At E3 2014, three new combatants joined the ranks of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U: Mii Fighters, Palutena from Kid Icarus, and Pac-Man. Pac-Man is a particularly big addition, completing a trio of third-party guests along with Sonic and Mega Man. But according to Smash creator Masahiro Sakurai, the yellow puck person was very close to trading blows in the previous Smash on Wii.
Comments made in Sakurai's semi-weekly Famitsu column indicate that it was Nintendo's illustrious Shigeru Miyamoto who pushed for Pac-Man's inclusion in the past. Kotaku was able to translate Sakurai's words:
During development of Smash Bros. Brawl, Mr. Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo approached me and asked, 'Can't we have Pac-Man as a guest character?' At the time, imagining the image of Pac-Man and his incomplete pizza shape, I thought to myself, 'Hmmm… That's a little too farfetched.'
As with the Miis who were similarly considered for Brawl, the work required to get Pac-Man up and running was too great. There were a great many decisions that would have to be made on the dev side, and who knows how that would have affected other areas. But here we are today, with all those concerns seemingly addressed to make the oiginal idea possible. It certainly helps that Pac-Man's owner, Namco Bandai, is the one handling development of this Smash incarnation!
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS arrives October 3. The Wii U version will arrive later in winter.
