As the final Smash Bros. presentation begins, we’re greeted with the signature intro of another character trailer.
We’re shown the distinctive art style of Fire Emblem, and immediately we’re to assume this is from Fire Emblem Fates. If you guessed this, you were right! While the game isn’t out in North America just yet, Japan has had it for a while, so maybe this reveal shouldn’t come as a surprise. Corrin, the main character from the game, is our newest Smash Bros. fighter.
Playable as both the male and female version (I’ll be referring to Corrin as “him” just for uniformity), Corrin is a character whose veins have the blood of a dragon running through them. This grants for a completely different style of gameplay from the other Fire Emblem characters, which was the goal when introducing him. While he does hold a sword, the Omega Yato, it is not his primary means of attacking.
Corrin uses the dragon blood in his veins to beat down his opponents, and it provides him with a variety of extremely unique moves. While he has the ability to turn into a dragon, only parts of his body will transform for most of his attacks. His side smash attack has tremendous reach, with the tip being particularly powerful, much like Marth’s sword.
With his back air move, Corrin reveals his wings and pushes himself forward. This little push provides an extra boost in the event you’re just shy of recovering, so use it to your advantage!
Corrin’s standard special attack is the Dragon Fang Shot, which is a charge-up move. It can paralyze opponents when it hits, and after it’s fired, Corrin’s transformed hand will also bite nearby foes. This can also be charged, and deals out a lot of damage!
His side special is the Dragon Lunge, which is a jump-and-jab attack, towards the ground. If the button is held, the thrust will stick in the ground and you can hang from that spot! If you catch an enemy in the attack, you can pin them to the ground and from there, front kick, back kick, jump, or cancel the move. It’ll be a great way to leave an enemy open to your teammate’s attacks, too!
His up special (or recovery) move is called Dragon Ascent. Corrin takes full advantage of his wings here and shoots himself upwards, spreading his wings and hitting any opponents around him. The range is large, and the move can be angled, so take advantage of this! His down special is a counter, much like other Fire Emblem characters, called Counter Surge. Uniquely, however, this counter attacks upwards, and hits both to Corrin’s right and left!
Lastly, Corrin’s Final Smash is called Torrential Roar. In it, Corrin takes on his full dragon form and pulls foes in with a whirl of water before blasting them away.
No new stages will be added with Corrin’s addition; however, two new songs will be added to the Wii U version for free: the Fire Emblem Fates theme song, with vocals, as well as a remix of the same song.
And lastly, with the purchase of Corrin, two new trophies will be added to your collection. Ryoma and Xander, the eldest brothers from the Hoshido and Nohr tribes respectively, will be our Fire Emblem Fates trophy representatives.
Corrin is slated for a February 2016 release to coincide with the release of his game in North America, though no specific date has been given yet. Sakurai mentioned that this is only hopeful, so take this date with a grain of salt.
I think it’s safe to say nobody saw this coming! It’s interesting to see so much Fire Emblem recognition in Smash Bros. nowadays, though I have to say this new addition looks impressive.
Written by George Comatas
As a wannabe social media personality and professional in the world of sarcasm, George does his best to always adapt to the changing world around him. He considers himself a maverick: a true-to-heart gamer with the mind of a pop star. Whether this makes him revolutionary or a setback, he's yet to find out. But one thing’s for sure; he's one-of-a-kind.
