Nerf

A nerf is a term used to describe the weakening of a character (or aspect of a character), either through updating a game or by releasing a sequel. It is often done as an attempt to balance the roster. The best example of this is Kirby's transition from the original Super Smash Bros. to Super Smash Bros. Melee; Kirby went from being among the best characters according to the Smash 64 tier list to among the worst according to Melee's. The opposite term is "buff", which is the strengthening of a character between sequel games and game updates.

The term "nerf" is derived from the brand of toy known for its soft foam-like substance. This substance allows for safer play, as little chance of injury comes from impact with such items. In effect, a projectile is less damaging because it was "nerfed".

Notable Examples

Smash 64 to Melee

• Kirby: one of the most well-known cases. In the transition, Kirby's reach was gravely reduced, with his up tilt in particular losing its infamously large hitbox. Also, his KO ability was toned down, with his forward smash going from one of the strongest in 64 to one of the weakest in Melee.
• Pikachu: Pikachu's range was also significantly reduced. Its air speed went from one of the fastest to slow, and its grab range was reduced to the shortest in Melee.

Melee to Brawl

The vast majority of veterans were nerfed, many as a result of universal gameplay changes, most notably hitstun cancelling, which adversely affected combos, and the loss of wavedashing and L-cancelling, which reduced characters' mobility options.

• Captain Falcon: the addition of hitstun cancelling compromised his combo ability, as he relied on hitstun to allow him to chain high-power moves with his mobility. His Knee Smash also had its hitbox reduced, and the sweetspot's shorter duration made the move overall more difficult to land, which was further compounded by the aforementioned hitstun changes.
• Fox: though still a high-tier, his Reflector could no longer be jump-cancelled, removing many of his combos and KO set-ups.
• Ganondorf: his already sub-par mobility was worsened. The removal of L-cancelling hindered his ability to use his aerials for approaching, comboing, and KOing.
• Jigglypuff: like Captain Falcon, Jigglypuff suffered severely with the hitstun changes, weakening its Wall of Pain ability and removing its reliable set-ups into Rest. Also, Rest's knockback was greatly decreased.
• Peach: her down smash (which was her best move in Melee) was severely weakened to the point where it can no longer KO until Sudden Death percentages, and it also dealt much less damage.
• Sheik: the sourspot of her up smash was weakened, and her forward aerial's knockback was significantly lowered, toning down her KO power.

Brawl to Smash 4

• Falco: Blaster fires slower, and no longer auto-cancels on landing, crippling his neutral game. His down throw can no longer chain-grab. Down aerial is much slower and weaker, removing arguably his best KO option.
• King Dedede: his new back aerial, though stronger, is much slower, and the hitbox has shorter duration, hurting his approach game. His down throw can no longer infinitely chain-grab.
• Marth: his overall reach has been shortened. His moves have increased ending lag and decreased hitbox durations, notably his down tilt and forward aerial. His throws have much higher base knockback, removing many of his set-ups and ability to tech-chase.
• Meta Knight: Meta Knight in SSB4 is one of the most nerfed characters in the series. His moves are laggier, especially his up aerial, deal less damage, and have lost their transcendent priority. His range has been reduced, and he can no longer glide. His falling speed and gravity have been significantly increased, and with the changes to hitstun, he is far more vulnerable to combos. Despite the heavy nerfs, he is still generally seen as a viable character in tournaments.

Smash 4 game updates

• Bayonetta: Upon her release as downloadable content, Bayonetta was widely viewed as overpowered due to her extremely deadly combos and ability to harshly punish even weak moves with Witch Time. These concerns were exacerbated by update 1.1.5, as although this update applied some nerfs to Bayonetta, the simultaneous nerfs to Sheik were more significant and left many players convinced that Bayonetta was now clearly the best character in the game, with some tournament scenes even considering banning her. This was ultimately averted by update 1.1.6, released solely to tone down Bayonetta by nerfing her combo moves, making her combos easier to escape and less capable of KOing at low percentages.
• Diddy Kong: Diddy Kong was highly dominant in early competitive play, being very common in tournaments and typically placing highly. However, in patches 1.0.6 and 1.0.8 Diddy Kong was heavily nerfed overall. Before the patches, Diddy Kong possessed powerful aerials that could easily be comboed into, most notably down throw to one or more up aerials, a combo termed the "hoo-hah", which was both a powerful KOing and damage racking tool and was simple to execute. The patches greatly weakened the damage, knockback and combo potential of several of Diddy's most frequently used moves, lowering his use in competitive play significantly and putting his usage more in line with other high tier characters. Nevertheless, while Diddy Kong is less effective after the nerfs, his neutral game has remained untouched in these updates, and he got some slight buffs in other areas, so he is still seen as a popular and successful character in competitive play.
• Luigi: Luigi was a strong character since the Wii U version came out. Luigi was considered a Top 5 character once J. Miller won B.E.A.S.T. 5 with him. He possessed a very strong combo game, good recovery and improved mobility. When 1.1.1 released, Luigi's down throw, the key to his success was significantly nerfed as well as changes to the shield mechanics have weakened him. Many pros claim that he is now a mid-tier, nevertheless he has strong players using him in tournament play such as Poke, Boss, and Mr. ConCon.
• Sheik: Sheik was a particularly potent character from the beginning of the metagame, and after the nerfs to Diddy Kong, she was almost universally viewed as the best character in the game due to her excellent neutral game, unrivaled attack speed and effective combos. For some time, repeated nerfs to Sheik's attacks had little effect on the metagame, as her combos and KO confirms made up for her lack of raw power, but she was finally dethroned by update 1.1.5, which altered the knockback of her throws to remove her most commonly used setups and make it very difficult for her to KO. Like Diddy Kong, though, her neutral game remains mostly intact and she is still well-represented in tournaments.