Nintendo didn’t kill Luigi last week after all, but it appears his ‘death’ may have actually hinted at something a little bigger. Specifically, fans reckon they’ve uncovered a currently unannounced Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game mode called Spirits. 

Cast your minds back to the Nintendo Direct event. Yes, Luigi got clobbered by the Grim Reaper, but we were also shown Ultimate’s main menu with one of the game modes blurred out. 

Enter Twitter user ’noctulescent,’ who has delved into the pixel logo frame-by-frame and apparently come up with the identity of the new mode. Yep, it’s called Spirits. 

This would make sense, seeing how there’s a spirit-themed thing going on with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate right now. There’s Luigi obviously, but also Mario and Mega Man, who were seemingly bumped off in the E3 trailer by newcomer Ridley.

 

frame by frame, the pixelated green thing in #SmashBrosDirect says “Spirits”. @GameXplain pic.twitter.com/fZKN0nYmIC

— l’attardé (@noctulescent) August 8, 2018

As such, fans are starting to speculate that this all ties in with the theme of Ultimate’s new single-player mode, which may involve saving characters by returning their spirits to their bodies. Or something along those lines.

Sounds a bit grim for a Ninty game, but then again, so was Luigi’s ‘death.’

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is due out on December 7 exclusively for Nintendo Switch.