During Nintendo’s E3 2018 livestream, we caught a sneak peek of the upcoming Super Smash Bros Ultimate, though it wasn’t as much a “peek” as it was a full reveal. During the stream, Nintendo threw back the curtain and gave us a full preview of what we can expect from the upcoming game, from the roster of fighters right down to small tweaks made to the gameplay.
First, for you Smash Bros fans out there, who is your favorite fighter? Well, no matter who you picked, you’re in luck — Super Smash Bros Ultimate will feature every single fighter from previous games. That’s right, all of them are making a comeback for Super Smash Bros Ultimate, even Mr. Game & Watch. And Solid Snake. And about a million different Kirbys.
On top of the full roster from previous games, we will see a number of new characters joining the fight, giving the game more than 60 fighters to choose from. As we saw in the original teaser, Inkling Girl and Inkling Boy, from Splatoon 2, will be in the new Smash Bros, along with an enormous wardrobe of skins and accessories. But we’ll also see Metroid Prime series villain Ridley joining the fight. Not space pirate Ridley, but giant-monster-alien Ridley.
The event was jam-packed with information so we’re just giving you the highlights here, and one big highlight was the fact that Smash Bros Ultimate will feature support for GameCube controllers, for all you traditionalists out there.
Details like these clearly illustrate just what a labor of love this game is for the developers. Not only is it built to be everything die-hard fans would want out of a Smash Bros title, but it’s built with the average player in mind too, series newcomers and original game adherents alike will find something to enjoy here.
During the presentation, designer Masahiro Sakurai not only walked us through what we can expect but also his thought process behind bringing in the full roster of characters.
Speaking with The Verge, Sakurai went into what it was like to pitch his ambitious plan to include every previous fighter, give them a makeover, and revamp their entire skill set to bring each character into the game with perfect balance.
“From where I stood, all I heard was dead silence,” Sakurai said, describing the moment when he informed his team what he wanted out of the next Smash Bros game. “I speak from the depths of my heart when I say it’s a lot of work.”
But the big reveal clearly illustrates that the hard work Sakurai and his team put in will most certainly pay off, as Super Smash Bros Ultimate heads to store shelves for Nintendo Switch on December 7.
