Steve and Alex from Minecraft were revealed to be the next fighters to join Super Smash Bros Ultimate's massive roster of playable characters, but what was more impressive was the reveal of SSBU Director Masahiro Sakurai's survival Minecraft world. Minecraft has been somewhat of an internet phenomenon ever since its release, and it seems as if Mr. Sakurai has been enjoying the sandbox survival game.
Minecraft Steve will be coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a part of the DLC Fighters Pass Vol. 2. He along with Alex, Zombie, and Enderman will join the fight with a complex move set the likes of which Smash players have never seen. Even Mr. Sakurai expressed how difficult it was to develop these characters in a way that they would fit into the world of Smash Bros, and stated that he didn't think he would ever see the day when Minecraft and Super Smash Bros would come together. However, it seems Sakurai may have drawn inspiration for Steve from his own journeys in Minecraft.
During the reveal event from Nintendo, Sakurai expressed that he has been playing Minecraft, and stated that he does not play in Creative mode but enjoys the challenge of Survival mode. Sakurai stated that he enjoys making his settlements flourish in Survival mode. During this segment, various screenshots from Sakurai's Minecraft Survival world were shown featuring some very impressive builds. Of course, Sakurai is known for his attention to detail, and the builds that were shown make it seems as if Sakurai is a seasoned Minecraft veteran.
The first build shown was an impressive wooden cottage accompanied by smaller buildings and well-placed flowers and bushes. The second was a neat and tidy storage area with each chest being labelled using an item frame and the corresponding item. The third and fifth images were of a large floating sphere and its interior, which making a sphere out of squares is a feat in and of itself. The fourth screenshot was of a villager trading hall, again labelled with item frames and enchanted diamond gear. And the last and arguably most impressive build showcased was a 23-panel map of The End dimension which is no small task to accomplish.
While the inclusion of Minecraft Steve may seem like a strategic release with Minecraft Live right around the corner and a partnership with Microsoft sounding like a pretty sweet deal, these screenshots show that Masahiro Sakurai is an avid Minecraft player. That is if they are in-fact screenshots of a world that Sakurai has built. Assuming they are, Steve's move set will be heavily inspired by Sakurai's time spent in the blocky world of Minecraft.
Source: Nintendo