Author: Ian "iantothemax" Walker

While the arrival of a new character and various balance changes have rightly dominated Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS discussions this morning, one curious Reddit user recently discovered sound files in the handheld version that may point towards appearances by Street Fighter’s Ryu and Fire Emblem’s Roy.

According to their findings (which have subsequently been confirmed by the folks behind The Cutting Room Floor), these new themes pull music from both characters’ respective franchises with very little editing, leading us to believe they may be leftovers from earlier development or just in the beginning phases. We’ve included all of these tracks, along with a preview of the sound work being done for Lucas’ release in June, below.

So, what do you think? Might we eventually see Ryu and Roy join the game as downloadable characters? Feel free to let us know in the comments.

Sources: r/SmashBros via NeoGAF, The Cutting Room Floor, tip via MegamanXZero

Although traditional controller usage is a bit more common than in other scenes, news that Mortal Kombat X would support the previous generation’s arcade sticks on PlayStation 4 made the proposition of upgrading for the new title a bit more enticing for many members of the community. Unfortunately, it appears as if it’s not being implemented as simply as Lab Zero Games envisioned when they were developing the driver for Skullgirls Encore.

According to Mad Catz community manager Mark “MarkMan” Julio, playing Mortal Kombat X with an older peripheral still requires the presence of a DualShock 4. This means, obviously, that if you want to jump into some matches with your friend but only own one PlayStation 4 controller, one of you is going to be twiddling their thumbs while the other performs their easy fatalities.

As the driver doesn’t normally require anything special to function, Lab Zero’s Peter Bartholow and Mike Zaimont believe the way NetherRealm Studios is handling profiles for things like trophies is to blame for these odd circumstances.

Mortal Kombat X is schedule to arrive on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 sometime this summer, releases we assume will support legacy arcade sticks just fine.

Sources: Mark Julio, Peter Bartholow

While the major news in the Skullgirls world these days is the upcoming release of downloadable character Beowulf, Lab Zero Games’ Peter Bartholow took the time to drop some brand new details on the upcoming PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita ports earlier this morning.

These versions, now dubbed Skullgirls 2nd Encore, will apparently feature a number of improvements to the base game along with new features and modes. One new bit of functionality will allow the fighter to be played between all of Sony’s consoles thanks to cross-play functionality, and those who purchase one will be treated to a free download for the other platform.

As the developers feel the upgrades being made are pretty substantial, however, owners of the original PlayStation 3 release will not be able to take advantage of cross-buy without first buying the game on PlayStation 4 or PlayStation Vita.

More details, including some information on when players will be able to get their hands on these releases, are planned for the near future.

Source: PlayStation Blog, tip via JJK

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS has received its first downloadable character today, flinging classic cast member Mewtwo back into the fray. The powerful psychic Pokémon infiltrated the roster early this morning by way of download codes provided by Nintendo to folks who bought both versions of the title.

But that’s not all; Super Smash Bros. has also been updated to ver.1.0.6, bringing balance adjustments to the table to accommodate developing techniques and the inclusion of a returning fighter. While concrete details as to exactly what was changed are scarce due to lack of official word from Nintendo themselves, the dedicated members of SmashBoards are quickly working their way through the new build for information.

At this point in time, there appear to be some damage reductions for Diddy Kong in an effort to knock him off his throne as well as smaller tweaks for folks like Sonic, Kirby, and Pac-Man. More discussion on this matter can be found here.

Mewtwo will be available for purchase through the Nintendo eShop on April 28.

Sources: Nintendo, SmashBoards

While they’re opening round of Mortal Kombat X competition was between eight specially-invited participants, ESL is ready to begin their free-to-enter series of tournaments across the globe this weekend. The first preseason cups will be held online for folks in North America, Europe, and the Commonwealth of Independent States, allowing players to compete for a $500 first-place prize.

Since they are scheduled to take place on Xbox One and PC, not to mention entirely through netplay, it would only be natural to assume they wouldn’t have the highest attendance rates, but that’s far from the case. Across all three regions, over 500 participants have signed up, with 433 alone from North America. This number is comprised of both unknown and experienced competitors, the latter of which includes folks like EG|Justin Wong, CDjr, fLoE, Happy Medicine, KH|Cat, Noobe, cR|SonicFox, and more.

Even then, how it all will go down is anyone’s guess. Will this early success continue on through the preseason and into regular competition? In any case, much like the Fatal 8 invitational, it’s sure to provide a good look at Mortal Kombat X’s early tactics and the techniques being discovered by strong players.

More details on this event can be found through ESL’s official website.

Source: ESL Pro League