THIS FIRST CHUNK DOESN'T REALLY HAVE TO BE READ UNLESS YOU REALLY WANT TO AND ARE INTERESTED ON WHY I THINK THIS WAY
Alright I'm adding my thoughts on the games current metagame and a list, that seems to me, like the future of the game. Here's what I'm thinking it will come down to in 3 years.
I’ll start with a little intro to why my thoughts may differ from yours. As you may already know, I am a dedicated random user and always have been. I’ve been committed (stubbornly) to the empty box in melee since day one. If it was the final of a tournament and I got Mewtwo when I was facing a Marth user, I wouldn’t switch, Mewtwo was my character. A long, personal story short, I stopped melee years ago, long before the ICs were even out of the armpit of peoples minds. It didn’t take long to pick it up again and catch the metagame over this last year with the help of some old smash friends fortunately. From forcing myself to use the character it would select for me, I eventually (because I had to) played literally every character and every style with each one of them at a tourney level. Every one on the tier list from Marth to Mewtwo. I did it within the first few months of melee and I did it again after a few months when I got back into it in 2007. Now that I have the ability to not even know who I am before a match starts and there is such an abundance of characters, I initially approached this game on a more universal level than a character specific one. The character specifics came into play naturally. So I’ve got a decent understanding of the entire roster, to say the least.
This may sound weird and may give the wrong impression initially or make some people think down on my thoughts but...I haven’t watched a video and I haven’t done any research on characters on my own time. Every little trick I know right now, I’ve learned on my own by trying it myself or from seeing the people I’ve played do it. Whether it was a friendly with my competitive brawling bro, or from playing the many upon many different smashers from different areas with different characters and the different level players online and traveling, I never played a battle the same twice. From all of my experiences, (and I’m sure this applies to yours) there are many things that separate the various smashers and at the same time there are many things we all have in common. Those things are what is faltering any list to date. At least any list on this forum or to my knowledge.
I’ll just come out and say it because I know we are all aware of the fact. The metagame sucks. I’ve heard stories that some people think we’ve reached the peak of Brawl. Well, that’s not from a Brawlers point of view that’s for sure. The lvl 9 CPUs are without question further ahead in terms of the games potential than any of us. Sure you can't approach them like you would approach a person. You couldn’t in melee because of the "superhuman" function. But have you tried to play like them against others? It's surprisingly easy and effective even though it may be your first time trying it. If you play a lvl 9 CPU like you would a human, you'll lose. If you don't use the uselessly stupid AI mis-haps to your advantage, you won't beat the games programmed player. Doing the normal fsmash when they're just in range will get YOU fsmashed. Then if you apply what it is they’re doing to someone else (which works well and is easier than it seems with simple techniques) you will fsmash anyone every time they try to fsmash you. Have you noticed that lvl 9s don't use smashes much at all? There is a good reason! They’ll just patiently wait for your nice wind up and smash then use something like it right back. If they can’t get the right spacing, they’ll PS you and crush you, if they space it, they’ll return the smash, if they can’t return the smash, they’ll crush you anyways. It does get a little super human sometimes, but that’s computers for you.
I have gone outside of the comfort zone for this game as a whole and unless it’s a Peach or Pikachu dsmash that’s multi-hit and quick (release and the hits), you can’t smash me with anything. Not a double him Pit fsmash or an Ike whomp. Power Shielding truly is perfect shielding and it’s an aspect of the game that will grow in time. It really isn’t any more difficult than mastering spacing or DI. It may be harder to practice than DI because you DI all the time, and harder than spacing because you space all the time, but if you try it enough you’ll know how to shield, dodge, etc, properly and maybe one day get to a point where you PS all the time just like everything else that’s natural at the moment. After all, the dodging and shielding system has changed more than spacing and directional influence and that’s clear in everyone’s mind. It’s not like we knew the potential of melees dodging and blocking system within the first few months, or year for that matter. In melee, I PS every 8<sup>th</sup> attack and I’m already at that point in Brawl. That was one of the most obvious things in my style that made me easy to pick out in a crowd. Both when I played the game in the early days and when I carried it trough to last year. Now that it’s easier and more effective, it’s a viable defensive choice possibly equal to rolling. That’s if you’re on the ground and it isn’t a laggy online match, the new defensive system in the air is something else that has changed dramatically, obviously. It has its own hidden gimmicks likes momentum decreasing and simply dodging to the ground but I won’t go into the other hundred things that I’ve been working with.
Another significant aspect that’s going almost unnoticed is something I’m just going to call a wave. If you watch a battle with characters that differ in range, speed and mobility, the new format of the game makes them flow in and out in what’s almost a pattern. It’s especially noticeable when they are taken into the air. If you want a really crappy example, but clear, the very first trailer from the dojo has a clip of Pit and MK rising and swiping at each other. That’s in a very remote way, emphasizing what we as competitive players are doing. Maybe we’re unconsciously aware of the escalating staircase we make when we chase someone into the air because we don’t. We’re busy stuck on the ground staying under the floaty opponent and moving slowly with smashes and tilts until we find the opportunity to dash upsmash when they spot dodge or try a short hop aerial on a shield. It’s somehow working for most of us though isn’t it? Maybe because that’s how everyone knows how to play the game right now. Then for some reason if you try to dash upsmashing a computer opponent and they do the simplest movement to counter it, they are called super human. Simply because they full jump with an immediate aerial to hit and evade? HAX! Something that wasn’t used in melee often I understand, but this game has a different flow. If you shield them, you can't retaliate cause they're gone, if you don't shield, you get hit and they are ALREADY chasing you. Advanced technique or just something to look at as a knew approach to the game? You know, because it’s a new game not just a new set of characters. I’m sure we’re figuring that out though.
It’s funny how this lack of combos thing came up too. They are just as accessible as melees, they just don't work the way they used to. Yes, DK can still 0-death, (utilts, uair and bairs into an upsmash?) yes, Falcon is still effective, (it took a year to bring Falcon to the same level as everyone in melee and it'll take plenty for the likes of him and his hit-on-opportunity buddy Sonic this time around too) yes, Yoshi, Ness, DK, Bowser and Jiggs are as Top Tiery as Marth... guess which character everyone always played as, continue to play as and didn't change dramatically from game to game and who were the characters that sucked, noone used, noone uses, changed a ton and only had major buffs along with having the game itself formatted in a way that better suits them... Marth is also easy to use and will always come out as better before the complicated and weird characters with new game hype. Looked down upon until looked at, I’ve said it before in this thread and I might say it again. Marth vs Yoshi and Marth wins more? I’d be very surprised if that were the case in a year from now.
You can’t have a win at all costs mind set all the time. At this point there is no point in just doing what you know will get you a win. Winning means next to nothing right now in a competitive aspect. Those approaching this game like they don’t know anything will come out on top in the end. Having battles where you try not to do the same thing twice (because really we don’t know what everything does yet) is probably the best thing right now. If you spread yourself out to see everything from every side, there’s a bigger picture. I personally love trying things out. To date I haven't played a battle with anyone without testing things that are in a way risky. Usually it’s just a subtle little thing like falling into a Uair to avoid being dodged but it’s all just done as tests. Often I'll use an aerial or dash attack or dodge or anything in a situation that is almost stupid because everyone knows that it doesn't work, and I’ll get punished badly for it, but that is a much better way to improve than doing the easy thing that everyone knows works. Surprisingly, things work that you might not think would be useful to ever bother doing. Whether it’s how high someone can go with their recovery to snap the ledge or how many times you can use an utilt before they get out of range or dodge and you can’t move into a ftilt or something to get them away anymore. Every time you grab the edge you should stop and think "what haven’t I done from here?" You never know, maybe the next 1 hit KO, Toon Link poorly DIed down smash is still to be discovered. Or just as well, something as useful as a double missile from the ledge. There’s thousands of smashers all approaching the game the same way, discovering the same things based on what is already known. Looking beyond that is what will separate the good at the moment from the good now and getting better.
"In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few." - Shunryn Suzuki
"By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart." - Confucius
I just quoted these because they were the quotes of the day today. I love quotes and they were just so relevant to this section.
I still like to play computer players every couple weeks and tried again yesterday but of course the real fun is playing people that are just as good, almost as good, or most of all, better than me. I’ve been practicing and improving dramatically in a different aspect than what the public current metagame is. Like a sidestep from what's going on with the community. Or at least this is the case with the forty plus tourney players I have played online and traveling. What I’ve somewhat discovered is probably something out of the comfort zone and train of thought for most people. Things like my good old PS where I sit back and practice that and everything you can do with it. Every attack while attacking between shields and on the move from every angle. An ROB laser will pass through me and I’ll fsmash them because they would think I’m regrouping from the hit and charge at me. Or I’ll dash, stop, a Marth will hit me with a tipper and I’ll grab him the second after. Everyone I have played in person has commented on the PS use that I’ve incorporated into my game because it stands out so much but that different view on my style is reasonable for many things under the covers right now. It’s just one example of an aspect in the game that will develop in time as a trait in the metagame to be looked at later. It seems to me that there is one thing that all of the tricks in the game lead to and it’s something that isn’t really being addressed.
First off, the defensive system is great. Camping is something everyone is looking at as a massive advantage. Well I can’t be camped anymore, and I’ve played my share of good campy Toon Links, Pits and whoever else is considered campy. PS nearly eliminates that and the dodging system in the air works wonders. The amazing range that some characters like Ike and Wolf have is something that is feared but it’s easier to get around that than it may seem. The one goal that nearly everyone has, that they push for at all costs and try looking for the best way to do it, is getting the opponent of the edge. This is where the game is going and I can tell that’s the case right now. These top tier characters (or the top tier people are thinking) are all simple and easy with edge game. We all know about Marths abilities and that quickly carried over from melee. Rangy characters and aerial mobility are thought of as the best attributes for edge game. That makes plenty of sense and is completely understandable. The ledge snapping, the great shielding, the multiple air dodges, the floaty feel, the concept of smash bros which happens to be knocking people off the stage. You have to go out there and keep them off or throw something at them. Multiple jumps, range and projectiles make this easy. What about the characters that can’t jump well like Link and Ganon, or the characters that have no range like Jiggs and Sonic? Well, that’s where that whole wave concept comes in. Why do they need to go to the edge of the stage or stand still? The wave will start coming up more often. Characters that are all confusing and noone knows how to make things work with will suddenly change as epiphanies unravel. The surface isn’t even scratched and the inside is full of everything from the amazing Bowser sideB cancels to the amazing Bowser bair edgeguarding. Of course, only time has that power and that we all know.
Enough of that? I put a tier list in this blog. The tiers don’t mean much but tiers are always there and I get to explain why I think things are going to be this way. Lets just say there are so many characters that you can argue any one of them to be higher than the others and the gaps are so small they barely exist. Some other type of chart is the only way to really capture the dynamics of the game. Indeed, balance is prominent just like the man had promised us. It’s like melee without Marth, Fox, Falco, Sheik, Peach, Falcon, Mewtwo, Kirby, Pichu and Bowser. lol
I've included a mini explanation for everyone because they all may need explaining and if you have a question or need something more, just ask. I play every character at a top level and have played almost every character at a top level (it’s hard to find opponents that play certain characters competitively) I’ve been putting this together here and there over a couple weeks so it’s pretty much my take on the whole thing all wrapped up. I’m not expecting anyone to agree or anyone to understand completely what I’m deciding. This is my opinion based on my thoughts and that’s all. Keep in mind also, that this isn’t meant to be a current tier list. If nothing else, it’s a reference for me in the future when characters start finding their actual place. And the only reason I didn’t get this up 2 weeks ago was because I had trouble sorting out the bottom part of the tier list. It’s the most difficult part and usually ends up a little wacky for a long time.
THE ACTUAL LIST STARTS HERE, FROM WORST TO BEST
Ike - Ike has great range and priority, invincibility frames, a counter, tons of power and is surprisingly agile for having all of that. Ike has slow attacks with a few exceptions which makes him predictable but his range and power still make him effective. Risk and reward with him is about even all through his game and that is why he will always be able to compete with the best. His recovery isn’t great and his juggling game lacks with his slow attacks so he doesn’t have much room to grow. Without multiple hitting attacks, a projectile or good off stage game, he will rely a lot on spacing and controlling the center of the stage. He has many good match ups, but many bad ones and that’s what keeps him from taking over.
Sonic - Sonic may take a while longer to figure out how things work with him, but he will always lack the easy low damage kill unless it involves taking away recoveries. Fortunately, he’s excellent at gimping and can hit and run and chase better than anyone. It’s all about evade and pursuit with him. Strike on opportunity is the best way for a fast character with little range can be effective and he’s the perfect example of that. Much like other opportunistic characters, he will take a while to develop. It will probably take him longer to reach the other characters level of play simply because they have to reach that level before him so he can find when the opportunities are. Falcon from melee was a perfect example but instead of strike and pursue, Sonic will strike and evade, then repeat. He will struggle for a while though, possibly always because he simply lacks the finisher to strike with when the opportunity to finish does come up.
Ganondorf - Ganon isn’t useless, but he sure seems that way when he’s stuck on the defensive. He doesn’t have to do much to win, but it’s difficult to get things done against many kinds of characters. He has some nice little tricks and good finishers in the air and grounded but dealing the damage to finish is still needed. His recovery isn’t great and his mobility isn’t spectacular. Ganon has good traits to win both defensively and offensively but it’s either one or the other. He can play a good dodge and waiting game and a good pressure and chase game, it’s just limitted and difficult to go from defensive to offensive and vis versa with him. His sideB does make for a good counter and can turn the tables quickly but that might not be enough in the long run. He probably has something else to him, but he just doesn’t have much yet.
Lucario - When Lucario is losing, it’s pretty much a tie. When Lucario is winning, it’s still a tie. His range is what can win battles for him. It is underappreciated and is possibly his best attribute. He can juggle and has a few options for finishers. He has to play a very defensive game to win though, his finishers are almost needed for dealing enough damage to finish and usually attack negation will eliminate the way he becomes more powerful with more damage. Lucario has to play smart, with a counter, good range and good aerial game, he can match everyone if they don’t watch the damage meter.
Captain Falcon - It took a long time for him to become effective last time around because he was such a strike on opportunity character. This time, it will take the same amount of time but he really doesn’t have those attacks needed to get the easy kills. He will always be a threat with his spike, knee and land speed but it can’t be applied as efficiently. CF can still rely on his uair and dsmash to get the job done and his jab game is as good as it gets. His game will change plenty from here on as his greatly underused tilts, usmash, nair and what will possibly change the way CF plays forever, Falcon Punch. It’s fast enough to hit with and doesn’t lag enough to get punished from using it. He will go through dramatic changes and there’s no telling how effective he can be until he becomes that effective.
Fox - His speed kills like always and he has a couple good finishers that are all he really needs to be effective. He can hit and run well if he gets in trouble and he can chase very well in the air and on solid ground. He’s always a dangerous character and very effective within the right situations. He doesn’t have enough speed to make up for his lack of range though. Fox will struggle a little when it comes to a spacing game but his off stage game is still alright with good aerials and his downB stall and spike. Recovering can be risky for him and he is light but he’s fast enough to avoid letting his enemies get easy kills.Samus -
Pokemon Trainer - PT is very unique. The deciding factor in a match could very well come down to getting the right character into play at the right time. He can win any match up battle because of this advantage but he also has to take the time to get the right match up once it’s lost. He’s a risky character but is very effective if he has time to be. Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard are all very good characters with their own advantages and disadvantages. It’s a fair game with PT no matter who he’s up against.
Sheik - Sheik has trouble finishing because it’s so predictable and her game all round is predictable. She is fast and can trap enemies really well so being predictable really isn’t an issue when it comes to dealing damage. She has decent range and decent edge game but she can be finished fairly easily. With a patient strike on opportunity style, she can match anyone because her speed in moving and attacking is so good. If she does get stuck in a bad match, there is always Zelda.
Jigglypuff - Jiggs has amazing approach and amazing finishers. Rest is still an incredible attack and her options have opened up as to what she can do both on the ground and in the air. She can juggle well and still dominates the best aerial characters off stage. Jiggs can turn a battle around at any moment.
Zero Suit Samus - Zamus doesn’t have anything overwhelming but she is strong in most areas. Her aerial and ground game are both fast and have plenty of range and juggling possibilities. She does lack in reliable finishers. The ones she does have take long to come out and lag so she has to be precise to get the kill. She can also be finished well without much weight or defensive abilities but she is very versatile and tough to avoid. She’s an offensive character and if she can take advantage of her strengths effectively, she will win.
Peach - Peach lacks that easy kill move but she still has great traits. She has a melee feel with her attacks but this isn’t the same Peach, it’s like if Daisy were in melee, this would be her. Her recovery is still great and her projectile is still a pain but what’s knew is that her tilts have opened up her diverse game. The dsmash still racks up damage and her aerials and usmash along with her fsmash and off stage work can get her the kills she needs. She has good defensive aggressive strategies and is fairly fast. Overall she’s a good competitor.
Link - Links battle is all about the center of the stage and moving outwards. He doesn’t have to be in the center himself, but he can control the center from anywhere. He has great projectiles and once you get past that, he has great range and power with his other attacks. The best option is to get him off the stage because he can be contained there. Getting inside on him doesn’t work very well either because of his good kicks and jabs. He’ll get you back in range of his sword then from there into his projectiles. Link is a tough competitor in many ways and if you don’t get the easy and quick kills on him by taking advantage of his great weakness in recovering, he’ll destroy any opponent no matter who it is.
Wario - Wario is fast for his size. He can juggle well, has an amazing recovery and can finish with his incredible fsmash and uair. He doesn’t need those to rack up the damage with his quick in and out aerials and his *** and grabs. His dsmash is a quick killer too but like many things, it’s risky. His bite and fart are great moves that can change the course of the battle, they aren’t just for show. He is a great character that can strike at any moment with his amazing aerial grace.
Ness - Ness has great ground and air game. He can juggle and chase many different ways and can finish well. His easily beaten recovery is his only real weakness. He can finish, has decent range and great projectiles with lots of tricks. His yo-yo is actually a smash now and his upB, bat, spike and back throw are lethal. His grab range isn’t less than a pixel anymore and his grab game is excellent.
ROB - ROB has the best recovery in the game by far. He can fly across New Pork City straight off the ground and attack at any moment with just his upB. His aerials are great stalls and he has finishers everywhere. His projectiles are effective and he can combo anyone. Great off stage game, great ground game, great air game. His attacks has range and he has defensive abilities like his dsmash if anyone gets inside. He isn’t very agile or mobile and has some lag on many of his much needed attacks so he does get punished but he is a killer if given the chance to set up the game he wants to play. He has good match ups and bad match ups. Tourney results maight faulter his placement because his good match ups are against characters that are good like Falco, and his bad match ups are against bad characters like Lucario. I believe this is where he belongs though.
Bowser - Bowser has the best power, range and speed combination with his attacks. He can take a ton of damage and his recovery is at least decent. His bad traits are that he’s a big target and he lacks mobility, which really isn’t that bad, especially with sideB jump cancels. His fire breath and the few quick attacks he does have are all deadly and plenty for him to be successful against almost any opponent.
Snake - Snake is a risky character to fight. He has many tricks like a spike, rising, guided and timed projectiles and planted traps. He is a very versatile character in many aspects and plays a much different game then the rest of the roster. He’s deceivingly fast with a wicked dash attack, has a great recovery with many nice little gimmicks to it and projectiles that kill. It’s possible to get around all of that, but his tilts are fast and kill too. He has many flaws such as lag and mobility though. Keep him moving and he’ll be in some trouble. Snake appears really good, and he is, but he has to play a well planned out game to win. If his enemies play a smart game, he might not pull out a win very often.
Pit - Pit has many multiple hitters with good range and priority. What is quite underappreciated is his diversity up close in battle. He can protect himself and he’s a threat from all angles so it’s tough to contain him. Then he has a projectile which can be the deciding factor in a match. He has reliable defensive and offensive options, little traits from reflectors to gliding. His amazing recovery can be gimped and his most effective play is fairly predictable so that will haunt him but he is a pretty safe choice. Pit is a steady character and can’t get in many bad situations, in match ups or in battle.
King Dedede - Dedede is big and slow but he doesn’t have to return much to even up a battle. He has good protection from every side so the only way to contain him is to get inside which makes only a few match ups bad for him. He has great range with literally all of his attacks so he can hit from anywhere. He has multiple jumps which gives him good off stage and aerial game and his projectile can limit the enemies options to get inside. It isn’t easy to get inside of his range but staying there is where it becomes a problem for him. If he can’t get away again, he’ll be in major trouble so it’s best to even run off stage and regroup or anything to get distance. He's possibly much better than this placement though.
Wolf - Wolf has a bizarre feel and approach to battle with odd rangy attacks and lots of options as far as chasing and combos. His recovery isn’t great but it’s fine for what he is capable of from the middle of the stage outward. He can escape any trouble with his moving attacks and what’s essentially a counter with his downB. He is tricky to play and if his enemies are off guard for a moment he can punish them quick and with plenty of force. His pathetic off stage play brings him down a good amount though.
Metaknight - He has two very feared moves and many multiple hit attacks on ground and in the air. He can chase, juggle, finish if given the chance and has great off stage game with an amazing recovery and wicked fast attacks. If he gets inside and on the offensive, his priority and attack speed are overwhelming and can easily turn into a quick chain with a finisher. Metaknight can have trouble because he is so reliant on opportunity and minimal but important spacing.
Pikmin & Olimar - His recovery is really bad and that is what makes him beatable. The depth of his character doesn’t go far right now but it will develop over a longer period. So far, he’s effective with his massive priority, range and ability to give damage and KO at a safe distance. This wont be the only thing he thrives on in the near future. He has many tricks, he just has to be experimented with. There’s a lot more to Olimar and his little Pikmin friends.
Lucas - His edge game is really where his strength is. Lucas can struggle mid stage but if he draws the battle to the edge, he can dominate from there in many ways. He does only have a few reliable finishers but he can chain attacks and chase well enough to make up for that along with his great off stage abilities.
Donkey Kong - Massive range, massive power and great speed. He can take a load of damage and dishes it out with ease. I’ve worked with DK a lot and there really aren’t many things he can’t do. He can’t be easily contained and he can contain well. Plenty of advantages with very few disadvantages in his favor in nearly every match up.
Marth - Marth has great range, power, speed and still has his aerial prowess. His game is all about spacing and keeping pressure on the enemy and he does this well. He can be overwhelming but if he loses his distance between far and near, he gets in trouble. He is an excellent character with great edge game and mid-stage dominance but it only lasts as long as his enemies are withing the distance of his sword and not his body.
Mario - I’ve worked with Mario more than anyone and I find him to be a very adaptable character. He can almost simply disable the opposition. He can combo and finish plenty and has great variety in his game all around. I like him and think he can come out winning in more match ups than not.
Ice Climbers - They rip defenses apart and have the great duo qualities that made them nearly unstoppable in melee. They’ve been buffed slightly to deal damage as fast as ever, finish many more ways and have a buffed recovery and air game both together and apart. You have to play on red alert all of the time against them.
Kirby - Sure MK might beat him in the match up but Kirby has a much greater chance against more characters than not. He can do everything well. Juggle, finish, chase, pretty much everything MK does but he has more options both offensively and defensively.
Falco - Falco is a very effective character. He has a great projectile as always and has great chasing abilities when he needs them. His sideB used just off the ground is possibly the fastest movement in the game and he has nice juggling prowess. Falco can deal damage and kill up close and is just as effective from any distance. He can contain enemies better than any.
Luigi - Luigi has many quick and powerful attacks. He is dangerous to approach and be approached by. His recovery is excellent. His priority and range is excellent. The only thing that holds him back is his slow yet mobile movement if he isn’t using is incredible tornado or mid jump. Maybe I’m giving him too much credit because I’ve worked with him a little bit more than most but he has some neat little tricks and easy kills that are going unused so far. What seems to be unique to him is that he wins when he doesn’t seem to do much, that counts for something too.
Toon Link - We all know how he has amazing projectiles, great aerial movement and recovery, can combo, can finish and has range and speed to go with it. Nothing special but I don’t think anything really needs to be said. He’s just a good balanced character.
Yoshi - This shouldn’t really be a surprise. Yoshi has always been able to finish, been able to combo, been great at dealing damage, been great in the air and had good ground game. He never was lacking in speed, power or range and all of the traits that he had from melee are still with him along with some areas getting buffed . The one thing that made him so bad was that he couldn’t even get back to the stage if he jumped twice. He couldn’t chase off stage or chase in the air and couldn’t recover without certain punishment. With no DJC, he is already a much better character. He had all of the right tools for off stage combat but could never apply them, now he can. The upB as a recovery, stall and great projectile is something that really improves is game too. He might be a little high, but not much.
Mr. Game & Watch - G&W needed one thing in melee and that was weight. He is now much heavier in Brawl so that isn’t a problem anymore. He has good quick and powerful aerial abilities all around and has all the traits needed to be effective in every area. He has good finishers, deals good damage, has good range and priority and great close in game. He really isn’t missing much. Can’t forget that his recovery and edge work can match the best in the game too.
Diddy Kong - Diddy dominates with speed, multiple hit attacks and great aerial abilities. Overall, he’s a pretty balanced character with a few little tricks to his attacks. He can pressure from every angle and can chase everywhere. His recovery is effective and tough to stop even though it can be stopped. He does lack solid easy kill moves but that doesn’t effect his play much with things like his spike, dash attack and his bananas which are very irritating and restricting when used the way Diddy can. I may be a little bold here but I believe he can at least match every other character.
Zelda - Attack negation doesn’t exist with Zelda. If something is weakened a bit, she has one of ten other magical moves to finish the job just as well. She has range that matches some of the rangiest and power behind it. With her incredible attack speed, she’s a true killer. If you’re near, she’ll give you a quick boot to the mid section with one of the fastest and most effective dsmashes. If you’re far, she’ll use what’s probably the best projectile in the game. She’ll kill you from the other side of the stage when you’re still trying to get ready to recover somewhere off screen. The wonderfully useful multi hit smashes like her upsmash and fsmash are perfect examples of why she’s dangerous. Her tilts are single hit but come out fast and kill just as well. Something that can’t be forgotten is her ability to reflect anything and of course, Sheik. If she’s in a bad match up, which I don’t know if that exists, she has plan (down)B which is a decent plan any time really. If it’s a spacing match, she has it covered, if it’s a camping match, she has it covered, if it’s a power match, she has it covered, if it’s a speed match, she has it covered. Other than a lack of mobility, which isn’t really needed with her incredible variety of attacks, she has everything.
Pikachu - Pikachu is finally getting some attention, took long enough! His tail and electricity can match any sword and some are also disjointed hitboxes. He’s heavy enough to withstand a lot and that’s if you can hit him though weight is probably his biggest weakness. He’s one of the faster characters in the game on land and in the air. With his amount of speed in every direction he’s a tricky pest. He can combo with variety and chase with the best. That’s enough to make him deadly. He has an amazing projectile. It has decent damage and knockback that allows you to follow up from quite a distance. It even falls at the perfect angle for edgeguarding and recovering from above. He has an amazing recovery with good air abilities in general along with his sideB and upB. The speed, distance and options that go along with it is actually unmatched. Pikachu has one of the best varieties of smash attacks. A great quick finisher, one kills and can’t be easily avoided or punished. Then there’s that wonderful dsmash. Multi hitting, fast and either kills, sets up for a kill or knocks them off the stage. He has one of the best moves in the game...downB. Not to mention he can combo into it with ease with nearly everything like a simple up throw. Even more threatening is his ability to take out a good chunk of certain characters damage meters with throws and good juggling. His canceled quick attack function opens up his chasing and tricking game even more. No competition for him when everything comes together.
Random - No I’m not kidding. Random is the best character, no argument can’t overthrow this fact.
1. Random can always counter pick your character by choosing a character, you can’t counter pick something you don’t know. It’s best to pick safe characters but even the safest characters can get bad match ups. Counter picking isn’t an advantage when playing against Random because it can go either way, but it’s still an advantage when Random has the choice to counter pick. This goes for stages often too.
2. A Random user will naturally become used to adapting to a character during the countdown of a match, the opposition wont be used to that. This gives Random an advantage for at least the first part of the match until the opponent finds their game against the character. I Random user wont have trouble with this because it’s an everyday thing.
3. Random has its own character box now... ISN"T THAT JUST TOO COOL?!?! OMFG!!!
I repeat just incase someone doesn’t understand, this is not a joke. If someone can actually play every character well enough to win at the highest level, with the Random function set up the way it is, they do in fact have a solid advantage.
Here’s the actual list. The order isn’t depicting much for a character within the surrounding characters but rather gives an idea on where certain characters will stand relative to others that are spaced far apart. Give or take a few characters switching tiers, I placed the gaps to generally separate where there are evident breaks all though they are so minor and insignificant.
Top
Random
High(have good match ups but bad ones too)
Pikachu
Zelda
Diddy Kong
Mr. Game & Watch
Yoshi
Toon Link
Luigi
Falco
Kirby
Ice Climbers
Middle(everyone is really here somehow)
Mario
Marth
Donkey Kong
Lucas
Pikmin & Olimar
Metaknight
Wolf
King Dedede
Pit
Snake
Bowser
ROB
Low(can beat anyone with the right match ups)
Ness
Wario
Link
Peach
Zero Suit Samus
Jigglypuff
Sheik
Pokemon Trainer
Fox
Captain Falcon
Lucario
Ganon
Sonic
Ike
Bottom(joke tier, Zelda destroys them)PS: this is the only joke part on the entire post, the rest is what I strongly believe
Tabuu
Master Hand
Bosses in the SSE
"End Quote"
This is what I have so far as my opinion on what it will come down to in a couple years. I posted it somewhere else but I might as well throw it on S
WF too
