Fox (SSBU): Difference between revisions

Fox is ranked 5th out of 82 on the [[tier list]] placing him in S tier. This is a slight improvement from his placement in ''Smash 4'' where he was ranked 7th/8th out of 54 and tied with {{SSB4|Sonic}}. Fox retains many of his strengths from the previous game including his phenomenal movement options, stellar frame data, and high [[damage]] output resulting in him having one of the best [[Neutral game|neutrals]] and advantage states in the entire game. Fox also has many ways to kill reliably thanks to his powerful and quick [[Smash attack|smash attacks]] and his notoriously safe [[Back aerial|back aerial]] at [[Ledge|ledge]] granting Fox the ability to overwhelm his opponents easily. Fox's [[combo]] and [[juggling]] game also greatly benefits from universal changes made in the transition from ''Smash 4'' to ''Ultimate'', such as the game's increased speed, reduction to [[landing lag]], and [[airdodging]] nerfs.

However, Fox retains his flaws from ''Smash 4'' such as his linear [[Recovery|recovery]], fast [[Falling speed|falling speed]], and considerably light [[Weight|weight]]. Though Fox has several recovery options that cover a great distance, their linearity makes it easy for Fox to be [[Edgeguarding|edgeguarded]] continuously if the player isn't careful. Fox is also one of the lightest characters in the game, giving him poor endurance compared to the rest of the cast. In addition, Fox has the fastest falling speed and [[gravity]] out of anyone in the roster, making him susceptible to combos and — when combined with his very low weight, potentially early KOs. Finally, Fox received notable nerfs to his moveset that worsened his ability to set up [[Kill confirm|kill confirms]], such as the changes made to his [[Tilt attack|tilts]] and [[Throw|throws]].

Despite these nerfs, Fox is considered to be just as good if not better than his ''Smash 4'' iteration, and remains a top tier character with wide representation in [[Competitive play|competitive play]], with players such as {{Sm|Light|p=Connecticut}} and {{Sm|Paseriman}} obtaining incredible results with the character.

Overall, Fox is a more polarized glass cannon; most of his tremendous strengths and advantages remain, and some of his moves have increased utility, but his key weaknesses are also significantly more exploitable, and he has an even harder time getting out of disadvantage; all these changes result in Fox's moveset having many more and versatile options, but also mean he now has to play more carefully in order to gain or retain the advantage, and the revamped mechanics compound both points. Like in ''SSB4'', Fox continues to have a high amount of representation in the competitive scene, having achieved noteworthy results thanks to the efforts of notable players including {{Sm|Light|p=Connecticut}}, {{Sm|Paseriman}}, {{Sm|Lui$}}, {{Sm|ZD}}, and {{Sm|Eon}}. Because of this, his competitive reception has remained positive, as many players consider him as a top tier character.

*{{Sm|Paseriman|Japan}} - The second best Fox player of all-time who was in contention for the best in 2020, ranking above Light at 11th on the [[OrionRank Pre-Quarantine]] thanks to a string of strong performances, most notably 4th at the supermajor {{Trn|EVO Japan 2020}} and 9th at the supermajor {{Trn|Frostbite 2020}}. However since then his results have been inconsistent and he has picked up {{SSBU|Diddy Kong}} as a co-main.

In stark contrast to pre-release ''Ultimate'', where it was speculated that Fox would be an unviable character, Fox initially saw a very positive reception due to all of the indirect benefits he received from the game's engine as well as phenomenal results from professionals such as {{Sm|Light|p=Connecticut}}, {{Sm|Lui$}}, {{Sm|Paseriman}}, and {{Sm|ZD}}. Light especially contributed to this reception, being a top 10 player in the first year of ''Ultimate'' and consistently making top 8 at national tournaments. In the early metagame, most players believed that Fox was a top-tier character, with some arguing that he was a top 5 character.

As the metagame progressed, however, Fox's results steadily dropped as his weaknesses, such as his expoitable recovery and his fragile weight became more apparent, and his playerbase either obtained less consistent results such as Light, completely dropped Fox such as {{Sm|Larry Lurr}}, or picked up other characters to cover Fox's bad matchups such as Lui$. Fox's placement became a huge topic of debate, with some players such as {{Sm|Dark Wizzy}}, {{Sm|MkLeo}}, and {{Sm|Tweek}} continuing to rank him as a top 10/15 character while others, including Light and Larry Lurr themselves, claiming that he's "overrated" and believing that he is high-tier at best due to his major weaknesses. On the other hand, Fox's perception in Japan is more optimistic as most of their top players rank him among the top 10 in the game, with {{Sm|Zackray}} ranking him 7th and {{Sm|Paseriman}} ranking him 4th.

In the online metagame, characters that require precision and strict reaction times are considered less viable. During the pandemic, Fox's results dwindled significantly as all of Fox's best players either temporarily dropped him, such as Lui$, or have not attended online tournaments at all, such as Light. Despite receiving buffs during this period, Fox continued to see low results in the metagame, with some players such as Light and Kola believing the character isn't even top 20 and potentially the worst of the [[Spacies]].

However, despite lower representation and perception from the early metagame, Fox continues to see much stronger results after the pandemic period thanks to the efforts of Light and Paseriman. Light has especially contribued to Fox's renewed reputation, winning both his and Fox's first major at {{Trn|Super Smash Con: Fall Fest}} and becoming the best player in the United States subsequently. As such, most players generally agree that Fox is still at least a top tier character with many saying he's one of the best characters in the game which is reflected by him being ranked 5th on the first Smash Ultimate Tier List.