Super Smash Bros. series

Traction

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"Friction" redirects here. For aerial friction, see here.
A short animation showing Luigi's small traction.
Because Luigi has a very small amount of traction, he slides very noticeably after finishing a dash.

Traction is a measure of how long it takes for a character to stop moving from a sideways force when grounded. Characters with low traction slide farther than others after walking, dashing, wavedashing, being hit by an attack while grounded, and so on. Traction is measured in negative units/frame².

Having high traction affords greater ground control over a character, so high traction is generally an advantage. Characters with low traction generally require more precise movement across the ground and cannot punish attacks as effectively out of shield since they will get pushed further away from the opponent. However, there are cases where low traction is useful: low traction is necessary for a long wavedash in Super Smash Bros. Melee and a long dash pivot cancel in Brawl, and there are cases where sliding away from a shielded attack can help escape multiple hits. In Super Smash Bros., characters with lower traction get pushed further away when being attacked when in shield, which makes follow-ups and potential shield breaks harder.

Luigi is well-known for having the least traction of any character in all games except Super Smash Bros. Ultimate; this originates from his low traction in most of the Mario platformers in which his abilities differ from those of Mario, which balances out his higher jumping in such games.

Traction is also affected by terrain. For instance, nearly all characters have decreased traction on slippery surfaces such as ice. However, the Ice Climbers uniquely have their traction completely unaffected by slippery surfaces.

Traction rankings[edit]

Super Smash Bros.[edit]

Rank Character Value
1-5 Fox's head icon from SSB. Fox 2
Link's head icon from SSB. Link
Ness's head icon from SSB. Ness
Pikachu's head icon from SSB. Pikachu
Samus's head icon from SSB. Samus
6 C. Falcon's head icon from SSB. Captain Falcon 1.8
7 DK's head icon from SSB. Donkey Kong 1.7
8 Yoshi's head icon from SSB. Yoshi 1.6
9 Mario's head icon from SSB. Mario 1.5
10 Kirby's head icon from SSB. Kirby 1.4
11 Jigglypuff's head icon from SSB. Jigglypuff 1.1
12 Luigi's head icon from SSB. Luigi 0.7

Super Smash Bros. Melee[edit]

During certain character states in Melee, the traction applied is doubled if the character's horizontal velocity exceeds their Walk Speed (maximum). For example: Peach has 0.1 traction and 0.85 walk speed. So if her velocity is 1 it becomes 0.8 on the next frame (1 - (0.1*2) = 0.8). This does not apply during Dash or RunBrake, but it does during landing states. This includes "LandingFallSpecial", which means that Wavedash & Waveland can go further the higher Walk Speed you have.

Rank Character Value
1-4 LinkHeadSSBM.png Link 0.1
PeachHeadSSBM.png Peach
PichuHeadSSBM.png Pichu
ZeldaHeadSSBM.png Zelda
5-6 JigglypuffHeadSSBM.png Jigglypuff 0.09
PikachuHeadSSBM.png Pikachu
7-13 CaptainFalconHeadSSBM.png Captain Falcon 0.08
DonkeyKongHeadSSBM.png Donkey Kong
FalcoHeadSSBM.png Falco
FoxHeadSSBM.png Fox
KirbyHeadSSBM.png Kirby
SheikHeadSSBM.png Sheik
YoungLinkHeadSSBM.png Young Link
14 GanondorfHeadSSBM.png Ganondorf 0.07
15-23 BowserHeadSSBM.png Bowser 0.06
DrMarioHeadSSBM.png Dr. Mario
MarioHeadSSBM.png Mario
MarthHeadSSBM.png Marth
MrGame&WatchHeadSSBM.png Mr. Game & Watch
NessHeadSSBM.png Ness
RoyHeadSSBM.png Roy
SamusHeadSSBM.png Samus
YoshiHeadSSBM.png Yoshi
24 MewtwoHeadSSBM.png Mewtwo 0.04
25 IceClimbersHeadSSBM.png Ice Climbers 0.035
26 LuigiHeadSSBM.png Luigi 0.025

Super Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]

Rank Character Value
1 LucarioHeadSSBB.png Lucario 0.0736
2 JigglypuffHeadSSBB.png Jigglypuff 0.0718
3-6 SonicHeadSSBB.png Sonic 0.07
WarioHeadSSBB.png Wario
WolfHeadSSBB.png Wolf
ZeroSuitSamusHeadSSBB.png Zero Suit Samus
7-8 GanondorfHeadSSBB.png Ganondorf 0.068
PeachHeadSSBB.png Peach
9 FalcoHeadSSBB.png Falco 0.065
10 LinkHeadSSBB.png Link 0.064
11-16 FoxHeadSSBB.png Fox 0.06
MarioHeadSSBB.png Mario
MrGame&WatchHeadSSBB.png Mr. Game & Watch
OlimarHeadSSBB.png Olimar
ROBHeadSSBB.png R.O.B.
SheikHeadSSBB.png Sheik
17 PikachuHeadSSBB.png Pikachu 0.0596
18 SamusHeadSSBB.png Samus 0.0585
19 BowserHeadSSBB.png Bowser 0.0577
20-22 CharizardHeadSSBB.png Charizard 0.055
MarthHeadSSBB.png Marth
MetaKnightHeadSSBB.png Meta Knight
23 ToonLinkHeadSSBB.png Toon Link 0.0547
24 NessHeadSSBB.png Ness 0.0546
25 SnakeHeadSSBB.png Snake 0.0542
26 ZeldaHeadSSBB.png Zelda 0.054
27 IvysaurHeadSSBB.png Ivysaur 0.0532
28 DonkeyKongHeadSSBB.png Donkey Kong 0.0529
29 PitHeadSSBB.png Pit 0.0505
30 CaptainFalconHeadSSBB.png Captain Falcon 0.05
31 KirbyHeadSSBB.png Kirby 0.0493
32-33 DiddyKongHeadSSBB.png Diddy Kong 0.0484
KingDededeHeadSSBB.png King Dedede
34 LucasHeadSSBB.png Lucas 0.045
35 IkeHeadSSBB.png Ike 0.044
36 YoshiHeadSSBB.png Yoshi 0.0426
37 SquirtleHeadSSBB.png Squirtle 0.042
38 IceClimbersHeadSSBB.png Ice Climbers 0.035
39 LuigiHeadSSBB.png Luigi 0.022

Super Smash Bros. 4[edit]

Rank Character Value
1 Lucario's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Lucario 0.0736
2 Jigglypuff's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Jigglypuff 0.0718
3-5 Little Mac's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Little Mac 0.07
Wario's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Wario 0.07
Zero Suit Samus's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Zero Suit Samus
6-9 Ganondorf's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Ganondorf 0.068
Palutena's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Palutena
Peach's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Peach
Rosalina and Luma's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Rosalina & Luma
N/A Giga Bowser 0.067
10-11 CorrinHeadSSB4-U.png Corrin 0.065
Falco's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Falco
12-13 Link's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Link 0.064
Mii Swordfighter's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mii Swordfighter 0.064
14-24 Fox's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Fox 0.06
Mega Man's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mega Man
Mr. Game & Watch's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mr. Game & Watch
Olimar's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Olimar
ROBHeadGreySSB4-U.png R.O.B.
RoyHeadSSB4-U.png Roy
RyuHeadSSB4-U.png Ryu
Sheik's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Sheik
Sonic's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Sonic
Villager's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Villager
Wii Fit Trainer's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Wii Fit Trainer
N/A Wario-Man 0.06
25 Pikachu's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Pikachu 0.0596
26 SamusHeadSSB4-U.png Samus 0.0585
27 Bowser's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Bowser 0.0577
28-33 CloudHeadSSB4-U.png Cloud 0.055
BayonettaHeadSSB4-U.png Bayonetta 0.055
Lucina's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Lucina
Marth's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Marth
Meta Knight's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Meta Knight
Robin's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Robin
34 Toon Link's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Toon Link 0.0547
35 Ness's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Ness 0.0546
36 Zelda's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Zelda 0.054
37 Donkey Kong's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Donkey Kong 0.0529
38-39 Dark Pit's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Dark Pit 0.0505
Pit's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Pit
40 Captain Falcon's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Captain Falcon 0.05
41 Kirby's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Kirby 0.0493
42-43 Diddy Kong's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Diddy Kong 0.0484
King Dedede's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. King Dedede
44-52 Bowser Jr.'s stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Bowser Jr. 0.045
Dr. Mario's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Dr. Mario
Duck Hunt's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Duck Hunt
Greninja's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Greninja
LucasHeadSSB4-U.png Lucas
Mario's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mario
Pac-Man's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Pac-Man
Mii Brawler's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mii Brawler 0.045
Mii Gunner's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mii Gunner
53-54 Ike's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Ike 0.044
Shulk's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Shulk
55 Yoshi's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Yoshi 0.0426
56-57 Charizard's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Charizard 0.04
Mewtwo's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Mewtwo
58 Luigi's stock icon in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Luigi 0.024

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate[edit]

In Ultimate, traction has been significantly increased across the cast, with even the lowest traction values being higher than the highest traction values in SSB4. This allows for every character to slow down faster on the ground after moving horizontally, and most notably benefits characters with low traction (such as Luigi and Charizard), as shielded attacks now push them back a much shorter distance, and it is therefore easier for them to punish out of shield. However, the increased traction also results in slide smashes covering less distance than in SSB4 as well. Unlike in previous games, Luigi no longer has the least traction, nor is he even in the bottom twenty; the characters with the least traction are now the Mii Gunner and Banjo & Kazooie.

Rank Character Value
1 SonicHeadSSBU.png Sonic 0.138
2-3 PitHeadSSBU.png Pit 0.135
DarkPitHeadSSBU.png Dark Pit
4 PikachuHeadSSBU.png Pikachu 0.132
5-8 NessHeadSSBU.png Ness 0.131
MrGame&WatchHeadSSBU.png Mr. Game & Watch
VillagerHeadSSBU.png Villager
IsabelleHeadSSBU.png Isabelle
9-10 JokerHeadSSBU.png Joker 0.13
MinMinHeadSSBU.png Min Min
11 CorrinHeadSSBU.png Corrin 0.129
12 WiiFitTrainerHeadSSBU.png Wii Fit Trainer 0.128
13 FalcoHeadSSBU.png Falco 0.127
14-15 GanondorfHeadSSBU.png Ganondorf 0.125
BylethHeadSSBU.png Byleth
16 DonkeyKongHeadSSBU.png Donkey Kong 0.123
17-18 IvysaurHeadSSBU.png Ivysaur 0.121
MythraHeadSSBU.png Mythra
19 MiiBrawlerHeadSSBU.png Mii Brawler 0.12
20-28 KirbyHeadSSBU.png Kirby 0.116
ZeldaHeadSSBU.png Zelda 0.116
MewtwoHeadSSBU.png Mewtwo
ZeroSuitSamusHeadSSBU.png Zero Suit Samus
SnakeHeadSSBU.png Snake
LucasHeadSSBU.png Lucas
LucarioHeadSSBU.png Lucario
LittleMacHeadSSBU.png Little Mac
Pac-ManHeadSSBU.png Pac-Man
29-30 FoxHeadSSBU.png Fox 0.115
KazuyaHeadSSBU.png Kazuya
31-33 MarthHeadSSBU.png Marth 0.114
LucinaHeadSSBU.png Lucina
IncineroarHeadSSBU.png Incineroar
34 LinkHeadSSBU.png Link 0.113
35 IkeHeadSSBU.png Ike 0.112
36-38 PeachHeadSSBU.png Peach 0.111
DaisyHeadSSBU.png Daisy
TerryHeadSSBU.png Terry
39-47 PichuHeadSSBU.png Pichu 0.11
CharizardHeadSSBU.png Charizard
WolfHeadSSBU.png Wolf
MiiSwordfighterHeadSSBU.png Mii Swordfighter
RyuHeadSSBU.png Ryu
KenHeadSSBU.png Ken
BayonettaHeadSSBU.png Bayonetta
HeroHeadSSBU.png Hero 0.11
Sephiroth's stock icon. Sephiroth 0.11
48-49 RoyHeadSSBU.png Roy 0.107
ChromHeadSSBU.png Chrom
50-54 SheikHeadSSBU.png Sheik 0.106
DrMarioHeadSSBU.png Dr. Mario
WarioHeadSSBU.png Wario
PalutenaHeadSSBU.png Palutena
CloudHeadSSBU.png Cloud 0.106
55-59 CaptainFalconHeadSSBU.png Captain Falcon 0.105
YoungLinkHeadSSBU.png Young Link
ROBHeadGreySSBU.png R.O.B.
RobinHeadSSBU.png Robin
KingKRoolHeadSSBU.png King K. Rool
60 BowserHeadSSBU.png Bowser 0.104
61-62 MarioHeadSSBU.png Mario 0.102
InklingHeadSSBU.png Inkling
63 Rosalina&LumaHeadSSBU.png Rosalina & Luma 0.099
64 MetaKnightHeadSSBU.png Meta Knight 0.097
65 LuigiHeadSSBU.png Luigi 0.096
66-67 YoshiHeadSSBU.png Yoshi 0.095
Steve's stock icon. Steve
68-69 MegaManHeadSSBU.png Mega Man 0.094
ShulkHeadSSBU.png Shulk
70-71 DiddyKongHeadSSBU.png Diddy Kong 0.093
OlimarHeadSSBU.png Olimar
72 DuckHuntHeadSSBU.png Duck Hunt 0.09
73-74 SquirtleHeadSSBU.png Squirtle 0.088
PiranhaPlantHeadSSBU.png Piranha Plant
75-76 JigglypuffHeadSSBU.png Jigglypuff 0.087
GreninjaHeadSSBU.png Greninja
77-78 ToonLinkHeadSSBU.png Toon Link 0.086
SoraHeadSSBU.png Sora
79-82 KingDededeHeadSSBU.png King Dedede 0.085
BowserJrHeadSSBU.png Bowser Jr.
SimonHeadSSBU.png Simon
RichterHeadSSBU.png Richter
83-84 SamusHeadSSBU.png Samus 0.082
DarkSamusHeadSSBU.png Dark Samus
85-86 RidleyHeadSSBU.png Ridley 0.08
PyraHeadSSBU.png Pyra
87 IceClimbersHeadSSBU.png Ice Climbers 0.077
88-89 MiiGunnerHeadSSBU.png Mii Gunner 0.076
Banjo&KazooieHeadSSBU.png Banjo & Kazooie