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Shrine Maiden of Paradise ~ Reimu Hakurei (Touhou Project)

zriL

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Feb 7, 2020
Messages
239
Eh, this just feels like wishcasting to me, I wouldn't read into it. Fan theories revolve around inventing some kind of pattern to apply to a series of arbitrary decisions by Nintendo - they're never right.
This one isn't just a random pattern like colors, character selection slots, or whatever. This one actually make sense in context and unless you can tell me why fp2 has 0 non-english european voice acting until now, there is very little reason to believe the last two characters will have them. This is actually more reliable than some glitches, license renewals, dev vague comments and even "reliable" leaker information. And by the way, most Nintendo decisions are definitely not arbitrary, there is a reasoning behind them, many patterns didn't work but that doesn't mean there is no pattern, the real pattern is just more complex and naturally uses a lot of information we don't have. Even then I'm sure we can find dozens of obvious patterns that work, but we only talk about controversial ones, that's why they are mostly wrong, they were very bold and/or naive in the first place.
 
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sessian

Smash Rookie
Joined
Dec 19, 2020
Messages
15
This one actually make sense in context and unless you can tell me why fp2 has 0 non-english european voice acting until now, there is very little reason to believe the last two characters will have them.
Even so, that's a wide, wide net. I would question how valuable it is for Reimu specifically, except to note with relief that she's one of the many who aren't excluded by it.
 

GolisoPower

Smash Master
Joined
Sep 17, 2017
Messages
4,315
Okay, just had an interesting thought, which led me to some research: what if Sakurai uses a refined version of the ZUN art style for Reimu, but her design is based on the in-game sprite that's used when you play as her. I've been looking far and wide for Reimu player sprites, trying to see if it's been consistent throughout the entire Windows era, and so far, I've only found the one that's labeled to be from Undefined Fantastical Object. Sound good?
 

TheTuninator

Smash Champion
Joined
Feb 25, 2013
Messages
2,315
This one isn't just a random pattern like colors, character selection slots, or whatever. This one actually make sense in context and unless you can tell me why fp2 has 0 non-english european voice acting until now, there is very little reason to believe the last two characters will have them. This is actually more reliable than some glitches, license renewals, dev vague comments and even "reliable" leaker information. And by the way, most Nintendo decisions are definitely not arbitrary, there is a reasoning behind them, many patterns didn't work but that doesn't mean there is no pattern, the real pattern is just more complex and naturally uses a lot of information we don't have. Even then I'm sure we can find dozens of obvious patterns that work, but we only talk about controversial ones, that's why they are mostly wrong, they were very bold and/or naive in the first place.
It's up to you what you'd like to believe, I just hate to see people getting their hopes up based on stuff that's pretty flimsy.
 

Doremy's smug grin

Smash Apprentice
Joined
Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
a Vtuber looked like Reimu playing Smash

the closest thing we have now
Oh my god, that's vocalist Marcia of Yuuhei Satellite! I used to listen to their covers of The Gensokyo the gods loved and Last Remote RELIGIOUSLY when I was a kid, and I still follow them to this day! They just released two covers of songs from the newest game. Anyone else here listen to them as well?
 
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zriL

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Feb 7, 2020
Messages
239
It's up to you what you'd like to believe, I just hate to see people getting their hopes up based on stuff that's pretty flimsy.
I don't think it's flimsy though but it seems we won't be able to agree on this.

If that's what's bothering you, don't worry I'm not really getting my hopes up. I like smash speculation because I see it like a survival game with dozens of popular characters as participants. So it's exciting for me when some of them take hits, especially big ones. Indeed, it would affect my hopes negatively if Touhou was hit by something as "reliable" as this. But in the end, as someone said previously, it's a very wide net, and even if it's true, Sonic and Pokemon being out doesn't do much for Reimu's chances since there are so many possible choices, it's more like it's nice that Reimu isn't taking any hits lately. And anyways, I wasn't believing in a Pokemon as DLC so the big deal is mostly Sonic for me. The Rayman argument is quite convincing as well but not as much so I won't really consider Rayman out.
 

GolisoPower

Smash Master
Joined
Sep 17, 2017
Messages
4,315
Ohhhhhh! I just thought of an interesting mechanic for Reimu: Touhou boss health bars!

To explain what I'm talking about, I wanna introduce you to this guy:
1621809926707.png

This is Ji-Woon Hak, otherwise known as the Trickster, one of the many Killers in Dead by Daylight. In the game, Ji-Woon has a power called Showstopper which is basically throwing knives. If you hit a Survivor with 8 knives within a short timespan, that Survivor will take damage. Sounds simple, right?

Now you're probably wondering: what does this have to do with Reimu? Well, in Touhou, you whittle away at a boss's health with quick and weak projectiles, all the while dodging their attacks. This mechanic, inspired by the above character and power, could translate to Smash in a similar manner. Here's how it works:

When at least one player is playing as Reimu, every other opponent gets a Health Ring, which is slowly depleted by her ofuda and/or needles, which would either be a Mega Man-style attack or a Neutral B, and deal no actual damage or knockback. If Reimu manages to completely deplete the Health Ring around a single opponent, they'll take ridiculous burst damage. The Health Ring is then refilled, only this time requiring more shots to deplete for each subsequent refill. If you manage to do this 5 times during their stock, they will be instantly KO'd on the spot.

Competitively, this makes for some amazing pressure and counter-pressure that could force the opponent on the defensive while Reimu dominates the space between her and her foe.

I'm sure there's a lot of stuff that'll seem confusing and the idea itself seems half-baked to some of you. I just wanted to throw it out there.
 
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Doremy's smug grin

Smash Apprentice
Joined
Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
Ohhhhhh! I just thought of an interesting mechanic for Reimu: Touhou boss health bars!

To explain what I'm talking about, I wanna introduce you to this guy:
View attachment 316273
This is Ji-Woon Hak, otherwise known as the Trickster, one of the many Killers in Dead by Daylight. In the game, Ji-Woon has a power called Showstopper which is basically throwing knives. If you hit a Survivor with 8 knives within a short timespan, that Survivor will take damage. Sounds simple, right?

Now you're probably wondering: what does this have to do with Reimu? Well, in Touhou, you whittle away at a boss's health with quick and weak projectiles, all the while dodging their attacks. This mechanic, inspired by the above character and power, could translate to Smash in a similar manner. Here's how it works:

When at least one player is playing as Reimu, every other opponent gets a Health Ring, which is slowly depleted by her ofuda and/or needles, which would either be a Mega Man-style attack or a Neutral B, and deal no actual damage or knockback. If Reimu manages to completely deplete the Health Ring around a single opponent, they'll take ridiculous burst damage. The Health Ring is then refilled, only this time requiring more shots to deplete for each subsequent refill. If you manage to do this 5 times during their stock, they will be instantly KO'd on the spot.

Competitively, this makes for some amazing pressure and counter-pressure that could force the opponent on the defensive while Reimu dominates the space between her and her foe.

I'm sure there's a lot of stuff that'll seem confusing and the idea itself seems half-baked to some of you. I just wanted to throw it out there.
The health ring? You mean that ring that the bosses have around them that has been a thing since the 10th or 11th game?
If so, then I have a question: When would we see these rings in a Smash Bros round? Could there be a random item that would activate these rings, or would they just start out with them, for some reason? Just curious, I think I see where you're getting at, and I kinda like your idea.

Since we are brainstorming ideas, I have an idea of my own. Maybe, if someone were to play as Reimu, there would be a portrait of her that flashes by across the screen, similar to when she or a boss does a spellcard attack in her native games. this could happen if she:
  • were to do a final smash
  • deals a high enough damage to K.O. another player
  • as a spirit (or any character from Touhou) could possibly turn the stage into a danmaku frenzy
I hope to god I got all this information right and no one thought of this before me because I just think it would be HILARIOUS to see in the game!
 
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GolisoPower

Smash Master
Joined
Sep 17, 2017
Messages
4,315
The health ring? You mean that ring that the bosses have around them that has been a thing since the 10th or 11th game?
If so, then I have a question: When would we see these rings in a Smash Bros round? Could there be a random item that would activate these rings, or would they just start out with them, for some reason? Just curious, I think I see where you're getting at, and I kinda like your idea.

Since we are brainstorming ideas, I have an idea of my own. Maybe, if someone were to play as Reimu, there would be a portrait of her that flashes by across the screen, similar to when she or a boss does a spellcard attack in her native games. this could happen if she:
  • were to do a final smash
  • deals a high enough damage to K.O. another player
  • as a spirit (or any character from Touhou) could possibly change the stage into a danmaku frenzy
I hope to god I got all this information right and no one thought of this before me because I just think it would be HILARIOUS to see in the game!
To answer the question about the Health Rings, I imagine it flashing momentarily like that little light glint when your fighter is in the lead. Another way to see it is when you hit the opponent with the projectiles, it'll persist for 5 seconds before disappearing. That way, you'll occasionally figure out how much health you guys have left.

As for the portrait thing, that sounds pretty good, most certainly. It'd be a unique FS aesthetic á la Sephiroth's Victory background and a unique Zoom-in aesthetic for her.
 

Doremy's smug grin

Smash Apprentice
Joined
Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
To answer the question about the Health Rings, I imagine it flashing momentarily like that little light glint when your fighter is in the lead. Another way to see it is when you hit the opponent with the projectiles, it'll persist for 5 seconds before disappearing. That way, you'll occasionally figure out how much health you guys have left.

As for the portrait thing, that sounds pretty good, most certainly. It'd be a unique FS aesthetic á la Sephiroth's Victory background and a unique Zoom-in aesthetic for her.
Thanks, man! I'm glad you like it! Honestly, that portrait idea has been on the back of my mind for a while now, and it is one of the main reasons why if she were to be included, I think she may just be one of the WEIRDEST characters in Super Smash Brothers Ultimate history! Yes, even more so than Crash, and I'm not saying this to knock Crash fans either. Everything about Touhou Project is weird. It's just that most of that weirdness is subtle. But when it's not, it really shows itself. That is also why I cannot take someone who says that she is "just another generic anime waifu" seriously. NOTHING about Touhou is generic. It has always been just a bit...unorthodox! which is why I love it so much! It just doesn't feel like any other franchise I have ever been acquainted with, or even know on a personal level.

...DAMN IT! Why do my essays always turn into me writing love letters to Touhou?! I literally can't go a day without complementing it!
 

Doremy's smug grin

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Feb 27, 2021
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There was a problem fetching the tweet
LW Youmu is getting a figure!
AmphabulouSnake AmphabulouSnake this might interest you. :ultpacman:
It seems that there are already chibi figures of her that have been released! I guess this is their first large scale figure, haha. I actually remember seeing some videos of people showing them off months ago:


 

Rie Sonomura

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It seems that there are already chibi figures of her that have been released! I guess this is their first large scale figure, haha. I actually remember seeing some videos of people showing them off months ago:


Youmu is bab

UwU
 

Narp

Smash Cadet
Joined
Oct 30, 2019
Messages
49
It seems that there are already chibi figures of her that have been released! I guess this is their first large scale figure, haha. I actually remember seeing some videos of people showing them off months ago:
The small ones were handed out to Lost Word players in Japan for free for logging in a bunch last year. You could get Reimu, Marisa or Youmu, selected at random. Got the Reimu myself through borrowing a friend's address.
 

Doremy's smug grin

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Feb 27, 2021
Messages
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Hey, Touhou addicts! Check this f*ing s* out! Touhou 9.5(Shoot the Bullet) is slated for release on Steam in June 17th!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1420650/Touhou_Bunkachou__Shoot_the_Bullet/

This is crazy to me! Mainly because, you may all know that ZUN is not able to implement games 6-8 onto Steam because he lost the source code for them. This game is part of that first generation of Windows Touhou games, and it's seeing a Steam release! This is making me positive that we may even see Touhou 9 on Steam! (even if nobody cares about the game, except me. I care. I care about all the games....except 16.5...F*ck that game....)
 

GolisoPower

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Sep 17, 2017
Messages
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Okay, so, I just realized something: you know how some Hololive VTubers play Smash Bros (The first thing that comes to mind is Marine & Pekora's Smash rivalry)?

Well, here's the thing: Houshou Marine is a huge fan of Touhou, to the point where she lost it upon ZUN making a surprise appearance. Imagine how crazy she'd go if Reimu does end up in Smash Bros. It'd be on par with Kiryu Coco going nuts after Kazuma's appearance in Yakuza Like A Dragon, if not surpass it.
 
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Doremy's smug grin

Smash Apprentice
Joined
Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
Okay, so, I just realized something: you know how some Hololive VTubers play Smash Bros (The first thing that comes to mind is Marine & Pekora's Smash rivalry)?

Well, here's the thing: Houshou Marine is a huge fan of Touhou, to the point where she lost it upon ZUN making a surprise appearance. Imagine how crazy she'd go if Reimu does end up in Smash Bros. It'd be on par with Kiryu Coco going nuts after Kazuma's appearance in Yakuza Like A Dragon, if not surpass it.
OMG, she's like, one of the few VTubers that I watch! I was impressed with her level of...ahem... expertise that she had when it comes to all things Touhou. Hell, not only has she actually played the newest Touhou games, but she could recognize all the artists and VA's in Touhou Spell Bubble, and played a quiz in which she had to guess the character just by looking at their faces drawn in the original ZUN style! And got 100%! Not even I got a 100% on the quiz whe I tried it, and I know and seen every single character from their respective games. She REALLY made me question myself on as a Touhou fan on occassion, lol. I look up to her in a strange way, and I think she and I will have the exact same reactions to this happening.
 
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GolisoPower

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Chocosta

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View attachment 317650
I wasn't hoping Reimu until Samsh Ultimate,
but Reimu's chance is higher than ever now...
Is this picture official and recent ?? I've never seen it before... I mean, I never check twitter and sakurai pics so...
I think it might a touhou reference because pyra is flying exactly like reimu and gruntilda is marisa with her broomstick... but what about the fact that they are in spiral mountain ? Mountain of faith reference Oo ??

If it's really a touhou reference and gruntilda is supposed to be marisa, I will never see marisa the same as before when I'll play her

Oh boy, if we get a picture with pyra and peach to make a reference about yukari...
 

VicAdward

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Location
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Is this picture official and recent ?? I've never seen it before... I mean, I never check twitter and sakurai pics so...
I think it might a touhou reference because pyra is flying exactly like reimu and gruntilda is marisa with her broomstick... but what about the fact that they are in spiral mountain ? Mountain of faith reference Oo ??

If it's really a touhou reference and gruntilda is supposed to be marisa, I will never see marisa the same as before when I'll play her

Oh boy, if we get a picture with pyra and peach to make a reference about yukari...

YES, an official pic from Sakurai
 
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Chocosta

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Joined
Sep 24, 2020
Messages
105

YES, a official pic from Sakurai
That's great ! And it's from a month ago which is not that long imo, but idk if sakurai pics could mean that a fighter is coming.
I believe that we are going to get the last 2 characters announced during nintendo presentation at e3 and it's possible that reimu could be announced at the beginning just like with hero in 2019 and then, at the end, we could get a character that would make a lot of noise (please waluigi...) just like with banjo kazooie ! Imagine if at the beginning of fp10, we see a shrine... only for pocky and rocky to be announced as dlc

Unpopular opinion but I'd love to see more of touhouvania designs. It might be because I'm a big fan of castlevania and bloodstained but I've always loved the designs from these games especially marisa, alice, remilia and yukari (meiling is cool too)
Sure, it looks like dark and "edgy" when you compare them to the usual designs, but I just love it and I can't help it


Reject the PC-98 alternate costume, embrace the koumajou densetsu costume !!
 
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Doremy's smug grin

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Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
That's great ! And it's from a month ago which is not that long imo, but idk if sakurai pics could mean that a fighter is coming.
I believe that we are going to get the last 2 characters announced during nintendo presentation at e3 and it's possible that reimu could be announced at the beginning just like with hero in 2019 and then, at the end, we could get a character that would make a lot of noise (please waluigi...) just like with banjo kazooie ! Imagine if at the beginning of fp10, we see a shrine... only for pocky and rocky to be announced as dlc

Unpopular opinion but I'd love to see more of touhouvania designs. It might be because I'm a big fan of castlevania and bloodstained but I've always loved the designs from these games especially marisa, alice, remilia and yukari (meiling is cool too)
Sure, it looks like dark and "edgy" when you compare them to the usual designs, but I just love it and I can't help it


Reject the PC-98 alternate costume, embrace the koumajou densetsu costume !!
I already feel that Reimu is already going to make a lot of noise (both good and bad....) But I can see something like this happening to... quell the western rage or something like that. At least we Touhou fans will show our full, unbridled support for her like she's our collective baby daughter!
I would also like to see Touhouvania as an alternate costume as well, but I wonder if they would actually consider adding fanmade stuff to represent a character, 'cuz if that's the case, LUNA NIGHTS WITH SAKUYA, PLEASE!!

(Please don't take this the wrong way, but WOW! You're 82?! Touhou really does live on through generations! You could be my mentor! How long have you been into Touhou?)
 
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zriL

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Feb 7, 2020
Messages
239
There is one obvious way to avoid the raging smash fans if Reimu gets in. That's the one they used for Banjo and Hero, both were probably not very exciting depending on your region, but when they're both announced at the same time, people somehow tend to forget that two character slots were used. That said, Hero is certainly less divisive in the west than Reimu would be. On the other hand, I think people vastly overestimate Banjo's global reception, even in the west. In my opinion, Banjo was more a smash speculation icon than a gaming icon, he was still relatively dead as far as gaming goes. To me, Banjo definitely deserves his slot as a retro half-nintendo character, but he's not that huge. So in the end, from Nintendo's perspective, I think Hero was used to carry Banjo, even though it looked like the opposite from our side.

All things considered, picks like Crash or Master Chief (I don't believe in this one) are much bigger than Banjo and would get a much better reception, therefore they could be used to "carry" Reimu. Honestly, for example, an E3 with Crash + Reimu isn't really less hype than Banjo + Hero, it's almost guaranted that anyone in the world is familiar with at least one of them.

You could even argue that Reimu as a character is better known than Hero (or any the 4 hero), otherwise they wouldn't have been able to merge them into one character. On the other hand, Reimu has the weirdest weakness, which is you can actually be familiar with Touhou and barely know who Reimu is. In the massive mess that is Touhou fanart, music and memes, nobody is the protagonist.
 

Doremy's smug grin

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Feb 27, 2021
Messages
172
There is one obvious way to avoid the raging smash fans if Reimu gets in. That's the one they used for Banjo and Hero, both were probably not very exciting depending on your region, but when they're both announced at the same time, people somehow tend to forget that two character slots were used. That said, Hero is certainly less divisive in the west than Reimu would be. On the other hand, I think people vastly overestimate Banjo's global reception, even in the west. In my opinion, Banjo was more a smash speculation icon than a gaming icon, he was still relatively dead as far as gaming goes. To me, Banjo definitely deserves his slot as a retro half-nintendo character, but he's not that huge. So in the end, from Nintendo's perspective, I think Hero was used to carry Banjo, even though it looked like the opposite from our side.
Hey man, I'm just glad that someone else can see that Dragon Quest holds so much importance in video game history, and that by extension, the Heroes are not just wastes of a slot, whatever that means. I don't even play Dragon Quest, the most knowledge I previously had of the games were the f***ing SLIMES, and even I can acknowledge that Dragon Quest certainly has a place in any game that is meant to celebrate the greatest achievements in gaming.

You know what we REALLY need? We need someone to make one of those video essays to defend her place in Smash, like with Hero! That'll teach them! /j
 

AmphabulouSnake

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Oct 30, 2018
Messages
443
That's great ! And it's from a month ago which is not that long imo, but idk if sakurai pics could mean that a fighter is coming.
I believe that we are going to get the last 2 characters announced during nintendo presentation at e3 and it's possible that reimu could be announced at the beginning just like with hero in 2019 and then, at the end, we could get a character that would make a lot of noise (please waluigi...) just like with banjo kazooie ! Imagine if at the beginning of fp10, we see a shrine... only for pocky and rocky to be announced as dlc

Unpopular opinion but I'd love to see more of touhouvania designs. It might be because I'm a big fan of castlevania and bloodstained but I've always loved the designs from these games especially marisa, alice, remilia and yukari (meiling is cool too)
Sure, it looks like dark and "edgy" when you compare them to the usual designs, but I just love it and I can't help it


Reject the PC-98 alternate costume, embrace the koumajou densetsu costume !!
Funny you put this version of Reimu, because......
 

Rikarte

Smash Ace
Joined
Jan 4, 2019
Messages
566
Location
Germany
Funny you put this version of Reimu, because......
That sure is a weird amount of Touhou fangames landing on Switch recently...
HinaThonk.png


Okay but for real, never thought they'd announce a 11 year old game with remastered graphics + bonus content lol
Heck, I didn't even know that Frontier Aja was still around. That's really cool news!
 
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