Sakurai: Zelda, Sheik couldn't be one Smash Bros. fighter on 3DS
Character transformations in this year's Super Smash Bros. were nixed due to Nintendo 3DS hardware limitations, director Masahiro Sakurai told Famitsu this week (via Siliconera).
Previous series entries featured characters that could switch outfits mid-battle; Zelda could turn into Sheik, for instance, and Samus could shed her armor and fight as Zero Suit Samus. In the latest sequel, however, Zelda and Sheik are only available as separate characters. "It's basically due to the 3DS' limitations," Sakurai said. "It was impossible to have both characters exist together [as one] on 3DS."
"However," Sakurai continued, "reaching that limit can sometimes lead in good directions. Transforming characters had the drawback of ambiguous tactics and such, and I believe that they have become more fresh now."
Former Smash Bros. brawlers Popo and Nana were also cut from this year's game due to hardware restrictions, as Sakurai found that the Nintendo 3DS was incapable of rendering both Ice Climbers at once in multiplayer battles. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS premieres this Thursday in North America, and a Wii U version is due out this winter.
[Image: Nintendo]
