Dojo update: The Pokemon ranks swell

by Chris Greenhough { Feb 28th 2008 at 5:00PM }

The 31st character to be revealed on the dojo might not be who you expect -- go past the break for the full, spoiler-filled lowdown.

Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard won't be the only playable Pokémon appearing in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Today's update reveals that Lucario will be joining them as an unlockable character, and will bring a unique style of its own to the Brawl roster.

Interestingly, Lucario becomes more powerful as it takes more damage, thanks to its mastery of "Aura." This effect is capped once damage reaches 200%, but the difference it makes is still obvious; a heavily damaged Lucario, for example, will be able to generate far larger (not to mention faster and more deadly) Aura Spheres than when unhurt. Its Final Smash, Aura Storm, sees this humanoid Pokémon taking to the air and blasting an Aura beam across the stage in the direction of your choosing.

Gallery: SSBB gallery four

Gallery: SSBB gallery three

Tags: dojo, fighting, lucario, pokemon, smash-bros-brawl, ssbb

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Donald @ Feb 28th 2008 5:37PM

I'm disappointed that they didn't call the Final Smash "Focus Blast" given that it fits the move AND is a Pokemon move.

Ah well, still a good candidate for my main if he's not too crippled at low health.

rTwelve @ Feb 28th 2008 5:50PM

I honestly preferred Flash Cannon.

xeleion @ Feb 28th 2008 6:15PM

Flash Cannon? Really? Couldn't we just call it Hyper Beam?

ALH @ Feb 28th 2008 5:56PM

its toes bug me. the middle one should be longer than the other two, its basic anatomy. jdhfbgjhdbfg

Neowyrm @ Feb 28th 2008 11:56PM

Basic anatomy? Of a Pokémon?

Give them a break, man. They're Japanese.

No offense intended to those among us that are Japanese.

Tom @ Feb 28th 2008 6:04PM

Hm, that stat effect is gay. Do any other characters get stronger as they get beat up? NO. So why should some stupid pokemon? This is gonna be the kind of character that little kids/n00bs use probably to think that they're great, when it's really just the Aura thing. Ah well, maybe it'll suck really badly when it has less damage.

Tyler @ Feb 28th 2008 6:10PM

Of course it'll be nerfed. Everyone knows how far you go flying when smashed. Calm down, if anything he'll be way better than Mewtwo.

xeleion @ Feb 28th 2008 6:19PM

Actually, it's not nerfed at all. Lucario's not that heavy, so it's really risky playing in a way that maximizes his damage just to have a big payoff. When he's unhurt, he's pretty average. Also, he lacks killing moves at low percentages, and there are only a handful of them when his Aura boost is capped out. He's pretty balanced, although he does have a very useful down d-air attack.

But yeah, you might not be as disappointed as you think you will be.