(Note: there will be some light spoilers from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 here. It's isn't anything that will ruin the game and chances are you would know about it if you watched all the xenoblade 2 trailers.)
Welcome to my Smash Diaries. In the last entry I gave a roundabout look all of the smash bros veterans and their odds of returning to the series. I also took a look at a trio of Smash 64 veterans who I felt like could use an update to their moveset. In this entry, I want to look at a newcomer for the series, one that I personally would love to see in the next game.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was a pretty big success when it launched back in December. It received critical praise and joined the one million club on switch. The series is bigger than ever and a new rep for Smash 5 makes too much sense. But who's the best option?
Xenoblade Chronicles 2’s protagonist, Rex, would seem like the obvious choice. He's front and center the entire game. He's a spike hair anime boy with a sword and magic attacks so he would fit right into Smash. While Rex seems like the most likely choice, I would prefer another character. Rex uses a lot of blades in Xenoblade Chronicles 2, but none are more prolific that Pyra or Mythra.
Pyra and Mythra are two sides of the same coin. Pyra is a sweet and loving mother figure while Mythra is the louder and more bombastic of the two. In-game they're able to transform at will between the two versions, with one of them supposedly being the host body for the other. Including them in Smash 5 as a transforming character similar to Zelda and Sheik would be the most interesting choice for a new character. But first we must answer some questions every newcomer will face.
How will they play?
Pyra and Mythra would likely share a similar moveset. Pyra focuses on fire attacks while Mythra has light based moves. For individual characters, these elements would reflect in their special attacks. For their smash attacks I would expect normal punches and kicks to make more sense. They might even be able to use the Aegis, the blade that houses them, to attack opponents with their up tilt. For recovery and mobility, basic jumps and double jumps would be a possibility. The idea of using other blades from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 to help with certain attacks would be interesting as well. For their final smash, Burning Sword for Pyra and Heaven’s Arrow for Mythra make the most sense. Both of these attacks are their highest level special attacks in Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
Unfortunately, Pyra or Mythra as their own character is unlikely to happen. So the best option is to combine them with Rex as another duel character option similar to Rosalina and Luma. Pyra/Mythra wouldn't attack in this state, but would still have animations to power up rex. Making Rex the main playable character also means that other blades could enter the fold such as using Roc for Rex’s recovery. Rex’s other moves such as Hookshot could be added in as well. The final smash could stay the same as well since both Burning Sword and Heaven’s Arrow require rex to begin with. Swapping between Pyra and Mythra would make Rex play a little closer to his Xenoblade brethren, Shulk. Pyra could deal stronger smash attacks while Mythra powered up Special moves.
My only issue with have Rex as a playable character is that he's another sword user in a game filled with sword users. While the added element of his blades would make him unique, the basis for most of his moves would still revolve around a sword. For my own personal tastes, I would prefer having just Pyra/Mythra as they feature better designs and they're more interesting characters.
How likely are they to get in?
For this portion of the question we have to look at two factors for every character.
How iconic are they?
Would they translate well to Super Smash Bros?
We already answered the second question before. While I would prefer having Pyra and Mythra by themselves, the likely answer is that they would appear alongside Rex if they were playable characters.
As far as popularity is concerned, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 will likely be heavily represented in Smash 5. The title sold 1 million units on the Nintendo switch, far more than its predecessor. The real kicker is Masahiro Samurai, the creator and director of the smash bros series, is a huge fan of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. He stated that he played through the game recently, completing it during his New Year’s vacation. That alone leads me to believe that Rex and Pyra will fall into the “Leans" category, meaning they have a greater than 60% chance of being in the game. It is possible that we could see another character from Xenoblade Chronicles 2, but all signs point towards Rex and Pyra.
Other Loose Ends
What about the rest of Xenoblade Chronicles 2? How will it be represented? It's not too crazy to imagine that Xenoblade 2 receives its own stage. It's entirely possible that a new stage for Xenoblade 2 could replace the existing one from the first Xenoblade title. Any of the game’s larger titans and locations would make for interesting locales to fight on.
I would also expect Xenoblade to receive a new assist trophy, potentially replacing Rikki. My personal choice would be Xenoblade 2 supporting character, Morag and her blade Brighid. These characters could zip around the battlefield and attack other players before Brighid finishes off the attack with a massive fire attack. Nia is also a possible assist trophy and the more likely candidate to appear.
Final Thoughts
Before we even knew of Smash 5, I wanted Pyra in as a playable character. She's one of my favorite new characters from a Nintendo game and I think she would fit perfectly in the next Smash game. Rex and Pyra would make for a unique and more fleshed out fighter, however, so that seems to be the more likely option. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is an excellent game (it made my top 10 best games of 2017 list after all). I hope that it's recent critical and commercial success will lead to a new fighter and more representation in Smash 5.
Newcomer: Rex w/ Pyra (Xenoblade Chronicles 2)
Category: Newtendo (appears in a nintendo game after 2006)
Likelihood: Leans entry
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