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Description
Super Smash Bros Ultimate is finally over. So now I can finally put this project to rest!

WARNING: The following is written by somebody who has never played a Kingdom Hearts game.
Come to think of it, all the people I see who are not happy with Sora are people who haven't played his games. I wonder, is there anybody out there who has played Kingdom Hearts but is still upset at his inclusion?

********

All those years ago when the first Kingdom Hearts released I saw this character and thought "What a rubbish design." He looked like a less unique Final Fantasy character. The hair is similar to Cloud's, but brown? Isn't that a pretty boring colour in a world of green and blue hairs? I didn't like the shoes, because they didn't fit at all and stuck out like a sore thumb. I did, however, think the key shaped sword was pretty smart!

These days, I still don't think Sora is a very exciting design, though it is funny that those shoes I hated so much I now really like, for the exact same reason I hated them They stand out ridiculously and make him much funnier than your average melodramatic Square hero.

So I've got no investment in the character or the games and yet...I think this was probably the best choice of character to round out the roster! How come?

Smash speculation has been running rampant for too long now. Every week I see people pointing towards Sakurai/Nintendo social media posts saying "It's a clue! It's a clue!" But look back through the entire DLC catalogue and you will discover it was never a clue. Save for the occasional leak, there has NEVER been a deliberate clue left by any of the parties involved. Why would they start now?

And every single character under the sun has been speculated. There can be no more surprises. And Sora wasn't really a surprise but that's not why he was the right choice.
Smash Ultimate has pretty much cast a net over the entire game industry. Sure, there are lots of eligible characters not in it, and a few notable genres not represented, but by and large it's got all of gaming covered.

The only 'big' way to go out then, is to start pushing on the edges of the gaming industry and rubbing up against the side of another avenue of entertainment. Film. Disney film.

For the record I don't want Smash to delve any further into film than it already has. Smash is a game about games and one of the main reasons I didn't want to see Sora show up was because I didn't like the possibility of 'opening the doors' to a bunch of film and television characters to start showing up.

So in a way, Sora is represented in what I would consider the best way possible. The Disney characters are nowhere to be seen. The trouble is...that's the whole point of Kingdom Hearts, isn't it?
Best I can fathom, the "original" content in KH is unnecessarily messy and pretentious, and the real draw are the various Disney game worlds. So to completely ignore that would be doing the series a disservice, wouldn't it?

And would it be right to say this is also exhibited in Sora's moveset? It doesn't need a gimmick, I'm happy to see a straightforward character, but it's pretty bland. It's basic RPG stuff. I expect you could assign this moveset to any Final Fantasy character and it wouldn't seem out of place. Aside from the Final Smash, what about it is unquestionably Kingdom Hearts? Is this because there are no Disney references? I'm not familiar with the source combat system but if it's elemental magic and sword swinging and nothing else, it really lacks a distinct personality. (I do like his aerial emphasis, though.)

SO. My opinion is that Sora is an understandable and commendable addition to close the Ultimate roster, but is let down as a fighter by the "sterilised" representation of his franchise.

In a funny sort of way, that Mickey Mouse keyring is the most important element of this entire character.

Description
Super Smash Bros Ultimate is finally over. So now I can finally put this project to rest!

WARNING: The following is written by somebody who has never played a Kingdom Hearts game.
Come to think of it, all the people I see who are not happy with Sora are people who haven't played his games. I wonder, is there anybody out there who has played Kingdom Hearts but is still upset at his inclusion?

********

All those years ago when the first Kingdom Hearts released I saw this character and thought "What a rubbish design." He looked like a less unique Final Fantasy character. The hair is similar to Cloud's, but brown? Isn't that a pretty boring colour in a world of green and blue hairs? I didn't like the shoes, because they didn't fit at all and stuck out like a sore thumb. I did, however, think the key shaped sword was pretty smart!

These days, I still don't think Sora is a very exciting design, though it is funny that those shoes I hated so much I now really like, for the exact same reason I hated them They stand out ridiculously and make him much funnier than your average melodramatic Square hero.

So I've got no investment in the character or the games and yet...I think this was probably the best choice of character to round out the roster! How come?

Smash speculation has been running rampant for too long now. Every week I see people pointing towards Sakurai/Nintendo social media posts saying "It's a clue! It's a clue!" But look back through the entire DLC catalogue and you will discover it was never a clue. Save for the occasional leak, there has NEVER been a deliberate clue left by any of the parties involved. Why would they start now?

And every single character under the sun has been speculated. There can be no more surprises. And Sora wasn't really a surprise but that's not why he was the right choice.
Smash Ultimate has pretty much cast a net over the entire game industry. Sure, there are lots of eligible characters not in it, and a few notable genres not represented, but by and large it's got all of gaming covered.

The only 'big' way to go out then, is to start pushing on the edges of the gaming industry and rubbing up against the side of another avenue of entertainment. Film. Disney film.

For the record I don't want Smash to delve any further into film than it already has. Smash is a game about games and one of the main reasons I didn't want to see Sora show up was because I didn't like the possibility of 'opening the doors' to a bunch of film and television characters to start showing up.

So in a way, Sora is represented in what I would consider the best way possible. The Disney characters are nowhere to be seen. The trouble is...that's the whole point of Kingdom Hearts, isn't it?
Best I can fathom, the "original" content in KH is unnecessarily messy and pretentious, and the real draw are the various Disney game worlds. So to completely ignore that would be doing the series a disservice, wouldn't it?

And would it be right to say this is also exhibited in Sora's moveset? It doesn't need a gimmick, I'm happy to see a straightforward character, but it's pretty bland. It's basic RPG stuff. I expect you could assign this moveset to any Final Fantasy character and it wouldn't seem out of place. Aside from the Final Smash, what about it is unquestionably Kingdom Hearts? Is this because there are no Disney references? I'm not familiar with the source combat system but if it's elemental magic and sword swinging and nothing else, it really lacks a distinct personality. (I do like his aerial emphasis, though.)

SO. My opinion is that Sora is an understandable and commendable addition to close the Ultimate roster, but is let down as a fighter by the "sterilised" representation of his franchise.

In a funny sort of way, that Mickey Mouse keyring is the most important element of this entire character.