Published , by Ozzie Mejia
Published , by Ozzie Mejia
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is about to arrive, carrying the tagline "Everyone is Here!" But is everyone here? That's not quite the case when booting up the game for the first time. It turns out everyone will be here. It's just going to take some work.
When starting Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the first time, the roster will only consist of eight characters: Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Yoshi, Samus, Kirby, Fox, and Pikachu. It's the core eight characters from the original Super Smash Bros. 64. The rest of the game's cast needs to be unlocked. To get you on your way towards ensuring that everyone is indeed here, Shacknews has a few pointers.
With over 70 characters on the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate roster, players should be prepared to see the "Challenger Approaching" warning a lot. In fact, it'll show up roughly every five Smash battles, or after Classic Mode runs, with the winning player taking on the unlockable fighter.
There are several ways to trigger "Challenger's Approach" battles. Here are a few ways:
As noted, a Smash Bros. character will challenge you to an untimed, one stock fight. It'll be with whatever character you most recently played as, so be prepared to enter battle with that specific character. And while it may appear that approaching challengers are chosen randomly, chatter over on the Smash Bros. subreddit seems to indicate that there's a set order in which they unlock. We'll be sure to update this page with new information as it becomes available.
Some of the unlockable characters will be jerks, coming with an amplified difficulty level. There will likely be instances where you will lose the battle to unlock them. It is possible to challenge them again, but it won't come immediately.
Spend some time in more of Ultimate's game modes, whether it's playing more Smash battles or taking some time to run through World of Light. After some time passes, return to the main menu and enter the Games & More menu. On the bottom right corner, you'll find a small icon, representing the "Challengers Approach" option. Here's where you'll be able to play your rematch against the unlockable character, only now you'll have the option to select any character to face them.
Nintendo hasn't issued parameters regarding how to unlock specific fighters. These battles are randomized. However, there is one way to ensure you get exactly the fighter you want.
World of Light mode is a full-blown adventure that's predicated on the idea of unlocking each of the game's characters. If you battle a specific character and win, they'll be unlocked for World of Light. However, if that character wasn't available in the full game prior, they will also become available in any game mode.
Be forewarned that this is the slow way to unlock everyone. World of Light is a 20+ hour adventure and character battles don't come as often as one might think.
One of the fastest ways to unlock everyone is to play Smash mode and adjust the rules. Set all games to a one-stock battle or to a one-minute timed battle. This will expedite the process, since Challenges Approach battles trigger after roughly five matches, regardless of length.
The other quick way is to run through the World of Light adventure, making sure to back out to the main menu every five games or so. A Challengers Approach battle will trigger without fail upon reaching the main menu.
We'll be sure to update this guide once Nintendo releases the specific requirements to unlock every character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. For more how-to stories and articles, be sure to stop by Shacknews' Super Smash Bros. Ultimate walkthrough and guide.