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Brawl Lakitu Goes Retro For A Reason

Lakitu has been revealed as an Assist Trophy in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Brawl By now you've hopefully seen where Lakitu has been revealed as an Assist Trophy in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Brawl.  Lakitu's appearance in the game is not as a freshly rendered 3D model, however.  Instead he's sporting a retro 8-bit look right out of the original Super Mario BrosSome folks seem to think that this isn't right and that the Spiny-throwing cloud-dweller should be fully modernized like his Koopa Troop brethren.  I believe I know why the team behind Brawl chose to bring the pixelized Lakitu back.

Lakitu has evolved quite a bit over the years.  His first appearance was all about frustration.  From the safety of his cloud at the top of the screen Lakitu could drop Spiny after Spiny down on Mario.  As time went on he gained new roles and abilities.  In Super Mario World Mario could steal his cloud and take it for a ride in search of secrets.  Sometimes Lakitu would carry a 1-up mushroom as bait for our hero.  Activate a gray P-switch and Lakitu's deadly Spinys suddenly become bonus coins good for points and extra lives.  As Lakitu has grown he's become less of an annoyance and more of an opportunity. 

Now consider Lakitu's appearance in Brawl.  He's not coming to bait the characters with 1-ups, his cloud can't be stolen, and he won't be playing the role of referee or flagman as in some of the Mario-based sports titles.  He's coming solely to drop Spinys.  What better incarnation of the character to use than his original Spiny-droppin' self?  I see a modern Lakitu and I see opportunity, but when I see the original Lakitu I feel dread and frustration, and I have a feeling that the creators behind Brawl want to evoke that specific special sensation of dread when the terror of World 4-1 appears above the battlefield. 

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