Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Announces Pokemon Tournament

Fans of both the Pokemon franchise and Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate are likely to be very interested in joining the fighting game’s next themed online tourney. This time, as another title taking part in the festivities for the 25th year of Pokemon, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is only allowing Pokemon fighters, stages, and items in their upcoming tournament.

Given the sheer amount of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fighters available in the roster, the regular online tournaments provide fans and players with a variety of ways to play the game. Not only will they be able to practice how to fight as different characters, but they will also experience battling it out with other players who are utilizing the same character line-up as part of the tournament.

In a recent social media post, the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate team shared that the upcoming online tourney will be themed around Pokemon, as a commemoration to the series’ 25th year milestone. Given that both franchises grew to popularity on the Nintendo platform, fans are likely not surprised that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is paying homage to its fellow Nintendo title in the only way it knows how, through an all-star brawl fight.

Starting March 5, 2021, the “Great Brawl Pocket Monsters” event will be live until it ends 3 days after. Players who do well in the leaderboards of the online tournament will be rewarded with better Spirit units for their Spirit Board. Though it was recently announced that new Bravely Default 2 Spirit units will be implemented in Super Smash Bro. Ultimate, it has not been confirmed that they will be part of the rewards for the Pokemon-themed tourney.

In the post, the key visual of the tournament features the Pokemon Trainers Red and Green duking it out with the entire line-up of available Pokemon in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. This means that players can utilize Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard as part of the Pokemon Trainer’s roster, or fight as individual Pokemon such as Pikachu, Pichu, Incineroar, Jigglypuff, Mewtwo, and Lucario.

The SSBU development team also shared news that Ver. 11.0 of the game is also coming soon, and to make sure to back-up any replay data into video to preserve them. Given that the recent DLC characters Pyra and Mythra are slated to be released this March 2021, it is likely that players will need to download the Ver. 11.0 update for the new fighters to be implemented into the game.

Crash Bandicoot in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is something fans have been thinking about for a long time. Topping one of the national Smash DLC surveys from a few years ago, the loveable bandicoot remains a popular guess for each DLC reveal. Many people want Crash because he fills in a "retro PlayStation" slot in the roster, even if he is currently only owned by Activision.

Regardless, now that Crash Bandicoot games have been revived with remakes and a sequel, Crash's addition to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate feels possible. Fans have been hard at work coming up with everything from Crash's movelist to his stage and taunts. There's a lot that goes into a DLC character's launch, and with a rich history to pull from, Crash Bandicoot can make his arrival one to remember.