Joker (Smash Plus)

Joker is a playable character in Super Smash Brothers Plus for the Nintendo Switch Plus. Representing the Persona universe, he is listed as Fighter #86 in Smash's modified numbering system and is classified as a Middleweight fighter. He is hidden at the start of the game, but can be unlocked through random encounters in Versus Mode or by scoring 10 KOs on Mementos in a single match.
Joker is a character with two different playstyles depending on circumstances within the game. In his base form, he largely focuses on combos and quick strike attacks to rack up damage, lacking many KO options and having lower than average defensive stats. His frame data is great in his base form, with little startup to his attacks overall. However, this changes slightly once his Rebellion Gauge fills and he summons the Persona Arsene. During that time, Joker has far more attack power, due to Arsene's enhancement of most of his moves. It is when he has this additional attack power that Joker is best suited to finish opponents off. The biggest obstacle though is surviving that long to get there. Players have to be quick on there feet to take advantage of Joker's periods of strength, and know when to back off to better advantage when in periods of weakness. Joker has two normal jumps and can wall jump.
==Moveset==
===Basic Attacks===
*Gimmick: Rebellion Gauge/Arsene- Joker has a unique ability displayed over his HUD called the Rebellion Gauge, which fills up naturally over time. It will also fill up when Joker takes damage, or when he is hit while Rebel's Guard is active. When the Gauge is full, Joker will summon the Persona Arsene, who then grants him additional attack power for most of his moves, and outright changes many of his Special Moves while active. While Arsene is active, the Gauge will slowly drain (and drain slightly faster every time Joker is dealt damage while Arsene is out). When the gauge empties, Arsene will disappear, and the Gauge will be able to be refilled again. The Gauge will automatically reset to a minimum level when Joker is KO'ed, however that minimum level is higher if Joker is losing the match.
*Neutral Jab- Joker performs a three hit combo with his knife consisting of an inward slash, a backhanded stab and then an outward slash. Arsene, if active, will perform two swipes with his arms followed by a palm thrust.
*Side Tilt- Joker performs a double thrust with his knife, with the second thrust moving at a higher angle. Arsene performs a claw swipe with his hand, before raising his hand in a beckoning gesture.
*Up Tilt- Joker swings his knife overhead, causing it to fly upwards, with him catching it behind his head. Arsene performs an overhead swipe attack, emitting electricity from his hand.
*Down Tilt- Joker and Arsene both perform a baseball slide kick, moving themselves forward slightly.
*Dash Attack- Joker performs a sliding roundhouse kick followed by a standing side kick to launch foes. Arsene performs a football kick, delayed to coincide with Joker's second kick.
*Grab & Pummel- Joker holds opponents with one arm, using magic to hold them in place. He pummels with a knee to the midsection.
*Forward Throw- Joker uses his magic to toss the opponent forward up into the air. Arsene, if active, will blast the opponent with a Maeiga blast to knock them away.
*Back Throw- Similar to the forward throw, only with Joker flinging them behind. Arsene still blasts them with a Maeiga blast.
*Up Throw- Joker tosses the opponent in the air and then hits them with an overhead swipe from his knife. Arsene will perform an overhead attack with his hands. When Arsene is active, this becomes Joker's most powerful KO attack.
*Down Throw- Joker slams the opponent onto the ground and then shoots them once with his gun to knock them away. If Arsene is active, Joker will shoot a volley of bullets from his gun, doing more damage.
*Neutral Air- Joker spins in a circle in midair his knife extended, creating a lingering hitbox. Arsene lies back to back with Joker as he spins, his leg extended, creating a perfect circle.
*Forward Air- Joker performs a two kick combo, finishing with a roundhouse kick to knock foes away. Arsene also performs a forward kick, timed to coincide with Joker's second hit.
*Back Air- Joker performs an upward swipe with his knife behind himself. Arsene performs a downward chop, intersecting with Joker's attack.
*Up Air- Joker performs a multi-hitting corkscrew kick, with the final kick having launch power. Arsene performs an overhead swipe with his hand, timed to coincide with Joker's final kick.
*Down Air- Joker flips in midair and swings his knife in a downward arc beneath himself from front to back. Arsene performs a delayed foot stomp, coinciding with the moment Joker's blade is pointed straight downward.
===Smash Attacks===
*Side Smash- Joker rears back and then swings his arms forward in a wide pattern, his knife in his forward facing hands. Arsene performs a similar motion with his hands, only in front of Joker, giving the attack an extended hitbox when he is active.
*Up Smash- Joker performs a jumping uppercut with his knife hand, spinning around while he does so. Arsene swings his leading arm above himself. Both attacks work best as anti-air tools rather than KO moves.
*Down Smash- Joker performs a kneeling knife slash in front of himself and then behind himself. Arsene performs a low sweep kick in front of Joker, followed with one behind Joker.
===Special Moves===
*Neutral Special: Gun/Gun Special- Joker will fire his gun a single time, creating a short range projectile that does little damage and no knockback. Holding the Special Button allows him to continue firing, while pressing the direction pad backward will cause him to dodge backwards while still firing. Tilting it up will cause him to jump in the air and fire several bullets straight down, which do slightly more damage and cause opponents to flinch. If Arsene is Present, he will use Gun Special instead, which causes Joker to fire his gun in three-round bursts, and giving each bullet flinch properties as well as increasing their damage, while slightly decreasing their range.
*Side Special: Eiha/Eigaon- Joker snaps his fingers and fires a small projectile downward at a diagonal angle. If it hits an opponent, it will cause a small amount of knockback and damage, but then continue to deal damage over time, ending with roughly 10% of curse damage. If Arsene is Present, then Eigaon will be used instead. This makes the projectile larger, gives it a larger field effect, increases knockback to opponents, and makes the curse last longer, doing a total of 17% overall.
*Up Special: Grappling Hook/Wings of Rebellion- Joker fires his grappling hook up at a very high angle, acting as a tether grab. When used on the ground, it can grab opponents in the air and bring them down to Joker, leaving them vulnerable for combos. However the awkward angle of the move makes this difficult to pull off, and the aerial version of the move only deals vertical knockback. If Arsene is present, Joker will use Wings of Rebellion, in which Arsene simply flies up at an angle. It works great as a recovery move, covering a large distance with the flight, but it deals no damage to opponents, making it useless from a grounded state.
*Down Special: Rebel's Guard/Tetrakarn & Makarakarn- Joker flashes blue, an aura forming around himself for a second and a half. If he is struck right as the move begins, Joker will perform a backhanded slap to knock foes away. Otherwise, he will absorb the attack with a 40% reduction in damage (and nullification of knockback). Countering or absorbing an attack like this will cause the Rebellion Gauge to fill faster, enabling Joker to summon Arsene sooner. If Arsene is active, he will use a counter called Tetrakarn for physical attacks and will use a reflector called Makarakarn for projectile attacks. Both counters are very powerful and have great frame data.
*Final Smash: All-Out Attack- Joker dashes forward (and can dash backwards if no one is hit in the initial dash). Anyone hit by this dash is sent into a cinematic cutscene where they are attacked by Joker and three other members of the Phantom Thieves, dealing major damage to them. The cinematic ends with a splash page of Joker putting on a glove dramatically as the opponents disappear in sparkles. If an opponent goes above 100% during the course of the Final Smash, they will be instantly KO'ed when the FS ends.
===Miscellaneous===
*Entry Animation- Joker drops in from the ceiling, standing up and adjusting his glove to start the match.
*Idle Animation 1- Joker pulls his knife close to his chest before resuming normal stance.
*Idle Animation 2- Joker twirls his gun around before resuming normal stance.
*Side Taunt- Joker poses with his gun pointed forward, shielded over his knife arm. Morgana appears next to him, playfully laughing.
*Up Taunt- Joker smiles and tugs at his glove, similar to the splash page in his Final Smash. Morgana appears next to him, saying "Looking Cool Joker!"
*Down Taunt- Joker turns his back to the camera and dramatically poses, glancing over his shoulder. Morgana appears next to him, jumping up and down and saying "He-Hey!"
*Victory Animation 1- Morgana bounces around happily next to Joker, as Joker waves for him to follow and begins running to the left, the screen staying focused on him.
*Victory Animation 2- Joker scratches his head and smiles, climbing into the Morgan-Mobile van which then speeds away from the scene of the crime, the screen staying focused on the van.
*Victory Animation 3- Morgana will accidentally be hit by the camera, being knocked down. Joker shakes his head and waves him on, running to the left, the screen staying focused on him.
==How to Unlock==
Joker can be unlocked any of the following ways:
*Playing Versus matches until he randomly shows up as a "Challenger Approaching" fight. Defeat him to unlock him.
*Score at least 10 KOs in a single match on Mementos.
*Unlock him in the Finale of World of Light by defeating him.
*Pay 1,000 gold in a shop, where he can randomly appear (though rarely.)
Category:Super Smash Bros. Characters
Category:Super Smash Bros. (series)
Category:Smash Plus Characters