The latest update patch for the 3DS version of Super Smash Bros. contains more than just a lot of nitty gritty balance changes to the game's fighters (including a much-needed downgrade for Diddy Kong). A couple of hidden, encyrpted files included with the update also point to the possibility that Street Fighter series regular Ryu could be making an appearance in the game in the future.

The files, labeled "snd_bgm_SF01_SF2_Ryu_3DS" and "snd_bgm_Z81_F_Ryu_3DS," were first discovered by a reddit user active in the Nintendo hacking community (who sheepishly admitted that he didn't even know who Ryu was) and were later confirmed by the editors of The Cutting Room Floor Wiki, a must-visit resource for hidden and deleted bits from classic games. Those files contain pitch-perfect recreations of Ryu's stage background music and winning quote music from Street Fighter II. Other unused sound files in the code's "bgm" folder point to new characters like Earthbound's Lucas, who was previously confirmed as a future bit of DLC, and Roy from the Fire Emblem series, who hasn't appeared in the Super Smash Bros. since Melee.

Since the beginning of the month, Nintendo has been actively seeking fan suggestions for new fighters to add to already sizeable roster . Ryu would be right at home in, which has over the years gone from a showcase for Nintendo characters to a showcase for all sorts of Japanese gaming mascots, from Sega's Sonic and Konami's Solid Snake to Namco/Bandai's Pac-Man and fellow Capcom creation Mega Man. Of course, if Capcom gets a second fighter in the series, those other companies might expect to up their character counts as well. Maybe our dream of battling Simon Belmont, Tails, and Heihachi aren't as doomed as we thought.

Last December, Capcom confirmed that Street Fighter V will be a PlayStation 4 and PC exclusive later this year.