Mario (SSBM): Difference between revisions

When making the transition from ''Smash 64'' to ''Melee'', Mario got a mix of [[buff]]s and [[nerf]]s, but was neither strongly buffed or [[nerf]]ed. Mario is faster on the ground and he greatly benefits from the introduction of [[air dodging]] giving him a solid [[wavedash]] which makes his grounded movement much more solid overall. The speed of Mario's attacks has been considerably improved as most of his attacks have decreased ending lag and a decent amount of them have decreased startup lag as well. His edgeguarding has also considerably improved as his back aerial is considerably faster and his up aerial has been retooled to give it more edgeguarding potential. His new side special [[Cape]] also gives him a new powerful edgeguarding tool as well as an extra tool for recovering.

Overall, Mario is largely a much weaker character as his damage output is lower, his combo game is weaker in some aspects and many of his previous KO moves can no longer KO under 90-120%. In exchange, his attacks are much faster and his grounded movement has been improved especially due to the introduction of wavedashing. Mario remains in a similar spot on Melee's tier list and he overall struggles against higher tiered characters limiting his success in competitive play.  

===Ground attacks===

*{{buff|The first and third hit of [[neutral attack]] deal more damage (2%/4% → 3%/5%).}}

*{{change|Third hit of neutral attack can now [[clang]].}}

*{{nerf|The second hit has a shorter duration (frames 3-5 → 3-4) and the final hit has more startup lag (frame 3 → 5). Mario also can no longer cancel the first hit into [[grab]].}}

*{{buff|Dash attack has less startup (frame 8 → 6) and ending lag (frame 41 → 38).}}

*{{buff|[[Forward tilt]] has less startup (frame 8 → 5) and ending lag (frame 43 → 33).}}

*{{buff|[[Up tilt]] has less startup (frame 5 → 4) and ending lag (frame 42 → 30) and combos more reliably at lower percentages.}}

*{{nerf|Up tilt has a shorter duration (frames 5-16 → 4-12).}}

*{{buff|Down tilt has less ending lag (frame 40 → 35).}}

*{{buff|[[Up smash]] has a new animation; Mario now takes a massive step forward as he leans for the headbutt. This gives it a bit more horizontal range than before.}}

*{{buff|Up smash has significantly less ending lag (frame 60 → 40).}}

*{{buff|[[Down smash]] has less startup (frame 8 → 5) and ending lag (frame 45 → 38).}}

===Aerial attacks===

*{{nerf|Neutral aerial has a shorter duration (frames 3-36 → 3-32) and deals less damage (14% (clean), 11% (late) → 12%/10%).}}

*{{buff|[[Back aerial]] is more useful for [[edgeguarding]] as it has less startup lag with a longer duration (frames 10-19 → 6-17) and ending lag (frame 40 → 29) making it a more effective [[wall of pain]].}}

*{{change|Back aerial has a new animation, where Mario kicks more sideways with his right side facing up, instead of kicking backward face-down. Mario also recovers differently without curling up into a flip.}}

*{{buff|Up aerial has less ending lag (frame 40 → 30).}}

**{{nerf|Despite this, Mario can no longer perform two up aerials in a short hop due to his higher fall speed and lower short hop.}}

===Grabs and throws===

*{{buff|Mario now has a [[pummel]], [[up throw]] and a [[down throw]], increasing his options out of a grab. He can also [[chaingrab]] characters with said throws.}}

*{{nerf|Grabs have more startup lag (frame 6 → 7 (standing), 11 (dash)) and ending lag (frame 16 → 31 (standing), 41 (dash)).}}

===Special moves===

*{{nerf|Fireballs are smaller and deal 1% less damage (7% (US/PAL) → 6%).}}

*{{change|Mario's side special, [[Cape]], allows him to deal better with [[camp]]ing and gives him a additional recovery option while in the air. It is also a deadly edgeguarding tool, making Mario one of the best edgeguarders in the game.}}

===PAL differences===