Unlocking Characters in Smash Ultimate

[SquashiniKun]

Sakurai said that unlocking characters would be more "Streamlined", what could he mean by this?

 

[McSpanker]

I'm personally hoping for another SSE. I thought it was really cool unlocking characters though the story and at the same had actually wanted less characters available at the start so you could unlock most of them through the story mode

 

[nirvanafan]

IDK, he did mention a potentially really small starting roster, I can see the match count method still working, maybe every 5-10 matches instead of scaling up since there may be significantly more fighters to unlock.

 

[Questionmark222]

Not getting my hopes up too high, but I wish it could mean unlocking them through a single-player campaign. I really hope that we do have a single-player mode (maybe not SSE-calibur but something between that and Melee's Adventure Mode) because outside of playing on For Glory there isn't a lot of replayability in Smash 4.

 

[DeltaSceptile]

I like the idea of going through and unlocking characters and stages, as it adds a new layer of excitement to the game. I don't know why so many people (namely competitive players) are against this idea. One of the things that I hated about Smash 4 was its huge limit to unlocks.

 

[Smashoperatingbuddy123]

In a interview he did near the beginning

I heard something on there's several different methods by what sakurai said

And something about like getting a new car for a racing game concept is what I see

It was a sourcegaming article I believe

 

[Yosher]

I think there'll also be a way to unlock all the fighters early on, to be honest. Like, a cheat code via button inputs on the title screen or something like that. Or maybe you just download the 'Unlock' code via the eShop, I think they've done something like that before. I'll certainly be unlocking everything the legit way but it would be nice to have the option to unlock everything right away for those who want it.

As for what he actually means by streamlined... uh.. that's really anyone's guess, but my guess is that you just need less matches to fight the next challenger. Like, maybe every 5 matches lets you challenge a new character to (try to) unlock them. If you don't go the alternative route(s) anyway. We'll have to wait and see what he actually means honestly unless they give info on this early.

 

[JadeRock 5599]

I feel a code in the box or eshop code for digital to get all stages will happen due to tournaments.

 

[ZeroJinKui]

well, streamlined basically means having something be faster and easier and having to do less stuff to get something done... so... i highly doubt that means a new story mode, guys.

considering that would be the exact opposite of having to do less stuff.

like what others have said, it's probably just fewer matches to get a character to challenge you.

 

[DeltaSceptile]

As for what he actually means by streamlined... uh.. that's really anyone's guess, but my guess is that you just need less matches to fight the next challenger. Like, maybe every 5 matches lets you challenge a new character to (try to) unlock them. If you don't go the alternative route(s) anyway. We'll have to wait and see what he actually means honestly unless they give info on this early.

I hope that's the case, as it would feel like less of a grind when there's less space between unlocks.

 

[nuclearneo577]

They should let you unlock everybody with the Konami Code, complete with Snake saying something about how he learned that trick from "the Contra guys".

 

[KingBroly]

Maybe we'll buy characters with Coins?

 

[Yuya-Noboru]

I really wish it will be a new story-mode like we get in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the game will be out at the end of the year and Sakurai likes to surprise us. Nobody expected Ridley or every-characters to return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, so everything is possible guys.

Your starting roster may be as small as their original Nintendo 64 game. We've streamlined the conditions for unlocking fighters and we want to make the process interesting so it feels like you're constantly recruiting popular characters to your side.

If you read what Sakurai said, there is no way it would be something as boring as "5/10 match to unlock a new character" because the process wouldn't be interesting at all. In SSE, we were "constantly recruiting popular characters" to our side, that's basically what he said during the announcement.

Eventually, we might unlock the characters with a new mode that is specific to Ultimate. Everything is possible and there is no correct answers at the moment but don't stop reading after "streamlined the conditions", read until the end of the sentence. There's no way Sakurai will make the unlocking process that unoriginal and boring.

 

[DeltaSceptile]

I really wish it will be a new story-mode like we get in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the game will be out at the end of the year and Sakurai likes to surprise us. Nobody expected Ridley or every-characters to return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, so everything is possible guys.

If you read what Sakurai said, there is no way it would be something as boring as "5/10 match to unlock a new character" because the process wouldn't be interesting at all. In SSE, we were "constantly recruiting popular characters" to our side, that's basically what he said during the announcement.

Eventually, we might unlock the characters with a new mode that is specific to Ultimate. Everything is possible and there is no correct answers at the moment but don't stop reading after "streamlined the conditions", read until the end of the sentence. There's no way Sakurai will make the unlocking process that unoriginal and boring.

I definitely think that anything is possible, and a new subspace would fit the wording that sakurai used. That, or it could just be a fun new mode exclusively used for unlocks.

 

[ChozoRidley]

I reckon it would be really cool if the Smash Amiibos automatically unlocked that character if you scanned it.

If there are only eight characters available when you boot up the game, it's going to be a real slog if it takes 20 hours of gameplay or a long playthrough of a single player mode before you can unlock the character you really want to use or your main from an older version. With so many characters to unlock - including ones you probably won't use - Nintendo isn't going to want to make the opening hours too frustrating.

But if you really like a character or you use them a lot, there's a good chance you already own their Amiibo. That way you can unlock your favourite characters right off the bat and the rest at a more leisurely pace as you play the game.

 

[Quick Gaming (QG)]

Adventure Mode? Story Mode? Smash Run? Smash Tour? BATTLE ROYALE? idk, what do you guys think?

 

[Quick Gaming (QG)]

I reckon it would be really cool if the Smash Amiibos automatically unlocked that character if you scanned it.

If there are only eight characters available when you boot up the game, it's going to be a real slog if it takes 20 hours of gameplay or a long playthrough of a single player mode before you can unlock the character you really want to use or your main from an older version. With so many characters to unlock - including ones you probably won't use - Nintendo isn't going to want to make the opening hours too frustrating.

But if you really like a character or you use them a lot, there's a good chance you already own their Amiibo. That way you can unlock your favourite characters right off the bat and the rest at a more leisurely pace as you play the game.

That’s a really cool idea! It would explain why Smash Amiibo are a little more expensive this time around...

 

[Yuya-Noboru]

"We want to make the process interesting", I don't think that unlocking characters with Amiibo would fit the way Sakurai intend us to unlock characters. I understand your point of view though and I guess that some people don't take fun unlocking characters. Anyway, the unlocking process was easy in everygame after melee, so it won't takes you that much time.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, you can unlock characters while playing the Subspace Emissary Mode BUT there are an alternative way for each characters. If we get a story mode (and I hope so), there will be an alternate way for you to unlock your main don't worry.

 

[Noventiaa]

The worst case scenario would be it being like smash 4's unlocks - just playing a certain amount of games. I really hope it's not that, but i'm keeping my expectations low.

The best would be in a single player campaign like subspace, but i think that's really unlikely.

 

[Quick Gaming (QG)]

The worst case scenario would be it being like smash 4's unlocks - just playing a certain amount of games. I really hope it's not that, but i'm keeping my expectations low.

The best would be in a single player campaign like subspace, but i think that's really unlikely.

With how many characters there are, I would be ok with that if there was another option that wasn’t as time consuming. But if that does return, they’ve got to give us a character every 5 to 10 matches

 

[TheTrueBrawler]

Smash 4 just had a boring way of unlocking everyone to be perfectly honest. Smash Melee was a lengthy process especially when unlocking MewTwo and consequently, Mr Game and Watch.

I do want an easy way of unlocking characters, but I hope it isn't as boring as basically an afternoon of work. The thing I have noticed is that 55 characters will have to be unlocked, and that is not including ones that haven't been announced yet. It makes me wonder how they're going to do it without making it too easy or too much of a grind.

 

[Pippin (Peregrin Took)]

Sakurai said something in an article about unlocks being like a car shop. I hope at least some of them are purchasable in a shop with smash coins. And I hope one of them is Bayo so I can safely ignore her...

On a nicer note, they could have some fun with this making it look like they are amiibos or something.

EDIT: Another option could be having them appear as random tickets in a Master Orders style scenario. Or a “Get Character” mode like Mario Golf

 

[TheTrueBrawler]

A character unlock mode would actually be a good idea. It could be another game mode. Maybe they could be the special events, and by completing them you unlock the character without fighting them again. Do you think unlocking characters by tons of versus battles would return as a possibility, or is it going to be like Smash 64 where you have to go through the special process?

 

[Smashoperatingbuddy123]

Probably simply have the character unlock methods on the challenge board

Or maybe a mode specifly to unlock characters like challenge mode or like master/crazy order tickets

And with that mode you can still unlock characters by doing a specific thing in a specific game mode and vs matches ofcoarse

 

[Quick Gaming (QG)]

Man I’m just so ready to know more about the game. We know pretty much everything gameplay and veterans wise, now we just need more of everything else

EDIT - I just had an idea. What if you have to complete All Star Mode with the original 12 and then you unlock everyone

 

[Yuya-Noboru]

A character unlock mode would actually be a good idea. It could be another game mode. Maybe they could be the special events, and by completing them you unlock the character without fighting them again. Do you think unlocking characters by tons of versus battles would return as a possibility, or is it going to be like Smash 64 where you have to go through the special process?

Hmmm, I prefer the "A challenger appear" method. That moment you get the chance to unlock a character is exciting. A special mode for unlocking character won't fit in Smash in my opinion.

 

[Quick Gaming (QG)]

Hmmm, I prefer the "A challenger appear" method. That moment you get the chance to unlock a character is exciting. A special mode for unlocking character won't fit in Smash in my opinion.

If that does happen though, then you would need to get characters very often (like every 5 matches)

 

[Spydr Enzo]

The ideal way would be a story mode. But honestly, I don’t find that very likely.

What I think would be interesting is if there was a “Smash Shop” used to buy various unlockables such as characters, stages, and music. I elaborated on this idea in another thread and it was inspired by somebody else in that thread but I can’t find it right now.

Basically, you earn silver coins for playing multiplayer matches. You earn a gold coin for completing various tasks, such as “complete Classic Mode” or “Hit the Sandbad 1400 feet in Homerun Contest.” These coins can then be traded in for unlockables (Jigglypuff = 50 silver coins, or 1 gold coin). In the shop, you can only see a silhouette of the character until you unlock them, and then you have to fight them.

Maybe the stock starts small, then as you play certain hours and/or unlock enough stuff in the shop, a message will pop up that says “New prizes are available in the Smash Shop! Press X to check it out!”

 

[Captain Shades]

I’m going to take a guess. In Melee you could unlock some characters through Events.

What if Sakurai is making specific events for each fighter that way you can have alternative paths like in Wii U that lead up to other characters to unlock. You can play the Fox events and choose between unlocking Wolf or Falco first depending on the event, like one has you battle Wolf as Fox, while the other is some sort of competition between Fox and Falco. Samus could have an event where she has to make it out without a suit, but alternatively you can chose the classic battle between Ridley and Samus.

There could be alternative methods for unlocking like Brawl, which had a certain amount of matches, story mode, or something like play classic mode, so players can decide the rate at which they unlock fighters. Events can be the quickest way, with playing modes being the middle path, and matches taking the most time to unlock characters.

 

[Dan]

I imagine there's just going to be a variety of avenues to unlock characters, and they're essentially gonna come as you play the game, instead of "break all targets to unlock Luigi".

 

[Smashoperatingbuddy123]

I think we will learn what sakurai mean't by streamlined on Wednesday

But overall I think the same ways as before but this streamlined way added

 

[Flynn__]

It's possible that this time around we'll have some kind of shop where you can unlock the characters you prefer first. Instead of having to play 20 matches to unlock Marth and 200 to unlock Mr. Game & Watch (which is bad if you main Mr.G&W and don't care about Marth) you can decide who you unlock first. Given that almost every character in Smash history is unlockable this time it doesn't seem too farfetched that Sakurai would decide to go with something like this.

 

[SupriceSupplies]

If I had to take a guess, we're going to get a seperate checklist for newcomers in the style of Kirby Air Ride and Kid Icarus: Uprising. I know Brawl and 4 had checklists as well for various things, and that will return for ultimate. But I do think we'll be getting a checklist next to that one purely for characters.

 

[Captain Shades]

It's possible that this time around we'll have some kind of shop where you can unlock the characters you prefer first. Instead of having to play 20 matches to unlock Marth and 200 to unlock Mr. Game & Watch (which is bad if you main Mr.G&W and don't care about Marth) you can decide who you unlock first. Given that almost every character in Smash history is unlockable this time it doesn't seem too farfetched that Sakurai would decide to go with something like this.

There are usually other ways to unlock characters.

I like the idea of events unlocking characters, as events could branch off so players can decide which characters to unlock, but they still have to earn it. Like let’s say you have Mario events, where you can choose between two characters; Peach or Luigi. If you go down the Luigi path you’ll get an even with Daisy afterwards, while Peach’s leads up to unlocking Bowser. It could be a fun way to expand on the roster and use events more effectively.

 

[Pippin (Peregrin Took)]

I think we will learn what sakurai mean't by streamlined on Wednesday

But overall I think the same ways as before but this streamlined way added

Yeah I think because they mentioned it cryptically twice now (once at E3 and once in Famitsu) we should be getting more details on it in this direct. I really want to know what Sakurai meant by comparing it to Gran Turismo’s garage.

 

[Crystanium]

It'd be cool if unlocked characters were presented as trophies and there was a scale for which character you wanted to unlock. The scale had to be even or exceed the weight of the trophy. So if something like a gold coin weighed 0.01, and Ridley weighed 800, you'd have to have 80,000 gold coins. Or perhaps there could be different colored coins and they were bronze, silver, gold, and platinum, with each being 0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10. This could also be applied to trophies that aren't playable.

 

[jskylinegtr]

I would predict that characters are unlock quickly, you will start with only 12 characters, the eight starters, and the original unlockables, i guess, Mewtwo's unlock method would involve number 150, while Lucario will have number 448 in the unlock condition.