Zero Suit Samus inSuper Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Metroid
Other playable appearances	inBrawl inUltimate
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Gunship
Tier	A (6)

Zero Suit Samus (ゼロスーツサムス,Zero Suit Samus) is a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. 4. Her return to the series was announced during aSuper Smash Bros. Direct on April 8th, 2014,^[1] which coincided with the 10th anniversary of the European release ofMetroid: Zero Mission. LikeSheik, Zero Suit Samus is now a standalone character, which means that she cannot activate or deactivate herPower Suit under any circumstances.

Rather than retaining Jessica Erin Martin and Ai Kobayashi, Samus' English and Japanese voice actors fromMetroid: Other M,Alésia Glidewell reprises her role as Zero Suit Samus' voice actor, albeit via recycled voice clips fromSuper Smash Bros. Brawl.

Zero Suit Samus is currently ranked 6th out of 54 on thetier list. This is a slight improvement from her high-tier placement inBrawl, where she was ranked 9th out of 38, and is her best placement in the series. Zero Suit Samus's greatest strength is her dominant air game: her neutral and back aerials are safe and reliable set-up and KOing options, respectively, whereas her up aerial is an incredibly effective juggling option and combo tool that also boasts KO potential. In addition, herpunishment potential is also one of the greatest among the cast, courtesy of her fast and nimble mobility, aparalyzingprojectile inParalyzer, and a potent combo game that can quickly rack up damage or even KO outright. Finally, she possesses a long-distanced and varied recovery, thanks to having twotether recoveries, a third jump in Flip Jump, and her new up special,Boost Kick. This makes her recovery hard to intercept as it's unpredictable and can be very deadly. The latter two specials also complement her air game, as both possess enough power to KO rather early.

Although she has outstanding strengths, Zero Suit Samus also has some noticeable weaknesses. Her ground game is unimpressive compared to her air game, which is most evident with her grab game: her grabs' long ranges are offset by their extreme amounts of start-up and ending lag, while her forward, back and up throws have very minimal utility outside of dealing damage. In addition, her ground moves also lack KO potential: her only ground move that truly has KO potential is her forward smash, which is one of the weakest smash attacks in the game, while the rest of her ground moves require very high percents or rely on edgeguarding to score a KO. By extension, many of Zero Suit Samus' attacks contain hitboxes that are positioned high above the ground, which can make it very difficult for her to fight against small characters. Finally, none of her aerials are effective combo breakers, which is further compounded by her susceptibility to combos. Altogether, these traits give Zero Suit Samus a weakneutral game.

Regardless of her flaws, Zero Suit Samus is widely considered to be a strong top tier in competitive play, with dedicated mains such asChoco,Marss, andNairo proving her effectiveness in top-level competitive play.

Attributes[edit]

Zero Suit Samus is a tall lightweight who boasts overall excellent mobility, thanks to several of her attributes being among the top 10 of their respective categories. Herwalking speed is tied withSheik's for the fifth fastest, herdashing speed is the fifth fastest, herair speed is tied with the defaultMii Brawler's for the sixth fastest, hertraction is tied withLittle Mac andWario's for the third highest, herair acceleration is tied withLucas andBayonetta's for the eighth fastest, and herjump is the third highest. Unlike most lightweights, Zero Suit Samus has very quickfalling speed and highgravity, and, like in her home series, cancrawl andwall jump.

Zero Suit Samus's greatest asset is her superb air game. In addition to her excellent aerial attributes, hershort hop is tied with Bayonetta's for the second highest in the game, which collectively supplement her useful aerial attacks. Her neutral aerial has long range and low landing lag, and launches at 55°, all of which make it very useful for follow-ups. Her forward aerial is quick and fairly powerful, making it useful as part of a combo at low percentages, and a dependable off-stage KOing option. Her back aerial has long range and high power, making it her most reliable aerial KOing option. Her up aerial is very quick, has very low base knockback and very high knockback scaling, and launches opponents vertically, all of which make it excellent at juggling and capable of KOing. Her down aerial canmeteor smash and possesses a strong landing hitbox, though it is dangerous to use off-stage due to being astall-then-fall. Unlike inBrawl, she now has agrab aerial, which can be used forspacing, set-ups, or as atether recovery.

Zero Suit Samus' special moves also possess considerable versatility.Paralyzer is quick, has decentrange, andparalyzes the opponent, granting it excellent follow-up potential.Plasma Whip has long range and, like her grab aerial, can be used for spacing or as a tether recovery.Boost Kick is decent for recovery, but thanks to it hitting on frame 4 and boasting impressive power, it is actually one of Zero Suit Samus' most viable KOing options, especially fromout of shield. Lastly,Flip Jump functions like a third jump, but also grantsintangibility at its start and allows her to move unpredictably. As such, it can enable her to avoid attacks or mix up her recovery, the latter of which is supplemented by its ability to automatically wall jump upon making contact with a wall. Like Boost Kick, it also boasts impressive offensive potential: its inputted kick is strong enough to KO easily and can meteor smash aerial opponents, whereas itsfootstool stomp is now capable of bothburying grounded opponents and meteor smashing aerial ones.

Lastly, Zero Suit Samus possesses a few invaluable KO set-ups aside from Paralyzer. Her down smash is one of the few smash attacks of its kind that only hits in one direction, but it has low ending lag and paralyzes an opponent like Paralyzer, allowing her to follow it up with a forward smash, back aerial, a grab, Boost Kick, or Flip Jump, with the last KOing at very low percentages. In addition, Zero Suit Samus's down throw itself has guaranteed follow-ups at any percentage below 160%. Depending on the opponent'sDI, it can combo into her forward or up aerial, and sometimes her back aerial and Boost Kick. This throw is also notorious for its ability to score very early KOs. Without proper DI, a series of up aerials leading into a Boost Kick can KO the majority of the cast at 50% while near the upper blast line. The latter's loop hits also have high base knockback and can KO if its last hit does not land due toSDI, even with perfect DI. Even with proper DI, this combo can also KO earlier if the opponent is near an edge. Due to its speed, Zero Suit Samus's neutral attack's first hit can also function as a surprisingly effective set-up into Boost Kick at medium to high percentages. Altogether, these traits make Zero Suit Samus'punishment potential one of the most potent in the game.

However, Zero Suit Samus has some noticeable weaknesses. She can be KO'd fairly early because of her status as a lightweight, but unlike the majority of her fellow lightweights, she is also burdened with a susceptibility to combos because of her tall frame, very quick falling speed, and high gravity. Aside from her pummel's speed and her down throw's excellent combo potential, the rest of Zero Suit Samus' grab game is poor. Her grabs' long ranges are offset by their overall lag: they are tied withGrapple Beam for the highest amount of start-up lag in the game, and their ending lag is the third highest in the game, surpassed only byPac-Man's grabs and her Power Suit's Grapple Beam. Despite having respectable damage outputs, her forward, back, and up throws have no guaranteed follow-ups; although the back throw has some semblance of mix-up potential, its mix-ups are very situational and require hard reads.

By extension, the overwhelming majority of Zero Suit Samus' attacks have hitbox placements that are high above the ground, making it easy for short characters to avoid getting hit, especially whilecrouching. Despite Paralyzer's paralysis effect, its range is decent at best, and it does not stay out for very long. As a result, her approach against most defensive and zoning characters is limited to dodging their projectiles with her mobility,perfect shielding, and either coming in from above with an aerial, or fast falling and then immediately grabbing. All of these drawbacks also make Zero Suit Samus susceptible to momentum shifts, which in turn gives her a weakneutral game.

Zero Suit Samus'custom moves are among the most polarized in the game. New advantages are gained from using them, but each one has a noticeable disadvantage to go alongside them, to the point that some are inferior to her default specials because their disadvantages outweigh their advantages. Blast Shot is faster, and Electromagnetic Net lasts longer, but both sacrifice Paralyzer's excellent utility. Plasma Dash has better offensive potential, and Whip Lash has excellent set-up potential, but they both have distinct flaws: the former is less reliable at edge trumping and lacks recovery potential, whereas the latter requires precise spacing to be effective. Impact Kick is much stronger, and Lateral Kick travels farther, but each has noticeable flaws: Impact Kick is much slower, which removes its status as a follow-up entirely and often makes it unable to connect with itself, whereas Lateral Kick KOs much later, which hinders Zero Suit Samus' KO potential. Lastly, Shooting Star Flip Kick and Low Flip have much less utility overall: the former is difficult to hit with, whereas the latter is less reliable for both recovering and KOing.

Overall, Zero Suit Samus' very potent air and punishment games allow her to reliably set up combos and KOs like inBrawl, while her KO potential has improved thanks to her newfound KOing options. However, she must nevertheless be wary of characters with strongneutral games, due to the poor quality of her own neutral game.

Changes fromSuper Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]

Despite being a high-tier character inBrawl, Zero Suit Samus has been buffed in the transition toSSB4, mostly due toSmash 4's altered mechanics, combined with the nerfs otherBrawl veterans received. Her KO potential has improved, most notably thanks to her new forward smash and her new up special,Boost Kick, the latter of which is especially potent fromout of shield. Zero Suit Samus' combo game has also improved, mainly due to the changes tohitstun canceling combined with her altered down throw and up aerial. She also greatly benefits from the introduction ofrage, which can allow her combos to KO opponents at insanely low percents. Lastly,Plasma Whip tethers the ledge much sooner, improving her already strong recovery, and she now has a grab aerial, improving her spacing potential and giving her an additional recovery option.

However, Zero Suit Samus also received some nerfs. The most noticeable of these was that, as she is no longer tied toSamus, she no longer has access to herPower Suit Pieces, which significantly hinders her stage control and her item game, combined with the removal ofglide tossing. Although Plasma Whip has improved recovery potential, it has more ending lag and is significantly weaker, making it much easier to punish and far less reliable for KOing, eliminating one of her most useful KO moves. Her aerial prowess has also slightly worsened. Her jumps are lower (especially since she no longer hasPlasma Wire), and her aerials, except for down aerial, are all weaker. She is significantly more vulnerable to combos due to the removal of hitstun canceling, combined with her increased falling speed. Lastly, some of her ground attacks have been nerfed as well: her down tilt has increased startup and much more ending lag along with a less favorable angle, removing all of its combo potential and making it arguably her worst move; her new dash attack has one more frame of startup along with much higher ending lag, making it much more punishable and removing its locking and follow-up potential; and her down smash is weaker, has smaller hitboxes, its stun duration was decreased, and it has increased ending lag, worsening its follow-up potential and making it less safe on shield.

Overall, Zero Suit Samus is an even larger threat inSmash 4, with her tournament results and representation being even higher, although she is less effective than in earlier versions of the game, as update1.1.4 addedBayonetta and gave Zero Suit Samus some minor nerfs, while update1.1.5 nerfed her further. Nevertheless, Zero Suit Samus remains one of the stronger characters inSmash 4.

Aesthetics[edit]

• Zero Suit Samus' design is now a combination of her appearance inMetroid: Other M, and her official artwork forMetroid Fusion andMetroid: Zero Mission. Her bangs, beauty mark, shorter height, largerbust/waist/hip measurements andZero Suit are fromOther M. Additionally, her lean musculature is fromFusion andZero Mission; her facial structure and greenish blue eyes are fromZero Mission;^[2] and her flaxen blonde hair is fromFusion. Lastly, the aesthetic used inSSB4 has resulted in Zero Suit Samus' hair being of a significantly higher visual quality than inBrawl.
• Zero Suit Samus has received three newalternate costumes, two of which are based on her Casual Outfits seen in the endings ofFusion andZero Mission. One replaces her purple costume.
• TheParalyzer's design is now fromOther M. Its plasma-based attacks also have updated visual effects and are lower-pitched.
• The Zero Suit's segments are now navy blue instead of blue, and it is now equipped with a matching set of Jet Boots and metal bracelets. The Paralyzer also features magenta accents within its interior. These changes are unique toSSB4.
• Zero Suit Samus is more expressive. She now winces with one eye closed when being hit or launched; winces with both eyes closed whenscreen KO'd; and frowns depressingly aftertripping and beingstunned.
• Zero Suit Samus now speaks during hertaunts, instead of at the end of their animations.
• Zero Suit Samus' previously unused damage yells fromBrawl'sSound Test are now heard when taking high knockback.
• Forwardjump's animation has slightly changed. Zero Suit Samus now somersaults twice, instead of once.
• Dash's animation has slightly changed. Zero Suit Samus now keeps her right arm steady, instead of swinging both arms.
• Due to no longer being a transformation of Samus, Zero Suit Samus is listed on the character selection screen

Attributes[edit]

• Zero Suit Samus is slightly shorter. While this would shorten her hurtbox, this is largely mitigated by her Jet Boots elevating her. The Jet Boots have also translated to Zero Suit Samus' moveset, be it through a tweaked animation or a completely new move. However, her metal bracelets are merely aesthetic.
• Zero Suit Samuswalks faster (1.33 → 1.4).
• Zero Suit Samus dashes faster (1.93 → 2.1).
• Zero Suit Samus'air speed is faster (1.034 → 1.2).
• Zero Suit Samus'air acceleration is lower (0.1 → 0.095).
• Zero Suit Samus falls faster (1.43 → 1.7). This makes her more susceptible to combos, and while this would improve her vertical endurance, this is offset by her higher gravity, giving her slightly worse vertical endurance overall.
• Zero Suit Samus'fast falling speed is faster (2.002 → 2.72), making her less susceptible to juggling.
• Zero Suit Samus' gravity is considerably greater (0.0884 → 0.12), going from the 13th highest out of 39 characters to the fifth highest out of 58. This improves her ability to land, but hinders her endurance, and increases her susceptibility to combos (the height of her jumps was compensated).
• Zero Suit Samus'double jump is marginally lower (height multiplier: 1x → 0.9933x).
• Zero Suit Samus is slightly lighter (81 → 80), hindering her endurance. While this would also make her less susceptible to combos, her fasterfalling speed, highergravity, and the changes tohitstun canceling andDirectional Influence collectively result in her being more susceptible to combos.
• Backroll has less ending lag (FAF 38 → 28) now matching her forward roll.
• Back roll has a shorter duration (frames 4-19 → 4-15).
• Spot dodge has less ending lag (FAF 26 → 25), now being one of the fastest spot dodges in the game.
• Spot dodge has a shorter duration (frames 2-20 → 2-15).
• Air dodge has less startup (frame 4 → 2) and ending lag (FAF 40 → 31).
  • Additionally, she can now cancel her air dodge at any time with her newgrab aerial.
• Air dodge has a shorter duration (frames 4-29 → 2-25).
• The removal ofmeteor canceling hinders Zero Suit Samus more than any other veteran, as while it improves the reliability of her down aerial andFlip Jump, it drastically hinders her endurance against meteor smashes as she previously had one of the most lenient meteor cancel windows inBrawl.
• Due to the limitations of theNintendo 3DS' processing power,^[3] Zero Suit Samus is no longer connected toSamus viaFinal Smash orcharacter selection screen input. As a result, she no longer has access to herPower Suit Pieces, which significantly hinders her stage control at the beginning of a match.
• Zero Suit Samus'Item throw is weaker (1 → 0.9333333). Additionally, the removal ofglide tossing significantly hinders her approach with items.

Ground attacks[edit]

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack's first and second hits have higher set knockback (10 (both) → 23/45 (hit 1), 34/50 (hit 2)). These changes make its hits connect better, and decrease the possibility of opponentspowershielding the second and third hits. It also improves itsjab canceling potential despite all three hits having higher ending lag. Its last hit also has more base knockback (45 → 60).
  • Neutral attack's first two hits deal less damage (2% → 1.5%) and all three hits have more ending lag (FAF 18 → 21 (hit 1), FAF 21 → 26 (hit 2), FAF 23 → 32 (hit 3)). The first hit also has a shorter duration (frames 1-3 → 1) and less range (3.5u/3.8u/4.8u/3.4u → 3u/3.8u). Lastly, the higher knockback of the first two hits can allow the last hit to whiff against floaty characters.
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt has a new animation where Zero Suit Samus now takes a step forward before kicking, improving the move's range.
  • Forward tilt has higher base knockback (8 (up/non-angled)/12 (down) → 30), improving its KO potential (outside of the down angled version's nearest hitbox).
    • However, this also hinders its locking potential, with the move no longer being able to reliably lock above 10%.
  • Forward tilt has smaller hitboxes (4u/4.5u/4u/3.5u) → 3.8u/4.2u/3.8u) and the back leg hitbox has been removed.
    • Additionally, the near leg hitbox is now attached to Zero Suit Samus's knee, rather than her leg. The hitbox has not been moved back far enough to compensate (x offset: 0 → -5), giving it less range inside of Zero Suit Samus.
  • The non and down angled versions no longer have an extra trip chance (20% (non angled)/60% (down) → 0% (both)). When combined with the move's higher base knockback, this significantly hinders its tripping ability, especially the down-angled version.
  • The up-angled version deals more damage (6% → 8% (far)/6.5% (near)).
  • The non-angled version deals more damage to Zero Suit Samus' foot and leg (6% → 7%).
  • The down-angled version deals less damage (9% → 8% (far)/6.5% (near)), hindering the near hitbox's KO potential despite its higher base knockback.
  • Zero Suit Samus does not bend her leg quite as low for the down-angled version, giving it less range below her.
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt now grants intangibility to Zero Suit Samus's lower legs from when the first hit becomes active, until the second hit ends. This makes it a safer anti-air.
  • Up tilt has a higherhitlag multiplier (1× → 1.2×), making it easier to DI.
  • The first hit launches opponents at different angles (120°/130°/80° → 150°/130°) and has lower knockback (55/80 (base), 70 (scaling) → (55/85)/(30/50)), making it connect more reliably into the second hit.
  • The first hit has been positioned higher against aerial opponents (z offset: 11 → 14), giving it more range above Zero Suit Samus.
  • The first hit now has consistently sized hitboxes (3u/3u/4u/4u/3u → 3u/3u). As the larger hitboxes were positioned the furthest away from Zero Suit Samus, this gives the move less range against grounded opponents.
    • Additionally, the move does not extend as far horizontally against aerial opponents (z offset: 10/-10 → 8/z stretch: 8), giving it less horizontal range against them.
  • The second hit has more startup lag (frame 7 → 9).
    • However, its total duration was unchanged, giving the move less ending lag.
  • The second hit more damage (6% → 7%) and has higher knockback scaling (80 → 90), significantly improving its KO potential.
  • The second hit has larger hitboxes (6u/5u → 7u/6u).
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt has a new animation, where Zero Suit Samus now moves forward when performing the legsweep.
    • This new animation improves down tilt's range, as well as allowing it to be used as a pseudo-crawl.
    • However, this also significantly hinders its safety, as Zero Suit Samus moves towards her opponent.
  • Down tilt deals more knockback (65 (base), 70 (scaling) → 60/85).
  • The far hitbox deals more damage (6% → 8%).
  • Down tilt has a lower trip chance (40% → 20%), although it is still incapable of tripping under normal circumstances.
  • Down tilt has more startup with a shorter duration (frame 5-7 → 8-9).
  • Down tilt has more ending lag (FAF 26 → 36) and a much longer animation (36 frames → 69).
  • Down tilt launches opponents at a lower angle (70°/90°/80° → 60°). When combined with the move's higher ending lag and knockback, this significantly hinders down tilt's follow-up potential, even with the changes to hitstun canceling and DI.
  • Down tilt has smaller hitboxes (4u/4.7u/4u → 4.2u/3.8u) and the nearest hitbox has been removed. The move also does not extend as far (y offset: -7/-1 → x offset/stretch: 5.2/0), reducing its range relative to Zero Suit Samus, especially inside of her.
    • These changes, along with its new animation, also mean that the move will now flat out whiff if Zero Suit Samus uses it too close to her opponent.
• Dash attack:
  • Zero Suit Samus has a new dash attack, a jet-propelled knee strike.
    • With this new dash attack, Zero Suit Samus does not extend her body as far horizontally, making her harder to hit horizontally.
    • However, Zero Suit Samus extends her body more vertically, making the dash attack worse at going under hitboxes.
  • Dash attack covers considerably more distance, going from covering around 25% of Battlefield to now covering around 40%-45% of Battlefield.
  • Dash attack has a longer duration overall (frames 6-15 → 7-19).
    • However, the clean hit has a shorter duration (frames 6-9 → 7-9).
  • The clean hit deals more damage (7% → 8%).
  • Dash attack has more base knockback but less knockback scaling (30/20 (base), 80 (scaling) → (100/80)/40), in addition to now launching opponents vertically (361° → 70° (clean)/60° (late)). When combined with its greater distance, this improves itscross-up potential, but hinders its ability to set up edgeguards.
  • Dash attack has more startup lag (frame 6 → 7).
  • Dash attack has much more ending lag (FAF 32 → 52). This not only greatly hinders its safety, but it also removes its follow-up potential despite its altered knockback and the changes to hitstun canceling and DI.
  • Dash attack no longer deals any extra shield damage (1 → 0).
  • Dash attack has smaller hitboxes (3.5u/5u/6u → 3.5u/4.5u (clean), 2.5u/3.8u/3.5u → 3.1u/4.1u (late)) and the nearest hitbox has been removed. The move now uses static hitboxes, which do not cover as much lateral distance, giving it less lateral range in comparison to Zero Suit Samus.
    • These changes, along with the move's new animation, also make it more prone to whiffing when used at close range.
    • However, the move now has a considerable disjoint despite its reduced lateral range, due to the move's new animation.
• Forward smash:
  • Zero Suit Samus has a new forward smash, a mid-level side kick, followed by a spinning side kick at a slightly higher angle.
  • Unlike the previous forward smash, it consists of two hits instead of one (10%/11%/13%/6% (front)/6% (back) → 5% (hit 1)/11% (hit 2)), and its second hit deals more knockback (30/35 (base), 100 (scaling) → 28/(106/109)). These changes make it significantly more effective at KOing. It also has less start-up (frame 21 → 14) and ending lag (FAF 67 → 63).
  • Forward smash has less range compared to the previous forward smash. Unlike the previous forward smash, it also cannot hit opponents standing directly behind Zero Suit Samus.
  • Forward smash has anormal andflame effect, whereas the previous forward smash has anelectric effect.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash's loop hits deal 0.2% less damage (1% → 0.8%), but it has received an additional loop hitbox. This results in its overall damage output remaining unchanged.
  • Up smash has more startup lag (frame 8 → 10) and ending lag (FAF 47 → 49).
  • The final hit has more knockback scaling (133 → 145). It also has larger hitboxes (6u (hit 1)/5u (hits 2-6)/5u, 6.5u, 8u (hit 7) → 6u/5.2u, 5.6u, 6.5u/6u, 7.5u, 9.6u).
  • The weakening ofSDI makes up smash significantly more difficult to escape from.
• Down smash:
  • Down smash has more ending lag (FAF 36 → 42).
  • Down smash deals less damage (11% → 8% (near)/6% (far)). The far hit's knockback was not compensated, which, along with the changes to theparalysis formula, makes it stun opponents for less than half the amount of time.
  • Down smash has smaller hitboxes (9u/9u → 4u/7u), reducing its range, despite the hitboxes now being extended and with the near hitbox extending closer to Zero Suit Samus (z offset: 10 → z stretch: 8).
    • Additionally, the far hitbox can no longer hit aerial opponents, greatly reducing its range against them, despite the near hitbox being moved further away from Zero Suit Samus (z offset: 10 → 13).
  • The near hit deals more knockback (40 (base), 50 (scaling) → 50/90). This hinders Zero Suit Samus' ability to follow up out of it (especially when combined with its higher ending lag), and while this would make the move stun opponents for longer, this is offset by the changes to the paralysis formula, causing it to stun opponents for a significantly shorter amount of time, despite its higher knockback.
    • Altogether, these changes significantly hinder down smash's follow-up potential, no longer being able to chain into itself multiple times against fast fallers to rack a huge amount of damage.
  • The changes to shields significantly hinder down smash's safety on shield, as the move no longer deals hitlag to shielding opponents. When combined with its lower damage and higher ending lag, this makes down smash go from being completely safe on shield against almost the entire cast to now being fairly punishable if the opponent is in range.

Aerial attacks[edit]

• Neutral aerial:
  • The change to hitstun canceling and DI significantly improves neutral aerial's setup potential.
  • The changes to shields significantly improve neutral aerial's safety on shield, with the move's high hitlag no longer hindering the move's safety on shield. The move is now no longer punishable by grabs with a perfectly timed landing.
  • Neutral aerial now launches opponents at a consistent angle (55°/52°/50°/47° → 55°).
  • Neutral aerial now uses two extended hitboxes instead of four normal hitboxes.
    • The near hitbox is larger (5u → 5.7u (front)/5.6u (back), and the move has a slightly wider range in front of Zero Suit Samus.
    • However, the far hitbox is smaller (5u → 3u) and the move overall has less range above, below, and behind Zero Suit Samus.
  • Neutral aerial is now properly affected bystale-move negation.
  • Neutral aerial deals less damage (10% → 8%), although its knockback was compensated (40 (base), 80 (scaling) → 38/96).
  • Neutral aerial has a shorter duration (frames 10-18 → 10-11/15-16).
  • Neutral aerial can no longerauto-cancel in a short hop due to Zero Suit Samus' higher falling speed/gravity.
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial has less ending lag (FAF 48 → 47).
  • Forward aerial has larger hitboxes (5.5u/4.8u/5u → 6.4u/5.5u).
  • Forward aerial now always launches opponents in front of Zero Suit Samus.
    • This allows the first hit to connect more reliably with the second hit.
  • Forward aerial has a new animation where Zero Suit Samus performs slightly higher kicks.
    • Zero Suit Samus stretches her leg out much further during the second hit, giving it more range.
    • However, Zero Suit Samus does not stretch her leg out as far for the first hit, giving it less range. Zero Suit Samus also moves her leg inwards during the move's later active frames for both hits (rather than outwards).
    • This new animation is also longer (47 frames → 74), significantly increasing the time Zero Suit Samus cannot grab ledges after performing the move.
  • The thigh hitbox has been removed on both hits.
• Hit 1:
  • The first hit has a shorter duration (frames 6-9 → 6-7).
  • The first hit deals less damage (6% → 5%).
  • The first hit has more base knockback but less knockback scaling (35 (base), 70 (scaling) → 50/50).
    • This allows it to connect more reliably into the second hit at higher percents, especially when combined with Zero Suit Samus' greater aerial mobility.
    • However, this does also remove forward aerial's ability to lock and trip at lower percents.
• Hit 2:
  • The second hit has a shorter duration, due to it no longer having a late hit (frames 16-17 (clean)/18-20 (late) → 16-17).
  • The second hit deals less damage compared to the previous clean hit (11%/10% (clean)/7% (late) → 7%), without full compensation on its knockback scaling (105 → 116), significantly hindering its KO potential.
• Back aerial:
  • The far hitbox is now connected to Zero Suit Samus' knee instead of her foot; however, it has been moved further away from Zero Suit Samus (x offset: 0 → 6), giving it slightly more range overall.
  • As with most back aerials, back aerial now always launches opponents behind Zero Suit Samus.
  • Back aerial has a shorter duration (frames 8-10 → 8-9).
  • Back aerial has more ending lag (FAF 38 → 40) and a longer animation (37 frames → 50).
  • Back aerial has more landing lag (9 frames → 11).
  • Back aerial deals less damage (13% (foot)/12% (leg) → 12/10%) without full compensation on its knockback (33 (base), 100 (scaling) → 42/98) hindering its KO potential, especially the sourspot.
  • The leg hitbox is smaller (4.8u → 2.5u) and it has been moved further away from Zero Suit Samus (x offset: 0 → 1.5), while the thigh hitbox has been removed completely. This gives the move drastically less range inside of Zero Suit Samus, to the point where back aerial now has a blindspot on Zero Suit Samus' upper leg.
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial has a new animation where Zero Suit Samus now performs a bicycle kick. She performs a considerably slower somersault than she did previously.
    • This makes the move cover more space overall, as Zero Suit Samus no longer sharply changes her angle.
    • However, this animation is much longer (35 frames → 73), significantly increasing the time Zero Suit Samus cannot grab ledges after performing the move.
  • Up aerial has a longer duration (frames 4-6 (clean)/7-8 (late) → 6-12), with the move no longer having a weaker late hit.
  • Up aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 34 → 25).
  • Up aerial has larger hitboxes (4.3u/4u (foot clean/late)/3u/3u (legs) → 4.6u/3.6u/3.6u).
    • However, the large, static hitbox, which was active for a single frame, has been removed.
  • Up aerial overall has slightly more range in front and below Zero Suit Samus during the beginning of the move.
  • Up aerial now has a normal effect, instead of aslash effect.
  • Up aerial deals less damage (10% (clean)/7% (late) → 6.5%), without full compensation on its knockback compared to its previous clean hit (40 (base), 100 (scaling) → 30/125), hindering its KO potential.
    • However, these changes improve its juggling and combo potential at higher percents, especially when combined with the changes to hitstun canceling and DI.
    • The move deals considerably higher knockback compared to the previous late hit (20 (base), 100 (scaling) → 30/125). This improves its KO potential but hinders its follow-up potential at higher percentages.
  • Up aerial has more startup lag (frame 4 → 6), which, along with Zero Suit Samus' higher falling speed/gravity, prevents it from being able to be performed twice in a short hop.
    • However, its total duration was unchanged, giving it less ending lag.
  • Up aerial overall has less maximum range above and behind Zero Suit Samus, with the move also having much less downwards range from behind.
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial has less landing lag (40 frames → 30).
  • Down aerial deals more damage (5% (aerial)/4% (grounded) → 6%/5%), improving its KO potential.
    • When combined with the removal of meteor canceling, this improves down aerial's edgeguarding potential.
  • Down aerial has larger hitboxes (6u/5u → 6.3u/5.2u).
  • Zero Suit Samus descends faster while performing down aerial (horizontal/vertical momentum: 0.8/-4.3 → 1/-5).
  • Down aerial launches aerial opponents at a slightly more horizontal angle (275° → 278°), while grounded opponents are now launched vertically (361° → 80°).
  • Down aerial now has astab effect.
  • The landing hitbox deals more damage (5% → 5.5%) and has higher knockback scaling (90 → 110).
  • The landing hit now has an extended hitbox, giving it more horizontal range (z offset: 0 → 1/z stretch: -1).
• Grab aerial:
  • Zero Suit Samus now has agrab aerial, granting her a new combo, spacing, and recovery tool.

Throws/other attacks[edit]

• Grabs:
  • All grabs have less ending lag (FAF 85 (all) → 69 (standing)/72 (dash)/80 (pivot)).
  • All grabs have shorter durations, with pivot grab also having more startup lag (frames 16-29 → 16-25 (standing/dash)/17-25 (pivot)).
  • Grabs overall have slightly more range.
  • The removal ofchain grabbing hinders forward throw's and aerialgrab release's damage racking potential. The general changes to aerial grab releases also significantly hinder their follow-up potential.
• Forward throw:
  • Forward throw has more ending lag (FAF 23 → 26).
  • The hitbox has less startup lag with a longer duration (frame 7 → 6-7).
• Back throw:
  • Back throw deals more damage (4% (throw)/6% (total) → 8%), with its knockback compensated (70 (base), 60 (scaling) → 72/45).
  • The hitbox has a longer duration (frame 9 → 9-10).
  • Zero Suit Samus releases opponents from back throw one frame later (frame 10 → 11).
• Up throw:
  • Zero Suit Samus releases opponents slightly later from up throw (frame 4 → 5), and it has less ending lag (FAF 54 → 41).
  • The hitbox has a longer duration (frame 3 → 3-4).
• Down throw:
  • Down throw deals less damage (5% (throw)/7% (total) → 3%/5%) and it deals more knockback (100 (base), 25 (scaling) → 90/60), hindering its follow-up potential at higher percents while still not being a viable KO option.
  • The hitbox has a longer duration (frame 26 → 26-27).
  • Zero Suit Samus releases opponents from down throw slightly later (frame 27 → 28). When combined with the changes to hitstun canceling and DI, this transforms down throw from a solid mixup throw into an incredibly potent combo throw, even with its higher knockback.
• Floor attacks:
  • Floor attacks deal more damage (6% → 7%) andshield damage (1 → 8) per hit, with their knockback scaling (50 → 48) and angles (361° → 48°) compensated.
  • Floor attacks have less ending lag (FAF 50 → 46) and back floor attack has less startup lag (frame 15 (hit 1)/27 (hit 2) → 14/23).
  • Floor attacks have less intangibility (frames 1-30 (forward)/1-29 (back) → 1-22/1-24) and shorter durations (3 frames per hit → 2).
• Edge attack:
  • Edge attack no longer has set knockback (110 (set), 100 (scaling) → 90/20).
  • Edge attack has less startup lag (frame 19 → 17).
  • Edge attack has less intangibility (frames 1-17 → 1-14) and deals less damage (8% → 7%).

Special moves[edit]

• Paralyzer:
  • Paralyzer has a higher hitlag multiplier (1x → 2x), and it has higher set knockback, especially when charged (12 (uncharged)/38 (charged) → 18/65). This makes the move stun opponents for longer, improving the charged version's follow-up potential.
  • Paralyzer now has extended hitboxes, which overall gives it more horizontal range.
  • Paralyzer now always launches opponents in the direction Zero Suit Samus is facing, making it more consistent.
  • The charged version has a longer duration (43 frames → 46).
  • The charged version's angle has been altered (361° → 65° (aerial)/315° (grounded)). It also now has a -100% trip chance against grounded opponents to prevent them from tripping despite its higher knockback.
  • Paralyser has more startup lag when charged (frame 41 → 43).
  • Paralyser has more ending lag (FAF 40 (uncharged)/60 (charged) → 49/71). This hinders the uncharged version's follow-up potential (unless Zero Suit Samus lands after shooting) despite its longer stun duration, as well as hindering the safety of both versions.
  • Paralyzer has smaller hitboxes (1.9u (uncharged)/3u (charged) → 1.3u/2u).
• Plasma Whip:
  • Plasma Whip has less startup lag (frame 24 → 22).
  • Zero Suit Samus now tethers to the ledge almost immediately when using Plasma Whip (frame 22 → 2). When combined with the removal ofedge-hogging, this significantly improves its recovery potential.
  • Instead of having one hit before the tip comes out, Plasma Whip now has four hitboxes which lead into each other. These hitboxes all have varying weight independent knockback, which allows the move to connect more reliably and removes its notoriously large dead zone (although opponents can still fall out of the move).
    • This also gives the move a longer duration before the final hit (frames 24-25 → 22-23/24-25/26-27/28-29), as well as giving it gradually increasing range as each hit comes out.
  • The final hit has less startup lag (frame 33 → 32).
  • The final hit launches opponents at a higher angle (50° → 60°). This improves its KO potential near the vertical blastzone and even from center stage; however, this also hinders its KO potential near the horizontal blast zone, as well as making it more susceptible to DI.
  • Plasma Whip has more ending lag (FAF 44 → 56).
  • The whip hitboxes deal less damage on their own (3% → 2% (hit 1 near)/1.2% (hit 1 far/hits 2-4).
    • However, the whip is now capable of dealing more damage due to it now consisting of four hits (3% → 5.6%).
  • The final hit deals far less damage (16% → 7.5%) without full compensation on its knockback (60 (base), 75 (scaling) → 45/105), significantly hindering its KO potential.
  • The tip of the whip has a much smaller hitbox (7.6u → 4.6u). This significantly reduces its vertical and horizontal range (although the hitbox is now extended backwards to compensate for its backwards range).
• Boost Kick:
  • Zero Suit Samus has a new up special, Boost Kick. It is a jet-propelled diagonal split-legged flying kick, followed by a spinning hook kick.
  • Compared toPlasma Wire, Boost Kick deals overall more damage (4%-6% → 5% (hit 1)/1.3% (hits 2-7)/4% (hit 8)) and has different knockback (60 (base), 40 (scaling) → 50/209), making it significantly more effective at KOing. It also covers more horizontal distance than Plasma Wire. Like Plasma Wire, it hasmindgame potential. Unlike Plasma Wire, it can punish rolls.
  • Compared to Plasma Wire, Boost Kick covers much less vertical distance, weakening her vertical recovery. Unlike Plasma Wire, it cannotmeteor smash opponents, and renders herhelpless. It also has more ending lag compared with Plasma Wire (FAF 44 → 80), and it cannot be used in conjunction with her jumps to gain extra height.
• Flip Jump:
  • Flip Jump occurs much faster with Zero Suit Samus quickly descending after performing the flip.
    • This makes flip jump a superior movement option.
    • However, this makes the kick significantly harder to land and overall makes it more risky if it doesn't connect.
  • Flip Jump now requires pressing the jump button upon contact with a wall towall jump, instead of doing so automatically.
  • Flip Jump's visual effects have changed. Zero Suit Samus now produces afterimages during its arc.
  • Flip Jump's kick deals more damage (12% (clean)/9% (late) → 14%), and the grounded-only hitbox has slightly higher knockback scaling (100 → 102), improving its KO potential despite its less favorable angle (361° → 48°).
  • The kick has a longer duration compared to the previous clean hit (frames 9-11 → 9-14).
  • The kick no longer consistently meteor smashes aerial opponents, and its meteor smash angle has changed (270° → 290°/361°). This improves the sourspot's KO potential and the sweetspot's edgeguarding potential on stage, but hinders the sweetspot's KO potential and the move's overall edgeguarding potential.
  • Zero Suit Samus will now jump off opponents after landing the kick.
  • Flip Jump's footstool stomp has received a hitbox that deals 8%;buries grounded opponents; and meteor smashes aerial opponents. Altogether, these changes significantly improve its utility. In addition, the footstool no longer has to be input with the jump button.
  • Flip Jump has increased partial intangibility (frames 13-43 → 13-49).
  • Flip Jump has decreased full body intangibility (frames 1-12 → 3-12) and the kick has significantly increased ending lag due to the removal of its late hit (10 frames → 45), making it easier to punish and rendering it less effective as a combo breaker.
  • The kick no longer has a late hit, significantly reducing its active frames (9-11/12-50 → 9-14).
  • The kick has more landing lag (30 frames → 36).
  • The kick no longer deals any extra shield damage (5 (early), 2/5 (late) → 0).
  • The kick's aerial hit has less base knockback (60 → 30), hindering its KO and edge-guarding potential despite its more serious damage.
  • The kick no longer has transcendent priority.
  • The footstool has more ending lag (FAF 81 → 85).
  • The move's animation no longer gets cancelled when used on the ground while facing a 45° slope.
• Gunship:
  • Due to now being character separate from Samus, Zero Suit Samus has a newFinal Smash, Gunship. She boardsher Gunship and fires energy blasts from its cannons toward the stage, similarly toGrenade Launcher. Compared toPower Suit Samus, it has a significantly longer duration, which makes it significantly more effective at damage racking despite its overall lower damage output (25% (spin)/10% (discharge) → 0.8% (hits 1-9)/10% (hit 10)). Unlike Power Suit Samus, it can be used for stage control.

Update history[edit]

Zero Suit Samus was nerfed via game updates. Update1.0.4 increased her air dodge's landing lag in order for it to match the rest of the cast's, while her up smash andParalyzer had their start-up and ending lag increased, respectively. Not only was Paralyzer's ending lag increased, but the fully charged version's angle against grounded opponents was altered. Originally, the move lifted opponents off the ground. This made it easier to land aerial followups, but more notably, it allowed Zero Suit Samus to re-stun opponents with another fully charged Paralyzer if they landed back on the ground during the paralyzer's hitstun. This gave Zero Suit Samus an infinite against fast fallers, as she could jump closer to the opponent to continue the stun if they got too far away, and she could even swap sides to continue the stun. The move was adjusted so that it kept opponents on the ground, preventing it from re-stunning opponents and completely removing the infinite.

While Zero Suit Samus did receive notable direct nerfs in version 1.0.4, she did greatly benefit from the removal ofLSI on moves with an angle between 65° to 115°, which indirectly buffed her overall (with the lower blast zones in the Wii U version further complimenting this). Zero Suit Samus has an array of effective vertical launching moves for comboing, primarily with her down throw, up aerial and Boost Kick, which she can use for powerful ladder combos. In early 3DS versions, however, those ladder combos were far less dangerous, as the opponent could utilise LSI on all of her main followups (down throw/up aerial/boost kick) to escape a ladder combo. LSI up was mainly effective, as it could get the opponent out of range of continuous up aerial followups or a Boost Kick ender, although LSI down could be more helpful at lower percents to fall out of the ladder combo, mainly for fast fallers. In version 1.0.4, however, it became impossible to LSI Zero Suit Samus's down throw, up aerial and Boost Kick, which made her ladder combos much more devastating. In earlier 3DS versions, ladder combos could be avoided consistently, and on flat ground especially, they should have never led to a KO against an experienced opponent, but from version 1.0.4, ladder combos could lead to guaranteed KOs at very low percents, and all the opponent could do was hope that the Zero Suit Samus player failed to follow their DI, or that they fall out of the Boost Kick ender and survive (although this could still lead to a KO depending on the scenario). Zero Suit Samus was by far one of the characters who benefitted the most from the altered LSI system, as it gave her a far more consistent and devastating combo game, making her a more effective character in version 1.0.4 despite her direct nerfs.

From updates1.0.6 to1.1.3, Zero Suit Samus remained largely unchanged. She did benefit from the changes to shields in updates1.1.0 and1.1.1, as they made her attacks considerably safer on shield (most notably, her aerials), and Zero Suit Samus still had an incredibly devastating frame 4 Out of Shield punish with Boost Kick, which stood out even more relative to the cast with the higher shieldstun and lower shield pushback. These changes did make her grab a less applicable guaranteed out of shield punish, although the reduced shield pushback did alleviate this to an extent.

Update1.1.4, however, did bring a couple of nerfs to Zero Suit Samus. She became slightly lighter, but more notably, her Boost Kick's power was reduced, making it a worse KO option, especially near the upper blast zone, hindering her ladder combos. Her most substantial nerfs, however, came about in update1.1.5. Zero Suit Samus received various reductions to her damage output with her neutral aerial, up aerial and down throw all being affected. Her down throw in particular was nerfed the most significantly, as while its damage was reduced, its knockback was increased. This notably hindered Zero Suit Samus' ability to ladder combo at higher percents. She still had the ability to KO her opponents off of a grab at very low percents, but the window to do so was reduced due to the move's higher knockback, meaning that ZSS had to rely more on her other KO options at higher percents. Considering that Zero Suit Samus's down throw is a key part of her grab game, this change was fairly substantial. Grabs also had their active frames reduced, which made it harder for Zero Suit Samus to get the grab and start her down throw combos. While Zero Suit Samus did receive improvements to her back throw and Plasma Whip, these changes were far from enough to make up for the nerfs to her key tools for her main game plan.

Overall, while Zero Suit Samus greatly benefitted from the universal changes in update 1.0.4, she ultimately ended getting considerably nerfed by the end of the game's life. Version 1.0.4 gave Zero Suit Samus an incredibly effective combo game, but her nerfs noticeably reduced the effectiveness of her most devastating combo tools. Her down throw had its damage reduced and its knockback increased, her up aerial had its damage decreased, and Boost Kick had its knockback reduced, with Zero Suit Samus' main combo starter, extender and ender all being nerfed. Despite this, Zero Suit Samus still remained a highly effective character. While her ladder combos are not as devastating as they used to be, they can still be absolutely devastating, still being able to lead into a very early KO at low percents, especially withrage. Zero Suit Samus' main game plan was nerfed, but it was not removed, still making her a very strong character.

While Zero Suit Samus' tier placement in the vanilla version of the game is hard to determine due to its unoptimized nature and different mechanics, which significantly affected her, she was one of the absolute strongest characters in the game in earlier Wii U versions. Things were initially positive for Zero Suit Samus, with her staying the same while other top tiers were nerfed, being as high as a top 2 character at her peak. By update 1.1.4, however, Zero Suit Samus started to get nerfed, and new, powerful DLC characters were added, which did reduce her strength in the metagame. Update 1.1.5 was ultimately the final nail in the coffin, giving her more notable nerfs. By the end of the game's height of activity, Zero Suit Samus was typically seen as a character in the lower half of the top 10. While she still remained a very strong character, she was not as powerful as she used to be, and she had more competition at the top of the tier list.

1.0.4

• Air dodge has more landing lag (14 frames → 21), now matching the rest of the cast.
• Up smash has more startup lag (frame 8 → 10).
• Up smash's first hit has a longer duration (frame 8 → 10-11).
• Up smash's loop hits all start 3 frames later.
• Paralyzer has more ending lag (FAF 25 (from release) → 29).
• Fully charged Paralyzer launches grounded opponents at a lower angle (60° → 315°), now keeping them on the ground. This not only makes it harder for Zero Suit Samus to get aerial followups out of the move (along with its higher ending lag) but it also notably prevents her from re-stunning fast fallers with another fully charged paralyzer, removing the move's ability to potentially infinite fast fallers.
• Fully charged paralyzer now has a negative trip chance against grounded opponents (0% → -100%). This prevents the move from tripping grounded opponents despite its adjusted angle.

1.1.1

• Down throw's hitbox has been extended horiontally (x/y stretch: N/A → -2.5/4), giving it more range.

1.1.4

• Zero Suit Samus is slightly lighter (81 → 80).
• Boost Kick's final hit has less knockback scaling (220 → 209), hindering its KO potential.
• Boost Kick's final hit launches opponents at a slightly lower angle launch angle (50° → 48°). This hinders its KO potential near the upper blastzone and while this does improve its KO potential near the horizontal blastzone, this is offset by the move's lower knockback, make it KO later horizontally regardless.

1.1.5

• Neutral aerial deals less damage: 10% → 8%, though with its knockback compensated (40 base/80 scaling → 38/96). Additionally, some of its hitboxes have less range (hitbox 1 front: 6u → 5.7u, hitbox 1 back: 6u → 5.6u).
• Neutral aerial has modified stretch positioning (hitbox 1 front X-axis: 11 → 10, hitbox 2 front X/Y-axis: 20/7.5 → 19/7, hitbox 1 back X/Y-axis: 9/14.6 → 6.6/13.8, hitbox 2 back X/Y-axis: 16/17 → 15/16.5). This gives it less horizontal range, but it can now hit small characters on the ground.
• Up aerial deals less damage: 8% → 6.5%, though with its knockback scaling compensated (110 → 125).
• The last active frames for all of her grabs are 4 frames shorter without its ending lag compensated: frame 29 → 25. This makes it more difficult to grab opponents out of their rolls or sidesteps with all of her grabs.
• Back throw's second hit deals more damage (4% → 6%). It also has altered knockback (70 base/60 scaling → 72/45).
• Down throw's second hit deals less damage (5%/7% total → 3%/5% total), though its knockback was also slightly increased (100 base/25 scaling → 90/60), making it somewhat more difficult to combo opponents at high percents.
• Plasma Whip has been improved: the first hit has more base knockback (80 → 100), the loops hits deal slightly more damage (.8% → 1.2%), the final hit deals more damage (6% → 7.5%), and various adjustments have been made to allow all of its hits to connect better. It also has less ending lag (27 → 24 frames).

Moveset[edit]

• Zero Suit Samus cancrawl andwall jump.

For a gallery of Zero Suit Samus's hitboxes, seehere.

Stats[edit]

Announcer call[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

On-screen appearance[edit]

• Jumps out of her Gunship and uses her Jet Boots to briefly hover before landing.

Taunts[edit]

• Up taunt: Tosses her Paralyzer into the air, spins once, and catches it behind herself while saying "Is that all?"
• Side taunt: Swings a whip of plasma in a circular motion while saying "Try me."
• Down taunt: Holds her Paralyzer near her waist, and then performs apirouette while twirling a whip of plasma around herself and saying "You're mine!"

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses[edit]

• Configures her Paralyzer.
• Stands up straight and looks around, holding her Paralyzer up to her face.

Crowd cheer[edit]

	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese)	Cheer (Spanish)
Cheer
Description	Ze - ro - Suit!	Zero Suit Samus!	Saaaa - mus Ze - ro!
	Cheer (French)	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Italian)
Cheer
Description	Sa - mus sans combinaison ! Sa - mus sans armure !	Ze - ro - Suit! Sa - mus!	Sa - mus Tu - ta Ze - ro!

Victory poses[edit]

• UsesFlip Jump and then performs a jet-propelled somersault while grunting.
• Swings a whip of plasma from her Paralyzer before saying "Be still."
• Performs a stretch kick and then swings her leg into position to perform a modifiedpassé while grunting.

Incompetitive play[edit]

Official Custom Moveset Project[edit]

Character	Custom sets available
Zero Suit Samus	1311	1312	1112	2311	2111
	2312	2112	1211	1332	1132

Most historically significant players[edit]

See also:Category:Zero Suit Samus players (SSB4)

•  ANTi - Although better known for usingMario, ANTi has also used Zero Suit Samus as a common secondary in tournaments, using her to win crucial sets to place 2nd at bothPort Priority 3: Tristate Throwdown andThe Big House 6, as well as 7th atGet On My Level 2016. He was ultimately ranked 14th on thePGR 100 with Zero Suit Samus as a secondary.
•  Choco - One of the best Zero Suit Samus players of all-time, ranking 35th on thePGR 100, and one of Japan's best players, known for being the runner-up atUmebura Niconico Qualifier andUmebura Smash 4 Final. Despite his achievements, he was notoriously underrated on thePGR for most of competitiveSmash 4 due to his performances being largely based in Japan, and wouldn't make a major impact internationally until his 7th-place run atEVO 2018.
•  Luhtie - First known for his run to 5th atRise 2017 defeatingElegant andTyrant, but this was quickly overshadowed by his win overZeRo at2GGC: Civil War, where he ultimately placed 33rd. He has since seen many other strong performances at events, including placing 25th at theSuper Smash Con 2017 and2GGC: SCR Saga defeatingAbadango in the former andAC in the latter. His performances in the latter half of 2017 led him to be ranked in the Area 51 position on thePGR v4.
•  Marss - The second-best Zero Suit Samus player of all-time, ranked 16th on thePGR 100, having dominatedNew England competitive play. He notably wonMidwest Mayhem 12, and has come close to winning several majors, having placed 2nd atThe Big House 7, 3rd atPound 2016, and 5th at2GGC: Civil War.
•  Nairo - The best Zero Suit Samus player of all-time, and one of the overall bestSmash 4 players of all-time, ranking no lower than 4th on any iteration of thePGR and ultimately ranking 2nd on thePGR 100. He is the only Zero Suit Samus player with major wins, with 10 major and supermajor victories includingSuper Smash Con 2016 andSuper Smash Con 2017. In addition, he is the first player to double-eliminateZeRo, doing so atMLG World Finals 2015.
•  quiK - The best Zero Suit Samus player in Europe and one of Europe's best players overall, ranking 6th on theEuropean Smash 4 Power Rankings and regularly placing top 8 at Europe's largest events, including winningAlbion 3 and placing 3rd atSmash Valley, 5th atSALT, and 7th atSyndicate 2017. Outside of Europe, he notably placed 33rd at2GGC: Nairo Saga defeatingLarry Lurr.
•  shky - The second-best Zero Suit Samus player in Japan, breaking out onto the competitive scene in 2018 by placing 3rd atUmebura Tokaigi Qualifier 1 and 7th atEVO Japan 2018, and remained a threat throughout the rest of competitiveSmash 4, placing 3rd atSumabato 27 and 7th atKVOxTSB 2018. He is the second Japanese player ranked on an iteration of the PGR without attending an international event, ranking 41st on thePGR v5.

Tier placement and history[edit]

Zero Suit Samus was widely viewed as a top-tier character ever sinceSSB4 was released. She became infamous for her highly rewarding grab combos that could lead into early KOs; varied methods of setting up KOs with her back and down throws, down smash, and Paralyzer; her ability to escape pressure with her aerial mobility and down special; and the incredible safety of her electric attacks like her neutral aerial, which she received in update1.1.1. However, she also has a few weaknesses, such as her laggy grab and lackluster ground game. Although players would often point out both her weaknesses and her representation only being above average for a perceived top-tier character, Zero Suit Samus' weaknesses were also perceived as negligible. Additionally, her top-tier status was supplemented by the efforts of many dedicated professionals, who dominated their respective regions with her and whose tournament results were sufficient enough to position her as the second best character in the game in the eyes of most players.

Among these dedicated professionals wasNairo, who quickly established himself as one of the best players in the world after regularly achieving top 8 placings at major tournaments, winning several of them, and becoming the first person to eliminateZeRo, the undisputed best player in the world at the time, from a tournament. Several other Zero Suit Samus players also made strong impacts on the metagame, includingMarss andNickRiddle. Thanks to these very strong tournament results, Zero Suit Samus was ranked 2nd on the first tier list.

However, Zero Suit Samus received nerfs from game updates, with update 1.1.5 providing her most significant ones by exacerbating her grab game's lag issues and somewhat toning down her immense strengths. These nerfs ultimately affected her results, with some of her main players eventually being outperformed by other characters, such asCloud, which in turn saw her playerbase slightly shrink. Zero Suit Samus' downturn was reflected in her next few tier placements, as she lost her top 3 status by being ranked 8th on the second tier list, and then lost her top 10 status by being ranked 11th on the third tier list.

However, this downturn of events was reversed following the release of the third tier list, as Zero Suit Samus saw a spike in results thanks to Nairo and Marss' continued success at majors andChoco's strong performances in the Japanese scene. In addition, the nerfs did little to hinder her threatening ladder combos, which remained a core part of her playstyle. As such, many Smashers believed she had been severely underrated on the third tier list, especially when her results were more impressive than some characters ranked above her, includingSheik andMario. Although a few top players remained adamant that Zero Suit Samus was not as strong as many perceived, she ultimately rose back into the top 10 on the fourth and final tier list, ranking 6th. This placement remained mostly agreed upon for the rest of competitiveSmash 4, especially with continued success from her best players and the rise ofshky in the game's final year.

In Solo Modes[edit]

All-Star Mode[edit]

In All-Star Mode, Zero Suit Samus is fought in Stage 6 in the 3DS version or Stage 2 in the Wii U version alongsideRoy,Ike,Lucas,Olimar,Lucario,Toon Link,Villager, andBowser Jr.

Event Matches[edit]

Solo Events[edit]

• A Situation of some Gravity: Zero Suit Samus must defeatRosalina & Luma while she is affected by high gravity.
• All-Star Battle: Brawl: Zero Suit Samus is one of the opponents fought in this event. All of the opponents debuted inBrawl.
• Bounty Hunter Clash: AsCaptain Falcon, the player must defeat Zero Suit Samus. After some time, twoVillagers will appear and must be defeated as well.
• Identity Crisis: AsZelda andSheik, the player must defeat Zero Suit Samus andSamus.

Co-op Events[edit]

• Peach in Peril:Bowser andBowser Jr. must defeat Zero Suit Samus, Rosalina & Luma, Zelda,Wii Fit Trainer and femaleRobin, but notPeach. KOing Peach results into an instant failure.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Congratulations Screens[edit]

Trophies[edit]

Zero Suit Samus's default trophy is obtained by clearing Classic Mode as Zero Suit Samus. Her alternate trophy is obtained by clearing All-Star Mode as Zero Suit Samus in the 3DS version or purchasing it in the Trophy Shop for 1000G in the Wii U version (the latter can only appear after clearing Classic or All-Star as Zero Suit Samus). The Gunship (Zero Suit Samus) trophy is obtained only in the Wii U version by clearing All-Star Mode as Zero Suit Samus.

3DS Classic Mode trophy

Wii U Classic Mode trophy

Zero Suit Samus

Samus is far from helpless when her Power Suit is deactivated. Sure, she loses a lot of the moves and weapons she had access to before, but her Jet Boots pick up the slack! She also has the Paralyzer, a versatile weapon that can shock her rivals or change into a Plasma Whip to grab edges and enemies.

:Metroid: Zero Mission (02/2004)

:Metroid: Other M (08/2010)

Without her Power Suit, Samus Aran may not have her usual strength, special moves or over-powered arm cannon, but her Jet Boots definitely kick things up a notch in their own way. The Paralyzer, her gun, does just what you'd expect it to, but it can also turn into a whip for attacking and grabbing onto edges while falling.

:Metroid: Zero Mission (04/2004)

:Metroid: Other M (09/2010)

3DS All-Star Mode trophy

Wii U alternate trophy

Zero Suit Samus (Alt.)

Zero Suit Samus's up special Boost Kick involves a series of fast kicks that end with a swift, sideways-launching one. A perfectly executed attack will hit eight times! Her down special Flip Jump can bury a grounded fighter in the dirt. She can kick midflip by pressing the special button.

Zero Suit Samus's up special Boost Kick involves a series of fast kicks that ends with a swift, sideways-launching one. A perfectly executed attack will hit eight times! Her down special Flip Jump can bury a grounded fighter in the dirt. She can kick midflip by pressing the special button.

:Metroid: Zero Mission (02/2004)

:Metroid: Other M (08/2010)

Zero Suit Samus's Boost Kick up special finishes with a swift sideways kick. If you start the move close to an opponent, you can hit them up to eight times and launch them sideways! Her main down special, Flip Jump, buries opponents if you land on them at the end of it. Alternatively, press the button again mid-flip for a drop kick.

:Metroid: Zero Mission (04/2004)

:Metroid: Other M (09/2010)

Gunship (Zero Suit Samus) trophy

Gunship (Zero Suit Samus)

Samus's spaceship carries her through space and serves as her base of operations during her missions. Zero Suit Samus will call down and board her Gunship with her Final Smash. Once she's in the pilot's seat, she has a short time to unleash up to five powerful shots from the ship's weapons. Foes aren't safe even hiding off-screen!

Samus's Gunship is her way of travelling through space and her base of operations when exploring hostile planets. In Zero Suit Samus's Final Smash, she can use her Gunship to fire powerful beams at other fighters, hitting them multiple times, even if they're hiding off-screen! At least they can be thankful it doesn't go on forever.

Alternate costumes[edit]

Gallery[edit]

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  Zero Suit Samus' splash art.

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  Zero Suit Samus'amiibo.

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  Preparing to usePlasma Whip.

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  Preparing to use Plasma Whip.

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  Using Plasma Whip againstLink.

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  Using her forward aerial.

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  Rolling alongsideher Power Suit.

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  Double jumping to demonstrate her Jet Boots' thrusters.

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  Using her up tilt.

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  Wearing aBunny Hood and being under the effect ofSuperspicy Curry, alongsideLuigi andKing Dedede.

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  Zero Suit Samus inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Jumping in Super Smash Bros for 3DS.

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  Double jumping alongside her Power Suit, demonstrating their Jet Boots and thrusters, respectively.

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  Using her forward aerial onPit, who is being attacked by aMetroid.

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  UsingFlip Jump alongsideWii Fit Trainer.

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  FightingRosalina.

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  Using her forward aerial againstPac-Man's forward aerial.

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  UsingBoost Kick, her new up special.

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  Two of Zero Suit Samus' newalternate costumes, which originated fromMetroid Fusion andMetroid: Zero Mission.

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  The new alternate costumes as they appear inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  AlongsideRidley.

Trivia[edit]

• Zero Suit Samus is the only character who has more than one method of accessing theirtether recovery.
• AlthoughZelda andSheik havealternate costumes that correspond to their costumes' respective orders,Samus and Zero Suit Samus do not follow this trend. Zero Suit Samus lacks a purple alternate costume to match Samus'Gravity Suit, while her last two alternate costumes consist of her Casual Outfits instead of variations of theZero Suit.
• SSB4 marks the first time Zero Suit Samus is listed in the character selection screen.
• Zero Suit Samus'entry in Nintendo of Europe's official Twitter account states she didcrawl back inMetroid: Zero Mission, making fun of her ability to crawl with the infamous"Y can't Metroid crawl?" meme.
• As ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,Smash 4 is the only game in which Zero Suit Samus is playable, but is not thelightest female character, with that title being held byRosalina instead.

References[edit]

v • d • e Metroid universe
Fighters	Samus (SSB ·SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Zero Suit Samus (SSBB ·SSB4 ·SSBU) ·Ridley (SSBU) ·Dark Samus (SSBU)
Assist Trophies	Metroid ·Dark Samus ·Mother Brain
Bosses	Ridley ·Meta Ridley
Stages	Planet Zebes ·Brinstar ·Brinstar Depths ·Frigate Orpheon ·Norfair ·Pyrosphere Brinstar Escape Shaft (Adventure Mode)
Item	Screw Attack ·Power Suit Piece
Enemies	Geemer ·Kihunter ·Metroid ·Reo ·FG II-Graham ·Joulion ·Zero
Other	Gunship ·Kraid
Trophies,Stickers andSpirits	Trophies (SSBM ·SSBB ·SSB4) ·Stickers ·Spirits
Music	Brawl ·SSB4 ·Ultimate
Masterpieces	Metroid ·Super Metroid

• Characters (SSB4)
• Metroid universe
• Zero Suit Samus (SSB4)
• Trophies (SSB4-3DS)
• Trophies (SSB4-Wii U)

• Articles in need of audio