Editing List of Super Smash Bros. Melee pre-release and unused content

{{italic title|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==
===Characters===
[[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.<ref>[https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/0717/index.html Ness] at ''[https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/index.html Sokuhou Smabura Ken!!]'', the Japanese website for ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''. (Accessed on 15 February 2016)</ref> Lucas would later be playable alongside Ness in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]''.

According to ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' series producer Yuji Naka, [[Sonic the Hedgehog|Sonic]] was requested to be in the game, but the idea fell through due to time constraints.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120207220055/http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/4451/sonicinmeleeis4.jpg]</ref> 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 [[List of Mii Fighter Outfits|Mii costume]]. Similarly, [[Solid Snake]] was requested by ''Metal Gear Solid'' series creator Hideo Kojima, but was rejected as development was too far in.<ref>[http://www.n-sider.com/contentview.php?contentid=2576 [E3<nowiki>]</nowiki> Interview: Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Miyamoto, Sakurai]. N-Sider (May 11, 2006). Retrieved January 1, 2016.</ref> Like Sonic, Snake would also be made a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''.

When choosing a "retro" character from the [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]]/Famicom era to add, Sakurai mentioned on the Japanese ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'' website that he also considered [[Bubbles (Clu Clu Land)|Bubbles]] from ''{{wp|Clu Clu Land}}'', the Balloon Fighter from ''{{wp|Balloon Fight}}'', "{{wp|Urban Champion}}", and "''[[Excitebike]]''" in addition to the [[Ice Climbers]].<ref name="Source">Soma (April 29, 2016). [http://sourcegaming.info/2016/04/29/duflupdate/ The Definitive Unused Fighters List in Smash]. Source Gaming. Retrieved August 18, 2016.</ref> Ayumi Tachibana from the ''{{wp|Famicom Detective Club}}'' series was also considered, but rejected as she lacked familiarity outside Japan.<ref name="Source"/>

In a meeting between Sakurai and Nintendo of America, it was suggested that [[Marth]] and [[Roy (Fire Emblem)|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.<ref>Soma (December 13, 2015). [http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/12/13/sakurai-fe25/ Sakurai Interview: Fire Emblem 25th Anniversary]. Source Gaming. Retrieved March 16, 2015.</ref> 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.<ref name="Source 2">sutamen (January 31, 2016). [http://sourcegaming.info/2016/01/31/dufl-sources/ The Definitive Unused Fighters List in Smash – Source Translations]. Source Gaming. Retrieved March 16, 2016.</ref> Wario would later be playable in ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl''.

===Stages===
The [[bulbapedia:Sprout Tower|Sprout Tower]] from [[bulbapedia:Pokémon Gold and Silver Versions|''Pokémon Gold'' and ''Silver'' versions]] was considered as being made into a stage at the start of development.<ref name="Source 2"/>

A stage based on [[fireemblem:Archanea (nation)|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.<ref name="Source 2"/>

In the debug menu, there is a cut stage named "ICETOP" that loads Icicle Mountain without music.<ref>''[[tcrf:Super Smash Bros. Melee|Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''. ''The Cutting Room Floor''. Retrieved August 25, 2020.</ref>

===Gameplay===
[[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".<ref>[http://nintendoeverything.com/sakurai-talks-duck-hunt-inclusion-in-smash-bros-8-player-smash-originally-planned-for-melee-more/ Sakurai talks Duck Hunt in Smash Bros., 8-Player Smash originally planned for Melee, more]. Nintendo Everything (December 10, 2014). Retrieved December 12, 2014.</ref>

"[[Assist Trophy|Assist Capsules]]" were planned as an item, but were scrapped.<ref name="Source"/> Another planned feature was Sukapon from ''{{wp|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.<ref name="Source 2"/>

===Trophies===
According to Rare Scribes, trophies of characters from [[Rare Ltd.|Rare]] games were planned, but were scrapped.<ref name="Source"/> ''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.<ref name="Source 2"/>

==Early builds==
The final roster originally consisted of only 19 characters (not counting [[Sheik]]). At some point during development, it was felt that the roster wasn't large enough, so several [[smashwiki:Clone|"model swap" characters]] were created. These characters include [[Dr. Mario]], [[Falco]], [[Ganondorf]], [[Young Link]], [[Pichu]], and [[Roy (Fire Emblem)|Roy]].<ref>http://forum.starmen.net/forum/Storage/SmashBros/I-ve-been-making-a-comprehensive-list-of-unused-characters</ref>

The [[Pokémon Stadium]] stage was planned to feature several Pokémon, including [[Pokémon#Venusaur|Venusaur]]. This feature had to be scrapped due to technical issues, and the Pokémon were instead made [[Poké Ball]] Pokémon.<ref name="Source 2"/>

The [[Temple (stage)|Temple]] stage originally had an elevator that led to the bottom of the stage, a feature based on the temples seen in ''[[zeldawiki:Zelda II: The Adventure of Link|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 (stage)|Yoshi's Story]] and [[Mushroom Kingdom (Super Smash Bros. Melee)|Mushroom Kingdom I]] had different designs altogether. [[Onett]]'s music also sounded different.<ref> Amphyrior. (January 15, 2020). [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAqq019dOpg SSBM Onett (Beta Bein' friends) Spaceworld 2001]. ''YouTube''. Retrieved June 6, 2021.</ref> 

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 [[fzerowiki:Blood Falcon|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.
<gallery>
Testlevel.jpg|Link in the test level
Smashb27.jpg|Early Mushroom Kingdom
Smashb26.jpg|Early Yoshi's Story
Meleebetasel.jpg|The old character-selection screen before the final version of the game. Note that [[Kirby]], Peach, [[Zelda]], and the [[Ice Climbers]] are missing.
SSBME3.jpg|The same select screen at E3 2001
Betameleescreen.jpg|Zelda missing in this picture from the Japan website
</gallery>

==Unused data==
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.<ref name="Source"/><ref>[https://imgur.com/5IR41io]</ref> 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.<ref>gabrielwoj (May 12, 2011). [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGOzsSEBO9Y Super Smash Bros. Melee: Unused AllStar Intros]. YouTube. Retrieved July 26, 2016.</ref>

In addition to existing bonuses, there are seven hidden ones that are accessed only by the cheating device.
{|border=1 class=sortable width=100% cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3 style=border-collapse:collapse
!Name
!Description
!Points
|-
|Crash & Burn
|All Meteor Attacks M<!--sic-->issed.
| -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==
The Japanese version actually had a different [[Motion-Sensor Bomb]]; it is actually a Proximity Mine from ''{{wp|Perfect Dark}}'' rather than the Motion-Sensor Bomb from ''{{wp|GoldenEye 007 (1997 video game)|GoldenEye 007}}'' (listed as "TOP SECRET" in-game) that appeared in the international version. The Proximity Mine's [[Trophy (Super Smash Bros. series)|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.
<gallery>
MeleeMotionSensorBeta.png|''Super Smash Bros. Melee''{{'}}s Proximity Mine trophy.
SSBM Early Boxart.png|The early cover.
</gallery>

==References==
{{NIWA|SmashWiki=Unused content (SSBM)}}
<references/>

{{Pre-release and unused content}}
[[Category:Pre-release and unused content|Super Smash Bros. Melee]]
[[Category:Super Smash Bros. Melee|*]]
[[it:Sviluppo ed elementi scartati di Super Smash Bros. Melee]]