Little Mac (SSB17)

Little Mac is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. OC Future. He was revealed alongside , , and 
==Attributes==
=== Strengths ===
* Can wall jump, which is the second highest in the game, after Lucario's.
* Unmatched speed on ground for both movement and attack.
** His very low dashing stance allows him to duck some projectiles and attacks.
* Has Super armor frames on many moves, most notably all Smash Attacks and Straight Lunge.
* Fastest Jab, Rapid Jab and Tilts in the game.
* Most of his attacks have low startup and ending lags.
* High knockback and speed on almost all ground attacks.
* Short stature gives him small hurtboxes.
* Third fastest dash speed in the game, after Sonic and almost tied with Captain Falcon.
** Additionally, his initial dash makes use of dash dancing and fox trotting to be one of the most usefuls in the game.
* Fastest side dodge in the game, with very little startup and ending lag.
* Has the third highest traction in the game, after Lucario and Jigglypuff.
* Has a Meteor Smash: Down Aerial.
* Very fast Counter that has high range and long hitbox.
* Forward Smash has three variations depending on the direction held when launching it.
* His KO Punch can dispose of opponents with very little percentage. Although it is not a guaranteed instant KO move, it is very powerful and grant him invincibility frames through most of it. 
** KO bar is filled by causing and taking damage.
** Can use moves like down tilt to combo into KO Punch.
** KO punch can attack through shields.
=== Weaknesses ===
* Has the worst recovery in the game; an aerial Jolt Haymaker gives very little horizontal movement, while his aerial Rising Uppercut merely launches him upwards, being lower than his second jump.
* Lightweight, being among the ten lightest characters in the game, being tied with Falco.
* Extremely weak aerial attacks, with very small hitboxes.
* Very poor grab game, lacking combo throws and kill throws.
* None of his ground attacks deal reliable shield damage, except for Forward Smash tilted down.
* One of the lowest jumping heights in the game, alongside Ganondorf and Megaman, and also the lowest double jump.
* Lacks projectiles and long range options.
* Can't deal with ranged opponents very well.
* Jolt Haymaker can easily result into self-destructs, as it propels him forward and into a helpless state, causing him to fall off the stage if used incorrectly.
* Rising Uppercut only has KO power if used on the ground; its aerial version is very weak, only KO'ing opponents above 150%.
* Even though a normal Straight Lunge fully charged can cause high damage, it has very high ending lag, making him vulnerable for punishment.
* Straight Lunge's KO Punch can be lost if Little Mac is hit by an attack with high enough knockback to send him into a tumbling state, if he is KO'ed, or if he is hit right before using it.
* Struggles against the majority of the cast, especially those with powerful gimping potential, such as and .
* His Meteor Smash is very weak like the rest of his aerial attacks.
==Summary==
Little Mac is a Footsie, notable for having a very powerful ground game, but very weak airborne, as well having very poor recovery moves. However, he has plenty moves with super armor and invincibility frames in his attacks.
Little Mac's ground game is nearly unmatched, boasting speed and power. His Rapid Jab is amazingly fast, capable of racking up lots of damage and having decent launch with the finisher; he can also cancel the first two hits easily, allowing to plenty follow ups and fake outs. His Tilts are good for combo strings, with his Down Tilt setting up for all kinds of combo opportunities, especially if he has the K.O. Punch. Forward Tilt is his strongest Tilt, being specially powerful to surprise opponents and break combos. Up Tilt can set for semi-juggling setups and covers a wide area all around Little Mac, being a good anti-air move. Finally, his Dash Attack, while having considerable ending lag, has good knockback and covers a good range. 
His Smash Attacks are some of the strongest in the game, and notable for having Super Armor during the attack frames; while he doesn't have it while charging, players can release it sooner to punish opponents trying to interrupt his Smash Attacks. Little Mac's Forward Smash can be angled, and it is unique as each angle boasts from different properties: if not angled, it is a straight punch with great damage and knockback; if angled up, it is an uppercut that deals slightly less damage, but deals higher knockback and launches opponents upwards; if angled down, it inflicts high damage and shield damage, but deals less knockback. Little Mac's Up Smash is very powerful if sweetspotted, at the base of his fist as soon the move is launched, having a fiery effect. Down Smash is a powerful sweeping move, covering lots of ground and great for edge-guarding. 
Aside Rapid Jabs and Forward Tilt for racking up damage, his Forward Smash is very powerful if angled down, as it is one of his strongest attacks, being able to deal over 25% if fully charged, being useful to punish opponents who side dodge a lot. A good way to approach with Little Mac is by doing dash-dances, fox trots, Perfect Pivot into Forward Tilt or Rapid Jab, or even moving slowly and countering every move, in order to intimidate and pressure the opponent. 
While Little Mac's aerials are atrocious in attack power and range, they can be good for setting up small combo strings, especially his Forward and Neutral Aerials, as their low knockback often sends opponents slightly downwards, which can lead into his powerful ground attacks. His Up Aerial can be useful after launching an opponent into the air from the ground, although it has no utility at all for juggling, being only useful for damage racking. Back Aerial functions similarly to Forward Aerial, but has less range and slightly higher knockback. His Down Aerial has absolutely no Meteor Smash power behind it, being very weak in both launch and damage; however, it can be useful for footstool locks or for gimping opponents just enough that they cannot get back.
His throws are not very powerful, lacking in both damage or knockback, and none of them can guarantee combos. However, they can be used for creating small setups such as baiting air dodges. Little Mac using pummel tends to be more rewarding than throwing.
Little Mac's Neutral Special, Straight Lunge, is a great move that has super armor frames during the whole move; when charging and after releasing. If an opponent is going for a grab, launch the attack immediately. Don't fully charge the move either; if an opponent is able to predict when the attack will be launched (at full charge) they can easily dodge, run up behind Little Mac, and punish, which is easy to do because the move can leave him wide open if he misses. In addition, fully charging Straight Lunge greatly increases the ending lag, leaving Little Mac very vulnerable.
Once Little Mac deals and/or takes enough damage, his Straight Lunge becomes the K.O. Punch. This move can KO opponents below 50%, and is another great finisher for combos; a good way to trap opponents just long enough for Little Mac to throw it out on them is to use Down Tilt, Neutral Aerial, and Down Aerial. It can also be used as a recovery if used correctly because it can give Mac just enough forward momentum to get him to the edge.
Little Mac's Side Special, Jolt Haymaker, is very powerful on both ground and air (although its aerial version covers much less range). If Little Mac finds himself cornered at the edge by an opponent, Jolt Haymaker towards the center of the stage to get back to the middle of the ring and damage the opponent while doing it. Additionally, if used correctly, this move can lead to stage spikes, although it is risky to do. Jolt Haymaker is infamous for being very easy to suicide with, leading to many offtstages leaps. Jolt Haymaker can also be useful on the stage; the jump Little Mac performs combined with the Super Armor frames of the move can dodge low-flying or small projectiles and even tank some larger projectiles and then hit the opponent that launched them. The leap can also dodge some lower attacks such as down tilts and down smashes; this is especially useful for combating Shulk's down smash, which has tremendous range that Little Mac could not otherwise get past without Jolt Haymaker.
Rising Uppercut is a great combo finisher when started on the ground and is also useful out of shield when an opponent is right next to Little Mac. The move can combo out of the first two hits of jab and it can kill off the ceiling if the opponent has enough damage. In the air it is rather weak in terms of recovery.
Slip Counter is an extremely useful move both in the center and at the ledge. If an opponent cornered Little Mac at the ledge and is going for a launching smash attack, Slip Counter is the way to go; just be sure not to let it loose too early and don't use it too often--throwing out counters all day will get him grabbed time and time again. 
If one is playing as Little Mac on a stage with lots of platforms, they should stay on the safest platform to ensure he has the smallest amount of risk of falling off the edge. Make the opponent come to Little Mac and fight on his terms. If it is a travelling stage that forces him to move off a safe platform, make sure he has minimal air time when moving from platform to platform. It is key to stay on the ground where Little Mac is the powerhouse. To main Little Mac, traversing the stage is a very important factor to ensure Little Mac doesn't fall short of the ledge.
However, his most blatantly and exploitable flaw is the polarity of his gameplay: being an outstandingly dominant force on the ground but reduced to a flailing and ineffective fighter in the air; his jumps are short and sluggish and his recovery is the worst in the game. If he is sent flying off the stage at a high percentage, specially if the knockback is horizontal, there is a high chance he won't come back. Little Mac also has few tools for edge-guarding, and if done it should always be executed from the edge and not the air. Unless players are 100% certain they'll be able to guard the edge, they shouldn't do it in the first place. The opponent will find a way to read their attack, dodge accordingly, and then reverse the roles, putting Mac in a bad position. Putting it into boxing terms, since Little Mac is a boxer; in boxing, the boxer doesn't want to get stuck in the corner or the opponent will be able to beat on them relentlessly. Boxers want to stay in the center; the same goes for Little Mac in Smash. Stay centered on the stage and away from the edge for the most part. Rely on his smash attacks to launch the opponents away from the center of the stage rather than risk getting K.O.'d at the ledge. 
Overall, Little Mac is a very good fighter, however he must stay at low percentages and on the ground to survive. Because of his poor recovery, rushing recklessly with Little Mac is usually not a good idea, even with his all powerful attacks. While a powerhouse, Little Mac's gameplay reflects a bit of his Punch-Out!! games; he is powerful, but must time his attacks to avoid retaliation, countering opponents and punishing when they miss.
==Moveset==
Attack 	Name 	Damage 	Description
Neutral Attack 	 	2%, 2%, 1% per hit	A straight punch with the leading hand, followed by another straight punch with the other hand, ending in a flurry of rapid punches. A very fast jab, and one of the safest in the game on shield, this jab can combo into grab or Up Special on hit.
Side Tilt 	 	4%, 8% 	Two jabs, with Little Mac reaching out for each punch. Both hits have the best range of Little Mac's tilts, and have strong knockback for a tilt. Hitbox starts after 4 frames, and a dependable KO move at high percentages.
Up Tilt 	 	3% 	A quick uppercut with the leading hand. It's very fast and good for juggling. It can juggle up to three times from 0% on heavier characters.
Down Tilt 	 	8% 	A low jab, similar to 's. It has frame advantage and can combo straight into Jab, Grab, or Up Special, among others.
Dash Attack 	 	10% 	A swinging overhead punch. Fast and one of Mac's only approach options, but highly recommended not to be used as such due to its predictability which is easy to punish with a shield grab; done near a ledge, Little Mac is almost guaranteed to lose a stock against a competent opponent even at 0%.
Side Smash 	 	20% 	A gut punch. Mac stuns his foe for quite a while with this attack, but it does no knockback. This enables Mac to combo into just about anything when this move hits.
Up Smash 	 	20% 	Mac does a overhead punch.
Down Smash 	 	10% 	Mac punches the ground, creating a small shockwave. It deals pretty high knockback, but it is by no means powerful. The move is useful for punishing poorly timed techs and roll dodges, and it can be combo'd into using Dash Attack at higher percentages.
Neutral Ariel 	 	4% 	Mac punches downwards in a arc, it can Spike the opponent while holding onto the edge of the stage.
Forward Ariel 	 	10% 	Mac does a quick forward punch.
Back Ariel 	 	10% 	Mac turns and punches behind himself. Somewhat slow startup and short range, but high knockback.
Up Ariel 	 	11% 	Mac punches upwards in the air, similarly to his Up Tilt. Fast and decent priority. This move is decent for juggling, but it doesn't lead to much unless used while falling to the ground at a low height. 
Down Ariel 	 	9% 	Mac delivers a downwards punch that spikes opponents. It has good range and always spikes, making it great as a finisher. It is also used to create resets in his ground combos.
Forward Throw 	 	11% 	Mac punches the opponent away with both hands. Decent knockback at high percents and becomes a kill move near the edge at 120% and so.
Back Throw 	 	10% 	Mac punches the opponent behind himself, launching at about a 50-degree angle. Juggles nicely into Back Air given the opponent DIs properly.
Up Throw 	 	11% 	Mac uppercuts the foe into the air. Low knockback at low damage and juggles into Neutral Ariel for a combo starter.
Down Throw 	 	10% 	Mac's most useful throw. Mac punches his opponent down, causing them to slide backwards along the ground. Can be followed up by Dash Attack or Side B. This is one of Mac's main ways to start combos.
Neutral Special	Straight Lunge 	30% 	Little Mac charges up a punch, and upon releasing it lunges forward, punching his opponent at high velocity, and temporarily giving Little Mac Super Armor.
Side Special 	Jolt Haymaker 	14% 	Mac dashes, invincible to all attacks while in motion. Once he reaches a target, he delivers a devastating punch. When used in combos, this move becomes more powerful.
Up Special 	Rising Uppercut	20% 	Mac performs a rising uppercut that has limited invincibility and high vertical knockback.
Down Special 	Slip Counter 	1.3x 	Mac pauses and takes a stance, and will counter any incoming attacks for a brief period.
Final Smash 	Giga Mac 	Varies 	Mac transforms into Giga Mac, a beastly version of himself, and delivers a beatdown, launching the foe into the air.
==In Competitive Play==
===Match ups===
==Alternate Costumes==
*See: Alternate Costumes (Super Smash Bros. OC Future)
==Trivia==
Category:Characters (SSB17)
Category:Playable Characters
Category:Punch-Out!! universe
Category:Footsies
Category:Super Smash Bros. OC Future