Editing Ness (SSBM)

|tier        = D

'''Ness''' ({{ja|ネス|Nesu}}, ''Ness'') is a [[starter character]] in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''. He was officially announced at [[E3]] 2001.

 

 

Ness is currently ranked 23rd out of 26 on the [[tier list]], placing within the D tier. This is a slight fall from his already very low placement in ''Smash 64'', where he was 10th out of 12 characters in the NTSC version, and his worst placement to date. While still possessing great throws and a great aerial and combo game thanks to his double jump cancel, Ness is strongly held back by having almost non-existent approach options on the ground due to significant range issues in most of his attacks; having one of the worst recoveries in the game, and he also has significant trouble KOing opponents, due to him possessing some of the worst smash attacks in the game, having overall very weak KO power and due to his aforementioned poor range. As a result of these significant weaknesses, Ness has terrible [[matchup]]s across the cast, is considered non-viable in competitive play, and has nearly non-existent representation in the modern metagame.

Ness is an unusual blend of character archetypes; many of his attributes are unique in comparison to other characters, such as his projectiles, his [[recovery]] and his midair [[jump]]. Ness has below average [[traction]] and a below average [[falling speed]], giving him an above-average [[wavedash]] that is relatively quick. Ness is a projectile-heavy character, as he has 3 projectiles: [[PK Flash]], [[PK Fire]], and [[PK Thunder]], while also having a healing move in his [[PSI Magnet]].

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ness is also significantly heavier which considerably improves his endurance along with his higher falling speed, though these factors also make him more vulnerable to combos. Ness has also gained a useful up throw and down throw with both throws being decent combo starters. Lastly, Ness now has access the Yo-yo glitch if he charges his up smash and releases it at the right time. When performed correctly, Ness has access to much greater range, as well as having hitboxes attached to him and new mindgames giving him a unique and unpredictable option.

However, Ness has received a much greater quantity of nerfs which along with universal changes, have drastically crippled him overall. Ness' damage output has been reduced which has also hindered the KO potential of many of his moves. Some moves such as up aerial, forward smash and back throw simply KO later than in the previous game while moves such as up smash, down smash, forward aerial and forward throw are now practically useless moves for KOing. This naturally hinders Ness' damage racking capabilities as well as his ability to close out stocks and as a result of these changes, Ness' ability to KO opponents has gone from being disproportionately high to rather low.

Ness' aerial game has also been considerably toned down both due to nerfs to his key aerials in the previous game as well as various universal changes. All of Ness' aerials have increased landing lag and (with the exception of neutral aerial) worse auto-cancel windows. Due to the weakening of [[L-canceling]], these changes do impact Ness hindering his aerial combo game when combined with the reduction of hitstun and the introduction of [[DI]] as well as making his aerials easier to punish. Ness is also one of the characters who was the most affected by the changes to [[shield]]s. With shields having more HP, taking less damage from attacks and with shieldstun being significantly lower; this combined with the aforementioned weakening of L-canceling has greatly hindered Ness' shield pressuring potential with his DJC, completely removing his ability to perform [[shield break combo]]s. Ness' own out of shield options are also worse due to his longer jumpsquat, slower grab and his slower down aerial.

Ness' down aerial in particular has seen rather drastic nerfs. Previously, it was an extremely fast and powerful meteor smash which was a good combo starter as well as an excellent combo ender, edgeguarding tool and shield pressuring tool. In ''Melee'', the move has about 5x as much startup lag and 3x as much ending lag and the move no longer auto-cancels while its hitboxes are out now having decently high landing lag (although it still has one of the most lenient auto-cancel windows in the game). Being a [[meteor smash]], it also suffers from the addition of meteor cancelling making it significantly easier to survive against despite its much higher base knockback. When combined with the aforementioned changes to shields and L-canceling, this removes most of its KO potential and completely removes its use in shield break combos and DJC combos in general, significantly hurting its damage racking ability.

Despite already being an exploitable recovery move, PK Thunder has been made much worse. PK Thunder itself travels faster but has received angling issues due to this change and Ness can no longer auto-snap the ledge while using it making it completely useless to use at the ledge if Ness does not hit himself. PK Thunder 2 travels a much shorter distance and has increased ending lag making it even easier to exploit than it already was. PK Thunder 2 is also much weaker as a KO move and has received a weaker late hit reducing its utility outside of recovering. This makes Ness' recovery arguably the worst in the game.

Lastly, Ness' weaknesses from the previous game were not properly addressed. While the range in some of his attacks has increased, his range is still among the absolute shortest in the game and his mobility is still mediocre even though its not quite as poor as it previous was. As a result, Ness still has a difficult time approaching opponents and winning the neutral as he can still easily be outspaced. His recovery also is now among the absolute worst as while he has better aerial mobility and he can airdodge to avoid having to use PK Thunder, PK Thunder retains all of the issues it had in the previous game and has even become a considerably worse move/recovery option overall.

Overall, Ness still retains the weaknesses he had in the previous game while the strengths he had were either toned down or removed. As a result of these changes, Ness is one of the most severely nerfed characters and he remains one of the worst characters in the game.

*{{buff|Ness [[walk]]s faster (0.7467 (22.4) → 0.84), no longer being the slowest.}}

*{{buff|Ness [[dash]]es significantly faster (1.067 (32) → 1.4), no longer being the slowest.}}

**{{nerf|However, Ness' initial dash is drastically slower (2.267 (68) → 1.3) and covers less distance.}}

*{{buff|Ness' [[air speed]] has been unchanged (0.933 (28) → 0.93). Compared with the returning veterans, however, his air speed is faster, going from the 2nd (JPN/NA) / 4th (AUS) / 3rd (EUR) slowest out of 12 characters to the 11th fastest out of 26.}}

*{{nerf|Ness' [[air acceleration]] is much lower (0.1067 (3.2) → 0.06).}}

*{{nerf|Ness [[jump]]s much lower (40.15 (1204.5) → 35.98).}}

*{{nerf|Ness' [[fast-fall]]ing speed is significantly slower (2.95 (88.5) → 2.2). The difference between his falling speed and fast falling speed is much lower (increase: 60.5% → 20.2%), which makes it more predictable when landing and gives him fewer options in the air.}}

*{{buff|Ness is drastically [[weight|heavier]] (81.818181 (1.1) → 94) which significantly improves his endurance.}}

**{{nerf|However, this also makes him much more vulnerable to combos and makes him susceptible to {{SSBM|Fox}}'s waveshine combos.}}

*{{buff|The introduction of [[air dodging]] benefits Ness as it gives him a much needed additional recovery option as well as an additional movement option in the form of [[wavedash]]ing.}}

**{{buff|Neutral attack's first hit deals more damage (2% → 3%).}}

**{{buff|The third hit has increased base knockback (10 → 16).}}

**{{nerf|Ness can no longer cancel the first hit into grab.}}

**{{buff|Forward tilt deals more damage (9%/10%/11% → 10%/11%/12%) and has increased base knockback (10 → 12).}}

**{{buff|Up tilt has less ending lag (FAF 35 → 32).}}

***{{nerf|However, this along with the reduction of [[hitstun]] and the introduction of [[DI]] significantly hinders its combo potential.}}

**{{nerf|Up tilt has a much shorter duration (frames 5-19 → 5-9) hindering its use as an anti air and giving it more cooldown.}}

**{{buff|Down tilt has less startup lag (frame 4 → 3) and Ness can perform another down tilt sooner (frame 11 → 8).}}

***{{buff|This make it safer on hit and chain into itself more reliably at lower percents.}}

**{{nerf|Down tilt has a shorter duration (frames 4-8 → 3-5).}}

**{{change|Dash attack is now a multi-hitting move where Ness produces three PSI rings in front of him.}}

**{{buff|Dash attack deals slightly more damage if all hits connect (12% (clean)/9% (late) → 5% (hit 1)/4% (hits 2 & 3)/12.28% (total)) and has significantly more range and overall utility.}}

**{{nerf|Dash attack has a shorter duration (frames 8-11 (clean)/12-25 (late) → 8/15/22) and each hit has high base knockback making it extremely difficult to connect properly.}}

**{{buff|Forward smash has increased horizontal range.}}

**{{nerf|Forward smash deals less knockback (70 (base), 65 (scaling) → 50/62) drastically hindering the sourspots' KO potential at high percentages.}}

**{{nerf|Forward smash has a shorter duration (frames 18-21 → 16-17), increasing its ending lag.}}

**{{nerf|Forward smash has a reduced reflection multiplier (1.8x → 1.5x) much like its Japanese ''Smash 64'' counterpart.}}

**{{nerf|Forward smash's reflector can now only deal up to 50% damage and the reflector will break if Ness reflects a projectile which deals over 50% (much like Fox's).}}

**{{buff|Up smash has less startup lag with a longer duration (frames 13-25 → 12-31).}}

**{{buff|Ness can use up smash to perform the [[Yo-yo glitch]] improving its utility.}}

**{{change|Up smash no longer has a mid hit.}}

**{{buff|The late hit launches opponents at a slightly higher angle compared to the previous mid hit (78° → 80°).}}

**{{nerf|Down smash has more ending lag (FAF 55 → 59).}}

*{{nerf|All aerials have increased landing lag (14 frames → 22 (neutral), 16 frames → 18 (forward), 15 frames → 18 (back), 4/8 frames → 18 (up), 4/8 frames → 28 (down)).}}

*{{nerf|All aerials except neutral aerial [[auto-cancel]] later (frame 27 → 30 (forward), frame 20 → 25 (back), frame 1 → 27 (up), frame 1 → 29 (down)).}}

**{{nerf|This combined with the changes to [[shield]]s has severely harmed Ness's shield pressuring potential; making his aerials much less safe against shield and completely removing his ability to perform [[shield break combo]]s.}}

**{{change|Ness has a new neutral aerial: a spin with his arms outward.}}

**{{buff|Neutral aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 40 → 27).}}

**{{nerf|Neutral aerial deals less damage (14% → 11% (clean), 11% → 8% (late)) hindering its KO potential.}}

***{{buff|However this combined with Ness's superior aerial mobility improves its combo potential.}}

**{{nerf|Neutral aerial has a shorter duration (frames 5-39 → 5-23).}}

**{{change|Forward aerial has been altered: Ness now produces five PSI rings in front of him with the move being a multi hit.}}

**{{buff|Forward aerial has less startup (frame 10 → 8) and ending lag (FAF 42 → 40).}}

**{{buff|Forward aerial deals more damage if all hits connect (12% (clean)/10% (late) → 3%/2% (hits 1-4)/5% (hit 5)/15.74% (total)).}}

**{{buff|Forward aerial has considerably more range.}}

**{{nerf|Forward aerial is less reliable due to being a multi-hit.}}

**{{nerf|The knockback on the final hit was not fully compensated (16 (base), 100 (scaling) → 24/135) hindering forward aerial's KO potential.}}

*[[Back aerial]]:

**{{nerf|The animation makes it so Ness's body no longer shrinks as much during Back aerial's startup lag and does not extend as far, giving it less range and hindering its safety.}}

**{{nerf|The sweetspot has a shorter duration (frames 10-13 → 10-11) with the late hit's duration being compensated (frames 14-19 → 12-19).}}

**{{nerf|The sweetspot now has an electric effect, giving it more hitlag (1x → 1.5x) and making it easier to DI.}}

**{{nerf|Ness's head is no longer intangible while performing up aerial.}}

**{{nerf|Up aerial deals less damage (15% → 13%) and its knockback was not fully compensated (10 (base), 110 (scaling) → 13/109).}}

**{{nerf|Up aerial no longer auto-cancels for its entire duration, now having 18 frames of landing lag (9 if L-cancelled).}}

**{{buff|Down aerial has much higher base knockback (10/0 → 90), improving its edgeguarding potential at lower percents.}}

**{{nerf|Down aerial has drastically increased start-up lag with a shorter duration (frames 4-20 → 20-28).}}

**{{nerf|Down aerial deals 3% less damage (15% → 12%) and has much lower knockback scaling (120 → 70), weakening the meteor smash's power at high percents and removing its KO potential on-stage..}}

***{{nerf|Altogether, these changes drastically worsens the move's utility and reliability, hindering its use in combos and in shield pressure while being much more unreliable as a KO move.}}

===Throws/other attacks===

**{{buff|Ness has been given an [[pummel]], [[up throw]], and a [[down throw]], improving his grab's utility. Both of these new throws can be used as combo starters.}}

**{{nerf|Back throw has more ending lag (FAF 45 → 53).}}

**{{nerf|Back throw no longer has a collateral hit which can hit bystanders.}}

**{{change|Ness now has a new neutral special: PK Flash. A chargeable green ball of light that increases in power and moves downward the longer the button is held. Once it reaches full power, it explodes, dealing huge knockback. It grants Ness a new powerful KO and edgeguarding option, although the move is ineffective due to its extremely poor speed and how vulnerable it leaves Ness when he uses it.}}

*[[PK Fire]]:

**{{change|As a result of PK Flash now being Ness's neutral special, PK Fire is now Ness's side special.}}

**{{buff|PK Fire has less ending lag (FAF 72 → 70).}}

**{{buff|PK Fire pillar's duration is slightly longer (frame 98 -> 100).}}

**{{buff|PK Fire pillar's hitboxes are larger and no longer shrink as its lifetime decreases.}}

**{{buff|PK Fire spark is less likely to knock opponents away from the pillar at higher percents.}}

**{{buff|PK Fire spark travels farther.}}

**{{nerf|PK Fire spark has a smaller hitbox and now relies on the assistance of a hurtbox to activate the fire pillar.}}

***{{nerf|Its reliance on the hurtbox makes it possible for attackers to hit the projectile, causing it to undergo 16 frames of hit cooldown; it also doesn't go off if the opponent and the hurtbox do not interact.}}

***{{buff|However, this also means that the PK Fire spark can absorb projectiles with transcendent priority.}}

**{{nerf|PK Fire deals less damage (4% (spark)/3% (pillar hits 1-7) → 2% (spark)/3% (pillar hit 1)/2% (pillar hits 2-7)), and it is now considerably easier to SDI out of.}}

**{{nerf|Ness will no longer auto-snap the ledge when using PK Thunder near a ledge.}}

**{{nerf|PK Thunder 2 travels a much shorter distance.}}

**{{nerf|PK Thunder 2 deals less damage when hitting an opponent (30% → 25%) and knockback (40 (base), 84 (scaling) → 60/70) significantly hindering its KO potential.}}

**{{nerf|PK Thunder 2 now has a drastically weaker late hitbox that deals less damage (30% → 20%) and knockback (40 (base), 84 (scaling) → 45/65).}}

**{{nerf|PK Thunder 2's clean hit has a shorter duration (frames 1-18 → 1-10).}}

**{{nerf|PK Thunder 2 has much more ending lag (FAF 44 → 100 (ground)/70 (air)) especially if Ness ends PK Thunder 2 on the ground or if he lands while in the middle of the animation of PK Thunder 2 and before he transitions into free fall.}}

**{{change|Physic-Magnet has been renamed to PSI Magnet.}}

**{{buff|PSI Magnet has less startup lag (frame 15 → 11).}}

**{{change|The color of PSI Magnet is now blue instead of green.}}

**{{change|The crowd no longer cheers when Ness absorbs a projectile with PSI Magnet. The screen additionally no longer flashes when this occurs either.}}

**{{nerf|Ness can no longer auto-snap the ledge while using PSI Magnet.}}

[[File:NessAerialAttacksSSBM.png|thumb|Ness's aerial attacks]]

|game=SSBM

|neutralcount=3

|neutralname=Hook ({{ja|ジャブ|Jabu}}, ''Jab'') / Straight ({{ja|ストレート|Sutorēto}}) / Kick ({{ja|ミドルキック|Midoru Kikku}}, ''Middle Kick'')

|neutral1dmg=3%

|neutral2dmg=2%

|neutral3dmg=4%

|neutraldesc=Punches forward twice, then kicks.

|ftiltdowndmg=10%

|ftiltdesc=Does a roundhouse kick forward. Can be angled up or down.

|utiltname=Push Up ({{ja|トス|Tosu}}, ''Toss'')

|utiltdmg=7%

|utiltdesc=Thrusts both his hands upward. Ness's head is intangible during the early part of the animation. Can combo into itself and DJC'd up aerials.

|dtiltname=Squat Kick ({{ja|クラウチングキック|Kurauchingu Kikku}}, ''Crouching Kick'')

|dtiltdmg=3%

|dtiltdesc=Thrusts his leg downward, then pivots his foot to hit the opponent. Can combo into itself by mashing the [[A button]] after the move is executed, and is an infinite against a wall.

|dashdmg=5% (hit 1), 4% (hits 2-3) (≈12.28% total)

|dashdesc=Throws his hands forward, sending three sparks PSI energy in front of himself. Good, disjointed range. 1st hit powerfully semi-spikes opponents, 2nd hit does very weak vertical knockback and the last hit deals powerful vertical knockback.

|fsmashdesc=Swings his bat forward. Has high knockback and damage at the tip of the bat, but has very weak knockback for a smash attack when untipped and has a little bit of start-up lag. There is a hitbox around Ness which can [[reflect]] projectiles,  but it is only out for 2 frames, so it's near-impossible to use reliably.

|usmashdmg=9% (startup), 4% (charging), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|6}} (attack)

|usmashdesc=Does a variation on the "around-the-world" yo-yo trick, swinging his yo-yo above his head. Has good range and speed. Used to perform the extremely powerful [[Yo-yo Glitch]], but has little utility otherwise. Like his down smash, this attack is incapable of KOing unless his opponent is over 200%, and the swinging part even has almost non-existent knockback not KOing until at least 500%, though this allows it to act an unorthodox combo-starter at mid to high percents. The attack has a hitbox while charging and can hang over ledges if spaced correctly, allowing for potential edgeguard situations. If Ness is too close to the ledge, however, and facing said ledge, he cannot charge the move.

|dsmashdesc=Sends his yo-yo backwards and "walks-the-dog" with it before pulling the yo-yo back. Has good range and speed, however, this attack is incapable of KOing unless his opponent is over 180%. More powerful than the up smash in terms of knockback, but still extremely weak. The attack has a hitbox while charging. The swinging part of the attack has barely any base knockback and can't KO until the 430% range. Overall less utility than up-smash due to the Yo-yo starting out behind Ness. If Ness is too close to the ledge, and facing away from it, he cannot charge the move.

|fairdesc=Throws both his hands forward, sending multiple sparks PSI energy in front of himself. Is a fast, multi-hitting move, with good range and high knockback on the last hit KOing under 130% off-stage. Generally used as a [[spacing]] move and can chain into itself several times at low to high percents.

|bairdesc=Thrusts both his feet backwards. If sweetspotted, it electrifies the opponent, dealing massive damage. Is fast with very high knockback albeit somewhat poor range. Can shield poke if fastfalled out of a DJC. The fourth most powerful back aerial in the game, beaten by {{SSBM|Zelda}}, {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}, and {{SSBM|Samus}}.

|uairdesc=Headbutts upward. Has amazing juggling potential when DJC'd and a good KO move with very low lag, but poor range. Unlike in ''Smash 64'', Ness's head is no longer intangible.

|dairdmg=12%

|dairdesc=Pulls his legs to his body before stomping downwards.  Is a [[meteor smash]], and has a decent amount of start-up lag. Great range, extremely high knockback at 0% (most powerful meteor smash at 0% in ''Melee''), but it also has very low knockback scaling, being unable to KO grounded opponents at even 200%, and is relatively easy to meteor cancel. It also has no IASA frames (being interrupted on the same frame as Mario's forward aerial, but Mario's seem slower compared to Ness's).

|bthrowdesc=Psychically throws the opponent behind him. Has extremely low base knockback but very high knockback scaling. This is Ness's strongest throw and the second strongest throw in the game (second to {{SSBM|Mewtwo}}'s up throw), KOing reliably at 130% and above.

|floorbdesc=Gets up and does a sweep kick with both feet.

|edgefdesc=Somersaults onto the stage, and kicks upwards with both feet.

|nsdmg=11-36%

|nsdesc=A sphere of green light appears above Ness. As the attack button is held, the sphere moves downwards and increases in power and size, until the attack button is released or until it is fully charged, it explodes. Has [[Priority#Transcendent_priority|transcendent priority]].

|ssdmg=2% (lightning), 3% (pillar hit 1), 2% (pillar hits 2-7)

|ssdesc=Fires a yellow, lightning-bolt shaped projectile that travels in a straight line until it hits an enemy or destructible portion of a stage, at which point it explodes into flames. The bolt has a [[hurtbox]], which is what activates the pillar upon contact; the surrounding [[hitbox]] deals 2% and little vertical knockback. The fire pillar also has a hurtbox which slowly shrinks in size and appears to have a windbox.

|usdesc=Creates a stream of lightning that can be aimed into opponents to deal damage with the head and stun with the tail. Aiming the head into Ness himself will launch him in a trajectory opposite to the side he was hit on, which is referred to as [[PK Thunder 2]]. PK Thunder 2 has intangibility frames during the first half of the move. PK Thunder has transcendent priority.

|dsdmg=0%, heals 2.0x the damage of absorbed projectiles

===Stats===

|cast = 26

|weight = 94

|rweight = 11

|dash = 1.3

|rdash = 21-23

|run = 1.4

|rrun = 16-20

|walk = 0.84

|trac = 0.06

|rtrac = 15-23

|airfric = 0.03

|air = 0.93

|baseaccel = 0.02

|rbaseaccel = 2-23

|addaccel = 0.04

|raddaccel = 5-11

|gravity = 0.09

|fall = 1.83

|ff = 2.2

|rff = 19-20

|rjumpsquat = 8-15

|jumpheight = 35.98

|shorthop = 13.26

|cast = 26

|weight = 94

|rweight = 11

|dash = 1.3

|rdash = 21-23

|run = 1.4

|rrun = 16-20

|walk = 0.84

|rwalk = 22

|trac = 0.06

|rtrac = 15-23

|airfric = 0.03

|air = 0.93

|rair = 10

|rbaseaccel = 2-23

|addaccel = 0.04

|gravity = 0.09

|rgravity = 18

|fall = 1.83

|rfall = 15

|ff = 2.2

|rff = 19-20

|jumpsquat = 4

|rjumpsquat = 8-15

|jumpheight = 35.98

|shorthop = 13.26

|rshorthop = 14

|djump = ?

 

===[[Announcer]] call===

[[File: Ness Announcer SSBM.wav]]

 

===[[Taunt]]===

{{Taunt/SSBM|char=Ness|desc=Turns to the screen and nods his head while saying "Okay".}}

 

===[[Idle pose]]===

{{Idle|desc=Looks from side to side.|image=Ness Idle Pose Melee.gif}}

 

===[[Crowd cheer]]===

|desc-us=Ness Ness Ness!

|desc-jp=Ness Ness Ness!

===[[Victory pose]]s===

|victory-theme=Ness Victory.ogg

|victory-desc=An orchestrated version of the final four Soundstone Melodies from ''[[EarthBound (game)|EarthBound]]''. They also play in the game's credits, ''Smiles and Tears''.

|desc-1=Looks to the left and right of him, then places his right arm on the back of his head.

|desc-2=Swings around his bat four times, then poses with it.

|desc-3=Jumps up and down twice, places arms on waist, and says "Okay!"

==In [[competitive play]]==

===Most historically significant players===

:''See also: [[:Category:Ness players (SSBM)]]''

*{{Sm|Simna ibn Sind|USA}} - Considered the best Ness player from 2006 to 2008, from 2015 to 2020, and of all time. He holds the best major results for Ness with 13th at {{Trn|EVO World 2007}} and 17th at {{Trn|Super Champ Combo}}. Mainly only attended {{Trn|EVO}} and [[GENESIS (tournament series)|GENESIS]] before his inactivity from competition. Simna ibn Sind is also known to be the person who discovered the [[Thunder Jacket]].

*{{Sm|Mofo|USA}} - One of the most influential Ness mains known for discovering many [[glitch]]es such as the [[Star Jacket]], [[Spike Jacket]] and the [[yoyo stack glitch]]. Considered the best Ness in the world from 2009 to 2014 before retiring, has taken a set off {{Sm|Gravy}} and {{Sm|Captain Smuckers}}.

*{{Sm|JoeyBats|Canada}} - The current best Ness player in the world, gaining notoriety during online tournaments through [[Slippi]]. He boast the highest tournament placements and highest rates of tournament participation among Ness players in 2021 on [[Project Slippi]] netplay and offline placed 17th at the superregional {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}}.

Ness was initially viewed as low-mid tier character in the metagame, with a peak of 15th place on the second tier list. While he originally not considered terrible, his strengths never outshined his weaknesses; as the metagame went on, his glaring issues in range, inconsistent KOing potential, and terrible recovery caused his competitive perception to tank. This is reflected following the third tier list, where he has consistently been ranked as a bottom tier.

On the current tier list, Ness places at 23rd, in the D tier, and he is widely considered non-viable for tournament play. Dedicated Ness players in high-level play are extremely rare in the current metagame, with most Ness players using him only as a situational counterpick. {{Sm|Hungrybox}} only used Ness once in all of {{Trn|Apex 2013}}, in an attempt to catch {{Sm|Armada}}'s {{SSBM|Young Link}} (which was developed specifically to fight Hungrybox) off-guard, and he mostly used {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}} for the rest of the tournament. Other players of Ness are semi-active and generally do not place very well with him.

==In 1-P Mode==

==={{SSBM|Classic Mode}}===

In Classic Mode, Ness can appear as an ordinary opponent, as an ally or opponent in the team battles, alongside {{SSBM|Yoshi}}, {{SSBM|Peach}}, or {{SSBM|Mewtwo}}, as a member of a multi-character battle, or as a metal opponent. In Ness's appearance, he appears on either [[Onett]] or [[Fourside]] (if unlocked) as a regular opponent and on {{SSBM|Battlefield}} as a metal opponent. When on a team with Yoshi, he appears on {{SSBM|Yoshi's Island}}.

===[[Adventure Mode]]===

Ness's appearance in the [[Adventure Mode]] is in Stage 9: Onett. In the stage, the player must fight against three computer players, each one being Ness, on Onett; in the fight, the only item that appear is [[Mr. Saturn]]. The player must defeat all three opponents within five minutes to continue.

===[[All-Star Mode]]===

Ness and his allies are fought on [[Onett]].

===[[Event Matches]]===

Ness is featured in the following event matches:

*'''[[Event 5: Spare Change]]''': the player controls Ness and fights {{SSBM|Captain Falcon}} in a coin battle on Onett. The player must collect 200 coins within 80 seconds in order to clear the event.

*'''[[Event 30: All-Star Match 3]]''': Ness is the third opponent to be fought in this series of staged battles. The player battles him on [[Onett]], which will transition to the next stage if Ness gets defeated. With a timer of four minutes, the player must defeat him along with {{SSBM|Kirby}}, {{SSBM|Pikachu}} and the {{SSBM|Ice Climbers}}.

*'''[[Event 36: Space Travelers]]''': As Ness, the player must defeat {{SSBM|Samus}}, Kirby, {{SSBM|Fox}}, Captain Falcon, and {{SSBM|Falco}}. The player battles the first three characters on [[Fourside]] and battles the last two on {{SSBM|Battlefield}}.

===[[Congratulations_screen#Super_Smash_Bros._Melee|Congratulations Screens]]===

<center>

<gallery>

NessClassicMode.jpg|Classic Mode

NessAdventureMode.jpg|Adventure Mode

NessAllStarMode.jpg|All-Star Mode

</gallery>

</center>

==[[Trophies]]==

In addition to the normal trophy about Ness as a character, there are two trophies about him as a fighter, unlocked by completing both [[Adventure Mode|Adventure]] and [[All-Star]] modes respectively with Ness on any difficulty:

{{Trophy/Fighter

|name=Ness

|image=Ness Trophy Melee.png

|mode=Classic

|desc=Ness is a young boy who's mastered the psychic power known as PSI. Ness was living a normal life in the suburbs of Onett until a meteor crashed into a nearby mountain and sent him on a wild adventure. Believing in the ultimate powers of wisdom, courage, and friendship, Ness proves that some heroes come in small packages.

|name=Ness

|image=Ness Trophy (Smash).png

|mode=Adventure

|desc=The key to mastering Ness is controlling his unique midair jump, which makes up for what he lacks in speed. His PK Flash attack may seem weak at first glance, but it grows more powerful the longer you hold down the B Button. To do a lot of damage with PK Fire, try to burn your opponent as many times as possible.

{{Trophy/Fighter

|name=Ness

|image=Ness Trophy (Smash) 2.png

|mode=All Star

|desc=Ness's mind is his best weapon. PK Thunder is a PSI missile weapon that can be guided using the Control Stick, and if Ness hits himself with it, he turns into a living missile capable of doing massive damage. This move can also be used for recovery. PSI Magnet turns energy missile attacks into health; try out certain Pokémon for stamina replenishment.

|gamelist=:Up & B: PK Thunder

|colspan=4|[[File:Ness Palette (SSBM).png]]

|-

|{{Head|Ness|g=SSBM|s=25px}}

|{{Head|Ness|g=SSBM|s=25px|cl=Yellow}}

 

SSBMWebsiteNess5.jpg|[[Jump]]ing over The Runaway Five tour bus on Onett.

*Although Ness is no longer able to auto-snap to the ledge out of aerial PK Thunder, modifying the move to be able to do so and grabbing the ledge while PK Thunder is being controlled reveals that it will despawn as it would in the original ''Super Smash Bros.'' This even happens with v1.00 behavior where normally, the thunder ball continues to fly if Ness is hit while controlling it, possibly suggesting that PK Thunder auto-ledge-snap may have been considered initially.

*When Ness's profile page was updated on July 17th, 2001, [[Sakurai]] revealed that Ness was meant to be replaced by [[Lucas]] from ''Mother 3''. However, as ''Mother 3'' was facing development issues and had its original Nintendo 64 release cancelled, Ness was brought back instead.

*Ness is one of three characters whose neutral special changed during his jump to ''Melee'', the others being [[Link]] and [[Jigglypuff]]. In the original ''Super Smash Bros.'', his neutral special was PK Fire; from ''Melee'' onward, he now uses PK Flash. As with the other two, his original neutral special remains in the game, having been transferred to the newly added side special move slot.

*Hitting Ness as he's using [[PK Thunder]] can cause his body to constantly produce sparks afterward, though these sparks only provide a cosmetic effect. This glitch continues until he gets KOed, shields, or performs PK Thunder again.

*Ness's [http://www.nintendo.com/amiibo/detail/ness-amiibo-super-smash-bros-series amiibo description] on the North American [[amiibo]] website is based on his trophy description from ''Melee''.

 

[[Category:Ness (SSBM)| ]]

[[Category:Trophies (SSBM)]]

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