Controversial statement time! Im not nearly as convinced that theres going to be a Fire Emblem newcomer as I was a few months ago. Heres the problem I have with Chrom: what exactly does he bring to the table that other characters dont already have?
Some people have the notion drilled into their head that the most recent Fire Emblem hero is always a shoo-in, but theres not enough evidence to support that. Roy was a last minute clone who wasnt initially planned for Melee, and Ike offers unique gameplay in that hes a heavy swordsman (who featured in two FE installments). Chrom doesnt have much going for him other than the fact that hes kind of new
but so what? He just seems like a really safe, bland, vanilla pick to me. Of course, not every newcomer is going to be groundbreaking, but there needs to be something that sets Chrom apart from Marth or Ike, and Im not really seeing what that could be. Visually, emotionally, and mechanically, he just isnt a distinct character. Ive heard suggestions that he could utilize lances, but thats not really a staple of Chrom as a character its too much of a reach for the sake of making him feel unique. Hes foremost a swordsman, and thats the condensed version of Chrom that would surely be put into Smash Bros.
I wholeheartedly feel that Chrom is the only plausible Fire Emblem newcomer candidate, which is what worries me. The only way to make his inclusion seem warranted is to pair him up with Lucina or Robin as a tag character, but Im not sure how feasible that would be mechanically. Sakurai couldnt get the Diddy and Dixie team to work in Brawl, after all.
