Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[Gengar84]

So, Im going to say something slightly controversial.

Falco is never leaving unless the roster is gutted and he'll never be cut for Wolf.

Falco has never been a low priority character after his clone debut.

• In Brawl, he was high priority and had a decent spotlight in the SSE.
• In Smash 4, he was an early unlock. These are usually saved for characters that are "obvious." It was no secret that Falco was returning.
• And Ultimate had everyone is here lol.

Falco may not be the highest priority character but he's certainly high priority enough to never be in doubt. And unlike Wolf, we have no proof he was ever considered lower priority.

BIRD UP

I agree with you and don’t think it’s particularly controversial. He already out prioritized Wolf for Smash 4 and he’s a big fan favorite. I don’t really see Wolf being cut at this point either unless they drastically scale down the roster. A lot of people really missed him when he was cut but he is probably lower priority than Falco.

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

So, Im going to say something slightly controversial.

Falco is never leaving unless the roster is gutted and he'll never be cut for Wolf.

Falco has never been a low priority character after his clone debut.

• In Brawl, he was high priority and had a decent spotlight in the SSE.
• In Smash 4, he was an early unlock. These are usually saved for characters that are "obvious." It was no secret that Falco was returning.
• And Ultimate had everyone is here lol.

Falco may not be the highest priority character but he's certainly high priority enough to never be in doubt. And unlike Wolf, we have no proof he was ever considered lower priority.

BIRD UP

This self-proclaimed "slightly controversial" take is about as hot of a take as Canada is during the winter, buddy.

With that said, the Eric Andre reference at the end still made me laugh so the entire post was worth sharing for that alone.

 

[Guynamednelson]

Being an echo of a clone leads people to suggest he has some arbitrary prerequisites to be included

I didn't mean to say he has arbitrary prerequisites with this post:

At the same time, he's a clone of a clone and reuses the model from Robin's FS/victory screen, so he depends more on assets from Marth and Robin to make, if anything.

but rather, he wouldn't need Roy's assets in order to be remade. Hell, they might just cut the middle man out and just (re)model Chrom without going through the work of remodeling the less popular Awakening rep's male and female versions.

I don’t see how that’s controversial

Some people preferring Wolf and/or thinking the next Smash will go scorched earth on clones?

 

[AreJay25]

So, Im going to say something slightly controversial.

Falco is never leaving unless the roster is gutted and he'll never be cut for Wolf.

Falco has never been a low priority character after his clone debut.

• In Brawl, he was high priority and had a decent spotlight in the SSE.
• In Smash 4, he was an early unlock. These are usually saved for characters that are "obvious." It was no secret that Falco was returning.
• And Ultimate had everyone is here lol.

Falco may not be the highest priority character but he's certainly high priority enough to never be in doubt. And unlike Wolf, we have no proof he was ever considered lower priority.

BIRD UP

I got a more controversial take. I actually HOPE Wolf gets in over Falco if it eventually comes down to it.

And it's almost entirely because of gameplay reasons. I really, REALLY don't care for how they've been designing Falco post-Brawl and I have a hard time seeing that changing. Meanwhile, Wolf easily got one of the best glow ups in Ultimate and I'd hate to see that go away.

 

[Swamp Sensei]

This self-proclaimed "slightly controversial" take is about as hot of a take as Canada is during the winter, buddy.

With that said, the Eric Andre reference at the end still made me laugh so the entire post was worth sharing for that alone.

Hey. Last time I brought this up, people disagreed with me.

I'm actually shocked people are agreeing with me.

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

Hey. Last time I brought this up, people disagreed with me.

I'm actually shocked people are agreeing with me.

I guess the cool people weren't here last time then.

 

[PersonAngelo53]

Would've been cool but then you'd have made people think these were two separate games rather than simply two different versions of the same one.

True, as cool as the names sound and make sense they could have confused people.

 

[Louie G.]

re: Fire Emblem, it's a tough nut to crack - I pretty much think all of Marth, Ike, Robin and Byleth will return but beyond that I can't really figure out who'd be next on the chopping block. Byleth is the one I'd miss the least, but outside of Marth is probably the one who makes the most sense to return. Between Ike and Robin, Ike is the most popular lord in the series and while Robin is the most archetypically unique character from perhaps its most pivotal game.

I would want to argue for Robin's return the most. I don't know if I fully believe it, but I think it's the smartest choice. He brings the most variety to the Fire Emblem cast (more than Byleth IMO... having one distinct fully fleshed out theme / archetype does more for me than being jack of all trades) and compelling (albeit somewhat undercooked) gameplay mechanics to the table. I also believe having the "tactician" around is really clever representation for Fire Emblem on the whole, a game so deeply driven by its patient strategy and management represented through a character who needs to thoroughly plot out their actions and not be wasteful.

But Robin is decidedly less popular than Ike, and isn't from one of the series' more current breakout hits like Byleth. Awakening representation can technically live on through Lucina. But I think much of what I said about Robin - their unique gameplay function and more abstract role within the series - bears repeating. Many roster decisions among fans are made under the guise of popularity and relevance but fewer pay mind to the roster variety that is clearly such a priority to Sakurai. Again though, I anticipate all four of the aforementioned characters will come back.

re: Falco and Wolf, I think Falco's return is a safe bet. But if I ever argued in favor of Wolf, it was to challenge the obvious return to tradition. Wolf returned and was received warmly, is a common favorite to play in Ultimate, and I think the sentiment that he will definitely be tossed aside again just because he was before is flawed. I do think it's difficult for Wolf not to have Falco's legacy nor a fresh new game to justify the series maintaining three characters, but I think it would be a waste to see many of the EIH characters immediately go to the wayside again. So I would at least just juggle more hypotheticals beyond "x was high priority last time and y was not", because I don't think that kind of logic is so tried and true after a certain point.

Mind you I'm not predicting Wolf to return (on base roster, at least), and I am predicting Falco, but I acknowledge more positive arguments to bring him back than it seems he is given credit for. And I'm progressively less and less convinced that decisions made 10-20 years ago are gospel to always be followed.

 

[dream1ng]

So, Im going to say something slightly controversial.

Falco is never leaving unless the roster is gutted and he'll never be cut for Wolf.

Falco has never been a low priority character after his clone debut.

• In Brawl, he was high priority and had a decent spotlight in the SSE.
• In Smash 4, he was an early unlock. These are usually saved for characters that are "obvious." It was no secret that Falco was returning.
• And Ultimate had everyone is here lol.

Falco may not be the highest priority character but he's certainly high priority enough to never be in doubt. And unlike Wolf, we have no proof he was ever considered lower priority.

BIRD UP

No, I would agree with that. I think the only way Falco gets the axe (other than a huge amount of cuts, like you said), is if SF had added a second unique character at some point. Like Krystal in Brawl.

I still think he'd be far from the most expendable, and we'd still need a decent amount of cuts to lose him, but at that point I just think there'd be a second SF character that out-prioritized him.

 

[waddledeeonredyoshi]

So last night I had a bit of a quirky Smash dream where the one thing I remember was that Sakurai was showcasing a new mode in the upcoming Smash game where you had to move around in an upwards auto-scroller to pop balloons and stuff and Sakurai was playing as.. Bandana Waddle Dee revealed with no fanfare, no trailer, no tagline, no nothing. He was casually using him to present the new mode and after a few seconds of silence said in Japanese along the lines of "Oh right, Bandana Waddle Dee is a new fighter joining the battle. laughs" followed by staff clapping and cheering in the backround. And to be honest that scenario did not strike me as too outlandish to me.

View attachment 397126

For his neutral special, Shadow wields a gun.

Spoiler

Maybe I wasn't paying attention but I recall him not firing that thing once during the movie. Heck I don't even think it appeared ever again after this shot.

 

[Golden Icarus]

I don't know how many agree with this take, but I do have a weird hunch that the next game will not necessarily be a "reboot," but will go out if it's way to present itself as a fresh start, without meaningfully overhauling the actual gameplay direction.

Like let's say they come up with a design for the next game that actually has more characters than Ultimate and would only require cutting about 10 characters - I still think they might prefer to cut 20+ not only because it'll make developing the game easier, but to amplify the feeling that Ultimate was the end of an era and to shed the expectation that Smash will always be "the same, but more" since that design philosophy has reached its peak. Does that make sense?

And if this were a thought to cross Sakurai's mind, then it almost incentivizes cutting Jigglypuff, Falco and Sheik, instead of Incineroar, Wolf and Pythra. Characters who would normally be prioritized because of tradition might make more sense to leave behind. That said, I am somewhat biased in this take as I thought Ultimate's newcomers and returning veterans were done so well and I hope being newly beloved characters can actually help them, rather than hurt them in terms of prioritization.

Again, not saying this is likely per se, but I also feel there's real reason to believe that this could be a driving mindset for the next game.

 

[SPEN18]

Well, to add to what I said last time.

The short of it is that, generally, there's not really anything special about Falco's case versus those of the other semiclones, except that several of the other semiclones come from series with more reps than Star Fox. Which may make them seem more expendable than Falco, but that might not end up being the case; I mean, those larger series get more dibs on multiple reps for a reason, and with Fox still pretty much guaranteed to return it's still not like the entire series' worth of representation is at stake with Falco.
Again, Falco being likely higher than many other semiclones gives him a decent chance to return, but the point is that even if you concede he ranks higher than most other semiclones, the distance from him and that group of more expected cuts is really not that far, meaning a little judgment error in those others' favor could be pretty perilous for his standing.

In any case I don't think anyone can claim Falco to be anywhere near an essential addition, due to his sidekick typing, lack of relevance, and cloned moveset. Just on that he can't be considered a frontrunner to return. And in a vacuum those items paint a pretty poor picture for him, it's just that the situation looks even worse for a lot of the other lower-workload characters.

 

[Noipoi]

So last night I had a bit of a quirky Smash dream where the one thing I remember was that Sakurai was showcasing a new mode in the upcoming Smash game where you had to move around in an upwards auto-scroller to pop balloons and stuff and Sakurai was playing as.. Bandana Waddle Dee revealed with no fanfare, no trailer, no tagline, no nothing. He was casually using him to present the new mode and after a few seconds of silence said in Japanese along the lines of "Oh right, Bandana Waddle Dee is a new fighter joining the battle. laughs" followed by staff clapping and cheering in the backround. And to be honest that scenario did not strike me as too outlandish to me.

Spoiler

Maybe I wasn't paying attention but I recall him not firing that thing once during the movie. Heck I don't even think it appeared ever again after this shot.

He fired it a couple times. Sonic dodged all the shots.

 

[SPEN18]

Also, not sure about the thing with Falco being an early unlock in Smash 4. If you look at the unlock lists for the Wii U and for the 3DS, pretty much everyone on there screams low priority. Except like Wario, who I think we discussed before could either be an outlier or could simply have been developed later than most fans would expect due to a large number of Mario characters being obviously higher than him. And possibly Ganondorf in the 3DS list, but he's still a clone and also has the issue of several same-series characters being higher than him, possibly pushing him into later development.
I'm more inclined to look at the fact that Falco was revealed post-release alongside other confirmed lower-priority characters and suspect that he probably wasn't very high up himself.

Edit: wrt Brawl, I think SF was simply in a much better position then, so it would check out if Falco was a safer return for that game.

 

[dream1ng]

Well, to add to what I said last time.

The short of it is that, generally, there's not really anything special about Falco's case versus those of the other semiclones, except that several of the other semiclones come from series with more reps than Star Fox. Which may make them seem more expendable than Falco, but that might not end up being the case; I mean, those larger series get more dibs on multiple reps for a reason, and with Fox still pretty much guaranteed to return it's still not like the entire series' worth of representation is at stake with Falco.
Again, Falco being likely higher than many other semiclones gives him a decent chance to return, but the point is that even if you concede he ranks higher than most other semiclones, the distance from him and that group of more expected cuts is really not that far, meaning a little judgment error in those others' favor could be pretty perilous for his standing.

In any case I don't think anyone can claim Falco to be anywhere near an essential addition, due to his sidekick typing, lack of relevance, and cloned moveset. Just on that he can't be considered a frontrunner to return. And in a vacuum those items paint a pretty poor picture for him, it's just that the situation looks even worse for a lot of the other lower-workload characters.

In terms of the character I agree he's not essential. If Wolf and Falco swapped circumstances, i.e. when they were added, having been cut before, I could easily see Falco getting removed. It's not the character itself.

I just don't think he'll be cut since I don't think Star Fox is gonna go down to one, and he's much likelier to remain than Wolf. I know SF isn't really active or successful these days, but I still don't see a series of its size and history being reduced to a single character.

The only series with more than two characters I can plausibly see being reduced to a single fighter is Kid Icarus.

 

[SPEN18]

In terms of the character I agree he's not essential. If Wolf and Falco swapped circumstances, i.e. when they were added, having been cut before, I could easily see Falco getting removed. It's not the character itself.

I just don't think he'll be cut since I don't think Star Fox is gonna go down to one, and he's much likelier to remain than Wolf. I know SF isn't really active or successful these days, but I still don't see a series of its size and history being reduced to a single character.

The only series with more than two characters I can plausibly see being reduced to a single fighter is Kid Icarus.

But how much is the difference between one unique rep and one unique rep + one clone? It just feels like more because the numbers are smaller than, say, a series like Zelda getting 6 characters versus 5, even though literally speaking it's the same difference. Again it's not like the series is in danger of being wiped completely off the roster, and the secondary rep is not unique and not a particularly major character all things considered. It just seems very arbitrary to pin his retention on that, and I don't really see something like "Star Fox should really have multiple reps" as the deciding factor.

 

[ScrubReborn]

What character isn't as guaranteed as people think. An example that I could have is Mewtwo since he doesn't have the best track record of staying in the roster.

I wanted to save this for my upcoming first party priority prediction list, but with recent discussion, Palutena and Falco come to mind. I've seen people say speculators emphasize there may be a lotof cuts but ignore most low priority possibilities that aren't Pichu/Young Link, and don't consider chars in the wider context of the vet roster. I don't agree, but if you wanted to prove it, Palu/Falco are probably the best examples where a lot say they're safe just 'cause they're "popular" and not much else.

It's, like these ppl insist, cuts have to start somewhere, and after Corrin, Doc, Plant, Pichu, who’s next? Knowing Sakurai, not single-fighter IP (Mac, R.O.B., Wii Fit, etc.), and not supporting characters from active Switch-era series. That pretty much just leaves secondary characters from smaller/inactive IP as the next ones... so characters like Falco and Palutena. Not 'cause they don't have merits, but because they're competeting with other merited characters and with more limited vet space, it becomes harder to justify prioritizing supplementals from dormant series, when it comes at the expense of the aforementioned groups.

I struggle to see them outside the bottom 15-20 priorities of first parties; any more requires cutting into characters that they really have no business being here over. Now granted I'll contradict myself by saying that they probably won't need to cut that many first party characters, so all things considered they'll likely stay, but 15 is about the upper half of where I can see cuts landing.

And to those who'll inevitably argue; what 20 (non-echo) first parties would you prioritize Falco/Palu over? I feel like that question needs to be asked more.

In Smash 4, he was an early unlock. These are usually saved for characters that are "obvious." It was no secret that Falco was returning.

I'm gonna echo SPEN, using him being a early unlock in Smash 4 as proof of high priority feels like a reach. Wasn't Dr. Mario an early unlock in Melee? I don't think there's anything that really suggests his priority level in Smash 4. I agree he was prolly high priority in Brawl, but that Brawl priority was also almost two decades and 50 characters ago, when Star Fox was still active VS now. Things have changed a lot for Nintendo since then.

I also agree he's prolly gonna be kept over Wolf, but I don't think that's much of a flex either; it gives him a scapegoat, but they're still both secondary dormant IP characters and the difference I imagine is like, bottom 5 VS bottom 15.

 

[Ivander]

I'm gonna echo SPEN, using him being a early unlock in Smash 4 as proof of high priority feels like a reach. Wasn't Dr. Mario an early unlock in Melee?

The only unlockable characters in Melee that require you to have other unlocked characters are Roy(who requires you to play with Marth) and Mr. Game & Watch(who requires all the other unlockable characters). Young Link doesn't require any unlockable characters, but you will unlock other characters before you unlock Young Link. Pichu doesn't either, but you will unlock Ganondorf first before Pichu.

So basically, any from Jigglypuff, Dr. Mario, Marth, Mewtwo, Falco, Ganondorf and Luigi can be your first unlocked character in Melee. Though in Marth's case, getting Marth as your first unlock would require doing only a Versus Mode match with all Starter characters once. Do single player stuff normally and you'll unlock Jigglypuff, Dr. Mario, Young Link and likely Luigi before getting Marth.

 

[ScrubReborn]

The only unlockable characters in Melee that require you to have other unlocked characters are Roy(who requires you to play with Marth) and Mr. Game & Watch(who requires all the other unlockable characters). Young Link doesn't require any unlockable characters, but you will unlock other characters before you unlock Young Link. Pichu doesn't either, but you will unlock Ganondorf first before Pichu.

So basically, any from Jigglypuff, Dr. Mario, Marth, Mewtwo, Falco, Ganondorf and Luigi can be your first unlocked character in Melee. Though in Marth's case, getting Marth as your first unlock would require doing only a Versus Mode match with all Starter characters once. Do single player stuff normally and you'll unlock Jigglypuff, Dr. Mario, Young Link and likely Luigi before getting Marth.

True, but there were also VS mode matches, and with VS matches Doc was like, the 1st or 2nd character to be unlocked. (EDIT: 2nd, just checked)

 

[Ivander]

True, but there were also VS mode matches, and with VS matches Doc was like, the 1st or 2nd character to be unlocked. (EDIT: 2nd, just checked)

There are, but I think the first, Jigglypuff, required 50 VS matches before unlocking. You can get Marth before then.

 

[Louie G.]

Call it superstitious, but I just don't think any series will lose more than half of its (non-echo) characters. So I think one of Falco or Wolf will stay.

Like, Star Fox is a three character series. Losing one of those characters is normal - we've had it happen before. Losing two of them less so, that's a significant chunk to take out of a longstanding series. Removing both Falco and Wolf would probably have Star Fox taking the biggest relative hit out of any series on the roster... which I dunno, would that be deserved? Star Fox isn't exactly dead and buried, it's inactive but it's one of those series that is both frequently referred to for legacy / nostalgia content and could be revived at any given point in time thanks to Miyamoto's nepotism.

This may feel like a silly way to look at things, but framing it like this makes it feel wrong to me. If we end up losing a really healthy cut of characters, like straight up roster-halving, Falco (or Wolf depending where your preference lies) is probably in more trouble. But I think there will likely be room for two space animals at any given point in time. And personally I don't think being derivative is THAT much of a slight against them - Falco and Wolf play a lot differently than Fox, and at this point Fox / Falco are arguably comparable to the series Ryu / Ken (ignoring yknow... Luigi, I guess. Whoever that guy is).

 

[Golden Icarus]

It's like, as these ppl insist, cuts have to start somewhere, and after the likes of Corrin, Doc, Plant, Pichu, who’s next? Knowing Sakurai, not single-fighter IP fighters (Mac, R.O.B., Wii Fit, etc.), or supporting characters from active Switch-era series. That pretty much just leaves secondary characters from smaller/inactive IP as the next lowest. Once like, Corrin, Pichu, Dr. Mario, Plant, etc. are gone, I'm near certain characters like Falco and Palu are next.

It does feel like there are certain characters who are clearly on that 40-60% chance bubble, but people quickly get uncomfortable arguing the case against them.

Most can agree that Falco doesn’t make the short list of “must haves,” yet we imagine that the old pattern of seeing him return paired with his ease of development and popularity will help him cross the finish line, but if push comes to shove…yeah you can imagine he’s gonna be standing on the razor’s edge with other relatively “dated” supporting characters.

I feel like there are very few characters who have absolutely no shot of returning and things are up in the air enough that it’s worth restating the case for ~20% certain characters like Corrin and Plant, as well as the ~70% certain characters like Jigglypuff or Palutena. Barely anyone expected Mewtwo to go in Brawl, or Ice Climbers to go in Smash 4 and those will probably feel insignificant compared to the upsets we will likely see in Smash 6.

As much as I can agree Falco is a safer bet than Wolf, it’s like comparing a ~55% to a ~45%. I don’t think one is a slam dunk over the other.

 

[Louie G.]

Barely anyone expected Mewtwo to go in Brawl, or Ice Climbers to go in Smash 4 and those will probably feel insignificant compared to the upsets we will likely see in Smash 6.

I do wonder which characters will rest in this area next game, but making the case will always get you a lot of pushback. Because the long and short of is that almost every character is here for a discernible reason. If you couldn't justify why a character was added to the game in the first place, they probably wouldn't be here. So you can make a solid case for any character coming back if you wanted, and the number of uncontroversial cuts are far less than the realistic number of cuts we will need next game to accommodate for new content.

I could see it being a number of Pokemon (Lucario is someone I've made the case for in the past, Mewtwo could be cut again...), secondary Mario characters (Rosalina and Bowser Jr aren't especially popular fighters in Smash), the aforementioned Fire Emblem characters (Ike and Robin could be closer to the bubble than we think) and perhaps some of the smaller IP retro characters like ROB or Duck Hunt (it hurts, but there isn't a whole lot of content to lose here). Many of these being cuts I wouldn't be happy to make, but could theoretically see if space is tight. Notably most of the ones getting singled out here are from large series that will probably be losing content already.

Not to mention third party cuts, which is a can of worms that I think many people are ill prepared for.

 

[Folezicle Lives!]

Fortnite sucks though.

Sure does, never said I liked it.

 

[Golden Icarus]

Star Fox isn't exactly dead and buried, it's inactive but it's one of those series that is both frequently referred to for legacy / nostalgia content and could be revived at any given point in time thanks to Miyamoto's nepotism.

…and at this point Fox / Falco are arguably comparable to the series Ryu / Ken (ignoring yknow... Luigi, I guess. Whoever that guy is).

Yeah getting just one Star Fox rep feels pretty out there. Not only does it have way more entries than people seem to acknowledge, but Star Fox Zero wasn’t that long ago, Starlink featured Star Fox, Star Fox 2 was used to push the SNES Classic. It’s a Nintendo staple. Same with F-Zero to a lesser extent. It got a Nintendo Land minigame, it’s all over NSO, F-Zero 99 is a thing. These franchises aren’t getting the love they deserve, but they are far far from ignored.

And I don’t think it’s inaccurate at all to refer to the Spacies as being Smash’s shotos. You need at least one and you can hardly have too many. I just hope they prioritize Akuma over Ken in this instance.

 

[Kirbeh]

but Star Fox Zero wasn’t that long ago

Going on 9 years soon...

In fairness to the actual topic at hand. SF2 was 2017 and Starlink was 2018. Overall, though, as others have said, StarFox doesn't get used too frequently, but the series isn't forgotten.

As for who makes it back. Fox is a given. Falco is next in line, though Wolf is my preference. Though Wolf likely misses base game, I could see him getting the DLC nod next time around.

If next game has upwards of 20 first party cuts, then I think Falco will finally be in danger.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Music app just added Mario 64. Was hoping they'd do something with a kinda festive track in it like Kirby's Epic Yarn or DKC3 (because of Evergreen Lift and Jangle Bells respectively) or the hilarious irony of Mario & Luigi Partners in Time for Holli Jolli Village, but Mario 64 was in the trailer. That leaves Wind Waker, DKC3, and potentially Super Mario World as the OSTs we know are coming eventually from trailers and things.

Still kinda hoping they do a funny and like upload the Ice Climber OST on Christmas Day or something because it's an NES soundtrack with just 6 songs in it, so you can't really expect it to fill a whole week lol

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

the hilarious irony of Mario & Luigi Partners in Time for Holli Jolli Village

Oh my god yes this would've been so funny

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Oh my god yes this would've been so funny

I was sitting there legitimately thinking like "wait Nintendo could do the funniest thing ever" but alas, twas not meant to be u_u

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

It's probably a moot point since they may not necessarily have the rights, but I'd love to see songs from the old Orchestral Game Concerts CD's pop up on the Nintendo Music app. Something like this just feels like it would be a nice surprise to fans:

Then again, it might just be me wanting more people exposed to the orchestrated version of the SimCity Village theme:

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

It's probably a moot point since they may not necessarily have the rights, but I'd love to see songs from the old Orchestral Game Concerts CD's pop up on the Nintendo Music app. Something like this just feels like it would be a nice surprise to fans:

Then again, it might just be me wanting more people exposed to the orchestrated version of the SimCity Village theme:

Whenever they eventually upload Melee's soundtrack, I'd love if it included the versions from Smashing...Live! as well, but yeah it depends on the rights. That's also something I've been curious about for Kirby Air Ride because of Checker Knights's theme and some of the City Trial themes like for the TAC and meteor events I think being songs from the anime, presumably created and owned by whoever composed the anime original tracks.

 

[ninjahmos]

It'll probably never happen, because the series is owned by EA and Maxi, but I kind of would like to hear music from SimCity SNES. Especially the Village theme:

Then again, we have Dr. Wright as an Assist Trophy, but he's exclusive to the SNES version which was developed by Nintendo themselves.

 

[Pupp135]

What character isn't as guaranteed as people think. An example that I could have is Mewtwo since he doesn't have the best track record of staying in the roster.

This is going to be a hot take, but I don’t see Greninja being as close to a lock that some speculators assume. At the minimum, I assume that Greninja will be a higher priority than Jigglypuff, Mewtwo, and Pichu, but I assume that Pikachu, Pokemon Trainer (Charizard as a last resort depending on time constraints), and Lucario are higher priority, and we don’t really know what the number of cuts will be next game. While I assume that one of Greninja or Incinoroar will likely remain on the roster, and Greninja is the more popular pokemon within the Pokemon community, I could see Incinoroar being prioritized for its well received playstyle.

 

[KillerCage]

What character isn't as guaranteed as people think. An example that I could have is Mewtwo since he doesn't have the best track record of staying in the roster.

I think Ness is more in danger of being cut than Jigglypuff. Yes Jigglypuff nearly got cut multiple times but she managed to stick around due being quite similar to Kirby thus being easy to develop and program. Ness doesn't have that programing luxury and people forget he was nearly cut in Melee in favor of Earthbound 64's protagonist. I know people will be mad at me for saying Earthbound/Mother isn't relevant away, but the creator of the series isn't interest in continuing the IP and Nintendo needs him to be involved.

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

I think Ness is more in danger of being cut than Jigglypuff. Yes Jigglypuff nearly got cut multiple times but she managed to stick around due being quite similar to Kirby thus being easy to develop and program. Ness doesn't have that programing luxury and people forget he was nearly cut in Melee in favor of Earthbound 64's protagonist. I know people will be mad at me for saying Earthbound/Mother isn't relevant away, but the creator of the series isn't interest in continuing the IP and Nintendo needs him to be involved.

If the only time Ness was almost cut was due to plans of replacing him with what would eventually be known as Lucas, I don't think it's the same situation as Jigglypuff having nearly not made the Brawl roster due to how late in development she was brought back.

And I don't think "Earthbound isn't relevant" is a good excuse when it still actively gets merch (only in Japan though) and Nintendo does acknowledge the IP a few times here and there. Not to mention that Smash's first party picks aren't just a ****-measuring contest of how big an IP is but a historical look at Nintendo as a whole, and I think Earthbound/Mother has been influential enough in Japan and enough of a cult classic everywhere else to justify sticking around in Smash for the foreseeable future.

If Ness gets cut, it won't be because of irrelevance. It'd be good ol' time constraints.

 

[RileyXY1]

If the only time Ness was almost cut was due to plans of replacing him with what would eventually be known as Lucas, I don't think it's the same situation as Jigglypuff having nearly not made the Brawl roster due to how late in development she was brought back.

And I don't think "Earthbound isn't relevant" is a good excuse when it still actively gets merch (only in Japan though) and Nintendo does acknowledge the IP a few times here and there. Not to mention that Smash's first party picks aren't just a ****-measuring contest of how big an IP is but a historical look at Nintendo as a whole, and I think Earthbound/Mother has been big enough in Japan and enough of a cult classic everywhere else to justify sticking around.

If Ness gets cut, it won't be because of irrelevance. It'd be good ol' time constraints.

And Earthbound sold like hotcakes on the Wii U VC and when it and Earthbound Beginnings got added to NSO they dedicated an entire section of a Nintendo Direct to it. I'm not a fan of people who think Smash should only represent the present day and not the entire history of Nintendo and gaming in general.

 

[Louie G.]

My “friend who’s too woke” Smash opinion is that cutting a series like Mother, simply because it has ended on its own terms because it said everything it needed to say, is actively anti-art and reflects poorly on anyone who suggests it.

Smash isn’t and never has been about simply promoting what they can sell to you at that given point in time and the strange fixation from some fans for it to become this is baffling.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

My “friend who’s too woke” Smash opinion is that the cutting a series like Mother, simply because it has ended on its own terms because it said everything it needed to say, is actively anti-art and reflects poorly on anyone who suggests it.

This isn't strictly related to Smash, but I do kinda wonder if someone at Nintendo has ever brought up the idea of remakes to Itoi or vice versa. Just to get the story he made out to more people while improving gameplay aspects since we're dealing with an NES game, an SNES game from 30 years ago, and a GBA game from 18 years ago.

 

[Louie G.]

This isn't strictly related to Smash, but I do kinda wonder if someone at Nintendo has ever brought up the idea of remakes to Itoi or vice versa. Just to get the story he made out to more people while improving gameplay aspects since we're dealing with an NES game, an SNES game from 30 years ago, and a GBA game from 18 years ago.

I think it’s likely. I’d honestly wager an Earthbound remake does happen sometime in the next decade. For as much as people say Mother is irrelevant these days Nintendo seems to have a vested interest in keeping these games playable on the latest hardware and making quite a fanfare of doing so in the process. It’s no secret that it remains one of their most beloved cult classic series, they aren’t naive to this.

Itoi also seems to enjoy the idea of letting new generations enjoy his stories. If Nintendo convinces him that a faithful remake would be the best way to accomplish this I think he could be open to it.

 

[The Stoopid Unikorn]

Smash isn’t and never has been about simply promoting what they can sell to you at that given point in time and the strange fixation from some fans for it to become this is baffling.

Remember how Playstation All-Stars's roster was basically that and it sucked?

Sure, a lot of things behind the scenes are the reason why it wouldn't happen like IP holders doubting this entirely new studio since the devs' original roster was actually going so damn hard, but it still ended up being a mostly promotional roster while missing out on a lot of classics and it ended up being extremely barebones and lacking because of it.

The fact that some fans want the same to happen to Smash is missing one of the big points of what makes it special, which is to have characters both big and obscure face off against one another. It's effectively like the Capcom side of any Versus game in that it embraces more than just the big/current names.