Stage Speculation and Discussion Thread

[Michael the Spikester]

Three stages I want are Bowser's Castle, Gangplank Galleon and Spiral Mountain (If Banjo-Kazoie gets in).

My idea for a stage hazard for the latter is at times in the background Gruntilda will leave her lair and then appear in the stage on her broomstick asking you an rhyming quiz question. If you get it correct she'll attack the other players but if you get it wrong instead she'll attack you.

Then for Gangplank Galleon hazards for that could be at times cannonballs falling from the sky as a reference to the first game at the end when you're fighting King K. Rool.

 

[notion_of_the_ocean]

I commented on this earlier but I still reside in the "this is not the final total camp". The 15 past stages I think are cut.... but there are more characters to be announced which may have a stage or two. There are six slots in the selection screen.... before I get the usual groans about that one point.... I will say that it is with near 100% certainty NOT space left for DLC as there is a tab that says "Normal" for all of these 103 stages. If anything, that points to there being more, DLC Planned, and I would even go further out on the limb to call that stage creator is returning. I am calling that the final base-game count is 110 give or take one or two.

 

[Handy Man]

Tetris is one of my all-time favorite games. Considering how iconic it is to the video game industry, I am still shocked that all Tetris has in Smash is just two songs. In my opinion, Tetris representation in Smash is more important than any possible character they could add at this point. I feel that Tetris is just as recognizable as Pac-Man, and while a playable character for Tetris probably won't happen due to a lack of options, a stage would be the perfect way to pay tribute to the franchise. There is so much that could be done in a Tetris stage too, the falling blocks would create a unique dynamic that has never been seen in a Smash stage before. A great example can be found in the video linked below, where someone created a modded Tetris stage for Brawl years ago.

Does anyone else think a Tetris stage would be awesome?

 

[MacDaddyNook]

Tetris is one of my all-time favorite games. Considering how iconic it is to the video game industry, I am still shocked that all Tetris has in Smash is just two songs. In my opinion, Tetris representation in Smash is more important than any possible character they could add at this point. I feel that Tetris is just as recognizable as Pac-Man, and while a playable character for Tetris probably won't happen due to a lack of options, a stage would be the perfect way to pay tribute to the franchise. There is so much that could be done in a Tetris stage too, the falling blocks would create a unique dynamic that has never been seen in a Smash stage before. A great example can be found in the video linked below, where someone created a modded Tetris stage for Brawl years ago.

Does anyone else think a Tetris stage would be awesome?

Of course, Tetris would make a fantastic stage. And the series really needs to make some form of appearance in Smash. Either as a stage or even as an AT in the vein of Color TV Game 15 would be great.

 

[TheTrueBrawler]

A Tetris stage would be great, but I don't exactly see how it would work when one of those blocks falls on a fighter.
In the mod stage, they glitch through. That looks very weird. What does Nintendo do when it is made in Ultimate?

 

[Gerrothorax]

A Tetris stage would be great, but I don't exactly see how it would work when one of those blocks falls on a fighter.
In the mod stage, they glitch through. That looks very weird. What does Nintendo do when it is made in Ultimate?

They could have characters get crushed, like in Midgar.

 

[KickleCubiclist]

I saw someone say Saltspray Rig would be cool, and now I really want it.
Also, I really want a stage based on City Escape, in the same style of Port Town Aero Dive.

 

[MissingNumbers]

I'm still bummed that out of ALL of the places they could have chosen for a Splatoon stage, they picked Moray Towers.

Out of all the Splatoon stages, Moray Towers was the only one that could've realistically been converted into a 2-dimensional space without sacrificing what the stage was known for.

 

[fogbadge]

Out of all the Splatoon stages, Moray Towers was the only one that could've realistically been converted into a 2-dimensional space without sacrificing what the stage was known for.

like changing water levels or conveyor belts?

 

[MissingNumbers]

like changing water levels or conveyor belts?

It's not just about the gimmicks, it's about the terrain still feeling like the stage. Mahi-Mahi and Piranha Pit would need massive rearranging to function in 2D, to the point where it probably wouldn't feel the same in my opinion.

 

[fogbadge]

It's not just about the gimmicks, it's about the terrain still feeling like the stage. Mahi-Mahi and Piranha Pit would need massive rearranging to function in 2D, to the point where it probably wouldn't feel the same in my opinion.

i can see where youre coming from dont think itd matter to much to the smash team mind you

 

[TheTrueBrawler]

They could have characters get crushed, like in Midgar.

I think it might be a bit cruel considering Tetris blocks would be dropping like crazy, but I really don't see any other way it can work.

 

[MacDaddyNook]

I think it might be a bit cruel considering Tetris blocks would be dropping like crazy, but I really don't see any other way it can work.

The blocks could be slow enough to give ample time to avoid them. They could also knovk away airborne characters which would further lower the chance of being squashed.

 

[fogbadge]

i hope we get some more tomdachi life tracks and some tracks from the other street pass games

 

[MissingNumbers]

I think it might be a bit cruel considering Tetris blocks would be dropping like crazy, but I really don't see any other way it can work.

One thing that really should be present in a stage like this is a "ghost piece", or the thing that shows where a Tetrimino will land. So if it actually looked something like this, it'd do massive amounts of favors to the stage's playability.

 

[Pippin (Peregrin Took)]

So I got a chance to hear what was said again (NOW the total number of stages is 103) and I still think we might be getting a couple more new stages. I won’t be devastated if we don’t, though.

I’m not thinking any more previous stages are returning or else they wouldn’t have basically shown them all. I’m thinking maybe one or two reserved to coincide with new characters and possibly a new Mute City to correspond with Mute City SNES. And hopefully a Bowser’s Castle too

A couple more thoughts:

1) I seriously hope they change the name of “Yoshi’s Island (Melee)” in post. There is precedent for it, and they went out of their way to rename all the other ones to avoid the parentheses. Also, they have the name “Dinosaur Land” just sitting right there in front of them...it’s no less jarring than “Super Happy Tree”.

2) I’m wondering if along with Stage Morph we could see some sort of “Battlefield/Omega tour” thing where it scrolls through all of the respective variants. Like BF Great Bay -> BF FInd Mii -> BF Suzaku and so on. It would make for great variety all at once while still having the playing field be fair.

 

[Hollywoodrok12]

Does anyone know what stage this is from?

 

[Luminario]

Does anyone know what stage this is from?

Definitely Rainbow Cruise. I'd recongise that extended rainbow anywhere.

 

[Gerrothorax]

Does anyone know what stage this is from?

It's from Rainbow Cruise.

 

[Thinkaman]

Does anyone else think a Tetris stage would be awesome?

My alma mater had a game development capstone course (gee, that was 9 years ago...), and I led a small team making a Smash Tetris game.

 

[DefinitelyNotSascha]

You might remember my Grape Garden-Stage from page 9, and now I'm back with another one. This time it's based on the Ace Attorney-series. While I personally can't quite picture Phoenix Wright as a fighter, I'd still love to see some representation of this franchise in Smash.

 

[DaUsername]

Seems like there's still 5 stages we don't know about.

CoroCoro is saying that there are 108 stages in Smash Ultimate. We have the magazine in our possession and are looking through it! Stay tuned to SG for more updates. pic.twitter.com/4bh92UxMz9

— Source Gaming (@AllSourceGaming) September 16, 2018

 

[Michael the Spikester]

Seems like there's still 5 stages we don't know about.

CoroCoro is saying that there are 108 stages in Smash Ultimate. We have the magazine in our possession and are looking through it! Stay tuned to SG for more updates. pic.twitter.com/4bh92UxMz9

— Source Gaming (@AllSourceGaming) September 16, 2018

Late to the party. This has been discussed for a while now.

 

[MissingNumbers]

Late to the party. This has been discussed for a while now.

Technically not. Everyone was just discussing the prospect of there being more stages, nobody knew for absolute sure.

 

[CamZilla94]

Seems like there's still 5 stages we don't know about.

CoroCoro is saying that there are 108 stages in Smash Ultimate. We have the magazine in our possession and are looking through it! Stay tuned to SG for more updates. pic.twitter.com/4bh92UxMz9

— Source Gaming (@AllSourceGaming) September 16, 2018

Good, my worries about the select screen will be fixed.

 

[notion_of_the_ocean]

I originally said 110 give or take one or two. This is my obligatory I told you so post.... jk just happy to see we may be getting some more series represented.

 

[Champion of Hyrule]

Got a lot so I’m not gonna post pictures:
Inside of Bowser (from mario and Luigi bowsers Inside Story)

Cap Kingdom

Death Mountain

Ghost Ship

Wuhu Town

Urchin Underpass

Palet Town

SNES Rainbow Road

Murisame Castle

Classic Ice Climbers Mountain

 

[Michael the Spikester]

My prediction for these five stages.

-Alola Poke Floats
-Forest Maze/Star Road
-Kirby stage (Since Marx is rumored to be a boss)
-Minecraft stage
-Rhythm Heaven stage

What I'm hoping for though.

-Bowser's Castle
-Gangplank Galleon

 

[Hollywoodrok12]

How I think these stages could go, from most likely to least likely:

Pokemon Stage (Either Sun and Moon Stage or Poke Floats 2 with gens 2-7)
Minecraft Stage (Vergeben Leak. Honestly it makes more sense then a Fighter, since Minecraft is a game about Worlds and not characters)
Possible Stage for a Second Square Enix Rep (If it's Geno (which it probably is) or somehow a second FF rep, it might not happen, since we have a lot of Newcomers from existing franchises that didn't get new stages)
Stage for New Franchise (Rhythm Heaven, Shantae, Golden Sun, etc.)
Modern Kirby Stage (Much more likely if Bandana Dee gets in)

I don't expect any returning stages (besides Poke Floats 2, if you even count that), because they would have shown them off already.

 

[Ridrool64]

I think all 5 stages will be for new series [maybe except 1, which is 50/50], though not necessarily all of them will be for new fighters from new series, and returning stages are finished. There'd be no reason not to show them otherwise, as Isabelle and K. Rool didn't get stages [although I still think: I'm guessing Golden Sun (heard the Venus Lighthouse tossed around a lot), Minecraft, Banjo-Kazooie, Super Mario RPG (a half exception, otherwise insert another wild card), and a wild card. Wild card could be an exception like an Alola stage for Incineroar or a stage with no fighter, like a Tetris stage.

 

[Michael the Spikester]

Another stage I'd love to see is the Underworld from Kid Icarus. It'd especially fit perfectly as Medusa's stage.

 

[Pippin (Peregrin Took)]

Since it looks like we just might get 5 more stages, I’m thinking they’re gonna be...

A “Dark” Mario Stage - could be Bowser’s Castle, could be something from Mario RPG if a certain someone gets in

Mute City - Because of Mute City SNES’ name; maybe it’s the one from Mario Kart 8?

Not sure about others (maybe another Pac-Man Stage), but I still think the Battlefield and/or Omega tour idea I had earlier makes a little sense, even if it’s boring.

 

[Zinith]

I'd like a Crafted World stage to replace the Woolly World one

 

[WertQuadNine]

I'd like a Crafted World stage to replace the Woolly World one

This makes my list as well, some of the options I want are: (no real order)

- Ultra Space. Or some neat SuMo stage that's not just stationary
- Tetris. Really needs to happen
- Advance Wars. Andy seems a bit unrealistic, but a stage at least would be dope
- Minecraft. Some don't want it, but they get really creative with it
- Bowser Castle. Really should be here already
- Pokefloats 2. Would be a nice surprise, would hopefully fix the issues with the original
- Rhythm Heaven stage. I'd love a rep, but a WarioWare styled stage would be good too
- Pac-Maze 2. It'd be a shame if Pac-Land was our only pacman stage
- Crafted World Stage. Like Zinith said
- Excite Bike Arena. So iconic that it deserves a bit more than just an AT
- Pushmo stage. I'd love this, maybe one of my top picks
- Snipperclippers stage. Pretty please, could be super cool if done well
- 1-2 Switch. Not a necessity, but again, could be cool
- LABO. Similar to 1-2 Switch situation

 

[Gerrothorax]

With Yoshi getting a Crafted World costume I'm fairly certain we're going to get a stage based on it as well. It definitely explains why the Wolly World stage didn't return.

 

[Thinkaman]

With Yoshi getting a Crafted World costume i'm fairly certain we're going to get a stage based on it as well. It definitely explains why the Wolly World stage didn't return.

Characters and stages were planned from 2015. A single unplanned character texture can be thrown in later, as was the case with ZSS's alt outfit in 4.

 

[fogbadge]

Characters and stages were planned from 2015. A single unplanned character texture can be thrown in later, as was the case with ZSS's alt outfit in 4.

tell that to stage based on games that werent out yet

 

[Thinkaman]

tell that to stage based on games that werent out yet

What?

Breath of the Wild was in various forms of development since 2011.

Mario Odyssey started development almost the same time as Ultimate, and seems to have ramped into production sooner.

Contrast with ARMS, which started later.

 

[fogbadge]

What?

Breath of the Wild was in various forms of development since 2011.

Mario Odyssey started development almost the same time as Ultimate, and seems to have ramped into production sooner.

Contrast with ARMS, which started later.

still doesnt mean the stages were finalised right at the start

 

[Thinkaman]

still doesnt mean the stages were finalised right at the start

Smash's development, like most projects of its production scale, tend to be very waterfall-y. (Post-64) We know Sakurai puts a lot of effort into his project plans, and seems to follow them pretty closely.

Known or suspected deviations from the plan are rare, outside of content cut due to running out of time:

• Possibly aspects of Melee Ganondorf, as his Spaceworld model was retrofitted to Falcon's animation rig very late
• Sonic being re-included in Brawl, after Sega initially said no
• Possibly Diddy's down-B in Brawl, if Dixie was a tag-team character linked to him and used it
• Robin substituted in for Chrom in 4. (Suspected)
• Addition of the clone characters in 4; additional replacement costumes created in the slots for the original characters, and ZSS
• Various aspects of 4 that did not work well on the 3DS, like Balloon Knockback, multiplayer Smash Run, 3D models for Pikmin and Flying Man, and possibly character transformations in general

Across the 4 sequels and their daunting complexity, this is a very short list.

Robin's substitution mid-development in 4 was the biggest alteration we suspect, and we don't really know how early/late that was.