The End of An Era in the Smash Bros Community

The recent announcement and subsequent release of Sora, the final DLC character planned for Super Smash Ultimate, marks the end of an era for fans of the series. For the past four years, millions of fans of the series have indulged in endless speculation about what characters could be added to the game’s ever-growing roster. Upon the official announcements of characters, fans would live stream their overly dramatic reactions to the cinematic trailers that Nintendo would use to reveal newcomers to the franchise. Reaction and speculation related to Smash has grown so incredibly popular over recent years that one could argue that it is the most popular type of Nintendo-related content on social media. To outsiders of the Super Smash Bros. community, the types of unfiltered and theatrical emotions invoked by these announcements might seem a bit extreme; however, when the history surrounding the culture of the Smash community is analyzed, it becomes easier to understand.

Nostalgia plays an important role in fan’s particular investment in the series. I know that for four-year-old me, the idea of a fighting game that was a massive crossover between some of my favorite Nintendo characters genuinely felt as if it were a dream come true. In a single game, I was able to battle as my favorite video game icons, such as Link, Mario, Sonic, and many others. The game felt like a gold mine: I remember spending hours everyday playing hundreds of matches trying to uncover all the secret characters, stages, soundtracks, and different collectibles the game had to offer. It excited me about the future of the series: my mind raced thinking about the new characters that could be added in the future games, and more specifically, what characters I wanted to be added.  The memories that I made of the series as a kid made me a fan for life.

There are numerous other kids around the world who, similar to me, have developed an attachment to the series and are passionate about the different characters and franchises that get added. In early 2018, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, the most recent entry to the series, was announced as a premier exclusive for the Nintendo Switch. With the overwhelming success of the Nintendo Switch and the popularity of both social media culture and the Smash Bros franchise being at all-time highs, the build-up and speculation for the release of this game was unlike anything I had ever seen for a video game in my lifetime. For the months leading up to its release, millions of people around the country would congregate on social media and in live streams to watch dramatic and suspenseful Nintendo-produced cinematic trailers that had the potential of either completely crushing or fulfilling their childhood dreams.   

For the time that followed the official release of Super Smash Bros Ultimate in December of 2018, fans of the series eagerly awaited the character announcements that Nintendo would drip feed them over the course of the next three years. With the internet being more accessible than ever, fans were able to spend countless hours theorizing and speculating through Youtube videos, Reddit forums, and lengthy Twitter threads. I remember having constant conversations with my friends over the years about who had a chance of joining the roster. I’ll never forget the elation some of my friends and I expressed after finding out that characters like Joker and Sora were making it into the game .Whether it be at lunch, over group discord voice calls, or in the intermediate period between classes, it felt like the topic of the next character was always pressing. When they were released, fans found some incredibly satisfying and some deeply disappointing.

Regardless of how people felt about the character inclusions, one thing that cannot be debated is the overall noise, anticipation, and conversation that these character reveals ended up causing.   These reveals provided a means for fans around the world to come together and share their collective enthusiasm and love for the franchise with one another. The release of Joker, the main protagonist from Persona 5, in April of 2019 ended up temporarily crashing Nintendo’s online servers as people scrambled to download him early. The announcement of the addition of Steve from Minecraft in October of 2020 was so substantial to people that it ended up completely shutting down Twitter for a time. The announcement of Sora from the Kingdom Hearts franchise most recently in October of 2021 incited nostalgic feelings so strong in fans that it was enough to even make one man cry of joy. For me personally, it was enough to brighten a day that was otherwise soured by a Calculus test I had been stressing over for the entire afternoon.

But now, with the announcement of Sora, the final addition to Smash and the most highly requested character, this long ride will come to a close with his addition on the eighteenth of this month. Though I’m grateful for having been able to experience this rollercoaster, it’s a bit bittersweet to see everything finally come to end. This cycle has provided me with a sense of childlike joy and excitement for around four years, a quarter of my life. I’m going to miss the thrill that came from watching these reveals live with my friends and rejoicing upon seeing one of the characters we loved finally get added. Seeing it end almost feels like the end of an era in my life, as dramatic as that may sound. It truly was more than just a game; it was something that you had to be present to experience.

By Kailen Hicks