Ahem.
*adjusts tinfoil hat*
Something isn’t fitting here. And no, it’s not just denial (Well, not completely anyway) The collective shock of Isaac being an AT by the community is pretty telling. Why is that though? Because Isaac was truly expected this time around. His inclusion as an AT just doesn’t fit.
I’d like to propose a possibility that, while not terribly likely, would explain everything.
King K Rool got his trademark in 2015 if I recall correctly, probably around the time development (or planned development) for the base roster started. So why is this important? Well, because it relates to what happened to Golden Sun three years later. Just nearly two months ago in September, Golden Sun’s trademark was renewed. A lot of people saw this as Isaac being in, but maybe that’s the wrong takeaway. Assuming K Rool’s was directly because of Ultimate, maybe it means that development of Isaac has started, not finished. Which means DLC. This isn’t even mentioning that part of the trademark mentioned downloadable content. I know what you’re probably thinking, but what if I told you that this timing makes perfect sense for DLC? Sakurai has said before that he doesn’t like saving characters for DLC, however, this direct showed us that DLC seems to already be planned. What is the one possibility left? DLC was decided recently. What else was recent? The Golden Sun trademark renewal, less than two months beforehand.
So the next question is the Rathalos tweet. I’m not willing to accept that it isn’t a reference. If you’re not convinced, try thinking about it this way: instead of looking for how it could be a Golden Sun reference, look for how it couldn’t be. When looking at it from that angle, it becomes a lot harder to deny. So you’re telling me that this one specific picture from all the pictures on the website was chosen by Sakurai just so happens to perfectly reference the most requested first party character at the current time, from the man who had gone on record in saying that he is very careful in what he posts on twitter and as such doesn’t post a lot, all because it “looked cool?” Yeah, I don’t buy that for a second. So why make this reference if he wasn’t in? As someone earlier said, maybe it wasn’t to say “Isaac is in” it was to say “He’s being worked on” Why do I think that? Well, I went back and looked at when Sakurai referenced another character in the past. Shulk. Remember that tweet with the replica monado? Well, I looked at the date of the tweet. Sakurai has said that it takes about a year to complete a character. When was the tweet? August, 2013. When was Shulk announced? August, 2014. Because of this, I think I can say that when Sakurai references a character like this, it probably means that development on that character has started, not finished. This fits perfectly if the Rathalos tweet is indeed hinting at Isaac for DLC. It wasn’t saying that he was in, it was saying that he will be in.
So why Isaac for DLC? Well after thinking about it, I think this makes the most sense. Every base roster character has a reason why they need to be base roster. Ridley and K Rool are there to drum up hype and really sell that this game is for the fans. Simon is there for the same reason but also because he has an echo, and we now know echos aren’t DLC. Isabelle is there to appeal to the casual crowd. Incineroar is there because obligatory Pokémon rep, and because if he was DLC, he most likely wouldn’t sell well compared to others considering he’s not very well liked. As opposed to these characters, characters like Isaac and Geno are perfect for DLC. They are niche but have diehard fan bases that are guaranteed to buy it because well, what else are they gonna buy of them? They’re desperate. Isaac is sure to rack up tons of individual sales for his DLC pack. He’s not in base because, well, just think of this scenario.
“Hey man, are you buying the new smash bros? It has Isaac in it!”
“Who?”
Not to mention that the whole “fighter, stage, and music” format for each pack is perfect for him.
So why is he an AT? There can be multiple answers to that, but let’s hear this one. Isaac’s AT was made before DLC was planned. When planning DLC, Isaac was chosen because Sakurai didn’t see the AT as an issue. It’s a fan rule after all. This connects with the Rathalos tweet, remember the list of assists on the side? It’s almost as if that says “Someone is an assist now, but we have something extra planned.”
*removes tinfoil hat*
It’s all hypothetical, of course. Take it with a grain of salt. I have to admit, I’m kinda ashamed of how I reacted to the direct. I’m still disappointedly understandably, but I felt like it took over. Well no more. My hope is back, even if it’s not a lot, it’s something. I’m not trying to give you guys false hope, I just want you to see this and have that sliver of hope like I do. This isn’t over...not yet.