As of now, neither Nintendo nor creator Masahiro Sakurai has made any comments leaning towards the existence of a Smash 6. But, given the series’ massive popularity and the inevitable giant bag of money that comes along with that, it may be safe to assume that a new rendition will hit shelves sometime in the next 5-7 years.
Smash Ultimate brought us many things fans had been begging for since the series’ inception. A giant cast of characters, live patch updates, and Min Min, for some reason. But there’s always room for improvement and tweaking. So here’s everything we want to see in the next installment of Smash.
Updated Movesets For the Original Eight
The original eight characters featured in the 1998 N64 Smash Bros were Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, Yoshi, Fox, Kirby, and Pikachu. In addition, the game also featured Luigi, Captain Falcon, Ness, and Jigglypuff, who could be unlocked through gameplay.
That was in 1998. And those twelve have had the exact same move sets since 2002 when Melee was released. So it’s been almost 25 years of new games and new developments for these characters. Nostalgia is one thing, but if you feel nostalgic, open up Melee, Brawl, Smash 4, or Ultimate. It’ll have the exact same move sets. The possibilities opened up by new installments from the main games of these characters are endless.
Maybe Carby is Kirby’s side B, sort of Bowser Jr-esque. Mario’s tilts could have a bit more range because he’s throwing Cappy around. Link could use the sheikah slate as his neutral B, and you could get a random function from it, sort of like Shulk. Metroid just had its first installment in over 25 years. Let’s see something new from Samus.
If the move-sets remain the same, it won’t be the end of the world, but seeing the franchise switch it up would be fun.
A Smaller Cast
Ultimate has the largest cast of characters ever assembled for a Smash game. 89 is an absolutely massive number, and honestly, the best way to go forward is to go back a little bit.
Nintendo has made a lot of money off of our nostalgia (see: Mario Party), and it would be foolish not to embrace that on the Smash side of things as well. So, maybe a reboot of Melee might be in order, with some updated mechanics and improved graphics. Or, just port Melee onto the Switch. Either way, I’m happy.
But a smaller, more focused cast seems to be in order this time around. Maybe not as small as the N64 cast, but the Melee cast seems like a good middle ground.
Some New Donkey Kong Skins
I’ve held this very specific gripe for a very long time. In any possible Mario or Donkey Kong installment, Donkey Kong is not green, yellow, purple, or otherwise, like his Smash skins are. What he has had, however, is a veritable posse of incredible-looking characters around him at all times. I’m talking, of course, about Funky Kong. But there’s also Chunky Kong and the cast of villains from Jungle Beat. Dread Kong, Ninja Kong; the list goes on and on.
The introduction of Steve showed us that character alts could be different shades of the same character, like Alex, the Zombie, and that Scottish version of Steve. The Bowser Jr alts are all the weird little cousin turtles like Morton and Ludwig. So why not embrace the storied history of one of the most iconic video game series ever to exist? There are a lot more monkeys in the sea.
Embracing Competitive Play
Competitive gameplay for Super Smash Bros has existed since the early 2000s. There’s a whole documentary about it. But you know where you won’t hear a peep about it? Nintendo. Nintendo’s point, to be sure, is understandable. This is meant to be a party game, and the image of this game as something valid for eSports makes it a liability from a sales perspective. It’s just not how they market the game.
However, the reality of the situation is that this is a competitive game. Whether it was intended to be that way or not, it is that way to millions of people. It’s one of the oldest and most dedicated eSports communities in American history. People really, really love these games. I’ve never known a corporation that hated making money, so why not provide some legitimacy to a deeply devoted part of your fanbase and line your pockets in the meantime?
Some New Characters, Of Course
We all want new characters each time around. While I’ve just argued above for a return to the original Melee cast, why not throw out some ideas?
These ideas will not include Waluigi. I get it. Everyone wants Waluigi. He’s the only Mario brother not in the cast, and there was a petition, blah blah blah. Nobody needs to hear that argument again, and honestly, I’m not even sure how Waluigi would fit into Smash. Fresh ideas only!
Bandana Waddle-Dee
Waddle-Dees are awesome, and Bandana Waddle-Dee is the best of them all. Armed with a spear and no legs, imagine propelling around the stage and throwing spears at everybody. The Waddle-Dees have been a consistent part of Nintendo for nearly 40 years, and in recent installments, our banadana’d pal has been a playable character. Now, it’s time for some love on the Smash side of things.
Golduck
Golduck is perfect for Smash, and we always get some new Pokemon on each installment. I imagine a side B similar to Squirtle’s, and a psychic down B that causes a stun if you get too close. The combination of psychic and water abilities with those razor-sharp claws make for a really interesting potential move-set.
Doomguy
Doomguy, if you don’t know, is, well, the guy from Doom. With the classic arcade games history and it being revamped onto modern consoles with sequels and remasters to boot, there’s no better time to capitalize than now. The game comes with melee and ranged moves and recovery options already in place. So all the developers need to do is get them in that classic Smash style.
Make Ganondorf Playable
Ganondorf is dreadfully bad. His recovery is terrible, and his moves are as slow and predictable as he is. The only redeeming quality with Ganon is that you only need three hits to take a stock.
In the Zelda franchise, Ganon is an unstoppable, unbreakable force of evil. Fights against Ganon in his various forms have been some of the most thrilling and challenging situations in video game history. But in Smash, he’s a bumbling idiot who yells DORIYAH way too much.
It’s a shame to see one of the most terrifying villains ever reduced to that. He deserves more, and Smash should give him more.
