Editing Super Smash Bros. 4 in competitive play

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Super Smash Bros. 4'' in competitive play}}
{{ArticleIcons|ssb4=y|competitive=y}}
''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''{{'}}s competitive scene began before either version was publicly released at the [[Super Smash Bros. Invitational]] on June 10, 2014, hosted by [[Nintendo|Nintendo of America]] at [[E3 2014]], where they presented a demo of {{forwiiu}}. {{Sm|ZeRo}} had emerged victorious, beginning his infamous winning streak of many [[List of national tournaments#Super Smash Bros for Wii U|''Smash 4'' major]]s to come. 

''Smash 4'' is the first Smash game to have balance [[patch]]es via online download, which had a significant impact on tournament play. These updates forcefully shifted almost every characters' [[metagame]] (by varying degrees) multiple times through 2014 into 2016.

==2014: Release and {{for3ds}}==
[[File:Nintendo 3DS Tournament.jpg|thumb|right|240px|A tournament hosted by [[Nintendo]] at Nintendo New York.]]
{{for3ds}} had a small amount of time being used in competitive play from September 12th until around the end of December. The vast majority of the competitive scene utilised the Wii U game, as it allows for superior viewing quality and native GameCube controller support. Despite  the Wii U version being released, the 3DS version of the game is still actively played by causal players and online play but not played competitively.

Since the 3DS game started with version [[List of updates (SSB4-3DS)#1.0.0|1.0.0]], it initially had a plethora of [[glitch|bugs]], (primarily carried over from ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]''), some of which was either an enhancement or was a deterrence to the competitive scene. Gameplay imbalance was also far more prominent. For instance, [[DACUS]] was still in from ''Brawl'', and was discovered through using hacks to make the [[GameCube controller]] usable. However, it was completely removed in the Wii U version and version 1.0.4 in the 3DS version.

The [[Umebura]] tournament series was among the only national level tournaments ever held for ''Smash 3DS''.
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==2015: Beginnings and ZeRo's Dominance==
[[File:NairoMLGVictory.jpg|thumb|right|240px|{{Sm|ZeRo}} congratulating {{Sm|Nairo}} on his victory at [[MLG World Finals 2015]]. Nairo was the first smasher in ''Smash 4'' to eliminate ZeRo from a tournament.]]
2015 marks the first year of the ''[[Super Smash Bros. for Wii U]]''{{'}}s competitive timeline. This ''Smash'' game had a rather unique start compared to previous ones, considering the fact that the 3DS version was essentially the same game. Players were able to "hit the ground running" going into the new year. The 3DS version saw a dramatically reduced tournament presence, as its Wii U counterpart shares the same gameplay while benefiting from more control options and clear, high-definition graphics. Thus, every major from here was played on the Wii U version.

Infamously, {{SSB4|Diddy Kong}}'s powerful [[neutral game]] and throw combos, most notably the "Hoo-Hah" (down/up throw to up air), dominated competitive play, and Diddy dittos were common, much to the disapproval of spectators. However, Diddy would get nerfed in coming patches. The many balance patches and five new DLC characters all released throughout the year resulted in an extremely unstable metagame. There was also debate over the legality of [[custom moves]], which were allowed at the biggest tournament to date, [[EVO 2015]], but banned in most tournaments soon afterwards.

At [[Smash Factor 4]], the largest Mexican ''Smash 4'' tournament at the time, young competitor {{Sm|Leo}} caused a massive upset by defeating ''Brawl'' veteran [[Mr. R]], one of Europe's best players, by using {{SSB4|Meta Knight}}, improving perception of the character and setting up for a dominant ''Smash'' career.

These various changes did not stop ZeRo from achieving a record streak of 56 tournament wins, taking majors such as [[Apex 2015]], EVO 2015, and [[The Big House 5]], becoming the undisputed best player in the game at the time. The streak ended at [[MLG World Finals 2015]], where {{Sm|Nairo}} defeated him in Grand Finals to become the only player to eliminate ZeRo in a ''Smash 4'' tournament in 2015.

==2016: The Meta Changes and ZeRo's Temporary Hiatus==
This year saw the release of the last two DLC characters, {{SSB4|Corrin}} and {{SSB4|Bayonetta}}. Bayonetta was seen as a highly controversial character, due to her powerful combo game, allowing her to [[zero-death]] most foes, and [[Witch Time]] giving her one of the strongest [[punish]] games in ''Smash 4''. Bayonetta was notably banned from tournament play in Spain, Russia, and certain areas in the United States. However, significant nerfs, most notably in May's patch [[1.1.6]], brought her on more even ground with other characters, and the bans were lifted. The lack of any other patches for the rest of the year finally gave the metagame time to develop without interruptions.

With ZeRo taking a brief absence from the competitive scene due to medical issues and Nairo unable to maintain the consistency he had the previous year, the meta gave way for players ranked below both of them on the Panda Global Rankings to rise. Upon ZeRo's return to the scene in May, he was no longer the dominant force he was previously, with a wider array of players defeating him compared to before the hiatus. {{Sm|Ally}} notably holds a positive record over him since the onset of patch 1.1.6 as a result, defeating him at events like [[Get On My Level 2016]], [[Smash 'N' Splash 2]] and [[Super Smash Con 2016]]. The 2016 summer season was defined as the rise of {{SSB4|Mario}} in the metagame as {{Sm|ANTi}} and Ally won [[CEO 2016]] and [[EVO 2016]] respectively using mostly Mario. September marked the rise of [[Apex 2013]] champion {{Sm|Salem}} in the game as he double-eliminated ZeRo at [[Collision XIV]]. Despite the losses he took since his return, ZeRo slowly regained his dominance over the game, albeit not as strong as before, with him winning [[Shine 2016]], [[2GGT: Abadango Saga]], [[The Big House 6]] and [[UGC Smash Open]].

{{Sm|MKLeo}}, who was well known for defeating {{Sm|Mr. R}} at [[Smash Factor 4]] over a year prior, secured a US visa in October 2016, allowing him to enter tournaments in the United States. This led to him winning his first ever US major by the end of the year: [[2GGT: ZeRo Saga]], defeating a wide array of players such as ANTi, Ally, ZeRo, {{Sm|VoiD}} and {{Sm|Larry Lurr}} using Marth, which led to his rise in the metagame.

==2017: The 2GG Championship==
[[File:ESAM Civil War.jpg|thumb|right|240px|{{Sm|ESAM}}'s pop off after his 3-1 victory over {{Sm|Ally}} at {{Trn|2GGC: Civil War}}, eliminating him at 25th. This was one of the many upsets that happened during that tournament.]]
The year began with [[2GGC: GENESIS Saga]], the first qualifier of the [[2GG Championship Series]], a circuit of tournaments announced at [[2GGT: ZeRo Saga]]. {{Sm|ZeRo}}, who had established his return to dominance at the end of 2016, won the tournament. The first premier of the year, [[GENESIS 4]], was won by MKLeo, being his second major win after ZeRo Saga. The first half of the year would be described as the introduction of more Japanese players to the United States, starting with [[Frostbite 2017]], being the US debut of players such as {{Sm|Shuton}}, {{Sm|T}}, {{Sm|Some}} and {{Sm|Tsu-}}, who notably defeated ZeRo at the tournament (going on to place 2nd to him). The third qualifier of the 2GG Championship Series circuit, [[2GGC: Civil War]], became one of the largest tournament in the game's history, with 47 of the 50 players on the Panda Global Rankings v2 attending. Despite the numerous amounts of upsets, the tournament was ultimately won by {{Sm|Dabuz}}, then ranked #4 on the PGRv2.

The early months of 2017 marked the rise of players such as {{Sm|Locus}} and {{Sm|CaptainZack}}. Locus, having placed 9th at ZeRo Saga in 2016 (defeating players such as {{Sm|Mr. R}} and {{Sm|Tweek}}), ended up finishing 7th at Civil War, notably defeating {{Sm|Nairo}}. CaptainZack placed 4th at both GENESIS 4 and Civil War. Along with Salem's relative fall from grace as he was unable to make top 8 at a notable tournament, CaptainZack was considered the best Bayonetta at the time. At around the same time, {{Sm|Trela}}'s retirement from the scene combined with Locus's Top 8 finish at Civil War caused Locus to be considered the best active Ryu in the world.

[[File:Salem EVO Victory.png|thumb|left|240px|{{Sm|Salem}}'s victory against {{Sm|ZeRo}} at {{Trn|EVO 2017}} after making a 2-stock comeback in the final set and securing the EVO title.]]
The first premier tournament after Civil War was [[2GGC: Nairo Saga]], which was won by ZeRo, though Salem rose back to being the best Bayonetta player as CaptainZack's recent placings became inconsistent while Salem made top 8 at four major tournaments, placing 2nd at Nairo Saga, 7th at [[CEO 2017]] and 1st at both [[EVO 2017]] (notably defeating ZeRo) and [[DreamHack Atlanta 2017]]. Patch 1.1.7 was released the week after EVO ended, though it did not change any characters.

The second half of the year was characterized by Bayonetta's rise in the meta, as Bayonetta's results improved with players such as Salem, {{Sm|Mistake}} and {{Sm|CaptainZack}} placing top 8 at several major tournaments. Most notably, Salem's tournament victories such as {{Trn|EVO 2017}}, {{Trn|DreamHack Atlanta 2017}} and {{Trn|2GGC: Fire Emblem Saga}} made him a contender for the number one spot, however ZeRo was ultimately able to hold him off by winning [[2GGC: SCR Saga]], [[Shine 2017]] and having a 6-4 record over him during the PGRv4 season. The {{Trn|2GG Championship}} was held in December and was won by MkLeo with ZeRo placing 2nd, Salem 3rd.
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==2018: The Final Year and A Vacant Throne==
With ZeRo's retirement from the scene in January, the #1 spot on the Panda Global Rankings was up for grabs, with players such as {{Sm|MkLeo}}, {{Sm|Nairo}}, {{Sm|Dabuz}} and {{Sm|Tweek}} setting their sights on taking ZeRo's throne. MkLeo led the charge by taking {{Trn|GENESIS 5}}, followed by Dabuz taking {{Trn|Frostbite 2018}}. Nairo would challenge MkLeo by taking {{Trn|Niconico Tokaigi 2018}} and {{Trn|Smash Masters League: Battle for Vegas}} over him and winning {{Trn|Collision XV}}, though MkLeo would defeat him at {{Trn|SwitchFest}} and {{Trn|Get On My Level 2018}}. In the latter half of the season, Tweek would rise by winning {{Trn|MomoCon 2018}} and {{Trn|2GG: Hyrule Saga}}. {{Trn|Smash 'N' Splash 4}} was won by {{Sm|VoiD}}, marking the first time Sheik won a major tournament since 2016. MkLeo and Tweek would face off at the final tournament of the PGRv5 season, {{Trn|CEO 2018}}, where MkLeo won, solidifying himself as the new #1 player in the world. 

The first half of the year also saw an increase in representation for certain low tier characters. Most notably, {{Sm|Glutonny}}, a {{SSB4|Wario}} main who was considered the second best player in Europe, would enter a few American tournaments, achieving high placements such as 9th at {{Trn|Midwest Mayhem 11}} and 13th at {{Trn|Get On My Level 2018}} while defeating players such as {{Sm|Darkshad}} and {{Sm|Fatality}}. {{Sm|Captain L}} also surprised many people by defeating top players, including {{Sm|Larry Lurr}}, with {{SSB4|Jigglypuff}}, a character considered the worst in the game, while {{Sm|ZAKI}}, a Japanese {{SSB4|King Dedede}} player, notably defeated {{Sm|MkLeo}} at {{Trn|2GG: Hyrule Saga}} placing 17th.

[[File:EVO 2018 Yellow Card.png|thumb|left|250px|Bear issuing a yellow card to Lima and CaptainZack for stalling during Grand Finals at EVO 2018.]]
With ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' being teased in March and a 2018 release date revealed at E3 2018, interest in ''Smash 4'' waned as most of the community looked to move on to that game. Had ''Ultimate'' released in time for [[EVO 2018]], ''Smash 4'' would have been dropped in favor of the newer game.<ref>https://twitter.com/mrwiz/status/971921848945528833?s=21</ref> The ''Smash 4'' event at EVO had lower attendance and viewership than the previous year, and a controversial incident occurred during Grand Finals: in a Bayonetta [[ditto match]], {{Sm|Lima}} and {{Sm|CaptainZack}} did not seem to take the set seriously, and in one match stalled charging [[Bullet Climax]] for two minutes straight, leading tournament organizer {{Sm|Bear}} to go on stage to issue them both a [https://twitter.com/BearUNLV/status/1025978601055776768 yellow card] in order to get them to play. Top players such as ZeRo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBiaudzNr6A believed] this incident tarnished the image of the competitive ''Smash'' community. Regardless, Lima went on to win the tournament, his first victory at a supermajor.

Despite a new installment approaching and decreasing attendance, ''Smash 4'' tournaments were held up until the release of ''Ultimate''. MkLeo won the largest Smash tournament of the year at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2018}}, beating the defending 2016-2017 champion Nairo in Winners Semifinals and {{Sm|Samsora}} in both Winners Finals and Grand Finals. {{Trn|Shine 2018}} had Bayonetta players Salem, {{Sm|Mistake}}, and Tweek take the top 3 spots, further solidifying the character's dominance in the game's final years. At {{Trn|The Big House 8}}, {{Sm|Cosmos}} became the first and only Corrin player to win a national tournament. {{Sm|Eim}} won {{Trn|Umebura Smash 4 Final}}, the last national tournament before the release of ''Ultimate'' a week later.

[[PGR 100]] ranked the best 100 players of all time for ''Smash 4'', starting with {{Trn|Apex 2015}} and ending with {{Trn|DreamHack Atlanta 2018}}. Although being retired for the last year, ZeRo was expectedly ranked the best player of all time, due to his dominance throughout the game's lifespan. The following rankings were Nairo at 2nd, MkLeo at 3rd, Dabuz at 4th, {{Sm|Ally}} at 5th, Salem at 6th, and Tweek at 7th, with all of them having been ranked in the Top 3 on at least one of the previous PGRs. {{Sm|Larry Lurr}} was ranked 8th, {{Sm|KEN}} was ranked 9th, and {{Sm|Mr.R}} was ranked 10th.

==Post-''Ultimate'' Release==
Tournament activity of the game declined sharply following the release of its successor, ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate''. Although a few major tournaments such as {{Trn|Albion 4}}, {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}}, and {{Trn|CEO Dreamland 2020}} would host ''Smash 4'' events, they would either have low entrant counts or a significant amount of disqualifications.

== Effect on the ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'' communities ==
''Smash 4'' has had little impact on ''Melee''{{'}}s tournament scene, as it is not uncommon for both games to be featured at tournaments simultaneously. Most already established '' Melee'' players have chosen to stay with the ''Melee'' community over ''Smash 4'' due to several factors; they include the physics of ''Smash 4'' being more similar to the controversial ''Brawl'' game engine, their [[main]] being more tournament viable in ''Melee'' than in ''SSB4'' (such as with [[Falco]] and formerly [[Marth]]), or ''Smash 4'' having a lower reliance on technical skill. Overall, both games attract large numbers of players and spectators.

''Brawl''{{'}}s competitive scene has largely tapered off and moved onto ''Smash 4'' since it was released. Almost all of its high-level players primarily played it because it was simply the latest installment in the series after ''Melee'' and was, therefore, their personal preference.

While the ''Smash 4'' engine was viewed as more tournament-friendly than that of ''Brawl'' ever since its earliest days, character balance has helped greatly in the game's perception relative to others. In contrast to the infamously unbalanced ''Brawl'', ''SSB4'' balance patches have allowed unbalanced character matchups and attributes to be corrected throughout the game's lifetime, resulting in a very large range of viable characters (including historically poor characters such as {{SSB4|Bowser}} and {{SSB4|Mewtwo}}), top-tier characters that are relatively easier to defeat, and bottom-tier characters that can hold up better against the higher tiers (to the point that the "Bottom" tier ranking was completely abolished in the third [[tier list]]). Some ''SSB4'' supporters cite this as an advantage over even ''Melee'', due to the fact that its top-tier characters are more dominating and ubiquitous than those of ''SSB4'' (particularly its single best character in {{SSBM|Fox}}), resulting in near-universal use of the top tiers and fewer appearances and results from lower-tier characters.

== Criticisms of competitive ''Smash 4'' ==
Although ''Smash 4'' has been more successful competitively than ''Brawl'', it has not come without its own criticisms. A number of former and current ''Brawl'' players have stated their preference for the older title, believing ''Brawl'' to have had greater competitive depth. For example, [[edgehogging]] was removed from ''Smash 4'' in favor of [[ledge trump|ledge trumping]], significantly limiting the power of [[edgeguarding]], which has been a core aspect of previous ''Smash'' games. In addition, in ''Brawl'', many characters could perform techniques such as [[DACUS]] and [[glide toss|glide tossing]], which created enhanced movement options; these techniques were largely removed in ''Smash 4''. In fact, four post-''Ultimate'' tournaments ({{Trn|Return to Subspace 2}}, {{Trn|Come to Papa 3}}, {{Trn|Get On My Level 2019}}, and {{Trn|Return to Subspace 3}}), have featured ''Brawl'' but not ''Smash 4''.

==See also==
*[[Tournament rulesets (SSB4)]]
*[[Super Smash Bros. 64 in competitive play]]
*[[Super Smash Bros. Melee in competitive play]]
*[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl in competitive play]]
*[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in competitive play]]

==External links==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7IWbinVA4k 「Rivalries」: ZeRo Vs. Ally (A Smash 4 Documentary)]
[[Category:Super Smash Bros. 4]]
[[Category:Competitive play]]
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