Kazuya and his Nearly Non-Existent Nipples join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Publication date of the original Japanese article: 2021-06-30 18:42 (JST)
Translated by. Braden Noyes

On June 30, 2021, Nintendo released the latest addition to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate lineup. Kazuya joins the roster from the Tekken series of fighting games. However, there was one question that remained unclear all the way up until his implementation: whether or not his character model had nipples.

This question led to two opposing groups forming online, with debates flaring up each time new information was released. Now that fans can finally play as Kazuya, the question has been put to rest. He does indeed have nipples. Barely.

Kazuya Mishima is a well-known character from the Tekken series of fighting games. He is essentially the face of the series, appearing as the main protagonist in the first, fourth, and seventh installments, and now he has officially taken his place as a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fighter.

Although he is quite versatile, with his wide variety of martial arts skills, the ability to turn into a devil, and various methods of turning the tide of a battle, one of the things that stands out most is his visual aesthetic. In other words, the fact he is naked from the waist up.

Kazuya’s masterfully sculpted muscles are nothing short of spectacular and your eyes can’t help but be drawn to his perfectly defined abs, massive chest, and powerful biceps. And at the center of it all, reigning supreme over his incredible physical beauty, are his nipples.

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, there are a number of characters who appear naked from the waist up sporting nipples on their chests. Shulk from Xenoblade Chronicles, for example, has an alternate costume available in which he is wearing only a pair of swim trunks. His chest is fully exposed with nipples in clear view, even if they are quite subtle. The appearance of Sephiroth with his shirtless costumes and nipples even more plainly visible than Shulk’s is still fresh in our memory as well. (Related article)

Kazuya, on the other hand, doesn’t even need to change before he can fight shirtless; that’s his default costume. One would therefore expect his nipples to be clearly visible. But to what degree are his nipples portrayed? Is there a clear difference between teat and areola? Well, the results are in and his nipples do exist, but only just barely.

Yes, Kazuya does indeed have visible nipples. However, they are so lightly drawn that they might as well not even be there. On top of that, you may have to do a little extra work in order to even get a glimpse of them. This is because in his default fighting stance, Kazuya’s arms actually cover up his nipples. In fact, despite his stances being quite faithful to the original games, it almost looks as if he is purposefully hiding his nipples from view.

This holds true when he jumps as well. Players are only able to get a decent view of his whole chest by taking an action that moves his arms. However, even this brief opening may not be enough to get a glimpse of his nipples.

At first glance, it looks as though Kazuya doesn’t even have nipples. However, this is because they get obscured in the shadow of his pectoral muscles. So what can we do in order to see them? Well, our only option is to adjust angle and lighting. By choosing a well-lit stage and pausing the game at just the right moment, one can finally see the tiny, vague hint of the nipples on Kazuya’s chest.

Super Smash Bros. has earned a reputation for its faithful renditions of characters from their original games, so it seems suspicious that the same wouldn’t hold true for the nipples of one of Tekken’s titular characters. If you need some reference, just take one look at Kazuya from Tekken 7. His nipples are so clearly defined they can be seen from nearly any angle. Looking closely, you can even see where the areola ends and the actual teat begins. Tekken 7’s supremely rich graphics leave nothing to be desired. They have clearly been shown the respect they deserve.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, on the other hand, looks to have slightly darkened the skin tone of the area where the nipple should be before slapping on a barely noticeable texture layer and calling it good. While you can see they are indeed there, it’s still debatable whether or not they honestly have the right to even call themselves nipples.

As mentioned above, it was unclear whether or not Kazuya would even have nipples right up until he actually made his Super Smash Bros. Ultimate debut. Looking back at early footage of him—his guard constantly up—it’s easy to see how so many could believe he didn’t. Indeed, we can’t fault them for saying so.

On top of that, the conservative depiction of his nipples only gets worse in his devil form. When his body turns a pale blue, his nipples remain pale as well, so even in a brightly lit area, one has to look very closely to catch a glimpse of them. The depiction of Shulk’s nipples may have been reserved, but Kazuya’s feel even more repressed. We therefore have no choice but to dub them the Nearly Non-existent Nipples.

Tekken 7 has a CERO C rating (ESRB: Teen) while Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has a CERO A rating (ESRB: Everyone 10+), so it’s probably safe to assume this had something to do with rules regarding the depiction of nipples. To be fair, it looks as if the graphical representation of Shulk’s, Sephiroth’s, and Kazuya’s nipples may all the same. Perhaps the reason Sephiroth’s are so much more visible than the others has something to do with his white hair.

With Kazuya’s darker skin tone, pronounced pectorals, and the placement of his ripped arms while his guard is up, it may just be an unfortunate coincidence that so many factors all lined up to make his nipples particularly difficult to spot. While his Nearly Non-existent Nipples are a bit disappointing, perhaps it’s best to assume the development team did their best within the limits they were given.

When all is said and done, however, Kazuya is more than just his nipples. Not only is he able to use a large number of fighting skills, but his jump behavior is rather unique as well, with a somewhat low first jump followed by a high second jump. In short, he is jam-packed with technical elements and is an ambitious addition to the game’s roster of fighters.

If you’re looking to fully appreciate his richly textured nipples, you can do so in Tekken. If you’re looking to enjoy some Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, however, Kazuya is sure to add to the fun.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is currently available for the Nintendo Switch. Kazuya can be purchased as part of the standalone Challenger Pack 10 or the Season Pass Vol. 2, both available now.