Super Smash Bros. remains one of Nintendo’s most ballyhooed franchises in its storied catalog. Between its fantastic fighting mechanics and its crossover elements featuring characters from all across gaming, Super Smash Bros. remains the apple of many gaming fans’ eyes. Every announcement of a new character feels like an event in and of itself and only serves to create even more excitement for the franchise.
With Nintendo closer than ever to peeling back the curtain on the Nintendo Switch 2, hype has mounted as fans hope for the next entry in the Super Smash Bros. series. While speculation currently centers on whether Nintendo will double down on the “Everyone Is Here” mentality of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate or scale things back, it’s a near guarantee that the next game will definitely feature its share of new characters. One Nintendo franchise seems primed to receive an even greater level of representation in the next title: Xenoblade Chronicles.
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Why a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Definitive Edition Would Be a Perfect Switch 2 Launch Title
With updates on Smash Ultimate finished and the Switch 2 on the way, the time is right for a definitive version of Nintendo’s most popular crossover.
Super Smash Bros. and Xenoblade Are Closely Tied Together
Xenoblade Was A Cult Classic Before Smash Bros.
To an extent, Xenoblade Chronicles as a franchise owes some of its recent success to the Super Smash Bros. franchise. While the first Xenoblade Chronicles game was released in 2012, it was only thanks to a major fan campaign known as Operation Rainfall that the game was localized. While the campaign succeeded, it was only released in very limited quantities at the end of the Wii’s lifecycle, causing it to fall into “cult classic” status upon release.
With the release of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, however, the game’s protagonist Shulk was added as a playable character. While this didn’t immediately catapult Xenoblade into becoming a major IP for Nintendo, it did help push the franchise forward in popularity. Nintendo also took advantage of this with a closely timed re-release on the New Nintendo 3DS before eventually releasing Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch in 2020.
Smash Has Helped Xenoblade Grow In A Big Way
Since the launch of the Nintendo Switch, Xenoblade Chronicles has catapulted itself in popularity. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 sold over two million copies on the Nintendo Switch, becoming not only the best-selling of the Xenoblade games but also of the larger Xeno series with which it exists. The Smash Bros. team was also clearly aware of its success, as while series director Masahiro Sakurai couldn’t add a character from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 at launch, he did eventually include Pyra and Mythra as downloadable fighters during the second wave of the game’s Fighter Pass.
Since the conclusion of Smash Ultimate’s DLC, there have been two new releases in the Xenoblade series: Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and the recent Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition. Nintendo has clearly taken an investment in the Xenoblade series, and Smash Bros. has become a catalyst for its increased popularity. Thus, if Nintendo is building another Super Smash Bros. game for the Nintendo Switch 2, a new Xenoblade character seems like a foregone conclusion.
Since the launch of the Nintendo Switch, Xenoblade Chronicles has catapulted itself in popularity.
Smash Bros. Has A Couple of Options For Xenoblade Representation
It’s not clear whether Nintendo will lean toward representing a character from one game or the other, or try to feature characters from both. As it is, the development team at Monolith Soft has confirmed that it plans to continue the Xenoblade series after Xenoblade Chronicles 3, while also noting a desire to make Xenoblade Chronicles X2 as well. Thus, the Smash Bros. team may inevitably play the waiting game to see what Xenoblade offers on the Switch 2 before deciding how to further represent the series in Smash.
Even so, as the next Super Smash Bros. game comes into form on the Switch 2, Xenoblade Chronicles looks to have an even bigger presence this time around. The franchise has seen a lot of growth in no small part because of Smash, and the release of several highly successful games in the time since the conclusion of Ultimate’s DLC offers a great playground for Sakurai and his team to work with. It may take some time before gamers get to see the next Smash game, but once it’s ready to go, expect plenty more Xenoblade goodness ahead.
- Released
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December 7, 2018
- ESRB
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E for Everyone: Cartoon Violence, Comic Mischief, Suggestive Themes
- Publisher(s)
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Nintendo