Pokémon Trainer (SSBU)

This page documents information about recently released content. Information may change rapidly as it becomes available. All information in this article must be verifiable.

Pokémon Trainer in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Pokémon
Shares character slot with	Charizard Ivysaur Squirtle
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Triple Finish

“	Pokémon Trainer returns with Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard. You can choose to play as a male or female trainer!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Pokémon Trainer (ポケモントレーナー, Pokémon Trainer) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He was confirmed on June 12th, 2018. Pokémon Trainer can use three interchangeable Pokémon in battle: Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard. Along with their Pokémon, the Pokémon Trainer is classified as fighters #33, #34, and #35.

In English, Billy Bob Thompson and Kate Bristol voice the male and female Pokémon Trainers, respectively, the former replacing Michele Knotz from Brawl. In Japanese, they are voiced by Tomoe Hanba and Wakana Kingyo, respectively, with the former reprising her role as the male Pokémon Trainer from Brawl.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with the Pokémon Trainer being the 26th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Donkey Kong or anyone in his unlock tree, being the second character unlocked after Bowser.
• Have the Pokémon Trainer join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, the Pokémon Trainer must then be defeated on Pokémon Stadium.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. Brawl

The list below covers the general changes of the Pokémon Trainer and his party as a whole. For information about each individual Pokémon's moveset changes, see Squirtle (SSBU), Ivysaur (SSBU), and Charizard (SSBU).

Pokémon Trainer has received several key changes for his transition from Brawl to Ultimate. Notably, the Stamina mechanic has been completely removed, and Pokémon Change has been granted high utility due to the addition of aerial switching and significantly faster Pokémon switches. As such, switches between his three Pokémon have now become a unique advantage for the Pokémon Trainer alone, and his Pokémon are now free to fight indefinitely without being limited by Stamina during battle. It is currently unknown however if Type effectiveness has been removed.

Aesthetics

• The Pokémon Trainer's model is significantly more detailed than it was in Brawl, having stylised body proportions and sharper, slimmer eyes. Additionally, the Trainer's Poké Balls have been resized to fit in his palm. Both of these changes make their designs similar to the style of recent Pokémon titles.
• The female Pokémon Trainer from FireRed and LeafGreen, Green, appears as half of Pokémon Trainer's alternate costumes. In addition to distinct voice clips, she has many unique animations.
• The Pokémon Trainer now turns in battle to face the position of their Pokémon.
• The designs and proportions of Squirtle and Ivysaur now match their appearances in more recent Pokémon titles. They are much more expressive than they were in Brawl.
• Triple Finish has a different text box and animations; the text box is now identical to how they appear in the Generation VII games.
• The Trainer now claps on the results screen.
• On the results screen, the Pokémon Trainer himself is shown and announced as the winner of the fight rather than the Pokémon that was in battle. His face is also used as the stock icon for all three Pokémon, although they all have their own stock icons used for other modes.
• Pokémon Trainer's crowd cheer is now "I choose you!".
• When any of their Pokémon are KO'd, the Pokémon Trainer may voice out in disappointment. Both Pokémon Trainers may mutter "Dang it!" while the Female Pokémon Trainer may blurt out "Aah!" or "No!". Either Trainer may also call out the Pokémon's name in anguish.
  • When their Pokémon are asleep or stunned, the Pokémon Trainer may call out to them to wake up or get a hold of themselves.

Attributes

• The Stamina mechanic has been removed, eliminating the necessity of switching out Pokémon to restore their power.
• Squirtle is now selected as the starting Pokémon by default when the player chooses Pokémon Trainer on the character select screen. This selection can still be changed before starting the match. In Brawl, a random starting Pokémon would be chosen by default if the user did not change their Pokémon selection on the character select.

Special Moves

• Pokémon Change is much faster due to no longer having to load the next Pokémon during every switch, and it can now be used in the air. Like in Brawl, it also offers brief invincibility upon switching out, though the quicker switch time allows it to potentially combo into another Pokémon's moves, or function somewhat as an alternative "air dodge". It also allows the user to choose the recovery that suits a situation best.
  • Spamming Pokémon Change will grant no invincibility frames for a period of time, and has a cooldown of around 2 seconds.
  • Pokémon Change's cooldown can be skipped if a special move is used.
  • Pokémon Change will refresh ledge invincibility if used in the air. This even works if the move is spammed, as the new Pokémon is considered a different character grabbing the ledge. This gives Pokémon Trainer a unique stall option.

Moveset

Pokémon Trainer is a three-in-one character who battles using their three Pokémon: Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard. Only one Pokémon is active at once, and all three of them have different movesets and abilities.

It is possible to change which Pokémon the Pokémon Trainer will start with at the beginning of a match. On the character select screen, Pokémon Trainer has the starting Pokémon's portrait to the upper-right of their portrait. If the Y button is pressed, or if the Pokémon's portrait is hovered over and selected, the starting Pokémon will be toggled to the next one. The default starting Pokémon is Squirtle, which can be toggled to Ivysaur, then Charizard, which can be toggled back to Squirtle.

The three Pokémon have separate movesets and attributes. The only moves shared by the Pokémon are their down special move, Pokémon Change, and their Final Smash, Triple Finish.

Pokémon Change involves the Pokémon Trainer recalling the currently active Pokémon and sending out the next one to replace it. The order that the Pokémon are changed in is the same as toggling on the character select screen: Squirtle changes to Ivysaur, Ivysaur to Charizard, and Charizard to Squirtle.

Triple Finish is a combination attack for which the Pokémon Trainer temporarily brings out all three Pokémon to attack simultaneously. The attack covers a large range and deals repeated damage to opponents caught in it. Once the move is over, the two inactive Pokémon are recalled.

Although the Pokémon Trainer does not act as a fighter directly, they can be seen standing in the background of the stage, commanding their Pokémon and reacting to the Pokémon's situation. There are various animations and voice lines which differ for the male and female Pokémon Trainers.

The Pokémon Trainer is able to move around somewhat on most stages, running towards their Pokémon if they are far enough away. They will also turn to face the position of their Pokémon at most times. On some stages, the Pokémon Trainer stands on a special platform in the background rather than standing on a part of the stage's background. On stages where the Pokémon Trainer is on these platforms, and on some stages where they are not, they cannot move around, but will still turn to face their Pokémon.

Pokémon Trainer does not appear in the background during battles with five or more players, but their voice can still be heard. The Poké Ball and its energy effects can be seen travelling towards the foreground, implying that the Pokémon Trainer is in the foreground, outside of the camera's view.

The Pokémon Trainer reacts to various situations and inputs:

• When the active Pokémon performs a special move, the Pokémon Trainer will gesture with their arm, pointing in a specific direction:
  • Neutral special move: Points left or right, based on the direction the Pokémon is facing.
  • Side special move: Points left or right, based on the direction the move was used in.
  • Up special move: Points towards the direction they're facing, or upwards if the Pokémon is above them.
• When using their down special move, Pokémon Change, the Pokémon Trainer will throw the next Pokémon's Poké Ball towards the Pokémon's position, then hold up the now previous Pokémon's Poké Ball as they are recalled (in energy form) to it. The Pokémon Trainer then puts the Poké Ball away in their bag, and pulls out the new next Pokémon's Poké Ball. The Pokémon Trainer will also say a voice line, either encouraging the next Pokémon or praising the previous Pokémon.
  • Pokémon Change cannot be used again until this animation completes or is interrupted by using another special move.
• When using their Final Smash, Triple Finish, the Pokémon Trainer will throw the other two Pokémon's Poké Balls out and point towards the direction the move was used in for the duration of the attack, while saying a voice line including the name of the move. Once the attack is over, the Pokémon Trainer recalls the other two Pokémon and puts a Poké Ball away in their bag.
  • Pokémon Change cannot be used until this animation completes or is interrupted by using another special move.
• When the active Pokémon lands a hit, the Pokémon Trainer does a small fist pump with a happy expression.
• When the active Pokémon scores a KO:
  • Male: Raises his left fist and fist pumps, while nodding and winking, with a happy expression.
  • Female: Jumps into the air with her right arm raised, doing a full spin mid-jump, and does a double fist pump as she lands.
• When the active Pokémon is hit:
  • Male: Throws his left fist downwards with a distressed expression.
  • Female: Winces with a distressed expression.
• When the active Pokémon is KO'd:
  • Male: Shakes his head while covering his face with his left hand. He may say "Agh!" or "Dangit!"
  • Female: Shakes her head while covering her face with her left hand. She may say "Ahh!" or "Dangit!"
• When the active Pokémon is stunned (including from a shield break) or buried:
  • Male: Puts his left hand on the back of his head and looks downward with a distressed expression. He will say one of three lines: the Pokémon's name in a distressed tone, "Wake up!", or "Get a hold of yourself!"
  • Female: Puts her left hand on the side of her head and looks downward with a distressed expression. She will say one of three lines: the Pokémon's name in a distressed tone, "Wake up!", or "You've got this!"

On-screen appearance

Pokémon Trainer sends out the starting Pokémon from its Poké Ball while saying "Go!" or the Pokémon's name.

Taunts

Male

• Up taunt: Triumphantly raises his right hand into the air, saying "All right!"
• Side taunt: Fist pumps with his left hand.
• Down taunt: Fist pumps with his left hand while posing triumphantly, saying "Yeah!"

Female

• Up taunt: Fist pumps with her left hand while triumphantly raising her right hand into the air, saying "All right!"
• Side taunt: Fist pumps with her left hand.
• Down taunt: Jumps slightly off the ground while doing a double fist pump, saying "Yeah!"

Idle poses

Male

• Rubs his left leg with his left hand.
• Jumps gently on the spot twice.

Female

• Wipes her brow with her left hand.
• Stretches her right arm, holding her elbow with her left hand.

Classic Mode: The Future Champion

Pokémon Trainer's route refers to the player's goal of becoming the Pokémon Champion in the Pokémon games. Like in Pikachu's route, the opponents are all Pokémon.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music
1	Pikachu	Pokémon Stadium	Main Theme - Pokémon Red & Pokémon Blue (Melee)
2	Jigglypuff	Pokémon Stadium	Battle! (Trainer Battle) - Pokémon X / Pokémon Y
3	Lucario	Unova Pokémon League	Battle! (Trainer) - Pokémon Sun / Pokémon Moon
4	Incineroar	Kalos Pokémon League	Battle! (Elite Four) / Battle! (Solgaleo/Lunala)
5	Greninja	Pokémon Stadium 2	Battle! (Champion) - Pokémon X / Pokémon Y
6	Opposite Gender Pokémon Trainer	Pokémon Stadium 2	The Battle at the Summit!
Bonus Stage
Final	Mewtwo, then Master Hand	Final Destination	Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue Medley/Master Hand

Role in World of Light

The Pokémon Trainer was among the fighters summoned to fight the army of Master Hands.

During the opening cutscene, the Pokémon Trainer was present on the cliffside when Galeem unleashed its beams of light. Working together with Bowser and his Fire Breath, he sent out Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard in an attempt to fight back against the beams with Triple Finish, to no avail. All four were vaporized and placed under Galeem's imprisonment along with the rest of the fighters (excluding Kirby).

Pokémon Trainer can be found at the southeast near the maze that resembles Pac-Maze. Defeating him allows access to all of their Pokémon.

Alternate costumes

Only the starting Pokémon is shown on the character selection screen; it can be changed by hovering the cursor over it and selecting it or by pressing Y after selecting them. All of Pokémon Trainer's alternate costumes reference a protagonist from each generation of the Pokémon games.

Gallery

• 

  Artwork of all playable Pokémon characters and Poké Ball Pokémon, as posted by the official Pokémon Twitter account.

• 

  Official render of the female Pokémon Trainer.

• 

  Pokémon Trainer's fighter card.

• 

  Charizard using Flare Blitz on Prism Tower.

• 

  Squirtle taunting on Battlefield.

• 

  Ivysaur taunting on Gaur Plain.

• 

  The Pokémon Trio running from a Burrowing Snagret on The Great Cave Offensive.

• 

  Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard on Skyworld.

• 

  The female trainer throwing a Poké Ball on Prism Tower.

• 

  Squirtle attacking Inkling with Water Gun on Pokémon Stadium 2.

• 

  Squirtle getting splashed by Isabelle on Delfino Plaza.

• 

  Squirtle struck by Lucario on the Bridge of Eldin.

• 

  Charizard with Lucina on Skyworld.

• 

  Ivysaur attacking a Leaf Shielding Mega Man with its dash attack on Tortimer Island.

• 

  Female Pokémon Trainer with a taunting Female Pikachu on Battlefield.

• 

  Squirtle, Ivysaur and a giant golden Pikachu on Pokémon Stadium 2.

• 

  Ivysaur taunting with Sheik on Tomodachi Life.

• 

  Ivysaur taunting with Villager on 3D Land.

Character Showcase Video

<youtube>dYpf9FoPN_M</youtube>

Trivia

• Pokémon Trainer is the first composite character to have been separated in a sequel and later reformed back into a composite character.
• As previous "dual character" pairings have been removed (Zelda and Sheik in Melee and Brawl, and Samus and Zero Suit Samus in Brawl), Pokémon Trainer's ability to switch characters has now become a unique character attribute.
• Each of the three Pokémon can appear as solo CPU characters during Classic Mode, World of Light, and Spirit battles without the presence of Pokémon Trainer. They also use individual stock icons. In World of Light, if the player selects Pokémon Trainer as well as the individual Pokémon to start with, its stock icon is used on the battle preview screen as well.
• Pokémon Trainer is the only playable character to have multiple fighter numbers, as Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard are each numbered from 33 to 35.
• The male Pokémon Trainer shares his English voice actor with another playable Pokémon character, Greninja.
• The official render of the female Pokémon Trainer uses her Pokémon's default colors; however, in the game, they use an alternate color scheme.
• The Trainer's Pokémon do not appear on the victory screen if there are three or more players on the winning team.
  • They also won't appear during the "No Result" screen.
• When freeing his spirit, the Trainer's eyes will be normal. His Pokémon will have possessed red eyes, however.
• There is a glitch where Pokémon Trainer can win a time match regardless of the score. This only occurs when Sudden Death is supposed to happen.
• Pokémon Trainer is one of two characters to have differing victory poses depending on the gender, the other being Inkling. In this case, the animations apply to the trainer themselves, not the Pokémon.