Using Wavedash in Smash Ultimate (Various Clips)

[Tha_Shogun_12]

After watching Wizzrobe's video of getting the perfect wavedash I decided to start playing around with it in actual matches to see if I could find any use towards using it.

After testing for a few hours in actual matches (online and offline) I find Wavedashing to be niche in this game, but it does have it's own effectiveness, mainly in the form of retreating wave dash. While a buffer'd reverse attack out of dash can give similar results, there are some cases where a retreating wave dash will yield a more react-able result of punish. Example: when you are in running animation and turning around would yield a slower outcome than just wave dashing back from dash.

Here are a few clips I use wavedash where I found uses and in some cases a retreating tilt could've sufficed, there are also a few where only a wavedash could yield the result.

https://youtu.be/UZV7Z3kmf2Q

It's not meta defining but it does have it's use and I have gotten a few punishes/tech reads from it in my matches.

 

[meowth_]

It’s currently the most effective way of getting on the other side of an opponent in close quarters. It’s also good for edge guarding.

 

[leafgreen386]

In most cases, this is no better than just dashing back, but I could see a situation where you wavedash triangle jump to trick your opponent into thinking you're jumping into the air, but in reality you quickly end up on the ground. If you're playing against someone that's reacting to your jump, this could lead to them whiffing an attack and you getting a punish. Not anywhere near as ubiquitous as wavedashing proper, but something you can pull out every now and then. What could be fun is conditioning an opponent to expect you to triangle jump back, then you mix it up with an actual approach.

 

[himynameisruss]

i feel like the majority of these just add unnecessary lag between moving and being able to attack. you'd be better off just doing a quick dash back and fourth and get the same effect with none of the delay.

wavelanding i can see potentially having use in specific situations, but i don't see wavedashing being anywhere near as useful as in melee.

 

[leafgreen386]

i don't see wavedashing being anywhere near as useful as in melee.

It's mostly for moves with jump cancels, like inkling roller. Definitely not something for widespread use.

 

[Tha_Shogun_12]

Having more time with the game I can honestly say I can't find anything better to use for retreat out of running animation than wave dash. You can jump backwards but given the fact that you have more options and, for the majority of the cast, more kill potential grounded its a more viable option.

So for example if you are going for a tech chase read but you are in full run animation, wave dashing back to read a tech chase at you is the safest and most reliable option. Turning around will yield that weird drifting animation that you get when in run animation, and jumping limits you to aerials. Wave dashing back leads you to jabs, tilts, smash attacks, grabs, and certain short hop aerials.

Another option I found useful for has been mentioned but trying to get past opponents that are trying to control neutral. Wave dash, next to triangle jump, are the only ways to get past opponents now as dash no longer lets you pass opponents.

If anything else come up I'll be sure to update this thread.

 

[meowth_]

You can avoid single hit attack’s by wave dashing in place. You can run at someone and input the opposite direction quickly and wave dash in front of them to be facing them from behind when you land. It’s useful for approaching when projectiles are on screen too.

Another fun thing to do is to sonic up b in place, air dodge downwards and spam down air and you will start hovering on your little jumper thing until it eventually dissipates. It looks cool. I figured it out when I was trying to stress test and see if I coild
DO janky infinite bounce stuff by repeatedly air dodging quickly downwards and landing on the jumper. Works for a long long time with dair since dair is the fastest way for him to close vertical distance. It looks hella cool when you’re doing it lol. It also makes the jumper last a lot longer than normal. Only problem is you can’t make it infinite without touching the ground in some way, which wouldn’t make it infinite anyway. Unless you can figure out how to glitch it out. Maybe a bumper or something.

More along the topic however, some characters get “sucked” across the other player’s body when they shouldnt, such as Kirby. So Kirby can slide through people a bit faster than other characters. Maybe because of his small character model. Try it out. His use case is definitely good. It’s possible out of shield too.

Ultimately it does cause landing lag in a way, not sure how it compares to a dodge roll but given that dodge rolls and spot dodges have diminishing returns, there are use cases. Still, in close combat, and given the variable horizontal displacement that it achieves (relative to the fixed horizontal displacement of dashing or rolling), it’s not too bad.

It really shines when done correctly to get behind someone and have their back facing you. You end up closer than you would if you dodged, prettt sure even with lag it’s faster, but most importantly it’s variable horizontal displacement.

 

[Xquirtle]

Having more time with the game I can honestly say I can't find anything better to use for retreat out of running animation than wave dash. You can jump backwards but given the fact that you have more options and, for the majority of the cast, more kill potential grounded its a more viable option.

So for example if you are going for a tech chase read but you are in full run animation, wave dashing back to read a tech chase at you is the safest and most reliable option. Turning around will yield that weird drifting animation that you get when in run animation, and jumping limits you to aerials. Wave dashing back leads you to jabs, tilts, smash attacks, grabs, and certain short hop aerials.

Another option I found useful for has been mentioned but trying to get past opponents that are trying to control neutral. Wave dash, next to triangle jump, are the only ways to get past opponents now as dash no longer lets you pass opponents.

If anything else come up I'll be sure to update this thread.

You can turn around while in full run animation without getting the long turn around animation. Just let go of the stick and then press back. It does the long turn around if you switch directions without letting the stick snap to the center. its the same timing as doing tilts out of dash instead of dash attack.

Wave dash might have a niche use for micro spacing in situations where a normal dash back still gets hit, you have no reliable dodge options, no jump option, no offensive option, and you just need to move like 2 inches really quickly but somehow won't get punished on the end lag.