User:Aidanzapunk/List of non-gaming media representation

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Revision as of 12:22, April 3, 2024 by Aidanzapunk (talk | contribs) (on second thought, this shouldn't be here—Captain Falcon's appearance in Smash has never been based on his SNES appearance, only F-Zero X and F-Zero GX, both of which fully show the character outside of the vehicle, so this is irrelevant)
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This is a list of non-gaming media that has been represented in the Super Smash Bros. series, whether acknowledged or not. This includes films, TV shows, literature, music, and other non-gaming media. Such representation can be subtle inspiration for original elements all the way to directly implementing the ideas of another creator. Due to the inherently communal nature of popular culture, it is common for aspects of otherwise unrelated media, espically those in the public domain, to reappear in newer media. The Smash franchise and the franchises that are represented within it are no exceptions.

Universes

James Bond

James Bond (universe)
Developer(s) Ian Fleming
Publisher(s) Various
Genre(s) Spy story
Console/platform of origin Book
First installment Casino Royale (book, 1953)
Latest installment No Time To Die (film, 2021)

James Bond is a literary spy created by British author Ian Fleming. The first book, Casino Royale, published in 1953, spawned a gargantuan multi-media franchise, with many books, movies, and video games. One of the video games, based on the movie GoldenEye, was GoldenEye 007, developed for the Nintendo 64 by Rare Ltd.. The Motion-Sensor Bomb, an item originating from GoldenEye 007, appears in Super Smash Bros. and the Western releases of Super Smash Bros. Melee (in the Japanese release, it is based on an original Rare game, Perfect Dark). However, references by name to the game in Smash were minimized, and from Brawl onwards, the Motion-Sensor Bomb has been redesigned and treated as an original item.

In an official poll held on Smabura-Ken regarding characters for a potential sequel, James Bond placed sixth overall with 35 votes, tied with Mewtwo from Pokémon.[1] The poll also included agent 006 Alec Trevelyan, who received 2 votes and was tied with a non-specified Blast Corps robot for fourth place among Rare characters.[2] Sakurai stated that he did not include James Bond owing to concerns over Bond's realistic weaponry that included handguns and similar items. Furthermore, the copyright to the game would be owned by Rare, and a number of other copyright issues, such as those involving the likeness of his actor, Pierce Brosnan, and rights involving the film series itself, would have led to numerous legal challenges in development of Melee.[3]

Yume Kōjō '87

Yume Kōjō '87 (universe)
Publisher(s) Fuji TV
Genre(s) Technology expo

Yume Kōjō '87 (夢工場'87, Dream Factory '87) was an event sponsored by Fuji TV and held from July 18th to August 30th, 1987. On the last day of this event, there was a grand finale[4] meant to introduce a new generation of media that would arrive in the years to come, with various technical displays, as well as to advertise Fuji TV's fall lineup of shows. The characters of Papa, Mama, Imajin, Lina, Poki, and Piki, as well as the use of masks as a visual motif, originate from this technology expo.

As part of a deal with Fujji TV, Nintendo developed a licensed game called Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (夢工場 ドキドキパニック, Dream Factory: Heart-Pounding Panic) to promote Yume Kōjō '87. The Yume Kōjō mascots Papa, Mama, Imajin, and Lina form the playable roster, each with their own set of abilities: Papa is the strongest and fastest; Mama has a high, floaty jump; Imajin is well-rounded overall; and Lina is capable of floating in midair. In addition, Nintendo created a storybook setting for this licensed game, populated with an entirely original cast of enemies including Shyguys, Birdos, Pidgits, Bob-ombs, Snifits, Mousers, and Mamu. The Yume Kōjō '87 mascots can fight these enemies by throwing vegetables or POW Blocks plucked from grass.

With Fuji TV and Yume Kōjō '87 being exclusive to Japan, Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic was never officially released internationally. Instead, it was rebranded as Super Mario Bros. 2, with the most significant change being replacing the licensed Yume Kōjō '87 mascots with Nintendo's own Mario cast. Papa, Mama, Imajin, and Lina's abilities have become staples of the Mario characters and carried over into their Super Smash Bros. appearances, most notably Princess Peach inheriting Lina's floating ability. Mario being a well-rounded character like Imajin and Luigi being a higher, floatier jumper like Mama, while having precedent in the Japan-exclusive Super Mario Bros. 2 (later released internationally as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels), are also further established in this game. The original music, setting, and enemies created for Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic have likewise become mainstays within the Mario series and have been represented in Super Smash Bros., most notably with the Mushroom Kingdom II stage.

Although the Super Smash Bros. series usually credits Super Mario Bros. 2 (or Super Mario Bros. USA in Japan) as the first appearance of elements from this universe, it has occasionally referenced Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic and, by extension, the original Yume Kōjō '87 event that serves as its basis. Shy Guy and Birdo's respective trophies in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U both mention these characters' debut in the non-Mario game Doki Doki Panic; however, these mentions omit the Yume Kōjō portion of the game's title, presumably due to licensing concerns.

Gaming-related media

Many video game franchises represented in the Super Smash Bros. series have received movie, television or comic book adaptations; certain elements originating from these adaptations have then made their way into Smash.

Promotional media

Content that, while not itself a video game, exists primarily to market other entities within its series as opposed to standing as its own work.

  • Atari Mario Bros. commercial: A US commercial for the port of Mario Bros. to Atari platforms, set to the theme song of the American 1960s cop sitcom Car 54, Where Are You?. This commercial marks the first instance of Luigi showing cowardice as a personality trait, something embraced by his portrayal in Smash.
  • Bandai Namco merchandising: Pac-Man's spirit uses artwork from a 2010s promotion.
  • E3: a former video game industry trade event hosted between 1995 and 2021. E3 is namedropped in Ultimate, as the version of His World featured in the game is from the 2006 game Sonic the Hedgehog's E3 reveal trailer and denotes such in the title, though the track's name lacks this in both Brawl and Smash 4; it is also namedropped in Brawl's Movies menu as the title of the game's reveal trailer.
  • Nintendo commercials and trailers:
  • Nintendo Official Site:
    • The artwork of Toad's spirit comes from the Nintendo Kids Club section of the British version of the Nintendo website.
    • The artwork of Nikki's spirit comes from the Nintendo News section of the Nintendo website.
  • SpaceWorld 2000 GameCube Tech Demo: Ganondorf's sword is taken from this tech demo.
  • Strawberry Flower: Two songs from the Pikmin universe in Brawl, Ai no Uta and Tane no Uta, are not present in the Pikmin games themselves; rather, they were chart singles by the band released to promote the series in Japan. Ai no Uta (French Version), an abridged cover of Ai no Uta, was used for Pikmin's advertising in France and subsequently featured in Brawl.
  • Super Metroid Nintendo Power comic: This Nintendo Power comic is the first source to reveal the backstory of Samus Aran, the sole survivor of the Space Pirates' raid on K-2L. This backstory is referenced by Samus's classic and unmasked trophies in Melee. The Metroid games themselves would not allude to this backstory until the Child Mode endings of Metroid Fusion, released after Melee.
  • Year of Luigi: An elaborate, if unsuccessful, marketing campaign enacted by Nintendo throughout 2013 and 2014, tying together a variety of Luigi-themed games, cameos, and merchandise. The Year of Luigi is referenced in Luigi's Smash 4 trophy description, as well as his Palutena's Guidance conversation.

Other media

These franchises did not originate or are not based on video games in any way, and are only represented in Smash by technicality.

  • Arsène Lupin: A fictional French thief and the titular character of a series of stories written by Maurice Leblanc. Arsène, a Persona that debuted in Persona 5 and appeared in Ultimate alongside Joker, is loosely inspired by this character.
  • Audio-Technica is a Japanese manufacturing company that specializes in the production of professional microphones, headphones, turntables, among other audio equipment. The Persona 3 Protagonist's earphones are modeled after the ATH-EQ300M SV clip-on earphones, which appear in the character's Mii Costume.
  • Carmilla: A female vampire and the titular character of the early vampire novel of the same name by Josep Sheridan Le Fanu. A very loose interpretation of Carmilla is first seen in Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, and this version appears in Dracula's Castle in Ultimate.
  • Carmina Burana: Verses taken from some of the poems featured in this medieval collection are used as the lyrics of One-Winged Angel; specifically, verses taken from O Fortuna, Estuans interius, Veni, veni, venias, and Ave formosissima.
  • ChocoBall: A Japanese brand of chocolate-coated malt balls, similar to America's Whoppers or Britain's Maltesers. Pyoro, a Wario series character who appears as a Spirit in Ultimate and background element on the Gamer stage, is a parody of ChocoBall's mascot, Kyorochan.
  • Dracula: A vampire and the titular character of Bram Stoker's novel of the same name. Dracula is a recurring antagonist in the Castlevania franchise, and the depiction of Dracula from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is the basis for the boss character in Ultimate. Jonathan Morris's surname is a reference to the novel character Quincey Morris.
  • Dragnet: A police crime drama about detective Joe Friday. The Game Start jingle from Donkey Kong, which is used in Smash in the 75m stage whenever Donkey Kong steps into the foreground and incorporated in a few remixes, is based on a portion of Danger Ahead, the famous brass cue that plays before the Dragnet March, the theme song of Dragnet. The Danger Ahead cue is itself based on a cue from the 1946 movie The Killers.
  • Dungeons & Dragons: A tabletop role-playing game designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The mimic, a shapeshifting monster created for the game in 1977, serves as the inspiration for both the creature of the same name from the Dragon Quest series and the Mimicutie.
  • Eine kleine Nachtmusik: A chamber ensemble piece originally composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The "Mario Bros." track, which is based on the level begin tune from the original arcade game, uses a short excerpt of this piece.
  • Frankenstein: A science fiction/horror novel written by Mary Shelley. The Creature in Dracula's Castle is inspired by the monster in this novel, particularly its portrayal by Boris Karloff in the 1931 film adaptation.
  • Game of Death: A martial arts film starring, written and directed by Bruce Lee in his final film project, as he died during production. The outfit Bruce Lee wears throughout the film was the inspiration for Bayonetta's yellow costume in Anarchy Reigns, which itself inspired her yellow costume in Smash.
  • The Girl I Left Behind: An English folk song. The "Overworld" track from Kid Icarus includes a short excerpt of this song.
  • Godzilla: A long running kaiju/tokusatsu franchise, which spawned from a drama/horror movie from 1954 inspired by the 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the 1953 movie The Beast from 50,000 Fathoms. A few Pokemon like Palkia and Solgaleo use modified versions of some of the monster's roars, taken directly from the 2006 CD Godzilla: Sound EFX / BGM on Japanese Film. One of Rathalos' roars samples King Ghidorah's roar from the 1991 film Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah.
  • Goro Maze-Solving Robot: A series of two robots designed by Namco for Micromouse competitions.[5] The titular character of the Mappy series, appearing in the Namco Roulette, originated as one of these robots, with the game being inspired by the competitions.
  • Greek mythology: A religion/pantheon of myths that originate from Greece around the 18th century B.C. Serves as the basis of aspects from multiple universes, including:
  • Guinness World Records: A British series of novelty books chronicling different human and corporate achievements. Guinness World Records is cited and namedropped in Pac-Man's Smash 4 trophy.
  • Gundam: A hugely popular Japanese media franchise revolving around giant robots, contrasting action with political commentary. Samus' green alternate costume, present in all Smash games, is a reference to the mass-produced MS-06 Zaku II robots.[6]
  • Hanshin Tigers: A Japanese baseball team owned by Hanshin Electric Railway. Ness' "Bee" alt, featured within all of the Smash games, is based on the Tigers' outfit. [7]
  • Hogan's Alley: One of the first popular newspaper comic strips, starring a character titled "The Yellow Kid" who lives in the slums of New York City. An FBI training facility would be named after the strip, which would then inspire the name of the Nintendo title Hogan's Alley, which is represented through, and named on the label of the can used in, Trick Shot.
  • Japanese folklore: A pantheon of myths originating from Japan. Serves as the basis of aspects from multiple universes, including:
  • Journey to the West: An ancient Chinese novel and legend depicting the adventures of Sun Wukong the monkey king, known as Son Gokū in Japanese. The Yūyūki universe is based upon this novel, with its main character Goku being based upon the Monkey King.
  • Kôsenjû Duck Hunt: The first iteration of Duck Hunt as a projector toy. Alongside being the first instalment of the franchise, the white duck from the projector toy appears in the trophy of NES Zapper Posse.
  • Korobeiniki: A 19th century Russian folk song, based on a poem by Nikolay Nekrasov. The "Tetris: Type A" track is based on this song.
  • Marvel Comics: Various characters from this multimedia company's comic books, such as the Avengers and the X-Men, are referenced in the Palutena's Guidance for Ryu. Namely, Viridi's line "cyborgs, androids, mutants, giant monsters, super heroes, aliens, and demons," referring to the Marvel vs. Capcom series, in which both Ryu and the aforementioned characters are playable.
  • Mickey Mouse: An anthropomorphic cartoon mouse created in 1928 by Walt Disney, serving as the main character of the eponymous franchise and the mascot of Disney.
    • Mickey's silhouette appears as the keychain of Sora's Keyblade; however, references to him and other Disney characters are otherwise minimized in Smash.
    • Egg, a reskin of the Game & Watch Mickey Mouse game, has a sticker in Brawl.
  • Norse mythology: A religion/pantheon of myths from the north Germanic people in modern day Scandinavia. Serves as the basis of aspects from multiple universes, including:
  • Pac-Man Bank: a short-lived toyline made by Tomy in the 1970s featuring a hungry, yellow, spherical character who would evolve into playable Smash fighter Pac-Man. Whether the Pac-Man games were directly based off of the toy or a strange coincidence is often disputed, though the Pac-Man: Birth of an Icon book claims that Namco had to pay Tomy for the trademark license before releasing the game.
  • Peter and Wendy: A play and novel by J. M. Barrie, telling the tale of Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, famous for being able to fly with a combination of happy thoughts and fairy dust. The plot was later adapted into a film by Walt Disney in 1953, which is one of the more famous adaptations. Link's original green look is based off the design of Peter Pan (with his association with fairies paying homage to Tinker Bell), and Sora's on-screen appearance features him flying around using the power of flight he obtained from Neverland in the original Kingdom Hearts.
  • Pokémon Global Link: The artwork of almost all Pokémon spirits comes from this website.
  • The Red Badge of Courage: A historical fiction novel written by Stephen Crane. A very loose depiction of Henry Fleming, the main protagonist of the novel, appears as a character in Code Name: S.T.E.A.M., which appears as a spirit in Ultimate.
  • Sikorsky Cypher: A product of unmanned aerial vehicles developed by Sikorsky Aircraft. As a result of it appearing within the Metal Gear series, Snake's up special in all of his appearances utilizes the Cypher.
  • Sonic Channel: All Sonic the Hedgehog stickers (with the exception of both Classic Sonic stickers, Shahra, and Erazor Djinn), as well as the spirits of Super Sonic, Chaotix, Big, Chao, Super Shadow, Omega, Cream & Cheese, Blaze and Jet use artwork from this site.
  • Star Wars: A science-fantasy multimedia franchise created by George Lucas. The Beam Sword is loosely based upon the lightsaber, using similar sound effects in the Japanese version of 64; the international release of 64 and all versions of Melee had more distinct sound effects, but all versions of the series from Brawl onward use similar sounds to the original Japanese 64.
  • Train Your Brain: A self-help book written by Japanese neuroscientist Ryuta Kawashima. The Brain Age universe is based upon this book, and Dr. Kawashima himself appears as an Assist Trophy. Dr. Kawashima is notably the only real-life person to have directly appeared in the Super Smash Bros. series.
  • Undertale fan art: The concept of Sans wearing pink slippers, as opposed to the white he seems to wear in-game, was created by Undertale fan artists, though an exact origin has yet to be traced.
  • Unknown Pleasures: The debut studio album by English post-punk band Joy Division. The design of the shirt that Travis Touchdown wears in the artwork for his spirit is a parody of the album's cover art.
  • Wham-O: A toy company from California, USA, known for novelties such as the Frisbee, the Hula Hoop, or the Slip 'N Slide. The trophy of Disc Dog from Wii Sports Resort is called Frisbee® Dog on the PAL English version of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and the Super Hoop is referred to as Super Hula Hoop™ in Canadian French versions of Ultimate.
  • Wild Gunman Game: A board game released by Nintendo in the 1970s. It would eventually be adapted into Wild Gunman, which is featured in Duck Hunt's moveset.
  • Yellow Tail Funny Car: A car toy created by Hasbro in the 1970s. The name Mach Rider was first used by Nintendo in a localised version of this toy.

References