Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
North American box art.
Developer(s)	Bandai Namco Sora Ltd.
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Designer(s)	Masahiro Sakurai
Released	December 7, 2018 (worldwide)
Genre(s)	Fighting Platforming
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer, Online multiplayer
Ratings	CERO: A ESRB: E10+[1] OFLC: PG PEGI: 12 USK: 12
Platform(s)	Nintendo Switch
Media	ROM Cartridge Digital distribution(Nintendo eShop)
Input methods	Joy-Con,Nintendo Switch Pro Controller,GameCube controller(via adapter)

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (大乱闘スマッシュブラザーズ SPECIAL,Great Fray Smash Brothers Special), often shortened to "SSBU" or "Ultimate" (スマブラSP), is a crossover action fighting game released for theNintendo Switch. The game was first teased at the end of aNintendo Direct on March 8th, 2018, and fully revealed on June 12th at E3 2018. It is the fifth installment in theSuper Smash Bros. series (sixth if the two versions ofSuper Smash Bros. 4 are counted as separate titles). The game was released worldwide on December 7th, 2018.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate received critical acclaim from both critics and players, with some critics calling it the best installment in the series. It received praise for its large amount of content and fine-tuning of existingSmash gameplay elements, although its online mode was widely criticized.Ultimate is currently the best-sellingSuper Smash Bros. game and also the best-selling fighting game of all time, beatingSuper Smash Bros. Brawl andStreet Fighter II, which previously held each title respectively. It is also the third best selling game on the Nintendo Switch. Its massive success has caused it to be nominated for, and win, multiple awards, including winning "Best Fighting Game" at The Game Awards 2019.^[2]

Opening movie[edit]

Theopening movie ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate is composed of the cutscenes fromWorld of Light and some gameplay footage from the game set to the tune ofLifelight, featuring all thefighters in the base game.

Fighters[edit]

Panoramic artwork of all fighters

All 63 characters (65 if counting thePokémon Trainer's Pokémon as three fighters) from all previousSmash Bros. games return as playable fighters. In addition to the returning cast, the game features 23 newcomers (24 if countingPyra andMythra as two fighters). 11 of these characters are available in the base game, with the remaining 12 (13) characters available asdownloadable content. In total, 74 characters (76) are playable in the base game and 86 (89) characters are playable overall, the most for anySmash Bros. game. Each character isnumbered based on the order in which they first joined the series, with the exception ofEcho Fighters (who share a number with the character they are based on) and Pokémon Trainer (whose Pokémon are numbered instead).

Thecharacter selection screen inUltimate with all characters unlocked and all downloadable characters available.

AnInkling from theSplatoon series, with various male and female designs from the originalSplatoon, was the first character confirmed to appear in the game as a new playable fighter in the base roster.Ridley (withMeta Ridley as an alternate costume) from theMetroid series andDaisy from theMario series were confirmed to be playable duringE3 2018.Simon Belmont and his descendentRichter from theCastlevania series were announced as the game's first third-party newcomers in the August 8th, 2018Nintendo Direct.King K. Rool from theDonkey Kong series,Dark Samus from theMetroid series, andChrom from theFire Emblem series were all confirmed to be a playable newcomers as well during the same Nintendo Direct.Isabelle from theAnimal Crossing series, who previously appeared inSmash 4 as anAssist Trophy, makes her playable debut as the secondAnimal Crossing fighter. Finally, anIncineroar fromPokémon Sun & Moon andKen from theStreet Fighter series joins as the title's last base roster newcomers.

In addition, most fullclones and one semi-clone are now labeled as "Echo Fighters" and are marked with an epsilon (ε) next to their fighter numbers, which they share with the characters they are based on. Returning charactersLucina andDark Pit are given this title (as they are Echo Fighters ofMarth andPit, respectively), while new charactersPrincess Daisy, Richter,Chrom,Dark Samus andKen Masters are Echo Fighters ofPeach, Simon,Roy,Samus andRyu, respectively. Aside from an option allowing these characters to be displayed on the same slot as their counterpart on thecharacter selection screen exclusively duringVs. Mode,Tourney,Custom Smash,Super Sudden Death andQuickplay, there is no special distinction between most of them in-game and the name is used mostly for marketing purposes.

Twelve (or thirteen) characters were added to the game from January 2019 to October 2021 via downloadable content. The first of these, aPiranha Plant from theMario series, was released as an early purchase bonus DLC character. An additional five newcomers were added in Fighters Pass Vol. 1:Joker from thePersona series, an amalgamation of severalHeroes from theDragon Quest series,Banjo andKazooie fromtheir namesake series (counting as one character),Terry Bogard from theFatal Fury series, andByleth fromFire Emblem: Three Houses. Following this, an additional six (or seven) characters were added in Fighters Pass Vol. 2:Min Min fromARMS,Steve from theMinecraft series,Sephiroth, arch-nemesis ofCloud Strife,Pyra andMythra fromXenoblade Chronicles 2 (counting as one or two characters),Kazuya Mishima from theTekken series andSora from theKingdom Hearts series.

As inSmash 4, further "characters" exist as alternate costumes for preexisting characters. In this game, fourteen characters have such costumes:Alph is accessible as a playable character viaOlimar'salternate costumes; the sevenKoopalings are available as playable characters viaBowser Jr.'s alternate costumes; one ofPichu's costumes depicts the specific "Spiky-eared" variant;Alex, aZombie and anEnderman appear as Steve's alternate costumes; Pokémon Trainer,Wii Fit Trainer,Robin,Corrin and Byleth each have opposite-gendered variants as alternate costumes;Pikachu possesses both an opposite-gendered variant and a costume depicting the specific "Cosplay" Pikachu variant; each ofVillager's and Inkling's costumes represent different customization options for the character, including gender; the Hero has three other protagonists from across theDragon Quest series as palette swaps; and theIce Climbers swap the playable Ice Climber from Popo to Nana in half of their alternate costumes. Additionally, theMii Fighters have alternate gender options depending on the created Mii used for them. However, none of these characters are treated separately in-game.

Only theOriginal 8 characters fromSuper Smash Bros. and any DLC fighters that have been purchased are available from the start. Like inSmash 4, the Mii Fighters are also available via customization without needing to be unlocked traditionally but are still technically locked upon initial startup of the game. The rest of the cast must be unlocked; however, the unlocking process and conditions are much simpler than in past games. Fighters will challenge the player in ten-minute intervals after completing a basic activity, such as a battle or by clearingClassic Mode with a prerequisite character, and can also be unlocked by being rescued inWorld of Light, rather than having unique unlock criteria for each character.

Veterans (65)
Mario		Luigi		Peach		Bowser		Dr. Mario		Rosalina & Luma		Bowser Jr.		Yoshi
Donkey Kong		Diddy Kong		Link		Zelda		Sheik		Ganondorf		Young Link		Toon Link
Samus		Zero Suit Samus		Kirby		Meta Knight		King Dedede		Fox		Falco		Wolf
Pikachu		Jigglypuff		Mewtwo		Pichu		Pokémon Trainer (Squirtle,Ivysaur,Charizard)
Lucario		Greninja		Captain Falcon		Ness		Lucas		Ice Climbers		Marth		Roy
Ike		Robin		Lucinaε		Corrin		Mr. Game & Watch		Pit		Palutena		Dark Pitε
Wario		Olimar		R.O.B.		Villager		Wii Fit Trainer		Little Mac		Shulk		Duck Hunt
	Snake		Sonic		Mega Man		Pac-Man		Ryu		Cloud		Bayonetta
					Mii Brawler		Mii Swordfighter		Mii Gunner
Newcomers (24)
Daisyε		Piranha Plant(DLC)		King K. Rool		Ridley		Dark Samusε		Incineroar		Chromε		Byleth(DLC)
Isabelle		Pyra/Mythra(DLC)				Inkling		Min Min(DLC)		Kenε		Sephiroth(DLC)		Simon
Richterε		Joker(DLC)		Hero(DLC)		Banjo & Kazooie(DLC)		Terry(DLC)		Steve(DLC)		Kazuya(DLC)		Sora(DLC)

Bold denotesstarter characters.
^"ε" denotesEcho Fighters.

Stages[edit]

The stage selection screen inUltimate with all downloadable stages available.

With the exception of theSuper Smash Bros.-original stages, all stages are ordered chronologically like the fighters are, based on their first appearances in the series (excluding the stages that were introduced in both versions ofSSB4, which are listed among the stages introduced in the Wii U version). For the first time in the series, all stages are available immediately from the start, with none that need to be unlocked first. Additionally, due to8-Player Smash no longer being a separate mode from regularSmash, all stages can be played with up to eight players, rather than just a select few as infor Wii U. All stages have both aBattlefield form andΩ form. In its base game,Ultimate features 103 stages (305 if counting Battlefield forms and Ω forms separately). There is anadditional stage exclusive to Training Mode, which replaces the Random Stage option on the stage selection screen for said mode.

Ninety-six stages from previous games have returned overall: seven fromSuper Smash Bros., 19 fromSuper Smash Bros. Melee, 26 fromSuper Smash Bros. Brawl, and 44 fromSuper Smash Bros. 4 (18 from the 3DS version, 18 from the Wii U version, and eight from both versions), with an additional seven new stages (in the base game). All returning stages fromMelee,Brawl, andfor 3DS were visually updated to HD, as well asfor Wii U stages receiving minor touch-ups to match the game's overall visual style, thoughSmash 64 stages retain their primitive polygonal aesthetic for nostalgia. In update 8.1.0, another new stage was added as a free download:Small Battlefield. This update also made it possible for anySuper Smash Bros.-original stages to play music from any series, instead of just music from theSuper Smash Bros. series.

In update 3.0.0, theStage Builder was added as a free download, and any custom stages made with it can be selected from the "Custom" tab.

Five additional new stages were added to the game as part of the paid Fighters Pass Vol. 1DLC, bringing the total number of stages up to 109 (321 if counting Battlefield forms and Ω forms separately). An additional six new paid DLC stages released as part of Fighters Pass Vol. 2, bringing the number up to 115 (339 if Battlefield and Ω forms are counted). Each of the eleven Challenger Packs contains one of these stages, alongside their corresponding fighters andmusic. The eleven paid DLC stages areMementos,Yggdrasil's Altar,Spiral Mountain,King of Fighters Stadium,Garreg Mach Monastery,Spring Stadium,Minecraft World,Northern Cave,Cloud Sea of Alrest,Mishima Dojo, andHollow Bastion, which released alongsideJoker,Hero,Banjo & Kazooie,Terry,Byleth,Min Min,Steve,Sephiroth,Pyra/Mythra,Kazuya, andSora, respectively.

Only 15 stages featured in previous games are absent fromUltimate (excluding stages exclusive to single-player modes and previous forms ofBattlefield,Big Battlefield, andFinal Destination). These stages are:Planet Zebes andSector Z fromSmash 64;Icicle Mountain,Mushroom Kingdom,Poké Floats andMute City fromMelee;Rumble Falls andPictoChat fromBrawl;Rainbow Road andPac-Maze fromSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS; andJungle Hijinxs,Pyrosphere,Woolly World,Orbital Gate Assault, andMiiverse fromSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U. WhileFlat Zone fromMelee andFlat Zone 2 fromBrawl are also technically absent,Flat Zone X incorporates all elements of both of these stages. TheWorld 1-2 version ofMushroomy Kingdom is also absent, as is the grayscale version ofDream Land GB.

New stages (19)
Battlefield		Final Destination		Big Battlefield		Small Battlefield(8.1.0)		New Donk City Hall		Great Plateau Tower
Garreg Mach Monastery(DLC)		Cloud Sea of Alrest(DLC)		Moray Towers		Spring Stadium(DLC)		Northern Cave(DLC)		Dracula's Castle
		Mementos(DLC)		Yggdrasil's Altar(DLC)		Spiral Mountain(DLC)		King of Fighters Stadium(DLC)
			Minecraft World(DLC)		Mishima Dojo(DLC)		Hollow Bastion(DLC)
Returning stages (96)
Peach's Castle		Mushroom Kingdom		Princess Peach's Castle		Rainbow Cruise		Mushroom Kingdom II		Delfino Plaza
Mushroomy Kingdom		Figure-8 Circuit		Luigi's Mansion		Mario Bros.		3D Land		Golden Plains
Paper Mario		Mushroom Kingdom U		Mario Galaxy		Mario Circuit		Super Mario Maker		Super Happy Tree
Yoshi's Story		Yoshi's Island (Melee)		Yoshi's Island		Kongo Jungle		Kongo Falls		Jungle Japes
75m		Hyrule Castle		Great Bay		Temple		Bridge of Eldin		Pirate Ship
Gerudo Valley		Spirit Train		Skyloft		Brinstar		Brinstar Depths		Norfair
Frigate Orpheon		Dream Land		Fountain of Dreams		Green Greens		Halberd		Dream Land GB
The Great Cave Offensive		Corneria		Venom		Lylat Cruise		Saffron City		Pokémon Stadium
Pokémon Stadium 2		Spear Pillar		Unova Pokémon League		Prism Tower		Kalos Pokémon League		Big Blue
Port Town Aero Dive		Mute City SNES		Onett		Fourside		New Pork City		Magicant
Summit		Castle Siege		Arena Ferox		Coliseum		Flat Zone X		Skyworld
Reset Bomb Forest		Palutena's Temple		WarioWare, Inc.		Gamer		Distant Planet		Garden of Hope
Smashville		Tortimer Island		Town and City		Wii Fit Studio		Boxing Ring		Gaur Plain
Duck Hunt		Shadow Moses Island		Green Hill Zone		Windy Hill Zone		Wily Castle		Pac-Land
Suzaku Castle		Midgar		Umbra Clock Tower		Hanenbow		PictoChat 2		Balloon Fight
Living Room		Find Mii		Tomodachi Life		Wrecking Crew		Pilotwings		Wuhu Island

Development[edit]

Towards the end ofSuper Smash Bros. 4's post-launch development,Masahiro Sakurai announced that his next project had been finalized and that he would be taking a small vacation following the completion ofSmash 4's DLC content.^[3] Unbeknownst to the public at the time, this next project would be the newest entry in theSuper Smash Bros. series. Sakurai had been inspired to work on the nextSmash Bros. game by a request fromSatoru Iwata before he passed away.^[4]

Unlike previousSmash titles, which had their development studios built from the ground up,Bandai Namco returned as primary game developer. Before starting development, the team had a choice between completely overhauling the game's system and feel or working off what was established in the last game. The team ultimately went with the latter. Had the team gone with the former, the game would have likely only had a third of its characters.^[5] Despite deciding to base the game on the previous installment, Sakurai still increased the overall speed of the game, but only by an amount that wouldn't be too alienating to people unfamiliar with the series.^[5] Sakurai notes that he had wanted to make this change in previous titles, but was unable to because it was easy for one to lose track of their character's position on the screen, especially on theNintendo 3DS.^[5] When Sakurai had revealed to his development team that he intended to bring back every previously playable character, he was met with silence.^[6] The project plan was later finished by December 16, 2015,^[7][8] and development officially began in February 2016, immediately after DLC was finished forSSB4.^[9] As Sakurai revealed in volume 542 of his Famitsu article, his work schedule had been cut down significantly, citing strict regulations regarding work hours.^[10]

Various characters had been considered to be added to the roster.Alucard was originally considered to be a playable character as a representative fromCastlevania due to his recognizability, but Sakurai decided to chooseSimon andRichter instead as he felt they would please fans more.^[11]Decidueye was also considered to be a playable character from Generation VII ofPokémon, but Sakurai pickedIncineroar instead because it would be the first wrestler character in the game.^[12] Due to the timing of the finalized plans forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, fighters fromARMS andXenoblade Chronicles 2 failed to appear in the base game; in compensation,Rex,Nia,Spring Man, andRibbon Girl hadMii Fighter costumes made based on them, with Rex's Mii costume being bundled as part of the first Fighters Pass, while Spring Man also appears as anAssist Trophy and variousARMS andXenoblade Chronicles 2 characters appear as spirits.^[13]ARMS would eventually get a playable character withMin Min as DLC in the second volume of the Fighters Pass, who was a request fromARMS director Kosuke Yabuki, after Sakurai had narrowed down potentialARMS fighters to Min Min andNinjara (though the latter ended up being the basis for a DLC Mii Fighter costume).Xenoblade Chronicles 2 would also end up getting its own playable DLC character -Pyra/Mythra - as part of the second volume of the Fighters Pass.

The silhouetted veterans from the teaser for the then-unnamedUltimate.

On March 8, 2018, what appeared to be aSplatoon trailer was revealed via aNintendo Direct. However, the trailer then revealed itself to be a surprise announcement for a newSmash game, tentatively titledSuper Smash Bros. with a release window of 2018. Without explicitly confirming the playable status of any characters, the teaser trailer hinted that theInklings would be debuting in the game as newcomers, while also suggesting thatMario andLink would be returning, the latter of whom would be based on hisBreath of the Wild incarnation. Several other veterans were also shown, though silhouetted and from a distance, and aside from clear features fromBowser,Donkey Kong, andSamus, which veterans were in that shot has never been confirmed. Shortly after the reveal, Sakurai explained in a tweet that he had been working on the game "in silence, day after day".^[14][15]

No more information was revealed untilE3 2018, where an extended look into the gamewas livestreamed via a Nintendo Direct, with Masahiro Sakurai directing the presentation. The presentation revealed that every character from theSuper Smash Bros. series, even characters that have previously been cut such as theIce Climbers andSnake or wereDLC fighters likeCloud andBayonetta, would return to the roster as playable fighters. The presentation also highlighted several changes made to theSmash Bros. roster, such asZelda having her look based off herA Link to the Past andA Link Between Worlds design. The end of this initial trailer revealed the game had the subtitleUltimate (Special in Japan). Sakurai then took the stage and announced more information, such as certainclone characters now being designated asEcho Fighters, with a new clone fighter,Daisy, announced to be appearing under this label. The presentation ended with the reveal ofRidley from theMetroid series - long requested by fans for inclusion in the series but rebuffed by Sakurai due to his large size - being confirmed as a playable character and a released date of December 7, 2018. The following Nintendo Treehouse also included additional info about the game that was not mentioned during the presentation, such as the stage hazard toggle. Following the Nintendo Treehouse, theSuper Smash Bros. Invitational 2018 took place on June 12th where invited professional players likeMkLeo andZeRo playedSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate for the first time. Immediately following the presentation, theofficialSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate website was published, and would serve as the primary source for new details about the game.

The website hosted the Super Smash Blog, where information was trickled out in posts, such as trailers for veteran fighters, as well as confirmation of stages, items, and other random topics akin to theSmash Bros. DOJO, albeit with less frequent posts. The website also had a music section where a sampling of music tracks can be played. This music section accidentally leaked the inclusion ofCastlevania content in-game by mislabeling the trackGalaga Medley asBloody Tears / Monster Dance with the new series logo.

ASmash Ultimate-focused Nintendo Direct was then released on August 8, 2018. This direct started with a trailer thatSimon andRichter are playable characters alongside theDracula's Castle stage, theAlucard assist trophy and theDracula boss battle. Later in the direct,Chrom andDark Samus were revealed as echo fighters, as well as the confirmation of the returning stages andKing K. Rool, the lattermost being a very popular request, as playable characters. TheNintendo Direct of September 13, 2018 revealedIsabelle fromAnimal Crossing would be joining the roster in conjunction with the announcement of a newAnimal Crossing game for Nintendo Switch. ANovember 1, 2018 Direct revealed bothKen and Incineroar as the final fighters in the base roster, as well as the newSpirits mode andAdventure Mode: World of Light. The direct also announced the Fighters Pass, featuring five fighters that had been selected byNintendo that would be added to the game with their ownstages, music tracks, and spirits.^[16]Piranha Plant's inclusion as an additional DLC fighter was also announced. Piranha Plant officially released on January 29th, 2019 for free to all digital purchases and all players that register a physical purchase through My Nintendo before January 31st, 2019. All players that purchase the game after February 1st, 2019 would have to purchase Piranha Plant separately.

DuringThe Game Awards 2018, a trailer for what seemed likePersona5 played, only to be a surprise announcement forJoker as Challenger Pack 1 for the Fighters Pass. Reggie Fils-Aimé then took the stage to confirm that all DLC characters will be new to the series and some will be unexpected picks. Joker received a proper trailer on April 16th, 2019, which revealed the stageMementos, 11 music tracks, a DLC spirit board, several Mii Fighter costumes, and a collection of updates as part of version 3.0.0, includingStage Builder andVideo Editor, which would be released the following day. DuringE3 2019,Hero from theDragon Quest series was revealed for release in the summer, with several different iterations of Hero across differentDragon Quest games as alts;Banjo & Kazooie from the fromBanjo-Kazooie series were later revealed in the same presentation for a fall release. On July 30, 2019, Sakurai himself held a presentation for Hero titledMr. Sakurai Presents, which would be held for every future fighter. This presentation showcasedYggdrasil's Altar, 8 music tracks, a new spirit board, Mii costumes, newamiibo, and other updates for version 4.0.0, which would be released later that day. There were considerations to includeSlime fromDragon Quest hadSquare Enix not allowed the team to useHero.^[17] EightDragon Quest heroes were considered as alternate costumes, but only four were finalized due to time constraints.^[18] A presentation for Banjo & Kazooie was aired following the September 4, 2019 Nintendo Direct. The presentation revealed a release date of that day,Spiral Mountain, 10 music tracks (11 ifMEGALOVANIA is counted), a new spirit board, Mii costumes, new amiibo, and other updates for version 5.0.0 likeHome-Run Contest. That same Nintendo Direct also revealedTerry from theFatal Fury series in addition to further DLC fighters beyond the Fighters Pass. Terry later received a presentation on November 6th, 2019, which showcasedKing of Fighters Stadium, 50 music tracks, a new spirit board, Mii costumes, amiibo, and other updates for version 6.0.0, released the same day. A presentation for the fighter included in Challenger Pack 5 was announced on January 14, 2020, for a premiere date on the 16th. The fighter was revealed to beByleth fromFire Emblem:Three Houses, who would be released on January 28th, alongsideGarreg Mach Monastery, 11 music tracks (12 ifFloral Fury is counted), a new spirit board, and Mii costumes. The presentation also fully revealed Fighters Pass Vol. 2, which would feature six fighters, once again selected by Nintendo, in addition to stages, music tracks, and spirits.

Development for Fighters Pass Vol. 2 was heavily affected by theCOVID-19 pandemic starting March 2020, forcing the developers to work remotely.^[19] The first fighter for Fighters Pass Vol. 2 was revealed to be a character fromARMS on March 26th, 2020 during aNintendo Direct Mini. This character was revealed to beMin Min during aMr. Sakurai Presents on June 22nd, 2020, which also revealed a release date of June 29th,Spring Stadium, 18 music tracks, a new spirit board, new amiibo, and other updates for version 8.0.0 likeRematch. Version 8.1.0 would have a surprise release on August 4th, 2020, and include several updates, most notably the introduction ofSmall Battlefield. A mystery presentation was announced for September 30th, 2020, and premiered on October 1st, which revealedSteve fromMinecraft and a proper Mr. Sakurai Presents on October 3rd. The full presentation revealed a release date of October 13th,Minecraft World, 7 music tracks, a new spirit board, Mii costumes, and new amiibo. According to Daniel Kaplan, former Production Director forMinecraft, negotiations betweenMojang Studios and Nintendo had begun somewhere during 2014/2015, during the period whenSSB4 post-content development was ongoing^[20][21], though said negotiations went nowhere until 2020, asSteve would join the roster as DLC. As Sakurai explained, developing Steve required immense work, having to readjust every stage to allow Steve to use hisCreate Block move.^[22] The Game Awards 2020 revealedSephiroth from theFinal Fantasy series as a playable fighter, with further details revealed in aMr. Sakurai Presents on December 17, 2020; this presentation revealed a release date of December 22nd,Northern Cave, 9 music tracks, a new spirit board, Mii costumes, and theSephiroth Challenge, which was a limited-time boss battle that allowed players to receive Sephiroth as early as the day of the presentation. During the February 17th, 2021 Nintendo Direct,Pyra andMythra fromXenoblade Chronicles2 were revealed as a 2-in-1 fighter. A presentation premiered on March 4th and revealed a release date of that day,Cloud Sea of Alrest, 16 music tracks, a new spirit board, and Mii costumes. During E3 2021,Kazuya from theTekken series was announced as a playable fighter. A separate presentation premiered on June 28th, 2021, and revealed a release date of June 29th,Mishima Dojo, 39 music tracks (40 ifBurning Town is counted), a new spirit board, Mii costumes, and new amiibo. Sakurai confirmed during this presentation that Fighters Pass Vol. 2 is the last planned Fighters Pass for the game. Fighters Pass Vol. 2 was originally going to only come with five fighters, but thanks to a chance encounter with aDisney representative and for the reason of being the most-voted character from theSmash Bros. Fighter Ballot,Sora from theKingdom Hearts series was added to Fighters Pass Vol. 2 as an additional fighter.^[23] The September 23rd, 2021 Nintendo Direct announced a special presentation for the final fighter, which premiered on October 5th and revealed Sora. In the same presentation, Sakurai confirmed that Sora was the actual winner of the Fighter Ballot, aligning with the statement thatBayonetta won among "realizable and negotiable characters". Sora was released on October 18th, alongsideHollow Bastion, 9 music tracks (10 if save data forKingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory is present on the player'sNintendo Switch), a new spirit board, and Mii costumes, with new amiibo planned for the future. After a final update that applied character balance changes and amiibo support, active development has reportedly ceased.

On November 15, 2022, Sakurai revealed portions of this game's design document in aYouTube video. According to the video, while the document was finalized on December 16, 2015, it was later revised with the final revision on November 1, 2016. The document took the form of a PowerPoint presentation, and was over 200 slides in length. Each slide had the basic format of a header for the topic of the slide, an edited image of eitherSmash 4, alpha builds ofUltimate and several non-Smash games, and a brief explanation of the topic and how that is portrayed in the image. Sakurai also mentioned that he did not repeat the script on the slide verbatim during presentations to avoid redundancy and boring the audience.

The document was broken up into nine categories:Overview,Smash,Fighters,Visuals,Audio,Game Modes,Spirits,Online, andNew Fighters. This was done to more easily locate specific slide by filtering to a single category instead of going through each slide one by one. Specific slides shown are the following:

• White-Knuckle 1-on-1: In 1-on-1 matches, characters deal1.2x damage. this will keep matches from feeling too long or drawn out.
• Decisive Impact:Slow motion and camera zoom will emphasize key moments, such as taking massive knockback in a stock match.
• Omega Forms Are All Floating Islands: We used to have non-floating islandOmega forms, but these have been unified to floating islands for match consistency.
• Isabelle: A variation on Villager. She fights using office supplies and public property.
• Final Smash Meter: Final Smashes charge up automatically over time. These can turn the tables, but opponents can use them as well.
• Increased Jump Starting Speed:Jumps start faster, then slow down quickly. This makes them more dynamic and responsive.
• Load Two Stages at Once: Stages canmorph instantly, expanding potential game options.
• Option: DisableStage Hazards: In addition to Battlefield and Omega forms, players can also turn stage hazards completely off.
• Only One Survivor: Thestory begins with one character's miraculous escape. They then set off to save the other fighters.
• Lend Me Your Power!!: In battlespirits can provide a huge power-up! These can massively boost a fighter's stats or confer skills.

A year after the video, on October 30, 2023, Sakuraiuploaded a video discussing about the game's development, such as how they managed the development of DLCs in privacy duringthe COVID-19 pandemic, and when the proposal document was completed. Additional information that were not shown in the last video includes a VR mode in the document, years before theNintendo Labo existed. In the end, he says he is unsure of the series' future, though there could be a next installment of the series with less content in general thanUltimate. After being inactive for two years, new info were published on the internet in its fifth anniversary announcing the resume of maintenance for the game, with new events starting January 2024. Slightly earlier, Bandai Namco has also createdStudio 2 & Studio S; a subsidiary company working with Nintendo, with the latter seemingly composed of the team who worked on theSuper Smash Bros. series sinceSuper Smash Bros. 4. While active development onUltimate has seemingly restarted since the introduction of these new events and patch updates being released for version 13.0, the scale of development and how long this period will last is currently unclear. After the release of the Sora amiibo and a small patch update,version 13.0.2, that adds support of the latter, Sakurai said his work forUltimate is finally complete.^[24]

Version history[edit]

LikeSmash 4 before it,Ultimate received regular update patches post-launch. The issue of unusablereplays caused by gameplay altering updates persisted at launch. In version 3.0.0, players can upload replays toShared Content, as well convert replays to a video file. Also, the feature of the game retaining old patch data to mitigate the issue was discovered with version 6.1.0.

Ultimate adopts asemantic versioning system (major.minor.patch), meaning each update is categorized based on its significance. Updates that introduce new fighters and their challenger pack change the first number (i.e. version 2.0.0). Otherwise significant updates such as new content or major game mode alterations that do not have anydownloadable content attached change the second number (i.e. version 2.1.0). Smaller updates that exist solely to change the game in minor ways like character balance, bug fixes oramiibo support change the third number (i.e. version 2.1.1), though the latter two haven't always been applied consistently. When a number is changed, all numbers after it are reverted back to 0 (i.e. version 3.0.0). Compared to the simple incremental system used bySmash 4, the semantic versioning used byUltimate allows players to more easily infer the significance of any given update at a glance. The latest update forUltimate is version13.0.3.

Changes fromSSB4[edit]

Menu and UI changes[edit]

The versus splash screen for a one-on-one match between Ryu and Samus.

• The main menu has been redesigned to be in a wheel format. The icons on this menu are the following in clockwise order:Smash,Games & More,Vault,Online, andSpirits, with aNintendo eShop icon in the bottom-right corner. In the center is a circle that shows an image related to the highlighted icon.
• There is a newdashboard on the main menu that can be accessed by pressing theZR button. The icons in this dashboard are the following from top to bottom:Back to Top Menu,Collection,Local Wireless,News,Options andHelp, as well as the time according to the internal clock.
• In Smash mode, the stage selection screen now appears before thecharacter selection screen, making players select a stage before selecting fighters.
  • The rule selection screen appears before the stage selection screen. Players can now save rulesets for quick access.
• 8-Player Smash has been merged with standard Vs. Mode, with matches having 2 to 8 slots for players. On the character selection screen, the number of player slots can be adjusted with the "plus" and "minus" buttons on the right side. However, other game modes have different limits.
• Alternate costumes are selected differently: selecting a character on their character selection screen portrait no longer cycles through their costumes, instead allowing the player to choose from eight small stock icons at the bottom of the portrait that represent each costume. However, the and buttons can still be used to cycle through costumes like before. Additionally, each costume is now listed with a name from the numbers 1-8 (e.g. 'Color 7').
• While a Smash or Online match is loading, an intenseversus splash screen will appear, showing the fighters.Tips still appear regularly on loading screens in other modes, and can appear on the splash screen when loading takes long enough.
• Thedamage meter now displays tenths of a damagepercentage (e.g. 10.5%). Note that while all games sinceMelee have used decimal percentages, this is the first game to reveal that fact instead of simply rounding down for display.
• In one-on-one stock fights, the stock count of both fighters will be briefly displayed on-screen whenever a stock is lost (with the exception of the final stock).
• The character selection screen is now similar in appearance to the originalSuper Smash Bros. menu when starting the game, with the other fighters unlocked later on.
  • Instead of being roughly organized by series, the character select screen now organizes characters by theirfighter number, which corresponds to when they were first officially announced for aSuper Smash Bros. game (with the exception ofEcho Fighters, who share a fighter number with their original counterparts, and Mii Fighters, who are always listed last).
• While a fighter is knocked off the stage, aradar that shows the character locations,blast zone, and camera zoom will appear in the corner of the screen they were knocked towards. This radar can be enlarged, shrunk, or removed in theOptions menu.
• LikeLittle Mac'sPower Meter andShulk'sMonado Arts inSmash 4, several characters now sport additional UI elements next to their damage meter, such asVillager andIsabelle'sPocketed item,Robin's Durability Counters,Inkling's Ink Tank gauge,Cloud'sLimit Gauge,Joker'sRebellion Gauge,Hero'sMP Gauge,Terry's GO symbol,Steve's resources, andSora'sMagic.
• Tracks inMy Music are now organized by series rather than by stage, such that all music from a given series will be available across the stages corresponding to that series.
  • Additionally, many remixes from64 andMelee have had their names updated to reflect the source music title, rather than the stage they were present on, such as "Poké Floats" becoming "Pokémon Red/Pokémon Blue Medley".
  • The "Nintendo" music category, now named "Others" to reflect the inclusion of third-party content, encompasses theIce Climber andDuck Hunt universes (represented through theSummit andDuck Hunt stages, respectively) as well as the non-playable universes (represented through theHanenbow,PictoChat 2,Balloon Fight,Living Room,Find Mii,Tomodachi Life,Wrecking Crew,Pilotwings, andWuhu Island stages).
• Some stages that once shared names now have been renamed. For example, theSmash 64 version of Yoshi's Island is now Super Happy Tree and theBrawl version of Mario Circuit is now Figure-8 Circuit.
• Echo Fighters can either be displayed in their own character slots or share their slot with the character they are based on, depending on user preference.
  • Mii Fighters share a similar display, with a difference of either being displayed in their own character slots, or merged together as three fighters in one slot like inSmash 4.
• The main menu,character selection screen,Milestones,Sound Test and many other UIs now use a new font. This replaces the main text font fromMelee,Brawl andSSB4, A-OTF Folk Pro B. The new font is FOT-RodinNTLG UB regular in the English version and FOT-RodinNTLG B regular in the Japanese version, both of which are identical to those used forSuper Mario Odyssey's UIs.
• The user can set default control settings for players who don't enter a name.

Game mode changes[edit]

• Sound Test can be used to create music playlists. The option where the music plays in handheld mode while the screen is off like a music player fromSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS also returns.
• Two new battle modes are present:
  • Squad Strike has players battle with a squad of 3 or 5 fighters. Multiple formats of Squad Strike are available, including one where the entire team of fighters is used in a single continuous battle, similar to the final battle ofSmash Tour inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U.
  • Smashdown renders the fighters selected in a given battle unavailable for use in following battles, forcing players to select a different fighter with every match they play.
• Coin Battle is no longer featured as a playable mode, after being in the three previous games.
• Classic Mode is loosely a combination of the versions seen inBrawl andfor 3DS, but now each fighter has a set series of opponents to face; many routes feature bosses other thanMaster Hand andCrazy Hand, and some feature a fight against a boss outside of the boss fight, or even the boss fight does not feature a designated boss, instead fighting characters who are otherwise playable.
  • Additionally, all fighter-specific ending cutscenes were omitted, only having a singlecongratulations screen for every fighter.
• Multi-Man Smash and its100-Man Smash mode is now referred to as "Mob Smash" and "Century", respectively;All-Star Mode has been merged with Endless mode as "All-Star Smash". It also lacks10-Man Smash and3-Minute Smash, making Mob Smash themselves harder.
• There is no longer aStadium menu; Mob Smash andHome-Run Contest (as of version 5.0.0) are now placed directly in the "Games & More" menu.
• Super Sudden Death is now a separated battle mode, akin toMelee.
  • Furthermore, Special Smash fromBrawl andSSB4 is now referred to as "Custom Smash"; the term "Special Smash" is instead used for a sub-menu which contains Super Sudden Death, Smashdown and Custom Smash, akin to the Special Melee mode inMelee.
• Training Mode is now compatible withamiibo fighters, and can now be played onan exclusive stage, which allows the player to measure distances such as knockback range and jump height.
• Spirits are introduced as a new feature with the merger ofTrophies andEquipment; additionally,Spirit Battles also replaceEvent matches from the previous games.

Gameplay changes[edit]

• TheWii Remote (andNunchuk),Classic Controller,Nintendo 3DS,Wii U GamePad andPro Controller are no longer officially supported due to being incompatible with theNintendo Switch.
  • To compensate, single and doubleJoy-Cons and theSwitch Pro Controller have been added.
• All stages now have aBattlefield form. Additionally, all stages (including Battlefield andΩ forms) can now be played with up to eight players, as opposed to having different limits between stages.
• All Battlefield/Ω form stages now reshape the main platform andblast lines to be identical to those inBattlefield/Final Destination, making some Battlefield/Ω forms such as those ofGolden Plains,Wily Castle, andKalos Pokémon League having larger bottom blast lines and no vertical walls.
  • However, stages whereZ-axis is flattened (e.g.Hanenbow,Dream Land GB,Flat Zone X,Duck Hunt) now affect them even in Battlefield/Ω form, which alters the characters'hitboxesfunction.
• Stage hazards can be turned off for the first time in the series, allowing players to remove intrusive elements, such as environment changes or enemy appearances from gameplay. The option is available in the advanced rules settings.
• The newStage Morph option allows two stages to be selected at once; the two stages will transition into one another either at random or on specified time intervals.
• To increase gameplay speed, all damage taken in one-on-one fights with no items ismultiplied by 1.2×.
• Smash attacks can be charged significantly longer. Once the fighter stops moving, the power of the attack will cease scaling.
• Buffering has been strengthened, as actions can now be buffered by inputting them at any point during a previous action and holding the inputs until they are possible. The 10-frame buffer fromBrawl andSmash 4 is still present in case the inputs are not held.
• Short hopaerial attacks now have a damage multiplier of 0.85×. This applies until the player lands or uses amidair jump.
• Buried opponents no longer take less knockback from attacks.
• Using aflame attack on afrozen character no longer thaws them out.
• The physics of launch movement has been overall sped up, with characters receivingknockback having a much higher initial speed and deceleration, resulting in being launched at higher speeds yet slowing down to nothing quickly. This was mainly done for aesthetic purposes to make moves feel more weighted and impactful. This does not affect moves withfixed knockback.
  • This change significantly lessens the usefulness ofhitstun canceling, as most of the hitstun and launch speed now wear off as soon as the player is able to perform anair dodge or anaerial attack.
  • If a character is struck with enough knockback by either ameteor smash or stage spike, they will be KO'd as soon as they are off-screen, rather than reaching the bottom blast line. This makes meteor smashes more effective, as well assacrificial KOs that rely on meteor smashes more reliable.^[25]
  • Hitstun increases at a slower rate for knockback that causestumbling, decreasing it at higher percents compared toSmash 4. However, this is compensated by characters being faster overall as described by the mobility changes below, still allowing for more combo opportunities below high percents.
• Fall speeds andgravity are now temporarily homogenized during hitstun from knockback which launches at angles 70°-110°. This prevents fast fallers from being disproportionately susceptible to ladder combos but also prevents them from having improved vertical survivability while floatier characters have improved vertical survivability.
• The base amount offreeze frames has been increased. However, there is an additional freeze frames multiplier that is lower the more players are participating in a match, with a maximum of 1× for two players (effectively standardizing freeze frames in one-on-one matches) and a minimum of 0.75× for eight players.
• Rage has had its knockback increase reduced to a maximum 1.1× boost, down from 1.15×. Additionally, it no longer applies to hits that useset knockback, preventing linking moves with high set knockback from KOing at disproportionately early percentages.
• Stale-move negation uses higher damage reduction values, with a fully stale move dealing 0.4695× of its original damage (down from 0.5294×). Additionally, moves now stale when hitting a shield.
• Shieldstun has been further adjusted. Direct special moves and ground attacks deal more shieldstun, while aerial attacks and projectiles deal less, and smash attacks remain unaffected. This makes direct attacks safer on shield (tilt attacks in particular), but makes aerials and projectiles less safe on shield. However, due to the increased mobility of the cast as well as the reduced landing lag on aerial attacks, their safety on shield has been relatively unchanged, with some even being safer on shield.
• Shields deplete faster when held, now even surpassingMelee's shield depletion.
• When holding a special move button or multiple shield buttons while shielding, moving the control stick allows for shield angling without triggeringrolls,sidesteps, orjumps (withtap jump on), making it easier to perform.
• Perfect shields are performed in reverse: instead of pressing the shield button a few frames before an attack connects, players have to release the shield button when an attack connects on theirshield instead. The window for the technique is also larger, lasting 5 frames instead of 3. A successful perfect shield causes the screen to pause briefly, with the fighter's eyes flashing yellow (similar toFinal Smash standby) to signify a perfect shield, and no shield damage being taken as a result. This updated mechanic makes perfect shielding a riskier tactic, and less likely to be performed unintentionally, but allows fighters to retaliate much faster against attacks when successful.
• Shield dropping incurs 11 frames of lag, up from 7 inSSB4, making the game less defense-focused.^[26] However, the minimum time the shield must be held for before it can be dropped has been reduced from 11 frames to 3, assisting in the new perfect shield mechanic.
• Shield platform drops are no longer possible.
• Grabbing anedge consecutively without landing or getting hit now decreases theintangibility of subsequentedge options, to the point of granting no intangibility at all from the fourth edge grab onward. Additionally, in a similar vein toAether in previous games, characters can only grab edges up to six times under these conditions. This further decreases the effectiveness ofplanking strategies.
• "Magnet hands", a controversial element inBrawl andSmash 4 that allowed some characters to evadeedgeguarders whilerecovering much easier, have been toned down.Edge sweet spots have become smaller, and recovery moves take longer to snap on ledges in general. This makes recovering overall more difficult.
• The window totech has increased from 8 frames to 11 frames, and teching, in general, has mostly been restored to its state inBrawl (but the added leniency while already making contact with a wall or ceiling is retained), removing all of the untechable situations fromSmash 4; however, sustaining too much knockback from a certain distance from a surface can prevent characters from teching, making stage spikes guaranteed at high enough percents. This threshold is indicated by the visual shockwave of a rebounding character turning red. The threshold is also much smaller for characters that hit the ground, making meteor smashes more effective on-stage on aerial opponents.^[27]
  • Opponentsfootstooled in midair can now tech on the ground during the animation. However, footstools now also grant the user a few frames of intangibility upon leaping off the opponent.
  • Meteor smash attacks can no longer be teched when grounded regardless of their properties, much like inSmash Bros. titles beforeSSB4, making them more reliable for starting combos.
• Locks can only be performed twice in a row, and no longer force the target to perform a standing getup, removing their guaranteed setups into powerful moves such as chargedsmash attacks. However, they can still be used to combo into faster attacks before the target can get up from the lock.
• Characters that originally cannot swim or have a weakness to water in their home series now take slow, constant damage whileswimming. The fighters affected includeCharizard,Incineroar,Inkling andSonic.
• If a character lands in deep water while using a move with high downwards velocity (e.g.Stone,Aether,Bowser Bomb andSuper Dedede Jump), they will keep most of their movement speed when diving. This now causes those moves to become self-destructs at certain heights.
• Characters can no longerrun through other characters and instead push them backward, preventingcross-ups or mixups revolving around moving through an opponent. This also seems to affect several momentum-based moves, which now stop on shield (such asFox Illusion andHeel Slide). However, there are still a handful of moves that are still capable of crossing up, such asSimon andRichter's dash attack.
• Screen KOs are much faster, making them once again faster thanStar KOs. Additionally, the blast KO effect has been added at the end of animation.
• Waiting on arevival platform now gradually decreases theinvincibility period of a character after they get off it, lasting only one second instead of two if they stay on it for the maximum duration.
• Shield breaking does not grant the victim any intangibility if it happens during thelast five seconds of a match.
• Sudden Death consists of the screen slowly zooming in, making the blast zones gradually shrink. It also appears to have a fixed camera angle, and the screen progressively gets covered in aesthetic flames, starting with the corners. This is presumably to balance the gameplay speed of Sudden Death across all stages, especially with large (such asTemple orNew Pork City), autoscrolling (such asMushroomy Kingdom), orStage Builder stages. RainingBob-ombs fromMelee onward are still present shortly after the screen has finished zooming in.
  • All characters participating in Sudden Death are ranked based on what time they are KO'd rather than all KO'd characters being automatically ranked 2nd, much likeSmash Bros. titles beforeSSB4.
• The length of a Timed Battle can be adjusted in 30-second increments between one and three minutes.
• Stamina battles are now part of the basic rule selection, allowing for combinations such as stamina withstocks.
• TheFinal Smash Meter is a newRules option that enables fighters to charge up theirFinal Smash over time for use without aSmash Ball. When this option is turned on, a gauge will appear under each fighter'sdamage display. The more damage the player deals or receives, the more the meter is filled. When it is filled, the player can use a weaker version of their Final Smash.
• The newCustom Balance menu allows assigninghandicaps to individual characters. Intended for leveling the field between players of different skill levels, each character can be assigned a Custom Balance value between -3 and +3, with negative numbers reducingdamage dealt, and positive numbers increasing damage dealt. These values are only applied when the Custom Balancerule option is enabled, which is not available in multi-console wireless or online play.
• Self-destructing in online matches with stocks can take away two stocks instead of one (except on 1v1 battles)
• AllSmash Taunts now share some consistencies:
  • Subtitles now use the aforementioned main text font, rather than matching those of their respective home series.
  • Codec Conversations are disabled in the Ω form ofShadow Moses Island, as with Smash Taunts inSSB4; this also applies to all Battlefield forms as well.
  • In the Japanese version,furigana has been added to allPalutena's Guidance (as well as re-added to allStar Fox Smash Taunts), similar to Smash Taunts inBrawl.

Mobility changes[edit]

• In update 2.0.0, the ability to consistently perform a short hop by simultaneously pressing two jump buttons was added.
• Thejumpsquat timing of every character has been standardized to 3 frames, with the exception ofKazuya, who has 7 frames. This is most easily noticeable withBowser andSnake, as both characters used to have the highest jumpsquat frames inSmash 4 andBrawl respectively.
• Run speeds have been increased by about 10% for a majority of the cast, with some having larger increases, whilewalk speeds have had a similar 5% increase.
• Air speeds have been increased by about 5% for a majority of the cast, with some having larger increases.
• Traction has been significantly increased across the cast, with all characters now having higher traction values thanSmash 4's highest traction values.
• The initial frames of full hops from the ground are sped up for all characters. Oddly, this can be bypassed by using a jump just before walking or running over the ledge.
• Landing lag for aerials has been reduced by 40% for most of the cast, and landing lag from helplessness has been significantly reduced overall. For some moves, the landing lag is even less than inMelee withL-canceling.
• Perfect pivoting can no longer be performed, as characters no longer enter their standing animation when turning around out of their initial dash.
• Rolling andspot dodging repeatedly nowpenalizes the user with increased lag and lessintangibility frames, in a similar vein toDeep Breathing, leaving them more open topunishments.
  • Backward rolls have more ending lag overall, hindering their utility further for retreating safely, and making them practically different from forward rolls again.
  • Spot dodges can be canceled earlier than usual (by 5 frames if fresh) into any grounded attack other than grabs and dash attacks, making them more effective for retaliation after dodging opposing attacks.
• Air dodges now contain elements from all previous incarnations of the technique: players can either perform a neutral air dodge by keeping the control stick in a neutral position (akin to aneutral aerial), which functions likeBrawl andSmash 4's air dodges, or a directional air dodge by holding in a direction, which grants characters a quick momentum boost towards much likeMelee's air dodges, but without making themhelpless.
  • Characters can only air dodge once before landing, grabbing an edge or getting hit, and both types of air dodges have much more ending lag, with directional ones lasting more than a full second. However, both have less landing lag than air dodges inSmash 4 (10 frames in the case of neutral air dodges, down from 21), and unlike air dodges inMelee, directional air dodges allow characters to grab edges during their ending lag. This significantly weakens defensive play by making air dodges more restricted and punishable but increases their effectiveness for escapingjuggles and recovering if used opportunely.
  • Wavedashing has made a return fromMelee, alongside techniques associated with it like wave landing. However, it is significantly weaker due to the new mechanics added to directional air dodges, compounded further by their higher landing lag, as well as the cast's increased traction. Furthermore, the universal buffs to dashing in general almost entirely eliminates the need of this technique.
• Initial dashes have been lengthened, allowing some aspects ofdash-dancing to return. They have also been significantly increased across the cast and have much less range invariance, with the slowest being slightly aboveMario's inSSB4 and the highest being slightly aboveFox's.
  • As a result, some characters now have initial dash speeds that outpace their running speeds, allowingfox-trotting to alleviate their low mobility; examples includeGanondorf andIncineroar.
• Being sent into hitstun by any attack from behind (except vertical hitstun) will preserve the direction the character is facing, like withBack Slash inSmash 4, having the effect of preserving the positions of their forward and back aerials.
  • As a result, all characters now have unique hitstun animations for taking hits from behind.

Attack changes[edit]

• Characters can now perform any ground attack out of a run, including theirneutral attack,tilt attacks, and allsmash attacks. In previous games, onlydash attacks,up smashes andspecial moves could be performed out of a run. Characters can also cancel a runturn in the same way to input any grounded attack in the other direction, which was previously only possible withforward tilts,forward smashes andside specials.
• Short hop aerial attacks can be performed by pressing the jump and attack buttons at the same time. However, full hop aerial attacks are more difficult to perform as a result, and can no longer be performed on the first frame of a jump.
  • As a further aid, several ground attacks can now be canceled by jumping during their very first startup frames (with a maximum of 3 for most), in which case they will automatically transition into a short hop aerial attack.
• The linking hits of allneutral attacks have been altered, using theSakurai angle and a 180°angle alongside low knockback values so that opponents stay on the ground and are dragged close to the user. This allows for neutral attacks to connect much more reliably than before, and gives all of them the ability tojab lock (with the exception ofGanondorf,Meta Knight,Roy andChrom). However, this removes guaranteedjab cancel setups for most characters.
  • Neutral infinites have been reduced in damage (with the exception ofMewtwo's), but are faster and inflict lessfreeze frames, allowing them to land far more hits in the same amount of time, and making them harder to escape in combination with the aforementioned changes. Their pushback from hitting opponents can also no longer drop the user off edges.
  • Neutral attacks also have decreased range across the cast. Characters no longer lunge to attack and the hitboxes were adjusted to match whatever limb or weapon each character uses almost perfectly.
• The function of the 0° launch angle has been changed, now becoming 32° at knockback values greater than or equal to 120 units, similar to theSakurai angle inSSB, but occurring later than said angle.
• Down tilts can be reversed by holding the control stick diagonally down and back, allowing characters to quickly use them in the opposite direction without the need to stand up fromcrouching and turn around.
• Smash attacks can be delayed for 2 additional seconds after reaching full charge. This is indicated by characters freezing in the last frame of their charging animation until the smash attack is released.
• Up smashes andup specials (by extension) can be usedout of shield without jump-cancelling.
• Aerial attacks can be performed while hanging onto aladder, a property known officially as a "ladder attack".
• Frame canceling has been removed.
• All variations of regulargrabs have more ending lag, making them easier to punish if missed. Conversely, extended grabs have less ending lag, no longer leaving characters as vulnerable compared to regular grabs.
• If twograbs collide, both characters take minimal damage and act as if they'regrab released. This event is known as "grab parrying" by the in-game tips and removes the effect ofport priority in determining who gets the grab.
• Shield grabs can no longer be used immediately aftershieldstun from an attack ends, now forcing the character to hold their shield for 4 extra frames beforehand.^[28]
• The speed and damage ofpummels has been standardized, differing only by a few frames between characters, and generally dealing from 1% to 1.6% damage. As a result, characters such asNess andSamus have slower pummels, but they deal more damage, while most other characters' pummels are faster, but deal less damage.
• Weight dependency forthrows has been removed: all throws now execute at their usual speed against the entire cast, much like inSSB.
• Edge attacks deal 9% on average (up from 7%) and now grant intangibility until their hitboxes cease, instead of until 2 frames before their hitboxes come out, allowing them to beat out opposing attacks.
• Chargeable special moves that can be stored for later use, such as Samus'Charge Shot and Donkey Kong'sGiant Punch, can now be canceled by jumping. These moves can also be executed with the attack button while charging.
  • Most chargeable neutral specials that can't be stored are now reversible, whether for the duration of the charge or right before they are unleashed.
• Manytaunts have been sped up or shortened, with some longer taunts, such asMario andZelda's up taunts, have been replaced with entirely new ones altogether, allowing characters to act out of them much quicker, with universalinterruptibility on frame 50. However, this does not apply to damaging taunts, such asLuigi's down taunt.
• The effectiveness of everytether recovery has been nerfed, as they can no longer be performed at any point duringair dodges, nor can they skip the lag incurred upon grabbing an edge.
• Custom special moves have been removed (with exception ofMii Fighters).
• AllRCO lags on special moves have been removed.
• Final Smashes are quicker overall, with versions granting a controllable transformation being removed, so players can return to fighting quickly. As a result, many fighters have either new Final Smashes altogether (such as theLandmaster being replaced byan Arwingcutscene) or different functionality to their returning Final Smash (such asOctopus dragging opponents offstage immediately after being activated).

Aesthetic changes[edit]

• The particle effects of the game are significantly more cartoony, with a solid-color or cel-shaded aesthetic, similar to particle effects used byBowser Jr. andDuck Hunt. Compared toSmash 4, hits are signified by spark-like blows instead of colorful stars, while attackeffects appear visually longer-lasting or possess far larger particle effects.
• Continuing a trend fromMelee andBrawl, most returning fighters feature greater model detail than inSmash 4. Character models also react to lighting more realistically, resulting in a soft white "glow" around their edges. Additionally, humanoid characters overall have slightly tanner skin tones.
  • However, hair and fur textures tend to use less complex shading and modeling techniques, resulting in a flatter appearance similar toBrawl andfor 3DS (better noticeable withIncineroar andDonkey Kong).
• The characters' design styles are once again unified: cartoony franchises such as theMario andKirby series have slightly more realistic and subdued color schemes, while those from more realistic-looking franchises such asThe Legend of Zelda andMetroid series have more vibrant color schemes. As a result, the overall color palette is slightly more subdued and less saturated than inSmash 4, but still brighter than inMelee andBrawl.
• Time slows down substantially and the camera zooms in with a colorful blue background at significant moments during a match, such as when landing a highly damaging special move (such as a fully chargedGiant Punch) or when breaking ashield. The camera also does this for potential final hits of a match, dramatically pausing gameplay with intense sound effects and red lightning/background, while zooming in. These are referred to as "Special Zoom" and "Finish Zoom" byMasahiro Sakurai and the development team.
  • Special zoom is signified by a sound similar to landing aKO Uppercut orFinishing Touch, and finish zoom has SFX somewhat akin to theping sound.
  • The slowdown and zoom do not take place when there are three or more characters on screen, though the blue background will still appear.
• Intimed matches, characters in the lead will occasionally flash with gold sparkles.
• Stock icons have been given a simplified, 2D appearance, akin to those inSmash 64, and usually lack eyes (with the exception ofKirby,Meta Knight,Sonic,R.O.B.,Zombie and Enderman). However, most humanoid characters' stock icons are still depicted with eyebrows, accessories, as well as some facial features (e.g.Mario,Luigi,Dr. Mario andWario's mustache,Ness and theIce Climbers' bangs,Bayonetta's glasses). Additionally, depictions of accessories in default stock icons no longer appears to be inconsistent with their actual colors; for example,Peach's crown now given its usual golden color instead of pink like in previous games, the latter of which matched the color of her dress.
• The rattling effect during hit lag is now more exaggerated, and a crescent-shaped angle indicator now appears when the victimSDIs.
• Knockback dealt by strong attacks will show a bright blue angle indicator, which visualizes the effect ofdirectional influence along the character's final trajectory. This can be difficult to notice due to the effect being very brief, although moves with high hitstun orparalysis effects allow it to be seen for a decent timeframe.
• After using up theirmidair jump(s), characters leave behind a subtle, transparent trail when moving through the air until they regain their jumps. This aesthetic effect is difficult to notice unless the camera is zoomed onto a character or the scenery behind them is particularly bright.
• Punching and kicking SFX on hit are different and sound harder-hitting compared to the previous game, with even weaker attacks playing loud "punch" effects.
• If two fighter's bladed weapons clash, they now produce a "clanging" noise, reminiscent of a similar effect inMelee. The sound depends on the type of blades that clash; metal blades and energy-based swords both produce different sound effects.
• Characters stunned after breaking their shield will have their voice clip play constantly instead of only once, much like inSmash 64 andMelee. This was exclusive to Roy inSmash 4.
• Fighters sent flying now leave a colorful, lingering trail of solid-colored smoke behind them. If dealt enough knockback, they will also play a whistling sound while flying, akin to a jet plane, rather than the lower-pitched wind rushing sound fromSmash 4.
• Characters flash yellow when they are close to breaking out of a grab, as well as during their grab immunity period after being released.
• Whenbutton mashing out of an unactionable state such as being grabbed orstunned, characters display wind blade-like particles around them that increase in quantity depending on how fast they mash.
• Blast KOs cause a burst of confetti on the screen alongside the standard colorful blast.
• When a current match ends and the announcer says his quote, all character voices and sound effects will immediately cease, even though blast KO sounds can still be heard. As a result, characters' KO voice clips, for the most part, do not play when a blast KO occurs and the current match ends.
• Star KO'd characters now use a tumbling animation similar toBrawl's Screen KOs (except for several characters), rolling away from the screen as they fly away.
• Phantomfootstools now play the footstool sound effect to indicate one being performed, and a yellow jump circle appears.
• Similar toLightning Kick andKnee Smash from previous games, as well as most ofMega Man andWii Fit Trainer's movesets inSmash 4, even more non-special moves received nicknames, which can be seen onTips.
• Final Smashes now cause a segment of the screen to show the upper right portion of the summoner's face (in Mr. Game & Watch's case, the close up is of where his eyes would be; in Piranha Plant's case, the close up of its teeth), which is taken entirely from the summoner's official artwork, before the move begins, similar to Chrom's appearance inPair Up, and the stage's background to display solid-colored pattern akin to the final hit ofShin Shoryuken when the opponent is dealt enough knockback to be KO'd.
• Compared toBrawl andSmash 4, several fighter animations have been made significantly more dramatic and tailored to look better from the camera's perspective. Examples of this are Mario's Up Tilt, Bowser's Flying Slam, and Donkey Kong's Giant Punch.
• Fighters are much more expressive than they were inSmash 4; most characters now sport a shocked/surprised expression when missing a grab and will scowl or frown when putting up their shield, and any characters standing too close to a Final Smash will visibly react to it by displaying a shocked facial expression.
• While on Final Smash standby, the character's damage gauge will constantly spark with aqua-colored electricity. Upon use, one of the eyes on the fighter's character portrait will flash.
• When a character has more than 120% damage, smoke will constantly come out of their damage meter.
• Announcer-related changes:
  • Whenselecting characters in atime orstock match, the announcer now says "Timed battle!" and "Stock battle!" respectively, rather than "Free-for-all!/Battle royale!" and "Survival!"
    • InBrawl, the announcer did say "Timed battle" for Spanish and Italian, but it was changed inSmash 4.
  • The announcer now calls Classic Mode's name when selecting the character in that mode, similar toBrawl. Additionally, in the Japanese version, he now says "Survival Smash!" as opposed to "Classic!" inBrawl.
  • When a playerlife steals in a team battle, the announcer now says "Restocked!", as opposed to "Stock player removed." inMelee or "Share (player) stock!" inBrawl andSSB4.
  • On theresults screen, the announcer now says "(Character name/Team color) wins!" ("(Character name/Team color) win!" in the Japanese, Korean, and Chinese versions, “Kazuya Mishima wins!” when using Kazuya, but with theTekken announcer), instead of saying "The winner is... (character name/team color)!" (Brawl/Smash 4) or "This game's winner is... (character name/team color)!" (Smash 64/Melee). Additionally, after Team Battles, all teammates will perform their complete victory animation instead of only the player with the highest score/stock count, much like the first three installments. As a result, all victory poses now "freeze" at the same time point during their animations.
    • InSmash 64, the announcer did say "(Team color) wins!", but this was changed inMelee.
    • However, the Spanish, French, Italian and German versions still say the winner's name at the end like inSmash 4, such as "¡La victoria es para... (character name/team color)!" in Spanish; this also extends to the Dutch version, newly recorded for this game, which says "De winnaar is... (character name/team color)!"
• Even more characters now face the screen regardless of the direction they turn towards, such as Donkey Kong and the Ice Climbers.
  • In addition, some Assist Trophies and Poké Ball Pokémon face the screen regardless of the direction they turn towards.
• Names now override some instances of character names, such as underneath the damage meter. However, when playing online, the user's name will override custom names.
  • If the player enters a name, any Poké Ball Pokémon or Assist Trophy character summoned by the player will be indicated by the player's name. In some cases, this may be harder to notice in stages with brighter lighting due to the name bar lacking the bordered background.
• Reflection moves now display shining hexagon effects, similar toFox's andFalco'sReflector, upon reflecting projectiles.
• Counterattacks that retaliate against sufficiently strong attacks will now cause the user to let out a large, bright yellow flash.
• Theflower effect's flower appearance was changed and now resembles the pink flowers seen on the title screen ofPanel de Pon.
• As a fighter moves closer to the blast zone, theirmagnifying glass shrinks. When a fighter is right next to the blast zone, the ring on their glass flashes yellow.
• If enabled, Score Display is displayed when playing either a Stock and Stamina match instead of only appearing inTime matches.
• In stages originating fromSmash 64,background characters appear more frequently.

Item changes[edit]

• Certain types ofitems, such asBanana Peels, can now be picked up bytilt attacks.
• There can now be more than oneAssist Trophy active at any given time. Additionally, some characters summoned by an Assist Trophy can be KO'd, granting a point to whoever KO'd said character. The summoner can also KO their own assist trophy to prevent the loss of a point. If multiple players summon an Assist Trophy each, they will proceed to fight one another if close enough.
• Smash Balls now have a chance of spawning withSoccer Ball physics, rolling around the stage and respawning once they drop offstage. They despawn after a set time. This property is similarly present inFake Smash Balls.
• TheBoss Galaga causes a black background to cover the screen when it catches an opponent, complete with pixel stars. Additionally, it now forces aStar KO on characters taken past the upper blast line, which can be seen attached above the character throughout the animation. The star also becomes larger.
• TheBeetle now forces aScreen KO on characters taken past the upper blast line. Additionally, it can be seen attached behind the character throughout the animation.
• TheHammer andGolden Hammer have a unique 8-bit-styled hit particle, resembling the particle effect used when Mario destroys a barrel or a fireball in the originalDonkey Kong. The corresponding sound effect is also taken from the original game. Additionally, the former's music is now taken directly from the arcade version of the game.
• TheWarp Star's descent can now be either stalled or hastened by the user.
• TheTimer now creates a dark warping background alongside its usual slowdown effect.
• Blast Boxes now explode after some time if hit. This is signified by a dull orange flash around the box that slowly gets brighter.
• TheBeam Sword now creates an aesthetic trail from its blade when thrown or dropped.
• Sandbag will now show a happy expression if left idle for long enough.
• Shrinking andgrowing animations have been reverted to theirMelee versions. As such, they are much faster and are no longer unique to each character.
• Explosive items directly thrown at opponents no longer harm the thrower.
• Characters can perform amidair jump while firing aSuper Scope,Fire Flower,Gust Bellows, andRamblin' Evil Mushroom and holding a completedDaybreak.
  • However, they can no longer dash forward while holding them.

Reception[edit]

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate received universal critical acclaim from both critics and the audience, with several critics calling it the best installment in the series. They praised its large amount of content and fine-tuning of existingSmash gameplay elements, although its online mode received criticism. It was estimated that the game sold over 5 million copies worldwide within three days of release, making it the fastest selling Switch game (at the time).

The game has sold 12.08 million units as of December 31st, 2018, marking it as the fastest-selling Nintendo game in history (at the time).^[39] In March 2019, that number reached 13.81 million, surpassing the total number of sales for the Wii U console in just 4 months. Since then, that number has reached 35.88 million units as of December 31, 2024^[40], making it the best selling game in the series and the third best-selling game on the Nintendo Switch, and also making it the best selling fighting game of all time (previously held bySuper Smash Bros. Brawl with 13.32 million copies). If all versions of a game are to be counted as a single entry, it would still be the best selling fighting game of all time (previously held by the combined sales of all versions ofStreet Fighter II with 15.5 million copies.)^[41] This success led to the game being displayed as one of the "Key Titles" in the Nintendo Switch section of the Nintendo Museum.^[42]

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate currently holds an aggregate review score of 93 out of 100 on Metacritic,^[35] tying it withBrawl as the highest-rated game in the series on the website, and held a score of 92.17% on GameRankings prior to its shutdown.^[43]

AtThe Game Awards 2019,Ultimate was nominated for Best Fighting Game, Best Family Game, and Game of the Year. It won Best Fighting Game, though it lost toLuigi's Mansion 3 andSekiro: Shadows Die Twice, respectively, in the other two categories. In a first for the awards show, a separate, tournament-style nomination called Player's Voice allowed fans to vote on certain games that they deemed their favorite;Ultimate successfully made its way to the final round of voting, though it lost toFire Emblem: Three Houses.

In competitive play[edit]

Ultimate effectively replacedSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U in terms of the competitive scene, with nearly all of the top players migrating over.Ultimate also being the onlySmash game currently available for purchase makes it the definitive version ofSmash to play in the current day. The divide betweenMelee and formerBrawl players has also subsided considerably, withUltimate generally being considered a satisfactory middle ground between the two styles and both isolated scenes intermingling more than ever.

Ultimate continued the momentum of mainstream success started inBrawl and continued with the Wii U version, such as a mainstage presence atEVO and major tournaments dedicated toUltimate often being the most watched events online, withUltimate also frequently being the most entered tournament in a series with other games. The scene also weathered the2020 COVID-19 pandemic and led the charge in normalizing online play as a legitimate form of competition.

The community has constructed a set ofstandard tournament rules to regulate tournament play. While rulesets may vary between different tournaments, generally universal gameplay rules include all matches being played viatimedstock (three stocks and 6-8 minutes), and restrictions on legalstages. These regulations are enacted to ensure that gameplay at the highest level remains fair.

While the community usestier lists to show which characters are the strongest and weakest,Ultimate remains one of the most well balanced games of the series. In one of Sakurai's video, "Average and Mediocre Are the Same Thing", he shows that the collected win rate battles from online play averages 50%. As of May 21, 2024, the highest win rate for a character is 51.43%, while the lowest for another is 47.18%. It is unspecified which characters bear these values, where are the remaining characters in the range, and how it is calculated precisely as its methods remain private.^[44]

Staff[edit]

Gallery[edit]

Logos[edit]

• 

  Promotional Box art

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  Digital box art

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  Key Artwork

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  English logo

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  Japanese logo

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  Traditional Chinese logo

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  Simplified Chinese logo

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  Korean logo

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  English title screen

Fighters[edit]

Artwork[edit]

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  Official illustration ofInkling.

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  Official illustration ofJoker.

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  Official illustration ofTerry.

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  Official illustration ofMin Min.

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  Official illustration of Min Min.

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  Official illustration ofPyra &Mythra.

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  Official illustration ofKazuya.

Part ofSmash Bros. Countdown[edit]

• 

  Official animation ofMario.

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  Official illustration of Mario andRathalos.

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  Official illustration ofSimon andRichter.

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  Official illustration ofVillager andIsabelle.

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  Official image ofPac-Man andMr. Game & Watch.

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  Official illustration ofLink,Kirby,Mario, andCloud.

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  Official image ofBomberman.

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  Official image ofKirby.

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  Official illustration ofSonic.

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  Official image of all playablePokémon characters, and the manyPoké Ball Pokémon.

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  Official illustration of the playableZelda cast.

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  Official illustration of all base gameFire Emblem fighters andAssist Trophies.

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  Official image of all base gameFire Emblem fighters onArena Ferox.

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  Official illustration ofBayonetta,Rodin, andMadama Butterfly.

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  Official image ofSnake.

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  Official image ofPit.

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  Official illustration ofMega Man.

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  Official illustration ofInkling.

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  Official illustration of all of the base game fighters.

Splash Art[edit]

• 

  Splash art ofRidley.

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  Splash art ofSimon.

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  Splash art ofRichter.

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  Splash art ofChrom.

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  Splash art ofDark Samus.

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  Splash art ofKing K. Rool.

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  Splash art ofIsabelle.

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  Splash art ofKen.

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  Splash art ofIncineroar.

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  Splash art ofPiranha Plant.

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  Splash art ofJoker.

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  Splash art ofHero.

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  Splash art ofBanjo & Kazooie.

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  Splash art ofTerry.

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  Splash art of maleByleth.

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  Splash art of female Byleth.

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  Splash art ofMin Min.

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  Splash art ofSteve.

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  Splash art of Alex.

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  Splash art of Zombie.

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  Splash art of Enderman.

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  Splash art ofSephiroth.

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  Splash art ofPyra.

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  Splash art ofMythra.

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  Splash art ofKazuya.

• 

  Splash art ofSora.

Trivia[edit]

• This is the onlySuper Smash Bros. game to:
  • Have been released simultaneously worldwide.
  • AllowMaster Hand to be playable without hacks orglitches.
  • Feature more unlockable characters than starter characters.
  • Have more returning stages than new stages.
  • Have no unlockable stages.
  • FeatureAssist Trophies from third-party universes without playable characters, namelyBomberman,Shovel Knight,Monster Hunter, andVirtua Fighter.
  • Feature universes owned by a current console rival to Nintendo (namelyBanjo-Kazooie andMinecraft, which are both owned byMicrosoft).
  • Not remove anyPoké Ball Pokémon from the prior installment.
• Because of the size of the USK's age rating icon,the German version of the game has a slightly different variation of the box art: several fighters have their positions changed (such asPikachu, who is moved upwards),Yoshi is completely missing, and the logo is pushed to the right side.
• This game marks the 100th performance credit ofCharles Martinet as the voice ofMario, a landmark for which he received a Guinness World Record for the most video game voice-over performances of a single character.
• Although the game has been digitally available in Brazil since December 2018, the country did not officially get physical copies of the game until December 2022.^[45]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• OfficialSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate website

• Games
• Nintendo Switch
• Super Smash Bros. series
• Super Smash Bros. universe

• Featured articles