Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo Switch is coming out later this year and we know next to nothing about the game!

What is its actual name? When is its release date? Will it get a 3DS port? Heck, is this actually a new game or just an expansion of Smash Bros. 4 from the WiiU? But of course, while all those are important questions, the biggest on the minds of most fans is “who can I play as?”

Over four installments, fans have been treated to sizable rosters containing loads of surprise entrants and precedent suggests that this next installment will be the biggest and best yet.

But who will actually make the cut? There are plenty of surefire candidates in Mario, Samus, Fox and Pikachu, but what characters will make their Smash debuts later this year?

Well, we here at Inven Global are here to give you some educated guesses as to who could appear on the Super Smash Bros. Switch roster. Read on and find out!


Breath of the Wild Link

This might sound like it's cheating and it may feel odd to start off the list with this choice, but anyone that actually played the latest installment of The Legend of Zelda knows that the new Link is essentially a totally different character from the repeatedly rehashed NES original. Not only does he look completely different—losing the sleepytime hat and green tunic—but Breath of the Wild also does away with a lot of staple Zelda tropes including the arsenal that revolves around bombs, bows, boomerangs and hook shots.

Because of that, it's only fitting that Smash Bros. on the Switch feature the all-new Link as an all-new character, building an all-new moveset around his all-new toolkit!

Ideally, Smash would continue its recent tradition of having two different Link characters, offering a “Classic Link” experience through Toon Link or maybe even bringing back the Ocarina of Time-based Young Link for the first time since Melee.

Either way, the one thing they can't do is just slap a blue shirt onto the same ol' Link we got on the N64. That'd be an absolute shame.


Captain Toad

With how much love the Mario franchise has received in Smash over the years it's somewhat surprising we haven't seen Toad at all. Mario, Luigi and Yoshi are Smash Bros. OG's. Peach and Bowser joined in Melee. Wario was one of the biggest additions to Brawl and, heck! We've had tertiary characters like Rosalina, Bowser Jr. and Dr. Mario included!

Well, now the proud owner of his own solo title in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Toad's time has come! The mushroom-headed assistant to Peach has a cool new look (relative speaking) and a big toolkit to work with for a fighting game. Couple that with how the game is being ported to the Switch and he is very well-positioned to join the fray.


Crash Bandicoot

Somehow, some way a remake of the original Crash Bandicoot trilogy is set to drop on the Nintendo Switch later this year. It's an absurd thought for anyone that remembers the early days of the Playstation 1, where Crash and Spyro the Dragon were regarded as the mascots for the console...an absurd enough thought, in fact, that it feels like anything is possible!

With that in mind...why can't Crash join the cast of Smash Bros.? Aesthetically, the critter would fit right in and Nintendo likely wouldn't mind shining a new light onto a 1990s' gaming icon that is finally landing on one of its consoles.

Above all, though, just imagine Mario, Sonic and Crash all in one game. How great would that be


Jibanyan

Yo-Kai Watch is one of Nintendo's hottest franchises right now. While it's easy to dismiss the series as another wannabe Pokemon or a fad enjoyed exclusively by the ever-fickle younger crowd...there's also a real chance that it's here to stay.

If Nintendo has anything resembling long-term plans for the series--something that seems to be the case judging from the fact that there's a game scheduled to drop on the Switch later this year—then adding a representative from the series is a must.

Who to choose from? Well, series mascot Jibanyan seems to be the most obvious candidate, but depending on what the future holds for the series there are other possibilities in play.


The Chosen Undead

Adding in the nameless, faceless protagonist from the first Dark Souls game might seem “out there” but can anybody really say it's not possible?

We can't dismiss the idea of third party characters at this point with the likes of Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man. Strong ties to Nintendo platforms don't seem to matter all that much anymore, either, with Street Fighter's Ryu and Final Fantasy's Cloud both popping up. And heck, “mature themes” aren't disqualifying at this point between Solid Snake and Bayonetta.

Every video game character capable of moving the needle or delivering a larger return for Nintendo is in the running and with Dark Souls Remastered set to drop on the Switch next month, the Chosen Undead fits that bill.

What would he look like? What skills would he have? How would he handle? Who knows! That's what makes them such an interesting possibility for both players and the developers.


Ribbon Girl

Nintendo has been throwing a lot of weight behind its two newest IPs; Splatoon and ARMS. It's a pretty safe assumption that the Inklings from Splatoon will be featured in the game given that they basically starred in the teaser trailer...but who will join from ARMS?

Ribbon Girl feels like the safest bet. The pop star-turned-boxer is one of the most prominently featured characters in the game, popping up in most media all the way down to the game's cover. There are plenty of other options Nintendo could go with here, but right now she's the shoe-in.


Rabbid Peach

Mario x Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is quietly the best game on the Nintendo Switch. Disagree? Well, the comments section is right down there.

For those unfamiliar with the game, Kingdom Battle features the classic cast of the Mario games alongside a series of Rabbids disguised as them. The Rabbid variants of the staple characters each have their own unique personalities and are interesting enough that their appearance in the game shouldn't be a one-off affair. The gruff Rabbid Mario, goofy Rabbid Luigi and squirrely Rabbid Yoshi would all be great additions to Smash Bros. on Switch, but the best overall character by far would be Rabbid Peach.

While Rabbid Peach has a generic set of skills in the game, she is by far the most amusing member of the cast. A stereotypical diva looking to grow her Instagram account during the game's adventure, her quirky personality leads to many of the story's most memorable moments and provides an excellent foil to the more demure Peach.

She's already proven as a character that can stand out in game


Decidueye

Hal has always given the Pokemon series generous representation in the Smash Bros. series, and includes interesting options from each of the most recent generations. The latest Pokemon games, Sun and Moon, offer up a slew of cool new Pokemon that would fit right into Nintendo's beloved brawler including Incineroar, Pheromosa, Alolan Marowak and many, many more. The most popular of the bunch (and therefore most likely to be added) seems to be Decidueye.

The final evolution of the latest grass-type starter is well-established as the breakout star of the latest installment of the series, courtesy of its super-cool appearance and archery-based signature moves. It has already received much more special treatment than its Gen. 7 counterparts across all Pokemon mediums, too, getting alternate artwork promos in the Trading Card Game and being selected as the featured addition to Pokken Tournament DX.

The popularity that has seen it get that extra love from the Pokemon Company International makes it the front runner from Sun and Moon to be added to Smash Bros. on the Switch...and with good reason! He's basically an owl-themed Aragorn!


Rex

Younger gamers won't remember this, but Fire Emblem didn't hit western shores until 2003, 13 years after its initial release in Japan on the NES. What convinced Nintendo to localize the game for American and European audiences? The boom in interest in the series following the inclusion of Marth and Roy in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

While Xenoblade Chronicles doesn't have the expansive history Fire Emblem does, the action series has the makings of being a big deal for Nintendo. Shulk's inclusion in Smash 4 resulted in a spike of intrigue surrounding the original Xenoblade Chronicles on the Wii, and with Xenoblade 2 already out on the Nintendo Switch, it only makes sense to include new series lead Rex to raise awareness of the latest installment.


Sora

Kingdom Hearts III is set to come out at some point in the next year. Or two. Maybe. Hopefully...

Kidding aside, the third installment in the Disney-Square-Enix collaboration is going to be the most buzzworthy game on earth at some point in the near future. The pure novelty of the series, which features iconic Disney characters rubbing shoulders with characters from Final Fantasy, still endures and the added excitement from the six years since the release of 3DS spin-off Dream Drop Distance and 12 years since the release of Kingdom Hearts II doesn't hurt the buzz that will come when the game finally drops.

Though series lead Sora has minimal connection to Nintendo hardware (exclusively popping up in some handheld spin-off titles), he's still poised to be one of the hottest characters in the entire video game world before long. Given how popular Kingdom Hearts is and the established working relationship between Nintendo and Square-Enix that brought Cloud into the Smash 4 roster, why not?