Editing Little Mac (SSBU)

|image = {{tabber|title1=Normal|tab1=[[File:Little Mac SSBU.png|250px]]|title2=Hoodie|tab2=[[File:Little Mac-Alt5 SSBU.png|190px]]|title3=Wireframe|tab3=[[File:Wireframe Mac SSBU.png|250px]]|title4=Wireframe Hoodie|tab4=[[File:Little Mac-Alt7 SSBU.png|190px]]}}

|tier = D-

Little Mac is ranked 81st out of 82 on the ''Ultimate'' [[tier list]], placing him in the D- tier. This is a noticeable drop from his ''Smash 4'' iteration, where he was ranked 43rd out of 54 at the lower end of mid-tier. Little Mac possesses a strong ground game thanks to his excellent ground mobility and numerous grounded kill moves. His smash attacks are especially strong as they have [[armor|super armor]] on startup and very respectable speed for their power, making them decently unchallengeable. His tilt attacks are also very respectable, as forward tilt serves as a quick and capable kill move, while down and up tilts can be used to set up combos. Finally, his special moves have also seen improvements from the previous game, most notably to Jolt Haymaker, which no longer sends Little Mac into freefall.  

To compensate for his strong ground game, however, Little Mac packs glaring weaknesses, most notably when it comes to fighting in the air. Although his recovery is improved from the previous game, it remains one of the worst among the roster due to his low double-jump height, being allowed only one Jolt Haymaker per airtime, and Rising Uppercut's pitiful travel distance in the air. His aerial game is also poor due to his aerial's poor damage and knockback as well as his special moves being weaker in the air. Finally, his average stature compared to the rest of the cast and lack of disjoints give him a notable range problem, which, when combined with his low overall shieldstun outside of down-angled forward smash and sweetspotted up smash, force him to play a linear, risky neutral game, while his high fall speed contributes to his vulnerability to combos, despite granting him decent survivability for a lightweight fighter.

Little Mac is a [[weight|lightweight]] with the 8th fastest [[walking]] speed, the 3rd fastest [[dashing]] speed, and above-average [[traction]], granting him effective [[out of shield]] options. He also has the 3rd fastest initial dash, which has a long duration of 15 frames, giving him a long pivot and an excellent [[dash dance]] that is surpassed only by {{SSBU|Zero Suit Samus}}'. His [[sidestep]] and [[roll]]s are tied with {{SSBU|Fox}}, {{SSBU|Sheik}} and Zero Suit Samus' for the fastest in the game, with his rolls giving the third longest distance in the game behind {{SSBU|Samus}} and {{SSBU|Dark Samus}}, making it easy for Little Mac to punish grounded attacks and giving him excellent defensive options. He also has fast [[falling speed]] (tied with {{SSBU|King Dedede}} for the 2nd fastest) and below-average [[gravity]], which collectively give him good vertical endurance in spite of his status as a lightweight. Aside from his great [[air speed]] (tied with {{SSBU|Mario}}, {{SSBU|Donkey Kong}}, {{SSBU|Sonic}} and {{SSBU|Inkling}}'s for 13th fastest) and his [[wall jump]], which is the 4th highest, the rest of Little Mac's aerial attributes are notoriously poor: his [[jump]] is tied with {{SSBU|Ryu}} and {{SSBU|Ken}}'s for the 5th lowest, his [[double jump]] is the 3rd lowest, his [[air acceleration]] is tied with {{SSBU|Ganondorf}} for the 6th lowest, and his directional [[air dodge]] travels the least amount of distance. These attributes effectively force Mac to stay on the ground as often as possible to make the use of his excellent ground mobility.

While considerably weaker than the rest of the cast, Little Mac's air game is not completely useless, and can be utilized for initiating short combos. Each of his air attacks have some limited perks; neutral aerial being the fastest aerial attack in the game, making it a decent combo breaker, and it can combo into itself, drag down opponents with him as a sacrificial K.O. option; forward and back aerials are semi-spikes, with the former being decent for combos or edge-guarding; up aerial is a fast anti-air, and down aerial is an extremely fast, weak [[meteor smash]]. Neutral aerial is by far Little Mac's most effective aerial, giving him excellent combo opportunities with a fast falling up aerial, forward aerial, down aerial for spiking, or when close to the upper blastline, Rising Uppercut. It also features a slightly disjointed hitbox in Mac's pelvis, which causes weak upward knockback that is surprisingly excellent for combos thanks to the move's autocancel properties, which will allow it to combo into up tilt, up aerial, or Rising Uppercut. Forward aerial is often best used in conjunction with Jolt Haymaker as a follow-up, and a powerful sacrificial K.O. tool. Back aerial is the worst of it's kind in the game, but has fair spacing utility, and sets the opponent up for tech chase situations when used close to the ground. Finally, down aerial can be used to lock an opponent's position out of a down tilt, down throw, or at any time while in neutral. It also acts as a highly situational, and risky meteor smash when at extreme percentages.

However, his aerials all have short range, poor damage output, and awful KO potential. While his neutral and down aerials can [[auto-cancel]] from a short hop, his forward, back, and up aerials cannot. This leaves Mac incredibly vulnerable in the air, as he has no means of properly defending himself beyond point-blank range without exhausting any of his special moves, which are limited to one use until he touches the ground. The low power of his aerials also makes them ineffective for flinching opponents, and Mac's only aerial KO options are indeed his special moves, which are highly likely to result in [[sacrificial KO]]s if misused off-stage. This also means that Mac is more severely affected by [[stale-move negation]] than most other characters, as he is effectively limited to using little more than half of his moveset in most situations, although his variety of powerful finishers can compensate it to a degree.  

Little Mac sports mediocre grab game; Mac's pummel is among the fastest, but his grabs, while having average range, have moderate startup lag and noticeable ending lag, and the ending lag and collateral hitboxes for his throws limit their ability to KO or start combos. However, they do have some uses: forward throw can followed into Jolt Haymaker from 0%, but requires a read due to the ending lag; down throw can combo into Rising Uppercut, but has some ending lag and it's susceptible to DI; his back throw has decent power and can KO at around 130%, but its collateral hitbox weakens it; up throw can combo into Jolt Haymaker at low to mid percents, and forward throw can tech chase at the same percentages. Unfortunately, throws also have very limited use, being very weak compared to other fighters, but have enough initial knockback to keep opponents out of Mac's direct vicinity for follow-up situations. This severely limits Mac's options when attempting to utilize throws, and makes them a risky prospect in the first place when combined with his average grab attributes.

Alongside these setbacks, Little Mac is further held back by a slew of exploitable weaknesses. As expected, Mac's weak air mobility and high falling speed make him incredibly susceptible to [[gimp]]s from [[meteor smash]]es, semi-spikes, and even footstool jumps, especially if he doesn't have his double jump. Compounding this, his directional air dodge has the least distance in the game, and his air dodge's ending lag is only average relative to the cast due to the universal changes to air dodges since now the ending lag depends on the character's falling speed and gravity. Thus, it is not only a situational option while in a disadvantaged state, but also poor as a normal recovery move. Mac can grab the ledge by using a directional air dodge if he is close enough, however, allowing him to cover the remaining distance to the ledge, making it very useful if combined with his double jump and special moves. His special moves are also considerably less effective while in the air. [[Straight Lunge]] loses much of its power when used in midair, and its long charge time makes it impractical for recovery. Aerial KO Uppercut is also significantly weaker and blockable, although it still has both KO and Recovery potential. While Jolt Haymaker and Rising Uppercut are Little Mac's most effective aerial KO options, they are very poor for recovery, offering poor travel distance, small [[edge sweet spot]]s, and minimal intangibility. Jolt Haymaker does not cause [[helplessness]], allowing Mac to follow up with a wall jump, directional air dodge or Rising Uppercut; however, it travels a mediocre distance and can only be used once before landing or grabbing the [[edge]], leaving Mac one of the most vulnerable characters to edge-guarding as he is unable to use it again if he gets hit. Rising Uppercut loses roughly half its travel distance when used in midair, and while aerial Slip Counter can be a good response to an edge-guard attempt and get Little Mac back on stage, it loses its intangibility, can be predicted, and its end lag if unsuccessful is likely to result in Mac self-destructing or getting gimped by the opponent if used at a low enough altitude. As a result, it is most beneficial to attempt to recover horizontally, rather than vertically, which is nearly impossible depending on if Mac is merely launched, or (semi-)spiked. These traits result in Little Mac having more difficulty with recovering than most other characters, being commonly cited as one of, if not the worst, recovery of the cast overall. While his below-average gravity and high falling speed grant solid vertical endurance for a lightweight, they also make him very vulnerable to combos and juggling. Additionally, the super armor granted by Mac's smash attacks still causes him to take full damage and must be timed carefully to avoid being punished. These traits make Mac extremely prone to momentum shifts; his lacking air game and overall frailty allows opponents to easily combo or even [[zero-to-death]] him after one mistake, even if Mac was otherwise dominating the match.

Little Mac received a mix of buffs and nerfs via game updates, but was buffed overall. Although update 2.0.0 granted inconsequential buffs to his neutral and up aerials, update 3.1.0 noticeably improved him in a number of ways. Neutral attack, in particular, was buffed in three distinct ways. Its hits connect better thanks to improved ranges and, more notably, its first and second hits had their ending lag reduced to the point that it and {{SSBU|Mr. Game & Watch}}'s neutral attack are currently the only ones in ''Ultimate'' that are capable of [[jab cancel]]ing reliably. Most notably, neutral attack gained an unintentional mechanic that decreased the ending lag of its third hit by 10 frames if it was inputted manually. This oversight gave his neutral attack the ability to combo into itself (via [[dash-canceling]]), forward smash, grab, and [[Jolt Haymaker]] at low to medium percentages. The sheer effectiveness of this mechanic even resulted in {{Sm|Sol}}, a pioneer of Little Mac's metagame in ''SSB4'', christening it the "Dreamland Express" as proposed by his Twitch chat.

 

In addition to neutral attack, Little Mac's ground game was buffed in a few other ways. Forward tilt connects much better against airborne opponents, which was a notorious flaw that remained unaddressed throughout ''SSB4''{{'}}s lifespan. Down tilt's range was increased to the point that it is actually on par with {{SSBU|Mii Swordfighter}}'s and out-ranges {{SSBU|Ike}}'s. Up smash gained more [[super armor]] frames, although its active frames were shortened unintentionally.

 

[[Jolt Haymaker]] received an additional hitbox that increased its vertical range; this not only improved its utility as a follow-up from down tilt, but also enables its grounded version to hit opponents on {{SSBU|Battlefield}}'s low platforms. KO Uppercut, [[Slip Counter]] and uncharged [[Straight Lunge]] had their ending lag reduced by varying amounts. Lastly, Little Mac indirectly benefits from the update's changes to shield damage for projectiles, as they make it somewhat easier for him to handle camping.

|ftiltdesc=A {{iw|wikipedia|one-two combo}}. It has very minimal startup (frame 4) and links reliably into the second hit, which is strong enough to KO {{SSBU|Mario}} at 90% while near the edge of {{SSBU|Final Destination}}. It also has anti-rebounding priority and the longest range among Little Mac's tilt attacks, due to Mac moving slightly forward during both hits (especially the first one). As a result, it is useful when dash canceled and especially with [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCNqH7a3hfQ pivot canceling], being able to punish attacks from more than half of Final Destination away. However, this makes the move inconsistent at high percentages. It heavily resembles the one-two combo Little Mac uses as an [[Assist Trophy]] in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'', and vaguely resembles Piston Hondo's Hondo Rush in the NES and Wii versions of ''Punch-Out!!''

|dtiltdesc=A crouching hook. It has very minimal startup (frame 3) and ending lag alongside anti-rebounding priority. Although its formidable combo potential has been toned down since ''SSB4'' due to its higher ending lag, it remains a useful combo option. It can combo into itself, forward tilt and up tilt at 0%, can combo into Jolt Haymaker consistently at medium percentages, and can even be used as a frame trap into dash attack, his smash attacks, forward aerial, and dash canceled Rising Uppercut. It can also combo into KO Uppercut at extremely specific percentages (usually at ≈60%), although the window can widen significantly (down to 40%) it Little Mac has a sufficient level of [[rage]]. Otherwise, it is mainly used to force opponents into a landing situation for Little Mac to capitalize on. As of update 3.1.0, down tilt's hitbox on Little Mac's fist is disjointed to the point it is on par with {{SSBU|Mii Swordfighter}}'s and out-ranges {{SSBU|Ike}}'s. As a result, it can reach low enough to hit edge-hanging opponents, which allows it to punish edge stalling by comboing into Jolt Haymaker, forward tilt, or KO Uppercut for a KO confirm. Overall, it is one of Little Mac's most useful neutral options due to its combo potential, speed, range and relative safeness on shield compared to the rest of his attacks.

|dashdesc=A lunging {{iw|wikipedia|overhand|boxing}}. It is fast for a dash attack (frame 7), covers a decent distance, and can be a situational KO option, having enough knockback to KO Mario at 136% while near the edge of Final Destination, thus making it moderately strong for a dash attack. It can also hit opponents hanging on edges, and due to its generous hitbox, finds a lot of use trapping opponents on an edge. However, due to its lack of shieldstun, it is notoriously punishable on shield, however, it can [[cross-up]] most of the cast on shield. The angle is different for the 3 frames in which the hitbox is active: it launches at 80° on frame 7, 70° on frame 8, and 60° on frame 9, with the late hit being notable for its ability to combo into KO Uppercut. It can combo into itself at low percentages. It resembles the attack portion of Von Kaiser's Spin Attack, which is used during Title Defense Mode in the Wii version of ''Punch-Out!!''

''Up'': An uppercut. It launches opponents vertically, has the largest hitbox out of all three punch variations, and grants super armor on frames 8-15. Altogether, these traits make it the easiest variation to land as well as a useful anti-air attack. It is powerful and launches vertically to the point that it KOs Mario at 102%, allowing it to finish off fighters who have poor vertical endurance. On opponents at 0% (or at very low percentages with rage), should Little Mac use his armor to break through an attack and successfully connect this move, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4DJNmgJDm8&t=20s it can frame trap opponents into many vertical moves, including KO Uppercut], due to the [[Special Zoom]] giving Little Mac extra hit advantage. On certain characters at very low percents and with no DI/DI in, a second forward smash can connect if the opponent uses a slow out-of-shield option or aerial. On {{SSBU|Battlefield}} at very low percentages, it can also set up a [[tech-chase]] if the hit opponent lands on a platform. It resembles Little Mac's Star Punch and One-Star Punch in the NES and Wii versions of ''Punch-Out!!'', respectively.

''Down'': A body hook. It deals the most damage out of all three punch variations, and its high [[shieldstun]] makes it safer on shield than the other two punch variations. As of update 13.0.0, its [[shield damage]] output has increased to the point that, when uncharged, it will break shields if it is followed by down tilt. Conversely, it will instantly break a full shield when it is fully charged. It also grants super armor on frames 9-15. However, it has very low knockback growth; while this makes it unable to KO at realistic percentages, it can be used to set up a tech-chase because of its very low launching angle.

|grabdesc=[[wikipedia:Grappling hold#Clinch hold|Clinches]] the opponent. In addition to having average range, Little Mac possesses moderate ending lag in his grabs. Unlike in ''SSB4'', Little Mac's grabbox no longer has blindspots on his hand and arm, although the grabbox does not extend past the palms of his boxing gloves. A [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1If8eSLKwI roll cancel boost grab] noticeably improves the range of Little Mac's standing grab, and even enables his grabs to [[cross-up]] opponents at the cost of possibly being difficult to perform. Little Mac's dash grab has long range due to him rushing forward before the grabbox comes out, and his pivot grab also has decent range and extends to cover his full boxing gloves. However, they both have noticeable startup as well. Little Mac's grabs heavily resemble Bear Hugger's Bear Hug in the arcade and SNES versions of ''Super Punch-Out!!'' and in the Wii version of ''Punch-Out!!''

|pummeldesc=A {{iw|wikipedia|short straight-punch}}. One of the fastest, yet least damaging pummels in the game.

| jumpsquat=3 | rjumpsquat=2-89

|[[File:Little Mac Cheer English SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Little Mac Cheer Japanese SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Little Mac Cheer Italian SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Little Mac Cheer Dutch SSBU.ogg|center]]||{{NTSC}} [[File:Little Mac Cheer French NTSC SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> {{PAL}} [[File:Little Mac Cheer French PAL SSBU.ogg|center]]

|[[File:Little Mac Cheer German SSBU.ogg|center]]||{{NTSC}} [[File:Little Mac Cheer Spanish NTSC SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> {{PAL}} [[File:Little Mac Cheer Spanish PAL SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Little Mac Cheer Russian SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Little Mac Cheer Korean SSBU.ogg|center]]

| || Little Mac! Little Mac! Ra ra ra! {{NTSC}} <br>Little Mac! Little Mac! E! E! {{PAL}} || Malysh - Maaaaac! || Li - ttle Mac!

*{{Sm|Kwaz|USA}} - The best Little Mac player in the United States in the early metagame. He regularly placed top 16 at tournaments in his region, including a 7th-place finish at the superregional {{Trn|Smash Out 2019}}. He has also seen some success at majors, including placing 33rd at the majors {{Trn|Low Tier City 7}} and {{Trn|CEO 2021}}.

*{{Sm|Peanut|USA}} - The best Little Mac player of all-time and the only solo-Little Mac player who consistently places top 64 at majors. His 13th-place finish at {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}} is tied for the highest placement for a Little Mac player at a major.

*{{Sm|Tarakotori|Japan}} - The best Little Mac player in the early metagame, and is still one of the best Little Mac players in the current metagame, playing the character alongside {{SSBU|Pyra}} and {{SSBU|Mythra}}. His 13th-place finish at {{Trn|Umebura SP 4}} is tied for the highest placement for a Little Mac player at a major.

During the early metagame, players had high hopes for Little Mac due to improvements to his notoriously awful recovery and ability to cancel grounded moves. However, Little Mac's changes and the game’s mechanics proved to be detrimental to some of his best tools, especially his ground game, while his weak aerial game, notoriously the worst in ''Smash 4'', was made even worse. Because of this, opinions on Little Mac dropped significantly, with the consensus believing that he is not only a bottom tier, but possibly the worst character in the game.  

 

Throughout the game's lifespan, even in spite of useful buffs and representation from top Little Mac mains such as {{Sm|Kwaz}}, {{Sm|Peanut}}, and {{Sm|Tarakotori}}, his cons have largely prevented him from achieving consistent success in top-level play. Even in the online metagame, Peanut’s strong presence in weekly tournaments has failed to offset his lack of aerial utility and vulnerability to edgeguards, represented by Little Mac proceeding to see low representation in both national level tournaments and [[Wi-Fi Warrior Rank]]ed tournaments.  

As of current competitive play, Little Mac has begun to gain a slightly better reception due to more representation and Little Mac players adapting to the recent meta. While he is still considered one of the worst characters in the game, some players have begun to skeptically see him as a low tier rather than a definitive bottom tier. Overall, professional players still see him in the competitive setting as an unviable character due to the amount of work necessary to perform as him effectively at the highest level of play, with him ranking 81st on the first and current tier list.

Little Mac's fighter spirit can be obtained by completing {{SSBU|Classic Mode}}. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Little Mac has been unlocked. Unlocking Little Mac in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. His fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with his artwork in ''Ultimate''.

*Little Mac's Showcase Video has him follow {{SSBU|Wario}}'s [[Wario Bike|motor bike]] while wearing his pink sweatsuit. This is a reference to the ''Punch-Out!!'' series, where Little Mac runs alongside [[Doc Louis]] on his bicycle.