Q&A Official FAQ and QnA Thread - Ask Your Questions Here!

[Dolla Pills]

Hi, this is my first time on the forum, and I'm trying to see if I have the computer specs for netplay. Would a GeForce GT 730 (2gb) be sufficient for the graphics card? Processor and RAM aren't issues for me (i7 6700 and 8gb), I just haven't been able to figure out if the graphics card will work.

Honestly you could probably use the integrated graphics, you should be fine

 

[cpnjzz]

Hi there, first time posting. Me and my brother just installed 20xx on an hd to play on our wii, but I'm not quite sure if we got it right. How can I know for sure? It says 20xx on the select game screen of the wii, but it looks just like regular melee to me.

(we use nintendon't, forgot to add that, don't know if it's relevant)

 

[EMachine]

Hey. Me and my brother (very casually) play melee sometimes. I play Sheik and he plays Fox. My problem is that his playstyle mainly revolves around either standing still crouching and waiting for me to approach so he can shine and knock me back or being extremely defensive, really only staying in one place waiting for me to, once again, approach. My question is, how do I play against/punish his playstyle? Thanks. I’d also like to know if there are performance differences between melee on the Wii and the GameCube. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member]

Looking to play Melee on a Wii and I have two questions.

1. There is a legit, not modded method of getting Melee in the wii, so does that mean a Wii controller will work?

2. Can I use netplay or whatever you call it to play Melee online, even if it is being played on a Wii?

 

[Pauer]

1. There is a legit, not modded method of getting Melee in the wii, so does that mean a Wii controller will work

Unfortunately, no. You either need a melee disc but then the wii will act exactly like a GameCube so you need a GameCube controller.
Alternatively, you can softmod your wii, which doesn't take a lot of time and is quite easy to do nowadays (instructions) , but I guess it's not "legit". I think you should be able to play with a Wii controller this way (if you don't have a GameCube controller), but I haven't tried so I'm not certain.

2. Can I use netplay or whatever you call it to play Melee online, even if it is being played on a Wii?

No, this only works using the dolphin emulator, not on a console. Setting up dolphin or rather the FasterMelee dolphin build, which dramatically reduces input lag, is very easy as long as your PC can handle it. You can find all the information on smashladder.com .

 

[Deleted member]

No, this only works using the dolphin emulator, not on a console. Setting up dolphin or rather the FasterMelee dolphin build, which dramatically reduces input lag, is very easy as long as your PC can handle it. You can find all the information on smashladder.com .

So can I use the Dolphin Emulator to still play online? (Sorry, not very familiar with this sort of thing.)

 

[Pauer]

So can I use the Dolphin Emulator to still play online? (Sorry, not very familiar with this sort of thing.)

Yes, that's right. In fact, it's the only way to play online, to my knowledge. You can find how to set it up in the guides section on smashladder.com . The emulator works with lots of different controller. You'd just have to configure them, meaning telling dolphin which button on the controller corresponds to which input on a GameCube controller. If have issues doing this, there should be video tutorials on YouTube to help you.

Optimally, you would to use an official GameCube controller, for which you'd need a USB adapter to connect to your PC. The (equally) best ones are the official Nintendo GameCube to USB adapter, the 4-port mayflash adapter and the new(!) 2-port mayflash adapter . These adapters transfer the controller input directly. All other adapters can't do this and are inaccurate in regards to the controller inputs and they add input lag.

 

[Deleted member]

Yes, that's right. In fact, it's the only way to play online, to my knowledge. You can find how to set it up in the guides section on smashladder.com . The emulator works with lots of different controller. You'd just have to configure them, meaning telling dolphin which button on the controller corresponds to which input on a GameCube controller. If have issues doing this, there should be video tutorials on YouTube to help you.

Optimally, you would to use an official GameCube controller, for which you'd need a USB adapter to connect to your PC. The (equally) best ones are the official Nintendo GameCube to USB adapter, the 4-port mayflash adapter and the new(!) 2-port mayflash adapter . These adapters transfer the controller input directly. All other adapters can't do this and are inaccurate in regards to the controller inputs and they add input lag.

Ok. Thanks so much! I was worried because I was playing Melee on a wii it wouldn’t work. Thanks!

 

[Shinigami Steve]

Does anyone have any tips on how to do Marth’s short hop double F-air to the right? I use X to jump, should I use Y to jump when playing as Marth so I can get to the c-stick in time?

 

[Abyssion]

I saw some videos of Melee and wanted to get into it, but I have nobody in meatspace to play with so I decided netplay would be a good option for me.
I bought a USB Gamecube controller to use in Dolphin, only to find out the R and L triggers are not analog. This means I can full shield but I can't light shield.
Does this put me at any real disadvantage?

 

[Pauer]

Does this put me at any real disadvantage?

Yes. Not because you can't lightshield but because you bought a USB gamecube controller. All controllers that aren't the official ones by Nintendo are vastly inferior to the original product, in every aspect. The sticks are less accurate, the buttons are less tactile, etc. Starting out with the controller you have right now is fine to get started but you really want to get an official gamecube controller and a GameCube to USB adapter (the mayflash 4 port adapter is recommended) as soon as possible.

Especially as a beginner, lighshielding is something you don't really want to use all that much. It's a very nuanced and situational thing to do, not often very beneficial. What's more important about not having analog triggers is the fact that you can't trigger l-cancels by lightly pressing the trigger. It's generally better to l-cancel by not pressing the triggers all the way through as the digital press triggers a tech input, making you unable to tech for another 40 frames or so every time you l-cancel. This is again more of a small difference but doing light presses for l-cancels is a good habit to form early.

but I have nobody in meatspace to play with

You'd be surprised about all the small melee communities you can find in the most obscure places. Check out the stickied Facebook group thread, join the group that is most relevant for your location, be it your state or country and ask there about tournaments or players in your area.

Please also don't be too discouraged if most players on netplay are much better than you. The skill level on netplay is generally a little higher than what you might find at a local tournament. You should be able find some other new players to practice with on netplay if you look for a bit.

 

[Abyssion]

Okay, thanks. This controller only cost $10 so it's not a terrible loss.
I really didn't know there was an adapter I could use to connect my real GCN controllers to my PC. I'll buy it when I get paid next week.

 

[CeLL]

Left the scene in late 2015, have been following only very occasionally since. Few questions.

What happened with the controller modding controversies?

What happened with the smashbox controversy?

What's with UCF these days?

Did 20XXTE take off?

What's the meta way of shield dropping? I used the straight down method before but I want to learn whatever the meta is.

 

[SB4Hyena]

I just got Melee a few days ago(FINALLY). I've been plying mostly Captain Falcon and Mario. This is for the actual console as I busted my computer over 2 months ago. My Question is: How in the Lord's world am I supposed to practice if I don't have a computer for online?

 

[Pauer]

How in the Lord's world am I supposed to practice if I don't have a computer for online?

You practice tech skill at home using your CRT setup and practice with people by meeting up at local tournaments or arranging local meetups. Please check out the facebook group stickied thread, join the group that is most relevant to your location (state, country, continent) and ask there about communities or people in your area.

Apart from that, buying a PC that can handle netplay isn't terrible expensive. I can write more about that or refer to my previous content in that regard if you like.

 

[SB4Hyena]

I applied for the closest Facebook group (Springfield, Missouri) got accepted then kicked out just as fast as its not under my groups. I have no friends in close proximity that play melee or smash for that matter. It's either Guitar Hero or Halo. Sigh, I'm depressed as it is and that just added to it, but thanks anyway. I won't be able to get a computer for some time since the money I make is needed for bills.

 

[Pauer]

got accepted then kicked out just as fast as its not under my groups.

I don't understand that part. If you have issues with that group, try contacting the admin or try joining a more general group like Missouri and explain your situation there. They can probably help you with joining the other group or give you info about meetups and locals in your area. I am 100% certain that there are several players within driving distance in around Springfield.

 

[SB4Hyena]

I don't understand that part. If you have issues with that group, try contacting the admin or try joining a more general group like Missouri and explain your situation there. They can probably help you with joining the other group or give you info about meetups and locals in your area. I am 100% certain that there are several players within driving distance in around Springfield.

I didn't even have a chance to do anything within the group. I checked it once, then checked it awhile later and It wasn't a part of the groups I was in.

 

[Pauer]

I didn't even have a chance to do anything within the group. I checked it once, then checked it awhile later and It wasn't a part of the groups I was in.

Well what happens when you go to the group page, using the link you found here? If it says you're not in the group, try joining again (there should be a button) or try something I suggested earlier.

 

[AceMelee97]

Hey bros, I'm new to the competitive community, but have played the game since it's been out. I'm in the Louisville area. Are there any groups out here?

 

[Pauer]

Hey bros, I'm new to the competitive community, but have played the game since it's been out. I'm in the Louisville area. Are there any groups out here?

Please check out the facebook group stickied thread, join the group that is most relevant to your location (state, district, town) and ask there about communities or people in your area. That's usually the best way of finding people.

 

[TopTierTaite]

Trying to get back into melee and I've been going back & forth with a lot of different chars. I think I'll keep it @ falco and marth for now. I've been tweaking a lot with my controller lately, fine tuning it and whatnot. I'm not sure where I should go next with it and I think thinking more about my controller rather than playing might be inhibiting my growth. What mods do the Gods to their controllers? I'd rather just use what works for them rather than fiddling around with my controller all the time.

 

[BXBX]

Are there any recommendations for good comprehensive guides that cover things like % when moves knock over, how much % moves deal, what % moves can be crouch cancelled. And since I'm a melee noob, other data that I should be knowledgeable about?

 

[KingCosta]

Hey im Costa, i'm a new player in the Melee community and i do play other smash games, like Brawl, Sm4sh, and now Ultimate but i have played Melee before but im starting to get into competitive Melee and i'm thinking about maining Captain Falcon, or Falco. So any advice or tips would be appreciated!

 

[Burninator24]

Official FAQ and QnA thread.

Got a simple question? Confused about something? Just want to introduce yourself to the melee community? Post away in this thread!

This thread was created due to the recent influx of threads that didn't deserve their own threads or were questions, etc. etc. If you have to ask yourself if this deserves a thread, then post it here

I am trying to learn basic tech for Fox. I have wavedashing decently but I'm having difficulty comboing out of it.

Problem 1: Whenever I finish a wave dash if I press down on the control stick I automatically do an spot dodge. This is making it difficult to learn waveshining as I end up air dodging instead of using shine with down B.

Problem 2: When I go to attack with A after a wavedash my character just stands there. There is a significant amount of frames until I can attack.

Problem 3: When I go to use the grab "Z" button after wavedash my character will instead shield.

Not sure if I'm doing something wrong / what to try different. Any help would be appreciated . Thanks.

 

[Arcane_]

How do I build up my endurance? After 2 tournament sets I was already feeling exhausted.

 

[127]

Has anyone been able to try out the Melee 64 mod?

 

[theBeerdedGOAT]

Welcome to the Question & Answer Thread and FAQ's​

This thread's purpose is to try and keep the melee discussion board from being so cluttered and give those that are new to the game or those that have just a general question about the game to come here and ask! Everyone here is willing to help you, so don't be afraid to ask even the dumbest question! As long as it goes in here, you probably won't get trolled...probably

Also anyone feel free to IM me about this thread and smash in general, I love talking about smash online.

A Guide About Competitive Smash by SCOTU This a really good guide made by SCOTU, some of it is brawl material, but the general concepts apply. Read it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fun stuff to read


The almighty Magus DI Thread (Credit Witchking for Compiling)

Witchking Compilation of frame data

Mew2King's SSBM Statistics List

Out of Shield options frame data by Wiseman

The Official Everything Thread - The Basics, How to Improve, Frame Data, etc

FAQ’s​

What is a frame?
A frame is 1/60th of a second, so 60 frames = 1 second.

How do I L cancel?
There are three timings to L cancelling: hitting nothing, hitting an opponent, hitting multiple opponents (ice climbers, teams, hitting shy guys on YS, etc), and hitting a shield. Each three have varied timings for each aerial. The only real way to get better at l cancelling is practicing.

How do I practice L cancelling on a shield if I don’t have anyone to play?
Go grab a rubber band, and around another controller wrap the rubber band around L or R and just go play.

What is DI, SDI, and ASDI and how are they different?
DI is your directional influence. After you are hit by an attack you are sent away in a direction depending on the attack. DI affects the trajectory at which you are flying at after you are hit. The better your DI is, the higher chance you have at living at higher %. There are frames of hitlag where you are frozen right before you are sent flying by an attack. During these frames, you can move using Smash DI. If you smash the control stick in that hitlag, your character “teleports” to that direction. It isn’t a very big difference, but enough to save yourself (Sdi’ing a fox uair). Automatic smash Di, or ASDI, occurs on the 1st frame of hitlag. The game reads the position of the stick on the frame of hitlag. C stick out prioritizes the control stick in this situation. The difference between SDI and ASDI is that ASDI doesn’t send you as far as SDI.

So…what are the best ways to DI?
Well it depends on the situation. If you want to DI out of a combo, You most likely hold away along with another direction depending on the move. If you want to survive a hit, like Marth’s fmash, then you want to survival DI, which is perpendicular to the trajectory that the move is sending you. For SDI and ASDI, it depends on what you are trying to do. Sometimes people try to SDI and ASDI into the stage so that they can tech. Other times they try to avoid follow ups, like the second hit of fox’s uair. Other times we try to tech on the stage so we SDI or ASDI in towards the stage so we don’t die from an edgeguard. It’s really situational depending on what you are trying to do.

Who should I main?
We can’t tell you. It all depends on how you want to play. For example, I love playing as sheik, but I don’t think most others do. I just find her enjoyable to play as. It’s all about preference, so take time to figure it out.

What exactly is CC?
CC is crouch cancelling. When you are hit while you are crouching, your knockback is reduced and hitstun is reduced apparently. You can also crouch cancel to cancel a dash. At low percentages you don’t fall over and can react with a variety of things, but when you start getting to higher percentages you fall and you can get wrecked…or you can tech it.

What are all these grabs?
Well theres your basic standing grab, dash grab, jump cancel (jc) grab, boost grab, pivot grab, and dash dance grab. The first two are exactly what their name implies. A jump cancelled grab is a grab where you dash, jump then grab before you start the jump animation. A boost grab is where you cancel the dash attack animation with a grab. A pivot grab is when you utilize the pivot, where you dash, then dash back into the neutral position instead of dashing the opposite direction, and grab. A dash dance grab is also exactly what it sounds like. When you dash dance, then grab. Each is good in its own right. You rarely use standing and dash grab. JC grab almost always > dash grab. Boost grab is really only good for the characters that gain momentum in their dash attacks, as they speed up when they grab, giving them a slight frame advantage. Pivot grabs are good for chaingrabing characters or for spacing, and same with DD grabs.

When Can I tech?
You can tech within 20 frames of hitting the ground, and then you can’t try for another 40.

What is buffering?
Out of a shield you can buffer an attack so that it does what you are imputing as soon as possible. You can jump cancel an upsmash, roll, jump and side dodge.

My favorite question: What button should I use for *insert command*?
WHATEVER THE **** YOU WANT

I'm going to my first tournament, what should I expect??​

Don’t, for the love of god, expect to win. Come expecting to give it everything you’ve got and play to win, but don’t feel disappointed if you don’t come in first, or top 15, or make it out of pools even. Some of these players have been playing this game for 4-5 years, maybe more. Even if you haven’t heard their name, it doesn’t mean they still aren’t good. But come to play, come to win, but most importantly come to have fun. Be open with the players that are there. There is seriously nothing like the melee community. You will be glad you are apart of it. But again I digress. Please never expect anyone to have a controller for you. It is your responsibility to bring a controller to play with, besides, I personally like to play with a controller I know will work and know the ins and outs of. Don’t be late, don’t be late in your games, don’t john, don’t complain unless its legit, be a good sport. As far as money, it will usually cost 5-10 dollars for teams and another 5-15 dollars for singles. Plus, you will want money for food and drink, as these tournaments last the whole day. So 45-50 dollars is more than enough. Just be ready, don’t be an ***, and be prepared to meet a ton of new people and have a lot of fun!

Read this . Help TO's out in anyway you can, even if it means just not being late to the tourney, playing your matches when your supposed to, and cleaning up after yourself.

If I missed any or more pop up let me know and I will edit this
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So for the love of all things beautiful..

USE THIS THREAD​

Anybody wanna play netplay?

 

[Finger]

I am trying to learn basic tech for Fox. I have wavedashing decently but I'm having difficulty comboing out of it.

Problem 1: Whenever I finish a wave dash if I press down on the control stick I automatically do an spot dodge. This is making it difficult to learn waveshining as I end up air dodging instead of using shine with down B.

Problem 2: When I go to attack with A after a wavedash my character just stands there. There is a significant amount of frames until I can attack.

Problem 3: When I go to use the grab "Z" button after wavedash my character will instead shield.

Not sure if I'm doing something wrong / what to try different. Any help would be appreciated . Thanks.

1. Do you mean spot-dodging? It sounds like you're keeping the L/R shoulder button down for too long. You can work on your timing or release the button during the wavedash.
2. Wavedash has 10 frames of inaction. You can time around it, extend your wavedash, or you crouch during your dash to do a dash cancel so you don't have to be inactionable.
3. You're pressing Z before the Wavedashes inactionable frames end. You can time it or you can hold shield and press A for a shield grab. When you see the shield pop up that's the earliest that you can perform grab. Though shield grab is 1 frame longer than grab.

It sounds like these are mostly timing issues. I recommend 20XX if you don't have it since it can help you find the timing for this.

 

[Finger]

I switched to Falco and I'm having trouble spacing late aerials. I'm only really comfortable doing a late aerial at dash SH distance. If an opponent gets closer than that I would rather abort than do a late aerial. Any tips for how to improve late aerials at odd distances?

 

[CbM_]

everyone says: thats not save, but how do you punsish double laser? i dont get it

 

[BuddydaBomb]

Once at a tournament my controller was acting weird; I couldn't light shield with L, but the entire day it was fine, it was just that one pool match.


Then ever since then it worked.


This happened only once before when I was playing at home, but after i replugged the controller it worked fine.

so...does anyone have a similar experience?

Happened one time to me in pools

I switched to Falco and I'm having trouble spacing late aerials. I'm only really comfortable doing a late aerial at dash SH distance. If an opponent gets closer than that I would rather abort than do a late aerial. Any tips for how to improve late aerials at odd distances?

try to space well and mix up your fastfall timing to be safe

 

[Shlorp]

Im pretty new to melee, but I've played enough that I can do some tech relatively consistently (wave dash, l cancel, super wavedash, short hop fast fall laser etc.) and I wanted to know if a ps4 controller is good enough to practice on an emulator, my wii broke recently and I dont have a gamecube controller or an adapter and dont have the money for 1 rn, but I really want to practice and play netplay melee.

 

[VodkaHaze]

I remember reading that some professional Melee players use controllers that are technically malfunctioning in order to overcome a bug that's present in the game. What is this bug, and does playing with these controllers not also come with certain downsides?

 

[KT1]

Hi everyone !

I need to setup melee on Dolphin, everything is fine with the emulation, but the geckos codes does not work, I've check the boxes by checking my ISO settings, it does not work !

 

[Sqrs]

Hey im a newer melee player. I was wondering some stuff with samus like just some basic or advance stuff, matchup stuff or anything really. If you want to message me through discord or here please I'm wanting to get better at the game.

 

[dcxia]

Hi everyone,

Does anyone know where I can info on how player ECB's are calculated, stored or interpreted?

Im really interested in the core physics/ elements that make up Melee.

 

[Dukemon]

Do anybody know working PAL AR or Gecko Codes to set Damage on X %? I found only Codes that set HP from Stamina on choosed value. But in common Smash games these Codes do nothing.
In Classic Mode on Hard I can fight again Master- and Crazyhand with 50 HP at start. But in MultiManMelee each WireFighter has normal 0% start damage. For example.

 

[Blanko]

Hi, I'm trying to earn all bonuses and strugle with Lucky number seven. I got 07:00 when completing target test in classic mode without acquiring the bonus. The description of Lucky number seven says you should clear a STAGE with seven seconds left. Somewhere I saw a tip to try on the Escape from Brinstar stage in adventure mode so I figured any stage would do, but clearly not. My question is which "Stages" are accepted for the bonus?

 

[GeekyNerd54]

how do I set short term goals, I cant really thing of any things to work toward and improve.