Fire Emblem has enjoyed something of a revival in the last few years. Fire Emblem: Awakening was really the big turning point, and it's no exaggeration to say its largescale success literally saved the series. This was somewhat reflected most recently in Smash 4, where Fire Emblem graduated to having five characters on the roster. It seems that Masahiro Sakurai is a big fan of the series, and he recently contributed a piece to the Fire Emblem 25th anniversary book with some information on how the series influenced and related to the Smash Bros. games.
When developing Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64, he initially wanted to include Marth, but was unable to due to technical restrictions of the time. When Melee came around, it was tough to get him and Roy in the game due to them not having any games released overseas, but Nintendo of America eventually came to support their addition.
As for figuring out which Fire Emblem characters to include in each game, Sakurai said that it largely is down to luck and timing of releases, and that picks are usually characters from games that are popular at the time. With a few exceptions, characters are never added after the initial project plan is made, due to the impact it has on production time and costs. If Awakening had been released a few months earlier, there likely would've been fewer Fire Emblem characters in Smash 4.
Hat tip to Source Gaming for the translation, you can read the full thing here.
What do you think? Are you glad that several Fire Emblem characters appeared in Smash 4? What other characters would you like to see appear in a future Smash game? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
[source sourcegaming.info]
Comments 53
In before too many sword fighters comments : P
@SheldonRandoms I've never really seen the problem with that. Why do sword fighters get so much hate?
@MitchVogel Beats me. There are a whole lot more brawlers than swordfighters anyway. The Fire Emblem fighters are my favorite thing about the roster.
I love Fire Emblem. I'm sure Sakurai is proud to have been a big part of why it was localized.
Ike is my main. I try playing as any other character in the game and immediately regret it. Cloud looks interesting, though...
If he adds a new FE rep, I'd like to see someone who ISN'T a lord... please? I guess Robin technically counts, but to have maybe Vaike or Hector (at least a varient lord), or really anyone who would work well and wasn't a "popular" character.
As little of a problem I have with swordfighters, I'd say it's only fair to get some other weapons and classes represented in Smash Bros. Like have Aqua from Fates be playable instead of the avatar (although seeing him/her transform would be pretty cool) Or have a Pegasus Knight be playable (fast, strong, but lacks combo possibility and has a big hit box).
You know for the next Smash Brothers game we could expect characters from the new Fire Emblem game that's coming out in February.
Robin may not have been considered? If Robin wasn't in the game I would travel to the dimension where Robin wasn't in the game and convince myself I shouldn't buy it...actually I already did...or tried. He looked like he was gonna buy it anyway, and I think I know that look.
Still doesn't explain the reason that Chrom couldn't be in smash. Like literally, the characters are near clones of each other with the only difference being their appearance.
But if he's a huge fan of the series, then I wonder if Nintendo might allow him to make the next Fire Emblem game.....
@Tuosev
I'd love to see Hector.
@Fee Space-time travel is NOT okay! Don't do it! ... I mean you shouldn't have done it! You're the reason why Meta Knight is no longer a god!!!
Huh. I thought play-testers were to thank for Marth and Roy remaining in the overseas versions of Melee, where they loved the characters despite being more unfamiliar with them.
I'd much rather see a pure, new Fire Emblem game come out for the Wii U. But sadly it's probably already too late now. I don't count the Shin Megami Tensei vs. Fire Emblem as a proper entry for the Fire Emblem series by the way.
@Tuosev vaikery in smash is great
@FierceRagnar I definitely wouldn't compare Awakening to Sticker Star and Other M, sticking with Paper Mario and Metroid I'd say Super Paper Mario/Metroid Prime 3. Not the best but not terrible either.
To me he can add every fire emblem character! Is my favorite franchise by far!
Fire emblems cool, it's a nice rpg. But I don't think we need any more of them added in the current smash so I'm hoping that we don't get that announced tomorrow(Tuesday). But I mean I wouldn't be completely disappointed. I just want something... New and fresh. whisper Qoute please... Please put Qoute.
This doesn't bode well for Fire Emblem's representation when you look at the bigger picture. I don't want every Smash game to have just Marth and somebody else... then again, Ike did return from Brawl. While there have been a lot of FE guys this time, the next game we might see Marth paired up with a rep from a Fire Emblem game releasing in the next five years.
@Rhydas Yeah, but sometimes things seem really important and I can't just not do them...Besides I thought the Space-Time was OK as long as you don't go backwards or forwards, but removing myself from this timeline for even a small amount of time had unforeseen effects. Oh well, not like I can change it.
So Marth was almost in Smash 64...well that's interesting!
So glad that Sakurai-san is fan of the series...the smash inclusions likely helped keep the series in the gamer mindshare until the awakening boom. Sadly enough, I'm happy that we have gotten big enough that we can have squabbles between the "hardcore veterans" and the "filthy casuals" (both sides give me a headache but it means the fanbase is actively contributing).
@Socar "Like literally, the characters are near clones of each other with the only difference being their appearance."
Bahahahaha, you must be terrible at Smash if you think any of the FE characters besides Lucina are clones.
@Grumblevolcano Except Super Paper Mario was the best Paper Mario game.
Well good for fans of the franchise. :]
Personally, I've never cared about any of the FE characters in Smash, bit that's down to personal taste. Same way I don't care about characters like Fox, Sonic, Pac-Man, Mr. Game & Watch, Shulk or Little Mac.
I would be happy with Joshua from Sacred Stones, but that's way off in left field
If Sakurai ever runs out of ideas, he could always put me in. I can use Wind, Thunder, and Fire magic, along with knives and staves. Besides, who better to team up with Ike than me?
@Ryu_Niiyama Yes. I, too, am grateful for the purpose that FE: Awakening served. I hope it convinced new players to pick up the old GBA, GCN, and Wii Fire Emblems to play and see what a Fire Emblem game was like without grinding for EXP (save for Sacred Stones). In those games, your only chance to level up characters was in the campaign. There were no skirmishes or maps you could grind to beef up your characters and progress by means of brute force. It forced the player to be more tactical and decide on training the team they wanted from the get-go and leave the other recruits in 'development hell'
As Fire Emblem is my favorite game series, I fully support Sakurai in this.
Would be great if we could throw out Lucina for Hector.
Or at least add Hector in if he's a ballot winner (along with Snake.....please?).
Or hell, for variation they could try making a version of Ike wielding Urvan that players can switch to through the color select or as a button combo or something like Zelda and Samus in Brawl.
@ollietaro Personally, that is the reason why I loved Scared Stone. I could develop my weaker characters without having to throw them out to the wolves.
Path of Radiance had the most balanced exp system overall, since it rewarded you based on how you did in battle, but also allowed you a chance to develop your weaker characters and level them up without having to worry about tossing them out before they were ready. You could keep them away from battle and give them some bonus EXP. Also made leveling up healers(the hardest class to level up) alot easier.
It also helped that Ike was a powerful lord, which meant you did not have to spend time babying him the same way you did Eliwood.
@Grumblevolcano
Awakening doesn't come anywhere close to be comparable to Prime 3. It's without question the Other M of Fire Emblem (along with Fates), except its actually popular.
@Sabrewing
I think it can be read as NoA worked to keep them in DUE TO playtesters loving them.
Fire Emblem is an awesome franchise but I admit its rather annoying seeing so many of them on Smash. I do like all the characters but having so many from one franchise in Nintendo's whole roster of franchises is a bit too excessive. Oh and I have no idea why people hate sword fighters, are they op?
I literally bought Fire Emblem for GBA (the first NA release of the series) solely because of the characters in Smash, without even really knowing what kind of game it was other than what was written on the back of the box. It was between that and another platforming game. I sunk a ton of time into Fire Emblem, it's probably a top 5 favorite series for me now.
So, right on Sakurai!
@MitchVogel I could be completely wrong here, but here is my reasoning why sword fighters get so many negative comments: For me, when I look at the vast majority of sword fighters in Sm4sh, they mainly come from the Fire Emblem series. You don't really see anyone complaining about Link and Toon Link. For me, I dislike the majority of sword fighters because they all come from the sam games and hardly feel unique. Like Marth and Lucina for example; they are just too similar for me to enjoy as two separate characters.
Sakurai, like me, loves his Fire Emblem, and if he made FE15 or heck, even just took FE from IS and completely fixed it... I'd confirm to never get his wild ride. I'd think he's even make Smash Amiibo's even work with his version of FE.
@DickSportswiener - Tink can combo from projectiles, Link is heavy zoner and power combat based. And what of Space animals? Pew-pewing, deflecting, Side-B'ing all the time.
Really tho, what would you expect between Marth and Lucina? They're. Clones. What's worse is that you completely ignore the fact that it's not the characters, but the players. If people want consistency, they play Lucina with the same damage across the blade. Or, play Marth whom is more skill based and needs plays to sweet-spot with that tipper. It's the same argument with Marth Vs. Roy.
Absolutely. Fire Emblem is my fave Nintendo series outside of Smash, with Radiant Dawn being my first and fave FE, thanks to Ike being in Brawl. Thank you Sakurai for still keeping Ike in Smash 4, too.
Still want to get myself a copy of Path of Radiance too, if only it wasn't for the 120 euro+ price tag on eBay/Amazon..
That's what I am saying... I don't particularly enjoy the majority of FE characters. And now with Cloud... I mean blonde Ike... I am saying that is why I think people dislike so many of the sword fighters is because the majority come from FE and they are pretty similar. As I've hear it said before: "We have Marth, girl Marth, Red haired Marth, and magic Marth, it's about time we got blonde Ike too". To me, I am tired of FE representation in Smash, though Ike and Marth are pretty different, they are similar in style (obviously), but they also count for the majority of sword fighters. I really think sword fighters would get less flack if they were spread across more than just FE and LoZ. Byt hey I also agree with the Star Fox reps, I would rather Wolf over Falco, then there would be a bad guy rep at least.
Uh no more please. There are enough pretty boys with swords in Smash Bros. For the love of god, there are other nintendo RPGs out there Sakurai.
If he's such a Fire Emblem fan he should stop designing so many of their move sets as a rough copy of Marth's.
@dronusMalonus keep ike in smash .Get rid of Mario no more Mario in smash he is way over powered.
Not a fan of all the Fire Emblem characters in Sm4sh.
No more anime swordsmen, please.
Smash Brothers WiiU/3DS: Fire Emblem vs. Pokemon
@Megajack @AugustusOxy @Marshi @Zoda_Fett
I fail to see why five is too many reps for Fire Emblem when Mario has himself, Bowser, Luigi, Peach, Rosalina, Yoshi, Wario, Bowser Jr, Dr. Mario, and (technically) DK and Diddy.
You realize that's a whopping 9 reps? 11, if you count DK and Diddy.
@Zoda_Fett @Marshi @AugustusOxy @Megajack
I fail to see why five is too many reps for Fire Emblem when Mario has himself, Bowser, Luigi, Peach, Rosalina, Yoshi, Wario, Bowser Jr, Dr. Mario, and (technically) DK and Diddy.
You realize that's a whopping 9 reps? 11, if you count DK and Diddy.
Not sure why my comment isn't showing the blue text on the names...
No, wait. Just needed to refresh. Whoops.
FailFish
"It seems to be that he's a big fan of Fire Emblem"
No, really?!........
@Tuosev honestly you got me there, can't lie. On that note, we sure as heck don't need anymore Mario characters
Corrin
@Caryslan True. I think the point that marred the experience just a little was the grinding in the Tower of Valni and Lagdou Ruins. I began to turn the battle animations off just because there were so many battles on a floor. I agree with you that it's a great way to level up weaker characters, for sure. And you needed to complete the Lagdou Ruins/Tower of Valni multiple times to unlock boss characters for your party, if you wanted to. I enjoyed the game immensely and it certainly didn't lack for enjoyable time spent.
honestly, theres too many fire emblem characters, theres more of them then the zelda characters! almost as many as the mario characters! about tied withbthe pokemon characters in sheer amount
just put mach rider in smash, thats all i ask. ONE character, is that too hard, sakruai, you jerk!? IS IT!? HUH!? IS IT!?
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