I'm advising you to listen to this music, my favorite video game music of all times and one really appropriate for the situation:
(It most likely won't last long enough before you finish reading this, but whatever.)
Most hyping moments
#1: Robin reveal
Prior to properly joining the Smash community I was really interested in playing as Robin in Smash after playing FE:A. That said everyone said that Chrom was the one eligible choice from this game and I didn't really understand how he would really stand out, though I was happy to discover that there actually was a support base for Robin (I was really happy to see his support thread while lurking on Smashboards). Even with the Gematsu debacle, I still believed Robin had a chance if only because I found him more interesting than Chrom as a Smash contender due to being less redundant due to being a tactician who was much easier to design a moveset for without feeling like a huge stretch in my mind. I was so happy when I was proven right.
My condolences to Chrom supporters too. Even as someone who wasn't keen on the idea of him being playable in Smash, the end of Robin's trailer made me feel quite guilty.
#2: Smash ballot reveal
Before the reveal of the ballot I believed the rest of Smash 4 DLC after Mewtwo would only be based on "relevance" based on titles released after Smash 4 itself and that MUH RELEVANCE RECENCY!!!!1!1!! was going to be the end all be all for future DLC character selection. Glad instead that fan feedback would actually be taken into account. As such it really increased my hopes to see K. Rool as a DLC character which skyrocketed from "lol nope muh relevance" to "among the most likely newcomers" in my mind, especially with the announcement of the re-relase of DK64 as a Wii U download in the same Direct, the game that made me appreciate K. Rool as a character.
Now if only we could know the actual influence of fan feedback through the ballot. Hopefully soon in the newly promised Direct.
#3: Mewtwo reveal
While I didn't mind much Mewtwo's absence in Brawl when I was younger despite the fact I had Melee earlier and even named one of my goldfishes "Mewtwo" (and the other two were named "Bowser" and "Ganondorf" - true story), possibly due to the fact I wasn't so emotionally attached to the Smash roster back then, the sixth generation of Pokémon with the return of Mewtwo as one of the most prominently featured Pokémon really reminded me how likable and awesome this Pokémon is, which made me want him back in Smash 4 very badly when I started to actually care about Smash 4. I was devastated when he wasn't in the initial roster - why exclude Mewtwo just because he accidentally missed the boat once? What would make him suddenly unworthy of ever being playable again in Smash?
At that point I mostly accepted that Mewtwo wasn't coming back, as much as his exclusion hurt my brain. I somewhat hoped him to be revealed for DLC in the 50 fact Extravaganza but I thought it was an unlikely stretch... but it was what actually happened. Due to the fact I already gave up at that time my reaction wasn't exactly hype at first but more like shock... this really makes me wish I didn't give up on Mewtwo because if I didn't I would have screamed of joy.
Honorable mention: the 1.1.1 update. While I didn't really care for the new purchasable contents in this update (though seeing Pirate Ship back was nice), I was quite pleased with its balance changes. Nerfed shields open the door for more aggressive and exciting play, especially in combination to smooth lander + heavy gravity (because after trying it I honestly can't come back to vanilla Smash 4), and the numerous balance changes specifically targeted towards custom moves really made me feel vindicated against those who used to say "The Smash team doesn't take custom moves seriously" to defend the lack of them for DLC characters.
Honorable mention #2: Globox and Barbara trophies. I'm a childhood fan of Rayman and I was so happy to see his series represented in Smash, and I was so happy to learn that it went beyond just Rayman himself! It really made me hope about Rayman as a DLC character at the time. Last time we did a most hyping and deflating day I mentioned this as #1 but considering I don't really want Rayman in Smash anymore (I've thought a lot about that and I finally accepted that Rayman doesn't really belong in Smash), I don't see myself putting this in my "most hyping" list anymore. I'm still grateful about this Rayman series cameo in Smash anyway.
Most hype deflating moments
#1: no custom moves for DLC characters
Did you know what was the most fun thing to discuss about Mewtwo prior to his release? Besides his Final Smash which could have been seen from miles away, potential moveset changes and what his custom moves would be was really fun to discuss. When the footage was revealed we saw that the moveset wasn't changed, which made sense, and the Final Smash was what everyone expected to be. Now we only have to speculate about his custom moves!
When I got the download codes for Mewtwo I was so excited! Playing as Mewtwo for the first time in Smash 4 felt so amazing! I played a few matches against CPUs and completed classic mode with Mewtwo, then I couldn't wait to see his custom moves! Wait, they're not unlocked by default? Okay then, I'll play some Smash Run and try to unlock them. Wait, I still don't unlock Mewtwo's customs? Wait... please...
don't tell me that...
When I realized the truth my hype levels flattened from over 9000 to negative values. I mean, why exclude such an important part of a character's identity without any warning prior? Why make Mewtwo irrelevant to the game when playing with customs on just because? This was (and still is) hurting my brain, especially with the absolute lack of official acknowledgment outside of the game itself. In fact, it hurt my brain so much I fully expected Mewtwo's custom moves to be added at a later date. And as of current it never happened. Even worse, the June 14th DLC characters also lacked custom moves.
Now at this point I got over it compared to my initial reaction when I felt truly devastated, but I'm not going to stop criticizing it, because it almost made me stop using custom moves altogether except in a few specific instances (like trying to get high scores in Smash Run or fixing some moves that don't work properly in heavy gravity) and I miss when I used to enjoy them without worrying about never using specific characters when playing with them. To be fair between special moves with altered properties and brand new characters I'd rather take the later, but I don't see why we shouldn't have both, and as such I'm keeping expressing my distaste about the situation.
If at least there was a known official reason why DLC characters won't or can't have custom moves...
#2: King K. Rool Mii costume reveal
After the reveal of the ballot I didn't feel too worried about the chances of my most wanted plausible newcomer, I didn't think he was a shoo-in but I felt fully confident that he was in Sakurai's consideration list at the very least. Then the July 30th update revealed something that made me really angry. I mean, why make such a safe character choice with such strong fan support be chosen... as a Mii costume? Especially for a non-human character who doesn't fit the proportions of Miis and doesn't even like melee combat in his home series where he prefers to charge at full speed or use wacky projectiles? Are we really expected to believe that K. Rool is a no-hoper to the same extent as Chrom or Flying Man, assuming this costume truly means that Sakurai disapproved about adding him to the playable roster?
Now that my initial kneejerk reaction is over I'm not as angry as when the costume was revealed, and I even bought it (only Mii costume I bought) as a way to tell Nintendo that the character is marketable and that he's worth using in the games he belongs in. I also don't think there's really a way to tell if its meaning towards K. Rool's actual chances are truly black or white, but its reveal also marked a rise of K. Rool detractors which is something I'm really disliking.
#3: lack of Mewtwo in the initial roster
Well, I think I already explained it in my Mewtwo reveal hype explanation. But this was worsened by the fact I fully expected the leaked CSS roster to not have all the unlockable characters at the time, and I fully expected Mewtwo to be one of the final unleaked unlockable characters. I felt devastated when I realized it wasn't the case, and the fact Dr. Mario returned made his absence feel even more baffling.
Really glad that Mewtwo actually came back after all.
Honorable mention: the sudden rise of apparent nobodies who ended up to become recurring names in speculation after the ballot. Though I won't mention any name here because starting an argument or a flame war is really the last thing I want for this final day. I hoped the ballot to make sure to reconfirm the demand of already established requests who actually feel deserving to a least some extent and give hope for them to actually get into Smash, and while it did that it also marked the rise of some characters I almost never heard of before as Smash contenders who quickly turned me off as a result, especially considering that most of these characters feel like they really don't belong in Smash at all imo.
Best memories
#1: Day 40: DLC characters receive custom moves
I remember as soon as I realized the lack of custom moves for Mewtwo I started nominating this. I also remember when I feared that we would rate this concept during a day when I wouldn't be available, which would have devastated me if it actually happened. I also remember stopping nominating it to make sure its day wouldn't happen when I wouldn't be available, but then I realized some other people sometimes nominated it as well. Instead I got the help of other people to push it towards the top of the nomination list before the weekend when I wouldn't have been available, and I was so delighted when this day happened during a day when I was available to post. This is also the day when I wrote my most passionate chances and want explanation, insisting on how much the lack of custom moves for DLC characters doesn't make any sense, and I remember giving a like to every single post that gave 100% want to this concept. Now that we had six updates since Mewtwo's release and we still don't have custom moves for DLC characters I'm much less optimistic than the 85% chances score I gave it back then, though.
Ironically I managed to go rate things during days I believed I wouldn't have access to the internet. Glad I did, which makes me proud of having participated during all single days of this game.
#2: Day 87: Black Shadow and Tetrimino
Probably my longest post in this thread, I loved going in-depth into what's going for and against a Tetrimino as a Smash fighter. Also I won't lie, the reactions to this idea from some other people were funny.
#3: Day 141: Kaptain K. Rool and Reyn
I'm really involved in supporting K. Rool as a DLC character for SSB4, and I've thought about the possibility of getting him under his Kaptain persona instead. I loved the moveset I've imagined for K. Rool using only the Kaptain persona and I thought that it would be awesome to rate the idea in RTC. I'm also really proud of what I said for him during this day.
Also honorable mention to the MUH RELEVANCE RECENCY!!!!1!1!! jokes
Special thanks
>
colder_than_ice
,
@PK_Wonder ,
CaptainAmerica
,
Smasher 101
and
@XenoBrawler610 for running different parts of this thread, you did an awesome job!
>
Sid-cada
for convincing me to not nominate a joke character (which wouldn't have had the time to be rated anyway);
>
@Troykv for giving his extra nominations to the concept of no DK characters which wouldn't have been rated otherwise.
Closing words
Well, this had been a fun ride. I'm proud to have participated in this thread every single day, even during the weekend when I believed I wouldn't have access to Smashboards. This thread really helped me to develop my stance on the chances on many characters and consider what they have for and against them, and was really a catch-up to the original RTC where I only participated when it was almost over (and I only had the time to nominate Magikarp there... *sigh*). Comparatively I'm happy to have contributed to nominating ideas in this thread like Kaptain K. Rool, Meta Crystal, a universal hitstun increase (the only balance change thing we ever rated), or the concept of getting no DK newcomer at all, as well as rerates like Rayman and Fountain of Dreams.
This thread had been a lot of fun, and will be severely missed, and the recent signs of the end of the news drought make this closure even more unfortunate. With this closure I suppose I'll be less active on Smashboards, but I guarantee I'll be sharing my impressions on the next DLC characters and other contents with everyone. Whenever we get new characters, I'm thinking about opening a new satisfaction thread for them, in the Smash 4 general discussion subforum (for exposure reasons); it will allow us to rate the new DLC characters in satisfaction in a similar vein to how we rated Roy and Ryu in satisfaction once they were officially revealed, and will be part of the continuity and legacy of this thread.
To be honest one of the things I wanted to nominate was... an Airwing as a playable character. When I watched the Star Fox Zero trailer some part of me thought "Walking Airwings? Maybe that could work as a playable fighter in Smash!" Of course it would have gotten low scores considering it shares many design issues with Ridley and that when people want a Star Fox newcomer they generally want Krystal, but I think it would have been interesting to discuss it.
If there's something non-character related you wish you had the time to rate but didn't, then I strongly recommend you to participate in my Rate Their Chances: last opportunity edition thread. This is open to stages, musics, balance changes, and other-non-character related stuff.
And to close this thread, here are the final tops 10 of chances and want (respectively):
http://img15.hostingpics.net/pics/656193RTCDLCTop10chancesfinal.png
http://img15.hostingpics.net/pics/830546RTCDLCTop10wantfinal.png
Thanks for putting up with us for so long.
![[Obnoxshush/Dasshizer]](/data/avatars/l/267/267037.jpg?1450250857){kind=avatar}
