Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Ivander]

I'm just happy that the characters and world of XCX aren't stuck on the Wii U. They can actually be exposed to a new audience.

With how Xenoblade X Switch just came out of nowhere, and near the end of it's lifespan, the Xenoblade X fans have been given a heavy load not unlike the Advance Wars fans. Sure, Xenoblade X will do a lot better than it did on the Wii U because of the Switch's playercase, but fans will still need to do their best to support and spread attention about it for much better results if they want Monolith to continue X's story...assuming the Definitive Edition leaves the story's "To be continued" ending as is.

I mean, it is getting new story content, so there's a chance they could finish it up, but we'll have to wait and see.

 

[Dan Quixote]

I feel like the sales of this XCX remaster will seem less to Nintendo as a sign to put Elma in Smash and more as a sign to continue the XCX subseries.

 

[chinkuru]

Whats an Appearance of a character you want in Smash?
Just like i want toy link as a look for toon link!
Is there anything? Maybe some of your want dread or returns samus or Wonder Mario!

-Classic Sonic
-Crossdressing Cloud
-Miyamoto's Donkey Kong
-Justin Bailey zero suit Samus
-Red
-Classic Pit

 

[Laniv]

Whats an Appearance of a character you want in Smash?
Just like i want toy link as a look for toon link!
Is there anything? Maybe some of your want dread or returns samus or Wonder Mario!

Any and all Hyrule Warriors designs for the Zelda cast. Heck, might as well do what Ike did and have their several designs available as alts where possible.

And I maintain that K. Rool should have had his alter egos as alts

 

[DarthEnderX]

YEAHHHHHHHHH

Aaaand, Elma moves back to the front of the line.

 

[AreJay25]

Xenoblade fans finally got what they've been asking for with this Xenoblade X remaster, with the game finally being brought out of Wii U jail and every game in the series being playable on the Switch.

Meanwhile, Star Fox Zero sitting in the corner:

 

[cashregister9]

LETS FIND THE KEY WE'VE LOST

Xenoblade X music in Smash is the most important next step

 

[Hydreigonfan01]

Xenoblade fans finally got what they've been asking for with this Xenoblade X remaster, with the game finally being brought out of Wii U jail and every game in the series being playable on the Switch.

Meanwhile, Star Fox Zero sitting in the corner:

People want Star Fox Zero on Switch?

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

People want Star Fox Zero on Switch?

Don't be mean to the negative two Star Fox Zero fans.

 

[Shinuto]

We need Elam purely for Uncontrollable.

 

[chocolatejr9]

People want Star Fox Zero on Switch?

Can confirm, I've seen it with my own eyes.

 

[AreJay25]

People want Star Fox Zero on Switch?

Well, it's the last major Wii U game that hasn't been ported yet. It's a game that could benefit GREATLY from a port since the major issue with it was its weird a** controls (and, well, being super derivative of 64 but that maybe could have been overlooked if it wasn't so reliant on the Gamepad).

It'd show that they want to do SOMETHING with the series, at least. But yeah, realistically it's probably going to live a very lonely existence on the Wii U lmao.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

Don't be mean to the negative two Star Fox Zero fans.

Star Fox Minus Two.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Do we think this gives Elma a higher chance than Noah or Mio now?

It’s possible, but I personally kinda doubt it just based on timing. While Xenoblade X DE is super cool, I feel like either the 2021/2022 project is Smash (which is a hit or miss assumption but still, it’s a possible factor), or the project plan has PROBABLY already been written for next Smash even if not.

Citing Ultimate as an example, that project plan was completed in like December 2015, three years before release, and if next Smash is coming out in 2026 or 2027 as most of us assume since every Smash comes out in the first couple of years…

It’s possible if and only if the project plan is currently being written, since I highly doubt it hasn’t even been started yet. But there is a possibility if next Smash comes out late enough in the year, so I can’t really count Elma out unless the 2021/2022 game is Smash.

 

[Speed Weed]

Going down to southwest gonna go my bus. A

 

[Gengar84]

It’s possible, but I personally kinda doubt it just based on timing. While Xenoblade X DE is super cool, I feel like either the 2021/2022 project is Smash (which is a hit or miss assumption but still, it’s a possible factor), or the project plan has PROBABLY already been written for next Smash even if not.

Citing Ultimate as an example, that project plan was completed in like December 2015, three years before release, and if next Smash is coming out in 2026 or 2027 as most of us assume since every Smash comes out in the first couple of years…

It’s possible if and only if the project plan is currently being written, since I highly doubt it hasn’t even been started yet. But there is a possibility if next Smash comes out late enough in the year, so I can’t really count Elma out unless the 2021/2022 game is Smash.

The benefit Elma has is that Xenoblade X is a fairly old game at this point so it’s not really the same as getting a Pokemon from Legends ZA for example. I’d imagine Nintendo must have known the game was getting remastered at some point since pretty much ever other major Wii U title was.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

The benefit Elma has is that Xenoblade X is a fairly old game at this point so it’s not really the same as getting a Pokemon from Legends ZA for example. I’d imagine Nintendo must have known the game was getting remastered at some point since pretty much ever other major Wii U title was.

Well, Monolith Soft was on record saying it was unlikely due to budgeting reasons lol

Frankly, I’m surprised it didn’t hold off until the Switch 2, but that’s another thing altogether. And while Elma is from an older game, there’s also the possibility of the project plan being written right now and a Xenoblade 3 character is already on it.

Like I said though, not impossible by any means and I will no longer count her out of the discussion, the timing just might not be the greatest for her imo lol

EDIT: Small aside but I could also see a world where we get a playable character from 3, but we also get Elma as an Assist Trophy or something.

 

[DarthEnderX]

People want Star Fox Zero on Switch?

If they remove the crappy motion controls(or at least make them optional)? Absolutely!

 

[chocolatejr9]

I saw this on Twitter, and it's pretty accurate: Xenoblade is THE Switch success story. Four games on one system, skyrocketing popularity, Monolith Soft solidifying themselves as one of Nintendo's best studios... they really did the thing here.

 

[ninjahmos]

Whether or not Elma actually gets into Smash, I still hope to hear some Xenoblade Chronicles X music…

 

[SPEN18]

Not to be too much of a downer, but frankly this doesn't change the chances of playable Elma in Smash. It's a Wii U port that's getting shoved out in the Switch's last days and will help fill out something resembling a release schedule while most effort is being plunged into Switch 2 stuff. It's not anything and everything that gets explicitly targeted for promotion thru Smash.
It could increase the chances of getting some more auxiliary content for X in Smash, like music. But I wouldn't count on more than that.

 

[Shinuto]

I saw this on Twitter, and it's pretty accurate: Xenoblade is THE Switch success story. Four games on one system, skyrocketing popularity, Monolith Soft solidifying themselves as one of Nintendo's best studios... they really did the thing here.

This is more ammo for potential Nia in Smash someday lol

 

[Ivander]

I saw this on Twitter, and it's pretty accurate: Xenoblade is THE Switch success story. Four games on one system, skyrocketing popularity, Monolith Soft solidifying themselves as one of Nintendo's best studios... they really did the thing here.

I mean, almost every Nintendo franchise got a game on the Switch that became the best selling game of their series, with Breath of the Wild for Zelda, Metroid Dread for Metroid, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Mario Kart, Three Houses for Fire Emblem, Pikmin 4 for Pikmin, Splatoon 2 for Splatoon(then again, it wasn't a high barrier to beat the original Splatoon in sales), Animal Crossing New Horizons for Animal Crossing and, obviously, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for Smash Bros.

Xenoblade is definitely one of the series that benefited so much from the Switch, but just about any Nintendo franchise with a game on the Switch benefited alot. Which makes me sad that we didn't get to see a new Donkey Kong, a Star Fox game(although unironically, the Switch version of Starlink, the version with the Star Fox characters, was the best selling version of the game), an F-Zero game and whatnot. I would've liked to see how well they would've done on the Switch.

 

[Gengar84]

Not to be too much of a downer, but frankly this doesn't change the chances of playable Elma in Smash. It's a Wii U port that's getting shoved out in the Switch's last days and will help fill out something resembling a release schedule while most effort is being plunged into Switch 2 stuff. It's not anything and everything that gets explicitly targeted for promotion thru Smash.
It could increase the chances of getting some more auxiliary content for X in Smash, like music. But I wouldn't count on more than that.

I think a lot of that is probably dependent on how much fan support Elma got. I do agree that advertising shouldn’t be the only reason to include a character but it’s generally a good idea to include characters that a lot of fans have been asking for. I’m not entirely sure how much support Elma got or still has but I’d imagine she’s pretty popular. Elma is also more distinct from Shulk from a gameplay perspective compared to Noah, which is another plus.

 

[Royaru]

We really did win. We have won.
Xenoblade Chronicles X is my favorite WiiU game and one of my favorite games in general, seeing it come back with more content and with more than clear possibilities of continuing the story in the form of new installments makes me immensely happy.
They've already mentioned that there will be "new story elements" so I'm assuming we'll get an epilogue like we did with the Xeno1 remaster. And that probably means we'll get more games in the Xenoblade Chronicles X universe in the future.
In fact, looking back in 2018, Torna, Definitive Edition and Xeno3 were all in development at the same time, so we shouldn't rule out a similar situation.

As for Elma's chances in Smash, it will all depend on whether the idea is to continue the story or if this is just another title. If the idea is indeed to make more games, Elma has a very good chance of either being in the base game or being one of the first DLC characters.
As C chocolatejr9 has commented, Switch has catapulted the popularity of Xenoblade, making it one of Nintendo's key franchises today. We shouldn't be surprised by a scenario in which Xenoblade could receive two newcomers in the next game, as happened to Kirby in Brawl, or FE in 4 as a strategy to further increase the popularity of the franchise.
Regardless of when development of the next Smash started, Elma's chances are not really affected since being a character from a 2015 game, you can already get all the references to make her moveset, and if there are indeed plans to continue XC:X, these should come from before the release of XC3.

 

[fogbadge]

New LA stage?

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

I saw this on Twitter, and it's pretty accurate: Xenoblade is THE Switch success story. Four games on one system, skyrocketing popularity, Monolith Soft solidifying themselves as one of Nintendo's best studios... they really did the thing here.

As a bonus, Monolith Soft is also the only studio Nintendo will actively acknowledge as developers of a game in actual trailers.

Even long time collaborators and other fellows owned studios like Next Level Games, Retro Studios, Bandai Namco, Koei Tecmo, Intelligent Systems, Good-Feel and so on don't get anywhere close to the studio name drops and recognition that Monolith gets.

Though that says a lot more about Nintendo than Monolith because seeing the Next Level Games or Retro Studios logo could definitely carry some power that may not be as strong as Monolith Soft's but would still be strong.

 

[Schnee117]

New LA stage?

nah if it isn't Noctilum or Sylvalum then they're doing it wrong
which means it won't be either of them because we can't have cool unique locations in Smash

 

[Shinuto]

nah if it isn't Noctilum or Sylvalum then they're doing it wrong
which means it won't be either of them because we can't have cool unique locations in Smash

I swear to ******* God if they pull another "basic default beginning of the game location" stop doing that!

 

[Schnee117]

I swear to ******* God if they pull another "basic default beginning of the game location" stop doing that!

You will take Early Grass Plains Stage 734207402377 and like it

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

I swear to ******* God if they pull another "basic default beginning of the game location" stop doing that!

At this point, if we want more variety in stages, it's more likely for the entire gaming industry to redefine what a default starting location is than it is to expect Sakurai to go for anything beyond level 1 and/or the hub world of whatever game he brings to his crossover game

 

[Ivander]

A reminder that Sakurai did not choose Urchin Underpass and chose Moray Towers, which was post-launch content for the first Splatoon. Nor did he choose Fossil Falls or the Cap Kingdom for Mario Odyssey.

 

[Guynamednelson]

Nor did he choose Fossil Falls or the Cap Kingdom for Mario Odyssey.

New Donk was part of Odyssey's marketing enough for Sakurai to consider it.

In other words, we don't need to make the first levels of various games more diverse, we need marketers to market more areas that aren't grassy plains.

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

A reminder that Sakurai did not choose Urchin Underpass and chose Moray Towers, which was post-launch content for the first Splatoon. Nor did he choose Fossil Falls or the Cap Kingdom for Mario Odyssey.

Yeah, thinking about it, there were a good amount of Ultimate stages that defied the whole "first stage only" logic

• New Donk City: Actually around the midpoint of the game. However, it was a heavily marketed location before the game released and also where Jump Up, Super Star can be heard, so it's still the most recognizable spot in Odyssey and the most logical spot to pick. If they had done the literal first location, that would have also been at least more creative than a grassland since it would be Cap Kingdom.
• Great Plateau Tower: Name literally gives away that this is the tutorial area of BotW.
• Moray Towers: Picking a multiplayer stage made sense, and Moray Towers was NOT in the original game's lineup at its launch, so this technically defies the "first stage" fake pattern in a few ways. Technically zigzagged since it was a launch day stage in Splatoon 2 but the Smash stage was likely conceptualized before we knew Splatoon 2's stages. It should be noted that Moray Towers is actually one of the most popular stages in Japan though so maybe that had a hand in Sakurai choosing it?
• Dracula's Castle: How do we count games that truly only have a single location? Because Dracula's Castle is that for multiple games in the series, including some where both Simon and Richter were present... Either way, it'd have felt wrong for the Castlevania stage to be anything else and it's at least very unique visually.
• Mementos: Hub world for Persona 5's Metaverse sections.
• Yggdrasil's Altar: Travels across DQ XI's entire world, so it technically is every location.
• Spiral Mountain: Literal first location.
• King of Fighters Stadium: Notably did NOT pick any Terry-specific stage and instead went for a generic stadium that's mostly carried by the legacy of King of Fighters, the frequency of stadium-type stages in KoF and the fact that it's a really fun stage due to the wall mechanics.
• Garreg Mach Monastery: Hub world.
• Spring Stadium: Picked Spring Man's stage rather than Min Min's, likely due to the springs being more interesting than a stage being bowl-shaped.
• Minecraft World: Technically acts as every location at once due to how Minecraft works. That and the multiple biomes brought to Smash.
• Northern Cave: Completely flips over the "first stage" rule by instead being the final location before the final boss. Being fair, the very first location in FF7, Midgar, was already taken in Smash 4.
• Cloud Sea of Alrest: Literal start of the game, as shown with Azurda still having a home on his back. But the Titans and World Tree in the background still technically lets the stage cover a majority of the game.
• Mishima Dojo: Is arguably more associated with Heihachi than it is Kazuya. However, it's still a location that has a lot of importance so it makes sense.
• Hollow Bastion: Is actually the penultimate world of Kingdom Hearts 1.

5 out of 15 is actually not bad when you start to actually look at things. I think Smash 4's sheer amount of grassy Mario stages ****ed my perception.

 

[SharkLord]

Yeah, thinking about it, there were a good amount of Ultimate stages that defied the whole "first stage only" logic

• New Donk City: Actually around the midpoint of the game. However, it was a heavily marketed location before the game released and also where Jump Up, Super Star can be heard, so it's still the most recognizable spot in Odyssey and the most logical spot to pick. If they had done the literal first location, that would have also been at least more creative than a grassland since it would be Cap Kingdom.
• Great Plateau Tower: Name literally gives away that this is the tutorial area of BotW.
• Moray Towers: Picking a multiplayer stage made sense, and Moray Towers was NOT in the original game's lineup at its launch, so this technically defies the "first stage" fake pattern in a few ways. Technically zigzagged since it was a launch day stage in Splatoon 2 but the Smash stage was likely conceptualized before we knew Splatoon 2's stages.
• Dracula's Castle: How do we count games that truly only have a single location? Because Dracula's Castle is that for multiple games in the series, including some where both Simon and Richter were present... Either way, it'd have felt wrong for the Castlevania stage to be anything else and it's at least very unique visually.
• Mementos: Hub world for Persona 5's Metaverse sections.
• Yggdrasil's Altar: Travels across DQ XI's entire world, so it technically is every location.
• Spiral Mountain: Literal first location.
• King of Fighters Stadium: Notably did NOT pick any Terry-specific stage and instead went for a generic stadium that's mostly carried by the legacy of King of Fighters, the frequency of stadium-type stages in KoF and the fact that it's a really fun stage due to the wall mechanics.
• Garreg Mach Monastery: Hub world.
• Spring Stadium: Picked Spring Man's stage rather than Min Min's, likely due to the springs being more interesting than a stage being bowl-shaped.
• Minecraft World: Technically acts as every location at once due to how Minecraft works. That and the multiple biomes brought to Smash.
• Northern Cave: Completely flips over the "first stage" rule by instead being the final location before the final boss. Being fair, the very first location in FF7, Midgar, was already taken in Smash 4.
• Cloud Sea of Alrest: Literal start of the game, as shown with Azurda still having a home on his back. But the Titans and World Tree in the background still technically lets the stage cover a majority of the game.
• Mishima Dojo: Is arguably more associated with Heihachi than it is Kazuya. However, it's still a location that has a lot of importance so it makes sense.
• Hollow Bastion: Is actually the penultimate world of Kingdom Hearts 1.

5 out of 15 is actually not bad when you start to actually look at things. I think Smash 4's sheer amount of grassy Mario stages ****ed my perception.

It also probably doesn't help that very few veteran franchises got new stages, and the few that did were all for recent Switch games, which leaves a few series with stages that end up overlapping with other stages (i.e. Kirby having two Whispy Woods levels, Sonic having two grassy "Hill" zones, the endless glut of traveling stages without a defined memorable layout and lazy SO RETRO stages, etc.)

 

[Jave]

Side note: I still think it's so bizarre that Brawl's Mario Circuit (based on Super Mario Kart's Mario Circuit 2) was renamed Figure-8 Circuit (for the Mario Kart DS track) to avoid two stages with the same name.

 

[The Prankster 16]

Xenoblade X music in Smash is the most important next step

It's 2027, you're at grand finals for Super Smash Brothers Evolution. It's Dante vs Waluigi on the NLA stage. Suddenly, you hear the music...
SHOOT THEM
WITH
YOUR
GUNS
https://youtu.be/ePypW6n1egQ?t=210

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

Side note: I still think it's so bizarre that Brawl's Mario Circuit (based on Super Mario Kart's Mario Circuit 2) was renamed Figure-8 Circuit (for the Mario Kart DS track) to avoid two stages with the same name.

Honestly, I thought it was weird for it to be called Mario Circuit in the first place. This new name feels better.

Also, the only thing is shares with SNES Mario Circuit 2 is the jumping platform. The track's overall layout, the map on the screen and the presence of Shy Guys make it far closer to Mario Kart DS than it does Super Mario Kart. Even the karts driven by the Shy Guys are distinctly from DS.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

A reminder that Sakurai did not choose Urchin Underpass and chose Moray Towers, which was post-launch content for the first Splatoon. Nor did he choose Fossil Falls or the Cap Kingdom for Mario Odyssey.

I mean that's fair but to be honest, I ironically feel like Cap Kingdom would've been perfectly distinct enough to stand out lol

EDIT: Also yeah Figure-8 Circuit was never actually Mario Circuit in the first place, so renaming it was a long time coming, DS Mario Circuit is completely different, as the Booster Course Pass showed lol

At least, I always figured it was from DS anyway, since Shy Guys were the character you could play when using Download Play without a copy.

 

[DarthEnderX]

Dracula's Castle: How do we count games that truly only have a single location? Because Dracula's Castle is that for multiple games in the series, including some where both Simon and Richter were present... Either way, it'd have felt wrong for the Castlevania stage to be anything else and it's at least very unique visually.

To be fair "Dracula's Castle" has a whole bunch of visually different stages within it.

And, in fact, the stage we got isn't even a particularly iconic location from any of the games. It's just kind of a random stained glass window.

No Clock Tower. No Throne Room. No Entryway with the huge glass windows.