Changes and Features Introduced in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
This page contains a list of the major features that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate contains whether they are brand new to the franchise or changes from previous titles. Major things like certain modes, new Fighters, Items, Stages, and more are detailed in their respective sections of this our wiki.
We also have a section dedicated towards news about DLC added to the game after it's released.
Modes and Features
- Squad Strike - 2-player stock battle style. Pick 3 or 5 different fighters for the match. Instead of a using Fighter with multiple stocks, you use multiple Fighters with one stock each. You and your opponent select your fighters and then secretly assign them the order they will appear in the match. The match ends when one player has used and lost all of their Fighters.
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- Smash Down - Special Smashes such as, Giant, Heavy, and 300% return. A new addition to the franchise is Smash Down. In this multiplayer mode. Players chose their fighter and play a series of battles (you chose how many you want) with rules just like those available in normal Smash. The twist? Each Fighter is only available to be used once and by one player! After every match the previously used fighters disappear from the roster. Keep playing through the ever decreasing roster until one player reaches the predetermined amount of wins for the series.
- Classic Mode - Classic Mode is now catered specifically towards each Fighter and ends in a boss battle depending on which Fighter is it is. See specific details in our Classic Mode section of the wiki!
- No More Trophies - Trophies which were used in previous titles. Trophies in the Smash Bros. series have been used to reward players and represent/celebrate other video games. Masahiro Sakuri, the game's director, stated that Trophies would have required too many resources to produce in this game due to the vast amount of content. Spirits were featured as a compromise and extended into their own game mechanics.
- Spirits - These collectible illustrations are acquired in a variety of way. Spirits used in battle can cause a variety of changes to a Fighter's stats, status effects, items equipped, and stage hazards. The Spirit Board offers a dynamic selection of Spirit Battles to participate in. Learn more about this new feature in our Spirits section.
- Adventure Mode - World of Light is the single player campaign for the game. You start with Kirby as your only Fighter. You must defeat Spirit battles free captive Fighters and traverse through this very expansive world. Our wiki has a full walkthrough for this campaign, click here.
- Battle Arenas - You must have a Nintendo Switch Online Membership to play Smash Ultimate online. Playing with friends online is only possible through Battle Arenas which are essentially rooms you or your friend sets rules for. Learn more about Online Play and Battle Arenas in our wiki.
Rulesets for Smash
- Rules First - Rules are the first thing set for a match, before stages and fighters.
- Save Your Rules - When playing local multiplayer Smash battles, you now select the Rules from their own dedicated screen. You can save different Rulesets with names so that they're available for you to choose in future plays.
- Variety of adjustments - Ultimate allows for more customization options as never before, like even enabling Spirits and toggling stage hazards on/off.
Stages Selection
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- Battlefield & Omega for All - All stages have Battlefield and Omega forms.
- Eight Players Anywhere - All stages can be played with 8 players!
- Stage Morph - Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has the option to shift between two different stages during a match. You can adjust the settings in the Rulesets.
Fighter Selection
- Outfits, Not Just Colors - Outfits are the official name for the alternate costumes certain fighter have access to. Outfits are generally completely different than the default costume, which separates them from the alternate colors. Some examples include Link's Armor of the Wild Outfit and Mario's Super Mario Maker Outfit. Not every Fighter has alternate Outfits.
- More Ways to Choose - When choosing outfits and costumes, you can now tap on your Fighter's portrait to display icons for each color instead of having to cycle through.
- Simpler to Add Players - VS. Mode now defaults to a 1v1 matchup, and you can easily add or lower the amount of fighters using the + or - button on the side of the screen.
- Mii Fighters - Super Smash Bros. Ultimate offers more outfits and voices to customize your Mii Fighters.
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General Combat Changes
- Air Dodging Shifts - The Directional Air Dodge from Melee makes a return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, albeit slightly altered. When dodging in the air you now have the option to execute a short dash in four directions, though it will put you into free fall. You still have the option to do a neutral, Non-Directional Air Dodge and not enter free fall afterwards.
- Less Fighters, More Damage - 1v1 matches have Fighters deal more damage with each hit. Example, where a Fighter might deal 10% damage with an attack in a battle with 3 or more players. That Fighter may deal 14% damage with the same attack when in a 1v1.
- Land and Go - Landing Lag has been reduced for all Fighters.
- New Control Options - There are new button press combinations to use: Pressing A+B will perform a Smash Attack which can be used in place of flicking the control stick. Holding Jump+A or Jump+A+Direction now automatically performs a "short hop" attack.
- Dash & Smash - When dashing in one direction, you can pivot and stop in place by performing a smash attack in the opposite direction.
- New Items - There are a variety of old and new Items, Assist Trophies and Pokemon that can be used during battles. Check out our wiki sections for details on each.
- KO Assist Trophies! - In Time Battles, there were a few stage hazards like the Yellow Devil in Wily Castle that would awards points for being defeated. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, many Assist Trophies that actively engage and attack players can also be KO'd, and will grant a point to the player that defeats them.
- Charge While Falling - Charge up moves like Samus' Charge Beam can now be done in midair instead of only on the ground. You can jump or dodge to stop this, but it may leave you vulnerable.
- Spamming Dodges - Repeated dodge-rolling will now begin to lag considerably, slowing down at the end of the roll and lowering the amount of time you are invulnerable to attack, while lengthening the amount of time you are recovering from the roll.
Final Smashes
- Quicker Final Smashes - All Final Smashes have been changed, modified, or outright overhauled to be faster and dependent on a single attack. Final Smashes that transformed your fighter for a limited time have been changed in favor of a hit or miss attack.
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- Final Smash Meter: This meter is displayed next to the Fighter's portrait on the bottom of the screen. It fills as you deal and obtain damage. Once filled, your Fighter glows just like when they have a Smash Ball. Unlike the Smash Ball, you cannot loose this from repeated hits. Final Smashes gained from this are somewhat weaker than those obtained from a Smash Ball.
- FS Meter Recharge - Your meter will start recharging once you've used your final smash. Getting KO'd with a meter will deplete some of it's charge.
Visual Changes in Battles
- Emphasis on Strong Attacks - In Ultimate, the screen freezes and zooms in on a potentially fatal attack to give it a more climactic feel. This only happens for certain powerful attacks (like Captain Falcon's Falcon Punch) and often occurs for the very last hit that KOs a Fighter and ends the match. This can also happen when KO'ing an Assist Trophy.
- Score Board - In a 1v1 Stock match a giant scoreboard covers the screen with every kill, keeping the players and viewers updated on the current stock count. (Can be toggled on/off in the Rulesets)
- Smoke Trails - When one of your attacks launches an enemy the smoke trail behind them will be the same color as your portrait color. If you are the blue player, enemies hit with your attacks will generate blue smoke. This will make it much easier to tell who hit you in a frantic free-for-all battle.
- Radar - In previous Smash titles players who were knocked outside the camera view would have to guess their position based on the small out of bounds icon. In Ultimate, a mini-map has been added in the top left or right corner to show players their exact position in relation to the stage and blast zone. This map only appears when a player is out of the camera view. (Can be changed in Rulesets)
- Item Graphics - Many retro items and assist trophies now include 8-bit effects or alter the background while the item is in play - like the Hammer's 8-bit graphical explosion when it connects with a player, or the Pac-Man Ghosts turning the background dark.
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- Final Smash Signaling - Triggering a Final Smash will now show a cut of the fighter's eyes in a more dramatic flair before the attack lands.
- Precise Percentages - Fighter portraits now calculate damage percent to the nearest decimal point (i.e. 20.5%)
- Signaling Greater Damage - Fighter portraits start to appear smokey after around 120%.
- Signaling Who's Winning - In Time Battles, the player who is in the lead may occasionally have a gold glint effect that clues other players on who to target in a match.
- Tie-Breaker Shrinks Area - During Sudden Death, the screen's borders are now wreathed in flames, and the screen itself will begin slowly zooming in until victory is declared.