Vs. Aggressive Playstyles

[Caedus]

I have this problem with the other characters that I play, but I feel like it's magnified with Samus. I have some friends that I play with, and they're much better than me. They know they can get in on me, so they're very aggressive with their play and once they get in I have a really hard time resetting to neutral. On top of that I have a hard time keeping them out. Is there any advice that could help me with getting people out and keeping them out?

 

[White_Pointer]

I like it when my opponents play rushdown, I find I generally have an easier time dealing with opponents running in on me than if they don't. Despite the fact Samus is considered a keep away character she actually does not have a good time against some heavy zoners like DHD, Toon Link and Villager.

If they are running in on you, you have several options:

- Short hop zairs (I find short backwards hops are very effective in baiting them into you)
- Bombs (They can often save you if you get grabbed as they will explode and hit them out of their grab animation, or they can cause shield pressure)
- Charge shot baits (Start charging your charge shot to bait them to run up to you, then throw out a grab or up b out of shield or something to punish them)
- Down tilts, forward tilts and jabs are reasonably fast and connect with anyone trying to rush in on you from the ground
- Missiles aren't entirely useless, you can throw them out occasionally to pressure them from a distance

Don't forget though that Samus actually isn't bad if you want to move in on them either, you don't need to play keep away the whole game. Once you have them frustrated by keeping them out they'll start trying more risky approach options and that's when you have the opportunity to turn the tables and move in on them instead, with dash attacks, grabs and aerials.

You have a few options resetting to neutral:

- Nair can break some combos and is a good punish tool if they over extend in the air
- Bomb jumps mid air can stall your descent, change your direction and mess up their timing on follow ups
- Falling to the edge and grabbing it
- Up b out of shield if they are on top of you and hitting your shield
- If they chase you off stage and you manage to air dodge or avoid their edge guard you can sometimes punish with dairs or bairs which often results in a stock

 

[Caedus]

This is exactly what I was looking for, thanks! Do you know of any videos of top level Samus players that play very defensively?

 

[White_Pointer]

You shouldn't be concentrating on playing defensively. Playing keep away is not the same as playing defensively. Keep away is reacting to your opponent's approach options and intercepting them to stop them getting in close to you. You should be mixing keepaway with aggression.

 

[NamelessHunter]

Samus can't kill on defense, which is probably a good thing to be honest. Even if you are the most defensive Samus ever, you still eventually have to go for the kill.

If you want to play a defensive Samus, I recommend focusing on SHAD bairs and nairs, as they allow you to pressure from a defensive position, but like anything become predictable when overused, but they would make a good core for a defensive Samus if you think that's what you want to do.

Listen to the other posters though. The best defense is a dead opponent. I'm only sharing this because I think it is better to learn a character through your own playstyle and deviate once you feel comfortable with that. It's a hard thing to deny who you are. I learned that when I tried to pick up a rush down character.

 

[DungeonMaster]

My largest problem as a player is I'm too aggressive. When I lose, it's because I'm throwing out too many hitboxes and should have taken a defensive option instead.
However, as others have said, this isn't a purely defensive character by design. You just can't compete in a projectile war vs. a good player. You're not going to wall out anyone
except maybe Ganon, Shield Shulk and a handful of others.
My suggestion is practice Up-B out of shield, it's essential that people respect your shield.
My other suggestion is go into training mode and get the Z-air -> Dash attack combo rolling consistently. Try it on a fatty to start, then move towards a thin target like Shiek. Start at 50% where it's easy to register.
That should be your essential defence, and your essential offence.

 

[Caedus]

I've landed that combo a few times before, but after having it evaded more often than not I assumed that something got patched that doesn't make it a combo anymore. Is there something I'm missing? Can't get it to true combo

 

[Shuckle_SSB]

-Always try to keep your opponent at Zair range.
-At larger distances (and given they aren't Sonic, Captain Falcon, or Sheik) go for a short hop homing missile to create space.
-ALWAYS try to punish your opponents unsafe aerials on your shield with an OoSO (Out of Shield Option), because Samus has plenty and they are VERY good. She has: Usmash, Nair, Jab, Dtilt, Ftilt (angled if needed), and especially Up B (arguably her best one). At high enough percents, the Up B will kill lighter opponents especially with rage. If you are playing with Tap Jump ON you only need to quickly press Up and B. If your Tap Jump is OFF, you need to JC it (Jump Cancel). You do this by pushing your jump button and quickly sliding to your B button (or whatever button you have set to special).
-Try to utilize SMR (Super Missile Rush) against dash happy opponents. If one of your SM catch your opponent, you sometimes get a follow-up depending on your range and percentage. (Ex: SM>Zair, SM>CS (Charged Shot), SM>Nair).
-SMR input: simply do a smash side B (SM input), dash forward once by flicking the stick, then do another SM input, rinse & repeat. It should be a somewhat rhythmic sequence of inputs, one after the other. Here is a visual:
/+>/(same direction as initial missile)>/+
____________________________________________________
SMR (Super Missile Rush)

These are some of the tools I use. Hope they helped.

 

[DungeonMaster]

C Caedus Check the stickied thread on combos, the OP has a link to a video showing in detail how to perform the combo. 59 minutes in if you want to skip through.

 

[Caedus]

Got it, thanks for all the help!