For better and worse, 2023 had many surprises that gamers didn’t expect. However, one of the biggest positive surprises was the success of Mario’s animated feature film made by Illumination. The movie had been known about for years, but delays and the global pandemic made people wonder how good it would be when it came out and how well it would be received. The answers were both positive. First, the film got a mostly warm reception from fans and critics, and then the film went on to make a billion dollars. So what does Super Smash Bros have to do with its success?
Well, nothing, but it could be a byproduct of it! According to ResetEra, Illumination is making a pitch that would have them make the oh-so-familiar “shared universe” set with Nintendo that would build up to a Super Smash Bros movie. Apparently, they’ll do this shared universe in the style of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where they’ll do various films featuring the characters and then make a movie that brings them all together.
At first, this sounds like a ludicrous idea, especially given the state of shared universes right now, including the MCU! But, as with all things, if something is done right and handled with care, anything is possible. But how would it even work?
Well, we’ll start with Mario, which confirmed many things, including the different worlds/realms out there. The movie didn’t just show off Mario and Luigi, but Peach, Donkey Kong, Bowser, and teased other characters like Yoshi, Rosalina, and more. So, if they played it the right way, they could make us believe that there are other parts of this world that have characters like Link, Pikachu, Kirby, the Ice Climbers, and more.
Plus, characters like Fox McCloud and Samus Aran would be in space, so that would be an easy thing to “sell.” The problem is that all of these properties would take time to develop, and one of the things that made the MCU successful was that “Phase One” had one good movie after another. With the video game space being what it is, it’s quite a risk to think that everyone would want to watch all of these Nintendo films.
When Super Smash Bros started doing their reveal trailers, one thing that fans were intrigued by was an anime-style recreation of the game, similar to the visual style of the Palutena trailer. But remember, this is all just rumors and speculation…until it’s not.
