SmashBoards Creates: PlayStation All Stars 2

[Megadoomer]

Shadow Moses Island wins for the new stage, and here are our options for a new character:

-Baldur (God of War)
-Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic)
-Carl "CJ" Johnson (Grand Theft Auto)
-Selene (Returnal)

Vote for your top three, and you can only put your own nomination in third.

1. Selene
2. CJ
3. Baldur

---

Going from our previous vote on bosses, the only option that we haven't covered (or tried to cover) is Spyro bosses, so I think we'll nominate options for that today. They can be regular bosses at the end of arcade mode or fusion bosses.

Spoiler

Ripto (Spyro) + Jormungandr (God of War) (Riptongandr?)

The World Serpent is a massive snake destined to fight Thor to the death at Ragnarok, the end of the world. Normally an antagonistic force, it's an ally to Kratos and Atreus. However, this changes when he's fused with the diminutive villain Ripto - while Spyro seems to have a rotating cast of villains (in contrast with Crash Bandicoot), Ripto's noteworthy enough to be the main threat on Spyro's side during Crash and Spyro's GBA crossover. Plus, having someone as tiny as Ripto being fused with something as massive as the World Serpent would be entertaining - I could see him going mad/giddy with his newfound power and size, leaving him open to attacks.

I could see it resembling the World Serpent, but red, with Ripto's face, an enlarged version of the gem from Ripto's staff on his back, and two stubby arms. He'd mainly attack by trying to ram or bite enemies, though occasionally, the gem on his back would glow and he'd start spitting out blasts of magic.

 

[tonygameman]

1. Selene (closest we'll have for Samus; also items in a base game)
2. Baldur
3. Shadow

 

[ivanlerma]

Selene
CJ
Shadow

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

1. CJ
2. Selene
3. Baldur

 

[GoodGrief741]

1. Baldur
2. CJ
3. Selene

 

[Megadoomer]

The results are...

Shadow: 2
Baldur: 7
CJ: 9
Selene: 11

...which means that Selene from Returnal will be added as a DLC character! Only three more to go!

Today, we're going to nominate a DLC character to be released alongside Selene.

Elizabeth (Persona 3)

A Velvet Room attendant, Elizabeth is inquisitive, impulsive, and far more dangerous than she appears to be. (Velvet Room attendants tend to be post-game superbosses) In her appearance in Persona 4 Arena, she uses Thanatos as a Persona, as well as tarot cards and the Persona Compendium (a very thick book) as weapons.

For their rivalry cutscene, Elizabeth could be under the impression that Selene is somehow responsible for time being warped and distorted. Selene's inability to explain what's happening to her is taken as her being unwilling to say anything, so Elizabeth decides that maybe beating her up will cause the time distortion to end. Selene tries to explain how that doesn't make sense, but Elizabeth's already prepared to fight. (alternatively, seeing Elizabeth's supernatural powers and unusual/unearthly appearance, Selene might think that Elizabeth is somehow behind what's been happening to her)

 

[ivanlerma]

The results are...

Shadow: 2
Baldur: 7
CJ: 9
Selene: 11

...which means that Selene from Returnal will be added as a DLC character! Only three more to go!

Today, we're going to nominate a DLC character to be released alongside Selene.

Elizabeth (Persona 3)

A Velvet Room attendant, Elizabeth is inquisitive, impulsive, and far more dangerous than she appears to be. (Velvet Room attendants tend to be post-game superbosses) In her appearance in Persona 4 Arena, she uses Thanatos as a Persona, as well as tarot cards and the Persona Compendium (a very thick book) as weapons.

For their rivalry cutscene, Elizabeth could be under the impression that Selene is somehow responsible for time being warped and distorted. Selene's inability to explain what's happening to her is taken as her being unwilling to say anything, so Elizabeth decides that maybe beating her up will cause the time distortion to end. Selene tries to explain how that doesn't make sense, but Elizabeth's already prepared to fight. (alternatively, seeing Elizabeth's supernatural powers and unusual/unearthly appearance, Selene might think that Elizabeth is somehow behind what's been happening to her)

Oh Heck No, F**k This B**ch.....I'm Kidding, I'm Kidding.

 

[Megadoomer]

Oh Heck No, F**k This B**ch.....I'm Kidding, I'm Kidding.

I'm assuming you're referring to Elizabeth (rather than being upset that Selene made it into the game) - if you don't want her in, it would be best to nominate someone else so she doesn't win by default. (I figure she'd be an interesting inclusion)

 

[GoodGrief741]

Selene is in! Now for the mystery rival I've been holding onto for months now...

...probably would have been more surprising if this wasn't the third time I'm proposing him but here goes.

Selene's rival: Sam Porter-Bridges​

Who is he?​

Sam is the protagonist of the 2019 game Death Stranding. In a world brought to its knees by an event known as the Death Stranding, which has upset the link between life and death, humanity has retreated to small, isolated cities, reliant on porters for communication and logistics. Sam is one of them; he also happens to be the son of the last President of the United States. It is through this bond that Sam is brought out of his apathetic exile and into BRIDGES, the organization aiming to reunite America, and sent out on a mission that could define the fate of a nation.

Moveset​

That's a lot of explanation required to explain who a character is, but what can he do? As you might know, Death Stranding is, at its core, a game about delivering parcels, and it has very in-depth walking mechanics (seriously). When playing DS Sam must strategically plan his trips to account for what he'll need and what he can carry. In a fighting game that could translate to a mechanic where Sam must pick all the items and weapons he wants to have at his disposal, and be penalized with reduced mobility; or go light and risk lacking ammo or crucial items he might need in specific situations. There would also be benefits to him being at full capacity, like melee attacks being stronger due to all the weight he's putting behind them.

Aside from the overarching mechanic, Sam has tons of tools and weapons at his disposal to fight the All-Stars. His default melee weapon is the Strand, a rope that he can use to pull off complex grappling maneuvers. Other distinctive weapons in Death Stranding include bola guns, to trip enemies; sticky guns, which function basically like Isabelle's fishing rod; hematic grenades and guns, weapons that draw from Sam's blood, and so would drain his health when used; and the EX grenades (I don't know how these could translate to gameplay but I'm not going to not mention the sweat, piss and sh*t grenades). As for non-weapons, Sam can use ladders and climbing anchors for traversal (and maybe even PCCs to spawn structures and vehicles, but that's probably best for supers). That's without mentioning the difference between lethal and non-lethal weapons (which might translate to different types or amounts of damage), Sam's DOOMS abilities (maybe a slow-mo dodge like when BTs are encountered? And stuff like repatriation could work as supers) and the ability of using regular cargo as melee or thrown weapons. Basically this guy has a hell of an arsenal, and all of these items would have to be loaded onto Sam's back to be used.

Why would he be added?​

I'd say there are plenty of reasons to add Sam. For one, the game was a pretty big hit, selling over 3 million copies (and that was before the PC release). Even though it was controversial, the people who liked it loved it, and it was nominated for Game of the Year at the Game Awards and won awards like Best Direction. He's also a creation of Hideo Kojima, who needs no introduction, and with Snake in Smash and Raiden having been in the last game he makes a lot of sense as the "Kojima rep" for this game (Sony owning him helps). I know many of you might not have played or liked his game, and for those people I can only offer the mental picture of Norman Reedus carrying a baby and throwing piss grenades at Kratos and Dante (to be clear this is a completely serious submission but one must appeal to the widest audience possible - and it would be hilarious).

Plus we don't have a single rep for strand-type games, that's just a glaring omission

(I promise this is the last time I bring him up)

Here's why Sam and Selene are perfect rivals: they both hail from games where death is a mechanic (Returnal has Selene dying and coming back to life as part of its roguelike loop, whereas in Death Stranding the danger isn't in Sam dying but rather in the permanent damage his death can do to the map). They're also an integral part of the story, with Selene's constant death being one of the strange phenomena that occurs in Atropos and Sam's being a result of his DOOMS syndrome that heightens his connection to the afterlife. Finally, and this is key, their outlooks on these are opposites: for Selene her virtual immortality is the only way she can hope to brave the mysterious planet she's found herself on, whereas for Sam it has caused him past tragedy and makes him feel like an asset to the government. This would be the reason for their rivalry: Selene approaches Sam asking him if he too keeps dying over and over again. Sam is standoffish and acts rude to her, but Selene approaches anyway. They get into a discussion on whether their shared ability is a blessing or a curse, which gets heated and culminates in a fight.

Other similarities between the two: they both come from sci-fi games where you traverse alien (bordering on Lovecraftian) landscapes; both wield pretty unconventional weapons despite being from third person shooters; Death Stranding is one of Sony's last new IPs for the PS4, while Returnal is one of the first for the PS5.

Admittedly Sam feels a lot less special after the one-two punch of Snake and Logan, but I think he has enough to stand out (also it's finals week and I'm too busy to write a proposal for a new character for the time being).

 

[ivanlerma]

I'm assuming you're referring to Elizabeth (rather than being upset that Selene made it into the game) - if you don't want her in, it would be best to nominate someone else so she doesn't win by default. (I figure she'd be an interesting inclusion)

I wasn't completely serious, though i personally don't like Elizabeth from her attitude alone.

Plus, i can't really nominate a good rival for her(Survivors: Nah, Shadow: Too Weird, Gex: Personality Clashing?)

 

[Megadoomer]

I wasn't completely serious, though i personally don't like Elizabeth from her attitude alone.

Plus, i can't really nominate a good rival for her(Survivors: Nah, Shadow: Too Weird, Gex: Personality Clashing?)

What about second characters from series that are already in the game? (I guess it depends on what you're familiar with, but they don't have to represent new series - it's just worked out that way so far)

 

[ivanlerma]

What about second characters from series that are already in the game? (I guess it depends on what you're familiar with, but they don't have to represent new series - it's just worked out that way so far)

Mmm, Not really. I barely know a lot of the series' in our roster and some that i do know that are here, either have been filled in(Ratchet & Clank) or would be tough to deal with(Sly Cooper).

I also haven't played enough of Little Big Planet so i can't really say anything about the guardians from Three and I played Persona 5, But the Phantom Thieves shouldn't take the spotlight here(same goes for a certain mercenary from another series).

 

[GoodGrief741]

I wasn't completely serious, though i personally don't like Elizabeth from her attitude alone.

Plus, i can't really nominate a good rival for her(Survivors: Nah, Shadow: Too Weird, Gex: Personality Clashing?)

Gex confuses Selene for Sandra Bullock in Gravity and a fight ensues because she let George Clooney die, the monster

 

[ivanlerma]

Gex confuses Selene for Sandra Bullock in Gravity and a fight ensues because she let George Clooney die, the monster

Hmm, You know what, maybe you confused thanks to that reasoning.

Then That's Settled for Today, I Nominate Gex The Gecko!

 

[Megadoomer]

Our nominations are:

-Elizabeth (Persona 3) ( Megadoomer )
-Sam Porter Bridges (Death Stranding) ( GoodGrief741 )
-Gex (Gex) ( ivanlerma )

Not sure whether to do a top three or a poll, but the top three option has worked so far. Since there are so few nominations this time around, you can put your own nomination in either second or third.

1. Sam Porter Bridges
2. Gex
3. Elizabeth

---

Today, we're going to nominate bosses from any series - I figure we can have at least one more round of boss nominations. (this might wind up being the last one; we'll see how this goes)

Zarok (MediEvil)

Surprised that you arrived at his lair so quickly, Zarok the sorcerer hurries into his back rooms, frantically trying to find a spell before entering the arena in the form of a dragon. In this state, he can breathe fire, float into the air, shoot electric balls from his hands, or cover the ground in electricity. The boss fight is fairly straightforward - when he's not covered with electricity, you can hurt him.

 

[tonygameman]

1. Sam Porter Bridges (makes lots of sense)
2. Elizabeth
3. Gex

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

1. Gex
2. Sam
3. Elizabeth

 

[ivanlerma]

We only got THREE characters nominated, it'll be difficult deciding one fighter.

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

1. Elizabeth
2. Gex
3. Sam

 

[ivanlerma]

is it okay if i just vote for Gex?

i couldn't possibly give the others a vote due to how i feel they might add to the game, personally or figuratively.

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

May I also request to remove Elizabeth from my vote? I think it's a little unfair for everyone to have at least one vote for all 3.

 

[Megadoomer]

May I also request to remove Elizabeth from my vote? I think it's a little unfair for everyone to have at least one vote for all 3.

I'm not sure what makes it unfair, but people have voted for two options instead of three in the past, so you can if you want.

is it okay if i just vote for Gex?

i couldn't possibly give the others a vote due to how i feel they might add to the game, personally or figuratively.

I'd prefer it if you didn't. I figure that making it so people can't put their characters in first makes it so they have to consider the nominations of other people instead of their own, and to encourage people to be convincing when choosing a character. Making it so people give their own nomination three points and everyone else's nominations zero defeats the purpose of that.

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

Yeah I really don’t think people should be able to vote for just their own submissions

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

I'm not sure what makes it unfair, but people have voted for two options instead of three in the past, so you can if you want.

I'd prefer it if you didn't. I figure that making it so people can't put their characters in first makes it so they have to consider the nominations of other people instead of their own, and to encourage people to be convincing when choosing a character. Making it so people give their own nomination three points and everyone else's zero defeats the purpose of that.

What about giving Ivan two votes or one vote for Gex alone instead of 3?

 

[GoodGrief741]

Bummer that there are so few submissions but I guess it's not too surprising that people aren't familiar with Selene, her game is pretty new and the PS5 is still hard to get.

1. Gex
2. Sam
3. Elizabeth

---

Since today is a slow day I'll post a boss idea

Zeikfried (Wild ARMs)

Zeikfried is the main villain of the first Wild ARMs game and a recurring character in the latter games. In case you don't know, Wild ARMs is a Western-themed JRPG series that began on the PS1 and spawned 6 entries, the last one in 2006. Zeikfried is the leader of the main opposing faction, the Metal Demons, who seeks to revive their previous leader known as Mother.

Zeikfried, as you can see, is a big metallic ****** with a giant sword. As a boss he'd be a bit unorthodox in that he isn't a giant beast in the center of the screen. He'd be about 1.75 times the height of Pyramid Head (I think he's our tallest fighter), move around slowly and take little knockback.

He has four attacks in this form: a vertical slash with his sword (does medium damage but is hard to telegraph), a spin attack (to cover his rear), Negative Rainbow (summons a beam of inverted rainbow that starts in the center of the stage and swipes to either side - major damage but little knockback) and Zeik Impulse (jumps to one side of the stage and throws his sword - major damage and knockback unless it hits with the tip and the player's on the ground, in which it impales them and enables Zeikfried for a follow-up).

After half his HP is gone he gets possessed by Mother and turns into Motherfried, who looks like this:

After that the fight becomes more like a traditional boss fight, with Motherfried floating high and moving from side to side. Motherfried's attacks are Dark Ray (a purple ball of energy that quickly darts towards the player - doesn't do much damage but it's hard to dodge), Sayfert's Galaxy (a version of Negative Rainbow that trades its rainbow pattern for space - it does more damage and sweeps the entire stage), Inferno (a close range fire breath attack, mainly to repel oncoming attackers), Als Magna (small columns of fire start to appear on the ground in a manner similar to Dracula's boss fight), Phatima's Miracle (a giant ball of glowing green light that slowly homes towards the player - think PK Flash but larger - it does medium damage but stuns) and Fatal Blow (a line shows up in the foreground that cuts across the screen, it turns to try to cover the fighter - after a while Motherfried "cuts" the screen, which instakills the player if caught in its wake; it's very telegraphed so there's no excuse).

I realize now that the whole possession thing would've been a great chance to come up with a Fusion boss. Ah well.

 

[ivanlerma]

I'm not sure what makes it unfair, but people have voted for two options instead of three in the past, so you can if you want.

I'd prefer it if you didn't. I figure that making it so people can't put their characters in first makes it so they have to consider the nominations of other people instead of their own, and to encourage people to be convincing when choosing a character. Making it so people give their own nomination three points and everyone else's nominations zero defeats the purpose of that.

i guess you're right.

 

[Megadoomer]

Here are the results:

Elizabeth: 8
Gex: 11
Sam Porter Bridges: 11

I'll have a separate poll here to break the tie: https://www.strawpoll.me/45427144 (I could include an option for both, but with so few nominations this time around and a limited amount of space, I'm not sure if I should)

Not sure if I should have a poll for the two boss nominations or include them both. (compared to characters, there's usually not a ton of interest in bosses) In the meantime, we'll have a nomination period for the next DLC stage.

PlayStation Labo (Astro's Playroom/Ratchet and Clank)

The stage starts out in the lobby, with various PlayStation consoles and add-ons scattered around and serving as platforms. Various robots can be seen in the background, resting on the consoles or playing with various toys and pieces of equipment.

Suddenly, a portal from the Dimensionator appears in the air, breaking the calm atmosphere. While this is technically a Ratchet and Clank crossover (some Ratchet and Clank characters/ships/enemies fly or fall through the portal, including Chairman Drek in his robot from the first game), the dimensions in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart include Sly Cooper, Uncharted, Knack, Jak and Daxter, Sunset Overdrive, and various other PlayStation series, so pretty much anything is fair game.

This stage serves as a tribute to PlayStation's history, both its consoles and its games, and while this might work better as a final DLC stage, I wanted to try nominating it now.

 

[ivanlerma]

I'd like to nominate Time Station from the original.

 

[cashregister9]

Temen-ni-gru (Devil May Cry x Tekken)

this is a Tower from Devil May Cry, the stage would be comparable to Kalos Pokemon league in it's layout only much larger and the appearance would be taken from the top of the tower (See Picture). In the background you can see the Devil May Cry Van with Nero, Lucia, V and Nico standing around it battle the many Demons like Sin Scissors and Empusa in the background.

After a While Devil Jin and Devil Kazuya will appear

They will duke it out and their battle causes a lot of collateral damage to the background and even a bit into the foreground, the scene ends when either of them win and the victor drops the loser off the roof, The victor then leaves.

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

I noticed we didn’t really have a resident evil stage so…

DLC Stage: Salazar Castle (Resident Evil 4/Dino Crisis)

You play on the roof of the castle and there are a bunch of zombies in the background walking around. Some will appear in the foreground and will become a stage hazard and sometimes far off zombies will catapult flaming rocks into the stage. Soon enough the stage will be overrun by the velociraptors from Dino Crisis

The dinosaurs will battle with the zombies and then they will start to wildly run around in the foreground, acting as another stage hazard. Eventually though the velociraptors will walk away from the screen, the zombies will come back and the cycle will start again.

 

[GoodGrief741]

My proposal is that Stowaways comes back because I just noticed we didn't bring it back, and it's one of my favorite stages in the original game.

We could bring it back as-is, but it would be weird to keep the BioShock stuff when it doesn't have a fighter. So, in order to give a franchise that does have a fighter its own stage, I propose that instead Stowaways mashes up with Knack.

It would be a simple aesthetic change. Instead of Vox Populi blimps it would be Viktor's airship (pictured below) showing up, and instead of Birdsong... a goblin? Sure, let's go with that.

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

Hold up, we didn't add Big Daddy?

Well, more "next character submission period" than "today" but still.

 

[Megadoomer]

Hold up, we didn't add Big Daddy?

Well, more "next character submission period" than "today" but still.

Nope, we didn't - we did add Elizabeth from BioShock as an assist, though, so there is some BioShock content in the game.

Sam Porter Bridges (not sure if I need to type out his full name or if I can just go with "Sam") won the tie-breaker poll, so he'll be our sixth DLC character!

For the nominated stages, we got:

-PlayStation Labo (Astro's Playroom/Ratchet and Clank) ( Megadoomer )
-Time Station (Ape Escape/Resistance) ( ivanlerma )
-Temen-Ni-Gru (Devil May Cry/Tekken) ( cashregister9 )
-Salazar Castle (Resident Evil 4/Dino Crisis) ( Champion of Hyrule )
-Stowaways (Uncharted/Knack) ( GoodGrief741 )

Since there's more stages nominated than normal (usually, it's been two, maybe three), we'll do ranked voting today - pick your top three, and you can put your own nomination in second or third since we'll only be including one of these stages with this DLC pack.

1. Temen-Ni-Gru
2. Salazar Castle
3. Stowaways

---

I think we'll jump straight to the next character nomination section.

Vergil (Devil May Cry)

Vergil is Dante's twin brother, though unlike Dante, he cares little for his humanity, seeking only power. Despite being twins, they fight and act in completely different ways - Vergil is quick, methodical, and doesn't say much, while Dante is flashy, showy, and rarely ever stops talking or mocking his opponents.

Vergil fights mainly using Yamato, a sword which he inherited from his father, which he uses in a "quick draw" style. He also uses Summoned Swords (blue energy swords) for ranged attacks, Balrog (boots and gauntlets) for closer-range melee attacks, and much like Dante, he can transform into a "Devil Trigger" state to increase his speed, damage, and regeneration.

Fighting against Vergil is always a highlight in Devil May Cry games, as it's like fighting a player character. If Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is any indication, it's easy enough to transfer his moveset from Devil May Cry into a 2D fighting game:

 

[Wario Wario Wario]

1. Labo
2. Stowaways
3. Time Station

Anyway, I'll submit Big Daddy as a veteran. I may resubmit CJ and Gex at some point.

 

[volbound1700]

I am not a big enough Sony fan to write intelligently in this thread but man you guys have done your homework, especially MegaDoomer.

I will say that I owned a PS3 and played PSABR and liked it a lot. I wish they would make a second title. In addition to many of your picks, I want some picks that they tried to get for the game but couldn't in it:

1. Lora Croft
2. Snake
3. Crash Bandicoot

With Smash Ultimate lacking the big Western IP additions that a lot of fans wanted, I think the time would be ripe for another PSABR.

Rayman would also be a big grab. I don't think Crash or Rayman will make it into Smash so Sony has a great chance to throw a bone to their fanbases.

 

[Megadoomer]

I am not a big enough Sony fan to write intelligently in this thread but man you guys have done your homework, especially MegaDoomer.

I will say that I owned a PS3 and played PSABR and liked it a lot. I wish they would make a second title. In addition to many of your picks, I want some picks that they tried to get for the game but couldn't in it:

1. Lora Croft
2. Snake
3. Crash Bandicoot

With Smash Ultimate lacking the big Western IP additions that a lot of fans wanted, I think the time would be ripe for another PSABR.

Rayman would also be a big grab. I don't think Crash or Rayman will make it into Smash so Sony has a great chance to throw a bone to their fanbases.

A lot of those are in this roster already:

Snake's DLC (I haven't made up an image for the DLC roster yet), so the only one you mentioned who's missing is Rayman. You can nominate him if you want; we're doing character nominations today for one of the last two DLC characters.

 

[volbound1700]

A lot of those are in this roster already:

Snake's DLC (I haven't made up an image for the DLC roster yet), so the only one you mentioned who's missing is Rayman. You can nominate him if you want; we're doing character nominations today for one of the last two DLC characters.

Yeah, might as well nominate him. I say do it. Great roster.

Lora and Snake were both supposed to be in first game and didn't get in due to the parent companies being in the process of rebranding both characters. Konami gave Raiden as a consolation price.

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

1. Temen Ni Gru
2. Salazar Castle
3. Playstation Labo

 

[tonygameman]

1. PlayStation Labo
2. Stowaways
3. Temen-ni-gru

 

[ivanlerma]

1. Temen-ni-gru
2. Salazar Castle
3. Time Station