| Character |
Company Origin |
How does it pertain to Smash Bros.? |
| Flying Man (Earthbound) |
Nintendo |
Flying Man was likely never considered as a playable character, as Earthbound couldn’t even retain Lucas for its launch. Flying Man was however used in the Magicant stage on 3DS. While the team had originally created a 3D model for him, they opted to use sprites instead. The 3D model was repurposed for a Mii costume.
|
| Megaman X (Megaman) |
Capcom |
Similar to the Flying Man, Megaman X had a 3D model to draw from as a base, likely making him an easily adaptable costume. Though it should be noted that Megaman X has immense popularity in his own right, even beating the classic bomber in terms of fan support for Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
|
| Protoman (Megaman) |
Capcom |
Protoman is one of several main characters in the classic Megaman line of games. A protagonist. While significantly less major than the bomber himself, he has maintained a great deal of popularity.
|
| Dunban (Xenoblade) |
Nintendo |
Dunban is one of the most popular characters to come out of Xenoblade, especially in Japan. He appears even over Shulk’s brother in arms, Reyn (baby), in Shulk’s own Final Smash. Like Flying Man, he had a model to be able to use as a starting point. Though it should be noted that he is pretty much the only Xenoblade character who would have worked as a Shulk clone, due to his notable stint as the Monado’s wielder.
|
| Isabelle (Animal Crossing) |
Nintendo |
It’s tough to say exactly where Isabelle lies on this. One the one hand, she’s become one of the most prominent Nintendo characters in the recent years. She’s been heavily publicised alongside other Nintendo legends, and she’s even made her way into Mario Kart long before the likes of Kirby, Fox or Samus. It’s entirely possible that she was considered as an Animal Crossing character in addition to, or perhaps instead of The Villager. It certainly is in the realm of possibility that Animal Crossing could have been given an additional fighter. It’s one of Nintendo’s top 5 biggest franchises (behind only Mario, Pokemon, Zelda and Donkey Kong). It can’t be discounted that the Villager was considered for Brawl already (which predates Isabelle’s existence), so it’s possible that Isabelle’s popularity lead to her Assist Trophy model being repurposed for a costume, much like Flying Man.
|
| Heihachi (Tekken) |
Namco |
Heihachi is confirmed to have been considered.
|
| Akira (Virtua Fighter) |
SEGA |
Jacky and Akira are both pretty big characters in their own right, as the co-faces of SEGAs own long running fighting game series Virtua Fighter. They were even selected for the first SEGA racing game. Smash’s status as a fighting game means that it’s likely that Sakurai took inspiration from other fighting games when thinking about new characters to add to Smash. Sonic’s basic jab combo was lifted from Virtua Fighter. We know that he considered Heihachi, and of course Ryu actually appeared as DLC. Sakurai has also discussed how he feels about fighting game characters in Smash.
|
| Jacky (Virtua Fighter) |
SEGA |
See Akira.
|
| Zero (Megaman) |
Capcom |
There’s no denying Zero’s popularity, or his importance to the Megaman IP. Capcom have steadily promoted him many, many times in the past few years. With playable appearances in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as well as Project X Zone and its sequel. Often selected over the classic bomber himself. He also remains the only character from a Megaman spinoff game to receive a trophy without an in game role.
|
| Megaman.EXE (Megaman) |
Capcom |
Megaman.EXE is in somewhat of a similar situation to Megaman X, both were involved in Megaman’s Final Smash. However, EXE’s popularity may shock you. In a DLC poll conducted in Japan that amassed over 35,000 votes for Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Megaman EXE was placed 2nd, even above the ever popular Megaman X. It’s interesting that the two clear fan favorites were the 2 Blue Bombers who received the Mii Fighter costumes.
|
| Inkling (Splatoon) |
Nintendo |
Splatoon is Nintendo’s latest success story and is well on its way to being Nintendo’s biggest new IP since Star Fox first debuted on the SNES. It’s highly likely that Inklings were considered at some point as the team was specifically looking to add a character to represent an upcoming game. Perhaps the timing just wasn’t right?
|
| King K. Rool (Donkey Kong) |
Nintendo |
It’s no secret that K. Rool has an extremely large and vocal fan base. It’s also a fair assumption to make that he was the most requested first party newcomer following Ridley’s official deconfirmation prior to the launch of the Wii U version. Popular in both Japan and the Western world, K. Rool’s Mii Fighter costume marked a first appearance in a new video game since 2008’s Mario Super Sluggers. It’s without a doubt that this Mii costume was a result of fan outcry.
|
| Chrom (Fire Emblem) |
Nintendo |
Chrom is confirmed to have been considered. A moveset was thought up for him which was deemed too similar to Ike and Marth, eventually Robin was used in his stead.
|
| Black Knight (Fire Emblem) |
Nintendo |
The Black Knight is the rival of Ike, and had a prominent role in the Path of Radience, with Sakurai’s known fondness for Fire Emblem, it’s possible that in addition to a Fire Emblem Awakening character, that he considered adding a villain from that series.
|
| LLoyd (Tales of Symphonia) |
Namco |
One of the most interesting facts about Lloyd is that the Tales Of series producer expressed a strong interest in wanting a character in the game. With Sakurai deeming that Lloyd was really the only choice when thinking about Tales Of content. As a notable Namco-Bandai owned IP, it was likely considered alongside the likes of Pac-Man and Heihachi, as Sakurai expressed a desire to include a character from Namco.
|
| K.K. Slider (Animal Crossing) |
Nintendo |
Much like Isabelle, K. K. Slider is one of the more notable Animal Crossing characters, and may have been considered in place of the Villager. Although, and again like Isabelle, he has a prior model that could have resulted in his inclusion as a Mii Fighter costume.
|
| Toad (Super Mario) |
Nintendo |
Toad is almost unquestionably the single most iconic Nintendo character that is not already playable in Super Smash Bros. Easily on par with the elite crew of Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi and Bowser, Toad’s face has been slapped on just about every kind of merchandise you could imagine. Sakurai previously expressed a desire not to over represent the Mario series, and it’s possible that Toad was simply passed over for characters with more moveset potential, the puppet master Rosalina & Luma, and the Clown Car driving Bowser Jr. Interestingly, Sakurai’s comments about Waluigi give a further indication of this.
|
| Viridi (Kid Icarus) |
Nintendo |
Kid Icarus was given a major presence in Smash Bros. For Wii U and for 3DS. The Smash Run game mode is brimming with villains from the Sakurai-helmed Kid Icarus: Uprising. Many new items were, an Assist Trophy, and even multiple new stages were implemented. Not to mention the two new playable characters. After Palutena herself, Viridi is one of the most noteable Kid Icarus characters. Notably she was given a major role in Palutena’s Guidances, appearing in all but a few of the conversations.
|
| Hunter (Monster Hunter) |
Capcom |
Monster Hunter is a colossal franchise for Capcom. With over 36 million copies sold, it has not only surpassed Mega Man, but is on its way to dethroning Street Fighter as it is well on it’s way to being Capcom’s second biggest franchise behind only Resident Evil. Monster Hunter games have been almost exclusively made for Nintendo platforms in recent years, a feat which apparently made negotiating Bayonetta for Smash “very easy”. The Monster Hunter team nixed having any of their characters playable on Marvel vs. Capcom 3, but later allowed Felyne to be used as a card in its Heroes and Heralds mode. It’s possible that something similar occurred with Smash.
|
| Rathalos (Monster Hunter) |
Capcom |
See Hunter.
|
| Chocobo (Final Fantasy) |
Square Enix |
After the Smash team shocked the world with Cloud’s announcement, fans were staggered at the idea of having a character who has almost no ties to Nintendo playable in Smash Bros. We’ve later learned that out of Final Fantasy, Cloud accumulated something along the lines of one third of total fan requests for Final Fantasy characters. This would indicate that there were other candidates who were discussed including possibly Terra and Bartz. Chocobo, as a symbol of Final Fantasy was most likely a candidate also. Interestingly Chocobo appeared high on the list of 3rd Party candidates in the “if there was a Smash 2” poll.
|
| Geno (Super Mario RPG) |
Square Enix |
Much to the amazement of every single Smash fan, Geno was recently confirmed to have been a contender for 2 games running now.
|
| Takamaru (Mysterious Mursame Castle) |
Nintendo |
Takamaru is confirmed to have been considered for this game, he was however not chosen due to a fear that wasn’t well known outside of Japan.
|
| Ashley (WarioWare) |
Nintendo |
Like the Flying Man, it’s possible that Ashley’s 3D model (in this case derived from her Assist Trophy) was used as a launching point for her Mii Fighter costume. It however must be said that she’s a damn popular character in her own right. Performing quite well (highest of any WarioWare character) in the perception of Smash DLC in Japan, Redux polls that SourceGaming hosted.
|
| Gil (Tower of Druaga) |
Namco |
Another Namco character from a fairly notable franchise, one that even got its own Anime. It’s possible that like Heihachi and Lloyd, Gil was considered due to this fact.
|
| Tails (Sonic The Hedgehog) |
SEGA |
Given Sonic’s immense popularity, it’s entirely plausible that Sakurai considered adding a 2nd character from this franchise. Sonic is after all the only 3rd Party veteran spanning 2 different generations of Smash. I previously wrote an article looking at both Tails’ and Knuckles’ chances of being included in Smash.
|
| Knuckles (Sonic The Hedgehog) |
SEGA |
See Tails.
|
I think it’s safe to say that they’re either consolation prizes or just convenient to do considering the workload that goes into your average character. Characters like the Inklings, Takamaru, Viridi, King K Rool, and the Monster Hunter hunters definitely have good potential for movesets and I have no doubt these characters will be possibly considered later (perhaps as is the case for Takamaru and King K Rool, waiting for said characters to become more relevant again).
The other ones listed just seem like cool extra characters that don’t quite have enough moveset material to justify their own unique fighter. Chocobo, Toad, Flying Man, Chrom, and the Virtua Fighter and Tekken characters are good examples of this. If Sakurai’s brain works the way I think it does, then popularity alone isn’t enough to guarantee fighter status, they must also bring something unique to the table as well.
I thought the Mii Fighters DLC costumes weren’t gonna deconfirm any upcoming characters…..But shockingly, They did…..Which ripped me off IMO. Is anyone sure Sakurai stated this or not? Cause I don’t remember.
If K. Rool (for example) had made it in, all the people who paid for his costume earlier would’ve felt ripped off.
I took it as consolation prizes too : ) I was happy to see Ashley and Tails love acknowledged in some fashion! (Though I was already quite content with her as an Assist Trophy).
It is a shame Mii Fighters can’t be used online though : ( So reduces it to a local role when it comes to these costumes.
Just because they can’t be used in ‘With Anyone’ doesn’t mean they can’t be used Online in general. They can be used in friend matches and Tourney Mode – which begs the question why they can be used there, where the main reason why they aren’t in With Anyone is because of possible offensive content with the Miis and yet Tourney Mode provides nearly everything With Anyone has and allows Miis to be used regardless of how ‘Offensive’ they could be shown to others.
Although again though, saying ‘Can’t be used Online’ gives the idea that Friend matches and Tourney Mode aren’t worth playing and don’t matter at all – as if ForAnyone is the only Online option to play in Smash.
Ah, sorry, I should have clarified that I meant in For Fun/For Glory modes.: ) Though I was unaware that they could be used in Tourney Mode, as I have not played in that mode at all. xD So thanks for pointing that out. It’s partially because the only friends I really play with are all local/same room sort of things, so keep forgetting there even IS an online “with Friends” mode. xD
Indeed, it’s pretty curious how they can be allowed in that mode and not some of the others, then.
[Quoting article]”I’m of the mindset that in a game that crosses over the likes of; Mario, Sonic, Donkey Kong, Link, Fox, Pac-Man, Pikachu and Ryu, that I have little desire to play as myself, Gandi, Rick Grimes, Orlando Bloom or as bastardised versions of beloved video game characters. Your opinion on them essentially boils down to why you consider yourself to be a fan of Smash Bros., or perhaps the pleasures that you seek from playing these games.”[End Quote]
Eh, I personally play them as a Mii, not as myself, not as another game character.
Miis have become a well established Nintendo character now, I mean with Tomodachi, Miiverse, Miitomo, and a Mii Maker for every console since the Wii; their relevance has quite a future. Though if I do fight as my Mii or as a Mii version of Zero, I don’t consider myself fighting as me, or Zero, but a mii lookalike. In other words, Miis are kinda like Ditto of Smash. (Well, more like a Gen II Ditto. XD) No matter what they may look like (or try to), they still are a Ditto or Mii.
Oh, Great article by the way! 😀
Thanks. I don’t really play them, but I created the 3 default Miis (the ones that you find on the site, that have the amiibo) to use for when I have to play All-Star or Classic mode through.
IMO, these are the characters I personally think were consolation prizes for characters Sakurai had in mind to be playable/considering them for a future installment: Takamaru (future installment), King K. Rool (future installment), Viridi (future installment), Isabelle (future installment), K.K. Slider (future installment), Geno (future installment), Ashley (future installment), Gil (intended for Smash 4 at least), Tails (intended for Smash 4 at least), Knuckles (same as Tails), Lloyd (same as Gil), Heihachi (same as Gil), Chrom (intended for Smash 4 at least), the Inklings (future installment), Hunter (intended for Smash 4 at least), Rathalos (same as Hunter), Toad (future installment), and the Black Knight (intended for Smash 4 at least)
Pretty good article.
I agree with your opinions at the beginning though, just had to say :T
I believe the only reason why there are such Mii outfits of those characters is because of the relationships already set in place with Capcom, Namco, & Sega. I highly doubt that any of those third party characters were even considered to be full-fledged characters. Nintendo should consider the real icons before they plan somebody like a Lloyd or a Heihachi.
Calling Toad on par with Mario seems like a bit of a stretch.
If this is true why didn’t Ridley get one? 🙁
I’m kidding of course I know they were supposed to do that.
I do have to wonder though. Is he too big or does Sakurai think summoning Gomorrah qualifies as a prize as well?
Well Sakurai did state all the way back when he first revealed the Mii Fighters that he didn’t just include them just to have you and your friend play as yourself. But also to fulfil some of the requests he’s seeing around as he obviously doesn’t have the time to include every character in the world that the fans can think of.
So considering that. I wasn’t too surprised that they used the Mii fighter costumes as consolation prizes for DLC and thus didn’t really expect anyone confirmed as one to be also made into a full playable character later on imo.
While I agree with the message of this article, since I’ve said multiple times before that most Mii Fighters were probably made for characters who had a decent following, but couldn’t warrant the time to develop a full character, I feel like this article is a bit unprofessionally written. Sure, you’re free to write in whatever way you want, I just feel an odd disconnect between the way this was written and the way other articles here are written.
The K. Rool costume isn’t so much a prize as it is a kick in the ‘nads.