Pokémon Trainer (SSBU): Difference between revisions

|image = {{tabber|size=250px|title1=Male|content1=[[File:Pokémon Trainer (solo) SSBU.png|x250px]]|title2=Female|content2=[[File:Pokémon Trainer (solo)-Alt1 SSBU.png|x250px]]|title3=Team (Male)|content3=<br><br>[[File:Pokémon Trainer SSBU.png|x150px]]|title4=Team (Female)|content4=<br><br>[[File:Pokémon Trainer-Alt1 SSBU.png|x150px]]}}

|shareslot = {{SSBU|Charizard}}<br>{{SSBU|Ivysaur}}<br>{{SSBU|Squirtle}}

<!--NOTICE BEFORE EDITING: When using pronouns, use those that match the gender of the default when referring to their Smash incarnation (treating the alternate gendered variant as a character costume like Alph) and gender neutral for home series info. However, completely omitting pronouns is entirely a valid style, as long as the sentence stays coherent.-->

'''Pokémon Trainer''' ({{ja|ポケモントレーナー|Pokémon Torēnā}}, ''Pokémon Trainer'') is a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''. He was officially revealed on June 12th, 2018 alongside his team of Pokémon: {{SSBU|Squirtle}}, {{SSBU|Ivysaur}}, and {{SSBU|Charizard}}, the latter of whom returns to the team after appearing by itself in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''. Although Pokémon Trainer lacks a fighter number compared to the rest of the cast, his Pokémon have fighter numbers in his stead: Squirtle is classified as [[Fighter number|Fighter #33]], Ivysaur is classified as [[Fighter number|Fighter #34]], and Charizard is classified as [[Fighter number|Fighter #35]].

The male Pokémon Trainer has new voice clips in all languages he is voiced in, with all of his voice actors from ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'' being replaced (except for his Japanese voice actor, who reprises her role). Respectively, the voice actors for the male and female Pokémon Trainers are:

*Maximilian Belle (male, replacing Dina Kürten) and Lea Kalbhenn (female) in German.

*Tania de Domenico (male, replacing Francesca Guidice) and Giada Bonanomi (female) in Italian.

*Rodri Martín (male, replacing Isabel Navarro) and Tania Ugía (female) in Spanish.

Unlike in ''Brawl'', Pokémon Trainer's Japanese voice clips are used in the Korean version of ''Ultimate'', instead of unique Korean-language voice clips.

 

Pokémon Trainer is ranked 24th out of 82 on the current [[tier list]], placing him at the top of the A- tier. This is a drastic improvement over his 29th out of 38 placement in ''Brawl'', and a significant improvement over {{SSB4|Charizard}}'s placement in ''Smash 4'', where it was ranked 42nd out of 54. This improvement is thanks to the faster [[Pokémon Change]], the ability to use Pokémon Change in mid-air, and the removal of the {{h2|Pokémon Change|Stamina}} and [[Type effectiveness]] mechanics.

:''The list below covers the general changes of the Pokémon Trainer and his party as a whole. For information about each individual Pokémon's moveset changes, see [[Squirtle (SSBU)]], [[Ivysaur (SSBU)]], and [[Charizard (SSBU)]].''

Pokémon Trainer was considered a lower-ranking character in ''Brawl'', as despite many of the Pokémon's unique strengths, the team's polarized balance and mechanics that adversely worked against the team counterbalanced said traits. Most likely following this status, Pokémon Trainer has been buffed significantly in the transition to ''Ultimate''.

Notably, both the [[Pokémon Change#Stamina|stamina]] mechanic and [[type effectiveness]] have been completely removed, and [[Pokémon Change]] has been granted high utility due to the addition of aerial switching and significantly faster Pokémon switches. As such, switches between the three Pokémon have now become a unique advantage for the Pokémon Trainer alone instead of being a major mandatory commitment, and the Pokémon are now free to fight indefinitely without being limited by Stamina during battle. In addition, Ivysaur, who was previously the worst Pokémon in the party, has been greatly buffed, and the general changes to ''Ultimate''{{'}}s mechanics greatly benefit Ivysaur and Squirtle.

 

In bulk, Pokémon Trainer has become a significantly more effective character than in ''Brawl''. Despite retaining a high learning curve, all three Pokémon now boast their own degree of effectiveness for certain matchups, making the character more dynamic overall. Still, while each of the Trainer's Pokémon is usable as its own character, as in ''Brawl'', usage of all three for different situations is optimal. Nevertheless, the team performs much better than they previously did in Brawl.

Unlike his Pokémon, Pokémon Trainer did not receive any buffs or nerfs via game updates due to not being a directly playable character. Instead, he received only a number of fixes to both minor and major glitches.

[[File:Pokemon Trainer SSBU Skill Preview Extra 1.png|thumb|All three of Pokémon Trainer's Pokémon, as shown via the [[Move List]].]]

*'''Up taunt''': Triumphantly raises his Poké Ball into the air, saying "All right!"

*'''Down taunt''': Fist pumps with his left hand while posing triumphantly, saying "Yay!"

*'''Up taunt''': Fist pumps with her left hand while triumphantly raising her Poké Ball into the air, saying "All right!"

*'''Down taunt''': Jumps slightly off the ground while doing a double fist pump, saying "Yay!"

|"¡Tu puedes!" || "¡Ja!"

SSBURedIdle1.gif|Male Pokémon Trainer's first idle pose.

SSBURedIdle2.gif|Male Pokémon Trainer's second idle pose.

SSBULeafIdle1.gif|Female Pokémon Trainer's first idle pose.

SSBULeafIdle2.gif|Female Pokémon Trainer's second idle pose.

|[[File:Pokémon Trainer Cheer English SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Pokémon Trainer Cheer Japanese SSBU.ogg|center]]||(♂)[[File:Pokémon Trainer Male Cheer Italian SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> (♀)[[File:Pokémon Trainer Female Cheer Italian SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Pokémon Trainer Cheer Dutch SSBU.ogg|center]]||(♂) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Male Cheer French SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> (♀) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Female Cheer French SSBU.ogg|center]]

|(♂) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Male Cheer German SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> (♀) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Female Cheer German SSBU.ogg|center]]||(♂) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Male Cheer Spanish SSBU.ogg|center]] <br> (♀) [[File:Pokémon Trainer Female Cheer Spanish SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Pokémon Trainer Cheer Russian SSBU.ogg|center]]||[[File:Pokémon Trainer Cheer Korean SSBU.ogg|center]]

The male Trainer can say "You all did great!" ({{ja|よくやったな、みんな！|Yoku yatta na, minna}}, ''Good job, everyone!''), while the female Trainer can say "Everyone did great!" ({{ja|みなさんは素晴らしい！|Minasan wa subarashī!}}, ''All of you did great!''). They will either say a non-specific line, or a Pokemon-specific line. In Team Battles, if there are more than two players on the winning team, the Pokémon will not be present, but this does not affect the Trainer's lines. The male and female Trainers also have variations in their own pose depending on the gender of the Trainer, similarly to the Inklings.

<!--This character has a ten player limit for this section. Before adding and/or removing a player, read these guidelines: https://www.ssbwiki.com/SmashWiki:Notability#%22Most_historically_significant_players%22_guidelines -->

''See also: [[:Category:Pokémon Trainer players (SSBU)]]''

*{{Sm|moxi|USA}} - One of the best Pokémon Trainer players in North America in 2019, ranking 33rd on the [[Fall 2019 PGRU]], with frequent high placement at North America's largest events including 13th at {{Trn|Mainstage}} and 17th at {{Trn|EVO 2019}}. She continued to play Pokémon Trainer in 2021, notably placing 17th at {{Trn|Mainstage 2021}} and 25th at {{Trn|Riptide}}, but eventually dropped the character for {{SSBU|Wolf}} by the end of the year.

*{{Sm|Ned|USA}} - Primarily played Pokémon Trainer in the early metagame and was considered one of the best Pokémon Trainer players in North America in the second half of 2019, ranking 37th on the [[Fall 2019 PGRU]]. He is best known for placing 9th at {{Trn|DreamHack Atlanta 2019}}, defeating {{Sm|Kola}} and {{Sm|ESAM}}; 13th at {{Trn|The Big House 9}}; and 17th at {{Trn|2GG: Kongo Saga}}, defeating {{Sm|Nairo}}. He eventually dropped Pokémon Trainer for {{SSBU|Sephiroth}}, although he eventually brought back the character as a secondary.

*{{Sm|Noi|Japan}} - One of the best Pokémon Trainer players in Japan since the pandemic period, playing the character alongside {{SSBU|Olimar}}. Although most of his best performances were with Olimar, he has taken several noteworthy names with Pokémon Trainer including {{Sm|Sparg0}} at {{Trn|Kagaribi 12}} and {{Sm|Kameme}} at {{Trn|Kagaribi 8}}. In addition, with primarily Pokémon Trainer he placed 9th at {{Trn|Wave 2}} and 13th at {{Trn|Seibugeki 12}}.

*{{Sm|Puppeh|USA}} - One of the best Pokémon Trainer players in North America and one of the few Pokémon Trainer players who continued to solo-main the character in the post-online metagame. His breakout tournament was placing 5th at  {{Trn|CEO 2019}} defeating {{Sm|Nairo}}, {{Sm|ESAM}}, and {{Sm|Samsora}}, and has since regularly placed well at North American majors and supermajors, such as 17th at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}}, {{Trn|Pound 2022}}, and {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2022}}. His best ranking was 28th on the [[Spring 2019 PGRU]].

*{{Sm|Quidd|USA}} - The best solo-Pokémon Trainer player in the world since 2022, considered a hidden boss as he rarely traveled outside the [[Tristate]] area. He is best known for winning {{Trn|Let's Make Big Moves 2022}}, becoming only the second Pokémon Trainer player to win a major, and immediately followed the event up by placing 5th at {{Trn|Collision 2022}}, two of the best Pokémon Trainer performances in the post-online metagame. Outside of majors, he has also won several noteworthy Tristate events such as {{Trn|High Rez}}.  

*{{Sm|Tweek|USA}} - Although he only played Pokémon Trainer for several months in the second half of 2019, he is considered the best Pokémon Trainer of all-time and remained the only Pokémon Trainer player to rank in the top 10. He is the first Pokémon Trainer player to win a major, doing so at {{Trn|Low Tier City 7}}, and had several other top 8 finishes at majors and supermajors, including 2nd at {{Trn|EVO 2019}} and 3rd at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}}.

Thanks to the various buffs given to his three Pokémon, especially the removal of the infamously counter-intuitive mechanics [[Pokémon Change#Stamina|stamina]] and [[type effectiveness]], Pokémon Trainer received a strong positive reception in the early metagame. This reception correlated with a large playerbase in the early metagame which was initially spearheaded by players such as {{Sm|Wishes}} and {{Sm|Puppeh}}. This playerbase only grew as 2019 went on after many other players began placing well with the character, including {{Sm|moxi}}, {{Sm|Ned}}, and -- most notably -- {{Sm|Tweek}}, who notably won the major {{Trn|Low Tier City 7}} with solo-Pokémon Trainer. By the end of the year, all three superregions had a Pokémon Trainer player ranked on the [[PGRU]] or its Area 51: the aforementioned players in North America, {{Sm|HIKARU}} in Japan, and {{Sm|Leffen}} in Europe. This resulted in Pokémon Trainer having one of the best representation in the early metagame, peaking at 5th for the second half of 2019, and leading many to believe the character was top 10.

During and following the [[COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on competitive Smash|COVID-19 pandemic]], Pokémon Trainer saw a decline in tourney success, due to multiple factors such as buffs to other characters, a lack of viability online, [[downloadable content]] bringing forth a number of stronger characters, and new weaknesses growing more apparent such as limited landing options, linear gameplans, poor ledge options, and an over-reliance on [[Pokémon Change]] to cover one another's weaknesses. In addition, [[Ivysaur (SSBU)|Ivysaur]], who was initially considered the best Pokémon of the three, received nerfs in Patch 4.0.0 such as increased startup lag on [[Razor Leaf]], reduced knockback on [[Vine Whip]], and down aerial's smaller sweetspot.

Most likely as a result of this, almost all of Pokémon Trainer's best players from the early metagame either dropped the character (most notably HIKARU and Tweek), relegated the character to a secondary (most notably Ned), or stopped competing altogether (most notably Leffen and Wishes). Although this led to a decline in representation, several new Pokémon Trainer players stepped into the limelight, including {{Sm|Atelier}}, {{Sm|DDee}}, and {{Sm|Noi}}. Most notable among these new players was {{Sm|Quidd}}, who won the major {{Trn|Let's Make Big Moves 2022}}. The efforts of these players has kept Pokémon Trainer's reputation afloat, and he is still considered a strong character in the current metagame. This is reflected in the character's placements on the first two tier lists, where he is ranked 23rd on the first list as a high-tier and 24th on the second list in the A- tier.

|6||{{head|Pokémon Trainer|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}} ({{head|Pokémon Trainer|g=SSBU|s=20px}}) Opposite-gender {{SSBU|Pokémon Trainer}}||Pokémon Stadium 2||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Pokémon|The Battle at the Summit!}}''

{{clr}}

While Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard's fighter spirits are obtained by completing {{SSBU|Classic Mode}} as Pokémon Trainer, the spirits for the Trainers themselves are only available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Pokémon Trainer has been unlocked. Unlocking Pokémon Trainer in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As fighter spirits, they cannot be used in Spirit Battles and are purely aesthetic. Unlike most fighters, the spirits for Pokémon Trainer only use their artwork from ''Ultimate'', rather than also having alternative artwork from a previous appearance.

Pokémon Trainer amiibo.png|Pokémon Trainer's [[amiibo]].

Pokémon Smash Bros.png|Artwork of all playable Pokémon characters and Poké Ball Pokémon, as posted by the official Pokémon Twitter account.

*In Spanish, German, French, and Italian, the voice clip from the announcer on the victory screen is slightly different from the one used on the character select screen, instead featuring a noticeable translation of "the" (respectively, "'''el''' Entrenador Pokémon"/"'''la''' Entrenadora Pokémon", "'''der''' Pokémon-Trainer"/"'''die''' Pokémon-Trainerin", "'''le''' Dresseur de Pokémon"/"'''la''' Dresseuse de Pokémon", and "'''l''''Allenatore di Pokémon"/"'''la''' Allenatrice di Pokémon"). This also happens with {{SSBU|Wii Fit Trainer}}, {{SSBU|Inkling}}, {{SSBU|Villager}}, {{SSBU|Hero}}, the {{SSBU|Ice Climbers}}, {{SSBU|Zombie}}, {{SSBU|Enderman}}, and the Mii Fighters.