A January Nintendo Direct and the announcement of the newest Smash Bros. Ultimate fighter may be imminent, according to a series of hints by both GameStop and Nintendo themselves.
To begin the new year on January 1, Twitter user YuYuKamii posted an image of what is supposedly GameStop’s new SKU listings.
“GameStop system doing it’s usual pre-direct new SKU listings,” the user said along with a smug emoji.
https://twitter.com/YuYuKamii/status/1212395645891489792
SKU stands for Stock Keeping Unit and are used to keep inventory at stores and as ComicBook points out, GameStop SKU updates in particular have occurred just before titles were revealed in Nintendo Directs.
The fourth Smash Ultimate DLC fighter, Terry Bogard, was unveiled at a Nintendo Direct in September, so the company has a history of showcasing new fighters during these presentations.
Nintendo themselves may also be hinting that something is coming soon. Maintenance is scheduled for January 6-8, so while it’s possible it could just be standard maintenance, anything is possible.
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challenger pack 5 is up for individual purchase so we might be getting a direct soon#NintendoDirect pic.twitter.com/JgM8Tc0oZE
— anon12345 (@anon42088) January 2, 2020
Last and certainly not least, a page for Challenger Pack 5 is currently up on Nintendo’s eShop. Of course, the fighter is scheduled to be released no later than February 29, so chances are he or she could be released even sooner.
As Dexerto previously reported, in addition to a Nintendo Direct, there are other high profile events where the company could reveal the fifth DLC fighter. Notably, both EVO Japan and Genesis 7 happen the same weekend in January, so either could be an excellent setting to unveil the new character.
In regards to who the fighter will be, it’s very much still up in the air. Prominent leakers have ruled out a series of popular candidates including Ninja Gaiden’s Ryu Hayabusa, Dante from Devil May Cry, Lloyd Irving from Tales of Symphonia and many more.
Still, it will be interesting to see who the next fighter does in fact end up being, especially with favorites such as Halo’s Master Chief still in the running.
Plus, while Challenger Pack 5 will mark the end of the Fighters Pass, Nintendo has announced that even more fighters will be coming in the future.
