Samus (SSB): Difference between revisions

{{ArticleIcons|ssb=y}}

{{disambig2|Samus' appearance in ''Super Smash Bros''|the character in other contexts|Samus Aran}}

|name = Samus

|image = [[File:Samus SSB.png|Samus]]

|symbol = preBrawl

|game = SSB

|ssbgame1 = SSBM

|ssbgame2 = SSBB

|ssbgame3 = SSB4

|tier = C

|ranking = 8

'''Samus''' ({{ja|サムス|Samusu}}, ''Samus'') is a [[starter character]] in ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]'' As in her games, she fights inside the hi-tech, powerful Varia Suit, giving her a strong endurance to attacks as well as varied options for attack. Her sound clips are entirely "technologic" sounds.

She is ranked 8th on the current [[tier list]], placing her at the top of the C tier. Samus is a [[weight|heavy]], yet [[falling speed#Floaty|floaty]], character with decent horizontal [[recovery]]. She has arguably the highest raw damage output in the game, courtesy of her many options for attacking, and due to the long range of her moves, she is able to space them well. The high damage output of her moves also translates well to her power, having many powerful finishers like her [[Charge Shot]] and her neutral and back aerials. Despite her weight, her floaty nature also allows her to not be comboed as easily as others.

 

However, Samus has many glaring weaknesses. One of them is her overall slow mobility: while she has a fast dashing speed, she is among the least mobile characters in the air due to her floatiness. Samus also has no reliable grounded or aerial options for approaching. Another weakness is her very sluggish frame data, with some of her moves having lots of ending lag. Altogether, this gives her an almost non-existent approach. While she seemingly has many combo starters due to said moves having low knockback, she has a low amount of combos due to her moves' ending lag. Lastly, she lacks a quick and easy-to-land KO move and relies on reads and predictable finishers to KO.

 

However, she is ranked higher in the Japanese version at 7th, due to the different gameplay mechanics having an impact on her moveset, and she has a notable smasher in {{Sm|Jouske}}, who achieves great results with her (despite refusing to travel to North America).

[[File:SSB64 Congratulations Samus.png|thumb|250px|Samus's ending picture in ''Super Smash Bros.'']]

[[File:Ssb64samus.jpg|thumb|Samus using Charge Shot in the ''Smash 64'' instruction booklet.]]

Samus is a tall heavyweight character that is also rather [[floaty]], an uncommon trait for most heavyweights. She has the 4th fastest [[dashing]] speed, but combined with the 4th slowest [[air speed]], second slowest [[falling]] speed, and a long and slow [[roll]] heavily decrease her mobility. She has decent [[range]] and also has two [[projectile]]s, including [[Charge Shot]], which covers a great distance and is fairly powerful, being quite useful for keeping opponents at bay, but requires a large amount of charging to have KO power, and {{b|Bomb|Samus}}, which can aid her horizontal [[recovery]]. [[Spacing]] works quite well with Samus, with her forward tilt and back aerial being useful. However, she has a high and slow [[short hop]]. Her [[grab]] is one of the three tether grabs in the game, giving it excellent range, but has sixty frames of ending lag, making it the laggiest grab in the game. Her back throw is a powerful KO throw and is also tied with {{SSB|Pikachu}} and {{SSB|Donkey Kong}}'s back throws for the most damaging throw in the game. Her biggest flaw however is her notorious inability to perform a [[zero-to-death]] combo with her regular moves, though to compensate, she escapes many zero deaths with her floaty weight and [[Screw Attack]]. Her [[dash attack]] can set up tech chases, leading into a down tilt and a down air to kill; however, this is not a true combo at all percents. In addition, her down-air may not kill heavier characters such as herself or {{SSB|Donkey Kong}}.  

Overall, most of Samus's moves, while doing over 10% in most cases, have a high amount of ending lag. As a result of that, she lacks easy-to-land KO options, apart from her down aerial, which is an extremely fast [[meteor smash]]. While Samus's dair is a great edgeguarding move, especially against slow recoveries like {{SSB|Kirby}}'s or {{SSB|Jigglypuff}}'s, she has poor to mediocre edgeguarding ability outside of it, and her primary recovery move, the {{b|Screw Attack|move}}, travels extremely short horizontal and vertical distance, giving her a very poor vertical recovery. Her horizontal recovery, while still short and predictable, is slightly aided by her floatiness and Bombs. She is vulnerable to edgeguarding herself; an aerial Charge Shot can help prevent careless edgeguards, but her recovery is slow and predictable.

[[File:Samus SSB air atacks.PNG|thumb|150px|Samus's aerial attacks]]

|neutralname=Straight ({{ja|ストレート|Sutorēto}}) / Cannon Hammer ({{ja|アームキャノンハンマー|Āmu Kyanon Hanmā}}, ''Arm Cannon Hammer'')

|ftiltname=Spin Kick ({{ja|スピンキック|Supin Kikku}})

|utiltname=Heel Kick ({{ja|ヒールキック|Hīru Kikku}})

|utiltdesc=Brings her foot down in an axe-like way. The move has weak horizontal knockback while Samus raises her foot up while it has higher damage and knockback when her foot comes back down. The early hit is very weak to the point that it is punishable on hit while the second hit comes out very slowly and is not particularly strong either. Unlike Captain's Falcon's up tilt, Samus cannot connect both hits. It is overall one of Samus' least useful moves due to the early hit's abysmal power combined with the second hit's abysmal startup.  

|dtiltname=Low Kick ({{ja|ローキック|Rō Kikku}})

|dashname=Shoulder Tackle ({{ja|ショルダータックル|Shorudā Takkuru}})

|dashdesc=Charges forward and rams opponent with shoulder. Doesn't deal much [[shield stun]] and can leave her vulnerable against opponents even at moderate percentages due to its very low knockback. However, if used correctly, it can occasionally be a combo starter.

|fsmashangles=5

|fsmashname=Gun Pod Knuckle ({{ja|ガンポッドナックル|Gad Poddo Nakkuru}})

|usmashname=Cover Fire ({{ja|ヘルファイア|Herufaia}}, ''Hellfire'')

|usmashdmg=10% (hits 1-5), 50% (total)

|usmashdesc=She aims her arm cannon upwards and shoots flames in an arch. Multi-hitting, 10% per hit. Best usage against heavier or fast falling characters as an anti-air move.

|dsmashname=Spinning Low Kick ({{ja|スピニングローキック|Supiningu Rō Kikku}})

|dsmashdesc=Does a round kick, first hits in front of Samus. Good spacing move or KOer near the ledge. KO percent wise, it is the weakest down smash in the game.

|nairname=Samus Kick ({{ja|サムスキック|Samusu Kikku}})

|fairname=Aerial Fire ({{ja|エアリアルヘルファイア|Eariaru Herufaia}}, ''Aerial Hellfire'')

|fairdmg=5% (hits 1-4), 20% (total)

|bairname=Sobat ({{ja|ソバット|Sobatto}})

|uairname=Drill Kick ({{ja|ドリルキック|Doriru Kikku}})

|uairdmg=2% (hits 1-5), 10% (total)

|uairdesc=Multi-hitting upwards drill kick. 2% per hit. Due to a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sa25aojJDs developer oversight] that prevents the final hitbox from spawning, Samus is left very vulnerable, making this an impractical move.

|dairname=Meteor Knuckle ({{ja|メテオナックル|Meteo Nakkuru}})

|grabname=[[Grapple Beam]] ({{ja|グラップリングビーム|Gurappuringu Bīmu}}, ''Grappling Beam'')

|grabdesc=Samus, along with {{SSB|Link}} and {{SSB|Yoshi}}, has an "extended grab". She uses the Grapple Beam while standing. This allows her to grab opponents from a distance, but the grab is very laggy if it misses and can make Samus vulnerable due to its length. This can lead to various unique combos due to the large grab range.

|fthrowname=Grappling Throw ({{ja|グラップリングスルー|Gurappuringu Surū}})

|fthrowdesc=Grabs opponent via Grapple Beam and tosses them forward with good power. Very high base knockback and decent scaling.

|bthrowname=Grappling Back Throw ({{ja|グラップリングスルーバック|Gurappuringu Bakku Surū}})

|bthrowdesc=Same as f-throw, but tosses them backwards and faces the position she was in before the throw. Also slightly stronger.

|nsdmg=3% (uncharged), 26% (fully charged)

|usdmg=2% (grounded hit 1), 1% (grounded hits 2-14), 15% (grounded total), 1% (aerial hits 1-14), 14% (aerial total)

==In [[competitive play]]==

===Most Historically Significant Players===

*{{Sm|Jouske|Japan}} - The most prolific Samus player in competitive play. He was one of the most dominant players of Japan for years, winning multiple Japanese nationals such as {{Trn|Kanto 2012}}, {{Trn|Kanto 2013}}, {{Trn|Kansai 2013}}, and {{Trn|Kanto 2014}}. Has placed top 3 at almost every tournament he attended before retiring in 2016.

*{{Sm|meipon|Japan}} - The best Samus player in Japan after Josuke's retirement. Though his results are not of the same caliber as Jouske, he has still shown great results at tournaments such as 13th at {{Trn|Japan Smash Cup 2017}} and 17th at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}}.

*{{Sm|SotoH|USA}} - One of the longest active Samus players in the United States, competing since 2015. While his placements can be considered inconsistent, he has made some notable placements in the modern era of ''Smash 64'' with 3rd at {{Trn|Rewind II}}, 9th at {{Trn|Low Tide City 2021}}, and 17th at {{Trn|Smashtoberfest}} with wins over {{Sm|Darkhorse}} and {{Sm|Waxy:Joe}}. Currently ranked 63rd on the [[2023 Smash 64 Power Rankings]].

===Tier placement and history===

For the longest time, Samus had been seen as a bottom tier character, frequently considered the worst in the whole game. The reasons for this negative perception are her lack of a reliable 0-to-death option, a slow and ineffective grab, and an overall laggy and predictable moveset. The biggest reason is that other characters have better versions of everything she has, giving players no real reason to use her competitively.

 

However, the perception of Samus has shifted more recently to be more positive, as she now sits in the lower-middle tier. The reasons for this shift are her floatiness granting above average survivability and some niche but highly potent kill options, particularly against high-tiered characters. Players have been utilizing these small strengths to get far better results than years previous, aiding to the more positive perception even more.

In the game's Single-player mode, Samus is fought on the [[Planet Zebes]] stage. If Samus is defeated via the acid under the stage, the player will be awarded with the [[list of bonuses|Acid Clear]] bonus, which is worth 1500 points.

|colspan=5|[[File:Samus Palette (SSB).png]]

|{{Head|Samus|g=SSB|s=25px}}

|{{Head|Samus|g=SSB|s=25px|cl=Pink}}

|{{Head|Samus|g=SSB|s=25px|cl=Blue}}

*Samus is the only female character in ''Super Smash Bros.'', as Pokémon were not considered as being gendered at the time of that game's release.  

**This is also their first appearance in 3D, as well as Kirby's.

*Both Samus and {{SSB|Donkey Kong}} had their official artworks flipped horizontally on the official English website.

*In the PAL version of the game, Samus's character description in French uses male pronouns with female ones in speculative brackets (the equivalent of "his (her?)"), in contrast to both the English and German descriptions using female pronouns throughout. This might be a reference to the instruction booklet from the original ''Metroid'', where Samus is referred to as a "he".

[[Category:Samus (SSB)| ]]

[[es:Samus (SSB)]]