What I think about each Smash character

[Commander]

This isn't a list about how good I think each fighter is as not everyone is a competitive smash player and many of us just play as casuals using who we really like just for fun not worrying about being the best. Since I've played every single Smash since release this is a good way to give a more positive post. If you guys want to do all 75 of this nightmare as well feel free or talk about your favorites, but gods don't force yourself to. And yeah I don't know all the nitty details of each change in Ultimate as this is more the entire series as a whole and not how good they are in an unreleased game.

 

Smash

 

Mario - I never really played him much in the original but I loved using him ever since Brawl. He was alright for me in Melee but Brawl is where I started using him to the point I could say he's a secondary. Mario can do pretty much anything, but I love how grounded he is in smash being closer to his Mario 64 incarnation using punches and kicks and then adding his flood. He's just average and standard when you think about it and for a guy who can do anything with power-ups that really does speak volumes. One thing I disliked was how boring his taunts were making him grow large and shrink. As for his games, I love the 3d exploration and many of the spinoff like Paper Mario, but I never could get into Super Mario series except World. Super Mario World was one of the few games my older sister liked so the inclusion of the cape does have a special place in my heart. Mario has always played a big role in my childhood even if I was terrible at it and probably more influential than Pokemon so I'll always have a bias to liking Mario.

 

Donkey Kong - Meet the 100 man melee cheeser. DK is kind of one that's weird for me. I loved him all the way up to Sm4sh, but I just don't like using him in that one and I don't know why. He was always the coolest one to me in the original Smash and the down+b mashing never got old. If I pick up and play older titles, I'd use DK in a heartbeat just due to my bias. As a series, I never got too into DK as I played the original DK Country which was a blast and one of the first games I ever played. I loved DK 64 which I only got to the fifth world, but that's all my experience with him. I really should spend more time so I can get better at using him, but he really just doesn't fit my tastes like he used to. And yes, I will try to cheese 15 minute melee with him again like always. Gotta get that Falco.

 

Link - So my first experience with Link was actually with smash and I absolutely loved to use this guy in the original. It was mostly due to the boomerang. I'm not a very good Link player, but I would be willing to make a fool of myself and use him since I really, really am a huge Zelda fan. Why I don't use him as much anymore is because I feel he's a little bit on the slow side for my tastes. He's still often the first one I go into a new single player mode to scout as since I still can use him decently. As for my Zelda experiences, I played OoT but I never did get past the Deku tree due to not figuring how rolling with fire destroys the spider web. Minish Cap was my second game and I loved it just as much, but it wasn't as amazing as being lost and confused in the original OoT. So now let's talk about Ultimate Link. I actually have mixed feelings with his main outfit being his BoTW canon attire. His moveset is fine and remote bombs are nothing new, but it's Link. His signature is the green tunic and the green hat. It's a small gripe, but I do respect the BoTW representation and will still play him...just with the Green tunic instead.

 

Samus - So here's a fun one. I've never really played Metroid all that much nor was I ever really good at Samus. I'm kind of meh with her as I think she's a cool character. Like many of you, I thought she was a guy when I first saw her as well, but that was corrected when I reached Melee and read the trophies. This might be due to never playing a Metroid game as the first time I played Metroid was Metroid Prime well into the Wii's life cycle. I love those games, but I never really got into Samus's moveset other than her giant scare laser ball of doom. I do prefer her over Zero Suit though.

 

Yoshi - I love him in Melee and Brawl, but I just haven't used him that much ever since. Flutter kick. That's all I ever needed to love using the guy, and I have plenty of stories of him. Being the home run contest hero unlocking a stage is one that I'll never forget in Melee, but my favorite is Mewtwo. For those who don't know, you have to keep the GC on for 24 hours in a match to unlock him and I did that with Marth and Yoshi expecting Marth to take the crown. Guess who won? Yeah, I had to face Mewtwo with Yoshi who wasn't my best fighter and I won. I still feel proud of that achievement. I'm not very good with Yoshi, but he's kind in the middle of the pack. As for games, it's mostly Super Mario World where I used him as I never touched a Yoshi's Island. I did do a tad bit of Yoshi's story, but I've never gotten around to getting and finishing it. I'm so glad he got the stampede in his final smash as I loved Melee's opening and watched it almost every time the game started up. I love the dino, but I'm terrible at him.

 

Kirby - Didn't like him in Smash, but he's one that I use quite a bit and people hate when I use him as I played as him so many times. There is one thing that really changed my mind on him and that came from Melee. He got a hammer. I don't like the hammer changes since then, but I still love using Kirby. Kirby just has so many fun and flashy moves it's really hard not to like the guy. I remember a lot of my friends would use Kirby's grab and slam foes down for the fire effect. I can't hate the guy even if people gripe he's the main character and I really am kind of happy Kirby is our first fighter again. As for his games, I first tried Kirby 64 and I adore that game and don't care if it's awful by today's standards. I haven't played most of the series but the ones I have are a blast with my favorite being Return to Dreamland. I'm not the biggest fan, but I am a Kirby fan and maybe I'll see if I can find some of the 3ds titles like planet Robobot. Kirby isn't one of my mains, but he's pretty close so I'm always familiar with him.

 

Fox - I've always been neutral towards Fox as I don't care to fight him, but I really liked using him in Melee. I haven't used him that much since, but he's fun to use still once in a while. He's definitely one that deserved his spot in the older games, but it's kind of scary thinking he might not have made the cut if we are looking at Star Fox today. We definitely wouldn't have Wolf and Falco added since Star Fox isn't as big as it was. As for the games, I've played bits and pieces and I've grown to like the games more to try and finish Star Fox 64, but I never played much. Pretty much Smash was my first experience towards him and his franchise.

 

Pikachu - I hated this guy forever. I really did not like using or facing Pikachu due to that bloody thunder move when I was little. I've grown to like him more around Sm4sh. I mean it was more a love-hate as some days I didn't mind him and others I didn't want to look at him. I'm definitely going to try him out again in ultimate since I usually play the original 8 a bit before trying new characters. All of them have a soft spot in me due to spending so much time. As for Pokemon experience, I think I actually watched the anime first and I really liked it as a kid even if I grew tired of Pikachu. Very tired. I do like the way Pikachu has always felt to control. Oh yeah I've played both Pokemon Blue and Yellow but I never actually beat Yellow until like 2005. Blue I beat in 1999 or 2000. Yes, I'm old.

 

Luigi - This is gonna sound weird. I love Mario, but I just don't care too much about using Luigi. I don't think he's awful to use, but I just don't really care to use him. His moveset is hilarious though. I do like how the Polterguist has been added in Sm4sh which is a huge plus. I played the original Luigi's Mansion a couple years back and loved that game...Dark Moon not so much. I never unlocked him in Smash so Melee was my first experience with him. One really odd thing is that I prefer Luigi over Mario in pretty much everything but Sm4sh. Especially Galaxy.

 

Ness - If someone is a worse Ness player than me, please let me now. I just can never get the PK thunder recovery right. I think Ness is an amazing character and I welcome any Mother character to Smash no matter what. I never unlocked him either to Melee was my first experience with him. As for the Mother series, I still need to play and beat both Earthbound and Mother 3 the latter which I got rather far. I stopped playing Earthbound as it just wasn't the game for me at the time but I do plan to tackle it rather soon. Also screw whoever decided to bring those Mushrooms into Smash Ultimate. Hate those things. I'm not a Ness player, but I really like the Mother series and it's kind of sad knowing it's dead now.

 

Captain Falcon - Another character I first experienced in Melee. Also, I've never played any F-Zero games as I'm not into racers all that much. So I thought Captain Falcon was cool, but not as much as most people. Though Falcon Punch to this day is the coolest looking attack and always worth pausing to see. I've never been a big Captain Falcon player as he just never really clicked for me and I don't know why. He's definitely fun and flashy, but I just never put the time to get good at using him.

 

Jigglypuff - I LOVE THIS THING AND I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU THINK. *Ahem* I have some explaining to do. So Jigglypuff is the only Smash bros character I unlocked in the original smash. This was pretty much my OG smash main as I always really liked Jigglypuff coming off of the anime. She's such a fun character to play as even if she gets nerfed to the ground in Brawl barely being usable. I still really like her and it's really only Smash as I've never used Jigglypuff on any of my teams in any Pokemon game. I've liked her since Smash and even more than Kirby so I'm kind of happy she's pretty much a permanent roster member. Yeah, I know she gets a bad reception due to being really good in Melee, but if you like a character for the character and not how good they are, there shouldn't be any shame in using them once in a while.

 

Melee

 

Peach - There's only two Peaches I really liked: Paper Mario's Peach and Smash's Peach. So I think the funniest thing is that Smash Peach was basically created due to localization. So the game most of Peach's moveset is based off of wasn't even a Mario game in the first place and one cosmetic change for the West sparked the playable Peach we know today. The one time censorship was a good thing. As for Peach, I thought I'd hate her, but ended up loving her because she was hilarious to use from throwing Turnips to her butt bomber (I think it's called Peach bash). She's never in my priorities but I definitely would pick up and use Peach for fun whenever I can. I never really use Peach that much outside of Smash as her voice does irritate me.

 

Bowser - Bowser I didn't like until Brawl. I never hated Bowser, but I really only used him for the belly flop suicides in Melee. It was Subspace Embassy that got me into really liking Bowser due to being a heavyweight and being able to take damage. Bowser was the heavy hitter who did damage to the boss while waiting for the Trophy Stand to spawn especially for the bosses on Intense Mode. I did get every single boss trophy though and Meta Ridley and Tabu were the biggest salt moments...especially Meta Ridely. I haven't really used Bowser since then, but he definitely has a soft spot for me being the MVP for getting boss trophies and especially Galleon's. I might try to use him more since I really do like how heavies controlled in Sm4sh.

 

Ice Climbers - Like most people, I've never played Ice Climbers outside of the Smash Demos. As for the characters, I really do like them, but I see why people hate them in competitive as Brawl they were immune to sliding on ice and Melee the could trap people easily to KO them. As much as people hate them, they kind of are rather interesting being from a game most people probably wouldn't even know existed if they weren't in smash and are that little guy who left a big splash. I love the idea behind Ice Climbers and they definitely were one of the most unique fighters brought in from Melee so I can't hate them and it was always fun seeing Nana get KO'd and still being able to fight. It was sad seeing them cut in Sm4sh due to online limitations, but it's gonna be interesting how a room of 4 Ice Climbers works.

 

Sheik - So I know a lot of people love Sheik, but I never really got into using her. I'm just not too into speedy characters, but to each their own. I said I was a big fan of Zelda, but OoT isn't my favorite Zelda game by any means. It's a good game, but it didn't wow me as much as Wind Waker and Minish Cap for me even with my childhood nostalgia of Kokiri Forest. I'm not very good at Sheik mostly because I just really don't use her like at all. Kind of funny how I have so little to say about a top tier Smash fighter.

 

Zelda - Unlike her Sheik form, Zelda is a not so good fighter, but I adore her from Melee and even up to now. So Twilight Princess is a game that I know a lot of people loved, but I only thought it was okay with a lot of annoying aspects like how slow it is to travel hyrule field the first time....if you go the wrong bloody way. I also had mixed feeling about Twilight Princess Zelda as she looks so much better than N64 Zelda, but TP is the odd one not being blonde and not a good representation of Zelda. I love the redesign and so many people do. I always liked blonde Zelda and looking back she looks like a really, really similar to her old Melee model, but way better. I have always preferred using Zelda over Sheik and pretty much have used and tried Zelda in every Smash game since Melee. I probably won't main her, but I definitely won't shy away from using her especially with her awesome new design. Who needs to be good when you look that good?

 

Dr. Mario - So I have a cool story behind this character. So I saw a smash bros Melee demo with one of the fighters being Dr. Mario and feel in love with this game because it looked amazing at the time. And it was amazing. He was one of the characters I was excited to unlock and play as due to watching someone fight as him. He's...okay I guess, but he introduced me to Melee. As for the games, I've only played the N64 game at a friends house and...I guess the games are alright. Never been a huge Dr. Mario fan. Only missing one game is pretty good and I might try to use him more in Ultimate as I just rarely have really touched him all that much. I love the pill sound effect as that alone is worth messing with him.

 

Pichu - So the first time I played Pokemon Gold was when I was really sick and a friend loaned it to me. I had a lot of fun with that game even using Ho-oh and Gyarados (ah, youth). As for Pichu, I'm kind of neutral towards him. I know a lot of people disliked him over Pikachu being Pikachu but damaging himself whenever he attacked. Personally, I'm really glad he's back as it was one of those nobody would ever think would ever come back in a million years. And for those saying older Pokemon games aren't getting love, Pichu comes with a Team Aqua Bandanna. I'm not going to use him, but it's amazing to see him back.

 

Falco - I really didn't know who Falco was until Melee kind of introduced him to me and I really liked his character. I still really like him though Wolf definitely if my favorite in terms of personality from the Star Fox games. I really haven't used Falco all that much, but I just don't care to use any of the Star Fox crew. Maybe I'll try him out more in Ultimate, but probably not. I don't dislike him and even used him a bit in Melee.

 

Marth - So Smash Bros has a large variety of characters and often times one just clicks for you. That's Marth for me. First time I used him, I just knew he was going to end up one of my favorites for a very, very long time and still is my favorite fighter to use. I actually almost bought Shadow Dragon for DS I love this guy so much. As for where I first played Fire Emblem, it'd be Awakening after hearing so many good things about it. I was deeply engrossed in that game and I wonder what things would be like if I started with Shadow Dragon. It's too late now and I'm now a big Fire Emblem fan and have finished Shadow Dragon. FE12 on the other hand...I still need to work on. Also, I love Japanese Marth to death, but I think I'm starting to like Marth talking in English. Completely different character than I thought he'd be.

 

Young Link - Oh this character is certainly something. Melee had a lot of clone characters and Young Link got replaced by Toon Link. While WW Link is my favorite Link in the series, I secretly kind of missed Young Link seeing as Majora's Mask is my favorite Zelda game. I gave up hope ever seeing the Hero of Time ever make another appearance in a Smash game. The best way to describe this is that seeing Young Link in the announcement trailer was to me as Snake was to quite a number of people. Young Link is my second favorite Melee fighter and I while I don't think I'll main him, I'll likely try using him a number of times. I wish he had a cooler final smash, but him being in the game is beyond enough for me. It's a miracle I never expected to happen in a million years as we all figured Toon Link was Young Link.

 

Ganondorf - So we had internet at this day and age and when I saw how to unlock Ganondorf...I had no idea what a Ganondorf was (I didn't get far in OoT). This guy kicked my ass so many times in the event that I was so pissed when I screwed up the match to recruit him having to go through that song and dance all over again. You can bet your ass I used him after taking so many beating and he was pretty fun to use. Then Brawl happened and oh my god he fell so far down the chain. He got completely changed and he was so much slower and it hurt my soul. Then Sm4sh happened and all was good and I really, really like him even better after that to the point he's one of my mains. Do I need to mention all of the Zelda titles I beat? I will say that I like his TP design about as equally as the Ultimate design. Kind of wish they kept the TP one, but I won't complain as both are good looking.

 

Mewtwo - You know when you work hard for something, it feels so much better when you get it. That's Mewtwo for me. Mewtwo already was one of my favorite Pokemon so him being in Melee was someone I was going to use. He also was really fun to watch seeing him spam Shadow Ball, his back throw, and flipping people in the air. He also was my MVP and savior going through both Pokemon Stadium games including a struggle fight between Blissey. Him not being in Brawl really kind of upset me being my third favorite fighter in that game. Yeah, Lucario certainly didn't help swallowing that pill. And yes, it was a grand time using Mewtwo online and having fun being able to finally use him again.

 

Roy - So Roy really was only good for one thing: Home Run Contest. Roy's charge shot was one of the most amazing things in Melee and it was hilarious how far it could launch that Sandbag. I wasn't too fond of him other than that as I much preferred Marth, but my little sister loved Roy. I haven't finished Roy's game either, but it was not a good time for our boy. And then he came back in Sm4sh and my opinion of him completely changed. I always thought he was a cool looking character, but Sm4sh really did wonders for him making him feel much different than Marth and his own character. I'm so glad Roy is here to stay even if it made a hilarious comic compilation. And while I'm talking about Fire Emblem, the FE theme on Hyrule Temple is my favorite in Melee. I love the recruitment theme from Marth's games.

 

Mr. Game & Watch - Whoever thought that the final character should be this guy lead to one hell of an anti-climatic final playable character and you had to work for it. I don't hate Game & Watch, but I never really liked him either. At first he was a very alienated character not fitting in, but now he...still is. Nobody is as weird as this guy, not even Piranha Plant. He's a 2d character fighting in a game with 3d characters. I do think Ultimate did wonders to this guy and I think I might give him a second chance as I liked him from what I used, but there just were a few things missing for me personally. As for playing, I've played things similar to G&W but never an actual G&W and don't plan to as I'm not a fan of those things. Still probably the most out there character in the game.

 

Brawl

 

Meta Knight - Oh this is a fun one. I'm probably the one person who didn't care for MK in Brawl, but grew to love him in Sm4sh. I did have some Kirby under my belt and I really loved how Meta Knight played when you controlled him in those games. As for why I like him in Sm4sh, I like swords and I like Kirby's multi jump recovery. It's just kind of like Marth where it just clicked for me in Sm4sh and likely will be using him a lot in Ultimate as he's amusing to help train up Amiibo. Also, can I just say he has one of the coolest looking swords. Maybe that's why I use him so much.

 

Pit - We probably should have read the writing on the wall with the Melee trophies as we might have seen him and Meta Knight coming. Pit is the character my little sister ended up really liking (probably because he looks like Roy) and I pretty much was rather neutral. I don't hate Pit, but I didn't care for him since I didn't know him much. Can I just say I love Kid Icarus Uprising for everything but the controls? I never played the old games, but that game is worth playing on the 3ds for the writing alone. I kind of went 180 seeing Pit with a personality and he's really quite likeable. I'm really glad Sakurai added him and I really hope there's another Kid Icarus game for the switch. I'm not even mad about 3 Kid Icarus reps after playing that game.

 

Zero Suit Samus - It's funny seeing as all three of these characters (plus one more) were all revealed at the same time. I kind of miss the days where character reveals weren't so big and there were big surprises left for the official release of the game. Anyways, Zero Suit was a nice surprise I was expecting and over time I've grown to like using her more and more. I just have to block Other M from my mind every time I see that suit. I like her a lot more than many of my so-so group, but I don't think I'll ever main her. Definitely has a fun kit.

 

Wario - And the winner for the most WTF just happened trailer should go to this guy. The man ends the trailer with a nuclear fart. I've never been the biggest Wario fan, but I've only played the Warioland games which are really fun. I've never tried the Microgames, but I definitely respect them for building quite the unique series. Warioware is probably the randomest game you will come across where you can pick someone's knows and play fire emblem within 2 minutes. As for the fighter himself, I really dislike using him. I just don't see him much fun to use outside of the Motorcycle and then seeing him eat it. I do wish they had a tad bit more references to Warioland within his character, but he is based off of Warioware so I can't complain too much.

 

Snake - I had no idea what a Metal Gear was when he was introduced, I still have not even touched a Metal Gear game despite owning a collector's addition, and I still don't know much about Metal Gear. Snake is probably the most odd one out fighter in Smash, but he certainly was a fun one to use. It's characters like Snake that make you wonder how Brawl got that T for teen rating. He was a fun one who helped out with trophy collecting and I'm both surprised and glad Snake is back. I'm hoping the conversations are back, but I'm not holding my breath. Those alone made Snake the best addition to Brawl. I'm not the best with him, but hey he was our first crossover character and he certainly left a bang.

 

I do want to note that these 5 plus Sonic were the only ones revealed until the game's release.

 

Ike - I didn't care for him in Brawl. He wasn't Marth and didn't feel like Marth so I just brushed him off. It actually wasn't until I played the Tellius games that I gave him another chance. I think knowing who Ike is really made me like him more so I started using him more in Sm4sh and I'm pretty comfortable as while he's not one of my mains, I definitely use him almost as much as Meta Knight, Ganondorf, and Marth. And if I'm honest, I think he's a better inclusion than Roy as Marth. I really think Marth, Ike, and Robin really are the 3 best fighters to represent the Fire Emblem series and well the Tellius games are my favorite. And while he looks much older than he really is, I prefer buff Ike over PoR Ike being one of the odd Lord designs at the time (later being used for Chrom). Ragnell also is a cool looking gold sword and definitely caught my eye the first time I saw it. Kind of scary thinking he may have been the last Fire Emblem fighter due to the series almost being killed off.

 

Pokemon Trainer (Red) - I'm not sure how I felt about Pokemon Trainer in Brawl as I didn't care much for him as a fighter. I loved his inclusion and I'd vouch for him being my favorite of the Pokemon fighters, but I really disliked using Charizard. Ivysaur and Squirtle were fun to use and I still think I'll mess with them from time to time. But Smash Ultimate had another surprise for me with them including Leaf, my favorite protagonist design in the main games. I am what they call a Gen Wunner but I really, really loved the Fire Red and Leaf Green remakes more than the original to the point I can safely say I enjoyed them more than HGSS which I could praise those games to the heavens. Pretty much when I saw Leaf I was like "Take my money I'm already sold." I always shrugged off alt colors, but this game has some absolutely amazing ones I might start using them more.

 

Diddy Kong - So another fun one. DK 64 is where my feelings for Diddy sprouted. He's my least favorite Kong to use in that game and I really despise the jetpack mechanic thrown at me as the controls felt so clunky. I did like his guitar though. I hated using Diddy in Brawl though and while I have a better handling of him now, I really, really do not like using him at all. I think his moveset is really neat featuring a lot of DK 64 in it, I just don't care to use him. A DK rep is a DK rep and I think it's good we finally have 3 for his series.

 

Lucas - So my first experience with Lucas was in Subspace Emissary and can I just say that Brawl does not do him justice at all leaving me with an impression of Lucas is kind of a meh or terrible character. He was just a cowardly boy who gained courage following Pokemon Trainer. Ness had such a cool intro in Melee it made me want to try his game vs Lucas who had just not the best entrance. Playing his game made me flip my opinions on Lucas making me super glad he got in on what would be a game fans would be dying for to get localized for years and more years to come. You don't understand the cry to get this game localized until you play it which is a damn shame. One of the best RPGs on GBA and one I'd argue is the best and we're talking about big competition like Golden Sun, Fire Emblem, and KH: CoM. I still don't like using him much but I'm definitely more of a Lucas fan over a Ness fan and would go for Lucas in a heartbeat if I had to choose between the two. By the way, I am so ecstatic Kumatora appears in the final smash. She's my favorite in the game with Boney being a close second.

 

Sonic - Oh boy Sonic. The best way to describe the Sonic franchise is they were on par with Mario, still decent when going to 3d with the Adventure games, had many misses and falls since then, and fell flat on their face many times, but is still going somehow and still a big gaming icon. Sonic was bound to be in Smash eventually as what was a rivalry kind of is an awkward friendship. I never really got into the 2d Sonics, but I loved Sonic Adventure and all it's awfulness and clunkiness as a whole. Adventure 2 almost as much...except for the space emerald hunts. As for Sonic in Smash, I don't really care to use him in all honesty. They did capture him perfectly being able to piss people off with his homing attack and for being so fast. It's really fun in special to do bunny hood and curry with speed x2 as Sonic as you're not fighting your oponnents, but trying not to fly off the stage. I don't like controlling Sonic at all but he'd be fun in that F-zero race to the finish from Melee Adventure Mode.

 

King Dedede - So my first experience with this penguin was Kirby 64 and I really, really liked him especially the segments you control him. I didn't know who he was because Kirby 64 had a weird way of storytelling, but Dedede definitely is one of my favorite in the Kirby series and I like his battles much more than Meta Knight's. Masked Dedede's theme is so crisp. As for a fighter, I'm kind of neutral towards using him as I can't really get the knack for him, but like his moveset. Then again, he's a goofy penguin with a hammer aka my favorite Kirby power-up. I have quite a bit of bias towards him, but I don't think I'll ever end up using him more.

 

Olimar - I don't think I played a single Pikmin game until near the end of the Wii's lifespan, but those games are really fun. My first impressions of Olimar were always just so-so and I really did not like his fighting style with the Pikmin as it is kind of annoying trying to find and use the right one. I don't think I have Pikmin anymore, but I did beat the original one which I'm so proud of. Never beat the second one though or even tried the third. I really like Pikmin as a series and am glad for the rep, but Olimar just isn't the fighter for me.

 

Lucario - Oh boy this Pokemon. This was one of the most hyped Gen IV Pokemon if not the most hyped Pokemon in the history of the franchise. He was even treated almost like a legendary and was really hard to get as you needed to get an Egg after doing a full optional sidequest. He was so frail and died super easily I was so let down and kind of hated the guy. It didn't help that so many people loved and praised the damn thing. Brawl certainly didn't help things. Imagine one of your favorite fighters being cut and this guy showing up who felt oddly similar to Mewtwo. I was so pissed probably like many other Mewtwo fans at the time. I refused to use him unless absolutely necessary like collecting his smash trophies. I don't mind him as much now, but I still am kind of reluctant to use him and would rather keep on using Mewtwo. I'm not a big Lucario fan, but I kind of may try him out more in Ultimate as he has some fun stuff. By the way, I actually was interested to see what Lucario brought until I saw how similar he was to Mewtwo so I did give him a chance in Brawl.

 

ROB - While Subspace did a lot of things wrong, I do think it showcased every character in its own special way and really made what would have been a nothing and a wtf character be a lot more welcomed to the team. I never had a ROB, but I really like him in the game. I'm just absolutely awful and the recovery controls I could never get a handle on. I did like him a lot more in Sm4sh, but I don't ever think I'll main him or really use him all that much. I can't find it anymore, but I still remember that video with R.O.B. doing a dance. I wish I could find that video because it made me like the Robot even more.

 

Toon Link - First, I'll always call it WW Link still because he's WW only at heart. He's my favorite Link in the series just due to being so expressive and making some of the goofiest sounds still ingrained into my head. I never actually have used him all that much actually though there's not too many reasons why I haven't. I guess I just stuck with normal Link all this time. Wind Waker is pretty much what got me hooked into Zelda as while sailing was a tad bit boring, exploring all the islands was still fun and the graphics looked gorgeous at the time. And pictographs were fun too making all those figurines despite how tedious it was. I never did 100 percent it, but man what a game. I will complain that I feel the art style in Smash really doesn't convey what I'd call the water color style in Wind Waker as much and one of the very few (or maybe only) I feel the original looks better than the smash version. He's not bad looking, but he just doesn't feel the same as he was in WW where he almost looked 2d even.

 

Wolf - I didn't know who Wolf was for the longest time despite reading the trophy in Melee. I connected the dots now. This guy pretty much was the Ganon of Brawl for me giving me pain and suffering. Only this time I had to go through a full level just to try and get him. I never really liked Wolf as his specials were just so weird compared to Fox I thought they were impractical. I've never played much Star Fox so I never met Wolf in those games, but I know the classic line. I'm glad he's back in Ultimate as I'm willing to give him another shot to see if I end up liking him since I really didn't in Brawl.

 

Sm4sh

 

Villager - So if I had to pick a favorite Sm4sh announcement, it'd have to be for the villager. I loved Animal Crossing ever since the Gamecube so it getting a rep made me super happy. I didn't play much of Wild World, but I loved the original, City Folk, and especially New Leaf. It's also one of the opposites where I knew the franchise before it was introduced into the games. As for Villager himself, he's a weird character that I don't see myself playing much. Don't get me wrong. He's really fun to use, but I have plenty of other fighters I prioritize using. That ax meme though is great.

 

Megaman - Was anyone surprised by this one? Mario, Sonic, and Megaman are just this odd trilogy where it feels wrong if you have two but not the other. I never really got into Megaman as a series nor as a character in game and I really haven't fully played a Megaman surprisingly. It's one of those things I really need to do at some point but I'm not the biggest fan of 2d platformers. I've always thought Megaman was cool, but I just don't know why I never got into it. I never could get into using him as a fighter either but I love how they included all the Megaman in the final smash.

 

Wii Fit Trainer - She's weird, but it does make a bit of sense why she's on the roster. Wii Fit was a pretty popular thing with a big gimmick so it's not too surprising they'd include her if you really thing about it. I played some Wii Fit myself and some of it was really fun. As for the actual character...what a weird character. Someone really was on something when designing this as it's such an interesting moveset, but I really could never get into using her. That trailer was also absolutely amazing being one of the funniest to date.

 

Rosalina & Luma - I love Mario Galaxy. It's nowhere near Sunshine, but I had a blast 100%ing that game with all its wonky platformers. The exploration purple coin missions were always my favorite though. Anyways, I always loved Rosalina's design in Galaxy though I figured she'd be one of those one and done type of characters. Nope, she's pretty much considered one of the main Mario members even appearing in Mario Party, Racing, and 3D World. It's interesting to think about, but the last Mario character introduced who constantly keeps reappearing is Bowser Jr. followed by Waluigi. I'm not a fan of using her or the Luma mechanic (I suck at her basically), but I never would have guessed a character I liked who I figured would be a one-off would end up in Smash.

 

Little Mac - So whoever thought making Little Mac a super tiny assist trophy was brilliant as I thought he looked so weird it was pretty funny seeing him kick butt. I haven't used Little Mac all that much, but I love Punch Out for the Wii. I should play it some more. If we have to have a new character give the conversations, I really hope it's Doc because he's pretty hilarious. He pretty much was made to be in smash being the little boxer who took down Mike Tyson. He also had such a cool intro video. I know a lot of my buddies picked him as they thought he was fun, but I never could really get into Little Mac, but he's a fun character.

 

Greninja - With Smash, you can never win with whatever Pokemon you pick. Greninja to me was pretty much "Really? We're doing this again." Lucario was one of the most popular Gen 4 reps and well Greninja pretty much was the most popular Gen 6 rep with little inbetween. So I kind of broke my tradition of always picking the water starter because I just didn't really like Greninja. Then you get it slapped in your face whenever you talk or battle competitively because of how "good" and "broken" it was. Unlike Lucario, I actually really like playing as Greninja in Smash as he was rather fun and had a bunch of fun moves. I should probably use Greninja more but there's just so many characters it is just easy to neglect or forget about a character.

 

Mii Fighters - You know it's both funny and painful remembering all the videos with both Reggie and Iwata facing off against each other as Miis. We got Reggie in Smash which was probably one of the funniest campaigns we've ever had. Miis are pretty much the customization of everything Nintendo. They really aren't so fun to use in battle, but I love all the outfits they get and I personally was the Black Knight slaying thy enemies one Eclipse at a time. As for gaming, the Miis were the highlight of the Wii U watching all those pictures drawn and shown. It's so sad it's gone now as some of those were pure works of art and you could sit there waiting to see if your favorite game got art while watching the chat. Miitopia was also a blast and one that really surprised me. I like the Miis and they kind of are that little customization that the game needed, but it went beyond Miis given all characters more than just their original moves which is crazy to think about.

 

Palutena - So I didn't play Kid Icarus before this and I thought Palutena was going to be this character I probably was going to hate (this is a recurring theme I see), and she sucks to use in Sm4sh. I for the life of me cannot use Palutena without getting destroyed I'm so bad at her. No seriously, I am not worse at any character as much as I am at Palutena. Despite that, I love her in Kid Icarus Uprising and she's half the reason to even play and try out that game making fun of Pit all the time. Seriously, that game is worth playing for the dialogue alone. I really hope she's better in Ultimate as she deserved better than what she got.

 

Pac-Man - Fun classic arcade game everyone with Google has played. I...actually haven't used Pac-man like at all. He's an odd character, but with such a big cast he just kind of got neglected as he didn't interest me all that much as a fighter. He was alright from the like two matches I used him and that final smash is so funny. I wish I could say more, but I never played much Pac-Man.

 

Lucina - I love her design...that's about it. I don't like her as a fighter, her character in Awakening is so meh, and there's a better character to talk about Awakening with. She's just not easy to talk about as her character is the size of her chest. I don't hate her and was excited to try her, but she's just a worse Marth in my eyes. Then Roy happened and now she's pretty irrelevant.

 

Robin - Of the custom characters, Robin reins supreme in the Fire Emblem franchise. I predicted they'd put Robin in and I was right. It was a pretty obvious choice given Awakening being a huge boom and Robin bringing the parts of Fire Emblem that were lacking. I never got super into Robin trying to figure out the whole durability ordeal but I might try him out more seeing as there's a display for it now which is nice. As for Awekening, I love that game as it got me into the series and I will defend it is a good game. And I think we all were a little glad the Chrom leak was fake as we got something more interesting and better. On thinking on FE, I'd like to petition for Capt Falcon for Heroes for a rematch.

 

Shulk - Of the big names that all made it to Sm4sh, I'd argue Shulk most likely the least known of the entire roster. Pit would have been if not for Brawl and Kid Icarus, but Shulk was quite a big named hero...in anywhere but the States. Even the Xenoblade port was kind of a too little too late Wii game but certainly left a bang and got a lot of people excited, myself included. A lot of people were really happy to see him included as it was kind of a dream come true. A Xeno character in Smash. That's about as close to Square Enix anyone would think we'd ever get. I adore Xenoblade Chornicles and it's one of my favorite Wii games so of course I tried out Shulk as one of my firsts (I love the Xeno series). He was...to be desired to me. I like the idea behind him, but I just couldn't get into him to really use him. He got a good change in Ultimate being able to easy select the power you want, but I don't see myself using him that much.

 

Bowser Jr. - Welcome to a character who added insult to injury with our missing boy, Roy. While I like Bowser Jr, I probably would've preferred him playing as Shadow Mario, but he's a fun character. He's just overused as a villain, but at least he's better than the Koopalings. Oh wait, they're here too. I like Bowser Jr as any time you face him things are bound to get interesting and has some of the best Mario fights in the franchise. As for a fighter, I actually really liked playing him with my favorite attack of his being the drill. I may invest more into him, but I don't know as we just have so many characters it's hard to really pick from all but the ones you're really good at. Though I do think at the time it was kind of annoying to see another Mario rep after Rosalina given we have so many Mario characters.

 

Duck Hunt Dog - ...That dog still mocks people to this very day. So what makes Duck Hunt one of the oddest characters is that all of the above Sm4sh characters were huge hitters that people would get very excited about. I'm not counting Pittoo or Dr. Mario as those were alts. So Duck Hunt really wasn't someone anyone asked for, but the leak had some surprising reactions and the reveal still had surprising reactions. It was a little guy. Nobody got upset or went on rants with his reveal and people were actually excited. I was mostly happy to beat him up from the bits of Duck Hunt I played. I'm not really a fan of his playstyle as it's really weird and I can't get used to it. Props to any Duck Hunt mains though.

 

Pittoo - I wasn't sure where to place him in the order but he never did get an official confirmation if I remember right. Anyways, he's a great character introduced in Kid Icarus Uprising and quite amusing as well. He's kind of a Pit clone and I could see why people were mad about 3 Kid Icarus representatives, but hey he probably didn't take much effort to make and just added a slot on the roster. You can't really hate on clone characters now given we got some awesome ones in Ultimate. My guess this was partially an experiment to see how they were recieved if they wanted to add more.

 

Ryu - It's about damn time he made his way into Smash. I kind of expected one of the old big fighting game names to make their way into the ultimate crossover fighting game. I've never played a Street Fighter game as I'm not really into fighting games (Smash is like the one exception), but I love Ryu in Sm4sh and he's one of my favorites to play as casually. I'm not the best at the combos, but I've gotten the hang of it at one point. Though I do need to practice to get good at him again.

 

Cloud - Remember how I said I never imagined a Square Enix Rep appearing in Smash. If you told me one was, I never would have figured Cloud would be the one. Cloud made a lot of history with his announcement since not only was he the first SE thing for Smash, he also was the first character who never appeared on a Nintendo Console before...until recently. This pretty much tore down the barrier that anything was possible and while I hate FF7 Cloud (I thought the game was only okay), I love how Cloud fights in Sm4sh. He pretty much is the only Sm4sh character who I'd probably even main. As for other FFs, I played up to X. V and IX are my favorites. VI is overrated, and VIII is a mess but I still enjoyed it way more than VII. I haven't played an FF game in a long time though. Now if I'd ever ask for anything else for Cloud, give us either a Chrono color scheme or a Zack alternate outfit. That's the only way to make me like him more.

 

Corrin - Yet another Fire Emblem character. I can't say if we'll hit 8 fighters for FE or not, but we really didn't get a FE rep this time so I'm okay with DLC. I'm kind of mixed with Fates. I love a lot about the games, but there's a lot that I didn't care for to the point I never want a repeat of this. As for Corrin as a fighter, he's weird, but I kind of like him, but I never played him enough to really say if I'd use him more or not. It was so weird learning his controls and it just didn't click. Also, I disliked the censor to Female Corrin's pants at first, but that change kind of has grown on me. Corrin is unique enough that I'm not really upset about them adding a 4th Fire Emblem character in Sm4sh (Roy, Lucina, Robin, Corrin). Maybe I'll try them out some more as I kind of want to play Sm4sh after I'm done here.

 

Bayonetta - If you want to blame a character for ruining the smash community, Bayonetta would be a pretty good guess as a culprit. I know people get annoyed about how good she is competitively to the point you could say she's broken, but it's actually a series of events that follow after her that I think are the issue. So Beyonetta was a highly requested character from the poll which was a dream come true to so many Bayonetta fans wanting to see her in the game. I never played Bayonetta or Bayonetta 2 so I don't know much about these games. I will say out of all the new DLC characters, I had the most fun trying out Bayonetta. She's so much fun to control or use and I don't think it's wrong to like playing as her. If you really like a character, you should be allowed to have fun playing as her. Now if you simply play her because she's good and easy to win with, that's a different story. I guess what I'm saying is that I really like Bayonetta.

 

Ultimate

 

Inklings - You want to know the biggest surprise for me was: Inklings weren't in Sm4sh. Unless you live under a rock, Splatoon was a smashing success and so many people really like it. It even now has a second game. I was so surprised they didn't get in as DLC, but thankfully Ultimate gave them a deserving slot. They deserve to be in Smash Ultimate and I still have yet to open and play my copy of Splatoon. I don't think I'll be playing them that much but they do seem like a fun character to use but not for my tastes.

 

Daisy - For all the people whining about Waluigi not being a fighter, your wait was nothing compared to Daisy fans. People have been wanting Daisy in Smash since Melee and I even remember some of those campaigns. They didn't just want the Peach Costume, they wanted an actual Daisy fighter. I'm more of a Daisy fan then a Peach fan so I guess I'm happy. It's just weird to think about Daisy being an actually playable fighter when the odds seemed really stacked given how much she looks like Peach. Now I never have to worry about using Peach ever again. Oh yeah I loved Daisy since I first saw her in Mario Party 3. Never cared for Waluigi and will never get why so many people like him.

 

Dark Samus - Meet the first American Smash character. There's not much to talk about. I never made it far in Metroid Prime 2, but I did get to that first Dark Samus fight and I struggled like hell to beat it. I really like Dark Samus and I'm really surprised they'd include her (or is it him) in Ultimate. If I use Samus more, I'd probably use Dark Samus since I think they look cooler.

 

Ridley - I think we all thought the same thing seeing this reveal "Holy shit, Sakurai actually took a meme and made it a reality." It's Ridley. Nobody ever though he'd be more than a boss, but here we are now seeing him as a fighter and a really fun one at that. I'm not sure if Ridley will become a main of mine or not given I really like what I see with him. I've never actually faced Ridley in a boss battle other than Brawl and the Demo on the Brawl game but...I always liked how creepy he looked. Also read the Melee trophy description and was rather amused by what he was. Are you starting to see why I'm sad to see trophies go? He also was a part of the issue I'll go into later.

 

Chrom - Chrom is where things start to become an issue with the fandom. If you didn't notice the pattern yet, it feels like they used the poll to determine what characters to create and add which got people excited. Chrom is pretty much like Lucina. I like him as a character Awakening, but I don't know why he's a Roy and not an Ike clone (I know why but I still don't see it). He's fine, but I'm only going to use him to see if Robin's final smash changes which I don't think it will. I'm pretty sure he was a highly requested character and I actually would have rather had pretty much any other FE lord, but likely no FE characters were planned to be developed by the look of things. I don't blame them as we now have 7. Admit it, Eirika would have been a cooler Roy Echo fighter.

 

Simon - I may have completely forgotten about the Castevania series. I just never could get into it as I'm not a big fan of Metroidvania. I wasn't sure about this guy, but I could see me playing as Simon and being one I use a lot since he seems close to the kind of characters I really like and I love so many of his attacks. He does look kind of ugly, but you never send a pretty boy to hunt demons and vampires unless...

 

Richter - I have no idea who this is, but I like him. I know he's an echo of Simon, but I think everyone likes him more than Simon just because he kind of looks like Joseph Joestar. I can't say much but I'll definitely be trying one of these two guys out as they look like a blast on top of that iconic whip. So much love for Castlevania.

 

K. Rool - And meet the number one problem child for getting people's hopes way too damn high. People expected too much after this reveal so there only being two fighters was something people outright would deny. I love how K. Rool looks and fights, but my only real experience seeing what he does way DK 64. I'm not actually sure if he's going to be one I use or not as he has a lot of interesting attacks. He's another I'm likely going to pick up and try and if I like him I'll try to get good with him.

 

Isabelle - Since the first time I met her in New Leaf, I've always had mixed opinions about our little secretary. I honestly think she's grown on me over time. I was kind of upset that the reveal was Isabelle being a smash character over a new Animal Crossing game, but we got the confirmation which made me happy. From what I've seen, Isabelle might be the most broken character added in Ultimate. I was kind of meh on a second villager, but I really like her and will try her out. I doubt she's going to be one I use a lot, but I love all the references they threw in with Isabelle like the fishing rod.

 

Ken - You didn't need to see a leak to make a good guess Ken was coming to Ultimate. I saw the name and figured he likely was a character and we got him. Ken may become one of my mains at it solved the one issue I had with Ryu: I wish he was faster. And like many people have said, Ken looks so great in Smash compared to any of the street fighters recently. I'm happy for his inclusion and I really am surprised he's not a direct clone of Ryu and almost can be considered his own character due to those little changes.

 

Incineroar - I was upset with Incineroar...for about a millisecond and I love him. Expectations were set way too high for this game and so many people were upset, but what's really upsetting is we haven't seen any little guys or the wtf as almost all of these are behemoths being a representative of a new franchise or highly requested. While Pokemon is popular, we've got the Pichu of this generation. Nobody really wanted him and would rather have had Decidueye. Those people should get over themselves as you got two of the most popular Pokemon at the time in previous titles. It was probably unintentional, but I actually like the underdog being in Ultimate. He looks really fun as well. He's going to be the first one I'm trying in Ultimate and I could totally see him becoming one of my new mains. Actually, I think he will be added to the mains crew. He's basically what I wanted Bowser to be.

 

DLC

 

Piranha Plant - So many people were "upset" about the Smash direct and the DLC character that was revealed certainly didn't help. In all honesty, I think our plant overlord made a fine addition and certainly will be rather interesting to see how viable he is. Maybe he's really good or maybe he's terrible. But if I had to describe smash using one character, Piranha Plant would honestly be the most fitting. Smash bros isn't about giving players the most popular and wanted characters. It's a fighting game where all of Nintendo clashes against each other and anyone has a shot of getting in. Sometimes it sparks new life in old characters. Nobody ever thought about Piranha Plant because he pretty much is considered more of a hazard than an enemy. Now we've got him as a mobile fighter which is kind of crazy. I don't think Piranha Plant will be someone I use a lot, but we really, really needed an out there unique small character after hitting so many of the popular ones.

 

(I may edit and add thoughts whenever a DLC is announced)

 

Afterthoughts: Honestly, I'm looking back and adding such a small cast of newcomers might actually be a good thing. I've played the original Melee cast quite a number of times I'm comfortable talking about them all, but Brawl I had a couple I only lightly touched. Sm4sh I have plenty I have to think about if I even used in the first place. So is it really a bad thing if we only have 6 new fighters to learn how to use? It gives me plenty of time to try out a bunch of the oldies I have been neglecting and get more comfortable with them. One day, I will be good at Palutena. One day.

[Karai]

You know what, I woke up one morning for the piranha plant direct and I remember spilling my cup of orange juice before I screamed "What the hell is on my screen."The day after I saw its gameplay and completely had a more contrary view, it just looks so fun to me and now plant gang is a thing.

Edited November 11, 2018 by Karai

[ShadeStrider]

I don’t actually mind the Piranha Plant.

 

He certainly... subverted expectations, and that probably was his entire deal.