Sakurai speaks out on Smash Bros.

The foundation has been laid. Now the real building begins.

Masahiro Sakurai, the man behind Super Smash Bros., had some interesting things to say about the upcoming Wii U entry in the series. In an interview with IGN, he said "The game system itself is complete, so we don't want to make it 3D or introduce complicated controls just for the sake of it." He then added, "However, I am thinking of ways we can introduce a slightly different, fun experience all the while keeping the usual frantic gameplay." While Nintendo undoubtedly wants the game to make use of the new controller in some way, the last time around, the series avoided the novelty of the Wii Remote, using purely digital input and avoiding motion sensing altogether. With the Wii U GamePad's fairly traditional button setup, the controls will most likely be exactly as we would expect them to be, though I'm sure the touchscreen will be used creatively one way or another.

There have been rumors that Namco's own characters will appear in the game, but Sakurai has made it clear that he is not too enamored with the idea. "I think Snake and Sonic joining were fantastic," he said. He noted that it made fans happy and "broadened the Smash Bros. arena," and yet he believes that throwing more non-Nintendo characters into the mix would "lose the focus of the game." It will be interesting to see who makes the roster. Sakurai doesn't want too many characters, and he wants the number of fighters to be relatively the same as in Brawl. Will Sonic and Snake return? Will fan-favorites Mega Man and Pac-Man make the team? These are questions only time, and Sakurai, can answer.