Super Smash Bros. Ultimate gives much further beyond just another fun party game to play with friends. This guide will help players jump into the competitive scene for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. This fighter is unlike any other fighter to exist, where typically, games would function in a 1v1 fashion with specified health bars that the player needs to knock down in order to be victorious. In Smash Bros, players face off against each other and build damage. This damage translates to how far players will fly once they're hit. Hitting the player off of the screen will result in a KO. In normal games of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, players will select stages, full of hazards that can damage or kill players, or items that give special abilities like turning metal or being invincible. In competitive Smash, all of this is removed to resort only to the player's skill. In order to determine who is the best player, neutral rules are set in place. This guide will help players understand what it takes to play Super Smash Bros Ultimate competitively.
The Competitive Smash scene has exploded onto the fighting game community with the release of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. This game served as an entry point to many players who wanted to play the game more competitively. For the first time in the series, Nintendo actually implemented a competitive game mode called "For Glory". On For Glory, players would face off against each other 1v1 on a Final Destination type stage. While the game didn't have a ranking system, this was an excellent first playground for players who wanted to take this platform fighter much more seriously. Gaming fighting game tournaments like Evo and Genesis have hosted some of the best players in the world, where each would compete for a financial grand prize. If players are interested in jumping into the competitive scene, this guide has everything they need to know to get started.
Selecting A Character for Competitive Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
The most important aspect of selecting a character to play with competitive Smash is to play someone the player has the most fun with. Having fun is the most important aspect of Smash in general. Although, by accepting someone who the player enjoys, they are potentially risking losing, as this character can potentially be non-viable. There are over 70 characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, but there are a select few that are much better. These characters are considered the best characters in the game in terms of strength, technicality, and recovery.
- Pikachu
- Joker
- Peach/Daisy
- Fox
- Wolf
- Inkling
- Palutena
- Ken
- Lucina
These are some of the high placing characters in tournaments. These are considered the best characters in the game and are on the top of the tier list. Each character not on this list can also be good, but maybe harder to pick up and master. Although, if the player has a character they comfortable with, play around with them as much as possible and learn their strengths and weaknesses. Lower tier characters like Little Mac have problems recovering but have an excellent ground game. Avoid being thrown off stage at this character.
The Stages of Competitive Super Smash Bros Ultimate
All competitive tournaments play with hazards off on all viable stages. Stage lists vary between tournament to tournament, but the point of these stages is to have as minimal distracting hazards as possible. Stages with minimal or no surfaces are the ones that are played in the competition. Here are some of the active stages for competitive Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
- Battlefield
- Final Destination
- Lylat Cruise
- Smashville
- Town and City
- Yoshi's Island
- Pokemon Stadium 2
- Kalos Pokemon League
Each of these stages has perks and disadvantages depending on the character the player is playing as. For example, Little Mac does better on Final Destination, since the stage has no platforms for players to camp or run to. Mario does better in stages like Battlefield since he can combo off of the platforms to the blast zone at the top. Each character works differently on each stage. Most tournaments have their own rules for banning stages when selecting where to go to keep it fair. Play around on these stages to get comfortable with their environments and remember to turn off the hazards.
Competitive Ruleset for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
These are the rules all competitive tournaments follow when going through games. As mentioned, items are completely banned (aside from those that come from characters like Peach and Hero). This is to prevent any randomness from happening in a game of skill. Matches are set to 3 stocks, 7 minutes long. The first player to eliminate the opponent's stocks wins the game. For most tournaments, the pools do games best 2 out of 3. If the player advances to higher placings like Top 32, it may raise to best 3 out of 5. The amount of games varies per tournament. 3 stocks allow players to have room to make a comeback if they're falling behind. In Smash Bros for Wii U, games were limited to 2 stocks due to the slow speed of the game. Smash Bros. Melee is currently sitting at 4 stocks per game due to how fast the game is. Play with this ruleset when going online to get matched with other players with similar rulesets to spar.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate brings together hundreds of gaming icons, even outside of its large character roster. Spirits are other ways characters have been introduced in the game like spirits of Astral Chain or of Warframe. The competitive scene has grown substantially with the successful release of the Nintendo Switch. Smash Ultimate is now the best selling fighting game of all time as well. More fighters are being planned to be released through DLC over the next 2 years, and as with the inclusion of the top tier Joker, the metagame for competitive Smash is bound to change throughout the next few years with the release of new characters. This keeps the metagame interesting the spectate. While it is unknown what characters will enter the game, one thing for sure, and that's that it will be an exciting reveal.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate is available now on the Nintendo Switch.