Fans are Guessing that Dante is the New 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate' DLC Fighter
Apr. 22 2020, Updated 4:36 p.m. ET
Nintendo promised fans that, during a 35-minute live stream, they will get an in-depth look at the brand new DLC fighter coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. But many fans guessed that just announcing that the live stream is coming Jan. 16 was enough of a leak for us to guess that the new character will be Dante. Here's why fans were speculating that he'll soon be a DLC fighter and who the actual fighter is.
Many believed Nintendo accidentally leaked that Dante is the new 'Smash' character.
According to Nintendo's tweet, the livestream, hosted by Super Smash Bros. Ultimate director Masahiro Sakurai, would "feature an in-depth look at an upcoming DLC fighter". Which is good timing on their end, considering that they promised the new fighter would be a part of the game by February 2020.
Speaking of timing, though, the timing of the livestream had fans thinking that they've already cracked the code. Earlier in January, Capcom producer Matt Walker shared a video on Devil May Cry's Twitter, saying that, "We know this game holds a very special place in all of your hearts and so we wanted to show our appreciation. I guess you could say that we were feeling a little motivated to add a little something extra that we think you're all really going to like."
He went on to say, "So here are the key dates for you to circle on your calendar to check back for more info. Jan. 16. Jan. 30. And Feb. 13." Fans immediately couldn't help but notice that Jan. 16 just happens to be a big day for Capcom and for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
But Matt accidentally added even more fuel to this theory.
In the video, the initial announcement is that Devil May Cry is coming to the Nintendo Switch. While that may sound like it doesn't have that much to do with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate except that Super Smash Bros. is a Nintendo property just like the Switch is, it actually holds a deeper meaning.
A year ago, fans were already asking for Dante to be a part of Smash and Devil May Cry boss Hidaki Itsuno kind of squashed those rumors that he would appear in the game during an interview with VG247. He said that, because all the other characters in Super Smash Bros. already appeared games for Nintendo platforms, he didn't think that it was possible to have a Devil May Cry character show up as a fighter just yet.
"Devil May Cry has never been on a Nintendo platform. So it seems like the first thing to do would be to get Capcom to put Devil May Cry on a Nintendo platform in some way, shape or form – whatever game that might be,” Hidaki said. He ultimately concluded that, while he's open to the idea of having Dante in Smash, Devil May Cry would have to come to the Nintendo Switch first.
You know, like how Matt just confirmed that Devil May Cry 3 was? And how we saw it's predecessors make their way over to the platform throughout 2019? It seemed like maybe Nintendo and Capcom were leading up to Dante in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate this whole time.
However, the real fighter is Byleth.
According to the livestream, the new DLC fighter isn't Dante at all. It's actually Byleth from the Nintendo Switch role-playing game Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
And it's a little awkward because the overall response was disappointment from fans who had been expecting Dante. Especially because fans had been saying that they didn't want any more Fire Emblem characters in the game. Hopefully Byleth can convince them that just as good a fighter as the rest and belongs in the Smash House.
