The infamous Brawl tech is back and much better!
I originally found this tech with Bidou, but since then, I found ways to input this tech with just the control stick, so it's usable for any control scheme. Note that you could also do this with A+B Smash Bidou, where you set C-stick to smash and hold A+B.
EDIT: You can use C-stick set to tilts for an input too. You have to hold Attack, then while walking press C-stick back (not diagonal). I would still consider the control stick input method because then you don't have to hold Attack.
I believe this tech works much better in Smash 4 than in Brawl is because you can smash a diagonal on the control stick and you will walk or pivot. In Brawl, you would dash instead. Plus Bidou exists as an already viable option. Something is also strange with the walk animations in smash 4, which leads to slides like PW, Pivot Sliding and Step Dash.
Here's my original post in the competitive Bidou thread.
I might have stumbled upon some valuable movement options for Bidou! Ok, I was messing around with Bidou and step dash and I got some interesting momentum boosts. Then I remembered this 8 year old Brawl tech called Pivot Walking (
PW, or people liked to call it Doop Walking too). I'm not sure if this has been tested in depth in Smash 4 yet, but I think it could use more attention.
PW lets you slide forward a respectable distance after walking and pivoting, allowing you to take any action.
I would say it's like a slightly slower but longer distance perfect pivot (PP), or like an easy but shorter step dash. The Brawl input is hold A and input C-stick diagonal up-back while walking.
http://smashboards.com/threads/the-official-pivot-walking-and-pw-crouching-thread.207154/
This tech caused a lot of discussion but didn't really catch on, partly because you had to be holding the A button, but in Smash 4 there is Bidou!
The Sm4sh Bidou input for PW is: While walking, press diagonal back-up or diagonal back-down on C-stick. The result is you will turn around with a bit of slide. You also have an option to keep holding the walk, letting you move forward with extra momentum. This only works if you started with the 2nd fastest walk animation, as the fastest one will convert to a dash after PW.
Benefits of PW:
- Slide is pretty far and fast. Some characters move faster than their normal walk while sliding
- You have smoother control over which direction you face after the action compared to PP. Personally I think crouching while sliding forward is pretty useful
- Since you walk instead of run, you can input shield/dodge/roll faster than from a PP. You also slide farther while doing shield/dodge/roll than with PP
- You can start anytime you're walking, instead of PP where you must start in a neutral position. You can also start PW from neutral if you walk for a split second first
PW techs I've done so far:
(When I say forward, it's compared to your original position before doing anything)
- Backward PW actions: PW -> Shield/dodge/roll/standing grab/any attack. You end up facing backwards.
- Forward PW actions: PW -> keep holding walk for a moment -> Shield/dodge/roll/standing grab/any attack. You end up facing forwards. slightly slower than backwards PW actions. For these you need to use your 2nd fastest walk animation, not the fastest one
- Sliding backwards crouch: PW -> L-stick down
- Sliding forwards crouch: PW -> L-stick down-forward. Very close to the same speed as backwards crouch.
- Awesome taunt: while walking, PW repeatedly. Surprisingly, this movement can be as fast or faster than some characters' walk speeds.
- PW into step dash: PW -> L-stick down-forward -> L-stick forward-down-forward -> L-stick down-forward. L-stick movements are very fast and it's still hard, but at least you don't need to time the first step perfectly like with normal step dash. I haven't practiced this one enough to understand it yet.
PW slides farther for some characters than others. It's definitely different from the step dash tier list, and the list from the Brawl thread seems kind of accurate as a staring point. It probably has something to do with walk speed/traction. In some cases, characters have really short PP and long PW, such as Link and some Fire Emblem characters. Their PW ftilt goes way farther than their PP ftilt, for example.
I believe PW could make Bidou viable on more characters, or for characters with good PP lengths already, you still get some neat movement options that come with control over the direction you face.
https://twitter.com/coneyzz/status/525400532329177088
We'll see about useless..
