Official Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion Thread

[fogbadge]

6 recurring human characters, and they're all fair skinned and, with the exception of Wario and Waluigi, they all have blue eyes.

In a series that has mushroom people, dinosaurs, fire-breathing turtles, baby stars, that they somehow haven't had even a couple of Black characters in this long is kinda embarrassing

Especially considering they’ve put in the effort in other series

 

[Scrimblo Bimblo]

Your insistence on ignoring the huge multi-million dollar elephant in the room every time is just confusing me at this point. If Nintendo wanted DKC to be forgotten they wouldn’t be putting this much money into the brand… or like, clearly putting off the Switch 2 announcement to promote a DKC remake.

Like, come on. It really is not that personal. I’m sorry you don’t like some of the recent choices but it doesn’t mean they’re here to spite you.

Why should I care about the theme park? I'm a fan, not a shareholder. It's cool that the brand is "healthy" but it doesn't matter but if it doesn't result in new games.

DK games always sell and review very well. They have a loud and dedicated fandom. There's no reason why the only significant piece of content we've gotten in ten years has to be one fighter in the crossover game we literally had to beg on our knees for.
I understand that it might not be a priority for everyone, but DK is a big reason why I buy a Nintendo console and I definitely feel like I've been strung along for a very long time.

In this ten years of radio silence they've been relegating DK + Diddy when they feel like it to Mario spin-off fodder. Even the fabled theme park is a companion piece to Mario's.
And now on top of everything they're canceling his iconic design that's been a staple for 30 years (obviously only because it was made by Rare instead of them), and replacing it with this dumb looking thing that's clearly designed to keep being a side character in Mario spin-offs and not the headliner of his own series of games.
DK fans have every right to be at least worried; if nothing else reception to this new design has been largely negative and I can only hope we at least manage to pull a Sonic movie-style coup, but I doubt it.

Anyways, I fully realize that I'm getting way more riled up at this than I should. It has even affected my mood today and that's a big no-no.
Already said it, but I'm going to take a long break from Nintendo-related stuff. Eyes don't see, heart don't hurt, hopefully with time anger will leave room to indifference, which is what I felt for most of the Switch generation really.

So yeah, bye to everyone for a while and sorry if I ruined the mood.

 

[Louie G.]

Why should I care about the theme park? I'm a fan, not a shareholder. It's cool that the brand is "healthy" but it doesn't matter but if it doesn't result in new games.

Because your point was that Nintendo is trying to bury Donkey Kong Country… while constructing a theme park for Donkey Kong Country, and actively promoting a Donkey Kong Country game that came out today for the last month. The park has a full body suit of Rare DK, and his image is plastered all over the place. It doesn’t really matter if you care about it or not, it sinks your entire argument here.

And the movie… design or otherwise, they gave DKC far more spotlight than I expected. Cranky Kong is a fairly important character, of all things. That doesn’t read to me like a disregard of the DKC brand.

In any case, I won’t harp on it much longer. I hope you can cool down and enjoy your break.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Why should I care about the theme park? I'm a fan, not a shareholder. It's cool that the brand is "healthy" but it doesn't matter but if it doesn't result in new games.

DK games always sell and review very well. They have a loud and dedicated fandom. There's no reason why the only significant piece of content we've gotten in ten years has to be one fighter in the crossover game we literally had to beg on our knees for.
I understand that it might not be a priority for everyone, but DK is a big reason why I buy a Nintendo console and I definitely feel like I've been strung along for a very long time.

In this ten years of radio silence they've been relegating DK + Diddy when they feel like it to Mario spin-off fodder. Even the fabled theme park is a companion piece to Mario's.
And now on top of everything they're canceling his iconic design that's been a staple for 30 years (obviously only because it was made by Rare instead of them), and replacing it with this dumb looking thing that's clearly designed to keep being a side character in Mario spin-offs and not the headliner of his own series of games.
DK fans have every right to be at least worried; if nothing else reception to this new design has been largely negative and I can only hope we at least manage to pull a Sonic movie-style coup, but I doubt it.

Anyways, I fully realize that I'm getting way more riled up at this than I should. It has even affected my mood today and that's a big no-no.
Already said it, but I'm going to take a long break from Nintendo-related stuff. Eyes don't see, heart don't hurt, hopefully with time anger will leave room to indifference, which is what I felt for most of the Switch generation really.

So yeah, bye to everyone for a while and sorry if I ruined the mood.

I just wanna say, I'm with you, and I hear you loud and clear.

For how much Donkey Kong "seems" to be in the picture, in terms of priorities he isn't. He's just a beloved character they can do whatever with that fits them, but seemingly not too worth investing in much on his own.

The DKCR HD box came in today. It hurts this is the long awaited DK release on the best selling Nintendo system ever. And yes, indeed we had to practically BEG for King K.Rool, only for this Smash appearance being the only thing that might ever become of this popularity.

Unless something happens, and soon, this is a bad spot to be in. It's just not fair and fun seeing your favorite series and characters treated like this. They seemingly cared more when Rare was just gone from Nintendo and PAON handled the franchise. We got K.Rool, Kremlings and a plethora of Kongs almost all but forgotten back then at least.

This remake which is just released is called Donkey Kong Country Returns...... but Donkey Kong Country never really properly returned.

Hurts man. Badly. And I'm with you here.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

I just wanna stress that this DK doomer-ism is because of 3 seconds of background footage of DK driving headlong towards a camera and the fact that Retro hasn't been able to make a new DK game because they've been working on Metroid Prime 4 for 6 years.

I really don't think it's that deep, the new Mario Kart just has a different art style for the characters going on than 8 did (which DK didn't exactly look perfect in either with his giant gaping hinge mouth lol).

 

[Noipoi]

Donkey Kong Country as a series is a victim of circumstance.

After Tropical Freeze, Retro moved onto other projects. Supposedly Nintendo tried to get a game made by another studio around 2017-ish, but for one reason or another it never quite worked out. And then Retro got busy with Prime 4, which they’ve been working on since 2019. No time for DK.

Could they have looked for someone else, or even started a new internal team devoted to making monkey games? Probably. But in the meantime they’re investing in the franchise with stuff like the theme park, a prominent role in a billion dollar movie, and remakes of older games.

It’s not ideal, but you can’t say they don’t care about DK.

 

[Golden Icarus]

I think it’s just weird seeing any Mario character redesigned. Almost the entire cast has had consistent appearances ever since the Gamecube. King Boo I guess had a prominent redesign, but who else?

I don’t think I hate the new Donkey Kong design, but it’s wild seeing such a noticeable change to a cast that has kept such consistent, memorable appearances for so long. And a character as classic and prominent as Donkey Kong…Bold. Weird. Extremely weird. Very surprised that they would do this.

 

[Noipoi]

I really don't think it's that deep, the new Mario Kart just has a different art style for the characters going on than 8 did (which DK didn't exactly look perfect in either with his giant gaping hinge mouth lol).

What do you mean?

Clearly this is the peak of Donkey Kong performance.

 

[Schnee117]

Fans of actually neglected franchises reading the current convo

 

[Captain Shwampy]

Aardman eyes DK is cute.
It makes him look more related to Dk Jr.

 

[Godzillathewonderdog]

If they can redesign DK they can give Daisy darker skin, cmon Nintendo.

 

[waddledeeonredyoshi]

Dumb hypothetical but if I was forced to choose between Donkey Kong in the next Smash game either still being stuck with generic gorilla sfx or getting Seth Rogen I'd pick Seth in a heartbeat lol.

 

[Golden Icarus]

Fans of actually neglected franchises reading the current convo

Real. Not trying to gatekeep or anything, but at worst Donkey Kong is only the least favored of all the highly favored franchises.

People be like Metroid this, Donkey Kong that, on the one forum containing people who actually give a **** about Golden Sun and Custom Robo. Kind of a tough crowd to garner sympathy from.

 

[Louie G.]

Dumb hypothetical but if I was forced to choose between Donkey Kong in the next Smash game either still being stuck with generic gorilla sfx or getting Seth Rogen I'd pick Seth in a heartbeat lol.

Lmao it would be pretty funny if the monkey’s paw (no pun intended) to getting DK’s “real” voice in Smash is to change his design to something so goofy looking that it wouldn’t look even remotely threatening enough to sound like King Kong.

 

[Schnee117]

Dumb hypothetical but if I was forced to choose between Donkey Kong in the next Smash game either still being stuck with generic gorilla sfx or getting Seth Rogen I'd pick Seth in a heartbeat lol.

The laugh taunt is the long awaited sequel to Brawl Sonic's taunts

Real. Not trying to gatekeep or anything, but at worst Donkey Kong is only the least favored of all the highly favored franchises.

People be like Metroid this, Donkey Kong that, on the one forum containing people who actually give a **** about Golden Sun and Custom Robo. Kind of a tough crowd to garner sympathy from.

Yeah like, sure it sucks there hasn't been a proper new game in over a decade, **** knows I'd love a new DKC already.
But we can end it there, all the stuff about Nintendo not caring about DK is just divorced from reality

 

[Gengar84]

Real. Not trying to gatekeep or anything, but at worst Donkey Kong is only the least favored of all the highly favored franchises.

People be like Metroid this, Donkey Kong that, on the one forum containing people who actually give a **** about Golden Sun and Custom Robo. Kind of a tough crowd to garner sympathy from.

I’ve been waiting over 25 years for a new Chrono game. I had to wait 27 years for another Battletoads game only to have the same things happen to their designs (also originally made by Kevin Bayliss like DK). Trust me, I know the feeling lol.

 

[Hydreigonfan01]

I feel like this forum went from Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion to Mario Kart 10 - Speculation & Discussion tbh.

Guess a Mario Kart 10 being confirmed alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 does that to people.

 

[Gorgonzales]

I feel like this forum went from Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion to Mario Kart 10 - Speculation & Discussion tbh.

Guess a Mario Kart 10 being confirmed alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 does that to people.

I'm not complaining. There's not much else to talk about in the way of Smash, and I like Mario Kart.

 

[RealLuigisWearPink]

I honestly like the movie DK, it just resembles arcade DK more than the Rare design

 

[Noipoi]

I feel like this forum went from Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion to Mario Kart 10 - Speculation & Discussion tbh.

Guess a Mario Kart 10 being confirmed alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 does that to people.

Because Mario Kart is real and new and something to actually talk about

 

[RileyXY1]

I feel like this forum went from Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion to Mario Kart 10 - Speculation & Discussion tbh.

Guess a Mario Kart 10 being confirmed alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 does that to people.

As well as people dooming about the future of the Donkey Kong Country series.

 

[Louie G.]

As well as people dooming about the future of the Donkey Kong Country series.

That’s nothing new, to be fair.

 

[CannonStreak]

People are talking about Donkey Kong being doomed or whatever just because of his new design and his not getting a new game? Man, people are really jumping the gun on this. That can and probably will change in the near future, the not getting a new game part.

 

[RileyXY1]

People are talking about Donkey Kong being doomed or whatever just because of his new design and his not getting a new game? Man, people are really jumping the gun on this. That can and probably will change in the near future, the not getting a new game part.

Yeah. People are fearing that DKC is over and DK himself will be reduced to nothing more than a regular character in Mario spinoffs.

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

I think it’s entirely within Nintendo’s wheelhouse that they felt they needed to make DK their own before they could effectively rebuild him in house. The Rare designs have dominated the character’s design for so long (with even the Retro designs still feeling emblematic of them) that a sentiment of “new DK for a new era”? It would make sense and is what Rare essentially did themselves in 1994. Its why I think Nintendo EPD making the next Donkey Kong game (as opposed to relying on Retro between Metroid titles) makes sense because this feels like the kind of move to really streamline the IP for their long term plans.

I don't think it's necessarily going to be a direct extension of the Mario aesthetics either; the theme park and recent promotional efforts very much keep DK distinct from SMB and I suspect it'll be the same in the future. It may not be as unique as the Rare games or (to a lesser extent) the Retro titles, but they'll be their own thing.

As far as Mario Kart on Switch 2, just get me Diddy and Dixie; anything else is just an added bonus.

 

[RodNutTakin]

I feel like this forum went from Next Smash - Speculation & Discussion to Mario Kart 10 - Speculation & Discussion tbh.

Guess a Mario Kart 10 being confirmed alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 does that to people.

I'm tempted to call it Mario Kart 24 out of spite for Windows numbering schemers.

 

[CannonStreak]

Yeah. People are fearing that DKC is over and DK himself will be reduced to nothing more than a regular character in Mario spinoffs.

Ah, great. Like I said, they are jumping the gun. Donkey Kong will be fine, I think. Just because he does not have much or anything new doesn't mean that can't change. It is too early to call out Donkey Kong as doomed.

 

[Hydreigonfan01]

I'm tempted to call it Mario Kart 24 out of spite for Windows numbering schemers.

That would make it 40 Mario Kart games away until Mario Kart 64 comes out

 

[NintenRob]

Donkey Kongs design honestly just reminded me of this

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Apparently, the 24 characters on the track in the reveal have all been placed.

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, Pauline, Yoshi, Birdo, Toad, Toadette, Koopa Troopa, Shy Guy, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Baby Rosalina, Lakitu, Wario, Waluigi, Donkey Kong, Bowser, Bowser Jr., and King Boo.

Also interesting to note: Wouldn't this be the first time we hear Kevin Afghani as Baby Mario and Baby Luigi?

 

[Noipoi]

Apparently, the 24 characters on the track in the reveal have all been placed.

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Rosalina, Pauline, Yoshi, Birdo, Toad, Toadette, Koopa Troopa, Shy Guy, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Baby Rosalina, Lakitu, Wario, Waluigi, Donkey Kong, Bowser, Bowser Jr., and King Boo.

Also interesting to note: Wouldn't this be the first time we hear Kevin Afghani as Baby Mario and Baby Luigi?

Pretty solid lineup to start with. Wonder who the unlockable character might be.

Hope they're a little more interesting this time. I understand that resources can be limited, but metal recolors are never that exciting.

 

[GoldenYuiitusin]

Pretty solid lineup to start with. Wonder who the unlockable character might be.

Hope they're a little more interesting this time. I understand that resources can be limited, but metal recolors are never that exciting.

Well, Cacomallow hadn't been disproven yet.....

.....so Doom Slayer. Isabelle invited him.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

Pretty solid lineup to start with. Wonder who the unlockable character might be.

Hope they're a little more interesting this time. I understand that resources can be limited, but metal recolors are never that exciting.

I'm just glad Bowser Jr. is on the starting roster this time instead of needing to wait for Mario Kart 10 Deluxe lmao

Also I'm pretty much set on my mains since we already know about Shy Guy and King Boo, but I do hope characters like Wiggler, Petey, Tour characters like King Bob-Omb, and Diddy make it.

 

[BuckleyTim]

I may make fun of roster decisions always, but as long as the Wario brothers are still playable I'll know who I'll gravitate to.

 

[Watuna4343]

Pretty solid lineup to start with. Wonder who the unlockable character might be.

Hope they're a little more interesting this time. I understand that resources can be limited, but metal recolors are never that exciting.

Keep in mind that some of the ones we see may be unlockable and were only part of the show case. It's not the first time Nintendo has done it. Heck in Wii U 8's Rosalina was shown in the trailer (and I think Lakitu as well?) and Toadette was playable in the demo and all of them were unlockable

 

[Golden Icarus]

I just hope the next Mario Kart roster is…big. Mario Kart 8’s starting roster wasn’t small, but having 5 babies and 7 Koopalings and the metal characters made it feel pretty flavorless and repetitive. This one having 24 characters in every race hopefully incentivizes 40+ characters so that every race feels different. I’ll take Baby Rosalina, Tanooki Mario, Pink Cat Peachette or whatever as long there’s still plenty of options to choose from.

Also, why is Mario Sluggers for the Wii still the best Mario spin-off roster out there? MK8 took a DLC pack, a Deluxe edition and then more DLC to even come close to this glory.

 

[TheFirstPoppyBro]

I just hope the next Mario Kart roster is…big. Mario Kart 8’s starting roster wasn’t small, but having 5 babies and 7 Koopalings and the metal characters made it feel pretty flavorless and repetitive. This one having 24 characters in every race hopefully incentivizes 40+ characters so that every race feels different.

Also, why is Mario Sluggers for the Wii still the best Mario spin-off roster out there? MK8 took a DLC pack, a Deluxe edition and then more DLC to even come close to this glory.

View attachment 397858

I feel like it will just based on having 24 characters per race. Mario Kart 8 after the BCP had 48, and I feel like with 24 characters each race that's a pretty solid number to aim for.

 

[LiveStudioAudience]

I just hope the next Mario Kart roster is…big. Mario Kart 8’s starting roster wasn’t small, but having 5 babies and 7 Koopalings and the metal characters made it feel pretty flavorless and repetitive. This one having 24 characters in every race hopefully incentivizes 40+ characters so that every race feels different.

Also, why is Mario Sluggers for the Wii still the best Mario spin-off roster out there? MK8 took a DLC pack, a Deluxe edition and then more DLC to even come close to this glory.

View attachment 397858

MK8 taking nearly 10 years to add Diddy and Funky while Sluggers included Diddy, Dixie, Tiny, Funky, K Rool, Kritter, and Baby DK at release is why nostalgia for spin-offs in the Gamecube and Wii era is entirely justified.

 

[Hadokeyblade]

I hope the next Mario Kart continues to have characters outside of Mario, not turn it into Smash kart or anything, but it'd be neat to have courses based on other Nintendo things.

 

[chocolatejr9]

I just hope the next Mario Kart roster is…big. Mario Kart 8’s starting roster wasn’t small, but having 5 babies and 7 Koopalings and the metal characters made it feel pretty flavorless and repetitive. This one having 24 characters in every race hopefully incentivizes 40+ characters so that every race feels different. I’ll take Baby Rosalina, Tanooki Mario, Pink Cat Peachette or whatever as long there’s still plenty of options to choose from.

Also, why is Mario Sluggers for the Wii still the best Mario spin-off roster out there? MK8 took a DLC pack, a Deluxe edition and then more DLC to even come close to this glory.

View attachment 397858

It was a different time back then. One where experimentation was rewarded rather than punished.