Topic: Rumor: Sakurai said Smash 4 final SSB game? Real or hoax?

I ran into a rumor that Sakurai said in an interview that Smash 4 would be the last game, but they didn't have a source for where or when he said that, and the context.

Is there any truth to the rumor? If you know when/where it was said can you tell me where I can read it?

Sakurai always treats the current Smash as if it's the final one....I doubt the series will actually end.

I doubt it. Smash Bros. is essentially another of Nintendo's flagship series and I can't see it ending any more than Mario, Zelda, or Pokemon coming to an end. Where'd you hear this rumor in the first place?

Perhaps Sakurai is no longer part of the development team, and is passing the torch.

Sakurai always says it‘s the last one. I mean, they announced Brawl without him being even aware of it and only afterwards was asked to return to direct it. Plus, most, if not all, SSBs have had a toll on his social life and his health. I couldn‘t blame him if he wanted to leave. But a Smash without Sakurai? They apparently have no qualms announcing it without his certain involvement so I doubt they‘d stop this flagship franchise just because Sakurai is out.

I've heard that rumor as well, but even if Sakurai wanted the series to end, Nintendo definitely would not allow it. Smash is one of their biggest moneymakers, so it would be absurd of them to end it, even if Sakurai ends up leaving development for good.

He always says that, but I believe him this time. His arm problems hit him pretty hard during Smash 4's development. Whatever he's doing now, I'm sure it's nothing as demanding as a new Smash.

@MarcelRguez Maybe the last Smash in which he gets involved, but from what I understood the rumour that scared people is that Smash 4 is supposed to be the final Smash, which I find impossible considering it's popularity.

@roy130390 My main question is if there is any truth to the rumor at all. No one can even name a magazine that I know of. I could see it being the last for him, but I just can't believe Nintendo would ditch such a popular series.

@roy130390 Well, that I don't believe, unless Smash goes the GaaS route.

@roy130390 @Heavyarms55 Smash 4 being the final Smash would work out just fine because it could just act as its own platform for the foreseeable future.

Port for Switch: Contains all Wii U content and some extras, gets supported by DLC throughout the Switch's lifespan.
Port for Switch's successor: Contains all Switch content and some extras, gets supported by DLC throughout the Switch successor's lifespan.

... and so on until Nintendo stops making new consoles.

@Grumblevolcano It could work for a while, but there's a limit to how many times you can sell a game with just a few differences like new characters and stages and improved graphics, so I still find it impossible to be the last one since they won't abandon the franchise and doing this will slowly affect the relevance of the game, so in my opinion it's safe to assume that there will be a new smash game, eventually.

@Heavyarms55 Yeah about that I can't say much, sorry. I also heard it but I don't remember any magazine, site or any source to validate said rumour. However, I think that just by proving that said rumour is highly unlikely to happen it's relevance it's already affected even if it's true and the source won't matter in the end unless it's for a specific reason. Sorry if you needed the source for something in particular.

@roy130390 I don't need the source, but I want to know if this rumor is just a rumor or actually was said. This is the internet, people make nonsense up all the time.

Maybe he can work on a new Kid Icarus now.

I personally want Kirby Air Ride 2.

Sakurai can feel free to leave the series

@Heavyarms55 Here's an article for you.

@Late So HIS last. THANK YOU for that.