Nintendo to blame for too many 'Fire Emblem' characters in 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'

Last month, Nintendo finally revealed the final character included in the Fighter Pass for "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate" on the Switch. The unveiling was hosted by game director Masahiro Sakurai in a special segment called "Mr. Sakurai Presents '???" After Byleth was announced the protagonist of "Fire Emblem: Three Houses" majority of fans were reportedly outraged. His/her inclusion to the roster prompted the public to question why there are too many characters from the tactical role-playing series.

It looks like Masahiro Sakurai understands and agrees with players of the fighting game franchise, but offered an explanation as to why it came to be. While the common misconception is that he had the authority to decide on which character to include, everything was decided upon by Nintendo from the beginning. Nintendo Life notes that this was allegedly sourced from translated excerpts to be published by Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu.

Moreover, according to Sakurai, Byleth's inclusion was already determined when "Fire Emblem: Three Houses" was still in development. He apparently suggested a character he wanted to add to "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate," but was ultimately shot down by Nintendo. Shortly after the final character was introduced, the director confirmed Fighter Pass Season 2 was already in development.

Again, this irked some fans who have noticed an upsurge of DLC content instead of new installments. The game director pointed out that he continuously receives messages from people with requests to include a specific character. Sakurai explained that the entire roster for the second Fighter Pass DLC was already finalised.

He apologised in advance before asking consumers to continue their support for the game by pre-ordering the Fighter Pass 2 even without knowing who will be included. Nevertheless, even with an overwhelming number of "Fire Emblem" characters in the lineup, some of the most recent DLC add-ons were well-received by fans. Notable additions included Joker from "Persona 5." The Hero from the "Dragon Quest" series, Terry Bogard, Banjo & Kazooie.

Nintendo was recently criticised by players after it marked the third anniversary of "Fire Emblem Heroes" with a paid subscription pass. The new content gives paying users quality-of-life upgrades and more. It seems that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is not the only game to have issues with the "Fire Emblem" franchise.