Dr. Mario (SSB4)

Dr. Mario in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Mario
Other playable appearances	in Melee in Ultimate
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Doctor Finale
Tier	F (48)

Dr. Mario (Dr. マリオ, Dr. Mario) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. His return to the series was announced on SSB4's official website on October 9th, 2014, during which Dark Pit was also revealed. Charles Martinet reprises his role as Dr. Mario's voice actor; however, he now uses Mario's voice clips recycled from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, some of which have been muted.

Dr. Mario is ranked 48th out of 54 on the tier list, placing him in the F tier. This is a significant drop from his mid-tier placement in Super Smash Bros. Melee, where he was ranked 13th out of 26, and ranked higher than his normal self. The implementation of multipliers to most of Dr. Mario's moveset and some of his attributes result in him functioning like a stronger, yet slower Mario. As a result, his overall damage output and KO potential are above-average for a character of his size and weight. Similar to Mario, Dr. Mario's frame data is very fast in regard to start-up lag. In addition to granting him a decent combo game, this trait makes him both difficult to punish and very effective at punishing.

However, the multipliers applied to some of Dr. Mario's attributes collectively result in him being considerably slower and less nimble than Mario. Due to changes to game mechanics and some adjustments to his moveset, Dr. Mario's combo game is also inferior to Mario's in regard to both versatility and consistency. Furthermore, Dr. Mario's recovery is inferior to Mario's overall, and he retains Mario's weakness of having short range in his attacks.

Overall, Dr. Mario's weaknesses outweigh his strengths, which has been reflected in having extremely sparse tournament results and performances for all of Smash 4. Although he is considered nonviable in competitive play and compared unfavorably to Mario, Dr. Mario has nevertheless achieved instances of success, thanks to smashers such as 2ManyCooks and B7Games.

How to unlock

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• Play 60 VS Matches.
• Clear Classic Mode as Mario on Intensity 4.0 or higher.

After completing one of the two methods, Dr. Mario must then be defeated on Mushroomy Kingdom.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

• Play 50 VS Matches.
• Clear Master Orders on Hard difficulty.

After completing one of the two methods, Dr. Mario must then be defeated on Delfino Plaza.

Attributes

As a clone of Mario, Dr. Mario is a middleweight that can wall jump. Like his normal self, Dr. Mario also has excellent frame data: when not counting special moves, the overall start-up lag of his normal moveset is the fifth fastest in the game. As a result, Dr. Mario is both difficult to punish and very effective at punishing. Although they share an overwhelming number of identical animations and even the exact same values for certain attributes (falling speed; fast falling speed; traction; and gravity), Dr. Mario nevertheless has a number of traits that differ from his normal self. Like Mario, Dr. Mario's height is below-average; oddly, however, he is marginally shorter in comparison, and does not crouch as low as his normal self.

Unlike in Melee, Dr. Mario now functions like a stronger, yet slower Mario, owing to the implementation of multipliers to the majority of his moveset and some of his attributes. Aside from six moves, the remainder of Dr. Mario's moveset deals 1.12× more damage compared to Mario's moveset. Conversely, his walking and dashing speeds are 0.832× slower; his air speed, air acceleration, and jump heights are 0.808× slower. These multipliers result in Dr. Mario being distinctly affected by passive equipment physics, in which he specifically possesses a +15 Attack value and a -50 Speed value. Although Dr. Mario's lower jump height makes his short hop more effective than Mario's, these modified attributes collectively render his overall mobility as sub-par. Conversely, Dr. Mario's higher overall damage output results in him being noticeably more efficient at KOing in comparison to Mario.

Other noticeable differences between Dr. Mario and Mario are seen in their movesets and, by extension, their playstyles. Although Dr. Mario's frame data is only slightly slower than Mario's, his higher overall damage output and slower overall mobility make him unable to use a healthy balance of offense and defense like his normal self. Instead, Dr. Mario is much better suited to a bait-and-punish playstyle. On a related note, Dr. Mario's combo game is less varied and consistent compared to his normal self's. Despite this, his combos deal respectable damage in spite of their fairly short lengths, similarly to Ike's.

He also shares two useful combo starters with Mario, thanks to said moves being modified since Melee. Down tilt is the most effective of the two: although it is short-ranged, it is very reliable at low to high percentages, with useful follow-ups including itself, neutral attack, up tilt, his smash attacks, back aerial, up aerial, and Super Jump Punch. Like Super Jump Punch, forward aerial can function as a KO mix-up at high percentages, but requires a hard read. Up tilt can combo into itself reliably, albeit not as consistently as Mario's version because of its higher damage output. However, its higher damage output makes it better at juggling, and even enables it to function as a situational KOing option at very high percentages.

Outside of these moves, up smash functions almost identically to Luigi's version instead of Mario's version: it launches the opponent diagonally instead of vertically, and will launch them in the opposite direction of where Dr. Mario is facing so long as they are in front of him. Compared to Luigi's, however, it launches at a lower angle. As a result, Dr. Mario's version has much greater combo potential when uncharged: it can combo into itself, up tilt and Super Jump Punch at 0%-10%, and into forward and down tilt at 10%-15%. On an unrelated note, its launching angle also makes it much better at edge-guarding or setting up edge-guards compared to Mario and Luigi's versions.

Dr. Mario possesses a decent grab game. His overall grab is range is average, but each of his grabs have minimal start-up and ending lag. Dr. Mario's pummel also has the distinction of being the most damaging in the game by default, as it is surpassed by Olimar and Shulk's pummels only if they use White Pikmin and the Buster Art, respectively. Forward throw is useful for initiating edge-guards and can even combo into dash attack at 0%-20%, whereas back throw is a viable KOing option at high percentages.

Up throw is able to initiate aerial pressure, especially on fast-fallers, but is effectively his least useful throw. Lastly, down throw is able to combo into Dr. Tornado at low percentages, and into up aerial at low to medium percentages. It can also combo into up smash; reverse aerial rushed back aerial; down aerial; and even forward aerial and Super Jump Punch as KO mix-ups at high percentages. However, up smash is only effective against the majority of the cast at 0%-10%, whereas the latter four follow-ups require hard reads.

Like his normal self, Dr. Mario's air game is above-average. Neutral aerial is a "reverse sex kick": its clean hitbox deals minimal damage, whereas its late hitbox deals more damage. Thanks to it hitting on frame 3 and having low landing lag, its clean hitbox is ideal for set-ups. Conversely, its late hitbox is decent at edgeguarding. Back aerial is also fast; auto-cancels in a short hop; and possesses a powerful clean hitbox, which collectively make it viable for KOing, edge-guarding and approaching. Forward aerial has considerable start-up lag, but its clean hitbox makes it the third strongest aerial of its kind; as such, it is lethal when SHFF'd against unwary opponents that are near the edge.

Up aerial's horizontal launching angle grants its beginning and ending frames decent combo potential into Super Jump Punch and back aerial, respectively, at low to medium percentages. This angle also makes its beginning frames capable of edge-guarding, unlike his normal self's up aerial. However, up aerial's launching angle also makes it much less effective at starting combos when SHFF'd or juggling compared to Mario's. Down aerial hits multiple times like Mario Tornado, and its final hitbox has a horizontal launching angle like up aerial. As a result, it is much more effective for edge-guarding compared to Mario Tornado, yet completely unusable for juggling. Compared to Mario's up aerial and Mario Tornado, however, Dr. Mario's up and down aerials are unable to KO outright because of their much lower knockback scaling and less damaging final hitbox, respectively.

In regard to special moves, Megavitamins travel farther in the air without landing compared to Mario's Fireball, and they bounce twice instead of three times. Super Sheet's reflection hitbox has a longer duration compared to Cape's. Due to its hitbox being positioned higher, it also has more vertical range, yet less horizontal range in comparison. Most notably, Super Sheet no longer stalls Dr. Mario in midair like it did in Melee. To alleviate the removal of Super Sheet's recovery potential, Dr. Tornado is now a much more integral part of Dr. Mario's recovery, thanks to it granting him a decent amount of horizontal distance when it is button mashed sufficiently.

Unlike F.L.U.D.D., Dr. Tornado deals damage. When coupled with its very high knockback scaling, auto-link angle and transcendent priority, it is useful for edge-guarding, warding off edge-guarders, and even out-prioritizing attacks. However, Dr. Tornado's much shorter range makes it much riskier to use for edge-guarding compared to F.L.U.D.D. Due to Super Jump Punch consisting of a powerful clean hitbox and a weak late hitbox instead of multiple hitboxes like Mario's, it actually functions like a less polarized version of Luigi's Super Jump Punch. As a result, its clean hitbox makes it a viable KOing option unlike Mario's. Although it can no longer be canceled, Super Jump Punch can now be B-reversed upon landing its clean hitbox like Mario's can upon start-up. This makes it useful for edgeguarding, and can enable Dr. Mario to avoid punishment and/or hit an opponent behind himself upon hitting his primary target.

However, Dr. Mario's flaws are significantly more noticeable in comparison to Mario's. Although he boasts excellent KO potential, it is inconsistent. This is most obvious with up smash: its launching angle makes it reliable at KOing only while near the edge, whereas Mario and, to a lesser degree, Luigi's up smashes KO reliably from anywhere on-stage because of their higher launching angles. By extension, he has minimal KO set-ups like Mario. Additionally, Dr. Mario shares Mario's notable weakness of having short range in his attacks, which hinders his ability to fight characters with long or disjointed range. Dr. Mario's sluggish mobility compounds another notable weakness: his recovery. Despite now being able to wall jump, the combination of his slow air speed; slow air acceleration; and Super Jump Punch's mediocre travel distance results in his recovery being predictable like Mario's.

Due to his overall recovery granting noticeably less vertical distance compared to Mario's, Dr. Mario is very vulnerable to most meteor smashes. As a result, it is optimal for him to read the opponent when trying to return to the stage, as well as knowing when and how to make use of Dr. Tornado. Even though Dr. Mario may not need to use his double jump to recover, any sufficiently strong attacks, particularly semi-spikes, may launch him too far away to recover properly. Lastly, Dr. Mario is an all-rounder like his normal self, and is thus outclassed in certain aspects by other characters: Donkey Kong and Captain Falcon have more power and much better overall mobility; Mario, Luigi and Bayonetta have much more versatile combo games; Marth and Cloud have much more range; and R.O.B. and Duck Hunt are much better at zoning.

Dr. Mario benefits significantly from his custom moves. Like Mario, his custom moves define the fundamentals of customization, but in Dr. Mario's case, some of them alleviate his most significant flaws. Fast Capsule deals less damage and barely causes flinching, but covers more range at a much faster pace. Conversely, Mega Capsule has less range and is much slower, but deals repeated damage and lingers after being thrown. This allows it to shut down many approaches from characters that lack projectiles, as well as provide follow-ups. Breezy Sheet provides more safety when fighting near the edge but deals slightly less damage, whereas Shocking Sheet gives Dr. Mario another KOing option that has decent speed, but merely destroys projectiles instead of reflecting them.

Ol' One-Two gives Dr. Mario a fast and extremely powerful KOing option that can KO at very low percentages, but at the cost of further hindering his already sub-par recovery. Conversely, Super Jump functions in the exact opposite way: it grants noticeably better recovery, but deals no damage. However, Soaring Tornado is arguably Dr. Mario's best custom move because of its utility. It grants noticeably better vertical recovery; has incredible edge-guarding potential thanks to its windbox and hitbox; and its hitbox is powerful enough to KO early either on-stage or off-stage. However, these benefits come at the cost of it granting no horizontal recovery. Conversely, Clothesline Tornado is effectively his worst custom move: it boasts impressive power, yet further hinders his recovery; has a shorter duration; and has slower start-up lag.

Overall, Dr. Mario's fast frame data enables him to pressure and/or punish the opponent effectively at close range, while his above-average damage output makes him capable of KOing easily. Unlike Mario, however, his slow mobility hinders his neutral game to the point that he is largely reliant on baiting and punishing. By extension, his sub-par recovery makes him a less capable edgeguarder compared to his normal self, and he retains his normal self's lack of range as well.

Differences from Mario

Like in Melee, Dr. Mario functions as a stronger clone of Mario. However, he is now significantly slower compared to Mario. With Mario's Down Special and Down Aerial changes in Brawl, this slightly declones Dr. Mario; albeit Luigi still shares similar moves. In addition, Dr. Mario's Up Special is now a single hit opposed to being a multi-hit attack, with the coins being removed.

While also factoring in the differences Dr. Mario had from Mario in Melee, this gives Dr. Mario a drastically different playstyle from his original counterpart, despite sharing many common moves.

Aesthetics

• Dr. Mario's stance is identical to Mario's, albeit slower.
• Dr. Mario is less vocal than Mario. Some of his attacks also emit different sound effects.
• Dr. Mario's on-screen appearance; taunts; idle poses; and victory poses are different from Mario's.
• Dr. Mario looks straight ahead during his defeated/No Contest animation, whereas Mario looks slightly to the left. Additionally, his arms are place slightly higher than Mario's.
• Dr. Mario keeps his fingers close to each other during his screen KO, whereas Mario spreads his apart.

Attributes

• Some of Dr. Mario's raw properties are modified as if he were wearing equipment of +15 attack and -50 speed.
  • The damage outputs of Dr. Mario's attacks use a 1.12x multiplier. As a result, he is stronger than Mario. However, this multiplier does not apply to reflected projectiles or items, and the base damage of his moves can also differ from Mario's.
  • Dr. Mario's walking speed, dashing speed and initial dash speed use a 0.832x multiplier; his jump heights, air speed, air acceleration and air friction use a 0.808x multiplier. As a result, Dr. Mario is significantly less mobile than Mario.
• Dr. Mario's wall jump covers less height, hindering his recovery.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack's first two hits have more weight-based knockback (15/10/15 (hit 1)/18/15/18 (hit 2) → 30 (both)). Additionally, Dr. Mario's neutral attack's first two hits can launch the opponent diagonally or vertically (60°/70°/80° (hit 1), 70°/78°/88° (hit 2)), whereas Mario's can launch the opponent horizontally or vertically (361°/361°/80° (both)). Lastly, neutral attack has more ending lag (frame 20 (hit 1)/frame 22 (hit 2)/frame 34 (hit 3) → 23/25/36). Altogether, these differences make it less effective at jab canceling and jab locking, and can result in lightweight and/or floaty characters escaping its entirety at high percentages.
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt has a longer duration (frames 5-6 → 5-7).
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt has higher base damage (5.5 → 6.3). This makes it significantly more effective for KOing, but less effective for combos.
• Dash attack:
  • Dash attack has different knockback (100 (base)/40 (scaling) → 90/42). Dr. Mario's dash attack also launches the opponent vertically (90° (clean/late)), whereas Mario's can launch them diagonally or horizontally (60° (clean)/110° (late)). These differences make it more effective for combos at low percentages.
• Forward smash:
  • Dr. Mario's forward smash's sweetspot and sourspot are on his arm and electricity respectively, whereas Mario's are on the flame and his arm respectively.
    • It has lower knockback scaling (99 (sweetspot)/103 (sourspot) → 96/100), partially compensating for the increased damage.
  • It has slightly less range.
  • It has an electric effect, whereas Mario's has a flame effect. This makes it safer on shield, but easier to DI.
  • Dr. Mario keeps his fingers outstretched while using forward smash, whereas Mario curls his fingers.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash has different knockback (32 (base)/94 (scaling) → 0/117). Dr. Mario's up smash also launches the opponent horizontally (130°), whereas Mario's launches them vertically (83°). These differences make it significantly more effective for combos at low percentages and KOing while near the edge, but make it significantly less effective for KOing and punishing.
  • It has a longer duration (frames 9-12 → 9-13).
• The 19% damage increase to shields and the increase to shieldstun make Dr. Mario's smash attacks significantly more effective at pressuring shields.

Aerial attacks

• All aerial attacks have more landing lag (10 frames → 12 (neutral), 26 frames → 28 (forward), 12 frames → 16 (back), 12 frames → 14 (up), 19 frames → 21 (down)).
• Neutral aerial:
  • Dr. Mario's neutral aerial deals more damage and has higher knockback the longer it is active, whereas Mario's functions oppositely.
  • It can lock until ≈40%.
  • It has a shorter duration (frames 3-5 (clean) → 3-10, 6-29 (late) → 11-27).
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial's clean hit has higher base damage (14 → 15). Forward aerial also has more knockback scaling (80 (early/late)/78 (clean) → 95/102).
  • The clean hit has less base knockback (32 → 30).
  • The clean hit launches the opponent diagonally (50°), whereas Mario's meteor smashes them (280°).
  • The early and late hits have lower base damage (12 (early)/10 (late) → 10/9).
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial's clean hit deals more base damage (10.5 → 12), making it more effective for KOing in spite of its lower knockback (12 (base)/106 (scaling) → 10/95).
  • It has a longer duration (frames 6-10 → 6-13).
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial has less knockback (10 (base)/135 (scaling) → 9/100). Dr. Mario's up aerial also launches the opponent diagonally (45°), whereas Mario's launches them vertically (75°). These differences make its beginning frames capable of edge-guarding, and its ending frames better for aerial combos. However, they also make its beginning frames unusable for KOing, and significantly less effective for juggling and SHFF'd combos.
• Down aerial:
  • Dr. Mario retains his diagonal corkscrew dropkick as his down aerial, whereas Mario's has been Mario Tornado as of Brawl.
  • The loop hits have higher base damage (1 → 1.7).
  • The last hit has lower base damage (5 → 3) and has different knockback (80 (base)/100 (scaling) → 50/120). These differences make it significantly less effective for KOing.
  • The loop hits use the auto-link angle (366°), whereas Mario Tornado's launch the opponent vertically (94°). This makes its hits connect together significantly better.
  • The last hit launches the opponent diagonally (45°), whereas Mario Tornado's launches them vertically (75°). This makes it capable of edge-guarding, but significantly less effective for juggling.
  • It has more start-up (frame 5 → 11); ending lag (frame 13 → 27); and smaller hitboxes. It also autocancels later than Mario Tornado (frame 33 → 45), preventing it from autocanceling in a short hop.

Grabs and throws

• Back throw:
  • It has less knockback scaling (66 → 60). This makes it less effective for KOing despite its higher damage output.
• Up throw:
  • Due to its higher damage output, up throw is as effective for combos at low percentages in spite of its lower knockback (70 (base)/72 (scaling) → 65/70).
• Down throw:
  • Down throw has altered knockback, with more base knockback, but less knockback scaling (40 (base)/90 (scaling) → 75/45).
    • It has less knockback overall, allowing it to combo for longer and improving its ability to combo into an aerial attack.
    • However, its higher base knockback causes it put opponents into tumble at very low percents and worsens its ability to combo into a series of up tilts at low percents.
  • It launches the opponent vertically (80°), whereas Mario's launches them diagonally (68°). This makes its combos less susceptible to directional influence.

Special moves

• Megavitamins
  • Unlike Fireball, Megavitamins cannot be absorbed.
  • It do not have a flame effect, unlike Fireball.
  • It bounce twice and at a higher angle, whereas Fireball bounces three times and at a lower angle.
  • Dr. Mario keeps his fingers outstretched while using Megavitamins, whereas Mario curls his while using Fireball.
• Super Sheet
  • Compared to Cape, Super Sheet's reflection hitbox has a longer duration (frames 6-20 → 6-22).
  • Compared to Cape, Super Sheet's hitbox is positioned slightly upward. This results in it having slightly more vertical range, but slightly less horizontal range.
  • Unlike aerial Cape, aerial Super Sheet does not stall Dr. Mario. This makes more effective at B-reversing, but unusable for recovery.
• Super Jump Punch
  • Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch consists of a clean hitbox and a late hitbox, whereas Mario's consists of seven hitboxes.
  • Due to its higher damage output, the clean hit is significantly more effective for KOing in spite of its lower knockback (52 (base)/145 (scaling) → 30/100). Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch also has a longer duration than Mario's (frames 3-11 → 3-19).
  • It retains its vertical distance from Melee, whereas Mario's has increased, making it less effective for recovery.
  • Unlike Mario's, It lacks intangibility on start-up.
  • It does not produce Coins upon contact, whereas Mario's does.
• Dr. Tornado
  • Dr. Mario retains Dr. Tornado as his down special, whereas Mario's has been F.L.U.D.D. as of Brawl.
  • Unlike F.L.U.D.D., Dr. Tornado deals damage.
  • Compared to F.L.U.D.D., Dr. Tornado is significantly more effective for recovery.
  • Compared to F.L.U.D.D., Dr. Tornado has significantly less range, making it ineffective for gaining stage control.
  • Due to dealing damage, It is less effective at gimping.
• Doctor Finale
  • Doctor Finale produces 2D and 3D Megavitamin-based effects and emits Megavitamins' contact sound effect, whereas Mario Finale produces 3D fiery effects and emits a burning sound effect.
  • Its hitboxes are further out (Z offset: 0 → 10), improving its range.

Other

• Dr. Mario uses Ties as defensive Equipment, whereas Mario uses Overalls.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. Melee

Dr. Mario became one of the most noticeably reworked veterans upon his transition from Melee to SSB4. Unlike in Melee, he now functions as a stronger, yet slower Mario because of multipliers being applied to the majority of his moveset and some of his attributes. However, Dr. Mario's stronger moveset does not compensate for his much slower mobility. As a result, he is among the few characters to have been heavily nerfed in the transition to SSB4.

Aside from the multipliers, changes to game mechanics have indirectly buffed and nerfed Dr. Mario. Rage makes his KOing options KO even heavyweights with relative ease. Additionally, the higher damage multiplier for fully charged smash attacks makes his fully charged forward/up smashes even more potent. Lastly, the changes to shields and shieldstun supplement Dr. Mario's smash attacks by making them much better at pressuring shields. However, the removal of chain grabbing significantly worsens his up and down throws' damage racking potentials, while the removal of wavedashing further compounds his already worsened approach.

A number of Dr. Mario's moves have received buffs and nerfs. Down tilt now functions like Mario's, and is thus a reliable combo starter at low to high percentages. Up aerial's lower launching angle makes it better for edge-guarding and partaking in combos. Down aerial and Dr. Tornado's hitbox alterations result in their hits connecting together better. Megavitamins have longer ranges, are no longer absorbable and, when used in the air, descend faster. Super Jump Punch now possesses KO potential, thanks to it functioning like a less polarized version of Luigi's Super Jump Punch. Conversely, neutral attack deals much less damage; forward aerial is only effective when sweetspotted; up aerial has significantly worsened juggling potential; down aerial and Megavitamins have lower damage outputs, more lag, shorter durations and, in the case of the latter, a smaller hitbox; and back throw's KO potential has worsened.

However, several of Dr. Mario's moves have been ambivalently buffed and nerfed. Up tilt's consistent angle makes more reliable for combo, but at the cost of its versatility. Up smash is no longer a spike, which makes its KO potential more consistent at the cost of significantly worsening its ability to start combos. Down smash's front hit is now a semi-spike, but has a much lower damage output. Neutral aerial's lower damage output makes its clean hitbox better for set-ups, yet removes its late hitbox's KO potential. Back aerial's clean hitbox now possesses KO potential, yet is no longer a semi-spike. Lastly, Super Jump Punch can now be B-reversed upon landing its clean hitbox, but at the cost of its ability to be canceled.

Despite being poor in Melee, Dr. Mario's recovery also received a mix of buffs and nerfs. His jump is higher, his air speed is faster, he can now wall jump like his normal self, and Dr. Tornado can now be moved horizontally. However, Dr. Tornado now covers much less vertical distance, while Super Sheet no longer stalls him in the air. As a result, Dr. Mario is forced to mix up the usage of Dr. Tornado by using it before his jump, before his double jump, or after his double jump.

All in all, Dr. Mario’s overhaul changed him for the worse, as he has become a significantly less effective character than he was in Melee, especially when comparing him to Mario. As such, he is widely regarded as an unviable low tier character, and is overall one of the most nerfed characters in Smash 4, alongside Wario, Marth prior to updates, Kirby, Falco, Olimar, Meta Knight prior to updates, and King Dedede.

Aesthetics

• Dr. Mario's design is now a combination of his appearance as of Dr. Mario Online Rx, and his appearance in Super Smash Bros. Melee. His fair skin; dark brown hair; fully buttoned white coat; red tie; and tawny shoes are from Online Rx and subsequent Dr. Mario games, whereas his white coat's loose sleeves and dark gray pants are from Melee.
• Dr. Mario's neck is longer, his pants are now slightly rolled up at his ankles, the collar of his shirt is open, his tie is loose and his stethoscope's tubing and head mirror's headband are dark gray and dark taupe, respectively, instead of steel blue and cordovan, respectively. These changes are unique to SSB4.
• Dr. Mario's coat and stethoscope have individual physics.
• Dr. Mario has received three new alternate costumes.
• Dr. Mario has been updated with universal features introduced in Brawl.
  • Dr. Mario uses various voice clips for any move between the third hit of his neutral attack, any tilt attack, his dash attack, and any aerial attack, and always uses specific clips for both his up and down smash attacks.
  • Dr. Mario now has an on-screen appearance and two new taunts. His taunt from Melee has been moved to his side taunt.
• Dr. Mario no longer uses his stun voice clip when waking out of sleep status.
• Walk's animation has changed. It is now identical to Mario's as of Brawl.
• Dr. Mario has a new idle pose. He now punches his open palm with his fist. However, his stance while holding a light item is now identical to Mario's.
• Dr. Mario has a new victory pose. He now contemplatively rubs his chin with his hand. It replaces the "Here we go!" victory pose that he shared with Mario in Melee.
• Dr. Mario's chest now faces the foreground, regardless of whether he is facing left or right.

Attributes

• Dr. Mario is slightly shorter. This makes his hurtbox slightly smaller, but slightly hinders his range.
• Due to the majority of Mario's damage output having slightly decreased since Brawl, the majority of Dr. Mario's damage output has also slightly decreased. This slightly improves his combo game, but slightly hinders his damage racking potential.
• Dr. Mario is lighter (100 → 98), as he now weighs as much as Mario as of Brawl. This makes him slightly less susceptible to combos, but slightly hinders his endurance.
• Dr. Mario walks slower (1.1 → 0.913).
• Dr. Mario dashes slower (1.5 → 1.3312).
• Dr. Mario's traction is lower (0.06 → 0.045), as it is now identical to Mario's.
• Dr. Mario's air speed is faster (0.9 → 0.9315).
• Dr. Mario's falling speed is slower (1.7 → 1.5). This makes him less susceptible to combos, but hinders his vertical endurance.
• Dr. Mario's gravity is lower (0.095 → 0.08715). This slightly improves his horizontal endurance, but slightly hinders his aerial mobility.
• Rolls and air dodge have decreased ending lag (FAF 31 → 30 (rolls), FAF 48 → 33 (air dodge)).
• Sidestep has increased ending lag (FAF 22 → 27).
• Rolls and air dodge have decreased intangibility frames (frames 4-19 → 4-16 (rolls), frames 4-29 → 3-27 (air dodge)).
• Sidestep has increased intangibility frames (frames 2-15 → 3-17).
• Dr. Mario jumps higher and can now wall jump.
• Jumpsquat is slower (4 frames → 5).
• Backward jump's animation has changed. Dr. Mario now performs a Backward Somersault repeatedly like Mario does, instead of once.
• The removal of wavedashing significantly hinders Dr. Mario's approach.
• The removal of meteor canceling harms Dr. Mario more than any returning veteran, due to his lack of a meteor smash.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack deals less damage (4% (hit 1)/3% (hit 2)/6% (hit 3) → 2.8%/1.68%/4.48%), although its last hit's knockback was somewhat compensated (18 (base)/100 (scaling) → 45/80).
  • Neutral attack has increased ending lag (FAF 16 (hit 1)/19 (hit 2)/23 (hit 3) → 23/25/36), hindering its jab canceling potential. Its last hit also has increased start-up lag (frame 5 → 7) and a shorter duration (frames 5-9 → 7-8).
  • Neutral attack's first hit is now a consecutive jab. Its second hit also has decreased start-up lag (frame 3 → 2). This makes its first two hits connect together better.
  • Neutral attack's first and second hits' angles have been altered (83°/83°/85° (both) → 60°/70°/80° (hit 1)/70°/78°/88° (hit 2)).
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt now deals consistent damage (9% (upward)/8% (non-angled)/7% (downward) → 7.84% (all)).
  • Forward tilt have increased start-up lag (frame 4 → 5) along with having a shorter duration (frames 4-8 → 5-7).
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt deals less damage (10% (clean)/8% (late) → 7.056%). Due to consisting of a consistent hitbox instead of a clean hitbox and a late hitbox, up tilt's angle has also been altered (361° (clean)/100° (late) → 96°). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes improve its combo potential. However, these changes hinder its utility.
  • Up tilt have increased start-up lag (frame 4 → 5) along with having a shorter duration (frames 4-12 → 5-11).
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt deals less damage (9% → 7.84% (body)/5.6% (foot)); has decreased ending lag (FAF 33 → 28); and its angle has been altered (150° → 80° (body/foot)). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes grant it combo potential at low to high percentages.
  • Down tilt has a shorter duration (frames 5-8 → 5-7).
• Dash attack:
  • Dash attack deals less damage (9% (clean)/8% (late) → 8.96%/6.72%). However, its clean hitbox's knockback was compensated (70 (base)/30 (scaling) → 90/42), and its late hitbox's knockback was somewhat compensated (60 (base)/50 (scaling) → 90/42). Its angle has also been altered (80° (clean)/85° (late) → 90° (both)). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes slightly improve its combo potential at low percentages. However, these changes slightly hinder its safety.
• The 19% damage increase to shields and the increase to shieldstun significantly improve all smash attacks' shield pressuring potentials.
• Forward smash:
  • Non-angled and downward angled forward smash deal more damage (19% (non-angled)/18% (downward) → 19.04%/19.6112%), although their knockback was compensated (30 (base)/97 (scaling) → 25/96). Forward smash has also received a sourspot located at the blast of electricity that deals 16.464% (upward)/15.68% (non-angled)/16.1504% (downward). This increases its range.
  • Due to the damage multiplier for fully charged smash attacks being increased from Melee to SSB4 (1.3671× → 1.4×), fully charged forward and up smashes deal more damage (27.342% (upward)/25.9749% (non-angled)/24.6078% (downward) (forward) → 27.9888%/26.656%/27.45568%, 21.8736% (clean)/17.7723% (late) (up) → 21.952%).
  • Upward angled forward smash deals 0.008% less damage (20% → 19.992%) and has decreased knockback (30 (base)/97 (scaling) → 25/96), slightly hindering its KO potential. Forward angled also has increased start-up (frame 12 → 15), ending lag (FAF 42 → 48), and a shorter duration (frames 12-16 → 15-17).
• Up smash:
  • Due to consisting of a consistent hitbox instead of a clean hitbox and a late hitbox, up smash now deals consistent damage (16% (clean)/13% (late) → 15.68%).
  • Due to its angle being altered (259° (clean/late) → 130°), up smash is no longer a spike. This improves its KO potential, but significantly hinders its combo potential.
  • Up smash has a longer duration (frames 9-11 → 9-13) and increased intangibility frames (frames 9-11 → 9-13).
• Down smash:
  • Down smash's front hit deals less damage (18% (clean)/17% (late) → 11.2%), hindering its KO potential. Additionally, down smash has increased ending lag (FAF 38 → 44). Lastly, down smash's back hit has a shorter duration (frames 14-15 → 14).
  • Due to consisting of a consistent hitbox instead of a clean hitbox and a late hitbox, down smash's back hit now deals consistent damage (15% (clean)/13% (late) → 13.44%). However, its knockback was somewhat compensated (45 (base)/75 (scaling) → 30/100). These changes improve its KO potential in spite of its damage output being lower than the clean hitbox's.
  • Due to its angle being altered (361° (front/back) → 32° (front)/30° (back)), down smash is now a semi-spike. This significantly improves its edge-guarding potential.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial:
  • Clean neutral aerial deals 4.4% less damage (10% → 5.6%) and its angle has been altered (50° → 361°). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes improve its combo potential. However, these changes hinder its spacing and edge-guarding potential. The late hit also has a longer duration (frames 20-31 → 11-27).
  • Late neutral aerial deals 5.04% less damage (14% → 8.96%) and has decreased knockback (20 (base)/100 (scaling) → 13/90), significantly hindering its spacing and KO potential. It also has a shorter duration (frames 3-31 → 3-27).
  • Neutral aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 36 → 34), matching Mario's neutral aerial. Due to Dr. Mario's slower falling speed and lower gravity, it can now autocancel in a short hop.
• Forward aerial:
  • Due to its arm hitbox being removed, forward aerial now deals consistent damage (17% (arm)/16% (fist) → 16.8%).
  • It deals less knockback overall (50 (base)/100 (scaling) (arm)/40/100 (fist) → 30/102), hindering its KO potential.
  • Forward aerial's angle has been lowered (60° → 50°). This hinders its KO potential off the top blast zone, but slightly improves it near the edge.
  • Forward aerial has received an early hitbox and a late hitbox that deal 11.2% and 10.08%, respectively. These changes decrease its start-up lag (frame 18 → 16) and lengthen its duration (frames 18-22 → 16-22). However, these changes make it more susceptible to punishment at low to medium percentages.
  • Forward aerials auto-cancels earlier (frame 44 → 43).
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial deals more damage (8% (clean)/7% (late) → 13.44%/7.84%). However, its clean hitbox's knockback was somewhat compensated (43 (base)/65 (scaling) → 10/95), and its late hitbox's knockback was compensated (20 (base)/100 (scaling) → 7/90 (late)). These changes significantly improve its clean hitbox's KO potential.
  • Back aerial has increased ending lag (FAF 29 → 34) and a shorter duration (frames 6-16 → 6-13). Due to its angle being altered (28° → 361°), clean back aerial is also no longer a semi-spike, hindering its edge-guarding potential.
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial deals 2.16% less damage (10% → 7.84%), although its base knockback was compensated (0 → 9). It also has decreased ending lag (FAF 34 → 32). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes improve its combo potential at low to medium percentages.
  • Up aerial's angle has been altered (55° → 45°). This improves its edge-guarding potential, but significantly hinders its juggling potential.
  • Up aerial auto-cancels later (frame 16 → 18).
• Down aerial:
  • Due to consisting of five hits instead of seven, down aerial deals 10.024% less damage (21% → 10.976%). It also has increased start-up (frame 10 → 11), much more ending lag (FAF 38 → 52), and auto-cancels later (frame 33 → 45), no longer being interruptible.
  • Down aerial now consists of a consistent hitbox that re-hits every 4 frames and launches at 95°/366°, instead of multiple hitboxes every 3 frames that launch at 80°. These changes make its hits connect together better, but shorten its duration (frames 10-29 → 11-27).
  • Down aerial has received a landing hitbox that deals 2.24% and launches at 361°. Down aerial's last hit also no longer has set knockback. These changes improve its safety.
  • The weakening of SDI makes down aerial significantly more difficult to escape from.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have increased ranges. Standing and dash grabs also have decreased start-up (frame 7 → 6 (standing), frame 11 → 8 (dash)) and ending lag (FAF 31 → 29 (standing), FAF 41 → 36 (dash)).
• All grabs' animations have changed. Dr. Mario now reaches out with one hand, instead of using both to clinch the opponent.
• Pummel:
  • Pummel deals 0.64% more damage (3% → 3.64%), making it the most damaging in the game by default. It is also faster (24 frames → 23).
• Forward throw:
  • Forward throw deals 0.04% less damage (9% → 8.96%) and has decreased knockback scaling (72 → 60). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes grant it combo potential into dash attack at low percentages. However, these changes hinder its edge-guarding potential.
• Back throw:
  • Back throw deals more damage (12% (throw)/8% (collateral) → 12.32%/8.96%), although its knockback was compensated (80 (base)/72 (scaling) → 70/60). This hinders its KO potential in spite of its higher damage output.
• Up throw:
  • Up throw deals 0.16% less damage (8% → 7.84%) and has decreased knockback (70 (base)/80 (scaling) → 65/70). When coupled with the removal of chain grabbing, these changes significantly hinder its damage racking potential.
• Down throw:
  • Down throw deals 0.4% less damage (6% → 5.6%), although its knockback scaling was compensated (40 → 45). Its angle has also been altered (90° → 80°). When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, these changes improve its combo potential at low to medium percentages.
  • The removal of chain grabbing significantly hinders down throw's damage racking potential.
• Floor attack:
  • Due to the introduction of tripping in Brawl, Dr. Mario has received a floor attack when he trips.
  • Front and back floor attacks deal 1.84% more damage (6% → 7.84%).
• Edge attack:
  • Edge attack now deals consistent damage (6% (body)/8% (legs) → 7.84%).

Special moves

• Megavitamins:
  • Megavitamins have increased range and can no longer be absorbed. Aerial Megavitamins also descend faster.
  • Megavitamins deal less damage (8% → 5.6% (early)/4.48% (late)) and have a smaller hitbox. They also have increased start-up (frame 14 → 17); ending lag (FAF 44 → 53); and a shorter duration (frames 14-89 → 17-69).
  • Megavitamins' visual effects have changed. They are significantly more vibrant, more rounded, and lack a translucent half.
• Super Sheet:
  • Super Sheet can now reflect projectiles behind Dr. Mario.
  • Super Sheet has a longer duration to reflect projectiles compared to Mario's Cape (frames 6-22).
  • Super Sheet deals less damage (12% (near)/10% (far) → 7.84%) and has decreased knockback (30 (base)/80 (scaling) → 0/0). It also has a significantly smaller hitbox.
  • Aerial Super Sheet no longer stalls Dr. Mario. This improves its mobility and B-reversing potential, but removes its recovery potential.
  • Super Sheet no longer causes opponents warping to the opposite side of the stage after being hit during the ledge get up.
• Super Jump Punch:
  • Due to having a clean hitbox and a late hitbox instead of five consecutive hitboxes, Super Jump Punch has an altered damage output (5% (hit 1)/2% (hits 2-4)/3% (hit 5) → 13.44% (clean)/6.72% (late)). This significantly improves its KO potential in spite of its clean hitbox having less knockback (40 (base)/160 (scaling) → 30/100).
  • Super Jump Punch can now be B-reversed upon hitting with its clean hitbox. This grants it edge-guarding potential, and improves its safety.
  • Super Jump Punch has increased landing lag and a shorter duration (frames 3-21 → 3-19).
  • Super Jump Punch can no longer be canceled.
  • Super Jump Punch's visual effects have changed. It no longer produces Coins upon contact.
• Dr. Tornado:
  • Dr. Tornado can now be moved horizontally, granting it horizontal recovery potential.
  • Dr. Tornado has decreased ending lag (FAF 80 → 75).
  • The weakening of SDI makes Dr. Tornado significantly more difficult to escape from.
  • Dr. Tornado deals less damage (13% (all grounded hits)/14% (all aerial hits) → 8.736% (all hits)), although its last hit's knockback was compensated (75 (base)/120 (scaling) (grounded), 80 (base)/120 (scaling) (aerial) → 80/130 (both)). It also has increased start-up lag (frame 8 → 10).
  • Aerial Dr. Tornado covers significantly less vertical distance, significantly hindering its vertical recovery potential.
  • Dr. Tornado now consists of a consistent hitbox that re-hits every 6 frames and launch at 90°/180°/360°, instead of multiple hitboxes with short durations that launch at 180°/160°/100°. These changes make its hits connect together better, but shorten its duration (frames 8-39 → 10-40).
  • Dr. Tornado's last hit's angle has been altered (361° → 45°).
  • Dr. Tornado's loop hits have lost their transcendent priority, whereas its last hit has received transcendent priority. This allows its last hit to cancel out non-transcendent attacks, but hinders its loop hits' safety against incoming moves.
  • Dr. Mario's now vocalizes when performing the final hit of Dr. Tornado, with the voice clip coming from Mario's F.L.U.D.D.
• Final Smash:
  • Dr. Mario now has a Final Smash, Doctor Finale. Dr. Mario rears his arms back before thrusting them forward to launch two gigantic Megavitamins that move across the screen in a spiraling motion, which trap and repeatedly damage any opponents in their path.

Update history

Dr. Mario has been buffed slightly via game updates. Updates 1.0.4 and 1.0.6 improved his forward aerial's KO potential by increasing its knockback and its sweetspot's damage output, respectively. Update 1.1.0 followed a similar format in regard Dr. Mario's up smash, as it increased its duration and knockback. Unlike Mario, the changes to shields and shieldstun brought about by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 are a mixed bag for Dr. Mario, instead of an indirect nerf. Although they hinder his out of shield options because of his low traction, his above-average damage output makes his most powerful moves noticeably safer on shield compared to Mario's.

1.0.4

• Forward aerial has increased knockback scaling (85 (early/late)/95 (clean) → 95/102)
• Down aerial's loop hits deal 0.336% more damage (1.568% → 1.904%)
• Down aerial has less landing lag (24 frames → 21).
• Down aerial deals less damage overall due to having two less hits (14.336% → 12.88%).

1.0.6

• Up smash's angle has been altered (110º →130º)
• Up smash knockback growth increased (105 →117)
• Sweetspotted forward aerial deals 1.12% more damage: 15.68% → 16.8%.

1.1.0

• Up smash's knockback scaling increased: 108 → 117.
• Up smash's duration increased: frames 9-12 → 9-13.

1.1.1

• Clothesline Tornado deals 1% more damage: 10.2% (hit 1)/12.44% (hit 2) → 11.2%/13.44%, although its first hit's knockback was somewhat compensated: 60 (base)/120 (scaling) → 100/70.
• Clothesline Tornado's first hit's hitbox size increased.

Moveset

• Dr. Mario can wall jump.

For a gallery of Dr. Mario's hitboxes, see here.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Jab (ジャブ) / Straight (ストレート) / Kick Up (けりあげ)	2.8%	The Punch + Punch + Kick combo from Super Mario 64. It hits on frame 2, which makes it among the fastest moves in the game. Its first hit can also jab lock like the first hit of his normal self's neutral attack. However, its higher ending lag makes it less effective at jab locking and unreliable at jab canceling compared to Mario's.
			1.68%
			4.48%
Forward tilt		Middle Kick (ミドルキック)	7.84%	A wheel kick. It can be angled and is useful for jab locking. Due to its average damage output and almost nonexistent base knockback, however, it only becomes reliable for spacing beginning at 50%.
Up tilt		Uppercut (アッパーカット)	7.056%	A spinning uppercut. Compared to his normal self's up tilt, its higher damage output makes it better at juggling. By extension, it can even function as a situational KOing option, unlike Mario's. On Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at 165%/156% (3DS/Wii U). However, its higher damage output makes it less effective at chaining into itself past low percentages. It appears to be based on the second hit of the Mega Glove's combo from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
Down tilt		Spinning Low Kick (スピニングローキック)	5.6% (foot), 7.84% (body)	A legsweep. It is Dr. Mario's best combo starter, thanks to it hitting on frame 5 and launching at 80°. It can combo into neutral attack and a grab at 0%-15%; itself, all smash attacks, and Super Jump Punch at 0%-20%; up tilt, a dashing up smash, and a short hopped Super Jump Punch at low to medium percentages; and back and up aerials at medium to high percentages. It also has forward aerial as a KO mix-up at high percentages, but this requires a hard read. However, it has short range.
Dash attack		Sliding (スライディング)	8.96% (clean), 6.72% (late)	The Slide Kick. Its clean and late hitboxes both launch at 90°, which make it better for set-ups at low percentages compared to his normal self's dash attack. However, it has a fair amount of ending lag like Mario's.
Forward smash	↗	Defibrillator (心臓マッサージ, Cardiac Massage)	19.992% (arm), 16.464% (hand)	A palm thrust that produces a blast of electricity. Unlike in Melee, it now consists of a sweetspot and a sourspot: the former is on Dr. Mario's arm, whereas the latter is the blast of electricity. Its sweetspot's impressive damage output and high knockback scaling make it Dr. Mario's strongest smash attack, and while its sourspot deals slightly less damage, it is also strong enough to KO reliably. Angling upward or downward slightly increases its KO ability, with the upward angled version KOing the earliest. While near the edge of Final Destination, its sweetspot KOs middleweights beginning from 72%/64% (3DS/Wii U), whereas the sourspot KOs middleweights beginning at 89%/80% (3DS/Wii U).
	→		19.04% (arm), 15.68% (hand)
	↘		19.6112% (arm), 16.1504% (hand)
Up smash		Ear, Nose, and Throat (スマッシュヘッドバット, Smash Headbutt)	15.68%	An upward arcing headbutt. It hits on frame 9, which is quite fast for a smash attack. It also renders Dr. Mario's head intangible throughout its duration like his normal self's up smash. However, its duration is slightly longer than Mario's. Unlike Mario's, it functions almost identically to Luigi's up smash, which launches opponents diagonally instead of vertically, and will launch them in the opposite direction of where Dr. Mario is facing so long as they are in front of him. Compared to Luigi's, it launches at 130° instead of 110°, which grants it much greater combo and edge-guarding potential in comparison. When uncharged, it can combo into itself, up tilt and Super Jump Punch at 0%-10%, and into forward and down tilt at 10%-15%. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at 105%/96% (3DS/Wii U). However, its launching angle makes it unreliable at KOing while away from the edge, whereas Mario and, to a slightly lesser degree, Luigi's versions can KO reliably from anywhere on-stage.
Down smash		Break Spin (ブレイクスピン)	11.2% (front), 13.44% (back)	The Sweep Kick. Due to it hitting on frame 5, it is tied with Pit, Dark Pit, Zelda, Ryu and his normal self's down smashes for the second fastest smash attack of any kind in the game, being surpassed only by Meta Knight's buffered down smash. It is also a semi-spike, which makes it excellent for edge-guarding. Its back hit is stronger and more damaging than the front hit, but the front hit is still powerful and capable of KOing. Depending on the opponent's position, both of its hits can potentially hit them. While near the edge of Final Destination, its back hit KOs middleweights at 97%/88% (3DS/Wii U), while the front hit does so at 121%/110% (3DS/Wii U). However, it is Dr. Mario's least damaging smash attack, and its 29 frames of ending lag make it punishable.
Neutral aerial		Dr. Kick (ドクターキック)	5.6% (clean), 8.96% (late)	A flying kick. It hits on frame 3, which is the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Dr. Mario's aerials. Like in Melee, it is a "reverse sex kick": its late hitbox deals more damage and has more knockback, whereas its clean hitbox deals less damage and has less knockback. It can also auto-cancel with a short hop. Thanks to these traits, its late hitbox is decent for edge-guarding, whereas its clean hitbox is a useful set-up option when SHFF'd and a decent combo breaker.
Forward aerial		Dr. Punch (ドクターグーパンチ)	11.2% (early), 16.8% (clean), 10.08% (late)	Rears back his fist and then throws an overhand. Unlike his normal self's forward aerial, its clean hitbox is not a meteor smash, but instead launches at 50°. While the slowest of Dr. Mario's aerials, its clean hit is the third strongest of all forward aerials in the game. Thus, it is useful for edge-guarding and, with a proper read, against on-stage opponents when SHFF'd. Unlike in Melee, it now has early and late hitboxes; these hitboxes make the overall move slightly safer, but these also KO significantly later than the sweetspot in spite of their decent damage outputs. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at 92%/84% (3DS/Wii U). Due to hitting on frame 16 and possessing both 37 frames of ending lag and 28 frames of landing lag, it is very punishable.
Back aerial		Drop Kick (ドロップキック)	13.44% (clean), 7.84% (late)	A dropkick. Its hits on frame 6, autocancels with a short hop, and its clean hitbox has both a respectable damage output and high knockback scaling. Altogether, these traits make it one of Dr. Mario's most viable KOing options. While near the edge of Final Destination, its clean hitbox KOs middleweights at 134%/123% (3DS/Wii U), respectively. It also has a moderately longer duration compared to his normal self's back aerial, which makes it more effective for spacing and edge-guarding.
Up aerial		Air Slash (エアスラッシュ)	7.84%	A bicycle kick. It hits on frame 4 and can auto-cancel with a short hop. Compared to his normal self's up aerial, it has much lower knockback scaling, slightly lower ending lag, a moderately longer duration, and launches at 45°. Altogether, these traits make its beginning and ending frames reliable for chaining into Super Jump Punch or back aerial at low to medium percentages. Its launching angle also makes its beginning frames useful for edge-guarding. However, its lower knockback and launching angle make its beginning frames unusable for KOing, and significantly less effective for juggling or SHFF'd combos.
Down aerial		Bone Drill (ドリルキック, Drill Kick)	1.904% (hits 1-4), 3.36% (hit 5), 2.24% (landing)	A diagonal corkscrew dropkick. Like Mario Tornado, the move hits multiple times, but also launches at 45°, which makes it usable for edge-guarding unlike its counterpart. If Dr. Mario lands during the move, it produces a hitbox, which can be used to cover landings. However, unlike Mario Tornado, this move is considerably laggier, cannot auto-cancel with a short hop, and its final hit's launching angle renders it unusable for juggling.
Grab		Grab (つかみ)	—	Reaches out. Like his normal self, Dr. Mario's overall grab range is average.
Pummel		Grab Headbutt (つかみヘッドバット)	3.64%	A headbutt. Moderately slow, but it is the most damaging pummel in the game by default.
Forward throw		Swing-Around Throw (ふり抜き投げ)	8.96%	Spins the opponent around once and throws them forward. It is best suited for setting up an edge-guard, but can also be followed up with dash attack at 0%-20%.
Back throw		Airplane Swing (ジャイアントスイング, Giant Swing)	12.32% (throw), 8.96% (collateral)	Spins the opponent by their legs three times before throwing them backward. Although its knockback has decreased since Melee, it is still strong enough to KO reliably. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at 154%/146% (3DS/Wii U). It also can hit nearby opponents during the spin. It is based on the throw that his normal self uses against Bowser in Super Mario 64.
Up throw		Throw Up (スルーアップ)	7.84%	Heaves the opponent directly overhead with both hands. It is useful against heavyweights and fast-fallers for aerial combos at low to medium percentages, but otherwise lacks combo potential on other types of characters past low percentages.
Down throw		Hospital Bed (スルーダウン, Throw Down)	5.6%	A body slam. Its average base knockback and low knockback scaling make it more effective for aerial combos compared to his normal self's down throw, but much less effective for grounded combos in comparison. It also launches at 80°, which makes its combos less susceptible to DI compared to Mario's. It can combo down aerial and Dr. Tornado at low percentages, and into up aerial and reverse aerial rushed back aerial at low to medium percentages. However, its down aerial and back aerial combos require hard reads. It also has forward aerial and Super Jump Punch as KO mix-ups at high percentages, but they also require hard reads. In comparison, its only grounded combos are up tilt and up smash, which are effective against the majority of cast only at 0%.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7.84%	Performs a modified version of the Sweep Kick before getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7.84%	Punches behind himself and then in front of himself while getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5.6%	Performs a side kick behind himself and then in front of himself while getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			7.84%	Performs a dropkick while climbing up.
Neutral special	Default	Megavitamins	5.6% (early), 4.48% (late)	Throws a Megavitamin. Megavitamins travel on a bouncing arc and are able to lock, similarly to his normal self's Fireball, although their arc is unique and allows them to cover different angles in comparison. Unlike Mario's Fireball, they cannot be absorbed.
	Custom 1	Fast Capsule	3.36% (early), 2.576% (mid), 1.68% (late)	Throws a smaller Megavitamin that flies straight ahead, similarly to Blaster. It is very spammable, thanks to its much lower start-up and ending lag. However, it deals less damage and hitstun.
	Custom 2	Mega Capsule	1.68% (per hit)	Throws a much larger Megavitamin that damages any opponent it hits in its predetermined path until it vanishes. Unlike Megavitamins and Fast Capsule, it does not disappear upon impact, which grants it decent set-up potential. However, it has significantly shorter range, as well as significantly more start-up and ending lag.
Side special	Default	Super Sheet	7.84% (sheet), 1.5× (reflected projectiles)	Waves a white sheet in front of himself. It deals damage; reflects projectiles with 50% more power than they originally had; and reverses opponents. Compared to Cape, its hitbox is much smaller, but its reflection hitbox has a slightly longer duration. Unlike in Melee, it lacks recovery potential because it no longer stalls Dr. Mario in midair.
	Custom 1	Shocking Sheet	12.544%	The sheet discharges electricity, which launches opponents and destroys projectiles instead of reversing them and reflecting them, respectively. Unlike Super Sheet, it deals respectable damage and has knockback, which grant it KO potential. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at 109% in the 3DS version. However, it has more ending lag.
	Custom 2	Breezy Sheet	5.6% (sheet), 1.5× (reflected projectiles)	The sheet has emits a small gust of wind that pushes opponents back. It is one of the best edge-guarding options in the game, thanks to the sheet itself possessing an extremely strong pushbox. However, it deals less damage and has slightly more ending lag.
Up special	Default	Super Jump Punch	13.44% (clean), 6.72% (late)	A jumping uppercut. Unlike his normal self's Super Jump Punch, Dr. Mario's version consists of clean and late hitboxes like Luigi's Super Jump Punch, which grants it much greater KO potential compared to Mario's. While near the edge of Final Destination, its clean hitbox KOs middleweights at 122%/112% (3DS/Wii U). Like Mario's Super Jump Punch, Dr. Mario's version now enables him to move himself in the opposite direction upon landing its clean hitbox, which makes it less punishable. Compared to Mario's Super Jump Punch, the travel distance of Dr. Mario's version has remained unchanged since Melee, which makes it worse for recovery. Unlike Mario's, Dr. Mario's version lacks intangibility on start-up.
	Custom 1	Super Jump	—	Covers much more vertical distance and, when moved left or right during start-up, more horizontal distance. However, it deals no damage and has slightly more ending lag.
	Custom 2	Ol' One-Two	8.96% (hit 1), 14.56% (hit 2)	A flaming version that is significantly stronger. Its first hit leads reliably into its second hit, but it is not strictly necessary to use, thanks to its second hit's higher damage output, knockback and vertical angle making it reliable for KOing on its own. Its second hit KOs middleweights at 96% from anywhere on Final Destination in the 3DS version. However, it covers much less vertical distance, and almost no horizontal distance.
Down special	Default	Dr. Tornado	1.344% (hits 1-4), 3.36% (hit 5)	Rapidly spins around, trapping opponents and damaging them with a series of discus clotheslines and spinning backfists before assuming a spread-eagle position to launch them. On the ground, Dr. Tornado allows Dr. Mario to slightly move left or right, while button mashing will make him leap into the air. In the air, button mashing immediately after the apex of a jump will make him ascend, thus helping his recovery. However, aerial Dr. Tornado can only be used once for recovery: if it is used at the apex of his first jump, using it at the apex of his second jump will result in him descending instead of ascending. Despite hitting on frame 10 and having 34 frames of ending lag, its loop hits' usage of the auto-link angle enable it to reliably trap opponents. Although its last hit has a very low damage output, it possesses very high knockback scaling, transcendent priority, and launches opponents at 45°. These traits enable it to function as a very potent, albeit risky off-stage edge-guarding option. While near Final Destination's left/right blast lines, it KOs middleweights at 82%/75% (3DS/Wii U). It resembles the Spin Jump.
	Custom 1	Soaring Tornado	6.72%	Covers much more vertical distance, especially when button mashed, and has slightly less start-up lag. Unlike Dr. Tornado, it consists of a windbox and a hitbox, the latter of which deals twice as much damage and much more knockback than Dr. Tornado's last hit. Altogether, these traits make it much more efficient for recovering and edge-guarding compared to Dr. Tornado. While near Final Destination's left/right blast lines, it KOs middleweights at 49% in the 3DS version. However, it does not cover any horizontal distance, cannot punish rolls because of its windbox, and has more ending lag.
	Custom 2	Clothesline Tornado	11.2% (hit 1), 13.44% (hit 2)	Deals much more damage and has much higher knockback. Its first hit has deceptive range and is a semi-spike, which allows it to hinder approaches. Conversely, its last hit launches opponents vertically and is extremely powerful, as it KOs middleweights at 72% from anywhere on 3DS's Final Destination. However, its first hit does not KO middleweights until 151% while near the edge of Final Destination in the 3DS version. In comparison, its second hit is very difficult to land because of its first hit's long duration. It also has much more start-up and ending lag, which make it unusable for recovering or edge-guarding.
Final Smash		Doctor Finale	3.36% (big Megavitamin), 2.24% (small Megavitamin)	Rears his arms back before thrusting them forward to launch two gigantic Megavitamins that move across the screen in a spiraling motion, which trap and repeatedly damage any opponents in their path. It functions identically to Mario Finale, but deals slightly more damage.

Stats

Stats	Weight	Dash speed	Walk speed	Traction	Air friction	Air speed	Air acceleration	Gravity	Falling speed	Jumpsquat	Jump Height	Double jump Height
Value	98	1.3312 – Initial dash 1.3312 – Run	0.9152	0.045	0.01212	0.9292	0.00808 – Base 0.05656 – Additional	0.08715	1.5 – Base 2.4 – Fast-fall	5	29.356105712 - Base 14.171785912 - Short hop	29.356105712

Note: Dr. Mario's movement stats are coded to be the exact same as Mario's, but are multiplied to be slower using external factors. His walk, dash, and run speeds are multiplied by 0.832, while his air friction, air speed, air acceleration, and jump heights are multiplied by 0.808.

Announcer call

• English/Japanese/Chinese

• French

• German

• Italian

• Spanish

On-screen appearance

• • Megavitamins fall to the ground, and Dr. Mario appears when they recede. Based on a Megavitamin chain from Dr. Mario.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Grinds the sole of his shoe on the ground.
• Side taunt: Pulls out a randomly colored Megavitamin, rolls it down his arm, uses his shoulder to toss it into the air, and then catches it.
• Down taunt: Lightly pounds his shoulder with his fist.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Pounds his fist into his palm.
• Performs a neck roll, a neck exercise.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Go Doc!	Doc-tor!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

A flourished remix of the Course Clear Fanfare used in Super Mario Bros.

• Throws two randomly colored Megavitamins, dusts off his gloves, and then pulls out two more Megavitamins that are the same color as the ones he threw.
• Holds out his stethoscope and points it in front of himself, then to his left, and then in front of himself again.
• Contemplatively rubs his chin and then suddenly glances at the screen while continuing to rub his chin.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Dr. Mario	2312	2332	2212	2232	2211
	1311	1332	1212	1211	2322

Most historically significant players

See also: Category:Dr. Mario players (SSB4)

•  2ManyCooks - The best Dr. Mario player in the world until he dropped him for Mario in 2017. He had several wins over Exodia, which includes defeating him and Alphicans to win Otafest Assault IV and defeating him at Alberta Beatdown 2016 to place 2nd. Outside of his region, he most notably placed 33rd at 2GGT: KTAR Saga defeating Rideae.
•  B7Games - The best Dr. Mario player in the world after 2ManyCooks dropped the character, best known for defeating Abadango at 2GGT: Abadango Saga, placing 49th overall. He has also placed 33rd at 2GGC: Midwest Mayhem Saga, the best solo-Dr. Mario placement at a major.
•  Rizeasu - Known for playing a variety of characters, including Dr. Mario. Most notably defeated Choco at Niconico Tokaigi 2018 and had also placed 7th at Sumabato 28 with both Dr. Mario and Zelda.
•  Tsumusuto - The best solo-Dr. Mario player in Japan with several decent performances at Sumabato events, including placing 17th at Sumabato 9 and Sumabato 22.

Tier placement and history

Upon SSB4's release, Dr. Mario's weaknesses and inability to successfully adapt to the new game physics saw him widely perceived as a low-tier or even bottom-tier character, with many players agreeing that Mario was a far better character. Despite this initial reception, Dr. Mario was able to see some noteworthy performances, most notably Nairo's surprising but effective choice to use Dr. Mario to defeat ESAM at MLG World Finals 2015. However, aside from that single Nairo performance, the regional efforts of players such as 2ManyCooks and B7Games, and the support from a few players due to Dr. Mario's particular strengths, Dr. Mario's metagame remained stagnant due to poor touornament results and representation for all of competitive Smash 4. As such, Dr. Mario remained in the low tier for all of Smash 4, ranking 45th on the first tier list before dropping to 48th on the second and 51st on the third due to 2ManyCooks dropping Dr. Mario in favor of Mario, before rising back to 48th on the final tier list thanks to the efforts of B7Games and a few Japanese Dr. Mario players.

Trophies

3DS Classic Mode trophy

Wii U Classic Mode trophy

Dr. Mario

In the 1990 puzzle game Dr. Mario, Mario threw on a white coat and decided to take a shot at that whole "medicine" thing. In this game, he's a balanced fighter who can throw Megavitamin capsules and nimbly deflect blows with his Super Sheet. He's not quite as quick as normal Mario, but his attacks deal a bit more damage.

: Dr. Mario (10/1990)

: Dr. Mario Online Rx (05/2008)

In Dr. Mario, released in Europe in 1991, Mario threw on a white coat and decided to have a bash at the whole medicine thing. In this game, he's an all-rounder who can throw Megavitamin capsules and nimbly deflect blows with his Super Sheet. He's not quite as quick as normal Mario, but his attacks deal a bit more damage.

: Dr. Mario (06/1991)

: Dr. Mario & Germ Buster (05/2008)

3DS All-Star Mode trophy

Wii U alternate trophy

Dr. Mario (Alt.)

Mario and Dr. Mario are only slightly different. Basically, Dr. Mario is stronger, but his MD slows his speed and lowers his jump. He also has a move Mario doesn't: Dr. Tornado, a down special that can trap opponents before launching them. You can move left and right while doing it and press the button repeatedly to rise into the air.

: Dr. Mario (10/1990)

: Dr. Mario Online Rx (05/2008)

Mario and Dr. Mario are only slightly different. Basically, Dr. Mario is stronger, but his heavy coat affects his speed and jumping. He also has a move Mario doesn't: Dr. Tornado, a down special that can trap opponents before launching them. You can move left and right while doing it and press the button repeatedly to rise into the air.

: Dr. Mario (06/1991)

: Dr. Mario & Germ Buster (05/2008)

Doctor Finale trophy

Doctor Finale

In Dr. Mario's Final Smash, he spreads his arms wide and then lets loose a pair of giant vitamin capsules that spiral through the air, taking out any pesky "viruses" in their path. Their wide range makes them tough for foes to avoid, and opponents they strike will take multiple hits, possibly even being pushed right off the screen!

In Dr. Mario's Final Smash, he spreads his arms wide, then lets loose a pair of giant vitamin capsules that spiral through the air, taking out any pesky "viruses" in their path. Their wide range makes them tough for foes to avoid, and opponents they strike will take multiple hits, possibly even being pushed right off the screen!

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Secret: Dr. Mario is one of the opponents fought in this event. All of the opponents have been unlockable characters in previous Super Smash Bros. games.
• Doctor Schmoctor: As Wario, the player must defeat Dr. Mario before Wario's health is depleted via flowering.

Co-op Events

• Viral Visitors: Dr. Mario and Peach must defeat four Kirbys.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Dr. Mario's amiibo.

• 

  Dr. Mario's unlock notice in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

• 

  Dr. Mario's unlock notice in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

• 

  Idling on Wuhu Island.

• 

  Attempting to grab Charizard.

• 

  Using his forward smash on Mega Man.

• 

  Using Super Jump Punch on Bowser.

• 

  Alongside a prone King Dedede, a prone Kirby, Wii Fit Trainer, and some food.

• 

  Using his dash attack on Fox.

• 

  Using his side taunt alongside Little Mac and Captain Falcon.

• 

  Using Doctor Finale, his Final Smash, on Olimar, Marth and Zero Suit Samus.

• 

  His on-screen appearance.

• 

  Using Megavitamins on two Kirbys, in reference to the viruses from his eponymous series.

Trivia

• Like Dark Pit and Lucina, Dr. Mario was originally planned to be an alternate costume. However, all three were instead converted into being clones late in Super Smash Bros. 4's development. Masahiro Sakurai explained that the reason for doing so in regard to Dr. Mario was in order to appeal to his fanbase from Super Smash Bros. Melee.
• Dr. Mario's amiibo description on the official amiibo website is a combination of his Classic Mode trophy descriptions from Melee and SSB4.
• Super Smash Bros. for Wii U is the only game where Dr. Mario is not unlocked by completing Classic Mode with Mario.
• In Dr. Mario's official artwork, his collar and tie are done up, while his stethoscope's tubing and head mirror's headband are black. However, his in-game model shows his collar open and tie loose, while his stethoscope's tubing and head mirror's headband are dark gray and dark taupe, respectively.
• Dr. Mario, Bowser and Lucina are the only characters who are not playable in a solo event unless selected.
• Dr. Mario is the only character to have two challenges exclusive to him in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
• Dr. Mario and Lucario are the only characters that lack a meteor smash, including unconventional meteor smashes.
• Dr. Mario and Pac-Man are the only characters who have a taunt that aesthetically changes each time it is performed. In Dr. Mario's case, his side taunt creates a randomly colored Megavitamin each time it is performed.
• Dr. Mario is the only character with custom equipment incorporated into his attributes.