The next downloadable character for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be the protagonist from Microsoft’s Minecraft, Nintendo announced Thursday morning.
Like a few other Smash characters, the Minecraft character will be available in several different versions, to account for their nature as a character-created avatar. This includes Steve and Alex, the typical male and female Minecraft default characters, as well as the option to play as monsters like Zombies or Endermen.
Steve & Alex’s fighting style involves the use of traditional Minecraft tools like picks, swords, and bombs, as well as being able to place solid blocks throughout the fighting arena. While there isn’t much information available right now beyond what can be seen from the short reveal trailer (below), a more in-depth presentation on the characters is planned for Oct. 3 at 7:30 AM Pacific, in advance of this year’s Minecraft Live online show.
Minecraft is the most popular video game in the world. The news that Minecraft was getting into Smash is probably why Twitter crashed early this morning, as social media lit up over the reveal.
Initially created in 2009 by Swedish developer Markus “Notch” Persson, Minecraft is a notoriously open-ended creation game, where players are placed into a randomly-generated open world to harvest materials, dodge monsters, and build whatever they like. Persson later co-founded Mojang Specifications with Carl Mannneh and Jakob Porser to continue to develop Minecraft; in 2014, Mojang was acquired outright by Microsoft and rebranded as Mojang Studios.
Steve and Alex from @Minecraft are joining the #SmashBrosUltimate roster! Get ready to mine and craft your victories on the battlefield! pic.twitter.com/CtBNfENjEE
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) October 1, 2020
SAKURAI FINALLY REVEALED MINECRAFT STEVE FOR SUPER SMASH BROS. The character we've all been wanting and waiting for. In today's Octo. Music: Halland / DalarnaSource: Minecraft DungeonsArrangement Supervisor: ACE (TOMOri Kudo / CHiCO)Composition: Mojang ABArrangement: SEKAI WALKER Producers.
Minecraft Smash Bros Seed
Since then, Minecraft has been ported to virtually every operating system and active console in the face of the planet, and is still famously platform-agnostic despite being owned by Microsoft; Minecraft is available even on competitors’ hardware, such as OS X and the PlayStation 4. As of May of this year, Minecraft had sold over 200 million units worldwide, which makes it the best-selling game of all time by a significant margin; nothing else even comes close.
This is only the second character in Smash Bros. Ultimate’s cast to come from a Western studio, after Banjo & Kazooie’s debut in September of 2019. Notably, Banjo & Kazooie are also Microsoft-owned, as they were created by the British studio Rare, which Microsoft purchased in 2002.
The Minecraft character crossover is the first announcement of any kind about Smash DLC from Nintendo since June 22, following the debut of the previous character, Min Min from the Switch-exclusive brawler Arms. This is an unusual period of silence from the Smash team, but the game’s producer Masahiro Sakurai has noted before that due to COVID-19 restrictions in Japan, his team has largely been working from home for the last eight months or so. Most of Sakurai’s trademark presentations this year have been recorded from his living room.
© Provided by Geekwire Masahiro Sakurai, producer of Smash Bros. Ultimate , speaks for us all. (YouTube screenshot)Minecraft In Smash Bros Ultimate
According to Sakurai, the introduction of Steve/Alex forced the Smash team to have to rework many of the game’s background stages to account for the character’s ability to place blocks, which is unique among the cast. While Steve and Alex still use the trademark rectangular Minecraft models, which meant they didn’t require complicated animation or voice acting, designing their Smash versions to account for Minecraft‘s trademark construction abilities was a “massive challenge.”
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate debuted in December of 2019 as an exclusive title for the Nintendo Switch. While it’s slightly controversial to call it a fighting game in fan circles, as it eschews many of the typical features of the genre, it’s nonetheless considered to be the best-selling fighting game of all time, with over 19 million units sold as of June of 2020. As the Switch itself has sold around 63 million units at time of writing, this means that almost a full third of Switch owners also have a copy of Ultimate.
Steve & Alex, like other DLC characters in Smash, will be automatically downloaded on release to players who already own the second Fighter’s Pass. If they’re priced like previous characters, they’ll be available individually for $5.99, which will include a new background stage and some remixed music.
This is a list of music tracks from the Minecraft series available in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. These tracks are available to play on the Minecraft World stage, as well as Battlefield, Small Battlefield, Big Battlefield, and Final Destination. Halland / Dalarna[edit]
Origin[edit]A new remix of the two camp themes from Minecraft Dungeons. Like the original songs, the arrangement is led by a piano, but the tempo is much faster paced and it also incorporates electric guitar riffs, a modern drum kit and string sections. The piano and guitar were performed by Takayuki Yoshimura and Yuya Komoguchi respectively, with Tomotaka Saka serving as the recording and mixing engineer.[1][2] Halland and Dalarna are both names of provinces in Sweden. When played on Minecraft World, the music syncs up with the stage's day-&-night cycle, as it will become more calm during sunset and nightime, before gradually picking up and returning to normal during sunrise and daytime, after which the song will loop back to the start. However, it will become desynchronized if the game is paused or the gameplay speed is altered. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Dungeons Arrangement Supervisor: ACE (TOMOri Kudo / CHiCO) Composition: Mojang AB Arrangement: SEKAI WALKER Producers LLC. Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track was used in Steve's reveal trailer and in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing Alex's neutral special. Earth[edit]
Origin[edit]A new remix of the main theme from Minecraft Earth. It is done in an upbeat orchestral style and also contains a drum-and-bass beat, compared to the original's calm slow-paced piano. However, it still retains the piano in some parts of the track. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Earth Arrangement Supervisor: Mitsuhiro Kitadani Composition: Mojang AB Arrangement: BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc. Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing the Minecraft World stage. It is also used on the Minecraft Spirit Board and in Steve's Classic Mode credits. Clockwork Crafter[edit]
Origin[edit]This was one of the Battle Mini Game themes that could play on the Steampunk map, with the song being taken directly from the original game. Composed by Gareth Coker. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Composition and arrangement Copyright Mojang AB Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing Steve's standard moves that don't use tools. Toys on a Tear[edit]
Origin[edit]A new remix of one of the Battle Mini Game themes that could play on the Shrunk map. It is faithful to the original, but it also includes acoustic and electric guitars as well as the FM synth style instrumentation from the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive's chip in place of the chimes, a style often used by the arranger. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Arrangement Supervisor: Yuzo Koshiro Composition: Mojang AB Arrangement: Ancient-corp. Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing Steve's characteristics. Dance of the Blocks[edit]
Origin[edit]A new remix of one of the Battle Mini Game themes that could play on the Shrunk map. Like the previous remix, it is very faithful to the original, but it also includes lighter percussion as well as a timpani, and is generally more subdued and calmer. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Arrangement Supervisor: Yoko Shimomura Composition: Mojang AB Arrangement: Midiplex Co., Ltd. Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when showing Steve's standard moves involving tools. Glide[edit]
Origin[edit]A new remix of one of the Glide Mini Game themes, which previously went unnamed in the Legacy Console Edition. It is done in an orchestral style like the original, but incorporates a loop and new instruments like acoustic guitar. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Arrangement Supervisor: Hiroki Hashimoto Composition: Mojang AB Arrangement: BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc. Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing Minecart, Elytra and TNT. Trivia[edit]
The Arch-Illager[edit]
Origin[edit]A new orchestral remix of the Arch-Illager's boss theme from Minecraft Dungeons. It remains faithful to the original complete with a choir, but also incorporates a modern drum kit and elements of piano. Composition & Arrangements[edit]Source: Minecraft Dungeons Arrangement: Motoi Sakuraba Composition: Mojang AB Composition Copyright Mojang AB Arrangement Copyright Nintendo Other uses[edit]This track is used in Mr. Sakurai Presents 'Steve & Alex' when discussing the music selection, as well as during the Mii Costume reveal for Creeper, Pig, and the Diamond Armor. Trivia[edit]
References[edit]
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||