By: Christina Bargren

Nintendo fans had been waiting for over a year to hear news on the newest installment of Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo Switch. That wait ended back in March during the Nintendo press conference at E3 when the game was announced at the very end of the conference.

Further information about the game was released during the Nintendo Direct on August 8th, and then just recently on September 13th. The Directs gave fans a lot of information regarding the game especially about the characters, stages, music, and the official title: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

It has been revealed that every single character from past installments will be included along with a few newcomers. New additions to the roster include Inkling Boy and Girl from Splatoon, Daisy from Super Mario, Chrom from Fire Emblem, Ridley and Dark Samus from Metroid, Simon and Richter from Castlevania, King K. Rool from Donkey Kong, and Isabelle from Animal Crossing. Currently, there are 74 characters, with possibility of more being added.

In regards to stages and music, most stages and tracks from throughout the series will be making an appearance. Each stage will have three versions: Original, Omega, and Battlefield. It has been revealed that 107 stages and over 28 hours of music are included.

New features and game modes have also been added to improve gameplay. The rules selection is now the first thing the player will see when they start a game, easing game setup. Stage selection comes after, which adds to producing a strategy to win by picking a character that would work well with the selected stage. A bunch of new assist trophies, Pokemon, and items have also been added.

So far, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate looks like it will be a very fun and competitive fighting game for fans of all types. More information should be released throughout the year as fans wait for the big release, just in time for the holidays, on December 7th, 2018.