Before Super Smash Bros. Ultimate rolled around, most fans of the crossover fighter would only take part in rampant speculation regarding new characters in the time between installments. Now, however, with DLC fighters coming thick and fast, the speculation as to who will be announced for inclusion next has been sustained far longer than usual.
Unfortunately, series creator Masahiro Sakurai threw a wrench in the speculation machine when he announced the first fighter of the second wave of DLC would be none other than Fire Emblem’s Byleth. Fans aren’t happy considering that out of the now-massive 75 character roster, 8 slots will now be filled by Fire Emblem swordsmen. In light of this, here are a few characters that likely would have been received better, and some that show the announcement could have been worse.
Better: Dante
A strong contender to be included in the current wave of DLC fighters, and with the newest entry in his franchise not long since released, and a Switch re-release on the way, Devil May Cry’s demon slayer would have been a more exciting sword slinger to include.
With a massive arsenal of weapons ranging from his traditional sword Rebellion and duel pistols Ebony and Ivory to a motorcycle that turns into two buzzsaws and a cowboy hat that fires demonic life force like a machine gun (yes, really). All that ridiculousness plus the fact that the point system in his own games being based entirely around being awesome, there’s no doubt Dante would be a fun addition, especially with his Devil Trigger as a Final Smash.
Worse: Rabbids
Mario’s recent crossover with them in Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle could point at a deal between Nintendo and Ubisoft to include the party game mascots in more than one crossover.
The Rabbids might work well in their gaming corner, but being introduced into a fighter like Super Smash Bros. might see them get boring fast; they’re the Minions of gaming. On the bright side, the inclusion of a Rabbid as a Mii Costume may have held the screaming vermin at bay.
Better: Spyro
Another long-awaited contender to join the battle is a certain purple dragon, the call for his inclusion only growing louder since the release of the Spyro Reignited Trilogy. He’s a classic character from an era of gaming that’s been unrepresented until the inclusion of Banjo Kazooie’s titular characters, could we be about to see an influx of said representation?
Fans of Spyro would likely be best pleased to see a version of the character closer to his younger days, with gliding, horn charging, and fire breathing all in his repertoire of moves. Who knows, maybe as he took more damage his trusty companion Sparx could change color, just like in his home turf games.
Worse: Any Pokémon
Considering the irritation caused by the inclusion of Byleth is because the Fire Emblem franchise has so much representation, it makes sense that another Pokémon would be just as annoying.
There’s been a whole new entry in the franchise since Incineroar joined the roster, and with Pokémon: Sword and Shield’s own DLC fast approaching, it would make sense that a new Pocket Monster would break onto the scene. However, with 8 slots already (10 if you count Charizard, Ivysaur, and Squirtle as 3 characters) wouldn’t it feel fresher to have a rep from a new franchise?
Better: Crash
Smash might be about to get a lot more N-sane! With the release of the Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy on the Switch, one denim shorted marsupial is the speculators favorite to be the next DLC revealed, but it’s hard not to feel like Crash would have made a bigger impact if he had the first DLC slot, claimed by Byleth.
Spinning, jumping, and sliding around are pretty basic moves in Smash but what would make Crash unique could be the inclusion of his extended tool kit it battle. From a ride-able polar bear to TNT and Nitro crates, Crash could be a character that forces the player to accept their unpredictable side to win. All that and donning magic Tiki mask Aku Aku to become invincible is a no brainer Final Smash.
Worse: Excitebike Racer
Old School 8-bit characters like Mr. Game & Watch haven’t really seen a lot of love during Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s lifetime, and while that’s unfortunate, it’s probably for good reason. Unlike Mr. Game & Watch, the vast majority of characters from that era don’t really have a vast array of moves that translate well to a fighter, the Excitebike Racer is one of them.
Imagine a character whose only move is basically Sonic the Hedgehog’s spin dash, that’s Excitebike Racer. Speculated to be a newcomer for the last couple of Super Smash Bros. entries, it really doesn’t look likely anytime soon, and that’s probably a good thing.
Better: Rayman
Over the years poor ol’ no limbs Rayman has gone from classic 2D platformers to 3D adventure platformers then back to 2D arcade side-scrollers and being outshined by some spinoff Rabbids. So, if Crash and Spyro can make a triumphant return, then why not Rayman? He definitely deserves it.
Created by Betilla the fairy when the Creator had his first nightmare, Rayman was intended to be both hilarious and tenacious in order to fight the nightmare and also make the Creator laugh. He’s a dead ringer for Super Smash Bros. with limbless punches and helicopter hair, he’d be an interesting addition in regards to gameplay too.
Worse: More Mario Characters
Clearly this is going to happen at some point, the Super Mario franchise is Nintendo’s flagship series staring their mascot at that. However, like Fire Emblem and Pokémon, Super Mario characters take up a whopping 11 character slots, to the point where some weird franchise icons are getting an inclusion.
While Parana Plant was a weird but bizarrely entertaining edition, we can probably all do without a playable Goomba or another Mario Echo Fighter in the form of Shadow Mario. While yes, Waluigi would be great, it’s more likely another Koopa related character will pop up and nobody wants that.
Better: Sora
While some were unhappy about Byleth’s inclusion because of the Fire Emblem angle, many others just weren’t fans of another sword-wielding anime character making the cut. While Sora, the protagonist of Square Enix and Disney’s Kingdom Hearts franchise, may be exactly that, there’s more potential here than eminently obvious.
Throughout Kingdom Hearts (the games staring Sora at least) he wields all sorts of powers and abilities inspired by classic Disney films. Pair this with sidekicks Goofy and Donald Duck maybe even accompanying Sora á la Duck Hunt or Ice Climbers, and the character could be a cut above the rest. Another Key Blade wielder like Mickey Mouse could even make a sneaky appearance in Sora’s Final Smash.
Worse: Ms. Pac-Man
So far Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has managed to avoid dropping any Echo Fighters as DLC, let’s not start with Pac-Man wearing a bow and lipstick. Her original games came out of Midway Games, the American distributor of Pac-Man, purchasing a project for a modification kit for the original Pac-Man.
The problem is not that Ms. Pac-Man would inevitably just feel like a re-skin of Pac-man, but that having that re-skin as the primary character of a paid DLC would feel cheap. Include her as an alternate costume or Echo Fighter as an extra incentive in another Character Pack by all means, but let’s not pretend that paying full price for an Echo Fighter-centric Character Pack wouldn’t be disappointing.
