Samus (SSB4)

Samus in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Metroid
Other playable appearances	in SSB in Melee in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Zero Laser
Tier	J (51)

Samus (サムス, Samus) is a playable veteran in Super Smash Bros. 4. Her return to the series was confirmed in the E3 2013 trailers on June 11th, 2013, while she was also among the first wave of amiibo figures that are compatible with SSB4. However, unlike in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Samus is no longer capable of transitioning into Zero Suit Samus, with the latter now becoming an entirely separate character.

Samus is currently ranked 51st out of 56 on the tier list, placing her at the top of the J tier and resulting in her remaining a bottom-tier character as in Brawl, where she was ranked 32nd out of 38. Samus has a rather strong camping game thanks to her projectiles and Grapple Beam, a good air game that allows for powerful and highly damaging combos when she finds or sets up an opening, and multiple moves that can set up said combos, such as her dash attack, up tilt, down aerial, down throw and Grapple Beam. Her Charge Shot poses a constant threat to opponents, functioning as a fearsome KOing option and a strong punishing option in many situations due to its high damage output and excellent knockback.

However, Samus is reliant on defensive spacing to keep opponents at bay; her moves are generally less effective at point-blank range, with the exception of her down tilt. Even at mid-range, Samus is prone to trading hits with opponents. Combined with her floatiness and average mobility, this can make it difficult for her to escape from juggling and other problematic situations, although she can easily return to the ledge through use of her Bomb and Grapple Beam, where she has multiple get-up options.

While Samus has noticeably improved since Brawl, largely due to game updates, most of her fellow veterans have also improved at varying degrees. This has stagnated her possible ascent to a higher tier placement and resulted in her overall representation being poor. Nevertheless, she has a slightly more significant playerbase than other bottom-tier characters, with hers even being more prominent than some bottom-tiers that are ranked higher than her, with professionals such as Jonny Westside and ChoZox bringing her some degree of competitive success. Additionally, Samus' current tier ranking is largely debatable due to her buffs from update 1.1.5 noticeably improving her, while her current ranking is only based on the 1.1.3 metagame.

Attributes

Samus is unique among the other heavyweights in the game. While she is tied with Bowser Jr. as the sixth heaviest in the game, she is a floaty character with slow falling speed and average air and ground speeds. While this gives her an easier time chasing down aerial opponents and forcing air dodges, it also causes her to be juggled easier, leaving her with few reliable landing options as her slow fall speed gives the opponent more time to punish her as she attempts to return to the stage. In addition, many of her moves artificially extend her hurtboxes, leading to trades, an opponent grabbing her invisible hurtboxes and in some cases getting punished after landing a move despite her being visually out of range of the opponents counterattack. Furthermore, some of the hitboxes on her moves, most notably up smash, forward smash and up aerial, have the issue of failing to connect properly or outright whiffing.

Samus' moveset is defensively-oriented, as she uses her projectiles to space, rack up damage from a distance and pressure shields. Charge Shot is her most consistent KOing option out of her special moves, courtesy of its increased speed and power. Missile is mostly used for spacing, due to neither its Homing or Super variants possessing KO potential, while Bomb gives Samus various mix-ups and can aid her recovery. However, Missile and Bomb also possess valuable utility, in that they can guarantee a shield break when used in conjunction with a sufficiently charged Charge Shot or a sweetspotted back aerial. Lastly, Screw Attack is a decent out of shield option, a KOing option near the upper blast line and a viable combo finisher from aerial combo strings.

In addition, Samus has a strong air game. Her back aerial is one of her best moves courtesy of its power, damage output and speed. Her down aerial can be a powerful meteor smash, forward aerial is a good pressuring tool due to its long duration, and up aerial is an excellent combo option. Lastly, her neutral aerial is a viable KOing option as of update 1.1.5. When coupled with her high jumps, Samus' air game is also potent while she is off-stage, as she can to recover from nearly anywhere on the stage, stay in position for longer periods of time due to her floatiness, or bait the opponent by stalling in the air and punishing edge-guard attempts.

Samus' grab game is also somewhat useful, as her Grapple Beam has impressive range, doubles as a tether recovery (with its range as such having been increased since Brawl) and is a capable spacing tool when used as a grab aerial. However, it still possesses considerable ending lag despite it having been reduced since Brawl and updates 1.0.8 and 1.1.5. Down throw is very useful for starting combos that deal respectable damage and can be used with her neutral, forward and up aerials at varying percentages. Many of her combos can rack up more than 30% and when using platforms to her advantage, or string together multiple times and then be finished with Screw Attack, leading to a KO or dealing 40%-50% at the very least. Lastly, her pummel is tied with Lucas' as the second fastest in the game, although it is also the weakest one in the game.

However, Samus' ground game is mediocre overall. All of her smash attacks are punishable, with only her forward smash being a fairly reliable KOing option due to its quick start-up. Her neutral attack is very mediocre, which is noticeably exemplified in its inability to connect at high percentages and thus limits Samus' anti-pressuring ability. Her tilts can combo, KO, and have decent range, but suffer from her unique hurtbox issue. Due to this and her mediocre dashing speed, most Samus players will often find themselves in the air, where her strengths lie.

In terms of customs, Samus benefits from a few. Apex Screw Attack has slightly more start-up and the recovery it provides is slightly worse, but it does more damage and massive knockback to the point of KOing most middleweights at 75% from the stage and as low as 50% near the upper blast line. Screw Rush, while making her vertical recovery worse, grants more horizontal distance and KOs earlier then Screw Attack depending where on the stage and deals more damage, making it more useful for racking up percent. Relentless Missile, while traveling slower, has more accurate tracking as a homing missile while dealing less damage. The Super Missile deals more damage and slightly more knockback. Turbo Missile travels more distance and is considerably faster than both Missile and Relentless Missile, at the cost of dealing less damage in general. Dense Charge Shot is dependent on the match-up and the person's playstyle. As one of the strongest projectiles in the game, it takes a bit longer to charge, and has much less speed and range. However, it gives Samus multiple set-ups due to the length of time the Charge Shot stays in the air and with the increased damage, can force shield breaks much easier and KO much easier. Slip Bomb, while dealing less damage, has the useful property of tripping grounded opponents and meteor smashing airborne opponents, making it useful as a set up for a grab or a punish and a edge-guarding option to spike the opponent. Mega Bomb can be used to stall opponents, since Samus can stay next to the bomb itself, waiting until the Bomb explodes, allowing Samus to either retreat, launch Missiles, charge her charge shot or make the opponent approach. Melee Charge shot has a shorter charge time then both Charge Shot and Dense Charge shot, while also having considerably more hitstun and shieldstun with the inclusion of extra pushback after its use, making it extremely safe if shielded or outright whiffed.

Overall, Samus is a character that works best when using her projectiles and grab aerial for spacing in order to set up combos and either finish off pressured opponents off-stage or KO them outright with Charge Shot. Unlike the majority of veterans, Samus' optimal playstyle is highly unorthodox; as she falls short in regards to either zoning-exclusive offense or melee-exclusive offense, success with Samus requires careful, calculated use of her various tools to keep momentum in her favor, much like in her home series. As such, she is like Shulk in that she is a character that is hard to master, but greatly rewards a patient and calculated playstyle.

Changes from Brawl

Samus has received a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition from Brawl to SSB4, but has been buffed overall due to her buffs being more abundant and helpful. Samus has gained several new KOing options, the most notable of which is her staple move, Charge Shot, which has drastically increased speed and knockback. The other noteworthy options include her forward smash, up smash, neutral aerial, forward aerial and Screw Attack. Forward smash now has a powerful sweetspot in the form of a fiery blast at the tip of her Arm Cannon. Neutral aerial, forward aerial, up smash and Screw Attack have each have had their knockback improved, most notably on neutral aerial (and only to the final hit in Screw Attack's case). Additionally, forward aerial, up smash and Screw Attack's multiple hits now connect better to further ensure that opponents cannot escape the final hits. Samus' dash attack is also capable of KOing due to strengthened sweetspot growth, although it is not as viable in doing so as the aforementioned moves.

Aside from her new KOing options, Samus benefits from the general changes between Brawl and SSB4. With the changes to hitstun canceling, Samus' combo game has been improved. Her attacks such as down throw and dash attack have been given better knockback angles, and she is able to combo attacks into each other far easier, with multiple combo starters and combo oriented moves, including dash attack, up tilt, forward aerial, up aerial and down aerial. Due to the overall higher fall speeds in the transition, Samus was given improvements to her falling speed, air speed, and gravity, which makes her aerial presence more threatening, giving her access to combos she never had before, and also allows her to land slighty easier than in Brawl. The changes to shields and shieldstun in update 1.1.1 also benefit her, as she can use her Charge Shot, Super Missile and Bomb in tandem with other moves to easily break shields.

However, Samus also received a few nerfs in other areas during the initial. Her forward smash now has sightly increased ending lag as well as a new sourspot that is rather weak and runs along the Arm Cannon, while her up smash now deals less damage overall, though its knockback was heavily compensated, however. Likely due to receiving more KOing options, some of Samus' more reliable finishers in Brawl, such as her down tilt and down smash, can no longer KO until very high percents. Missile is harder to camp with due her losing the ability to perform her Missile Cancel technique, though her projectiles overall are still powerful and useful in their own right. Additionally, a few of of Samus' most damaging attacks deal slightly less damage, although they still deal high damage relative to the cast, while her aerials have slightly more landing lag (a universal nerf though this is universal among the cast).

Overall, Samus has been buffed overall from Brawl despite receiving a fair share of nerfs. She has been slightly re-balanced to be less reliant on projectiles, now wielding a slightly improved close-range game, with both her damage racking ability and combo game having been vastly improved. Most importantly, she has noticeably improved KOing potential, enabling her to score KOs much easier. While a few of her moves now require slightly more precision, such as her forward smash, neutral aerial and Missile, they compensate for this by being more rewarding. As such, she has a relatively high learning curve, but can be quite viable and versatile when mastered, similarly to Shulk. Dedicated players like ESAM have managed to bring her some degree of tournament success and continue to develop her metagame.

Aesthetics

• Samus' design is now based on her design in Metroid: Other M, while she retains her taller height from Metroid games preceding Other M. Her updated design also incorporates numerous black vents, while her visor and the accents on her Arm Cannon, chest plate and shoulder pads have had their coloration changed from lime green to emerald green.
• Missile and Bomb have been very slightly updated with general graphical enhancements. Bomb is now colored red instead of orange-red.
• Dash's animation has changed.
• Missile's animation has changed. Super Missile is now fired slightly more exaggeratedly.

Attributes

• Samus walks faster (1.05 → 1.0615).
• Samus dashes faster (1.445 → 1.504).
• Samus' air speed is faster (0.987 → 1.03).
• Samus' falls faster (1.07 → 1.3).
• Samus' fast falling speed is faster (2.0 → 2.08).
• Samus' gravity is higher (0.75 → 0.77).
• Jumps are higher.
• Samus is no longer connected to Zero Suit Samus via Final Smash, taunt, or menu input usage, with the latter becoming her own separate character.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack's second hit deals 1% more damage (7% → 8%) and has increased vertical range.
• Neutral attack's first hit has decreased hitstun and increased knockback growth. This allows opponents to shield the second hit or even be launched out of range for the second hit to land, hindering its utility.
• Forward tilt has adjusted hitbox properties. Its non-angle it has received two sweetspots covering the lower leg and foot that deal more damage and received sourspots on her upper leg and body that deal the same damage as in Brawl (7%/8% → 7%/8%/9%/10%). Its upward and downward angles have each received a sweetspot on her foot that deals 1% more damage (10% → 11%). Additionally, the move has increased knockback, improving its KO potential.
• Forward tilt's upward and downward angles have received sourspots covering her upper leg and body (10% → 8%/9%/10%). It also has 1 more frame of start-up (frame 7 → 8).
• Down tilt deals 2% less damage (14% → 12%) and has decreased knockback growth (60 → 48), hindering its KO potential.
• Down tilt has slightly increased range.
• Up tilt has reversed damage outputs (13% → 12% (grounded opponents), 12% → 13% (aerial opponents)), improving its combo potential on grounded opponents and its KO potential on aerial opponents.
• Dash attack has received an early hitbox that deals 7% damage and prevents point-blank whiffing. It also has adjusted hitbox timing and a longer hitbox duration overall (frame 8-10 (clean)/11-16 (late) → 8-9 (early)/10-13 (clean)/14-18 (late)), decreased ending lag (IASA 38 → 34), improved knockback against aerial opponents and a more vertical angle. When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, this significantly improves its combo potential.
• Forward smash has received a sourspot on the Arm Cannon that deals 1% less damage (14%/13%/12% → 13%/12%/11%). However, this sourspot is still somewhat stronger overall than it was in Brawl (20 (base)/100 (growth) → 16/112). It also has 2 more frames of ending lag.
• Forward smash has received a sweetspot at the tip of the Arm Cannon that deals more damage (14%/13%/12% → 15%/14%/13.5%), improving its KO potential when fully charged and angled upward.
• Forward smash's animation has changed. Its sweetspot is now indicated by a fiery blast that deals flame damage.
• Up smash deals 5% less damage (23% → 18%).
• Up smash connects together better and has increased knockback, improving its KO potential.
• Down smash deals less damage (15% → 10% (front), 14% → 12% (back)) and decreased knockback (90 (base)/50 (growth) → 70/46 (first hit), 80 (base)/40 (growth) → 70/48 (back hit)), hindering its KO potential. Both hits also have 1 less active frame.
• Down smash has decreased ending lag (IASA 52 → 45) and now semi-spikes, improving its edge-guarding potential.

Aerial attacks

• All aerials' have increased landing lag (9 frames → 16 (neutral), 9 frames → 25 (forward), 12 frames → 18 (back) 9 frames → 12 (up), and (9 frames → 20 (down)).
• Samus has a new neutral aerial, a swiveling roundhouse kick. Compared to the previous neutral aerial, it deals more damage (9%/6% → 10%/9%/8%), has increased knockback, has increased reach behind her and launches at a more horizontal angle, improving its KO potential.
• Neutral aerial has 3 more frames of start-up (5 frames → 8) and its hitbox is significantly smaller, as it no longer covers her entire body, hindering its range.
• Samus' faster falling speed removes forward aerial's ability to auto-cancel from a short hop and back aerial's ability to be used twice from a short hop.
• Forward and down aerials deal less damage (18% → 12.8% (forward), 15% → 10%/14%/11% (down)).
• Forward aerial has received an additional hitbox to make its hits connect together better. It also launches at the auto-link angle and its last hit has increased knockback.
• Back aerial's sourspot deals 2% more damage (10% → 12%) and its sweetspot is much stronger, making it among the strongest back aerials if her foot connects, improving its KO potential. Additionally, the move has received a lingering sourspot that deals 9% and knockback that enables it to be used in a Wall of Pain, improving its utility.
• Up aerial's hits connect together better and its last hit has increased knockback, improving its KO potential near the upper blast line.
• Down aerial comes out 1 frame faster.
• Down aerial has received a sourspot along the edges of its arc that launches opponents horizontally.
• Grab aerial deals less damage (4%/7 → 1%/3.5%) and now has 8 frames of landing lag instead of auto-canceling.
• Grab aerial has received two additional hitboxes, with a sweetspot located at the tip of the Grapple Beam.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have significantly less ending lag (IASA 94 (standing)/74 (dash)/96 (pivot) → 69/67/83). When coupled with the pummel, this noticeably improves Samus' grab game.
• Pummel has been fixed to always hit Bowser.
• Down throw has an altered launching angle, improving its follow-up potential.
• Grapple Beam has increased range as a tether recovery.
• Front floor attack deals 1% more damage (6% → 7%).
• Back floor attack and edge attack deal consistent damage (6%/8% → 7%).

Special moves

• Charge Shot charges slightly faster, travels significantly faster and has increased knockback growth (56 → 62), improving its KO potential.
• Homing and Super Missiles come out 2 frames earlier (20 (Homing)/23 (Super) → 18/21), their shooting durations have increased by 2 frames, and both have decreased ending lag on the ground (IASA 60 (both) → 57 (Homing)/59 (Super)). Super Missile also has increased base knockback (40 → 50), slightly improving its KO potential.
• Samus can only have two Homing Missiles and one Super Missile on-screen at the same time. If she attempts to shoot another one while one is already on-screen, she will perform the firing animation, but no Missile will be fired. Homing Missile also appears to target less reliably. Additionally, Missile covers less distance and Samus is no longer able to perform the Missile Cancel, hindering its utility.
• Screw Attack travels higher vertically and its last hit has increased knockback, improving its KO potential near the upper blast line.
• Bomb has decreased knockback, improving its combo potential. It also has decreased ending lag (IASA 47 → 45). Additionally, aerial Bomb can be used faster, which when coupled with her faster air speed, improves its horizontal recovery potential.
• Aerial Bomb stalls Samus' falling speed for a slightly shorter amount of time. Additionally, Bomb Jumps bounce Samus slightly lower than before, hindering its vertical recovery potential.
• Zero Laser deals less damage overall.
• Zero Laser comes out faster and has a wider range.
• Zero Laser's animation has slightly changed. The beam now starts out thin before expanding and produces slightly more prominent visual effects around the Arm Cannon's tip.

Update history

Samus has been heavily buffed via game updates. She received plenty of significant buffs during game updates, along with two minor nerfs that were either negligible or even fixed outright in later updates, causing her to fair much better after the updates.

In terms of direct changes, Samus started receiving relevant minor buffs in update 1.0.8. Said update saw her up smash buffed so that its hit can connect together slightly better than before, while her grabs' ending lag was reduced, making them slightly safer. 1.1.1 bought about more minor buffs; Screw Attack was changed to help its hits connect together better. Her neutral and forward aerials were also slightly buffed, with neutral aerial having its hitbox sizes and timings improved, while forward aerial had its damage output increased and its landing lag decreased. In term of indirect changes, the changes to shield mechanics brought about by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 are a mixed bag for Samus. The new mechanics gave Samus a number of new Charge Shot combos that allow her to break shields, of which she previously only had one such combo. However, these same changes also make most of her close-ranged attacks more difficult to land, while the only other moves that have been improved are her down tilt, her forward smash's sweetspot, up smash, and forward aerial, which are already difficult to land (or in up smash's case, the opponent to be above on a platform).

However, update 1.1.5 has granted Samus arguably her most noteworthy buffs. Dash attack now has a hitbox that deals 7% at the beginning of the dash, which prevents it from whiffing and makes its hitbox timing virtually identical to Brawl. Forward tilt has been vastly improved; after being nerfed overall in update 1.0.6, all of its hitboxes now deal 2% more damage, its sourspot deals more knockback (thus making it safer and more rewarding upon landing) and its tech-chase combos have effectively been restored after they had been severely weakened to the point of necessitating its sweetspot for said combos to be performed. Like her forward tilt, her neutral aerials hitboxes all deal 2% more damage, which naturally increases its knockback and improves both its damage racking and KO potentials. Although it is still a very unimpressive move, down smash had its ending lag decreased, making it safer as a quick anti-pressure option. All of her grabs had their ending lag deceased even further. Bombs were also changed slightly, as Samus now gets more momentum out of one in the air. Lastly, Samus' attributes were also changed for the better. Her gravity and both her falling and air speeds were increased, which improves her already great survivability and allows her to land more effectively than before, which has been made even easier thanks to the aforementioned Bomb buff. As a result, Samus has been significantly buffed overall as of update 1.1.5, having become considerably better than she she was in Brawl and even better than she was during SSB4's initial release.

1.0.6

• Sweetspotted forward tilt deals 1% more damage: 7%/8% → 8%/9% and its knockback increased, slightly improving its KO potential near the edge.
• Forward tilt received a sourspot on the middle part of Samus' leg. This makes it deal 1% less damage: 6%/7% → 5%/6% and little to no hitstun. When coupled with the aforementioned sweetspot buff, forward tilt has also lost its ability to lead into Charge Shot tech-chases, hindering its utility.
• Super Missile's speed increased, although it is rather negligible.

1.0.8

• Up smash has been improved. Its initial hits' hitbox sizes increased by 0.5u, its last hit's hitbox size increased: 7u/3.5u → 7.3u/4u and its last hit's knockback growth increased: 135 → 150.
• Standing and pivot grabs' ending lag decreased: 79 (standing)/92 (pivot) → 75/88.

1.1.1

• Up tilt's damage outputs reversed: 13% → 12% (grounded opponents), 12% → 13% (aerial opponents), improving both its combo potential on grounded opponents and its KO potential on aerial opponents near the edge.
• Neutral aerial has been improved. Its hitboxes' sizes increased: 5.5u → 6u (first), 3.5u → 4u (sweetspotted second), 2.8u → 3.3u (sourspotted second), its hitboxes' durations increased by 2 frames and its sourspotted second hit's knocback growth increased: 80 → 98.
• Neutral aerial's second hit's angle altered: Sakurai angle → 45°.
• Forward aerial's loop hits deal 0.6% more damage: 1% → 1.6%.
• Forward aerial's landing lag decreased: 30 frames → 24.
• Melee Charge Shot has been improved. It deals more damage: 5% → 6% (partially charged), 18% → 20% (fully charged), its partially charged base knockback increased: 30 → 50 and its fully charged hitbox sizes increased: 8u → 10u.
• Partially charged Melee Charge Shot's hitbox sizes decreased: 4u → 2.5u.
• Fully charged Melee Charge Shot's knockback altered: 65 (base)/35 (growth) → 70/32.
• Melee Charge Shot's recoil distance increased.
• Screw Attack's loop hits' weight knockback increased: 150/120 → 178/140.
• Screw Attack's loop hits' angles altered: 100° → 96°.

1.1.5

• Samus' air speed (0.95 → 1.03), falling speed (1.25 → 1.3), fast falling speed (2 → 2.08) and gravity (0.75 → 0.77) increased.
• Dash attack ending lag decreased by four frames (IASA 37 → 33).
• Dash attack has received a new 2 frame hitbox on frame 8 that deals 7%. This makes it no longer whiff at point-blank range.
• All of forward tilt's hitboxes deal 2% more damage (6%/7%/8%/9% → 8%/9%/10%/11%) and the sourspots have more base knockback (10 → 20), overriding the nerf in 1.0.6 and restoring its tech-chasing abilities.
• Down smash ending lag decreased by seven frames (IASA 52 → 45).
• Neutral aerial deals 2% more damage: 8%/6%/7% → 10%/8%/9%.
• The second hit of neutral aerial (late) has a larger hitbox size and z position: 3.3 (hitbox)/5.3/0 (z position) → 3.6/5.4/0.
• Forward aerial's angles have been altered, its hitboxes values have been extended, and its first hit has received a new hitbox that deals 3% to make it connect together better.
• All grabs have decreased ending lag by six frames each (75 (standing)/73 (dash)/89 (pivot) → 69/67/83.
• Homing Missile and Super Missile come out 2 frames earlier: (20/23 → 18/21).
• Super Missile's shooting duration is increased by 2 frames.
• Bombs give Samus more momentum in the air.
• Bomb can be cancelled with a crouch sooner (frame 47 → 45).

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3%	Punches with her left hand and then performs a forearm club with her Arm Cannon. The first hit can jab reset opponents, but the attack is mediocre overall, as opponents can usually act out before the second hit to shield or counterattack, while the second hit may not even connect at high percentages. At percents ranging from 35%-75% though (varies with weight), the attack is safe, and can true combo into itself, but only if the first hit connects relatively close to the arm and not at the fist. First hit comes out at frame 3, while the second hit comes out 6 frames later, meaning it is a much safer option overall to connect the first hit and retreat. The second hit does have KO potential at high percentages, however.
			8%
Forward tilt	↗		11% (foot), 10% (lower leg), 8% (upper leg), 9% (body)	A reverse roundhouse kick. Deals more damage and knockback with her heel, while her leg deals less damage and knockback. Can be aimed at strong angles, though if angled up, it can even miss medium sized characters like Mario. Comes out at frame 8. The foot sweetspot deals rather potent knockback for a tilt, which can KO near the edge at around 150%. At varying percentages, such as from 30%-40% when sweetspotted and 100%-120% when sourspotted, it can lead into a guaranteed Charge Shot. This is because, regardless of teching, Charge Shot will catch their option in time.
	→		10% (foot), 9% (lower leg), 7% (upper leg), 8% (body)
	↘		11% (foot), 10% (lower leg), 8% (upper leg), 9% (body)
Up tilt			13% (aerial), 12% (grounded)	An axe kick, similar to Captain Falcon's up tilt. If an opponent is hit directly by her heel as it comes down, they take extra damage and are meteor smashed. If not, this move deals upward diagonal knockback. Samus' strongest tilt, it is able to KO grounded opponents at 140% or less with rage, but has slight start-up. KOs aerial opponents at the ledge around 90% or earlier depending on weight. Comes out at frame 15. If the opponent misses the grounded tech, is a good combo starter for her aerials at low to medium percentages, while it functions as a true combo into Charge Shot at high percentages.
Down tilt			12%	Quickly blasts the opponent's feet. Fast start-up, but high ending lag. Decently damaging for a tilt attack, although it cannot KO until extremely high percentages. It comes out at frame 6, making it useful as a close range anti-pressure option on opponents in front of Samus, a punishment option, and a damage racking option. With maximum rage, it can KO middleweights at 150%.
Dash attack			7% (early), 10% (clean), 6% (late)	Activates her thrusters and shoulder tackles the opponent. Deals lower damage at the beginning and end of the tackle. A fantastic combo starter as of update 1.1.5, as it can lead into neutral, forward and up aerial or Screw Attack at a variety of percents depending on which hitbox connects.
Forward smash	↗		15% (fire), 13% (Arm Cannon)	Quickly thrusts her Arm Cannon forward, which releases a small fiery blast. Despite the blast's appearance, the hitbox does not quite reach the end of the blast, and even reaches slightly into the Arm Cannon. Heavily reliant on spacing, as only the blast deals knockback strong enough to KO at 100% from the middle of Final Destination. Conversely, her Arm Cannon KOs at 138%, similarly to Mario's forward smash. However, it is tied with Marth and Lucina's forward smashes as the fastest one in the game, coming out at frame 10. It can be angled like her forward tilt, with the upward angle dealing more damage and knockback, though it can typically miss as a result. The downward angle can hit edge hanging opponents, similarly to her down tilt.
	→		14% (fire), 12% (Arm Cannon)
	↘		13.5% (fire), 11% (Arm Cannon)
Up smash		Cover Fire	3% (hits 1-4), 6% (hit 5), 18% (total)	Fires five fiery blasts in an overhead arcing motion. True to its name, this move works best as an anti-air attack, as its multiple hits give a good amount of aerial protection. Conversely, this move is unable to hit grounded opponents unless they are touching Samus. When reversed on the ground, it can poke and hit through shields. KOs at 115% uncharged and around 60%-70% when fully charged.
Down smash			10% (front), 12% (back)	A legsweep. A semi-spike, its speed is decent and provides protection against rolls and near ledges. However, its power has been significantly toned down since Brawl, as it is now one of the weakest down smashes in the game. KOs at extremely high percents, making it unreliable. However, the back hit deals more knockback, making it possible to KO at 150% with enough rage. Its ending lag is relatively quick however, making it more useful as a decent anti-pressure move and a punishment option against rolls due to its ability to hit behind Samus.
Neutral aerial			10% (hit 1), 9% (hit 2 clean), 8% (hit 2 late)	A swiveling roundhouse kick. Hits on both sides quickly and can auto-cancel from a short hopped fast fall. One of the strongest neutral aerials as of update 1.1.5, the first few frames deal very powerful knockback, makes it a viable KOing option off-stage or near the edge. It also functions as a decent combo finisher.
Forward aerial			3% (hit 1), 1.6% (hits 2-4), 5% (hit 5), 12.8% (total)	Fires five fiery blasts forward from her Arm Cannon while slowly arcing downward. The first four hits drag opponents into the rest of the move, with the last hit carrying the entire attack's knockback. Samus' main aerial move for both combos and protection. Extremely useful as a ledge get-up option or against air dodges due to its multiple hits, and using the move immediately after a short hop can hit opponents with the last hit before Samus lands again. As of update 1.1.5, the first hitbox of the move results in all of the move's hits connecting together much better than before, to the point that it functions as a true combo from down throw up to around 70%, or chain into itself at low percents thanks to Samus' improved air speed in that same update.
Back aerial			14% (clean foot), 12% (clean leg), 9% (late)	A back kick. In addition to being fast, it has great, powerful knockback, which makes it an excellent KOing option, especially while edge-guarding. However, it has a small hitbox like her neutral aerial. Among the strongest back aerials if the sweetspot at the foot connects and can be used as a Wall of Pain if the sourspot connects. KOs under 100% and around 80% at the edge.
Up aerial			3% (hit 1), 1% (hits 2-5), 4% (hit 6), 11% (total)	A diagonal corkscrew flying kick. Hits multiple times, though only the last hit deals moderate knockback. Unlike most drills, the opponent can easily be launched before the move is complete if Samus does no follow the opponent's previous launch direction. Grounded opponents can be hit by the last hitbox if Samus lands while starting the move in the air, although difficult to do so. It is her fastest aerial, coming out at frame 5. Useful for landing, breaking some certain combos, and countering aerial approaches. Can be used as a follow-up after a dash attack, grounded up tilt, down aerial, or down throw, all of which can be followed up with another up aerial and/or can be finished off with a Screw Attack. On stages with platforms, can even zero-to-death the entire cast when using a platform to extend the combo.
Down aerial			10% (early), 14% (clean), 11% (late)	Swings her Arm Cannon in a downward arcing motion after a brief pause. Hitting with the move's trail will meteor smash opponents, while the sourspot on the edge of the move at the very start and end deals strong upward diagonal knockback. Auto-cancels from a short hop. A relatively good combo starter.
Grab aerial		Grapple Beam	1.5% (early), 3% (clean)	Fires the Grapple Beam forward. A useful spacing option due to its unnoticeable landing lag from a short hop (8 frames), auto-cancels from a full hop, and has impressive range, being the longest grab aerial in game. Good at setting up an opening for a dash attack, which Samus can capitalize on with combos.
Grab		Grapple Beam	—	Fires the Grapple Beam to catch the opponent. It has impressive range and is the longest tether grab in the game, though it is tied with her suitless form's grab as the second slowest in terms of ending lag, making it very punishable if missed.
Pummel			1.2%	A palm strike. Tied with Lucas' pummel as the second fastest pummel in the game, losing out only to Lucario's pummel. However, it is also the weakest one in the game.
Forward throw			9%	Twirls the enemy over her head, then flings them forward. Low knockback growth prevents it from KOing even the lightest of characters unless with rage at extremely high percents.
Back throw			8%	Swings the opponent behind her. Has even lower knockback growth than her forward throw.
Up throw			1% (hits 1-5), 4% (throw), 9% total	Holds the opponent above her, then blasts them upward. Can combo into a Screw Attack or up aerial at 0% against heavyweights or fast-fallers, but otherwise launches opponents too high for follow-ups. However, on a platform, it can zero-to-death the same characters when followed up by up aerial and then Screw Attack. Like her forward and back throws, it possesses low knockback growth.
Down throw			6%	Pulls the opponent high above her head, then whips them into the ground. A dependable combo starter, as it can be reliably followed up with her aerial attacks, particularly her neutral, forward, up aerials, or a Charge Shot or Screw Attack at low to medium percents.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Waves her Arm Cannon in front of her, then blasts behind her.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	A low-level roundhouse kick.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Sweeps the floor in front and behind her with her feet.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	Climbs onto the edge and performs a sweep kick.
Neutral special	Default	Charge Shot	3% (uncharged), 25% (fully charged)	Charges up a ball of energy and fires it. Unless the move is already charged, Samus will instantly fire the weakest shot if used in the air. Gains excellent KO potential when fully charged, while a useful intercepting move at a low charge. KOs at 70%-110% depending on weight, DI and rage. Can be used to break shields if used in conjunction after using her up or down tilts, Bombs, Super Missiles, aerials or her neutral attack if both hits are shielded. When used in conjunction with forward tilt to force the opponent into tumble, said move can set up a guaranteed Charge Shot, regardless of tech option, as the Charge Shot will catch their tech direction.
	Custom 1	Dense Charge Shot	4% (uncharged), 27% (fully charged)	The shots deal slightly more damage, more shield damage and considerably more knockback, making it even better for KOing and breaking shields. However, the charge time is increased by 30%, the ending lag after firing is increased and shots travel at extremely slow speeds, so much so that three uncharged shots can exist at once. As a result, this can make them be used as an edge-guarding option, as it can be used to trap opponents and put them at a tough spot.
	Custom 2	Melee Charge Shot	6% (uncharged), 20% (fully charged)	Fires a shotgun-style blast of energy that only hits at point-blank range. Takes less time to charge, but the ending lag is increased. Has a massive amount of shieldstun and hitstun and gets pushed back after use, making it safe if whiffed or shielded.
Side special	Default	Missile	5% (standard, Homing), 10% (Super)	Fires a Missile. If the special button is held, the Missile will chase the opponent. If tapped like a smash attack, Samus will fire a Super Missile that travels in a straight line. Both versions deal low knockback, but can be used for a shield break if used in conjunction with a fully charged Charge Shot. Both Missile variations can be used as set-ups by opening up an opportunity for a dash attack, grab aerial, or Charge Shot, while the Super version sets up better for a true combo into forward jumping Charge Shot at higher percentages. The homing variation is also useful for catching recoveries and forcing air dodges, which can open up punish opportunities.
	Custom 1	Relentless Missile	3% (standard, homing), 12% (Super)	Missiles are weaker and slower, but have drastically improved tracking capabilities. Super Missiles cover less range, but are stronger and have increased KO potential.
	Custom 2	Turbo Missile	4% (standard, homing), 9% (Super)	Missiles pause in the air once fired before shooting forward at high speed at the cost of dealing slightly less damage.
Up special	Default	Screw Attack	2% (ground hit 1), 1% (ground hits 2-11), 1% (aerial hits 1-12), 12% (total)	Leaps upward and performs a high-speed somersault while discharging energy. Shoots upward if started from the ground, while the move gains distance slower if started in the air. A useful out of shield option and deals good knockback that can KO near the upper blast line around 100%.
	Custom 1	Screw Rush	2% (loop), 5% (last)	Deals more damage and knockback sporadically, but with more control. It also covers more horizontal distance, but at the cost of decreased vertical distance. Has more KO potential then Screw Attack depending on stage position.
	Custom 2	Apex Screw Attack	2% (hit 1), 9% (ground hit 2), 7% (aerial hit 2)	A much more powerful variation that can KO as low as 50% near the upper blast line, depending on weight and DI and can KO earlier with rage. However, this version provides mostly vertical movement and only hits twice.
Down special	Default	Bomb	4% (contact), 5% (explosion)	Rolls into her Morph Ball form and drops a Bomb, which explodes on a timer. She can hit herself with the Bombs to Bomb Jump. Useful for edge-guarding or to force an opponent to shield. Deals good shield damage, as it is able to break them if used with her up and down tilts or a fully charged Charge Shot. Good for punishing certain recoveries and also useful for punishing the 2 frame-long edge grab vulnerability if timed correctly.
	Custom 1	Slip Bomb	2.5% (ground explosion), 3.5% (aerial explosion)	The Bomb deals slightly less damage, but trips grounded opponents and meteor smashes aerial ones, making it capable of being a set-up a grab and a useful edge-guarding option.
	Custom 2	Mega Bomb	4% (contact), 9% (explosion)	Only one Bomb is able to be launched at a time, but its explosion deals more damage and provides a higher Bomb Jump. Deals more shield damage, making it better for breaking shields when used in conjunction with Samus' other moves.
Final Smash		Zero Laser	0.5% (fringe loop), 1.5% (main loop), 2.5% (fringe blast), 5.5% (main blast)	Samus fires a very large energy beam across the stage. The beam can be angled slightly up or slightly down.

On-screen appearance

• Arrives from a Save Station.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Salutes vigorously with her left arm as her thrusters activate.
• Side taunt: Faces the screen and demonstrates the Arm Cannon's mechanics.
• Down taunt: Holds her Arm Cannon with her left hand and aims behind her, then kneels and aims lower in front of her.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Rubs her Arm Cannon with one finger.
• Brings her Arm Cannon down and then pulls it back up.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Sa-mus!	Sa-mus!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

A flourished remix directly from Brawl based on the sound clip that would play when Samus Aran obtained a new power-up or addition to her Power Suit. It would also play when Samus defeated Ridley and Kraid.

• Fires multiple shots from her Arm Cannon while kneeling and finishes with a pose. The pose she does is based on the box art for Metroid II: Return of Samus.
• Does a reverse roundhouse kick, readies her Arm Cannon, then strikes a pose.
• Punches twice, fires from her Arm Cannon, then strikes a pose. The motion is similar to Mii Gunner's neutral attack, while the pose is based on the box art for Super Metroid.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Samus	1211	1221	1231	1212	1222
	1232	2211	2231	3211	1213

Notable players

•  ChoZox
•  Danish
•  Depth
•  ESAM
•  Jonny Westside
•  KayJay
•  Wes

Trophies

Samus

Samus Aran has fought her way across a variety of planets in the Metroid series. She wears a Power Suit designed by the Chozo, giving her incredible versatility in a fight. She can wade in, but she favors beams and missiles. A fully charged Charge Shot packs a serious punch!

The heroine of the Metroid series, Samus Aran. Her missions take her across the reaches of space, and her Power Suit gives her immeasurable fighting prowess. In this game, she uses a variety of ranged attacks based around beams and missiles. When her Charge Shot is fully charged, it can launch foes with devastating force.

: Metroid (08/1987)

: Super Metroid (04/1994)

Samus (Alt.)

Samus protects herself from overhead enemies with her up smash, Cover Fire, which can land multiple hits on anyone it connects with. Samus also fires a homing missile by holding sideways and pressing the special- attack button or launches a Super Missile by quickly tapping sideways instead.

Samus' up smash attack, Cover Fire, fires five small blasts overhead, making it great for countering incoming aerial attacks. Her Missile attack fires a homing missile if you hold sideways and then press the special button, but if you do these things at the same time, you'll fire a Super Missile.

: Metroid (08/1987)

: Super Metroid (04/1994)

Zero Laser

Samus unleashes a massive, long-range beam from her Arm Cannon as her Final Smash. Fighters on the edges of the beam will be drawn in, taking more and more damage. The sheer power of this weapon makes it tough to aim once it's firing, but it's possible to adjust the beam up and down.

In Samus' Final Smash, she unleashes a huge laser beam from her Arm Cannon that draws opponents to the centre of the beam. Quite handy, since the closer they are to the centre, the more damage they'll take! You can also angle it up and down (albeit slowly), letting you catch more of your enemies and create more havoc.

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  Classic (3DS)

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  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

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  Zero Laser

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Regulars: Samus is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents are starter characters from the original Super Smash Bros. game.
• Galactic Avenger: Samus must defeat Dark Samus and Ridley in a 150 HP match.
• Identity Crisis: The player, as Sheik and Zelda, must defeat Samus and Zero Suit Samus.

Co-op Events

• Final Battle Team-Up: Samus in her Dark Samus alternate costume is one of the opponents the player must defeat.
• Poisonous Planet: A flowered Samus and Olimar must defeat two giant Charizards in a 200 HP battle before their own health bars are depleted.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Samus in the Nintendo Direct from April 8th, 2014.

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  Samus' amiibo.

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  Samus' appearance during E3 2013.

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  Samus charging a Charge Shot in the Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS of the game.

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  Samus firing a Missile in the Wii U version of the game.

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  Samus dropping a Bomb in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS of the game.

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  Samus charging Zero Laser.

• Zero Laser SSB4.png

  Zero Laser.

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  The second hit of her neutral attack.

• Little Mac Counter.png

  Forward tilt.

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  Back aerial.

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  Crouching with Marth near a Steel Diver.

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  Samus and Bowser fighting on Arena Ferox.

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  Peach, Wii Fit Trainer, and Samus showing off a height comparison.

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  Side-by-side with Little Mac.

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  Samus posing in the Boxing Ring.

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  Toon Link using the Gust Bellows on Samus.

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  Zero Suit Samus with her Power Suit showing off their Jet Boots and thrusters, respectively.

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  Samus and Link simultaneously grabbing a ledge with their tether recoveries.

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  Samus battling enemies in Smash Run.

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  Samus sporting her new Light Suit-inspired alternate costume.

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  Samus as she appears on the cover for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.