Masahiro Sakurai must be tired. Honestly, looking back at the development cycle for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, it’s a miracle the game even functions. We’re talking about a project that started with the ambitious "Everyone is Here!" tagline and ended with a character count so high it makes other fighting games look like tech demos. The smash ultimate full roster isn't just a list of names; it’s a legal nightmare of licensing agreements and a balancing act that should have been impossible.
It's huge.
Seriously, if you haven’t sat down and actually scrolled through the CSS (Character Selection Screen) lately, you might forget the sheer scale. We started with the original 12 from the N64 days and ballooned into a museum of gaming history. From Mario to Sora, the game covers almost every major pillar of the industry. But there's a lot of nuance in how that roster is built—things like Echo Fighters, DLC tiers, and those weird Mii costumes that basically act as "pseudo-characters" for the fans who didn't get their favorite pick as a full fighter.
The Mathematical Madness of 89 Fighters
When people talk about the smash ultimate full roster, they usually argue about the number. Is it 82? Is it 89? If you count Pokémon Trainer as one slot but three characters (Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard), the math starts getting wonky. Officially, if you look at the fighter numbers, Sora caps things off at #82. But that doesn't tell the whole story.
Echo Fighters are the reason the number feels so bloated yet refined. Characters like Daisy, Ken, and Richter occupy their own spaces but share core DNA with Peach, Ryu, and Simon. It was a clever way for Sora Ltd. and Bandai Namco to pad out the variety without needing to build entirely new frame data from scratch for every single entry. You get the aesthetic variety without the three-year development cycle for a single move set.
Then you have the sheer variety of playstyles. You’ve got "zoners" like Samus and Belmonts who want to keep you at the edge of the screen. You've got "grapplers" like Incineroar. You've got "swordies"—so many swordies—that became a running gag in the community, especially when Byleth was announced. But even within the sword archetypes, the difference between Marth’s "tipper" mechanic and Roy’s "sweet spot" at the hilt changes everything about how you approach a match.
Why Every Character Matters (Even the Ones You Hate)
I know, nobody likes fighting a good Sonic. It’s annoying. He’s too fast, and the spin dash sounds haunt your dreams. But the smash ultimate full roster needs those outliers. Without the polarizing kits of characters like Steve or Min Min, the game would just be a generic brawler.
Steve from Minecraft is perhaps the best example of how weird this roster got. When he was revealed, the internet basically broke. It wasn't just the meme factor; it was the technical implementation. The developers had to recode every single stage in the game to allow for Steve’s mining mechanic. Every. Single. One. That’s the level of dedication we’re talking about here.
And let's be real about the DLC. Fighters Pass 1 and 2 weren't just cash grabs. They were bridge-building exercises. Getting Joker from Persona 5 or Banjo & Kazooie into the game required Nintendo to play nice with Sega and Microsoft in ways that would have been unthinkable during the GameCube era.
Breaking Down the "Everyone is Here" Promise
The core hook of the smash ultimate full roster was the return of every single veteran. This meant bringing back characters that hadn't been seen in over a decade. Young Link and Pichu were relegated to the "Melee" era until Ultimate dragged them back into the spotlight.
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- The Veterans: Everyone from 64, Melee, Brawl, and Wii U/3DS.
- The Newcomers: Original additions like Inkling, Ridley (who was "too big" for years), and King K. Rool.
- The Third-Party Icons: Cloud Strife, Sephiroth, Snake, and Pac-Man.
The inclusion of Ridley and King K. Rool was a direct response to fan ballots. For years, the competitive community and casual fans alike begged for these villains. Sakurai eventually gave in, proving that this roster was, in many ways, a "thank you" note to the fans. But that "thank you" came with a cost: power creep.
The Power Creep Problem
It’s the elephant in the room. If you look at the top tier of the smash ultimate full roster, it’s heavily populated by DLC characters. Aegis (Pyra/Mythra), Joker, and Steve have tools that the base game characters struggle to match. Mythra’s "Foresight" or Joker’s "Arsene" mechanic reward players for things that would normally be a disadvantage.
Is the game balanced? Surprisingly, yes.
Despite having nearly 90 characters, you can still see a wide variety of fighters in a Top 8 at a major tournament like Genesis or Super Smash Con. You’ll see a solo-main Shulk or a dedicated King Dedede player making waves. That shouldn't happen in a game this big. Usually, in a roster this size, 70% of the characters are "trash tier." In Ultimate, almost everyone is viable at a mid-to-high level if you put in the work. Except maybe Ganon. Poor Ganon. He’s still a heavy-hitter with no recovery, but we love him anyway.
The Legal Nightmare Behind the Scenes
You can't talk about the smash ultimate full roster without mentioning the licensing. Think about the companies involved:
- Square Enix: (Cloud, Sephiroth, Hero, Sora)
- Microsoft/Rare: (Banjo & Kazooie, Steve)
- Sega/Atlus: (Sonic, Joker, Bayonetta)
- Capcom: (Mega Man, Ryu, Ken)
- Bandai Namco: (Pac-Man, Kazuya)
- Konami: (Snake, Simon, Richter)
- Disney: (Sora)
Getting Sora into the game was the final boss of roster building. Most people assumed Disney would never let it happen. But through years of negotiation and a chance meeting at an awards show, the dream happened. This makes the smash ultimate full roster a literal miracle of corporate cooperation. It’s a snapshot of the gaming industry as a whole, preserved in a 15GB file on a Nintendo Switch.
The Role of Mii Brawlers and Spirits
If a character didn't make the cut as a full fighter, they usually ended up as a Mii Costume or a Spirit. This is the "soft" roster. When Sans from Undertale or Cuphead showed up as Mii costumes with their own music tracks, it felt like a legitimate inclusion.
Spirits replaced the Trophies from previous games, and while some fans miss the 3D models, the Spirit system allowed for thousands of characters to be represented. It turned the game into a massive encyclopedia. You want to see some obscure character from a 1980s Famicom game? They’re probably a Spirit.
How to Actually Navigate This Roster
If you’re a new player looking at the smash ultimate full roster, it’s overwhelming. You shouldn't try to learn everyone. That’s a one-way ticket to burnout. Instead, categorize them by their "feel."
Most characters fall into "archetypes." You have your "All-Rounders" like Mario and Pit—they’re great for learning the game because they don't have many gimmicks. Then you have the "Zoners" like Link or Samus who rely on projectiles. If you like being fast and aggressive, you look at "Rushdown" characters like Fox or Sheik.
The beauty of having a roster this big is that there is definitely a character that fits your specific brain chemistry. Maybe you like the RNG of Hero’s command menu. Maybe you like the precision of Kazuya’s "Electric Wind God Fist" inputs. There is a "main" for everyone.
The Legacy of the Ultimate Roster
We are likely never going to see this again. Sakurai himself has mentioned in his YouTube videos (Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games) that bringing this many licenses together again would be an astronomical task. If there’s a "Smash 6," expect a smaller, more refined roster.
That makes the smash ultimate full roster a "lightning in a bottle" moment. It’s the peak of the "crossover" era of gaming.
Actionable Steps for Mastering the Roster
If you want to actually get good at the game or just enjoy the depth of the characters, don't just mash buttons.
- Stick to the "Rule of Three": Pick one main, one secondary for bad matchups, and one "fun" character you only play in friendlies. Trying to play ten characters seriously will keep you stuck in "low-tier" play forever.
- Watch the Pros: If you want to see what a character is capable of, look up specific players. Watch MkLeo for Byleth or Joker, watch Riddles for Kazuya, and watch Acola if you want to see why everyone thinks Steve is broken.
- Use Training Mode Features: Ultimate’s training mode isn't the best in the genre, but the "frame by frame" and "hitbox visualization" (via mods or external guides like UltimateFrameData.com) are essential.
- Ignore Tier Lists (Mostly): Unless you are playing at a top-tier professional level, tier lists don't matter. A "low tier" Little Mac will still destroy a "top tier" Peach if the Little Mac player understands the fundamentals better.
The smash ultimate full roster is a celebration. It’s a chaotic, unbalanced, beautiful mess that represents the best of what video games can be when companies actually decide to work together. Dive in, find your main, and don't worry too much about the meta—just enjoy the fact that you can have a fight between a Piranha Plant and Sephiroth on top of a Minecraft world. It’s ridiculous, and that’s why it works.
To get started, head into the "Classic Mode" for different characters. It’s the best way to get a feel for their unique mechanics and "weight" without the pressure of online lag or competitive sweatiness. Once you find someone who "clicks," stick with them for at least a week before switching. Consistency is the only way to conquer a roster this massive.