Pikachu (SSB)

Pikachu (, Pikachu) is a starter character in Super Smash Bros. It originates from the series, being its recognizable mascot. Pikachu is generally a light, quick character, which would serve as the archetype for some other lightweight characters in the series. Pikachu is voiced by Ikue Ōtani, who voices it in the anime, and other game appearances.

Pikachu ranks 1st on the tier list, its best placement in the series due to having many overwhelming advantages: its mobility is among the best, with fast walking, dashing, and air speeds, though its falling speed is slightly below average. Pikachu is notable for its amazing offstage and edgeguarding game, with fast and powerful aerials that can also combo well with or without certain other moves, along with a recovery on Quick Attack that covers a long distance while also being unpredictable, as well as having some invincibility frames and the ability to easily sweetspot the edge. While its attacks are generally fast, it has a few rather powerful moves, though its moveset is overall more combo-oriented. This is evident in its solid ground game, with an that can rack up large damage by chaining into itself and can easily combo into virtually any other move as well, along with powerful smash attacks and an exceedingly powerful. It also has a projectile in its Thunder Jolt, as well as, which is notable for being able to KO near the upper blast line very early; the Thunderspike technique can easily set this up.

Pikachu, however, is not perfect. It is a lightweight character, allowing for it to be KOed earlier than most other characters, and can also be easily comboed by others. Pikachu also has limited options out of a tech.

Despite this, Pikachu's strengths exceed its weaknesses, and it has held the best tournament results in competitive play, alongside good representation. Pikachu's prowess in Smash 64 is considered undisputed to such a great extent that it is considered to have the best matchup spread of any character in the game, with Pikachu's only potentially difficult matchups being against and  which are typically considered to either be even or slightly winning for Pikachu in the North American version of the game.

Attributes
Pikachu is a small lightweight, being the third lightest character in the game although Pikachu's falling speed/gravity are around average overall. Pikachu has great mobility, having the third fastest dash speed as well as high air speed/air acceleration, high jumps and high traction.

Pikachu's high mobility on the ground is complemented with Pikachu possessing a a strong array of ground moves, with the main standouts being Pikachu's up tilt and up smash. Up tilt is a fast, highly disjointed move which can easily chain into itself and other moves beyond lower percents while up smash is a reliable combo starter at lower percents in addition to being very safe on shield and a strong KO move at higher percents. These moves allow Pikachu to have a strong combo game at lower percents and Pikachu can lead into these moves with its aerials. Pikachu also possesses a grab with respectable range and Pikachu possesses a jab grab, allowing it to easily land a grab, especially with its strong mobility. Pikachu's throws are also quite effective. Forward throw has low ending lag, allowing Pikachu to potentially follow up out of it at lower percents while back throw deals very high damage and knockback, making it a very strong KO option. The rest of Pikachu's ground normals are overall more situational although down tilt is a notably solid move with good power, long disjointed range, a low launching angle and low ending lag.

Pikachu also has a very strong aerial game, not only due to Pikachu's fast air speed and high jumps but also because Pikachu has a strong set of aerials. Neutral aerial is a fast, lingering aerial with decent KO power, making it a solid combo starter at lower percents as well as a solid edgeguarding option. Forward aerial can rack up a lot of damage and easily set up followups at any percent, although it is susceptible to SDI. Back aerial is a bit on the slower side but it has great range and very solid KO power, making it strong as either an edgeguarding option or as a combo ender. Down aerial is a lingering aerial with horizonal knockback, which covers Pikachu's entire body and it never gets weaker as it stays out, making it a solid option to either get opponents off stage, edgeguard opponents or even anti air to an extent. Pikachu's best aerial overall however is its up aerial. Up aerial is rather unusual as it has weak, horizontal knockback however, it is very fast, it is highly disjointed and it covers an arc around Pikachu and it is overall an excellent combo and edgeguarding tool, as well as a solid spacing move and anti-air. All of these aerials combined with Pikachu's great mobility and up special give it one of the most devastating aerials games in the game.

Pikachu also has a strong set of specials. Thunder Jolt is Pikachu's weakest special as it is a laggy projectile, but it can be useful for edgeguarding and camping with its downwards trajectory and long duration. Pikachu's down special,, is a very powerful move which is a projectile with infinite vertical range. Pikachu can easily combo into it with an up smash for a KO at very low percents (with the use of Thunder to KO opponents off the upper blast known being known as Thunderspiking). Thunder not only allows Pikachu to score some very early KOes but it is also not reflectable or absorbable unlike many other projectiles. If the Thunder hits Pikachu, it produces a hitbox with strong horizontal knockback, although this is not utilised anywhere near as much as Thunderspiking.

Pikachu's best special however (and possibly Pikachu's best move overall) is Quick Attack. Quick Attack is completely intangible on startup, it travels a long distance, Pikachu can angle it in any direction and Pikachu has the option to use it twice in a row. This makes it the best recovery move in Smash 64 by far, as Pikachu can travel a huge amount of distance with it, Pikachu can mix it up in a ton of ways and it is generally incredibly hard to intercept both due to the intangibility on startup and its mixup potential. This not only naturally makes it strong when Pikachu is trying to recover from a disadvantageous poisition but this also makes the move strong when Pikachu is in an advantageous position, as it allows Pikachu to go incredibly deep for edgeguards and still safely return to the stage.

The move's intangibility on startup also gives the move utility in a ton of other areas, such as escaping fake combos and as an Out of shield option to avoid shield pressure. Pikachu even has the ability to stall on the ledge infinitely, as Quick Attack can snap to the ledge and due to Quick Attack's intangibility frames, Pikachu can stall at the ledge almost completely intangibly, being the only character in the game who can do so. Quick Attack overall is one of the best moves in the entire game (despite its lack of a hitbox) due to its incredible recovery potential as well as its high utility and mixup potential.

Pikachu's does not possess one single notable strength but rather, a variety of strengths which all work together to make a formidable character. Pikachu has great mobility, a great ground game, a great aerial game, incredible edgeguarding and Pikachu has the best recovery and escape options in the game. Pikachu can easily approach its opponent to start its strong punish game and Pikachu also has the tools to play a more defensive game if it needs to. Pikachu has plenty of strong combo starters and extenders in addition to strong combo enders and raw KO moves Even if Pikachu does find itself in a disadvantageous spot, Pikachu overall has one of the best disadvantages in the game, as it has the best recovery by quite a wide margin and Quick Attack is an excellent tool to escape disadvantage if Pikachu can access it (in addition to being a fantastic move).



As strong as Pikachu is however, it does have a few weaknesses. Pikachu is very light and it has average falling speed, which makes Pikachu moderately easy to combo and even KO at 0% although if Pikachu does survive, it has a very strong recovery, making it difficult to KO from an edgeguard after a significant combo. Quick Attack does leave Pikachu quite vulnerable if it does not warp to the edge, so it can be quite punishable, especially against faster characters. Quick Attack in general is a very difficult move to master as there are many ways to use it and using it incorrectly can result in Pikachu losing a stock. Pikachu's tech options are also rather slow and punishable and it has a short pivot, making pivoting less useful for Pikachu than for some other characters. These weaknesses however are relatively minor compared to other characters, with Pikachu's strengths far outweighing these weaknesses.

Overall, Pikachu is an incredibly solid character who excels in almost every area, moreso than any other character in certain areas. Pikachu has both strong offense and defence, with Pikachu having great mobility, an all around strong moveset, the best recovery in the game and very strong ways to escape disadvantage. This results in Pikachu having a very strong matchup spread. In the North American version, Pikachu's most difficult matchups are against Captain Falcon and. Captain Falcon outruns Pikachu on the ground and he can easily KO Pikachu off of one hit while Yoshi has superior air mobility to Pikachu, in addition to being able to utilise parrying and double jump armor to heavily punish Pikachu. These matchups however are generally considered to be around even or slightly winning for Pikachu, with the general consensus being that Pikachu wins every other matchup in the game, including the matchup.

As a result of all of these factors, Pikachu is often considered to be the best character in the game and has overall seen some of the highest representation and results in tournaments out of the entire cast.

In the Japanese version, Pikachu has a few differences although none of them are particularly significant, with Pikachu's strongest tools being identical in both versions. Pikachu is still considered to be the best character in the Japanese version although Captain Falcon is considered to have a definitive winning matchup against Pikachu in said version. Pikachu also received some changes in the PAL versions of the game, which buffed Pikachu overall, with Pikachu receiving power increases to some of its more notable moves, including up tilt, forward smash, down aerial and Thunder. As a result, Pikachu is still the best character in the PAL versions albeit to an even greater degree.

NTSC-J to NTSC-U
Pikachu was noticeably buffed in the North American version. Its up angled forward tilt and dash attack are stronger, and forward smash has more range, making it easier to hit with. Thunder Jolt, however, covers less distance, slightly worsening its projectile game although its aerial hit is stronger. Pikachu also benefits from the changes to gameplay mechanics more than any other character, due to the higher presence of SDI allowing it to escape combos easier (despite its forward aerial being slightly less reliable for combos), whereas the removal of momentum sliding makes its mobility one of the best. As a result, despite its worse matchup spread, Pikachu is considered to fare better than in the Japanese version.

NTSC-U to PAL
Pikachu was buffed again in the PAL versions. Forward smash, down aerial and all deal more damage making them stronger KO moves.

Moveset
For a gallery of Pikachu's hitboxes, see here.

Most historically significant players

 * See also: Category:Pikachu players (SSB)


 * - One of the best Pikachu players in the world and the best from South America. Notably won using Pikachu to beat SuPeRbOoMfAn in grand finals and has placed 1st at a multitude of smaller tournaments using Pikachu and.
 * - Considered the second best player in Mexico before his retirement. Had a steady stream of top 8 finishes throughout his whole career as a solo Pikachu main with 4th at and . In 2017, he was ranked as a top 10 player, being 9th on the 2017 64 League Rankings.
 * - One of the best Smash 64 players of all time who is efficient with the entire cast and mains Pikachu, who is what many consider his strongest character. Won where he used Pikachu to beat kysk, and double-eliminated SuPeRbOoMfAn and, the latter being the #1 player of 2022. Also won  and placed highly at other tournaments throughout the game's competitive lifespan using Pikachu as his primary character.
 * - The second best player in Peru behind Alvin. He has won multiple tournaments around South America, including, , and with notable wins over , Alvin, and Tavomono.
 * - The best solo Pikachu player in the United States. He has been ranked in the top 10 for Smash 64 throughout 2019 to 2022. Won multiple tournaments as a solo Pikachu player such as and  and having wins over many established players such as Prince, KeroKeroppi, and JaimeHR.
 * - The best Smash 64 player in Europe. He won one of the most notable European tournaments with and also placed 5th at . He is also one of the most notable European players to have attended some large North American tournaments and gave some tough competition, seen with his 2nd place finish at  where he took sets from, Josh Brody, and.
 * - One of the top Smash 64 players in the United States for years. He has solo Pikachu tournament wins with, , and and has shown consistently strong placements at Super Smash Con events such as his 2nd place during . He was considered a top 5 player back on the 2018 64 League Rankings and currently ranks 11th on the 2021-2022 Smash 64 Power Rankings.
 * - The best Smash 64 player during 2019 and one of the best players of the game overall. He was considered one of the first Japanese players to heavily utilize counterpicking at a high level, doing so at many points with his Pikachu. Won a multitude of tournaments in 2019 with Pikachu as a secondary character. He also won and placed 4th at  with solo Pikachu.
 * - One of the best Pikachu players of all time. His tournament win with where he double-eliminated Isai, as well as other strong placements such as 4th at  and 5th at  made him a top 10 player from 2016-2017. He retired from the game in 2018.
 * - The second best solo Pikachu from Japan behind wario. His best placement to date is 2nd at, beating and  at the event. Additionally, he has amassed a number of top 8s at many Kanto tournaments.
 * - The best player from Chile who has become a top 10 player in the current meta. He has beaten Isai, Alvin, and Shihman and also placed 2nd at and 5th at . He is currently ranked 3rd on the 2021-2022 Smash 64 Power Rankings.
 * - One of the best Pikachu players in the United States in recent years, being ranked 8th back on the 2019-2020 Smash 64 Power Rankings. He has won multiple tournaments such as and  and made major placements such as 3rd at  and 4th at . His list of wins include, , and Josh Brody.
 * - Considered the second best player in North America during the mid-2000s and early 2010s and co-mained Pikachu and . He made 2nd place finishes at and  and made top 6 at  and.
 * - One of the best Smash 64 players and one of the best Pikachu players of all time. His tri-main status with Pikachu, Kirby, and Captain Falcon allowed him to win majors such as  and  and has wins over Fukurou, Mariguas, and KeroKeroppi with Pikachu. He was considered the best player in the world during 2018.
 * - One of the best Japanese players and one of the best Pikachu players of all time. He won every tournament he attended from 2015 to 2016 which included, , and . He is one of the few Japanese players to have a winning record over , including two grand finals wins. As such, he is one of the most respected Pikachu players in the scene.

Tier placement and history
Since the beginning of the metagame of Smash 64, Pikachu has been a centerpiece within the metagame, reflected by how it has been always at the top of the tier list across all four editions. In the third tier list, Pikachu even had its own tier at the top of the list; this is no longer the case as of the fourth tier list, though Pikachu is still considered the best character by a significant margin. This dominance is due to an excellent recovery compared to the rest of the roster, quick speed, and high damage output that is difficult to contest due to an overall small size.

Due to the the majority of Pikachu players and the character's dominance, there was discussion in the community of having the character banned in 2017. Such discussions, such as from top Pikachu main KeroKeroppi, thought he should have been banned due to how much flexibility and reward the character offered. SuPeRbOoMfAn even used Pikachu a lot more in tournaments to further support Pikachu’s influence. However, this ban never ended up happening and Pikachu was left to continue to dominate the scene. In recent years, however, Pikachu is considered to have two close-to-even matchups, while in the past, he undisputedly had none. These two matchups that are considered to be managable are against, with his wide array of powerful combo and KO moves, and recently Yoshi, due to his parry mechanics and having a few zero-to-death combos on Pikachu. Despite more developed counterplay, Pikachu continues to remain the top character in the metagame.

In Doubles, even in Smash Remix tournaments, double Pikachu is often banned, due to very little reason not to use both. Additionally, while allowed on his own, is often banned from being used alongside Pikachu, seen at tournaments such as Battle at the Border.

Thunderspiking
This technique involves launching the opponent to the top of the screen and using for a Star KO. The easiest way to perform this is to use an up smash. At percentages around (possibly a bit below) 100%, up smash combos into Thunder effectively, and at percentages around 140%, an up tilt can combo into Thunder. The technique can be used as a combo finisher (notably at the end of 's Greenhouse combo) or just for raw KOing.

Extended Quick Attack
By allowing the control stick to snap back to its neutral position before the animation of one of the warps in Quick Attack ends, Pikachu's aerial momentum will not be cancelled, allowing it to cover more horizontal distance. This can be used on either warps, and it is even possible to extend both warps, though this runs a high risk of missing the second warp. Extending the move is essential for recovering from a large distance, though the player may choose not to in certain situations, such as landing on a platform onstage on to evade the opponent.

Jab grab
A technique that enables Pikachu to cancel his jab immediately into his grab. Since Pikachu's grab hitbox begins on frame 6, but jab begins on frame 2, this combo allows him to attack faster, and is effective when pressuring shields, or after teching to surprise an opponent. However it can only be used when standing still, since unlike grabs, jabs can't be done out of a run. This technique can also be performed by, , and.

Ledge-stalling
Pikachu can stall on the edge by abusing the invincibility frames of Quick Attack. This is performed by simply edge dropping, jumping, then aiming Quick Attack straight down to regrab the edge. The process can be repeated for as long as one's reflexes allow.

In Single-player
In the game's Single-player mode, Pikachu is fought on the Saffron City stage.

From the Game
Pikachu Mouse PKMN Height 1'4" Weight 13 lbs When several of these Pokémon gather, their electricity could cause lightning storms. (Pokédex excerpt) Works:
 * Pokémon (GB)

Trivia

 * Pikachu is one of the two only characters in the game to lack a meteor smash, along with.
 * Pikachu is the only character in the game, aside from Mario and Luigi, to have a forward smash with battering items that attacks both in front and behind, as it does a spin attack with the item.
 * Most of Pikachu's static and electric effects are rendered in 2D due to technical limitations.
 * Pikachu's up special used to be called Agility but was changed to Quick Attack later.
 * However, Agility would eventually be given to Pichu for its up special in Melee and Ultimate.
 * On the character selection screen, Pikachu's portrait greatly resembles its artwork from .