King Dedede (SSB4): Difference between revisions

'''King Dedede''' ({{ja|デデデ|Dedede}}, ''Dedede'') is a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''. His return to the series was announced in a [[List of Director's Room Miiverse posts|Director's Room Miiverse post]] on January 10th, 2014, which also commemorated ''{{s|wikirby|Kirby: Triple Deluxe}}'' being released in Japan on the same day. [[Masahiro Sakurai]] reprises his role as King Dedede's voice actor, albeit via a filter being applied to his ''Brawl'' voice clips.

King Dedede is ranked 51st out of 54 on the [[tier list]], placing him at the top of the G tier. This is a significant drop from his high-tier placement in ''Brawl'', where he was ranked 12th out of 38 and is roughly tied with [[King Dedede (SSBU)|his later iteration from ''Ultimate'']] as his worst placement in the ''Smash'' series. Dedede's primary strength is most of his attacks having large, disjointed range, courtesy of his hammer. In addition, he also possesses some very powerful attacks, such as his forward smash, down smash, back aerial and down aerial, with the latter two also functioning as good edgeguarding moves. Dedede also boasts arguably the greatest overall endurance in the game, being the most difficult character to KO vertically, due to having the third highest [[weight]] and the second fastest [[falling speed]], and also very difficult to KO horizontally despite being a fast-falling character with slow [[air speed]], which is also due to his high weight and the fact that he boasts an impressive [[recovery]], due to his multiple [[midair jump]]s and [[Super Dedede Jump]].

However, King Dedede is among the slowest characters in the game, possessing one of the slowest [[walk]]ing, [[dash]]ing, and air speeds in the game. Likewise, his moveset is among the slowest in the game, with only his down tilt, neutral aerial and standing grab being active before frame 9. These traits not only hinder Dedede offensively, but defensively as well; alongside his large size, considerable weight and fast falling speed, Dedede's mobility and frame data issues result in him being among the characters that are most vulnerable to rushdowns, combos, and [[camping]], with only his moderate [[gravity]] enabling him to not be as vulnerable as other heavyweights or fast-fallers would be to them. Dedede is also no longer capable of camping himself due to his new side special, [[Gordo Throw]], being [[reflect]]ed by any attack that deals at least 2%. Finally, Dedede suffers from disproportionately weak strength for a super heavyweight: his fastest moves fail to KO until very high percentages, whereas his slowest moves are among the most punishable in the game.

As a result of his glaring flaws and the weakening or total removal of moves and/or mechanics that were important to his neutral game in ''Brawl'', such as his [[chain grab]] and his old back aerial, King Dedede is widely considered to be nonviable throughout ''SSB4''{{'}}s competitive metagame, with most players considering him one of the worst characters in ''SSB4''. As such, he commands a small playerbase with extremely sparse results, although some King Dedede players such as {{Sm|ZAKI}} have been able to put up some noteworthy performances at superregionals and majors.

King Dedede is the third [[Weight|heaviest]] character and, like {{SSB4|Ganondorf}}, is the epitome of the archetypal heavyweight: he has a large frame, slow [[walking]] and [[dash]]ing speeds (despite them being increased), below average [[traction]], the slowest [[air speed]], one of the slowest [[air acceleration]] values, the second fastest [[falling speed]] and average [[gravity]].

His potent [[punishment]] game also supplements his great endurance. Most of his attacks deal high amounts of damage and can leave opponents vulnerable to more of his attacks. His most useful moves at that include, but are not limited to, down tilt, down smash and his grab game. The former is also very quick for a super heavyweight, and can help him fend off opponents and set up edgeguards. His [[pummel]] is highly damaging, making it good for adding up damage before throwing the opponent. His forward throw can reliably launch opponents off-stage, while his back throw deals very high damage. Lastly, his down throw can combo into up tilt, up smash and any aerial attack bar his down aerial, making it very reliable for damage racking and giving him combos that most fellow heavyweights do not have. He also has a plethora of very powerful moves, including his forward and down smashes, his up, back and down aerials, and [[Jet Hammer]], all of which are capable of KOing easily if they connect. Because of these advantages, he is also one of the characters to benefit the most from [[rage]], as it allows his powerful moves to put the opponent in a disadvantageous situation most of the time, and can allow him to initiate a comeback, which is further complemented by his endurance.

However, King Dedede has numerous weaknesses, to the point where they significantly outweigh his strengths. His most prominent one is his underwhelming frame data, which is among the worst in the game. This makes Dedede prone to punishment, and due to his vulnerability to combos and juggles, he will have to [[read]] his opponents more often than not to safely land a move. However, it should be noted that his moveset is among, if not the overall, weakest of the super heavyweights; very few of his moves are capable of reliably KOing before 80%, with such moves being nearly limited to back aerial, [[Jet Hammer]], and forward smash, all of which are easily telegraphed and highly punishable, despite back aerial being able to [[autocancel]] from a short hop. His fastest moves are incapable of KOing until very high percentages, and his slowest moves are among the most predictable and most punishable in the game, with notable examples being forward smash and up tilt. These factors make said moves being easy to punish before or after they connect. While the fastest of his moves, his down tilt and neutral aerial, come out on frame 6, repeated use of them can render him a predictable opponent.

Another one of King Dedede's most prominent weaknesses is his polarized mobility. All of his attributes work against him, as they give him very slow horizontal movement, hindering his ability to [[approach]] and combat [[spacing]] and [[camping]]. The latter problem is more serious, as he has no useful counters against [[projectiles]], with Dedede's projectile being ineffective and overall unreliable to combat [[camp]]ing altogether. His slow horizontal mobility leaves him vulnerable to getting juggled horizontally, while his very quick vertical mobility also leaves him vulnerable to combos, and he has a hard time escaping from them once he enters enough knockback, with a move that grants super armor, [[Super Dedede Jump]], coming out way too slowly to render him invulnerable to heavy damage once an opponent gets a combo in. In turn, this makes it very simple for other characters with reliable combo games, such as {{SSB4|Luigi}} and {{SSB4|Bayonetta}}, to easily rack up damage on him.

Another flaw King Dedede faces is his [[approach]]. All of his attributes significantly hinder his ability to get close to characters safely, considering the aforementioned factors of the overwhelming start-up and ending lag on his attacks, fairly poor mobility regardless if grounded or in the air, and his noticeable nerfs from game updates, which have all decreased his already poor offensive game. Most notably, his grabs' drastically reduced ranges and the removal of [[chain grab]]bing are collectively considered to be his fatal flaw: they not only hinder his chances to rack up damage efficiently, but also almost completely remove his chances of reliably KOing his opponents or keeping his opponents at bay with his grabs.

His special moveset also faces some issues, as it is riddled with significant drawbacks. Gordo Throw is often considered his best special move, as it can be used for a KO option at high percents, can grant strong stage control if spaced and timed correctly, and can be used as a set-up into many other options if the opponent is sent toward Dedede. It can also aid his edgeguard attempts if the Gordo gets stuck on a wall or edge, allowing him to score a KO. Finally, it can be used to edge trap the opponent, giving them few options to retaliate and get back to safety. However, it has one major flaw, arguably enough to counterbalance all of the Gordo's benefits: it can be [[Reflection|reflected]] by any attack that deals at least 2%, which can limit its otherwise great utility and stage control potential and renders it a risky move, even when used from a safe distance. As a result of this, King Dedede's [[neutral game]] is risky due to being committal.

Super Dedede Jump is an amazing recovery move due to its distance and super armor, but its use is almost limited exclusively to recovering. However, the move's landing induces high shield damage, average [[shieldstun]], and emits stars upon meeting the ground, which can make the move surprisingly difficult to punish, despite the move's high endlag. Inhale can be used to pressure the opponent and possibly score a [[sacrificial KO#Grab-based sacrificial KOs|Dededecide]], but it is telegraphed, laggy, and unsafe due to the removal of grab armor. Lastly, [[Jet Hammer]] is best used only when trying to punish an unsafe get-up attempt or when breaking a shield.

King Dedede benefits a fair bit from his [[Character customization|custom moves]]. Topspin Gordo has consistent power and moves much faster, which allows King Dedede to force the opponent to react with little risk of his Gordo being used against him, due to its high speed. However, it does not last as long, and it removes almost all combos with the Gordo itself, as it cannot be used for traps, and moving the control stick barely changes its trajectory. Bouncing Gordo is considerably weaker, but it lasts much longer, and enables King Dedede to apply stage control and gives him more time to use Gordo combos. The Gordo's trajectory changes greatly when the player tilts the control stick. Rising Dedede covers more vertical distance, maintains the default's super armor, and can even function as an (albeit risky) out of shield option due to its hitbox while ascending. However, it cannot meteor smash, as King Dedede becomes helpless at the apex of its jump, which also makes it less safe, especially if King Dedede tries to land on the stage. Dash Jet Hammer does far less damage, but King Dedede dashes forward when he attacks, enabling it to function as a mindgame tool. It can also function as a viable horizontal recovery option, which can ameliorate his glacial air speed.

All of his other custom moves have very situational advantages and are overshadowed by their disadvantages, with Dedede Storm, Taste Test, and Armored Jet Hammer being the most notorious examples. Dedede Storm has much slower start-up and ending lag than [[Inhale]], removes Dededecide, is a multi-hitting move that cannot connect after 100%, and lacks strong hitboxes, preventing it from KOing even well beyond 200%. Taste Test spits opponents out instantly, preventing Dedede from sending the opponent off-stage, which allows them to exploit his vulnerability. Armored Jet Hammer offers super armor on charge, but causes [[recoil damage]] faster, is drastically weaker to the point where a fully charged blow is weaker than an uncharged hit by the default, and has severe ending lag to the point where one can jump from the top of {{SSB4|Battlefield}} and use it and then be unable to move until Dedede lands on the main platform.

Overall, King Dedede's weaknesses heavily outweigh his strengths. Due to his very sluggish frame data, risky neutral game and poor approach, his optimal playstyle is a defensive combination of zoning as well as baiting and punishing.  

King Dedede has been heavily [[nerf]]ed in the transition from ''Brawl'' to ''SSB4''. Several of his moves have been heavily altered or changed entirely, which has resulted in both positive and negative changes to his playstyle, though despite his buffs, his nerfs are much more prevalent due to his worse frame data and the loss of many of the traits that made him a formidable character in ''Brawl''.

The most notable positives that these changes bring are his new [[down tilt]], new side special [[Gordo Throw]], and his down special, [[Jet Hammer]]. Dedede's new down tilt has faster start-up and travels a long distance, making it one of his best defensive moves (out of shield, after a smash attack, etc) at the cost of its spacing potential. Unlike [[Waddle Dee Toss]], Gordo Throw deals a consistent amount of damage, fairly high knockback, and can even be used to "pinball" opponents by using their tumbling momentum to Dedede's advantage by trapping them between a Gordo and Dedede due to the ability to angle a Gordo's trajectory, which improves his neutral game. Lastly, Jet Hammer has been noticeably buffed in terms of range and the recoil damage, and due to the addition of [[rage]] combined with his high endurance and weight, it is a much better move both onstage and for edge-guarding. As a result, these moves are more versatile than their previous iterations in ''Brawl''. Some of the gameplay changes brought about by ''SSB4'' have also helped Dedede. He is now less susceptible to projectile camping due to the universal nerf to projectile camping (although he still arguably has the hardest time against camping), and he can utilize the rage mechanic very effectively due to his considerable weight, which supplements his high power.

However, the aforementioned new move alterations and changes to gameplay mechanics have also brought drawbacks that drastically outweigh the aforementioned positives, despite having a less polarized moveset than ''Brawl''. The most significant of these came with his new [[down throw]]. Dedede's grabs are slower and have less range making it harder for him to land a grab and when he does, the reward he receives has been greatly decreased. One positive change down throw received is that it now launches opponents vertically which gives it greater followup potential however, down throw no longer has [[set knockback]] making its followups percentage dependent and the removal of [[chain grab]]bing has heavily harmed down throw as it can no longer be used to (infinitely depending on the character) chaingrab opponents. While it is still a decent throw overall, it is nowhere near what his ''Brawl'' down throw was which was so powerful that it alone completely nullified certain characters.

Another one of Dedede's best moves which was changed for the worse was his [[back aerial]]. The move went from a fast, powerful, disjointed [[sex kick]] to a more powerful but much laggier and more difficult to land backward hammer swing. While the move is still decent, it is no longer one of the best back aerials in the game and one of Dedede's best moves. [[Up tilt]] was also noticeably nerfed as it is laggier, lingers for less time and has much less KO power. His new moves, despite bringing nice buffs, have also brought some drawbacks as well, such as his down tilt losing its KO power and having worse spacing capabilities, his new forward aerial no longer auto-canceling in a short hop (despite its faster start-up lag and more favorable hitbox placement) and being weaker and Gordo Throw being able to be reflected by any hitbox that deals at least 2%, which also hurts the previous anti-camping abilities the Waddle Dee Toss had in ''Brawl''. Dedede's already terrible air speed was decreased even further which is especially poor as most other returning veterans had their air speed increased. Altogether, all of these changes have nerfed Dedede's approach potential. Lastly, the changes to [[hitstun canceling]] also significantly harm Dedede, as they weaken his endurance despite his increased weight and make him an easy victim of combos.

As a result of these changes, King Dedede is significantly worse than he was in ''Brawl'' as his overall frame data was nerfed and a lot of his moves were completely changed with his two best moves (back aerial and down throw) being changed for the worse and he is one of the few characters who suffered more from the changes to ''Smash 4''{{'}}s mechanics than he benefited from them. He is arguably the most severely nerfed character in his transition from ''Brawl'', and despite having never been considered a strong character, Dedede was directly nerfed in patches receiving nerfs to his forward aerial, down throw, Gordos and his air speed. While this was somewhat balanced out with other top tiers receiving nerfs, other lower tiered characters had been buffed and DLC characters such as {{SSB4|Cloud}} and (more importantly) {{SSB4|Bayonetta}} were added to the game, further worsening his matchup spread. Due to this, Dedede went from a polarizing high tier who heavily struggled against some of the top tiers but completely annihilated many mid and low tiers to a non-viable bottom tier character who loses to almost every character ranked above him and only slightly beats some of the characters ranked below him.

*{{change|Up taunt's voice clip is now in sync with its animation, regardless of the direction he is facing.}}

*{{change|Like other large characters, such as {{SSB4|Donkey Kong}} and {{SSB4|Bowser}}, King Dedede's general size in proportion to the other playable characters is also greater than in previous installments. This improves his [[range]], but makes his hurtbox larger.}}

*{{nerf|King Dedede's [[air speed]] which was already the slowest in the game by a considerable margin is even slower (0.658 → 0.63). This is especially poor as most other veterans had their air speed increased.}}

*{{nerf|[[Roll]] has increased ending lag (FAF 32 → 33).}}

*{{nerf|[[Spot dodge]] has increased start-up lag with a shorter duration (frames 2-20 → 4-19) and it has more ending lag (FAF 28 → 29).}}

*{{buff|[[Air dodge]] has decreased ending lag (FAF 40 → 35) although relative to the cast, it has gone from one of the fastest air dodges to one of the slowest as its intangibility was unchanged.}}

*{{buff|[[Jump]] is higher.}}

*{{change|The removal of [[chain grab]]bing both helps and hinders King Dedede. It significantly improves his endurance, but removes his own chain grabs.}}

*{{nerf|The changes to [[hitstun canceling]] significantly hinder King Dedede. They make him very susceptible to combos and remove his ability to momentum cancel,hindering his endurance in spite of his heavier weight. However, he still has the best vertical endurance among the cast. The only moves that benefit from the changes to hitstun canceling are down throw and to a lesser extent up tilt and up throw.}}

**{{buff|Neutral attack's first hit has decreased start-up lag (frame 12 → 10). Its neutral infinite has also received a finisher, an upward hammer swing.}}

**{{buff|The weakening of [[Smash directional influence|SDI]] makes neutral infinite significantly more difficult to escape from.}}

**{{nerf|Neutral attack deals less damage (6% → 4% (hit 1), 5% → 4% (hit 2), 2% → 1% (loop)) and has smaller hitboxes (6u/3.5u → 2.5u (hits 1-2), 4u/5u/7u → 2u/3u/7u (loop)). The second hit can also no longer [[Tripping|trip]] opponents.}}

**{{change|Neutral attack has altered knockback (20/25/35 (set)/100 (scaling) → 50/48 (base)/25 (set)/10/100 (scaling) (hit 1), 20 (base)/50 (scaling) → 50/30 (base)/10/45 (scaling) (hit 2), 30 (base)/20 (scaling) → 60/20/2 (set)/100 (scaling) (loop)) and altered angles ([[Sakurai angle|361°]]/80° → 75°/105°/361° (hit 1), 85° → 115°/105°/100° (hit 2), 30° → 70° (loop hits)). This makes the first hit connect into the second hit more reliably but makes it harder to [[jab lock]] with.}}

*{{Sm|ZAKI|Japan}} - The best King Dedede player of all-time and the only King Dedede player who made any major impact on the global scene. He is best known for his 2018 tour in the United States, especially his performance at {{Trn|2GG: Hyrule Saga}}, where he upset {{Sm|MkLeo}} to place 17th; he also placed 17th at {{Trn|Smash 'N' Splash 4}} and 33rd at {{Trn|MomoCon 2018}}, some of the best major results for King Dedede.

 

===Tier placement and history===

 

 

It wasn't until the final year of ''Smash 4''{{'}}s active competitive lifespan when opinions on King Dedede finally saw a shift. {{Sm|ZAKI}}, a King Dedede player from Japan, made his debut outside of his country, placing 17th at both {{Trn|Smash 'N' Splash 4}} and {{Trn|2GG: Hyrule Saga}}, notably defeating {{Sm|MkLeo}} in the latter. Although it may be the result of matchup inexperience, as ZAKI performed worse back in Japan, his results convinced several players such as {{Sm|Raito}} that King Dedede was not the worst character in the game, due to King Dedede's improved representation compared to other low- and mid-tier characters. Nevertheless, King Dedede is seen as a shell of his former ''Brawl'' self and is considered non-viable in the competitive metagame.

 

In All-Star Mode, King Dedede is fought in Stage 4 in both versions alongside {{SSB4|Kirby}}, {{SSB4|Fox}}, {{SSB4|Falco}}, {{SSB4|Meta Knight}}, {{SSB4|Wario}}, and {{SSB4|Sonic}}.

 

*'''[[Kirby's Crazy Appetite]]''': As {{SSB4|Kirby}}, the player must heal by eating [[food]] on the stage while three King Dededes try to hinder his progress.

*'''[[The Ultimate Battle]]''': Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.