Duck Hunt (SSB4)

This article is about Duck Hunt's appearance in Super Smash Bros. 4. For the characters in other contexts, see Duck Hunt. For other uses, see Duck Hunt (disambiguation).

Duck Hunt in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Duck Hunt
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	NES Zapper Posse
Tier	D (37)

“	Duck Hunt Takes Aim!	”
—Introduction tagline

Duck Hunt (ダックハント, Duck Hunt), rendered in-game as Duckhunt in the Japanese version and known as Duck Hunt Duo in the PAL version, are playable characters in Super Smash Bros. 4. After initially being leaked on August 19th, 2014 as part of the ESRB leak, and then hinted at by Masahiro Sakurai himself on October 22nd, 2014, Duck Hunt were formally revealed via a reveal trailer on November 5th, 2014 during a Nintendo Direct presentation. In addition to their titular game, Duck Hunt reference two other "Light Gun Series" games, Hogan's Alley and Wild Gunmen, via their neutral special move, side special move, and Final Smash.

Duck Hunt are currently ranked 37th out of 58 on the tier list, placing them in the D tier. Duck Hunt have a very capable zoning game thanks to their three versatile projectiles, with the remote controllable Trick Shot being especially useful. Their fast air speed and useful aerial attacks also grant them a decent air game, which in turn syncs well with their projectiles' ability to maintain stage control. Duck Hunt's frame data is also quite good: nearly all of their moves have less than 10 frames of start-up lag and possess very high knockback growth, which makes them fairly capable of warding off opponents in close quarters combat when necessary.

However, Duck Hunt's most glaring flaw is their KO potential, as their moveset's overall very high knockback growth is offset by their overall low damage output and overall very low base knockback. By extension, their smash attacks are infamously unreliable: despite having multiple hitboxes, respectable overall damage outputs, and the ability to increase their ranges via charging, their initial hitboxes' knockback and launching angles can result in opponents inadvertently evading their final hitboxes.

Due to their above average falling speed and them being tied for the third lightest middleweights, Duck Hunt's endurance is also unimpressive. By extension, their recovery's overall mediocrity compounds this flaw: although the dog is capable of wall jumping, and Duck Jump is a maneuverable recovery option that covers a decent amount of vertical and horizontal distance, Duck Jump is slow and offers no protection.

Although Duck Hunt's flaws have resulted in them attaining minimal tournament representation, they have achieved respectable tournament results regardless, thanks to You3, Dandy Penguin, ImHip, Raito, Brood and Ozone each achieving top 10 placings at the regional level. In addition, Dandy Penguin and ImHip have achieved top 10 placings at the national level, while Brood has taken a set a off of ZeRo. As a result of Duck Hunt achieving better results in comparison to a number of characters that are considered much better than him, their current tier placement is debatable.

How to unlock

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• Play 110 VS Matches.
• Complete Classic Mode with 8 characters.

After completing one of the two methods, Duck Hunt must then be defeated on Battlefield, even if their home stage of the same name is present in the game's system as of update 1.1.1.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

• Play 100 VS Matches.
• KO 1 opponent in Cruel Smash.

After completing one of the two methods, Duck Hunt must then be defeated on Duck Hunt.

Attributes

Duck Hunt are middleweights whose overall mobility is rather average. Their walking speed, air speed, falling speed, and air acceleration are quite fast, while their dashing speed is average. However, both their gravity and traction are low. Aside from these general attributes, the dog and duck each possess specific traits: the dog can crawl and wall jump, while the duck has a hurtbox just like the dog.

As their name in the PAL version suggests, Duck Hunt is not a single entity, but actually a team of characters like the Ice Climbers, the Pokémon Trainer, and Rosalina & Luma. In Duck Hunt's case, the team consists of the dog and a duck from Duck Hunt, as well as an off-screen hunter using the NES Zapper. The dog and duck comprise the majority of the team's moveset, such as using spins, paw swipes, headbutts, and pecks. The dog also initiates their neutral and down specials, Trick Shot and Wild Gunman, while the duck performs their up special, Duck Jump. Conversely, the hunter is involved with only five moves: their smash attacks, the remainder of Trick Shot, and their side special, Clay Shooting.

Duck Hunt's offensive special moves are oriented at zoning and stage control. Trick Shot is useful for not only playing mindgames, but also helping Duck Hunt with edge-guarding. However, the explosion also damages Duck Hunt, which forces careful spacing between them and the tin can. Clay Shooting's long range makes it useful for luring opponents from a distance, and especially for hindering an opponent's approach. Wild Gunman is best suited for mindgames like Trick Shot, and both moves can synchronize rather well with each other. In addition to this, it has defensive value due to each gunman being able to block attacks, similarly to Link and Toon Link's Bombs. Unlike Trick Shot, Wild Gunman has little offensive use because of its varying damage outputs, unimpressive knockback, and each gunman being unable to fire if they are dealt at least 5%. Duck Jump rounds out Duck Hunt's special moves: it is maneuverable and covers a decent amount of vertical and horizontal distance, but it cannot be stopped upon being initiated, and offers no protection. However, the dog's aforementioned ability to wall jump is useful for assisting with Duck Jump's recovery.

Fittingly enough for a team with a bird, Duck Hunt's air game is perhaps the strongest aspect of their offense after their projectiles, and it typically synchronizes well with their projectiles, thanks to the latter's suitability for stage control. Their neutral aerial is useful for edge-guarding thanks to its minimal start-up lag and sex kick properties, while its clean hitbox is strong enough to reliably KO even on-stage opponents at reasonable percentages. Both their forward and back aerials are useful for edge-guarding, while the latter's sweetspot and their up aerial are also strong enough to KO reliably. Lastly, their down aerial is their most damaging aerial, and is able to meteor smash.

Although Duck Hunt's grounded attacks are less effective than their aerial attacks, they still have their uses. Their neutral attack is perhaps their best grounded attack: its neutral infinite is reliable for damage racking thanks to its hits connecting together reliably even at high percentages, while both its last hit and its infinite's finisher are reliable for spacing thanks to their very high knockback growth. Their up tilt is their only consistent combo starter, as it can combo into itself until almost 30% on middleweights, and even higher on heavyweights and fast-fallers depending on their DI. It can also act as a set-up for a short hopped up aerial, or even function as a situational KOing option at very high percentages. Down tilt is useful for launching Trick Shot's tin can back into the line of fire, dash attack has impressive range and decent power, and all of their smash attacks have good ranges and respectable power.

However, Duck Hunt possess glaring weaknesses. The most notable one is their KO potential: even though almost the entirety of their moveset has very high knockback growth, this is offset by their overall low damage output and overall very low base knockback. To compound this, their smash attacks are inconsistent because of their awkward hitboxes, while their aerials' fairly short ranges make them best suited for edge-guarding. Duck Hunt's endurance is also unremarkable: in addition to their aforementioned above average falling speed, they are tied with Palutena as the third lightest middleweights in the game, and their overall recovery is only mediocre at best. These traits also make Duck Hunt susceptible to rushdowns and combos, although their neutral aerial, Trick Shot, and Clay Shooting can somewhat help them alleviate these types of pressure.

While it is not as burdensome as their KO potential and recovery, Duck Hunt's grab game is nevertheless a mixed bag. Their grabs' ranges are deceptively long, their pummel is among the most damaging in the game, and their forward and back throws can help them launch an opponent into Trick Shot's trajectory if they initially dodged the tin can. Forward throw can also combo into a dash attack beginning at 0%, and then into a dashing, short hopped forward aerial from very low percentages to medium percentages. However, their up and down throws are extremely ineffective at KOing and starting combos, respectively, while their pummel is tied with Mega Man's as the fourth slowest in the game.

Duck Hunt possess a few notable custom moves. Zigzag Shot is very unpredictable and travels an impressive distance upward. When the shots are timed correctly, it functions as a capable, albeit gimmicky, KOing option. Super Duck Jump covers more vertical distance and has a windbox that makes them more difficult to edge-guard, but has more start-up lag and covers almost no horizontal distance. The variations of Wild Gunman are the most promising, however: Quick Draw Aces makes Duck Hunt's zoning game more powerful and even more difficult to counter at the cost of covering less distance, whereas Mega Gunman's improved defense and larger hurtbox grants them a way to ward off pressure at the cost of weakening their zoning and stage control games.

Overall, Duck Hunt's projectiles make them very capable at maintaining a strong defensive presence and playing mindgames. However, due to relying heavily on their projectiles in order to maintain an offensive presence, Duck Hunt can be very vulnerable to characters that can counteract them, such as those capable of reflection. As a result, players must also properly synchronize their projectiles with their useful air game in order to maintain a precise, varied, and pressuring offensive presence both on the ground and in the air.

Update history

Duck Hunt have been slightly buffed via game updates. Update 1.0.8 made their neutral aerial safer by decreasing its landing lag. Update 1.1.0 improved the utility of their neutral attack's last hit, and slightly improved their forward smash's reliability by increasing the sizes of its second and last hitboxes. However, this same update also slightly toned down their neutral infinite's damage racking potential. Lastly, update 1.1.5 slightly improved Duck Hunt's KO potential by marginally increasing the knockback growth of their smash attacks' last hits.

1.0.8

• Neutral aerial's landing lag decreased: 22 frames → 17.

1.1.0

• Neutral attack's first and second hits have received two hitboxes with differing angles.
• Neutral attack's third hit deals 1% more damage: 4% → 5%, has increased knockback: 40 (base)/125 (growth) → 50/130, its hitbox size increased: 5u → 5.8u, and its vertical displacement increased: 4.5u → 5.5u.
• Neutral infinite's finisher hitbox no longer stretches vertically.
• Forward smash's second and third hits' hitbox sizes increased: 4.5u (second)/5.1u (third) → 5.2u/7u.

1.1.5

• Forward smash's third hit has higher knockback scaling (123 → 125).
• Up smash's third hit has higher knockback scaling (110 → 112).
• Down smash's third hit has higher knockback growth (153 → 155).

Moveset

• Duck Hunt can crawl and wall jump.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2%	The dog performs a paw swipe, followed by a headbutt, followed by a dropkick performed from the baby freeze, a variation of the freeze breakdancing move. If button mashed, the duck pecks repeatedly at alternating angles and then thrusts its wings and beak forward. It is one of Duck Hunt's most useful moves, thanks to its damage racking and spacing potentials.
			3%
			5%
			1% (loop), 3% (last)
Forward tilt			8%	The dog leans on his chest and forepaws in order to thrust his lower back forward and propel the duck, who performs a peck. It can be angled and is decent for spacing.
Up tilt			7%	The dog leans on his chest and forepaws in order to thrust his lower back upward and propel the duck, who performs an upward headbutt while thrusting its wings upward. It can combo into itself from 0% to 28% on middleweights (and up to 35% on heavyweights and fast-fallers), into an up smash and into a short hopped neutral aerial at low percentages, and into a short hopped up aerial at medium percentages. In addition to its combo potential, its very high knockback growth enables it to KO middleweights at 164%. However, it has very minimal horizontal range, which forces Duck Hunt to practically stand next to a grounded opponent in order to land it.
Down tilt			8%	The dog swings his lower back forward to propel the duck, who performs a turning peck. Due to being a semi-spike, it is arguably their best move for moving Trick Shot's tin can while it is in front of themselves, especially since it launches the can faster than pressing the special button does. It is also decent for shield stabbing. Despite being a semi-spike, its average damage output and below average knockback growth make it unsuitable for edge-guarding.
Dash attack			10% (clean), 7% (late)	The dog slides onto his chest and forepaws in order to thrust his lower back forward and propel the duck, who performs a peck. It covers a fair amount of distance and its very high base knockback makes it decent at warding off an opponent. However, it has noticeable ending lag.
Forward smash			4% (hits 1-2), 9% (hit 3), 17% (all hits connect)	The dog barks to signal the off-screen hunter to fire the NES Zapper three times in front of the duo while the dog and duck comically dodge the shots. It is a semi-spike and the longer it is charged, the larger its range becomes. However, its first two hits are unreliable, as their angles and very high knockback growth can occasionally launch opponents too early, and thus allow them to evade its last hit. As a result, it is preferable to space accordingly in order to simply use the last hit when attempting to score a KO. Its last hit KOs middleweights at 111% while near the edge.
Up smash			2% (hit 1), 2.4% (hit 2), 10% (hit 3), 14.4% (all hits connect)	The dog looks upward to signal the off-screen hunter to fire the NES Zapper upward three times while the dog and duck comically dodge the shots. Like forward smash, its range increases the longer it is charged. Although its first two hits are unreliable because of their angles and very high knockback growth, they are slightly more reliable compared to forward smash and down smash's first two hits. Its last hit KOs middleweights at 134%.
Down smash			5% (hits 1-2), 6% (hit 3), 16% (all hits connect)	The dog looks at the ground to signal the off-screen hunter to fire at both sides while the dog and duck comically dodge the shots. Its first and last hits are in front of the dog, while the second hit is behind him. Its last hit launches the opponent behind the dog, and as result, Duck Hunt must face away from the edge when attempting to use this move to launch the opponent off-stage. Like forward and up smashes, its range increases the longer it is charged, but its first two hits are unreliable because of their angles and very high knockback growth. Its last hit KOs middleweights at 124% while near the edge.
Neutral aerial			11% (clean), 5% (late)	The dog performs a cartwheel. It functions like a sex kick and it comes out on frame 6, which ties it with up aerial for the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials. When coupled with its clean hitbox's decent damage output and very high knockback growth, it is decent at breaking out of combos and juggles, and is strong enough to KO middleweights at 126% while near the edge. However, its late hitbox has virtually no KO potential.
Forward aerial			6.5% (duck), 10% (duck's beak), 7.5% (late duck's beak)	The dog thrusts his lower back forward to propel the duck, who performs a corkscrew peck. It comes out on frame 7, which ties it with back aerial for the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials. In addition, it has the lowest amount of landing lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials. When coupled with its range and the duck's beak functioning as a sweetspot, it is useful for spacing, edge-guarding, and aerial follow-ups. However, its sweetspot's average damage output and knockback growth make it unsuitable for KOing outright.
Back aerial			10% (duck), 12% (duck's beak), 10.5% (late duck's beak)	The dog thrusts his lower back backward to propel the duck, who performs a turning peck. It comes out on frame 7, which ties it with back aerial for the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials. Like forward aerial, the duck's beak is a sweetspot, though it is much stronger in comparison, to the point that it will KO middleweights at 125% while near the edge. However, its other hitboxes have much lower KO potential, and it has the second highest amount of landing lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials.
Up aerial			3% (hits 1-2), 6% (hit 3)	The duck pecks upward three times while carrying the dog in tow. It comes out on frame 6, which ties it with neutral aerial for the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Duck Hunt's aerials. Its last hit has the highest knockback growth out of Duck Hunt's aerials, which makes it strong enough to KO middleweights at 123% while near the upper blast line. It also auto-cancels with a short hop.
Down aerial			5% (hit 1), 10% (hit 2)	The dog somersaults to propel the duck, who performs a somersaulting peck. It has an excellent auto-cancel window, which allows it to auto-cancel even after fast falling at the peak of their double jump. Its second hit can also meteor smash airborne opponents. However, landing before the second hit comes out results in Duck Hunt enduring very high ending lag, which makes it unsafe to use before landing.
Grab			—	The dog bites the opponent and holds them with his mouth. Despite their animations, Duck Hunt's grabs have deceptively long ranges, especially their pivot grab.
Pummel			3%	The duck performs a headbutt. It is one of the most damaging pummels in the game, but is tied with Mega Man's pummel as the fourth slowest in the game.
Forward throw			8%	The dog rears his head back and sways it forward to throw the opponent. It can combo into a dash attack or Clay Shooting from 0% to very low percentages, and a forward aerial from low to medium percentages. It can also be used to throw an opponent toward Trick Shot's tin can if the tin can is still on-stage.
Back throw			9%	The dog spins around to throw the opponent. It is Duck Hunt's most damaging throw and, like forward throw, it can be used to throw the opponent into the trajectory of Trick Shot's tin can if it is still on-stage.
Up throw			6%	The dog performs a handstand kick. It can lead into an up aerial at low percentages. Despite having the highest knockback growth out of Duck Hunt's throws, it lacks KO potential because of its low damage output.
Down throw			5%	The dog sways his head downward to slam the opponent onto the ground. It is Duck Hunt's least damaging throw, but can function as a set-up into up aerial at high percentages for a potential KO combo. Outside of this, it can combo into Trick Shot and a forward aerial at low to medium percentages. However, these combos are largely ineffective, as the former is risky because of Trick Shot's explosion also being capable of harming Duck Hunt, whereas the latter requires a hard read.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	The duck pecks on either side of the dog.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	The duck headbutts behind the dog and then in front of the dog.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	The duck pecks behind the dog and then in front of the dog.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	The dog climbs up and leans on his chest and forepaws in order to thrust his lower back forward to propel the duck, who performs a peck.
Neutral special	Default	Trick Shot	8% (explosion), 1.8%-2% (contact)	The dog kicks away a tin can from the Hogan's Alley game mode of the same name. The can is explosive and subsequent neutral special button presses alert the player with the Zapper to shoot the can forward. After enough button presses, the can starts to emit smoke and will then explode. The can is able to be manipulated by the dog and duck's attacks outside of the special button. However, this also applies to the opponent's attacks, while the explosion will also hurt the dog and duck if it hits them. It is Duck Hunt's best edge-guarding option, and KOs middleweights at 145% while near the left/right blast lines.
	Custom 1	High-Explosive Shot	7%/12% (explosion), 1% (contact)	The tin can is kicked only once upon its initial activation. It covers greater distance, travels faster, and can potentially deal more damage than the default version. However, pressing the special button again at any time will make the tin can explode immediately, making it less suitable for edge-guarding.
	Custom 2	Zigzag Shot	6% (shot), 6% (explosion), 2% (contact)	The tin can's direction alternates in the air for each special button press. Getting hit by the explosion launches the opponent directly upward, while the tin can's contact hitbox can lead into juggling combos that can potentially KO them near the upper blast line. However, the explosion deals less damage.
Side special	Default	Clay Shooting	2% (hit 1), 1.8% (hits 2-4), 5% (hit 5)	The dog throws a clay pigeon, based on the Clay Shooting sub-game (Game C) from Duck Hunt. It has two flight trajectories: a slow, higher arc and a faster, straight arc. Moving while performing the move initiates the former, whereas standing still and performing the move initiates the latter. Pressing the special button again causes the off-screen hunter to destroy it with a barrage of shots from the NES Zapper, making it a natural combo. It is useful for hindering approaches, but can also act as a set-up into a dash attack from 0% to medium percentages, or into a forward aerial at high percentages. Although somewhat situational, the clay pigeon can also act as a makeshift landmine by allowing it to land on the ground, and then destroying it to surprise an opponent.
	Custom 1	Rising Clay	2%-8%	The clay pigeon slowly rises into the air and deals more damage the farther it travels. However, it is thrown slower and cannot be shot at. It retains Clay Shooting's trajectory influence.
	Custom 2	Clay Break	7% (hit 1), 7% (hit 2), 13% (hit 3)	The clay pigeon is thrown faster and can be shot at three times, with each shot being stronger than the default version's. However, each shot has varying accuracy. It retains Clay Shooting's trajectory influence.
Up special	Default	Duck Jump	—	The duck flies upward while carrying the dog before getting tired and falling to the ground. It is maneuverable, and covers a decent amount of vertical and horizontal distance. However, it is unsafe because of its slow speed and lack of protection.
	Custom 1	Duck Jump Snag	1% (hits 1-6), 2% (hit 7)	The dog bites any nearby opponents repeatedly as the duck carries him upward, which can potentially gimp an opponent's recovery. However, it covers much less vertical distance, and somewhat less horizontal distance.
	Custom 2	Super Duck Jump	—	Covers more vertical distance and has a strong push effect upon ascending, thanks to a gust generated by the duck flapping its wings. The dog and duck ascend faster as well, making it less susceptible to being gimped from above. However, it has more start-up lag and covers noticeably less horizontal distance.
Down special	Default	Wild Gunman	4%-7%	The dog summons an 8-bit gunman from Wild Gunman. The gunman will fire his gun after a set amount of time, which is dependent on the gunman that appears, and then disappear in a puff of smoke. The gunman can also block attacks, but if he receives at least 5%, he will fall and thus not fire his gun. Once a gunman falls, Duck Hunt must wait for very briefly before they can summon another one.
	Custom 1	Quick Draw Aces	6%-9%	Each gunman has less start-up lag, while their shots' damage outputs and base knockback are slightly higher. However, their shots' ranges are shorter and their knockback growth is lower. The gunmen also have much less durability, as they will fall if they receive 1%.
	Custom 2	Mega Gunman	3%-6%	Each gunman is significantly larger, and thus has much more durability, to the point that each one is able to receive 40% before falling. However, their damage outputs are slightly lower, and they will only fire after a considerable delay if nothing hits them.
Final Smash		NES Zapper Posse	45%	The dog barks to call in a flock of 8-bit ducks. The flock tackles the opponent, launching them into a Wild West-styled field from Wild Gunman. The opponent is then repeatedly fired at by the gunmen, who are also shooting at the cardboard cutout gangsters and tin cans from Hogan's Alley. It is fairly powerful, as it KOs middleweights at 75%.

On-screen appearance

• The dog leaps into an 8-bit sprite of grass with the duck on his back before they both rise from the grass while the dog performs his signature laugh. The grass then disappears in a puff of smoke.

Taunts

• Up taunt: The dog performs a handstand and barks before the duck, while perched on one of his hindpaws, quacks at him to stop.
• Side taunt: The dog lays on his side and does his signature laugh while the duck flaps its wings tauntingly.
• Down taunt: The dog stands on his hindpaws and dances.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• The dog and the duck sniff the ground.
• The dog scratches his ear.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Duck Hunt!	Dakku Han-to!
Pitch	Group chant	Female

Victory poses

A remix of the jingle that plays before a new game starts in Duck Hunt. It begins with the original 8-bit rendition, then transitions to an orchestral rendition for the rest of its duration.

• The dog uses Wild Gunman to the left and then again to the right while the duck either looks at the dog, or looks at the Gunman.
• The dog dashes on-screen, turns around to use Trick Shot, and then strikes a pose alongside the duck.
• The dog leaps into an 8-bit sprite of grass, then rises from the grass while performing his signature laugh as the duck flies out and either looks off into the distance, or looks at the camera. It is almost identical to their on-screen appearance.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Duck Hunt	3121	3123	3122	1121	1123
	3132	1132	3111	3221	3323

Notable players

Active

•  Beer - The best Duck Hunt player in Western Australia. The tournament organizer of the Big Win Beer Smash Extravaganza weekly events in Perth.
•  Brood - Placed 13th at Smash of the Titans 15, 25th at GENESIS 4, and has achieved several top 10 placings at Umebura tournaments. He is the seventeenth player to take a set off of ZeRo.
•  Dandy Penguin - Placed 13th at Super Smash Con 2015, 9th at Tipped Off 11, 5th at Glitch, and 33rd at CEO Dreamland.
•  ImHip - Placed 9th at both Final Battle and 2GGT: Fatality Saga, and 5th at both 2GGT: The False Awakens and 2GGT: Mexico Saga.
•  Ozone - Placed 9th at Midwest Mayhem 7: Mexico Invasion and 17th at Midwest Mayhem 8: North American Tour. He has wins over falln and JJROCKETS.
•  Raito - Placed 7th at Umebura 23, 49th at GENESIS 4, 4th at Umebura 26, 9th at CEO Dreamland, 17th at Umebura Japan Major 2017, 13th at 2GGC: Nairo Saga, and 13th at CEO 2017. Has wins over MKLeo, ANTi, Larry Lurr, Mr.R, Kameme, Ken, and Ranai.
•  Tamushika
•  You3 - Placed 7th at both Hyper Sumabato and Sumabato 6, 4th at Sumabato 11, 3rd at Smash of the Titans 15, 33rd at GENESIS 4, and 7th at Sumabato 15.

Inactive

•  DunnoBro - Placed 9th at Glitch and achieved several top 10 placings at Smash @ Xanadu tournaments before switching to Mario.
•  MVD - Placed 17th at Final Battle and 7th at Apex 2015 before switching to Diddy Kong.

Tier placement and history

Duck Hunt's viability has been among the most contentious throughout SSB4's lifespan. They were initially considered to be among the best characters in the game, largely thanks to their zoning game offering them excellent set-ups and stage control. Later, it would become clear that Duck Hunt's overall average mobility, smash attacks' awkward hitboxes, handful of KOing options, and over-reliance on set-ups collectively hindered them in competitive play. As a result, their playerbase in the Western scene declined dramatically, even in light of the nerfs to Diddy Kong and Sheik, two of their most challenging matchups. Despite this, Duck Hunt achieved respectable tournament success in Japan thanks to Brood, Raito and You3, who also breathed life into their metagame by employing even smarter set-ups, frame traps, and pressure options. Western players that continued to main Duck Hunt, such as Dandy Penguin and ImHip, would also achieve decent success in tournaments.

These instances of success somewhat improved Duck Hunt's perception, to the point that they were tied with Little Mac for the 42nd/43rd on the first tier list, and then ranked 42nd on the second tier list. Duck Hunt's perception continued to improve following Brood, You3 and Raito placing 25th, 33rd and 49th, respectively, at GENESIS 4. This, in turn, saw them ranked 37th on the third and current tier list, and thus be reassessed as mid-tier characters instead of low-tier characters. Despite this continued success and improved tier status, Duck Hunt's tier placement is debatable. Some players argue that they, like Palutena, should be ranked slightly lower because of their results remaining quite sparse, regardless of their aforementioned flashes of success. Conversely, others disagree with this assessment after Raito placed 9th at CEO Dreamland, 17th at Umebura Japan Major 2017, and 13th at both 2GGC: Nairo Saga and CEO 2017.

Reveal trailer

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Trophies

Duck Hunt

You could call these two the stars of the NES 1985 launch title Duck Hunt. The goofy dog would chase down any ducks hit by the Zapper. In Smash Bros., these two work as a team to fight. When a can or a clay pigeon is in play, hit the button again to fire at it. Show your foes how the ducks felt!

Back in 1987, when Duck Hunt came out, these two might not have had the best relationship. That all seems to have changed now, and this unlikely pair are here to fight together. After throwing a can or a clay pigeon, press the button again to have a little helper fire the NES Zapper for extra damage!

: Duck Hunt (10/1985)

Duck Hunt (Alt.)

Duck Jump, an up special, has the charming twosome float up in an adorable fashion. It also makes getting back to the stage much easier. Their side smash can hit up to three times at close range, depending on your shooting skills. By charging up the attack, you can increase the range even further!

Duck Jump Duo, an up special, has the charming twosome float up in an adorable fashion. It also makes getting back to the stage much easier. Their side smash can hit up to three times at close range, depending on your shooting skills, and by charging up the attack, you can increase the range even further!

: Duck Hunt (10/1985)

NES Zapper Posse

In this Final Smash, three games from the Light Gun Series team up: Duck Hunt, Hogan's Alley, and Wild Gunman. A flock of ducks fly by, warping anyone they hit to the Wild West. There, a posse of gunmen will use foes for target practice! If the ducks don't hit anyone, though, nothing happens besides some birds passing through.

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• DuckHuntAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  NES Zapper Posse

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• Duck Hunt!: Duck Hunt must defeat ten background ducks in a row on Duck Hunt while several Falcos try to interfere.
• Guardian of the Jungle: As Donkey Kong, the player must defeat three Duck Hunts.
• New Challengers 1: Duck Hunt are among the opponents fought in this event, alongside Rosalina & Luma, Wii Fit Trainer, Little Mac, Villager, Bowser Jr., and Lucina.

Co-op Events

• Secret Smash: Duck Hunt and Mr. Game & Watch must defeat another Duck Hunt and Mr. Game & Watch.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Duck Hunt-inspired artwork.

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  Duck Hunt's splash art.

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  Duck Hunt's amiibo.

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  The Pic of the Day featuring a teaser of Duck Hunt's trailer.

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  On Onett.

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  Using their side taunt after using Wild Gunman.

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  Using Duck Jump alongside Mega Man using Beat.

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  Two Duck Hunts alongside Kirby after he copied one of them.

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  Charging a smash attack.

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  Using their up smash.

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  Using their forward tilt alongside three Falcos.

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  Using their up taunt alongside another Duck Hunt.

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  Their on-screen appearance.

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  Laying prone alongside Falco.

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  Duck Hunt being attacked by Takamaru.

Trivia

• Duck Hunt make a few references to their home game:
  • The dog performs his signature laugh during their on-screen appearance, side taunt, and one of their victory poses.
  • The dog's tiptoeing animation is almost identical to his animation seen in the beginning of each round of Duck Hunt.
  • The dog being targeted during their smash attacks is a reference to the fact that players can shoot him during a bonus game in VS. Duck Hunt.
  • When they are rendered helpless after using Duck Jump, the sound effect used when a duck falls after being shot in Duck Hunt is played.
• The dog is the third playable canid character after Fox and Wolf, and the second quadrupedal character after Ivysaur. The duck is the third playable avian character after Falco and King Dedede.
  • The dog is also capable of being bipedal, as he stands on his hind legs during their down taunt, losing animation, while swinging the Home-Run Bat, and while carrying a heavy item.
• Duck Hunt and Dark Pit are the only newcomers to not appear in the opening movie. Unlike Dark Pit, however, Duck Hunt are also the only newcomers to not have footage from their reveal trailer in the movie.
• Duck Hunt, Pac-Man, and Villager are the only characters who have special moves based on a series other than their home series.
• Duck Hunt are the only unlockable newcomers who are the sole representatives of a new universe.
• Duck Hunt are among the few characters who lack voice clips in Sound Test. Despite this, the dog barks during some of his attacks, laughs during their side taunt, on-screen appearance and one of their victory poses, yelps during their star KO, and whines if NES Zapper Posse misses. The duck quacks during their up taunt, and each of the gunmen yell before firing. This could be because they are registered as sound effects instead of voice clips. Because of this, some, if not all, of these sounds can still be heard, even if Duck Hunt are metal.
• When the game is slowed down via Training, Special Smash, or the Timer, the number of hits for Duck Hunt's smash attacks will double from three to six if all of their hits connect, which results in their smash attacks dealing twice as much damage. Conversely, the last hit of each of their smash attacks will be more powerful when the game is sped up. These quirks technically make Duck Hunt's smash attacks the most damaging and among the most powerful in the game.
• Duck Hunt are the only characters whose facial expressions change when their trailer's tagline is displayed.
• Due to their home stage being downloadable content in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, unlocking Duck Hunt in that version of SSB4 involves fighting them on Battlefield, instead of on their home stage of the same name. Despite this, they are fought on their home stage in Classic Mode in both versions of SSB4.

External links

• Duck Hunt's moveset