Smash Bros. Ultimate: Hero DLC Fighter, Update 4.0 Details Revealed In Stream

Nintendo will reveal more details on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's new DLC fighter, Hero of Dragon Quest fame, in a new livestream. The publisher says it will reveal the character's release date and other "new details" in the stream, which will premiere on July 30 at 6 AM PT / 9 AM ET / 2 PM BST / 11 PM AET.

Update: The stream has ended, and it delivered a variety of details on the Hero and update 4.0--both of which release today, July 30. The update introduces more than just the ability to play as the new fighter; it adjusts how Final Smashes work (putting them on a timer before they expire), introduces a new difficulty for Adventure mode, adds online tournaments, and more. Meanwhile, we got a good look at the Hero and their abilities; they'll be available as part of the Fighters Pass or sold individually. The original story follows.

Nintendo has also confirmed Smash's new update, version 4.0, will launch "within seven days" of July 29. It's not clear if Hero will arrive at the same time as the 4.0 update. The company also warned this forthcoming update will erase any replays saved from previous versions; if you've replays you'd like to keep, you should convert them to videos and save them to the system from within the in-game vault.

We could be seeing the Hero released before the end of the month. A video published by the company recently indicated that the character was among the new games and content being released for Switch in July. That reference to July was later amended, suggesting it might not be quite that soon (or that more information was shared than intended).

Nintendo has released additional DLC fighters since launch to further expand Ultimate's already extensive roster. The first was Piranha Plant, one of Mario's most memorable enemies. It was followed up with Joker, the main protagonist of Persona 5. Dragon Quest's Hero will be the third of the six DLC fighters scheduled for the game, while the next will be Banjo-Kazooie. The characters are available individually for $6 / £5.39 or together in the game's season pass, which costs $25 / £22.49.

In our Super Smash Bros. Ultimate review, Edmond Tran wrote: "An inconsistent online mode and situational downers don't stop Super Smash Bros. Ultimate from shining as a flexible multiplayer game that can be as freewheeling or as firm as you want it to be. Its entertaining single-player content helps keep the game rich with interesting things to do, as well as bolstering its spirit of loving homage to the games that have graced Nintendo consoles. Ultimate's diverse content is compelling, its strong mechanics are refined, and the encompassing collection is simply superb." He awarded the game an 9/10.