I think this has been analyzed pretty thoroughly by now.
- In terms of what “fits” stylistically/historically/design-wise (and as we all know from Star Wars, guests may not actually make sense), Ezio is easily the obvious choice. He’s also massively popular and has a new game coming out. So he really fulfills all the top requirements for a guest. Speaking personally, he’s as close as I’ve seen to a guest suggestion that I would actually like (as opposed to merely find humorously tolerable, or downright wrong). I would welcome a better idea but nobody has so suggested one yet.
- Lightning also seems* a good choice simply because her XIII-2 incarnation looks close enough to SC design paradigms and is equipped appropriately, plus FF games in general make it... well, relatively easy for characters to pop in and out of timestreams/dimensions (they’ve done the same thing intra-series multiple times). And again, game coming out in roughly correct timeframe, huge audience.
*(I’m not sure why Idle thinks Lightning is such a horrifying choice, but then again I haven’t actually played FFXIII and don’t really know anything at all about the plot or character. I’ve heard that (for once!) she’s actually supposed to be a bit of a no-nonsense persona, not as much FF BS philosophy... but that is really loose hearsay. I suspect people will rapidly disabuse me of my misconceptions on this one.) Idle, do you just hate FF on principle? Or is something about Lightning’s design or character specifically distasteful?
- Dante would be dumb. Too modern/supernatural IMHO. He has a sword... so what? So do tons of other characters. He just doesn’t look SC to me. To be honest I’m not sure why I think he’d be a bad choice, I just... the thought leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Not compelling argument I know.
- Ryu is awesome in NG, but 1) already in a FG franchise, and 2) actually very generic in terms of character design (so he’s popular, but putting him on the SC cover wouldn’t elicit the whole “oh wow look who they put in SC!” marketing message). I would find it pretty cool if they game him his sword, kunai, and kusarigama, turned him into a sort of male cross between Ivy, Mitsu, and Taki. New game coming out too. But again, very unlikely b/c of points 1 and to a lesser extent 2. *(also, cool 2p idea - maskless Ryu.)
- A Belmont is an idea I can get behind. Even though the timeframe might be off depending on whom you are talking about, the weapon selection, character design, popularity, etc. are all lining up pretty well. Not a blockbuster choice though so I’m predicting “no.”
- SONIC!? WTF is wrong with whoever suggested Sonic? The idea is so far beyond laughable it isn’t even funny. A small cartoon anthropomorphic hedgehog with super speed, no weapons, and sticks for arms / legs. Why not Mario while you’re at it? Or Pikachu? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I loved Sonic 2, 3, & Knuckles but we’re talking about oil and water here. This isn’t Smash Brothers. Smash brothers is a fun game, but... listen, if I have to explain this to you, you’re probably not sane enough to get anyway, so I’ll stop trying.
- Crossovers from other fighting games such as BB don’t help draw in the non-FG masses (most FG fans will buy SC or not regardless of guests). I don’t have serious complaints about BB characters but neither am I ecstatic about them either. And seriously, Samurai Showdown &c.? The point of a guest is to be current-blockbuster / mainstream-recognizable, not FG-nostalgic. Even if I like the character designs for SS.
Here’s the thing... there are only so many very popular games being released late this year or next year whose iconic characters are 1) humanoid, 2) use melee weapons, and 3) are remotely similar in tone to SC. I think we’ve more or less looked at
all of them, right? We’re not exactly looking at Commander Shepard, Master Chief, or Gordon Freeman here. Or even Lara Croft.
In the meantime, if Project Soul pulls a surprise on us and we get some left-field character... well, at least then we can all have a merry time arguing about how stupid/brilliant the decision is.