Sora (SSBU)

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Sora in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
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Universe	Kingdom Hearts
Availability	Downloadable
Final Smash	Sealing the Keyhole

“	Sora Is Finally Here!	”
—Introduction tagline

Sora (ソラ, Sora) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He was officially announced during a Mr. Sakurai Presents on October 5th, 2021 as the sixth and final downloadable character from Fighters Pass Vol. 2 and was released on October 18th, 2021 (October 19th in time zones east of the Americas) as part of Challenger Pack 11. He is the fourth fighter from a Square Enix developed series (after Cloud, Hero, and Sephiroth) and the only fighter from Disney. Sora is classified as Fighter #82, the last fighter number of the newcomers and fighters as a whole.

Haley Joel Osment and Miyu Irino, Sora's main voice actors in English and Japanese respectively since the first Kingdom Hearts game, reprise their roles in the English and Japanese versions of Ultimate, with their portrayals of Sora from Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance and Kingdom Hearts Re:coded being repurposed for Ultimate.

Attributes

Sora is a swordfighter whose mobility attributes reference his movement in the Kingdom Hearts series. Although he is a lightweight who weighs the same as Zelda, his aerial mobility is notably strong due to having below-average fall speeds, a relatively high ground jump and a very high delayed double jump. Despite this, his grounded mobility is also noteworthy due to roughly average walk and dash speeds. Altogether, Sora's overall mobility is overall well-rounded.

The centerpiece of Sora's game plan is his aerial prowess, due to his aforementioned jumping abilities. His neutral and forward aerials are similar to Bayonetta's forward aerial in that they are both natural combos. Holding or repeatedly tapping the attack button for each move will complete the full combo while tapping the button once will only initiate one hit. However, of note is that the first hit of his forward aerial during a fast fall will negate his upward momentum, allowing for KO confirms on landing well past mid percentages. His back aerial has relatively low landing lag (at roughly 12 frames), making it relatively safe on shield, and his down aerial works well as an edgeguarding tool due to its long duration, low ending lag and Sora's aforementioned double jump. However, where his air game shines is his up aerial, which can carry opponents closer to the upper blast line due to its high overall knockback, putting them in an unfavorable position where Sora can potentially KO them with his up special, Aerial Sweep.

Sora's ground game also has its uses. His neutral attack and forward tilt are similar to his neutral aerial in that they are natural combos that either initiate only one hit on a single button press or the full combo if the attack button is held or repeatedly tapped. In particular, his neutral attack comes out on frame 4, making it a good tool for close-range pressure. His forward tilt has a slow startup, but compensates with more versatility than his other moves; when single tapped, it has enough power to KO reliably despite dealing very low damage, and when held or repeatedly tapped, it deals much more damage but sacrifices some KO power (although it is still an effective KO tool regardless). His up tilt functions much like Palutena's equivalent move in that it hits multiple times and has solid KO power while being an effective anti-air to its overall good range and multi-hit properties. His down tilt is his go-to combo starter, being able to combo into his aerial moves at low to medium percentages, while it can also combo into his up aerial for a KO if the opponent does not react correctly. Lastly, his dash attack covers a very large area of effect and can also KO at very high percentages.

His smash attacks are also serviceable in their own right. His forward smash is the least reliable of his smash attacks due to its startup and end lag, but is the most powerful, and can negate other projectiles (although he is left vulnerable when doing so). His up smash has deceptively good range in front of him, and likewise has strong KO power, being one of the strongest up smashes in the game. Lastly, his down smash functions like the equivalent moves of Ridley, King K. Rool and Incineroar, jumping upwards before striking the ground. In doing so, he can vault over low profiling attacks, but unlike other moves, the move is also well suited for 2-framing since the move's hitbox goes well below him.

Sora's grab game is also very good. His standing grab is among the fastest in the game with only 7 frames of startup, his pummel is among the best in Ultimate due to its damage and speed, and he has three KO throws. His forward throw is mainly used for getting foes offstage, but can KO at high percentages near ledges. His up throw is also decently powerful and can set opponents up for juggles if they do not DI or react correctly. His back throw, however, is his primary KO throw, being able to KO at around 130% near the edge. His down throw lacks the KO power his other throws have, but like up throw, can still position opponents for juggles and other aerial situations.

Lastly, Sora has a useful kit of special moves. His neutral special, Magic, cycles between three attacking spells (Firaga, Thundaga and then Blizzaga), each cycling after the previous one has been utilized. Firaga functions similarly to Banjo & Kazooie's Breegull Blaster, being able to launch fireballs by repeatedly pressing the attack button. After finishing, Firaga transitions to Thundaga, which drops several bolts of lightning that combo into each other. Notably, the last bolt has very strong KO power, making it the only spell that can outright KO reliably. Lastly, Thundaga transitions to Blizzaga, which has no KO power but freezes opponents starting at mid-high percentages, allowing him to catch up to deal extra damage.

His side special, Sonic Blade, is a charging attack that functions similarly to Pikachu's Quick Attack. When the move is initiated near an opponent, Sora will face towards them and charge; otherwise, he will continue to move in the direction the Control Stick is held in. If the special attack button is tapped, Sora will charge forward once, but if held or repeatedly tapped, Sora will strike up to three times instead. His up special, Aerial Sweep, is a spinning sword strike much like the Spin Attacks utilized by the three Links; however, unlike said move, the grounded version causes Sora to rise upwards, making it identical to said move's aerial version. It can also transition into Sonic Blade if the move input is performed near the jump's apex. His down special, Counterattack is a counterattack that almost uniquely functions as both a reflector and a counter, alongside the down specials used by Palutena, King K. Rool, and Joker. Uniquely among said moves, however, is that projectiles that get reflected behind Sora instead of in front of him. While this makes the move ineffective as a direct reflector, it allows him some defense against characters with both reflectors and projectiles (such as Mario, Mewtwo and Hero).

However, for as many strengths as Sora has, he also has several flaws. His low weight and below-average falling speed make him very susceptible to vertical KO's, while the below-average frame data on his moveset makes it hard for him to escape from combos. With all of these factors considered, he is particularly susceptible to wall of pain combos, as he has no realistic ways of defending himself.

Sora's range is also another issue. Despite being a swordfighter, Sora's Keyblade has among the shortest range of any weapon in Ultimate, which leaves him at a disadvantage against other range-based fighters such as Shulk and Sephiroth (especially given their respective sword attacks). When combined with his aforementioned frame data, he is unable to keep maximum distance from other characters as effectively as other spacing-based characters (such as Marth and Simon) and can result in opponents being able to chase him down more easily.

Lastly, Sora's special moves all have certain flaws that force him to maintain a patient playstyle. Magic cannot freely swap between spells (unlike other 3-weapon attacks, such as Peach's forward smash), forcing him to repeatedly use his spells to utilize one for particular situations. Transitioning also leaves Sora vulnerable since he cannot move until his current spell concludes, making him very vulnerable if opponents can get behind him, where he has limited defense options. Lastly, since all 3 spells are projectiles, they can easily be turned against him by reflectors.

Sonic Blade also slows down slightly upon hitting a shield (although given the short amount of time it takes to transition between hits, punishing the move can prove to be difficult), while Sora cannot input any actions if the move concludes in the air, making him very vulnerable. Aerial Sweep does not hit behind Sora on startup, while Sora is vulnerable to meteor smashes since the move does not hit directly above him. Lastly, Counterattack shares one flaw with Sephiroth's Scintilla in that the area directly behind him is not protected, while the move's aforementioned ineffectiveness against projectiles makes it infeasible for reflected projectiles to KO opponents.

Moveset

• Sora can crawl.
• Sora possesses a special midair jump. When jumping in midair, Sora will ascend in a floatier, curved trajectory with significantly more height, similar to the midair jumps of Ness, Mewtwo, Lucas, and Kazuya.
• Sora hovers above the ground during his dash, similarly to Cloud and Sephiroth. The animation is similar to his Glide ability in his home series.
• Each of Sora's Keyblade hits generate a cartoony star effect and a unique hit sound, emulating the Kingdom Key's hit effects from the Kingdom Hearts series.
• Upon Sora landing the final hit in a stamina battle, a special slow-motion zoom will play that fades the screen to white before the Announcer says "Game!". This is reminiscent of the visual effects of landing the finishing blow against a major enemy in the Kingdom Hearts games.
• Sora is a lightweight, at the same weight as Zelda. As Sakurai explained in his reveal presentation, the reasoning behind Sora's light weight is due to his floaty airborne characteristics in combat, and not his mass, similarly to Mewtwo.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.8%	An overhead strike, a forward thrust, and a spinning, horizontal strike. It is fast but very weak. Resembles the standard attack combo in the original Kingdom Hearts.
			2.6%
			4.2%
Forward tilt			7.2% (tap), 5.2% (hit 1), 2.8% (hit 2), 2.6% (hit 3)	An upward swing. If tapped or held, he will do a forward thrust and an overhead strike. A bit slower than his neutral attack, but much stronger. Uniquely for a natural combo, the first hit knocks away opponents if cancelled, but continuing with the second hit will allow the rest of the hits to connect. Partially based on the Slapshot ability.
Up tilt			0.8% (hits 1-4), 1.2% (hit 5), 4.6% (hit 6)	Spins his Keyblade above his head before catching it with a swipe. Acts somewhat like Palutena's up tilt. Deals multiple hits and lacks vertical range, though the first hit has a scooping hitbox that can connect against nearby opponents. Resembles one of Sora's actions when performing the "Reflect" Reaction Command against Final Xemnas in Kingdom Hearts II, as well as the Chain Rave Deck Command from Kingdom Hearts: Re:coded.
Down tilt			5.2%	A vertical swipe while crouching. Launches an opponent in a diagonal trajectory towards Sora, allowing him to combo into multiple moves like up tilt, up smash or an aerial.
Dash attack			9.6% (clean), 7.6% (mid), 7.2% (late)	A slide kick, similar to Mario's. Resembles the Sliding Dash ability, as it first appeared in the original Kingdom Hearts.
Forward smash			15.4%	A powerful, horizontal swing. Compared to the rest of Sora's moveset, it is very powerful, thus making it a go-to finisher.
Up smash			0.6% (hit 1), 14.6% (hit 2)	Lifts his Keyblade upwards, emitting a brief flash of light. The hitbox is quite large, though it does not appear to reach too far beside him. It has a sweetspot at the end of the Keyblade that deals more damage and knockback. Resembles Magic Flash.
Down smash			15.2%	Does a small hop and stabs his Keyblade to the ground, emitting a shockwave. Like King K. Rool, Ridley and Incineroar's down smashes, Sora's hurtbox shifts upwards during his hop, allowing him to evade attacks with low hitboxes. Resembles Finishing Leap.
Neutral aerial			3.8% (hit 1), 3.5% (hit 2), 6.8% (hit 3)	Spins vertically with his Keyblade. Part of a three-hit combo: if tapped or held, he will do an upward strike and a downward strike. Each hit causes him to float slightly, similar to Bayonetta's forward aerial. The first hitbox has a wide, lasting hitbox, allowing it to be used out of a short hop to initiate aerial combos. Resembles Air Spiral.
Forward aerial			4.8% (hit 1), 4%, (hit 2), 6.8% (hit 3)	A downward strike. Part of a three-hit combo: if tapped or held, he will do an upward strike and a spinning attack. Each hit causes him to float slightly, similar to Bayonetta's forward aerial.
Back aerial			13.2%	Turns around to perform a horizontal swing.
Up aerial			12.2%	Slashes upwards in an overhead motion while doing a backward flip.
Down aerial		Hurricane Blast (ハリケーンピリオド, Hurricane Period)	9.8% (hit), 5.5% (landing)	Moonsaults downwards with the Keyblade multiple times. Upon landing, Sora poses with the Keyblade against his shoulder. Based on an ability introduced in Kingdom Hearts Final Mix.
Grab			—	Reaches out with one hand.
Pummel			1.3%	Sora smacks the target with the handle of his Keyblade (resembles pummels like Shulk's.)
Forward throw			5% (hit), 3% (throw)	Swings his Keyblade downwards, teeth-first.
Back throw			11.8% (throw), 7.6% (collateral)	Spins twice to throw his opponent backwards, similar to Mario's. Resembles Blow-off, a Flowmotion-based ability in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. It also could resemble the second portion of the "Merge" Reaction Command from Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix.
Up throw			6.8%	Lifts the opponent upwards. It resembles the first portion of the "Merge" Reaction Command from Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix.
Down throw			4.6%	Tosses the opponent to the ground. Somewhat resembles the "Fail-Safe" Reaction Command in Kingdom Hearts II.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Spins around and slashes the Keyblade behind him, then in front of him while getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Spins around and slashes the Keyblade, then in front of him while getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Spins around and slashes the Keyblade, then in front of him while getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Sora crawls forward from the ledge, poking the Keyblade out at a low angle.
Neutral special		Magic	Firaga: 5.6% (clean), 5.2% (mid), 4.8% (late) Thundaga: 5.2% (hits 1-3) Blizzaga:	Sora casts one of three different spells: Firaga, Thundaga and Blizzaga, with each use cycling through the spells in the list. He starts with Firaga by default, then switches to Thundaga, then Blizzaga, and then back to Firaga again according to the command icon above his mugshot. Firaga is a fireball that moves straight, which can be tapped to fire continuously, and acts as a conventional projectile. Thundaga generates three vertical thunderbolts in front of Sora one at a time, which can combo into each other; they cover less distance in the air but are very effective for edgeguarding due to their vertical coverage. Blizzaga fires a stream of short-ranged ice crystals similar to Ice Climbers' Blizzard which can freeze opponents and grant an opening. All three moves are counted as energy projectiles and can thus be absorbed, Pocketed and reflected, though all versions are difficult to use if Pocketed since they are either weak or possess vertical hitboxes. (Firaga and Blizzaga are based on their use and Sora's animations from the original Kingdom Hearts, while Thundaga is based on Sora's animation from Kingdom Hearts but the straight-line shots of lightning are based on using the spell as Sora in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days.)
Side special		Sonic Blade	5.2% (hit 1-3)	Performs a high-speed thrusting attack. Like Quick Attack, Sora can change directions multiple times during use to increase travel distance, with a maximum of three thrusts. If an opponent is hit with this move, a "Lock-On" target appears on them, and the remaining thrusts will automatically lock onto the victim; this does not occur if it hits a shielding opponent. Each thrust travels less distance, though its combined distance grants Sora a good recovery. However, it is rather slow, making it interruptible by opponents. Sora becomes helpless at the end of the move.
Up special		Aerial Sweep	3.8% (hit 1), 2.1% (hits 2-3), 4.6% (hit 4)	A series of spinning, inward slashes while jumping, similar to Spin Attack. Unlike similar moves, Sora will still jump and leave the ground if it is initiated while standing. It can be also be canceled into Sonic Blade to maximize recovery distance if done right before Sora goes into special freefall, though it causes Sora to become helpless otherwise. It deals good knockback, making it an effective finisher.
Down special		Counterattack	1.4x (reflection)	A counterattack in which Sora retaliates with an upward swing. Like Mii Swordfighter's Blade Counter, the opponent will momentarily be thrown off balance in their grab release animation before they are hit by the counterattack (which references to gaining a 'Tech Point' when guarding in KH1). The counter does not cover his back effectively, meaning attacks behind him may end up connecting. He can also counter projectiles and reflect them with a 1.4x damage multiplier; however, it is unique as it deflects projectiles behind him, making it function more like a "parry" in 1v1 situations. (When Sora is 'guarding', he is using an animation originally from Kingdom Hearts.)
Final Smash		Sealing the Keyhole	16% (initial), 24% (cutscene), 10% (throw)	Sora fires a beam that summons a huge keyhole. Anyone trapped inside will be locked behind by a Smash variant of the Door to Darkness, and Sora seals the keyhole with the same beam, causing an explosion.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Casts Stopga, Aeroga, or Curaga, which cycle similarly to Magic. However, these spells are only aesthetic and do not have any effect on gameplay. Sora calls out "Time!", "Wind!", and "Heal!" for each respective spell.
• Side taunt: Faces the screen and twirls his Keyblade in front of himself while grunting. This resembles one of his victory animations in the Olympus Coliseum.
• Down taunt: Does a small hop while raising a fist in the air and says "Here we go!" (行くよ, Let's go!)

Victory poses

• Jumps in the air ceremoniously, spins his Keyblade around, and then rests it on his shoulder while saying "Yes." (良し, Alright.) This is similar to one of his victory animations when he wins a round in one of the cups from the Olympus Coliseum area in the original Kingdom Hearts, which, in turn, resembles Cloud's victory animation in Final Fantasy VII. The pose at the end is similar to his Tetsuya Nomura artwork from Kingdom Hearts and, by extension, his P1/P5 render pose.
• Thrusts his Keyblade forwards, then spins it around, and points it upwards while holding it both hands.
• Swings the Keyblade forwards twice, then turns around and rests it on his shoulder while facing his back towards the player. This is also another one of his victory animations in the Coliseum, which in turn, references Squall Leonhart's victory pose in Final Fantasy VIII.

Classic Mode: The Light That Clears the Darkness

Sora's route mostly consists of stamina battles against opponents based on various antagonists from the original games.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Link and Young Link	Hollow Bastion	Fragments of Sorrow	Stamina battle. Player: 100 HP. CPUs: 50 HP. Both fighters represent Soldier Heartless.
2	Mr. Game & Watch (normal-sized x5, large x2, giant x1)	Skyworld (Battlefield form)	Night of Fate	Horde Battle. Player: 100 HP. The normal-sized Mr. Game & Watches have 20 HP, the large ones have 50, and the giant one has 70. The Mr. Game & Watches represent Shadow, Neoshadow, and Darkside Heartless.
3	Cloud	Coliseum	Shrouding Dark Cloud	Stamina battle. 100 HP. A reference to Sora's battle against Cloud at the Olympus Coliseum in Kingdom Hearts.
4	Robin (normal-sized x1, large x1) and Robin	Kalos Pokémon League	Hollow Bastion	Stamina battle. Player: 100 HP. CPUs: 50 HP. The Robins represent Organization XIII, with the female representing Larxene, the normal-sized male representing Vexen, and the large male representing Marluxia, referencing the events of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. Kalos Pokémon League resembles Castle Oblivion, where the game primarily takes place.
5	Giant Ganondorf	Find Mii (Ω form)	Destiny's Force	Stamina battle. 100 HP. Ganondorf likely represents Xehanort, the primary antagonist of the Kingdom Hearts series. Find Mii resembles the Keyblade Graveyard where he often resides.
6	Metal Sora	Hollow Bastion (Dive to the Heart, Sora's Station)	Destati	Stamina battle. 100 HP. Metal Sora represents the Armored Ventus Nightmare from Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand and Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Destati	The Hands likely represents Ansem, the primary antagonist of the first Kingdom Hearts. Both Hands are fought in any difficulty.

Note: Every stage plays a track from the Kingdom Hearts universe, no matter what universe the stage originates from.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Sora has Blast Away! -Gummi Ship II- accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

The message that shows Sora's availability in World of Light

Due to his status as downloadable content, Sora does not have a legitimate role in World of Light. Instead, he is unlocked for use in the mode after freeing 10 fighters from Galeem's control. If loading an existing save file that meets this condition before downloading Sora, he is immediately unlocked.

Spirits

Sora's default fighter spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Sora has been downloaded. Unlocking Sora in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. His Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, Kingdom Hearts III, and Timeless River outfits have fighter spirits of their own, available through the shop. Each fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

• 

  1,500. Sora

• 

  1,501. Sora (KINGDOM HEARTS II)

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  1,502. Sora (KINGDOM HEARTS 3D [Dream Drop Distance])

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  1,503. Sora (KINGDOM HEARTS III)

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  1,504. Sora (Timeless River)

In Spirit battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
1,507		Roxas	Kingdom Hearts Series	•Sora (160 HP)		13,800	Hollow Bastion (Dive to the Heart, Roxas)	•Health Recovery •Move Speed ↑ •Attack Power ↑	•Stamina battle •The enemy has increased attack power after a little while •The enemy has increased move speed after a little while •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge	Fragments of Sorrow
1,511		Ventus	Kingdom Hearts Series	•Sora (100 HP) •Dark Samus (80 HP)		3,900	Gerudo Valley (Battlefield form)	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Shrouding Dark Cloud

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
1,506		Kairi	Kingdom Hearts Series	•Daisy •Sora		2,100	Tortimer Island	•N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy starts the battle with a Lip's Stick	Hand in Hand	Sora

Conditions in italic are not listed on the Spirit Battle preview screen.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Sora's splash art.

• 

  Sora shaking hands with Mario in front of the fire art Smash symbol.

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  Sora's Station of Awakening in Hollow Bastion.

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  Sora at a readied stance at Hollow Bastion.

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  Sora using Aerial Sweep on Tortimer Island.

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  Sora using Blizzaga on Popo.

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  Sora using Sonic Blade towards Metal Face of Gaur Plain.

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  Sora fighting Sephiroth on Coliseum.

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  Sora using a powerful strike on Bowser.

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  Sora with Kirby, Mr. Game & Watch, and Link in PictoChat 2.

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  Sora with Cloud and Sephiroth in Midgar.

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  Sora combating Mario, Cloud, and Sephiroth at Hollow Bastion.

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  Sora interacting with Duck Hunt.

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  Sora using Firaga.

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  Sora using Thundaga on Pit.

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  Sora using his counterattack against Charizard.

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  Sora reflecting Samus’s Charge Shot.

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  Sora using his Final Smash, Sealing the Keyhole.

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  Sora finishing his Final Smash.

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  Sora and Mario at Hollow Bastion.

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  Sora, Mario, Donkey Kong, Kirby, and Pikachu traveling together through Mushroom Kingdom U.

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  Sora fighting Sephiroth at Venom.

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  Sora Diving into Final Destination.

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  Sora on the beach-side of Tortimer Island.

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  Sora fighting Link at Final Destination.

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  Sora and Kirby casting Firaga.

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  Sora and Kirby casting Thundaga.

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  Sora casting Stopga, Aeroga, and Curaga for one of his taunts.

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  Sora jumping in his Station of Awakening.

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  A lineup of Sora's costumes.

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  Sora arriving in Hyrule.

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  Sora alongside all the fighters in the 2nd Fighters Pass.

Trivia

• Sora's internal codename is "trail".
• According to Sakurai, Sora was the actual winner of the Smash Bros. Fighter Ballot, aligning with the statement that Bayonetta was the winner among "realizable and negotiable characters".
• Several of Sora's promotional images contain references:
  • Sora on Tortimer Island is a reference to his birthplace, Destiny Islands.
  • Sora attacking Metal Face references the Guard Armor, a recurring Heartless boss.
  • Sora fighting Sephiroth in Coliseum references their encounter in the Olympus Coliseum area in Kingdom Hearts.
  • Sora standing next to Duck Hunt references his allies Goofy and Donald Duck from the Kingdom Hearts series (who are also a dog and duck duo).
  • Mario and Sora together is a reference to both being the first and last fighters on the roster respectively and Mario being a major inspiration for the Kingdom Hearts series as a whole.
  • Both Sora and Link fighting each other with two swords is a reference to Roxas, who frequently wields two Keyblades. The image specifically references their battle at the Station of Serenity.
• His reveal trailer has different lip-syncing between the English and Japanese versions; when he flies by the camera to chuckle in the Japanese version, his mouth is already open. In the English version, he grins before chuckling. This goes along with the lip-syncing changes in most English versions of Kingdom Hearts.
• Each of Sora's official renders resemble his official artworks from each iteration of Kingdom Hearts. Said renders are also used for his fighter spirits.
• Sora's fighter tagline, "Sora Is Finally Here!", is a reference to both his massive and long-term popularity as a fighter candidate and his status as the final Ultimate fighter on the roster. It could also be a subtle nod to the definitive versions of the Kingdom Hearts games having the subtitle Final Mix.
• The Kingdom Hearts series holds a strong connection to the numbers 7 and 13. A pivotal plot point established in Dream Drop Distance and Kingdom Hearts III is Xehanort's goal of uniting 7 "lights" and 13 "darknesses" to forge the legendary χ-blade, with the Real Organization XIII as the 13 darknesses and the Seven Guardians of Light as the 7 lights. These numeric connections are heavily connected to and referenced in Sora's inclusion in Ultimate:
  • The update Sora releases in is version 13.0.0, which releases 13 days after his reveal, and includes 13 new spirits (5 fighter spirits based on his incarnations, and 8 from the rest of the Kingdom Hearts series).
  • When counting Pyra and Mythra as separate fighters, Sora is the 7th fighter in the Fighters Pass Vol. 2 and is the 13th DLC fighter overall added in Ultimate.
  • Sora's stage, Hollow Bastion, features 7 different stained glass portraits of characters from Kingdom Hearts.
• If one counts Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings as separate characters, Sora has the most Fighter Spirits in the game, with five.
• Despite having his proportions from the original Kingdom Hearts, Sora's stance and crouch height resemble his battle pose from Kingdom Hearts II and III.
• Unlike in the Kingdom Hearts series, Sora's P1 and P5 renders have him hold the Keyblade such that the teeth face upward, in contrast to how the teeth face downward in his other renders and his P1 fighter spirit. This is to reflect his 2D artwork from the original Kingdom Hearts, in which he holds the Keyblade similarly.
• When holding sword-type items, Sora's stance changes so that he holds the Keyblade with his raised right arm and the item in his left, resembling his battle stance in Valor Form.
• Sora is the third DLC character in Ultimate whose voice clips are repurposed from another game, following Banjo & Kazooie and Min Min.