I think knowing what function each characters does better would help me a lot in picking a main. I still have trouble identifying which character I like to play the most in Brawl and I don't want to play Smash 4 for years without maining two or three characters, at most.
Oh okay. I can try to help you with that then. I play more characters than anyone I've ever seen so I feel like I have a good understanding of how they work. This is also assuming that each character plays sort of similarly to the way they play in Brawl, which it looks like all of them do. I'll put an asterisk next to characters I've played a whole lot.
Newcomers:
Wii Fit Trainer: She's been hard to pin a description on since the game came out, but she looks like she has some decently powerful and quick moves that use her flexibility to give them enough range to be safe. Kind of like Chun-Li in Street Fighter. Two of her default moves heal her, so it always gives her something to do while her opponent is away. She could be the series' first buff character that excels when she can find opportunities to knock away the opponent and heal/buff herself. Her moves also alter her positioning sometimes so they could be used to make it hard for the opponent to directly attack her.
Villager: A projectile character that uses a wide variety of bizarre moves to his/her benefit. Control of the map seems very important to Villager. If the Villager player gets set up the way they want, it could be very difficult to take the lead back from him/her. A drawback might be that Villager can't easily reverse momentum if the opponent takes control of the match. Villager also seems to rule the off stage game with a wide array of edgeguarding attacks that hit at weird angles or for weird durations. Villager can have so much going on at once, that players who enjoy multi-tasking might enjoy Villager a lot.
Mega Man: Mega Man looks like a more traditional zoning type character, but for Smash Bros. that id unique. No character has ever had as many projectiles as Mega Man. Instead of having one or two great projectiles, Mega Man appears to have a whole lot of decent ones for different situations. Players that enjoy having many projectile options and few close-range options might feel right at home with Mega Man.
Rosalina: A character type that has existed in a few fighting games, but is a first for Smash. Rosalina can position a Luma do be where she wants to be. Many characters require strategy, but Rosalina requires a different type. If piloting a dummy fighter to attack the opponent and assist you as well as keep you out of harms way, Rosalina might be for you.
Greninja: Greninja seems to have similar values as Sheik, but Greninja has some close-range attacks with pretty long reach as opposed to having super fast moves that string together like Sheik. Greninja also has some moves that allow him to attack less directly. If a ninja character that focuses more on safety than tearing the opponent apart sounds good to you, Greninja might be right up your alley.
Little Mac: Much different than most Smash characters that rely on air combat, Little Mac has everything that makes any ground character in Smash great. A fast and effective jab that can be used for mix ups, moves that alter where his hitbox is for brief moments, invincibility, super armor, good anti-air attacks, fast and powerful moves, as well as great dodges, and a great running speed. Little Mac is terrifying on the ground, but horrible in the air. If you prefer to play with your feet on the ground, you might like Little Mac.
Palutena: Palutena, from what I remember, has been stated to be a good keep-away character. Palutena has a few crazy projectile moves up her sleeves. If custom moves are legal, Palutena might be best played by people who love crazy long range moves and feel comfortable learning many different moves to use for a variety of matchups. From her move demonstrations, even her physical moves seem like they hit pretty far. This makes Palutena look like she might be made for people that would normally both like playing heavy weight characters with good range and projectile characters.
Pac-Man: Not much has been shown of Pac-Man, but from what it looks like, he is a character that values utility above raw power. This makes him seem like players who like Villager might like Pac-Man. Pac-Man players might have to keep quite a few crazy ideas running through their heads to make use of he multiple-purpose fire hydrant, the draw-your-own-attack-path, and the fruit cycle. Pac-Man might be kind of like Villager, but for players that enjoy close range combat.
Robin: If any player got a kick out of stale move management in Brawl, that person might like Robin. Robin is a projectile character that has to use his/her moves very wisely. The player must keep the status of all moves in their head at all times. Each tome type also has different abilities, so players must keep this in their head as well. Rather than exactly keeping ideas in the players head, Robin players might excel from being able to micromanage their abilities and come up with good plans to make the most out of their limited resources. Sounds kind of tactical to me.
Announced Veterans:
*Mario: Mario is one of the three characters I've played the most in every Smash game. Mario has very quick attacks. When I looked at his frame data for his most used moves, he was around 4th or 5th most impressive imo. Mario's fireball is key to keeping him safe. Throwing it out at certain distances while jumping forward allows him to follow the fireball and hit slightly after the fireball hits. If you like the way Mario's fireball works, you may very well end up liking Mario. Mario has short range, but if Mario can hit an opponent after they make a mistake he can get in a lot of damage with his fast aerial attacks.
One of Mario's main draws is that he's amazing at keeping characters from coming back to the edge. Using his FLUDD to put enemies at a farther and higher position. If the enemy floats down to Mario after FLUDD and he reacts quickly, Mario can up smash the opponent or cape them so that they don't make it back. His fast aerials can also be used to pester opponents off stage.
*Luigi: Similar to Mario. Luigi doesn't have as many options to deal with situations, but what Luigi does he does very well. If Luigi can catch the opponent making a mistake he can do more damage than Mario can and gets kills easier because his attacks are stronger. Luigi can edgeguard okay because he has quick aerials to pester the opponent with, but doesn't have all the tools of Mario. Luigi can make it back to the stage much more easily than Mario though.
*Peach: Peach is another top three character of mine. Peach's main attribute is her float ability that gives her great control over her aerial attacks and allows her to attack the opponent from uncomfortable positions where they can't easily hit her. When Peach is around the same horizontal line with her opponent, she is great and very difficult to hit, but if she gets hit high up in the sky, it can be very hard for her to reach the ground safely because she falls slowly and has a bad air dodge.
Peach uses turnips that allow her to both approach very easily by throwing them in front of her and defend very easily by throwing them while running away or as a quick option after blocking an attack. Peach is good at guarding the edge because of how much aerial control she has. Turnips also help a lot for messing up recoveries. Peach is a very hit-and-don't-get-hit character.
*Bowser: Bowser imo is best played by psyching out the opponent into thinking you'll attack and then using grab or side b to beat their shield or making them think you'll attack and punishing their attack with yours if you predict it. Bowser also has good tools for punishing opponents that attack his shield like his up b or forward tilt. Even though Bowser usually is forced to approach, he excels when he can make people attack him when he knows what's coming.
*Donkey Kong: Another of my top three characters. DK uses his back aerial a lot because it's so good compared to his other aerial approaches. DK is good for players that are good at spacing attacks. DK outranges all but a few of the characters in the game and his attacks usually come out faster. He has a lot if lag after the moves, however. This means that he can't throw out moves willy-nilly because good players will punish him easily. Like Bowser, DK benefits from being one step ahead and using his ridiculous reach to his advantage. He can also predict the opponent to get early KO's by either using super armor, long reach on his smash attacks, or attacking people at the end of their air dodge or spot dodge. He also has the ability to position opponents where he wants them by using his cargo throw.
Diddy Kong: Diddy is one of the only characters that can be played very well as a rushdown character, but still benefits on the defensive from having a throwable projectile like Peach does. Diddy can get more momentum than any character with his bananas. Having them on the stage or repeatedly throwing them at the opponent can make the opponent lose control of the match. If the opponent can use bananas against Diddy or not let Diddy pull them out, they can turn the tides, however. It's important to know that Diddy's moveset compliments banana uses more so than any other character.
*Yoshi: Yoshi's eggs are a great projectile and because of the range on Yoshi's pivot grabs, he already has two great tools. Yoshi's air speed is also very high and he has great jumps, as well as a good ground speed. Unfortunately, Yoshi isn't very good at getting out of pressure because some of his defensive options while in his shield are rather poor. Luckily, his shield is better in Smash 4 because he can now jump out of his shield. Yoshi is good for players that like to have a very mobile character without having to be small, light, and have short range. His egg throw, ability to grab while in the air with his neutral b, and good grab game are also very appealing!
Wario: I'll include Wario because I'll be very surprised if he's not in Smash 4. Wario might be very different in Smash 4, but in Brawl a lot of people liked him because he could attack in the air without much commitment. He was good at pressuring shields and running away. He's sort of like Jigglypuff in a way because of his great aerials and ability to change directions in the air on a dime! Wario also has some very good moves and an awesome command throw with his Bite attacks. Because of his Bite, air speed, and good aerials, I would say Wario is one of the best characters at messing with defensive players.
Link: Link is a projectile character that can use his projectiles like his bombs and boomerang to do interesting things. Link being able to throw his bombs gives him similar options to Peach and Diddy Kong. His boomerang is interesting too for obvious reasons.
With all of Link's projectiles and his good range on most if his attacks, he can keep out opponents well, but has some good close range tools as well. His sword attacks have good range and are strong, while his kick attacks are fast and easy to land to get his opponents off of him or to attack his opponents after they get hit by a bomb.
Zelda: Zelda is great on the defensive because her smash attacks, are strong, have decent range and last a long time. Zelda is scary because she attacks like a heavy character, but without most of the drawbacks usually associated with those moves. At least in Brawl, Zelda didn't have a lot of attacks that were good in all situations. Most of her moves were pretty weird. While they weren't bad as stand-alone moves, lacking some conventional attacks made her not very good when she had to approach the opponent.
Toon Link: A lot like Link, but floatier, faster, and better at getting back to the stage. In Brawl, Link's fast falling speed and character model made him east to use exploits like chain grabbing on him and he was easy to gimp. Because of this being (I think) reconciled in the new game, Link might be closer to the same level as Toon Link.
Sheik: A very fast character that plays like a ninja. Sheik is mobile and has some of the fastest moves in the game. It is very easy to rack up damage with Sheik. In the new game, she looks even better because she has two great-looking new moves. Sheik could possibly be a rushdown character in the new game, especially because he needles can now be used to approach the opponent!
Kirby: Kirby is an easy character to learn because his moves aren't very complex and he can make it back to the stage easily. Kirby looks like he has even better throw moves in Smash 4 and his throws in Brawl were already very good. Kirby is a good air fighter because of his multiple jumps. He can also edgeguard well because he can stay off stage so long. Kirby has good power and speed.
*Dedede: Smash 4 Dedede could end up being very different because of the lack of chain grabs, but in Brawl Dedede had very long grab range while still coming out very fast. Multiple jumps and long range attacks made Dedede a threat in the air. His Inhale ability and fast fall speed combined meant Dedede could also beat shielding opponents by inhaling them! Dedede's main draw is his great range on his moves, as well as power, and multiple jump ability. It made Dedede a very interesting heavy weight. Dedede looks like he will play similarly in this game, but without as much of a reward from grabbing.
Samus: A projectile character that has very long range. Her ability to use her tether as an attack in the air makes her keep away game even deadlier. Samus is a fun character for players that like projectiles and keeping the opponent out. Her projectiles are rumored to not be as good in this game, but they still do what they're supposed to. She still seems to play defensively though as in the new game, they made her up b even better as an attack.
Zero Suit Samus: ZSS has some long range attacks and her attacks that aren't long range are very fast. ZSS is a super fast character with long range, which is something we don't see often. Zero Suit Samus doesn't do tons of damage on each hit, but she can use her paralyzer gun to string hits together and get tons of damage. I don't think we know exactly if the same paralyzer combos will carry over from Brawl, but I'm almost sure there will be an alternative if they don't.
Fox: Fox has fast attacks that string together easily. He is very fast on the ground and reaches high jumps very quickly. Fox is good for players that like to run very fast while pressuring opponents into leaving themselves open so that Fox can finally get a hit and get huge damage. Fox might be a rushdown character in this new game.
Pit: Pit is a projectile heavy character with one of the most practical projectiles in the game. Pit has the benefit of multiple jumps like Kirby does, so that's good for him. Pit's attacks are surprisingly devastating for as quick as they are. Pit operates a little differently in this game, but I'm guessing he will still be a good projectile character with some quick and powerful attacks at close range, good air combat ability, and good recovery.
Captain Falcon: It's hard to say what Falcon will be like in the new game. His design is very much like a rush down character, but Brawl's physics didn't support conventional rushdown characters. We'll have to see more of Captain Falcon to find out!
Olimar: Olimar has less Pikmin in this game, but from reports about Olimar, it doesn't really matter. Olimar is one of the best characters in the ground because he has the range of a character must larger than him! His Pikmin do a lot for him, including increase his grab range. Because of this Olimar can get grabs easily. Sort of like Yoshi. Olimar is another micro-manage character like Robin. Olimar players must make sure they are constantly at their best for whatever situation they are going into!
Marth: Marth is a character that excels if they are used by a player who has great spacing skills. Marth players must also know that there are a few times when it's best not to space attacks correctly or when the effort to hit with the tip of the attack wouldn't be worth it. Marth is relatively straight forward. Marth's attacks are quick and have long range, but have a bit of recoil time behind them, which makes spacing even more important. Marth doesn't have a whole lot of crazy tools, but the ones he has are simple and effective. His Dolphin Slash can get him out of danger easily. Marth is good for players that enjoy the spacing game a lot.
Ike: Ike has even longer range than Marth and even more recoil after his moves. However, his moves are super strong! Ike can out range almost every character in the game and with a simple prediction, he can KO characters like nothing. If his jab is anything in Smash 4 like it is in Brawl, he will still have a good option for players that get through the range of his sword. His low speed on both his attacks and run hurt him badly though.
*Pikachu: Pikachu is a mobility character. Pikachu can land safe hits very easily and then leave the opponent without getting damaged. Even while recovering, it is very hard to attack Pikachu because he can hit so quickly to deter you from him and then zip to the stage and out of harms way. Pikachu can string together attacks easily and use most of his very quick moves to pester the opponent. His Quick Attack Cancel was very important to his mobility in Brawl and it is possible to do it in the new game, but it is done differently from what I've heard. I don't like including advanced techniques in brief character descriptions, but it really is important to Pikachu in Smash. Pikachu's down b is also one of the coolest moves in the game and gives a reason to fear being high above Pikachu.
Lucario: Lucario is kind of like Marth and can use forward aerial a lot on the opponent because it's fast and easy to land. Lucario is a little hard to pin a description on, but he's kind of like a spacing/combo character. He can approach and defend pretty easily with his attacks. He's pretty decent at most things and is better at pressuring an opponent's shield than most characters. If you're thinking about trying Lucario, use his down aerial a lot in matches. If you think it's fun like I do, you might like Lucario.
Charizard: They kind of messed up Charizard in Brawl so I hope they do some cool things with him in the new game. Overall, I think he's supposed to be kind of like Donkey Kong. A surprisingly mobile heavy character with long reach and good grabs. I hope they do more with his air mobility and combat.
*Sonic: A very mobile character that excels in mobility going in only one direction. Sonic can zip around and do minor amounts of damage periodically while not getting hit until his opponents eventually have enough damage and get hit by a strong-enough Sonic move. Sonic is very hard to do damage to because his speed and ability to escape any situation he doesn't like with his dash speed and up b. Something about that makes me happy so I like playing Sonic.
I may have forgotten a million characters, but I don't want to go look at who's confirmed. Let me know if that helped and if there's any characters that look interesting from the description.
Hong , I recall you saying Villager fits your play style more than Robin... may I ask why? What in Villager's moveset/play style interest you?
Veggi ?
