Hate to point out the obvious, but snake IS a tad out of place in Melee. He hasn't had a Nintendo game in years, and they had to deny him his guns, ciggies, and knife. However, Sakurai promised that he would get plenty of explosives.
Let's review the facts:
Fact #1: This is the update. (minus images. I'm a tad lazy right now.)
"It’s not just Snake’s special moves that use ordnance—so do his Smash attacks. Can that be?
He’s shooting something up in the air!
He’s planting something!
<Side Special Move: Remote Missile>
This is called a Nikita. It’s a remote-controlled missile.
Missile fired!
You can control the missile yourself! But since Snake is so focused on controlling the missile, he’s completely defenseless while he does so.
If things get dangerous, press the shield button to stop controlling the missile.
<Standard Special Move: Hand Grenade>
Try walking around with the pin out.
Press your special-move button to pull out the pin. The grenade will explode after a few seconds, so be aware of the time and press the special-move button again to toss the grenade.
Strong throw!
Mid throw!
Soft throw!
There are three ways to throw the grenade.
Tilt the Control Stick forward, not at all, or backward.
In some cases, grenades you drop may get returned to sender.
And his recovery special move is...
<Up Special Move: Cypher>
Oh! Watch out! In times like this...
Shoosh-shoosh-shoosh-shoosh-shoosh!
Use his flying reconnaissance camera, the Cypher, to recover. Snake can’t fly, but he’ll do what he must.
He’ll use anything in the battlefield. That’s the crux of survival."
If you look closely, you'll see that the subject is divided into two distinct sections via verbal cues. For the reader's convenience, I will separate them using a line.
"It’s not just Snake’s special moves that use ordnance—so do his Smash attacks. Can that be?
He’s shooting something up in the air!
He’s planting something!
___________________________________________________________
<Side Special Move: Remote Missile>
This is called a Nikita. It’s a remote-controlled missile.
Missile fired!
You can control the missile yourself! But since Snake is so focused on controlling the missile, he’s completely defenseless while he does so.
If things get dangerous, press the shield button to stop controlling the missile.
<Standard Special Move: Hand Grenade>
Try walking around with the pin out.
Press your special-move button to pull out the pin. The grenade will explode after a few seconds, so be aware of the time and press the special-move button again to toss the grenade.
Strong throw!
Mid throw!
Soft throw!
There are three ways to throw the grenade.
Tilt the Control Stick forward, not at all, or backward.
In some cases, grenades you drop may get returned to sender.
And his recovery special move is...
<Up Special Move: Cypher>
Oh! Watch out! In times like this...
Shoosh-shoosh-shoosh-shoosh-shoosh!
Use his flying reconnaissance camera, the Cypher, to recover. Snake can’t fly, but he’ll do what he must.
He’ll use anything in the battlefield. That’s the crux of survival."
Note how the rest of the update is unaffected by the dissasociation of the upper part of the text. This shows that the two are not connected via verbal cues. In fact, if I delete the 'special moves section' all together, the rest of the post will still make perfect sense (that sense being 'Snake's smash attacks also use ordnance, here are some examples.')
Also, if I delete the 'smash attack section', the rest of the post still makes perfect sense (that sense being 'I'm explaining three of Snake's special moves.') This shows that the two are not linked by verbal cues and do not refer to each other, which proves that they are not connected in any way. The text "It’s not just Snake’s special moves that use ordnance—so do his Smash attacks. Can that be?" Specifically refer to the two following examples, while each special move section (<Side Special Move: Remote Missile>, <Standard Special Move: Hand Grenade>, <Up Special Move: Cypher>) each refer to the text specifically in their own subsections.
Also, if you think planting the mine would be an odd move for a V Smash, I'd like to point out his up Smash, which has him firing a missle straight into the air. Never in all of SSB has there been a smash attack that involves shooting an explosive projectile into the air. I personally think that's a lot stranger than burying a land mine.
Sakurai mentioned that his smash attacks are also explosive, so I think him shooting that rocket launcher into the ground may be his > Smash, as it is explosive and was seen briefly charging in the trailer, something that only Smash attacks can do. If that's true, Snake's Smash attacks will be among the most original in the game, granting him a thoroughly unique play style.
I wonder if the detonator seen in that clip was his down B? That would allow him to plant multiple mines, then set them off even in midair. Talk about your crazy combos! It would also be more in-keeping with his character and games, as that's how the mines worked in MGS: Slap a bunch of them everywhere, then start blowing them up one by one. 'Course, it would do you no good if you don't have any mines planted or the opponent can keep track of them all.
