As any fan of the fighting game knows by now, the remaining DLC fighter slots forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimateare few and far between. Everyone is wondering who Nintendo could’ve saved for last, should the two known slots truly be the end ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate’s line of DLCs. While it’s possible that Nintendo announces a third wave of DLCs, surprising fans like before, for now it looks like there really will only be two more fighters added toSmash Ultimate.Naturally those precious few slots spark heated debates about who is still worthy of an invitation. Although there’s too many demanded fighters to count, one of them isHorizon Zero Dawn’s Aloy.
What makes Aloy a little different from the other top candidates is that she isn’t an old friend. Out ofeveryone thatSmashfans want to seeadded, many of them are classic characters who have been around for a long time: Master Chief, Crash Bandicoot, the Doom Marine, Dante, Kratos – the list goes on. Aloy is only a newly established character, but she’s more than worthy of aSmashinvitation, considering how she’s one of the main faces of the PlayStation right now. Aloy’s broad arsenal of weapons and the lack of Sony representation inSmashwould make her perfect for one of the two remaining DLC fighter slots.
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Adding a Spearfighter
One criticism that fans frequently levy atSmashis that there’s too many swordfighters. There’s certainly a lot of them; while the very first game had only Link using a sword,Smash Ultimatefeatures a litany ofFire Emblemswordfighters, three different versions of Link, plus other characters like Shulk,Cloud Strife, and Sephirothwho come brandishing blades. Naturally fans are a little tired ofSmashfighters showing up and swinging sharp objects around. While Aloy’s spear would surely function similarly to a sword in some ways, she would probably still function very differently from most swordfighters.
There’s two characters who give a decent sense of what Aloy would look like as someone who uses a spear for most of their attacks.Fire Emblem’s Byleth is known for using a polearm, and Sephiroth’s sword is so long that he uses it rather like a spear sometimes. Aloy would probably have heavier, slower attacks with longer range than swords, but often moving in straight lines rather than sweeping motions. That makes for a lot of very different hitboxes from a sword. The complaints ofSmashfans aren’t against weapon users in general; in fact, fans often wishsome ofFire Emblem’s representativesfocused on weapons like axes instead, rather than not being there at all. Aloy’s spear would be a good way to bolsterSmash Ultimate’s weapon diversity.
Aloy’s Mastery of Range
If Aloy made it intoSmash,there’s no way that she wouldn’t be a zoner. So much ofHorizon Zero Dawnis played at long range that she would inevitably come packed with projectiles. One imagines that her neutral special would involve firing a bow like Link and Byleth. Nintendo could still set Aloy’s bow apart, though.Horizon Zero Dawnputs a huge emphasison elemental ammo, so maybe Aloy could switch between a couple arrow types for extra effects. A Shock or Freeze arrow could build up a stun, while a Corruption or Fire arrow could sacrifice initial damage and knockback in exchange for damage over time.
Bows are onlyone part of Aloy’s arsenal, though. She could use a Ropecaster or Tripcaster to put traps on the stage at range, keeping enemies at bay while she harasses them with projectiles and lunging spear attacks. There’s also the Sling and Blast Sling to consider. It’d be interesting to see Aloy use an attack like Snake’s Up Smash, firing a projectile rather than just swinging a weapon with extraordinary force. Conversely, Aloy might have something like a Rattler that encourages her to get up close. Having so many projectiles would definitely make Aloy a nuisance to deal with, so maybe Nintendo could balance it out by giving her an ammo system similar to Steve’s inventory or Robin’s spellbooks.
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Cause for Aloy’s Inclusion
Aloy’s theoretical kit offers all kinds of possibilities, but that alone isn’t why she should be included. She’s become really important to Sony’s brand, so she seems like a perfect candidate.Horizon Zero Dawnshone brightly on the PS4, and fans are really invested in seeing where the new franchise goes next. Her high visibility thanks toHorizon Forbidden Westmakes her very timely to include inSmash.It seems a little bit crucial that Sony gets intoSmashanyway. Microsoft is lending some of its finest characters toSmashso far, and meanwhile,Sony is missing out on a big opportunity.
Smashalso really needs more womenrepresented in its cast. While the video game industry is getting better and better at giving female protagonists the spotlight,Smash Ultimatehasn’t done the perfect job of representing that; it’s still overwhelmingly populated by men. That’s probably partially because so many of its characters are from the old days of the game industry where there were very few female protagonists to begin with, but as times change,Smashneeds to better reflect the industry and the gaming community as a whole.
Looking to Smash’s Future
The big question now is when the nextSmashfighter will be announced. With only about a month to go before E3, odds are Nintendo is waiting to reveal their next guest until then. E3 is a highly appropriate venue for that. In fact, someSmashfans speculate that both of the last two DLC fighters will get revealed at E3, even if one of them won’t release until the end of the year. E3 hosting the nextSmashannouncement might be bad for Aloy’s chances.Sony is famously skipping E3 again, and if Sony isn’t there, then it doesn’t seem likely that Nintendo will reveal a Sony fighter. It’d feel odd for Aloy to get her invitation without her parent company at E3 to celebrate with her. It’s also hard to say if Nintendo would save Aloy for a final announcement after E3.
Although circumstances are sort of bent against Aloy getting intoSmashright now, hope springs eternal. Nintendo keeps managing to surprise its fans time after time with announcements like Banjo and Kazooie, Sephiroth,andPersona 5’s Joker. If there’s hope for all of these distant characters, then maybe there’s hope for Aloy after all. If Nintendo decides to extendSmash Ultimate’s DLC production, then Aloy will be back in the running for sure.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimateis available now for Nintendo Switch.
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