A few months ago, just ahead of the final Super Smash Bros. presentation, the team here at Nintendo Inquirer pooled together to list our DLC hopefuls. Now we’re back at it again, this time with our eyes set on the future cast of a new fighting game: Pokkén Tournament. Who do we want to see make the cut? Read on!

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Ricky’s pick: Breloom

Pokémon and fighting games make up such a large portion of my gaming history, and while I’m more a Street Fighter kinda guy, the marriage of ideas that is Pokkén Tournament had me looking back at some of my Tekken memories for inspiration. Probably the earliest I have is of a boxing glove wearing kangaroo, and while I don’t play much Roger (or his family) these days I’d love to see Breloom, Pokémon’s own boxing kangaroo, take its place in the roster.

In spite of the above inspiration, Breloom could also bring in gameplay ideas from Tekken’s more defined boxer: Steve Fox. The ability to duck and weave or throw out a Hellfire-esque Focus Punch would all too satisfying, while at the same time staying true to Breloom. Add in some stretchy armed attacks a la Street Fighter’s Dhalsim and we’ve got a mechanically unique fighter that can throw out a Mach Punch with a lot of untapped personality, as Breloom has seldom held any sort of spotlight.

Breloom’s other claim to fame when it comes to battling is access to Spore, the only sleep-inducing move without a natural miss chance. By bringing status effects to Pokkén, it would capitalize on another element of Pokémon’s classic battling system. Giving it access to Toxic or another poisoning move could add another layer to battles, as Breloom can have the ability Poison Heal. Do you poison the enemy to add damage over time, or take a moment to poison yourself to slowly heal at the risk of leaving yourself open? With that in mind, it could bring Leech Seed to Pokkén as well, allowing it to affect health bars in even more unique ways. Throw in powerful, potentially visually dynamic attacks like Seed Bomb and Stone Edge, and you’ve got the recipe for a rising star in the Pokémon world!

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Brittin’s pick: Aegislash

Okay, full disclosure: I don’t know a whole lot about Pokémon. I can count on two fingers the number of games in the series that I’ve played to completion, one of which was nearly 20 years ago. Even though my internal Pokédex is admittedly a bit lacking, Pokkén Tournament is a different enough beast that I feel qualified enough to throw out a wishful addition to its growing roster of fighters.

Despite my fondness for the original Pokémon anime and the first generation Game Boy games, my suggestion is actually a much more recent addition to the Pokédex: Aegislash.

Here’s my elevator pitch: Aegislash is a sentient, disembodied sword and shield. I could easily leave it at that, but I’ll elaborate a little. In the lead-up to the launch of Pokémon X and Y, I honestly felt like the monster design had hit a wall. None of the creatures I had seen for quite a few generations wowed me in any real way, they all seemed like retreads of existing ideas– which was understandable, there being five, six, seven hundred or more. That mindset changed, though, when I saw Honedge, the base form of Aegislash. This single Pokémon showed me a new, bold direction in Pocket Monster design, and single-handedly convinced me to give Pokémon another try. I was very glad I did.

Aegislash has obvious and exciting fighting game implications, and, alongside the recently announced Chandelure, would help bring some radical diversity to the game’s current roster. Its multiple stances and blade-based attacks would make for a beautifully acrobatic and fluid fighter, one that would likely be as much fun to watch as it would be to play.

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Tom’s pick: Wigglytuff

You might think this suggestion is a joke, I mean, how could this adorable pink puffball hold its own against the burly powerhouses that make up the majority of the Pokkén cast? Well, you might be forgetting that it’s Wiggly tuff. That, and its marshmallow-like physique could probably take a few punches.

Truth be told, I was originally going to argue for Jigglypuff, due to the simple fact it’s the only Smash Bros. representative that isn’t confirmed to be making the leap over to this new fighting franchise. (Sorry, Pichu.) Ultimately though, the hitbox for everyone’s favorite singing orb would probably be too small compared to the rest of the cast, giving it quite an advantage. So, I thought, what about Wigglytuff? It stands taller, but keeps the same large eyes and iconic hair swirl of its pre-evolution. It’s a win-win.

Not only that, but Wigglytuff would help fill another niche: the Fairy-typing. Right now Pokkén just has Gardevoir fighting in that corner, and it seems to focus more on ranged and non-physical attacks. Wigglytuff, on the other hand, wouldn’t be opposed to playing rough with, er, Play Rough. Plus, to take another page from Smash Bros., we could get a special move that delivers massive damage through the power of sleep, and who wouldn’t want to see Garchomp be given what’s-for with a well timed nap?

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Frank’s pick: Scyther

Out of all the current Pokkén Tournament fighters announced thus far, not a single one of them falls under the Bug-type category. While I’ll be the first to admit I am not the biggest fan of Bug-type Pokémon, narrowing my decision between Scyther and Heracross was difficult. Both of them are some strongest Bug-types, and each would bring something new to the table. After weighing my options, I ultimately decided on Scyther.

Besides filling the slot of a bug Pokémon, Scyther’s attack pool and playstyle make sense in context. Attacks like Slash, X-Scissor, Steel Wing, Aerial Ace and Double Team would easily transition into the Pokkén Tournament format.

I also think the addition of Scyther into the Pokkén Tournament roster would be a welcome one in the eyes of players. From my personal experience, Scyther seems to be popular with many Pokémon fans and is a great mascot for the bug team. Regardless if Scyther makes the cut or not (pun intended), I believe that Pokkén Tournament has already exceeded my expectations of what a Pokémon fighting game can be, and I can’t wait to see the rest of the cast.

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George’s pick: Roserade

Pokkén Tournament seems to be the perfect game for untraditional fighters. While certain Pokémon, like Machamp and Lucario, make perfect sense for the game, others such as Chandelure, Suicune, and even Pikachu, seem to make a little less sense in a fighter. However, this isn’t a bad thing– if it were otherwise, all we’d see is Fighting-type ‘mons with humanoid appearances, and that would get pretty boring pretty quickly. In keeping with this “untraditional fighter” approach, my hopeful combatant takes on the form of another Grass-type: Roserade.

While Roserade is humanoid, it appears to be anything but a fighter. Its look is fierce and aggressive, yes, but with a lack of actual hands and a rather graceful movement pattern, Roserade might not, at first glance, seem to be the best fit for a fighting game. I, however, disagree. It’s Grass- and Poison-typing, while not particularly unique in the main Pokémon games, would be a first for Pokkén’s roster, and I think it could definitely work in Roserade’s favor. While having the same benefits of the current roster’s Sceptile’s plant-based moves, it’d also have long-ranged and possibly deadly toxic effects, which I think could be extremely interesting to see utilized in a fighting game. It’s large rose-bouquet hands could also effectively be used as a sort of boxing glove, dealing out heavy club-like hits whenever an opponent gets too close.

While I don’t know the specifics of what its attacks would be, moves like Energy Ball, Venoshock, or even Solarbeam could be seriously devastating. Grass Knot could be an interesting way to play against heavier fighters like Machamp, and a move such as Poison Jab could deal out heavy poison damage up close. Petal Dance and Magical Leaf would also be fun to see, and something like Giga Drain could be a unique way to turn a battle around as you deal out damage while recovering your own health. Ultimately though, what’d be most fun about Roserade, to me, is that while it would be aggressive and could have some devastating attacks, it’d do it all while looking graceful and beautiful, just like the masquerade dancers it’s based off of.

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We had a lot of fun thinking up these potential Pokkén Tournament combatants. What do you think of our suggestions, and who would you personally like to see? Let us know in the comments!

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