It's odd to think that some legitimate information could surface via a grotesquely notorious forum such as 4Chan, and yet the entire Super Smash Bros. community has been buzzing over a roster that may or may not be legitimate.
As many will attest, the images that have surfaced appear to be the real McCoy and if they weren't done by an employee of Nintendo then they were done by a person that should be under the employ of the Big N. The images are of an immaculately professional quality and despite the graininess of the pictures themselves — they piece together a very bizarre lineup of playable characters.
The images are believed to originate from an ESRB employee (or presumably someone with access to the content Nintendo submitted to the board) who opted to snap photos of the presentation while it was running. It's possible that, since the ESRB doesn't receive copies of the physical game for rating purposes because some games are upwards of 40 hours long, the content fell into the wrong hands and has since been strewn across the Internet.
According to the photos and the individuals who've been leaking them, Super Smash Bros. for 3DS will feature a roster comprised of at least 48 characters with the remaining cast made up of 8 returning veterans and 4 additional newcomers.
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Based on the pictures, the following fighters will be making their return, with one particular mascot rejoining the cast after missing the boat in Super Smash Bros. Brawl:
- Dr. Mario
- Falco
- Ganondorf
- Jigglypuff
- Mr. Game and Watch
- Ness
- R.O.B.
- Wario
Now this is where the roster gets a little zany, as these newcomers are said to be making their debut in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS:
- Bowser Jr.
- Dark Pit
- Duck Hunt Dog
- Shulk
This, of course, means that a number of characters will presumably be getting the axe this time around. The most shocking absence from the list is without a doubt the Ice Climbers, a fan-favorite that many expected to return in the new games, but franchise creator Masahiro Sakurai did previously state that not all characters would be returning in the forthcoming iterations.
Here's a list of those supposedly cut from the new games:
- Ice Climbers
- Ivysaur
- Lucas
- Snake
- Squirtle
- Wolf
While the prospect of playing as Duck Hunt Dog is now an undoubtedly alluring one in the fallout of this alleged leak, there are some issues that gamers have with the credibility of the photos. Despite the fact that the images originated from 4Chan, which is reason enough to doubt the legitimacy of the screenshots, the roster itself doesn't look complete.
Traditionally, characters are lined up and grouped with other members of their respective franchises (i.e. Mario participants line up together, Fire Emblem fighters are situated next to one another, etc.) but this roster has clones discarded at the bottom, Yoshi breaking up the gaggle of Mario characters, and just all around odd placement of individuals throughout. This, however, is where the leak could get interesting.
If these screenshots are indeed representative of the game's roster, then there's a good chance that there are even more characters to unlock — with room on the screen allowing for a total of 5 more. Another image posted by the leaker axes any other potential veterans for inclusion, but interestingly puts a question mark on the face of the beloved legendary Pokemon Mewtwo; a fighter that many longtime Smash fans have been demanding to see make a return after missing out on Brawl.
It's possible that the footage that these photos may have derived from only featured a brief look at a portion of the game's roster as Nintendo demonstrated match setups, showcasing just an incomplete roster of playable fighters to the Entertainment Software Rating Board in the process. If that's the case, then there could very well still be some surprises for fans at least until the game arrives in Japan next month.
The leaker also claimed to know of 5 fighters that would be offered in both the Wii U and 3DS versions of Super Smash Bros. as add-on content. Admittedly, if the individual leaking this information is from the ESRB, then he wouldn't be privy to future DLC, so these claims are the shakiest. With that in mind, the downloadable characters are said to be:
- Chorus Men
- Ice Climbers
- Lucas
- Snake
- Wolf
Last but not least, a list of supposed stages from Super Smash Bros. for 3DS were shown off. Interestingly, never before see angles of previously announced stages are on display in the murky screenshots. The Tomodachi Life stage in particular matches up with images of the battlefield that only just arrived from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, which seems to only give credence to the images. Meanwhile, new stages that appear to be from Xenoblade, F-Zero, Yoshi's Island and more.
Regardless of whether or not any of this is true, although the 4Chan post that started all of this commotion has suspiciously been taken down, it makes for a fun means of speculation for fans to engage in. It won't take until release for this "leak" to be debunked or clarified either, because as soon as the next stage of character is revealed fans will be able to compare the assets.
That said, the 3DS version of the game is arriving soon in Japan (September 13, 2014 to be exact), so stay tuned to Game Rant for an update on the official Super Smash Bros. roster as soon as it arrives.
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Super Smash Bros. for 3DS will be arriving on October 3, 2014, while the Wii U version will hit during Holiday 2014.
Follow Riley on Twitter @TheRileyLittle for more news on Super Smash Bros., as well as everything else in gaming.
Source: 4Chan (via SmashBoards)