Super Smash Bros Ultimate Update 8.1 has just been deployed and here’s what it does.

　　Out of nowhere, the brand-new update adds the Small Battlefield Stage to the game for competitive players who prefer a smaller stage in 1vs1 battles. “Battlefield is a bit too large, and Final Destination is a bit too empty, so we designed this to have just two platforms”, Smash director Sakurai writes on Twitter.

　　Following this update, players are also able to select any stage-specific music for the Battlefield, Small Battlefield, Big Battlefield, and Final Destination stages.

　　"It's not another option to change stages into; it's a standalone stage", Sakurai writes (as translated by @BoltGSR). "However, we've made it so you can select any song from any series to play on it! Feel free to pick your favorite tune from the near-1000 songs available from all sorts of game series."

　　突然ですが『スマブラSP』に、”小戦場”を追加しました!

　　競技シーンでは主流の対戦である1on1をするには、戦場だとちと広い。終点だとちと物足りない。そんな見解から、足場を2枚に調整したステージになります。 pic.twitter.com/d9DIpNYwV9

　　— 桜井 政博 (@Sora_Sakurai) August 5, 2020

　　In addition, the 8.1 update slightly improves connectivity in 1vs1 games and fixes several issues to improve the gameplay experience.

　　ところで、1on1オンライン対戦におけるレスポンスが、ちょっとだけ良くなっているかもしれません。

　　お試しください…

　　— 桜井 政博 (@Sora_Sakurai) August 5, 2020

　　We’ve included Nintendo’s official release notes for this new update down below:

Super Smash Bros Ultimate Update 8.1 Release Notes

　　StageThe Small Battlefield stage has been added. You can also set Small Battlefield as a Preferred Rule in Online battles.You can now select any stage-specific music for the Battlefield, Small Battlefield, Big Battlefield, and Final Destination stages.OnlineThe online user experience has been adjusted.The way matching is determined when using Preferred Rules has been adjusted.Following a look at the current number of players eligible for Elite Smash, the threshold for entry has been recalculated to allow more players. Additionally, the way initial values for Global Smash Power are calculated has also been adjusted.Further investigations and adjustments to Online mode are expected.GeneralSeveral issues have been fixed to improve gameplay experience.Super Smash Bros Ultimate is available now globally for the Nintendo Switch.