Games
Nintendo have finally announced the long-awaited Super Smash Bros. for Switch and we’ve been thinking about which characters we’d like to see in the game.
It was inevitable, really. Given that Nintendo have re-released Wii U games for Switch and that the new console has had an incredible first year, Smash Bros. was always going to happen. Now we have it confirmed, thanks to a recent Nintendo Direct presentation.
While we don’t know much about it other than “it’s coming in 2018”, we can make an almost cast-iron guarantee that it’ll be more than a simple direct port of the Wii U game. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe got a new battle mode, Pokken Tournament DX got some new characters and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is getting an entirely new 'easy mode'. The most likely outcome is that we’ll see four or five new characters, and our minds have been working overdrive at the possibilities. Here are the new characters we want in Smash for Switch.
Shovel Knight
First he got his own amiibo, now he should be a Smash Bros. character, then he can take over the world! But seriously, Shovel Knight is a superb character that feels purpose-built to appear in the Smash series. With his trusty shovel (hence the name) he could be a high-strength character who would likely have a limited moveset, veering towards the realistic rather than the fantastical, but would also be very durable. Yacht Club Games’ characters have got multiple amiibo and have appeared in other games before (Shovel Knight himself is in Yooka-Laylee), so this seems very possible, and we hope it happens.
Doom Marine (Doom)
Given how Nintendo are embracing the darker, grittier games from the rest of the wider gaming industry, and how manic the combat can feel in Smash Bros., it’d make for a fun experience if Doomguy (or the Doom Marine as some know him) popped up in the brawler. His deal would be that he’s fast, aggressive and has guns. Imagine firing homing rockets with the Doom Slayer before almost blinking out of existence due to his lightning speeds. We’d pick him, that’s for sure.
Crash Bandicoot
This is certainly wish-fulfilment, but opening up the platform to the likes of Doom and Shovel Knight has also paved way for PlayStation-exclusive characters to come and join the party, and if there’s a more perfect character for Smash than Crash, we can’t think of it. Already full of anarchic attitude and crazy moves, Crash would fit in perfectly. His spin attack would make sense as a basic attack, and maybe Nintendo could even add in a new pickup that summons the warthog Crash so enjoys riding. Everyone loves Crash, so this one just has to happen.
Rayman
Look, if Crash is coming to the party, so should Rayman. Reasons for his inclusion would be much the same as for everyone’s favourite Bandicoot, but also because Rayman, as a character, deserves love. The fact his limbs aren’t attached could make it tricky to read his moves and we’re really hoping that if people play as him enough, Ubisoft might realise we adore him and give us the sequel to Rayman Legends we so desperately want.
Solaire of Astora (Dark Souls)
This one is simply a must, and seems highly possible. Dark Souls publisher Bandai Namco are putting the game out on Switch this year and they're even releasing an amiibo which lets you make your character “praise the sun” from the start of the game. Transitioning this into Super Smash Bros. feels like a no brainer, due to the plethora of potential attacks the Dark Souls knight could unleash via the sword and shield combat.
Owlboy
Nintendo loves indie gaming enough to coin the term 'nindie'. That should be enough, but Owlboy as a character could be very interesting in Smash. Now, Owlboy as a straight pick might not seem that strong, but in his own game, picking up certain characters grant certain abilities. In Smash, we want him to be fairly useless on the ground, but when taking to the air he can grab opponents for a short while and they grant him a unique ability. He’d be tough to master, but such an interesting pick for the already deep combat.
Ninjara (ARMS)
Good lord, imagine the salty opponents if Ninjara appears in Super Smash Bros. for Switch. While ARMS itself had the throw ability slightly nerfed, Ninjara in Smash could still leap into the air, blink out of existence and reappear to throw you off the map, causing a mad dash to scramble back to safety. His range would have to be tempered slightly, because he’d end up a broken character otherwise, but we think Ninjara is the best character from his game and should be the ARMS character Nintendo inevitably uses in Smash Bros.
Tom Nook (Animal Crossing)
As the most evil character in all of Nintendo history, how can Tom Nook not be in the latest and greatest Smash Bros. game? He has to be there, with his cold, dead eyes, and his cute apron belying his brutal financial strangling. His attacks will be limited to him throwing money at you, except his smash attack which will see Nook dropping an entire house on your head, the joke being that you just paid your mortgage off. Seriously, if Nintendo won’t give us a new Animal Crossing game for Switch then at least give us Tom Nook in Smash!
Knuckles (Sonic the Hedgehog)
Apart from being an Echidna, Knuckles is cool because he just uses his fists to do the talking. He’d be a straightforward character for Smash, but he has plenty of friends to call on, and it’d also allow us to relive the Sonic & Knuckles memories of old. They could face one another, or do battle, but it’d help us sort out once and for all who is better (spoiler: it’s Knuckles).
Shantae (Shantae: Half-Genie Hero)
You might not have heard of Shantae, but her games have been getting better and better. Metroidvania style platformers, Shantae could be an absolute classic character for Smash Bros. by hook of the fact her modus operandi is that she can dance to transform into various different forms. While she has a whip as her main weapon (she whips her hair back and forth), this transformation could take her to a whole new level: imagine fighting a standard melee character only for her to transform into a spider or a crab. What would do then, huh? Game-changer.
Earthworm Jim
Ah, Earthworm Jim. How we remember your very first appearance back in 1994, and then your TV show that was as daft as the game that birthed you. Jim could actually be a fun character to play if his move-set is like for like from his games because he has a gun (that’d have to be limited in how much damage it does) and he can also whip his own head at people. On top of that, if we got an Earthworm Jim themed level, perhaps there could be elements that he can swing from, giving him home advantage. It’s doubtful Nintendo would do this purely because it’d make him broken out of the gate, but it’d be a fun idea, for sure.
