Link (SSB)

Link (, Link) appears as a starter character in Super Smash Bros. He is the sole fighter from series. Link is perhaps the most well-equipped character with either long ranged and melee options of attack, with two projectiles (which would become three in later iterations), his long-reaching and his Hookshot. His design is based on his appearance as an adult in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Link is voiced by Nobuyuki Hiyama, who also voiced him in Ocarina of Time, with his voice clips recycled from the game.

Link is currently ranked 11th on the tier list, the second lowest ranked character, outranking only. Link is known in high level competitive play as a very defensive character, relying on s and Boomerangs to prevent gimps and using his up tilt and up and back aerials for combos, while using his forward and down smash, down aerial, and projectiles for edgeguarding. Having many disjointed melee attacks and his aforementioned two projectiles, Link can be a hassle to approach, while also having an average approach himself courtesy of his extremely high traction.

However, his lack of speed and maneuverability limit his ability to safely approach. As a result, Link's game plan is largely attacking from afar with thrown projectiles and waiting for an opening. Due to his slow ground movement and attacks, it is imperative for Link players to be able to not only short hop but be able to input an attack immediately afterward. Link's recovery is awful, and widely considered to be one of the worst recoveries in the series, making offstage play very risky. He is also very easy to combo due to his weight and being a fast faller. Link's recovery and combo vulnerability make many of his matchups difficult. Link is slightly better in the PAL version due to having faster air speed (improving his recovery and some of his combo ability), and his forward smash dealing 4% more damage, and much better in the Japanese version where he is ranked 9th on the tier list, due to Link's up tilt having more reliable combo ability and sending opponents on a more favorable angle to combo, as well as his bombs being much easier to use in combos. Regardless, he has poor matchups on the NTSC-U version, and poor results due to his small playerbase.

Attributes
In general, Link's attacks are slow, long-ranged, and powerful. This gives him good KOing ability, with his down aerial and forward smash being especially powerful finishers. However, his moves are laggy and easy to punish if they aren't landed. His grab is also ranged, being one of the three tether grabs in the game, but it is also very slow and leaves Link very vulnerable if it misses. Link himself is also rather slow, with the second lowest dashing speed in the game and very short jumps. Despite this, his air speed and walking speed are above average. Link is also very stable in terms of gameplay.

Link has some powerful finishers as well. His forward tilt is among the strongest, but also slow for one. His forward smash is powerful but slow for a forward smash. Spin Attack is a powerful move both on the ground and the air.

Link is known for relying on his two projectiles (his Boomerang and ) to keep his opponents away and prevent them from approaching. His projectiles can which can lead to some combos. They can also be used to edgeguard. However, while Link can camp well himself, he has trouble dealing with projectile camping from some characters (especially ), due to his poor mobility and jumps.

Link is also heavy, which means he is harder to KO than normal, but it along with his size also makes him easier to combo. Link has some combo moves himself, including his up tilt, back aerial, and up aerial, as well as his aforementioned projectiles. His down aerial, forward smash, down smash, and projectiles are his main edgeguarding moves. He is one of the only two characters in the game (along with ) to not have a meteor smash, which can give him some minor trouble edgeguarding.

Link's biggest problem is his recovery, which many agree is one of the worst in the series as well as the worst one of the game itself. Link's short jumps, fast falling speed (the second fastest in the NTSC-U version and the fastest in the NTSC-J version) and extremely poor distance given by Spin Attack (it even descends before the animation is over), with no options to extend it. Link is also edgeguarded and gimped easily.

Link is low on the tier list because he is very easy to combo and edgeguard, which allows many characters to get him offstage quickly and finish him off, if not zero-deathing him outright. Link relies solely on his projectile camping to avoid this. Link is not helped by the fact that is the only legal stage in competitive play. When Hyrule Castle was legal, he could rely on projectile camping there far more than on Dream Land.

NTSC-J to NTSC-U
Link was significantly nerfed in his transition to the NTSC-U version compared to his original Japanese incarnation. Link's gravity was increased which reduced the height of his jumps and Spin Attack, notably making his recovery even more limited than it already was. A handful of Link's moves were also made noticeably less effective. Up tilt received a huge damage/knockback reduction which both significantly hindered Link's combo potential at lower percents and his shield pressuring potential. Down aerial also saw a significant power reduction which made it far less effective as a combo ender. While the higher SDI presence/hitlag does make it easier for Link to escape combos, this overall does not help Link too much (due to his susceptibility to combos) and Link's higher gravity made him more susceptible to combos. In addition to this, these factors also hindered some of Link's main combo tools, particularly up smash and back aerial due to their multi hitting nature. Link is overall significantly worse in the NTSC-U version, as his combo game is weaker and his biggest weakness (his recovery) was made even worse. Link ended up going from a solid mid tier in the Japanese version to one of the worst characters in the North American version.

NTSC-U to PAL (EUR)
Link received some notable buffs in the transition to the European PAL version. His air speed is much higher (now being almost as high as Pikachu's) and he is also significantly heavier which noticeably increases his survivability. Link's recovery covers significantly more distance (although it still remains linear and exploitable) and his higher weight means that a vast majority of hits do not send him as far, giving him the potential to live for significantly longer. Link's forward smash also saw a rather large increase to its power, making it significantly more powerful as a combo ender. Link's combo game in general was improved as his higher air speed gave him access to combos he could not perform previously (or in situations where certain combos would not work) and his stronger forward smash allows him to get KOes off combos where he previously could not score KOes. Ultimately, Link is considerably stronger in the European version than in the North American version, although he is still regarded to be slightly weaker than his Japanese counterpart, being considered to be no higher than mid tier.



PAL (EUR) to PAL (AUS)
In a rather unique case, Link was changed in the Australian version, being the only character in the game who differs between the European and Australian versions. Link was significantly nerfed in his transition to the Australian PAL version, even beyond his NTSC-U counterpart. The higher weight and stronger forward smash Link received in the European version were reverted to how they were in the NTSC versions, hindering his endurance and KO potential. His air speed received a rather drastic decrease, being a considerable amount lower than in the NTSC versions and his double jump gains even less height. Both of these factors not only made Link's recovery the worst it had ever been by a significant margin but they also made Link's combo potential the worst it had ever been. Link's lower air speed removed combos Link could do in every other version while his lower double jump also meant that certain combos would stop working sooner. As a result of these factors, Link is considerably worse than in any other version, likely being the definitive worst character in the Australian version.



Most historically significant players

 * See also: Category:Link players (SSB)


 * - More known for his prominent, but is also has a strong Link that he used in tournaments. Has placed 4th at , 7th at , 9th at and has used Link to beat  and . Previously ranked 33rd on the 2017 64 League Rankings.
 * - One of the best Link players in Japan and in the world. His best placement is his 2nd place at where he defeated  and . He also beat  and  at  where he placed 5th. He was previously ranked 17th on the 2017 64 League Rankings.
 * - One of the best Link players in Japan. He placed 3rd at and has top 8s at Kansai events such as  and  with wins over, , and.
 * - One of the best Smash 64 players of all time who is efficient with the entire cast. Notably placed 2nd at with solo Link, beating top players such as, , and . He has also placed 1st at  and 3rd at  primarily using the character.
 * - Considered the best Link player in South America. Kort is known for his utilization of Link's bombs, notably with the titled black-cat setup. He commonly played Link alongside other secondaries at multiple North American tournaments such as 2nd at, 13th at , and 17th at . He was previously ranked 20th on the 2018 64 League Rankings.
 * - Considered the best Link player from Japan and of all time. He won, using Link to beat Kurabba and to take the tournament. He additionally has great tournament results at other Kanto tournaments and has beaten other highly regarded players such as Isai and.

Tier placement and history
Throughout the history of Smash 64, Link has always been regarded as one of the worst characters in the game. On the first tier list for 64, he was dead last in bottom tier, sharing it with Samus. He rose up to 11th on the second tier list then he would remain, but share the same placement of 10th-11th with Luigi on the third list. He would regain the placement of 11th tier on the fourth and most current tier list where he remains the second worst character in the game.

However, in spite of his placement, Link has achieved high results in a few tournaments due to the performance of players such as Isai, Gyaki and Sekirei. Even with these impressive placements, it is unknown if Link will ever get out of the bottom two spots that he has consistently remained in throughout the game's lifespan.

In Single-player

 * In the game's single-player mode, Link is the first character the player battles; he is faced on Hyrule Castle.
 * If the player is against Link in Single Player Mode on Very Easy, he will not attack or move until the player makes the first few strikes or after a period of time.

Extended Boomerang
Link's boomerang (neutral special attack) goes farther if it is treated as a smash attack. Quickly tap the control stick to the side while hitting the special button to extend the range.

Extended boomerang ledge boost
Link's extended boomerang, if used at the right distance from a ledge to allow Link to maintain momentum after dashing, results in Link going significantly further in midair during the boomerang throw animation. This is useful when performing a combo on an opponent who is slightly too far for the boomerang to hit.

Bomb gift
Lightly throwing a bomb so that it lands on a platform near a spawning opponent is a popular mindgame as the latter will often be tempted to pick the bomb up. This results in the player losing the invincibility frames granted by the spawn.

Invisibomb glitch
Link pulls out a bomb and places the bomb on the ground without having it explode. When the bomb will near the explosion point while being out of explosion range, Link will have just a few frames to grab the bomb (now invisible) after the explosion. All bombs thrown by Link will become invisible.

Off ledge Spin Attack
Performing a grounded Spin Attack right after Link's initial dash while running off a ledge will result in Link continuing his spin attack in midair without the animation changing to his aerial spin attack. This rarely has any uses outside top Link players using it to edgeguard or complete combos.

Bomb recovery
Like, Link can use his bombs to aid his recovery. However, unlike Samus, Link must use a bit of technical skill and timing. While recovering, one should pull out a bomb and drop it slowly below Link, then continue to DI towards the stage, and use a back aerial. This will cause Link to explode toward the platform. One should then use his up special and land back safely. Note that Link will not be able to grab the edge because the explosion causes him to face the other direction. To counter this, one must throw his boomerang before using his up special. This technique is extremely situational and difficult to perform. Despite the difficulty of pulling off the technique, it does not greatly help Link's recovery.

Black-cat setup
A technique popularized by involving a set up of positioning a bomb for a boomerang hit as an edgeguarding technique. The technique requires Link to throw a bomb on stage opposite to where the enemy is (preferably when the enemy is offstage), followed by a toss of a boomerang against the bomb, causing the boomerang to 1) ricochet flying in the opposite direction towards the enemy, 2) accelerate at a faster speed then the previous speed then initially thrown, and finally 3) will go through Link without causing Link to catch the boomerang, allowing for Link to reduce lag caused by the grab of a returning boomerang.

From the Game
''Link is the valiant boy hero of "Legend of Zelda" series in which he fights against the evil Ganon to recover the Triforce. Though his tools may change with each adventure, his strength and righteousness remain constant. With his trusty sword and a variety of weapons, he takes his adventures head on!''

Works:
 * The Legend of Zelda
 * The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
 * The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64)

Trivia

 * Link is one of the two characters to lack a meteor smash, the other being.
 * When Link picks up a battering item, his dash attack will show him using his sword and the item he's wielding.
 * In the PAL version of Smash 64, Link is the second heaviest character and no longer shares his weight with.
 * On the Character selection screen, Link's portrait greatly resembles his artwork from .
 * This is the only game in which Link is the only Legend of Zelda fighter.