Ness (SSB4): Difference between revisions

{{disambig2|Ness's appearance in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''|the character in other contexts|Ness}}

|name         = Ness

|image       = [[File:Ness SSB4.png|250px|Ness]]

|game         = SSB4

|ssbgame1     = SSB

|ssbgame2     = SSBM

|ssbgame3     = SSBB

|ranking = 28

'''Ness''' ({{ja|ネス|Nesu}}, ''Ness'') returns as a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''. Ness was officially confirmed on October 3rd, 2014, alongside {{SSB4|Falco}} and {{SSB4|Wario}}, coinciding with the Western release of [[Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS]]. As in every previous ''Smash Bros.'' installation, Ness is voiced by Makiko Ōmoto, who has now recorded new voice clips for both versions of the game.

Ness currently ranks 28th out of 55 characters on the [[tier list]] (tied with {{SSB4|Lucas}}), placing both him and Lucas as the lowest C tier characters and the lowest high tier characters. This is a vast improvement from his 26th out of 38 in ''Brawl'', and his best placement compared to previous ''Smash Bros.'' games. Ness no longer suffers from having 10 extra [[grab release]] frames, which was a huge detriment to his survival. Besides that, Ness possesses arguably the best grab game among the entire cast (competing with {{SSB4|Mewtwo}}'s), with his forward and up throws leaving opponents in very unfavorable positions, his down throw being a great combo starter and his back throw being the most powerful throw in the game, on top of being difficult to DI properly. Other notable strengths include an effective [[projectile]] game with [[PK Fire]] and [[PK Thunder]], a formidable air game courtesy of his powerful aerials, and a versatile combo game thanks to his throws and aerials. Despite being a middleweight, he also has high raw KO power and high damage output, a prime example being his aerials, forward smash, PK Flash and PK Thunder 2. Finally, due to the strengths above, Ness possesses very useful options to cover getups from a ledge or on the ground.

However, Ness has rather sub-par mobility and range, which often forces him to be methodical with his approaches, or play defensively in order to gain the lead, which can leave him at a disadvantage against characters with greater range on their attacks such as Cloud. His KO power, while consistent, is relegated to only his back throw and his up-air, as most of his powerful attacks are hard to land in the neutral game. Lastly and the most problematic is his recovery. Despite being greatly improved, PK Thunder remains quite gimpable as the lightning bolt can clang with other attacks, while opponents can forcibly push Ness out of the way or even take a hit from the lightning bolt, making his recovery fail.  

Currently, Ness's tier placement is debatable. While Ness has poor matchups against several characters that were ranked higher than him, particularly {{SSB4|Cloud}}, {{SSB4|Rosalina & Luma}}, {{SSB4|Marth}}, and {{SSB4|Corrin}}, Ness has achieved good representation and noticeable top players such as {{Sm|FOW}}, {{Sm|S1}}, {{Sm|The Great Gonzales}}, {{Sm|Gackt}}, and {{Sm|NAKAT}}. Ness also achieved above average results and wins thanks to these said top players most notably FOW placing 13th at [[2GGC: Nairo Saga]], The Great Gonzales placing 5th at [[Royal Flush (tournament)|Royal Flush]], S1 placing 5th at [[B.E.A.S.T 7]] and 7th at [[Syndicate 2017]], NAKAT placing 13th at [[EVO 2017]] while mostly going Ness, and most recently, Gackt placing 17th at [[The Big House 7]]. From this, while some smashers generally argued that he should be ranked slightly lower due to his poor matchups from the higher ranked characters, other smashers argued that he should be ranked higher due to his favorable representation, results, and wins.

==How to unlock==

Ness possesses three [[projectile]]s: [[PK Flash]], [[PK Fire]], and [[PK Thunder]]. PK Flash can be used as an extremely powerful punishing or edge-guarding option, dealing huge knockback which can KO even Bowser, the heaviest character, under 70%. PK Fire possesses a good amount of range and holds opponents in it when it hits them (due to being impossible to SDI out of), granting Ness guaranteed follow-ups (such as grab, an additional PK Fire, or a forward smash to finish the opponent) as long as he acts quickly enough. Also, it can be used off-stage against characters with more linear recoveries to combo into down air. PK Thunder is one of the more unique projectiles in the game. When used, the player will lose control of Ness and instead take control of a large thunder ball for a few seconds. PK Thunder can essentially be used to knock opponents towards Ness for follow ups, to mindgame opponents into a PK Thunder 2 trap to finish them, to edgeguard, and to juggle opponents. The knockback it provides can also hit an opponent over the upper blast line (especially light and floaty characters), allowing it to be used as a situational [[KO]] move as well. His down special move, [[PSI Magnet]],  provides a psychic shield that can heal him when hit with an energy based attack, making it extremely effective against characters with slower projectiles such as Samus or the Mii Gunner. PSI Magnet has fast start-up and end-lag, this allows Ness to cancel his double jump momentum and allows him to reverse himself mid-air more reliably, making it effective for avoiding vertical attacks such as Mario's up smash when Ness is on the air.  

While Ness's aerials make him a formidable fighter at close quarters, he can struggle to pressure from afar. His dash attack has an exceptionally long range and is a decent approach, but leaves him vulnerable to landing aerials and is only safe if properly spaced. PK Fire covers a lot of ground and can be used to perform a [[PK Jump]], a technique that allows Ness to approach or retreat by inputting the move 1 frame after double jumping. If Ness buffers an airdodge after double jumping, he can increase the height of his double. If Ness uses PSI Magnet then PK Thunder by the ledge, he will snap immediately, rather than stalling as he would normally. By combining these two traits togther, Ness can often recover without having to use PK Thunder to travel, alleviating one of his biggest weaknesses.

{{SSB4|Villager}}, and {{SSB4|Pit}} can force Ness into disadvantage when offstage.  

==Changes from ''Brawl''==

Ness has been heavily buffed in the transition from ''Brawl'' to ''SSB4''. His 10 extra frame grab-release animation, which was one of his most detrimental flaws, has been removed, and many of the other flaws he had have been addressed. Ness also greatly benefits from the general changes of ''SSB4'', as the new edge-trumping mechanic makes his recovery much harder to gimp, and the changes to hitstun canceling allows him to combo with his moves much more efficiently. Overall, Ness is significantly better than he ever was in previous ''Super Smash Bros.'' games and he has also seen solid tournament representation and greatly improved results due to his vast improvement.

*{{buff|Ness no longer has an extra 10 frames of lag from being grab-released, bringing him in line with everyone else, and making him significantly less vulnerable to grab release follow-ups.}}

*{{change|All of Ness's [[electric]] attacks except for his specials are now a normal effect except for his back aerial's sweetspot, as it is actually a [[magic]] effect. They use a graphic effect similar to Lucas's attacks (forward aerial, up smash, etc.) instead of using the same graphic effect as his double jump.}}

*{{nerf|[[Neutral attack]] deals 1% less damage (9% → 8%).}}

*{{buff|Dash attack now launches at a vertical trajectory in front of Ness (80°) instead of behind him (100°), making followups easier.}}

*{{change|The first hit of dash attack no longer deals consistent damage (5% → 4%/7%/3%). Dash attack also has more intense lighting effects.}}

*{{nerf| The second hit of dash attack deals less damage (4% → 2%).}}

*{{nerf|[[Forward tilt]] does 2% less damage un-angled (11% → 9%) and 1% less damage when angled (11% → 10%). Now has a more notable ending animation where Ness holds up his left hand.}}

*{{buff|Up tilt now involves Ness releasing a burst of magic from his hands, increasing vertical reach.}}

*{{nerf|Up tilt starts up slightly slower (frame 5 → 7) and now has a sourspot that deals 2% less damage.}}

*{{change|[[Up tilt]]'s animation is more similar to that of ''Smash 64'', and its sweetspot now has a magic sound effect instead of a punching sound effect.}}

*{{nerf|[[Down tilt]] now has a sourspot at the end of Ness's foot that deals 2% less damage (4% → 2%).}}

*{{buff|[[Forward smash]] deals drastically more knockback (50 base/62 scaling → 70/67), going from a below-average powered forward smash in ''Brawl'' to one of the most powerful forward smashes in ''Smash 4''. Its reflector now has a speed and power multiplier, drastically improving its punishing utility.}}

*{{nerf|One of forward smash's tipper hitboxes has been completely removed, so that its maximum damage potential when uncharged is 22% instead of 24%, and its reflector now has a limit, where if he tries to reflect a projectile that is too strong to reflect, Ness will experience about 300 frames (5 seconds) of ending lag.}}

*{{buff|Yo-yo smashes ([[up smash]] and [[down smash]]) now deal properly-increased damage when charged and are now stronger.}}

*{{nerf|Yo-yo smashes are charged while still in Ness's hand, removing their pre-charge hitboxes.}}

*{{change|Yo-yo is colored green, instead of yellow.}}

*{{buff|Up smash now has a small hitbox behind Ness that comes out on frame 6. While this new hitbox is considered a sourspot, dealing less damage and knockback, it is a buff as it puts out a hitbox earlier and covers his back during startup, strengthening the up smash's use as an out of shield option.}}

*{{buff|Down smash now sends opponents at a low semi-spike angle instead of diagonally, greatly improving its edgeguarding utility.}}

*{{nerf|[[Neutral aerial]]'s hitbox is shorter in duration.}}

*{{buff|[[Forward aerial]]'s individual hits now chain significantly better, and can now result in multiple forward aerials in a row, improving Ness's combo and damage capabilities.}}

*{{nerf|Forward aerial deals 4% less damage (11% → 7%) along with significantly more landing lag (12 frames → 20 frames).}}

*{{nerf|[[Back aerial]] has moderately increased landing lag (12 frames → 17 frames).}}

*{{buff|Back aerial has more range.}}

*{{nerf|[[Up aerial]] has slightly more landing lag (12 frames → 14 frames).}}

*{{buff|[[Down aerial]] now has an extra spin in its animation, with Ness facing at a different orientation as he kicks downward with his toes instead of the stamp of his foot; the new special effect at his toes gives its hitbox more range, along with having its sourspot deals 1% more damage (9% → 10%).}}

*{{nerf|Down aerial's clean and late hits have smaller hitboxes (6.54u/6.54u (clean/late) → 3.9u/6u), a shorter duration (4 frames → 2 (clean), 5 frames → 4 (late)), and have drastically decreased base knockback (90/90 (clean/late) → 20/30), with both hits now being incapable of KOing at realistic percentage. Down aerial also autocancels later (frame 29 → 50). As a result, the meteor smash is much harder to hit with, and the move is now generally inferior to his other aerials.}}

*{{change|Down aerial uses the magic sound effect on hit instead of a punch sound effect in prior games.}}

*{{buff|Pivot grab's range is now large and disjointed.}}

*{{nerf|Pivot grab comes out slower.}}

*{{buff|Pummel is faster.}}

*{{buff|Up throw's ending lag has been significantly decreased.}}

*{{buff|The changes to hitstun canceling significantly benefits down throw, as he can now use it to set up into his aerials much more effectively.}}

*{{nerf|Down throw does less damage (9% → 7%).}}

*{{change|Down throw has less fire graphics.}}

*{{buff|[[PK Flash]] travels faster. It travels even faster and gains even more distance if directed behind Ness. Turning around before using this move might prove useful, depending on prediction.}}

*{{change|PK Flash is now a much darker green.}}

*{{buff|[[PK Fire]] travels slightly farther.}}

*{{nerf|[[PK Fire]] has 1 more frame of ending lag. It now travels much farther back to Ness if [[reflected]] rather than petering out after traveling its set distance.}}

*{{change|PK Fire's effect after hitting an opponent produces darker colored flames and more smoke.}}

*{{change|When interrupted whilst starting up PK Fire, Ness stops reciting the attack's name.}}

*{{buff|[[PK Thunder]] travels faster, has less cooldown, a much larger hitbox, is more powerful, travels in a drastically tighter arc and goes through opponents until the tail disconnects from Ness with 1% more damage, making him less susceptible to being [[gimp]]ed. [[PK Thunder 2]] is much faster, much stronger (now KOing at around 30%), and when Ness bounces off a wall while recovering with it, he can initiate PK Thunder again during the bounce.}}

*{{nerf|[[PK Thunder 2]] has increased ending lag.}}

*{{change|PK Thunder and PSI Magnet are now light blue like in ''Melee''.}}

*{{buff|[[PSI Magnet]] has significantly less ending lag, with Ness now being able to act out of it much quicker. It's also larger, increasing its range.}}

*{{nerf|PSI Magnet swirls projectiles around it, causing a slight delay until Ness can actually be healed. If Ness were to drop PSI Magnet and/or be launched, the absorbed projectiles may take even longer to reach him, but they will still heal him eventually.}}

*{{change|The swirling of captured attacks by PSI Magnet utterly nullifies even projectiles that would continue past Ness, including [[Thoron]] and {{b|Thunder|Pokémon}}.}}

*{{change|[[PK Starstorm]] now fires a thin, aimable line of meteors from the top-center of the stage, similar to how [[Aura Storm]] functioned. This enables it to deal damage more reliably at the cost of having blind spots.}}

*{{change|PK Starstorm now has a [[flame]] effect, instead of an electric effect.}}

*{{buff|[[PSI Magnet]]'s ending lag decreased.}}

'''{{GameIcon|ssb4}} [[1.1.1]]'''  

*{{buff|Rising PK Flash's knockback altered base knockback decreased|80 (base)/30 (scaling)|50/80, improving its KO potential.}}

*{{nerf|Rising PK Flash's first hitbox's duration decreased|3|2.}}

*{{buff|Rising PK Flash's range increased|10|13.}}

*{{buff|[[PK Freeze]] range increased|10|11.}}

|neutraldesc=Punches twice, then kicks. The first hit can [[lock]] at low percents.

|utiltdesc=Pushes upward with both hands that produces a PSI spark. Has a sourpot located on his hands that deals 5%.

|dtiltdesc=A swift shin kick. Extremely spammable and can be used to jab reset. Has a sourspot located on the tip of his foot. Has a chance of making the opponent trip.  

|fsmashdesc=Swings his bat. It is the second strongest forward smash in the game when sweetspotted at the tip of the bat and still one of the strongest forward smashes when untippered, but it has some start-up and ending lag. The bat itself will [[reflect]] incoming projectiles when he swings it. However, reflecting a projectile that is too strong to reflect can cause him to have terribly long endlag, making it incredibly unsafe if the opponent is nearby.

|usmashname= 

|dsmashname= 

|dsmashdesc=Sends his yo-yo backwards and "walk-the-cat" with it before pulling the yo-yo back. Covers get up options well, but cannot connect well if the opponent is at the longest range of the move.

|fthrowdesc=Psychokinetically swings his opponent in a small circle in front of himself before sending them off forward. Very high base knockback, but incredibly low scaling, KOing at percents generally not even seen in a standard match (starting at around 850%). However, it can KO very easily on [[Smashville]] or [[Town and City]] at 0%, depending on the platform's position.

|bthrowdesc=Psychokinetically swings the opponent over his head before sending them off backwards, in a diagonally upwards motion. Possesses very low base knockback but incredibly high knockback scaling, making it the strongest throw in the entire game, KOing Bowser, the heaviest character in the game, with optimal DI at 122% near the ledge without rage.

|nsdefdesc=A green plasma-like energy projectile appears above Ness. As the special attack button is held, the sphere moves downwards and increases in power, until the attack button is released or until it is fully charged, it explodes. Can KO as low 37% fully charged.

|dsc1desc=Ness draws opponents in, releasing an explosion that damages nearby foes when the move is released. It cannot absorb projectiles.  

==In competitive play==

===Notable players===

*{{Sm|Awestin|USA}} - The best Ness player in Texas, consistently achieves top 8 at Shockwave tournaments. Placed 9th at [[Aftershock 2016]] and 17th at [[Low Tier City 4]].

*{{Sm|BestNess|USA}} - The best Ness player in Utah. Ranked 1st on the Utah Smash 4 Power Rankings. Has wins over {{Sm|Darkshad}}, {{Sm|JK}},  {{Sm|Xzax}},  {{Sm|Shaky}},  {{Sm|Charliedaking}},  and  {{Sm|Shoyo James}}.

*{{Sm|Gackt|Japan}} - The best Ness main in Japan. He is famous for his insane PK thunder reads. Placed 13th at [[Umebura 26]] and 17th at [[The Big House 7]]. He has notably beaten {{Sm|ANTi}}, {{Sm|Atelier}}, {{Sm|Locus}}, {{Sm|Mistake}}, {{Sm|T}}, {{Sm|Abadango}}, {{Sm|Umeki}}, {{Sm|Shogun}}, and {{Sm|Tsu-}}.

<!--NOTE: Please mention Gackt's placing at The Big House 7 as a reason for Ness being considered high tier.-->

*{{Sm|NAKAT|USA}} - Co-mains Fox/Ness. Currently considered the best active Ness player in the world during FOW's inactivity. <!--NAKAT has beaten Larry Lurr, Mistake, and CaptainZack with Ness while BestNess has not beaten any of the PGR v3 players during the v4 season and is not in contention for Top 100 according to suar. Please don't change this.-->He has the best and most consistent results out of all active Ness mains. Has taken sets off of {{Sm|Ally}}, {{Sm|ANTi}}, {{Sm|CaptainZack}}, {{Sm|Larry Lurr}}, {{Sm|Locus}}, {{Sm|Mistake}}, {{Sm|Nairo}}, {{Sm|Salem}}, and {{Sm|Zinoto}} with Ness. Placed 2nd at [[Smash the Record 2015]], 9th at [[CEO 2016]], 13th at [[EVO 2017]], 17th at [[GameTyrant Expo 2017]], and 17th at [[2GGC: Fire Emblem Saga]] with him. Currently ranked 33rd on [[Panda Global SSB4 Rankings]].

*{{Sm|S1|Netherlands}} - The best Ness player in Europe. Placed 5th at [[B.E.A.S.T 7]], 7th at [[B.E.A.S.T 6]] and [[Syndicate 2017]], and 9th at [[Syndicate 2016]]. Has beaten top Dutch players such as {{Sm|iStudying}} and {{Sm|Mr.R}}. Ranked 2nd on the [[Dutch Power Rankings|Dutch Smash 4 Power Rankings]], tied with iStudying.

*{{Sm|Deimos|France}}

*{{Sm|Greward|Spain}}

*{{Sm|DSS|USA}} - Now mains {{SSB4|Meta Knight}}.

*{{Sm|FOW|USA}} - Widely considered the best solo Ness player in the world, but is currently inactive. Placed 4th at [[PAX Arena]], 4th at [[2GGT: Fresh Saga]], 5th at [[GENESIS 3]], 7th at [[EVO 2015]], 13th at [[2GGC: Nairo Saga]], 17th at [[2GGT: ZeRo Saga]], 25th at [[2GGC: Civil War]] and many more high placings. Has beaten players such as {{Sm|Ally}}, {{Sm|ANTi}}, {{Sm|Captain Zack}}, {{Sm|ESAM}}, {{Sm|Larry Lurr}}, {{Sm|Locus}}, {{Sm|Marss}}, {{Sm|Rich Brown}} and {{Sm|VoiD}}. He is ranked 50th on the current [[Panda Global SSB4 Rankings]].

<!--NOTE: Please do not add more names to FOW's list of players he's beaten. Having 9 here is more than enough.-->

*{{Sm|Fsann|Japan}} - Formerly ranked 15th on the [[Umebura Smash 4 Power Rankings]].

*{{Sm|The Great Gonzales|USA}} - Was the best Ness player in the Tri-State area, then-ranked 3rd on the New Jersey Smash 4 Power Rankings. Has a long streak of success at The Break Weekly, and placed 5th at Royal Flush and 17th at both KTAR XX and Smash 'N' Splash 3. Has beaten 6WX, Day, John Numbers, Mr.E, Pink Fresh, Pugwest, Salem, ScAtt, and WaDi. He announced that he would be dropping Ness in favor of maining Diddy Kong on November 15th, 2017.

During the early life of ''SSB4'', players immediately noticed the buffs made to Ness. He was widely considered to be either a high, or even a top-tier character due to his amazing throw game and his fantastic KO power and damage output. However, overtime, many people have learned about Ness's bad matchups against many of the top tier characters in the game, including many ways to exploit his recovery despite the improvements made to it. Regardless, Ness's expectations have been strong, leading to great tournament representation and results, and securing the 13th position on the first official ''4BR'' [[tier list]]. While his results slightly fell since the first tier list, as well as the release of {{SSB4|Bayonetta}}, the significant buffs to {{SSB4|Mewtwo}} and the increased representation of {{SSB4|Mega Man}} having a strong impact on the metagame, he would drop slightly on the second tier list, placing at 16th.  

Later on, Ness results would be very stagnant since many of his players had been significantly inactive than ever before in such a long time (Specifically after [[EVO 2016]] to [[2GGT: ZeRo Saga]]). Despite again gaining results on Winter 2016 and 2017, most noticeably FOW's 17th placement in [[2GGT: ZeRo Saga]] and S1's 5th placement in [[B.E.A.S.T 7]], it didn't compensate the loss of his stagnant results he had suffered from mid to late 2016. Some of his previously not so troublesome matchups such as {{SSB4|Marth}} and {{SSB4|Lucina}} would also gain a large spike in popularity, and prove to now be worrisome matchups for Ness. This resulted in a much larger tier drop to 24th on the third tier list, this drop being tied with {{SSB4|Pac-Man}} for the largest between the second and third tier lists.

Ness' ranking on the tier list became fair topic of debate, as recently, Ness has had commendable results such as FOW briefly coming out of retirement to place 13th at 2GGC: Nairo Saga and 25th at 2GGC: Civil War respectively, while NAKAT placed 3rd at [[Smash Factor 6]], 13th at EVO 2017, 17th at [[GameTyrant Expo 2017]], 17th at [[2GGC: FE Saga]], and 33rd at [[GENESIS 4]] while mostly using Ness, The Great Gonzales placed 5th at Royal Flush and 17th at Smash 'N' Splash 3 respectively and, most recently, a Japanese Ness player, Gackt, placed 17th at [[The Big House 7]], claiming wins against {{Sm|ANTi}}, {{Sm|Locus}}, and {{Sm|Mistake}} (although lost to {{Sm|Raito}} by 2-3). Regardless of these improved results, Ness dropped once again on the fourth and current tier list, at 28th, now sharing the spot with his Earthbound represenative {{SSB4|Lucas}}, though due to the expansion of the tiers, he is now considered a high tier character rather than a mid tier character. To this day, Ness' tier placement remains a large topic of debate, nonetheless.

::{{Flag|ntsc}} ''Hailing from Onett, a small town in Eagleland, this young boy's ordinary looks hide his psychic powers. Ness fought against the evil Giygas in Earthbound, and in Smash Bros. he unleashes some of the same PSI moves. Watch out for PK Thunder, a guided attack that can also launch Ness like a rocket!''

::{{Flag|pal}} ''From Onett in Eageland comes this young lad. He may not look like much, but he has powerful psychic abilities, and they really come in handy in EarthBound. They come in handy in this game, too. Did you know you can control his PK Thunder bolt? Aim it at Ness himself to send him flying, absolutely clobbering anyone in his path!''

{{Trophy games|console1=SNES|game1=[[EarthBound (game)|EarthBound]] -- 06/1995|console2=GBA|game2=[[wikibound:Mother 1+2|Mother 1+2]] -- 2003 (JP)}}

:'''Ness (Alt.)'''

::{{Flag|ntsc}} ''Ness may have psychic powers, but that doesn't mean he shies away from getting physical. His side smash packs a real punch if you hit enemies with the end of his bat, and it can even deflect projectiles! His up and down smashes also have a lot of range - Ness can land his strikes with ease!''

::{{Flag|pal}} ''Ness may have psychic powers, but that doesn't mean he shies away from getting physical. His side smash packs a real punch if you hit enemies with the end of his bat, and it can even reflect projectiles! His up and down smashes have a lot of range, meaning when you play as Ness, it's always easy to land hits on your foes!''

 

{{Trophy games|console1=SNES|game1=[[EarthBound (game)|EarthBound]] -- 06/1995|console2=GBA|game2=[[wikibound:Mother 1+2|Mother 1+2]] -- 2003 (JP)}}

 

::''In EarthBound, this PSI ability belonged to Poo, the Crown Prince of Dalaam and one of Ness's friends. Ness must have learned it especially for Smash Bros.! The attack makes a shower of meteors fall onto the stage, damaging any foes it hits. While the attack's in progress, Ness is invincible and can adjust the meteors' trajectory.''

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Ness amiibo.png|Ness's [[amiibo]].