An edge attack is an attack performed by pressing the attack button while hanging on an edge. The character will get up while performing an attack. There are 2-3 different Edge attacks for each character.
In the first three games, once a character has received 100% of damage, they begin to perform a different edge attack than normal. The attacks are usually slower, but do more damage to opponents, although the increase is usually only 3-5%. For example, Yoshi's edge attack involves a quick 6% tail whip, while when at high damage, it becomes a slow 12% headbutt. However, in Smash 4, this effect is removed and the edge attack is the same regardless of damage percent for all characters.
Edge attacks are generally avoided in competitive play due to their slow speed and limited usefulness. Players will often use other techniques or attacks to return to the stage instead. However, players will often mix in edge attacks to catch the opponent offguard, especially if their character's edge attack has great reach (such as Donkey Kong's and Wolf's), and/or has invincibility frames (which are safer to punish an opponent caught charging smash attacks near the edge with than other edge options).
List of edge attacks (SSB)
Character | Under 100% | Over 100% |
---|---|---|
Captain Falcon | Climbs onto the stage and performs a low kick. 6% damage. | Climbs onto the stage and quickly jabs. 4% damage. |
Donkey Kong | Turns around 180 degrees and jabs the opponent with his rear. 6% damage, does not hit opponents right next to the edge. | Slaps the edge and then climbs on. 6% damage. |
Fox | Flips and kicks onto the stage, then dashes backwards. 4% damage. | Quickly flips and kicks onto the stage. 4% damage. |
Jigglypuff | Jumps onto the edge and kicks, than performs a small backflip. 4% damage. | Climbs onto the edge, dashes forward, than backflips. 4% damage. |
Kirby | Does a front-flip, kicking. | Climbs up onto the edge, then does a headbutt. |
Link | Flips onto the stage while slashing with his sword. 4% | Slowly pulls himself up and slashes upwards with his sword. 4% |
Luigi | Climbs onto the edge and kicks the area around him. | Climbs on and kicks the area in front of him. |
Mario | Performs a motion similar to a cartwheel | Climbs on and kicks the area in from him. |
Ness | Performs an attack which looks a cartwheel attack. Very similar to Mario's | Climbs on slowly then kicks with his right leg. |
Pikachu | Does a cartwheel-like kick with right leg. | Climbs on then attacks with its tail. |
Samus | Does a kick with her right leg. | Slowly climbs up and punches with left hand. |
Yoshi | Spins his tail. | Climbs on and attacks with his head. |
List of edge attacks (SSBM)
Character | Under 100% | Over 100% |
---|---|---|
Bowser | Rolls quickly onto the stage | Climbs up onto the stage and swipes claws |
Captain Falcon | Jump Kicks onto the stage | Climbs onto the stage while throwing an uppercut |
Donkey Kong | Flying Butt bump | Climbs up and slaps |
Dr. Mario | Cartwheels onto the stage with a double kick | Climbs onto the stage with a straight kick |
Falco | Double kick onto the stage | Front-flip-kick onto the stage |
Fox | Double Kick onto the stage | Front-flip-kick onto the stage |
Ganondorf | Jump kicks onto the stage | Climbs onto the stage while throwing an uppercut |
Ice Climbers | Swings hammer in an arc while climbing onto stage | Crawls onto the stage, swinging hammer at floor level |
Jigglypuff | Flip kick onto the stage | Split kick onto the stage |
Kirby | Flip kick onto the stage | Spinning Split kicks onto the stage |
Link | Flips onto the stage with a downward sword slice | Climbs onto the stage with a sword thrust |
Luigi | Cartwheels onto the stage with a double kick | Climbs onto the stage with a straight kick |
Mario | Cartwheels onto the stage with a double kick | Climbs onto the stage with a straight kick |
Marth | Jumps onto the stage with a downward sword slice | Climbs onto the stage with a sweeping upward sword slice |
Mewtwo | Flips onto the stage while tail whipping | Climbs onto the stage with an arm swipe |
Mr. Game & Watch | Climbs onto the stage, swinging a bell | Climbs slowly onto the stage, swinging a bell |
Ness | Cartwheels onto the stage with a double kick | Climbs onto the stage with a jump kick |
Peach | Jumps onto the stage with a hip bump | Climbs on stage with a low spin kick |
Pichu | Climbs onto the stage with a quick front-flip-kick | Climbs onto the stage with a tail smack |
Pikachu | Climbs onto the stage with a quick front-flip-kick | Climbs onto the stage with a tail smack |
Roy | Jumps onto the stage with a downward sword slice | Climbs onto the stage with a sweeping upward sword slice |
Samus | Leaps onto stage with a kick | Climbs onto the stage with a cannon thrust |
Sheik | Climbs onto stage with a double kick | Climbs onto the stage and elbows |
Yoshi | Tail spins onto the stage | Headbutts onto the stage |
Young Link | Flips onto the stage with a downward sword slice | Climbs onto the stage with a sword thrust |
Zelda | Climbs onto the stage with a slap | Climbs onto the stage with a low spin kick |
List of edge attacks (SSBB)
Character | Under 100% | Over 100% |
---|---|---|
Bowser | Hits the opponent with a spinning attack when Bowser is in his shell. 8% damage. | Does a slow claw swipe as he pulls himself up for 10%. |
Captain Falcon | Flips himself up with a fast kick. 10% | Climbs up, then does a small uppercut as he stands up. Oddly, does less damage than his "Under 100%" attack, dealing 8%. |
Charizard | Does a fast headbutt. 8% normally, 5% when exhausted. | Makes a slow swing of his tail. 10% normally, 7% when exhausted. |
Diddy Kong | Sweeps his tail along the ground for 8%. | Performs a low kick for 10%. |
Donkey Kong | Thrusts his whole body forward, back-first, for 8%. Covers quite a bit of distance for an edge-attack. | Slaps low to the ground. 10% |
Falco | Slides forward with both legs for 8%. Shares this animation with Fox and Wolf. | Delivers a flip-kick for 10%. Shares this animation with Fox and Wolf. |
Fox | Slides forward and comes back a short distance with both legs for 8%. Shares this animation with Falco and Wolf. | Delivers a flip-kick for 10%. Has a small blind spot very close to the ledge. Shares this animation with Falco and Wolf. |
Ganondorf | Quickly delivers a backhand. 10%. | Climbs up and thrusts one leg forward. 10%. |
Ice Climbers | Thrusts their hammers overhead. Both climbers deal 8%. | Sweep their hammers low to the ground. Both climbers deal 10%. |
Ike | Gets up and does a low, spinning slash for 8%. | Pulls up slowly, then does a short slash parallel to the ground, much like his Quick Draw. 10%. |
Ivysaur | Sweeps one of its vines forward. 8% normally, 5% when exhausted. | Does a short range tackle. 10% normally, 7% when exhausted. |
Jigglypuff | Does a flipping kick, much like Kirby. 6% | Pulls up and does a spinning split kick. 6%. Shares this animation with Kirby. |
King Dedede | Thrusts one foot forward, similar to his down-tilt, for 8%. | Swings his hammer overhead for 10%. |
Kirby | Does a kick as he flips over the edge for 6%. | Scoots up, then does a low spinning kick, similar to his Down Smash for 6%. |
Link | Performs an overhead slash for 8%. | Slowly climbs up, then thrusts his sword forward, similar to the final hit of his Neutral attack combo. 10%. |
Lucario | Quickly pulls up onto the stage strikes with both palms. Fast and Good Range. Damage varies, dealing anywhere from 3-12%, depending on the strength of his aura. | Slowly pulls up onto the stage and does a flip kick. Damage varies, dealing anywhere from 10-19%, depending on his aura. At full power, this is the strongest edge attack in the game. |
Lucas | Flips onto the stage, kicking with both legs for 8%. Shares this animation with Ness. | Slowly delivers a powerful punch for 10%. Shares this animation with Ness. |
Luigi | Flips over the edge, kicking the opponent with both legs. 8% damage. Shares this animation with Mario. | Slowly gets up and kicks. 10% damage. Shares this animation with Mario. |
Mario | Does a somersault and then kicks upwards, from a laying down position. 8% damage. Shares this animation with Luigi. | Gets up then does an attack similar to his down tilt. 10% damage. Shares this animation with Luigi. |
Marth | Flips onto edge with a quick downward diagonal slash from left to right. 6% base. 8% tip. | Quick, low, horizontal slash with medium lag. Less range than normal edge attack. 10% base and tip. |
Meta Knight | Leaps onto stage and slashes for 8%. | Virtually the same as the above, but slower, dealing 10%. |
Mr. Game & Watch | Climbs up, and swings his bell forward. 8%. | Virtually the same as the above, but slower, dealing 10%. |
Ness | Flips onto the stage with a kick for 8%. Shares this animation with Lucas. | Delivers a powerful punch for 10%. Shares this animation with Lucas. |
Olimar | Somersaults onto the stage headbutting. Deals 8%. | Thrusts his legs along the ground for 10%. |
Peach | Quickly thrusts her rump forward for 6%. | Slowly sweeps both legs along the floor for 10%. |
Pikachu | Flips forward with his tail overhead. 8%. | Pokes its tail forward for 10%. |
Pit | Flips onto the stage with a kick, dealing 8%. | Thrusts his bow forward for a stab that deals 10%. |
R.O.B. | Thrusts both hands forward, similar to his forward-air. 7%. | Thrusts one arm forward for 10%. Covers more ground than his other edge attack. |
Samus | Does a high-arcing kick for 6%. | Climbs up with a punch from her arm cannon for 10%. |
Sheik | Flips up and does a two-legged sliding kick for 8%. | Does an elbow jab dealing 8%. |
Snake | Flips around, kicking with his heel for 8% | Slowly kicks both legs forward. Deals 10%. |
Sonic | Charges forward a short distance in spinball form. 8%. | Delivers two kicks. The first does 6%, the second for 7%. The first kick rarely leads the opponent into the second. |
Squirtle | Crouches and swipes its tail with a spin. 8% normally, 5% when exhausted. | Does a slow headbutt. 10% normally, 7% when exhausted. |
Toon Link | Swings his sword overhead for 8%. | Thrusts his sword forward for a stab, similar to the final hit of his Neutral attack combo. 10%. |
Wario | Crawls up the edge and flips onto his back, attacking with his head. 8% | Crawls up the edge and slides his hand across the ground. Similar to his down tilt. 10% |
Wolf | Slides forward, attacking with both legs for 8%. Shares this animation with Fox and Falco. | Flips onto the stage with a kick, dealing 10%. Shares this animation with Fox and Falco. |
Yoshi | Quickly sweeps his tail forward for 6%. | Slowly swings his head forward for 12%. Similar to his Forward smash. |
Zelda | Does a low spinning sweep before she stands. 6%. | Slaps in front of her for 10%. |
Zero Suit Samus | Does a low spinning kick for 8%. | Does a turning forearm thrust dealing 10%. |
Trivia
- Sonic is the only character with an edge attack (his slow one) that can hit twice.
- Mr. Game & Watch's edge attacks are the only ones to not deal fixed knockback, instead dealing the same strength of knockback as floor attacks.