Editing Screen KO

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[[File:ScreenKOSmashUltimate.png|thumb|350px|{{SSBU|Wolf}} getting screen KO'd in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''.]]

A '''Screen KO''' ({{ja|手前やられ|Temae yarare}}, ''Forefront defeat'') is a special type of [[KO]] which has a chance of occurring when characters are launched past the upper [[blast line]]. In contrast to a [[Star KO]], the character instead falls into the foreground and appears to [[wikipedia:Fourth wall|crash into the screen]], before they are KO'd at the bottom, which is how these KO's got their name.

Whether a character is Star KO'd, Screen KO'd, or merely blast KO'd is mostly random. In the first three games, Screen KOs are considerably rarer than Star KOs; as a result, Screen KOs rarely involve two or more characters at once. From ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]'' onward, the frequency of Screen KOs has been increased, especially in the 3DS version of Smash 4, to be about as common as Star KOs.

In ''Smash 64'', characters yell out their Star KO scream and fall down between the front of the stage and the camera, getting KO'd by the bottom blast line afterward. Depending on the camera angle, this may not always be visible. The distance the character is from the camera is chosen randomly — sometimes doomed characters appear to be falling normally, while at other times they are just a quick flash of color going down the screen. Screen KOs have the same duration as a Star KO. Unlike the other games of the series, Screen KO'd characters do not actually hit the screen in any way.

In ''Melee'', all characters, with exception of {{SSBM|Mr. Game & Watch}}, have a unique [[tumbling]] animation for when they crash into the screen; upon striking the camera, the character also exclaims one of their two strong knockback yells (with the exception of {{SSBM|Samus}}), then gets KO'd by the bottom blast line without making any sounds. How close a character being KO'd is to the camera is no longer determined by randomness, but by the stage being played on. On {{SSBM|Mushroom Kingdom}} and [[Mushroom Kingdom II]], for example, Screen KO'd characters are very close to the camera and thus appear much larger. With the introduction of [[Coin Battle]]s, Screen KO'd characters also visibly drop numerous coins when they hit the screen.

While Screen KOs in ''64'' were roughly the same length as star KOs (around 2 seconds), Screen KOs in ''Melee'' are significantly faster than Star KOs (around 1 second). This difference is significant, and can potentially affect gameplay. For example, when a character is KO'd by {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}}'s [[Rest]], getting a Star KO means that the character will not [[respawn]] fast enough to [[punish]] the sleeping Jigglypuff, due to the length of the Star KO animation. However, if a character is instead Screen KO'd, this provides them with more time to potentially get a solid hit on the vulnerable Jigglypuff. The Screen KO's shorter duration can also influence the outcome of matches that have gone to a last [[stock]] situation. If both characters are KO'd off of the top at around the same time and one is Screen KO'd instead of Star KO'd, the Star KO'd player will win the match due to random chance and the lengthier animation.  

A [[Bonus points|bonus]] exists for getting Screen KO'd, Foresight, which grants the receiver 500 points for every time they are KO'd this way.

In ''Brawl'', with the exception of {{SSBB|Meta Knight}}, {{SSBB|King Dedede}}, {{SSBB|Mr. Game & Watch}}, and {{SSBB|Sonic}}, characters use a side version of their regular tumbling animations for a Screen KO, though the animations for the actual impact are not as nuanced as in ''Melee''. Like ''Melee'', Screen KOs are considerably faster than Star KOs, again potentially leading to some gameplay effects.

With strong knockback yells being scrapped and unused in ''Brawl'', characters now either use their regular pain yells or remain silent when they hit the screen.

In ''SSB4'', instead of using their tumbling animation, every character now uses a unique Screen KO animation depicting them flying towards the screen, hitting it face-first, then staying in place briefly before sliding down. Due to this new separate animation, several characters pose during their Screen KOs in a manner referencing their series, such as {{SSB4|Kirby}} reusing a pose from ''Kirby: Triple Deluxe'', {{SSB4|Cloud}} using a pose similar to his official render, and {{SSB4|Shulk}} hitting the screen with his back in order for the [[Monado]] to be visible. Characters who share the same base model tend to share the same Screen KO poses, such as {{SSB4|Ness}} and {{SSB4|Lucas}}. While ''Smash 4'' re-added strong knockback yells that were absent in ''Brawl'', Screen KO'd characters in ''SSB4'' no longer make any vocal sounds when they hit the screen, and instead, a comical "thud" sound effect is played.

As a direct result of the new Screen KO's "pause", Screen KOs now take a very slight amount of more time to resolve than a Star KO, which is seemingly a change made to not affecting gameplay as much compared to ''Melee'' or ''Brawl''. Furthermore, Screen KOs and Star KOs are both disabled during the [[Match timer#Final countdown timer|final five seconds of a match]] and [[Sudden Death]] — characters will simply create the usual colorful blast after crossing the blast line. Blast KOs can still occur even if the match has no [[Match timer|time limit]] or if it is in an early part of a [[time]]d match.

Several characters have different Screen KOs between both versions. The maximum amount of characters that can be Screen KO'd at one time is three. If the 3D slider is turned on in the ''Nintendo 3DS'' version, the stage's field of view will momentarily "flatten" during a Screen KO while the KO'd character appears at the forefront, slightly protruding from the screen.

In {{forwiiu}}, Screen KOs are disabled on [[Super Mario Maker]], [[Jungle Hijinxs]] (normal form only), [[Flat Zone X]], {{b|Duck Hunt|stage}}, [[Wii Fit Studio]], [[Pac-Land]], and [[Umbra Clock Tower]], and players instead are either Blast KO'd or Star KO'd on these stages. Screen KOs are available in all stages except Super Mario Maker and Umbra Clock Tower in {{for3ds}}.

===In ''[[Ultimate]]''===

Screen KOs retain their unique animations from ''Smash 4''. They once again complete faster than Star KOs, which will affect gameplay. For the first time in the series, one attack can cause [[Instant KO|instant]] Screen KOs, which is [[Giga Bowser Punch]], and the [[Beetle]] item will now always cause a Screen KO. At the end of the animation, the colored blast from a Blast KO now appears off the bottom blast line. However, there are still stages where Screen KOs can't occur. These stages in VS. mode are:

*{{SSB|Mushroom Kingdom}}

*[[WarioWare, Inc.]]

*[[75m]]

*[[Mario Bros.]]

*[[Hanenbow]]

*[[Dream Land GB]]

*[[Mute City SNES]]

*[[Balloon Fight]]

 

They also will not happen on [[Mushroomy Kingdom]] and [[Wuhu Island]]'s Battlefield and Ω forms (but star KO’s can), despite the normal versions of the stages having them.

Ganondorf ScreenKO.png|{{SSBM|Ganondorf}} about to hit the screen in [[Yoshi's Story]] in ''Melee''.

Ness up against the screen.jpg|Ness being Screen KO'd on [[Shadow Moses Island]] in ''Brawl''.

Mario Screen KO SSBB.gif|{{SSBB|Mario}} getting Screen KO'd on [[Delfino Plaza]] in ''Brawl''.

LuigiscreenK.O.jpg|{{SSB4|Luigi}} getting Screen KO'd in {{for3ds}}.

Shulk and Marth Screen KO.gif|{{SSB4|Shulk}} and {{SSB4|Marth}} getting Screen KO'd, showing player indicator icons disappearing during the animation in Wii U.

Triple KO.gif|{{SSB4|Roy}} getting Screen KO'd while Shulk gets [[Star KO]]'d, showing the length of both KOs being about the same.

InklingScreenKO.png|Inkling getting screen KO'd on [[Moray Towers]] after recently getting inked by another Inkling in the E3 build of ''Ultimate''.

 

==See also==