Final Destination (SSBM)
- This article is about theSuper Smash Bros. Melee stage. For other uses, seeFinal Destination (disambiguation).
| Special Stage Final Destination | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  Final Destination inSuper Smash Bros. Melee. | |||||
| Universe | Super Smash Bros. | ||||
| Appears in | Melee | ||||
| Availability | Unlockable | ||||
| Unlock criteria | CompleteEvent 51: The Showdown. | ||||
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Final Destination (終点,Endpoint), often abbreviated asFD, is astage inSuper Smash Bros. Melee.
Master Hand andCrazy Hand are fought on this stage inClassic Mode, as well asBowser andGiga Bowser inAdventure Mode,Roy and any of his teammates inAll-Star Mode, andGanondorf andMewtwo in their unlock battles. Someevent matches, including twoAll-Star Matches, are also played here.
Stage overview[edit]
Final Destination is a flat, medium sized stage, very similar to itsSmash 64 counterpart but much larger. It features a single, octagonal solid platform, under which a black orb floats. While having no effect on gameplay, the background of the stage changes during matches; a full cycle lasts about 216 seconds (3 minutes and 36 seconds).
Tournament legality[edit]
Final Destination is currently either a starter or a counterpick stage in all singles tournaments, depending on ifFrozen Pokémon Stadium is used. This due to the polarizing nature of matchups on the stage, as it is considered either the strongest or weakest stage for a large amount of the roster. Throughout muchMelee's history, Final Destination was a starter stage for tournament play, due to it having no stage hazards and a simplistic design that allowed for straightforward singles matches; however, as the metagame continued to evolve and matchups were further optimized, the stage proved to have a disproportionate influence on the outcome of best of five sets, and it became increasingly unpopular among the playerbase, especially with the rise of Frozen Pokémon Stadium as a starter, with its similar layout. This initally led to its status as the only tournament legal stage not available as a starter, prior to the decline of Frozen Stadium.
Final Destination is considered one of the best stages forprojectile users and characters withchain grabs, as there are no platforms for opponents to escape to that can allow for alleviation of such pressures. It is also a solid stage choice for characters who have largely groundedneutral game options. On the other hand, Final Destination is a bad stage for characters who rely on platforms to continue combos, or lose defensive options due to the lack of such platforms. Final Destination is consideredIce Climbers' best stage, one ofMarth's best stages, and a bad stage forJigglypuff andSheik against other top tiers, particularlyFox andFalco. Final Destination is particularly bad forYoshi, who relies onshield dropping from platforms to make up for the inability tojumpout of shield.
Despite the stage's flat layout, the lack of platforms has made Final Destination one of the least balanced stages in competitive play, as it gives certain characters major advantages not seen on other stages. Several characters have their combo game greatly extended on the stage, as the lack of platforms gives opponents less of an opportunity to escape them. In particular, Marth has extensive combos and chain grabs on fastfallers, such as Fox and Falco, which can lead to a KO starting at very low percents. Fox,Pikachu, andPeach, also have their own chain grabs on fastfallers, and Falco has extensive pillar combos on most characters as well. This means that against these characters, getting grabbed can result in a stock loss at near zero percent. Marth players almost always counterpick Foxes to this stage in a best of five tournament set, and at the highest level of play, this counterpick is often considered a highly probable (though not guaranteed) win for the Marth player. The counterpick advantage, combined with Fox's lack of a similar preferred counterpick amongst the other stages, gives Marth an advantage in the matchup.
Extensive controversy has risen over Final Destination's legal status, and many players had advocated for it to become a counterpick stage again, or even ban the stage outright. Detractors argued that the completely flat geometry gives a disproportionate advantage to the aforementioned projectile and chain grab users, and that the enhanced punish game means that small mistakes become far more consequential (similarly to playing againstwobbling). They also argued that the lack of platforms removes many of the game's complex movement options, such aswavelanding andedge cancelling and oversimplifies recoveries. Some players have also argued in favor of a stage ban during best of five sets, in large part due to Final Destination's role in polarizing matchups.
Trophy[edit]
The Final Destination trophy is unlocked by completingEvent 51: The Showdown.
- Final Destination
- As time passes on this stage, the level appears to travel through a wormhole from the imaginary Super Smash Bros. Melee world into reality. You move through a cloud-filled sky over a vast mountain range, then into a deep-space vista of dark blues and purples. The scenery is as real as you get in this fantastical world.
- Super Smash Bros. Melee (12/01)
Gallery[edit]
First background.
First background transforming into the second.
Second background.
Third background.
Fourth background.
Fifth background.
Fifth background transforming into the sixth.
Sixth background.
Final background.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
 Japanese | 終点 | Endpoint |
 English | Final Destination | — |
 French | Destination Finale | Final Destination |
 German | Final Destination | — |
 Spanish | Destino Final | Final Destination |
Trivia[edit]
- It is possible tojump under Final Destination withJigglypuff,Peach,Samus,Mewtwo,Luigi,Pikachu,Pichu,Kirby,Link andYoung Link.
- The track for Final Destination is a remix ofSuper Smash Bros. 64's Credits theme. This is most evident during the end verse.
- Super Smash Bros. Melee is the only game in whichFinal Destination is anunlockable stage.
- Final Destination is the onlystage of five neutral stages whose stage design is not similar to that ofBattlefield's.
- Unlike most stages, therevival platforms in Final Destination are positioned by player port number. The order is as follows from left to right: P3, P4, P1, and P2. A similar situation also occurs inBattlefield.
| Stages inSuper Smash Bros. Melee | |
|---|---|
| Starter stages | Brinstar ·Corneria ·Fountain of Dreams ·Great Bay ·Green Greens ·Icicle Mountain ·Jungle Japes ·Kongo Jungle ·Mushroom Kingdom ·Mute City ·Onett ·Pokémon Stadium ·Princess Peach's Castle ·Rainbow Cruise ·Temple ·Venom ·Yoshi's Island ·Yoshi's Story |
| Unlockable stages | Battlefield ·Big Blue ·Brinstar Depths ·Final Destination ·Flat Zone ·Fourside ·Mushroom Kingdom II ·Poké Floats |
 UnlockablePast Stages | Dream Land ·Kongo Jungle ·Yoshi's Island |
