Forum:Link (SSBM)

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I don't want this to be long, so just discuss about Link. From anything to how to make him better to his users, discuss everything. I want you guys to bring in your own opinions, all being accepted. How do you think anyone can make him better? Is there something we may have missed; and more importantly, are there secrets that I am holding about Link?

Discuss. Requiem of Ice (talk) 22:48, 23 November 2013 (EST)

Melee is 12 years old, and has been played, analyzed, and dissected to and back; every single bit of frame and hitbox data of every move from every moveset has been uncovered and recorded, and it has been shown over and over what works and what doesn't. You're not going to "discover" anything new to make Link (or any character) "better" at this point, barring some crazy glitch that would be too convoluted to use anyway. There's nothing you can do to help with Link's inherently bad traits that keeps him from being able to viably compete, nothing of note has been "missed". What the tier list shows won't be changing in any significant way at this point, the most you can expect is a character being shown to be slightly better at even higher levels of play than a character or two above them.

I also guarantee any "secrets" of yours are useless/impractical/negligible techs, or is information already known. 99.9% of the time "secret techniques" don't work. Omega Tyrant 09:04, 24 November 2013 (EST)

Oh, it's too bad, then. I guess I'll just keep all of my techniques to myself whenever I enter tournaments. Of course, you are always invited to come against me in a Melee Money Match (or when I get Brawl back, an Online Brawl Match, but that's for a different discussion). That's when I may surprise you. Requiem of Ice (talk) 20:20, 25 November 2013 (EST)

Haha, sure, I'll wifi you, and if you ever come around here, I'll money match you in both Melee and Brawl. Just don't be a Smash Master and bitch about the lag when your "secret techniques" don't work. Omega Tyrant 00:39, 26 November 2013 (EST)

That would be nice, then. But I won't only use Link in Brawl (only in Melee). Also, do you have anything positive to say about Link? Requiem of Ice (talk) 00:52, 26 November 2013 (EST)

Ok as the primary active Melee player on the website here's what I have to say. Link is a mediocre character with a slew of neat tricks (none of which are your "secret techniques" posted on your page) but with those deceptively good traits comes an array of negative traits that hold Link back from being a fully viable character.

Link's most notable trait his is fantastic zoning ability, having considerable disjoint on his hitboxes (not to Marth levels though) and 2 very, very useful projectiles (bombs and boomerangs) both of which give Link a surprisingly deadly combo game. Furthermore Link's attacks in general are fairly speedy and actually have a great deal of power, with 4 of them being great finishers. These moves are down air, up air, forward air, and spin attack and all of them can be set up by the projectiles I mentioned earlier. Another 1 of Link's positives is his recovery. Link's spin attack gives him a good amount of distance to recover high or he can do a wall grapple out of an air dodge to recover low. Link can also extend his recovery by bomb jumping (up b'ing into thrown bomb). Link is also a fairly heavy character so he can be sent offstage quite a few times and recover safely before he is sent off the stage permanently.

Now here comes the bad things about Link. His biggest weakness is his lack of mobility options to help him zone. Melee is an extremely fast past game and the majority of top tier characters are separated from the rest of the cast simply due to their ability to outmaneuver them. Yes, some characters like Falco, Peach, and Ganon have only average or limited mobility, but make up for it by having strong defensive tools to punish movement. Link doesn't have that. While he can swat opponents away with the tools I mentioned above, he cannot move away from opponents quickly. Link has a slow running animation, a subpar dash dash, a short and slow wavedash, and a slow jump and poor air speed. This ironically makes him easy to corner and Link has few tools to deal with corner pressure having only a spin attack out of shield. The next problem is Link's weight. While it does give him a good crouch cancel and longevity against single hits, it augments Link's difficulty of getting out of pressure or combos when cornered.

Now a bit more general advice from me. First of all, listen to people more experienced than you and don't talk like you can revolutionize the game when actually you don't know anything. I'm a reasonable person but given that make false claims about Link AND the fact you aren't by any means a notable player at all, I have to conclude you're not too great at the game and thus can't take your claims seriously. Drop the act dude. While he isn't a bad character, Link has no hidden game-breaking potential. May you be enlightened soon. --Brian^{Don't try me!} 03:06, 26 November 2013 (EST)