Sora’s Smash Bros inclusion was difficult, according to Sakurai

Sora is our latest addition. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s massive roster, and he may have been the hardest character to secure for the series. Masahiro Saurai, game director Super Smash Bros. UltimateFamitsu’s Japanese magazine published an article by, about including Sora within Smash. PushDustln and Kody NOKOLO on TwitterWe joined forces to translate this article for English-speaking readers, and provided details through two threads.

Unlike other high-ranking poll fighters (like Banjo & Kazooie) Sora was much harder to acquire — at one point Sakurai thought that Sora would be “highly unlikely” to get. But at an award venue (PushDustln didn’t call out a specific one, so it’s likely Sakurai didn’t specify), Sakurai bumped into a Disney representative who seemed excited about Sora joining. It took a lot of discussions before Sora was accepted despite this fortunate encounter. Smash. Fighter Pass 2 wasn’t supposed to include five fighters. Sora was added to increase the number to six.

Even after all the studios reached an agreement, Sora wasn’t an easy character to implement. Sakurai’s team had to seek approval through two supervisors: Square Enix and Disney. Sakurai laughed at the difficulties of trying to please everyone.

Outside of Sora, Sakurai spoke about the length and difficulty of developing the DLC packs’ 11 fighters. Sakurai worked on the DLC for the entire title, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s been three years since Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s release, and it’s only now complete with Sora’s launch.

Finally, Sakura said he will only work on “a few more games,” and considering how long the development took on the DLC, he’s “worried about the future.” It’s unclear if Sakurai plans to work on another Smash Bros. game before his assumed retirement. His blog was closed by Sakurai announcing that his Famitsu column will be ending. According to the director, Smash Ultimate was a “celebration of gaming,” and seemed pleased that so many developers from different studios could come together and make it happen.

If you’re interested in reading the full column, the two translators said they will publish a complete translation in two weeks.