A Switch 2 Super Smash Bros. Game Shouldn't Be Afraid to…

Since the initial Switch 2 reveal, the community has been questioning when a new Super Smash Bros. Game will release. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was a huge success with fans, reintroducing characters from the series' past, as well as adding some newcomers to the series that have been requested for some time. If Super Smash Bros. Ultimate receives a sequel on the Switch 2, it has very high expectations to live up to.

What may be the best course of action instead is to take a step back from the content added to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Upping the ante from the Switch entry could be an impossible task, so it may be wise to change direction completely. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was a hub of fighting game royalty, but rather than focusing solely on crossover characters, a Switch 2 installment could have different priorities.

Super Smash Bros. On Switch 2 Should Have A Smaller Roster

Not Everyone Is Here

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate marketed itself as the ultimate game in the series because of its expansive roster. Alongside the newcomers to the series, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate revealed that “Everyone is Here!”, with all past competitors being available in the game’s base roster. A new installment for the Switch 2 shouldn’t undermine its predecessor’s efforts to unite characters from the series’ past, and should consider narrowing the cast down to only those who are essential instead.

While this may seem controversial, it could work in the game’s favor. The complete roster of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate set the bar high for a sequel to follow, and player expectations would likely be even higher. By establishing early on that the next entry in the series would be cutting down the size of its roster, fans would be able to temper their expectations prior to release.

It’s also important to note that the existence of a sequel does not remove Super Smash Bros. Ultimate from existence. If players want to enjoy every character from the series’ history in one place, revisiting Ultimate is always an option. As backwards compatibility is confirmed for Switch 2, players are able to get the best of both worlds, since Ultimate and a new installment would both be playable on the new console. It’s also possible for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to receive a Switch 2 Edition upgrade, bringing it up to par with the rest of the console’s library.

The reveal of each new Super Smash Bros. Fighter generated a lot of hype in the community, excited to see which characters would join the fray in the ultimate crossover fighting game. However, the broader the roster gets, the easier it is for the unexpected picks to become lost, lessening their impact. Though the reveals came as a surprise at the time, the expansive roster has led to players forgetting some Super Smash Bros. Characters that are playable.

Familiar Characters, Different Playstyles

If the next Super Smash Bros. Game were to reduce the number of playable characters, there would need to be a reason for this. Players would likely want justification for why the game has less content than the previous game. Super Smash Bros. Melee tournaments help to lengthen the game's lifespan, and these persist because Melee features gameplay mechanics and tech that are absent from all other entries. For the next game in the series, changes to the gameplay could be the justification needed for the smaller roster.

One way to shake up the series after Super Smash Bros. Ultimate would be to alter the characters’ movesets. Many of the legacy characters have seen very few changes to their moves since the original Super Smash Bros. On Nintendo 64. By reworking the Super Smash Bros. Roster, players could be excited to play as the returning characters again.

This would also give the characters the chance to feel more in line with their modern depictions. A notable example is Mario, who has used F.L.U.D.D. In his Super Smash Bros. Kit since Brawl, despite F.L.U.D.D. Not appearing in a mainline Super Mario game since 2002. It’s important that characters are representative of their entire history, but some could use additions from their recent games. As such, Super Mario Bros. Wonder should influence Super Smash Bros. By giving Mario some newer abilities.

For players who enjoy the existing movesets for characters, there is a method already established in the Super Smash Bros. Franchise that would allow this. Super Smash Bros. For Wii U and 3DS, often abbreviated to SSB4, allowed players to equip characters with Custom Moves, which were different special attacks than their defaults. A Switch 2 Super Smash Bros. Title could bring this concept back, possibly keeping the movesets fans are familiar with while giving them much-needed overhauls. Some Fire Emblem and Mother series characters would benefit from this, as their Super Smash Bros. Movesets are different from those in their games, so Custom Moves could give them a canon move list.

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The Next Super Smash Bros. Game Could Reintroduce Older Game Modes

Though Super Smash Bros. Ultimate dubs itself as the ultimate game in the series, this only really applies to the roster. Unfortunately, there is still some content missing that some fans have been eager to see return. In particular, there are many Super Smash Bros. Game modes that did not make their way to the Switch entry. If a Switch 2 Super Smash Bros. Game puts less focus on new fighters, returning game modes could take priority.

While the World of Light mode did provide players with a story experience, many longtime fans of the series have been eager for a follow-up to the Subspace Emissary story since Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Compared to World of Light, Subspace Emissary was much more story-heavy, giving players a variety of bosses to fight and an adventure field to platform their way through. A smaller Super Smash Bros. Cast would benefit the story, as it could give more focus to certain character moments without feeling too bloated.

Another fan-favorite mode that was omitted from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was Break the Targets. The mode that was once a series staple slowly changed over time, from Melee’s iconic Target Test to SSB4’s Target Blast, a hybrid of Break the Targets and Home-Run Contest. For a new entry on the Switch 2, this mode could be reintroduced with personalized Break the Targets stages for each character. Each would be a test of that character’s abilities, teaching players the basics and easing them into the potentially new movesets.

Ryu and Ken from the intro of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

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Which Characters Could Players Expect in the Next Super Smash Bros.?

There have been 12 recurring characters since the original Super Smash Bros., and it’s unlikely that the next installment will break this tradition. Though they are the most expected to return, reworking their move lists could keep them fresh for players. Some Super Smash Bros. Characters need improvements, and a game that reinvents the formula may be the best opportunity for this.

Even if a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate sequel trims the roster down, there are some third-party characters that are likely to stay. Characters like Sonic the Hedgehog and Banjo & Kazooie were surprising additions to players at first because it didn’t seem within the realm of possibility, but now they feel at home in the series. These choices made for some of the best Super Smash Bros. Reveals, and it is likely that some players could be disappointed to lose them in the next game.

There are also plenty of other guest characters that fans have been desperate to play as in the series that have yet to appear. By limiting the roster, the arrivals of some of these heavily-requested characters could hit that much harder. Ultimate tried to compensate players by adding some of these as costumes for the Mii characters, such as Dante and Geno, but featuring them as their own unique fighters would be a far bigger move. There are plenty of characters that should feature in Super Smash Bros., and with a more limited roster, their eventual inclusion would have much more impact.

The Super Smash Bros. Series is known for its out-there choices when it comes to characters. Ultimate still had its fair share of these, such as Piranha Plant and Minecraft’s Steve and Alex, but characters like Kazuya and Terry made the game feel more grounded. Min Min and Sora were points of excitement for fans, but were expected to be included at some point. The next game in the series could take players by surprise and include obscure and unexpected characters as Super Smash Bros. Newcomers. Many Western players were introduced to series like Fire Emblem through Melee, so having more niche picks could generate interest in other lesser-known series while giving players more varied character choices.

It’s likely that a new Super Smash Bros. Game could be held back for a while, but when it is eventually revealed, it might not be a huge surprise if not all the content from Ultimate finds its way to a sequel. Outdoing the roster of Ultimate would be a difficult task, and could diminish the “Everyone is Here” motto that made the game special. Instead, a Switch 2 installment could reinvent the existing characters and the series as a whole, marking Ultimate as the end of an era and the start of a new one.

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