Walmart Just Teased Halo Crossover With Super Smash Bros
From the humble roots of the Super Smash Bros. series, we've seen Nintendo's fearsome fighter expand its ranks over the years. While the first game included a small squad of eight fan-favourites (and four unlockables), the likes of Donkey Kong, Mario, and Link were soon joined by plenty more players over the years. Jump forward to 2018's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and we've been inundated with a who's who of video game giants that includes everyone from Pac-Man to Lucario, Bowser Jr. to Mega Man.
Alongside the 76 base characters, we've been promised the roster will round off with 89 playable fighters thanks to the ongoing release of DLCs. Nintendo started this with the reveal of Piranha Plant and has continued to reveal Persona's Joker, Byleth from Fire Emblem, and Minecraft's Steve (among others).
The latest release will bring Xenoblade Chronicles' Pyra and Mythra as part of the Challenger Pack 9, while the rest of the Fighters Pass 2 characters are expected by the end of the year. As we hunt for clues on who else could be on the way, Walmart might've spoiled the surprise with a potential Halo and Super Smash Bros. crossover.
Why do fans think a Halo and Super Smash Bros. crossover is on the way?
The idea of Master Chief swapping pummelling Reapers for pummelling plumbers, giant gorillas, and whatever Bowser is supposed to be (dragon-turtle hybrid?) was first sparked by the supermarket superstore. When Master Chief celebrated his birthday on March 7, Walmart posted a cryptic tweet that sent the internet into overdrive. Walmart Canada Gaming also got in on the celebrations and posted a picture on an envelope - asking where to send it. There's nothing in that, however, it was the fact it was sealed with the signature Smash Bros. logo. Considering Master Chief has been some players' No.1 pick for as long as we can remember, it was a tweet that quickly picked up steam.
Jumping on the bandwagon that John-117 could give the rest of the Smash Bros. fighters a run for their money, one fan wrote, "Oh my God please @Nintendo this is one of the few things that would make my entire year". Another gushed, "Master Chief in Fortnite and Smash Ultimate would be f*****g crazy", while a third added, "I want this so bad please if Master Chief is in halo I’ll never ask for anyone else again". Not everyone was convinced though, someone pointed out that Walmart reused the same picture from when Joker was announced as part of the Fighters Pass, and others said the account is probably just having a bit of fun by getting in on the hype,
Is a Halo and Super Smash Bros. crossover on the way?
Only recently, one Halo fan added Master Chief to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate with an unofficial mod that turned one of the Miis into John-117. Long before then, gaming fanatics have been calling for an official Halo and Super Smash Bros. crossover. There have been critiques that recent DCL characters have been a little lacklustre, so why not round off in style? With the upcoming release of Halo Infinite, the timing also couldn't be better.
Once upon a time, the idea of anyone other than a Nintendo staple dropping into Smash Bros. was almost laughable. These days, we've seen third-party developers like Capcom, Konami, and Sega make the most of the fighting favourite. It's important to remember this also isn't the first time Microsoft has slipped into the world of its rivals. As well as welcoming Banjo and Kazooie with open arms, we've seen Microsoft's Minecraft also join the Fighters Pass. Although we'd usually laugh this one out the room, Master Chief recently popped by Fortnite.
Going against the idea of a Halo and Super Smash Bros. crossover, would someone running a Twitter account be privy to presumably embargoed information on such a scale as Master Chief coming to Smash Bros. in 2021? Then again, with Sony and Microsoft arguably having an even bigger rivalry than Nintendo and Microsoft, who'd have thought Halo's Master Chief and God of War's Kratos would be sharing the Fortnite map? In a year when Sony and Microsoft are willing to share the stage, nothing is out of the question.
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