Spoiler Thoughts on the Smash Poll After the Fact

[Ver-go-a-go-go]

Okay, but you can only include so many Pokemon before it gets stale. Maybe if they included a trainer or something, it'd be better.

This doesn't make any sense. The exact same blanket statement could be made to literally every other series, including Fire Emblem. Each Pokemon is sporting a completely different type with different movesets and drastically different designs. In fact, the Pokemon we have in the game look far more different from each other than the Fire Emblem characters do - we have three FE representatives with a sword and blue hair.

Let's face it, Zelda is an amazing franchise, but their reuse of characters doesn't give any characters an individual identity.

This is so strange in the face of Fire Emblem though, since Zelda does almost the exact same thing. Zelda gives us some pretty unique characters in each game that are different, just like how FE usually uses characters for just a single game as well. Characters such as Midna, Linebeck, Ghirahim, and others definitely have a personality that stuck with people despite those and others not being featured in future games.

Also, why does Fire Emblem get characters to promote games when Zelda doesn't? Is it just because Fire Emblem isn't as popular as Zelda? If that's the case, why isn't Starfox getting the same treatment with their new game being right around the corner? It's just so strange.

Fire Emblem may not be the best selling franchise, but it certainly deserves rep. Hell, the only reason Fire Emblem was brought to the west was because of Roy and Marth being included in Melee, so I'd be damned to say that I'm perfectly fine with more FE characters.

I don't think anyone is arguing that Fire Emblem doesn't deserve characters. I'm an incredibly huge fan of the series and didn't really have a problem with five characters, because in actuality it was three characters and two clones that were just kind of a bonus. But this sixth one, no matter how unique, has really made Smash seem like the FE Promo show, which is a problem in the face of other series which probably deserve at least one more character (Like Donkey Kong and Metroid).

 

[DeactivatedUser2]

This doesn't make any sense. The exact same blanket statement could be made to literally every other series, including Fire Emblem. Each Pokemon is sporting a completely different type with different movesets and drastically different designs. In fact, the Pokemon we have in the game look far more different from each other than the Fire Emblem characters do - we have three FE representatives with a sword and blue hair.

There's no denying that, but when I see them, I think "Oh, Marth, what an awesome character! There's Ike too, what a burly awesome mercenary! Then Lucina, the Masked Swordsman!" You can define all of them by "blue haired swordsmen." However, that's kind of specific, no? You can define all of the pokemon as simply "pokemon."

This is so strange in the face of Fire Emblem though, since Zelda does almost the exact same thing. Zelda gives us some pretty unique characters in each game that are different, just like how FE usually uses characters for just a single game as well. Characters such as Midna, Linebeck, Ghirahim, and others definitely have a personality that stuck with people despite those and others not being featured in future games.

Yes, but literally everybody that's in Sm4sh and is an FE character is a main protagonist, and they're each from different games, no less. Midna and Ghirahim are already both assist trophies, and Linebeck was a side character, and he was merely reduced to being dead, and his only remembrance is his annoying descendant who only has the use of trade and an annoying quest. How many main characters does Zelda have?
Let's see...
Link
Ganondorf
Zelda
uhh...hmmm...

I don't think anyone is arguing that Fire Emblem doesn't deserve characters. I'm an incredibly huge fan of the series and didn't really have a problem with five characters, because in actuality it was three characters and two clones that were just kind of a bonus. But this sixth one, no matter how unique, has really made Smash seem like the FE Promo show, which is a problem in the face of other series which probably deserve at least one more character (Like Donkey Kong and Metroid).

Yeah, I won't lie, FE has a lot of characters, and I understand people not liking it. However, it's true that FE does deserve rep; and it's kind of obvious that FE is one of Sakurai's fan favorites, and he certainly puts a lot of his own special touch in his games. Kid Icarus should really only have 2 reps for being such a minor series; however, it's his design, and he can do whatever he wants.

 

[Zonda]

K.Rool would have been the nail in all of humanity's coffin.

I'm sure we'd find a way to cope with this apparently genocidal magnitude of injustice.

 

[DeactivatedUser2]

That's what they all say.

 

[Lozjam]

There's no denying that, but when I see them, I think "Oh, Marth, what an awesome character! There's Ike too, what a burly awesome mercenary! Then Lucina, the Masked Swordsman!" You can define all of them by "blue haired swordsmen." However, that's kind of specific, no? You can define all of the pokemon as simply "pokemon."

Yes, but literally everybody that's in Sm4sh and is an FE character is a main protagonist, and they're each from different games, no less. Midna and Ghirahim are already both assist trophies, and Linebeck was a side character, and he was merely reduced to being dead, and his only remembrance is his annoying descendant who only has the use of trade and an annoying quest. How many main characters does Zelda have?
Let's see...
Link
Ganondorf
Zelda
uhh...hmmm...

Yeah, I won't lie, FE has a lot of characters, and I understand people not liking it. However, it's true that FE does deserve rep; and it's kind of obvious that FE is one of Sakurai's fan favorites, and he certainly puts a lot of his own special touch in his games. Kid Icarus should really only have 2 reps for being such a minor series; however, it's his design, and he can do whatever he wants.

Except there is the fact that Impa isn't in the cast, despite being one of the most important characters.
Plus, Sheik is the ultimate one-off in Zelda games, she made it in regardless.
There is also the fact that Ganondorf doesn't have a Zelda moveset.... Actually... Sheik really doesn't have a Zelda-esque moveset either. And Toon Link is a clone! So we really only have Zelda and Link who actually do things that resemble their subsequent games!
This already makes the Zelda cast very lopsided.
If they refuse to give Ganondorf an original moveset, why not make Toon Ganondorf, or a classic Pig Ganondorf? Plus, it's hard not to say that Ghirahim, Zant, Vaati, Skull Kid, wouldn't fit perfectly into Smash Bros.

 

[the8thark]

Except there is the fact that Impa isn't in the cast, despite being one of the most important characters.
Plus, Sheik is the ultimate one-off in Zelda games, she made it in regardless.
There is also the fact that Ganondorf doesn't have a Zelda moveset.... Actually... Sheik really doesn't have a Zelda-esque moveset either. And Toon Link is a clone! So we really only have Zelda and Link who actually do things that resemble their subsequent games!
This already makes the Zelda cast very lopsided.
If they refuse to give Ganondorf an original moveset, why not make Toon Ganondorf, or a classic Pig Ganondorf? Plus, it's hard not to say that Ghirahim, Zant, Vaati, Skull Kid, wouldn't fit perfectly into Smash Bros.

Groose please

 

[Ver-go-a-go-go]

There's no denying that, but when I see them, I think "Oh, Marth, what an awesome character! There's Ike too, what a burly awesome mercenary! Then Lucina, the Masked Swordsman!" You can define all of them by "blue haired swordsmen." However, that's kind of specific, no? You can define all of the pokemon as simply "pokemon."

My main point is that this still doesn't make any sense. You can define all the Fire Emblem characters as "swordsmen" (they all use swords in their attacks in some way) in the exact same arbitrary way you can define all Pokemon as "Pokemon". You can even take this a step further and define all humanoid characters as "human", or all Star Fox characters as "animals". As long as they characters look distinct and play differently, I think this entire argument of characters from various series getting "stale" is a non-issue.

Yes, but literally everybody that's in Sm4sh and is an FE character is a main protagonist, and they're each from different games, no less. Midna and Ghirahim are already both assist trophies, and Linebeck was a side character, and he was merely reduced to being dead, and his only remembrance is his annoying descendant who only has the use of trade and an annoying quest. How many main characters does Zelda have?
Let's see...
Link
Ganondorf
Zelda
uhh...hmmm...

So your argument is that only main hero protagonists from a series can be playable Smash characters, and that it's okay that Fire Emblem has so many just because they use different characters each game? 1.) This type of logic doesn't make sense when you consider Fire Emblem's general popularity (Roy and Ike's games sold pretty badly, and we didn't even get Roy's game in the USA), and how you justify characters based on said popularity. 2.) That's an incredibly limiting interpretation, but even if we somehow accept that, Midna most definitely fits the mold of a protagonist character from a major game in a major series, moreso in her own game than the likes of Lucina was in Fire Emblem Awakening, as her role dwindles after she reveals her true identity as opposed to Midna who played a huge part throughout Twilight Princess. This also goes to contradict the only conceivable reason I can see for Corrin to be in Smash - if Fire Emblem gets free promotion for an upcoming game, why doesn't Zelda with Twilight Princess HD in the form of some character like Midna or Zant (assist trophies can easily become characters as we've seen with Little Mac)? If you're going to make the argument that it's because Fire Emblem isn't as popular, I repeat the point I made before about Star Fox Zero.

Yeah, I won't lie, FE has a lot of characters, and I understand people not liking it. However, it's true that FE does deserve rep; and it's kind of obvious that FE is one of Sakurai's fan favorites, and he certainly puts a lot of his own special touch in his games. Kid Icarus should really only have 2 reps for being such a minor series; however, it's his design, and he can do whatever he wants.

"Sakurai makes the games, he can do what he wants" is a pretty bad cop-out. I'm not a Sakurai hater by any means, but he most definitely isn't immune to criticism, nor should we just blindly accept everything he gives us as the best course of action without questioning it.

 

[the8thark]

I repeat the point I made before about Star Fox Zero.

That was a huge missed opportunity with cross promotion between it and SSB4. Pushing Wolf would have been cool as a DLC to promote SFZ. The 3 amiibo would have also worked with SFZ.

I would have put in Lin or another character from XCX into SSB4 to promote XCX. Another missed opportunity.