List of Super Smash Bros. 4 character trailers
All newcomers and third-party characters in Super Smash Bros. 4 were officially announced with trailers. These trailers consist of original animation done predominantly with CGI before showing gameplay clips demonstrating the characters' moveset, although some trailers consists of mostly gameplay footage (One example being Bayonetta's). Each trailer begins with the sound of a sword being unsheathed before an animation of a fiery Smash logo blazes towards the camera. Before showcasing a characters' moves, the character poses for the splash art alongside an introductory catchphrase, pun, or statement displayed in the shot (i.e. "Palutena Alights!" or "Roy seals the deal!"). All character trailers are available for viewing within the Movies submenu in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, except those for Sonic, Mii Fighters, and DLC characters. Duck Hunt must be unlocked in order to view its trailer.
Newcomers also have poster artwork, many of which directly reference their trailers.
Below is a complete list and synopsis of all 21 character trailers in SSB4 in chronological order.
Villager
Villager's trailer was shown at E3 2013 within the first trailer for the game, which begins with Villager in an Animal Crossing town checking his mailbox and receiving a letter. He is then shown excitedly running through the town while the animal citizens look at him with surprise. The open envelope drifts down and catches Tom Nook's eye before the camera focuses in on the seal of the letter, which depicts the iconic Super Smash Bros. logo. The trailer then shows clips of Mario, Link, Samus, Kirby, Pit, Fox, Donkey Kong, and Pikachu in their respective series settings before they all form in the midst of a misty abyss and jump into the top screen on a Nintendo 3DS. A series of gameplay clips are shown, revealing Bowser in the process, as well as a multitude of new playable stages before a clip that shows Mario leaping from a then-unknown location and back into the misty abyss from before, preparing for the transition from 3DS to Wii U. Pixel by pixel, Mario is taken apart and put back together, now in higher quality, as he and the characters from before land on another Battlefield. Once again, more new stages are shown off before the video cuts to Mario and Bowser fighting in the Super Smash Bros. version of the Boxing Ring (which was not confirmed to be a Punch-Out!! stage until Little Mac's reveal), whereupon Bowser attacks Mario, but before Mario can retaliate, he is taken by surprise by Villager, who catches him with his bug net. The camera zooms in on the Villager, with a caption announcing "Villager comes to town!". Following that, it shows several clips of him fighting using the various tools from the Animal Crossing series. Finally, stills of all known characters at the time trail by before the trailer ends displaying the game's logo.
Mega Man
Mega Man's trailer, simply called "Mega Man Joins the Battle!", begins with a blaring siren and a "New challenger approaching!" sign. It then cuts to a canyon in the dead of night, with Mario, Link, Kirby, and Donkey Kong glancing at a mysterious figure watching above them on a clifftop, hidden by shadow; all that can be discerned is the figure being humanoid, with a head of spiky hair. Suddenly, a series of pixels form a helmet that covers the hair before a series of lights come on, a pair of blue eyes glowing. The figure, none other than Mega Man himself, leaps and teleports out of the canyon before briefly paying homage to his home series in the form of a Robot Master screen, with a caption proudly declaring that "Mega Man joins the battle!" From there, several clips are played of Mega Man doing battle against Nintendo's greatest, also showing off his animations, which are recreations of his movements from his 8-bit days. However, after the scenes soon show said greatest getting the better of him, the trailer shifts back to video form, as Mega Man accesses his Weapon Copy System and equips himself with the Metal Blades, the signature weapon of Metal Man, one of the most iconic Robot Masters Mega Man has ever faced. He creates a pair of sawblades and hurls them at his assailants, who narrowly evade the blades. From there, the trailer becomes a showing of the various weapons Mega Man has acquired from fallen Robot Masters, making use of them in his moveset to land just as many hits on his fellow characters as they had on him, culminating in Mega Man using the Flame Blast, gotten from another Robot Master, to unleash torrents of fire upon the four from the trailer. After the trailer, a short snippet plays of Mega Man on Wily Castle, doing battle with the Yellow Devil.
Wii Fit Trainer
Wii Fit Trainer's trailer, simply titled "Wii Fit Trainer Joins the Battle!", opens on a screen showing Wii Fit gameplay. The screen pans out to show the gameplay is actually on a television screen as Mario, Link, and Kirby are all following the game's instructions, all of whom are having trouble keeping the given poses. A white arm taps Mario on the shoulder as he and the others look at the individual tapping him, revealed to be the Wii Fit Trainer. She assumes another yoga pose that sends the trio soaring and leaves the television the three were using askew. The trailer then cuts to a number of clips in succession, in which the Wii Fit Trainer uses a number of yoga poses to attack her foes, even using a barrage of them in her Final Smash. She addresses the camera and delivers a thumbs up while the trailer ends with splash art that exclaims "Wii Fit Trainer weighs in!", with the Balance Board bouncing up and down behind her.
Sonic
Sonic's trailer, simply titled "Sonic Joins the Battle!", begins when Mario and Mega Man are busy fighting in Battlefield, whereupon, after Mega Man is thrown to the ground, then Techs, and then Mega Man and Mario both rush towards one another. However, their bout is cut short by Sonic darting into the stage, attacking both of them in the process. The remainder of the trailer shows Sonic doing battle with several other Nintendo characters, though it also confirms the existence of the Windy Hill Zone stage and shows the three mascots in battle once again.
Note: Sonic is the first veteran to have his own trailer, mainly because he is a third-party character.
Rosalina & Luma
Rosalina & Luma's trailer, titled "Comet Observatory", opens in space, with Kirby soaring the cosmos on his signature Warp Star as he flies to a race on a Rainbow Road. Mario and Donkey Kong, the leaders in the race, are busy glaring at each other, both trying to take the lead, before Kirby darts by them forcing them to spin out; he soon crosses the finish line. The camera cuts to a glow in space, which is revealed to be a Launch Star, rocketing a blue orb out towards space, where Kirby is once again happily traversing the stars. The blue orb whizzes on by Kirby, making him lose control of his Warp Star and force a crash landing back onto the course. The blue orb splits in two at this point; while one whirls above Rainbow Road, the other races down towards the track, where it slows down and reveals itself as a Luma. Kirby and the Luma stare at each other curiously before several of the other racers, in particular, Luigi, Peach, and Bowser arrive, all wondering what the figure is; albeit Donkey Kong expresses his curiosity by poking Kirby rather than the Luma. The glow from the other orb envelops the stage, which gathers the attention of the six figures. The Luma bounces towards the source of the orb and jumps in its arms. As the camera slowly pans up, the figure holds the Luma in its arms and glances at the camera face-first; the figure in question being Rosalina. The ensuing splash art declares that "Rosalina & Luma launch into battle!" before cutting to new gameplay footage showing Rosalina coordinating her attacks with the Luma and the versatility such a pairing entails. The trailer ends with both Rosalina & Luma twirling around before a small snippet from the trailer that shows Kirby and the Luma dancing.
Little Mac
Little Mac's trailer, titled "Champion of the Ring", begins in a gym, during which time the trailer is portrayed in a comic book-like art style. A figure in a pink hoodie is busy training with a coach offering encouragement. More shots of this figure training are shown, culminating in them delivering an uppercut that sends the Sandbag flying through a window. The figure sheds the hoodie and takes a stance, with the figure's identity revealed as Little Mac. The corresponding splash art quips, "Little Mac punches in!". The screen fades out to Battlefield, with Samus staring down at the boxing champion, seemingly unimpressed. She runs a hand from the top of her head down to Little Mac's, lightly tapping it and comparing her height with his (referencing his Assist Trophy Character profile from the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website). Little Mac looks highly agitated at this point before the Power Meter appears at the bottom, rapidly filling up to maximum, at which point, he throws a KO Uppercut that sends Samus flying. The trailer shifts to in-game footage as Doc Louis continues to shout advice and tips at Little Mac; the gameplay itself shows off Mac's combo prowess and quick ground speed, but also denotes his poor quality of movement and recovery while in the air. The gameplay soon shows Little Mac transforming into a colossal monster known as Giga Mac briefly before the trailer ends on Little Mac throwing another KO Uppercut that defeats Mega Man and Bowser before posing in the middle of the Boxing Ring stage. A short stinger then plays that shows Little Mac and Doc Louis, once again in comic-book style, enjoying some chocolate bars as Samus rolls past them in Morph Ball form.
Charizard and Greninja
Greninja's trailer, titled "Challenger from the Shadows", begins in the middle of a canyon, similar to that used for Mega Man Joins the Battle, only set more in the daytime. The trailer opens with a series of Poké Balls being lobbed from the sky, releasing several Pokémon from them that can appear in the game, all gathered at the foot of a cliff. The camera pans up to reveal Pikachu resides atop the cliff, with Charizard behind it; the caption for the latter proclaims that "Charizard fires it up!" This is the first instance of a veteran in the base game with splash art differing from its artwork. Soaring into the sky, Charizard then slams down in front of Mario, who narrowly evades the attack and lands in front of Link, Samus, Kirby, and Olimar. Elsewhere, in a cave, a mysterious figure hangs upside-down from the cave roof making hand gestures as a disc of water begins to form in its palm. The five heroes hurl projectiles at Charizard, alongside Mario himself rushing to face the Pokémon dodging everyone else's attacks. The disc of water begins to form a four-pointed star and rotates rapidly, before it is thrown and stops Mario and Charizard from exchanging blows. Mario and Charizard land and glance at a nearby tree, where the figure is upside down on a tree branch. Flipping itself upright, it cranes its head at the duo, revealing its identity as Greninja; the caption comments that "Greninja makes a splash!" It uses Hydro Pump to blast itself out of the shot and into a series of gameplay footage showing itself and Charizard in battle, followed by brief clips showing off Charizard and Lucario's respective Final Smashes. The trailer finally ends on Greninja using its own Final Smash on Mario, cutting to the game's logo right before the final hit is thrown.
Mii Fighters
Mii Fighter's trailer begins with Satoru Iwata and Reggie Fils-Aimé in a black background. The pair stare each other down before Reggie lunges at Iwata, who swiftly kicks him away; before they begin exchanging rapid jabs, Iwata "absorbs" energy while striking a pose similar to a double hand chop, which is the pose made by presenters in Nintendo Direct when saying "direct." Following this, an over-the-top fistfight commences, culminating in Iwata pulling out a Wii U GamePad while Fils-Aimé does the same with a Classic Controller Pro and proceed to play Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, using Miis of themselves to continue their conflict; while Reggie's Mii is only equipped with a pair of gloves, Iwata's is armed with a longsword. The pair continue their duel, going from Battlefield's Ω Form to Palutena's Temple, as both men trade glances as the bout progresses; ultimately, Reggie ends up triumphant while Iwata shoots him a look before pulling out an amiibo of Mario and placing it on the GamePad. The resulting in-game Mario exacts revenge on Reggie, handling every move his Mii self throws with ease before launching a Forward smash that sends the real Reggie flying. As Iwata's Mii celebrates alongside the amiibo Mario, Masahiro Sakurai himself arrives and explains the history behind getting Miis ready for Super Smash Bros.; after he explains it didn't feel right during the lifetime of Super Smash Bros. Brawl to have Miis as playable fighters, he delivers some new video gameplay which shows off a number of Miis fighting official Nintendo characters. The Miis, he adds on, are grouped into three classes: Mii Brawlers who fight using hand-to-hand combat, Mii Swordfighters who use swords and other bladed tools to do battle, and Mii Gunners who come equipped with arm cannons and a variety of projectiles. In addition, Mii Fighters are special in that their special moves, rather than be modified versions of their standard specials, have all-new options to use for all four special move types. To demonstrate some of the possibilities of the Mii Fighters, Mii versions of actual character suggestions posted by Miiverse users, with captions such as "Lincoln gets sworn in!," "Elijah Wood like to battle!," and "Ice-T pours it on!" During this, Sakurai explains the reasoning behind adding Miis, stating that he gets countless amounts of requests and ideas for characters to join the roster, and concludes by saying that by using Miis, players can put their dream character into the roster. This trailer is not on the official Super Smash Bros. website, nor available for viewing in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
Palutena and Dark Pit
Palutena's trailer, labeled "Goddess of Light", begins in the animated art style of Kid Icarus: Uprising, in which Palutena watches and comments on a duel between Link and Pit. Neither side can land a hit in on the other, but even then, Link seems to have the upper hand, able to use his assortment of weapons and items to control the blow of the battle. After a fierce kick to the stomach sends the angel flying, Link readies the Gale Boomerang to finish Pit off, but the item is stopped with a flash of light. The goddess of light herself now stands in front of Pit, using a horizontal force field to block the shot. As Pit stares in awe, wondering what Palutena herself is doing here, she activates his Power of Flight and sends him soaring off; she states she's here "for a little divine intervention", a comment proclaims that "Palutena alights!" before Link stands in front of the goddess. The trailer then jumps to gameplay, in which the duel between hero and goddess is resolved, and Palutena and Pit exchange banter before Palutena shows off a large number of powers available for her to use on demand, culminating in a display of her Final Smash before commenting the vast numbers of heroes across multiple dimensions, and praising them for being worthy enough to fight each other. In the stinger for the trailer, Dark Pit arrives and taunts Palutena. Though he was eventually revealed as a newcomer post-trailer reveal, he does not have splash art like the rest of the newcomers. This is by far the longest reveal trailer with 3 minutes long excluding the moveset presentations.
Pac-Man
Pac-Man's trailer, titled "Red, Blue, Yellow", opens with a shot of Mario fighting Link on Battlefield. As he launches an attack, the camera zooms in on Mario's hat, filling the screen with red; the camera then zooms back out to display the red as a diagonal streak across the screen. Another scene interrupts, showing Sonic darting through Windy Hill Zone before leaping off a spring and Mega Man attacking Greninja on Wily Castle. Like Mario and his hat, the camera zooms in on Mega Man's helmet. A corresponding shade of blue fills the screen and turns into a diagonal slant underneath the red from before. Suddenly, a yellow line comes between both of them and fills the screen before shrinking to a perfect circle. The circle opens up and makes a "waka" sound; the circle is, in all actuality, the original form of Pac-Man. After a caption stating that "Pac-Man hungers for battle!", the trailer shifts to Pac-Man taking on another signature design, that from the Pac-Man World series of games, and follows up with a series of gameplay videos in which Pac-Man fights using both acrobatics and characters and objects from past Namco games. After a brief clip of the Pac-Land stage, the trailer shifts to the Pac-Maze stage, played on a 3DS, being the only newcomer trailer to show its character in the 3DS version.. The trailer concludes in Mario, Sonic, and Mega Man chasing Pac-Mac before being chased by him in his classic 8-bit form and leaping towards the screen. A stinger follows with Mr. Game & Watch walking on screen next to Pac-Man and ringing his bell, while "1980" is written above the two. In the corner, the tops of Mario and Donkey Kong's heads appear, with "1981" written above.
Robin and Lucina
Robin and Lucina's trailer, titled "By Book, Blade, and Crest of Flame", begins with a wounded Chrom lying on the ground while his daughter, Lucina, is facing off against Captain Falcon (a caption adds that "Lucina wakes her blade?!"). Lucina then looks upon her wounded father and then focuses back on Captain Falcon, boldly proclaiming "For my father!" She then rushes at him with her Falchion and attempts to slash him, but Falcon proceeds to dodge it. Captain Falcon attempts to punch Lucina, but she dodges it. Captain Falcon then backflips to regain his ground. Lucina then proceeds to directly charge at Falcon with Falchion, but he proceeds to block the attack, and he overpowers Lucina by kicking the hilt of her sword. As her blade drops to the floor and Captain Falcon prepares to deliver a Falcon Punch, he is suddenly interrupted by several blasts of Elwind. Both fighters then glance up at the source of the attack, which is an unknown hooded figure. Once the figure descends to the ground, he assures Lucina, "It's going to be alright," whereupon the figure lifts his hood and readies a jagged electrical sword; the figure is thus confirmed to be Robin, with an accompanying caption that "Robin brings the thunder!" Some gameplay clips of him are shown as he and Lucina discuss the various types of spells and swords he has at his disposal and the importance of using them wisely, and then Lucina responds that she will join the fight alongside Robin, showing off some of her moves in gameplay, before they both comment on how they are facing the Hero-King himself and the radiant hero of legend. The trailer moves to a stinger which cuts to Chrom, who laments losing his chance to be worthy enough of being in Smash. Another clip then follows of of him assisting Robin in his Final Smash, Pair Up. The trailer ends with a brief clip showing footage of the female Robin.
Shulk
Shulk's trailer is titled "Looks like we don't have a choice!" (NTSC)/"Now it's Shulk time" (PAL), the former title referencing a quote when Shulk encounters a strong monster in Xenoblade Chronicles, and the latter referencing one of his taunts. It opens with Bowser running around Gaur Plain, who comes to a stop and roars. He is quickly distracted by a butterfly fluttering past, and turns around to search for it. Behind some nearby grass is Shulk, who readies the Monado before leaping into the air and attacking Bowser from behind with a Back Slash, sending him flying into the distance. He turns and addresses the camera with an enthusiastic "I'm really feeling it!" as a caption denotes that "Shulk foresees a fight!". The scene is quickly broken by a vision where he sees himself being attacked and knocked away by Link and Marth. Quickly reacting and turning around, Shulk manages to change the future by barely dodging the combined slashes from his foes, and he exchanges several parried sword strikes before jumping and sliding away. He then announces "Now it's Shulk time!" and prepares the Monado once again for a further conflict, with his five Monado Arts scrolling slowly through the spectrum of colors before stopping on the Smash Art; with a final flourish and a shout of "This is the Monado's Power!", the trailer then shifts to gameplay footage of Shulk in action and a number of moves, taking extra time to show off the Monado Arts that can affect Shulk's physical properties, alongside the remainder of his special moves and differing effects based on how they're used before summoning Dunban and Riki for a Chain Attack that ends the trailer. A stinger then follows, in which Shulk encounters Metal Face taunting him.
Bowser Jr.
Bowser Jr.'s trailer, titled "The Future King" (NTSC)/"The Future of Evil" (PAL), opens in a canyon similar to those used in Challenger from the Shadows and Mega Man Joins the Battle. It starts off with an unknown figure gliding above the ground in a small floating vehicle with a smiling face on it. It makes a sharp turn and as a cannon emerges from the vehicle's mouth, a massive cannonball is fired, stopping just barely in front of a gathering of heroes that consists of Mario, Link, Samus, Kirby, Mega Man, and Rosalina & Luma (the only character trailer to feature SSB4 newcomers in the CGI portion). The cannon retracts, and in its place, the vehicle, charging at the others, releases a wrecking ball on a chain that the band of six once again narrowly dodge. Mario glances at the vehicle's driver, still swinging the ball and chain and darts towards it; the vehicle, in response, adopts a menacing grimace and arms itself with a pair of drills. The two collide and Mario puts up a shield, but the drills slowly whittle it until it shatters, knocking Mario back. Finally, the kart springs out a pair of wheels from its undercarriage and charges forward, running over Mario, sending him flying before doing the same to Mega Man. With some proper lighting, the figure, Bowser Jr., is seen pumping a fist in the air and cheering; the accompanying caption dictates that "Bowser Jr. clowns the competition!" The trailer then cuts to Bowser Jr. still in the Junior Clown Car, now with gameplay footage showing off the remainder of the menagerie of weapons hidden in it; of note is a move wherein he ejects himself out of the Clown Car and can pummel midair foes with a hammer, and his Final Smash, Shadow Mario Paint where he transforms into Shadow Mario and paints a massive X on the stage that knocks about foes who touch it before bursting. As the trailer continues, Mario gets back upright, but as he recovers, he gapes in fear, seeing Bowser Jr. on the clifftop, chortling as a series of figures appear behind him. Roy, Iggy, Lemmy, Ludwig, Larry, Wendy, and Morton, the seven Koopalings, all arrive to accompany Bowser Jr., all of who have their own clown cars. The eight villains and the six heroes stare each other down before launching into battle. In the finale of the trailer, a series of videos show Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings working in tandem to attack numerous foes, culminating in a group shot of the eight engaging in antics with one another on Big Battlefield and a parting clip of Bowser Jr. using his own clown car.
Duck Hunt
Duck Hunt's trailer, titled "One Dog, One Bird, One Zapper" (NTSC)/"An Unlikely Team" (PAL), begins with a round of the classic Duck Hunt game, starting with the cinematic of the dog sniffing out some ducks and leaping into the grass. An unseen player shoots down a duck, which the dog grabs and shows the player; they fail to shoot the second one, though, and the dog breaks into its infamous laugh. The screen darkens and the camera zooms in on the dog, who glances to the side and sees the 8-bit versions of Mario, Link, Pit, Donkey Kong, Samus, and Bowser all confront it. Mario gestures at the dog, and, in a burst of light, the entire scene is rendered using modern-day graphics as Mario leaps near the grass; his five companions all join him, ready for the dog in the rustling grass. The same dog lunges from the grass with the duck the player failed to shoot down, the duo from Duck Hunt soon face the screen as the duck lets out a quack. A caption that states that "Duck Hunt takes aim!" startles the pair before the trailer turns into a series of videos in which the dog and duck taunt, strike, and move to the beat of the background music; the trailer also demonstrates how Duck Hunt fights, with both the dog and the duck landing blows, some of their special moves, such as summoning a Wild Gunman to work as a shield and fire shots at opponents, and a smash attack that pauses the video in its tracks as the player from before readies the NES Zapper and lets off a trail of shots. The trailer proceeds as normally, with the dog, duck, and player all unleashing attacks upon a series of foes, including a snippet that takes place on the dog and duck's signature hunting ground, before culminating in the dog releasing a horde of birds on Mario, Yoshi, and Villager that trap the three in the midst of a barrage by the Wild Gunmen. The trailer ends with a stinger in which the dog and duck high five each other and the dog laughs at the player aiding them in their smash attacks. Duck Hunt must be unlocked to view this trailer in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
Mewtwo
Mewtwo's trailer, titled "Mewtwo Strikes Back!", is named after the first Pokémon movie. It starts on a black background while the sound of a heartbeat can be heard. Soon, a monochrome eye opens and jitters around the screen as the heartbeat steadily grows faster. The eye turns purple as the lights rise, revealing Mewtwo. The caption proclaims "Mewtwo Strikes Back!". The remainder of the trailer is gameplay footage highlighting Mewtwo's various moves. One segment references Mewtwo Strikes Back, showing Mewtwo next to Mew in reference to the Mew Duo. Another segment makes reference to the sixteenth Pokémon movie, where a different Mewtwo can been seen encountering Genesect, the latter serving as the movie's antagonist. The trailer ends with Mewtwo Mega Evolving into Mega Mewtwo Y to unleash its Final Smash, Psystrike.
Lucas
Lucas's trailer, titled "Lucas Comes Out of Nowhere!", begins with scenes of Ness being beaten up by Mario, Little Mac, Wario, Marth, Villager, Robin, and Donkey Kong in rapid succession, culminating in Ness being sent flying by Bowser. As Ness lies helplessly on the ground, Bowser roars and charges for another attack. The screen cut to black and silence for a few seconds, before a new voice cries "PK Fire!" The screen cuts back to Bowser being hit with the flames and knocked away. The defender's shoes slide back to a halt and then move to a casual standing position. As a groggy Ness rises, we see the defender is Lucas, who leaps away. The caption declares "Lucas Comes Out of Nowhere!" (a reference to Mother 3's Nowhere Islands, where Lucas is from, specifically the Tazmily Islands). Gameplay footage demonstrates Lucas's moves, as well as several snippets recreating moments from Mother 3: One scene references the endgame fight against the Masked Man, represented by Lucas' new gray costume holding a Beam Sword and his standard costume wearing a Franklin Badge. Another scene references Lucas with his twin brother Claus and the family dog Boney, the latter of which is represented by a brown costume Duck Hunt. Lastly, one scene references Lucas with Boney and his father Flint, represented by Duck Hunt and Wild Gunman respectively.
Roy
Roy's trailer, titled "Roy Seals the Deal!", begins with all four Fire Emblem characters (Marth, Ike, Robin, and Lucina) battling each other on Coliseum before they're about to collide with each other. The screen then goes black for a few seconds before a familiar voice says "Don't forget about me!" in Japanese. A very short cinematic scene then shows someone jumping out flames and landing on the same stage that the fighters were on. That person is then revealed to be Roy. The caption announces that "Roy Seals the Deal!" as he says "I've returned at last!" in Japanese. The splash art states "Roy Seals the Deal," referencing his sword, the Sword of Seals, also known as the Binding Blade. The trailer then cuts to Roy Koopa taunting, to which Roy knocks away and taunts afterwards, referencing the fact that they share the same name. The gameplay footage is then shown. One segment in Roy's trailer involves him performing his down taunt before a Superspicy Curry referencing "The Ultimate Curry", one of the winning photos of the Melee "Camera Mode Contest." After doing his Final Smash, Critical Hit, Roy says "守るべきもののために、負けられない!", which translates to "For those I must protect…I cannot lose!"
Ryu
Ryu's trailer, titled "Here comes a new challenger! RYU.", begins with Ryu declaring (in the form of on-screen text) "I'm looking for a challenge." The opening segment of the trailer is based on the opening screen from Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers before unleashing a Hadoken on the screen. He then enters the battlefield and says, "So this is Smash..." Mario then appears to fight him, which Ryu accepts. One scene in his trailer shows him using the Tatsumaki Senpukyaku and Shoryuken while being pushed by Mario's F.L.U.D.D. This references Ryu's ending in Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (SNES) where he trains by continually performing Shoryukens under a waterfall. The trailer ends with Ryu declaring "You must defeat my Shoryuken to stand a chance", a correct translation of his win quote in Street Fighter II, which was famously mistranslated in that game as "You must defeat Sheng Long (a mistranslation of "Shoryuken") to stand a chance". A stinger at the end of the trailer shows a Mii Brawler wearing the Heihachi outfit clashing with Ryu, referencing the Capcom-Namco crossover game Street Fighter X Tekken.
Cloud
Cloud's trailer, titled "Cloud Storms into Battle!", begins with a starry sky (referencing the opening animation to Final Fantasy VII), leading to the Super Smash Bros. 4 logo, followed by an "X" (to signify the crossover), and then showing the Final Fantasy VII logo, all while playing Final Fantasy VII's opening music. The trailer then cuts to Cloud on Midgar, showing him at different angles, before finally showing him fully; he then says "Never thought I’d see the day..."
The trailer then goes on to show off his moveset, as well as his alternate costume based on Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, before fading to black; it then cuts to Cloud charging a Limit Break, while saying "Limits are meant to be broken!". The trailer then shows his moveset with the added Limit Break, and then showing off the stage hazards on Midgar, before cutting to a fight between him and Ike, with Cloud finishing him off with Omnislash. The trailer ends with a remix of the victory theme from Final Fantasy VII, while also showing off the Chocobo Mii Fighter hat.
Cloud's reveal trailer references moments and characters from the Final Fantasy series, primarily Final Fantasy VII:
- The starry sky in the opening is a reenactment of the original opening to Final Fantasy VII, which even includes the original accompanying music, "Opening - Bombing Mission".
- The trailer contains a "blurring" screen transition to the battle phase in which Cloud faces off against Kirby, Samus, and Charizard, with Cloud situated opposite of the other three combatants. These instances reference Random Encounters, battle sequences that are often seen in the Final Fantasy series. The screen transition itself is one that is observed during gameplay of Final Fantasy VII along with the accompanying battle theme "Let the Battles Begin!".
- Zelda lying on her knees near Cloud laying on his back is a reference to a scene in Final Fantasy VII, where Cloud falls from the Sector 5 Reactor down into the church and is found by Aerith the Flower Girl, with Pikmin representing flowers in the church. The Lip's Stick that Zelda is holding resembles the flowers that Aerith sells.
- Cloud grabbing Wario and throwing him off his bike before making off with it himself references the segment when Cloud commandeers the Hardy Daytona motorcycle to escape from Shinra Headquarters. In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Cloud himself has the motorcycle Fenrir, to fit with his "Lone Wolf" motif.
- Cloud being dizzy on The King of Red Lions is a reference to motion sickness Cloud suffers in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.
- The Sablé Prince turning into a frog next to Cloud is a reference to the recurring Toad spell, which transforms its targets into harmless frogs.
- Odin's appearance after Cloud uses his casting animation is a reference to the ability to summon monsters in Final Fantasy VII.
- Cloud fighting Ike towards the end is a reference to the final battle in Cloud's mind between him and Sephiroth.
- The segment in which Chocobos appeared references Chocobo Woods, a location in Final Fantasy III where Chocobos and the Fat Chocobo can be found, and Smells Like Chocobos is a recurring quote in the series which references the fact that Fat Chocobo can only be summoned in places that "Smell like Chocobos" in Chocobo Woods.
- The fact that the Chocobos are on Gaur Plain may be a reference to the Chocobo Farm from Final Fantasy VII, which is located in the grasslands outside Midgar.
Square Enix's copyright information can be seen added in at the end of the trailer. This detail, as well as the opening shot of the fiery Smash symbol, was not shown in the Nintendo Direct.
Corrin
Corrin's trailer, titled "Corrin Chooses to Smash!", opens with the cutscene of the central plot divergence of Fire Emblem Fates, where Corrin must choose to side with Hoshido ("Birthright"), Nohr ("Conquest"), or neither ("Revelation"). In this cutscene, his family in Hoshido is represented by Ryoma, Sakura, Takumi, and Hinoka, while his family in Nohr is represented by Xander, Elise, Camilla, and Leo. These characters' voice clips differ from the original games', and Corrin additionally speaks after each family has said their piece. Corrin is presented with the three options from Fates, but a fourth option appears labeled "Join the battle in Smash", which he immediately selects. Once Corrin makes his choice, the trailer then cuts to Corrin on Battlefield.
Corrin, as well as his little sisters and kingly older brothers, provide commentary while the trailer proceeds to show Corrin's mixture of swordplay with Omega Yato and attacks using Dragon Fang transformations. The trailer also reveals the female Corrin as a costume. At the end when showing off his Final Smash, Torrential Roar, Corrin verbally reaffirms his decision, declaring that his path is "to fight the legendary heroes of Smash".
Bayonetta
Bayonetta's trailer, titled "Bayonetta Gets Wicked!", opens with Pit defeating Samus and Bowser on Battlefield, declaring "Two down!" Palutena, however, warns him that a challenger is approaching. The camera pans to the large moon behind Battlefield; Bayonetta's voice is heard saying "Oh, another angel? Must've missed one." She then appears from Bat Within in front of the moon and lands on the stage, saying "Let's dance, boy."
The trailer itself shows off Bayonetta's moveset in depth, showing her combo-based gameplay, her Bullet Arts, her special moves, and her Wicked Weaves smash attacks. The trailer has Bayonetta, Pit, Palutena, and Dark Pit narrating throughout, with many references to Bayonetta's games and her battles against angels. The trailer also shows off Bayonetta's access to costumes based on both Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2, and her stage, Umbra Clock Tower.
The trailer contains several references to the Bayonetta games:
- Bayonetta posing in front of the moon in the beginning of her trailer references the style of various different artworks created when promoting her series.
- Bayonetta's interactions with Pit references the fact she kills angels for a living.
- When Palutena states that she thought Umbra witches were extinct, it is in reference to the Witch Hunts in the Bayonetta series.
- Bayonetta's response to this, referring to Palutena as part of an "Endangered Species" references how she, in both of her games, kills off a god as the game's final boss.
- Bayonetta telling Palutena to stop talking at the end of the trailer references how, in both of her games, Bayonetta will interrupt enemies who end up going on tangents while conversing with her.
- Bayonetta's posing with the Chain Chomp references the creature's utility as a weapon in Bayonetta 2.
- Bayonetta's line "If you need to learn how to talk to a lady, ask your mum", is a reference to Bayonetta director, Hideki Kamiya, who regularly uses the phrase "Ask your mom" to respond to questions he doesn't like on social media. It is also a taunt said by Bayonetta in Bayonetta 2.
- The trailer concludes with Bayonetta KOing Pit and Dark Pit with Infernal Climax and declaring "Don't mess with a witch," which is a euphemized reference to her famous quote, "Don't fuck with a witch" which she declares upon defeating Bayonetta's penultimate boss.