A new character for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ultimately means an update on amiibo for the game's roster of DLC characters, and that's exactly what Masahiro Sakurai delivered at the end of his latest presentation when he introduced the upcoming Banjo-Kazooie, Byleth, and Terry figurines. Although not as emphasized as they were in the heyday of toys-to-life, Nintendo's line of amiibo toys continues to expand alongside their respective first-party franchises.
In addition to the Super Smash Bros. characters, Nintendo is releasing new Cat Mario and Cat Peach figures for the re-release of Super Mario 3D World early next year. Nintendo has slowed down in-game support for amiibo even if they continue to release new figures from time to time. It used to be pretty reliable that a first-party Nintendo game would include a nod to their collectible toys, but that hasn't been the case for years, and even easy integrations like reintroducing costumes in Super Mario Maker 2 just don't happen. It could be that Nintendo realized that tying any kind of desirable in-game content to physical objects was a headache, or it could be that Nintendo stopped focusing on the initiative and internal developers simply followed suit.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, meanwhile, still has robust amiibo support, so Nintendo produces new figures for each downloadable fighter. At the end of this week's gameplay-focused look at the game's new Minecraft characters, series creator Masahiro Sakurai revealed the release plans for the next few amiibo in the series. Figures for Joker and Hero are just hitting store shelves and online retailers, so they're ready to join the brawl on Switch. The next three characters will finish off the amiibo for the Fighters Pass 1 roster, letting players grab miniature versions of Banjo and Kazooie, Byleth, and Terry.
Sakurai explained that the next three amiibo would be ready in 2021, but couldn't get more specific than that. As with many things in the world at the moment, production is somewhat stalled and it's unclear when things can go back to normal. Sakurai also broke the news that Byleth would only be getting one amiibo, meaning that the male version of the character would be represented while the female model is left out. This matches the previous situation with Robin, another Fire Emblem protagonist that only had one iteration of his amiibo despite having two playable genders.
Despite amiibo becoming better toys over time than they ever were as video game accessories, it's good that Nintendo is dedicated to completing the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate line for collectors and fans of third-party characters. The figures are still a high-quality item, with a better build and size than competitors like Totaku. The physical DLC part of the equation has rightfully faded to the background, but one hopes that Nintendo keeps creating collectibles in the same vein as publishers like Ubisoft and Square Enix. It's always great to take a 30-hour adventure in a virtual world and have a real-life souvenir to show for it.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is available now on Nintendo Switch.
Source: Nintendo