Pikachu (SSB)

This page is about Pikachu's SSB appearance. For information about his Melee appearance, see here. For information about his Brawl appearance, see here.

Pikachu (ピカチュウ, Pikachū) is a starter character and is notorious for his high priority aerials, good edgeguarding ability, and superb recovery. A versatile character with very few weaknesses, a player opposing a Pikachu should never rush straight at the opponent as his aerials can out-prioritize and out-range almost any move. He is currently ranked number one on the tier list. As a side note, Pikachu is Isai's character of choice.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Quick dash and jumps
• Small size
• Very versatile, long, and quick recovery
• Possesses an infinite edge stall
• Has invincibility frames during his up B
• High priority aerials, many of which have invisible hitboxes
• Very good edgeguarding
• Has a projectile
• Disjointed forward smash
• Abusable grab
• Good at juggling

Cons

• Fairly easily comboed
• Light and floaty, thus easy to KO
• Has a vulnerability during the up B
• Most moves have relatively low reach

Moveset

Coming soon

Combos and General Strategy

Extended Quick Attack

Pikachu's already long up B can be extended even farther by letting the analog stick snap back to neutral position before the end of the second quick attack.

Thunder-Spiking

Launching the opponent straight up (usually with an Up smash) and using Thunder (Pikachu's Down B) is called "Thunder-Spiking." Thunder-Spiking is usually used as a combo finisher. Unlike Pikachu's Thunder in Melee, Thunder in SSB has infinite vertical range. This technique allows Pikachu to get a vertical kill at around 40% damage sooner than just a normal Up smash.