Hey there, Smashers! Today I want to talk about something maybe a little different than what which usually gets talked about around here.

Smash Brothers is a video game, in case it hadn’t occurred to you, and video games are one part game, one part video. They run on audio and/or visual output to create a connection with the player. The way your game looks and moves sends a lot of signals to the player. And in fighting games in particular, the way your characters act visually is really important for the player to grasp timing, hitboxes, power, character style, and more. There’s a lot of study and discussion about how visual stimuli affect a gameplay experience.

So today, I’m just gonna talk about that for a little, most specifically in relation to the newcomers. If you’re interested in animation or game dev and design or just how the newcomers move, maybe you might think what I say is interesting, provided I say anything worth hearing. I’m not really gonna be making predictions or discovering hidden information, just a little open dialogue about the visual character of some of our new smashers. I really like their motion, and I think the dev team has really brought us some interesting stuff that I’m excited about seeing, and excited about talking about. I mostly think they look cool, and there’s things to be said about how they look. And I want to say ‘em!

You might have picked up on a lot of this stuff on your own, depending on what kind of eye for visuals you’ve got. But if you wanna hear me talk about it, hit the break!



You might have heard the word “kinaesthetics” thrown around. It’s something of a game design buzz word, but I’m probably gonna need to touch on it a little bit. For those of you that don’t know, kinaesthetic sensation typically refers to the body’s ability to tell what position it’s parts are in in space. In video games, it’s a little different. It basically means how the sounds and sights of a game react to the player’s input, and to other things in the game, giving game objects a sense of character based on things like timing, energy, speed, loudness, etc. It’s a part of any video game in some way. In fighting games, the primary function of visual character is to help the player understand how a character works, and how each of their moves works. Let’s look at a quick example of what I’m talking about.

This is kirby’s down special. Upon pushing the button, the move starts up with a nice, juicy animation; Kirby halts in mid air, and particles move in towards him. This gives the player a really clear idea. His motion stops and he takes in energy, which communicates a really powerful, slow action that interrupts Kirby’s velocity abruptly. When the player activates this move, they should feel like they’ve started something strong and heavy and hard to interrupt and slow the opponent. This lets the player understand that this is a strong move that stops whatever your current momentum is. This kind of communication with the player is really important in a fighting game because fighting games are chiefly about two things: considering the timing of your attacks in relation to their strength, cool down time, flinch time, and the speed and position of your opponent. And two, learning a fighting strategy that takes advantage of the strengths and weaknesses and fighting styles of everyone on the battlefield. With a strong visual design, you can not only help the player learn and understand these things easier, but also make the experience juicy and satisfying, which is a good thing for any game to be! Who doesn’t like juicy and satisfying.

So let’s get to the meat of this article!

Rosalina:

From what we’ve seen, Rosalina is looking to be a unique character, with a cerebral play style that’s going to favor precision and technical strategy. Her animation style is one of the most unique we’ve seen, and borrows a lot from her appearances in other games. Super Mario 3D World, in particular, where she did lots of action-y stuff. See here, Rosy at dashing animation.



Her run cycle is healthily atypical. She leads into her run with her chest and waist, her legs, arms, and head trailing behind her like a balloon in the wind. In a platformer, the gameplay is comprised of you navigating your character’s body through a course. Just making sure your body lands in the right spot over and over. As such, Rosy here’s body takes the lead. You can think of an invisible string (you, the player) pulling her body (the important part) along, while the rest of her remains calm and follows at a respectable distance.



In Smash 4, Rosalina retains that character, though the focus of the gameplay shifts, obviously. Let’s take a look.



Here is some footage so you can see how she moves. Picking some words to describe her, you’d probably say something like “graceful,” “precise,” or “flowy.” Rosalina is a well designed character, and her motion design is no exception. Check it out.



Typically, when animating a character, especially doing something as aggressive as attacking other people, the character’s weight pushes into the action. The spine tilts forward, a foot steps up. The character puts the weight of their mass into the punch, creating an action that looks heavy and directed. Rosalina’s actions don’t usually carry such weight. When she moves, her hands lead. See in the above gifs (which aren’t great but the only acceptable ones I could find.) Rosy motions with her hand, which moves quickly and precisely. Her arm positions itself however it needs to to let the hand be in the right position, and her shoulder only moves if it needs to so the arm can be in position, and her chest only moves if it needs to so her shoulder can be in position. Basically, she has the visual character of Kermit the Frog. Kermit’s hand is on a little stick that the puppeteer moves. Kermit’s arm is directed by the hand, not the other way around, as is the case in normal circumstances for humans. And Rosalina has a very similar way of moving. See the attack she does at 1:42 and 1:56 of the first video; the shove looking attack that is likely a smash attack. Her hands push forward together, and her chest follows like it’s being pulled on a string, and her torso follows that. Her final pose has her legs in their standing position, with the rest of her body pointing in a straight line to where her hands are. In the first video at 24:12, you can see a move, likely her standard A, in which her body moves very little, retaining an almost identical silhouette, while her hand moves fast and mechanically. The farther down her arm, the more motion. At 24:31, we see her aerial forward, which is actually a kicking move. As she does this, her spine and arms actually stay still relative to each other. Her body just rotates into her opponent. This visual character is repeated in almost all of her moves. Her hands have the most motion, and the rest of her body only moves to follow their lead.



The effect created here is, of course, a focus on the movements of her hands. Just like how in Super Mario 3D World her dashing animation is made to focus on the movement of her body, here her entire movement is engineered as a way to move her hands. The rapid and defined, flawless movements of her hands make her appear dexterous and precise, highlighting her control of Luma and communicating to the player that Rosy is a character whose strength lies in precision and grace. Aside from that, it gives her an interesting look that’s entertaining just to watch; Rosalina only moves the parts of her body that she needs to, making her look calm, dignified, and graceful, like a space balloon princess. I actually find it kind of funny that the “puppeteer” fighter moves like a puppet does. Her visuals are really well done in my opinion and I could talk more about them, but let’s just move on.

Wii Fit Trainer(s):

Video here and here.

Wii Fit Trainer is my other favorite newcomer, in terms of movement. She’s very key frame heavy and snappy. Wii Fit trainer is essentially just a series of poses that she animates to and from, with very little ‘tweening frames. The poses are very mechanical and stable; Wii Fit trainer maintains perfect posture in every attack she does, while most other characters have more organic stances; slouched spines, bounciness, stuff to make them seem more alive and less static.



Her poses are built on geometric, strong gesture lines. You can see in the videos how she quickly snaps between each pose, complete with a sharp whistling sound to complete the effect. From a gameplay perspective, this demonstrates her agility and fitness, treating her muscles and bones like a parts of a machine. The player should be the same, executing the moves with precision. Deep Breathing is one of the only instances where she animates smoothly. This communicates a slower, more relaxed move, helping the player understand the vulnerability they put themselves in, and also the peaceful nature of the move. Aesthetically, WFT’s motions are great because they characterize her as a fighter who’s always in a workout session. It plays off of her role in Wii Fit, which is to show the player a series of poses. Wii Fit trainer is a really funny character, but also one who moves like a powerful fighter with balance, strength and speed, and her movement reflects both of these aspects excellently.

Little Mac:

Video here and here.

Little Mac doesn’t move with such exaggerated style as Rosalina or Wii Fit Trainer, but he definitely takes advantage of his animation to create character for himself.

When Little Mac runs, he pulls his arms in and ducks down, decreasing the size of his silhouette into a dense and compact shape. He throws the weight of his entire body into his punches, and all of his attacks are highlighted with very vibrant and aggressive color effects. It all comes together to show Mac as a fighter who puts all his weight and power into every action he does, despite his size. He’s a hard hitter. Aside from that, a lot of his attacks are ones that essentially utilize his own body as a projectile, complete with armor to prevent interrupting his momentum. Something you’ll also notice is that Little Mac’s body isn’t subject to any stretch and squish.



Many characters have body parts that grow or stretch when they attack, adding range and power. Little Mac doesn’t have any attacks like this, as far as we’ve seen. Which you might think is abnormal, considering that he’s confined to fighting exclusively with melee attacks. Instead, he lunges deep into his punches to add range, while his anatomy stays intact. Finally, as I’m sure we’re all aware, Little Mac has no air game. This encourages the player to stay on the ground, keeping a horizontal motion. It also communicates that Mac is a more solid player that requires stability. He has the visual character of a cannon ball. He communicates his force with his mass. He moves fast and hits hard and heavy. He’s all about putting as much density and weight into his form as possible to gain power. And that’s as much a punishment as it is a benefit. The mass he puts into himself is constantly pulling him down to the ground. It encourages the player to stay on the ground, while also helping the player understand his weak air game.

Mega Man:

I would talk about Mega Man in more detail, but honestly all there is to say is that he plays exactly like he does in his own games.

So there you go! I hope at least one person who read this thought it was a little interesting, and maybe I’ve given you some food for thought. Every character has a special way of moving. These guys are professionals! It’s fun to think about how they were animated to look, try analyzing one on your own sometime.