>>50316951Just because it prints money doesn't mean Sakurai has to like it.
Every single game mandates at least one new Pokemon has to be added, and it can't be whatever Sakurai wants from the full roster of Pokemon, it's picking one from a pre-selected assortment (or a single Pokemon) that TPC expects him to adapt. And he can't go completely off the walls, he's dealing with adding a Pokemon like he does a third party, following strictly within the supplier's guidelines and wants with little room for his own ideas or interpretations.
It's entirely possible if he refuses, they threaten to pull their cash and forbid the use of the franchise in its entirety between fighters, items, Trophies/Stickers/Spirits, music, stages, the whole like.
And since it involves an entire franchise that's been majorly tied to Smash since the first game, owned and ran by the most stingy, greedy mohterfuckers imaginable, its exclusion due to a refusal to bow down would be extremely noticeable and harmful to not just Smash, but leave people wondering what the relations between Nintendo and Pokemon are like in negative light, creating bad PR all around.
