Can we like, not, with the Larry posts? It is entirely not necessary and doesn't accomplish anything worthwhile. Thanks.
ANYWHO~
LOOK UP IN THE SKY! IT'S A BIRD, IT'S A PLANE, IT'S...A DISTRACTION!
Original MU Chart + Other Stuff
Blue = Advantage
Green = Even OR Slight Advantage
Yellow = Mostly Even
Orange = Even OR Slight Disadvantage
Red = Disadvantage
Sorry if it looks a little disorganized. I got a bit lazy, lol
As mentioned earlier, this includes opinions that I have gathered (indirectly) from Dabuz, Zinoto, Pugwest, and more.
Couple of interesting notes that I can gather from this:
- Dat Sheik doe.
- The great thing about Diddy is that the characters he is weak to are on the rarer side (Rosalina and Mega Man). Likewise, Sheik is in a similar boat, only being weak to Mewtwo. Because of this character rarity, this helps attribute to their own individual successes. Both Sheik and Diddy are quite popular at the top level, too.
- Cloud is the only other character at the top with a single truly disadvantageous matchup, besides Sheik (and is Sheik coincidentally). Unlike Sheik though, he doesn't really dominate in some top tier matchups like she does. Despite this, a lot of yellow matchups have been claimed to be in his favor. And while most people would hate to fight Rosalina and Sonic, Cloud is a rare character that wouldn't really mind fighting either of them.
- Either I am crazy, or Mewtwo has a pretty awesome MU spread. Despite this, his disadvantageous MU against Diddy will likely hold him back, especially due to how popular Diddy is at tournaments. On the other hand, his ability to keep Sheik, Rosalina, and Mario in check in particular is certainly a huge boon to him.
- Rosalina counterplay seems to be developing to some degree, which may hinder her a bit in the future. Regardless, she is still a great character, and her ability to counter popular choices like Diddy, Fox, and Mario will ensure that she will never be kicked out of the top ranks.
- Sonic is one of the two characters on this list who isn't really disadvantaged against Sheik, Diddy, or Mewtwo. So if you would consider those "The Top Three", then that means that Sonic is in a pretty good spot. If that's not enough, he has an edge over his old rival Mario, too. He really doesn't like Fox McClouds, though (-1 originality points). If not those two, disjointers do well against him...usually. He does seem to do well against Marth, though.
- Ryu probably has one of the more balanced MU spreads among the top characters. As a result, I don't have much to say about him, other than that I want to see more of him. He should probably put some shoes on though, since it gives him an innate weakness to bananigans.
- Thank goodness that Sakurai gave Fox (and Falco) the ability to recover after his Side B in this game. Otherwise, I imagine that his MU spread would be a lot worse than it is right now. I could see most of these characters bodying him if that was the case.
- ZSS has it pretty hard. She is still a great character, but she really suffers in that she loses to a good amount of the popular choices (Sheik, Diddy, Fox). It also doesn't help that her advantageous matchups are on the rarer side (Mewtwo, Rosalina, Sonic). She does beat the ever popular Mario, but it's probably not enough to help all of her woes. This, in top of her recent nerfs, is why I feel as though she has had a bit of a falling out as of late. On the bright side, you see a lot more Rosalina/Sonic players at high level tournaments, which means that she will still be pretty relevant regardless. Mewtwo still seems pretty rare, but that may change in the future.
- Mario is weird. A lot of characters say that they have an advantage over him. And yet he somehow overcomes these obstacles. A big part of this confusion are behind his yellow matchups, I believe. While Cloud, Ryu, and Fox have yellow MUs, most people feel as though that those characters slightly win over Mario. Conversely, while Sheik and Diddy have yellow matchups, most people feel as though that Mario wins those matchups (which REALLY helps Mario if that is the case). Another interesting thing about him is that, besides Sheik, he is the only other character that has significant advantages over two characters (Mega Man and Pikachu). Unlike Sheik or Diddy though, neither of these characters are as popular as Fox or ZSS at higher levels. I also find it weird how people keep saying that a character has to be within the "Top 5" in order to win a National. In Smash 4, it wouldn't really surprise me if anyone in the Top 15-20 wins a National. It's not really that big of a deal, IMO. Now, if someone outside of that bubble...say, Roy, for example, THEN people can start freaking out. In any case, Ally and ANTi are amazing players, and he never would've gotten as far as he did without them. This goes for all players at a top level. Instead of complaining, you should thank them for the amazing games that they have played for the entertainment that you have gotten out of watching them. That seems like a much better use of time, in my opinion. But I digress.
- One thing to note about Pikachu is that he's not nearly as bad as people claim to be, but he's not as good as ESAM claims to be, either (nothing against him though). Both ESAM and Dabuz seem to agree that he has an advantageous matchup against Rosalina, so that is something at least. Other than that, his MU's seem pretty average all-around. That is, until you count Mario. Mario's popularity and Pikachu's super-rarity are major reasons why you don't see this character do better. Which is unfortunate, because he doesn't seem to lose to Sheik/Diddy/Mewtwo (just like Sonic). And like Cloud, he just seems to do well in most top tier MU's that he is in. The major exception being Mario.
- Mega Man's main purpose is to serve as a counterpick character, particularly against Diddy and Cloud (despite having an even-ish MU with Cloud). He can also deal with Sonic and Ryu, too. Besides that, he has the roughest MU spread on this chart, losing badly to both Sheik and Mario. Fox, Rosalina, Mewtwo, and even Pikachu all give him trouble, as well. His status as a super-rare character probably helps a lot though, since his ability to shift the game's pace to his own is unusual to deal with if you don't know the matchup too well. But the high degree of skill it takes to master this character will probably ensure that he doesn't get too far in tournaments, unless a genius like Kamemushi plays him. Truly an underdog character, but that's what makes him so popular with viewers, too. Other than Ranai's villager, Kamemushi's Mega Man was the character that people were the most hyped about at EVO, and was probably the most hyped character overall. It sucks that he lost EVO, since I imagine that people would STILL be going crazy right now if he had won. And that is saying a lot, since Mega Man isn't even anywhere near the Bottom 20 characters on the roster.
- Marth's sole mission seems to be slaying citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom. I'm pretty sure that he has positive matchups against like...all of them? In any case, his power has picked up in spades after the generous buffs from last patch (and other patches before it). Maybe not as much as Mewtwo, but it is enough to put him on people's radars again. He's certainly a contender now, but I wouldn't be too worried, as there are a fair amount of checks to him. His MU spread seems a lot like "Cloud Light", honestly. Though he trades a better Mario matchup for a worse Sonic matchup...and Diddy, and ZSS. Bummer. It doesn't matter too much though, as both Marth and Cloud play quite differently from one another, and that is something that is more important for players to consider when picking up a character. Their Up B's are still pretty meh, though. But unlike Fox, they don't get punished as hard for using it.
- Meta Knight seems to have a Rayquaza/Deoxys relationship with Rosalina. Against most characters, he is pretty chill with them. Even going as far as letting them beat him, probably as a knightly code of honor or something. But the moment that Rosalina steps into the room, he throws his chivalry aside, and goes on a bloodthirsty rampage against the cosmic queen. Sword swings and pieces of Luma start flying everywhere, as demonic laughs can be heard beneath that sinister mask of his. And after banishing her to the shadow realm with his Galaca Darkness, he goes back to being a flying hacky sack for cats, monkies, ninjas, and plumbers. He also doesn't like Sonic, because he spins better than he does.
ONE FINAL NOTE: Although I feel as though this chart holds some degree of accuracy, in NO way I am saying that it is all true. Especially for the Green/Orange matchups, which can be more volatile than others. A good portion of them should be correct though. Lastly, while most of these are "top characters", that doesn't necessarily mean that they all are. Or, they could be. Up to you to decide, really. In any case, this is what I have for now.
Anywho, have fun tearing this up! :D
I'll make notes of what people have to say about the matchups/feel free to criticize. I made it for that reason/for clarity and discussion's sake~
main somehow beats ZeRo*
