The Official Thread For the Sal Romano/Gematsu Leak

[Deleted member]

Read my posts above for Rosalina logic.

How do you know Rosalina wasn't meant to be revealed at E3? Your inside knowledge of that is as prevalent as your knowledge of whether or not the other 3 he was WRONG about (PacMan, Mii, Little Mac) were supposed to be at E3. You can say that "maybe those 3 were supposed to be at E3, but plans changed," but you simply do not know.

Because her trailer incorporates Luigi and Peach in the cinematic portion as opposed to random gameplay footage that can be swapped out, and they were not revealed until after E3? Why is common sense so uncommon?

And I'm not even claiming that Little Mac, Pac-Man, and Miis were "supposed" to be shown at E3; I'm saying that they were perceived as such (which they were). Rosalina was never perceived in such a way.

There is plenty of reason to believe an AC character would be in Smash. 1) Sakurai changes his mind all the time. 2) AC is a popular Nintendo franchise. 3) Sakurai is incredibly creative. Next?

This is hindsight bias at its best.
1) Exaggeration much? Name 5 things Sakurai has actually changed his mind about other than Villager.
2) It was a popular Nintendo franchise back in Brawl's time, yet did not get a character.
3) Irrelevant reasoning. Creativity wasn't the issue at hand; it was that Animal Crossing characters were perceived as unfit as fighters due to the peaceful nature of the franchise.

Only issue I have with this statement is that people were clearly still asking for and expecting an Animal Crossing representative even after Sakurai said in Brawl that the guy had no chance to get in. Having said that, I feel like it's simply that everyone forgot about it since it was something like six plus years ago, so you tend to forget a few things.

People still ask for and expect Goku even after Sakurai said that Brawl would not feature manga characters.
Guess Goku's an easy guess now.

Except for @GoldenYuiitusin . He's got it all figured out, and we're all idiots.

No. But you've managed to prove to me that you are one.

 

[Artsy Omni]

You people forgot this, the day, the time. If he did say this post-reveal wouldn't that hurt his chances? I know it would for me. It's possible that he forgot Villager and simply said "Animal Crossing Guy" like Greninja is "Pokemon from X/Y."

ANSWERING THIS COULD MAKE IT OR BREAK IT!

Is there a timeline thread or something that documents all of the reveals in tandem with major leaks? It would be really convenient. =P

Though, if it were really that simple, I feel like that would've come to light a looooong time ago.

 

[Rocket Raccoon]

Is there a timeline thread or something that documents all of the reveals in tandem with major leaks? It would be really convenient. =P

Gestmasu doesn't have it, err, doesn't have an article on it.

 

[Fablemad]

It just occurred to me that

Spoiler: WARNING GUESSES AND SPECULATION TO DEBUNK THE LEAK!

Sal could've said the leak after Villager and Mega Man were revealed and sneaked around or overheard someone talking WFT at E3. *This is all guesses.* People were asking him for more, of course, he'd choose the poopular ones and throw in CM, because A. Ran out of options or B. Wanted to try a "Sakurai-ball" and Chrous Men. It was never told about what time he said it.

Only idiots think "Animal Crossing Guy" could mean anything other than the unnamed player character.

It could've Tom Nook or K.K., thanks for being so condescending.

Listen, I understand the fact that youcreally believe in the leak and everything, I am not saying it's completely false(yet). Only that Sal Romano really looks like he's been surfing on his original post's popularity.

If it's debunked at E3, he'll probably just say his source was false. How convenient is that? Not taking any responsability.

Also, Gematsu was a very little website before that leak came out. Do remember that Smash is one of the biggest games of 2014, it's perfect for exposure.

Unlike you, I'm ready to assume I was wrong. Just don't start insulting people on something so unsure, it could hit you back

 

[Deleted member]

Is there a timeline thread or something that documents all of the reveals in tandem with major leaks? It would be really convenient. =P

Though, if it were really that simple, I feel like that would've come to light a looooong time ago.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=62304489&postcount=2996

Date: 6/10/14
Time: 6:01 AM
Time of Nintendo Direct: 7:00 AM

This is at least the timeframe for this one.

 

[Rocket Raccoon]

It could've Tom Nook or K.K., thanks for being so condescending.

Listen, I understand the fact that you really believe in the leak and everything, I am not saying it's completely false(yet). Only that Sal Romano really looks like he's been surfing on his original post's popularity.

If it's debunked at E3, he'll probably just say his source was false. How convenient is that? Not taking any responsability.

Also, Gematsu was a very little website before that leak came out. Do remember that Smash is one of the biggest games of 2014, it's perfect for exposure.

Unlike you, I'm ready to assume I was wrong. Just don't start insulting people on something so unsure, it could hit you back

Is this towards me?

 

[Artsy Omni]

It could've Tom Nook or K.K., thanks for being so condescending.

Listen, I understand the fact that youcreally believe in the leak and everything, I am not saying it's completely false(yet). Only that Sal Romano really looks like he's been surfing on his original post's popularity.

If it's debunked at E3, he'll probably just say his source was false. How convenient is that? Not taking any responsability.

Also, Gematsu was a very little website before that leak came out. Do remember that Smash is one of the biggest games of 2014, it's perfect for exposure.

Unlike you, I'm ready to assume I was wrong. Just don't start insulting people on something so unsure, it could hit you back

Why should he be forced to take responsibility? All he's doing is relaying information. Assuming he's not lying about the existence of a source in the first place, you can't shoot the messenger for bringing bad information.

Also: obviously hindsight is 20/20, but Villager makes SO much more sense than any NPC from animal crossing. =P

 

[Fablemad]

Is this towards me?

Nah, the guy with the Entei pic

 

[Fablemad]

Why should he be forced to take responsibility? All he's doing is relaying information. Assuming he's not lying about the existence of a source in the first place, you can't shoot the messenger for bringing bad information.

Also: obviously hindsight is 20/20, but Villager makes SO much more sense than any NPC from animal crossing. =P

He says he's relaying information, nobody can confirm that but him. His original post clearly states that these are his lucky guesses: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=62304489&postcount=2996

Anyways, I guess we'll never know.

And by the way, I would've really liked Nook as a character I think he's more iconic than just the villager, whom is different for everyone

 

[Rocket Raccoon]

@GoldenYuiitusin Are you trying to defend or debunk this leak? You are really at it.

 

[Deleted member]

It could've Tom Nook or K.K., thanks for being so condescending.

Listen, I understand the fact that youcreally believe in the leak and everything, I am not saying it's completely false(yet). Only that Sal Romano really looks like he's been surfing on his original post's popularity.

If it's debunked at E3, he'll probably just say his source was false. How convenient is that? Not taking any responsability.

Also, Gematsu was a very little website before that leak came out. Do remember that Smash is one of the biggest games of 2014, it's perfect for exposure.

Unlike you, I'm ready to assume I was wrong. Just don't start insulting people on something so unsure, it could hit you back

No, it couldn't have been Tom Nook or K.K. Slider.
Why do you not get that? If it was Tom Nook or K.K. Slider, they would have been listed! Instead, we get "Animal Crossing Guy" a.k.a. "Animal Crossing Boy" a.k.a. the unnamed male player a.k.a. the one Sakurai looked at for Brawl a.k.a. who we know as "Villager" now.

It's not like "Pokémon from X/Y" where it doesn't specifically allude to Greninja or any Pokémon from X/Y in particular, but instead a character Sakurai previously determined as the intended "representative" of the AC franchise.

If the leak is fake, the leak is fake. However, that doesn't change the fact that people make heavily flawed points against it and come off as downright ignorant.

 

[Deleted member 245254]

Only issue I have with this statement is that people were clearly still asking for and expecting an Animal Crossing representative even after Sakurai said in Brawl that the guy had no chance to get in. Having said that, I feel like it's simply that everyone forgot about it since it was something like six plus years ago, so you tend to forget a few things.

Am I crazy and post things without noticing or did you mis-quote me...

 

[Artsy Omni]

He says he's relaying information, nobody can confirm that but him. His original post clearly states that these are his lucky guesses: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=62304489&postcount=2996

Anyways, I guess we'll never know.

And by the way, I would've really liked Nook as a character I think he's more iconic than just the villager, whom is different for everyone

I'm not saying this is what happened, but he could have just been saying that because he wasn't confident. Admittedly, if he really is getting info from a source—and saying "these are my unlikely guesses" was just a facade to avoid ridicule—it's unfortunate that he wasn't confident enough to just say it came from a source outright.

I guess even in the most optimistic scenario, he still lied at least once. =P

 

[ChunkyBeef]

People still ask for and expect Goku even after Sakurai said that Brawl would not feature manga characters.
Guess Goku's an easy guess now.

Well, way I see it, just to be prepared for the next Smash, we should all start seriously guessing the inclusion of every possible character, so this silliness can never be repeated.

Seriously, though, people didn't let what Sakurai stated about Villager stop them from asking for the character and expecting it. Besides, they turned out to be right in the end regardless of what Sakurai said, and I've argued that nothing Sakurai ever says regarding the roster or playable characters should be taken at face value. That's just another excellent example.

Am I crazy and post things without noticing or did you mis-quote me...

Uh, maybe. Who knows. I'm lucky to remember who I am in the mornings.

 

[Deleted member]

He says he's relaying information, nobody can confirm that but him. His original post clearly states that these are his lucky guesses: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=62304489&postcount=2996

We know of another who verifies that Sal is not making **** up. CAW Evolution, known for obtaining and relaying information about other fighting games before release.

Here's the story.
About a week ago, respectable NeoGAF member Sal Romano, who runs a site called Gematsu, received an email from a source claiming that Villager, Mega Man, Wii Fitness Trainer, Little Mac, Pac-Man, and Mii would be revealed at E3. Sal did not post this on his site because he wasn't able to verify the information, but he did jokingly post the list a day before SSB4's reveal on NeoGAF as a "prediction" just in case it was correct.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=62304489&postcount=2996
Look at the date. It's important to note that the post hasn't been edited at all.
Sal told me that as soon as Wii Fit Trainer was revealed, he ran and posted the list on his site because he knew at that point it couldn't have been a lucky guess from his source.
http://gematsu.com/2013/06/wii-fit-trainer-joins-super-smash-bros
I received some additional verification that I'm not going to post, but that's the gist of it all. Sal's legit and his source is credible. It's only a matter of whether Nintendo decided at the last minute to change their E3 plans and hold off on Little Mac, Pac-Man, and Mii.

There's also to note that NeoGAF has very strict rules when it comes to fake leaks. If you relay information that isn't true or don't provide the mods with verification that your information is accurate, you get banned.
This is why Sal didn't claim the list as a leak initially; if he did and none of it came true, he wouldn't be on NeoGAF for much longer.

 

[Deleted member 245254]

If the leak is fake, the leak is fake. However, that doesn't change the fact that people make heavily flawed points against it and come off as downright ignorant.

This.

I could go either way on the leak. If it's fake, no skin off my back, I put no stock in whether it's real or not.

It's just some of the arguments that denouncers have make it incredibly difficult to not want to play Devil's advocate.

 

[Fablemad]

We know of another who verifies that Sal is not making **** up. CAW Evolution, known for obtaining and relaying information about other fighting games before release.



There's also to note that NeoGAF has very strict rules when it comes to fake leaks. If you relay information that isn't true or don't provide the mods with verification that your information is accurate, you get banned.
This is why Sal didn't claim the list as a leak initially; if he did and none of it came true, he wouldn't be on NeoGAF for much longer.

Alright, alright. I'll admit defeat for now, but I'm still about 89%(PRECISELY) that this leak is fake. After all, words prove nothing. This year's E3 will prove wether Sal was right or not.

Sorry for being direct, I just didn't like you calling me an idiot. (I still think Tom Nook is a more recognizable figure in the AC series)

 

[Deleted member 245254]

Alright, alright. I'll admit defeat for now, but I'm still about 89%(PRECISELY) that this leak is fake. After all, words prove nothing. This year's E3 will prove wether Sal was right or not.

Sorry for being direct, I just didn't like you calling me an idiot. (I still think Tom Nook is a more recognizable figure in the AC series)

...but...the whole debate we're having here is that E3 would neither confirm nor deny whether the leak was fake or not.

 

[Artsy Omni]

Alright, alright. I'll admit defeat for now, but I'm still about 89%(PRECISELY) that this leak is fake. After all, words prove nothing. This year's E3 will prove wether Sal was right or not.

Sorry for being direct, I just didn't like you calling me an idiot. (I still think Tom Nook is a more recognizable figure in the AC series)

Well we don't know for sure. We could all be disappointed by absolutely no reveals. Unlikely, but still. =P

 

[Deleted member]

Alright, alright. I'll admit defeat for now, but I'm still about 89%(PRECISELY) that this leak is fake. After all, words prove nothing. This year's E3 will prove wether Sal was right or not.

Sorry for being direct, I just didn't like you calling me an idiot. (I still think Tom Nook is a more recognizable figure in the AC series)

I apologize if you felt I was doing a personal attack, but my statement was directed at everyone who seriously thought it could've meant anyone that wasn't Villager himself. Still, I can see how that may offend you, so again, I apologize. I agree that Tom Nook is more recognizable, though we know that in Smash, being more recognizable doesn't always mean you'll be the one picked.

 

[TeenGirlSquad]

I do think that the Chorus Kids are more recognizable than any of the other Rhythm Heaven characters.

 

[Fablemad]

Well we don't know for sure. We could all be disappointed by absolutely no reveals. Unlikely, but still. =P

In a perfect world, this gets revealed:

 

[Deleted member]

I do think that the Chorus Kids are more recognizable than any of the other Rhythm Heaven characters.

I'd argue that they have some stiff competition in Wrestler.

 

[Noiblade]

Let's say Sal made all of this up.
Let's assume that it's all fake.
Let's say that Sal just wanted to get clicks on his site.

Sal makes a fake leak right? So he researches for information.
That's the part where it all falls apart.
Let's say he researches and he comes up the fake leak.

Villager is the key.

I've debunked it once and i'll do it again.
If anyone was making this up Villager would NOT be here.
Sakurai said he didn't want him in Smash and he didn't fit.

There is 0 reason anyone could have found reason that Sakurai changed his mind prior to Villagers Reveal.

So there I've debunked your "HURR DURR LUCKY GUESSES AND RESEARCH" argument. I'd say there's at least 90% that this leak is legit.
I'm not gonna hold my breath for E3 for changing people's minds. Because any other characters on this list revealed are just going to end up being called lucky guesses.

I mean hell the whole roster could be shown off and all the characters from the Gematsu leak could be there, it'll still be written off as a lucky guess. Because it's 100% impossible for anyone to actually get inside information.

 

[ChunkyBeef]

So there I've debunked your "HURR DURR LUCKY GUESSES AND RESEARCH" argument. I'd say there's at least 90% that this leak is legit.
I'm not gonna hold my breath for E3 for changing people's minds. Because any other characters on this list revealed are just going to end up being called lucky guesses.

I mean hell the whole roster could be shown off and all the characters from the Gematsu leak could be there, it'll still be written off as a lucky guess. Because it's 100% impossible for anyone to actually get inside information.

I wouldn't worry a whole lot about the vocal minority in the case that E3 proves the Gematsu Leak to be right. All it takes is a Chorus Men or Shulk confirmation and the leak is pretty much 100% golden at that point. Not sure about anyone else, but either of those two things would sell me on the leak being right all along.

 

[Deleted member 245254]

I feel like this thread is setting up for quite possibly the most epic "I told you so" moment in forum history, once E3 hits. In either direction.

 

[Fablemad]

I feel like this thread is setting up for quite possibly the most epic "I told you so" moment in forum history, once E3 hits. In either direction.

Ahahah! I know, right?

 

[ScottyWK]

No, it couldn't have been Tom Nook or K.K. Slider.
Why do you not get that? If it was Tom Nook or K.K. Slider, they would have been listed! Instead, we get "Animal Crossing Guy" a.k.a. "Animal Crossing Boy" a.k.a. the unnamed male player a.k.a. the one Sakurai looked at for Brawl a.k.a. who we know as "Villager" now.

It's not like "Pokémon from X/Y" where it doesn't specifically allude to Greninja or any Pokémon from X/Y in particular, but instead a character Sakurai previously determined as the intended "representative" of the AC franchise.

If the leak is fake, the leak is fake. However, that doesn't change the fact that people make heavily flawed points against it and come off as downright ignorant.

There are flaws in both arguments. The differences in opinion are based only on what evidence people consider more significant. I find the fact that he claimed 6 characters at E3 and only 3 were shown as significant. I also consider the method of communication significant (meaning, why is the leaker just sending Sal one bit at a time? And why is he only releasing certain newcomers, but not others, or any information about veterans inclusions or cuts or whatever?)

@GoldenWhateverhisnameis weighs the guess of the specific "Villager" and WFT significant. He also doesn't consider the Rosalina piece relevant (which, with my communcation point, I do find relevant). That's where the disagreements are.

I don't see how anyone who believes either side of this is idiotic. There is no definitive proof either way - just varying degrees of "what is more important: this piece or this piece?" The only thing idiotic is someone taking such a trivial thing so personally (and don't say you aren't. When you start calling people idiots, it takes a new level).

tl;dr: chill out man. You're shaving years off your life getting so worked up.

 

[Starphoenix]

E3 cannot come soon enough...

In the meantime, people need to cool the engines.

 

[Deleted member]

@ ScottyWK
And yet, I haven't directly called anyone an idiot but you on technicality, though you set yourself up for that.

This is literally the only time it's come up in this entire discussion:

Only idiots think "Animal Crossing Guy" could mean anything other than the unnamed player character.

which you've immaturely corrupted into:

Except for @GoldenYuiitusin . He's got it all figured out, and we're all idiots.

so my statement on you proving to me that you are one is rather apt.

Yes, Fablemad took offense to my statement, though I've already apologized while explaining that I wasn't singling him out.
You, on the other hand, put words into my mouth that I haven't said, and using said words you've put into my mouth, you made a rant about how I should "chill out" as if I'm doing absolutely nothing but making personal attacks. Claiming you to be an idiot at this point is letting you off easy.

Prove to me you're not one by backing down.

 

[Verde Coeden Scalesworth]

@GoldenYuiitusin: No, there is no reason to believe Animal Crossing "Guy" must've meant Villager. That's pretty much easily hindsight bias too. It definitely at least can be taken as a character from Animal Crossing as is. And many did. Many thought Tom Nook could've been the same thing(and he's a fully named and major character from Animal Crossing too. Pretty much the same role as Wii Fit Trainer at that point. An NPC, but a key character to the series. You don't play as WFT in Wii Fit, but a Mii. Now, that is also a hindsight point in theory, but that was one of the many examples of major NPC's who could've easily been playable. Compare Ganondorf or Sheik as well if you want to. Not Zelda, since she was at least playable before Melee, just not for most people(CD-i games were never easy to obtain these days for many reasons). Guy is sometimes used to mean male(which only slightly reduces observation), but it does not always mean that. And it especially does not equate to Villager either.

 

[Morbi]

@GoldenYuiitusin: No, there is no reason to believe Animal Crossing "Guy" must've meant Villager. That's pretty much easily hindsight bias too. It definitely at least can be taken as a character from Animal Crossing as is. And many did. Many thought Tom Nook could've been the same thing(and he's a fully named and major character from Animal Crossing too. Pretty much the same role as Wii Fit Trainer at that point. An NPC, but a key character to the series. You don't play as WFT in Wii Fit, but a Mii. Now, that is also a hindsight point in theory, but that was one of the many examples of major NPC's who could've easily been playable. Compare Ganondorf or Sheik as well if you want to. Not Zelda, since she was at least playable before Melee, just not for most people(CD-i games were never easy to obtain these days for many reasons). Guy is sometimes used to mean male(which only slightly reduces observation), but it does not always mean that. And it especially does not equate to Villager either.

I agree with this sentiment; "Animal Crossing Guy" is far too ambiguous to objectively allude to Villager and only Villager. A reasonable person could assume that "Animal Crossing Guy" is referring to an Animal Crossing character. I mean, if it was Animal Crossing Avatar or Animal Crossing Playable Character, maybe even Animal Crossing Mayor... I could see that someone might be incompetent for not realizing that it was Villager.

 

[ChunkyBeef]

I mean, if it was Animal Crossing Avatar or Animal Crossing Playable Character, maybe even Animal Crossing Mayor... I could see that someone might be incompetent for not realizing that it was Villager.

Let's not forget that this is the same leaker who couldn't identify Greninja.

 

[Deleted member]

@GoldenYuiitusin: No, there is no reason to believe Animal Crossing "Guy" must've meant Villager. That's pretty much easily hindsight bias too. It definitely at least can be taken as a character from Animal Crossing as is. And many did. Many thought Tom Nook could've been the same thing(and he's a fully named and major character from Animal Crossing too. Pretty much the same role as Wii Fit Trainer at that point. An NPC, but a key character to the series. You don't play as WFT in Wii Fit, but a Mii. Now, that is also a hindsight point in theory, but that was one of the many examples of major NPC's who could've easily been playable. Compare Ganondorf or Sheik as well if you want to. Not Zelda, since she was at least playable before Melee, just not for most people(CD-i games were never easy to obtain these days for many reasons). Guy is sometimes used to mean male(which only slightly reduces observation), but it does not always mean that. And it especially does not equate to Villager either.

Lol. Just lol.

 

[Artsy Omni]

I agree with this sentiment; "Animal Crossing Guy" is far too ambiguous to objectively allude to Villager and only Villager. A reasonable person could assume that "Animal Crossing Guy" is referring to an Animal Crossing character. I mean, if it was Animal Crossing Avatar or Animal Crossing Playable Character, maybe even Animal Crossing Mayor... I could see that someone might be incompetent for not realizing that it was Villager.

But on the contrary, Villager is the only character that doesn't HAVE a name in the games. So it only makes sense to call him "The animal crossing guy" for the lack of a better name. If it were any other character, they'd have a specific name to use.

It wasn't until he was revealed that there was any unanimity behind the name "Villager"

 

[Rocket Raccoon]

 

[Artsy Omni]

Let's not forget that this is the same leaker who couldn't identify Greninja.

I still don't think we can definitively say that he "couldn't identify" him. More that he didn't have sufficient information to be more specific. If we are to believe that he's a middle man, at least.

 

[ChunkyBeef]

I still don't think we can definitively say that he "couldn't identify" him. More that he didn't have sufficient information to be more specific. If we are to believe that he's a middle man, at least.

Oh, I'm mostly just being facetious for the sake of being facetious. At this point I'm expecting the leak to be real and praying that it's not.

 

[Deleted member]

It wasn't until he was revealed that there was any unanimity behind the name "Villager"

Actually, I can confirm as someone who posted in the pre-E3 thread for Villager that "Villager" was one name people used. As was "Animal Crosser".
Mainly to be unisex, as opposed to "Animal Crossing Boy/Girl", "Village Boy/Girl", etc.

 

[Morbi]

But on the contrary, Villager is the only character that doesn't HAVE a name in the games. So it only makes sense to call him "The animal crossing guy" for the lack of a better name. If it were any other character, they'd have a specific name to use.

It wasn't until he was revealed that there was any unanimity behind the name "Villager"

I did not state that it does not make any sense to refer to Villager as Animal Crossing Guy, I am asserting that someone is not grossly incompetent if they did not objectively believe that the leak was alluding to Villager.