-Wolfy-
Smash Champion
This thread is the pre-release Bowser in Brawl guide.
I'm going to try an make this as easy to read as I can, so I am going to throw in a glossary that I'll keep updating to help accomodate the less competitive smasher and bridge the lingo gap.
*{I will add an asterix to any name of my own design given to a move}
**{I will add to this frequently in order to make this page understandable for everyone}
I'm not updating this. It will remain as is to contrast the US release with the Japanese game.
I'm going to try an make this as easy to read as I can, so I am going to throw in a glossary that I'll keep updating to help accomodate the less competitive smasher and bridge the lingo gap.
Ground Normal Attacks
- Jab/Combo: The jab has a faster first hit, and the second hit still does enough damage to gain some breathing room.
- F-Tilt: The F-Tilt has a ridiculously large range. In melee, Bowser just sticks out a knuckle, while in Brawl, he leans his whole body forward and lunges a magically enlarged fist at the foe. The move is fairly laggy at the start up and finish of the attack. The move also has significant knockback.
- U-Tilt: The U-Tilt is very similar to what it was in Melee. It seems to be much faster upon the finish, and equally as fast on the start up. It still does alot of knockback in Brawl as well.
- D-Tilt: The D-Tilt has recieved considerable buffs. It's range, speed, and knockback have been considerably increased. It is now one of Bowser's kill moves.
- Ledge *Sweep*: This move doesn't have quite the range it did in Melee, however it is still pretty good.
Smash Attacks
- U-Smash: The U-Smash seems to be buffed in Brawl. The damage, knockback, and speed seem to be static, however the range is significantly increased. An U-Smash has no problem fully covering a platform above him. He still does duck down while charging the attack.
- D-Smash: The D-Smash is definitely improved compared to Melee. It's range is increased, and it still sucks enemies in if they make contact with Bowser during the move. It also deals more knockback, and is a great kill move.
- F-Smash: The F-Smash, according to Gimpy, has more range than any physical attack by far. The knockback is not as high as in Melee, and kills about 20% later than in Melee. It does feature a few Heavy Armor frame on the leanback, but not the whole charge.
Aerial Attacks
- N-Air: The N-Air does not seem to have as much priority in Brawl, but because it ends quicker, does not leave you exposed for very long.
- F-Air: The F-Air comes out very quickly this time around, so quickly that two complete F-Airs can be performed completely in one jump before landing.
- U-Air: The U-Air is much faster than in Melee, which was one of Bowser's slowest moves. Despite a big range decrease, the U-Air is one of the strongest move in Brawl, easily killing at low percents.
- B-Air: The B-Air seems to be a bit more difficult to land in Brawl, despite having an increased range, and a faster execution time. It still has the semi-spike knockback it had in Melee when hit correctly.
- D-Air: The D-Air still is not very good, however is does still have that little shockwave at the end. It still has very little priority.
Special Moves
- B-Neutral: The firebreath is back and is generally one of the most improved moves. It has a very quick startup and very low lag following it. It doesn't die down as it did in Melee, but is on a recharge timer of sorts, meaning you can use it longer the less often you use it. The flame can be angle with the C-Stick, and because of the speed of the move, can be useful in the prevention of most approaches.
- B-Down: The *Bowser Bomb* is back, and has several buffs. The move is not only faster on the startup, but also features heavy armor in the beginning. The knockback is also inmproved. The move does have less leg than in Melee, but still has alot compared to other moves. It can still be used to grab the ledge. Also, the Bowser bomb has a hit frame ON THE WAY UP.
- B-Left/Right: The Klaw is quite different compared to Melee. It is extremely fast, has a decreased range , and no longer throws forward or backward, but does a pretty awesome suplex move. After the grab, Bowser shoots up straight into the air, and slams his foe to the ground. You have complete control over is lateral movement during this move, and this alows for some interesting suicide kills. The move does approximately 17% and multiple Klaw grabs can be strung together at lower percentages. Why? BECAUSE BOWSER SUFFERS NO LAG!
- B-Up: The fortress. How many times have we been told "up-b more"? Well, to the Chagrin of most Melee Bowser players, there are several nerfs of the Fortress. First off, the damage and knockback have been reduced, so kills out of the sheild seem less likely. Fortresshogging is still possible, but seems to be less effective. The Second major nerf is the land lag at the end of the move. The fortress had no land lag in Melee, and made using it to float over the edge a viable option, but it has become much more punishable. It also is no longer possible to automatically cancel the Fortress on a slanted edge. Overall, the move was considerably nerfed.
Grab Game
- Bowser's grabs seem shockingly similar visually.
- The D-Throw is no longer useful for tech chasing due to the new physics engine.
- The dash grab seems to have a decreased range.
- The standing and shield grab are much more effective.
Glossary of Terms**
- Air Dodge- The air dodge is a maneuver that grants the user a few invincibility frames. The physics are new to Brawl, as you can no longer aim it in the same way, but it is dependent on character momentum. Another new facet, is the fact that you are able to attack, jump, or air dodge again after the first air dodge. While this basically eliminates wavedashing as we know it, the new qualities of the air dodge add an entirely knew layer of possibilities in the metagame.
- C-Stick- The C-Stick has been changed. Now if you are holding any direction while you are using it, you will do a tilt instead of a smash. Emphasis on any direction. If you are neutral and then C-Stick, it will be the same as in Melee. It can also still be used in aerials. The C-Stick can also be charged again, and can also be used to catch an item in the air.
- Crouch Canceling(CC)- Crouch canceling works the same as in Melee, although crouch canceling into a down smash will be more difficult because of the new C-Sticking mechanics
- Dash Dancing- Dash dancing is the act of starting the dash animation, and then canceling it by dashing in the reverse direction, and remaining in the initial dash animation, going left and right. This tactic is used to allow the player to dash into either direction, or prevent the opponent from being able to correctly guess what your next action will be. This is also used in spacing, and to set up a Pivot.
- Directional Influence (D.I.)- Directional Influence is something that most smashers do instinctively without knowing there is a specific name for it. Essentially, it decreased the distance an attack's knockback sends you by angling the control stick towards the stage and upwards. Towards the stage prevents the character from being K.O.'d horizontally, and the D.I. upwards causes the characters flight path to shift to a wider angle, allowing for an easier recovery. D.I. is also used to escape combos by allowing the player to influence which direction they tumble after the knockback.
- Edgeguarding- This is the act of physically preventing an opponent from recovering by using an attack to prevent them from landing on the stage or grabbing the edge. Typically attacks with large or disjointed hitboxes and high priority are used to both stop the recovery, and prevent from the edge guarder from taking any damage.
- Edgehogging- Edgehogging is a rather elementary technique to prevent an opponent from returning to the stage. Edgehogging involves holding the edge in order to prevent an opponent from grabbing it to return. Once the edge is grabbed, the character recieves several frames of invincibilty, further aiding in staving off a recovery attempt.
- Edgehopping- This technique is used to renew the invincibility frames aquired when a character grabs a ledge. If you angle the control stick away from the stage, the character will drop slowly, and will then be able to jump and grab the ledge again, acquiring invincibility frames.
- Fast Falling- By pressing Down on the control stick at the peak of a jump(full or short hopped), the character will, you guessed it, fall faster than normal.
- Hugging- As the wavedash is eliminated, Hugging seems to be the most effective replacement as a way to quickly get onto the edge, mostly for edge hogging purposed. Hugging is when a character walks/runs/whatevers off the edge and quickly angles the control stick back towards the stage, and the character grabs the edge depsite facing the other direction.
- Item Catching- In Melee, it was possible to catch an item by pressing the Z button at the right time, but now, it is even possible to catch items during an aerial attack.
- Meteor- A meteor is a spiking attack that can be canceled by a jump or an Up-B attack, not to be confused with moves with peculiar knockback that spike.
- Meteor Cancel- Meteor spikes can be canceled by jumping or using an Up-B move quickly following the spike.
- Rolling- While in the shielding position, by tapping either left or right, the player can roll in the corresponding direction. If a character rolls to the right, they will be facing the left. If the player rolls to the left, they will be facing the right.
- Shield Stun/Shieldhitstun- After striking a shield with an attack, the attacker and the shielder each suffer a minute number or frames in which they cannot do anything.
- Short Hop- By pressing the jump button lightly or quickly, th character will jump with less height compared to a full jump, allowing the character to move more quickly and spend less time in the air.
- Spotdodge/Sidestep- While shielding, tapping Down on the control stick will cause the character to do an airdodge in place, and avoid an attack all together.
- Super/Heavy Armor– When the heavy or strong characters in this game perform certain moves they recieve a number of frames where they do not flinch. This acts differently from what some initially thought. If you are hit during your super/heavy armor, you not only do not take stun, but you also DO NOT RECIEVE ANY DAMAGE. It was difficult to test what moves have this effect in such a short period of time, but after viewing videos of it you can see that no percentage is recieved upon impact of the moves.
- Teching- Teching is the act of pressing the shield button before maknig contact with a surface, while still in the tumble animation, so that once contact is made, the character will instantly right themselves. Teching is possible on floors, walls, and ceilings. By holding Up on the control stick, a wall-tech will turn into a walljump-tech. By holding a direction while teching on the ground, instead of righting themselves in place, characters will roll in the direction held.
Bowser Videos from E For All
- History-> First ever Brawl Moneymatch Gimpy vs. Hugs
Note that the person that filmed it was warned not to record the screen or they would be asked to leave.- Final Smash at 3:40 or so.
- Short Gameplay with Mario, Meta, and Diddy as well.
- Mario vs. Bowser Pt. 1-Not Gimpy./Smashville
- Mario vs. Bowser Pt. 2/Smashville
- Bowser vs. Metaknight- Sounds like Gimpy, tough loss with 4 seconds left.
- Bowser places second at Norfair to Fire-Flower Mario
- BLINGIN' BOWSER!
- Bowser's introduction at about 1:10
- Bowser, two Diddy's, and a Sonic on battlefield. Lots of Final Smashes.
- Bowser, Pit, Samus, and Metaknight at Castle Siege.
- Bowser, Pit, Metaknight, and Sonic on Pokemon Stadium 2, Bowser gets his final smash.
- Bowser, Samus, Yoshi, and Diddy(Dixie costume) on Yoshi's Island
- Gimpyfish(Bowser) vs. EternalPheonixFire(Pit)
*{I will add an asterix to any name of my own design given to a move}
**{I will add to this frequently in order to make this page understandable for everyone}
I'm not updating this. It will remain as is to contrast the US release with the Japanese game.
