So, with the dust of the Smash Bros Nintendo Direct having settled across the Internet and supposed rumours and leaks of stuff appearing all over the place, let me give you my predictions for Smash 4, in the run up to E3 in June.

First off, let’s deal with one of the major ‘leaks’ circulating the Internet which is the supposed roster screenshot, which shows characters like Mr Game and Watch, Ganondorf and Ice Climbers returning while also debuting new ones like Chrom from Fire Emblem Awakening. Now, while this screenshot has been debunked by most people due to the pictures used for the veterans being identical to their models in Brawl, it does raise the question of who of the remaining newcomers will return, who will be left out and who else could be added to round out the roster.

Veteran Fighters

Let’s deal with the veterans fighters first. I think Ness and Captain Falcon are definitely going to return for Smash 4. Those two, along with Luigi were three of the original secret characters in the very first Smash Brothers and due to the presence of the Franklin Badge and Mr Saturn as items and with Earthbound finally being released on Virtual Console as well as Samurai Goroh still being an assist trophy, I’m willing to bet they are still present in the game.

Jigglypuff however, I am more skeptical of. Seeing as she was not announced alongside Charizard and Greninja, and did not seem to appear among the Pokemon released from the Pokeballs at the start of the most recent announcement trailer, I wouldn’t hold out too much hope. I may be wrong but I think the singing puffball has gone.

Sorry Jiggs, I think you’ve had your final song.

In terms of other veterans, I think the Ice Climbers and Mr Game and Watch are out. While the Polar Bears from Ice Climbers can be seen in the Smash Run footage, but due to the fact that Rosalina and Luma’s fighting style is very similar to the icy duo, my reckoning is they are out. I think Wolf, Ike and Snake are definitely out of the running whilst I still believe characters like Falco, Wario and Ganondorf are still in. Whether Ganondorf is being replaced with Demise, as suggested by Fi’s appearance in the Trophy Quiz portions of the Smash Direct or Ghirahim is being added as a character is up for debate at the moment. However, due to the fact that Sheik now takes up a whole character slot instead of sharing one with Zelda, it will be only one of the two with it more likely being Demise.

Metaknight is the tough one though. Seeing as he was reviled by the competitive scene and that Greninja’s moveset and movement is very similar to Metaknight’s, focusing on air strength and speed, my bet is that he is no longer in the game. I could be wrong and he could be announced when Kirby Triple Deluxe is released worldwide but my hunch is that he’s gone.

Nintendo Newcomers

Right, let’s talk new guys. The other three trophies shown in the Smash Direct are thought to be nods to the possible 4 new Nintendo characters left to join the roster. The first was Tiki from the Fire Emblem series and I think it is a safe bet to assume that Chrom is in the game. The presence of an Arena Ferox stage from Fire Emblem Awakening can support this theory and due to the popularity of that game, it would seem silly to not have him in game. I could be wrong and Lucina is the new Fire Emblem character, or even the Avatar but it is more than likely going to be Chrom.

A Final Smash where he romances everyone in the match would suit best I think.

The other one was Psuedo-Palutena from Kid Icarus Uprising, which could either be a subtle nod to the supposed Palutena leak from early this year or be a conformation that another Kid Icarus character is in game. Due to the increased number of Kid Icarus items in game and the fact that Pit’s Final Smash has changed from Palutena’s Army to the Three Sacred Treasures, it is plausible or it could be Sakurai trolling the fanbase as usual.

The final trophy to be revealed was King Kihunter from the Metroid series which could be a nod to Ridley being in the game, to the delight of many fans. However, due to the shadow of Ridley on the Pyrosphere level when Sakurai was discussing boss monsters and again, due to his desire to troll the fans, I don’t think he will be in game. I hope there is another Metroid character in Smash 4, like one of the Hunters but I think we’ll have to make do with Samus and Zero Suit Samus.

Wildcards

Now, I believe there could be two more non-Nintendo characters which will be announced as characters for Smash 4. My theory is that one will be a Namco character, due to their involvement in the game and the reveal that aliens from Galaga will be an assist trophy while the other will be a character from a Platinum Games title. This is mainly down to Sakurai tweeting about visiting Platinum late last year and the growing links between Nintendo and Platinum over the past year and a bit. My prediction is that the Namco character will be Pac Man while I think the Platinum character will either be Bayonetta or Wonder-Red from the Wonderful 101. I hope the Platinum character is Wonder Red, as I think his character design and moves fit the Smash Bros design and aesthetic much better than Bayonetta, but seeing as Bayonetta 2 is coming out this year and they want to push that game more, I reckon it is more likely to be her.

You don’t understand how badly I want him in the game.

There you have it, my predictions for Smash 4 after the Nintendo Direct. No doubt we will have a steady trickle of information in the run up to E3 and all will be revealed when the game releases this summer on 3DS. As for the 3DS release date, I’m thinking Nintendo will do something incredibly surprising and release the game worldwide on the Nintendo eShop on the day of their E3 press conference, with the physical release at the end of the following week. That is my most unlikely prediction but if I’m right, I want a prize of some sort.