What if Retro's secret game they had been beavering away quietly was..........

.......... Smash Bros?

In some ways it makes perfect sense. Sakurai saying he's not doing another Smash and needed a long holiday after release of 4 was over but i would expect Nintendo would want a big Smash Bros. out fairly early in the Switches lifecycle. Holiday 2, being announced at E3 both makes perfect sense and would also explain how quiet Retro have been for the longest time. There's very few companies Nintendo would trust to do Smash but i'd bet Retro would be 1 of them. Makes perfect sense to me. 

Thoughts? 

I hope not.I have said several times, and Ill say again:I want Retro to do something original.No DK, no Metroid, no Smash.Do something that only they can do, and we may have something special on our hands.

I would prefer it over a 3D donkey kong game. However we are all going crazy on figuring out what Retro is doing right now. At this point we all have crazy expectations on what it is.

Anyway I doubt they have been working on Smash Bros. Tropical Freeze finished in 2013. A year before Smash 4 came out. So unless they were working on a Smash Bros long before the 4th one finished I will make it up as highly unlikely.

Yeah...no.

I hope Retro makes a new IP.

I'd be happy with Smash, New IP or even something like f zero or excite truck! DK, less so. I just thought that Nintendo wouldn't want Smash to be just another port, so it would probably take 4-5 years, which could also easily equate to holiday time to make an outstanding one, hence Retro's relative silence for 4 years. 

I think Nintendo may be of the opinion of too many ports from Wii u may cause some backlash from fans and maybe are even aware of the beginnings of mumblings of discontent from some regarding them. 

Awesome avatar! My favourite album of all time!

Haha - thanks!

I guess I feel like a jerk for shooting down your idea now : ( Well, I guess it could happen ... I think it's more likely it won't happen though specifically because they finished DKTF in 2013. I think there's just a priority to get something different on the system too. Sorry if my simplistic answer earlier sounded dickish, I just think it's very hard to imagine a RETRO made smash bros ... as i'm sure you understand.

I'm honestly of the thought that they won't need to pull out the big guns like Smash Bros and Mario Kart 9 till later in the Switch's life. I think an Animal Crossing, or even a rushed Pokemon, are more likely. I've actually thought for a while that Smash Bros 5 and Mario Kart 9 were 2019 titles, but I think it's a little unlikely so i've never committed to the idea. I guess I could see Pokemon launching in 2019 and someething else filling up 2018 along side Animal Crossing, don't know what it would be though. 

People overestimate the importance of IPs like Smash and Pokemon for the success of the Switch.Sure that if they released them this year, it would make the Switch sell even more than it will, but it will still sell alot.We are certainly getting games like FE and Animal crossing this year, and those other games that have yet to be announced(but are not those two I mentioned) will be more than enough for the Switch to sell those 20 millions.Every single existing Nintendo franchise is selling better on the Switch than in any other console, and I think people are underestimating those games sales potential and market reach, at least as far as I see.

And so I reach the point I wanted to talk about:Nintendo needs games for 2019 and beyond.Animal Crossing, for better or worse, has the same if not more appeal than Smash, so it can do its job this year.Leaving Smash 5 to release next year, which would give 4 or 5 years to any of Nintendo development teams, that is not Retro, to work on it.

And I mean, Smash is comming either way, no matter who ends up developing.And its not like they will give the IP to a rookie studio or an unkown team.What Nintendo really needs is new games, new ideas, like ARMS.And Retro being one of the few western studios that Nintendo has, could give a breath of fresh air to Nintendo lineup.So thats why I want and hope that they are making something new.Not only for new fans to buy a Switch, but also for old fans that want something different.

Well, i think most of us on here are of the opinion they are competent they would be able to pull off a great Smash and there's speculation that Smash is being prepared for the rollout of online.

I actually agree with you that whatever has been announced + Animal Crossing/Pokemon would be enough this year but it would be great to have at least 1 1st party surprise at the direct and "BOOM" type surprises are always welcome at E3.

Can totally see your point too. If Retro aren't making Smash, i can't see it dropping until 2020 tbh.