Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will feature every single character from the series’ history

Part of The best of E3 2018

Today Nintendo finally unveiled the next Super Smash Bros. for the Switch, and it looks to be the biggest and most comprehensive entry in the series to date. Called Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the new game will feature every single character from the series’ history, for a roster of more than 60 fighters. That includes DLC from the Wii U version of the fighter, like Final Fantasy VII’s Cloud and Ryu from Street Fighter, as well as long-forgotten characters like Metal Gear Solid’s Snake.

Photo by Bob Riha, Jr./Nintendo via Getty Images “I speak from the depths of my heart when I say it’s a lot of work.” - director Masahiro Sakurai on creating Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Despite mining the past so much, the new Smash Bros. isn’t a port — it’s a brand new game. All of the characters have been reworked, both in terms of how they look and how they play, to better fit the modern game. Link, for instance, now wears his tunic from Breath of the Wild, and he can wield remote bombs. Meanwhile, Mario now wears Cappy, the sentient hat that introduced a slew of new mechanics to Super Mario Odyssey. Many of the changes were made with the intention of speeding up the game.

There are also new stages, including a Great Plateau tower from Breath of the Wild, and a ramp-filled city scene from Splatoon 2 — Nintendo previously revealed that one of the new fighters in Ultimate is the ink-shooting Splatoon Inkling, who will be joined by Ridley from Metroid. There’s no word yet on what other new characters might make their way into the game.

It’ll be available on December 7th.