How are tier lists determined

[RepStar]

The best character in the game? Whoever makes the "official" tier list did they use every character vs every other character and, saw who could beat who the easiest? MK was top tier in brawl because he could beat every character with ease or struggle the least , the MU is never against them right? Im asking this because sometimes i think its impossible for me to beat a character with my main sometimes unless my opponent just isnt good yet so their not using them to their peak. Is it even possible to beat the entire roster competitively with just 1 main.

 

[Wyoming]

Tournament results, match-ups (good and bad), viability in the meta based on MU chart and engine/mechanics, how the meta shapes up (is it better for zoners? Turtlers? Rushdown?), the character's overall kit in dealing with the meta and MUs, and so on.

 

[Frihetsanka]

Im asking this because sometimes i think its impossible for me to beat a character with my main sometimes unless my opponent just isnt good yet so their not using them to their peak. Is it even possible to beat the entire roster competitively with just 1 main.

It's important to remember that tier lists primarily apply to top level of play. Characters like Ganondorf and King Dedede can be very scary at local and regional levels, but they're highly unlikely to win EVO or other major tournaments.

In Smash 4 and likely also in Ultimate, no matchup is impossible or even close to impossible. It's likely that some matchups will be hard, but it should be doable, and every character should be good enough (in Ultimate) to have a decent chance of winning every matchup. I don't think we're going to see matchups that are like "If I grab you once you die", like some matchups in Brawl.

If you main Ness in Ultimate* you should be fine vs every, probably. Some characters will be a bit harder but still possible.

*Like it says you currently do, but really, unless you're planning to win a major you could main any character and still do relativity well. It might still be easier if you play a good character but even bad characters don't seem that bad in Ultimate.

 

[Mogisthelioma]

Lots

And lots

Of data.

Tournament results, matchup data, meta results, etc.

Which means it's way too early to make reliable tier lists.

 

[REZERO]

It's important to remember that tier lists primarily apply to top level of play. Characters like Ganondorf and King Dedede can be very scary at local and regional levels, but they're highly unlikely to win EVO or other major tournaments.

In Smash 4 and likely also in Ultimate, no matchup is impossible or even close to impossible. It's likely that some matchups will be hard, but it should be doable, and every character should be good enough (in Ultimate) to have a decent chance of winning every matchup. I don't think we're going to see matchups that are like "If I grab you once you die", like some matchups in Brawl.

If you main Ness in Ultimate* you should be fine vs every, probably. Some characters will be a bit harder but still possible.

*Like it says you currently do, but really, unless you're planning to win a major you could main any character and still do relativity well. It might still be easier if you play a good character but even bad characters don't seem that bad in Ultimate.

Right now the game is still being discovered so you could win with characters like Ganondorf. Forgot which tournament but a Ganondorf placed second.

 

[RepStar]

Lots

And lots

Of data.

Tournament results, matchup data, meta results, etc.

Which means it's way too early to make reliable tier lists.

Still waiting to play you.

 

[MG_3989]

Unless you’re a top player and playing in tournaments tier lists don’t really matter to you. You have to get to a certain level of the game where everyone is playing their characters to their optimal potential for tier lists to matter

Also there has been extremely balanced tournament results so far and obviously there will be best and worst characters but it seems like a very balanced game so far. Also if you’re a Ness main like I saw earlier you won’t have to worry. Ness is really good in this game

 

[Frihetsanka]

Right now the game is still being discovered so you could win with characters like Ganondorf. Forgot which tournament but a Ganondorf placed second.

You can probably win a national with any character (not sure about majors though), but it'll be harder. Some low tiers are better than others, though: I could see someone like Ganondorf working much better than Kirby at lower levels, for instance, thanks to his ability to make reads and hit hard.

Each player will have to make a decision on how hard they want to try and if they're willing to make more of an effort in order to win. Some characters will likely reduce your chances of winning, but it could still be worth playing them if they are valuable in other ways. Perhaps you really want to play someone like Zelda or Lucas, and that's fine, but you'd probably had a better chance of winning if you picked one of the easier top tiers.

 

[BloodyThumbsDown]

From what I've seen, it seems like a lot of the tier lists are based on how well a character is able to compete at a high level. So if you play casually, they really don't matter.

 

[RepStar]

From what I've seen, it seems like a lot of the tier lists are based on how well a character is able to compete at a high level. So if you play casually, they really don't matter.

Im talking competitive