List of Super Smash Bros. Melee pre-release and unused content
This is a list of pre-release and unused content for the game Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Early ideas[edit]
Characters[edit]
Lucas (mentioned as the protagonist of Mother 3) was originally meant to replace Ness, but as Mother 3 was facing development difficulties and ultimately canceled, Ness was used instead.[1] Lucas would later be playable alongside Ness in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
According to Sonic the Hedgehog series producer Yuji Naka, Sonic was requested to be in the game, but the idea fell through due to time constraints.[2] Sonic was later included as a playable character in the series starting with Super Smash Bros. Brawl, while Tails would appear as a background character on the Green Hill Zone stage and as a Mii costume. Similarly, Solid Snake was requested by Metal Gear Solid series creator Hideo Kojima, but was rejected as development was too far in.[3] Like Sonic, Snake would also be made a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
When choosing a "retro" character from the NES/Famicom era to add, Sakurai mentioned on the Japanese Super Smash Bros. Melee website that he also considered Bubbles from Clu Clu Land, the Balloon Fighter from Balloon Fight, "Urban Champion", and "Excitebike" in addition to the Ice Climbers.[4] Ayumi Tachibana from the Famicom Detective Club series was also considered, but rejected as she lacked familiarity outside Japan.[4]
In a meeting between Sakurai and Nintendo of America, it was suggested that Marth and Roy would be removed from the international version, meaning both characters would be only playable in the Japanese version, though Nintendo of America decided to keep them in the game.[5] Because of this, they do not speak in English; they speak in Japanese instead.
Wario was another character considered to appear as a playable character, but ultimately was not added, in part due to time constraints and because Sakurai felt the game would have had too many Super Mario characters. He also stated that he would have had to cut Mewtwo or Marth and Roy for Wario to be included.[6] Wario would later be playable in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
Stages[edit]
The Sprout Tower from Pokémon Gold and Silver versions was considered as being made into a stage at the start of development.[6]
A stage based on Akaneia from the early Fire Emblem games was planned. According to Masahiro Sakurai, the stage would have featured a castle being attacked by catapults, and dragons and wizards would have appeared.[6]
In the debug menu, there is a cut stage named "ICETOP" that loads Icicle Mountain without music.[7]
Gameplay[edit]
Masahiro Sakurai has stated that, when thinking about ideas for a Super Smash Bros. follow-up, 8-player simultaneous multiplayer was considered and was listed on a project planning document, but due to technical limitations it was "beyond impossible". The idea would later be implemented into Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, though "just barely".[8]
"Assist Capsules" were planned as an item, but were scrapped.[4] Another planned feature was Sukapon from Joy Mech Fight, which characters would have been able to ride on and attack with, but due to legal issues, this could not be implemented.[6]
Trophies[edit]
According to Rare Scribes, trophies of characters from Rare games were planned, but were scrapped.[4] Fire Emblem trophies were also planned, but as they would have taken too much time to create, they were not made a high priority and in the end scrapped entirely.[6]
Early builds[edit]
The final roster originally consisted of only 19 characters (not counting Sheik). At some point during development, it was felt that the roster was not large enough, so several "model swap" characters were created. These characters include Dr. Mario, Falco, Ganondorf, Young Link, Pichu, and Roy.[9]
The Pokémon Stadium stage was planned to feature several Pokémon, including Venusaur. This feature had to be scrapped due to technical issues, and the Pokémon were instead made Poké Ball Pokémon.[6]
The Temple stage originally had an elevator that led to the bottom of the stage, a feature based on the temples seen in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and had a fixed appearance. Hyrule Temple also had two mysterious platforms in the center of the stage. These platforms can also be seen in the game's Special Movie. Players could also walk through the laboratory in Great Bay. The stages Yoshi's Story and Mushroom Kingdom I had different designs altogether. Onett's music also sounded different.[10]
Another graphic change was the Topi enemies in the Ice Climber stage - in the Japanese version, they were seals, but this changed to yeti creatures in the international versions.
On the back of Captain Falcon's red color change, the outfit was originally going to say "Hell Hawk", the Japanese name of Blood Falcon's F-Zero machine.
A early version of the character select screen features a question mark space where Zelda's spot appears on the final screen.
Link in the test level
Early Mushroom Kingdom
Early Yoshi's Story
The old character-selection screen before the final version of the game. Note that Kirby, Peach, Zelda, and the Ice Climbers are missing.
The same select screen at E3 2001
Zelda missing in this picture from the Japan website
Unused data[edit]
Through the use of an Action Replay, many unused/unfinished stages can be found. The first is a large, gray stage with the background appearing to be some kind of pub. The music is the same as used on Corneria. This is assumed to be a test stage because of its name, which on the debug menu is TEST. There are three other stages, "AKANEIA" (left over from the Fire Emblem stage that was in development), "10-2", and "Dummy", which will crash the game when loading, but hacking into it shows it is just an empty stage with an invisible platform. The last stage, named IceTop (a possible precursor to the Summit stage from the sequel, which belongs to the Ice Climbers), simply loads Icicle Mountain except without music. In addition to these stages, the entire Debug Menu, which was used in pre-release testing, can be used, allowing for complete editing of anything in the game. Giga Bowser, both male and female Fighting Wire Frames, Master Hand, Crazy Hand, and even Sandbag are all playable (to a limited extent) via the Debug Menu.
Through the Debug menu players can also access Ditto as a Poké Ball Pokémon, though it is incomplete, as it only shouts part of its Japanese name before disappearing. According to the Nintendo Power guide, which includes Ditto in its listing of Poké Ball Pokémon, Ditto would have transformed into the player that threw the Poké Ball and fought as their ally.[4][11] Ditto would later become a Poké Ball Pokémon in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, acting as Nintendo Power described.
All-Star mode would have featured loading screens featuring each of the characters, similar to the loading screens used in Classic. These can be accessed from the debug menu.[12]
In addition to existing bonuses, there are seven hidden ones that are accessed only by the cheating device.
| Name | Description | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Crash & Burn | All Meteor Attacks Missed. | -500 |
| Poolshark | Threw one enemy into another. | x300 |
| Deflector | - | 1000 |
| Ricochet Rifler | Deflected shot hit an enemy. | x800 |
| Barrel Blast KO | Used a Barrel to KO someone. | x300 |
| Red Shell Shooter | Caused damage 3 or more times with a Red Shell. | x400 |
| Green Shell Shooter | Caused damage twice or more with a Green Shell. | x800 |
Miscellaneous[edit]
The Japanese version actually had a different Motion-Sensor Bomb; it is actually a Proximity Mine from Perfect Dark rather than the Motion-Sensor Bomb from GoldenEye 007 (listed as "TOP SECRET" in-game) that appeared in the international version. The Proximity Mine's trophy can be viewed in English due to the language option, and this screenshot shows the text in the Proximity Mine trophy was tampered with only a minor amount (with only a few removals of references to Perfect Dark) for the final Motion-Sensor Bomb trophy.
The early box art for the game featured Mario getting hurt by Bowser's Fire Breath, on the Temple stage, without any of the other characters and using a different camera angle.
Super Smash Bros. Melee's Proximity Mine trophy.
The early cover.
References[edit]
- ^ Ness at Sokuhou Smabura Ken!!, the Japanese website for Super Smash Bros. Melee. (Accessed on 15 February 2016)
- ^ [1]
- ^ [E3] Interview: Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Miyamoto, Sakurai. N-Sider (May 11, 2006). Retrieved January 1, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Soma (April 29, 2016). The Definitive Unused Fighters List in Smash. Source Gaming. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
- ^ Soma (December 13, 2015). Sakurai Interview: Fire Emblem 25th Anniversary. Source Gaming. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f sutamen (January 31, 2016). The Definitive Unused Fighters List in Smash – Source Translations. Source Gaming. Retrieved March 16, 2016.
- ^ Super Smash Bros. Melee. The Cutting Room Floor. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
- ^ Sakurai talks Duck Hunt in Smash Bros., 8-Player Smash originally planned for Melee, more. Nintendo Everything (December 10, 2014). Retrieved December 12, 2014.
- ^ http://forum.starmen.net/forum/Storage/SmashBros/I-ve-been-making-a-comprehensive-list-of-unused-characters
- ^ Amphyrior. (January 15, 2020). SSBM Onett (Beta Bein' friends) Spaceworld 2001. YouTube. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
- ^ [2]
- ^ gabrielwoj (May 12, 2011). Super Smash Bros. Melee: Unused AllStar Intros. YouTube. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
