Link (SSBU): Difference between revisions

This is the first time in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series to break the tradition of Link using re-purposed voice clips from past ''Zelda'' games. In all regions, Link is voiced by Kengo Takanashi, who reprises his role from ''{{iw|zeldawiki|The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild}}'' with new voice clips that mimic his portrayals from the game, succeeding Akira Sasanuma's portrayal from ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess'' used since 2006 in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl|Brawl]]'' and ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''.

Link is currently ranked 56th out of 82 characters on the current tier list, placing him in the C+ tier. Despite being buffed overall from ''SSB4'', this is a moderate drop from his placement in ''SSB4'', where he ranked 31st out of 54. Link has solid disjointed range, courtesy of the iconic Master Sword, with several strong KO moves that utilize it, such as his forward tilt, dash attack, forward aerial, his smash attacks, up aerial, down aerial, and [[Spin Attack]]. Link's non-sword moves also have fantastic utility. In particular, his neutral aerial is notorious for being a staple of his neutral game, being a strong landing, spacing, edgeguarding, and pressure tool. Link also has a strong projectile game, with his [[Remote Bomb]] acting as a dynamic tool for mindgames, item combos, edgeguarding, recovering, and ledgetrapping that he can activate at any time. His [[Boomerang]] is also good at catching approaches and keeping opponents in check. Overall, Link has a strong zoning game with powerful KO tools should his opponent get up close to him.

However, Link has several weaknesses. He is on the slower side of the spectrum, so he struggles to keep up with faster characters who can get around his projectiles. Link's sword moves also have rather sluggish frame data, which can cause him to be overwhelmed by faster moves. Link status as a heavyweight also makes him easy to combo and juggle and keep in disadvantage. His recovery is also exploitable, as his Spin Attack travels in a predictable path, leaving his head vulnerable to spikes or lingering hitboxes.

Overall, Link has the tools to keep out his opponents and KO them at fairly low percentages, but should his defenses be infiltrated, it makes it difficult for him to get back in neutral. Link had promising results in the early metagame thanks to strong performances from {{Sm|T}}; however, his results and representation declined noticeably in the post-online metagame, with only a few notable performances from players such as {{Sm|Rido}} and {{Sm|Kyon}}.

However, like all fighters, Link has some weaknesses. Although he has better mobility than his predecessors, Link's mobility is still inconsistent and somewhat on the poor side. Despite his fast walking speed, his dash is only marginally faster, making it very sluggish and unreliable for approaching (with foxtrotting being the only way of mitigating this issue). Link's air speed and air acceleration are both very poor, making his air game solely reliant on the traits of his aerial attacks. On a related note, Link's recovery is burdened by the combination of his low jumps and high falling speed, his aforementioned poor air speed and air acceleration, and the merely average travel distance of Spin Attack. Due to lacking a [[Hookshot]] or a [[Clawshot]] in his moveset, Link lacks both a [[tether recovery]] and another spacing option, the former of which further hinders his recovery.

|pummeldesc=Hits the opponent with the Master Sword's pommel. Average power and speed.

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|[[File:Link & Toon Link Cheer German SSBU.ogg|center]]||{{NTSC}} [[File:Link & Toon Link Cheer Spanish NTSC SSB4 SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> {{PAL}} [[File:Link & Toon Link Cheer Spanish PAL SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Link & Toon Link Cheer Russian SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Link & Toon Link Cheer Korean SSBU.ogg|center]]

*{{Sm|Bernie|Mexico}} - One of the best Link players in North America. He has been the best Link player in Mexico throughout the entire game's lifespan, placing well at regional events such as 3rd at {{Trn|BIT MASTER MTY 7}} and 5th at {{Trn|Delfino Maza 2}}. Additionally, he has made rare but solid appearances at majors, including 13th at {{Trn|Smash Factor 8}} defeating {{Sm|Chag}}, 33rd at {{Trn|S Factor 11}}, and 49th at {{Trn|Delfino Maza 2023}}.

*{{Sm|Kyon|p=Japan|Japan}} - The best Link player in the world in 2023 and as of 2024. He solidified himself as one of the best Link players in the recent metagame with multiple top 32s at majors such as {{Trn|Maesuma TOP 15 "FINAL"}} and [[Tournament:DELTA 7 FAT|DELTA 7 [FAT]]], and garnered notable wins with {{Sm|Skyjay}} at {{Trn|Maesuma TOP 14.5 "in Hyogo"}} and {{Sm|Kaninabe}} at {{Trn|Umebura SP 9}}. While his 2024 season saw similar mixed results, he has seen some success regionally with a 9th place finish at {{Trn|OH-BAI-TOH-RI 0}} and defeating {{Sm|yone_pi}} at {{Trn|Hirosuma 28}}, as well as the occasional major result such as 25th at {{Trn|Sumabato SP 50}}.

*{{Sm|Otakuni|France}} - One of the two best Link players in Europe. In 2019, he was the most consistent Link player at European majors, placing 17th at {{Trn|Syndicate 2019}}, 25th at {{Trn|Ultimate Fighting Arena 2019}}, and 33rd at {{Trn|Albion 4}}, ultimately ranking 39th at [[European Smash Rankings]]. While his tournament appearances are more sparse in the current metagame, he still remains one of the best Link players in the country, with a 25th place finish at major {{Trn|King Of Fields 95 3}} and winning D-tier regional {{Trn|Smash Contest: HeroFest 2022}}.

*{{Sm|Rido|Japan}} - The best Link player in the world during 2022. In 2021, he made a offline breakout with 17th at {{Trn|Maesuma TOP 6}} and then placed highly at events during the 2022 season, including 5th at the superregional {{Trn|Seibugeki 11}} defeating {{Sm|Eim}} and {{Sm|Umeki}} and 17th at the major {{Trn|Maesuma TOP 7}}. He was the second Link player to be ranked globally, ranking 107th on the [[OrionRank 2022]]. After 2022, he has been inactive for the last two years, with the exception of a 49th place finish at {{Trn|Kagaribi 9}} and other mixed results.

*{{Sm|T|Japan}} - The best Link player of all-time, with performances that have yet to be matched by any other Link player. He remains the only Link player who has placed top 8 at a major, having placed 4th at the major {{Trn|Umebura SP 7}} and 5th at the supermajor {{Trn|2GG: Kongo Saga}}. He was the first Link player to be ranked globally, placing 47th on the [[Spring 2019 PGRU]] and 15th on the [[Fall 2019 PGRU]]. After he returned to offline tournaments in 2022, he never reached the same peaks prior, and picked up {{SSBU|Young Link}} as a secondary at specific events.

*{{Sm|VinS|France}} - One of the two best Link players in Europe. He has garnered notable results throughout the entire game's lifespan, placing highly at European majors such as 17th at {{Trn|King Of Fields 95 3}}, 25th at {{Trn|COLOSSEL 2022}}, and 33rd at both {{Trn|Ultimate Fighting Arena 2019}} and {{Trn|King Con}}. Internationally, he has placed 65th at {{Trn|2GG: Kongo Saga}} and defeated {{Sm|alice}} at {{Trn|EVO Japan 2020}}. He was previously ranked 43rd on the [[European Smash Rankings]].

Link is unlocked near a Sheikah Tower when taking {{SSBU|Villager}}'s route. The player must defeat [[List of spirits (Animal Crossing series)|Don's spirit]] to access his unlock battle.

Link's fighter spirit can be obtained by completing {{SSBU|Classic Mode}} as Link. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold. Unlocking Link in World of Light allows the player to preview the second spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. His fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with his artwork in ''Ultimate''.

*''Ultimate'' marks the first time in the ''Smash'' series where Link:  

**does not use recycled voice clips from his respective ''Zelda'' games, as mentioned above; this also applies to {{SSBU|Ganondorf}}.

***By extension, ''Ultimate'' marks the first time in which any incarnation of Link (including Young Link and Toon Link) has new voice clips recorded exclusively for ''Smash'' as opposed to recycling ones from the ''Zelda'' series.

**does not fight left-handed, matching ''Breath of the Wild''; this resulted in multiple animation changes.

**does not wield the Triforce, as it does not appear in ''Breath of the Wild''.

**has his trademark green tunic delegated to an alternate outfit rather than his default costume.

**It is also the first time Link no longer has his Goron and Zora tunics from ''Ocarina of Time'' as his respective red and blue alternate costumes. His new red and blue costumes are based on armor sets from ''Breath of the Wild'' - the {{s|zeldawiki|Hylian Tunic}} and the Royal Guard Uniform, respectively.

***Ironically, Link's Champion's Tunic cannot be dyed in ''Breath of the Wild'' despite being the base for four of his costumes in ''Ultimate''. Although the Hero of the Wild set can be dyed, the recolors seen for Link's alternate costume are not possible dye colors in ''Breath of the Wild'', but these recolors do appear as obtainable armors in the game.

*Link is classified as fighter #3 on ''Ultimate'''s roster,  which is coincidentally the same number of playable Links in the game as well as the same number of pieces in the {{s|zeldawiki|Triforce}}, as well as the number of sides of a triangle.

*In response to a viral cosplayer's struggles in pulling out the Master Sword from its sheath due to its length, Sakurai revealed that, in ''Ultimate'', Link physically pulls his sheath down when sheathing and unsheathing the Master Sword to make the act more realistic, as it is a common in 3D animation to simply have a sword clip through its sheath instead.<ref>[https://x.com/Sora_Sakurai/status/1856170552873865434]</ref>