Topic: Thoughts on SSB Direct...

They did give Sheik a more feminine body starting with Brawl.
This version of her seems to have increased and rounded her chest a little bit, but not much.

Oops I talked about this again.

I was kind of surprised when they had the ability to switch gender on the Wii Fit trainer, but didn't announce that feature for the Villager. I was disappointed by that.

I find funny the people complaining about having too many Pokémon because
original Smash: 2 Pokémon(?)
Melee: 4 Pokémon
Brawl: 4 Pokémon(6 if you count Red's team as 3)
3DS/WiiU(so far):4
nothing exceptional here.

edit: lol not the subject anymore

For shame! You oughta be smashed for this

Speaking of which, I demand matches with folks here on the 3DS version

These are the remaining characters I think will be included:

Veterans:
Ganondorf and Meta Knight

Wario and Ness- The fact that they still reference items and Assist Trophies from their respective franchises leads me to believe they're in.

Jigglypuff- I'll say this, I absolutely hate Jigglypuff, and I don't think he has much reason to remain a series mainstay. But I think another Pokemon rep is possible, and between Mewtwo and Jigglypuff, Jigglypuf has a unique moveset (whereas Mewtwo fights too similarly to Lucario and Greninja) and his moveset could be even more unique with Fairy type moves added.

Newcomers:

Dixie Kong- With Donkey Kong Country back in the limelight thanks to Returns and Tropical Freeze, they're probably going to want to add a third rep to the series. I was torn between Dixie and Cranky because they both have important roles in the series and both appeared in Tropical Freeze, but I think Cranky would be better suited as an Assist Trophy, so that leaves Dixie.

Palentula- Sakurai seems to love Kid Icarus, and since he's helped bring the franchise back to relevancy, it's fair to assume there's probably another character in the game. And since Palentula is nowhere to be found, I'm guessing it's her.

Some kind of Fire Emblem: Awakening rep (people keep saying Chrom, so I guess him). Don't really play Fire Emblem, but I think it's relevant enough to retain two characters, and since it just recently had a new game, they would probably choose one from that game.

On the fence:

Captain Falcon- I heard someone saying they say Samurai Goroh in the game, so if that's true, then he's in the same boat as Wario and Ness. Otherwise, with Nintendo basically ignoring F-Zero I can see him being edged out if necessary.

Falco- Obvious loss of relevancy here, but aside from that, let's talk about the fact that all three Star Fox characters in Brawl have similar fighting styles, with Fox and Falco having nearly identical movesets. Why would you include so many clone characters from a game that isn't even popular anymore? If they can fix Falco so he has a unique moveset, fine. Otherwise, I can see him going right along with Wolf.

Lucas- Not really sure how popular Earthbound is, but I don't think it's popular enough to justify having two characters.

Mr. Game and Watch- Had his games rereleased on the eShop, but aside from that has zero relevance and with Villager and Wii Fit Trainer already in, we don't really need another joke character.

Ice Climbers- Let's face it, the only reason these guys are still around is for having a unique fighting style (and I guess Sakurai likes them for whatever reason). They haven't done a single thing outside of Smash since the NES, and you don't exactly hear people clamoring for a new Ice Climbers game like they do with Star Fox, F-Zero, and Earthbound. I'm tempted to say these guys should just be cut.

Boobs!
Well that is a fight if I ever saw one.
Really glad Sheik is a stand-alone character, I used to dominate her in Melee but in Brawl she sucked!
_{Watch the profanity please — TBD}

Wario, Ganondorf, Ness, Jigglypuff, Captain Falcon and possibly everyone on your fence will most likely return, mostly the first 5 I mentioned. I don't think Dixie would make it but Palutena and I think Robin from Awakening could work (I'd rather see them over Chrom/Lucina but they'd be nice to).

Shiek is androgynous in OoT because it would be been obvious spoilers otherwise. Every game that has featured her since has given her an athletic, but clearly feminine body. Even the tightly wrapped sarashi can't be hiding that royal chest.

/lolthisdidntneedanotherpost

To everyone talking about the fate of Ness, Falcon and Jigglypuff, they will almost certainly return as they are a part of the original 12. They have seniority over all the other characters. And as far as Ganondorf, they already have 3 Zelda characters, and if Falcon returns, Ganondorf is almost certainly out. They have near identical movesets, but Falcon is faster, making him the more likely one to stay.

They could just do the right thing and make Ganondorf his own character, instead of a lousy clone.

WindWaker Ganondorf 4 Smash Bros!

I think if Ike is cut then Ganondorf should adopt his moveset. It would make Ganondorf different as well as give Ike players a similar character. I think it just makes a lot of sense. But if Ike is cut then Chrome or another Fire Emblem character should come in.

At the same time, we can't really expect every character to be unique

Yeah, some characters will have similar abilities.

But still, making Ganondorf a simple reskin of Captain Falcon is too random and lazy.

I think Brawl changed him enough to be more unique

If Ganondorf and Metaknight return they need major reworks. Honestly, complete changing their move sets would hardly harm anything since competitively Metaknight is generally banned and no one plays Ganondorf. I doubt casual players would even care in the end as well. Also, those of you who doubt the Ice Climbers be aware that some where in the 410 screenshots released after the direct that the polar bear appears as an enemy in Smash Run. Also, they are extremely powerful, and Sakurai knows this. I find it hilarious when people think them and Olimar are weak when they are like some of the best fighters, lol. Not trying to be a jerk I just love both of them, But yea I think Ice Climbers are completely safe, same with R.O.B. and Mr. Game & Watch (even though I really don't care for them.) since Sakurai has said he has no plans on ever removing retro fighters. His feelings could change though. Also, I think Captain Falcon, Ness, and Jigglypuff are all safe. They are all pretty much staple hidden characters for the most part, so I really doubt they'll be announced until right up until the 3DS release. Now... those who I feel are cut... Pokemon Trainer (pretty obvious.), Snake, Wolf, Lucas,and Ike. It's small, but it's the same amount removed from Melee. Newcomers I think Palutena is a safe bet by now, as well as an Ike replacement. If i were to chose one more it have to go to Takamaru, but yea those are my thoughts.

I think we can all agree that clones are nonsense. Falco and Wolf were probably the worst offenders though. Toon Link and Link are more different than Fox and Falco. What's up with that?

Not saying they should be removed, but Ganondorf and Falco deserve unique movesets.

I kinda wish they had gone with the Link from Spirit Tracks for toon Link instead of the same old Hero of the Winds.

I don't understand how arguments such as "Samurai Goroh proves Captain Falcon is returning" work. There are a lot of items and assist trophies that don't have characters associated with them. I would expect Mr. Saturn to be in regardless of Ness and Lucas because it is a funny item, for instance.

That said, during Brawl's previews Samurai said he would always have the original eight in, I seem to recall. I expect to see Jiggles, Ness, and the Captain as unlockables like in all previous games. I am surprised Luigi was previewed though since he was a secret character, too.

Captain Falcon seems redundant because of Little Mac.

If I recall they revealed Luigi because Dark Moon came out and they were revealing characters with the releases of games or events/anniversary's (Olimar, Marth, King DeDeDe). I also think the original characters who haven't been shown will most likely return as they haven't had games come out for them in awhile (at least new ones with the exception of Jigglypuff).