User blog:SilverthehedgehogMan/Smash Analysis: Who May Return in Possible Future Installments?

I'm back after a couple years and it's time I start talking about something. Even though we don't know anything about any future installments of Smash, I still thought it would be nice to talk about who could possibly return in future Smash installments. Obviously, we'll have a lot of newcomers, but we often think about who will or will not return. This is inspired by something that someone did on another wiki and I figured I would do something similar here, but with Smash obviously. Also, don't let this blog make you believe that another game is in the making, because we don't know anything right now, I'm just doing this for fun.

Here's how it will work. I'm going to use the same scale that my inspiration used to analyze who is more likely to return and who is unlikely:


 * Confirmed - 100% (Even though we won't know anything for some time, there are some characters who are safe to assume are automatically confirmed to return)
 * Very Likely - Over 75% (Have a high chance of returning, but we don't know for sure)
 * Likely - 50%-75% (Still have a high chance of coming back, but still have reasons for not returning)
 * Maybe - 50% (Have many reasons why they may or may not return)
 * Unlikely - 25%-50% (Will be used for those who don't have much of a chance of returning, but still have a small chance)
 * Very Unlikely - Less than 25% (Have a very low chance of coming back, but are not completely disconfirmed)
 * Disconfirmed - 0% (Have no chance of ever returning)

Before you start reading keep in mind that I could be wrong, so please do not bash me. These are just my thoughts and opinions and they do not confirm anything. I will also be taking requests for which characters I analyze next, because I will not have them all done in one day. I'm going to analyze every character who has ever been playable in Smash, so you can request anyone from any game.

Bowser

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



So I was originally going to give him the status of Very Likely, but then I realized that's not right and that he is definitely coming back for the next installment. The reason why is because he has a unique moveset, he's iconic, he's part of the biggest franchise of the series, he's a villain and he's been in the franchise since Melee. It wouldn't feel right if he were to be removed from the franchise. As for his return in the next game, I would like to see him have Dry Bowser as an alternate costume. Wouldn't that be nice?

Bowser Jr.

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



This may sound like a bit of a surprise, but yes, I think Bowser Jr.'s chances of coming back are very likely. Why, you ask? Well, first off, he has a unique moveset that's even better than what anyone else could've come up with for him. The next thing is he's a villain, I'm sure Sakurai is aware of the lack of villains by now and will probably decide to keep him. Lastly, he is a part of the biggest franchise in the series, and we're only going to keep getting more new Mario characters. The only reason I can see him getting cut is the fact that he's a Mario character, but it's more of a positive thing than a negative thing, because the only time a Mario character has ever been cut from Smash was Dr. Mario in Brawl and he was only cut because he was a clone, which Bowser Jr. clearly is not. He's also one of two characters to have another character as an alternate costume. So really, I'm confident that he's coming back!

Ganondorf

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



This character is one of the only clones that has a high chance of coming back and it's mainly because he's been in since Melee and he's such an iconic villain. Not only that, but he's in one of the biggest franchises in the Smash series, so it wouldn't make sense for him to go. The only thing that would stop is the fact that he's a clone, but it hasn't stopped him before, so it shouldn't stop him now. About the clone thing though, I wouldn't mind if he got a new moveset. Despite the fact that I main him in Smash 4, his moveset still bothers me, just because he's a clone of Captain Falcon of all people. I don't have a problem with Captain Falcon, but the two are nothing alike. None of Ganondorf's moveset is canon for the exception of his final smash. Despite that, at least we were able to see him use his sword with custom moves. I highly doubt he will get an entirely new moveset, because that would pretty much be cutting a character who has been in the series for a long time now. The other option though is that Ganondorf's moveset still returns, but is given to someone else. Someone who would make more sense having the moveset like Black Shadow from F-Zero. That way, Ganondorf and his moveset will still be in the game, but they would just be separated from each other. One last thing I'd like to say is that I've heard from a few people that Ganondorf is Sakurai's Brawl main, so that would just be another reason to keep him.

Ice Climbers

 * Returning Status: Likely



One of the most creative ideas for a character in the series due to the fact that it's two-in-one and the fact that we don't actually see them teaming up in the game. Nice choice Sakurai. Unfortunately, these two were cut in Smash 4 due to technical difficulties on the Nintendo 3DS. Because of that, they were the only Melee veterans included in Brawl that did not return for Smash 4. I'd give them the very likely status, but the fact that they were cut makes me feel like it's possible that they won't be coming back, but I still think it's more likely that they will than won't. There are two reasons why I think it's possible that they won't be coming back and those would be:

1. It's possible that the next installment will also be available for a handheld, therefore the technical difficulty might stay.

2. The fact that Sakurai didn't at least give us one Ice Climber as DLC like people suggested.

Despite those two reasons, I'm pretty sure Sakurai was very upset that the Ice Climbers were unable to make it into the game. We also know that characters who were previously cut can return. Let's all hope they come back next time!

Kirby

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



Come on, this one is way too obvious. Not only is this cute adorable pink puff ball one of the original 12, but he's one of Sakurai's creations. Why would anyone think he could possibly be removed? There's really not much to be said, but just so that this analysis isn't too short, there are a few things we can discuss about him. First off, he's one of the character's who has canon palette swaps, there are several others, but he was one of the first. Another thing I want to talk about is how even though his franchise has been in the series for so long, there really aren't a lot of characters playable from it. Until Brawl, Kirby was the only character who was playable from the franchise until Meta Knight and King Dedede were added. Then in Smash 4, no new Kirby characters were added. I don't see why the Kirby franchise doesn't have a fourth rep yet. I know Sakurai doesn't like to clutter the roster with his characters, but he gave Kid Icarus three characters in Smash 4 even though there aren't very many games in the franchise. The Kirby franchise has the most games in his franchise, so I don't see why we can't get another rep. I would talk about about who could possibly be added, but I don't want to go more off topic than I already did, so that's all for Kirby.

Link

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



There's really not much that can be said about a character who is part of the original 12, one of Nintendo's most iconic franchises and part of one of the franchises with the biggest amount of characters in the Smash franchise. Link is very obviously coming back for the next installment. While we already know he's coming back, it may not be safe to assume that he will still have his Twilight Princess design. In Smash 64 and Melee, he had is Ocarina of Time design, then in Brawl he had his Twilight Princess design. This means that just because a character is one of the originals, it doesn't mean they're designs won't be updated similarly to some other characters in the franchise. There are two possible design changes he could have, he could either have his Hyrule Warriors design or his Breath of the Wild design. Although, there are problems with both of those. Hyrule warriors is not part of the core series and Breath of the Wild lacks Ganondorf. I wouldn't be upset if Link kept the Twilight Princess design, but you never know.

Mario

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



The one is the most obvious and the reason is because not only is he part of the original 12, he is the most well-known character in all of Nintendo. Heck, he's their mascot. This character is always one of the first to be announced for the next installments of each game. It would make no sense to take him out of the game, so he's not going anywhere. The only reason why anyone would even think of removing him is because a lot of people hate the fact tath Mario Tornado was replaced with F.L.U.D.D. in SSBB, but that was done to make him more unique from Luigi, so it's not coming back, sorry Melee fans.

Marth

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



The fact that Marth was one of the most obscure characters to ever be added into Smash, he has become one of the most popular because of his inclusion. Just take a look at all that fan art that exists of him and it's all because of his inclusion in Smash. He's also one of the many Melee veterans that made the cut in Brawl and came back for Smash 4. Thinking of Smash 4, we all know about the big amount of Fire Emblem characters we got in that installment. Back when Smash 4 was in development, there were rumors going around that Marth would be replaced by Lucina, but that rumor ended up being false when he got confirmed. Not only that, but why would Sakurai want to remove the character that made the franchise a big part of Smash? I would go far to even say that he's automatically confirmed, but he's not one of the originals, so he's not Sakurai's main priority.

Mega Man

 * Returning Status: Maybe



This character can really go either way. The fact that he's a third party character makes it difficult to determine whether or not he can come back. But there's still a chance that he can come back. Remember back in the Brawl era when Capcom wanted Mega Man added, but they asked too late, so he couldn't get in. Well, we got him in the next game. You may think that's enough for him to return, but then you need to remember what happened to Snake. Snake went through the same situation with Melee and Brawl and then he didn't come back, but at the same time Mega Man might end up like Sonic and return in the next game. I'm also not sure how Nintendo and Capcom feel about each other right now, so we'll just have to see around the time another Smash is announced. I'm not doubting his return, but I'm also not confident about it. Will he pull a Sonic or a Snake?

Meta Knight

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



Now that this character has returned in Smash 4, there is no way he's getting cut! The only reason why anyone thought he would be removed in Smash 4 was because he was broken in Brawl, but guess what, they fixed that! Because of that, there's really nothing that's stopping him from returning. Come on, he's one of Sakurai's characters, Sakurai really cares about his characters, so why would he want to remove one of them. Another thing about this is that Meta Knight is one of the main characters of the Kirby franchise, so that means it would make even less sense to remove him. This ended up as one of the shortest analyses on this blog, but I pretty much made my point.

Mr. Game & Watch

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



Despite being a gag character who no one really knew about until the release of Melee, it seems like this character is not about to leave the franchise. The main reason he is probably returning is because like I said, he's been in the franchise since Melee, so that almost automatically confirms him. Along with his moveset, there are a few other unique things about him. First off, he's the only character who is flat. (He's technically a 3d model made to look 2d.) Another thing is that he is the only amiibo in the Smash franchise that is detachable and includes other poses. Lastly, there's one other fun fact about him and it's that he is the oldest character in the franchise, yes, he's a few months older than Pac-Man. Because of this, his only real chance of being removed is if an older character gets added to the franchise and that's probably not going to happen. The other thing is that a lot of people assumed that he was cut, because he was not confirmed right after his appearance in Pac-Man's trailer (which got on my nerves quickly). So yeah, I'm confident in his return, but we never know.

Pikachu

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



How could he possibly not be confirmed to come back for Smash, not only is he a part of the original 12, but he is the mascot of the second biggest franchise used in Smash. There's really not much that can be said, just because Pikachu is in every installment and he's always one of the first to be announced. Something that just came to mind, wouldn't it be cool if we could get cosplay Pikachu from Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire as an alternate costume. There are several characters that have potential for an alt. costume and Pikachu just happens to be one of them.

Pit

 * Returning Status: Confirmed



Despite not being introduced in Smash until the third installment of the series. He is the most likely of all the Brawl newcomers to return. The reason for that is because he belongs to Sakurai. I know he's not one of Sakurai's creations, but he adopted him and he loves him. He was one of the first newcomers to be announced for Brawl and one of the first veterans to be announced for Smash 4. Not only that, but he was considered for Smash since the very first installment, but just didn't make the final cut. Overall, I think it's safe to say that he's coming back for the next Smash.

Just for fun, I'm going to make up how Sakurai adopted the Kid Icarus franchise. Here's how I think it went down:

Sakurai: Hey Nintendo, it's been so long since you've made another Kid Icarus game. How about you make another?

Nintendo: I don't know, wouldn't it be weird to bring back a dead franchise like that.

Sakurai: Come on, Kid Icarus was great, why don't you try it out again.

Nintendo: We currently have no desire to continue the franchise and I don't think we'll ever use it again. You know what, why don't you just have it. You can do whatever you want with it.

Sakurai: (Starry-Eyed) THANK YOU SO MUCH NINTENDO, THIS IS ALL I EVER WANTED! Kid Icarus Uprising: Coming Soon!

Pokémon Trainer

 * Returning Status: Very Unlikely



I'm sure this one isn't too big of a surprise and there's a big reason I've decided his status as very unlikely. Even though he was only removed due to technical difficulties on the 3DS, I don't think they will ever use him again. Charizard is now his own character and I don't think Sakurai would take that away from him. If they brought him back, he would only have Squirtle and Ivysaur, which would just not be the same. The only chance he really has of coming back is if they decide to bring him back and give him different Pokemon, but I don't think Sakurai wants a whole lot of starter Pokemon playable. Some may argue that I have no proof that Sakurai wouldn't take Charizard being his own character away from which I don't, but Charizard is such an iconic Pokemon that he deserves his own slot and he also got a new Final Smash in Smash 4, so I don't think they're going to change it again.

R.O.B.

 * Returning Status: Likely



This is one that I think has a good chance of coming back, but still has some reasons why they could always be cut. When Smash 4 was in development a lot of people thought he was going to be removed, but others still had faith in him and guess what, he came back. The fact that this character is considered to be the gag character of Brawl means a lot. The fact that Mr. Game & Watch was our first gag character and he's been in every installment ever since means the same can go for R.O.B. The only reason I can see him getting cut is because he was more of a joke, but it doesn't stop us from getting a new gag character every time. Something else I'd like to say is that R.O.B. was a very unique choice just like the other gag characters, especially since he started out as an accessory that was compatable with a couple games. The last thing is that he is the only character that has a different default palette swap depending on the region. We could really use more of those, just because that was interesting.

Rosalina & Luma

 * Returning Status: Very Likely



Some may be annoyed, some may not mind and others may be pleased that another Mario character has a very likely chance of returning. Yes, the franchise that a lot of people don't want to see have another rep. Why? She's female, unique and from the biggest franchise in the series. Not only that, but she's one of the only duos in the game. I've never heard this before, but it wouldn't surprise me if someone were to say that she can't come back if the Ice Climbers do. That is false, because Roaslina & Luma did not replace the Ice Climbers, because the Ice Climbers were removed due to technical difficulties. Rosalina was also one of the most wanted characters in the franchise to be in Smash, so that's just another reasn for her to come back. The only thing that's stopping her is if Sakurai wanted a different Mario rep instead, but at this point, we'll eventually have 20 or more Mario reps by the time we're at Smash 10.

Roy

 * Returning Status: Maybe



At first you may think the fact that he came back after being cut means he will come back. The answer is yes and no. It's true that Sakurai brought him back due to popular demand, but that doesn't mean he's going to come back again. The fact that him and Lucina are both in the game and are both Marth clones makes it a competition between the two of them for who gets to come back, which is a similar situation between Falco and Wolf, some may argue that Wolf's not a clone, but this isn't about Wolf, it's about Roy. The fact that Roy only came back due to popular demand means he doesn't really have any other reasons he would come back. He hasn't been in any recent video games, besides as DLC in Fire Emblem Awakening and his game was never released in the United States, and not only that, before he got confirmed as DLC, he's the only character removed from Melee to not have a trophy in either the Wii U or 3DS versions of Smash 4, the last thing is that he's part of a franchise that is now a big part of Smash and it wouldn't be a surprise if Sakurai wanted to make some changes to who gets to represent it. Despite all that, Roy still had something unique from Marth and that would be the standard special, due to Marth's having changes made to his in Brawl and Roy's was kept the way it was in Melee. The other thing is that Roy was brought back due to popular demand like I said, so that means if he gets cut again, he may come back as DLC again. Will our boy come back for the next installment? Who knows?

Wii Fit Trainer

 * Returning Status: Likely



Yes, the character that so many people complained about being added in the game is likely to return. Why? This is because Sakurai almost always keeps the characters that no one would've ever expected to be added to the series. Other reasons include her unique moveset, the fact that she has an alternate costume and that she's female. The only thing that's stopping her from returning is the fact that so many people thought she was a stupid decision made by Sakurai. How do I know this? A couple friends from school kept complaining about her and I even saw petitions online trying to get her removed from the game. I don't get why people complain about characters all the time. You don't have to play as them! Not only that, but we've had weird characters before, why is she any different? Ultimately, it is Sakurai's choice on who returns and I doubt he has any reasons to remove her, because he's only removed a few unique characters and there were reasons behind all of them.