Goku should be in Smash.


I know Sakurai said that characters have to be videogame in origin. But hear me out. Goku is almost equally as much a video game character at this point. Obviously the show is more revered. But Goku has had major games literally every few years since the 90s.


Legacy of Goku series, Super Butoden, Budokai series, Xenoverse series, and now Fighterz which has massive overlap with Smash players.


The last Smash player to win EVO, Leffen, also plays Dragon Ball competitively. This is just one example of the massive love between both fanbases, even if Goku is a polarizing choice. Even if you don’t like him, you can’t deny he would make a lot of people happy, and isn’t that different from Ryu or Cloud.


There are already characters with a way weaker connection to Nintendo, like Cloud, Pac-Man. and Bayonetta, who are already in. And Goku is just as iconic as any of them. Especially in America, Japan, and Latin America.


This really is a big point, Goku is not just the most popular anime character overall, he is \*one of the most popular fictional characters of all time overall\*. This alone makes him more respectable and likely as a choice than people give him for. Just because almost everyone is aware of him, and because he’s so beloved.


Funimation, the company that dubs Dragon Ball, also wants Goku in. They tweeted this:


[https://mobile.twitter.com/FUNi…/status/973274075580821510](https://mobile.twitter.com/FUNimation/status/973274075580821510)


Which shows a company officially affiliated with Goku supports him.


Sakurai is a huge anime fan, liking Madoka Magica and owning a Homura wood carving. He saw the third movie in theaters.


He loves Kingdom Hearts, Xenoblade, and Fire Emblem. At some point he’ll be like “eh, we already have Cloud, and he has less to do with Nintendo” and add Goku.


I understand that the “rule” is about medium of origin. I’m just saying when it comes to “is this a video game character,” the line more blurry than that.


It’s absurd to not see Goku as a video game character as well as an anime character, when thousands of people will live and die having only known him from games.


That’s why I believe Sakurai will eventually break this rule, like he has with all of them. People used to believe no third parties. Then we got Sonic and Snake. People believed they had to have a strong connection to Nintendo. Then we got Cloud, the symbol of betrayal from the N64-PS1 debacle.


For those of you who don’t know, back in the days people would say Cloud was impossible, first because he was third party. Then they started saying he would never be in due to being a symbol of betraying Nintendo.


Square Enix used to make Final Fantasy for Nintendo consoles. FFVII was supposed to come out on the N64, but Square bailed for Sony and became an exclusive for them. People said this made bad blood between Nintendo and Square that would make it impossible for a Final Fantasy character, or even Geno, to ever appear.


Later Sakurai added Cloud as playable and Geno as a costume. Proving that fans invent all sorts of rules in their heads that can change all the time.


We even got Ridley after Sakurai said “it would be pretty impossible.”


Let’s also not forget that Sakurai adds characters at his friends’ request, like Snake. From my experience, people who do their friends favors are usually flexible and will bend rules. Which Sakurai has proven he will do time and time again for fan demand (Ridley) and the better (removing tripping).


I also want to talk about Snake for a minute. He was a seriously weird character to have gotten into Smash. I’m not complaining, I love him. But nobody expected him or really associated him with Nintendo. I’m aware he’s had Snake’s Revenge and Twin Snakes by the time he got in, but his major releases were not Nintendo affairs for the longest time.


My point is that people say “Goku would break the spirit of Smash.” Snake shit on the spirit of Smash. He was super realistic and shit. And we were all hyped as fuck when he returned. Being gritty and real was his aesthetic, just as anime is Goku’s.


Goku would be right at home next to Ryu, Cloud, Ganondorf, etc. anyway.


Goku also wouldn’t be that weird. He could float like Peach, recover with Nimbus like Snake, charge down B to become Super Saiyan like Cloud, charge Kamehameha like Samus, and do Dragon Punch like Ryu’s Shoryuken. He could even have disjointed attacks with the Power Pole. If not a full character, he’d be an easy echo.


Also, honestly Goku fits right in. Namco Bandai has used the Dragon Ball license to make Goku’s games, and they make Smash now (and have in the last). Sean Schemmel, Goku’s English voice actor, already is in the game, voicing Lucario. They could easily tap him. The pieces are there.


All I’m saying is by emphasizing that Goku doesn’t come from a video game, you are ignoring the fact he is just as beloved of a game character. Sakurai obviously just stated that “rule” so people would make less absurd requests.


I think Sakurai is flexible and has proven Goku now is well within the realm of possibility. I don’t think Goku is guaranteed, but he makes sense and would be the perfect final mind-blowing reveal.


Goku is a popular anime character, true. But he’s also had decades of videogames that have been well-received critically, and are popular, and overlap with Smash players, and he’s one of the most popular fictional characters of all time. Sakurai is already an anime fan and has broken his rules before.


Goku is a legitimate request for Ultimate. He has a respectable chance.