Well, since I had to delay the post that I was going to do this weekend, I figured I'd at least leave you guys with something, so here's a completely different post instead.
Note that this is ENTIRELY speculation, and nothing is confirmed. So if you are just here for news, you can skip this post.
When it comes down to it, there's only so much room on the Super Smash Bros. roster. Not every franchise can fit all of their characters on the roster. So which characters are likely to show up? Well, let's think about this.
Smash 64: Characters (Mario, Luigi)
Melee: Characters (Dr. Mario, Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser)
Brawl: Characters (Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser)
Wii U/3DS: Characters (Mario, Bowser)
The Mario franchise is the only one to currently have two confirmed fighters on the roster: Mario and Bowser.
What else could happen? Well, I definitely see Luigi returning, as he's basically THE mascot for Nintendo, aside from Mario himself. Peach is also a definitive return. Dr. Mario isn't very likely, given that it basically IS Mario. Unless every character gets new costumes, similarly to Wario's in Brawl, I don't see Dr. Mario being included at all, except maybe as a Sticker or a Trophy.
Newcomers? Well, Toad is definitely not going to be in it, assuming that Peach keeps her standard B attack. Waluigi is a possibility, given how detailed his design was when he appeared in Brawl as an Assist Trophy, but seeing as how he doesn't even appear in any non-spinoff games, I just don't see it happening.
The ones that are likely are Bowser Jr. and Geno, particularly the former. Both of these were extremely wanted in Brawl, and since we didn't get either one, I bet we get one here. Geno isn't too likely due to Nintendo having to negotiate with Square-Enix for the rights to use him, but Bowser Jr. has no such issues.
And finally, with New Super Luigi U introducing the character Nabbit, with a particularly gimmicky playstyle, it's possible that we'll see that same playstyle appear in Smash Bros.
Smash 64: Character (Yoshi)
Melee: Character (Yoshi)
Brawl: Character (Yoshi)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Yoshi has always been flying solo, as the sole representative of his series. Unfortunately, I think that trend will remain. Baby Bowser isn't a likely inclusion if you have Bowser Jr. (or heck, just Bowser in the first place). Baby Mario and Baby Luigi couldn't really add anything that their adult counterparts couldn't. Kamek is the only unique character from this series, and since there's enough Mario characters on the roster as is (assuming my predictions above were accurate), I don't see it happening.
Yoshi will definitely come back though. I guarantee it. He's the last of the original 8 not to be confirmed. But I doubt that he'll bring anyone with him.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Trophies Only
Brawl: Character (Wario)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Now, I will freely admit this much: WarioWare has great characters.
I've always wanted them to make a non-WarioWare game featuring WarioWare characters, just because I'd love to see what some of these guys do when they aren't working at their jobs. Like, a WarioWare RPG or a WarioWare fighting game or something.
But despite its great cast of characters, it's not really significant enough for Nintendo to give it more than one character, or maybe two.
Wario should return, as he was a unique enough fighter from Brawl.
If another character gets in, I expect it to be Kat & Ana, who were previously seen as an Assist Trophy. They just seem the easiest to turn into fighters. But I wouldn't even expect that much.
Besides, aside from using the swords, what moves would they even have?
Smash 64: Character (Donkey Kong)
Melee: Character (Donkey Kong)
Brawl: Characters (Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Donkey Kong)
The last of the questionably-Mario franchises, the Donkey Kong franchise has Donkey Kong confirmed as a playable character. Diddy Kong was also in Brawl, and I think it'd be foolish not to expect his return.
As for newcomers, it is somewhat likely that we'll get Dixie Kong as a pseudo-clone of Diddy Kong (though hopefully with a Up+B similar to what she does in the upcoming Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze), but not much else.
As popular as this franchise is, they don't have much going for them in the way of characters. The only other major contender is King K. Rool, who is VERY polarizing amongst fans. I just don't think Nintendo will take the gamble with him.
Smash 64: Character (Link)
Melee: Characters (Link, Zelda, Sheik, Ganondorf, Young Link)
Brawl: Characters (Link, Zelda, Sheik, Ganondorf, Toon Link)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Link)
Well, we know that Link is returning. Zelda and Sheik are also prime candidates for returning, especially the former (but Sheik is still VERY likely).
I speculated that Ganondorf could potentially be replaced with Ghirahim or Demise. After rethinking it though, Ganondorf wields the Triforce of Power. He's just too important to be replaced. Hopefully he'll be made better than he was in Melee and Brawl though.
Young Link and Toon Link? Well, I'm fairly sure there's gonna be a second Link. Whether it's one of these two or a new one entirely, though, I couldn't say. Don't expect any more than that though.
There are plenty of other cool characters too, like Groose, Vaati, Midna, and Impa. But I don't know if it's safe to expect six characters from Zelda.
Smash 64: Character (Samus)
Melee: Character (Samus)
Brawl: Characters (Samus, Zero Suit Samus)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Samus)
Samus is already confirmed, and I think it's a fair bet to assume that Zero Suit Samus will be back, since we know that Samus can still use the Zero Laser.
One character that has been demanded by fans REPEATEDLY is Ridley. More than any other character from any franchise, in fact. I always assumed that he wouldn't be in Brawl (and I was right), mainly due to Pokémon Trainer's Charizard taking the role of "flying fire-breathing dragon," but since I think there is a good chance that Pokémon Trainer won't return, I bet Ridley will make it this time.
Admittedly, I've never played a Metroid game, so I don't know too much about other characters aside from that who could potentially be in this game, but considering the fact that the franchise isn't very popular in Japan, I wouldn't expect more than three characters.
Smash 64: Character (Kirby)
Melee: Character (Kirby)
Brawl: Characters (Kirby, Meta Knight, King Dedede)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Kirby)
The Kirby franchise is the hardest to predict, since Masahiro Sakurai, the guy who makes the Super Smash Bros. franchise, also makes this one. And he is very modest. So he has always downplayed the Kirby franchise's role in the Smash games.
That said, I do expect King Dedede and Meta Knight to return, hopefully without the latter being ridiculously overpowered.
As for newcomers, Adeleine would be an interesting character to play as. But this is highly unlikely, just due to Sakurai's modesty.
Prince Fluff may appear as an alternate costume for Kirby, and Galacta Knight as one for Meta Knight. Other than that, don't expect too much.
A good chunk of people seem to want Waddle Dee as a playable character, but if King Dedede's Side+B and Final Smash remain the same, then you face the same problem as Peach's Toad.
Smash 64: Character (Fox)
Melee: Characters (Fox, Falco)
Brawl: Characters (Fox, Falco, Wolf)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Fox)
Star Fox, as a franchise, has gone WAY downhill over the years. As such, it's really not popular.
But there is one aspect of it that is: Krystal. I was honestly surprised that she wasn't in Brawl. However, I don't think that Star Fox deserves four characters.
So, basically, with Fox already confirmed, my prediction for the remainder of this franchise is as follows:
Falco, Wolf, and Krystal. Pick two.
Yeah, that's the best I can do. I don't think that any combination is any more likely than any other. Falco-Wolf would be consistent with continuity, and would allow Sakurai to cut as few characters as possible. Falco-Krystal would be nice, as we get a new character, who would use a staff, making her unique, while keeping Fox's team together, and maintaining the duo from Melee. Wolf-Krystal would allow us that same new character, as well as provide villain representation.
Basically, any of those three could be combinations.
The only other major characters in the franchise are Slippy and Peppy, but I don't see either one appearing in the game, since they can't really do much that Falco can't do. Plus, then we'd lose the Smash Taunt.
I guess maybe Andross, but I'm not entirely convinced that he has a large enough fanbase, especially when compared to Wolf.
Smash 64: Characters (Pikachu, Jigglypuff)
Melee: Characters (Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Mewtwo, Pichu)
Brawl: Characters (Pikachu, Pokémon Trainer (Squirtle, Ivysaur, Charizard), Lucario, Jigglypuff)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Pikachu)
Pokémon definitely has the widest variety of characters to choose from, with a total of 649 in existence so far, and another 100 to 150 expected in October. Plus form changes to add even more!
First of all, Pikachu is back. We know this. It's the franchise mascot, and it'll never go away.
The other veterans, though, are ALL in danger of getting cut. Jigglypuff just isn't popular AT ALL. Lucario has been obsoleted lately by Zoroark. Pichu was a terrible choice from the start. Pokémon Trainer is using Pokémon from an outdated generation now. And Mewtwo has at least one new form in the upcoming games, making the old one seem very outdated.
Aside from a new trainer to replace the old one, and POSSIBLY Zoroark to replace Lucario though, we don't know what could possibly be happening for this franchise.
Simply because we haven't had time to play the sixth generation yet, as it isn't released. So we don't know which characters, if any, will be popular enough to merit playability in Smash.
Smash 64: Character (Captain Falcon)
Melee: Character (Captain Falcon)
Brawl: Character (Captain Falcon)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
F-Zero is the only franchise to have been around since Smash's early days and still only have one character (assuming that you group Yoshi as a Mario franchise).
Captain Falcon, a character who was, for the most part, created specifically for Smash Bros.
Seriously. In the games, we never even see him leave his car, so what he looks like and how he fights was invented just for Smash.
And while Black Shadow would be awesome, how different would he be from Captain Falcon? We need a character that's different.
Samurai Goroh, a sword-wielder, would fit that mold perfectly. Featured in Brawl as an Assist Trophy, he's a good fit for a playable character. If F-Zero gets a second character, I'd expect him.
But will F-Zero get a second character?
I honestly don't know enough about the franchise to make the call.
Smash 64: Character (Ness)
Melee: Character (Ness)
Brawl: Characters (Lucas, Ness)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
This franchise has an interesting history, to say the least. It was originally called MOTHER in Japan, followed by two sequels, MOTHER 2 and MOTHER 3.
Only one of these games got translated to America, and that was MOTHER 2, where it was renamed to "Earthbound." This caused many fans to rename the other games unofficially to "Earthbound Zero" and "Earthbound 2."
And none of the games ever made it to Europe.
Cut to years later on the Virtual Console, and after several eons of demanding it from Nintendo, we FINALLY get Earthbound on Virtual Console. Worldwide, so Europe has it too now.
This makes me wonder if they're going to do anything with the franchise, like translating MOTHER 3 or making MOTHER 4 or something.
If they do, then all bets are off. Cause the fanbase for this franchise is overwhelming. There's a shockingly huge amount of fans for this, considering that two of the three games are unavailable in English. And even the one that is happens to be one of the rarest games in existence!
I actually haven't played any of the games, but I really really want to.
Having said that, I'll try to make my best guess based on what I do know about the franchise, assuming that nothing changes in the franchise between the release of the fourth Smash game and now.
If things do change, then just pick whichever character is the most popular at the time of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U/3DS's release.
Without changes, let's see... Claus, Poo, Porky, Paula, and Jeff could all very well be newcomers. Lucas and Ness could return. I expect there to be three from that list, with at least one being a veteran.
I don't think Ninten will appear, at all.
Is he even popular enough for the fans to know who he is?
You know, considering that his only appearance is in MOTHER 1.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Character (Ice Climbers)
Brawl: Character (Ice Climbers)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Expect Ice Climbers to return. Expect nothing else.
Yeah.
This is a franchise that has had only one game in its entire existence, which was released WAY back in 1985. And very few people had heard of it before Super Smash Bros. Melee.
I am ashamed to be one of those people.
The game isn't very fun, doesn't offer ANYTHING enjoyable, and somehow ended up offering us what has got to be the most irritating character in Smash Bros.
Oh, don't get me wrong, they're fun to play as, and there's a lot of cool things you can do with them.
It's just rather annoying to rack up a huge combo against them, and realize you've only hit Nana. It's even more annoying when you kill Nana, but Popo is still alive. It feels like you got cheated out on a win.
And of course, their stage in Melee was the most unbearable thing in existence.
As for other characters, um, ARE there even any other Ice Climber characters in existence? I don't think there are. And no, generic enemies don't count. You wouldn't expect a Goomba or an Octorok to be in the game, so don't expect a Condor.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Characters (Marth, Roy)
Brawl: Characters (Ike, Marth)
Wii U/3DS: Stage (Arena Ferox)
Yeah, given that we have a stage based on Fire Emblem: Awakening, we're definitely getting a character.
I hate to lose Marth, who is iconic for having debuted in Smash Bros. without actually doing so (his game was Japan-only at the time of Melee's release, thus causing international players to wrongfully think that he debuted in Smash. Contrast this with Roy who really DID debut in Smash Bros.), but I think it's likely.
Fire Emblem: Awakening is here, and Chrom is essentially the new version of Marth.
It's possible that they'll have both, but how different will they be?
Ike may return, possibly with Lyn as another character too, but again, I think Chrom has got Lyn counter-checked as well.
Roy will not be coming back. He was only in Melee as an advertisement to promote his new-at-the-time game, Fire Emblem: Sword of Seals.
I really want Hector to appear, since an axe-wielder would be unique, but I think someone like Lucina is FAR more likely.
Still, I can hope.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Character (Mr. Game & Watch)
Brawl: Character (Mr. Game & Watch)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Expect Mr. Game and Watch. Expect nothing else.
Repeat the same exact comments as Ice Climber here.
Seriously. There's NO other characters in the franchise.
The franchise is ridiculously out-of-date, and few people knew about it before Melee.
Though, once again, I was one that did. And this time, I'll proudly admit it, rather than shamefully admit it.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Trophy Only
Brawl: Character (Pit)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Pit)
Kid Icarus would have the same spiel as Ice Climber and Game & Watch, having had only a single game way back in 1987, and no new ones since then (the Game Boy one doesn't count, as it was never released in Japan).
Although this time I hadn't heard of Kid Icarus before Brawl.
So yeah, I *would* say the same stuff here...
Except for the fact that we recently got a new game in 2012.
Yeah, took you long enough.
Now, like the Kirby franchise, this new game was directed by Sakurai himself, so it's impossible to speculate on.
I thought it was good enough to warrant one more character in Smash, but Sakurai may be modest about it.
Palutena, Medusa, and Hades are all very likely candidates, but between the three of them, I'd say that Palutena is my odds-on favorite.
Unless costume changes AREN'T in the game, and it's just color changes. Then, we can have the extremely cool and sexy Dark Pit as our second character. But most likely, he'll just be a costume for Pit.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Trophies Only
Brawl: Character (Olimar)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Olimar)
Well, with Pikmin 3 being released in Japan, it's possible that Alph, Brittany, or Charlie could appear.
But what could they do that Olimar couldn't?
Heck, even other characters from past games, like Louie and the President, really couldn't do much that Olimar couldn't.
I'm seeing Olimar flying solo once more, but talk to me in a few weeks when America gets this game to know for sure.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Character (R.O.B.)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
And now, to talk about the history of R.O.B., since very few people actually understand it. Most people think he debuted in Mario Kart DS. This is incorrect.
In 1983, in America, video game popularity was at a minimum. To the extent that you couldn't even sell a video game. As soon as you said the word "video game", no one would want it.
Why? Because there were so many horrendously bad games released in rapid succession.
This problem seemed to be American-specific, though. Video games were still going strong in Japan.
And so Nintendo made the Famicom (Japanese version of the NES), and released it in Japan. It was a huge success, and they wanted to market it elsewhere. But you couldn't sell video games in America.
So they tried selling the Nintendo Entertainment System as a "toy" instead of a "video game." But it's not very toy-like. That brings us to R.O.B. (which, if you didn't know, stands for Robotic Operating Buddy).
He was Nintendo's "trojan horse" attempt to steal the market. He was an accessory for the NES that was compatible with two games that launched with the NES: Gyromite and Stack-Up, the former of which came with the R.O.B. upon purchase.
Neither game was very good (not at all helped by the fact that R.O.B. just didn't work half the time - but even ignoring that factor, the games still sucked), and no future games used this accessory at all.
But R.O.B. did do one thing right: he looked like a toy. Because of him, the NES was able to sell, and as a result, video games became good again, and the market eventually evolved into what it is today, with video games being a respected form of media once again.
Yes, this robot, which usually didn't work and was absolutely terrible even when it did, saved the entire video game industry. And this was seriously Nintendo's plan all along.
R.O.B.'s remaining history is just a bunch of cameos in later games: a similar-looking robot appears in StarTropics, Kirby builds one in Kirby's Dream Land 3, there is a Star Fox character named ROB 64 (named after him), several WarioWare games make references to him, a model appears in Port Town Aero Dive of F-Zero GX (which, ironically, would also appear in Brawl), its head can be found in Pikmin 2, and he is playable in Mario Kart DS.
After all of this, he then goes on to be a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Most people first heard about him either here or in Mario Kart DS.
After Brawl, his sole appearance was on the back of the box for the Viewtiful Joe game for the Wii. And he hasn't been seen since.
But yeah, that's his franchise in a nutshell. There's basically no room for character expansion, so I'm betting that he flies solo as well.
He will return though. I don't doubt that. If Mr. Game & Watch made the jump from Melee to Brawl, R.O.B. can make it from Brawl to the next one.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Character (Sonic)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Third-party space is EXTREMELY limited, so no third-party character is a guarantee.
Plus, there's still kinks with legal issues to work out regarding the use of non-Nintendo characters.
Sonic is probably going to return, given his massive popularity, but the very fact that he isn't a Nintendo character means that this is no certainty, and he is in danger of being cut at any point.
Simple legal problems could cause stuff like that.
Is there any hope for newcomers? Ideally, yes. I want to play as Shadow and Knuckles and Amy and Tails and Rogue and Cream and Metal Sonic and Dr. Eggman and probably a few others that I'm forgetting.
But as I said, third-party space is limited, so these are NOT ideal circumstances, and they are NOT happening. Sonic will have to fly solo. Knuckles or Shadow might show up, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Especially with Mega Man already taking up one third-party slot.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Character (Snake)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Don't expect anything here. Snake will be cut. Nothing will replace him.
This franchise will be stricken from the Smash Bros. universe.
Why? Snake isn't a popular character, Konami and Nintendo aren't likely to discuss legal issues right now (given their recent history), and there's already rumors that Snake won't be returning.
So yeah. I'm almost certain that this franchise is non-existent in the upcoming Smash game.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: Trophies Only
Brawl: Stage (Smashville)
Wii U/3DS: Character (Villager)
Mr. Resetti is an awesome Assist Trophy. I don't think he'll be removed from that role.
And all other likely candidates for a playable spot are seen in the background of the new Smash Bros. stage.
Looks like Villager is doing it alone.
But I haven't played any Animal Crossing games, except for the original and Wild World, and I barely remember the latter. City Folk and New Leaf may have something, but since my brother is a huge fan of this franchise, I know pretty much everything about it, even without playing it.
So I'm guessing that there are no major characters that I'm unaware of when I make that assertion.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Stage (PictoChat)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Possibly the most bizarre franchise to have representation in Smash Bros., I don't see it getting any characters, simply because there aren't any characters in it.
Not surprising, given that this is a franchise with ZERO games of its own.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Stage (Hanenbow)
Wii U/3DS: None Yet
Working our way up from zero, Electroplankton does have one game. And another ten. Kinda.
There are ten, really cheap, downloadable games on DSiWare that are literally just one-tenth of the original DS game each. Meaning that there really is only one game.
It was an interesting stage, and I expect some stage like it to appear in the new game, but characters? No. Once again, there are no characters to be had.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: No Representation
Wii U/3DS: Character (Mega Man)
In regards to additional characters, basically everything that I said about Sonic applies here as well.
But one thing that makes this franchise ahead of Sonic's is that they already have a character confirmation in the Wii U/3DS game.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: No Representation
Wii U/3DS: Character (Wii Fit Trainer)
The newest franchise to join the Smash Bros. fray is Wii Fit.
No one saw this coming, whether seriously or jokingly. But the "Miss Fit" has made herself known to the world as a Smasher now. And most people have accepted her as a character.
Anything else from this franchise, character-wise?
Um, I don't think there really is anything that could be playable at all. I seriously don't think there are other characters in this. But the only game I've played from this series is the original Wii Fit, and it was only played once or twice, a long time ago. So take that with a grain of salt.
Smash 64: No Representation
Melee: No Representation
Brawl: Assist Trophy
Wii U/3DS: Stage (Nintendogs 3DS stage)
Not really expecting anything here, except maybe the Assist Trophy to come back. Maybe.
Speaking of which, here's other series with Brawl Assist Trophies that have no confirmation in the Wii U/3DS game (some of them were also trophies in Melee):
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None, but maybe Ray MK III, or Ray MK II, or Ray, or Ray 01. But probably not any of them.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None, but maybe if they make a custom moveset like they did with Captain Falcon, it would be possible.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: Isaac, almost definitely. Possibly Matthew as well. There's also a chance of Matthew appearing without Isaac, but that's unlikely.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: None
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: Little Mac, but it's really a 50/50 shot.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...
Nah, just kidding.
None, though.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: Saki Amamiya, maybe.
Characters Expected in Wii U/3DS: Starfy. For sure.
Finally, for franchises with EXTREMELY minimal representation in Smash. Meaning: Item or Music or Sticker or Trophy. And no Assist Trophy, Stage, or Character.
Now, Chibi-Robo is an interesting case, beca-
Stop.
I'm not going to put a logo for each and every one of these. That'd just be ridiculous. Here they are, in alphabetical order, text-only:
1080° Snowboarding/Avalanche
Balloon Fight
Big Brain Academy
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!
Card Hero
Chibi-Robo
Clu Clu Land
Cubivore
Doshin the Giant
Duck Hunt
Elite Beat Agents
Famicom Detective Club
Famicom Disk System
Kung Fu
Mach Rider
Magical Vacation
Nintendo Hardware
Perfect Dark
Pinball
Shaberu! DS Oryouri NAVI
Sheriff
Shin Oni Ga Shima
Tennis
Wave Race
Wild Gunman
X
Looking at that list, I don't really see anything worth talking about, actually. But you never know.
As we learned with Wii Fit Trainer, expect the unexpected.
Special Thanks to the following wikis for helping me with research on this:
bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net
dkwiki.com
fireemblemwiki.org
goldensunwiki.net
kidicaruswiki.org
mariowiki.com
metroidwiki.org
mutecity.org
nookipedia.com
pikminwiki.com
ssbwiki.com
starfoxwiki.info
starfywiki.org
warswiki.warscentral.com
wikibound.info
wikirby.com
zeldawiki.org
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