At this point, you likely know that Nintendo has announced a new Super Smash Bros. game for Switch. While the announcement was more of a tease than anything, it ignited the boosters and put the hype train into full speed. And knowing that each game gets bigger than the last, we started thinking about what more from Zelda could be incorporated into the fifth Smash.
In fact, we came up with so many ideas that we felt we needed to split them up. So over two articles, we’ll discuss the items, characters, and references we’d like to see included in the next Smash Bros. For now, we’re going to be talking about games in the franchise up through the release of Skyward Sword in 2011. We’ll pick up next time going from 2013’s A Link Between Worlds and run through all the way to Breath of the Wild.
In general, we wanted to maintain a sort of happy balance between wishful thinking and cold, hard reality. Where some of our more fanciful ideas are included, we hope you’ll be persuaded by our reasoning and good looks. Feel free to join in the conversation as well; we’d love to know what you think.
Items
Key items have always been fairly central to the classic Zelda experience! While many of them have been mined already, there’s still a few veins of gold just waiting to be refined.
The Four Sword
This titular item can summon three differently colored clones of your character that run around for a short period and attack foes. We’re flexible on that number lowering on lower player-counts. There should be a one-in-ten chance that it ends up being the fake sword found in the Lost Woods of A Link to the Past. When this happens, you can throw it at people for very little effect.
Fire Rod
This Zelda classic can cast fireballs in a straight line that erupt on contact. Being hit by the flame “ignites” the enemy, making them run constantly while taking fire damage. Of course, anybody else they touch will be set on fire (including the caster).
Candle
Continuing our pyromania, the Candle would be able to create a flaming wall that will burn up most projectiles. It can also be used to create a fiery space between you and those who are hunting you down, allowing for a quick charge or getaway.
Assist Trophies
We could give you a move set for Majora’s Mask’s Postman if you gave us enough time, but let’s face facts: not everybody can be in Smash. Those characters who don’t really fit the big time can still be appreciated in our contest of Nintendo champions, albeit under the smaller (still very cool!) role of the Assist Trophy.
Kaepora Gaebora
This cranky owl makes everyone listen to what he has to say, stunning all players in place. To escape, hit A repeatedly to cycle through his relentless dialogue. When you’ve reached the end, hit Down and then A to confirm you’ve understood him. Otherwise, you’ll be trapped in another cycle that leaves you vulnerable to those who broke out the first time. Any damage breaks you out as well.
Groose
We get it, Nintendo. If you’re going to dedicate time and resources for Groose from Skyward Sword, you need to make sure you use everything you can. Sometimes that just doesn’t fit into the budget. Groose deserves the very best, and if you can’t deliver it, it’s best to save him for later. Now is that time.
Hoisting the Assist Trophy high above your head after battling with the other players for the right to claim it, you shiver with anticipation. “Will Lyn back me up?” you ask. “Will I call forth the adorable Nintendog? Is this the end of all existence as Waluigi The Destroyer of Realities materializes in his corporeal form?” The trophy bursts.
Nothing at first.
Then? The Groose is loose.
Hurtling from the sky with a powerful war cry, Groose will triumphantly crash down on his opponents with fierce intensity. Those caught in his fiery wake will find themselves suddenly strapped into The Groosenator, and launched off stage. Nobody knows where he will come from. Only the fortunate soul who summoned him will be safe.
Sakon
One of the first sidequests most people in Majora’s Mask may run across is the old woman who gets robbed on the first night by Sakon. This ne’er-do-well makes off with a large bag of bombs, and you must intervene to stop him in order to stock the Bomb Shop with bigger bags. Later he goes on to be a bigger jerk, but focusing on this first encounter, what if the old lady appears and Sakon steals her bag? Beating up on the thief will reward whoever lands the final blow with a Blast Mask. This mask gives its owner something similar to the Screw Attack item, except you will be exploding to jump around, damaging any enemies hit by you or caught in the said explosion. Think ‘Splosion Man but you’re Luigi.
Characters
We have some fairly wild ideas for some more modern Zelda interpretations of already existing Smash characters, but more on that next time. For now, here are a couple of characters that some of us have been championing for Smash for a very, very long time.
Toon Ganondorf
We feel regular Ganondorf is fine the way he is, and we know a lot of people enjoy playing him in his current incarnation. Instead, we offer an alternate timeline Ganondorf to compete with the different heroes: The Wind Waker’s Toon Ganondorf. Armed with dual swords (a first for all the sword fighters we have in Smash!), he could leap about the stage with surprising agility. Add in some more well-known moves, like a Phantom Ganon Orb or a blast of fiery bats, and he could be a unique character than his Captain Falcon-esque counterpart. That said, Toon Ganondorf’s robes would make a great costume for the current Ganondorf if that’s all we’re allowed.
Skull Kid
It seems the re-release of Majora’s Mask on 3DS revitalized this cult classic a bit, and maybe that means it’s time for the Skull Kid to do some damage of his own in the Smash realm. A floating menace like Mewtwo, he could draw from a variety of tactics and moves similar to those used in Hyrule Warriors and various 3D Zelda titles. A horn could summon a puppet to take damage, and maybe even be used to attack. His partner fairies could help him with some quick attacks while he powers up terrible magic. He himself could bound around like a lifeless doll, shaken and thrown by the whims of Majora’s titular mask. While it seems obvious that his Final Smash would be calling down the moon, we’d opt for something a little more flavorful: The Mask itself ditches the kid and becomes the incarnation of Majora’s Wrath. The player would lose all control, but the Wrath would dash around the stage, hunting its foes. It only seems right that you should lose yourself to the evil that sleeps within that terrible mask…
Stages
The next most important thing to a Smash Bros. game is the stages you’ll be spending your time fighting on. The stages themselves can be like characters when you think about it! They represent the places, the look, and the sounds of the games we love. We’ve dug deep into the past to find some interesting locales for duking it out!
Retro Death Mountain
Having appeared in almost every Zelda to date, Death Mountain is incredibly important to the world of Hyrule. While you could do something with any of the versions, a look back to the first game in our beloved franchise could net an awesome retro-themed stage. Spectacle Rock could form a couple of peaks for the major structure while exploding fireballs rain down from above.
Southern Face Shrine
We envision platforms suspended in a large dungeon corridor, framed similarly to the actual room from Link’s Awakening. Against the back wall, you can see the relief depicting The Wind Fish and the truth of Koholint. During the match, the various Instruments of the Wind Fish will drop to the stage. Grabbing an instrument grants the owner a small power boost for a short period of time. Once the fighters have collectively obtained all eight instruments, The Wind Fish wakes up and transitions the stage to a sea littered with drifting ship wreckage. In the background, you can catch glimpses of all our favorite large ocean and sky life like Jabun and Levias.
Music
The musical history of Zelda has been pretty well chronicled thus far in Smash Bros., but it still feels like there are a few gaps. We present this humble list to fill in some of those gaps. As is with a lot of older songs, an interesting remix could go a long way to bring them into a more modern sound.
Death Mountain
Ideally suited for a retro Death Mountain stage, this classic NES tune would make a great start for a nice remix. Throw in a small segment that pays homage to the version in Breath of the Wild or use the insane Pictobits version of the song. It would certainly match a slowly increasing firestorm building in the background.
Time of the Falling Rain
A classic bit of Super Nintendo greatness, “Time of the Falling Rain” was the dire opening track to A Link to the Past. While it would probably need a gloomier stage to go with it, it’s still a powerful piece of music.
The Ballad of the Windfish/Credits theme
“The Ballad of the Windfish,” if you ask us, has been criminally absent from the Smash Bros. series for long enough. It’s time to whip up an amazing version of this song. As attendees of the Symphony of the Goddess tour, we’ll say their rendition will be plenty sufficient.
The Face Shrine
The Southern Face Shrine represents a terrible, tangible feeling in Link’s Awakening. Every dungeon theme has sounded creepy or sinister in some way, but the change of tone for the Southern Face Shrine was a huge punctuation to the awful realization waiting within.
Majora’s Mask Title Theme
Most music in Majora’s Mask is too morose or otherworldly to really make into interesting combat themes, but a good arrangement of the title theme could be everything Majora’s Mask fans have wanted.
Outset Island
While an amazing tune on its own, it is admittedly a lackadaisical track. However, we’ve heard plenty of fan versions that give Outset Island more punch. The same treatment could easily be applied from one of the industry’s renowned composers for our next game.
These are our picks from the past! But Zelda has a lot of material to draw from, so let us know what you would love to see from past games! Next time, we’ll talk about the more recent games and what we’d love to have from them.
by Randy Marr on May 23, 2018
This titular item can summon three differently colored clones of your character that run around for a short period and attack foes. We’re flexible on that number lowering on lower player-counts. There should be a one-in-ten chance that it ends up being the fake sword found in the Lost Woods of A Link to the Past. When this happens, you can throw it at people for very little effect.
Continuing our pyromania, the Candle would be able to create a flaming wall that will burn up most projectiles. It can also be used to create a fiery space between you and those who are hunting you down, allowing for a quick charge or getaway.
