Xuan Wu
Valor Ablaze
Greetings, all.
Four years ago, I created a thread asking for other players' opinions of what they believe to be Ike's best and worst moves in SSB4 when used in a competitive environment. This time, the topic will be centered on Ike's iteration in Ultimate. I am curious to see other players' thoughts of how much his moves from the previous installment benefit from the mechanics changes, as well as from their altered properties, if any, during the transition. Like before, I intend to monitor the thread for any major version updates affecting Ike's moves and will revise accordingly.
Now that we have full access to SSBU, I was able to do some experimenting, which allowed me to form an opinion on the different moves in Ike's arsenal. This list is not final as it is subject to change. There may be some questionable placements.
Looking forward to seeing how everyone else ranks Ike's moves.
Top Tier:
N-air
U-air
B-air
D-tilt
F-air
D-throw
High Tier:
F-tilt
Pivot grab
U-tilt
U-throw
Quick Draw
Pummel
Mid Tier:
Jab
Eruption
Aether
U-smash
Dash attack
B-throw
F-throw
Dash grab
D-air
Counter
Low Tier:
D-smash
Standing grab
F-smash
Bottom Tier:
N/A
ANALYSIS (WIP)
Aerials:
Among the best options in Ike's kit. With the jump squat reduction down to 3 frames from SSB4's 7 frames along with decreased landing lag across the board, this allows Ike to be more oppressive with his aerial attacks while also improving their overall safety when properly spaced. All aerials are able to true combo from D-throw at low percent. N-air has been buffed significantly due to the combination of increased range and faster start-up. It has become his best aerial, in my opinion, and remains his best option for starting combos. For instance, it is possible for it to kill confirm into U-air as well as into B-air when near ledges, with the back hit allowing the combos to work at even higher percentages. Although D-air is the least valuable of Ike's aerial options, especially with footstool combos being less prevalent in SSBU, one can still find use for it in certain situations, such as attempting a meteor smash when foes grab ledges during the 2-frame tangibility window; additionally, its utility onstage should see an improvement for the fact that one can no longer tech grounded meteor smashes. I think D-air would go a long way had it retained its lingering hitbox from SSBB.
Tilts:
These are solid all-around options for Ike. Mechanics changes to dash enables him to tilt after inputting a dash. D-tilt still comes out decently fast at frame 7; furthermore, changes to the buffer system has made it considerably easier to true combo D-tilt into a turnaround B-air. The damage increase and slightly faster start-up on F-tilt has made it an even better tool in neutral; retreating with it is still possible as there is a bit of slide after using it this way during a dash. In exchange for U-tilt no longer having a hitbox behind Ike, the sweetspot is easier to land, and the reduced landing lag on N-air allows U-tilt to true combo from it at low percent. I find that U-tilt makes for a rather effective anti-air mix-up when reversing it as you are chasing after a foe falling from the air.
Jabs:
This has got to be the worst iteration of Ike's Jab. Compared to SSB4, which had already seen a Jab nerf from SSBB, it is far more difficult to string the first jab into other attacks, such as D-tilt. Once the first hit successfully connects it seems you are much better off inputting the commands for the remaining two jabs, instead of attempting to follow-up the first jab with something else. Compounding to this nerf is the range decrease; Ike now has to be extremely close to his opponents if he is going to land the first hit. That being said, the hitbox is first active at frame 4, which still makes this one of his fastest ground options. It is also at least reliable enough for allowing Ike to maintain space between opponents and himself, should the situation call for it.
Smashes:
It is a recurring theme across all of the Smash games Ike has appeared in that smash attacks are among the slowest moves in Ike's arsenal. While they are quite powerful, they are best used for hard punishes and for anticipating certain actions made by the opponent. For instance, one can charge an F-smash while facing the opposite direction from the ledge when predicting the opponent's roll from the ledge. U-smash is also solid for punishing certain ledge get-up options and offers decent anti-air utility as well. Meanwhile, D-smash is still Ike's fastest smash, which has also received a damage boost to both hits; this could be the strongest option for punishing attacks following a successful parry. Considering how sparingly these should be used, smash attacks might as well not even exist in Ike's moveset.
Grabs:
Throws:
Specials:
Eruption
Quick Draw
Aether
Counter
REVISION HISTORY
UPDATE 1 (Dec. 7, 2018): Personal list created mainly through first impressions from using Ike in SSBU for the first time. Analysis section added.
UPDATE 2 (Dec. 12, 2018): Upon further testing as well as input from other users, the following changes were made. Analysis updated.
+ D-air and Counter moved from top of Low Tier to bottom of Mid Tier.
- Jab moved from High Tier to Mid Tier.
Four years ago, I created a thread asking for other players' opinions of what they believe to be Ike's best and worst moves in SSB4 when used in a competitive environment. This time, the topic will be centered on Ike's iteration in Ultimate. I am curious to see other players' thoughts of how much his moves from the previous installment benefit from the mechanics changes, as well as from their altered properties, if any, during the transition. Like before, I intend to monitor the thread for any major version updates affecting Ike's moves and will revise accordingly.
Now that we have full access to SSBU, I was able to do some experimenting, which allowed me to form an opinion on the different moves in Ike's arsenal. This list is not final as it is subject to change. There may be some questionable placements.
Looking forward to seeing how everyone else ranks Ike's moves.
Top Tier:
N-air
U-air
B-air
D-tilt
F-air
D-throw
High Tier:
F-tilt
Pivot grab
U-tilt
U-throw
Quick Draw
Pummel
Mid Tier:
Jab
Eruption
Aether
U-smash
Dash attack
B-throw
F-throw
Dash grab
D-air
Counter
Low Tier:
D-smash
Standing grab
F-smash
Bottom Tier:
N/A
ANALYSIS (WIP)
Aerials:
Among the best options in Ike's kit. With the jump squat reduction down to 3 frames from SSB4's 7 frames along with decreased landing lag across the board, this allows Ike to be more oppressive with his aerial attacks while also improving their overall safety when properly spaced. All aerials are able to true combo from D-throw at low percent. N-air has been buffed significantly due to the combination of increased range and faster start-up. It has become his best aerial, in my opinion, and remains his best option for starting combos. For instance, it is possible for it to kill confirm into U-air as well as into B-air when near ledges, with the back hit allowing the combos to work at even higher percentages. Although D-air is the least valuable of Ike's aerial options, especially with footstool combos being less prevalent in SSBU, one can still find use for it in certain situations, such as attempting a meteor smash when foes grab ledges during the 2-frame tangibility window; additionally, its utility onstage should see an improvement for the fact that one can no longer tech grounded meteor smashes. I think D-air would go a long way had it retained its lingering hitbox from SSBB.
Tilts:
These are solid all-around options for Ike. Mechanics changes to dash enables him to tilt after inputting a dash. D-tilt still comes out decently fast at frame 7; furthermore, changes to the buffer system has made it considerably easier to true combo D-tilt into a turnaround B-air. The damage increase and slightly faster start-up on F-tilt has made it an even better tool in neutral; retreating with it is still possible as there is a bit of slide after using it this way during a dash. In exchange for U-tilt no longer having a hitbox behind Ike, the sweetspot is easier to land, and the reduced landing lag on N-air allows U-tilt to true combo from it at low percent. I find that U-tilt makes for a rather effective anti-air mix-up when reversing it as you are chasing after a foe falling from the air.
Jabs:
This has got to be the worst iteration of Ike's Jab. Compared to SSB4, which had already seen a Jab nerf from SSBB, it is far more difficult to string the first jab into other attacks, such as D-tilt. Once the first hit successfully connects it seems you are much better off inputting the commands for the remaining two jabs, instead of attempting to follow-up the first jab with something else. Compounding to this nerf is the range decrease; Ike now has to be extremely close to his opponents if he is going to land the first hit. That being said, the hitbox is first active at frame 4, which still makes this one of his fastest ground options. It is also at least reliable enough for allowing Ike to maintain space between opponents and himself, should the situation call for it.
Smashes:
It is a recurring theme across all of the Smash games Ike has appeared in that smash attacks are among the slowest moves in Ike's arsenal. While they are quite powerful, they are best used for hard punishes and for anticipating certain actions made by the opponent. For instance, one can charge an F-smash while facing the opposite direction from the ledge when predicting the opponent's roll from the ledge. U-smash is also solid for punishing certain ledge get-up options and offers decent anti-air utility as well. Meanwhile, D-smash is still Ike's fastest smash, which has also received a damage boost to both hits; this could be the strongest option for punishing attacks following a successful parry. Considering how sparingly these should be used, smash attacks might as well not even exist in Ike's moveset.
Grabs:
Throws:
Specials:
Eruption
Quick Draw
Aether
Counter
REVISION HISTORY
UPDATE 1 (Dec. 7, 2018): Personal list created mainly through first impressions from using Ike in SSBU for the first time. Analysis section added.
UPDATE 2 (Dec. 12, 2018): Upon further testing as well as input from other users, the following changes were made. Analysis updated.
+ D-air and Counter moved from top of Low Tier to bottom of Mid Tier.
- Jab moved from High Tier to Mid Tier.
Last edited:
