Guessing The Last Six Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Characters

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s director Masahiro Sakurai has recently stated that the six characters that form the Fighter Pass Vol. 2 will be the last characters added to the game, and that there are no plans to release another game, at least on current gen consoles. Let’s be honest though, there will be another Smash Bros. at some point. Get ready for Super Smash Bros. Origins, the gritty reboot, releasing in 2024 on the Nintendo Lever.

This news is interesting, as many people likely fell into the assumption that there would probably be at least one more Fighters Pass following Vol. 2. The current pattern for highly successful fighting games appears to be releasing at least three seasons worth of content post-launch. Tekken 7 did it, Street Fighter V did it, Killer Instinct did it, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Soulcalibur VI do it too.

With this news, space on the good ship Smash Ultimate is now at a premium, and the final six roster additions are the most important roster announcements ever. Nintendo have already decided which six characters will form the Fighters Pass Vol. 2, but it couldn’t hurt to throw our own predictions into the void. Hell, we even went for 12, just to try and guarantee at least one of them is correct. Double your chances, right?

One ground rule before we get going: we’re avoiding characters that have already been featured in the game as assist trophies, because it’s unlikely that Nintendo will go backwards in that respect. This means no predictions for Waluigi (sorry, dudes), Shadow the Hedgehog as a Sonic echo fighter, Spring Man or any of the other Trophies. With that out of the way, let’s take a look at our predictions.

 

1 (& 2). The Obligatory First-Party Pick

Not many people were expecting a first-party Nintendo character with the first Fighters Pass, but in rocked Byleth to disappoint a majority of players. They have a cool moveset, but no one was rushing out to buy the first Fighters Pass over the idea of another Nintendo or Fire Emblem character. With six spaces in Vol. 2, a first party Nintendo pick is almost certain, but the assist trophy caveat leaves us with limited options.

One potential pick is Toad. Heck, if Piranha Plant can get a space in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, then surely the time is right for Toad to get their due. Nintendo could go down the route of introducing Captain Toad to the world of Smash Bros., with his adventuring approach and hunt for treasure potentially leading to an interesting moveset.

Another option could be the Sword and Shield Pokémon Trainer, using a combination of the game’s starter Pokémon and their evolutions. Rillaboom seems like a good shout, just because the trio needs a decent heavy hitter, while Cinderace balances speed, power and a penchant for booting flaming rocks into his opponents. Chuck in Inteleon as a ranged character and you’ve got the full set.

 

3. Crash Bandicoot

The Bandicoot is making a comeback in a big way, with a new game in the series pretty much expected at this point, so what better way to build even more hype than by placing gaming’s favourite marsupial into Smash Bros.? Considering where Crash comes from, and the nature of the world he inhabits, he’s a perfect fit for the series.

Throughout the games, Crash obtains a host of special abilities beyond just his spin attack, all of which could be incorporated into his moveset. On top of that, the music and graphical style of Crash Bandicoot is iconic, and would lend itself naturally to Smash Bros. The stage could be a tour of Wumpa Island, or just the Road to Nowhere bridge from Crash 1, if only to give players those horror flashbacks.

 

4. Spyro

Another platformer, and certainly not the last one on this list, Spyro the Dragon shares a lot of similarities with Crash Bandicoot, especially now that they’ve both had significant remakes of their original trilogies. Both Crash and Spyro were considered to be icons of platform gaming, standing toe-to-toe with the likes of Mario and Sonic as the new kids on the block.

If many had their way, that toe-to-toe staredown would be a more literal one, as seeing Spyro square off against some of gaming’s biggest properties is a literal dream match. Like Crash, Spyro’s abilities lend themselves well to the platform fighting genre, and the vibrant world of Spyro would make for some excellent stage backgrounds.

 

5. Rayman

In some kind of weird paradox, Rayman as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is both incredibly likely and unlikely to happen, all at once. On the one hand, he appears as a Spirit in the World of Light mode, so the partnership with Ubisoft is already there (along with the Altair Mii costume), but because Rayman is already a spirit, that makes this a dark horse pick. Like the assist trophies, it’ll be hard to imagine Nintendo going backwards like that.

That said, I’d love to see Rayman as a playable character more than arguably any other character on this list. His appearance in Brawlhalla confirms he’s suited to platform fighters, and let’s be honest, Ubisoft aren’t really doing much else with the character at the moment. May as well chuck him Smash Bros., see what happens. We might get a new game out of it, who knows?

 

6. Minecraft Steve

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has basically become the ultimate crossover game, combining characters from franchises like Super Mario, Street Fighter, Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid, Kirby, Bayonetta and so many more. It’s home to some of the most recognisable characters across all of gaming, which makes Minecraft Steve’s absence sting all that more.

There’s no escaping the fact that Minecraft is one of the biggest games ever made, successfully finding its way into mainstream culture the same way Mario has. For that alone, Steve belongs in Smash Bros., but there’s also potential for the stage itself to have some unique gimmicks. Being able to break blocks to explore underground seems like the exact kind of dumb party game mechanic Sakurai would love. If anything, I just want to hear that death noise every time Steve gets KO’d, because that’d be funny.

Ah, who am I kidding? It’s going to be something Fortnite related, isn’t it? Get ready to see Mario dabbing, I guess.

 

7. Tracer

With Overwatch now available on the Nintendo Switch, though not in its best form, let’s be honest: it’s likely that we’ll see an Overwatch character added to the roster. It’s one of the biggest possible crossovers that Smash Bros have on the table right now, and with Overwatch 2 looming on the horizon, now seems like the perfect opportunity

With over 30 playable heroes, everyone is going to have their own personal preference as to who they’d like to see. Personally, I’d love to see Roadhog, just because I love my chunky boy. Meanwhile, Doomfist’s abilities seem to be tailor made for Smash Bros., but it’ll be Tracer. She’s the poster girl, so it only makes sense if any character will be added, it’ll be her. Add a stage based on King’s Row and you’ve got yourself a new DLC character.

 

8. Doom Slayer

Mister Rip And Tear himself, your boy Doomguy has long been rumoured to be a part of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for a while now. Given that the Doom Slayer has developed a burgeoning friendship with Isabelle, considering that Doom: Eternal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons will release on the same day, the likelihood of seeing the angriest man in the universe appear in Smash Bros. increases by the day.

Unfortunately, his moveset and overall aesthetic might not be the best fit for Smash Bros as a whole. I doubt we’ll see the Doom Slayer grabbing Luigi by the skull and kneeing his head off, but his BFG would probably make for an impressive Final Smash. On top of that, the Mick Gordon soundtrack would be fantastic to hear while beating up your friends.

 

9. Dante

Everyone’s favourite pizza loving demon hunter was all set to be the final member of the first Fighters Pass. The chosen one would finally arrive in Smash Bros., Ebony and Ivory in hand, to style on the rest of the roster, but unfortunately it was not to be. Byleth was announced, meaning hopes of seeing Dante mix it up with everyone were quickly dashed. Hopefully, though, they’re not dashed for good.

Like many other picks on this list, Dante seems like a natural fit for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. His wide variety of weapons and styles could give him an intricate move-set that goes beyond any other character in Smash history, while the soundtrack ensures there’ll be a host of bangers to accompany whichever stage Dante ends up with. Let’s go with the top of the Temen-ni-gru from Devil May Cry 3, sod it. Why not capitalise on the recent release of the DMC 3: Special Edition on the Switch?

Also, chuck Vergil in as an assist trophy. Do it, you cowards.

 

10. Sora

It seems like everybody and their best friend would like to see Kingdom Hearts’ Sora added to the beautiful world of Smash Bros., and if recent reports are to be believed, even Nintendo and Square Enix were up for it, but Disney Japan decided to put the kibosh on the whole thing. Not even Disney as a whole, Disney Japan specifically, for reasons that are still not quite clear. Unless Disney are planning a platform fighter with Mickey and the gang, and they consider Smash to be a direct competitor, there doesn’t seem to be a valid reason as to why.

Either way, feelings change over time, and after seeing the level of success Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and the Nintendo Switch has had, Disney Japan might finally let Sora join the roster. His Keyblade is legendary in its own right, but in truth, a Kingdom Hearts stage that visits all the famous Disney properties would be the star attraction. Going from Toy Story to Hercules and beyond would be absolutely magical.

 

11. Amaterasu

Capcom has a few characters they’re not doing anything with, so why not throw them into Smash? Okami is still considered by many to be a masterpiece of the PS2 era, a beautiful adventure through a stylised and mythical version of historical Japan. Playing as Amaterasu, the literal God of the Sun transformed into the form of a wolf, you must cleanse the land of an evil plague.

The highly stylised world of Okami would make for an interesting contrast to the rest of Smash Bros., giving Amaterasu a unique visual aesthetic against other characters, and her Celestial Brush and assortment of weapons would be fun to play with, as her appearance in Marvel vs Capcom 3 proved. She’s a bit more of an obscure pick, sure, but she’s a good one nonetheless.

 

12. Nightmare

Since Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U’s DLC, Nintendo have been throwing pure fighting game characters into their roster whenever they can. Ryu was a DLC character for the Wii U, while his rival Ken Masters was added to Ultimate. Finally, SNK’s Terry Bogard was featured as part of the first Fighters Pass, so it makes sense that Vol. 2 sees another fighting game character added to the game.

With Capcom and SNK, two of the biggest fighting game developers out there, already represented, eyes should turn to another developer, the most likely candidate being Bandai Namco. A few predictions on Twitter have stated that they’d like to see Heihachi or Jin from Tekken make their way into the game, but allow me to suggest a more leftfield pick: Soulcalibur’s Nightmare.

The Azure Knight’s decades-long history in gaming, along with his awesome weapon Soul Edge, speaks for itself, but the reason he belongs in Smash over Tekken characters is because I feel his huge sword strikes and range better fit Smash Bros. than most Tekken characters. His slow but powerful swings could make for a nice heavy character. As for stage, the Lost Cathedral from Soulcalibur 3 is practically begging for a redo. Throw Siegfried in as an echo fighter or added costume, and you’ve got a real winner of a Challenger Pack on your hands.

 

Bonus: Yamper

The cute electric boy is one of the best aspects of Sword and Shield, as far as I’m concerned, so I’d like to see Yamper added to Smash Bros. in some way. Maybe just make him a random Poké Ball appearance, just to have him block the screen like Nintendogs do. I don’t know, I just want to see more of that little bundle of joy.

And those are our predictions, but what are yours? Are they better than ours? Let us know in the comments.