Incineroar inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Pokémon
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Max Malicious Moonsault
Tier	C+ (60)

Incineroar (ガオガエン,Gaogaen) is a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate. It was confirmed alongsideKen andPiranha Plant on November 1st, 2018, and was the finalnewcomer revealed for the base roster. Incineroar is classified asFighter #69.

Tyler Bunch (credited as "H.D. Quinn"), who voicesProfessor Kukui's Incineroar in the English dub ofPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon, reprises his role. In Japanese, Incineroar is voiced byUnshō Ishizuka, who passed away 2 months and 19 days before Incineroar's reveal. Incineroar also has different voice actors for the French and German versions due to its name being different in those languages, being voiced by Frédéric Clou in French and an unidentified voice actor in German.

Incineroar is ranked 60th out of 82 on the currenttier list, placing it at the end of the C+ tier. Incineroar's main strength is its high damage power especially when fighting up close. It has several moves that have fast frame data and large hitboxes, which allows it to rack up damage quickly. In addition, Incineroar possesses several strong KO options, including three of its throws,Alolan Whip, and most of its aerials. All of its moves are further powered up thanks toRevenge, which allows Incineroar to not only tank a hit, but also deal even more damage the next time it attacks. Finally, Revenge and Incineroar's heavy weight allow it to survive to higher percents and take advantage of rage, making it even deadlier.

However, Incineroar also has several weaknesses, most notably its sluggish movement in both the air and on the ground; its walking and dashing speed are the slowest in the game. This gives Incineroar a poorneutral game, which, combined with a lack of projectiles and somewhat short range, means it can have trouble getting close to those that can camp or outrange it. Furthermore, its KO moves are also somewhat inconsistent, as many of its moves either have sourspots that deal less damage and knockback or have poor knockback scaling; Revenge also does not last forever as there are several ways for it to disappear, including getting grabbed. This leads to Incineroar having to rely on either its throws or Alolan Whip to KO, which can become predictable. Finally, Incineroar's recovery is also lackluster due toCross Chop's limited horizontal distance if not used above or near the stage, which can lead into aself-destruct if not positioned properly.

Overall, Incineroar is most effective when fighting and pressuring players up-close, but it has trouble against those that can outspeed or outrange it. Historically, Incineroar had weak representation and results in competitive play, though they improved for a period of time thanks to the efforts ofSkyjay. However, no other Incineroar player has matched Skyjay's level of results, leading the character's representation reliant on one player.

How to unlock[edit]

Complete one of the following:

• PlayVS. matches, with Incineroar being the 46th character to be unlocked.
• ClearClassic Mode withSamus or any character in her unlock tree, being the 4th character unlocked afterPit.
• Have Incineroar join the player's party inWorld of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Incineroar must then be defeated onBoxing Ring. In World of Light, it is fought on theΩ form ofSpear Pillar.

Attributes[edit]

Incineroar draws many comparisons to some of the slowest, hardest-hitting fighters from throughout the history of theSuper Smash Bros. series: it is a tall superheavyweight (being tied withCharizard as the 6th heaviest character) who has the 19th fastestfalling speed, the 11th highestgravity, and averageair acceleration. However, Incineroar is the overall slowest character in the game: it has the slowestwalking anddashing speeds among the entire cast, as well as the 10th slowestair speed, and is tied for the 14th slowest initial dashing speed.

As a character that pays homage to professional wrestling, Incineroar's moveset boasts an abundance of single-hit attacks and throws, and its attacks have respectably large hitboxes for a close-range fighter of its mobility. Contrary to its sluggish movement and heavy weight, Incineroar's frame data is surprisingly above-average, with fairly quick start-up and respectable ending lag in spite of their impressive damage outputs. Unlike most other hard hitters, Incineroar's weaker attacks are fairly reliable combo starters that work at a myriad of percentages, giving its moveset an excellent amount of utility. Meanwhile, most of its stronger moves are greatly damaging and, in many cases, capable of KOing early. As expected of a super heavyweight,rage helps Incineroar KO even easier, and it is able to take advantage of it easily thanks to its quick falling speed, high gravity and aforementioned weight collectively granting it impressive endurance.

Unsurprisingly for a professional wrestling-inspired fighter, Incineroar's greatest asset is its excellentgrab game. While Incineroar's grab range is average, its grabs are decently quick, linger longer than average (though its dash grab and pivot grab are slow), and it has one of the best sets of throws among the entire cast, all of which have respectable damage outputs. Itsforward,back, andup throws are all powerful (with each being the strongest of their kind in the game in certain situations), whereasdown throw is the core of its combo game. The latter can lead into various aerials (includingdown aerial, though its slow start-up makes it a mix-up),forward and dashingup smash at very low percentages, andDarkest Lariat. It can also potentially lead to a riskysacrificial KO withCross Chop, which will always result in the opponent being KO'd first.

Incineroar's forward throw has high knockback even at low percentages, making it an acceptable throw to set up an edgeguard at percentages where its down throw will not combo anymore, and to KO at high percentages near the edge. Its back throw, when performed at the edge, can potentially rivalNess' own back throw as the strongest throw in the game, and can KO light characters exceptionally early; however, due to its launch angle, lack of damage during the actual throw (as it consists of a hit before the opponent is thrown), and lackluster resistance to DI, it can be survived relatively easily if used mid-stage and kills far later than Ness' own throw if used in such a situation. Finally, Incineroar's up throw is its most reliable KO throw due to being the strongest of its kind (only surpassed byOlimar's up throw with Blue Pikmin), and easily KOs earlier with the assistance of platforms and/or a low upperblast line. Overall, Incineroar has KO throws for any given situation, while also having a reliable combo starter.

Similarly to some of its fellow super heavyweights, Incineroar also possesses a unique grab; in this case, acommand grab that functions as itsside special,Alolan Whip. Upon execution, the player must press the attack or special button again after the throw initiates, and depending on timing, it has three outcomes: performing it early will result in a back body drop that has high vertical knockback that scales slowly, performing it too late will result in the opponent harmlessly bouncing back while damaging Incineroar, and performing it cleanly (as the opponent is about to collide with Incineroar) results in a lariat that is one of Incineroar's strongest moves, thanks to impressive horizontal knockback and a low launch angle. Even the early and failed versions of the move have their uses, with the back body drop KOing earlier while near the upper blast line, and the collision being usable to set up a reversal.

Incineroar's grounded moveset is a good example of its fast frame data for its high damage and power. Itsneutral attack is tied for the second fastest attack in its moveset, and it is tied withKing K. Rool,Ike, andWario's neutral attacks for the third most damaging non-infinite neutral attack in the entire game, being surpassed only byKazuya andTerry's. Incineroar'sforward tilt is the strongest in the game when sweetspotted, and is among its best KO options on the ground due to its solid startup andsemi-spike angle. Itsup anddown tilts serve similar purposes, being combo starters that can set up into Incineroar's other moves. The former can link into itself at low percentages and into aerials at low to medium ones, and serves as an anti-air due to invincibility on Incineroar's head. Conversely, the latter has impressive range, lowers Incineroar's hurtbox, and has excellent combo potential throughout all percentages, allowing combos into Incineroar's up tilt orup smash at low percentages or aerials at high percentages, including KO confirms into all its aerials (barring down aerial) orDarkest Lariat.

Incineroar'sdash attack's clean hitbox makes it is one of the strongest attacks of its kind in the game, but is mainly useful as a burst KO option when fresh, as Incineroar's slow speed can make it quite predictable. Finally, Incineroar'ssmash attacks have their own unique perks. Itsforward smash comes out surprisingly quickly, KOs extremely early when sweetspotted at the foot (being the 4th strongest when sweetspotted), and deals goodshield damage. Its up smash has a wide, consistently strong hitbox and grantsintangibility, which make it useful for both anti-air tactics and KOing outright. Finally, Incineroar'sdown smash momentarily shifts its hurtbox upwards, allowing it to dodge grabs, attacks, and even projectiles to act as a hardpunish.

A few of Incineroar's aerial moves are also useful. Its neutral aerial is also tied for its second fastest attack and has a large hitbox all-around. When sweetspotted, it can be used to KO offstage; if not, it can still function as a powerful combo starter, especially for anout of shield option. Incineroar's up aerial is its go-to aerialjuggle option due to its wide hitbox and its capability of comboing from up and down tilts. Itsdown aerial is a powerfulmeteor smash that can still KO even if the sourspot hits, and at lower percentages, sets the opponent up for a combo. Incineroar's forward and back aerials are its main way to KO opponents in the air, aside from Alolan Whip, thanks to their faster startup, with short hop forward aerial being a quick follow up to down tilt, and full hop forward aerial following down throw at higher percentages. Due to its aerials' power and decent enough recovery, Incineroar's edgeguarding game is respectable.

Incineroar's otherspecial moves complete its moveset with a few versatile tools.Darkest Lariat is Incineroar's get-off-me option, possessing fast startup (being tied for neutral attack and neutral aerial as its second fastest attack), a long duration,transcendent priority throughout its hitboxes,invincibility on its arms, and a very strong early hit. Though its power gradually weakens over time, its perks allow it to outprioritize many moves (even weak projectiles) while hitting hard.Cross Chop is Incineroar's main recovery move; it can contest against other attacks due to itssuper armor during the start, and the descending hit deals high knockback. It is also a powerful combo finisher orsacrificial KO, as the initial descent's high base knockback allows it togimp any character at 0% should the descending hit connect.

Finally,Revenge is a uniquecounterattack that retaliates with a weak hit, but stores a stackable power increase that affects Incineroar's next move; with a sufficiently strong buff, it grants exorbitantly powerful punishes, with moves such as its smashes, Darkest Lariat, Alolan Whip, and most infamously back throw turning into some of the strongest attacks in the game. While the buff lasts for one successful move, it is not lost should the attack hit an opponent's shield, making Incineroar's moves generally safe on block and can even result in the opponent's shield being broken if they keep shielding, leading to their doom. The buff does eventually go away if Incineroar uses too many moves without landing a hit, or if Incineroar itself is hit enough times, or if Incineroar is grabbed and thrown by an opponent. Revenge's buff is not lost upon hitting the failed version of Alolan Whip, but is lost upon hitting the first neutral attack if you do not complete the jab combo.

However, Incineroar's powerful abilities come at a severe cost. Its biggest issue comes from its poorneutral game. As mentioned before, Incineroar possesses abysmal mobility; when combined with a lack of aprojectile, this makes it very easy to zone out and gives it a terrible approach. While the hitboxes on its moves are large, Incineroar's overallrange remains somewhat short, so any sufficiently long-ranged projectile ordisjointed range can be enough to keep Incineroar at bay. This is especially troublesome considering the cast is also full of characters with either greater mobility (such asSonic), superior melee range (such asLucina), good zoning games (such asMin Min), or in some cases, all three points (such asWolf).

Further adding to this is Incineroar's poor air game: although moves like its neutral aerial offer good utility, and its forward and back aerials have the range to outspace opponents, none of Incineroar's aerials can autocancel from a short hop aside from its up aerial (with its forward aerial not autocanceling even from a full hop). This significantly limits their use in the neutral game, as their poor autocancel windows make them unable for approaching reliably. In bulk, this gives Incineroar one of the most lackluster neutral games of any character, being one of the characters with the most trouble at getting close to opponents to begin with, and forces it to heavily rely on bait-and-punish tactics in order to get in.

Another prominent issue is Incineroar'srecovery. Cross Chop turns into an inevitableself-destruct if Incineroar is not directly below the edge or above stage level, which can lead to falling into predictable recovery paths, while Alolan Whip is very linear and has considerable ending lag. Incineroar's slow air speed, fast falling speed, and high gravity further compound its recovery issues. That said, Alolan Whip can intercept edgeguard attempts thanks to its non-inputted collision, allowing Incineroar to potentially reverse the situation. Furthermore, neither Cross Chop's descent nor Alolan Whip render Incineroarhelpless, so Incineroar does have the ability to mix its recovery up when used in tandem with a directionalair dodge and its midair jump, especially if it recovers from a high altitude, which adds to its impressive endurance. However, in a similar manner toMarth, if it doesn't have its double jump, Incineroar is highly vulnerable to being edgeguarded. By extension, any sufficiently strong semi-spike or meteor smash will almost certainly result in Incineroar being KO'd, and any combo that drags it offstage is usually fatal if it is not at a high enough altitude to recover.

Although its frame data gives it less of an issue breaking out of combos and rushdown tactics, its only reliable options to break through such tactics are its neutral aerial, Darkest Lariat, and Revenge, all of which are exceptionally simple to punish predicted. If it is unable to break through combos, its slow mobility can leave it very vulnerable to constant aggression, in addition to being vulnerable to zoning and spacing. Its poor neutral game further contributes to this, as it can make it very difficult for Incineroar to even get back to a position where it can try to exploit the opponent's offense or defense. Despite its fast falling speed, Incineroar's slow air speed also leaves it vulnerable to juggling. Altogether, all these flaws collectively result in Incineroar having a poor disadvantage state.

Although its moveset has greatly damaging options, Incineroar has surprisingly inconsistent KO potential compared to many of its fellow super heavyweights. While its throws are among the strongest in the game and many of its other moves possess high knockback at low percentages as a result of their high base knockback, their knockback does not increase quickly due to their low knockback scaling. Notable examples of this are its neutral and back aerials, back throw, Darkest Lariat and Alolan Whip's back body drop. Notably, some of Incineroar's moves require landing a sweetspot in order to attain their maximum knockback; notable cases include its forward tilt (despite the sweetspot being the strongest in the game), forward smash, and both forward and back aerials.

Finally, disregarding its up throw, Incineroar has the worst vertical KO potential of the super heavyweights. Its up tilt, up aerial, and Alolan Whip's back body drop all have lackluster power, while its up smash, while powerful, is relatively slow for an out of shield option. Revenge can alleviate this issue to a degree, but this requires Incineroar to read the opponent's attack in the first place. In addition, the buff is lost once it has successfully landed an attack, meaning that if Incineroar is forced to attack with one of its weaker moves, it is possible to waste the buff entirely. The buff can also be gradually lost by attacking Incineroar, by waiting after approximately 60 seconds (which is possible due to Incineroar's susceptibility to being outranged or camped), or outright wasted by throwing Incineroar via a regular grab or a command grab, further adding to its inconsistency.

In the end, Incineroar falls within the "grappler" playstyle archetype, which notoriously requires a very specific playstyle to be effective. Incineroar excels at taking advantage of close-range openings, where it can land powerful blows or start consistent combos that rack up damage quickly in only a few hits, all while being difficult for an opponent to punish due to its staying power, relative safety on shield and heavy punish abilities, making Incineroar very formidable once it wins the neutral game and gets in close. However, its significantly below-average mobility and relatively short range makes getting in its greatest hurdle, as most of the cast can simply run away and attack from a distance. Also, while it has an incredible overall damage output, it suffers inconsistent KO potential that is mostly reliant on its throws and side special, making it predictable when it comes to scoring a KO.

Update history[edit]

Incineroar received a mix of buffs, nerfs and glitch fixes via game updates, but was buffed overall. Update 2.0.0 strengthened its up smash and up throw, and made its down aerialauto-cancel properly. The most notable buff, however, wasCross Chop's increased overall travel distance, which improved Incineroar's notoriously weak recovery at certain angles and especially its vertical recovery (although lower angles that are not directly below the edge are still almost impossible to recover from). As part of a near-universal buff to multi-hit attacks, update 3.1.0 buffed Incineroar's neutral attack by adjusting its hits in order for them to connect more reliably.

Update 6.0.0 further buffed Incineroar in a number of ways. Its neutral attack's third hit was strengthened noticeably, thus improving the move's reliability in regard to warding off opponents. Its forward aerial gained a late hitbox, which makes the move function similarly toDiddy Kong's forward aerial. Its down aerial's meteor smashing hitbox is now significantly easier to land, thanks to it out-prioritizing the sourspot. Lastly,Darkest Lariat's clean hit has increased power and range, whileRevenge became safer via increases to its active frames and knockback alongside decreased ending lag. Following this, update 7.0.0 adjusted the collateral knockback ofAlolan Whip's back body drop and lariat: this made them safer on hit against at low percentages when used on bystanders, yet noticeably weakened the lariat's KO potential against bystanders.

Update 8.0.0 provided Incineroar with a number of helpful buffs, the most notable of which were to Alolan Whip and Revenge. Alolan Whip's overall lag was decreased by 2 frames, and its already powerful lariat was strengthened even further. Revenge's damage multiplier was increased significantly, thus making it much more rewarding. Its ending lag from a missed counter attempt was also decreased yet again, which improved its safety.

In addition to these buffs, Incineroar's up smash's already respectable KO potential was improved even further via its knockback being increased overall. Incineroar's grab game was also improved: each of its grabs received 1 frame decreases to their start-up and ending lag, while forward throw was strengthened slightly, making it the strongest forward throw in the game. Lastly, update 13.0.0 buffed Incineroar by slightly increasing the damage outputs of its down smash, up aerial and Cross Chop at the cost of slight knockback compensation for each move.

Overall, Incineroar fares better than it did at the launch ofUltimate, thanks to its buffs improving the consistency and/or utility of several of its moves, particularly Cross Chop and Revenge.

2.0.0

• Up smash has more knockback.
• Incineroar can grab edges earlier after using up aerial (frame 58 → 56).
• Down aerialauto-cancels earlier (frame 59 → 45), matching the move'sinterruptibility.
• Up throw has more knockback.
• Cross Chop travels farther vertically and horizontally (Height multiplier: 0.81× → 1×). While this hinders its potential as a KO confirm follow-up from down throw, this more prominently improves its recovery potential.

3.0.0

• The glitch that allowed the opponent to lose 2 stocks usingAlolan Whip collision glitch withFishing Rod in Stamina matches has been fixed.

3.1.0

• Neutral attack's hits connect more reliably.
• A glitch involvingAlolan Whip andMii Brawler'sCounter Throw putting a fighter in a state where the game will crash if they are KO'd has been fixed.

6.0.0

• Neutral attack's third hit deals more damage (4.7% → 6.7%) and knockback (75 base/50 scaling → 80/60).
• Forward aerial has gained a late hit on frames 11-14 that deals less damage (12%/13% → 9%/9.6%), increasing the move's duration and allowing it tolock more effectively.
• Down aerial's sweetspot takes priority over the sourspot, making the meteor smash easier to land.
• Darkest Lariat:
  • Darkest Lariat's clean first hit deals more damage (16%/12% → 17%/13%) with no compensation on knockback.
  • The clean first hit's hitboxes on Incineroar's arms are larger (4.6u/4.2u → 5.8u/5.4u) and placed higher (Y offset: 10u → 11u), increasing its range.
  • The late first hit's arm hitboxes are placed higher (Y offset: 10u → 11u). While this better matches the move's animation, it more prominently makes it slightly worse at hitting small characters.
• Revenge:
  • Revenge's counter window lasts longer (frames 3-22 → 3-27), and the move has reduced ending lag both when missed (FAF 59 → 54) and successful (FAF 29 → 26).
  • The counterattack launches at a marginally lower angle (52°/56° → 51°/54°) with slightly more knockback (36/34 base/38/36 set → 40/38/40/38), and usesweight-independent knockback, making it consistent across the cast.

7.0.0

• Alolan Whip's hitboxes have altered knockback against bystanders (80 base/50 scaling → 128/34 (back body drop), 20/76 → 88/38 (lariat)), making them safe on hit at low percents.
  • However, this also severely weakens the lariat collateral's KO potential.

8.0.0

• Up smash has altered knockback (94 base/53 scaling → 89/61), increasing it overall.
• All grabs have one frame faster startup (frame 8 → 7 (standing), 12 → 11 (dash), 13 → 12 (pivot)), with their total duration reduced as well (FAF 39/47/45 → 38/46/44).
• Forward throw has more knockback scaling (52 → 58).
• Alolan Whip:
  • The move has faster startup (frame 18 → 16), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 60 → 58).
  • The lariat attack has more knockback scaling on both grabbed opponents (440 → 454) and bystanders (38 → 40).
• Revenge:
  • The move has less ending lag if it misses (FAF 54 → 50).
  • It applies a larger damage multiplier to the next attack (1 + (0.25 + 0.075 * damage) → 1 + (0.5 + 0.075 * damage)).

13.0.0

• Down smash deals more damage (16% → 17%), with only a slight decrease to its base knockback (75 → 73), improving its KO potential.
• Up aerial deals more damage (8% → 9%), with its knockback compensated (65 base/87 scaling → 66/79).
• Cross Chop:
  • The non-spiking descending hit ofCross Chop deals more damage (11% → 13%), with its knockback scaling compensated (54 → 48).
  • The explosion deals more damage (9% → 10.8%), with its knockback compensated (88 base/83 scaling → 89/72).

Moveset[edit]

• Incineroar will display various animations after using its neutral attack, dash attack, all smash attacks and Alolan Whip; it strikes a boastful pose if an attack hits, and expresses frustration if it misses (during its smash attacks). Aside from neutral attack's third hit, all of these animations areinterruptible. All pose-inducing attacks (excluding neutral attack's third hit) also result in a crowd (separate from the standardcrowd) cheering in response.
• Incineroar continuously receives damage whileswimming. This trait is shared withCharizard,Sonic, andInkling. This references Incineroar being susceptible to water due to being a Fire-type Pokémon.

For a gallery of Incineroar's hitboxes, seehere.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the1v1 multiplier.

Stats[edit]

Announcer calls[edit]

This article could use additional or higher-quality audio files. The editor who added this tag suggests:Needs announcer calls from other languages. If you have a good audio file for this article, upload ithere.

• English

• Japanese/Chinese

• Korean

• Russian

On-screen appearance[edit]

• Emerges from aPoké Ball and struts while smirking.

• 

  Incineroar's on-screen appearance.

Taunts[edit]

• Up taunt: Points to the sky as its flame belt ignites.
• Side taunt: Pounds its chest then raises its fist triumphantly while facing forward.
• Down taunt: Kneels and poses with its arms out, as if calling to the crowd.

• 

  Incineroar's up taunt.

• 

  Incineroar's side taunt.

• 

  Incineroar's down taunt.

Idle poses[edit]

• Flexes its muscles in the "crab pose", a variant of the "Most Muscular" bodybuilder pose.
• Wiggles the fingers of one of its paws, a common taunt used to initiate awristlock-based test of strength.

• 

  Incineroar's first idle pose.

• 

  Incineroar's second idle pose.

Crowd cheer[edit]

Victory poses[edit]

• Left: Roars as its flame belt ignites, then throws a punch toward the camera while grinning.
• Up: Laughs while triumphantly raising achampionship belt above its head, then makes a beckoning gesture while grinning.
• Right: Performs a left-handed claw swipe, then a right-handed claw swipe, and then roars briefly upon kneeling.

Incompetitive play[edit]

Most historically significant players[edit]

See also:Category:Incineroar players (SSBU)

•  LittN! - The best Incineroar player in the world after Skyjay's hiatus, making his debut in the post-pandemic metagame. He was first recognized for his performances in the second half of 2024, which includes placing 2nd atSmash Train, placing 5th atReset The Bracket defeatingCosmos andChag, and placing 7th atPosada Gamer 2024, in addition to victories at multiple D-tier events. Though he did not meet the attendance requirement, he was recognized as an honorable mention for theLumiRank 2024.2's 101st-150th positions.
•  Magister - The first successful Incineroar in competitive play and was the best Incineroar player in the world in the early metagame, with results, such as 25th atGENESIS 6 and 33rd at both2GG: Prime Saga andGlitch 8 - Missingno, that remained unmatched until Skyjay's rise in the post-pandemic metagame. He was the first Incineroar player ranked in the top 100 on a notable global ranking, ranking 93rd on theOrionRank Ultimate: Six Months In, though he was not ranked on the full-year ranking. He became inactive during theCOVID-19 pandemic.
•  Skyjay - The greatest and most influential Incineroar player of all time and one of the best Mexican players in the post-pandemic metagame, his performances largely contributing to Incineroar's rise on the tier list, while conversely, his multiple tournament bans in late 2024 and subsequent inactivity led to a drastic decline in Incineroar's representation. He is best known for placing 2nd atCollision 2023, which is the closest an Incineroar player has come to winning a major, and continues to be the only Incineroar player to place top 8 at majors, having also placed 4th atDelfino Maza 2023, 5th at bothSmash Ultimate Summit 6 andLuminosity Makes BIG Moves 2024, and 7th atMaesuma TOP 14.5 "in Hyogo". He is the only Incineroar player ever ranked top 50 globally, peaking at 32nd on theLumiRank 2023. While not formally banned on a global scale, he later went inactive after sexual misconduct allegations afterWavelength 2024.

Tier placement and history[edit]

In earlyUltimate, Incineroar was considered a mid-tier fighter by most players thanks to its raw power and threatening KO potential, and it attained a decent amount of success from players such asMagister, who placed well at both regionals and majors. However, Incineroar's sluggish movement gradually began to work against it, as it was unable to keep up with the fast, agile characters that were prominent in the early metagame. This greatly hurt Incineroar's representation, especially with Magister attending fewer events and having worse performances at the ones he did attend; by the end of 2019, Incineroar's representation was among the bottom 10. As such, its reputation suffered greatly, with many players considering it to be a low or bottom tier.

The post-pandemic metagame revived Incineroar's representation, as dedicated players were able to succeed at several events and showcase its high damage and KO potential. In particular,Skyjay's greater presence on the continental scene and strong major placements improved Incineroar's representation, and with Skyjay establishing himself as a top 50 player by the end of 2021, players began to reassess Incineroar as a mid-tier, ranking it 64th on the first tier list at the bottom of C+ tier. An explosion of strong results from Skyjay throughout 2023, which included his 2nd place finish atCollision 2023, further improved Incineroar's standings in the metagame, and with other dedicated mains such asGaosan andSeesaw doing well at large events, Incineroar subsequently rose 12 spots on the second tier list to rank 52nd near the top of C+ tier, one of the biggest improvements of any character from the first to second tier list.

This revival period, however, ended in 2024. Skyjay's results declined throughout the year before he was banned at the end of the year following controversies surrounding his conduct. Without Skyjay, Incineroar's representation dropped significantly; though there remained successful Incineroar players such asLittN!, none of them were able to come close to Skyjay's best performances. As such, Skyjay's absence greatly affected Incineroar's standings on the tier list, causing it to drop 8 spots down to 60th on the third tier list, once again placing it at the bottom of the C+ tier.

Classic Mode: Burning Pro Wrestling Spirit![edit]

Incineroar'scongratulations screen.

Incineroar's opponents, like itself, are among the heaviest fighters ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate's base roster. Its Classic Mode route's title is further highlighted by Rounds 1 through 6 occurring onBoxing Ring, as well as Round 3 and the Final Round referencingtag team wrestling by featuringGreninja as a CPU ally.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Bowser	Boxing Ring	The Grand Finale
2	Ganondorf	Boxing Ring	Molgera
3	Morton andLudwig	Boxing Ring (Battlefield form)	Fortress Boss - Super Mario World	Greninja is a CPU ally. Based on atag team wrestling match.
4	King K. Rool	Boxing Ring (Battlefield form)	Gang-Plank Galleon	References the boss battle againstKing Krusha K. Rool inDonkey Kong 64.
5	Donkey Kong	Boxing Ring (Ω form)	Boss 2 - DK: Jungle Climber	ReferencesDonkey Kong's guest appearance as a bonus opponent in theWii version ofPunch-Out!!.
6	Incineroar	Boxing Ring (Ω form)	Battle! (Lorekeeper Zinnia)	If the player uses the purple alternate costume, the opponent will be the default Incineroar.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand andCrazy Hand	Final Destination	Master Hand / Crazy Hand	Greninja is a CPU ally.

Note: Each Round uses a music track from the opponents' respective home series.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Incineroar hasThe Battle at the Summit! accompany the credits.

Role inWorld of Light[edit]

Finding Incineroar in World of Light

Although Incineroar does not appear in World of Light's opening cutscene, it was vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (exceptKirby) whenGaleem unleashed his beams of light.

Incineroar was one of the many fighters that fell underDharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. It can be found on the southwest path ofThe Dark Realm, where the spirit ofCaeda must be beaten to access it.

Fighter Battle[edit]

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
69		Incineroar	Attack	12,500	Spear Pillar (Ω form)	The Battle at the Summit!

Spirit[edit]

Incineroar's fighter spirit can be obtained by completingClassic Mode as Incineroar. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Incineroar has been unlocked. Unlocking Incineroar in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Its fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with its artwork inUltimate.

In Spirit Battles[edit]

As the main opponent[edit]

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
520		Victini	Pokémon Series	•Incineroar		13,400	Prism Tower (Battlefield form)	•Easy to Launch	•You are easy to launch •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Victini)	N's Castle
557		Solgaleo	Pokémon Series	•GoldIncineroar (160 HP)		9,400	Spear Pillar (hazards off)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy favors special moves •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Solgaleo)	Battle! (Elite Four) / Battle! (Solgaleo/Lunala)
733		9-Volt &18-Volt	WarioWare Series	•Incineroar •Villager		9,000	Gamer (Battlefield form)	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Sheriff) •Item:Boss Galaga	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy is easily distracted by items	WarioWare, Inc.	18-Volt
783		Big the Cat	Sonic The Hedgehog Series	•GiantIncineroar		2,600	Windy Hill Zone (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Slumber Floor	•The floor is sleep-inducing •The enemy is giant	Open Your Heart
803		Red Pikmin	Pikmin Series	•TinyIncineroar Team×12 (10 HP)		3,900	Garden of Hope (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava •The enemy's explosion and fire attacks have increased power •Stamina battle	Main Theme - Pikmin (Original)
828		Tom Nook	Animal Crossing Series	•TailIncineroar		3,600	Smashville	•Sudden Final Smash •Item:Food	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash •The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly •The enemy's melee blows will heal them when they hit	Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store - Animal Crossing: Wild World
939		Great Tiger	Punch-Out!! Series	•Incineroar (140 HP)×2 (100 HP)		3,400	Boxing Ring	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Minor Circuit (Original)	Great Tiger's illusionary clones (gray costume)
983		Zangief	Street Fighter Series	•Incineroar (140 HP)		9,100	Boxing Ring	•Jump Power ↓	•The enemy's throws have increased power •The enemy's physical attacks have increased power •Stamina battle	Zangief Stage Type A
993		T. Hawk	Street Fighter Series	•Incineroar (120 HP)		1,800	New Donk City Hall (hazards off)	•Jump Power ↓	•The enemy's up special has increased power •The enemy's throws have increased power •Stamina battle	T. Hawk Stage Type B
1,358		Joe Higashi	Fatal Fury Series	•Incineroar (160 HP)		2,000	Kongo Falls (Ω form)	•Jump Power ↓	•Stamina battle •All fighters have reduced jump power •The enemy starts the battle with anOre Club	A New Poem That the South Thailand Wants to Tell - FATAL FURY 2
1,405		Dragaux	Ring Fit Adventure	•Incineroar (200 HP)		9,500	Find Mii (Ω form)	•Metal Shift •Giant •Item:Food	•The enemy is giant when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy will occasionally turn metal when the enemy's at high damage •Stamina battle	Battle Start - Fossil Fighters: Frontier
1,412		Kevin & Charlotte	Mana Series	•Incineroar •TinyRobin		9,100	Hyrule Castle (hazards off)	•Health Recovery •Attack Power ↑	•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy is healed significantly when the enemy's at high damage	Preparing to Advance	Kevin
1,481		King & Armor King	Tekken Series	•Incineroar (130 HP) •Incineroar (130 HP)		3,800	Boxing Ring	•Attack Power ↑	•Stamina battle •The enemy has increased attack power after a little while	Ethno Evening	King (orange costume) Armor King (gray costume)
1,522		Ogerpon	Pokémon Series	•Incineroar Team (60 HP) •MetalIncineroar (60 HP)		8,900	Tortimer Island	N/A	•Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •The enemy is metal	Battle! (Wild Pokémon) - Pokémon Diamond / Pokémon Pearl	Green:Ogerpon Red: Ogerpon (Hearthflame Mask) Blue: Ogerpon (Wellspring Mask) Metal: Ogerpon (Cornerstone Mask)

As a minion[edit]

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
482		Raikou,Entei, &Suicune	Pokémon Series	•Greninja •Incineroar •Pikachu		9,900	Suzaku Castle	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava	Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue Medley	Entei
696		Lion	Game & Watch Series	•Mr. Game & Watch •Incineroar		3,600	Flat Zone X (Lion)	N/A	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Flat Zone 2	Lion
969		Nia	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	•Mii Brawler (90 HP) (Moveset2122, Nia Wig, Nia Outfit, High Voice Type 2) •Incineroar (90 HP)		9,100	Gaur Plain (hazards off)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy heals over time	Battle!! - Xenoblade Chronicles 2	Dromarch
										Gormott[SB 1]
1,053		Maria Renard	Castlevania Series	•Zelda •Falco •Charizard •Incineroar		3,700	Reset Bomb Forest (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy starts the battle with aCucco	Slash	Cat
1,199		Baxter & Forthington	Rhythm Heaven Series Rhythm Paradise Series	•Duck Hunt •TinyIncineroar		1,500	Pilotwings	•Item: Throwing Types	•The enemy is easily distracted by items	Monkey Watch	Forthington
1,309		Morgana	Persona Series	•Pikachu •GiantIncineroar		11,500	Mementos (hazards off)	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Dangerously high winds are in effect after a little while •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Last Surprise	Zorro
1,369		Grookey, Scorbunny, & Sobble	Pokémon Series	•Diddy Kong •BunnyIncineroar •Squirtle		9,600	Onett (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy has increased attack power when badly damaged •Reinforcements will appear during the battle •The enemy starts the battle with aLip's Stick	Road to Viridian City - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue	Scorbunny

Alternate costumes[edit]

Reveal trailer[edit]

Gallery[edit]

• 

  Incineroar's splash art.

• 

  Incineroar'samiibo.

• 

  Incineroar's fighter card.

• 

  Incineroar's unlock notice.

• 

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

• 

  Incineroar onKongo Falls.

• 

  Using its dash attack onLittle Mac onBig Blue.

• 

  UsingAlolan Whip's lariat onFalco onPirate Ship.

• 

  Using its down taunt alongside multiplePikachu andPichu onPaper Mario.

• 

  Rolling next to aSmoke Ball onWii Fit Studio.

• 

  UsingRevenge onMushroom Kingdom U.

• 

  Being hit byLuminary's up aerial onColiseum.

Fighter Showcase Video[edit]

Trivia[edit]

• Prior to the addition ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate'sdownloadable content, Incineroar was the fighter with the most recent games of origin,Pokémon Sun andMoon, which were released on November 18, 2016 for theNintendo 3DS. Incidentally,Greninja also held this title inSuper Smash Bros. 4. Both are partial Dark types that are the final evolutions of starter Pokémon, they were the solePokémon seriesnewcomers in their respectiveSuper Smash Bros. installments, and theirdamage meter portraits are tilted slightly compared to their official renders.
  • With the addition of DLC, Incineroar's placement as the most recent fighter of origin (Pokémon Sun andMoon were released in November 2016) has been superseded byByleth (Fire Emblem: Three Houses was released in July 2019), similarly to how Greninja's placement as the most recent fighter of origin inSSB4 was superseded byCorrin.
• Leaked artwork ofAlola's fully evolvedstarter Pokémon depicts Incineroar using agiant swing and anArgentine backbreaker rackdrop.^[1] InUltimate, it uses these moves as its forward and up throws, respectively.
• Unshō Ishizuka provided the Japanese voice for Incineroar inUltimate before his unexpected passing on August 13, 2018. Ishizuka recorded all of his voice clips for the game before his death.^[2]
  • Incineroar's Japanese voice clips are much more muffled and lower in quality than in other languages, likely because Ishizuka was not able to return for ADR before his death, resulting in the development team having to use the voice clips as they originally were. Oddly, however, the voice clips appear to be in much higher quality in the Japanese version of its reveal trailer.
• Incineroar's double jump fall animation notably has it descend lower than in its regular falling animation. This can result in it hitting the lower blast zone slightly earlier if it attempts to recover low on certain stages.
• Incineroar is the only playable Pokémon that does not have a special move based on a Pokémon move of its primary type.
  • It is also the only playable Pokémon to not have a special move that originated inGeneration I.
• Incineroar andKen are the first pair of fighters from different series who share a reveal trailer.
• Incineroar is the only first-party newcomer in the base game forUltimate who was not represented in any way in previousSuper Smash Bros. installments, due to not existing at the time.
• Incineroar is the onlyPokémon fighter that is not fought in any of its home series' stages when being unlocked, as well as the only non-Street Fighter character with this distinction. It is instead fought onBoxing Ring as a reference to its reveal trailer and wrestling influences.
• Incineroar's Classic Mode route features the lowest number of stages among the entire cast, due to it traveling only to Boxing Ring (in all three forms).
• Incineroar,Wario andKing K. Rool all have Classic Mode routes themed around super heavyweight fighters.
  • Morton and Ludwig are the only opponents in Incineroar's Classic Mode route that are heavyweights instead of super heavyweights. However, their inclusion could be a reference to how they (along withRoy Koopa) are portrayed as heavier than the rest of theKoopalings in theMario series.
• Incineroar is one of the few fighters who emits any sounds during their idle animations.
• Due to an error on the American official site blog, Incineroar does not have its own fighter tag on its blog entry and is thus not listed when sorting the "By Fighter" category. This also applies toFalco.
• Incineroar is the only fighter in the base version ofUltimate who was not in the game's original project plan when it was drafted in December 2015. When choosing characters, Sakurai wanted to pick one from a newer game, and with the upcoming release ofPokémon Sun andMoon, a spot for a playable Pokémon was reserved in order to be determined later. Although Sakurai did considerDecidueye, he ultimately chose Incineroar instead, primarily because he had never designed a wrestling-oriented fighter before.^[3][4][5][6]
• Incineroar is the second fighter to brandish achampionship belt in theirvictory pose, with the first beingLittle Mac.
  • Unlike Little Mac, who wears the World Video Boxing Association (WVBA) World Circuit Championship fromthe Wii version ofPunch-Out!!, Incineroar's championship belt is unique toUltimate.
• Incineroar is one of the few fighters who cannot render themselveshelpless apart from a very specific condition, this being landing with aCross Chop and failing to touch solid ground during the initial rebound.
• There is a visual glitch with Incineroar's eyes in spirit battles where it gains multiple irises when hit.^[7]
• Zooming in around Incineroar's neck during its reverse knockback animation reveals a gap between its neck and body.^[8]
• Due to the visual aesthetic used inUltimate, Incineroar's design differs slightly from its design in thePokémon series. As a fighter, it has more defined musculature, its torso's gray fur has a light-to-dark color gradation, and its fur (especially the spiky portions on its head, shoulders and tail) has noticeable definition.
• Incineroar will briefly extend its toes' claws (similarly to the retractable claws of real-life felines) during its forward smash, up and back aerials, and the dropkick it uses duringMax Malicious Moonsault. Although Incineroar's model in thePokémon series also has these claws, they are not used due to it lacking animations that make them appear.
• Despite Incineroar having separate voice actors for the French and German translations, its trailer in those languages uses its English voice clips instead.
• After Pichu, Incineroar is the second playable Pokémon to possess only types shared with previously introduced Pokémon fighters, due to Fire and Dark already being represented by Charizard and Greninja, respectively.
• Incineroar's list of techniques menu ofUltimate incorrectly states the three slowest walkers as itself, Robin, and Jigglypuff. In actuality, these three are actually the three slowest in dashing, though Incineroar actually is the slowest walker.
• As part of the October 12, 2024Game Freakleak, screenshots and videos of Incineroar were found in the file★派生作品\cross2\ガオガエン, likely sent to Game Freak for approval. The file contains two folders,ノーマル, which shows Incineroar's standard texture, andリベンジ, which shows Incineroar's texture whenRevenge is on standby. Some of the screenshots depict Incineroar on theSmash 4 version ofBattlefield to test the game's lighting engine.

References[edit]

v • d • e Pokémon universe
Fighters	Pikachu (SSB ·SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Jigglypuff (SSB ·SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Pichu (SSBM ·SSBU) ·Mewtwo (SSBM ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Pokémon Trainer (SSBB ·SSBU) ·Squirtle (SSBB ·SSBU) ·Ivysaur (SSBB ·SSBU) ·Charizard (SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Lucario (SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Greninja (SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Incineroar (SSBU)
Boss	Rayquaza
Stages	Saffron City ·Pokémon Stadium ·Poké Floats ·Pokémon Stadium 2 ·Spear Pillar ·Unova Pokémon League ·Prism Tower ·Kalos Pokémon League
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Other	Charmander ·Cresselia ·Dialga ·Porygon ·Registeel ·Reshiram ·Team Rocket ·Zekrom ·List of Pokémon
Trophies,Stickers andSpirits	Trophies (SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4) ·Stickers ·Spirits
Music	Brawl ·SSB4 ·Ultimate

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