Joining many of her fellow Smash Bros. alumni, the next-in-line to head up the Mushroom Kingdom, Princess Toadstool, better known as simply Peach, will be returning in the next Smash Bros. installment for the Wii U and 3DS (and I suppose the 2DS as well).
After Captain Olimar, Luigi, Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, Kirby, Fox, Pikachu, Bowser, and Pit, Peach will be the twelfth returning character, and counting newcomers WiiFit trainer, Mega Man, and the Animal Crossing Villager, bolsters the game's roster up to a respectable 15.
Returning characters are great, don't get me wrong, but I'm more excited about the potential for new characters, none of which unfortunately have been mentioned since the first three. Given Nintendo's lengthy history, there's still plenty of options to go with, and still room enough yet for the game to feature more playable characters.
Nintendo first unveiled the new Smash game during an episode of Nintendo direct. As one of the more popular exclusive series for the company, it's hoped that the game will be able to help pull the Wii U out of its slump. Though, under the directional development of Namco Bandai, not a whole lot of information has been provided on what players can expect from the new game. Given the company's association, it's thought that some of the developer's classic characters could be possible candidates for inclusion in the game, such as Pac-Man, Dig Dug, and others.
Peach made her first Smash appearance in the original game's sequel, Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the Wii. Like a number of other characters (Bowser, Pit, Mewtwo, etc.), she was originally planned to be playable in the first game, but technical limitations prevented that.
She's considered one of the best characters in the series, but it remains to be seen if her fighting style will have changed much, or at all, since the last Smash game.
You can check out more pictures of her at Nintendo's official Smash Bros. site.
Super Smash Bros. is slated to hit both the Wii U and the handheld 3DS some time in 2014. Sadly, cross-play between the two systems will not be featured.
