Golden Sun (universe)

The Golden Sun universe refers to the  series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from Nintendo's fantasy RPG game series developed by Camelot Software Planning. Inspired by the series's cult following, in addition to an Assist Trophy in ' and ', the series gets a playable representative in Super Smash Flash 2.

Franchise description
Originally, Camelot planned to create a single title instead of a series, and in the extremely early stages of their project they had created a game design document for  to be on the Nintendo 64. When it became apparent the system was to be superseded by the Nintendo GameCube, Camelot shifted their focus to making a game on the handheld Game Boy Advance.

The original Golden Sun underwent a development cycle of between twelve and eighteen months by Camelot, which is considered a long period of time for the development of a handheld video game, and was described as a "testament" to the positive results a long development cycle can bring to a game. It was shown in early, playable form at the Nintendo Spaceworld Expo in Japan on August 2000. North American previewers received the game a few weeks before the release, and IGN noted that the experience of developing  for SEGA helped Camelot develop a gripping RPG for the handheld. As a handheld title, Golden Sun was originally going to be a single game, but due to both the hardware limitations of putting the game on a single Game Boy Advance cartridge and the developers' own desire for what they wanted to do with the game, it was expanded to become two successive games, Golden Sun and .

Golden Sun: The Lost Age, was first revealed to Japan in early 2002, with the magazine Famitsu being the first publication to review the game. The Lost Age was highly anticipated; it topped IGN's list of Game Boy Advance "Most Wanted" games for 2003. The North American version of the game was playable at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2002, and IGN noted that the opening of the game did away with the slow opening sequence of Golden Sun, introducing the characters in between the action. GameSpot previewed a localized copy of The Lost Age in February 2003, and noted that the game built on its predecessor's graphics engine, with "the environments in the game featuring rich detail with little touches— such as birds that fly off as you approach." Following The Lost Age release, the series remained dormant for nearly eight years. During this time, the fighting game Super Smash Bros. Brawl featured the original protagonist, Isaac, as one of the numerous unlockable Assist Trophy characters in the game; when summoned he casts a Psynergy aid called "Move", which creates three large, greenish hands that pushes opponents away powerfully without inflicting damage to them.

After a long-awaited hiatus, the third game,  was first revealed and introduced at the Nintendo E3 2009 conference by Nintendo of America president, Reggie Fils-Aime, as a series that "went dark six years ago" but has since been revisited and polished up for the Nintendo DS.

In an interview with Nintendo Gamer in June 2012, series producer Hiroyuki Takahashi spoke about the possibility of a fourth Golden Sun game: "A big reason for us making RPGs comes from the requests from all the people who have enjoyed our RPGs in the past. Perhaps if there are enough Nintendo users asking for another game in the Golden Sun series, then this will naturally lead to the development of such a game."

In Super Smash Flash 2
The Golden Sun series is further taken on count as the demand for a playable character and stage from this series was consolidated in Super Smash Flash 2.

Character

 * : The 17-year-old protagonist of the first Golden Sun and may be considered the main character of the Golden Sun series as a whole. Isaac is classified in-game as a Venus Adept, which means he is an individual with the ability to manipulate earth-based forces such as ground and plants through a sorcerers craft called Psynergy. As a fighter, Isaac will consist of using his Psynergy along with his Earth elements and not just focusing on his sword.

Stage

 * Venus Lighthouse: A stage that is based on the dungeon of the same name from Golden Sun. It is comprised of three pillars where characters can jump onto and fight inside a pillar.

Media with elements appearing in the Super Smash Flash series
The following list consists of media from the Golden Sun universe that appears in Super Smash Flash 2.


 * Isaac, who debuted in this game as its main protagonist, is a starter character in SSF2.
 * His design in SSF2 is based on his appearance in this game.
 * Isaac's on-screen appearance in SSF2 is based on Teleport, which originates as a Utility Psynergy in this game.
 * Isaac's forward smash in SSF2 is based on his attack animation in this game.
 * Isaac's neutral attack, dash attack, up aerial, grab, throws, side special move, up special move, and down and up taunt in SSF2 summon a Psynergy hand, which originates from this game.
 * Move, Isaac's side special move, originates as a Utility Psynergy from this game.
 * Isaac's forward tilt and down aerial in SSF2 are both based on Growth, which originates as a Venus Psynergy in this game.
 * Isaac's up tilt, down tilt, and down smash are based on Punji, Thorn, and Quake, respectively, which originate as Venus Psynergies in this game.
 * Vine, Isaac's neutral special move in SSF2, originates as a Venus Djinni's battle effect in this game.
 * Gaia, Isaac's down special move in SSF2, originates as a Venus Psynergy in this game.
 * Judgment, Isaac's Final Smash in SSF2, originates as a summon from this game, with the move also featuring the Ragnarok summon and playing similarly to a battle in this game.
 * Isaac's neutral taunt in SSF2 summons a Venus Djinni, which originates from this game.
 * His victory pose also features Flint, who debuted in this game.
 * Isaac's second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth costumes in SSF2 are based on Ivan, Garet, Mia, Felix, and Jenna, respectively, who debuted in this game.
 * The stage Venus Lighthouse in SSF2 originates as the final dungeon in this game and takes place at the top, where the final battle is fought.
 * Isaac's Battle Theme (Golden Sun), an intense synthetic remix of the main battle theme from this game, plays as Venus Lighthouse's main music track in SSF2.
 * Title Theme (Golden Sun), an orchestral remix of the title theme from this game, plays as Venus Lighthouse's alternate music track in SSF2.
 * The victory theme of Isaac in SSF2 is a remix of an excerpt of the theme that plays when a battle is won in this game.


 * Scoop, Isaac's up special move in SSF2, originates as a Utility Psynergy from this game.
 * Isaac's seventh and eighth costumes in SSF2 are based on Sheba and Piers, respectively, who debuted in this game.


 * Isaac's artwork for SSF2 is based on Matthew's pose on the box art of this game.
 * The sprites of the Venus Djinn in Isaac's neutral taunt in SSF2, including Flint, Salt, Granite, and Vine, are taken from this game.
 * Isaac's tenth costume in SSF2 is based on his appearance in this game.
 * The series symbol for Golden Sun in SSF2 originates as the sun icon in the logo for this game.