#ray 01

Maybe that sounds selfish. We’ve just gotten Mewtwo confirmed after all, so what more could we want!? You might have seen my ask that Challenger answered on that subject - if the DLC coming in Spring is consisting solely of Mewtwo. They backed up my thought that at least one other fighter is accompanying them in the update. This kind of thing has been done by another submitter to the blog, but I wanted to take a crack at it myself. I want to really dig down deep into the subject and find out who is fit, if anyone, to accompany the most powerful Pokemon in existence! Find out after the break!

(Wait a second, is Mewtwo still the most powerful, or does that title belong to Arceus now…)

A couple of rules need to be established before we start. These could in fact mean nothing, as Sakurai loves to surprise us, and Mewtwo is proof of that, but they are what I am using to help narrow down who is most likely to appear playable as future DLC.

1.  Assist Trophies can NOT appear as DLC characters.

This one might seem obvious, but let’s recall who exactly falls under this category. Knowing the current roster and all of the assist trophies eliminates a good deal of people. Going by the CA Top Picks, this eliminates *Ahem* Waluigi, Tingle, Skull Kid, Midna, Dark Samus, Knuckle Joe, Samurai Goroh, Jeff, Katt & Anna, Ashley, and Takamaru. Andy, I’m saying, can also be counted out since his source of firepower is also an assist. I won’t go into detail or make a separate rule for this, but characters that play a role on stages, like Ridley as a boss and Blaziken as a stage hazard, are also ineligible. I feel none of them will be making a disappearing act from there and onto the roster; Toon Link and Alfonzo should remain the one existing exception.

2. Characters cut from Brawl will NOT be packaged as DLC Characters.

Lucas, Wolf, the Pkmn Trainer, and Snake are all doomed, I’m afraid. In the case of Wolf and Lucas, it would have cost the development team little time and effort to bring them over into the new Smash Bros. game. They were cut to make room for other fighters, so having them as DLC would be strange with that in mind. Characters that have different fighters taking up the same slot was removed, and so Pkmn Trainer could no longer exist. Charizard was the certainly the most popular of his Pokémon, so Ivysaur and Squirtle had to get the axe as well. Snake was cut simply because he didn’t fit in, and no doubt would have went against the E 10+ rating that Nintendo was trying to get. It also seems Konami is pushing themselves, and Snake included, away from Nintendo, but that’s another conversation for another time. I left the Ice Climbers out because they’re a strange case. They aren’t a clone, and are among the most adorable characters on the roster so in no way can they endanger the rating. They were axed because of their one unique feature that was probably the biggest attribute to them being chosen for the roster in Melee! Their mechanic would simply be too much for the 3DS to handle, having a 4-Player all Ice Climbers match, and for the Wii U, an 8-Player all Ice Climbers match. I honestly thought it was the end for them, until I read a submitted article by Ohthehypocrisy. It gives them another unique gimmick which they could return to the game with, and you can find out what that is by reading the whole article linked here. Even with that though, I am apprehensive about adding the duo to the list. That decision is extremely difficult, and definitely even more-so for Sakurai. Even though they aren’t on my list, don’t be surprised if you are to see them again.

3. Having a trophy already existing in the game does NOT diminish their chances.

Back when Smash for 3DS released in Japan around a month ago, I followed closely to the list of possible unlockable fighters confirmed by their trophy being acquired in the game, as just that; a trophy and nothing else. Mewtwo once again makes me question why we even bother making lists and ‘rules’ when he was confirmed as DLC. So having a trophy in the game doesn’t hurt a character’s chance of being playable. There are some cases where the inclusion of or even lack of a trophy might actually help! There is one case, however, where not having a trophy diminishes their chances quite significantly. That case is Isaac, from Golden Sun. He is no longer an assist trophy, which many think boosted his chances quite nicely, and it could be argued that he doesn’t have a trophy because it’s going to be saved for when he comes out as DLC. But, keep in mind that the 3DS Version of the game is supposed to have important characters, items, etc from Handheld titles. The Golden Sun series that Isaac is from has only had games on handheld systems (not counting Virtual Console). If Nintendo still thought the series was important, he should have appeared as a trophy to represent the series. If games like Style Savvy are deemed worthy of a trophy representative over Isaac, then it’s possible Nintendo, Sakurai, or both, have waved off the the small series in favor of others.

Thank you for bearing with all of those pesky rules. They’re necessary, but you can only read about them for so long. I suppose it’s time to show you what you probably clicked on this article (and possibly scrolled all the way down past the rules) for! Starting off this list with…

#10

Name: Ray Mk. III (Custom Robo)

Chance: Iffy

For those not aware, Ray Mk. III is a main character from Custom Robo, a series that is pretty self-explanatory; you build a custom robot using new parts that you unlock as you progress. He has been a heavily requested character and was without a doubt one of the more likely Brawl assist trophies to be made playable. Well, the game is out now, and there are 3 assists that are absent from last time that people think still have a shot at the roster. I’ve already shared my thoughts on Isaac, and the other will appear later in the list, but Ray is who we’re focused on at the moment. Despite no longer being an assist AND still having a trophy on the 3DS version even though it was mainly a console series, his chances are still small. Custom Robo only has four games to its name, and out of those only two were released in North America. Oddly enough, Europe only had one of those games ported to their country. To top it all off, their last title was released in 2007, which is probably what gave Ray just enough popularity to become an assist for Brawl. So Ray’s chances are just like his size, pretty small, but he is still a wanted character with nothing making him ineligible, and that’s enough to make him #10 on my list.

#9

Name: Professor Layton (Professor Layton)

Chance: Iffy

(Credit)

The good professor hails from the series of the same name. Layton’s talents include crafting inventions, swordplay, and above all else… puzzle solving. It may be a strange talent for a Smash Bros. fighter, but his other talents alone certainly make him more qualified than characters like Game & Watch and Pac-Man. There is a lot that could be done with Prof. Layton in terms a of moveset: his aforementioned swordplay skills, his slot-machine cannon, and his athleticism, intelligence, and references to his puzzles could easily fill his pool. He’s been the star of 6 games, a spin-off with Phoenix Wright, and has his own movie too! Prof. Layton is an incredibly popular character who has just the kind of quirkiness that Sakurai looks for in making his roster. So then you’re probably wondering… why is he at #9? Professor Layton is owned by Level 5, a third-party company. It may seem like they work second-party with Nintendo; in addition to the Layton series they’re also the minds behind Inazuma Eleven, a sports-centered RPG, and Fantasy Life, the recently released and incredibly popular 3DS RPG. The DS and 3DS have without a doubt been their main source of game revenue, and it may seem like they’re more of a second-party with how closely they work with Nintendo, but sadly they aren’t. This alone is a major issue with him being added to the Smash Bros. roster. Would Sakurai want to add a third-party character as DLC? If he would, would he even consider Prof. Layton for the roster as he isn’t a “classic” character like Pac-Man, Mega Man, and Sonic. Those last questions might make you think Simon Belmont should obviously be here in place of Layton, but Konami and Nintendo have really drifted apart in relationship, the opposite of what’s happened with Level 5. Kojima has said that Sakurai never approached him for the matter of adding Snake into the game, and I am willing to bet that means there was no discussion over any of their characters inclusions at all.

Anyways, all of this makes me unsure of whether the Professor should be a lot higher on this list or if he should even be on it at all! It’s hilariously coincidental how puzzling it is deciding a place for him, so Layton stand as our other “iffy” character.

#8

Name: Krystal (Star Fox)

Chance: Fair

Krystal, the fox girl from the Planet Cernia, will be the last character discussed in this part. With Wolf gone, Smash is back to having just two Star Fox characters on the roster. Due to the size of their series, three was honestly pushing it in Brawl, but I’m thinking there just might be room for one more member, so long as they aren’t a second clone like Wolf was. Krystal would have to have her own moveset since she carries a different set of skills than any of the other Star Fox characters. She’s telepathic, is much more proficient with her staff than the squad’s blaster, and could use some of the other weapons in the Star Fox arsenal that aren’t currently in use. In the end, what might keep her from being added is popularity. She is without a doubt the most likely Star Fox member that could be added to the game, but from her roots in Adventures to the last original Star Fox title being released in 2007, it’s a bit of a stretch to say her likeliness is anything better than okay.