Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch

> *"It's time to switch it up!"*
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North American Logo

Sega

**Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch**, commonly shortened to **Smash Switch**, (スーパースマッシュブラザーズアルティメット, Great Fray Smash Brothers ∞) is the 5th (6th if you count Super Smash Bros For Wii U) installment in the Super Smash Brothers series. Released for the Nintendo Switch, this game was developed with the goal of being the most expansive Smash Bros. game in years, celebrating Nintendo's, Super Smash Bros.', and gaming as a whole.
Sora Ltd. and Namco Bandai both are credited as developers of the game, and for the first time, Sega is now in collaboration for the development of this project. For the first time, Sakurai isn't the only Lead Designer of the game, and Gregory McLeod, known for his fan game, Super Smash Flash and it's sequel, joined him as a Designer. This game is considered the biggest collaborative project by different companies, with developers like Atlus, Spike Chunsoft, and Nd Cube joining on the huge project.

Like Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Melee, this game is rated T by the ESRB. (being the 3rd game in the series to do so)

Due to this game celebrating Nintendo's 130th anniversary, the game focuses more on the history of Nintendo as a whole and it's effect on gaming, reviving past and "forgotten" characters from Nintendo's past. One of the most notable inclusions to the roster is the first 4th party characters, Shonen Jump's Goku, Ichigo, Naruto and Luffy, Attack on Titan's Eren Jeagar, and Disney's Mickey Mouse. The game also attempts to mix the competitive side and the causal side of smash for the first time in the series.
The musical score of this game is a collective mix of various composers across the world. Over 85+ composers came to make the soundtrack for the game, making the number hit over 900+ tracks, having the most music tracks of any Smash game to date.
The game uses an engine called Havok provided by an Irish company of the same name.The game released on December 20th, 2021.
Smash Switch supports three types of controllers - the Joycon, the Pro Controller, and the GameCube controller. Up to 8 players can engage in local multiplayer battles at any given time with any combination of controllers, while Switch also supports online play through the Nintendo Network.

While Switch continues to include the arcade-like "Classic" and "All-Star" single-player modes Smash 64 had, an Adventure Mode similar to Melee's has been added, along with a new Story Mode named: Universal Collision: A Super Smash Bros Story Mode, a much more extensive side-scrolling beat-'em-up mode featuring both the playable characters and many enemies specifically created for the game and from the original series. The resulting mode includes an involved plot and numerous pre-rendered cutscenes, as well as some platform game elements during gameplay. However, the story mode was so big, it had to be included in a separate cartridge/downloadable title. Each "game" can be purchased separately, however.

A limited edition pre-order release of Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch came in an extra movelist booklet, depicting all of the characters available by default, and came with a special figure of any of the first 12 characters announced for the game. It also came with a special "history of gaming" booklet, and a download code for another game called *Super Smash Bros.* *Remix* , a "reimagining" of the original game on the Nintendo 64, but with more content. A mobile game called, *Super Smash Bros. Mini* was also released on iPhone and Android devices, is compatible with this game.
The game requires 21 GB of memory in the Nintendo Switch's System Memory, while the story mode requires 10 GB, meaning a total of 31 GB is needed to fully enjoy the game. Data can be copied to an SD Card and transferred onto another Nintendo Switch console. If the player does not create a save file when they start, he or she will not be able to play via the Nintendo Network and vault data will not be saved.

## Characters

So far, this game boasts the biggest character roster of the series to date. A total of **170** characters appear in the game. All 58 fighters from Super Smash Bros. 4 return, along with the "cut" characters from both Melee and Brawl. This includes Young Link, Pichu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Snake, Wolf, and the Ice Climbers. The Pokemon Trainer does make a reappearance, except updated with newer pokemon. Character transformations make a return, but only for a select few characters. Characters that had broken away from the transformation rule, like Zelda and Sheik, remain separate, as well as Squirtle and Ivysaur being their own characters, due to Charizard being separated. Some characters appear as alternate costumes, like Alph, or the Koopalings, however, they aren't considered as unique characters in game, sharing the same stats as their base character.

Most of the newcomers are additions to series represented in past Smash Bros games. The others are highly requested characters from various games, and some extra third parties such as Sega's Arle from the Puyo Puyo series, or Konami's Frogger from his eponymous series. Various Indie characters also make an appearance, such as Shovel Knight. However, many newcomers represent their own series as a whole, and there has been an increase in "retro" characters.

This game is also the first to feature fourth party characters. This sparks the first ever character in the Smash Bros series that hasn't originated from a video game franchise or a Nintendo related accessory (Like R.O.B.) More characters are scheduled to appear as downloadable content.

A common trend with the characters in this game is the redesigns for them. Some characters have very drastic redesigns to accomidate their appearance in this game.

## Tier List

> *Main Article: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Tier Lists*
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Due to the game having a more competitive background, a bigger player-base, the sheer size of the characters in game, the tier list was decided to be chosen by the community. The first tier list put characters into groups due to the sheer size of the roster.

## amiibo

*Main article: amiibo*
amiibo are part of a new system introduced in Super *Smash Bros. for Nintendo Switch*, that uses near field communication (NFC) through special figurines of the respective characters, that can be bought separately. Through this, players bring the characters to the game as FPs (Figure Players), which can level up and be customized, learning more as they improve and interact with the Human Player, Computer Player, and other Figure Players. amiibo level up and learn faster by;

* Having it play on someonelse's Nintendo 3DS and/or Wii U system.

* Losing in Stock Battles.

* Playing against different fighters

* Making it fight against other amiibo

* Use the same fighter as the amiibo you're playing against.

Amiibo are now much more "smarter" and learn more often than the last game.

## Stages

A total of 80+ stages appear in *Smash Switch*, with some returning from Smash 64, Melee, Brawl and 4.

Unlike the other games, the past stages are remade, having newer hazards, or stage layouts. Rather than being called "Familiar Stages", each past stage is categorized and sorted into their own tabs.

Omega Stages make a return, as long with the Beta and Alpha stages. Beta stages turn off the hazards on the stage, keeping the stage's original layout. (If the stage is a moving stage, the stage will stay still at the beginning.) And Alpha stages turn the game into a more competitive version of the stage, sometimes changing the layout entirely.

Unlike in Smash 4, all stages are playable in 8 and 12 player Smash.

## Items

*Main Article: Items*
Like it's predeccesors, Super Smash Bros. Switch has a pletora of items players can use which can give players an advantage during battle. All items from the previous Smash titles, appear in Switch, as well as newer ones. Items now have "rarities", showing how rare a certain item is and when will it drop.

## Changes from Smash 4 to Switch

-In general, gameplay is more faster than Smash 4, but still slower than Melee, but not by a huge margin.

-Movement is more “free”. Characters can dash dance easier, and move around more smoothly. Characters also fast fall and move quicker than Smash 4 but not as fast as Melee. Characters hold onto momentum after they dash or move into a jump.

-Omega, Beta and Alpha stages are introduced.

-Character sizes are re-tweaked. Characters are now have more similar ranges, some are still different depending on the character.

-A new size category was created, Ultra Heavy. This is for the character, Ridley, due to him being very large compared to the rest of the cast.

-As stated before, characters that had their mid match transformations taken away in Smash 4 are still taken away and are treated as separate characters. Mid Match Transformations are still possible by a select few characters like the Triforce Links. Some characters, like Giana and Lycanroc have a new Stance Change mechanic.

-The edge system has been revamped entirely. Edge Hogging is back, and invulnerability while grabbing the edge for the first time is back. If the character grabs the ledge again, without touching the floor, they won’t be invincible anymore and can be ledge trumped. The time your character is invincible on the ledge depends on the current damage, and this time gets shorter as damage increases. Slow and Fast attacks based on damage is back, with slow attacks being used when the character has 100% or higher.

-Characters now have a "tired" animation when their damage is high. They still blink red and emit steam.

-The amount of invincibility after throwing a grabbed character has been reduced, allowing chain grabbing to be possible, however, the window is much smaller, making chain grabbing harder compared to Brawl and Melee. However, throws are now subjective to the Stale Move Negation, and chain grabbing causes throws to get weaker in damage each time a chain grab is caused.

-Hitstun is more pronounced. Players can’t act out of a hit 50 frames into the tumbling animation. Characters also play their "hurt" sound effects when an attack collides.

-Meteor Smashes now have a more pronounced sound when hit. Characters now emit a phrase when a Deadly Blow occurs.

-True Combos and comboing in general are more focused. Players can now Jab Lock up to 5 times rather than 3, and the hitstun changes allow the player to combo their opponent more easier.

-Air Dodging is now more punishable.

-Directional Dashing has be reintroduced, being renamed as Air Dashing. By pressing the Dashing button, your character will dash in a direction your are pushing the control stick. (Similar to Melee) This allows wavedashing to be possible once again. This can only be used once however, and you can't use it again until you touch the ground, which is symbolized via an icon on your player HUD. Air Dashing doesn't render the player Helpless, and the player can act out of a dash. Air Dashing still cancels momentum however.

-DI or Directional Influence, is much more influential than Smash 4. Vectoring also makes a return.

-Smash 4's Rage mechanic has been out right removed.

-Sidestepping and dodging are more punishable.

-Star Kos and Screen KOs don’t occur when there’s 1 minute or less left in a match, or if a player has 1 stock left.

-Swimming has be altered. When characters hit water, they will rise up to the surface, however, by pressing the down button, they will be fall down in the water, allowing them to move underwater. Their physics will be more floaty and slow, and they can drown, similar to the Sonic series. They can get air by touching a air bubble. If they drown, they drown similarly to how Smash 4 and Brawl does it. Some water can’t be swam in, but your physics will change.

-Special Attacks can be performed out of a shield.

-Footstools can be teched.

-The timer is back to the top center of the screen. Sometimes it’s at the top left in some gameplay modes.

-Invulnerability during throws (like Mario's Back Throw) is now gone, meaning characters can be attacked out of a throw (There are some exceptions) Some throws can damage other players as well. (Such as Mario’s backthrow)

-A new mechanic, Meteor Crashing, is introduced. If a character is launched into another character with enough force, that character will also take damage and knockback. Damage and knockback depend on how fast your character is going before he/she collides with another. Sometimes, if two characters are launched into each other at the same time, the knockback will either be cancelled, or both characters will bounce off of each other.

-Custom Moves has made a comeback.There are still 3 specials to choose from, and you can change your character’s attributes with badges.

-New Mode: Custom Build Mode - Here you can create your own custom builds of characters. With the badges and custom moves you collected, you can save your custom characters in a bundle, as long with any custom stages (Which made a return) and put them online to send them to others.

-Buffering In general is reduced. Crouch cancelling and power shielding are also back.

-Grab Aerials don’t leave the character in a helpless state anymore. Grab Aerials can also attach to a wall and the player can use this as a swing, or a high jump, similar to Wall Clinging in Melee. If a character with a tether recovery grabs an edge while another character is already grabbing it, they can still grab it. If they get on the edge, they perform a ledge trump no matter what. Edge grabbing after a tether doesn't give the character invincibility anymore, and they can be edge trumped no matter if it was their first time grabbing the ledge.

-If a player is in hitstun and is hit again while being launched, the new attack will replace the knockback the player had prior to the second hit. If a player is it by two attacks at once, he will take half of the damage the attacks would do, and will be launched in the medium direction. For example, if a player is hit by two Falcon Punches from both ends, they will be sent straight up.

-When dash grabbing a foe, the player will keep his/her momentum prior to the grab. This most noticeable with Luigi.

-If a character is getting back on a stage via a slow get up, ledge attack, or ledge roll, another player will always be able to grab the ledge. Also, if a character with a tether grab, grabs the ledge while another character is on it, BOTH characters will grab the ledge.

-Gliding is reintroduced only for a select few characters. Gliding now has a timer and leave the character helpless after using it. Glide Attacks also have a lot of landing and ending lag, however, it won't leave the character helpless.

-Taunt cancelling returns. Some taunts can be held down.

-CPU have greater AI. Instead of a 1-9 scale, there is now a 0-12 scale for CPU difficulty.

-Multi Attack battering attacks are back. Characters now have more unique attacks with items like the Beam Sword once again.

-Veterans re-tweaked to be more accurate to source material and balanced. Big characters are heavier and are more balanced. Some veterans have huge moveset changes, and the moveset they did have are given to another character, like Black Shadow having Ganondorf's "clone" moveset.

-Every character now has a total of 12 palette swaps. Some palette swaps change the character’s costumes, gender, and sometimes the character (As seen with Olimar and Alph)

-Characters that are similar, like Young/Triforce/Toon Link will have a special indicator if another similar character is in a match with them. For example, if a player is controlling Toon Link and the other is playing Young Link, a special indicator will show detailing that character more.

-If multiples of certain characters are on screen, (For example, 3 Inklings in one battle) things such as projectiles, and certain markers will reflect the player color of that character. For example, if player 1 is controlling Inkling, and player 2 also is in control of Inkling, player 1's ink will be red, and player 2's will be blue.

-Similarly to classic mode, players are now ranked on their performance from X, S, A+, A, A-, B+, B, C+, C, D, E, or F. Score bonuses are also given if the player does certain actions in a match. The ranking effects the chances of having prizes gained during the results screen.

## Development

After the first year of the Nintendo Switch's release, it was seen as one of the most successful gaming consoles in history, due to its portability and excellent line-up in the year of 2017/Early 2018. At the Electronic Entertainment Expo, during Nintendo's Digital Event presentation, they showed a teaser trailer, featuring a Smash Bros symbol with the Nintendo Switch logo making it's "click" sound. Later on, a reveal trailer was shown, revealing the first 25 characters, known as the "Starting 25", and revealing Shantae, the series' first indie newcomer.

Around March 2018, however, Sakurai confirmed that he was stepping down from his role as Lead Producer and in his place was Greg McLeod, known for his Super Smash Flash series, which made many fans question their choices. Sakurai did later state that he was still working on the game, but in more of a more lax fashion, working on side projects he liked while working on Smash Switch and giving a mentor-like role. The character roster was apparently created at the beginning of the game's development, and the game's huge scope required additional helpers. At some point after the game's proposal, employees from SEGA, Bandai Namco, Sora LTD., Atlus, and Aksys games join in on the game's development. Hideo Kojima helped join development on the game's story mode after finishing Death Stranding. Competitive players and members of Smashboards were chosen to help playtest the game and to make it have more of a competitive edge.

Sakurai had remarked that one feature of the Switch Smash title would be a more in-depth story mode, trying to merge the actual worlds of the characters in Super Smash Bros together. He has also said that this was made to celebrate Nintendo's 130th anniversary and to have the biggest roster ever in a fighting game, which was evidenced by the 260+ character roster. This game was meant to celebrate gaming as a whole and was a joy for everyone to work on the game.

Sakurai had stated that there were no plans to implement downloadable content or touchscreen controls of any variety. However, he also said that once the game was released DLC was something they would take into consideration. Downloadable content was eventually implemented through several additional fighters, music, items, stages, and costumes for Mii Fighters. However, the touchscreen controls were rethought and put into the game through mini-games.

## Reception

Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch has received major critical acclaim and has sold very successfully. The game has sold 950,000 units on day one, and over 1 million digitally, totaling up to 15.70 million units worldwide, making it the best selling Nintendo game of all time, and the best selling fighting game.

Super Smash Bros. Switch is the best selling game for the Nintendo Switch, as of March 31, 2019. Switch currently holds an aggregate review score of 99.99% on GameRankings and a score of 97% on Metacritic. Despite this, British publication NGamer received criticism for awarding a 93% rating to Switch, with readers deeming the score too low, especially in comparison to Official Nintendo Magazine's 95% rating. Switch has reviews with ratings equal or slightly better than it's predecessors. The game's multiplayer was received excellently, as well as it's expansive single-player modes and collectibles.

The game has also gotten major representation in tournament play, with most of the characters being shown in eSports.

## Releases

### Closed Beta

When the game was in dvelopment, a special Closed Beta version of the game was given out to popular media outlets, youtubers, and people who signed up quick enough. The beta itself lasted for 2 weeks, and was made to test the game's servers. The game has only 3 modes, Online For Glory, Online FOr Fun, and Training, and was very limited, only allowing the player to change the options, create a SMasher Card, and look at tips. There was only 2 stages, Battlefield, and Final Destination, with a select few assist characters and items.

Those who played and kept their Closed Beta save file, was awarded with a special smash icon to used for their Smasher Card.

#### Characters in the Closed Beta

* Mario
* Link
* Kirby
* Pikachu
* Sonic
* Marth
* Shantae
* Zero
* Rex
* Urban Chamipion