I've got them heavy hands

[vsock]

I've played Smash for years, but only now am I trying to actually utilize tilts and short hops. More often than not I end up in a smash attack or dash anyway. And short hops have become the bane of my existence. I know 99% of it is just practice, but I was just curious. Are there any other tips for easing up on the controller?

 

[GhostUrsa]

What to recommend will depend on your control scheme preferences. For example, I play with tilt set to my right stick (The ATTACK option) which helps me mitigate mistaking tilts during heated battles. (Which is also good when you want more control over your aerials, but that's a different question) If Tap Jump is off, I've practiced using the 11 o'clock and 1 o'clock positions on the left stick for quick turnarounds instead of trying to just slightly pressure the stick in a direction. (Just like the right stick reasoning, in the heat of battle I maybe too forced on my stick and you can't dash when hitting those angles since only the sticks position on the x axis counts)

I've found practicing on the 3DS does help a little, since there is no right stick on there for most users (and those with the New models can only smash with the c-nub) and you're forced to work with the Circle Pad. The Circle Pad is also a flat input compared to the raised nobs on the Pro controllers and equivalent, so it takes less pressure to do the same job. (You won't be fighting against a Sphere Circumference for resistance!) The equivalent pressure required for the 3DS on the Pro controller's sticks (or GCN, or Gamepad, etc) will move the stick less so your muscle memory will work towards your advantage here.

These are some of the things that have helped me. I'm still not perfect, but these have upped my game so much since I started.

 

[vsock]

That's certainly interesting. I don't have Smash for the DS but I'll try out those different controller stick positions for tilts! Thanks for the input :D

 

[GhostUrsa]

You'll want to be careful on practicing too much on a regular 3DS if the tourneys you'll be going to are all Wii U versions, because it will train you to use the left stick too much. (Some tilts are faster and less predictable when performed with the right stick, like d-tilt. That and aerials will lose momentum when you only use the left stick to perform them, which can be a 'tell'.)

If you have a New 3DS, then the nub will help mitigate some of this. Unfortunately, we can have the nub set to ATTACK like we can for the right stick on the Wii U version (I'm hoping it comes as a patch, as it seems like an oversight) we can still perform aerials the same way we do on the Wii U.

I had the 3DS version since it's launch, and over-reliance on the left stick for aerials is something of a bad habit I'm trying to break. You'll want to be equally adept at both to maximize your playstyle.