Mario (SSB)

This article is about Mario's appearance in Super Smash Bros.. For the clone of Mario, see Luigi (SSB); and for the character in other contexts, see Mario.

Mario in Super Smash Bros.
Universe	Mario
Other Smash Bros. appearances	in Melee in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Tier	B (5)

“	The internationally-famous, mustachioed superstar. Mario's jumping ability is the key to his success.	”
—Super Smash Bros.'s instruction manual

Mario (マリオ, Mario) appears as a starter character in Super Smash Bros.. Mario is considered an "all-around" character (as in most games).

Mario is currently ranked in the B tier at 5th (lowest position in the high tier) on the tier list for great gimping capabilities, good offense, defense, and speed stats, excellent combo ability, great smash attacks, and one of the few good recoveries in the game. However, he has bad air speed which limits some of his combo potential as well as some range issues (such as bad tilts and aerial hitboxes) which limit him compared to characters tiered higher.

Attributes

Mario's ending picture in Super Smash Bros.

Mario is considered to be a mostly balanced character. He has average weight, dash speed, air speed, and size. He also has good comboing ability with a powerful finishing move (up smash), but he lacks the range/disjointed hitboxes of the top tier characters. Mario is known for his short-hop-down-aerial-into-up-aerial combos. In some ways, Mario's up air is quite similar to Captain Falcon's, but with less combo ability and a worse hitbox. Mario is quite good at gimping opponents as he can meteor smash many characters with his down aerial drill kick and still recover. He has one of the better recoveries in the game by using his down special move (Mario Tornado), but this requires incredibly fast button mashing. Mario's down special can also meteor smash.

Moveset

Ground Moves

Normal

• Neutral attack: Jab-Punch-Kick, 2%, 4%, 5%. This combo is directly taken from Super Mario 64. The first jab leads to the easiest Jab Grab in the game in terms of how early it can be cancelled and how much range it has.
• Forward tilt: Roundhouse kick. An OK spacing but rarely used competitively. Comes out fast with decent range. 13%
• Up tilt: High spin punch, Mario twirls and punches upwards. Above average knockback for an up-tilt, can KO at extremely high percents or more simply lead into other air combos. Can also chain into itself at low to mid-low percents. Very useful combo starter. 10%
• Down tilt: Spin kick, also taken from SM64. Not the best defensive move, and not many uses in general outside of gimping Samus's recovery. 12%
• Dash attack: Slides and stops, taken from SM64. Has high ending lag making it not so viable competitively. 12% damage.

Smash attacks

• Side smash: Mega punch. Mario punches in front of him, his fist enlarging as he does so. Medium speed and good power. Useful 17%
• Up smash: Headbutts upwards. His whole head becomes a very large disjointed hitbox making it a slightly laggy but powerful finisher. In terms of KO ability, it is considered to be the best up smash in the game along with Pikachu and Fox. Has one of the highest priorities of any move in the game as well. 19%
• Down smash: Breakdance kick. Mario swirls around while breakdancing on both sides. A decent spacing and KO-ing move. Usually used to punish techs/rolls. 17%

Mario's aerial attacks

Other

• Ledge attack- Gets up and flips. 6% damage.
• 100% ledge attack- Slowly gets up and punches. 6% damage.
• Floor attack- Gets up and spins. 6% damage.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial: A Sex kick. It gets weaker the longer it's out, though when it first comes out it's a good finisher. Useful spacing tool as well. One of the better n-airs overall in the game. Can combo into itself along with u-air depending on percent. 14%
• Forward aerial: Forwards spin kick. It is a semi-spike, so it can be used for a gimp. Highly useful vs. the majority of recoveries int he game. Can combo into itself at mid percent. 16%
• Back aerial: Backwards kick. Good for edgeguarding, and has good power. 16%
• Up aerial: Flip kick. Knockback direction depends on which angle the foe was hit on. Not always the best choice for an aerial KO, but an excellent juggle move. Good hitbox as well. 12%
• Down aerial: Spin kick, 3%/hit, up to 8 hits. A useful Spike. Similar to Kirby's down aerial, it can be used multiple times to ensure that the foe is unable to recover. Can combo into itself and u-air. Is heavily DIable like most other Drills.

Throws

• Forward throw: Spin throw. He quickly swings the foe once and tosses them in front of him. A good throw in terms of power, though most players prefer his back throw for reliable KOs. Also leads to "tent" combos. 12%
• Back throw: Super Mario 64 throw; Grabs opponent by the legs and swings him/her until release. 16% damage. One of the most powerful back throws in the game, a very reliable finisher.

Special Moves

Mario in the SSB instruction booklet.

Mario's special moves
Neutral special	Fireball
Up special	Super Jump Punch
Down special	Mario Tornado

Taunt

• Puts his arms by his sides and grows, as if receiving a Super Mushroom. He shrinks shortly after. A very long taunt, so it is often used sparingly.

Note: Mario's taunt can be immediately canceled when he starts to shrink by using the Z button.

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. (N64) Character Matchups

Avg.

In 1P Game

In the game's single-player mode, a player and a randomly chosen ally fight against Mario and Luigi in a team battle on Peach's Castle. Later on in the single-player mode, Metal Mario, a metallic incarnation of Mario (introduced in Super Mario 64), is featured as a "boss character" in Meta Crystal. He is not merely a heavier texture-swap of Mario; his weight is drastically higher than Mario's, and his attacks deal much more knockback as well. He can take many, many hits before being KO'd.

Description

From the Game

Although best known as the mustachioed plumber who battles the Turtle Tribe with his distinct jumping action, this internationally famous hero has also acted as a referee, a driver, and even a doctor! He's been linked to Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom for years, but to this day their true relationship remains a mystery.

Works:

• Super Mario Bros. (NES)
• Super Mario Kart (SNES)
• Mario Kart 64 (N64)

Costumes

Mario's changeable clothing in SSB