spring Man's design), and I don't have a problem with her playstyle since I don't really play competitively, but this is the one DLC character who wouldn't bother me if they were excluded. The stage is boring as hell and the music is not my thing.
90% - I wasn't an active participant of the Banjo-Steve war, but I silently sided with Banjo when it was occuring. Like I said before, I already stopped caring about Smash speculation at this point, so Steve's reveal didn't do much for me. However, I did finally play Minecraft a few months ago and I can understand why it's as popular as it is, even if I haven't fully mastered it yet and haven't played it in a while. Plus, while it took a bit to understand, grasping Steve's playstyle was extremely satisfying and while I'm still not very good at playing as him, I still find him incredibly fun. The stage is cool as well and the music is pretty neat.
100% - I slept through last year's Game Awards as I wasn't keeping up with social media and was unaware of the fact a Smash reveal was supposed to take place, so I was extremely surprised to wake up and find out that
****ing Sephiroth made it in. His inclusion makes complete sense in hindsight - I haven't played Final Fantasy VII, but I know it's a big deal, which is why I lost my mind when Cloud made it in all those years ago, but I never thought Square Enix would be so cooperative as to let TWO FFVII characters to get into this game. Of course, Sephiroth was the obvious choice for that as he's one of the most iconic video game villains ever made. Trailer was a banger too. Sephiroth is a blast to play - having so many moves with so much power is extremely satisfying. Using him to patch up the lack of FFVII music was a stroke of genius, and the music selection he came with is amazing. Both versions of One-Winged Angel are a jam. Absolutely fantastic inclusion and I can't wait to play Final Fantasy VII one day. (btw, can someone tell me if the OG is worth playing over the remake? The remake looks more up my alley in terms of gameplay but I heard polarizing things about the remake so idk if I should wait until I get a PS5 just to play it). This is all coming from a Geno fan btw
90% - Didn't expect to enjoy this inclusion as much as I did tbh. I always dreaded the possibility of a Rex getting in since I thought some of XC2's character designs in that game were absolutely dumpster fire (Rex included), so I was pleasantly surprised that they picked the booba girls over him, even if objectively speaking their designs are probably not much better. They fit really well with the rest of the cast, and the switching mechanic is a good take on a stance character. They're both incredibly fun to play as as well, with Pyra's incredibly powerful Smash attacks being amazingly fun to land and Mythra having a really nice combo-oriented playstyle. I warmed up to them so much that I plan on playing XC2 if I enjoy the first one (though that's a big if). The music is a jam too, with my favorite being Gormott, and I find the stage to be visually stunning.
89% - Like Dragon Quest, Tekken was a series I expected representation from, but didn't actively want since I never played it. Was somewhat surprised with who they chose since I was more familiar with Heihachi and always assumed he'd be the rep, but I'm not a Tekken fan so I don't care enough to complain. Kazuya's playstyle is something I still haven't fully wrapped my head around, but I still find him rather enjoyable despite that, though he's far from my favorite DLC character. Stage is pretty cool but I haven't given the music enough of a listen to form an opinion.
100% - At this point I regained my interest in speculation. When it came to Sora, I was a non-believer. It's a licensing nightmare and it took me a week to fully wrap my head around the fact this is the reality that we're in. I have never played a Kingdom Hearts game, but I have an IRL friend who won't shut up about it when they're drunk (which is a lot in my friend group) and loves it to death. When Sora was revealed, they sent me a text saying they were crying. And i know they weren't the only one as Sora trended on Twitter constantly in the context of Smash, even back when I was still using the website, and I believed all these people were setting themselves up for disappointment like I was all those years, and I'm so happy to be wrong. Because of all this, it didn't surprise me at all when Sakurai said Sora was the true ballot winner all those years ago. I was moreso surprised that he actually managed to pull it off.
The soundtrack is amazing and the stage looks cool. He seems really fun to play as as well (although I am getting Sm4sh Bayo flashbacks), but honestly? It doesn't matter. This is a perfect way to wrap up this game. He may have not been the character I wanted personally, but I'm still happy he's here.
Pass 2 ranking - 95%
