[Feature] New Knowledge on the Newcomers!

It’s no wonder a game such as Super Smash Bros. has become the big hit it is today. Even after its near 15 year lifespan, it seems that the Smash community only grows larger and larger every day. I mean, a game where you get to mound Sonic the Hedgehog’s smug little face in with Mario’s fire-spouting fists as Mega Man tries to intervene for that one extra kill is already my game of the century based on that scenario alone. While the series is also known for its kick-ass gameplay that’s just simple enough while still providing the necessary elements to begin a huge competitive scene, it’s mainly known for accomplishing a seemingly impossible task and gathering together all of Nintendo’s star players and making it all seem so… right. As expected, there’s a huge roster of characters to select from, boasting characters from huge series’ such as Mario and Legend of Zelda all the way to lesser known series such as Earthbound and Fire Emblem. I thought it would be fun to delve deeper into some of the more unique newcomers’ history and analyze why the characters might’ve been chosen join the battle, so let’s go ahead and do that, shall we?

Since both these characters pasts’ are pretty similar, I’ve decided to place them into one segment. These two fighters were both first introduced to American audiences with the 3DS release of Fire Emblem: Awakening, an early 2013 title, and were actually two characters no one saw coming. You see, upon the release of Fire Emblem awakening, there was one character who everyone thought “Man, he must be in Smash! He’s a strong sword-wielding character with dashing good looks!!”, and that character, my friend, was no other than the game’s main protagonist Chrom, the King of Ylisse.

As you probably know by now, he ended up never being chosen. In a very controversial decision made by no one other than Sakurai himself, they chose not to have Chrom due to him being too close of a clone similar to another Fire Emblem rep, Ike. He instead placed the time traveling heroes of Lucina and Robin into the fray.

In Fire Emblem: Awakening, you play as Robin, a completely customizable character who you can make fight, look, and sound just the way you’d like him/her to. You are woken up in the middle of a vast plain by the previously mentioned Chrom and his group, and after that you’re thrown into the huge battle to save not only the Kingdom of Ylisse, but also the world. Along the way of your large journey, however, you intervene with a young fighter donning a blue mask and a haircut similar to that of the Hero King Marth, and after crossing paths multiple times, the fighter reveals (have you guessed it yet?) that she in no other than Chrom’s time traveling daughter from the future, Lucina. Due to Probably being that her fighting style in the game Awakening is remarkably similar to Marth’s, that’s probably why Sakurai decided to give her a move set identical to his.

Lucina on the left, Marth on the right. It appears Lucina is quite the cosplayer…

Sakurai chose Robin because he thought he wanted to “utilize his all-around nature by assigning swordplay to his Smash attacks and magic tomes to his special attacks– that is, allow him to use magic.” In other words, he wanted to create a whole new character with a play style we’ve never seen before. It’s a bit different with Lucina, though; she originally was was originally going to just be an alternate costume for Marth, but he also wanted to make a character similar to Marth, but a bit easier to pick up. Marth has a sweet spot at the tip of his blade, making his attacks deal more damage if hit right by that small section. Lucina, on the other hand, has power evenly distributed amongst her blade. Her attacks may be weaker, but what she fails with in strength she makes up in speed.

(FUN FACT: Did you know that because Marth and Roy were both shown to other territories outside of Japan with the release of Melee, the other audiences fell in love with them so much, it inspired Nintendo to finally bring the Fire Emblem series overseas? That’s right, without the selection of Marth and Roy in Melee, Fire Emblem may have never made it over to us!)

Despite being introduced to us in the 1986 NES game Kid Icarus, Palutena (along with Pit!) didn’t get her sassy and sarcastic personality until the 3DS title Kid Icarus: Uprising released in 2012, nearly 20 years after the original title was conceived. In both titles, you don’t actually play as Palutena at all, but instead play as Pit. In the game, the Overworld is being attacked by the likes of Medusa and her Underworld army. Pit is sent to drive those beasts back where they came from, as Palutena much watch from afar. Throughout the course of this game, you actually don’t even see Palutena fight once, so her entire moveset in Smash is actually based on moves Pit uses in Uprising that haven’t already carried over.

Every move available in her arsenal is a move/item Pit used in Kid Icarus: Uprising

Before beginning development on this Smash for the Wii U and 3DS, Sakurai actually was was actually the lead developer in making Kid Icarus: Uprising, which is probably one of the reasons Palutena and Dark Pit were chosen as characters. Another reason could also be because he wanted a character to really show off the customizable moves option, other than the Mii characters. Both the Mii characters and Palutena’s are the only characters with all their customs available from the start, and while most characters customizable movesets are variations of their already existing moves, Palutena’s are entirely different altogether. What could be a homing shot attack in one slot could be changed to a move that creates a ray of light dealing all foes caught in its range. Her customizable moves are more unique than the rest, giving us an idea of why Sakurai might’ve chosen her.

Our last character for the day is no other than the hunting lovers Duck Hunt. Don’t let their looks fool you, however, for they’re not a duo. In fact, they’re a trio! They’re enemies have not only the Duck and Dog to look after, but they also have the mysterious shooter who helps them launch their foes off into oblivion. While you never see the shooter, he’s always there… watching…and learning your every move…okay, maybe he’s not that creepy, but he’ll shoot you and that’s spooky enough for me. Anyways, back on track: this character was birthed into the world with the NES launch title, Duck Hunt. Duck Hunt also ended up becoming a title packaged with an updated copy of Super Mario Bros., allowing Duck Hunt to grow into a widely known title.

Why Duck Hunt dog was chosen doesn’t seem too intriguing at first, but when you look into it, it may be more interesting than it seems on the surface. So, as most of you know already, the Ice Climbers were not put into this iteration of Smash Bros., despite being in the past two entries. They couldn’t be placed in the roster due to the hardware of the 3DS not being capable enough to have those characters fighting while still maintaining 60 FPS. So after they were cut, it left a spot without an 80’s representative, which was a very big time for Nintendo. So, with a character from the 80’s missing, they needed a new character to fill the spot…and guess when Duck Hunt was released? That’s right, it’s speculated that Duck Hunt was made to replace Ice Climbers in the same fashion Ice Climbers replaced the slot that Balloon Fighter was supposed to be in in Melee. Of course, it’s just an idea some over observant fans came up with. He could’ve just been made because Sakurai wanted to, but maybe there is a bit more?

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Sakurai obviously had some pretty tough decisions to make during the development of Smash Bros., and with possibly even more DLC characters coming other than Mewtwo, it seems like his job isn’t done yet. So while we’re having a great time smashing with our favorite characters and having fun with friends, let’s all remember to keep in mind the hard work that went into making one of our favorite games as amazing as it is.

Or don’t. I don’t rule your life.