As the Smash Bros. series inevitably ages, with Nintendo’s core cast very much present and accounted for, it’s up to obscure and third-party characters to take on the duty of being all-important newcomers. And what a new pair we have.
Simon Belmont, King K. Rool – Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
The Nintendo Direct today revealed famous ‘vampire killer’ Simon Belmont from the legendary Castlevania series and Donkey Kong’s arch-villain King K. Rool.

Simon’s inclusion seems to be a long time coming, especially as Castlevania was synonymous with Nintendo platforms for years. King K. Rool, on the other hand, is fan service through and through – he’s one of the most highly requested characters in Smash Bros. history.
Masahiro Sakurai, let’s be honest, Nintendo’s personal curator, stated that his music team adores Castlevania’s tunes, so, naturally, they decided to add 34 tracks to Simon’s stage – Dracula’s Castle – alone. Simon obviously fights with his famous holy whip and can use moves such as ‘holy water’, ‘uppercut’ and ‘axe’.

Moving on, King K. Rool was announced as a surprise, right at the end of the Direct, and can be seen using famous moves like his blunderbuss and crown toss, which recalls memories of playing Donkey Kong Country and controllers being smashed on the floor in anger while doing so.

Other Characters Shown
Other rather obscure characters, in the form of Echo Fighters (characters with different models, same moves) announced include:

- Richter Belmont – Rondo of Blood
- Chrom – Fire Emblem: Awakening
- Dark Samus – Metroid Prime series
Assist Trophy characters shown include:
- Alucard – Castlevania, Symphony of the Night design
- Zero – Mega Man
- Knuckles – Sonic The Hedgehog
- Krystal – Star Fox
- Klaptrap – Donkey Kong
- Kapp’n – Animal Crossing
- Chef Kawasaki – Kirby
- Gray Fox – Metal Gear
- Nikki – Nintendo Letter Box
- Shovel Knight – Shovel Knight
- Moon – The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
- Rathalos – Monster Hunter World
You can check out the full Super Smash Bros. Nintendo Direct below:
The roster is looking ultimate indeed. Now, can we just have Capcom’s Phoenix Wright announced for the cherry on the cake – before December 7th?