Another Smash, another non-playable Isaac.
Nintendo has revealed the two final fighters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and if you were hoping that Golden Sun’s Isaac to be one of them, then I’ve got bad news for you…he’s an assist trophy AGAIN.
Isaac has been an assist trophy since Nintendo introduced the feature in Super Smash Bros Brawl (2008), and it has been around that time that fans started asking for him to become a full-fledged character in his own right.
It wasn’t an unreasonable request either: not only is Golden Sun a popular series on the Gameboy Advance (Golden Sun, Golden Sun: The Lost Age) and Nintendo DS (Golden Sun: The Dark Age), but he as a character seemed like he would translate well into the Smash series, with his various Psyenergy being potential templates for special attacks and the Sol Blade’s unleash, Megiddo, as a Final Smash.
However, DLC characters never even came to Brawl, and he wasn’t chosen as one in Smash 4, with characters like Corrin, Roy and Bayonetta making the cut instead.
And now, judging from the most recent Smash Direct, he likely won’t be playable in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate either.
Needless to say, this is a disappointing turn of events for those who held up hope for those who anticipated his inclusion — especially after an alleged leak (now proven false) suggested that he would finally get his chance in the limelight, along the likes of Geno and Banjo-Kazooie.
Yet, despite all that, this result isn’t too surprising.
Though popular, Golden Sun is fairly old, with the most recent entry coming out in 2010, and there seems to be no attempts to revive interest in it. Meanwhile, Smash as a franchise suffers from a similar problem that crossover titles (Fire Emblem ones, specifically) have: there are too many sword characters. Ignoring characters like Link and Shulk, the mere presence of Fire Emblem in Smash means there are at least seven sword-wielding characters in Ultimate’s roster. Perhaps Nintendo figured it didn’t need another.
That said, don’t go writing off Isaac just yet — there’s still hope. At the end of the presentation, director Masahiro Sakurai confirmed there will be five DLC characters coming to Smash within the span of about a year. Perhaps Isaac could be one of them. Granted, it would be odd to see him as both a character and assist trophy, but he’s definitely worth a slot — especially if the Djinn system gets worked in somehow.
- This article was updated on November 1st, 2018
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