Sora from Kingdom Hearts is the final fighter for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Stacey Henley called it months ago, describing him as a potentially poetic conclusion to a game that has spent years bringing fans together to celebrate a medium with a deep history worth honouring. We’ve seen Banjo-Kazooie, Joker, Sephiroth, Minecraft Steve, and so many others - all icons in the gaming world that deserve a place in the spotlight. To be honest, once they added Persona 5 all bets were off on who would be next.
The keyblade wielder is the core definition of this ethos, with Kingdom Hearts being one of the most beloved and passionate gaming series of all-time. Fans cry at the trailers for each new game, spending months delving into potential theories and character reveals when the narrative we’re left with at the end is all just a bunch of beautiful nonsense. I’m still not over Kingdom Hearts 3 Re:Mind and exactly where the story might go, but I’m so ready for it.
It’s this nonsensical nature that makes Sora such a compelling hero, regardless of the situation he’s in or whatever he’s fighting for, the spiky-haired hero always does so with a smile on his face. Now he’s in Smash, and that smile is brighter than ever. It’s also pretty fun that he can beat the shit out of so many veterans, too. His inclusion in the crossover fighter seems to lean into this identity, taking us to the worlds of Hollow Bastion and other stages with iconic imagery and characters from across the series. While Kingdom Hearts can be seen as a load of rubbish, it has a broad, fascinating history to lean into that makes it perfect for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and it’s giving me mad goosebumps already.
Seeing the likes of Xion, Roxas, Kairi, Riku, and so many other characters decorate stages as I duke it out with Cloud and Sephiroth is so bizarre, and would only be possible in a game like this. Sora’s moveset leans into his movement and attacks from the main series, and describing is yet another ‘anime sword fighter’ feels like an uncharitable descriptor of a character who is capable of so much more. He can soar into the air and attack from multiple angles all while deflecting and recovering from attacks to gain the upper hand. Alright - it sounds a little broken - but we’ll leave that for hardcore players to figure out in the months to come.
Either way, Sora feels like a poetic endnote for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and its years of continuous support, with Masahiro Sakurai expressing evident excitement in revealing the character and how, for so many years, he and his team have tried to incorporate Sora into the game as a thank you to fans who have asked about him for so many years. Some idiots will still be mad, because this is gamers we’re talking about. I don’t want to even think about the legal hustle and bustle between Nintendo, Disney, and Square Enix required to make this a reality, since for years many doubted Sora would ever grace Smash’s shores because of this exact reason.
But here he is, overcoming adversity to help tie a bow on one of gaming’s most unique experiences. He’s a symbol of hopeful optimism, a feeling that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has spent years spreading across its audience regardless of what games you’re into or how good you are at fighters. None of it matters, you simply pick your favourite character and dive in to have some fun. There’s still nothing like it, even if Nickelodeon has just launched its own clone, and there likely never will be again until a potential sequel emerges and Sakurai is woken up from the nap he so sorely deserves.
I’ll admit I will miss the constant hype surrounding Smash, with its character reveals becoming a permanent fixture of the gaming calendar in recent years. Yet its absence will only serve to highlight how mammoth an achievement the entire affair truly is. Nintendo has managed to amass a selection of characters from multiple series under a single umbrella to duke it out all while paying homage to the meaning, history, and nuance of each character. You might not be happy with all of the newcomers, but it’s impossible to deny that each one has been masterful in its execution, and I’ll miss them now they’re gone.
With Sora’s arrival, everyone is finally here, and we’ll be spending many more years with them before Super Smash Bros Ultimate is retired for good.