Editing List of characters in the Super Smash Bros. series

{{DISPLAYTITLE:List of characters in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series}}
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This is a '''list of characters''' in ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]'', ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]'', ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]], [[Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U]]'', and ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''. In some cases, the characters listed, if they had any connections to the ''Metroid'' franchise outside of the ''Smash Bros.'' series, will be noted in their character descriptions.

[[File:SSBU panoramic Kazuya.jpg|center|710px|thumb|Panoramic artwork of all announced fighters as of June 15th, 2021.]]

==''[[Metroid (series)|Metroid]]'' characters==
===Samus===
{{Main|Samus (Super Smash Bros.)}}

'''Samus Aran''' is the main protagonist of Nintendo's science-fiction ''Metroid'' series and appears in all five ''Super Smash Bros.'' games to date. She was the fourth character to be introduced in the series. The series from ''Brawl'' onwards features an alternate form for Samus in the form of "Zero Suit Samus", which is the heroine in the form-fitting [[Zero Suit]] that first appeared in ''[[Metroid: Zero Mission]]''. In ''Brawl'', she transforms into Zero Suit Samus when she uses her Final Smash, the [[Zero Laser]]; in ''3DS/Wii U'' and ''Ultimate'', Zero Suit Samus is a separate character. In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Ultimate'', Samus fights Ridley atop a mesa, briefly entering [[Morph Ball]] form to avoid several of his attacks and using a charge shot against him, only for him to knock her off the stage, and then use his [[Final Smash (Disambiguation)|Final Smash]] on her.

<gallery captionalign="center">
SSB Samus.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
Samusmelee.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Samus SSBB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Samus_smash_render.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Samus render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Zero Suit Samus===
{{Main|Zero Suit Samus}}

'''Zero Suit Samus''' is a form of [[Samus Aran]] from the [[Metroid series|''Metroid'' series]]. She was the 29th character to be introduced in ''Super Smash Bros.'' Zero Suit Samus wears her form-fitting suit first seen in ''[[Metroid: Zero Mission]]'', which has returned in every subsequent ''Metroid'' game. In ''Brawl'', Zero Suit Samus becomes a playable character after using her [[Zero Laser]] Final Smash, which causes her suit to crumble. She can restore her suit using the Final Smash [[Power Suit Samus]]. She returns in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' and ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', this time as a separate character from suited Samus. She is now equipped with [[Jet Boots]] and a new [[Gunship (Final Smash)|Final Smash]] and [[Boost Kick|recovery]].

Prior to Zero Suit Samus's introduction into ''Super Smash Bros.'', Samus's suitless form had made cameos in the original game and [[Samus Unmasked|as a]] [[trophy]] in ''Melee''.

<gallery>
Zero Suit Samus alt Brawl.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Zamus art.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Zero Suit Samus render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Ridley===
{{Main|Ridley (Super Smash Bros.)}}

'''Ridley''' is the archnemesis of Samus Aran and one of the major [[Space Pirate]] leaders in the ''Metroid'' series. Ridley has had a role in almost every previous ''Super Smash Bros.'' game (with the exception of ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS'', not counting [[Ridley (clone)|his clone]]), but finally became a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' after years of fan requests. He was revealed in a CG animated trailer, titled [[A Piercing Screech]].

[[Meta Ridley]] is also playable as an alternate costume for Ridley.

<gallery>
SSB_Ultimate_Ridley_render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
SSBU Meta Ridley Art.jpg|[[Meta Ridley]] alternate costume
</gallery>

===Dark Samus===
{{Main|Dark Samus (Super Smash Bros.)}}

'''Dark Samus''' is an evil doppelganger of Samus Aran as well as the main antagonist of the ''Metroid Prime'' subseries. Similar to Ridley, Dark Samus had a role in the series since ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' as both a standard trophy/sticker and as an assist trophy and skin for Samus, but eventually became a playable character for ''Ultimate''. She is an [[Echo Fighter]] of Samus in that game, which marks her first playable appearance in any video game.

<gallery>
File:Dark Samus Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

==Introduced in ''Super Smash Bros.''==
The original 12 characters in ''Super Smash Bros.'' are referred to as the "perfect-attendance crew". They have appeared in every game in the series to date.

===Mario===
'''Mario''' is the main character of the [[Mario (series)|''Mario'' series]] and is Nintendo's mascot and the first character to be introduced in ''Super Smash Bros.'' In ''Ultimate'', he is slightly redesigned to take into account his appearance in ''Super Mario Odyssey'', including having his cap appear as Cappy.

Mario's interactions with the ''Metroid'' series do not just occur in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. In ''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars'', Mario can meet Samus sleeping in the Mushroom Castle's guest room bed if Mario returns before going to Land's End; a [[Samus Doll|doll]] of Samus can also be seen in a toy box in Booster's Tower. ''Mario vs. Wario'', a ''[[Nintendo Power]]''-published comic, depicts another Samus doll that Mario wants to buy for Peach, though it turns out Luigi had bought it instead. ''Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga'' was supposed to feature Samus and a few other Nintendo characters at the Starbeans Café, but they were removed and replaced by Professor E. Gadd at the last minute. Most recently, Samus and Zero Suit Samus act as two Costume Marios in ''Super Mario Maker'', which is supplied by scanning their respective amiibos into the game.

Mario has also made occasional cameos in the ''Metroid'' franchise. In ''[[Victory Techniques for Metroid]]'', Mario can be seen briefly when Samus comes across an [[Air Hole]] and mistakes it for a Warp Pipe from ''Super Mario Bros.'' A man resembling Mario can be seen in the beginning of ''[[Metroid: Volume 1]]''. A Paint Job based on Mario can be unlocked in the [[Blast Ball]] mode of ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' using any of his [[amiibo]]. Playing ''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption'' while having save files on ''Super Mario Galaxy'' or ''Super Paper Mario'' will give the player [[Ship Bumper Stickers]] modeled after Mario's emblem or Paper Mario's head, respectively.

Mario appears prominently in ''[[A Piercing Screech]]'', [[Ridley (Super Smash Bros.)|Ridley]]'s ''Ultimate'' reveal trailer, where he and Mega Man accompany Samus on patrol of a mechanical area. However, Mario ends up ambushed by Ridley, who presumably grabs his head, leaving only his hat behind. Ridley is then seen twirling it on his finger. The manner in which Ridley attacks Mario resembles a PTSD-induced hallucination by Samus in the ''Metroid'' manga, where Ridley was seen crushing the heads of [[Chief Rodney Aran|Rodney]] and [[Virginia Aran]], her parents, in a similar manner. On a similar note, the manner in which Ridley twirled his hat resembled Mario's actions in the teaser for ''Super Mario Odyssey''.

In ''Super Mario Bros. 3'', when using an Invincibility Star, Mario does a sommersault jump which resembled the [[Screw Attack]]. This was given a slight reference in the key art for the "Screw Up Your Opponents" tourney for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', which featured Mario as one of the characters utilizing the Screw Attack.

In [[04: Samus]], Mario and Luigi attempt to fight Samus at [[Frigate Orpheon (stage)|Frigate Orpheon]]. However, Samus knocks Mario away by firing upward with her Arm Cannon shortly after defeating Luigi.

<gallery captionalign="center">
SSB Mario.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
MarioM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Mario2.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Mario.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Mario render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Mech Mario amiibo skin.png|''Metroid Prime: Federation Force''
Mario Paint Job.png|The Paint Job.
A Piercing Screech thumbnail.png|A Piercing Screech
A Piercing Screech isometric view.png
A Piercing Screech Mario pulled away.png
A Piercing Screech Mario strangled.png|Ridley attacking Mario.
A Piercing Screech Mario's hat alone.png
A Piercing Screech Ridley twirls Mario`s hat.png|Ridley twirls Mario's hat on his finger.
</gallery>

===Donkey Kong===
'''Donkey Kong''' ('''DK''' for short) is a character who originated in the ''Mario'' franchise. He has since gone on to become the protagonist of a franchise with the same name. He has been playable in every ''Super Smash Bros.'' game to date, and was the second character to be introduced.

In Donkey Kong's Adventure Mode ending for ''Melee'', Samus is shown at the end with three Donkey Kongs of varying sizes in an apparent parody of the ''[[Wikipedia:March of Progress|March of Progress]]''.

In Sonic's debut trailer for ''Brawl'', Samus ends up hitting Donkey Kong with a Charged Shot, although she had actually been aiming for Sonic.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], Donkey Kong meets Samus and Pikachu when he, along with Olimar, Captain Falcon, and Diddy Kong arrive to confront the Ancient Minister, although all six ultimately ally with him - or rather, R.O.B. - after Ganondorf backstabs the latter by forcing his fellow R.O.B.s to detonate the Subspace bombs enmasse, wiping out several members of the Subspace Emissary. Later, when they are forced to evacuate due to their being unable to disable the bombs, Captain Falcon proceeds to summon his ship, the Blue Falcon, to get them to safety, working with them to fight [[Meta Ridley]] as he pursues them.

In [[Samus (SSBU trailer)|Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Samus kicks away Donkey Kong at the Lylat Cruise stage before entering freefall, also proceeding to charge her beam as she does so.

In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Ultimate'', Ridley uses his fully-charged [[Plasma Breath]] on Donkey Kong in the Boxing Ring stage.

[[List of cameos and crossovers#Donkey Kong Country Returns series|''Donkey Kong Country Returns'' and ''Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze'']] were developed by [[Retro Studios]], the makers of the [[Metroid Prime (series)|''Metroid Prime'' series]]. In an IGN interview, [[Kensuke Tanabe]] revealed that in development of the environments for ''Returns'', he came across what looked like a "Metroid palm tree", or a tree that had the detail of a ''Metroid Prime'' game.<ref>Harris, Craig. "[https://www.ign.com/articles/2010/06/17/e3-2010-kensuke-tanabe-and-the-metroid-palm-tree E3 2010: Kensuke Tanabe and the Metroid Palm Tree]". ''IGN''. June 17, 2010. Retrieved December 12, 2021.</ref> [[Bryan Walker]] suggested that there were multiple such trees, describing them "very sullen, dark, edgy and menacing", which led to an adjustment in the game's art direction.<ref name="kiwitalkz">Reilly, Reece. "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sWfE2x-ClM #109 - Bryan Walker Interview (Metroid Prime Trilogy, Donkey Kong, Mario Kart 7, Project Management)]" (starts at 17:58). ''KIWI TALKZ''. October 2, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.</ref> Additionally, ''Tropical Freeze'' briefly had a cameo of a Metroid in one of the levels.

<gallery captionalign="center">
SSB Donkey Kong.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
DKM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
DKB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
donkey kong.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Donkey Kong render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Link===
Link is the main protagonist of [[The Legend of Zelda|''The Legend of Zelda'' series]]. Often, he must travel across lands and through dungeons to either stop Ganondorf from either stealing the Triforce or save Princess Zelda, occasionally both. He appears in all five ''Super Smash Bros.'' games, and was the third character to be introduced. In all his appearances until ''Ultimate'', he wore his trademark green tunic and hat as his primary outfit, although said outfit will appear in ''Ultimate'' as his alternate outfit (specifically derived from his Hero set from the same game). In ''Ultimate'', however, he wore his blue outfit from ''The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild''.

In [[Event 3: Bomb-fest]], Link appears as an opponent alongside Samus. In Pac-Man's reveal artwork in ''Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'', Link appears alongside Samus, Mario, Peach, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Mega Man, Kirby, and Sonic in their NES sprites (or in the case of Sonic, his Sega Master sprite). In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Ultimate'', he is seen fighting Ridley on the Unova Pokémon League stage, with Ridley using his [[Skewer]] to impale Link in the chest from behind with his tail, and then watching as Link keels over before exploding (alluding to Ridley's sadism).

He has had many connections with the ''Metroid'' series outside of ''Super Smash Bros.'' In the ''[[Victory Techniques for Metroid]]'', he is seen when Samus is playing ''The Legend of Zelda'' on her [[Famicom Disk System]] while flying to [[Zebes]]. A short story in ''[[The Shape of Happiness]]'' features a Galactic Federation official who offers Samus a copy of ''Zelda II: The Adventure of Link'' and ''[[Kid Icarus]]'' as payment for going to Zebes, but she does not respond. The plotline for ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past'', which dealt with Link traversing between the Light World and the Dark World, served as the inspiration for the [[Aether|Light Aether]]/[[Dark Aether]] plot element for ''[[Metroid Prime 2: Echoes]]''; during development of ''Metroid Prime 2'', Retro Studios even called in one of the developers for ''A Link To The Past'' to aid them in properly implementing the light/dark world concept.<ref>http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=16389</ref> ''[[Metroid Prime 3: Corruption]]'' and ''[[Metroid Prime Trilogy]]'' feature a [[Ship Bumper Stickers|Ship Bumper Sticker]] with the symbol of Link's shield if the player has [[Wii]] save data for ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess''.

Although there have not been any ''Metroid'' cameos in any ''Zelda'' games, ''The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Master Quest'' features a trailer for ''[[Metroid Prime (game)|Metroid Prime]]''. As an unused concept, one of the planned story treatments for ''The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild'' shown at GDC 2017, called ''The Legend of Zelda: Invasion'', featured Link in a spacesuit interacting with a Metroid.<ref>https://www.polygon.com/2017/3/1/14782750/nintendo-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-canceled-concepts-gdc-2017</ref>

Link also shares several appearances with Samus in other [[Nintendo]] games, such as in ''Super Mario RPG'', where he can be found sleeping in the Rose Town inn. In a promotional 3DS wallpaper for ''Ultimate NES Remix'', Link (in his ''Zelda II: The Adventure of Link'' sprite) is seen fighting Ridley.

<gallery captionalign="center">
SSB Link.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
LinkM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Link_ssbb.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
link ssb4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Link render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Link-Alt1_SSBU.png|Hero of the Wild alternate costume in Ultimate.
</gallery>

===Yoshi===
'''Yoshi''' is a character who originated in the ''Mario'' series as the tritagonist but also has his own sub-series of games. He appears in all five ''Super Smash Bros.'' games to date and was the fifth character introduced. Aside from ''Smash'', Yoshi has had a handful of minor crossovers with ''Metroid''. Additionally, [[Shigeru Miyamoto]], due to his friendship with ''Metroid'' producer [[Yoshio Sakamoto]], named Yoshi after the latter.

Samus appears in a drawing in the official Japanese strategy guide for ''[[Wikipedia:Yoshi (video game)|Yoshi]]'' (1991).

Using the Samus or Zero Suit Samus amiibo in ''Yoshi's Woolly World'' unlocks color schemes for Yoshi based on them.

In [[Samus (SSBU trailer)|Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Samus uses her forward smash to knock Yoshi away before finishing him off with a charge shot on the Spear Pillar. Yoshi appears in Ridley's [[Classic Mode]] ending, where he is seen watching in awe as a giant Ridley is roaring in a manner similar to his up-taunt and Rathalos doing the same at Bridge of Eldin.

<gallery>
SSB Yoshi.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
YoshiM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
YoshiB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Yoshi.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Yoshi render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook – Yoshi's Egg Samus.jpg|Samus's cameo in {{nihongo|''Nintendo Kōshiki Guidebook – Yoshi's Egg''|任天堂公式ガイドブック　ヨッシーのたまご}}.
File:Samus amiibo costume Yoshi's Wooly World.png|''Yoshi's Woolly World'' costumes.
</gallery>

===Kirby===
'''Kirby''' is the main character of the [[Kirby (series)|series of the same name]] and is present in all five ''Smash Bros.'' games to date. He was the sixth character introduced.

In both the ''Kirby'' and ''Smash Bros.'' games, Kirby has the ability to swallow enemies and copy their abilities. If he swallows Samus, he will wear her helmet and be able to use the [[Charge Beam]]. If he swallows Zero Suit Samus, he will have her ponytail and be able to use the [[Paralyzer]]. In ''Ultimate'', if he swallows Ridley, he copies his fireball move and wears a hat based on Ridley's head. Similarly, he wears Dark Samus's "helmet" if he swallows her.

In [[Zero Suit Samus (SSBU trailer)|Zero Suit Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Kirby alongside Sheik fight Zero Suit Samus on the Big Battlefield stage, but she manages to deliver repeated blows to them both before knocking them both out of the stage. In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Ultimate'', Kirby fires his Charge Beam while using her helmet on the Mushroom Kingdom U stage before turning around to face Ridley just as he arrives and uses his down [[Taunt]]. In Dark Samus's reveal trailer for ''Ultimate'', at the Lylat Cruise stage, both Kirby and Dark Samus (with the former wearing a hat modeled after her "helmet") enter freefall with the latter curled up, and Kirby briefly spins.

Kirby, or rather his Keeby alternate costume, acts as a puppet fighter for the [[X Parasite]] spirit in the game's World of Light storyline, which was most likely a reference to how both Kirby and the X had similar abilities (namely, copying the abilities of anything they absorb).

Kirby has had interactions with elements from the ''Metroid'' series in his own games, outside of ''Super Smash Bros.'' In ''Kirby Super Star'', he can randomly became a statue of Samus Aran when he uses his Stone ability. In level 5-2 of ''Kirby's Dream Land 3'', Kirby can encounter Samus Aran and six [[Metroid larva]]e, and Samus will appear [[Samus Unmasked|unmasked]] and give him a Heart Star or 1-up if Kirby destroys the Metroids with an ice ability; interestingly, the Metroids cannot harm Kirby, even if they latch onto him and try to feed.

<gallery>
SSB_Kirby.png|''Super Smash Bros.''
KirbyM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
SSBB_Kirby.png|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Kirby samus ssb.jpg|Kirby's copy ability in ''Super Smash Bros.''
Kirbysamus.png|Kirby's ability in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''.
Kirby 071220n-l.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' (Samus)
Kirby 071220h-l.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' (Zero Suit Samus)
Kirby.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Kirby render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Kirby Ridley SSBU copy ability.png|Ridley copy ability (''Ultimate'')
Dark Samus Kirby copy.png|Dark Samus copy ability (''Ultimate'')
</gallery>

===Fox===
'''Fox McCloud''' is the leader of the Star Fox team and the main protagonist of the ''Star Fox'' series. He was the seventh character to be introduced.

On the box art for ''Super Smash Bros.'', Fox is seen punching Samus hard enough to send her flying.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], a remix of the [[Sector 1 (SRX)]] [[Sector 1 (theme)|theme]] from ''[[Metroid Fusion]]'' plays when battling doppelgangers of Samus, Fox, Falco, Captain Falcon and Snake in The Great Maze.

In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', Ridley proceeded to briefly use his [[Skewer]] on Fox, grab him, and then throw him into the air vis his [[Grab Attack]] while in the Lylat Cruise stage. Similarly he also ends up impaled via Ridley's [[Skewer]] and then knocked off the arena by Ridley's lunge at Palutena's Temple in [[Ridley (SSBU trailer)|Ridley's gameplay trailer]]. In Dark Samus's reveal trailer, Fox is seen being fed on by a Metroid as Dark Samus appears near it.

While there have not been any crossovers between ''Star Fox'' and ''Metroid'' outside of ''Super Smash Bros.'' and to a lesser extent ''Animal Crossing'', there are some Nintendo employees who worked on both series. [[Dan Owsen]], the person responsible for supplying the opening narration of ''Super Metroid'', also voiced several characters in the SNES ''Star Fox'' game, including Fox's dialogue in the ending of the game. In addition, [[Benimaru Itoh]], who illustrated the ''Star Fox'' ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' comics in the early 90s, also illustrated the ''[[Super Metroid comic|Super Metroid]]'' comics. In addition, Fox alongside Samus and a few other Nintendo characters were intended to cameo in the game ''Mario & Luigi: SuperStar Saga'', where they would test out whatever flavor of coffee the player had just created. In the ''[[Metroid Prime: Episode of Aether]]'' manga, there is a character named [[Jeff McCloud]] who may have been named after Fox McCloud, although this reference is unconfirmed.

<gallery>
SSB Fox.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
FoxM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
FoxB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
fox.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Fox render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Pikachu===
'''Pikachu''' is the mascot from the ''Pokémon'' series of video games. He appears in all five ''Super Smash Bros.'' games to date, and is the eighth character introduced. Starting with Generation IV of the ''Pokémon'' franchise, Pikachu is given slight variations depending on its gender, with males having a whole tail, while females had a slightly notched tail that resembled a heart.

In one of the artworks for the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', Pikachu was seen using headbutt on Samus, Donkey Kong, and Yoshi and launching them away. In addition, Pikachu's electrical attacks were instrumental in causing a rather infamous glitch when used on Samus where her Power Suit is replaced with a silver polygon model.<ref>https://youtu.be/JjI-gt0ZDF4</ref>

Zero Suit Samus is notably paired with Pikachu in [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary|The Subspace Emissary]], in which she rescues the electric mouse Pokémon while searching the Research Facility for her Power Suit. Together, they fight against R.O.B.s and [[Copied Power Suit]]s before Samus finally regains her Power Suit. When Samus is attacked by Ridley, Pikachu saves her by striking Ridley with a Thunderbolt.

In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Ultimate'', Pikachu is dizzy and left vulnerable to Ridley on the Mario Galaxy stage, but a Metroid assist trophy latches onto Ridley long enough for Pikachu to recover and perform its side taunt.

<gallery>
SSB Pikachu.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
Pikachu.png|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
PikachuBrawl.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
pikachu ssb4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Pikachu render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Luigi===
'''Luigi''' is the younger twin brother of [[Nintendo]]'s mascot Mario, both hailing from the ''Mario'' series of games. Luigi serves as the deuteragonist in the ''Super Mario'' platforming titles, and is the protagonist of his own mini-series, ''Luigi's Mansion''. Luigi has appeared in every ''Smash'' game to date, and was the ninth character introduced. He was an unlockable character for all games except for ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''.

In [[04: Samus]], Luigi and Mario attempt to fight Samus at [[Frigate Orpheon (Stage)|Frigate Orpheon]], but Samus uses her grapple beam to throw Luigi away from her, dealing with Mario shortly thereafter. In Luigi's All-Star Smash Challenge, unlocked by dealing damage with his down taunt three times in All-Star Smash, the clear image shows Luigi attempting to flee from Kraid, Ridley, Bowser, and K. Rool.

Outside of the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series, Luigi provided Peach with a Samus Aran doll for her birthday in the ending of a ''Mario & Wario'' comic (as Mario and Wario were competing to get the same doll for her).

The second game in the ''Luigi's Mansion'' series, ''Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon'', was developed by [[Next Level Games]] after their prototype for a [[3DS Metroid game|Nintendo 3DS ''Metroid'' title]] was shelved. They later developed ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'', in which Luigi's amiibo can unlock a [[Paint Job]]. On a related note, [[Adrian David Enciso]] acted as a conceptual artist for both games as well as ''[[Metroid Prime: Blast Ball]]''. ''Luigi's Mansion 3'' would later contain references to ''Federation Force'' as part of Next Level Games' developmental history.

<gallery>
SSB Luigi.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
LuigiM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Luigi 2.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Luigi.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Luigi render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Ness===
'''Ness''' is the main character from the game ''EarthBound'' (''MOTHER2'' in Japan). He has been present in all five ''Smash Bros.'' games to date and is the tenth character introduced. He was initially an unlockable character, although he was made playable from the start in ''Melee'' and later made unlockable again in ''Brawl''.

The composer for ''Earthbound'', [[Hirokazu Tanaka]], had also done the score for ''Metroid''.

In a trailer covering ''Earthbound'' and ''Earthbound Beginnings'' release on the Nintendo Switch on February 2022, the Metroid Prime screw attack logo was briefly seen as the Player 1 icon while covering gameplay for the two games.

<gallery>
SSB Ness.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
NessM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
NessB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Ness.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Ness render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Captain Falcon===
'''Captain Falcon''' is the main protagonist of the futuristic racing series ''F-Zero'' and is a bounty hunter similar to [[Samus Aran]]. He appears in all ''Smash Bros.'' games to date and is the eleventh character introduced. He was originally an unlockable character, although in ''Melee'', he was promoted to being available from the start, and ultimately was made unlockable again in ''Brawl''. He was fought on Planet Zebes when unlocking him (by beating Classic Mode in under 20 minutes without any continues), due to there not being any stages from his home series in the game.

In ''Melee'', he appears in [[Event 17: Bounty Hunters]], where Samus (the player's character) and Falcon compete to see who can K.O Bowser first. Falcon also appears in Samus's All Star Mode ending in the same game, where the two Bounty Hunters are apparently about to duke it out.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], Captain Falcon meets Samus and Pikachu when he, along with Olimar, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong arrive to confront the Ancient Minister, although all six ultimately ally with him - or rather, R.O.B. - after Ganondorf backstabs the latter by forcing his fellow R.O.B.s to detonate the Subspace bombs enmasse, wiping out several members of the Subspace Emissary. Later, when they are forced to evacuate due to their being unable to disable the bombs, Captain Falcon proceeds to summon his ship, the Blue Falcon, to get them to safety, working with them to fight [[Meta Ridley]] as he pursues them.

Later in The Great Maze, a remix of the [[Sector 1]] [[Sector 1 (theme)|theme]] from ''[[Metroid Fusion]]'' plays when battling dopplegangers of Falcon, as well as Samus, Fox, Falco and Snake in The Great Maze. This is in spite of Falcon and Snake having no relation to ''[[Metroid (series)|Metroid]]''.

In ''Super Smash Bros for the Wii U'', Zero-Suit Samus is an opponent for Captain Falcon in [[Bounty Hunter Clash]], and must be defeated alongside two Villagers to win the event, with the flavor text indicating that the two fought each other for a "priceless bounty."

In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', Ridley proceeded to use his [[Wing Blitz]] on Captain Falcon and knock him away on a stage.

<gallery>
SSB Captain Falcon.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
FalconM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
FalconB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Captain Falcon SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Captain Falcon render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Jigglypuff===
'''Jigglypuff''' ('''Purin''' in the Japanese version) is a Pokémon hailing from the series of the same name, and was intended to be the weakest character in the game. It has appeared in all five games and was the twelfth character introduced. In most games, it acted as an unlockable character, with the exception of ''Super Smash Bros for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'', where it was available from the start. According to the Japanese website for ''Melee'', [[Masahiro Sakurai]] was initially undecided as to whether to have Jigglypuff return for the game or not, but ultimately decided to have it return to not leave out fans of the character.<ref>{{cite web|author=nocturnal YL|date=October 13, 2015|url=http://sourcegaming.info/2015/10/13/news-flash-smash-bros-dojo-jigglypuff/|title=News Flash! Smash Bros. Dojo: Jigglypuff|work=Source Gaming|accessdate=August 18, 2016}}</ref>

Jigglypuff appears in [[65: Ridley]], where Ridley does his upward grab and throw, and then uses his [[Wing Blitz]] on it at Suzaku Castle.

<gallery>
SSB Jigglypuff.PNG|''Super Smash Bros.''
JigglyM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
JigglyB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Jigglypuff.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Jigglypuff render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

==Introduced in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''==
''Melee'' adds fourteen new characters to the roster.

===Peach===
'''Princess Peach''', originally known as '''Princess Toadstool''' outside Japan, is a major character in the ''Mario'' series. Her interactions with the ''Metroid'' series have mostly occurred in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. She first appeared in ''Melee'' and has returned in every subsequent installment.

In ''Melee'', Peach is one of the opponents in [[Event 15: Girl Power]], alongside Zelda and Samus.

In ''Super Smash Bros. for the Wii U'', the event match Peach in Peril has Zero Suit Samus, among other female characters, fighting against Bowser, with the flavor text indicating that Bowser was trying to "protect" Peach from being abducted by her and the others (although solely because he wanted to abduct her himself). Despite Peach being an AI opponent in the event match, KOing her would have the player lose.

In the ''[[Nintendo Power]]''-published comic ''Mario vs. Wario'', Peach desired a doll of Samus that caused Mario and Wario to fight over it; in the end, however, it is revealed that Luigi had bought it. In ''Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars'', Samus ends up resting up at Peach's residence in the Mushroom Kingdom area. In the English localization, her reason for staying in Peach's room was to rest in preparation for her fight against Mother Brain. In the Japanese version, she simply says [[Metroid... Omoroido!]], referencing the Japanese promotional tagline for ''Metroid II: Return of Samus''.

[[Leslie Swan]], who voiced Princess Peach in Nintendo 64 games, also voices the [[Bottle Ship P.A. Announcer]] in ''[[Metroid: Other M]]''. Peach's [[amiibo]] can be used in ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' to unlock a special [[Paint Job]] based on her for use in [[Blast Ball]].

<gallery>
Peach.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Peach2.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Peach3.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Peach render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Peach Paint Job.png|''Federation Force'' Paint Job
</gallery>

===Bowser===
'''Bowser''', alternatively known as '''Koopa '''or '''King Koopa''', is the main antagonist of the ''Mario'' series, who often kidnaps Princess Peach with the goal of marrying her and/or taking over the Mushroom Kingdom. In the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series, he first appeared in ''Melee'' and has returned in every installment since, either being available from the start or, in the case of ''Ultimate'', acting as an unlockable character. He was originally going to be added to the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', but was cut due to time constraints.<ref name="Character Popularity Poll">{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/PostResult2.html|title=Character popularity poll on Smash 64's official Japanese website|work=Nintendo|accessdate=August 7, 2018}}</ref> Likewise, he ultimately was one of only two proposed characters to actually be worked on (the other being King Dedede).<ref name="PushDustIn">{{cite web|author=PushDustIn|date=May 9, 2015|url=http://sourcegaming.info/2015/04/09/smash-reader-response-page-75/|title=Smash Reader Response Page 75: Bowser, Dedede|worl=Source Gaming|accessdate=August 7, 2018}}</ref>

In ''Melee'', he appears as the target in [[Event 17: Bounty Hunters]]. Samus is required to K.O Bowser before fellow [[Bounty Hunter]] Captain Falcon does, to avoid missing out on a bounty. In ''Super Smash Bros. for Wii U'', the co-op event [[Peach in Peril]] sees Bowser (controlled by both players) having to defeat the female characters in the game, including Zero Suit Samus, to "protect" Peach from abduction; in truth, this is to eliminate other would-be kidnappers so that the Bowsers can seize her themselves.

Bowser appears in [[Dark Samus (SSBU trailer)|Dark Samus's gameplay trailer]], where, shortly after she knocked out Cloud Strife at the Battlefield stage, she proceeded to knock Bowser upward as he attempted to attack her from behind and then kick Bowser as he was falling back down, knocking him out (although not before he briefly glowed with electricity from the contact).

Bowser's [[amiibo]] can be used in ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' to unlock a special [[Paint Job]] based on him, for use in [[Blast Ball]]. The Bowser amiibo from the ''Mario'' series, or the Hammer Slam Bowser amiibo from the ''Skylanders SuperChargers'' series can also be used to unlock the same Paint Job.

<gallery>
BowserM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
BowserB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
bowser.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Bowser render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
File:Mech Bowser amiibo skin.png|''Metroid Prime: Federation Force''
Bowser Paint Job.png|The Paint Job in-game.
</gallery>

===Ice Climbers===
The '''Ice Climbers''', consisting of a duo of Inuits ('''Popo''' and '''Nana'''), hail from the game ''Ice Climber''. In ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'', they appear as a duo; the player controls Popo while the computer-controlled Nana attempts to mimic all of the player's moves. They were scrapped from the 3DS and Wii U games, apparently due to difficulties which arose when they were used in the 3DS version of the game. While they functioned normally in the Wii U game, the decision was made to cut them to keep the character rosters between the versions identical.<ref>http://gamerant.com/super-smash-bros-wii-u-3ds-why-ice-climbers-cut</ref> Despite not being playable in the game, they did nonetheless appear as trophies. They return in ''Ultimate''.

On the ''Ultimate'' website, the Ice Climbers are shown freezing a Metroid, since their ice powers are most effective against the assist trophy that can now be KO'ed. Ice Climber puppet fighters also participate in the Spirit Battle for the ''Ice Climber'' Condor, which uses a red-colored Ridley puppet fighter due to its pterodactyl-like appearance.

<gallery>
IceClimbersM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Ice Climbers.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
SSB Ultimate Ice Climbers render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Sheik===
In ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'', Zelda has an alternate form she can switch into: '''Sheik''', her alter ego from ''The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time''. Similar to [[Zero Suit Samus]], Sheik is a separate character in ''Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' and ''Ultimate''; the two characters can no longer transform into each other.

Much like Zelda, Sheik and Samus appear together in [[Event Match]]es, with Zelda having the ability to transform into Sheik in ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'' events. [[Identity Crisis]] in ''Super Smash Bros. for Wii U'' has the player initially controlling Sheik, who must defeat Samus and then Zero Suit Samus in a single-stock battle.

In [[Zero Suit Samus (SSBU trailer)|Zero Suit Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Sheik alongside Kirby fight Zero Suit Samus on the Big Battlefield stage, but she manages to deliver repeated blows to them both before knocking them both out of the stage.


<gallery>
Sheik SSBM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Sheik.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Sheik.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Sheik render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
File:Sakurai - Boost Kick and other upper kicks.jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on June 2, 2020.<ref name="kick">Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 1 June 2020 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1267652254892322816</ref>
</gallery>

===Zelda===
'''Princess Zelda''' is the title character from the ''Legend of Zelda'' series who first appeared in ''Melee'' and has returned in every subsequent installment of ''Super Smash Bros.'' In ''Melee'', Zelda's design was derived from her ''Ocarina of Time'' incarnation, while in ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', her design was derived from ''Twilight Princess''. In ''Ultimate'', Zelda uses a combination of her ''A Link to the Past'' and ''A Link Between Worlds'' designs, due to Sakurai deciding that her ''Breath of the Wild'' incarnation would not have worked as a fighter.

Zelda and Samus appear together in numerous [[Event Match|Event Matches]] throughout the series. In ''Melee'', Zelda appears as one of the opponents in [[Event 15: Girl Power]] along with Peach and Samus. [[Co-Op Event 6: Unwanted Suitors]] in ''Brawl'' has Zelda and Zero Suit Samus fight against two invisible opponents on the Port Town Aero Dive stage (from ''F-Zero''). In the [[Identity Crisis]] event of ''Super Smash Bros. for Wii U'', in which Sheik must defeat Samus and Zero Suit Samus, the player character switches to Zelda if Sheik is KO'd.

<gallery>
ZeldaM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Zelda.png|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Zelda ssb4 main.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wi U''
SSB Ultimate Zelda render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Dr. Mario===
'''Dr. Mario''' is a form of Mario that appears in a spinoff of the ''Mario'' series, ''Dr. Mario''. He appears in ''Melee'', ''Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' and ''Ultimate'', having been scrapped from ''Brawl''. Dr. Mario was originally repurposed as an alternate costume for Mario in ''Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'', but was reinstated as a separate character later in development.<ref>http://nintendoeverything.com/sakurai-on-the-clone-characters-in-smash-bros-wii-u3ds</ref> Similarly, Dr. Mario was created to act as a power-based clone of Mario, which had been supplied as a result of their original choice, Wario, being cut.<ref name="SourceGaming" />

The composer responsible for the music of his debut game, [[Hirokazu Tanaka]], also did the score for ''Metroid''.

Dr. Mario's [[amiibo]] can be used in ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' to unlock a Mario [[Paint Job]] in [[Blast Ball]].

<gallery>
DrM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Dr. Mario.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Dr Mario render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Pichu===
'''Pichu''' is a Pokémon and is Pikachu's pre-evolution. It debuted in ''Melee'' as a playable character, although it only appeared in ''Brawl'' and ''Nintendo 3DS'' as a trophy. It later returned as a playable character in ''Ultimate''.

<gallery>
PichuM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
SSB Ultimate Pichu render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Falco===
'''Falco Lombardi''' is a very skilled pilot and a deuteragonist from the ''Star Fox'' series. He first appeared in ''Melee'' and has returned in every installment since.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], a remix of the [[Sector 1]] [[Sector 1 (theme)|theme]] from ''[[Metroid Fusion]]'' plays when battling dopplegangers of Samus, Fox, Falco, Captain Falcon and Snake in The Great Maze.

<gallery>
FalcoM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
FalcoB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
main.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Falco render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Marth===
'''Marth''' is the main character from both the first and third ''Fire Emblem'' games as well as the series' mascot. Marth appeared in ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'', and ''3DS/Wii U'' as a playable character. He was originally planned to appear in the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', but was ultimately cut due to time constraints.<ref>{{cite web|author=Soma|date=December 13, 2015|url=http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/12/13/sakurai-fe25/#more-4331Sakurai|title=Interview: Fire Emblem 25th Anniversary|work=Source Gaming|accessdate=August 7, 2018}}</ref> Likewise, he was heavily requested for ''Melee'' by the Japanese players, although they had initially considered keeping him and Roy Japanese-exclusive largely due to ''Fire Emblem'' being Japan-exclusive at the time, although Nintendo of America insisted that they be included internationally, which ultimately resulted in the ''Fire Emblem'' franchise eventually being released internationally.<ref name="including Marth and Roy outside Japan">[http://guides.ign.com/guides/16387/page_27.html IGN.com]</ref> Because of the ''Fire Emblem'' series initially being a Japanese-exclusive franchise at the time of ''Melee'', he was given a Japanese voicetrack in ''Melee'', ''Brawl'', and ''3DS/Wii U'' (the last of which ironically occurred after his official debut game in the West, ''Shadow Dragons'', was released), and is one of only two ''Fire Emblem'' characters to retain their Japanese voicetrack outside Japan even after being localized (the other being Roy). In ''Ultimate'', he is now fully voiced in English by Yuri Lowenthal.

One of the games Marth appeared in, ''Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem'', was made by [[Intelligent Systems]], which had also been responsible for the creation of ''[[Super Metroid]]''.

<gallery>
SSBM Marth.png|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
MarthB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Marth ssb4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Marth render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Young Link===
'''Young Link''' is Link's child form from certain ''Zelda'' games, most notably ''The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time''. He first appeared in ''Melee'' as a playable character and moveset clone of Link. He was replaced by Toon Link in the two subsequent games, although he eventually returned in ''Ultimate''. The game he hailed from, ''Ocarina of Time'', or more specifically its ''Master Quest'' version, included a trailer for the then-in-development game ''[[Metroid Prime]]'' among its bonus features.

<gallery>
YoungLinkM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
SSB Ultimate Young Link render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Ganondorf===
'''Ganondorf''' (also known as '''Ganon''') is the main antagonist of the ''Legend of Zelda'' series. He has appeared in ''Melee'', ''Brawl'', ''3DS/Wii U'', and ''Ultimate''. The name "Ganondorf" is usually used with his human form, while "Ganon" is used for his true form as a demonic boar. Ganondorf was originally not planned for ''Melee''; however, due to his character model from the Zelda Gamecube tech demo being similar to Captain Falcon's, he was able to make it in, albeit as a clone. In ''Melee'', his appearance was derived from the Space World Demo in 2000 (which in turn was based on his ''Ocarina of Time'' design); in both ''Brawl'' and ''3DS/Wii U'', his design was derived from ''Twilight Princess''; and in ''Ultimate'', his design was once again based on his appearance in ''Ocarina of Time''. His entrance starting with ''Brawl'' depicts him exiting from a dark portal. Dark Samus's entrance in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' was similar to Ganondorf's, only in her case it was a wormhole. Ganondorf also had his side special changed between ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'', the former, Gerudo Dragon, was a direct lift from Captain Falcon's Falcon Kick that dealt Darkness damage, while the latter, Flame Choke has him rushing towards his opponent and placing them in a one-armed neck hold before releasing a bit of darkness. The latter version was derived from his murder of the Water Sage after narrowly surviving execution via the Triforce of Power in ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess''.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], Samus, alongside Pikachu and a newly-arrived Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Captain Falcon, and Captain Olimar, briefly witnessed Ganondorf (who appeared via hologram) control the various R.O.B.s on the Ancient Island and have them activate the Subspace Bombs, as well as having them attack the Ancient Minister when he attempted to stop them.

In [[Zero Suit Samus (SSBU trailer)|Zero Suit Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Ganondorf attempts to use his warlock punch on Zero Suit Samus as she's charging up her Paralyzer, but she ends up sidestepping the blow, using her [[Down Smash Attack]] to launch him into the air, and then drop kicks him at Suzaku Castle.

In ''[[Captain N: The Game Master]]'', Mother Brain plays a key role in orchestrating Ganon's revival, believing that he would join the Forces of Chaos under her command. Upon regaining his power, Ganon refuses to become Mother Brain's minion, declaring that he works for no one.

Ganondorf's [[Special Move (Disambiguation)|Side Special]] from ''Brawl'' onward, Flame Choke, seems to have been the basis for [[Raven Beak]]'s [[Flash Shift]] move on Samus in ''[[Metroid Dread]]'', in particular his usage of it during his first encounter in Artaria.

<gallery>
GanondorfM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
Ganonbrawl.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Ganondorf.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Ganondorf render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Mewtwo===
'''Mewtwo''' is a legendary Pokémon from the series of the same name. It was originally going to be added to the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', but was cut due to time constraints.<ref name="Character Popularity Poll">{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/PostResult2.html|title=Character popularity poll on Smash 64's official Japanese website|work=Nintendo|accessdate=August 7, 2018}}</ref> Its first appearance as a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros.'' had been in ''Melee'', though it was cut from ''Brawl''. It later returned as a downloadable character in ''3DS/Wii U'' and as part of the base roster in ''Ultimate''.

Samus appears in Mewtwo's DLC character trailer, "Mewtwo Strikes Back", taking hits from its Neutral Attack. Similarly, Mewtwo alongside Samus was the victim of Roy's Final Smash in the ending of Roy's DLC character trailer.

Mewtwo's classic mode, Psychic Control, has notable similarities to [[Dark Samus (Super Smash Bros.)|Dark Samus]]'s classic mode, namely that it often "recruits" one of its prior opponents in a previous match upon defeating them.

<gallery>
MewtwoM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
File:Mewtwo (SSB4).png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''.
SSB Ultimate Mewtwo render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Roy===
'''Roy''' is the main character from the sixth ''Fire Emblem'' game. He was included in ''Melee'' as a playable character and moveset clone of Marth. After being absent from ''Brawl'', Roy returned in the ''3DS'' and ''Wii U'' games as a downloadable fighter on June 14, 2015. Interestingly, Roy technically made his debut in ''Melee'' as his ''Fire Emblem'' debut, ''The Binding Blade'', would not be released in Japan until four months later; Roy and Marth were initially considered to be relegated as Japan-exclusive characters in ''Melee'', although Nintendo of America insisted that they be included internationally, which ultimately resulted in the ''Fire Emblem'' franchise eventually being released internationally as well.<ref name="including Marth and Roy outside Japan">[http://guides.ign.com/guides/16387/page_27.html IGN.com]</ref> Like Marth, due to the then-Japanese exclusive status of his home series, he was given a Japanese voice track in ''Melee'' and ''Smash 4'' even in the overseas releases. This was changed in ''Ultimate'' where he was voiced by Ray Chase in the English localization.

In his DLC trailer, Roy performs a KO on Yoshi at the [[Pyrosphere (stage)|Pyrosphere]] stage. Samus and Mewtwo are also the recipients of his Final Smash at the end of the trailer.

<gallery>
RoyB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
File:Roy SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Roy render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Mr. Game & Watch===
'''Mr. Game & Watch''' is a representation of characters and objects that appear in the handheld ''Game & Watch'' series of video games. He appeared as the final unlockable character in ''Melee'' and returned in ''Brawl'' and ''3DS/Wii U''.

<gallery>
G&WB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''
G&WM.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Mr. Game & Watch.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Mr Game and Watch render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

==Introduced in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''==
''Brawl'' adds nineteen new characters to the roster. Mewtwo, Dr. Mario, Roy, Pichu and Young Link do not return; while internal data suggests that the former three were planned to be included but scrapped, there is no evidence that the latter two were ever planned to make a return.
===Squirtle===
'''Squirtle''' is a water type starter Pokemon for the Kanto region in Generation I of Pokemon, and to a lesser extent the remake FireRed/LeafGreen as well as the Gen VII remakes for Pokemon Yellow: Eevee and Pikachu versions.

===Ivysaur===
'''Ivysaur''' is a Grass/Poison type Pokemon who is evolved from Bulbasaur

===Charizard===
'''Charizard''' is a flying, fire-breathing draconic/reptilian Pokémon from the ''Pokémon'' series, acting as the fully evolved form of the Fire-type starter for Generation I. Prior to ''Brawl'', it was a randomly summoned Pokémon via the Poke Ball item in ''Smash'' and ''Melee'', and will breathe fire to its left and right when summoned. Originally appearing as a member of Pokémon Trainer's team in ''Brawl'' (see below), it became a solo playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'', before returning to the Pokémon Trainer's team in ''Ultimate''.

In Charizard's debut trailer for ''3DS/Wii U'', "Challenger from the Shadows", Samus, alongside Captain Olimar, Link, Mario, and Kirby, fought Charizard after the latter challenged them, firing a missile at it with Charizard dodging them.

Charizard could glide in ''Brawl'', although the mechanic did not return in subsequent games. Despite this, Ridley's code included the same code for gliding as Charizard, implying that Ridley was derived to some extent from Charizard in ''Brawl''.<ref>[https://www.ssbwiki.com/Ridley_(SSBU)#Trivia Ridley (SSBU) Trivia section - SmashWiki, the Super Smash Bros. wiki (ssbwiki.com)]

On October 19, 2020, Masahiro Sakurai tweeted an image of Zero Suit Samus riding on Charizard at Eldin Bridge. Charizard in particular was using its purple costume, indirectly alluding to Ridley.

<gallery>
Charizard.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
ZSS riding Charizard.jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on October 19, 2020.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 19 October 2020 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1318386457728397314</ref>
</gallery>

===Diddy Kong===
'''Diddy Kong''' is Donkey Kong's sidekick from the ''Donkey Kong'' series. His first appearance was in ''Brawl''. He returns in ''3DS/Wii U''.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], Diddy Kong meets Samus and Pikachu when he, along with Olimar, Donkey Kong, and Captain Falcon arrive to confront the Ancient Minister, although all six ultimately ally with him - or rather, R.O.B. - after Ganondorf backstabs the latter by forcing his fellow R.O.B.s to detonate the Subspace bombs enmasse, wiping out several members of the Subspace Emissary. Later, when they are forced to evacuate due to their being unable to disable the bombs, Captain Falcon proceeds to summon his ship, the Blue Falcon, to get them to safety, working with them to fight [[Meta Ridley]] as he pursues them.

Zero Suit Samus appears in Diddy Kong's 3DS Classic Mode ending, where she uses her Paralyzer's whip function to knock off his hat. Likewise, Samus appears in his Wii U classic ending alongside a Mii Gunner and Fox McCloud, where Samus raises her arm cannon while the others adopt similar badass poses. 

<gallery>
DiddyB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Diddy Kong SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Diddy Kong render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Ike===
'''Ike''' is the main character of ''Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance'', and appears in its sequel, ''Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn''. He appears in ''Brawl'' and ''3DS/Wii U''. He is also notable as being the first ''Fire Emblem'' character to have an English voicetrack instead of simply using his Japanese voicetrack, which is most likely due to his debuting in a game that had been localized into English by the time ''Brawl'' was released.

<gallery>
IkeB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Ike SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Ike render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===King Dedede===
'''King Dedede''' is a major antagonist from the ''Kirby'' series, though he does assist Kirby occasionally. He was originally going to be added to the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', but was cut due to time constraints.<ref name="Character Popularity Poll">{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/PostResult2.html|title=Character popularity poll on Smash 64's official Japanese website|work=Nintendo|accessdate=August 7, 2018}}</ref> Likewise, he ultimately was one of only two proposed characters to actually be worked on (the other being Bowser).<ref name="PushDustIn"/> Although not playable in ''Super Smash Bros.'' for the reasons stated above, he does nonetheless make a cameo in the Dream Land stage, where he is seen flying in the background (similar to Ridley in [[Planet Zebes]]). His first playable appearance was in ''Brawl'', and he returned in subsequent games. Notably, he's one of the few fighters to have a different [[Final Smash]] in each appearance. He is voiced by [[Masahiro Sakurai]], who also acted as the creator of the ''Super Smash Bros.'' franchise.

<gallery>
DDDB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
King Dedede SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate King Dedede render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Lucario===
'''Lucario''' is an Aura type Pokémon from the series of the same name and was the mascot of the fourth generation.  His first appearance was in ''Brawl'' and he returns in ''3DS/Wii U'' and ''Ultimate''.

In [[Ridley (SSBU trailer)|Ridley's gameplay trailer]], Ridley proceeded to use his [[Space Pirate Rush]] to drag Lucario across the arena on the Coliseum stage.

<gallery>
LucarioB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Lucario SSB4.png|In ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Lucario render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Lucas===
'''Lucas''' is the main character from the Japan-only game ''Mother 3''. He first appeared in ''Brawl''. While Lucas was not present in the release version of ''3DS/Wii U'', he was released as DLC on June 14, 2015.

In ''Mother 3'', the enemy [[w:c:earthbound:Einswine|Einswine]]'s brain container had a similar design to a Metroid larva.

<gallery>
LucasB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Lucas.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Lucas render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Meta Knight===
'''Meta Knight''' is an anti-hero from the ''Kirby'' series. He makes his playable debut in ''Brawl'' and appears in each subsequent game.

In [[Zero Suit Samus (SSBU trailer)|Zero Suit Samus's gameplay trailer]] for ''Ultimate'', Zero Suit Samus proceeded to make repeated kicks on Meta Knight before knocking him out of bounds at Skyloft. In Dark Samus's reveal trailer, Dark Samus uses her down smash on Meta Knight, then launches him into the air with her arm cannon and then sidekicks him out of the arena at Magicant. In King K. Rool's reveal trailer, Meta Knight is shown fighting Kirby in the rivals montage, which also features Samus fighting Ridley.

<gallery>
MetaB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Meta Knight SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Meta Knight render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Olimar===
'''Captain Olimar''' is the main character of the ''Pikmin'' series. He makes his playable debut in ''Brawl''. He uses Pikmin in combat.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], Captain Olimar meets Samus and Pikachu when he, along with Captain Falcon, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong arrive to confront the Ancient Minister, although all six ultimately ally with him - or rather, R.O.B. - after Ganondorf backstabs the latter by forcing his fellow R.O.B.s to detonate the Subspace bombs enmasse, wiping out several members of the Subspace Emissary. Later, when they are forced to evacuate due to their being unable to disable the bombs, Captain Falcon proceeds to summon his ship, the Blue Falcon, to get them to safety, working with them to fight [[Meta Ridley]] as he pursues them.

The ship log for the first game, in regards to the "Guard Satellite" part, has Olimar alluding to how the item saved him countless times from "Space Pirates", which may have been an indirect reference to the [[Space Pirate]]s from the ''Metroid'' franchise. In addition, Olimar alongside Samus and a few other Nintendo characters were intended to cameo in the game ''Mario & Luigi: SuperStar Saga'', where they would test out whatever flavor of coffee the player had just created. Fox's scene would have gone as follows:

<blockquote>'''Olimar''': ...I detect a strange, yet pleasing aroma drifting through the atmosphere of this cafe. It would seem to require further investigation...

'''Cashier''': Wow! This is a rare treat! If it isn't Captain Olimar!

'''Olimar''': What is this? Before my eyes stands a strange life form. It resembles me slightly, so I shall dub it...Marlio! ...Further investigation indicates that the drink that this Marlio holds is the source of the aroma. I shall now partake of its flavor. Why! Its flavor is most satisfying! Finding that such a drink could be partook of in such a place is a tremendous discovery, indeed! This Marlio creature exhibits what seems to be a longing expression... Perhaps it will react if I present it with something... I have just noticed a strange, unsightly green creature standing next to the Marlio... It could be a dangerous life form. I feel I should attack it before it attacks me.</blockquote>

While Samus's scene would have been done as follows:

<blockquote>'''Cashier''': Whoa! A power outage? Yikes! Samus Aran! I see you're rocking and rolling as usual! ...Looks like your energy tanks are empty! Sorry, but can't you give your Hoolumbian to Samus? Oh! Feeling better?</blockquote>

Both characters ended up cut from the final version of the game in order to give Professor Elvin Gadd an expanded role in the side mission, although they were nevertheless retained as dummied data and the items supplied by E.Gadd nevertheless alluded to their original role in the form of the Colbalt (originally [[w:c:Pikmin:UV Lamp|UV Lamp]]) and [[Power Grip]] (originally an [[Energy Tank]]). It is also to be noted that both Olimar and Samus did not have direct dialogue during their scenes (Samus being a mute character, while Olimar ended up speaking via the item acquisition box rather than a speech bubble).

<gallery>
Olimar.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
olimar.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Captain Olimar render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Pit===
:''"Pit" redirects here. For other uses, see [[Pit (Disambiguation)]].''
'''Pit''' is the main character of the ''[[Kid Icarus]]'' franchise. He appears as a collectible trophy in ''Melee'' and is a playable character in ''Brawl'', ''3DS'' and ''Wii U'', and ''Ultimate''.

Using Pit's [[Taunt|Smash Taunt]] on Palutena's Temple stage will trigger the [[Palutena's Guidance]] easter egg, in which Pit converses with other ''Kid Icarus'' characters about one of his opponents. Pit, Palutena, and Viridi have unique dialogue for Samus, Zero Suit Samus, Ridley, and Dark Samus.

In the gameplay portion of the ''[[A Piercing Screech]]'' trailer for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', Ridley proceeded to knock Pit away via his [[Standard Air Attack]] on the Umbra Clock Tower stage.

Pit shares numerous connections with the ''Metroid'' series. As one of the main characters in the N-Team, Pit has battled against various ''Metroid'' enemies in the NES crossover cartoon ''[[Captain N: The Game Master]]'', which features Mother Brain as the main villain. In the [[Nintendo Comics System]] adaptation of ''Captain N'', Samus Aran joins Pit and the N-Team as a major character. Pit and Samus also perform together in an orchestra, as seen in ''Tetris'' and ''[[WarioWare]]: Smooth Moves''. In ''Kid Icarus: Uprising'', Pit remarks that Komaytos resemble Metroids, but Viridi insists that the ''Kid Icarus'' and ''Metroid'' universes are unrelated.

<gallery>
pit.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
pit.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Pit render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Pokémon Trainer===
'''Pokémon Trainer''', appearing in ''Brawl'', is based on the male protagonist of the ''Pokémon: FireRed'' and ''LeafGreen'' games (canonically named '''Red'''). He does not take part in any battles himself and instead commands his three Pokémon: '''Squirtle''', '''Ivysaur''', and '''Charizard'''. The Pokémon Trainer and the former two Pokémon do not appear in the fourth game. In ''3DS/Wii U'', Charizard appears as a full playable character; see above. The trainer, however, returned in ''Ultimate'', and also came with a new skin based on the female protagonist from ''Pokémon: FireRed'' and ''LeafGreen'' games (canonically named '''Leaf''' by ''Pokémon Masters''). In addition, the Pokémon Trainer will no longer have a stamina drawback for the currently assigned Pokémon, meaning the player can stick with only one if they wish.

<gallery>
PokemonTrainerB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
SSB Ultimate Pokemon Trainer render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Pokemon_Trainer_(Leaf)_SSBU.png|Pokemon Trainer as Leaf in SSBU.
</gallery>

===R.O.B.===
The '''Robotic Operating Buddy''' (known better as '''R.O.B.'''), also known as '''Robot''' in Japan, was an accessory for the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (and in the case of Japan, the Famicom.). R.O.B. makes his debut in ''Brawl'' as a playable character.

Many R.O.B. variants appear as enemies in ''Brawl''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], guarding the Research Facility infiltrated by Zero Suit Samus. The playable R.O.B. also acts as the true identity of the mode's false main antagonist Ancient Minister. In one of the cutscenes for the game, Samus attempted to use the [[Grapple Lasso]] (or at the very least a similar technique) in a failed attempt at removing a R.O.B. from a Subspace Bomb.

Ridley's Challenge image depicts Ridley using [[Skewer]] on a R.O.B. with Famicom colors.

<gallery captionalign="center" widths="185">
R.O.B.B.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
R.O.B..png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate ROB render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Super Smash Bros Ultimate - Character Art - R O B .png|Famicom Robot colors in ''Ultimate''.
Samus and Zamus beat by R.O.B..jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on August 31, 2020, the 10th anniversary of ''[[Metroid: Other M]]''.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 31 August 2020 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1300629452351631360</ref>
</gallery>

===Snake===
'''Solid Snake''' is the main character of Konami's ''Metal Gear ''series. He was originally planned to appear in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'' at the request of Hideo Kojima; however, at the time he made the request, the development for ''Melee'' was at its late stages, meaning they could not appropriately add him in.<ref>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/19/thank-kojimas-son-for-getting-snake-into-smash-bros-brawl/</ref> He appeared in ''Brawl'' and returned in ''Ultimate'' after being absent from ''3DS/Wii U''.

Using Snake's [[Taunt|Smash Taunt]] on the Shadow Moses Island stage will trigger the [[Codec Conversations]] easter egg, in which Snake chats with another ''Metal Gear'' character about the fighter he is facing. Snake and Otacon talk about Samus, while Snake and Mei Ling talk about Zero Suit Samus; these conversations imply that Snake has an infatuation with Samus. There are no Codec Conversations for Ridley or Dark Samus.

In Event Match 36: High-Tech Special Forces, Snake was targeted by Samus, alongside Captain Falcon and Wolf O'Donnell of the ''F-Zero'' and ''Star Fox'' series, with the flavor text for the mission revealing that they had been hired by Snake's former unit FOXHOUND to take him out.

Zero Suit Samus appears in Snake's All Star Mode ending, where she looks at Solid Snake's box suspiciously at Shadow Moses Island.

In [[Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary]], a remix of the [[Sector 1]] [[Sector 1 (theme)|theme]] from ''[[Metroid Fusion]]'' plays when battling doppelgangers of Samus, Fox, Falco, Captain Falcon and Snake in The Great Maze.

In his ''Ultimate'' trailer, he is briefly seen in the [[Frigate Orpheon (stage)|Frigate Orpheon]] stage, where he placed a C4 explosive on a stunned Bowser Jr. before detonating it. Two Samus Arans alongside two R.O.Bs are fought against in Snake's [[Classic Mode]] path, "Weapons and Equipment O.S.P.", Samus and R.O.B. being opponents was most likely intended to be a reference to the surprise boss fight against [[w:c:MetalGear:Paz Ortega Andrade|Paz Ortega Andrade]] and [[w:c:MetalGear:Metal Gear ZEKE|Metal Gear ZEKE]] from ''[[w:c:MetalGear:Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker|Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker]]'', due to [[w:c:MetalGear:Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker Main Theme|the eponymous theme song]] playing in the background of the fight.

Snake appears as a puppet fighter in the Spirit Battle for [[Adam Malkovich]], most likely chosen to represent Adam due to their shared military background (and to a lesser extent having [[Samus-Adam Relationship|a similar mentor-student relationship]] in their respective home series). An identical Snake puppet fighter reprises this role in [[Young Samus]]'s Spirit Battle.

While there are no confirmed crossovers or references between ''Metroid'' and ''Metal Gear'' outside of the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series, several of the production studios who were involved in the creation of ''Metroid: Other M'' (such as [[XAX Entertainment Inc.]], [[Shirogumi Inc.]], and [[Digital Frontier]]) also had worked on ''Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots'', ''Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance'', and ''Metal Gear Solid V''.

<gallery captionalign="center">
SnakeB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
SSB Ultimate Snake render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Ridley taking the box off Snake.png|Image shared by Sakurai on November 21, 2020.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 21 November 2020 10:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1330345261369937920</ref>
</gallery>

===Sonic===
'''Sonic the Hedgehog''' is the main character of Sega's ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' series as well as Sega's mascot. He appears in ''Brawl'', acting as the second third-party character to appear in the game (the first being Snake from the ''Metal Gear Solid'' series by Konami) and returns in ''3DS/Wii U'' as well alongside fellow Sega protagonist, Bayonetta, and later returns in ''Ultimate''. Prior to his formal debut in the ''Smash'' series, Sonic as well as Tails were the subject of a ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''-related April Fool's joke in Electronic Gaming Monthly.

In Sonic's announce trailer for ''Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS and Wii U'', Samus is seen attempting to use her Charge Shot at Sonic, only for him to dodge the attack, causing her to hit Donkey Kong instead.

Sonic appeared alongside Samus, Mario, and Pit on the Duck Hunt reveal artwork, being sent flying by an explosion that was presumably caused by the dog and duck duo. Unlike the other characters, owing to Sonic's origins at Sega, he was the only one of the characters (including the eponymous duo) who did not use his NES sprites. Instead, he used his Sega Master sprite. Similarly, he also appeared alongside Samus, Mario, Bowser, Peach, Donkey Kong, Mega Man, Link, and Kirby on Pac-Man's reveal artwork, also using his Sega Master sprite unlike the other characters who used their NES sprites, and also featured prominently in Pac-Man's debut trailer alongside Mega Man and Mario due to the name of the trailer (with Mario representing red, Sonic and Mega Man both representing blue, and Pac-Man himself representing yellow).

In the gameplay portion of the [[A Piercing Screech]] trailer for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', he is knocked away by Ridley's [[Space Pirate Rush]] in the underground portion of the Castle Siege stage.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Sonic.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
SonicB.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''.
SSB Ultimate Sonic render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
File:Sakurai - Boost Kick and other upper kicks.jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on June 2, 2020.<ref name="kick"></ref>
</gallery>

===Toon Link===
'''Toon Link''' is a character from the ''Legend of Zelda'' series. He is the cel-shaded version of Link from some ''Zelda'' games such as ''Wind Waker''. He first appears as a playable character in ''Brawl'', and returns in ''3DS/Wii U''.

In Dark Samus's reveal trailer, Toon Link is one of the fighters hit by Dark Samus's Zero Laser at the Battlefield Stage.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Toon_LinkB.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Toon Link 2.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.''
SSB Ultimate Toon Link render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Wario===
'''Wario''' is a recurring anti-hero in the ''Mario'' series, and he also has two series of his own called ''Wario Land'' and ''[[WarioWare]]''. It was initially planned that Wario act as a more power-based clone of Mario for ''Melee'', although by the final release, this had been relegated to Dr. Mario instead.<ref name="SourceGaming">http://sourcegaming.info/2016/01/31/dufl-sources/</ref> Wario made his playable debut in ''Brawl''.

[[Zero Suit Samus]] and Wario were both featured in the E3 2006 reveal trailer for ''Brawl''. As he loses control of the Wario Bike, Zero Suit Samus and Pit jump out of its way before it crashes. When Wario grins in embarassment, Zero Suit Samus is one of the fighters who looks on in shock as he unleashes his Wario Waft attack, which forms an explosive mushroom cloud of flatulent gas. In addition, ''Brawl'' includes a default snapshot depicting Zero Suit Samus using her Paralyzer Gun's whip function on Wario as the latter is lunging at her with his Chomp attack.

The ''Wario Land'' series included a Metroid as one of his treasures in ''Wario Land II'' as well as having reused sound effects from ''Metroid II: Return of Samus'' in ''Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3'' (specifically, the sound when Wario jumps the final boss's head was the same sound uttered by all Metroids except for the [[Omega Metroid|Omega]] and [[Queen Metroid|Queen]] when they are hit with [[Missile]]s in the former game.<ref>https://youtu.be/aE1zi_x0CDI?t=25</ref>). The ''WarioWare'' has featured numerous ''Metroid''-themed microgames, which are eight-second minigames based on moments from the ''Metroid'' games. Wario was also [[Mario (series)#Mario & Luigi: SuperStar Saga|intended to cameo alongside Samus Aran]] in ''Mario & Luigi: SuperStar Saga'', with his scene intended to be as follows:

<blockquote>'''Wario''': Ah ha ha ha! Move it! Wow! Now that I’m here, this game’s finally gettin’ good!

'''Cashier''': Oh! Wario! What’s a bad dude like you doing here? Oh! I got it! You came to pay your tab from the other day!

'''Wario''': What are you talkin' about?!? You tryin’ to give me a bad rep with stupid rumors? I oughta...

'''Cashier''': Aww, come on! Just pay up! I'll even take beans if you got 'em. Come on! You're a rich guy, right?

'''Wario''': Uh... OK. Maybe next time. But... Don't you have free drinks for celebrity guest stars in this game? Wa ha ha ha ha ha ha! BLECH! AWFUL! Do you guys really like drinking nasty stuff like this? ...Losers. Ah! Whatever! Hope this covers your costs! Blech! Drinkin' that stuff made me wanna go shave my tongue! Uh-oh! Gotta go!</blockquote>

This alongside Samus's cameo was omitted from the game due to E.Gadd being given a larger role in the side mission, although both were retained in the game's files and evidence was present with the Greed Wallet (originally Wario's Gold).

Although not a true cameo of Wario in the franchise, internal files for ''Metroid Fusion'' reused sprites and objects from ''Wario Land 4''. Playing ''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption'' with a save file from ''WarioWare: Smooth Moves'' will result in a Ship Bumper Sticker being unlocked that referenced the latter game.

<gallery captionalign="center">
ssbm_art_wario.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
Wario.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:SSBB stock photo.png|Snapshot included in every copy of ''Brawl''.
SSB Ultimate Wario render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Wolf===
'''Wolf O'Donnell''' is the leader of the nefarious Star Wolf team, Fox McCloud's relentless rival, and an antagonist in the ''Star Fox'' series of games. He makes his playable debut in ''Brawl'' and, after being relegated to a [[Trophy]] in ''3DS/Wii U'', returns in ''Ultimate''.

In [[Event 36: High-Tech Special Forces]], Solid Snake has to defeat Samus, Wolf, and Captain Falcon (implied to have been fired by FOXHOUND, Snake's organization, to take him out) in a fight. He is listed in the mission to be a [[bounty hunter]], even though unlike Samus Aran or Captain Falcon in their respective franchises, Wolf was not shown to be of the profession in the ''Star Fox'' series or anything beyond a mercenary (and ironically, was actually subject to a bounty himself in ''Star Fox: Command'').

Wolf's voice actor in ''Brawl'', [[Jay Ward]], also provided narrations for [[Main Theme (Metroid)]] and [[Opening/Menu (Metroid Prime)]] (the latter being a abridged version of the cut opening narration for ''Metroid Prime'').

<gallery captionalign="center">
WolfB'.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
SSB Ultimate Wolf render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

==Introduced in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''==
The Nintendo 3DS and Wii U games introduce nineteen new characters. The Ice Climbers, Pokémon Trainer, Snake and Wolf were all cut from this game, although Charizard returns as a separate character. The Ice Climbers were intended to return but scrapped due to hardware limitations, while it is likely that Snake was not retained due to copyright issues with [[Wikipedia:Konami|Konami]]. Prior to the game's release, his creator [[Wikipedia:Hideo Kojima|Hideo Kojima]] had stated that Snake's return was unlikely.<ref>http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/132950-Solid-Snake-Unlikely-to-Return-in-Super-Smash-Bros-4-Says-Kojima</ref>

They are also the first games to introduce downloadable fighters. Seven fighters were released between early 2015 to early 2016, including returning veterans Mewtwo, Lucas and Roy, and newcomers Ryu, Cloud, Corrin and Bayonetta.

===Bayonetta===
'''Bayonetta''', alternatively known as '''Cereza''', is the protagonist of the series of the same name. The winner of the Smash Bros. Fighter Ballot, Bayonetta was announced as the final DLC fighter for ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' in November 2015, and released in February 2016. She is the second character to hail from an ESRB "M" rated franchise, the first being Snake, and is also the second third party character to hail from Sega, the first being Sonic.

Prior to her addition, one of Zero Suit Samus's congratulations screens was a direct reference to ''Bayonetta''. Samus also appears in Bayonetta's reveal artwork, where she is seen glaring at Bayonetta. She was later revealed to have actually been the runner up in the aforementioned Fighter Ballot, being beaten out only by Sora from ''Kingdom Hearts''. However, she was chosen as the default winner due to Sora's complicated copyright information (see Sora's section below). Bayonetta returns in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''.

''Bayonetta'' and ''Bayonetta 2'' on [[Wii U]] and [[Nintendo Switch]] feature a costume based on Samus Aran's original [[Power Suit]] from ''[[Metroid]]''. See [[Bayonetta|here]] for more information. Additionally, [[Jennifer Hale]], the voice of Samus in the ''Metroid Prime'' series, voices Bayonetta in her third game.

<gallery>
Bayonetta.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
Bayonetta Witch With No Memories.png|Bayonetta's "A Witch With No Memories" alternate costume, which was her outfit from her first game.
File:Bayonetta artwork.png|Reveal artwork
File:SSB Ultimate Bayonetta render.png|''Ultimate''
Bayonetta WWNM SSBU.png|Bayonetta's "A Witch With No Memories" alternate costume in ''Ultimate''.
Samus and Bayonetta kicking.jpg|Screenshot of Samus and Bayonetta together by [[Masahiro Sakurai]].<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). Dec 2019 10:36 p.m. Tweet. https://29 twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1211491258465546240</ref>
</gallery>

===Bowser Jr.===
'''Bowser Jr.''' ('''Koopa Jr.''' in Japan) is Bowser's son. He appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. According to [[Masahiro Sakurai]], Bowser Jr. was nearly cut from the game, although due to the teamwork of the development team, he ultimately was included..<ref>[http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=145444294&postcount=63 Post on NeoGAF by Garou] (December 31, 2014).</ref> Bowser Jr.'s trailer, "The Future of Evil", featured CG animation done by [[Digital Frontier]], whose studio was where the motion capture for ''[[Metroid: Other M]]'' was recorded. Samus appears in this portion of the trailer, dodging an attack from Bowser Jr.'s Koopa Clown Car, and proceeding with other fighters (specifically Mario, Link, Kirby, Mega Man, Rosalina, Meta Knight, and the Villager) to do battle with Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings. In the gameplay portion, Zero Suit Samus is at one point seen standing on a step on the Skyloft stage, firing a Steel Diver at Bowser Jr., who ducks and avoids it. She and the other fighters in the trailer also appear in Bowser Jr.'s reveal artwork.

In Dark Samus's reveal trailer, Dark Samus uses her grapple beam on Bowser Jr. and throws him down, then proceeds to use her air kick before topping it off with her screw attack at New Pork City.

His [[amiibo]] can be used in ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' to unlock a special [[Paint Job]] based on him, for use in [[Blast Ball]].

<gallery captionalign="center">
Bowser Jr..png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:Bowser Jr. artwork.png|Reveal artwork
File:Samus in The Face of Evil (Bowser Jr. trailer).png|Samus and other fighters confront Bowser Jr.
File:Samus in The Face of Evil (Bowser Jr. trailer) 2.png
File:Samus in The Face of Evil (Bowser Jr. trailer) 3.png
File:Samus in The Face of Evil (Bowser Jr. trailer) 4.png
SSB Ultimate Bowser Jr render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Bowser Jr. Paint Job.png|''Federation Force'' Paint Job
</gallery>

===Cloud===
'''Cloud''' is the protagonist of Square Enix's ''Final Fantasy VII''. He was announced as a future DLC character for ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' on Nov. 12, 2015. 

Samus appears in Cloud's debut trailer, where she, Kirby, and Charizard face off against Cloud at Midgar in a similar manner to various battles from his home series before they rushed at each other, and later on at Palutena's temple, where Samus tries to fire a Super Missile at Cloud, only for him to slide under her and then do his Up Aerial against her. Cloud also appears in [[04: Samus]], where he alongside Greninja and a third unidentified fighter are hit by Samus's Zero Laser as the trailer ends. In [[Dark Samus (SSBU trailer)|Dark Samus's gameplay trailer]], he attempts to jump down to attack her on the Battlefield stage, only to be knocked out of the ring by her forward smash, followed subsequently by Bowser.

Although no ''Metroid'' references occur in ''Final Fantasy VII'' itself, the overall ''Final Fantasy'' franchise has a recurring enemy called [[w:c:FinalFantasy:Mother Brain|Mother Brain]] in the games ''Final Fantasy II'' (specifically the Soul of Rebirth storyline introduced in the Game Boy Advance remakes) and ''Final Fantasy Dimensions'', a direct reference to the major antagonist of ''Metroid''/''Zero Mission'' and ''Super Metroid'' of [[Mother Brain|the same name]]. ''Final Fantasy Dimensions II'' also has Mother Brain being used, though in this case as a summon.

<gallery>
File:Cloud SSB4.jpg|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Cloud render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Corrin===
'''Corrin''' ('''Kamui''' in the Japanese version) is the main protagonist of ''Fire Emblem Fates'', and a DLC character for ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. Corrin is playable as a male or female character, similar to Robin and Villager. (S)He's also the second character to technically make their debut in ''Super Smash Bros.'' before their home series (as (s)he was released as DLC on February 3rd, 2016, while ''Fates'' was not released until sixteen days afterward), such having previously been done by fellow ''Fire Emblem'' character Roy. Zero Suit Samus appears in Corrin's reveal poster, which was illustrated by ''Fire Emblem Fates'' art director Yusuke Kozaki. Kozaki also illustrated Robin and Lucina's poster, which does not feature Samus or Zero Suit Samus. In his/her trailer, "Corrin Chooses to Smash!", the male Corrin is seen impaling Samus and then kicking forward, driving through her.

<gallery>
File:Corrin.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:Corrin artwork.png|Reveal artwork
SSB Ultimate Corrin render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Corrin-Alt1 SSBU.png|''Ultimate'' (female)
</gallery>

===Dark Pit===
'''Dark Pit''' (known as '''Black Pit''' in Japan) is a recurring character in ''Kid Icarus: Uprising'' who appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as a playable character. He is a clone of Pit, meaning he shares much of Pit's move-set and animations. In ''Ultimate'', he'll act as an echo fighter for Pit.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Dark Pit.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Dark Pit render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Duck Hunt===
"'''Duck Hunt'''" ('''Duck Hunt Duo''' in Europe) consisting of the dog and one duck from the game of the same name, appear as a playable group in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. Although called a duo, they are technically a trio as an unseen shooter (implied to be the player with the Zapper gun) also aids them in their moveset, which is noted in its Palutena's Guidance description. The dog was rather notorious for his frequently popping up and laughing at the player if they missed shooting a duck.

Samus appears in the debut trailer for the duo "One Dog, One Bird, One Zapper", alongside Mario, Link, Bowser, Pit, and Donkey Kong, both in their [[NES]] versions and their usual appearances in the game. In the gameplay portion of the trailer, the dog is seen headbutting and then kicking Samus during a fight. Samus also appears on the reveal artwork for the characters, alongside Sonic, Mario, and Pit, where they are launched by an explosion that was presumably caused by the duo. They appeared in their NES appearances in the artwork (or in the case of Sonic, his Sega Master appearance).

In ''[[Metroid Prime]]'', there are [[bird]]s that appear in the skies of the [[Chozo Ruins]]. While ingame they explode into feathers when shot, they have an unused death animation where they fall spiraling from the sky, similarly to the ducks in ''Duck Hunt''.

On December 27, 2019, Masahiro Sakurai tweeted Ridley flying while posed similarly to one of the ducks on the Duck Hunt stage as a joke.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Duck Hunt.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:Duck Hunt reveal art.png|Reveal artwork
File:Confronting Duck Hunt Dog (NES).png|"One Dog, One Bird, One Zapper" trailer (NES appearances)
File:Confronting Duck Hunt Dog (Wii U).png|Modern appearance.
File:B die tweety die.gif|''Metroid Prime'' unused Tweety animation.
SSB Ultimate Duck Hunt render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Ridley pretends to be a duck.jpg|Image tweeted by [[Masahiro Sakurai]].<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). December 27 2019 11:22 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1210777911361302534</ref>
</gallery>

===Greninja===
'''Greninja''' is one of the then-newest Pokémon for Generation VI of the franchise, and a newcomer in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''.

In the gameplay portion of its debut trailer "Challenger from the Shadows" (which it shared with Charizard), Zero Suit Samus was seen fighting Greninja in the [[Geothermal Power Plant]] stage.

Greninja is seen being hit with Samus's Zero Laser in the ending to her [[Character Showcase Video]] for ''Ultimate''.

In the Pokémon games, Greninja can learn the move Hyper Beam via Technical Machines, though barring the same English name, it has little connection to either the [[Hyper Beam (Super Metroid)|weapon system]] from ''Super Metroid'' or the [[Hyper Beam (Metroid Prime 3: Corruption)|hypermode weapon]] from ''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption''. Coincidentally, however, the Generation IV rendition of Hyperbeam depicts a rainbow colored appearance to the beam similar to that of the Hyper Beam utilized in ''Super Metroid'', and the previous and later games depict it with an orange color resembling how said weapon was depicted in the flashback in the beginning of ''Metroid: Other M''.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Greninja.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Greninja render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Little Mac===
Little Mac is the protagonist from ''Punch-Out!!''. He was featured as an Assist Trophy in ''Brawl'', but appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as a newcomer and returns in ''Ultimate''.

Little Mac first appeared with ''Metroid'' characters in the ''[[Captain N: The Game Master]]'' comic ''Welcome to Videoland''. Princess Lana observes Little Mac boxing King Hippo on one television screen, while another screen shows Samus battling Ridley. Unlike Pit, Mega Man, or Simon Belmont, he has no further role in the series. Although not in the comics, the TV series features one of his opponents, King Hippo, as one of Mother Brain's minions.

The 1991 cover for [[The Power Game Calendar]] featured both Samus Aran as well as [[w:c:PunchOut:King Hippo|King Hippo]], a recurring opponent in the ''Punch-Out!'' series that Little Mac often fought against (usually in the beginner cups).

When first revealed as an Assist Trophy in ''Brawl'', Little Mac was shown standing next to Samus to demonstrate their exaggerated difference in height.<ref>[https://www.smashbros.com/wii/en_us/items/assist/assist10.html Smash Bros. DOJO!! - Little Mac]</ref> As a possible reference to this, Samus appears in Little Mac's debut trailer, "Champion of the Ring", in a hand-drawn animated scene. She compares her towering height to his, before getting sent flying by a K.O. Uppercut. In the gameplay portion, he is seen uppercutting her again, and then countering another move in a different match. Samus also appears at the end of his trailer during another animated scene, rolling across the screen in [[Morph Ball]] form.

Little Mac is the first Assist Trophy in ''Super Smash Bros.'' to later become a playable character. Dark Samus would later become the second Assist Trophy to become playable.

One of Little Mac's concept artists for the 2009 ''Punch-Out!!'', [[Adrian David Enciso]], had also done conceptual artwork for ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' and ''[[Metroid Prime: Blast Ball]]''. In addition [[Next Level Games]], which did ''Federation Force'', also worked on the 2009 ''Punch-Out!!''. Therefore, a ''Punch-Out!!'' poster featuring Little Mac and Doc Louis could be found across from a ''Metroid Prime: Federation Force'' poster in the Paranormal Productions floor in ''Luigi's Mansion 3''.

<gallery>
Little Mac.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Little Mac render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
CNTGM Welcome to Videoland Page 1.jpg|Little Mac, Samus, Ridley, and Mother Brain in ''Welcome to Videoland''
SSBB Little Mac and Samus.png|Samus and Little Mac in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''
File:Samus Champion of the Ring.png|Samus in Little Mac's trailer.
File:Samus Champion of the Ring 2.png|Samus comparing their heights
File:Samus Champion of the Ring 3.png|Little Mac about to punch Samus
File:Samus Champion of the Ring 4.png|Samus is hit by the K.O. Uppercut
File:Samus Champion of the Ring 5.png|Samus rolling past Little Mac and Doc Louis
MPFF poster in Luigi's Mansion 3.png|''Punch-Out!!'' and ''Federation Force'' cameo in ''Luigi's Mansion 3''.
</gallery>

===Lucina===
'''Lucina''' is a character from ''Fire Emblem Awakening''. She appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as an unlockable character and clone of Marth. She will return in ''Ultimate'', acting as an Echo of Marth. Samus briefly appears in Lucina and Robin's trailer, "By Book, Blade, and Crest of Flame", being attacked by Lucina. Lucina is also seen fighting Luigi on [[Pyrosphere (Stage)|Pyrosphere]] in the same trailer.

<gallery>
Lucina.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Lucina render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Mega Man===
'''Mega Man''' is the main character from the series of the same name and the mascot of Capcom. He appears as a newcomer in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as a playable character. He is the franchise's third 3rd-party character.

Mega Man has previously interacted with [[Mother Brain]] and other ''Metroid'' enemies in the NES crossover cartoon ''[[Captain N: The Game Master]]''.

Samus appears in Mega Man's reveal trailer several times, first by fighting the Blue Bomber on the Boxing Ring stage by attempting to use her charge shot on Mega Man, only for the latter to sidestep her and uppercut her; then on the Battlefield stage where she attempts to hit him with a forward smash only for him to duck; and finally during the Special Weapons segment, where she is hit with the Flame Sword. She also appears in his reveal artwork created by Ryuji Higurashi.

Mega Man appears in [[A Piercing Screech]], accompanying Samus and Mario on a patrol when he is suddenly ambushed, and impaled with [[Ridley]]'s tail. The manner in which Ridley stabbed Mega Man resembled how Ridley dispatched [[Grey Voice]] in the ''Metroid'' manga. Owing to the [[List of similarities between Metroid and Alien|Metroid series' taking elements from the Alien franchise]], Mega Man's death also resembled how the Alien Queen killed the android Bishop. He also appears in [[Dark Samus (SSBU trailer)|Dark Samus's gameplay trailer]], where he is rammed, thrown down to the ground by Dark Samus's grapple beam, and then launched out of the ring by her upward smash.

Archie Comics, before pursuing a ''Mega Man''-themed comic storyline, had considered doing [[Metroid (Archie Comics pitch)|a ''Metroid''-themed comic storyline]]. In addition, a Halloween-themed blog for the comic by Ryan Jampole had Mega Man's robot sister, Roll, wearing various costumes based on various franchises, one of which was [[Zero Suit Samus]]. The pose Roll adopted while dressed up as her is based on Zero Suit Samus's render artwork from ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''.<ref>http://www.themmnetwork.com/blog/2013/10/31/31-days-of-halloween-costumed-roll-by-ryan-jampole</ref>

<gallery>
Mega man.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
Illust-modal.jpg|Reveal artwork<br />Illustration / Ryuji Higurashi（CAPCOM）
SSB Ultimate Mega Man render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Samus_roll_lorez_by_ryanjampole-d6rs3wl.jpg|[[w:c:MegaMan:Roll/Archie Comics|Roll]] dressed up as Zero Suit Samus in the ''Mega Man'' Archie Comics.
</gallery>

===Mii Fighters===
'''Mii Fighters''' are playable fighters in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. Three variants can be chosen from: '''Mii Brawler''', '''Mii Swordfighter''' and '''Mii Gunner'''. Mii Fighters are created from imported [[Mii]]s and are therefore able to be customized in appearance. Nintendo released a specific [https://www.smashbros.com/images/dlc/image/qr_sample13.jpg QR Code] allowing players to download a Mii based on Samus, which was officially used in the game's marketing.

Mii Fighters can have selectable costumes which allow them to technically cosplay as various characters, including both playable fighters and non-playable characters. One of these costume sets involves Samus Aran herself: [[Samus' helmet|Samus's Helmet]] can be worn by any Mii Fighter, while Samus's Armor (originally released as DLC for ''3DS'' and ''Wii U'', later included in the base game of ''Ultimate'') is exclusive to Mii Gunner.

Players can customize Mii Fighters' movesets by choosing their special moves. Two of Mii Gunner's available special moves, Charge Blast and Gunner Missile, are nearly identical to Samus's Charge Shot and Missile.

Samus appears in the trophy representing the Mii Gunner's Final Smash, Full Blast. In addition, the Alt. Trophy for Mii Gunner in the ''Wii U'' version has the Mii Gunner wearing Samus Aran's helmet.

A Miiverse post featured Zero Suit Samus fighting a Mii Brawler with brown hair and a black and red tunic.

A tweet by Sakurai on June 12, 2021 featured a Mii Fighter dressed as a knight fighting Ridley inside Dracula's Castle. This was an indirect reference to Firebrand, an antagonistic character from the Capcom series ''Ghost 'n Goblins'', due to it being the 35th anniversary of the NES game's release.

<gallery>
Mii Fighters.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:Samus Mii Fighter costume.jpg|Costume released in a DLC patch on July 31, 2015.
SSB4 Mii Fighter Samus Armor.jpg|Samus's Armor worn by a Mii Gunner
File:Zero Suit Samus and Mii.jpg|[[Miiverse]] post featuring a Mii Brawler with Zero Suit Samus
SSB Ultimate Mii Fighter render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
Ghosts n' Goblins Sakurai tribute with Ridley.png|Image tweeted by Sakurai on June 12, 2021, the 35th anniversary of the [[NES]] release of ''[[Wikipedia:Ghosts 'n Goblins|Ghosts 'n Goblins]]''.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). "1986年のきょう､ファミコンで『魔界村』(Ghosts'n Goblins)発売!! オリジナルは1985年のアーケード版｡『スーパーマリオ』と同時期｡ 映像も音楽も面白さも高いレベルで､ゲームセンターで異彩を放っていました｡だけど難しい｡ 原作は『カプコンアーケードスタジアム』などで遊べます｡  #スマブラSP" 12 June 2021 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1403909998569308163</ref>
</gallery>

===Pac-Man===
'''Pac-Man''' is the eponymous character of the Namco series of the same name and Namco's mascot. He is also [[Shigeru Miyamoto]]'s favorite video game character. As such, Miyamoto had suggested that Pac-Man appear in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'', although Sakurai, believing Miyamato to be referring to Pac-Man's 2D sprite, declined due to thinking such would have been too "far-fetched".<ref>[http://www.vg247.com/2014/07/04/super-smash-bros-wii-u-pac-man-thank-shigeru-miyamoto/]</ref> He is playable in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. Samus, or rather, her 8-bit self, also appears alongside Bowser, Mario, Link, Peach (or, technically, Princess Toadstool), Kirby, Mega Man, Donkey Kong, and Sonic (the last of whom uses his Sega Master sprite) in Pac-Man's reveal artwork, where she is being chased by Speedie/Pinkie, one of the four ghosts that antagonize Pac-Man in his home franchise. Zero Suit Samus appears briefly in Pac-Man's reveal trailer, "Red, Blue, Yellow", where, aside from Pac-Man, she also fights Marth and Yoshi.

<gallery>
Pac-Man.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
Pac-Man Poster.jpg|Reveal artwork
SSB Ultimate Pac Man render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Palutena===
'''Palutena''' is a goddess who has been a central character in the ''Kid Icarus'' series. She made cameo appearances in ''Brawl'' (in particular, she's the one who dispatches Pit to deal with the threat of the Subspace Army) and made her debut as a playable character in the 3DS and Wii U ''Smash'' games. Aside from her playable role in these games, she also acted as one of the characters who conversed with Pit via [[Palutena's Guidance]], with her giving various pieces of advice for the various opponents when making a certain taunt at Palutena's Temple (although she will be at a loss on how to deal with any characters who were included via DLC). She returns in ''Ultimate''.

Palutena appears alongside Zero Suit Samus on Ryu's reveal artwork.

The character Princess Lana from the comics version of ''Captain N: The Game Master'' was based on Palutena. Samus Aran acted as Lana's bodyguard in the comic.

<gallery>
Palutena.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Palutena render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Robin===
'''Robin''', also known as the '''Avatar''', is the default name for the main protagonist of ''Fire Emblem Awakening''. Robin appears in ''3DS/Wii U'' as a male and female variant. Samus briefly appears in Lucina and Robin's trailer, "By Book, Blade, and Crest of Flame", being attacked by Lucina.

<gallery>
Robin.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Robin render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Rosalina & Luma===
'''Rosalina''' is a recurring character in the ''Mario'' series who first appeared in ''Super Mario Galaxy''. She appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' and ''Ultimate'', alongside a Luma. They are a duo referred to as '''Rosalina & Luma'''. In the gameplay portion of her debut trailer, "Comet Observatory", Samus fires her Charge Shot at Rosalina and Luna, and although she succeeds in hitting the latter, the former lunges into her and then knocks her off of Skyloft, and was also seen attacking Luigi and Mario as well as Pit in two separate instances at the Geothermal Power Plant stage.

They acted as the opponent for Zero-Suit Samus in the Event Match [[A Situation of Some Gravity]] with intense gravity affecting the arena. The flavor text for the match indicated that Samus discovered the planet that Rosalina and Luma were on, and viewed them as hostile alien lifeforms.

Rosalina's amiibo can be used in ''[[Metroid Prime: Federation Force]]'' to unlock a [[Paint Job]] based on her for use in [[Blast Ball]].

<gallery captionalign="center">
Rosalina SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Rosalina and Luma render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
RosalinaPaintJob.jpg|''Federation Force'' Paint Job
</gallery>

===Ryu===
'''Ryu''' is the main protagonist of Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' series. He was revealed as a DLC playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' on June 14, 2015, after his inclusion in the games was leaked through datamining of an update. This marked the first time two different characters from a third-party publisher appeared together in ''Smash'' (Mega Man and Ryu are both owned by Capcom). This feat would later be repeated with Sega's Sonic and Bayonetta. In Ryu's reveal trailer, Samus is one of three characters to challenge him as he makes his entrance. He is later seen attacking Link on the [[Pyrosphere (Stage)|Pyrosphere]] stage.

Zero Suit Samus appears in Ryu's reveal poster on the official website. This poster is a direct imitation of a piece of promotional art for ''[[Wikipedia:Street Fighter II: The World Warrior|Street Fighter II: The World Warrior]]'', with Smash characters taking the place of the other fighters from that game. Zero Suit Samus replaces Ken Masters, who would later become playable with Ryu in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''. The poster is illustrated by [[Wikipedia:Akira Yasuda|Akira "Akiman" Yasuda]], a former Capcom artist who was the character designer for ''Street Fighter II''.

<gallery>
File:Ryu SSB4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
File:Ryu art.png|Reveal artwork
SSB Ultimate Ryu render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Shulk===
'''Shulk''' is the main protagonist of ''Xenoblade Chronicles'', who joins the cast as a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''. In the gameplay portion of his debut trailer, "Looks like we don't have a choice!", Zero Suit Samus was seen trying to double team against Shulk with Diddy Kong on the Comet Observatory stage. In the story mode for ''Ultimate'', he was among the various fighters gathered, including Samus, to fight off the newly arrived threat Galeem and its flotilla of Master Hands. He eventually foresaw in a vision that the fighters would ultimately fall against Galeem, but was unable to warn the others in time before Galeem proceeded with its attack, with only Kirby escaping unscathed due to his warp star.

Some of the Nintendo of Europe localizers for ''Xenoblade Chronicles'' were the same ones who localized ''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption''.

<gallery captionalign="center">
Shulk Smash 4.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Shulk render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Villager===
'''Villager''' refers to the human player character in ''[[Animal Crossing]]'', whom as the name indicates acts as a villager in most of the ''Animal Crossing'' games (exempting ''New Leaf'' where the player instead acts as the mayor of the village). Villager can be played as a boy or girl, and appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as a playable character. Some of the furniture, wallpaper, and even clothing he or she can get references Metroid. The [[Varia Suit]], or at least pieces of it, can also be acquired by the player via fortune cookies in ''Animal Crossing: New Leaf''. In the gameplay portion of his reveal trailer (which also doubled as the announce trailer for ''Smash 4'' itself), Samus attempts to fire her Charge Shot at the Villager in the Boxing Ring stage, although he ends up catching the blast. Prior to the villager's formal debut in ''Smash 4'', the villager appeared in the Smashville stage that was derived from ''Animal Crossing'' occasionally in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'', and also appeared as a trophy (under the name "Animal Crossing Boy").

In ''Super Smash Bros for the Wii U'', Two Villagers act as opponents to Captain Falcon after Zero-Suit Samus is defeated in [[Bounty Hunter Clash]], and must be defeated to win the event. The flavor text for the event implied that the Villagers were staking out to challenge whoever won the earlier struggle to pick the winner off so they could get the priceless bounty for themselves for a "quick buck."

In Dark Samus's reveal trailer for ''Ultimate'', although not directly seen, his Gyroid attack was briefly seen as one of the objects Dark Samus dodges at Suzaku Castle.

<gallery captionalign="center">
villager.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
SSB Ultimate Villager render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Wii Fit Trainer===
The '''Wii Fit Trainer''' is a holographic representation of a human female in ''Wii Fit''. She appears in ''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' as a playable character. Her male counterpart is playable as an alternate costume. Samus appears in the Wii Fit Trainer's trailer, being attacked by the character's Final Smash attack (aptly titled Wii Fit). Samus also appears in silhouette alongside Pit, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Link, and Mario in the Wii Fit Trainer's reveal poster, where she and the others are mimicking the Wii Fit Trainer's current pose.

Although the ''Wii Fit'' game itself does not have any connections to the ''Metroid'' series beyond the ''Smash'' series, having save files for two games from the same series as ''Wii Fit'', ''Wii Sports'' and ''Wii Play'', while playing ''Metroid Prime 3: Corruption'' will have Samus unlocking two Ship Bumper Stickers composed of the logos for those two titles.

<gallery captionalign="center">
wii fit trainer.png|''Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U''
Illust-modal2.jpg|Reveal poster, featuring Samus (based on the Japanese ''Wii Fit'' box art).
SSB Ultimate Wii Fit Trainer render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
M_Wii_Fit_Trainer_SSBU.png|Male Wii Fit Trainer in ''Ultimate''.
Wii Fit Trainer on medicine Morph Balls.jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on September 11, 2020.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 11 September 2020 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1304615717128470528</ref>
</gallery>

==Introduced in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''==
''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' is the first game in the series to see the return of every single fighter in its history, including those that did not return in subsequent installments. Sakurai had warned that there may not be as many newcomers as before, however, 22 additional characters were added, the most newcomers of any ''Super Smash Bros.'' game.

Six downloadable characters were confirmed to be released after the game's launch, beginning with Piranha Plant in February 2019. Five more fighters were announced to be released as part of a Fighter Pass, including Joker, Hero, Banjo and Kazooie, Terry Bogard and Byleth. It was announced on September 4, 2019 during a Nintendo Direct that more fighters were in development beyond the Fighter Pass. A second Fighter Pass was announced on January 16, 2020, which would include six fighters to be released by January 31, 2021. The first of these fighters was revealed on March 26, 2020 to be Min-Min from ''[[Wikipedia:Arms (video game)|ARMS]]'', who was released in June 2020. Due to complications as a result of the [[Wikipedia:COVID-19 pandemic|COVID-19 pandemic]], the remaining fighters were released up until October 2021, and include Steve, Sephiroth, Pyra/Mythra, Kazuya and Sora.

===Inkling===
'''Inklings''' are a species of squid-like humanoids and playable protagonists of the ''[[Wikipedia:Splatoon|Splatoon]]'' games. On March 8, 2018, they were featured in the surprise trailer for ''Super Smash Bros.'' (its working title at the time), confirming them as the first new playable characters for the game. Samus also appeared on the teaser poster for Inkling, where she aims her arm cannon at the Inkling. Prior to their formal debut as a fighter in ''Ultimate'', they were quasi-playable as costumes for the Mii Fighters.

To promote ''Ultimate'', the theme of Splatfest #20 in ''Splatoon 2'' was Heroes vs. Villains. Samus was one of the characters representing the Heroes team, while Ridley was one of the characters representing the Villains team. The Heroes won the popularity vote (62.89% to 37.11%), but the Villains beat the Heroes in normal (52.21% to 47.79%) and pro (53.51% to 46.49%) clout, winning the overall Splatfest.

<gallery>
SSB Ultimate Inkling render.png|''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''
File:SSB Switch.png
SSBU Inkling character poster.jpg|Character poster. Unlike the posters released for newcomers in ''Super Smash Bros. 4'', this poster was released via ''Splatoon'' social media instead of the ''Ultimate'' website.
Inkling_Boy_SSBU.png|Inkling Boy alternate outfit in Ultimate.
</gallery>

===Daisy===
'''Princess Daisy''' is a character from the ''Mario'' series, who often appears in spinoff sports games. She was confirmed as a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', appearing as an Echo of Peach. Prior to her formal debut, however, Peach had always had an alternate costume turning her hair auburn, and dress yellow and orange to resemble Daisy, and trophies of Daisy could be unlocked in ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'', the latter game also using her as a series of stickers. Similarly, ''Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U'' had a bonus outfit for the Mii Fighters that was modeled after Daisy, thus making her quasi-playable at that time.

A Princess Peach outfit is unlockable in the Nintendo Switch version of Bayonetta 1 & 2, alongside the Samus Aran suit. Like in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' games before ''Ultimate'', a palette swap for the outfit exists that was based on Princess Daisy.

<gallery>
SSB Ultimate Daisy render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Simon===
:''"Simon" redirects here. For other uses, see [[Simon (Disambiguation)]]''

'''[[w:c:castlevania:Simon Belmont|Simon Belmont]]''' is the protagonist of the ''[[w:c:castlevania:Castlevania (series)|Castlevania]]'' series. He first appears in ''Ultimate'', and was the first confirmed newcomer in the August 8, 2018 Nintendo Direct. His descendant, Richter, is an Echo Fighter. They appear alongside fellow Konami protagonist Solid Snake. This marks the first time that three characters from a third-party company have appeared in ''Super Smash Bros.'', as well as the first time two characters from a third-party franchise are playable in ''Smash''.

In his debut trailer, Samus briefly fights Simon, being subject to his grab-down move and then tossed aside after a failed attempt at using her Grapple Beam on him. Similar to Ridley, he also has his own debut trailer, "Vampire Killer", which he shared alongside Richter.

''Castlevania'' games, beginning with ''[[w:c:castlevania:Castlevania: Symphony of the Night|Symphony of the Night]]'', heavily took inspiration from ''[[Super Metroid]]'' and formed a new genre of game called [[Metroidvania]]. [[MercurySteam]], the studio that developed ''[[Metroid: Samus Returns]]'', previously developed ''[[w:c:castlevania:Castlevania: Lords of Shadow|Castlevania: Lords of Shadow]]'', ''[[w:c:castlevania:Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate|Mirror of Fate]]'' and ''[[w:c:castlevania:Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2|Lords of Shadow 2]]''. An [[w:c:castlevania:Simon Belmont (Lords of Shadow)|alternate version of Simon Belmont]] is one of the playable protagonists in ''Mirror of Fate''. Coincidentally, both franchises responsible for the Metroidvania genre had roots in vampire stories (as the ''Alien'' franchise, which had been [[List of similarities between Metroid and Alien|a major influence]] on the ''Metroid'' franchise, had itself been influenced by the 1965 Italian sci-fi/horror film ''Planet of the Vampires'').

''Castlevania'' producer [[w:c:castlevania:Koji Igarashi|Koji Igarashi]] told IGN in a March 20, 2014 interview that he would be interested in developing a ''Metroid'' game, but said that it was Nintendo's decision.<ref>"Whether it's possible or not comes down to the [intellectual property] holder, which in this case would be Nintendo, and whether they want to work with me, But, if they did want to work with me, I would love the chance of doing that." https://ca.ign.com/articles/2014/03/20/former-castlevania-producer-would-love-to-work-on-metroid</ref>

In addition, [[w:c:castlevania:Simon Belmont (Captain N)|Simon Belmont]] also had previously interacted with [[Mother Brain]], Pit, Mega Man, and various other ''Metroid'' enemies in the NES crossover cartoon ''[[Captain N: The Game Master]]''. On a related note, their brief encounter in the gameplay portion of Simon Belmont's debut trailer marks the first time that Samus Aran and Simon Belmont actually encounter each other; Simon and Samus, while being main characters of ''Captain N'', were exclusive to the cartoon and comic book, respectively, and thus never actually encountered each other between mediums of that franchise.

In the artwork for the Volume 3 box of the ''Famicom Mini'' GBA anthology, Samus (in her forward-facing sprite) is seen standing next to Simon Belmont from ''Castlevania'' as he's readying his whip.

<gallery>
SSB Ultimate Simon render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Richter===
'''[[w:c:castlevania:Richter Belmont|Richter Belmont]]''' is a descendant of Simon Belmont in the ''Castlevania'' series. He appears in ''Ultimate'' as an Echo Fighter of Simon. Similar to Ridley, he also has his own debut trailer, which he shared alongside Simon. In Richter's gameplay trailer, Samus attempts to fire a missile at Richter, only for his spinning the [[w:c:castlevania:Vampire Killer (whip)|Vampire Killer]] whip to cause the missile to detonate before it even came close to him, and then had him whipping Samus away before she could fire a second shot.

One of the items found in ''Symphony of the Night'', the [[w:c:castlevania:High Jump|Gravity Boots]], featured a similar name and design as the [[High Jump Boots]] powerup in the ''Metroid'' series and also had a similar function to them. Although Richter Belmont was not playable in that game (prologue and Richter Mode nonwithstanding), he was nonetheless an incidental figure in that game due to his disappearance kicking off the game's plot.

During the January 16 Nintendo Direct livestream announcing Byleth, it was announced that Richter Belmont's Amiibo alongside Dark Samus's Amiibo would be released on January 17, the day after the livestream.

<gallery>
File:SSB Ultimate Richter render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Chrom===
'''Chrom''' is the the protagonist of ''[[Wikipedia:Fire Emblem Awakening|Fire Emblem Awakening]]''. He was considered for ''Smash 4'', but passed over in favor of Robin since his fighting style would have been too similar to Marth and Ike. Despite this, he appears as part of Robin's [[Final Smash]],<ref>http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/06/28/sakurais-famitsu-column-vol-457-abilities-unlike-any-other/</ref> and also appeared in the [[Palutena's Guidance]] conversation relating to Robin, where he served a similar role to that of Slippy Toad from ''Brawl''<nowiki></nowiki>'s [[Codec Conversations]] in regards to being an otherwise unrelated character in the home franchise directly interacting with the representative character. Additionally, Chrom was quasi-playable as a Mii Fighter costume. He made his full debut in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' as an Echo Fighter of Roy. He was unveiled shortly before [[Dark Samus]], an Echo Fighter herself (of Samus). Sakurai revealed in his weekly column in '''Famitsu''' that Chrom and Dark Samus were added due to their popularity in Japan and the West, respectively.<ref name="Sakurai Famitsu">https://sourcegaming.info/2018/08/22/more-information-about-the-smash-direct-sakurais-famitsu-column-vol-561/</ref>

In Chrom's debut ''Fire Emblem'' game, ''Fire Emblem: Awakening'', one of the collectible powerup stones in the game, [[w:c:FireEmblem:Beaststone+|Beaststone+]], had the same icon as the [[Varia Suit]] in the ''Metroid'' series starting with ''Super Metroid''.


<gallery>
File:SSB Ultimate Chrom render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===King K. Rool===
'''King K. Rool''' is the king of the Kremlings and main antagonist of the original ''Donkey Kong Country'' trilogy. He makes his debut in ''Ultimate'' as a playable fighter, after being confirmed at the end of the August 8, 2018 Direct. Prior to this, he acted as a collectable trophy in the series starting with ''Melee'', was a random name for custom stages in ''Brawl'' and also was quasi-playable as a DLC outfit for the Mii Fighters. He had been a highly requested character for many years, which was the main reason why he was ultimately included in ''Ultimate''.<ref name="Sakurai Famitsu" />

In his debut trailer, ''The Rivals'', Samus and Ridley make a cameo in the beginning as part of a montage of various heroes and either villains or otherwise rivals fighting each other. Their poses were largely similar to in Ridley's debut trailer, although Samus seems to be crouching as well as powering her charge beam. Prior to the trailer airing in the livestream, the screen quaked slightly as the presenter was signing off, foreshadowing K. Rool's presence.

A King K. Rool puppet fighter houses [[Kraid]]'s Master Spirit in the [[World of Light]] story mode of ''Ultimate''. Completing Luigi's All-Star Smash Challenge unlocks an image depicting K. Rool, Bowser, Ridley, and Kraid all roaring at Luigi.

<gallery>
File:SSB Ultimate King K. Rool render.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Isabelle===
'''Isabelle''' is a major character in the ''Animal Crossing'' series from ''New Leaf'' onwards. She serves as the Villager's secretary in their capacity as mayor. She was confirmed to be the 74th (68th if discounting Echo Fighters) playable character in ''Ultimate'' at the end of the September 13, 2018 Nintendo Direct, which also confirmed a mainline ''Animal Crossing'' game for [[Nintendo Switch]] in 2019. Largely because of the trailer's dual purpose of both announcing her appearance in ''Ultimate'' as well as teasing the new ''Animal Crossing'' game, ''New Horizons'', her ''Ultimate'' trailer is the only trailer to not feature any conflicts (the gameplay portion non-withstanding) or for that matter any character deaths, and instead was depicted in a similar manner to standard ''Animal Crossing'' games. It also did not have the Smash Bros. logo opener during its premiere for the same reason, although it was later included in the individual release. The Direct, and by extension, her announcement, was originally intended to air on September 6, 2018, but was delayed out of respect for those impacted by the [[Wikipedia:2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake|Hokkaidō earthquake]] that day. While not an Echo of Villager, her moveset is similar to theirs. In her debut trailer, "All in a Day's Work" ("A Hard Worker's Dream" in the UK version), she is briefly seen on [[Planet Zebes: Brinstar]], pouring water on Falco as he attempts to use his Fire Bird attack.

Isabelle was previously an Assist Trophy in ''Super Smash Bros. 4'', and is the third character in ''Smash'' history (after Little Mac and Dark Samus) to later become playable. She is the second former Assist Trophy to become playable in ''Ultimate'', after Dark Samus. Similarly, she's also the fourth summonable character to later become playable (as the first was Charizard, who had originally acted as a Poke Ball summon until ''Brawl'' and especially ''Smash 4''). Aside from this, she was also quasi-playable in the same game as a costume set for the Mii Fighters. She also had a brief cameo in the announce trailer for ''Smash 4'', where she watches alongside the other animals as the Villager runs by her in excitement at being invited to the new ''Smash 4'' game.

In ''[[List of cameos and crossovers in other games#Nintendo Badge Arcade|Nintendo Badge Arcade]]'', there is an unlockable badge of Isabelle wearing Samus's [[Varia Suit]].

<gallery>
Isabelle.png|''Ultimate''
NBA Metroid Set 4.png|''Nintendo Badge Arcade''
</gallery>

===Ken===
:''"Ken" redirects here. For other uses, see [[Ken (Disambiguation)]].''
'''Ken Masters''' is a character from ''Street Fighter''. He was confirmed to appear in ''Ultimate'' in the November 1, 2018 Nintendo Direct in a joint trailer with Incineroar. His presence in the game had been leaked in a screenshot before his confirmation. He acts as an Echo Fighter for Ryu.

Prior to his formal debut in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series, Zero Suit Samus adopted his position in Ryu's reveal poster for ''Smash 4'', which was derived from promotional artwork for ''Street Fighter II: The World Warrior''.

<gallery>
File:Ken.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Incineroar===
'''Incineroar''' is a Pokémon from the series of the same name who was introduced in Generation VII of the franchise. He was confirmed in the November 1 Nintendo Direct in a joint trailer with Ken. It was added in to have a more professional wrestling-type character be utilized for ''Ultimate'', and to promote the Generation VII Pokémon games (which, at the time of development was entering release).<ref>https://www.sourcegaming.info/2018/12/12/sakurai-tells-more-details-about-smash-ultimates-development/ </ref><ref>https://twitter.com/AllSourceGaming/status/1062726902341746691</ref>

<gallery>
File:Incineroar.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Piranha Plant===
'''Piranha Plant''' is a recurring enemy from the ''Mario'' series. It was confirmed as a downloadable fighter after the game's launch in the November 1 Direct. Similar to Mewtwo in the previous game, Piranha Plant was available for free to players who pre-ordered or bought ''Ultimate'' between November 1, 2018 and January 31, 2019, and was released on January 29. It is separate from the five DLC characters who are part of the Fighter's Pass, and was not added to the panoramic artwork until its release.

Although Piranha Plants themselves have yet to appear in the ''Metroid'' series in any capacity, the [[Air Hole]]s present in the [[NES]]/[[FDS]] ''Metroid'', and to a lesser extent ''Super Metroid'' and ''Zero Mission'' bear a strong resemblance to their common habitat: the Warp Pipe. The original game's tongue-in-cheek instruction manga, ''[[Victory Techniques for Metroid]]'', even had Samus briefly mistake it for a Warp Pipe.

Samus appears in the gameplay portion of Piranha Plant's debut trailer, where she is knocked away by its spiked ball after blowing it at her (based on [[w:c:mario:Ptooey|Ptooey]]).

<gallery>
File:Piranha Plant.png|''Ultimate''
</gallery>

===Joker===
"'''Joker'''" is the codename used for the protagonist of ''[[Wikipedia:Persona 5|Persona 5]]''. His civilian name can be chosen by the player, but in related media he is named '''Ren Amamiya'''. He was confirmed on December 6, 2018 during the Spike Video Game Awards to be the first DLC character for ''Ultimate'' as part of the Fighter's Pass. Samus appears briefly as an apparition in his trailer. He acts as the third character to hail from an M-rated game/franchise following Snake and Bayonetta, and the third character to hail from SEGA, following Sonic and Bayonetta.

He was released on April 17, 2019 as part of Challenger Pack 1. He fights on Frigate Orpheon and Brinstar in his gameplay reveal trailer.

Zero Suit Samus and Ridley appear as assistant fighters for Puppet Fighters housing ''Persona''-related spirits (Phantom Thieves of the Heart and Igor, respectively).

<gallery>
Joker.png
Samus in Joker trailer.png|Samus's apparition.
Zero Suit Samus and Joker shooting ducks.png|Image tweeted by Sakurai on November 25, 2021.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 25 November 2021 10:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1464066383625564200</ref>
</gallery>

===Hero===
The '''Hero''' is the protagonist of ''Dragon Quest''. His default appearance is the Luminary from ''Dragon Quest XI'', and has alternate costumes of other ''Dragon Quest'' protagonists, such as Erdrick. He was confirmed to be the second character in the Fighter Pass on June 11, 2019. Hero was released on July 30, 2019.

Zero Suit Samus appears in gameplay during his reveal trailer ''Heroic Encounter'', sitting with him and Zelda beside a fire blast, as if it was a campfire. Ridley and Zero Suit Samus later appear as Puppet Fighters in the second cinematic portion. Both Puppet Fighters are then defeated in gameplay footage, with Ridley being caught in the Hero's final smash near the ending of the trailer.

<gallery>
File:Hero.png
File:The Hero trailer Puppet Fighter ZSS 1.png|Ridley and Zero Suit Samus Puppet Fighters in ''Heroic Encounter''
File:The Hero trailer Puppet Fighter ZSS 2.png|Zero Suit Samus Puppet Fighter in ''Heroic Encounter''
</gallery>

===Banjo & Kazooie===
'''Banjo & Kazooie''' are the titular protagonists of the series of the same name, which began its life on [[Nintendo 64]] but later became a Microsoft franchise with their acquisition of Rare Ltd. They were announced as the collective third downloadable character in ''Ultimate'' on June 11, 2019, the same day as Hero. They were released on September 5, 2019. They are technically the third Rare-created character to be used in the ''Smash'' games, after Diddy Kong and King K. Rool (Donkey Kong and Fox McCloud both originated with Nintendo before being used in Rare games). It marked the first time since ''Banjo-Pilot'' that the duo have appeared in a Nintendo game, and the first time since the Xbox version of ''Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing'' that the two have appeared in a game at all.

Prior to their reveal, Microsoft executive vice-president Phil Spencer stated in 2015 that Microsoft was willing to license Banjo and Kazooie to appear in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series, if Nintendo asked. In the ''Melee'' era, [[Masahiro Sakurai]] addressed fan questions about their inclusion by saying that it would be difficult to include them or [[Wikipedia:James Bond|James Bond]] because of licensing issues.

Like in King K. Rool's debut trailer, "The Rivals", an image of Samus and Ridley fighting was briefly shown in a montage at the beginning of Banjo & Kazooie's trailer, "Best Friends".<ref>https://youtu.be/iOlsY0WzqYA</ref>

Ridley acts as the puppet fighter for the Buzzbomb enemy from ''Banjo Kazooie'', a slight pun on how the Buzzbomb was modeled after a dragonfly.

Samus previously appeared alongside Banjo and Kazooie at the very end of ''Die Hexe lacht um Mitternacht'' (The Witch Laughs at Midnight), the final issue of the German comic ''N-Gang''.

<gallery>
File:Banjo-Kazooie.jpg
N-Gang Samus cameo.png|Samus with Banjo, Kazooie, Kirby, Luigi, Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Yoshi and the titular N-Gang in the comic.
</gallery>

===Terry===
'''Terry Bogard''' is the main protagonist of the ''Fatal Fury'' series. He was confirmed as the fourth character in the Fighter Pass in the September 4, 2019 [[Nintendo Direct]]. Terry's addition to ''Ultimate'' was foreshadowed a few days prior in a DLC leak on Nintendo.co.uk, which indicated that the next fighter would be an [[Wikipedia:SNK|SNK]] character. He is the first third-party character to hail from a NEO GEO gaming franchise, which is even highlighted in his debut trailer. He was released on November 6, 2019.

<gallery>
Terry.png
</gallery>

===Byleth===
'''Byleth''' is the main protagonist of ''[[Wikipedia:Fire Emblem: Three Houses|Fire Emblem: Three Houses]]''. Byleth can be played as a male or female character. Largely because of this, as well as their technically being different characters in the Japanese versions (the male being called "Bereto" and the female being called "Beresu"), Byleth is the first playable character to have two taglines instead of one, with the male Byleth having "Byleth Joins Smash House" (a reference to a core plot element of their debut game) and the female Byleth having "Byleth Recruits… Byleth!". They were originally meant to be part of the default roster for ''Ultimate'', although because of Masahiro Sakurai needing to get a feel for them before implementing them, they were instead delayed to being DLC. They were confirmed as the fifth character in the Fighter Pass, and the only Nintendo character, in the January 16, 2020 presentation by Sakurai. They were be released on January 28th.

Ridley in his red colorization makes a cameo in Byleth's showcase trailer "The Ashen Demon" (more specifically, during the weapons gameplay portion), where he is taken out by Byleth's fully charged Failnaught. Similarly, near the tail end of the trailer, Zero Suit Samus attacks Byleth in the marketplace area of Garreg Mach Monastery, only for her to be swung around and then launched into the air. In addition during the tag battle sequence late into the Nintendo Direct coverage announcing Byleth, one of the fighters utilized Mother Brain.

Female Byleth is voiced in Japanese by [[Shizuka Itō]], who voiced [[MB]] in the Japanese version of ''[[Metroid: Other M]]''.

<gallery>
Byleth.png
</gallery>

===Min Min===
'''Min Min''' is a playable fighter from ''ARMS''. During the March 26, 2020 [[Nintendo Direct]] Mini, it was revealed that the first fighter of the second Fighter's Pass would be an ''ARMS'' character, and it was revealed to be Min Min on June 22, 2020. Largely due to lockdown orders stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the announcement was made from Sakurai's living room (with the video also indicating that the announcement was originally intended to be issued on May 2). She was released on June 29, and is the first playable character to have formerly been a [[spirit]]. Sakurai revealed that he had planned for an ''ARMS'' character to be included in ''Ultimate'', but because ''ARMS'' hadn't actually entered development by the time character planning for ''Ultimate'' had ended, he instead relegated the ''ARMS'' character to DLC, with Min Min specifically being the representative by special request from the ''ARMS'' producer Kosuke Yabuki.

Her announcement came with two drawings shared on Twitter, one of which she sits next to Captain Falcon in a ramen bar with Zero Suit Samus among several fighters seated behind them, while the other has various fighters fighting against Min Min, with Samus and Fox pointing their arm cannon and blaster, respectively. In the gameplay of her announce trailer, Zero Suit Samus alongside Villager got knocked back by Min-Min's punch at Reset Bomb Forest, while Samus at one point tries to use her charge beam at Min Min, only for the latter to deflect the charge shot back at her and knock her away at Tomodachi Life.

<gallery>
Min Min.png
Samus, Min Min and Captain Falcon eating ramen.jpg|Artwork released with the reveal.<ref>ARMS (ARMS_Cobutter). "バネバネ！ ついに！『大乱闘スマッシュブラザーズ SPECIAL』に参戦するARMSファイターが明かされました。 なみいるファイターたちの中で大乱闘への招待状を手にしたのは、ミェンミェン！ 愛する麺天飯食堂の、そしてARMSの看板娘として、頑張ってくださーい！ #スマブラSP" 22 June 2020 10:45 a.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/ARMS_Cobutter/status/1275077388875915265</ref>
</gallery>

===Steve===
'''Steve''' is a playable fighter and the fan-dubbed name of the playable character in ''Minecraft''. On October 1, 2020, he was revealed in a short presentation as the second downloadable fighter. More information was revealed on October 3, and Steve was released on October 13. Steve's alternate costumes are based on his female equivalent Alex, a Zombie and an Enderman, enemies in the franchise. He is also the second playable character to have more than one tagline introducing him, after Byleth, as well as the fourth character to be composed of more than one character, after Pokemon Trainer as well as Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings. Specifically, Steve's tagline is "Rocks the Block!", while Alex, Zombie and Enderman's taglines are "Swaps In!", "Spawns In!", and "Steps from the Shadows!" Samus appears in the tail end of his debut trailer, where she attempts to charge up her Charge Shot, only to be blasted away by Alex with her TNT move.

<gallery>
Steve.png
Dark Samus jumping on Minecraft stage.jpg|Image tweeted by Sakurai on October 2, 2020.<ref>Sakurai, Masahiro (Sora_Sakurai). 2 October 2020 11:00 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1312225865376423937</ref>
</gallery>

===Sephiroth===
'''Sephiroth''' is the main antagonist of ''Final Fantasy VII'', and a major antagonist in the extended ''Final Fantasy'' universe. He was announced as the third playable character of the second Fighter Pass at The Game Awards on December 10, 2020. He was released later that month. Prior to his debut as DLC, he was indirectly alluded to in ''Smash 4'' and ''Ultimate''.

Samus appears in the cinematic portion his trailer, being knocked back by an attack from Galeem. She and several other fighters ready to face him when Sephiroth slices Galeem in half.

Ridley is among the villains paired up with Sephiroth in the Dark Reunion spirit board, an indirect reference to the [[w:c:Reunion Theory|Reunion theory]] in Sephiroth's home game, which Sephiroth played a key role in enacting.

During the transition between the second and third phase of the final battle with [[Raven Beak]] in ''[[Metroid Dread]]'', Samus shoots off the latter's right wing, ironically having him resemble Sephiroth's One-Winged Angel form, although Raven Beak proceeds to rip the other wing off.

<gallery>
Sephiroth SSBU.png
Samus in Sephiroth trailer 1.png
Samus in Sephiroth trailer 2.png
Samus in Sephiroth trailer 3.png
</gallery>

===Pyra / Mythra===
'''Pyra''' and '''Mythra''' are major characters in ''Xenoblade Chronicles 2''. They are Blades, lifeforms that serve as anthropomorphic personifications of weapons (in their case, the legendary Aegis Sword) and are wielded by Rex, the main protagonist of said game. Pyra is an alternate personality created by Mythra out of shame, and the two share a body. They were announced as the second Fighter Pass' collective fourth character during the Nintendo Direct on February 17, 2021. While classified as separate fighters, the two share a character slot and can transform into one another, similar to Samus and Zero Suit Samus and Zelda and Sheik (prior to ''Smash'' on 3DS and Wii U) and the Pokémon Trainer.

Samus, Zero Suit Samus and Ridley appear in Pyra and Mythra's trailer. In gameplay, Pyra is seen using her Smash Flare on Samus, a Smash Attack on Hero on the [[Planet Zebes: Brinstar Depths|Brinstar Depths]] stage, and Mythra attacks Ridley with her Ray of Punishment move. In cinematics, [[Zero Suit Samus]] runs towards Pyra and fires a [[Paralyzer]] shot that she dodges. Zero Suit Samus then tries to use a [[Boost Kick]] and spin kick on her, knocking her back. After Pyra's transformation into Mythra, Zero Suit Samus tries to launch another midair kick towards her, but with Mythra's Foresight, she evades the attack and sends Samus flying. Zero Suit Samus's role in the reveal trailer is directly referenced by ''Mr. Sakurai Presents "Pyra/Mythra"'', in which she is selected as one of Pyra and Mythra's opponents in Squad Strike.<ref>[https://youtu.be/XeDBCgDSiB4?t=1543 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - Mr. Sakurai Presents "Pyra/Mythra"]</ref> 

In their Classic Mode route, "Shared Destinies", the duo must defeat Samus and Dark Samus aboard the [[Frigate Orpheon]] during the second round. Furthermore, Zero Suit Samus, Dark Samus, and Ridley all appear as opponents in their ''Xenoblade Chronicles 2'' Spirit Board. A black-clad Zero Suit Samus is the primary opponent for the robot character Poppi α, but actually represents her final form Poppi QTπ;  a white Dark Samus is used for the villain Praetor Amalthus; and multiple green Meta Ridley appear as minions during the Malos Spirit Battle, representing Blade Bots.

<gallery>
Pyra and Mythra.png|Pyra (left) and Mythra (right)
Zero Suit Samus in Pyra and Mythra trailer 1.png|Zero Suit Samus in the trailer.
Zero Suit Samus in Pyra and Mythra trailer 2.png
Zero Suit Samus in Pyra and Mythra trailer 3.png
Zero Suit Samus in Pyra and Mythra trailer 4.png
Zero Suit Samus in Pyra and Mythra trailer 5.png
</gallery>

===Kazuya===
'''Kazuya Mishima''' is a character from the ''Tekken'' series. He was announced as the fifth fighter of the second Pass on June 15, 2021, during the Nintendo Direct at E3 2021. He was fully unveiled on June 28th, and released the next day.

Samus and Zero Suit Samus both appear in gameplay during his reveal trailer. In particular, Samus attempts to rush him, only for Kazuya to launch a charged punch, stunning her long enough for him to promptly kick her away with roundhouse kicks. Zero Suit Samus in her black costume, likewise, tries to attack Kazuya, only for him to morph into his Devil Gene form and launch her.

In his home series of ''Tekken'', more specifically ''Tekken Tag Tournament'', the Zero Suit made a cameo as an unlockable costume for female characters.

<gallery>
Kazuya.png
</gallery>

===Sora===
'''Sora''' is the main protagonist of the ''Kingdom Hearts'' series. He was announced as the sixth and final fighter of the second Fighter Pass on October 5th, 2021, and was hinted at as early as September 23. His announcement trailer is a deliberate call back to the first teaser for ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', and features Samus and Dark Samus in [[trophy]] form.

According to Sakurai, Sora was the actual winner of the 2015 fighter ballot for ''Super Smash Bros. for the 3DS and Wii U'', but he was replaced at the time with [[Bayonetta]] due to his highly complicated character rights, owned by Square Enix and Disney.

<gallery>
Sora.png
Samus in Sora trailer 1.png|Samus and Dark Samus in Sora's trailer, amongst other characters on the lower left.
Samus in Sora trailer 2.png
Samus in Sora trailer 3.png|Trophies of Samus and Dark Samus.
Samus in Sora trailer 4.png
</gallery>

==Scrapped or considered characters==
Certain characters were planned or considered for a particular installment, but were scrapped and have yet to debut as a playable fighter in the series. This section does not count characters who were scrapped for an installment but made their debut in a later one.
*A number of characters were considered to represent the [[NES]] era of Nintendo in ''Melee'', including the '''Balloon Fighter''' from ''[[Wikipedia:Balloon Fight|Balloon Fight]]'', the protagonist of ''[[Wikipedia:Urban Champion|Urban Champion]]'', '''Bubbles''' from ''[[wikipedia:Clu Clu Land|Clu Clu Land]]'' and an '''Excitebiker''' from ''[[Wikipedia:Excitebike|Excitebike]]''. Ultimately, the Ice Climbers were chosen. The Excitebiker became an Assist Trophy starting in ''Brawl'', while Balloon Fighter appeared as a trophy in ''Melee'' as well as to some extent had his moves incorporated into Villager in ''Smash 4'', and Bubbles was relegated to a collectible trophy in ''Melee'' and a spirit in ''Ultimate'', and the protagonist of ''Urban Champion'' acts as a collectible spirit in ''Ultimate''.
*'''Ayumi Tachibana''' from ''[[Wikipedia:Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha|Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha]]'' was considered for ''Melee'', but scrapped as Masahiro Sakurai knew that she would be unfamiliar to Western audiences since her games were exclusive to Japan. She appears in-game as a trophy.
*'''Leif Faris Clausen''' was initially planned to act alongside Marth as the representative for ''Fire Emblem'' in ''Melee'', but was replaced with Roy in order to promote the then-upcoming ''Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade''. However, he was retained to a degree as one of Marth's alternate costumes as well as a spirit fighter.
*Unused, mostly empty character data files referencing "dixie", "toon_zelda" and "toon_sheik" are present in the internal data of ''Brawl''. These are assumed to refer to '''Dixie Kong''' from the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise and '''Toon Zelda''', the cel-shaded equivalent of Princess Zelda, with an accompanying cel-shaded version of Sheik, which has never been seen in the ''Legend of Zelda'' franchise. Sakurai stated that Dixie was intended to appear with Diddy Kong as a playable duo, but the idea was scrapped after running into technical issues.<ref>http://www.geocities.jp/bgrtype/gsl/words2/dairantosmabrax/smashbrothersx.html</ref>
*'''Geno''' from ''[[Wikipedia:Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars|Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars]]'' was considered for inclusion in ''Brawl'', and was popularly requested. He was not implemented, likely due to copyright issues with Square Enix, who co-own the character rights of Geno with [[Nintendo]].<ref>http://sourcegaming.info/2016/02/21/nintendodream3/</ref> However, Geno would appear as a Spirit in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''. 
*'''Blastoise''' was considered for inclusion as part of the Pokémon Trainer's team in ''Brawl'', but Sakurai chose Squirtle instead, partially to establish a balance in size and stages of the trainer's Pokémon.<ref>http://sourcegaming.info/2016/04/29/duflupdate/</ref>
*'''Krystal''' from ''Star Fox'', another popularly requested character, was considered for ''Brawl'' but passed over due to time constraints in favor of Wolf, who could be more quickly implemented based on Fox and Falco's models. Sakurai stated that Krystal would have required her own model and moveset.<ref>http://sourcegaming.info/2015/08/17/sakuraibrawlquestions/</ref> She appears as an Assist Trophy in ''Ultimate''.
*Data mining of the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U games has revealed an unused emblem reference for a ''[[Wikipedia:Rhythm Heaven|Rhythm Heaven]]'' character, potentially the Chorus Men.<ref>http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/01/26/smash-4-wii-u-data-discoveries</ref>
*'''Alph''' from ''Pikmin'' is implied from interviews and design documents to have been intended as a clone of Olimar. He appears as an alternate costume of Olimar in the final games.
*'''Bartz Klauser''', the main protagonist of ''Final Fantasy V'', was originally considered among Sakurai's first choice to represent the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise. However, he went with Cloud instead, due to fearing that no one was familiar with who Bartz was.<ref name="Bartz and Terra planned before Cloud">[http://www.sourcegaming.info/2016/01/20/sakurai-x-nomura-creator-interview-2016-part-one/ <nowiki>Sakurai x Nomura: Creator Interview 2016 [Part One]</nowiki>]</ref>
*'''Terra Branford''', the main protagonist of ''Final Fantasy VI'' (titled ''Final Fantasy III'' in the SNES release outside Japan) was also originally considered among Sakurai's first choices to represent the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise. However, Cloud was chosen instead, for the same reason why Bartz was rejected.<ref name="Bartz and Terra planned before Cloud" />
*'''Takamaru''', the protagonist of ''[[Wikipedia:The Mysterious Murasame Castle|The Mysterious Murasame Castle]]'', was briefly considered for a playable role in both ''Melee'' and ''Smash 4'', but scrapped due to his low current relevance. He appears in ''Smash 4'' and ''Ultimate'' as an Assist Trophy.<ref>http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/03/22/mewtwo-dlc-takamaru-and-sakurais-nico-nico-appearance/</ref>
*'''[[Wikipedia:Heihachi Mishima|Heihachi Mishima]]''' from the ''[[Wikipedia:Tekken|Tekken]]'' series was briefly considered as Bandai Namco Entertainment's representative in ''Smash 4'', but Pac-Man was chosen instead; partially because Sakurai felt that implementing his moveset would be difficult.<ref>https://sourcegaming.wordpress.com/2015/06/26/800</ref>
*'''Decidueye''' from ''Pokémon Sun & Moon'' was initially considered to be part of the ''Ultimate'' roster, although it was removed in favor of Incineroar.<ref>https://www.eurogamer.net/amp/2019-01-21-super-smash-bros-ultimate-nearly-featured-decidueye-instead-of-incineroar</ref>
*'''''Breath of the Wild'' Zelda''' was considered, although she was ultimately rejected in favor of her ''A Link Between Worlds'' depiction, with Masahiro Sakurai explaining during the announcement of Byleth's inclusion that a large part of the decision to nix the design was because, having played through an advance pre-release version of ''Breath of the Wild'' as research material for the then-in development ''Ultimate'', Zelda's fairly minimal role in that game was deemed inappropriate for a fighter game. However, she was included to some capacity as a [[Spirit]].
*''Ninjara'' was considered to be the DLC representative for ''ARMS'' in ''Ultimate'', although the spot ultimately went to Min Min instead. He appears in the game as a Spirit.
*During ''Ultimate''<nowiki/>'s development, Sakurai had considered adding characters from ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenoblade_Chronicles_2 Xenoblade Chronicles 2]''.{{fact}} However, that game was not announced until after he had completed the roster early in development, in order to secure all returning fighters. However, he passed them over years later and Pyra and Mythra were later added to the roster as the tenth DLC fighter on the February 17th, 2021 Nintendo Direct as downloadable content in March 2021.<ref>[https://www.ign.com/articles/super-smash-bros-ultimates-new-dlc-character-is-pyra-from-xenoblade-chronicles-2]</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[ru:Список персонажей серии игр Super Smash Bros.]]
[[Category:Lists|Characters in the Super Smash Bros. series]]
[[Category:Super Smash Bros.]]