- Game Versions
- Smash 3DS, Smash Wii U
so here is some things you should know about playing bowser.
If you're looking for Super Smash Bros. version of a hard-hitting grappler, then Bowser is your character. With a wide range of kill moves and a powerful grab special move, this is one Bowser's best incarnations in the Smash series.
Bowser's stats
Strength: [▇▇▇▇▇ ]
Weight: [▇▇▇▇▇▇▇]
Speed: [▇▇▇▇ ]
Skill Level: [▇▇ ]
Bowser is surprisingly fast for his size and weight being faster then mario while being a tad slower then marth.
he is one of the heaviest characters in the game so he can survive for a long time before death.
well....he is a Strong heavy character so his Strength will be high as well.
Once you learn bowser he is not hard to play at all.
Bowser's mechanics
Bowser has an effect called "Tough Guy" this allows him to take weak attacks with no flinch and knockback this is mostly limited to weak attacks (usually infinites) and very few projectiles (such as Luigi's Fireball, Ness' PK Fire, or Megaman's forward tilt), and generally lasts up until 50% to 100%. The effect is significantly amplified if Bowser is crouching, but not while crawling or attacking. It is also amplified on a low damage ratio.
Jab
Bowser's jab is a really quick to-go Option if they get a bit too close. and it reaches a fair bit ahead of him and is one the few moves he has that requires very little commitment. A common tactic when looking for a chance to break through an opponent's defense is to do a single jab and then attempt to react to what option they choose. If they attempt to roll past you, you have more than enough time to either forward tilt or side-B them for a ton of damage.
Dash attack
Bowser's Dash attack is a Decent and quick punish. and it can also be used to keep one in the air. but like all other dash attacks. it can be easily shielded then grabbed.
Tilts
Forward tilt has decent range and knockback and can be done out of a pivot to control space.
Down tilt is your strongest punish at around 0-15%, scoring a 2-hit 25% combo. It has kill power as well at later percents.
Up tilt can be used to harass people on low platforms while keeping you relatively safe. and it also doubles as a Decent combo starter due to its speed and juuuuust enough knockback to where it can combo into itself or air moves with a short hop.
Defensively, Up Tilt has a ton of range around Bowser and happens pretty quickly.
aerials
When it comes to aerials, Bowser has alot to work with. His neutral air is his most damaging aerial one of the most damaging standard aerials in the game.
His forward air is his best aerial due to the ability to have it autocancel during a shorthop. Even doing a rising fair will still hit short characters due to the large hitbox on the move. The low cooldown on the attack lets you threaten with another fair offstage should you land a hit near the edge. Retreating fairs also cover alot of space and can make it difficult for characters with short range to approach Bowser.
His back air is one of his most popular kill moves, having ridiculous knockback and the ability to autocancel it out of a shorthop. When opponents are at high % and are looking to get back down to the ground against Bowser, simply being near them with your back turned can bait out an airdodge and allow you to punish very hard and take an early stock.
Dair is mostly used for disrespect and High percent kills off the stage at a possible cost of a stock.
DO NOT DAIR BECAUSE OF THE EXTRA SPARK DAMAGE FROM THE WINDBOX ON THE LANDING. IT IS SO PREDICTABLE AND PEOPLE SEE IT COMING LIGHTYEARS AWAY.
Throws
U-Throw can pretty much combo into almost anything at low percents. it can combo into...Utilt, Uair, and Nair. just to name a few. U-Throw into Uair can even kill at mid-high Percents....if you can land the Uair.
Both F-Throw and B-Throw are his kill throws. both throws kill around 90%. B-throw kills earlier
D-throw...is used for getting a foe off stage when your F-throw and B-Throw are unable to kill. as D-throw has high Lag and low knockback. it is not really that useful.
Smashes
F-Smash will be tempting to throw out there. but is has a ton of startup lag and it can be seen coming. if you make a good prediction, and break a shield then by all means use dat F-smash! also if it is angled properly it can hit people who are hanging off the ledge to snag a kill from there.
D-smash is incredibly useful to throw out. it has a Very similar animation to U-Special and thus many newer plays might mistake D-smash as U-Special and Vice versa. and thus they might dodge roll into bowser to avoid the "U-Special" while it is really D-smash. and it also Decent Edge guarding tool for Fox and Falcos (or anything with a good Horizontal Recovery. except Ike) (Though Whirling Fortress Can do the same Job.) this move has less startup lag then most of his other Kill options (mostly his other smashes).
U-smash is a Powerful Semi anti-air. it is tough to land but just like F-Smash. if you make a good prediction then use it. it is also a Kill option if F-Smash wont work.
Specials
Fire Breath is a nice tool, but obviously gets shorter over time. It is a little hard to maneuver around, so it is a decent move to use sometimes as a more ranged option to rack up a bit of percent and used as a Gimp tool
Flying Slam is a good way to mix up your approach options, since you can do it while airborne; most people will think of shielding when you jump towards them, so throw this move out. it is also used for the Bowser-cide and is another kill option. This move also has Little-to-no Landing Lag if it misses.
Whirling Fortress can be done out of shield and comes out rather quickly and covers all of Bowser. it is also a Potent Horizontal and Surprising Vertical Recovery. if you keep tapping the button you can go farther with it. be sure to keep tapping the button when recovering. This move can also do the same job as Bowser's D-Smash for Edge guarding for those who are trying to recover Horizontally (Maybe even better at it) Though D-Smash has much more kill power then Whirling Fortress.
Bowser Bomb is yet another Kill option. on the ground bowser jumps. if a foe gets hit by the jump then they will get hit by the Drop. just like F-smash you dont want to use this often as it is very easy to punish. it can break shields if all of the land hit-boxes hit. only use this move after good read.
Overall
Bowser is an interesting character. He is a big body, but he has a fast run speed and long, fast startup pokes. On the other hand, some of his moves have a lot of time to wait after they're done, so they have to be done in moderation. if used correctly Bowser will be a Powerful Choice as a main.
Bowser is my Personal Main so i wont be putting up where i would personally put him on the tier list so there wont be any bias. but i will put Rank him in my Rank chart as "Decent"
Rank:
Bad
Disappointing
Alright
>Decent
Good.
thanks for reading. it was really fun to make this.
If you're looking for Super Smash Bros. version of a hard-hitting grappler, then Bowser is your character. With a wide range of kill moves and a powerful grab special move, this is one Bowser's best incarnations in the Smash series.
Bowser's stats
Strength: [▇▇▇▇▇ ]
Weight: [▇▇▇▇▇▇▇]
Speed: [▇▇▇▇ ]
Skill Level: [▇▇ ]
Bowser is surprisingly fast for his size and weight being faster then mario while being a tad slower then marth.
he is one of the heaviest characters in the game so he can survive for a long time before death.
well....he is a Strong heavy character so his Strength will be high as well.
Once you learn bowser he is not hard to play at all.
Bowser's mechanics
Bowser has an effect called "Tough Guy" this allows him to take weak attacks with no flinch and knockback this is mostly limited to weak attacks (usually infinites) and very few projectiles (such as Luigi's Fireball, Ness' PK Fire, or Megaman's forward tilt), and generally lasts up until 50% to 100%. The effect is significantly amplified if Bowser is crouching, but not while crawling or attacking. It is also amplified on a low damage ratio.
Jab
Bowser's jab is a really quick to-go Option if they get a bit too close. and it reaches a fair bit ahead of him and is one the few moves he has that requires very little commitment. A common tactic when looking for a chance to break through an opponent's defense is to do a single jab and then attempt to react to what option they choose. If they attempt to roll past you, you have more than enough time to either forward tilt or side-B them for a ton of damage.
Dash attack
Bowser's Dash attack is a Decent and quick punish. and it can also be used to keep one in the air. but like all other dash attacks. it can be easily shielded then grabbed.
Tilts
Forward tilt has decent range and knockback and can be done out of a pivot to control space.
Down tilt is your strongest punish at around 0-15%, scoring a 2-hit 25% combo. It has kill power as well at later percents.
Up tilt can be used to harass people on low platforms while keeping you relatively safe. and it also doubles as a Decent combo starter due to its speed and juuuuust enough knockback to where it can combo into itself or air moves with a short hop.
Defensively, Up Tilt has a ton of range around Bowser and happens pretty quickly.
aerials
When it comes to aerials, Bowser has alot to work with. His neutral air is his most damaging aerial one of the most damaging standard aerials in the game.
His forward air is his best aerial due to the ability to have it autocancel during a shorthop. Even doing a rising fair will still hit short characters due to the large hitbox on the move. The low cooldown on the attack lets you threaten with another fair offstage should you land a hit near the edge. Retreating fairs also cover alot of space and can make it difficult for characters with short range to approach Bowser.
His back air is one of his most popular kill moves, having ridiculous knockback and the ability to autocancel it out of a shorthop. When opponents are at high % and are looking to get back down to the ground against Bowser, simply being near them with your back turned can bait out an airdodge and allow you to punish very hard and take an early stock.
Dair is mostly used for disrespect and High percent kills off the stage at a possible cost of a stock.
DO NOT DAIR BECAUSE OF THE EXTRA SPARK DAMAGE FROM THE WINDBOX ON THE LANDING. IT IS SO PREDICTABLE AND PEOPLE SEE IT COMING LIGHTYEARS AWAY.
Throws
U-Throw can pretty much combo into almost anything at low percents. it can combo into...Utilt, Uair, and Nair. just to name a few. U-Throw into Uair can even kill at mid-high Percents....if you can land the Uair.
Both F-Throw and B-Throw are his kill throws. both throws kill around 90%. B-throw kills earlier
D-throw...is used for getting a foe off stage when your F-throw and B-Throw are unable to kill. as D-throw has high Lag and low knockback. it is not really that useful.
Smashes
F-Smash will be tempting to throw out there. but is has a ton of startup lag and it can be seen coming. if you make a good prediction, and break a shield then by all means use dat F-smash! also if it is angled properly it can hit people who are hanging off the ledge to snag a kill from there.
D-smash is incredibly useful to throw out. it has a Very similar animation to U-Special and thus many newer plays might mistake D-smash as U-Special and Vice versa. and thus they might dodge roll into bowser to avoid the "U-Special" while it is really D-smash. and it also Decent Edge guarding tool for Fox and Falcos (or anything with a good Horizontal Recovery. except Ike) (Though Whirling Fortress Can do the same Job.) this move has less startup lag then most of his other Kill options (mostly his other smashes).
U-smash is a Powerful Semi anti-air. it is tough to land but just like F-Smash. if you make a good prediction then use it. it is also a Kill option if F-Smash wont work.
Specials
Fire Breath is a nice tool, but obviously gets shorter over time. It is a little hard to maneuver around, so it is a decent move to use sometimes as a more ranged option to rack up a bit of percent and used as a Gimp tool
Flying Slam is a good way to mix up your approach options, since you can do it while airborne; most people will think of shielding when you jump towards them, so throw this move out. it is also used for the Bowser-cide and is another kill option. This move also has Little-to-no Landing Lag if it misses.
Whirling Fortress can be done out of shield and comes out rather quickly and covers all of Bowser. it is also a Potent Horizontal and Surprising Vertical Recovery. if you keep tapping the button you can go farther with it. be sure to keep tapping the button when recovering. This move can also do the same job as Bowser's D-Smash for Edge guarding for those who are trying to recover Horizontally (Maybe even better at it) Though D-Smash has much more kill power then Whirling Fortress.
Bowser Bomb is yet another Kill option. on the ground bowser jumps. if a foe gets hit by the jump then they will get hit by the Drop. just like F-smash you dont want to use this often as it is very easy to punish. it can break shields if all of the land hit-boxes hit. only use this move after good read.
Overall
Bowser is an interesting character. He is a big body, but he has a fast run speed and long, fast startup pokes. On the other hand, some of his moves have a lot of time to wait after they're done, so they have to be done in moderation. if used correctly Bowser will be a Powerful Choice as a main.
Bowser is my Personal Main so i wont be putting up where i would personally put him on the tier list so there wont be any bias. but i will put Rank him in my Rank chart as "Decent"
Rank:
Bad
Disappointing
Alright
>Decent
Good.
thanks for reading. it was really fun to make this.
you learn something new everyday