Nintendo announced that Kingdom Heart's Sora will be the final character joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's extensive roster of fighters.
Revealed during a live stream event, Sora was confirmed via a cinematic trailer. Narrated by game director Masahiro Sakurai, Sora's design and moveset are explained in great detail. While he features a straightforward control scheme, Sora's biggest drawback is his light weight, which allows him to be launched out of the arena easily. The Kingdom Hearts hero makes use of his iconic Keyblade weapon to attack enemies, using a variety of moves fans will no doubt recognize from Disney and Square Enix's beloved action role-playing game.
Sora will also sport a wide selection of color schemes and costumes. His default outfit resembles his appearance in the first Kingdom Hearts while his designs in Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance and Kingdom Hearts III will also be available. His most unique look is Timeless River, which turns Sora into a black and white cartoon of himself, inspired by classic Disney animations like Steamboat Willy. Sora's special attacks take the form of his magic spells seen throughout the series, including Firaga, Thundaga and Blizzaga. Curaga, Aeroga and Stopga also feature in the game as taunts but they have no mechanical effect.
Alongside Sora's announcement, Sakurai also revealed that the game's new stage is Hollow Bastion, an iconic location seen throughout the Kingdom Hearts franchise. The arena can transform into the void-like stage seen also featured heavily in many games in the long-running franchise.
Launched in 2018, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is the final entry in Nintendo's long-running fighting game series. The game was praised by fans and critics alike for offering an expansive roster of iconic characters, a wealth of single-player content and simple to understand yet difficult to master fighting mechanics. The game has received several major DLC characters since its launch, including Persona 5's Joker, Banjo-Kazooie and Hero from the Dragon Quest franchise.
Prior to the announcement of the final character, fan speculation ran wild. Many players suspected that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate would add Sora from Kingdom Hearts, while others hedged their bets on Halo's Master Chief or Doomguy from Doom. While he may not be an original character, Doomguy will be available as a Mii Fighter outfit when Sora launches.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.
Source: Twitter