SSB4 DLC Movesets: Dark Matter
One with an Eye for Evil
Name: Dark Matter Game: Kirby’s Dream Land 2 (1995), Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (1997/1998), Kirby 64: The Crystal
Shards (2000/2001), and Kirby Mass Attack (2011). Has a lingering presence in other titles though like Dark Mind, Dark Nebula, Nidoos, Mariel, and so on.
Series: Kirby Series (1992-Present)
Company: Nintendo & HAL Laboratory. Kirby is co-owned IIRC, so it is sort of like a 2nd party scenario due to HAL being affiliates with Nintendo.
Moveset Focus: Morphing and Trickery with a hint of Possession.
Characteristics & Strengths:
- 2nd Bulkiest Kirby Character. Basically, Dark Matter has a weight of 96 units, which is the same as Pit’s and Dark Pit’s weight. Compare that to Kirby’s 77, Meta Knight’s 80, and King Dedede’s 119. That being said, Dark Matter is lighter than Mario (who is 98 units heavy), so it is still kinda light.
- Floaty. As Dark Matter is made of, well, dark matter, it is a bit floaty. It also floats in the Kirby games, so there’s that. This means that Dark Matter shouldn’t have too much trouble getting back onto the stage if knocked away to one of the sides.
- Fast Fall is fast. When compared to Dark Matter’s normal vertical movement, its fast fall creates a great change in speed.
- Decent Air Speed. Can move around pretty well for a floaty character. This is because of how it can float. It isn’t Wario levels, but at least it’s better than Kirby’s. Helps with horizontal recovery.
- One of its special moves is the ability to “possess” the opponent. When possessing the opponent, Dark Matter can control where the opponent walks by holding down the B button and pressing the desired direction.
- Can wall cling and wall jump. When clinging on a wall, Dark Matter “melts” onto it. Has access to 2 midair jumps. It floats in the source material, so it gets an extra jump.
Weaknesses:
- Has the least amount of jumps for a Kirby character. Has the ground jump and just 2 aerial jump. You’d think that a character that could float in the air would be able to jump more….
- Due to how floaty Dark Matter is, it is prone to getting KO’d on the upper blast line. Floaty characters are a bit easier to KO due to their slow falling speed.
- Dark Matter has slow running speed.
Misc:
- For the majority of the time, Dark Matter is in its Swordsman form with its blade. However, it will not be a character that relies COMPLETELY on its sword. This form of Dark Matter borrows attributes from Miracle Matter, 0, and Dark Mind (mainly the mirrors). Miracle Matter covers the elements that Dark Nebula has to cover already (seriously, Dark Nebula was a weak final boss) and Magalor is not that well tied with the Dark Matter family, despite him having an eyeball similar to Dark Matter in his final form.
Moves: The following movies are for reference as to where certain moves come from. Kirby's Dreamland 2: Kirby's Dreamland 3: Kirby 64 (Miracle Matter): Kirby Quest:
Jab: Slice - Dark Matter slices once with its sword. Has good weight to it, but is surprisingly quick. 7% damage with decent knockback. Based on what Dark Matter sometimes does in the Kirby’s Dreamland 2 boss fight. Slash effect is used. See around 2:44 in Dreamland 2 video.
Dash Attack: Cutter Rush - Dark Matter uses Miracle Matter’s Cutter ability and transforms into a saw briefly. Does 4 hits of 1.25% where the final hit has standard dash attack knockback. Slash effect is used. See around 2:30 in Miracle Matter video.
Forward Strong/Forward Tilt: Dark Beam - Dark Matter transforms into its eye form temporarily and shoots a Dark Laser Beam forward. Has a good reach (reaches about 1 Battlefield platform away), but it isn’t the quickest attack. 10% damage with good knockback. Has Darkness effect. Based on attack that the True Form does in Kirby Quest. See around 0:42 in Kirby Quest video.
Up Strong/Up Tilt: Dark Moon - Dark Matter swipes the blade above it. Deals 9% damage and has a Slashing effect.
Down Strong/Down Tilt: Orb Attack - Dark Matter sends off an orb lining that travels low to hit the opponent. Deals 4% damage and minor knockback. Based on the attack where Dark Matter’s True Form launches one of its orb linings from Dreamland 2 and 3. See around 4:03 in Dreamland 3 video.
Side Smash: Lighting Storm - Dark Matter charges up its eye and fires a condensed bolt of dark lightning. Deals 15% damage and has good knockback for a forward smash. The area it covers is the nice part about this move. Has an Electrical Effect. Based on the move that the True Form uses in Kirby’s Dreamland 2, but with less range and more power. See around 3:56 in Dreamland 3 video and 4:53 in Dreamland 2 video.
Up Smash: Needle Fortress - Borrowed from Miracle Matter. Dark Matter uses the Needle ability to turn into a spiky core that covers the area around it. End lag is a BIT long (not as bad as the ending to Ike’s Up Smash though). Deals 13% damage and decent knockback. More of a defensive move. Stab effect is present. See around 1:29 in Miracle Matter video.
Down Smash: Flame Plume - Borrowed from Miracle Matter. Dark Matter transforms into a core of fire and blasts both sides of it with fire plumes. Each plume deals 11% and covers good distance. They expand (slightly) more when charged. Has Fire effect. See around 3:19 in Miracle Matter video.
Neutral Air/NAIR: Glacier Spin - Borrowed from Miracle Matter. Dark Matter turns into an Ice Block and spins around with 6 icy pyramids. Does 6 hits of 1.5%. Has Ice effect and is able to freeze at higher percentages. See around 1:23 in Miracle Matter video.
Forward Air/FAIR: Rainbow Killer - Dark Matter does a fierce downwards vertical slash (think Ike's FAIR) that deals 15% and can KO well if timed right. Has a Slashing effect. Name is reference to the Rainbow Sword, the weapon used to defeat Dark Matter in Kirby’s Dreamland 2.
Back Air/BAIR: Spark Shot - Borrowed from Miracle Matter. Dark Matter transforms into a ball of electricity and shoots a single line of charge. The line goes through the opponent and deals 2% each hit (can get about 4-5 hits with it). After a while, the line turns into a ball of electricity that moves around slowly. This ball deals 5% damage with weak knockback (it can NEVER KO) and slight homing ability. Does dissipate after 170 frames (2.86 seconds). Both attacks are Electrical. See around 1:09 in Miracle Matter video. Unique thing about this move is the fact that Dark Matter can angle the attack upwards or downwards like some Forward Tilt attacks.
Up Air/UAIR: Crystal Cracker - Dark Matter stabs upwards with its sword, dealing 13% with good knockback. Has a Stab effect. Name is reference to the Crystal Shards and the Crystal Gun, the items used to repel Dark Matter in Kirby 64.
Down Air/DAIR: Stab in the Heart - Dark Matter stabs downwards with its sword. The sword is considered a Meteor Smash if hit during the moment of the thrust. Deals 13% and has a Stab effect. Name is SORT of a reference to the Love-Love Stick, the weapon used by Kirby against Dark Matter and 0 in Kirby’s Dreamland 3.
Grab Air/ZAIR: N/A: Dark Matter lacks a ZAIR.
Grab: Dark Matter materializes a hand from its stomach and uses it to grab the opponent. Pummel: Dark Squeeze: The hand tightens. 2% with moderate rate of fire.
Forward Throw: Bomb Bubble - Dark Matter encases the opponent in a black bubble. It then taps the bubble away. The bubble bursts and deals 9% damage. Can KO well due to Dark Matter pushing the bubble away. See around 0:31 in Miracle Matter video.
Back Throw: Boulder Roll - Borrowed from Miracle Matter. While still grabbing the opponent, Dark Matter does backwards rolling somersaults while in stone form and then tosses them backwards. Deals 4%, 4% (rolls over opponent twice), and then 2% (toss) with decent knockback for a back throw. More of a damage oriented throw than anything. Has a Flame effect. See around 2:06 in Miracle Matter video. For those who have played Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, think Ken's Hell Wheel (back throw) move but with a giant boulder.
Up Throw: Trick Shot - Dark Matter tosses the opponent into the air (3%). It then generates a mirror and fires a laser from its eye into it, reflecting the shot into the opponent (5%). The mirror does 3% damage if touched. Not exactly the best throw for KOing the opponent, but it is quick and flashy. A reference to Dark Mind.
Down Throw: Bite - Mimicking the time that it possessed King Dedede, Dark Matter gnaws into the opponent 4 times (1.75% each time). Knockback is low (and diagonally up and forward), so it can combo at certain percentages. See around 1:32 in Kirby's Dreamland 3 video.
Neutral Specials (variants of Possession)
1: Possession - Borrowed from 0 (technically) (see around 4:52 in Dreamland 3 video). Dark Matter sends out a tiny Dark Matter eyeball that moves forward in a somewhat quick fashion. If it managed to hit the opponent, it possesses the opponent. If the possession is successful, then Dark Matter is able to control the opponent while holding down the B button. Actions that are permitted are mobility based actions (barring fast falling as that would make kills SUPER easy), shielding, taunting, and all attacks that aren’t special moves. If the B button is let go while an action is performed, then the possessed character will keep on performing that action. For example, say Jigglypuff is facing Dark Matter and gets hit with the possession move. Dark Matter’s player can hold down the B button to activate the possession. He/she chooses to shield as Jigglypuff. While holding down the shield button, the player lets go of the B button. Jigglypuff is still shielding and will continue to do so until its possession wears off or it gets hit. Knowing that Jigglypuff dies when its shield pops, the Dark Matter player keeps the Jigglypuff player shielding and closes in with an attack that pops the shield. The formula that determines the number of frames that the possession is active for is the following: Duration = (Damage)*(98/Weight). For example’s sake, let’s say Kirby gets hit with the Possession attack at 135%. Kirby’s weight is 77, so we perform the following calculations: Duration = (135)*(98/77) = 172 Frames, which is about 2.86 seconds. After the effect wears off, the victim performs the animation that occurs when the effects of a shield break are done. A couple of things to ensure that the move isn’t super broken: The mini Dark Matter can be blocked. If Dark Matter flinches during the process, the possession is cancelled due to it losing focus. If the victim flinches during the process, the victim breaks free. The victim cannot be commanded to fast fall, so jumping off a cliff is harder to do. Still, characters with Stall-Then-Fall moves are at a huge risk when fighting Dark Matter.
2: Total Possession - The mini Dark Matter that is sent out is MUCH slower than before. However, Dark Matter is able to possess the opponent for twice as long. Can’t be blocked either.
3: Dark Orb - Dark Matter fires an orb of energy that tracks the opponent twice. Deals 5% damage with decent knockback, but lacks the ability to possess the opponent. Up to 3 can be on the screen at once. Based on Possessed Dedede’s other attack where the eyeball shoots orbs out to hurt Kirby. See around 1:11 in Kirby's Dreamland 3 video.
Side Specials (variants of Sword Dash):
1: Sword Dash - Dark Matter rushes forward with its sword (see around 2:55 in Dreamland 2 video and 0:07 in Kirby Quest Video). Dark Matter has Heavy Armor while performing this move, but the move is a bit slow. Dark Matter can delay the attack to make it move faster however by holding down the special button. Deals 12% damage with moderate knockback. Has a Stab effect. Doesn’t cause Dark Matter to enter freefall state in the air. However, it can’t act for a bit after the move is completed in the air (like Fox Illusion).
2: Hasty Dash - Dark Matter moves as fast as a fully charged Sword Dash without the need to charge. However, knockback is reduced, the damage is 6%, and Dark Matter lacks Heavy Armor.
3: Chain Dash - The Dash deals multiple hits (7 hits of 2%) and has more knockback, but it doesn’t move as far.
Up Specials (variants of Flight):
1: Flight - Borrowed from Indefinite Minimum’s moveset. Dark Matter transforms into its true form (the eyeball) and floats in a free direction (think similar to how Rosalina’s Up Special works, but without the spinning).
2: Burst Flight - Dark Matter has orb linings surrounding it that spread out and attack while flying. Dark Matter also tackles the opponent while performing this move. Dark Matter pauses for a bit before performing this move, so it can be predictable. The tackle deals 9% damage while the orbs deal 5% damage. Based on the tackle attack that Dark Matter’s True Form does in Kirby’s Dreamland 2.
3: Teleport - Dark Matter teleports. Based on how several Kirby bosses teleport.
Down Specials (variants of Sword Beam):
1: Sword Beam - Dark Matter generates energy from its blade. There are 3 levels in this attack. No charge: Dark Matter fires a quick sword beam that can be rapid fired with the rate of Brawl Falco’s lasers in the air. The deal 2% damage with little knockback. Comes from Kirby’s Dreamland 2. See around 3:20 in Kirby's Dreamland 2 video. Some charge: Dark Matter fires an energy ball that is fired forward. The opponent can reflect it like a tennis ball. As more hits are done, the ball moves faster and deals more damage to the victim. Deals 7% damage default, but it can skyrocket to insanely high levels. Based on attack from Kirby’s Dreamland 2. See around 2:46 in Kirby's Dreamland 2 video. Fully charged: Dark Matter fires a sword wave that moves fast and deals 13% with good knockback. Based on attack from Kirby Quest. See around 0:15 in Kirby Quest video. Dark Matter has to do the charge on one go. If things look hairy, Dark Matter can opt to cancel the move by shielding or rolling. All attacks have a darkness effect to them.
2: Rapid Beam - The quick sword beam deals 3% damage. However, Dark Matter can no longer charge the attack.
3: Charge Beam - Dark Matter can store the charge of the beam. However, it loses access to the Rapid Beam.
Final Smash: Invasion - Dark Matter calls upon its “family” to invade the battlefield. The skies darken and Miracle Matter, Dark Matters, Dark Mind, Dark Nebula, and 0 appear to wreak havoc on the scene. Lasts for 20 seconds.
Ledge Attack: Dark Matter fires a quick laser beam out of its eye. 5%.
Get Up Attack (Sitting): Dark Matter creates a quick burst of dark energy. 5%.
Get Up Attack (Face Up): Dark Matter fires a beam around it. 7%.
Get Up Attack (Face Down): Dark Matter spins around with its sword. 7%.
Idle:
Normal: Dark Matter is floating up and down. Cape and hair are flowing and sometimes Dark Matter jolts with electricity. Sword is out as well in a horizontal position like its KD2 sprite. Basically a mix of the KD2 and KQ sprites.
Special 1: Looks at the screen with its eye menacingly. Eye turns red briefly.
Special 2: An eye pops out of Dark Matter’s stomach briefly. Dark Matter looks at it and it goes back inside.
Taunts:
Up: Dark Matter looks upwards and creates a shower of dark lighting above it. Can deal 1% damage with low knockback.
Side: Envelops sword with Darkness and Electricity and sticks it out menacingly. It then brings it back with a slice, dispelling the effects from the blade.
Down: Spins sword around it as if it is orbiting Dark Matter.
Victory Poses:
The camera looks upwards and an invasion of Dark Matters appear. Dark Matter poses similarly to its official artwork from KD2 as other Dark Matters (in the eyeball form) continue on flying by.
An occasional Miracle Matter appears as well. Dark Matter does some snazzy poses with its sword. It stares at the camera with its eye menacingly.
A rainbow appears in the background. Dark Matter then appears and cuts the rainbow in half with its sword. The rainbow crumbles and darkness starts to form around the victory screen. Dark Matter looks onward.
Costumes:
Default
Crimson Colors (Similar to Fire Dark Nebula)
Green Colors (Similar to Electric Dark Nebula)
Light Blue Colors (Similar to Ice Dark Nebula)
Deep Blue Colors (Similar to Gooey)
Purple, Silver, and Red (Dark Mind Colors)
White and Red (Miracle Matter and 0 Colors)
Grey and White (N-Z Colors)