If you did get to watch the Nintendo Direct during E3, you likely got that one character you always wanted in Smash Ultimate. Whether if you are a big fan of Dragon Quest or a big fan of Banjo-Kazooie, fans around the world are happy with we are getting in the coming months.
What probably makes some of us the happiest of all is for one thing: All Bets Are Off. If you follow the various “Leaks” of Smash Ultimate, you can toss all of them out the window! The Grinch has been murdered thanks to the Assist Trophies, while Banjo effectively killed everyone else’s list off in spectacular fashion. We likely will see more in the coming months, but at this point, no one has a single clue about who the last two characters will be. So now we must ask ourselves: Who are the Final Two characters for Smash Ultimate? Who have we not taken into account yet? And how do you top Joker, Hero, and Banjo?
There’s a lot to take into consideration and I know I’m hovering over my speculation board with red strings stretching all over the board like an unorganized spiderweb. Still, there could be a way to figure out some idea of what we can expect and it all comes down to probability.
Source: Nintendo E3 2019 Direct
Now bear in mind (no pun intended) that for all we know, we could see a first party IP make the cut, but many are on a hope and a prayer that the third-party train isn’t going to slow down after E3. But this does lead to another question: Could we use what we’ve had so far to guess who could be next?
Until now, the DLC fighters have come from Atlus (owned by Sega), Square-Enix and Rare (owned by Microsoft). Now unless if a really good deal was struck with Nintendo, we likely won’t see a second character from any of these three companies.
Meanwhile on that same note, here is the breakdown of all playable third parties currently in Smash:
Capcom: Ryu, Ken, Megaman
Sega: Sonic, Bayonetta, Joker
Konami: Snake, Simon and Richter
Square-Enix: Cloud and Hero
Namco: Pac-man
Microsoft: Banjo
13 in total (eleven characters with two echoes). So by the end of the Fighter’s Pack, we could be looking at 15 Third parties characters. So now, if we remove companies with DLC characters already and then remove other companies that got new characters thrown in so far, we only have one company left. And I suspect that this company either has the 4th of 5th slot reserved for themselves. So let’s talk Namco.
Bandai-Namco
So between only having one rep and assisting in creating this game, it is fair to say that Bandai-Namco could likely have a seat at the Fighter’s Pack table. The question then becomes: Who takes it? After thinking about it, there are one of three possibilities to consider.
The Tales of series is to Bandai Namco like what Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest is to Square Enix. Could we see a 3rd RPG character in the Fighter’s pass? Perhaps, but the question would be who that rep would be. Some would say Lloyd for his appearance in Tales of Symphonia on the Gamecube. Others would say Yuri from Tales of Vesperia as his popularity has steadily grown over the years. Either way, best to not write off this series quite yet.
Source: Tales of Vesperia
Tekken is one of the biggest fighting game franchises in the world right now. And considering many are holding out for another fighting game character to get in, what better time than now to make it happen. As for who it would be, everyone seems to focus on Heihachi, Jin and Kazuya. Understandable as they are the faces of Tekken, but many would say Heihachi is a front-runner due to how he was a Mii costume in Smash 4.
Source: PlayStation All-Stars. From one Crossover to another?
Finally, we have Klonoa. When people aren’t talking about Pac-man as the face of Bandai-Namco, Klonoa is usually the next person in line. I wouldn’t know how good of a pick this would be, but maybe it is possible that Bandai-Namco would like Klonoa to get in the Smash Spotlight.
Konami
So besides Bandai-Namco, we must also consider if one of the other two companies might get a chance to have one more rep in the game. As fun as it would be to think Konami will have one more rep though, it might not happen.
Considering that this would be a brand new title coming to smash, that doesn’t leave that many takers. Bomberman would have been a great pick, but if he is an assist trophy, he likely won’t get to be playable. The same can be said of Castlevania, which already has two characters with the Belmonts.
From there, the complications continue to stack up. What other IPs does Konami own that could make the cut? To run down a few, we have Adventure Island, Bloody Roar, Contra, Frogger, Gradius, Mystical Ninja, Silent Hill, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Zone of the Enders. Now as funny as it would be to see a playable Pyramid Head, that’s likely not going to happen as well as the other titles shown here.
In the end, it is probably fair to assume Konami isn’t taking an invite here. Still, it can be possible they can have someone and it will be someone we didn’t see coming. If that happens, that will definitely be a shock, but it’s probably fair to cross Konami off the list.
Capcom
So as the last of our six companies with no Fighters in the Pack yet, let’s think about Capcom. Something to which a lot of fans did not waste any time in considering. After all, we did get Ken, but he is an Echo Fighter which means we could see one more from Capcom.
Now as for who that will be, I’m going to throw my hands up in defeat since there have been so many suggestions, it is nonsensical. But let’s highlight some front runners.
Capcom Candidates
Source: Marvel vs Capcom 3 Ultimate– Plenty to Pick from.
Dante- With Bayonetta in and Devil May Cry 5 coming out earlier this year, what better time than now to bring in the Devil Hunter. He would be almost like Bayonetta for what could be done for combo potential and gameplay capabilities.
Leon Kennedy- Probably not one many would consider due to the use of guns, but if Snake can get in, why not Leon. From the Resident Evil 2 Remake to his various appearance in this classic Horror series, it’s fair to say Leon has become the face of Resident Evil and even for the Gamecube when RE4 first came out there and all other platforms afterward.
Amaterasu- Okami is well known as one of the most stylish games out there and people believe our Wolf God should get in. Considering how good she is in Marvel vs Capcom 3, it is understandable why people would like to see a Smash version of her. Speaking of MvC3…
Phenoix Wright- Even people believe this random lawyer should be in Smash! Understandable consider the wide range of 3DS titles Mr. Wright was in, including a crossover. It may be possible to see a playable Phenoix, but best to not hold your breath on it.
Monster Hunter- Why do we have a Rathalos and some music from Monster Hunter in Smash Ultimate and no Rep? Many did not hesitate to point this out and believe that the Monster Hunter will get to be another Downloadable Character in another Fighting game. Will be neat to see if there will be some changes to the playstyle or even if it would be a hunter. Playable Palicos anyone?
Anyone else?
So we did talk about our three third-party companies, but would there be any other takers for Smash Ultimate?
Source: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy– At this point, anything is possible.
Funny enough, many people are trying to use Banjo’s inclusion to claim we might even get a Sony character. Don’t get me wrong, Kratos in Smash would be as jaw-dropping as Cloud, but that seems like a big stretch to see happen. Others think this could be the time to see Crash or Spyro in Smash too since they aren’t with Sony anymore. More hands point to Crash for being the face of the PS1 and perhaps it could be time for Mario and Sonic to fight against a Bandicoot.
But let’s say that perhaps Nintendo said, “No! The final slot is for us!” and went with a Nintendo series that has never got a Smash reveal. Are there any other Nintendo IPs that Nintendo could tap into? We do have Golden Sun and ARMS, but we have to assist trophy reps already. Chibi Robo could be possible too, but who knows if they would consider that series. No More Heroes? After all, the third game is coming soon.
So What Do You Think?
Who could the final two fighters be? Could they come from Bandai-Namco? Capcom? Konami? or a different third party altogether? There are seemingly endless possbilities, and while it will be some time until we find out who the 4th character will be during the winter time, it is safe to assume that the hype for Smash Ultimate isn’t going to die down anytime soon.
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