Ubisoft character could be drafted for Smash Bros. Brawl
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Jun 20th 2006 at 1:55PM }
GoNintendo.com has picked up a new rumor that has fans speculating about an Ubisoft-branded addition to Wii's Super Smash Bros. Brawl. When developer Masahiro Sakurai unveiled SSBB at E3, he suggested that, besides the already confirmed Solid Snake, other third party characters would be a definite possibility. Now, you can add Ubisoft's Jade (Beyond Good & Evil), the Prince (of Persia), Rayman, and Sam Fisher to that list of 'possibilities.'Do you think third party newcomers will cramp SSBB's Nintendo-style?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Zach @ Jun 20th 2006 2:00PM
Solid Snake vs Sam Fisher
hell yeah
GlitchCog @ Jun 20th 2006 2:01PM
I hope it's Jade.
shiftup @ Jun 20th 2006 2:02PM
yes. yes i do
Jose @ Jun 20th 2006 2:03PM
I think third party characters in such a flagship Nintendo franchise shows a bit of their open relationship with third party developers themselves this time around. Not only are they allowing third party characters in games like Smash Bros (and hopefully more titles), they are helping with development of third party games (see Red Steel.)
I would much rather see Prince than another stealth dude, or some ray guy.
Nick @ Jun 20th 2006 2:06PM
Actually, I'm all for Rayman. Screw the rest of 'em, they're not even contenders! Jade was alright, but didn't really pop. Sam Fisher is in jail right now, isn't he? And the Prince is off moping in the corner, listening to bad emo.
Rayman, on the other hand, exudes that videogame cartoon quirkiness, and has been a solid little character for several years now. He deserves it. Plus, isn't Rabid Rabbits coming out at launch for the Wii?
Marc @ Jun 20th 2006 2:06PM
"Do you think third party newcomers will cramp SSBB's Nintendo-style?"
Nope. I personally want to see Mario vs. Sonic cuz I wasn't a gamer when the two legendary companies were rivals.
delerious @ Jun 20th 2006 2:11PM
SSB has always been Nintendo orientated. It's sad that they had to draft Snake. I'll never ever use him. Though, I do think that Rayman would be a cool addition.
But, yeah. I think that the third-party characters will cramp the style. No one will use them except n00bs and Sony converts, and maybe those who are into MGS on the Box as well.
Raynre @ Jun 20th 2006 2:11PM
I could imagine Rayman or Jade being in there. Everyone else just seems like theyre a little too bloody to be in a Smash Bros game. Possibly the Prince, but he got a little emo towards the end there...
Of course, thats what I said about Snake, so I guess its up to debate. But you have to think about it; how many "Rated M" characters can you add without giving them real weapons and still keep them from being cookie-cutter cop-outs?
j ron @ Jun 20th 2006 2:12PM
I'd also want to see Mario vs Sonic becuase I *was* a gamer when those two were rivals :-)
Jason C, @ Jun 20th 2006 2:12PM
Snake vs Sam vs Mario vs Sonic
DCrooKZ @ Jun 20th 2006 2:12PM
Personally, While Solid Snake is my all time favorite fictional/game/whatever charater, I feel he is slightly out of place in this game. I feel like Grey Fox, the cyborg ninja would have fit better with his crazy jumping ability and having a sword and all.
As far as 3rd party there are many great possibilities, Seems like they should have viewtiful joe in there. And Sonic.
Price of Peria would fit very well too, but Solid Snake vs. Sam Fishcer would be awesome. However I would let the entire staff of Joystiq punch me in the gut and film it if they put Sam Fisher in there.
retromancer @ Jun 20th 2006 2:15PM
^^ you're a nutjob. just because a game is nintendo oriented doesn't mean that it can't be open. having snake in SSBB is the best news I've heard since I heard link was going to be in SCII. as long as thesse third party characters aren't just clones along the lines of Ganondorf and young link in melee, then bring on as many of them as we can handle!
GlitchCog @ Jun 20th 2006 2:19PM
delerious,
Nintendo didn't draft Snake. He volunteered.
Sakurai said the decision to include Solid Snake when Hideo Kojima himself practically "begged" to include the Metal Gear character in the last Smash Bros. game. When asked about the possibility of Sonic the Hedgehod appearing in the game as well, Shigeru Miyamoto said: "There are probably possibilities for other third parties as well, and it maybe that even know there are corporate discussions going on about including some of these other characters."
Source:
http://wii.ign.com/articles/707/707504p1.html
Thomas Werewolf @ Jun 20th 2006 2:23PM
Throwing Snake into SSBM kind of adds a welcome (at least for me) campiness to it. Come on, Kirby vs. Snake? That's awesome. Sam Fisher is a bit much, though. Third-party characters make the game feel a little less walled-off and more like an all-inclusive Battle of the Network, er, Video Game Stars.
In fact, I'd like to see Scott Baio as a playable character. Who owns the rights to him?
kyou @ Jun 20th 2006 2:23PM
Noobs? I don't know... what about people who... just like the god damn characters? Having 3rd party characters in SB does not harm Nintendo's "street cred" or does it "cramp it's style". Forgive me but a noob is probably more attracted to a face he sees everywhere like Mario or a character with can be used to shoot and run like Samus than someone like Snake. If you haven't realized all the characters in SB have been adapted from games completely different from each other into a fighting game. Including a 3rd party character won't make a difference.
Anyways... I'd much rather have Sonic in the game than Rayman. Phoenix Wright would be awesome too but that's never going to happen :(.
Mark D. @ Jun 20th 2006 2:24PM
Although I'm a huge fan of the SC series, I think only Rayman would really work out of those four.
Derbeste @ Jun 20th 2006 2:30PM
I'm all for Rayman as well. He's really the only true "icon" of the bunch.
Also, remember that the Wii is designed to attract NON gamers. How many NON gamers have heard of Jade or "The Prince"? Most people I know HAVE heard of Rayman - guys and girls alike.
As for Sonic....He'd BETTER be in the game. I, like many other gamers that grew up in the 90s, want to see the Mario vs. Sonic match up so badly it burns (not for 6-8 weeks though.)
Crazylink @ Jun 20th 2006 2:30PM
Here's to Rayman.
Exo @ Jun 20th 2006 2:32PM
I want to see jade, because id also like to see her get a sequel.
I think jade is quite possible cause the smash bros director made a comment that he wasnted to put in some lesser known characters.
but I think her and rayman would be the only ones that work, sam fisher would just be lame, and hed be almsot the same as snake cause they cant use guns, and the prince is just retarded, they ruind that character.
Shalazar @ Jun 20th 2006 2:36PM
I think it has a good possibility of cramping the style. It's no longer a Nintendo-only franchise. I will probably use the non-Nintendo characters only to beat the game. But who knows? Maybe they will be good after all.
Felix Andrews @ Jun 20th 2006 2:44PM
Bomberman. The old one, not the rubbish new Xbox 360... thing. In the absence of any better ideas from me, this is my demand.
There's a precedent for his appearance, too: way back when, there was a Japan-only Smash Bros rip-off for the Gamecube produced by the unholy matrimony of Hudson, Konami and somebody else (Ban Dai, I think). That had Bomberman in it, as well as, interestingly, Solid Snake.
It was crap, mind - and I can't for the life of me remember what it was called. If anyone else knows what I'm wittering on about, please refresh my memory!
As for Ubi's posse: I'll second my enthusiasm for a bit of Snake vs Fisher scrappage, but I'm not so keen on Rayman, though the fact that he's Ubi's flagship 'family-friendly' mascot makes his inclusion more likely than anyone else.
Jade would be an awesome choice for her acrobatic combat: the Prince would be acceptable on the provisio that it was the Prince from Sands of Time, not the blacker-than-black emo bondage freak from the latter two games.
AssemblyLineHuman @ Jun 20th 2006 2:44PM
Honestly, at first, I was put off by the idea of having third-party characters in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The Super Smash Bros. games for the N64 and Gamecube had a unique feel because they were the games in which the Nintendo universe comes together. Characters from everyone's favorite Nintendo games all get together and fight. Adding in third-parties seemed to destroy that Nintendo-ness.
But then something hit me. Over the past few generations, Nintendo has done a lot that caused them to lose third-party support. They secluded themselves and trapped their consoles in the Nintendo universe. Now, with the Wii, we're seeing Nintendo cooperating with third parties on a level that we have never seen before. To me, the inclusion of third party characters in SSBB is more representative of a new Nintendo than anything. The third-party characters aren't invading the Nintendo universe; Nintendo is inviting them. Now, everyone can become part of this new all-inclusive Nintendo universe.
lala @ Jun 20th 2006 2:44PM
don't put the prince or fisher in there
David D @ Jun 20th 2006 2:50PM
The idea behind Smash Brothers oh so long ago was just a bunch of Nintendo icons from tons of different games to come together and whallop the crap out of each other. The first time I played I died laughing as I was able to send stupid little Pikachu flying across the screen from a powered up punch by DK.
Does having non-Nintendo characters ruin this in any way? Of course not. You are still taking characters from their world, their standard controls and their standard styles and applying them to a quirky fighting game.
I'd vote for Rayman out of the four as well, he has the comic goofiness that fits with Smash Brothers.
And I would die to have Sonic in there. Mario vs Sonic Smash Brothers style, boooyah.
Nmaster @ Jun 20th 2006 2:51PM
No character addition, unless they actually unbalance the game, is a bad addition. While I much rather see Sonic than any Ubisoft character, it's definitly intriguing to think of Snake fighting Sam. I really wish they could just add EVERYBODY. The more the merrier, if you don't like 'em, just don't play as 'em.
By the way Joystiq, what is this Smash Bros. "Bawl" you speak of in your title? :P
Ryan @ Jun 20th 2006 2:58PM
anyone lse think they aren't BROTHERS if they aren't nintendo? the whole point is they are all iconic nintendo characters in one game... not just iconic characters... why not just put the sims, daxter, and sephiroth in there too?
Jody Anthony @ Jun 20th 2006 2:58PM
im surprised only one other person has noticed "bawl"
or at least said anything about it.
Forse @ Jun 20th 2006 3:02PM
While they're at it, how 'bout Chuck Norris?
Chris @ Jun 20th 2006 3:17PM
As long as the unlockable third party characters are in the minority and not the majority I wouldn't mind. There are still plenty of Nintendo characters I'd like to see in Super Smash Bros. first. Though I'd love to see things like the Prince of Persia from SoT (not WW), Viewtiful Joe, Mega Man and Leon Kennedy. Only essential third party characters of each generation should be allowed.
GlitchCog @ Jun 20th 2006 3:19PM
Regardless of their Ubisoft choice, they need to include the awesome floating head, Dr. Kawashima.
Louie @ Jun 20th 2006 3:20PM
LOL! That would be cool, but I Chuck Norris would be unbeatable.
Thomas Werewolf @ Jun 20th 2006 3:22PM
I'd also like to see Shaquille O'Neal as represented in the classic game Shaq Fu in SSBB.
Ross Jernigan @ Jun 20th 2006 3:27PM
I am pretty sure that the devs said that the only 3rd party characters showing up in the game are ones that were on classic Nintendo systems and are known for that. Sam Fisher, Jade, and the Prince are definately not going to happen. As for Rayman...I doubt it. That character is not known for being on say the NES or SNES, and I doubt they would add him becasue of his appearance on the N64. Snake, however, had a couple of hit adventures on the NES. My guess at who will be in the game as a 3rd party character? Megaman.
And as for Sonic? No way. Never going to happen.
Video Game Master @ Jun 20th 2006 3:31PM
I personally want to see Mario vs. Sonic because I WAS a gamer during the rivalries. Just a very, very, teenie tiny gamer.
kevin @ Jun 20th 2006 3:33PM
Nintendo VS. CAPCOM
I'd love to see that game made.
Jay @ Jun 20th 2006 3:37PM
they're going to destroy this game.
Kevin - thats a good idea. They should make Smash Bros Brawl then bring out the Nintendo vs. line. that would better than squeezing in characters that shouldn't be here.
scott @ Jun 20th 2006 3:46PM
i want rayman. he would have some very cool moves i bht.
Rob @ Jun 20th 2006 3:47PM
I wouldn't dismiss Sonic outright if I were you. After all, Nintento and Sega are cozy enough to be selling the Genesis catalog over the Wiinternet (I wish they also had the Sega CD and Saturn in there). But if I had to pick a couple of iconic Nintendo 3rd parties I guess my list would be: Rayman (Ubisoft), Megaman (Capcom with Viewtiful Joe 2nd), Pac Man (Namco), Sonic (Sega). I think if they keep the list short and make it super difficult to unlock them they will not overshadow the game, and act as a breath of fresh air. I also want them to put in King Hippo but that probably aint happening.
Charles @ Jun 20th 2006 3:50PM
I've never played a Rayman game, but he looks to be a good fit for Smash Bros. Of course I'd like to see Sonic, but a Mega Man v. Samus battle would be interesting to see. Especially if it were X.
delerious @ Jun 20th 2006 4:04PM
Holy jeez, GlitchCog pwnd me. I would suppose that if Kojima gravelled for the spot, then it should be fine. Even still, I'll never play as a third-party character.
Gravelling and copying are the first two things that go towards flattery(imo).
Jason Zeidan @ Jun 20th 2006 4:09PM
I love the idea of Rayman in the game. He's gonna be at the Wii launch so it makes sense. Along with him, I really really want Sonic (like many of you Mario vs Sonic fans), but I also want Crash Bandicoot, Bomberman and Megaman in there. Imagine Bomberman vs Megaman vs Crash vs Sonic; that would just rule.
I would LOVE to have Fisher in the game too (I've been dreaming to see a Fisher vs Snake battle), but I think it might be a bit much to have two stealth guys in the game. And if Fisher does get added, he'll probably end up being a clone of Snake or something (which isn't bad, just a waste of space if that's the case).
^omg that last phrase rhymed!
Mr. Bogus @ Jun 20th 2006 4:17PM
Since its coming out on wii, there probably gonna update characters periodically. Wouldn't be great if they have vote offs and then whatever character wins gets added to the game?
Chris @ Jun 20th 2006 4:18PM
As long as the unlockable third party characters are in the minority and not the majority I wouldn't mind. There are still plenty of Nintendo characters I'd like to see in Super Smash Bros. first. Though I'd love to see things like the Prince of Persia from SoT (not WW), Viewtiful Joe, Mega Man and Leon Kennedy. Only essential third party characters of each generation should be allowed.
Raikage @ Jun 20th 2006 4:20PM
I bet if Sonic was in the game and you set computer Mario vs computer Sonic, Nintendo would program it so that Mario always won against Sonic...XD The Sega/Nintendo fude isn't over yet...
P.S. Sam Fisher is my hero.
The Raikage
Brody Brooks @ Jun 20th 2006 4:22PM
Add me on the list of "Rayman only" commentators.
I frigging loved Beyond Good & Evil, but Jade isn't really iconic as she was only in one game that became a cult classic, not a popular franchise. Sam Fisher, while it would be awesome to see him take on Snake, would sort of detract from the Super Smash Bros light-hearted image as there's no funny item to associate with him (like Snake's instantly appearing cardboard box). I can practically say the same for the martial artist formerly known as Prince.
Rayman, though, has been around since the days when PlayStation was this new video game machine and had this its-not-nintendo-so-why-bother aura surrounding it. Not only has he been the main character of a successful series that has appeared on Nintendo consoles a number of times, but the limbless wonder would fit in nicely with the SSB roster.
As long as his taunt is "YEAH! GRANMA!" as heard in Rayman 2 (minus the PS2 rerelease).
Jay @ Jun 20th 2006 4:22PM
But Crash Bandicoot is a BAD character. He's just a rip of the Tasmania Devil guy, absolutely no character, terrible repetitive games, stolen idea games (Crash Team Racing?). No. The day Nintendo put Crash in a Smash Bros game is the day I stop playing computer games.
I think everyones getting a little ahead of themselves. Splinter Cell characters? no. Sonic? Perhaps, though I personally wouldn't want that and part of me can't see it happening.
gotta be realistic here. Didn't the head of SSBB say that we should expect only a few 3rd party characters, including Snake? if anything Megaman will probably be there and I'd guess at just 1 more.
Zatch @ Jun 20th 2006 4:32PM
I'm all for it. Nintendo has run out of fresh and unique players so the more the merrier!
BenDoverx @ Jun 20th 2006 4:44PM
I personally would love to have Prince in there. He is very acrobatic and quick with his attacks. He would make a great addition to the franchise.
I think Pit vs Prince would be a very cool fight!
-B
skinnytie @ Jun 20th 2006 5:00PM
Megaman, please.
/please
//please please
Agrajag @ Jun 20th 2006 5:15PM
I think Rayman is the most likely, although I think Jade would be cool.
As for other 3rd party characters I'm hoping for Megaman. He started on the NES and has had lots of games for Nintendo systems, and fits in really well with the other characters IMO. Sonic/Tails might also be nice (would be a cool two-person character now that apparently the Ice Climbers have been eliminated).