It goes without saying that Super Smash Bros. is one of the most anticipated Nintendo Switch exclusives of the year. Even though we know very little about it, the pedigree of the franchise has left Nintendo fans very excited to see what the new game will bring to the table. We are still waiting on official details from Nintendo, but one rumor points to the new game featuring a lot of third-party characters.

This Super Smash Bros. rumor comes from "industry insider" Marcus Sellars, who has been "leaking" information on the upcoming game. Sellars does not provide evidence for his claims, but says he "independently verified" the information with his sources. In a since-removed tweet, Sellars said that "third parties will be heavily represented" in the upcoming game.

It's worth pointing out that Sellars was supposedly fed this information from a Twitter user and Twitch streamer named ConnorEatsPants in an attempt to expose Sellars as a leaker of fake news. As previously stated, Sellars insists that he "independently verified" the information, but in light the ConnorEatsPants situation, fans should treat this rumor as almost certainly false until proven otherwise.

However, if the new Super Smash Bros. game for the Nintendo Switch did include more third-party characters than before, it wouldn't be surprising. After all, past games have included the likes of Bayonetta, Sonic the Hedgehog, Snake from Metal Gear Solid, and even Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy 7.

If Nintendo is planning on bringing third-party characters to Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo Switch, the question remains, who could it be? Besides returning third-party characters that were included in past games, maybe Nintendo will take Phil Spencer up on his offer to bring Banjo-Kazooie to Super Smash Bros., or maybe it will look to add another of Mario's rivals, Crash Bandicoot, to the game.

Since the last couple games in the series featured third-party characters, it seems like a safe bet that Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo Switch will have some as well. Who these characters will be remains to be seen, but perhaps we'll learn more when Super Smash Bros. is shown during Nintendo's E3 2018 presentation.

Super Smash Bros. will launch in 2018, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.