So, here we are. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s first DLC Fighters Pass is complete. It brought us a wide range of characters, from Persona 5’s Joker to Rare’s beloved Banjo and Kazooie. The final character to join the fray (for the first Fighters Pass, that is, as we now know there’ll be another) is Byleth, the protagonist of Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
Of course, Byleth’s announcement caused all kinds of mixed reactions from fans. Now that the dust is settling, though, we have to look towards the future and the second Fighters. Which big names do we want to see appear as playable characters? Well, some of these, please!
10 A Hunter (Monster Hunter Series)
Byleth, as we’ve discussed, is going to bring a little more to the Super Smash Bros. table than your average sword fighter. Armed with the Hero’s Relics, their moveset will feature long-ranged attacks, projectiles and such, more akin to Link than most of Smash’s Fire Emblem cast.
In the same way, an excellent representative of the Monster Hunter franchise could be added. A Hunter could have various alternate costumes that consisted of different armor sets, as well as a moveset that utilized different weapons from the series with varied properties. With the franchise’s tremendous popularity in Japan (and increasing renown in the west), this could be a real possibility.
9 Toad (Super Mario Series)
Now, granted, this would be a super tough one to implement well. What would the tiny Toad’s moveset be? These happy little fungi have appeared in a great variety of Super Mario games, and there’s no denying how iconic they are. It’s really just the practicality of it that holds things back.
Sakurai can make this work, we know he can. No longer should the poor little Toads be limited to popping out from the confines of Princess Peach’s dress to counter attacks thrown her way.
8 Tracer (Overwatch)
With Nintendo Switch’s success, it’s attracted ports of some of the biggest games of recent years. Overwatch was one of them, which begs the question: could a Smash representative be a possibility?
Naturally, some of the hit shooter’s cast are bigger deals than others, but there isn’t a specific ‘mascot’ of the game. With that said, it’s Tracer who adorns Overwatch’s box art, so perhaps she’d be the most likely candidate? There’s potential for an unusual moveset here, that’s for certain, but she wouldn’t have much in the way of non-projectile attacks. Still, the team have worked around that issue before.
7 Crash Bandicoot (Crash Bandicoot Series)
Next up, we have a name that’s been bandied about (or bandicooted about) a lot: Crash Bandicoot. The little orange furball has developed quite a good relationship with Nintendo and the Switch lately: the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled have both been ported to the system. Will he make it into Smash Ultimate? It’s quite likely.
This iconic character would fit into Smash’s chaotic cartoon world very well. He’s also used a variety of different techniques and items over the years, from riding his little animal friends to firing Wumpa Fruit from a bazooka. He’d be a riot to play!
6 Jill Valentine (Resident Evil Series)
Now, we’re a little conflicted on this one. On the one hand, the much-requested Doomguy seems a little unlikely for many because he’s just so… M for Mature. Resident Evil’s Jill Valentine also hails from a famously gory and adult franchise, but if Bayonetta and Solid Snake were invited to the party, why shouldn’t Jill (or perhaps Chris Redfield) be too?
Granted, it’s a little out there, but Jill has proven her proficiency with firearms and hand-to-hand combat. She could have a very fluid Smash style, flitting between melee and projectile-based combat as the situation dictated. If she did happen to make it, she’d probably be a complex character with a high skill ceiling.
5 Professor Layton (Professor Layton Series)
Ah, yes. Now here’s a curveball of a character request: Professor Layton, of the intriguing puzzle series of the same name. Dear old Hershel Layton first appeared in 2007’s Professor Layton and the Curious Village, a Nintendo DS game that saw the player advancing a mystery by solving riddles and brainteasers.
The quirky charm of it all made Level-5’s title a great success, and the puzzle-loving professor has gone on to star in several sequels and spawn a franchise. Maybe he’s a little too prim and proper to want to hop into battle in Smash, but it would definitely be a welcome surprise in our book if he did!
4 Rillaboom (Pokémon Sword & Shield)
One franchise that’s always sure to be well represented in Smash is Pokémon. Game Freak’s critter-catching phenomenon is one of the hottest names Nintendo has to offer, so a representative from Pokémon Sword and Shield wouldn’t exactly come as a shock. There’s a slot on the roster just asking for a Grass-type starter, too.
With Greninja and Incineroar already in Smash Ultimate, it looks as though Rillaboom could be the choice. Not exactly the most iconic Pokémon from Generation VIII, but it certainly seems fitting. Sakurai would just need to decide what the heck he’s going to do about that drum of Rillaboom’s.
3 Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII)
Yes, the chances of this happening are… well, not the best. Even so, though, with Square Enix being super conservative about the content they allowed the Smash team (Cloud and a meager two songs were the extent of it), they probably wouldn’t stray too far from what they have allowed.
As such, why not throw in Sephiroth, perhaps as an Echo Fighter for Cloud? We’ve seen that he has all kinds of powers, so who knows what he’d be able to do besides the usual sword-swinging?
2 Spyro The Dragon (Spyro The Dragon Series)
Another popular classic character many Smash fans would love to see, Spyro the Dragon could bring something truly unique to the series.
With his fire breath, charging attack and gliding ability, Spyro would both attack and move differently to most of the class, sporting elements of Bowser but with a far smaller frame. Like Crash Bandicoot, he’s made a recent Switch appearance in the form of the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, which may well have brought existing fans and new ones alike flocking to his cause.
1 Waluigi (Super Mario Series)
Well, this last entry was inevitable really. You just can’t have a potential Smash Ultimate characters discussion without sparing a thought for poor, spurned Waluigi. Yes, he appears in the series as an Assist Trophy, but is that really enough? Of course it isn’t.
The poor guy deserves better. He’s only a bit player in the wider Super Mario universe, true enough, but he’s made more cameo appearances than we care to name and is surely as recognizable as the likes of Wario. The argument that being an Assist Trophy effectively disqualifies a character is a tough one to brush aside, but we can dream that Waluigi will get the representation he deserves.