List of flaws in artificial intelligence (SSBM)

The following is a list of flaws in the artificial intelligence of Super Smash Bros. Melee.

General

Category	Description	Character
Recovery	CPUs will never attempt to fight off or evade edge-guarders.	All
	CPUs will only use their midair jumps and up special move to recover - never any alternate recovery methods such as side special moves, air dodges or wall-grapples (as they don't use grab aerials). Luigi is the exception to this rule.	All
	CPU Luigi will always use Green Missile and never use Super Jump Punch to recover, even when necessary. He also never charges the former move, so he will most likely fail to recover if the attack is not a misfire, even though the move is used periodically. This leads to him self-destructing easily on stages that emphasise vertical recoveries, like Mushroom Kingdom II or Brinstar Depths.
	CPU Fox, Falco, Marth, Roy, Zelda, and Mewtwo will always aim in the same upward diagonal trajectory when recovering, even if using such a trajectory will result in them failing to make it back to the stage while a more desirable trajectory would allow them to recover successfully.
	A CPU Sheik will always aim straightly horizontally or vertically (depending on her position from the edge), never diagonally.
	If a CPU Jigglypuff runs out of midair jumps when recovering, it will use Sing, instead of using Pound or an air dodge, guaranteeing a failed recovery if it cannot grab the ledge.
	CPU Ness will use PK Thunder only when recovering if he is set to level nine, and will always aim it in an upwards, barely horizontal trajectory. A lower level CPU Ness will just fall and get KO'd if the midair jump is not enough to make it back to the stage.
	CPU Peach will rarely use the ability to float: she only uses it near the bottom of the stage after falling off with an attack, and unusually will not move around when doing so, simply stalling her eventual fall, and always holding it to the maximum length. This allows players to edgeguard her in a simple and easy way, while she would have survived otherwise. CPU Peach also tends to use Peach Parasol to recover immediately when close enough to the edge, even when she could have used a midair jump to recover more effectively.
	If a CPU Pichu uses Agility and ends up above the edge of a platform with the first dash, it will always aim straightly horizontally with the second, even if that causes it to move offstage and self-destruct. A CPU Pikachu will also exhibit this behavior, though it will very rarely SD due to Quick Attack giving a shorter distance.
	When CPUs are caped by Mario or Dr. Mario offstage before they use up special after using their midair jump, they will use aerial attacks even if they miss the ledge while using aerial attacks. Depending on the attack's duration, this will cause them to fail a recovery that was possible and self-destruct.	All
Repeated or Held Inputs	CPUs never charge attacks that require button holding, including smash attacks (with the exception of the Ice Climbers, who occasionally charge their forward smash), Shield Breaker, Hero's Bow, Skull Bash, Green Missile, Rollout (Rollout in particular suffers from the CPU's behaviour, since it has no effect other than leaving the user vulnerable if it is used without being charged), and the Super Scope, among others. Zelda with Din's Fire (depending on the foe's distance) and Sheik with Needle Storm, as well as Ness with PK Flash against a grounded opponent, are the only exceptions.	All
	CPU Link and Young Link almost never use the second hit of their forward smash; as a result, they have more difficulty KOing, as Link's forward smash is relatively weak when the first hit connects, while Young Link's first hit deals low, set knockback to set up the second, more powerful attack.
	CPUs never hold indefinitely extendable attacks such as rapid jabs, Fire Breath, Reflector, Inhale or Hand Slap past their minimum length. They also never hold the Fire Flower's flames, and never fire the Super Scope continuously.	All
	CPU Kirby under the effect of Stone will never end the transformation early. Besides allowing players to easily punish a CPU Kirby with powerful attacks, this will cause him to self destruct on some stages; if he hits a breakable platform above the lower blast line or is on a slope that ends offstage, he will end up sliding down and plummeting offstage. In addition to this, if a player is under a platform and a CPU Kirby uses Stone, the CPU will continuously use Stone until the player moves or successfully attacks Kirby.
	CPU Mario, Luigi and Dr. Mario never move around nor rise when using their respective down specials.
Grabbing & Throwing	CPUs will always throw a grabbed opponent in a random direction, which, combined with their excessive use of throws, results in CPUs throwing the foe into the stage while attempting to edgeguard, or using a certain throw when a different one would have KO'd the foe. Some CPUs also tend to overuse a specific throw, such as Fox overusing his down throw, or Mario and his clones frequently using their back throws.	All
Jumping & Falling	CPUs will never initiate a fast fall intentionally, only doing so sometimes when attempting to attack with a down aerial while falling down.	All
Taunting	AI players have poor taunting habits. After the CPU respawns, if the player was previously KO'd by it will occasionally walk to the player and taunt for no apparent reason.	All
	Upon KOing a character, CPUs will usually taunt, regardless of what is occurring around them. Additionally, when KOing an enemy horizontally from the middle of a main platform, they will walk to the edge nearest to where the KO occurred before taunting. When Star KOing an opponent, they won't taunt until the animation is finished, leaving them unnecessarily vulnerable during long taunts.	All
Dashing	CPUs will never initiate a dash except to perform dash grabs and dash attacks, the latter being less common. In this case they act almost immediately after the initial dash, which makes their attack pattern predictable and easy to avoid.	All
Shielding & Dodging	Like in Smash 64, CPUs will still shield attacks when invincible, and still attack other opponents during the invincibility period of a revival platform. When returning on one, they also reenter the fight instantly, regardless of what is happening.	All
	CPUs will never sidestep intentionally; the only time they will sidestep is when they are trying to shield and fall through a soft platform simultaneously.	All
	While CPUs always attempt to dodge certain attacks (as noted above), their dodges are often poor in these cases. For example, a CPU near an edge attempting to dodge an attack such as Bowser Bomb may still roll towards the edge, which can result in the attack still hitting and KOing the CPU while it would have survived with another dodging technique.	All
	When air dodging, CPUs also tend to shift themselves in the direction they were already moving, or may not move at all, even if it causes them to unnecessarily fail to avoid the attack they were trying to.	All
Other	CPUs will continuously attack Kirby while he is under the effect of Stone.	All
	CPUs never attempt to intentionally execute wall or ceiling techs, the former being accidentally triggered when they are near a wall and attempt to shield too late. They also use ground techs only if they are sent on an upwards trajectory and are not interrupted before reaching the ground.	All
	Other than Fox and Falco using their Reflectors, CPUs always reflect projectiles with perfect shields only, even though some characters like Mario and Zelda have more effective reflectors. This results in things such as CPUs not being able to properly reflect Poké Balls (as perfect shielding them does not change the Pokémon's owner) or consecutive projectiles, or their shields becoming easily broken by rapid-fire projectiles.
	When an opponent is knocked down or hanging on a ledge, CPUs will only use down tilts and down smashes to attack them, even when some like Captain Falcon's down smash don't reach ledge-hanging foes.	All
	CPUs cannot properly recognise the height differences that occur when standing on slopes, which will lead to things like a CPU flailing above an opponent with its jab when higher up on a slope.	All
	CPUs do not recognise pits as if they were an offstage area, leading to the CPU just walking and falling into them as the CPU attempts to carelessly attack an opponent near the pit, which often results in the CPU self-destructing.	All

Character Specific

Character	Description
Kirby	CPU Kirby has unusual behavior with his use of Inhale. When he first uses Inhale, he will constantly use it until he can copy a character. Additionally, Kirby will heavily spam the move he copied. He also never moves around with swallowed foes, and spits out an opponent only if it is another Kirby. In this case, he also always spit out the Kirby, even if it has a copied ability that can be stolen.
	CPU Kirby will mostly use his Stone on foes below them when he is in midair, regardless of what is below them. When a CPU Kirby without an ability is swallowed by another Kirby player, he will almost always use Stone after being released from Inhale, due to him being left above the player, allowing the human Kirby to rack up damage by repeatedly swallowing the CPU.
Peach	As noted before, Peach will almost never float, hovering in place on the occasion that she does.
	CPU Peach tends to use Peach Bomber against foes near the attack's maximum range. While not seemingly problematic, she can be easily punished if the attack misses.
	If a CPU Peach ends up offstage with Peach Bomber, she will stall by floating as described above, leaving her vulnerable for several seconds.
	A CPU Peach may spam Peach Parasol if the player is at a close range. Additionally, when CPU Peach uses Peach Parasol as an attack, she will follow the player even if near a pit, making Peach approach it and then, depending on the stage, not being able to reach a platform or ledge, resulting in a self-destruct.
Dr. Mario	CPU Dr. Mario often tries to edge-guard with his forward aerial, which unlike Mario's is not a meteor smash. More often than not, this attempt fails, sometimes leaving him unable to recover, causing an SD.
Mario	CPU Mario often tries to edge-guard with his forward aerial. More often than not, this attempt fails, sometimes leaving him unable to recover, causing an SD.
Luigi	As noted before, CPU Luigi incorrectly uses Green Missile to recover.
	CPU Luigi tends to use Green Missile against foes near the attack's maximum range, not charging it (as noted above). While not seemingly problematic, he can be easily punished if the attack misses. He may self-destruct on small stages if the attack misfires.
	CPU Luigi will never meteor cancel when offstage, even at level nine (due to his way of recovering).
Pikachu	As noted before, Pikachu will always use both dashes of Quick Attack, even when it may cause it to SD.
	CPU Pikachu tends to use Skull Bash against foes near the attack's maximum range, not charging it (as noted above). While not seemingly problematic, Pikachu can be easily punished if the attack misses.
	CPU Pikachu will spam Thunder.
Pichu	As noted before, Pichu will always use both dashes of Agility, even when it may cause it to SD.
	CPU Pichu tends to use Skull Bash against foes near the attack's maximum range, not charging it (as noted above). While not seemingly problematic, Pichu can be easily punished if the attack misses.
	CPU Pichu will spam Thunder.
Marth	CPU Marth will never use Counter.
	When CPU Marth uses Dancing Blade, after knocking his foe away with the first hit, he will always execute the three subsequent hits of the attack even if the foe gets out of reach. He also never uses the up and down versions of the attacks. If the foe is very close to him and isn't knocked away with the first hit, he may instead only use that one, even when following-up with the others was possible.
Roy	CPU Roy will never use Counter.
	When CPU Roy uses Double-Edge Dance, after knocking his foe away with the first hit, he will always execute the three subsequent hits of the attack even if the foe gets out of reach. He also never uses the up and down versions of the attacks. If the foe is very close to him and isn't knocked away with the first hit, he may instead only use that one, even when following-up with the others was possible.
Zelda	CPU Zelda will never use Nayru's Love, not even for reflecting projectiles. CPU Kirby with Zelda's ability still uses the move, though.
	If a player semi-spikes a CPU Zelda close to the edge, she will never use Farore's Wind unless she is low and underneath the stage, or is hit by another player, leading to self destructs. In addition when edgeguarder comes near, she will use aerial attacks or Din's Fire, causing Zelda to fail a recovery that was possible resulting in SD.
Mr. Game & Watch	CPU Mr. Game & Watch will never use Chef.
	CPU Mr. Game & Watch uses Oil Panic at inappropriate moments.
	If a player semi-spikes a CPU Mr. Game & Watch close to the edge, he will never use Fire unless he is low and underneath the stage, or is hit by another player, leading to self destructs.
Ness	As noted before, CPU Ness only uses PK Thunder to recover correctly at level 9. Even then, CPU Ness only angles PK Thunder upwards, never diagonally or sideways.
	CPU Ness never uses PSI Magnet; even when projectiles are shot in his vicinity, he will just reflect them by perfect shielding.
	If a player semi-spikes a CPU Ness close to the edge, he will recover with his usual pattern. When an edgeguarder comes near, he will use aerial attacks and never use PK Thunder to recover unless he is low and underneath the stage, or is hit by another player, leading to self destructs.
	CPU Ness will spam PK Flash.
	When using PK Thunder as an attack, CPU Ness will always aim it in a trajectory between diagonal and horizontal, and will not alter this trajectory even if it misses the foe, leaving him highly vulnerable to attacks during the move.
Jigglypuff	As noted before, Jigglypuff uses Sing to attempt to recover.
	CPU Jigglypuff never uses Rollout or Rest. CPU Kirby with Jigglypuff absorbed will attempt to use Rollout, but will never charge it when using it (as noted prior). CPU Kirby also may use Rollout even if near a ledge, which would cause him to fall down in helpless state and self-destruct. As CPU Kirby mostly spams copied abilities, this can be easily exploited.
Link	CPU Link will never attempt to angle his Boomerang.
Young Link	CPU Young Link will never attempt to angle his Boomerang.
Sheik	As noted before, CPU Sheik will never angle Vanish diagonally.
	CPU Sheik may periodically use Chain when approaching, instead of Needle Storm, leaving her easily vulnerable against attacks. She also rarely swings the chain around, and only if the opponent is close to her.
Samus	CPU Samus will only use Bomb when above a foe in midair.
Captain Falcon	As he approaches the player, CPU Captain Falcon will periodically use Falcon Punch and Raptor Boost like how other CPUs use projectiles while approaching. He does this despite the opponent being completely out of his range, and the very long lag of these attacks makes it easy for opponents to punish him. He will occasionally use Falcon Kick instead, however.
	CPU Captain Falcon will always use Raptor Boost after using forward throw (or sometimes down throw) on someone, even if it would cause him to go offstage and self-destruct. He may also use Raptor Boost if the player is near the ledge offstage, attempting to hit them, but usually falling off the stage.
	CPU Captain Falcon will often try to Falcon Dive after successfully executing an up throw. This is preceded by a single jump. The entire process is a predictable and thus poor attempt at comboing the opponent.
Ganondorf	As he approaches the player, CPU Ganondorf will periodically use Warlock Punch, Gerudo Dragon, and up tilt like how other CPUs use projectiles while approaching. He does this despite the opponent being completely out of his range, and the very long lag of these attacks makes it easy for opponents to punish him. He will occasionally use Wizard's Foot instead, however.
	CPU Ganondorf will also nearly always use Dark Dive when someone is nearby and above him, even if they're near the edge of the stage, which can cause him to use Dark Dive and then fall offstage, self-destructing.
Bowser	When approaching, CPU Bowser periodically uses Fire Breath even if the opponent is completely out of the attack's range, making his approach even more predictable and easy to counter.
	CPU Bowsers will mostly use Bowser Bomb on foes below them when they are in midair, regardless of what is below them.
	CPU Bowsers will never shield projectiles when approaching the player, even at level nine, despite the AI's tendency to shield and even reflect any projectile.
Yoshi	CPU Yoshi will spam Egg Throw if an opponent is above him.
	A high level CPU Yoshi mostly uses Egg Roll against a player at a large distance, and chase him/her even if near an edge, so that if the player dodges or just shields against the attack, the CPU may easily fall offstage and self-destruct.
Mewtwo	A CPU Mewtwo that is charging Shadow Ball in midair (by either falling off an edge when attacking a foe out of range, or sometimes when using the move very close to one) will never cancel the attack, and won't shoot the ball if there are no enemies directly in front of it, simply falling down and self-destructing.
	If a player semi-spikes a CPU Mewtwo close to the edge, it will never use Teleport unless it is low and underneath the stage, or is hit by another player, leading to self destructs. In addition when an edgeguarder comes near, it will use aerial attacks or Shadow Ball. Depending on distance and attack's duration, this will cause Mewtwo to fail a recovery that was possible resulting an SD.

Item Related

Item	Description
Any	A CPU Zelda that holds a throwing item will usually throw it down when close to an opponent, in an attempt to use a down tilt. Not only does this often render the item ineffectual, but she will easily self-destruct if the item is an explosive.
Starman	Picking up either a Hammer or a Starman will cause all the CPUs to run to the opposite side of the stage and stand there until the effect wears off; they will not use any defensive maneuvers whatsoever. On Poké Floats, while standing there until the effect wears off, a CPU will only attack if an opponent comes near very close to the camera boundaries or between a blast line and the camera's view. This can result in SD, if the CPU stays on certain float too long while attacking an opponent.
	When using a Warp Star, CPUs never change the trajectory of the attack, which can result in them self-destructing if the default trajectory happens to propel them offstage.
	If a CPU grabs a Hammer, it will chase opponents until it reaches a wall and continually jump in place even if the obstacle can be jumped over. It will also jump offstage to chase opponents that have jumped off the stage, and self destruct in the process. Additionally, even if the Hammer's head falls off, CPUs still attempt to chase opponents, putting themselves in harm while doing so. They also never pick up the head intentionally, as with other items.
	If they are next to the radius of Venusaur's earthquake or near Wobbuffet, CPUs may shield even though they are not in the Pokémon's damage radius. Unusually, they may also hold their shields in place, which can result in a self-inflicted shield break (Jigglypuff will SD because of its unique shield jump). This is noticeable with the Wire Frames on the Legendary Pokémon event. Additionally, if a CPU is knocked in the air near Venusaur or goes above it to approach a player, it often immediately air dodges, even if the Venusaur can just be jumped over.

Stage Related

Stage	Description
Any	When the player stands still on certain locations in stages, all opposing CPUs will cease all movement and action if the player is not in attack range, until the player moves or one of the aforementioned desired items appears. A notable example of this is the right edge of the middle right platform in Battlefield, which can be exploited in Cruel Melee.
	On Princess Peach's Castle, CPUs will always run to the opposite side of the castle when Banzai Bill appears. During this, they will ignore opponents, and will not attack nor defend themselves unless an opponent comes near. This allows the player to attack without fear of retaliation, even with normally slow or punishable attacks such as fully charged smashes. When the opponent does come near, it disrupts their normal behavior pattern and they will sometimes stay on the side of the castle where the Banzai Bill is and get KO'd by its explosion. Also, if Banzai Bill spawns in the middle of the castle, CPUs may run straight into it in an attempt to reach the other side.
	On Brinstar, CPUs will always go to the hovering metallic platform in the centre when acid rises from the bottom. During this, the CPU will ignore opponents, and will not attack nor defend itself unless an opponent comes near.
	When at a stop on Mute City and the stage is about to move again, CPUs will not jump back on the main moving platform unless a player or item provokes them to go on it, leading to them sustaining avoidable damage when the stage moves.
	On Jungle Japes when the player is Player 1 while a CPU Ness is Player 2, if the player does not move, Ness will try to jump over to the player, but will fall into the river, and self destruct his first stock. Even at Level 9, he will still fail to recover as his PK Thunder would be blocked by the left platform. Also, if the player stands still on the right platform as a CPU Fox comes off the revival platform in this same stage, Fox will repeatedly jump into the river, use Fire Fox below the center platform and fail to recover until he runs out of stocks or time runs out. A CPU Roy will also exhibit this behavior in this situation, aiming his Blazer to the left, missing the ledge and self-destructing.
	For an unknown reason, high-leveled CPUs on Fourside and Yoshi's Island tend to air dodge near the pits, which depending on the character can lead them to self-destruct. A notable example is Yoshi, who, if selected as Player 2 (who starts on the rightmost building), will always air dodge at the beginning of the match above the first pit and self-destruct when attempting to reach a player in Player 1's spawn position.
	On N64 Yoshi's Island, if the player stands on a cloud close to the horizontal blast line, CPUs will go towards them with their usual recovery patterns, commonly not using other clouds at platforms. When using their up special, they will also aim for the closest cloud even if it's out of range, leading to self-destructs.
	During the first part of the boat ride on Rainbow Cruise, if the player jumps out of sight, onto a platform above the boat, CPUs will go towards them with their usual recovery patterns. When using their up special, they will aim for the closest platform above the boat even if it's out of range, leading to self-destructs.
	On Green Greens, if a player meteor smashes a CPU, it will aim its recovery towards the center of the stage even if the blocks don't allow it to get back on, or it could recover by aiming for the outer ledges instead, resulting in self-destructs.
	On Mushroom Kingdom II, when battling against a level 9 Luigi set as Player 2, if the player KOs him and then goes to the right part of the stage, Luigi will jump backwards from the revival platform and miss the ledge, and then use Green Missile on the wall and self-destruct. He will continue this indefinitely until interrupted by an item, Pidgit, or Birdo's eggs.
	On walk-off stages such as Flat Zone, if the player is close enough to the blast line without getting KO'd, the AI may ignore the player completely and fight other opponents, even if the player is under Hammer or Super Star effect.

See also

• Flaws in artificial intelligence

External links

• A video showing many AI flaws in Melee, which are listed above.
• A video showing an AI flaw of Falco in Melee.