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 an upcoming Fighter 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 is set to release on October 18th, 2021 (October 19th outside 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, at least partially using re-purposed voice clips from Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

Moveset

• 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.
• Each of Sora's Keyblade hits generate a cartoony star effect and a unique hit sound, emulating the hit effects from the Kingdom Hearts games (and specifically, when hitting enemies with the Kingdom Key, Sora's main weapon of choice).
• 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 killing blow against a major enemy in the Kingdom Hearts games.
• Sora is a lightweight, having around 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				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.
Forward tilt				A side-to-side swipe. 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				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				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				A slide kick, similar to the down tilts of Cloud and Sephiroth. Resembles the Sliding Dash ability, as it first appeared in the original Kingdom Hearts.
Forward smash				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				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				Does a small hop and stabs his Keyblade to the ground, emitting a shockwave. Like King K. Rool and Ridley's down smashes, Sora's hurtbox shifts upwards during his hop, allowing him to evade attacks with low hitboxes. Resembles Finishing Leap.
Neutral aerial				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				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				Turns around to perform a horizontal swing.
Up aerial				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)		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
Forward throw				Swings his Keyblade downwards.
Back throw				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 "Merge" Reaction Command from Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix.
Up throw				Lifts the opponent upwards.
Down throw				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)
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)
Edge attack Edge getups
Neutral special		Magic		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 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		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		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 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		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.
• His other two taunts seem to consist of him spinning his sword around in front of him towards the screen, much like one of his victory animations in the Olympus Coliseum, while the other has him performing a fist pump and smiling while looking forward as wind blows onto various parts of him.

Victory poses

• Jumps in the air ceremoniously, spins his Keyblade around, and then rests it on his shoulder while saying "Yes." 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.

Role 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.

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  1,500. Sora

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  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)

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Sora's splash art.

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

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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 Hallow 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.

Trivia

• 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.
• 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.
• 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).
  • Sora was revealed over 13 years after Super Smash Bros. Brawl was released and nearly 7 years after Super Smash Bros. 4 was released.
  • 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 artwork from the original Kingdom Hearts, in which he holds the Keyblade similarly.