[Source Gaming] Sakurai on Corrin, Bayonetta and Value

Source Gaming has provided another translation from Sakurai's bi-weekly Famitsu Column, Think about the Video Games. In this column, Sakurai briefly mentions the last new characters for Smash for Wii U/3DS, Bayonetta and Corrin.

I’ve said this before, but excluding Lucas and Roy, who are returning veterans, every DLC character has unique mechanics and playstyles.

Afterwards, Sakurai discusses how a variety of people can play the game for a long time.

What that means is that the game can wear you out pretty quickly every time you play. If you turn on items and visit a bunch of different stages while playing with a group, things will unfold differently every time, so there aren’t a lot of problems. However, there are a lot of people who enjoy serious matches, and in order to win, they’ll narrow down the number of fighters that can be used, and that diminishes some of the breadth of the game.

Sakurai states that adding characters is what creates new and interesting depth in the game, despite the formula remaining largely unchanged throughout Smash's history.

As a result, the mindset I had when developing this game was that the game’s “rules” are set in stone, but the fighters themselves are very flexible and allow for new, exciting elements. The fighters themselves become the sources of new excitement. That’s why the new fighters can do things the others cannot, to bring to life a number of battles that did not previously exist.

Sakurai did confirm that development for Smash for Wii U/3DS was finished.

For the full column, head over to Source Gaming.

...and check out their Patreon too! The Famitsu Columns do cost money, and if you want to support these translations, then please consider donating.

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Sounds good on paper
Still pretty broken in practice.

Sakurai's FFA playtesting in a nutshell...

anyways, that basically means if your opponent isn't using it, use as many grab combos as you need to to take them out before they can read you

 

People don't tend to enjoy RNG

competitive pokemon scene would like a word with that, game and watch's judgement special would also like a word with that...

 

competitive pokemon scene would like a word with that, game and watch's judgement special would also like a word with that...

Luigi misfire?

 

They're still not as good as their Brawl/Melee counterparts.

Ok, but it's not worth saying "R.I.P." over.

 

-mopes and feels its all ogre now over marths-

better start taking up street fighter

Ok, but it's not worth saying "R.I.P." over.

yup

 

Oh man that means Corrins counter will forever be this ridiculous.

 

Of course not. They have yet to fix Witch Time! It's broken and it needs a nerf.



And Mewtwo is...?

A beautiful, lovable exception. Shhh...

 

I was going to comment at first to complain about things that still needed fixing. But then I realized when you have a game that gets actively balanced that nothing is ever balanced enough. It's time to stop relying on the game and start relying on our skill.

 

competitive pokemon scene would like a word with that, game and watch's judgement special would also like a word with that...

Competitive pokemon scene doesn't actually like RNG. It can cost you a match much more than it can help you.
Also Game and Watch's judgement and Luigi's missile are the same thing. The RNG can easily cost you the match.

As someone who isn't very lucky with RNG, I utterly detest randomness in games unless it isn't major.

 

Luigi Buff When

 

I don't know what to make of Sakurai any longer.

My best guess is that HE is the one who comes up with ideas for characters, for movesets, etc., but that the folks at Namco are the ones who actually balance everything.

I also can't help but feel that Namco must be the ones who have been paying attention to the competitive scene of SSB4. I say this because when Sakurai said that he felt it was a waste that people in tournaments didn't use fsmashes, it was like someone who claims to be a history major saying that the War of 1812 happened in 1942.

If he REALLY doesn't understand why players don't use fsmashes (because they're horribly unsafe, require a read, lose to shield, and you're better off using safer options), then I'm going to go ahead and guess that every bit of attention paid to the competitive scene of SSB4 was from Namco members and not Sakurai.

So I'm happy that he's done the work he has done on the overall feel and design of the game, but I would prefer that balance was handed fully over to the Namco team (and if they release one more patch after Sakurai goes on vacation, maybe that's what we'll get...).

 

competitive pokemon scene would like a word with that, game and watch's judgement special would also like a word with that...

I never understood the point of a competitive Pokemon scene. The card game I can understand, but what about the games? Is it really much deeper than just acquiring 6 lvl. 100 godly Pokemon?

 

I never understood the point of a competitive Pokemon scene. The card game I can understand, but what about the games? Is it really much deeper than just acquiring 6 lvl. 100 godly Pokemon?

Trust me, my friend, it is much, MUCH deeper than that. Training a competitively viable Pokémon takes hours of dedication, and much of the factors this involves could take even days to get right (albeit they make it simpler every generation, but still). I'm talking about natures, abilities, Individual Values, stats, etc. Not all Pokémon are viable either. You have to come up with strategies where each Pokémon provides something other party members can benefit from. Combining each Pokémon's strengths with the right items (that can sometimes be very time-consuming to get) is also a somewhat challenging task. Conveying battle strategies that are hard to counter is something that takes work; using the right moves at the right times and whatnot. Also, just like in Smash, reading your opponent's next move could also make the difference between victory and defeat. The Pokémon metagame is much more complex than people think!

 

Also Game and Watch's judgement and Luigi's missile are the same thing. The RNG can easily cost you the match.

I'm glad tripping is gone for sure, but I don't think these two things or other RNG moves in the game are problematic, really (like villager's turnips).

Can you count on a misfire? No, but you can still plan for the chance that one may happen, same as GW's judgement.

 

Trust me, my friend, it is much, MUCH deeper than that. Training a competitively viable Pokémon takes hours of dedication, and much of the factors this involves could take even days to get right (albeit they make it simpler every generation, but still). I'm talking about natures, abilities, Individual Values, stats, etc. Not all Pokémon are viable either. You have to come up with strategies where each Pokémon provides something other party members can benefit from. Combining each Pokémon's strengths with the right items (that can sometimes be very time-consuming to get) is also a somewhat challenging task. Conveying battle strategies that are hard to counter is something that takes work; using the right moves at the right times and whatnot. Also, just like in Smash, reading your opponent's next move could also make the difference between victory and defeat. The Pokémon metagame is much more complex than people think!

Thanks.

I believe it, but is it exciting to watch?

 

I'm glad tripping is gone for sure, but I don't think these two things or other RNG moves in the game are problematic, really (like villager's turnips).

Can you count on a misfire? No, but you can still plan for the chance that one may happen, same as GW's judgement.

The focus point was the RNG aspect. Some people enjoy it, but I, as a person with terrible luck in games, find them really bothersome.

 

Sakurai's FFA playtesting in a nutshell...

anyways, that basically means if your opponent isn't using it, use as many grab combos as you need to to take them out before they can read you

Too bad Witch Time has grab invincible frames.
WHYYYYYY

 

I wish he would stop saying things like this. Me and all my friends who played Smash 64, Melee, and Brawl back in the day knew nothing about a competitive scene. Yet we got quickly bored of items and stages where you spend more time fighting the stage than fighting the other players. People will play the game how they want. Quit making jabs at them. If people only played games the way they were designed to be played, the whole game industry would be a lot more boring.

And I really don't think anyone's taking his words out of context. He continues with this in the full interview.

I really wish people like you would start reading things the way they are written instead of twisting them into unintended meanings. I read the whole article and there is no alleged jab at the competitive scene at all, he simply is stating his opinion regarding the game's different playstyles. Grow up and stop getting offended by what Sakurai [doesn't] say.

 

I never understood the point of a competitive Pokemon scene. The card game I can understand, but what about the games? Is it really much deeper than just acquiring 6 lvl. 100 godly Pokemon?

basically imagine an expanded, various versions of G&W down Bs and knowing of stats and calculation rates in the RNG to push forward, players on that scene know how the RNG works and what is calculated to get a character with stats that stand a change in a matchup of another set of stats, then on top of that, the second and so on stats such as the moves, the move's power, and the move's type in relation to what the type of the opponent's character's is (basically, rock paper scisors on steroids but not)

 

Thanks.

I believe it, but is it exciting to watch?

That depends on each person. To me, battling is extremely fun and exciting, but watching... Not so much. Like golf, I suppose. But I'm sure some people do find watching others having Pokémon battles exciting!

 

So... uh... no Wolf then? #freewolf

 

Too bad Witch Time has grab invincible frames.
WHYYYYYY

your grab would have to be a tether to be punished straight out of an attempted Witch Time... besides, even with those frames, that still means a wasted attempt.

 

This game just got 10,000 times more boring.

I think it's time for me to drop this game.

If you're a character loyalist who solo mains any of clearly unviable characters then I suggest you do the same.

This game had so much potential.

Custom moves, online, and etc. What a shame that all of it turned out to be disappointing bar the roster.

 

lolNo.

SmashDev being over means overall not doing anything else with it ever.
They're even going for the extended vacation.
You guys better suck it up, because there's no patch coming soon. And there never will be.

That sounds like you are being very dark.

 

That sounds like you are being very dark.

Reality in general is dark.

 

Sounds good to me, everyone can have fun and advance the metagame in Smash 4 while Sakurai takes a long-needed break.

He probably still isn't totally OK with how we do things.

 

This game just got 10,000 times more boring.

I think it's time for me to drop this game.

If you're a character loyalist who solo mains any of clearly unviable characters then I suggest you do the same.

This game had so much potential.

Custom moves, online, and etc. What a shame that all of it turned out to be disappointing bar the roster.

Don't let the door hit you on your butt on the way out. We are gonna miss you (not).
Geez, patches have made people like you bratty and spoiled, how did you manage to go through three other Smash games where updates didn't exist and your main would remain "unviable" for the rest of the game's life cycle? Did you drop previous installments as well the second your character was considered bad? Someone needs to get over himself.

 

This game just got 10,000 times more boring.

I think it's time for me to drop this game.

If you're a character loyalist who solo mains any of clearly unviable characters then I suggest you do the same.

This game had so much potential.

Custom moves, online, and etc. What a shame that all of it turned out to be disappointing bar the roster.

welp, time to move over to the original street fighter

 

Not gonna lie, after reading this I have a new found appreciation for all of the DLC characters.