October 2021 has been great for fans of party-fighting games.Kingdom Heart’sSora was announced to be the lastSuper Smash Bros. UltimateDLCfighter, set to release on October 18, and the hotly anticipatedNickelodeon All-Star Brawllaunched on October 5. The latter caught peoples' attentions for its mix of competitive tech likeSuper Smash Bros. Melee’s wavedashing with a colorful cast derived from Nickelodeon stars of the 1990s and beyond.
Thoughcomplaints are being levied againstNickelodeon All-Star Brawldue to issues like a lack of voice acting, its character roster is difficult to fault. From older, more obscure characters likeAaahh!!! Real Monsters' Oblina to current Nick stars likeThe Loud House’s Lincoln Loud, developers Ludosity and Fair Play Labs cast a wide enough net for people of all ages to enjoy the fighting game. One series with plenty of representation isAvatar, bothThe Last AirbenderandThe Legend of Korra, but there’s still plenty of potential for a leaked Prince Zuko to stand out in the roster.
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Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl’s Leaked DLC Potential
Shortly after the game came out,All-Star Brawl’s DLC characters leaked online. While this is disappointing in an era whereSmash Ultimate’s DLC fed years of hype among its fans, having some knowledge of where the new IP is headed does leave open a different kind of speculation. Given each fighter has tons of references in their base kits, the DLC representatives should have a lot to draw from too.
Prince Zuko is one of the most prominant members of the leaked DLC roster, asAvatar: The Last Airbenderis a popular show for the network that is often considered one of the best pieces of “children’s media” out there. Numerous other characters were leaked, including Garfield, Squidward, Jimmy Neutron, Vlad Masters, Tommy Pickles, and Rocko. There’s no telling whether any of them will actually make it intoNickelodeon All-Star Brawl, as leaked data could be cut content, but with threeAvatarcharacters available it would not be surprising to see fan-favorite Zuko used to sell DLC.
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What Prince Zuko Can Bring to Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl
Aang, Toph, and Korra are already members ofAll-Star Brawl, largely representing airbending, earthbending, and waterbending respectively. Zuko would round out the cast as a firebender, but to make him truly unique the designers could also lean into his extensive use of weaponry throughout theAvatarseries.
Firebending would remain a huge part of Zuko’s theoretical moveset, as the show displays a number of ways to command fire for use in the game’s basic, strong, and special attacks, as well as grabs. Depending on which part of the show his character is derived from,Zuko could be a more passionate glass cannon-like fighterto represent his early days of banishment from the Fire Nation. Alternatively, he could have a more fluid style reminiscent of his time with Aang’s team, complete with references to the Firebending Masters' dragon dance or his ability to redirect lightning.
However, with Toph and Korra already centering much of their movesets around pure bending, Zuko could play well as a foil to Aang by mixing his bending with the use of two-handed blades. Just as Aang channels airbending through his staff, Zuko could channel fire through a pair of swords based on his time as the Blue Spirit. Despite how odd it is to imagine Zuko slicing up a character like Nigel Thornberry, theprecedent set byTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesmakes it an easier sell.
Zuko’s personal stage inNickelodeon All-Star Brawl, assuming DLC fighters get one as they do inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, could also go in a few different directions. The hull of a Fire Nation Cruiser would make sense as a callback to the show’s first season, but if a later take on Zuko is prioritized he could instead use the aforementioned Firebending Masters altar - complete with dazzling colors and dragons swirling about the battlefield. For an even deeper cut, developers could recreate the stage whereZuko and his sister Azula face off in their climactic Agni Kai. Regardless, there’s plenty of potential to be mined from Zuko’s appearance.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawlis available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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