Feature: The Best Smash Bros. Ultimate Character Trailers, Ranked By You

Terry's love letter to Neo Geo/SNK should have been in Top 5.
It was not only a great tribute to SNK's Neo Geo era, but it had a lot of fantastic and even funny callbacks, some great pixel art recreations of famous scenes, and a hefty amount of tension with the invitation envelope slipping through so many different hands. (Maybe next time, Nakoruru.)
This is sad. Especially since Smash Bros wouldn't exist without Fatal Fury.

Sephiroth and Sora were the best reveals for me. It's also nice to see Pyra and Mythra + DQ Hero in the top 10.

Surprised Steve isn't in the top 5!

Bear and Bird on top! So Happy!
Banjo Tooie and Rareware games were a huge part of my childhood so this is an absolute win for me.

@LadyCharlie I agree but I think most people here don't know or care about Fatal Fury/Terry B

I figured Pyra & Mythra were a bit of a niche pick. Surprised to see them at 7th!

@The_Blue_Mage That's really sad. There must be more respect for the classics (especially when those classics are still very fun to play).

Pyra and Mythra's trailer really wasn't all that good. Paced very poorly, especially because it was fairly obvious what it was building towards. I imagine it's only so high because the characters were a popular enough pick and the trailer certainly lavished some love on Xenoblade 2. News flash: I don't think a trailer should be considered good just because the character choice is one you're happy with. Smash reveal trailers are at their best when they don't give things away at the start, then give you some subtle hint, before snappily revealing who's being added. Sephiroth's is a good example of this being handled well for a character I didn't even have on my radar, especially with the hints being some of the most subtle in any trailer (placing emphasis on Pit for one shot to establish the angel connection, and then I guess the sword slash sound when Galeem is cut in half is taken from Advent Children). Not too much buildup, but enough to really sell the impact of his addition. A trailer like Pyra and Mythra's or Kazuya's falls flat more because the former just kind of immediately screamed "Smash," especially with it opening a Direct, while Kazuya's had like 20 seconds of buildup and a pretty immediate hint of dropping a body off a cliff.

@LadyCharlie At most, alot of people voting are most likely people born from 1990- onward.

While it may be true SNK had a impact on Smash Bros, people like me had no idea the franchise even existed. I don't see it as disrespectful, just I have no personal connection to it.

I have no doubt Fatal Fury played a big role in Smash, but in the history of my time, I have no feelings towards the series.

I feel like Banjo only won first place due to nostalgia and not the actual quality of the trailer.
Sure it was funny but it was just a continuation off of K Rool's trailer and they just threw a jiggy and you immediately knew who it was.

Sephiroths trailer had way more effort put into it and got me excited despite me never touching a Final Fantasy game.
Seeing Galeem casually being obliterated then hearing Sephiroths music cue in with him appearing is amazing and theres nothing like it.
Theres also the brilliant blend of CGI and in game shots mixed in well together that also do a ton of subtle yet brilliant references to the game and Advant children movie.

While Banjo was a good addition, his trailer was boring and sadly his gameplay also shows it, Sephiroth easily has the best trailer in smash history.

" I don't think a trailer should be considered good just because the character choice is one you're happy with." — @PikaPhantom
This needs to be said louder and more frequently.

Banjo Kazooie wins by default. It's two video game icons finally coming back where they belong.

@iLikeUrAttitude Well, I mean who's to say nostalgia didn't play a role in Sephiroth winning second place?

Piranha Plant made some impressive leaps for a fully ingame trailer.

@PikaPhantom Idk, I actually had no clue that Pyra and Mythras trailer was going to be a smash reveal. I genuinely thought for the first half that it was going to be a Xenoblade sequel. It only really hit me when I saw Pyra standing on Final Destination.

Sephiroth wasn't my favorite new character. But his reveal trailer absolutely blows the other ones away.

I'll take the unpopular opinion and say Bowser Jr. had the best trailer.

The atmosphere being dark and moody, with the characters looking towards a potential dangerous threat; Then Bowser Jr. comes in swinging hard. Knocking everyone around like pins in a bowling alley.

Watching Mario charge in only to go "Oh crap!" when baby brings out the drills and starts depleting Mario's shield without mercy was excellent.

Just the idea that a child is kicking everyone's butt is hilarious to me.

@Quiet2down Uhm...Baby Bowser isn't in Smash. You're thinking of Bowser Jr.

@NCChris That I am. I get them confused at times. Still my favorite trailer.

@PikaPhantom I agree with a lot of this but I disagree on Kazuya.
A lot of people actually had the impression that Heihachi was always going to be the pick for Tekken and for the majority of the trailer, even if you recognise the music, you think it's Heihachi.
But then when it's revealed you suddenly realize "Oh! It's Kazuya! Not Heihachi!" which even for me was a nice twist as I instantly recognised the music and what was about to go down.

@Quiet2down Fair enough.

Banjo & Kazooie deserve another game and King K. Rool must replace Tiki Tong as DK's arch enemies.

I kinda wish you had used Joker's true reveal trailer which was the one used in the Game Awards.

@LadyCharlie Hmm... You like fighting games? Or, at least, SNK/NEO•GEO games? I know that you have mentioned Rage of the Dragons port several times before, and I replied you, lol... Anyway, that's nice to see someone appreciating SNK and NEO•GEO there, on NL. I know only a few people who plays fighting games on this site and mentions it, including me. Most NL users and NL stuff (and most gamers too, sadly) don't care about fighting games, and this fact annoys and hurts me...
«There must be more respect for the classics (especially when those classics are still very fun to play).»
Yeah!
@The_Blue_Mage Yeah, sadly... Most people underestimate fighting games. This fact annoys me. Also, some gamers outside of Japan even don't know about the existence of The King of Fighters(!) series, but they know about the existence of Street Fighter or TEKKEN... Almost everyone knows who CAPCOM are. But SNK... Sigh Oh, and yeah, if we talk about old fighting games... I am SNK fanboy. SNK old fighting games are better than CAPCOM old fighting games. Characters, stories, music... SNK did what CAPCOM didn't.

@Vyacheslav333 Wow, the fighting scene is huge and just because of some users on NL don't care for them, it bothers you?

Besides, you have such high respect for the genre, yet you always advocate for removing the core component of why they exist in the first place. Multiplayer.

You want a future where fighting games, the thing that builds communities thanks to it's multiplayer, to become single player experiences only.

Banjo and Kazooie was immense. Just a pure celebration of Rare, having DK Diddy and K.Rool just going nuts at seeing them was so good and a great nod to the relationship Rare and Nintendo had.

Sora’s was great too even if I don’t care for the franchise, but still nothing on BK.

Byleth was the worst.

I’ll say it again. Isabelle was the best one.
(I’m definitely not biased because ACNH is my favorite game, why would you think that?)

What I liked about Isabelle's trailer was actually the Nintendo Direct/trailer that Tom Noon was watching on that Animal Crossing: New Horizons teaser.
I feel Kazuya's could be a little higher, that ending where he throws Kirby in the volcano is just too funny to let it pass.

@Frailbay30 «Wow, the fighting scene is huge and just because of some users on NL don't care for them, it bothers you?»
It's not only NL users and NL stuff. Just gamers in general.
«Besides, you have such high respect for the genre, yet you always advocate for removing the core component of why they exist in the first place. Multiplayer.»
Well... Fighting games were quite fine without online multiplayer before seventh generation of video game consoles. Focus towards online multiplayer started to hurt fighting games' single-player content. And some fighting games' sales too... The core component of fighting games is a single-player arcade mode.
«You want a future where fighting games, the thing that builds communities thanks to it's multiplayer, to become single player experiences only.»
Well, I want them to be filled with single-player content.

@Vyacheslav333 I do very much enjoy fighting games! And I'm definitely a Neo Geo fangirl, it was my favorite arcade cab growing up. Loved Metal Slug, loved Puzzle Bobble, enjoyed a couple of the platformers, enjoyed a couple of the Visco titles, and enjoyed a few of the sports games.
It wasn't until a few years ago that I got into the huge catalog of Neo Geo fighting games. It has felt good to catch up on some classics I missed the first time!

@LadyCharlie Wow! That's cool!

Byleth's should have been dead last.

@LadyCharlie This is a vote on who had the best reveal, not who deserves it thanks to history.

If that were the case, Pac-Man would be #1.

@iLikeUrAttitude Nostalgia definitely played a role in Banjo & Kazooie's reveal trailer winning. There's no way someone watched their trailer and actually thought it was better than the reveal trailers for Sephiroth, Sora, and the Belmonts.

I liked the Banjo trailer because it was totally unexpected for a MS character to be on Smash

@GooseLoose1 This is also why Banjo shouldn't be #1.

@LadyCharlie Im not making a case or comment for Banjo, Im simply saying SNK desevering a higher spot on the list because of it's historical relevance does not apply here.

This is a vote on who had the best reveal. Your post doesn't talk about the quality of Terry's reveal, just that it deserves more votes because of it's history.

If this were a vote on what impact these characters and their franchises as a whole did for gaming, you'd have a fair point if SNK was low on the list. This is why I used Pac-Man as an example.

Pac-Man's historical significance rates higher than everyone on the list, but his reveal trailer wasn't the best. This is what the votes are about.

Ken + Incineroar ranked last?! It's the only trailer that announced two characters from separate franchises: that has to count for something

@GooseLoose1 "This is a vote on who had the best reveal."

Which still means Banjo & Kazooie shouldn't be #1 because they definitely didn't have the best reveal trailer. Especially with it being a rehash of King K. Rool's trailer.

I think people are overly conflating the character with the trailer; Banjo & Kazooie's trailer loses a lot of points for me for giving it away too quickly.

@TheImperfectInsider Again, Im not making a case for Banjo here. I keep saying that. Banjo getting the top spot doesn't change that this is a contest on what "you", the people think had the best reveal.

@LadyCharlie is making a case that SNK should be in the top 5 based purely on what impact the franchise had on Smash Bros. That has zero to do with the actual quality of the reveal itself.

This is vote on what the people think who had the best reveal. Banjo winning is simply people voting based on that. This is not, I repeat, not a vote of historical relevance. It's a vote on who had the best reveal in smash bros.

@LadyCharlie is arguing for something that does not apply here.

I just wish they would add these trailers to the game so we can watch them anytime all in one place.

Sora and Sephiroth pulled all the stops. Just like Megaman did a few years earlier

@LadyCharlie haha, fun fact. My Dad was in a SNES accessory ad that had Fatal Fury as it's selling point!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=87mb5ii5M1g083oS&v=Gg1cDhRnsCY&feature=youtu.be

@LadyCharlie I really like SNK's games, but I had to vote for the Sephiroth trailer because it was just the hypest ***** ever.

Just wanted to share how much I hated Sora Reveal trailer.
Everything about it made it feel like it was gonna be Dark Souls.
And then out of nowhere comes the Keyblade.