Stage Discussion

[PLATINUM7]

Ah, excellent. I look forward to stealing some of your suggestions for my own. >8D



I think Mario and Pokemon are the only franchises big enough to get 3 stages per system. I've only put two per system for now, but I can easily see this being higher in the actual game.

By Mario Kart Zero Gravity, are you referring to MK8, and the whole F-Zero-esque hover mode? An MK8 stage could be cool - however, we already have an MK7 stage on the 3DS (Rainbow Road).

And after a quick check, I see the Rogueport is from Paper Mario. I played the first one (didn't beat it), and haven't tried TYD. A Paper Mario stage could be neat, especially as a counterpoint to Galaxy.

I also wonder if we might get a 3D World stage - or a stage from the more recent Mario platformers. Then again, the Galaxy games are recent platformers in themselves.



I added Cerulean Cave because I think Mewtwo is very likely. And given what his unique status might be (Veteran and pseudo-Newcomer), a stage based on him is most befitting as a homecoming.

I'm not familiar with PC, so I'll stick with Cerulean Cave.



I remember Area 6. 8D

I will look into these picks.



I chose Elysia for the contrast it provided with Pyrosphere. Plus, it has pretty music.

I intend on remaking the Elysia icon to show off the skies better. In fact, the whole Dragon Roost-Pyrosphere-Elysia trio look kind of bland with all that brown. I may also change the Dragon Roost icon, but that remains to be seen.



I'll go ahead and use these.




For my roster, I decided to only include stages that pertain to existing franchises (barring the Console/Handheld stages). I wouldn't be surprised if we got stages from franchises that don't have playable characters (much as it was in Brawl).

For Ice Climbers, I was thinking an NES-stage for the 3DS. But the NES was a console, so there's that. I'll either have an NES stage, or a generic glacier stage or something.

I will look into the underlined for my own roster.



You know, I did have Frigate at first, but I figured that I already added a Prime stage (Elysia), so I switched to Norfair. But having two fire-based Metroid stages would be redundant. I'll therefore switch back to Frigate.



These all sound good. I was considering Pac-Man World for the Wii U and Pac-Maze for the 3DS, so I'll probably do that.

As for MGS, I picked Outer Haven from Metal Gear Solid 4. It's the final level in the game, and would be suitably epic.



Here's my current 3DS stage roster (again, a work in progress):

I've decided to have Pokemon share the "stadium/arena" level, and assigned Lumiose City from X&Y (Wii Fit and Punch-Out have shared stages also). You also have Eryth Sea for Xenoblade, Flatzone, Gyromite (for ROB), Mother Base (from MGS Peace Walker), and the first level from Pac-Man arcade (here titled Pac-Maze).

The Classic Stages remain the same, since the 3DS can no doubt handle downgraded versions of them. I think the Classic Stages should remain identical across both systems, so that both can have the same experience.

And I intend on adding the highlighted suggestions in your list (I was already considering those Metroid stages).




Your roster looks pretty good. Thanks for giving me ideas for the franchises I'm less familiar with. 8D

I will post my updated Wii U & 3DS rosters once I've made the additions. If anyone else has suggestions, by all means suggest.

While that looks nice and balanced, if SSB4 is anything like the past games, the Mario universe will have more stages than any other universe. Especially if it's like Brawl where it had 6 Mario stages.

 

[Sehnsucht]

While that looks nice and balanced, if SSB4 is anything like the past games, the Mario universe will have more stages than any other universe. Especially if it's like Brawl where it had 6 Mario stages.

I noted as much in my post. On the updated rosters that I'm working on, I've bumped up the Mario stage total to six (three per system). I currently have the following thus far (confirmed stages in bold):

-Gateway Galaxy
-New Super Mario Bros. stage
-Flipside (Super Paper Mario)

-Super Mario 3D Land
-Rainbow Road
-Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (I have Haunted Towers at the moment, but having not played the game myself, I am open to more suitable suggestions)

Looking at it now, it seems I have struck a thematic balance between systems as well - we have two Mario platformers (NSMB and 3D Land), two space-themed stages (Galaxy and Rainbow Road), and two stages from Mario spin-offs (Paper Mario and Luigi's Mansion). XD

I don't think that each system will get six Mario stages, if that's what you mean (six Wii U and six 3DS, for twelve total). I expect that there will be a balance both for series representation on a system, and between them. This has informed the shape of my rosters.

So for the time being, I have Mario with three stages per system (six total), DK/Zelda/Metroid/Kirby/Pokemon with two stages per system (four total), and the rest with one stage per system (two total). I find this to be a balanced distribution befitting the significance of these series.

Anyway, I've more or less finished my revised Wii U stage roster; I still have 10 icons to make for the 3DS version. Once both are finished, I'll post them here.

 

[StupendousMike]

While that looks nice and balanced, if SSB4 is anything like the past games, the Mario universe will have more stages than any other universe. Especially if it's like Brawl where it had 6 Mario stages.

Are we counting Mushroomy Kingdom as two stages? Because then in would be seven, counting the returning Rainbow Cruise. But really it's eight, because even though Smash counts Melee's "Yoshi's Island" as a Yoshi stage, it's from Super Mario World, which is a genuine Mario game.

 

[PLATINUM7]

Are we counting Mushroomy Kingdom as two stages? Because then in would be seven, counting the returning Rainbow Cruise. But really it's eight, because even though Smash counts Melee's "Yoshi's Island" as a Yoshi stage, it's from Super Mario World, which is a genuine Mario game.

I counted Mushroomy Kingdom as one stage and included Rainbow Ride. I do think Yoshi's Island is a Mario stage but I went with what Sakurai/Smash considers it to be.

 

[StupendousMike]

Fair enough. I guess my only point was that there were a crap-ton of Mario stages in Brawl, which is fair since there's like 200 Mario games, and we should expect the same from Smash 4.

 

[fogbadge]

id love to see frost fruits from donkey kong tropical freeze

just imagine fighting stop ice lollies (or popsicles i believe the're called in the us)

 

[MasterofMonster]

Stage Ideas.

Mewtwo's home stage: Cerulean Cave. A big, slightly rounded rock/Island in the middle of a lake. The Cave is pretty big, and one of the darker stages. At times, you will see the Three Legendary Birds fly in the background, as well as Mew.

Another idea, not for a specific stage, but I want Underwater Battles. It would work like normal battles, but with some tweaks. Everyone has a 'Kirby-like' Float Jump after their normal jumps. The more %, the faster you will sink.

 

[Vintage Creep]

So the last announced stage beside the 3DS version of the Ring is Palutena's Temple right? It's been more than a month if I'm not mistaken...
I want the Donkey Kong Country stage. And a StarFox stage.

 

[MasterofMonster]

So the last announced stage beside the 3DS version of the Ring is Palutena's Temple right? It's been more than a month if I'm not mistaken...
I want the Donkey Kong Country stage. And a StarFox stage.

Yeah, we have no StarFox, DK, Pokémon, or Kirby stage yet. Which is kinda weird, seeing as how many Mario Stages we have, and such.

 

[aldelaro5]

Yeah, we have no StarFox, DK, Pokémon, or Kirby stage yet. Which is kinda weird, seeing as how many Mario Stages we have, and such.

It shows that tthere's alot info that is hidden to us.

 

[DaDavid]

Makes me wonder if we'll ever see a StarFox, DK, Pokemon, Kirby, stage before release, since I'm not sure when would be a good time to show them. Then again we got the KI stage pretty randomly so who knows?

 

[Reila]

I want to see a WarioWare stage. Or a Mega Man stage for the 3DS version.

 

[SmashShadow]

I just want a Yoshi stage based on then underground portions of the game complete with spores, mushroom platforms, waterfalls and lantern ghost in the background. It would be so scenic...especially with this playing in the background.

 

[Starphoenix]

Perhaps we can liven this place up a bit.

So it's finally here, performing for you, if you know the stage, you can join in too. Coming straight from Tropical Freeze it is the Bright Savanna region! The inspiration of the level is an amalgamation of the many themes found inside the world -- none of which I'll go too in depth about since there are probably a few people who've yet to purchase and or download the game. Shame on you bunch, but for your lots' sake I'll try to keep spoilers to a minimum.

The stage is split up into three parts: a main totem platform in the middle carved in the shape of an animal head like the ones seen in Grassland Groove, two land masses on both sides which have platforms in the form of baobab trees with branches that act as extra platforms. The main platform bobs up and down at times, occasionally tilting to the spirit of wild nature. Underneath the totem lies bunches of bramble that, if a player falls into, will yield damage and cause the players to fly back into the air. Think of the spike blocks in stage builder, except not as powerful. Oh, and the stage is not able to be walked off.

In the background, the vivid nature of the African savanna can be seen. Animals, large bouncing animal puppets, Snowmad flunkies, distant islands representing the various worlds in Tropical Freeze, and good ol' fashioned bananas. Lucky players who happen to load the innocuous alternate stage are treated to a nasty thunderstorm which will brew and wreak havoc for the players. A tornado will appear in the background, causing wind to swirl in the stage in an attempt to push players into the bramble, or off the stage. Bolts of lightning will strike one of the two landmasses, sparking a small wildfire which will burn down one of the baobab trees. Touching the fire will yield small damage and knock back, but will also leave a residual burning effect that will sap away some strength. Don't try to be a hero. And watch out for debris.

Stage Name: Bright Savanna
Stage Icon: DK logo

Stage Example:

-Tracks-
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Grassland Groove
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - DK Island Swing
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Scorch N' Torch
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Twilight Terror
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Busted Bayou
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Big Top Bop
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Alpine Incline
Donkey Kong Country Returns - Sunset Shore
Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast - DK Jungle Theme 1 (Brawl)
Diddy Kong Racing - Darkmoon Caverns ~ Credits

Choosing music was a very tough decision, so I tried to stick with things that fit with the theme of the stage and offered the best variety.

 

[DaDavid]

Not totally on board with the fire thingy, but everything sounds completely fantastic.

 

[MasterofMonster]

So far, my Top Three Stages on each version is

1: Super Mario Galaxy
2: Pilotwings
3: Wii-Fit Training Room

1: Mario Kart Rainbow Road
2: Gerudo Valley
3: Tortimer Island

I Think the Wii-U stages so far are much better in most ways. But I am really happy overall so far. Still need a Bowser's Castle/Bowser World stage.

 

[DaDavid]

So far, my Top Three Stages on each version is

1: Super Mario Galaxy
2: Pilotwings
3: Wii-Fit Training Room

1: Mario Kart Rainbow Road
2: Gerudo Valley
3: Tortimer Island

I Think the Wii-U stages so far are much better in most ways. But I am really happy overall so far. Still need a Bowser's Castle/Bowser World stage.

My only real reason for preferring the Wii U so far is the layouts. I'm not a fan of walk-offs, but 3DS has some really nice locations, like Rainbow Road, Tortimer Island and that Spirit Tracks stage.

In general it kinda seems like 3DS version = actually being in those worlds and fighting in the locations while Wii U = Fighting on stages based on certain worlds.

 

[Dairz]

3: Wii-Fit Training Room

Really? But Wily's Castle has Yellow Devil, and the moving platforms...

 

[MasterofMonster]

@ DaDavid
I guess it is easier to just take areas from 3DS games to edit/use in that Smash version. That's the only reason I can Think of.

@ Dairz
I love that one, too. It is just Number 4 in this list.
Well, it's hard to say, I like all stages so far, so making fitting lists isn't easy.

 

[Dairz]

@ Dairz
I love that one, too. It is just Number 4 in this list.
Well, it's hard to say, I like all stages so far, so making fitting lists isn't easy.

Yeah, I know. There hasn't been a stage shown that I didn't want to play on.

 

[MasterofMonster]

Yeah, I know. There hasn't been a stage shown that I didn't want to play on.

Agreed. ^^ Well, the Wii-U Animal Crossing stage is very similar to Brawl's one, so it isn't very exciting. But it's still a nice stage.

Really can't wait to try out those Galaxy gravity and Airplane riding levels, haha.

 

[Dr. Krumm]

I want Poke Floats to come back! I've always missed that stage in Brawl.

 

[BlitznBurst]

What kind of obstacles would a Bowser's Castle stage have? If they wanted to be tame they could just have a platform sitting in lava, but if they wanted to go crazy they could have anything from spinning fire chains to chain chomps to thwomps to lava fountains to anything else they can think up. I can imagine people in competitive circles hating the stage, but it would be an absolute blast to play in casual games.

Or maybe it would be the 75M of the game and be unanimously hated by the fanbase. Who's to say

 

[MasterofMonster]

What kind of obstacles would a Bowser's Castle stage have? If they wanted to be tame they could just have a platform sitting in lava, but if they wanted to go crazy they could have anything from spinning fire chains to chain chomps to thwomps to lava fountains to anything else they can think up. I can imagine people in competitive circles hating the stage, but it would be an absolute blast to play in casual games.

Or maybe it would be the 75M of the game and be unanimously hated by the fanbase. Who's to say

Well, I can Think of loads of different types of Bowser's Castle stages. So let me give some examples. ^^

1: would be a level kinda like the Mushroomy Kingdom level, in that it slowly travels to the right (only, playable). A Classic-looking Bowser's Castle, with simple lava pits, Fire Bars, and such. But after all that, it comes to a stop right where you usually battles Bowser, on the bridge. You keep fighting there, and then, after a certain amount of time, the Axe/Button appears, and hitting it will cause the bridge to collaps. Around the same time the Axe/Button appears, the stage starts moving again, starting allover again.

2: Another one would be a simple castle-themed platform, inside Bowser's Castle. There's lava at the bottom, but too far down to touch it, you'd just get KO'ed if you fell. But it has hazzards. There's a giant Bowser Statue in the background, and at times, it will give away sounds, hinting at what will happen. If it roars, the statue will breath fire on the middle of the stage, creating a fire barrier. If it laughs, the lava will rise up to the platform, so high that there are no grabable ledges anymore. Those jumping Fire enemies will jump around at times. If the statue Yells, like Bowser does when giving commands, two Thwomps(Womps?) will appear next to the Edges, and will, of course, fall when someone stands under them.

3: You stand on the entrance, above the Castle's gate, and fight. There are two tall Towers, one on each side, and you can stand and battle on them. But if the Towers takes enough damage, they will fall over (left Tower will fall left, right Tower to the right), but they won't fall down out-of-bounds, but will get stuck, completely tipped over, making the stage much longer. After some time, it will fall off completely. If both Towers are gone for a long while, Kamek will fly in and creates new ones.

 

[BlitznBurst]

I can imagine a Bowser stage functioning like Mushroomy Kingdom in that sometimes you'd get a castle stage and sometimes you'd get an airship stage. That would be cool to see.

 

[ryuu seika]

Ok, here's my concept for a Bowser's Castle stage:

Spoiler

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f339/dracomageat/bowsercast_zpscaa54ad1.png[/collapse]

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f339/dracomageat/bowsercast_zpscaa54ad1.png[/collapse]

It's a fairly wide stage, in terms of solid area, with grabbable ledges as any competitive player would demand and a lot of flat space. That, however, is where the normality ends. There is no offscreen fighting on this stage. What you see is what you get and the blast zones are therefore abnormally close to the play area.
Don't camp at the edges in the hopes of an easy kill though. At regular intervals, the blue Thwomps in the upper corners of the stage will shake to alert players to their imminent fall. They will not have long to move and, should a Thwomp catch them, players will take huge damage and knockback, hitting diagonally downwards such that the ill prepared will most likely either be KOed sideways or shoot down into the lava below.
The Thwomps spend less time down than up so as to prevent wall infinites going on for too long. During this time, the stage does technically have walk off ledges but they are raised above the main play area and, should a player attempt to camp atop a Thwomp, they are likely to be star KOed when it rises without warning.
So, what about the lava you ask? It's a touch weaker than Brinstar's but essentially the same. Players caught in it will most likely not be KOed off the sides but will instead have to navigate the stage's awkwardly shaped underside in an attempt to pass back up through the middle bridge section (since side recovery is so risky). This bridge can also be dropped through if you're crazy enough.
At this point you're probably thinking to yourself, what's to prevent players from getting a stock ahead and stalling under the stage till time runs out? It's quite simple really. Fireballs resembling Mario's neutral B move in all respects will jump up a short way from the lava on random and fairly frequent occasions. Expect one on screen at all times. They will not hit players unless they are very close to the lava or, on rare occasions, standing on the bridge. If, however, a player is racking up damage stalling under the stage, the fireballs will hit them and, at the expected high percents caused by such a tactic, do an awful lot of knockback, mostly sideways.

While we're on the subject, I thought this up a while back and figured it might be relevant.

 

[MasterofMonster]

Aw, no one cared for my ideas.

@ ryuu seika
I remember seeing that one. I like it. ^^ Though, the Thwomps can seem a Little annoying if they are there constantly.

 

[ryuu seika]

The Thwomps in mine aren't like the ones in yours. Mine are time based and act as platforms much of the time. I'd see yours as the more annoying sort.
That is, however, the only thing I see wrong with your middle idea. Otherwise, it's a lot like mine and, obviously, that means it's much like how I envision the stage.

The first idea, I'm not convinced on at all but, depending on the actual execution, it could work. I would, however, like to see the axe being the trigger for continuing the movement, forcing one player to troll all the others with it.

The third I simply cannot picture.

 

[MasterofMonster]

Sorry, didn't mean you had to comment about it just because I said so. And yeah, the third one I had a hard time explaining in English. At least it looks good in my head.

And well, the Thwomps in mine would disappear most likely for the entire battle when they Whams down, at least. ^^ I guess it is hard to Picture other's Stage ideas in your head, since Little details will change a lot.

However, we both agree there should be a Bowser's Castle stage, and that's what's important~

 

[EmceeEspio]

It's been said and done time and time again, but I'd much rather have a Station Square stage where Perfect Chaos wrecks the stage after a while, then is defeated by background cameo characters (Like Team Chaotix, Tails, Knux, and Silver), and the city is rebuilt. Rinse and Repeat. Plus, think of the music!

 

[ryuu seika]

The fact that we haven't had a Bowser's castle yet, despite being the second most recognisable Mario Kart level type AND a feature of virtually every main series Mario game baffles me.

 

[MasterofMonster]

The fact that we haven't had a Bowser's castle yet, despite being the second most recognisable Mario Kart level type AND a feature of virtually every main series Mario game baffles me.

Exactly. Also no Airship stage. All Mario stages are just 'happy' stages so far. XD
Speaking of that, I hope Peach's Castle returns.

Also, if not a Bowser's Castle stage, we better get a Bowser World stage.

 

[Curious Villager]

Kinda interesting how we got Peach's castle twice yet we still haven't got Bowser's castle at all in the series. Would love to see it though, I'd recon it would be a pretty cool stage to have.

 

[ryuu seika]

How about Baby Bowser's Bedroom? Spiked ceiling preventing star KOs and full flooring preventing bottom KOs too. At the each side, rather than the walls in the real game (Yoshi's Story), an Anti-Flyguy (black, coptered Shyguy, for the uninformed) carries a large spiked block, making it almost impossible to walk off without him dropping it on you for a KO. If done right, this would help prevent a lot of the walkoff stage problems.
The happy tree would be a background piece, perhaps with low level healing food if items are on (thus drawing players towards the middle).

 

[MasterofMonster]

I assume this has been posted here Before, but I've not seen it myself, so there's no harm in it.

I guess this makes sense, right? By the looks of it, this looks like a pretty big and awesome stage. Say that someone is about to get KO'ed, but tries to jump in, and someone stands on the Tin Can on the opposite direction, making the other one rise up so high you can't grab it, and dies.
Such fun<3

 

[DaDavid]

I assume this has been posted here Before, but I've not seen it myself, so there's no harm in it.

I guess this makes sense, right? By the looks of it, this looks like a pretty big and awesome stage. Say that someone is about to get KO'ed, but tries to jump in, and someone stands on the Tin Can on the opposite direction, making the other one rise up so high you can't grab it, and dies.
Such fun<3

Nice. I hadn't seen it before either. Looks very very interesting.

 

[Chappified]

I don't know if this has been mentione before, but I'd like to see a stage that is based of the fight area with Miracle Matter from Kirby 64. Would be sick imo.

 

[TumblrFamous]

Hey, does anyone have the stage layout for Garden of Hope? I remember someone piecing together the pictures we've seen of it into one big picture.

Edit: I'm stupid...

 

[DaDavid]

Yo it's like.. 3 posts above haha.

 

[TumblrFamous]

Wow. I am an idiot...