Falco (SSB4)

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Falco in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Star Fox
Other playable appearances	in Melee in Brawl
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Landmaster

Falco (ファルコ, Falco) returns as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Falco was officially confirmed on October 3rd, 2014, alongside Ness and Wario, meeting up with the the North American release of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS. His moveset appears to be largely unchanged from its Brawl incarnation.

In Japanese, he is once again voiced by Hisao Egawa. In English, he is voiced by Mark Lund, his voice actor from Star Fox 64 3D.

How to Unlock

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• Play 20 VS Matches.
• Complete Classic Mode without using any continues.

Falco must then be defeated on Corneria.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

• Play 10 VS Matches.
• Clear Classic Mode on any intensity.

Falco must then be defeated on Orbital Gate Assault.

Changes from Brawl

While he has received miscellaneous buffs, Falco has been nerfed overall from Brawl to Smash 4. Falco has increased KO ability in several of his attacks, and is harder to edgeguard due to the buffs to Falco Phantasm and the removal of edgehogging, but at the cost of losing effective neutral, approaching, and damage racking abilities. His most significant nerf was to his Blaster; formerly the crux of his neutral game, the shots can no longer autocancel, weakening his approaches and his ability to pressure from afar. The removal of DACUS only exacerbates this as Falco now lacks any safe, quick way to approach enemies on the ground and follow up on combos or strings. His down aerial, which was a staple in his playstyle in previous games, has also been significantly nerfed, weakening his ability to close out stocks quickly efficiently. It also weakens his ability to approach with down aerial, a relatively effective strategy in past games, unless the player frame cancels the move (which is extremely difficult to do consistently in tournament settings). The removal of chain grabs is also a double-edged sword for Falco; while Falco is no longer an easy victim to it, its removal means that he loses his down throw chain grab, which impairs his ability to rack up damage quickly.

Thus, while Falco's punish game besides down aerial has been left relatively untouched, Falco is now more easily camped and must work much harder to win neutral exchanges, which are disadvantages he cannot afford to endure at high-level play due to his fast falling speed and the ease in which he can be comboed by other characters.

Aesthetics

• As part of the aesthetic used in SSB4, Falco's overall color scheme is brighter compared to how it looked in Brawl (which, like Fox, is based off his appearnce in Star Fox: Command). Additionally, his eye reticle is smaller than it was in Brawl.

Attributes

• Falco's dashing speed is slightly faster (from 1.432 in Brawl to 1.472 in Smash 4).
• Falco's Falling Speed is slightly faster (from 1.708 in Brawl to 1.8 in Smash 4).

Ground attacks

• Neutral infinite now transitions into a finisher.
• Dash attack is slightly slower, with an extra 4 frames of start-up.
• Down tilt sweet-spotted is stronger, giving it KO potential above 120%.
• Up smash hits twice, deals more damage and has no sour-spot behind Falco.
• The removal of DACUS removes the potential of Falco's up smash as an approach option, followup option, and KO setup from his down throw. Falco can also no longer perform the Gatling Combo, removing its combo potential.
• Down smash deals slightly more knockback. Falco's feet are now intangible during start-up (including the charging period).
• Forward smash deals more knockback.
• Forward smash hits 1 frame later and has less reach.

Aerial attacks

• Forward and neutral aerials connect better.
• Neutral aerial has more landing lag.
• Forward aerial is significantly stronger, making it a decent KO option off-stage.
• Forward aerial deals less damage and has 6 frames extra start-up.
• Forward aerial has an added landing hitbox that deals 5%.
• New sweet spotted back aerial is stronger, now being able to KO at 110%.
• New back aerial has lost its lingering hitbox and no longer hits in front of Falco.
• Down aerial's meteor smash is weaker with a significant increase in starting, ending and landing lag.
• The introduction of frame cancel significantly benefits Falco's down aerial, which can allow him to set up combos than it did in the previous game if the player is frame-precise with the move.

Throws/other attacks

• Up throw consists of 1 blaster shot instead of 3, making it more reliable. Its new vertical trajectory makes it better for follow-ups.
• Back throw deals more damage, knockback and consists of 1 blaster shot instead of 3.
• Down throw deals less damage and has lost its chain grabbing ability, removing one of his best strategies from Brawl and well as harming Falco's damage racking game.

Special moves

• Falco Phantasm has slightly less start-up, no longer leaves Falco helpless when used in mid-air and can no longer dash over edges when used on the ground. It also has less landing lag when used air-borne.
• Fire Bird gains more recovery distance.
• Blaster looses practically as an approach option as shots no longer auto-cancel and cannot be fired as frequently. The height of Falco's short hop often shoots the lasers over the opponent's heads. It also covers significantly less range. (Not even the full Final Destination length).
• Landmaster is less powerful and lasts a shorter duration.

Moveset

	Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		3% (hit 1), 2% (hit 2), 0.4% (infinite), 3% (hit 3)	Falco does a jab, another jab, and then tilts diagonally and spins very quickly with his arms out.
Forward tilt		9%	Kicks his leg out. Can be angled up or down with the control stick. Below-average knockback.
Up tilt		4% (clean hit 1) or 3% (late hit 1), 5% (hit 2)	Swings both of his wings above his head, hitting twice.
Down tilt		12% (nearest), 11% (near), or 9% (farthest)	Falco performs a quick tail swipe.
Dash attack		9% (clean) or 6% (late)	Falco jumps slightly off the ground while running and performs a kick.
Forward smash		15% (clean) or 10% (late)	Falco swings his wings in an overhead powerful swipe, slashing anyone who is caught in it.
Up smash		4% (hit 1), 12% (hit 2)	Falco does a backflip, kicking out with both feet.
Down smash		15% (foot) or 12% (body)	Falco does a split kick that comes out relatively quickly.
Neutral aerial		3% (hits 1-2), 2% (hit 3), 4% (hit 4)	Falco does a series of spinning swipes with his wings, hitting five times.
Forward aerial		1% (loop hits 1-4), 4% (hit 5), 5% (landing)	Falco turns horizontally and spins, hitting multiple times with his beak, similar to Pikachu's or Sonic's forward aerial.
Back aerial		13% (clean) or 7% (late)	Falco does a backwards flying kick with one leg outstretched.
Up aerial		11%	Falco does a forwards flip kick into the air.
Down aerial		13% (clean) or 8% (late)	Falco turns diagonally and spins. Hits once, but can spike the opponent.
Grab		—	Grabs the opponent.
Pummel		2%	A quick knee strike.
Forward throw		4% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Falco bashes the opponent forward.
Back throw		6% (throw), 3% (laser)	Falco throws the foe backwards and then blasts them with his blaster.
Up throw		4% (throw), 4% (laser)	Falco throws the foe upwards and shoots at them.
Down throw		2% (laser), 3% (throw)	The opponent is thrown on the ground and shot.
Floor attack (front)		7%	Falco lunges and kicks backwards and forwards.
Floor attack (back)		7%	Falco extends to attack in front and in back.
Floor attack (trip)		5%	Falco spins around, kicking those who are near.
Edge attack		7%	Falco lunges at the opponent with a kick.
Neutral special	Blaster	3%	Falco fires his blaster. Unlike Fox's Blaster, it is slow but can stun the opponent. The lasers lose power as they travel.
Neutral special custom 1	Explosive Blaster	1% (hits 1-4), 2% (hit 5)	Falco fires a shot that slows down as it travels and explodes right before it stops. It pushes opponents while traveling.
Neutral special custom 2	Burst Blaster	2% (early) or 1% (late)	Falco fires more rapid shots, but with less power and range.
Side special	Falco Phantasm	7% (grounded opponents), 6% (airborne opponents)	Falco becomes invisible and suddenly dashes through opponents, leaving behind after-images. Unlike Fox Illusion, Falco Phantasm will launch airborne opponents straight downwards on contact.
Side special custom 1	Falco Phase	0%	Falco is intangible for the duration of the move, but cannot hit opponents either.
Side special custom 2	Falco Charge	4% (early), 12% (clean), 4% (late)	A shorter dash that hits much harder at the beginning of the move.
Up special	Fire Bird	2% (charging hits 1-7), 3% (dash hit 1), 2% (dash hits 2-8), 2% (dash hit 9)	Falco charges up and suddenly fires himself in one of eight directions, depending on what direction is held. The attack hits multiple times.
Up special custom 1	Fast Fire Bird	2%	Falco instantly fires himself in one of eight directions, but travels a shorter distance.
Up special custom 2	Distant Fire Bird	8% (initial hit), 2% (loop hits)	Falco charges up for a longer period of time, but travels further. The initial part of the attack launches opponents while the rest of the attack hits opponents multiple times, dealing weak knockback and can't link hits very well.
Down special	Reflector	5% (reflector), 1.2x damage for reflected projectiles	Falco activates his Reflector and kicks it away from him, reflecting any projectiles and shocking any enemies it comes in contact with. It then returns to him as if magnetized.
Down special custom 1	Accele-Reflector	2% (reflector), 1x damage for reflected projectiles	It can only reflect projectiles while moving forwards, but increases the speed of the reflected shots which deal the same damage as before.
Down special custom 2	Reflector Void	9% (reflector), 0.7x damage for reflected projectiles	Will nullify most projectiles instead of reflecting them, but deals more damage on contact. Reflected projectiles deal less damage than before.
Final Smash	Landmaster	Varies	Falco summons his Landmaster. It has more air speed than Fox's, but does not last as long.

Taunts

• Kicks his reflector around like a hackey sack and says "Piece of cake!"
• Poses by standing on one foot with his wing raised before saying "Get some."
• Like in Melee, he spins once and crosses one arm before saying "Hands off my prey!"
• Smash Taunt: When fighting as Falco on the Corneria stage, quickly tap down on the directional pad once and he will kneel down and seem as though he's trying to communicate with someone through a device, and then stand back up, at which point a conversation will begin with another character from the Star Fox universe.

On-Screen Appearance

Falco ejects from an upside-down Arwing.

Victory Fanfare

A flourished remix directly from Brawl based on the theme that would play at the title screen in Star Fox 64. It is shared with Fox.

In event matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Melee: Falco is one of the eight opponents fought in this event. All the opponents debut in Melee and reappeared in Smash 4 as veterans.
• Duck Hunt!: As Duck Hunt, the player must defeat 10 ducks which appear in the stage background. Falco can interfere with the progress with Giant Falco appearing after some time has passed.
• Great Fox Defense: Falco must prevent a group of Mr. Game & Watches from landing on the stage. The Mr. Game & Watches have more stock on higher difficulties.
• Up to Speed: As Sonic, the player must defeat Fox, Falco, and Captain Falcon in a high-speed 1 stock match.

Co-op Events

• Keep 'Em off the Ship!: Fox and Falco team up to prevent a larger wave of Mr. Game & Watches from landing on the stage.
• Sky Pirates: Meta Knight and Dark Pit must team up to defeat Captain Falcon and Falco before the plane returns to the airfield.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.
• Visiting Onett: Falco is one of the opponents Ness and Villager must fight against. The opponents are space characters or characters from other planets.

Trophies

Super Smash Bros. 4 trophy descriptions

Falco

A talented pilot and part of the Star Fox team, Falco can be a bit rough around the edges. He once led his own galactic gang before joining up with Fox. In Smash Bros., his ability to jump high and deal damage in the air makes him a powerful threat, and his thrown Reflector can catch foes by surprise.

Falco (Alt.)

Falco's Blaster looks identical to Fox's at first, but actually it's quite different! The beams Falco fires deal more damage and cause the victim to flinch, but at a slower rate of fire. Considering Falco's lineage, it's not all that surprising that he can fire faster while airborne.

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  Classic (3DS)

• FalcoAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

Update history

1.0.4

• Blaster can shoot faster.
• Landing hit of Forward Air does 5% damage, up from 2%.
• Fixed Reflector Void failing to reflect Timber properly.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Kicking Little Mac.

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  Readying his Blaster.

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  Attacking Bowser with Diddy Kong, Fox, and Takamaru.

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  Riding on an Arwing with Captain Falcon, Little Mac, and Fox.

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  Staring down Fox.

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  Attacking Link and Marth.

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  Posing with Pikachu.

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  In his Landmaster attacking Samus.

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  Using Falco Phantasm on Greninja.

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  On Boxing Ring with Captain Falcon, Luigi, and Shulk.

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  Hitting Lucario while wearing a Bunny Hood.

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  Using Falco Phantasm.

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  Slashing Pit.

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  Uses Falco Phantasm on Pit and Yoshi.

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  Hitting Charizard.

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  Fires his blaster.

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  Uses Fire Bird on Mario.

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  Firing alongside with Fox.

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  Jabs on Olimar.

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  Forward aerial attack on Mega Man.

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  Dash attack.

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  Falco in standby mode.

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  Down smash.

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  Poses with Peach.

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  Attacking Toon Link.

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  A pose.

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  Attacking Greninja.

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  Aerial attack with Andross.

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  Uses a Drill Arm on Mario and Sonic.

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  A taunt.

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  Poses with Captain Falcon.

Trivia

• Falco has three English voice actors between both versions of Super Smash Bros. 4. He has Marc Lund for his battle voice and the Orbital Gate Assault Smash taunts, Dex Manley for the Lylat Cruise Smash taunts, and Ben Cullum for the Corneria Smash taunts.
• Interestingly, the custom move set for his neutral special, Blaster will actually influence the throws in which Falco uses it. The same applies to Fox.