Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

[Dragon Lord]

And I thought they couldn't make the roster any more shitty than it is... they proved me wrong.

[Mr EliteL]

Isabelle joining is fine to me. I wasn't bothered either way, and wasn't against seeing a new rep for AC. Seemed quite a lot hoped for her anyway during the time Smash 4 had the ballot and saw comments in places, then for Ultimate too. She seems to have different moves than Villager, but some the same. I was expecting her to be an Echo Fighter to Villager, so glad it doesn't seem that way.

For the bundle, OK seems good and all. Might be the one for me if I do get a Switch. I'll see what's on offer at the time, and if I want to go ahead with it.

[Karo]

That dock and joy con looks pretty cool, but also a bit of a let down. All the other joy cons except the black one are pretty colorful and have a nice contrast going to them.

I think its pretty neat they added Isabella to the brawl. I actually liked the introduction of King K Rool as I am a fan of Donkey Kong 64.

As for the rest I'm kinda like thats neat. I mean I love Chrom & Lucina, but there are so many other lords in the game.

[Moonface]

The Joy Con designs for that bundle are really bland to me. I get they put the Smash logo onto them but couldn't they have given it a little more pop?

[Moonface]

Everything From Today's Smash Nintendo Direct
Here is all the news and details from today's Smash Bros. Ultimate Nintendo Direct, as well as the video for those who wish to watch it rather than read about it.

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Final Base Roster Fighters Revealed
Ken (Street Fighter) and Incineroar (Pokèmon) are the final two fighters coming to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate roster for the games launch.

Ken will be an Echo Fighter of Ryu, and is based on his Super Street Fighter II Turbo version.

Ken's Moveset

• Heavy Shoryuken
  
• Hadoken (different shape to Ryu's)
  
• Tatsumaki Senpukyaku (strikes opponents multiple times)
  
• Hell Wheel
  
• Focus Attack
  
• Signature moves such as his kicks, based on your command inputs
  
• Final Smash 1 - Shinryuken
  
• Final Smash 2 - Shippu Jinraikyaku (execute Final Smash near opponent)
  

Incineroar will be a stand alone character, and uses mainly pro-wrestling moves and therefore has powerful throws. After successful attacks, he will pose for the audience, but you can cancel out of these poses at any time so you won't be open to attacks.

Incineroar's Moveset

• Darkest Lariat (neutral special)
  
• Cross Chop (up special)
  
• Force opponents to run the ropes after a dash and grab (side special). When opponents bounce back towards you, press the button at just the right time to pull off a move based on your timing. Wait too long and you'll fail, otherwise you'll do either of the following two moves:
  • Back Body Drop (early attack)
    
  • Lariat (perfect timing)
    
• Revenge (down special) powers up his next attack after taking damage
  
• Final Smash - Max Malicious Moonsault
  

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Starting Fighter List Revealed
When you first start your game, your roster will have the following characters unlocked to play:

• Mario
  
• Donkey Kong
  
• Link
  
• Samus
  
• Yoshi
  
• Kirby
  
• Fox
  
• Pikachu
  

This is the same starting roster as the original Nintendo 64 game.

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amiibo Figures and Release Dates
All the new fighters for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be getting an amiibo figure, some of which have confirmed release dates.

• Inkling, Ridley and Wolf will be available December 7th.
  
• King K. Rool and Ice Climbers will be available February 2nd, 2019.
  
• Ken, Isabelle, Young Link, Pichu, and Daisy will be available in 2019.
  

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Spirits
Collectible trophies will not be in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Instead, a new feature will replace them, called Spirits.

Spirits are characters who lost their physical forms, and can't return to the real world like the regular fighters. They can however join forces with regular fighters to enhance their powers in battle, and there are several classes of spirits based on their strength: Novice, Advanced, Ace, and Legend.

Fighters can have one Primary Spirit assigned to them at a time. That Spirit's power will be added to the fighter who has it equipped, and depending on the power of their Spirit, they may be extremely powerful. If a Primary Spirit has enough slots, you can assign them up to three Support Spirits. These Spirits do not enhance fighters power, instead lending them skills such as unflinching charged smashes, higher jumps, item gravitation, critical-health stats, or an item to start the battle with.

Spirits can be acquired in Spirit Battles. Select the Spirit you want to fight for from the Spirit Board, and you'll face off against the fighter who's abilities and personality are similar to the opposing Spirit. Here are some examples:

• Lakitu & Spiny Spirit - battle against Iggy Koopa and a group of tiny, red Bowsers.
  
• Gordo Spirit - battle against three King Dedede's, and during the fight a volley of Gordo's will appear from nowhere to attack you.
  
• Guts Man - battle against an oversized Mega Man who shows off his throwing skills.
  
• Owain - battle against Chrom, who taunts at every opportunity, Killing Edge in hand.
  
• The Imprisoned - battle against King K. Rool while Ghirahim guards him from your attacks.
  
• Lip - battle with a flower blooming on your head against the Mii Swordfighter and Jigglypuff.
  
• Able Sisters - battle against three Sonic's who all start with a Drill item.
  
• Hal Emmerich - battle a dodging Dr. Mario who is protected by a giant R.O.B.
  
• Bullet Bill - battle a trio of Captain Falcon's who shoot across the screen as Bullet Bill
  

When you win a battle, you'll have the chance to capture your opponent's Spirit by hitting them at the right time as a shield circles around them with openings. If you miss by hitting the shield, the damage carries over to the next time you encounter that Spirit.

Primary Spirits have strength's based on type:
Attack >> Grab >> Shield >> Attack

Primary Spirits will level up after battle if you have it equipped, or you can feed them snacks to level up. Some Spirits have an enhanced form unlocked by levelling them up. You can also choose to send Spirits back to the real world, meaning you do have to say goodbye to it, but its core will stay. Cores can be combined to summon a new Spirit. Train your Spirits by sending them to the Dojos and Gym, or send them to search for treasure which they'll hunt for even during play or while powered off.

Certain Spirits are known as Masters, and you can beat them to unlock facilities (no clue what these are as the Direct didn't cover it and this is the first I'm hearing of facilities).

Spirits can power up amiibo Figure Players, however this will cause you to lose the Spirit for your own use. It can be used with the amiibo limitless times however.

Whenever you fight against a Spirit, the Final Smash Meter is enabled, and certain Spirits will fill your gauge up faster. Stronger Spirit teams will overwhelm weaker opponents, but you will be rewarded less the more your power overshadows your opponents, so it pays to have a fair fight. If you're unsure of what Spirits to use against an opponent, use the Y button before the battle to receive recommendations of what Primary Spirit and Support Spirits to bring along with you.

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Local Wireless and Online Play
You can connect up to four Nintendo Switch consoles for local wireless play, by pressing the ZR button on the main menu and selecting the Local Wireless option.

Online is no longer split into For Fun and For Glory modes. Instead, matchmaking is based on three factors:

• Preferred Rules - You can set your preferred rules for online battles to quickly set up your preferred playstyle, and before battle one players preferred rules will be chosen at random. You can also let others decide the rules by choosing to not set any preferred rules if you wish. The matchmaking system will try to find players with similar preferences.
  

• Global Smash Power - This will now be factored into matchmaking, as well as continuing to be used as an online leaderboard. Your GSP is affected by the total number of Smash Ultimate players, and GSP score is set per fighter. Self destructing on purpose will incur penalties such as being disconnected and lowering your GSP.
  

• Distance Between Players - To ensure the most stable connection, the matchmaking system will prioritise shorter distances between players.
  

Elite Battles are a new feature for Online, which you can enter only when your GSP is high enough. These battles will feature only the best players, and as such the development team will reference Elite Battle results to determine if any balance changes need to be made to the game.

Everyone who plays online will need a Smash Tag, and beating another player will give you their Smash Tag. You will never lose Smash Tags, so fight on and keep collecting! If you want, you can sell Smash Tags for gold to redeem unlockable items in the game.

While waiting for a battle, you can enjoy other modes in the meantime. Not all modes will be available during matchmaking.

Spectator mode returns for you to do what it says on the tin.

You can form a two-player team to play together online with a single Nintendo Switch system. The matchmaking system will always face you off against other two-player teams with the same setup.

Players can set up Battle Arenas with their own rules and public availability, and other players can choose to wait in line for their turn in a battle or spectate the action. Voice Chat will be available during Battle Arena via the Nintendo Switch Online App on your smartphone.

A free service called Smash World will be released for smartphone users, and is exclusive to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. This service allows players to post gameplay videos, watch them, and more!

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New Assist Trophies
More Assist Trophies were revealed, and are as follows:

• Yuri Kozukata (Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water)
  
• Isaac (Golden Sun)
  
• Black Knight (Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance)
  
• Thwomp (Super Mario series)
  
• Spring Man (Arms)
  
• Wily Capsule (Mega Man series)
  
• Flies & Hand (Mario Paint)
  
• Tiki (Fire Emblem Awakening)
  
• Vince (Art Academy series)
  
• Guile (Street Fighter series)
  
• Akira (Virtua Fighter series)
  

The total number of Assist Trophies is now 59, and they can be KO'd by their summoner just before being KO'd by other fighters, so you have a chance to not lose a point to the other player.

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Century Smash, All-Star Smash, and Cruel Smash Return
Century Smash, All-Star Smash, and Cruel Smash return. Century Smash will be familiar as the mode where you try to eliminate 100 Mii Fighters as quickly as possible, and you can fight on many different stages and choose the music too.

All-Star Smash is available right out of the box, and all currently available fighters will appear endlessly.

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Language Support
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will support 11 different language options, and some characters such as Pokémon will have a different voice for each language. The fighter names and their vocal announcement in the fighter select screen are also tailored to each language.

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Smash Radar
You can choose to enable a radar in the top right corner of the screen during battles which shows the location of every fighter on the map, as well as the out of bounds areas.

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Custom Balance Options
Want to have a fairer fight against someone who's worse or better than you? You can now adjust the strength of your fighter before a battle in offline modes to do just that!

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New Mii Fighter Outfits
Mii Fighters will have new outfits:

• Yiga Clan set
  
• Splatoon 2 set
  
• Ribbon Girl set
  
• Chibi Robo set
  
• Ray MkIII set
  
• Toy-Con set
  

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DLC Development Confirmed
After the release of the game, more fighters will be coming to the roster via paid DLC! None of these fighters will be Echo Fighters, and as every fighter in Smash Bros. history is already in the game, that means every DLC fighter will be a brand new character.

The DLC will come in the form of sets, which include one fighter, one stage, and multiple music tracks, with a price of $5.99 USD. However, you can get a slight discount by purchasing the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Fighters Pass, which will give you five DLC sets as they are released, for a cost of $24.99 USD. It is not recommended to purchase this pass unless you are confident in its value, as the specific contents of the DLC sets has yet to be determined or revealed.

Purchasing the Fighters Pass will also give you a bonus Mii Swordfighter outfit, based on Rex from Xenoblade Chronicles 2, as well as a selection of music from the Xenoblade Chronicles series.

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Piranha Plant Pipes Up for Battle!
As a limited time offer, anyone who purchases Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and registers their copy will receive the brand new fighter Piranha Plant  for free. This tricky fighter can spit poison, fire spiky balls, has a variety of long range attacks and has Petey Piranha as its Final Smash!

Piranha Plant won't be ready until after the game launches, and can be redeemed for free by registering your copy of the game by 11:59pm PT on January 31st, 2019.

As with every other fighter in the game, Piranha Plant will be receiving an amiibo, available on February 15th, 2019.

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Adventure Mode Details
Whereas the Subspace Emissary was focused on story, the Adventure Mode for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is focused more on fun, however there will still be a story to tie things together. It will focus on how certain characters lost their physical forms and became Spirits, and you can watch the final five minutes of the Nintendo Direct to see how it all begins.

Based on the footage, it appears the mode will start you off as Kirby, the only one to escape the attack that turns everyone else into Spirits or possessed fighters. There will be a huge overworld map to explore, and you can play as other fighters as you locate and defeat them in battle to free them from whatever evil influence has come over them. But what is the force that caused all of this and how will the fight against them turn out? You'll have to find that one out for yourself when the game launches.

[Dragon Lord]

I can't believe they actually found a way to make the roster worse than it was. Every character reveal, it's like, "They can't possibly screw it up any more than they already have", and then it's like, wow, they actually managed to screw it up more than they already have.

Piranha Plant? Really? REALLY?! That is the biggest waste of a character slot I've seen in any game ever. Then to make things even worse, they make Incineroar a non-echo?! Great, another Pokemon character who wastes a spot that someone more deserving could have taken. The game needed another Pokemon character about as much as it needed another Fire Emblem character.

At least the Adventure Mode seems pretty decent. If I had a Switch, I'd probably get the game for that alone. But man, this character roster is a HUGE turn-off from this game. This game had so much potential, and they just ruined it by adding so many stupid characters.

[Moonface]

I thought the Piranha Plant character was superbly done myself, and I want to use it just for how stupid it is.

As for the roster as a whole, I think it's fine but I'm speaking from a perspective of someone who doesn't know everyone that should or could be in the roster.

Spirits seem a neat addition and look like they could make for some fun fight scenarios.

Adventure Mode was the highlight of the direct for me, and it looks like it'll be a pretty big mode.

The Fighter Pass doesn't seem that good of a deal though. $5 off isn't really enough incentive for me to consider getting it when I may not care for any of the DLC characters.

[Mr EliteL]

Was surprised by Incineroar and Piranha Plant as the new characters. Ken I was happy to see, didn't necessarily want him but with Echo Fighters being a thing, was a good chance for him. A huge shame on Isaac though. Incineroar looks pretty good though for the moveset. Was expecting more fire moves, but being based on a grappler is an interesting addition. Piranha Plant is a very weird choice and couldn't believe how on Earth it'll traverse or imagine what attacks it would have for 11 moves and grabs. Would've loved a new Mario boss instead, which is what I was hoping for when seeing Luigi and Yoshis rendered dizzy with Mario confronting the enemy. Funny to see here though, but will be kinda embarrassing/annoying to lose against. Then again what appears to be the side b special, will be excellent for attacking anyone trying to recover to the stage.

Spirits seem kinda like the stickers in Brawl and the...whatever it was in Smash 4 for Attack, Defence and Speed. Cool everything else can be used in some way for gameplay.

Loved the cinematic for the Adventure. Seems like the best place to collect Spirits perhaps?

For the remaining 5 DLC characters, no clue who they could be as most choices I'd think of are Assist Trophies already.

[yeo]

I feel like the newcomers were delivered very bad causing the fanbase to rage lol. From Ridley being the last one in the first direct (hype) to Piranha Planta being the last one in the last direct (lolwut).

Other than that, people are just stupid. It's pretty stupid to be mad for ONE character when you got 70+ characters in the game.

[Moonface]

I think they would've been damned either way they did the reveals. Do Piranha first, and it gives a bad first impression of the game, but ends on a high note with Ridley. Get Ridley out first, and it gets a good hype build for the game going, but at the expense of subsequent reveals being overshadowed by it.

Also, the five DLC characters have already been decided and were decided upon by Nintendo themselves, not Sakurai or the Smash team. I wonder if that was to help secure any third party characters as Nintendo would be the ones to handle that and would want the most control over who they approach. I wouldn't be surprised if Ubisoft get a fighter given their good relationship with Nintendo recently, but I also won't expect it to happen either. Can't really think of who Nintendo would most likely want to put into Smash off the top of my head.

[queenzelda]

So......am I really the only person who realized that this game releases on the 77th anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day? Cause, it is.

[Dragon Lord]

I think you're the only person who cares about something that irrelevant to the topic at hand.

[Mr EliteL]

I didn't realise that, but eh any date's probably going to correlate with something somewhere.

Who's seen the new ad trailer for Ultimate? How there's no music, so it's spawned videos of people placing music over the top, going along with the sound and voice effects from the original trailer.

[Moonface]

Who's seen the new ad trailer for Ultimate? How there's no music, so it's spawned videos of people placing music over the top, going along with the sound and voice effects from the original trailer.

The best edit I've seen for the new trailer is this one:

It syncs up so well you could probably show this to someone ignorant of the official trailer and convince them that this is the official one. XD

[Mr EliteL]

Yeah, that synchronised really well with what's happening in the trailer. Another good one is the video using the old Smash 64 trailer's music (Together) just for the throw back to that game.
EDIT: Not so much now as I forgot that song was used in the Detective Pikachu trailer.