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{{ArticleIcons|melee=y}}
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{{Disambig2|Pichu's appearance in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''|the character in other contexts, see [[Pichu]]; for information on the character of whom Pichu is a [[clone]]|Pikachu (SSBM)}}
{{Disambig2|Pichu's appearance in ''Super Smash Bros. Melee''|the character in other contexts|Pichu}}
{{Infobox Character
{{Infobox Character
|name = Pichu
|name = Pichu
|image = [[File:Pichu SSBM.jpg]]
|image = [[File:Pichu SSBM.jpg]]
|symbol = preBrawl
|symbol = preBrawl
|game = SSBM
|game=SSBM
|ssbgame1 = SSBU
|ssbgame1=SSBU
|availability = [[Unlockable character|Unlockable]]
|availability = [[Unlockable character|Unlockable]]
|tier = D
|tier = D
Line 15: Line 15:
'''Pichu''' ({{ja|ピチュー|Pichū}}, ''Pichu'') is a [[Pokémon]] character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''. Pichu is the "baby" pre-evolution of {{SSBM|Pikachu}}, and in ''Melee'', Pichu has a nearly identical moveset, making it a [[clone]].
'''Pichu''' ({{ja|ピチュー|Pichū}}, ''Pichu'') is a [[Pokémon]] character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Melee]]''. Pichu is the "baby" pre-evolution of {{SSBM|Pikachu}}, and in ''Melee'', Pichu has a nearly identical moveset, making it a [[clone]].


Pichu is voiced by Satomi Koorogi, who also voiced one of the {{s|bulbapedia|Pichu Brothers}} in the ''Pokémon'' anime.
Pichu is voiced by Satomi Kōrogi, who also voiced one of the {{s|bulbapedia|Pichu Brothers}} in the ''Pokémon'' anime.


Pichu is currently ranked 22nd in the D tier, and is the lowest ranked clone and unlockable character in the game. Pichu possesses a surprisingly good grab game, is very quick as most of its attacks have little to no start-up lag, and also has a decent air game with a slew of powerful attacks, some even more powerful than those of its counterpart, Pikachu.  
Pichu is currently ranked 22nd in the D tier. Pichu has solid overall movement, complemented with some very quick attacks and an excellent neutral air. It also possesses a surprising amount of power for its weight class, with good [[chaingrab]]bing ability and a handful of strong finishers. However, all of Pichu's strengths are severely outweighed by its weaknesses. It has abysmal range and very poor endurance due to its light weight, and is unusually prone to chaingrabs itself despite its small size, due to the unusually high amounts of hitstun it sustains as a result of being the game's lightest character. It also takes [[recoil damage]] from its electric-based moves, including its own recovery move [[Agility]], further hampering its defensive game. As a result, Pichu suffers from abysmal matchups- with nearly the entire cast taking advantage of its fragility and poor range. Historically, Pichu was considered to have the worst matchup spread in the game, with no universally agreed upon winning matchups. However, its perception has mildly improved over time due to developments in the metagame- partially because its unexpectedly fast frame data was undervalued. Regardless, Pichu's survivability remains absolutely atrocious, drastically hampering the effectiveness of any metagame developments.


However, all of Pichu's strengths are severely outweighed by its weaknesses: poor range and being prone to chain throws despite its small size, due to the unusually high amounts of hitstun it sustains as a result of being the game's lightest character; the latter attribute also means that as the game's lightest character, all throws performed against it become very fast and short, meaning opponents recover very quickly. It takes [[recoil damage]] from its own electric attacks, hindering its KOing ability, as most of its finishing attacks involve electricity.
Although no longer considered a contender for the worst character competitively, Pichu was intended to be a sub-par character in general, with its trophy descriptions mentioning Pichu as "''top of the class in weakness''" and "''best suited for handicapped matches.''" This was confirmed in a development news update, shortly after the game's release.<ref>''[http://sourcegaming.info/2015/09/24/meleepichusite/ News Flash! Smash Bros. Dojo: Pichu]'' (translated 2015-09-24; [https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/1211/index.html original] posted 2001-12-11)</ref>


Pichu suffers from abysmal matchups, and it has the highest amount of very unfavorable matchups of any character in any ''Smash'' game, having a total of twelve. By comparison, {{SSBM|Kirby}}, the lowest on the tier list, has seven, and {{SSBM|Bowser}}, the second lowest on the tier list, has six. Furthermore, Pichu has no advantageous matchups, with three being even (against {{SSBM|Yoshi}}, {{SSBM|Kirby}} and {{SSBM|Bowser}}), when even these matchups can be disputed at length.
==How to unlock==
Pichu must be defeated in battle before it can be unlocked. There are two ways the player can encounter Pichu:
*One way is to complete [[Event 37: Legendary Pokémon]]. If the player fails to defeat Pichu, they can re-fight it by completing the event again.
*Another way is to play 200 VS. matches to completion. If the player fails to defeat Pichu, they can re-fight it by playing another VS. match to completion. If this method is used, fighters with lower VS. match quotas must be unlocked before Pichu can be fought.
Upon meeting either requirement, the player will fight against Pichu on Pokémon Stadium, with "Battle Theme" playing.


It appears that Pichu is ''intended'' to be a sub-par character, since its trophy descriptions mention that it is "''top of the class in weakness''" and it is "''best suited for handicapped matches.''" Indeed, this was confirmed in a development news update, shortly after the game's release.<ref>''[http://sourcegaming.info/2015/09/24/meleepichusite/  News Flash! Smash Bros. Dojo: Pichu]'' (translated 2015-09-24; [https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/1211/index.html original] posted 2001-12-11)</ref>
==Attributes==
{{competitive expertise|Most paragraphs contain partially correct information, and this section as a whole somewhat misprioritizes Pichu's drawbacks and strengths.}}
Pichu, as a character, falls under the archetype of being nimble, yet relatively fragile. Due to its high traction and average falling speed, Pichu has a rather short wavedash; additionally, its quick and low-lag aerials also give Pichu a good SHFFL, much like Pikachu's. As such, Pichu can easily maneuver around stages, with very low landing lag, a small frame and a rather fast dash, as well as decent jumping power, making it surprisingly difficult to hit in the hands of a capable player. However, its poor endurance due to its very light weight ensures that opponents will not have to find too many openings against it to secure KOs.


==How to unlock==
One of Pichu's main advantages is its perhaps surprising power. While its moveset generally consists of attacks that deal less knockback than its clone {{SSBM|Pikachu}} or most other characters in the cast, the few strong moves it possesses can be deadly if utilized properly. Pichu's smashes are all of short range, but all are unusually powerful; its up smash and forward smash contain incredible power, being able to KO characters reliably at as little as 70 to 80 percent, while its down smash semi-spikes opponents and has invincibility frames. Pichu also has decent throws; its forward and back throws can knock opponents off stage or set up combos, while its up and down throws can chain throw fastfallers and tech chase characters respectively.
To unlock Pichu, players have to complete [[Event 37: Legendary Pokémon]] or play 200 VS. matches.  
 
Pichu's best tool is its neutral aerial, becoming active in just three frames and has minimal landing lag, especially when L-canceled. This move serves as a viable [[approach]] option, can rack up respectable damage with long strings of just itself, and can create a pseudo-[[wall of pain]] if the player can complete a string of hits off-stage. Pichu's up aerial complements neutral aerial's utility, allowing it to juggle enemies into the air. Most of its other aerials are situational in use, but these two moves alone give Pichu quite a force in the air.
 
Pichu also boasts an excellent recovery. Its up special, [[Agility]], can travel in many different directions and cover very large distances; while Pikachu's [[Quick Attack]] is superior in speed and distance, Agility is still a solid recovery tool in its own right. Pichu's [[Skull Bash]] also further aids its horizontal recovery, with surprising power and distance when charged; at full power, it deals a massive 39% damage and guarantees KOs at very low percentages. With Agility being able to seamlessly mix up edgeguarders, and Skull Bash's potential strength serving as a direct deterrent to attempted edgeguards, Pichu has one of the best recoveries in the game.
 
Much like {{SSBM|Pikachu}}, a key weakness is its poor range. All of its best and most powerful attacks are very close to its body, and it lacks a full set of tools to consistently approach enemies to make use of these moves, making it very difficult for Pichu to KO or even find any openings against its opponents (especially against characters with disjointed hitboxes). Its neutral aerial and [[Thunder Jolt]] projectile are among its only reliable options, making Pichu's overall [[neutral game]] play very predictable; the latter also inflicts [[recoil damage]] to it, making it unreliable long-term. Pichu's grab game is also heavily hampered by its short range, at the third shortest in the game, making it difficult for players to consistently take advantage of Pichu's decent throws. Many of Pichu's poorest matchups stem from it being unable to deal with individual moves of characters (such as {{SSBM|Sheik}}'s forward tilt or a large portion of {{SSBM|Marth}}'s moveset) because it lacks tools that have enough range to counter the attacks.


Upon completing either criterion, the player will fight against Pichu on Pokémon Stadium, with "Battle Theme" playing.
Pichu's defensive game is also notoriously poor. Although it has a rather large shield for its size, it is saddled with short tech rolls and a slow, short ledge roll, making it very easy for enemies to extend punishes on Pichu with little that the Pichu player can do to escape. Furthermore, despite being a lightweight, Pichu is also quite vulnerable to combos (some of which are either infinite or [[zero-death]], such as {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}'s chain throw) due to its abnormally high hitstun and average falling speed. These traits exacerbate Pichu's range issues; its problems in the neutral game are very reminiscent of Pikachu's, but Pichu is punished harder for losing exchanges by several orders of magnitude, making the risk-reward of its approaching heavily skewed against it in the vast majority of situations.


==Attributes==
Finally, Pichu suffers from the infamous recoil damage it receives while using almost any move involving electrical hitboxes. Several of Pichu's moves, especially those that involve electricity, add at least one percent of damage to the user. For example, using both segments of Agility to recover adds four percent to Pichu each time it is used. While most of Pichu's best moves do not use electricity, making this less of a problem at higher levels of play, the threat of recoil damage reduces the utility of its electric-based attacks, and there is no way for Pichu to avoid recoil when recovering. If players are not careful with balancing Pichu's electrical and non-electrical attacks, the recoil damage can add up quickly, which can be especially crippling to Pichu. With the lowest weight in the game (being lighter than ''Jigglypuff'') and average falling speed, Pichu's survivability is already among the worst in the game, even without recoil damage. Additionally, the extra damage taken also reduces how long it can utilize [[crouch cancel]]ling.
Pichu, as a character, falls under the archetype of being nimble, yet relatively weak; while slightly stronger than {{SSBM|Pikachu}} in some cases, its moveset generally consists of attacks that deal much lower damage and knockback than Pikachu or most other characters in the cast. Due to its high traction and average falling speed, Pichu has a rather short wavedash; additionally, its quick and low-lag aerials also give Pichu a good SHFFL, much like Pikachu's. As such, Pichu can easily maneuver around stages, with very low landing lag, a small frame and a rather fast dash, as well as decent jumping power.


One of Pichu's main advantages is its perhaps surprising power. While its smashes are all of short range, all are unusually powerful considering Pichu's small frame. Its up smash and forward smash contain incredible power, being able to KO characters reliably at as little as 70 to 80 percent, while its down smash semi-spikes opponents and has invincibility frames. Pichu's [[Skull Bash]] also has surprising power and distance when charged; at full power, it deals a massive 39% damage and guarantees KOs at very low percentages, and the long distance traveled greatly aids in Pichu's recovery.
Overall, Pichu is a very poor character at all levels of play, with its advantages being thoroughly outweighed by its numerous deficiencies. While Pichu could potentially pose a threat to the opponent with its decent frame data, evasion, and chain grabs, its horrific survivability heavily counters any benefits over higher tiered characters. The vast majority of the ''Melee'' cast can easily outrange and out-punish Pichu in nearly every instance. This is amplified by Pichu's need to sometimes win vastly more neutral interactions than the opponent to be victorious, owed to Pichu being easily comboed and knocked out at low percentiles. As such, Pichu is almost never seen at any level of play.


Professionals consider Pichu's neutral aerial to be the best tool in its arsenal, as it comes out very quickly and has very low ending and landing lag, especially when L-canceled. Pichu can approach enemies with neutral aerial, rack up respectable damage with long strings of it, and create pseudo-walls of pain if the player chooses to continue the strings off-stage. Aside from this, Pichu's up aerial allows it to juggle enemies into the air. Its other aerials are lackluster, but these two moves alone give Pichu quite a force in the air. Pichu also has decent throws; its forward and back throws can knock opponents off stage or set up combos, while its up and down throws can chain throw fastfallers and tech chase characters respectively.
==Differences from {{SSBM|Pikachu}}==
{{incomplete|Missing a lot of differences in overview.}}
Pichu performs significantly worse than Pikachu, being largely outclassed in most areas by its counterpart. A key change is the added [[recoil damage]] on several of its moves, making such moves less rewarding to land and mildly punishing the user for choosing the option, regardless of whether or not it connects.  


Pichu's greatest flaw, however, is its significant range problems. All of its best and most powerful attacks are very close to its body, making it tough for Pichu to KO or inflict damage easily (especially against characters with disjointed hitboxes), having only a handful of options for approaching enemies. Although Pichu does have access to two projectiles ([[Thunder Jolt]] and {{b|Thunder|Pokémon}}), both cause recoil damage and are easily telegraphed, making them unreliable and punishable if used excessively. Pichu's grab game is also heavily hampered by its short range, at the third shortest in the game, making it difficult for players to consistently take advantage of Pichu's decent throws. Many of Pichu's poorest matchups stem from it being unable to deal with individual moves of characters (such as {{SSBM|Sheik}}'s forward tilt or a large portion of {{SSBM|Marth}}'s moveset) because it lacks tools that have enough range to counter the attacks.
Asides from some of Pichu's recovery options dealing recoil damage, the movement of Agility is slower and has no attack hitboxes unlike Pikachu's version. Pichu however has the ability to wall jump. With wall jumping being a rather situational option, this makes Pikachu's recovery superior.


Additionally, Pichu suffers from the infamous recoil damage it receives from using almost any of its attacks involving electrical hitboxes. In several of Pichu's attacks, especially those that involve electricity, at least one percent of damage is directly inflicted onto it; using Agility to recover alone adds four percent to Pichu each time it is used. This recoil damage is especially crippling to Pichu; with the lowest weight in the game (being lighter than ''Jigglypuff'') and average falling speed, Pichu's survivability is among the worst in the game, meaning that this recoil damage, coupled with damage inflicted by the opponents, can cause Pichu to be more easily KOed than any other character in the game. Outside of making Pichu even easier to KO, the extra damage taken through recoil also reduces how long it can utilize [[crouch cancel]]ling. In order for Pichu to avoid the significant drawbacks of recoil damage, players need to strike a proper balance between Pichu's electrical and non-electrical moves; as a benefit to Pichu, arguably Pichu's best KOing and comboing moves, such as its neutral air and up smash, do not use electricity, making recoil damage less of a problem if the player is careful enough not to use electrical moves, such as its forward smash and forward throw, too often.
One of the key differences across Pichu's moveset is the change of some single-hit moves to multi-hit, and vice versa. The greater presence of multi-hit moves in its moveset is mostly to Pichu's detriment, allowing opponent's to use directional influence to escape the remaining hits. Perhaps most notably, it makes Forward Smash largely unsafe on hit if the opponent is on stage, as the finisher can be escaped. Neutral aerial is the same hitbox wise as his counterpart- but due to Pichu having significantly smaller damageable collision bubbles than Pikachu, the move is vastly better than Pikachu's version. This is possibly the only monumental benefit Pichu has over Pikachu that doesn't come with a significant drawback.


Pichu's defensive game is also poor, with short tech rolls and a slow, short ledge roll, making it far easier for enemies to punish Pichu for attempting to dodge. Its shield is rather large for its size, however, making shield stabbing less of a problem for it. Furthermore, despite being a lightweight, Pichu is also quite vulnerable to combos (some of which are either infinite or [[zero-death]], such as {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}'s chain throw) due to its abnormally high hitstun.
Pichu's up aerial lacks a semi-spike hitbox, which makes it vastly inferior to Pikachu in terms of [[edgeguard]]ing, and instead launches the opponent upward in a consistent manner, making it better for setting up a follow up attack. Regardless, this loss of such an integral edgeguarding tool harms its viability noticeably, as edgeguarding is considered one of Pikachu's biggest strengths, and one of the main reasons that it can stand up to the top ''Melee'' characters at the highest levels of play.


==Differences from {{SSBM|Pikachu}}==
As a result of its major flaws, it is arguably the worst clone in the game, and overall one of the worst clones in the series.
Pichu not only performs significantly worse than Pikachu, but is considered a bottom-tier character and sometimes even referred to as a joke character. Although Pichu is very small, this makes its range very low. It also has a somewhat below-average approach as its only option is Thunder Jolt to use as a projectile while Thunder isn't good either, due to being able to SDI out of the move for being multi-hit. It's also the lightest character in the game which makes it extremely easy to KO, although its small hurtbox makes this somewhat difficult. Arguably one of Pichu's biggest flaw is that it takes recoil damage from its electrical attacks, harming its survivability even more. As a result of its major flaws, it is considered to arguably be the worst clone in the game and overall one of the worst clones in the series.


====Aesthetics====
====Aesthetics====
Line 52: Line 63:
*{{buff|Pichu can [[wall jump]], aiding its recovery.}}
*{{buff|Pichu can [[wall jump]], aiding its recovery.}}
*{{nerf|All of Pichu's [[electric]]al attacks inflict [[recoil damage]].}}
*{{nerf|All of Pichu's [[electric]]al attacks inflict [[recoil damage]].}}
*{{nerf|Pichu runs slower than Pikachu (1.8 → 1.72).}}
*{{nerf|Pichu [[run]]s slower than Pikachu (1.8 → 1.72).}}
*{{change|Pichu's traction is higher than Pikachu's (0.09 → 0.1). This makes it easier for Pichu to punish out of shield but it also gives Pichu a shorter [[wavedash]].}}
*{{nerf|Pichu's [[fast fall]] speed is lower (2.7 → 2.5).}}
*{{nerf|Pichu is significantly lighter than Pikachu (80 → 55), giving it a much lower survivability.}}
*{{change|Pichu's [[traction]] is higher than Pikachu's (0.09 → 0.1). This makes it easier for Pichu to punish out of shield but it also gives Pichu a shorter [[wavedash]].}}
**{{buff|This however, makes it harder to combo as well.}}
*{{nerf|Pichu is significantly [[Weight|lighter]] than Pikachu (80 → 55), giving it a much lower survivability.}}
*{{nerf|Pichu's attacks are generally weaker.}}
*{{buff|Pichu's [[roll]]s go slightly further than Pikachu's.}}
*{{change|Pichu is slightly smaller than Pikachu, reducing its range and hurtbox.}}
*{{change|Pichu is slightly smaller than Pikachu, reducing its range and hurtbox.}}


====Ground attacks====
====Ground attacks====
*{{nerf|All of Pichu's tilts have shorter reach than Pikachu's.}}
*{{nerf|Pichu's [[jab]], [[forward tilt|forward]] and [[down tilt]]s have shorter reach than Pikachu's.}}
*{{nerf|All three of Pichu's smash attacks deal less damage and have less reach than Pikachu's.}}
*{{nerf|All three of Pichu's [[smash attack]]s deal less damage and have less reach than Pikachu's.}}
*[[Up tilt]]:
*[[Up tilt]]:
**{{nerf|Up-tilt deals less damage (7%/6% → 6%) and has lower knockback (45 (base)/124 (scaling) → 25/120).}}
**{{buff|Up tilt becomes significantly more disjointed than Pikachu's from the fourth active frame onwards.}}
**{{nerf|It deals less damage (7%/6% → 6%) and has lower knockback (45 (base)/124 (scaling) → 25/120).}}
*[[Forward smash]]:
*[[Forward smash]]:
**{{nerf|Forward smash strikes multiple times instead of once, and can therefore be [[SDI]]'d out of before the final blow connects.}}
**{{nerf|Forward smash strikes multiple times instead of once, and can therefore be [[SDI]]'d out of before the final blow connects.}}
**{{nerf|Forward smash is a multi hitting move making it far less reliable than Pikachu's. It also deals less damage (21% (early), 19% (mid), 18% (late) → 2% (hits 1-5), 6% (hit 6), 14% (total)).}}
**{{nerf|It is a multi hitting move making it far less reliable than Pikachu's. It also deals less damage (21% (early), 19% (mid), 18% (late) → 2% (hits 1-5), 6% (hit 6), 14% (total)).}}
**{{change|The final hit of Pichu's forward smash deals more knockback (25 (base)/92 (scaling) → 90/140). This improves its KO potential near the horizontal blastline however, it has less KO potential when used far away from the horizontal blastline due to its lower damage.}}
**{{change|The final hit has increased knockback values (25 (base)/92 (scaling) → 90/140). Combined with the lower damage value, this results in the move's knockback being more base-heavy, improving its KO potential near the horizontal blastline, while worsening its KO potential from further away.}}
**{{nerf|It causes recoil damage (2%).}}
*[[Up smash]]:
*[[Up smash]]:
**{{change|Pichu's up smash is completely different; it hits the opponent with its head. Similar to the Mario Brothers.}}
**{{change|Up smash is completely different; it hits the opponent with its head. Similar to {{SSBM|Mario}} and his clones.}}
**{{buff|Up smash's sweetspot has a much larger hitbox than Pikachu's (2u/3.2u/4.8u → 5.6u).}}
**{{buff|Its sweetspot has a much larger hitbox than Pikachu's (2u/3.2u/4.8u → 5.6u).}}
**{{nerf|Up smash has more startup lag with a shorter duration due to it lacking a late hit (frames 8-17 → 9-11). It also deals less damage than Pikachu's clean hit (19%/18%/17% → 16%) and knockback (40 (base)/110/100 (scaling) → (50/40)/105).}}
**{{nerf|It has more startup lag with a shorter duration due to it lacking a late hit (frames 8-17 → 9-11). It also deals less damage than Pikachu's clean hit (19%/18%/17% → 16%) and knockback (40 (base)/110/100 (scaling) → (50/40)/105).}}
*[[Down smash]]:
*[[Down smash]]:
**{{buff|Pichu's down smash is more reliable due to consisting of a single hit and it is a semi spike (70° → 160°, sending opponents behind it, like the first hit of Ganondorf's down smash). It also has intangibility on frames 7-10 and it deals more damage than the final hit of Pikachu's down smash (3% → 13%) making it stronger despite its decreased knockback (70 (base)/170 (scaling) → 30/70).}}
**{{buff|Down smash is more reliable due to consisting of a single hit and it is a semi spike (70° → 160°, sending opponents behind it, like the first hit of Ganondorf's down smash), giving it edge-guarding ability, as long as Pichu is close to the edge while facing its opponent. It also has intangibility on frames 7-10 and it deals more damage than the final hit of Pikachu's down smash (3% → 13%)).}}
**{{change|Pichu's down smash has one hit and it's non-electrical.}}
**{{change|It has one hit and it's non-electrical.}}
**{{nerf|Down smash's new angle has removed its combo potential. It also deals slightly less damage than Pikachu's (13.83% → 13%).}}
**{{nerf|Its different angle has removed its combo potential. It also deals slightly less damage than Pikachu's (13.83% → 13%).}}
**{{nerf|Despite dealing more damage than the final hit of Pikachu's down smash, it is significantly weaker than Pikachu's down smash, due to its lowered knockback values (70 (base)/170 (scaling) → 30/70).}}


====Aerial attacks====
====Aerial attacks====
*{{nerf|Pichu's forward and back aerials deal less damage than Pikachu's.}}
*[[Neutral aerial]]:
*{{nerf|Forward and down aerial deals more recoil damage than its other attacks.}}
**{{buff|Neutral aerial has less landing lag (15 → 12).}}
*[[Forward aerial]]:
**{{buff|It has less landing lag (12 → 9).}}
**{{nerf|It causes recoil damage (4% (1% per hit)).}}
*[[Back aerial]]:
**{{nerf|Back aerial deals less damage (12%/9% → 9%).}}
**{{buff|It has significantly less landing lag (30 → 18).}}
*[[Up aerial]]:
*[[Up aerial]]:
**{{change|Pichu's up aerial has a consistent angle throughout the entire attack (80°/0°/120° → 80°), this improves it's combo ability against fast-fallers, but removes it's gimping ability due to not being able to [[semi-spike]].}}  
**{{nerf|Up aerial has a consistent angle throughout the entire attack (80°/0°/120° → 80°), slightly improving its combo ability against fast-fallers, but entirely removing its gimping ability due to not being able to [[semi-spike]].}}
**{{nerf|Pichu's up aerial has slightly more start-up (frame 3 → 4).}}      
**{{nerf|It has slightly more start-up (frame 3 → 4).}}
***{{buff|However, its total duration remains unchanged, giving it less ending lag.}}
**{{buff|It has a slightly longer initial auto-cancel window (frames 1-2 → 1-3).}}
**{{buff|It has significantly less landing lag (26 → 18).}}
*[[Down aerial]]:
*[[Down aerial]]:
**{{buff|Down aerial is stronger and deals more damage.}}
**{{buff|Down aerial has significantly less landing lag (40 → 26).}}
**{{nerf|It causes recoil damage (1% (aerial hitbox), 1% (landing), total: 2%).}}


====Grabs and throws====
====Grabs and throws====
*{{buff|Grab range is slightly longer than Pikachu's, although it is still one of the shortest in the game.}}
*{{buff|[[Grab]] range is slightly longer than Pikachu's, although it is still one of the shortest in the game.}}
*{{nerf|[[Pummel]] and [[forward throw]] cause recoil damage (1%).}}


====Special moves====
====Special moves====
*[[Thunder Jolt]]:
**{{nerf|Thunder Jolt causes recoil damage (1%).}}
*[[Skull Bash]]:
*[[Skull Bash]]:
**{{buff|Skull Bash can be charged for a longer period of time, is more powerful when fully charged, and travels a longer distance than Pikachu's.}}
**{{buff|Skull Bash can be charged for a longer period of time, is more powerful when fully charged, and travels a longer distance than Pikachu's.}}
**{{nerf|Skull Bash has more ending lag than Pikachu's.}}
***{{buff|It deals much more damage when fully charged (29% → 39%).}}
**{{nerf|It has more ending lag than Pikachu's.}}
**{{nerf|It causes recoil damage (1%).}}
*[[Agility]]:
*[[Agility]]:
**{{nerf|Pichu's [[Agility]] is slower than Pikachu's [[Quick Attack]], cannot travel as far, and inflicts neither damage nor knockback.}}
**{{nerf|Pichu's [[Agility]] is slower than Pikachu's [[Quick Attack]], cannot travel as far, and inflicts neither damage nor knockback.}}
**{{buff|Pichu's Agility can go in more directions than Pikachu's Quick Attack.}}
**{{buff|It can go in more directions than Quick Attack.}}
**{{nerf|It causes recoil damage (1% (first zip), 3% (second zip), total: 4%).}}
*{{b|Thunder|Pokémon}}:
*{{b|Thunder|Pokémon}}:
**{{nerf|Thunder does less damage than Pikachu's and is a multi-hit move (hitting up to 4 times), allowing opponents to [[Smash DI]] out of the move.}}
**{{nerf|Thunder's lightning bolt does less damage than Pikachu's and is a multi-hit move (hitting up to 4 times), allowing opponents to [[Smash DI]] out of the move.}}
**{{change|Thunder has a vertical knockback angle unlike Pikachu's.}}
**{{change|Its lightning bolt has a vertical knockback angle unlike Pikachu's (70° → 94°).}}
**{{nerf|Thunder's discharge causes recoil damage (3%).}}
**{{nerf|Thunder's discharge does significantly less damage (17% → 13%), and less base knockback (100 → 90). Combined these changes significantly hinders the discharge's KO potential.}}
**{{nerf|Thunder's discharge hitbox size was slightly reduced (3,000 → 2,800).}}


==Moveset==
==Moveset==
Line 106: Line 139:
|game=SSBM
|game=SSBM
|neutralcount=1
|neutralcount=1
|neutralname=&nbsp;
|neutralname=Headbutt ({{ja|ずつき|Zutsuki}})
|neutral1dmg=2%
|neutral1dmg=2%
|neutraldesc=Does an extremely quick headbutt. Can easily chain into itself, and even infinite against some characters on walls.
|neutraldesc=Does an extremely quick headbutt. Can easily chain into itself, and even infinite against some characters on walls.
|ftiltname=&nbsp;
|ftiltname=Pichu Kick ({{ja|りょうあしげり|Ryo Ashi Geri}}, ''Double Foot Kick'')
|ftiltangles=3
|ftiltangles=3
|ftiltupdmg=9%
|ftiltupdmg=9%
Line 115: Line 148:
|ftiltdowndmg=7%
|ftiltdowndmg=7%
|ftiltdesc=Plants itself on its upper paws and kicks both its feet forward. Low range and knockback, though a fast move. This attack can be angled up and down.
|ftiltdesc=Plants itself on its upper paws and kicks both its feet forward. Low range and knockback, though a fast move. This attack can be angled up and down.
|utiltname=&nbsp;
|utiltname=Tail Smack ({{ja|しっぽアタック|Shippo Atakku}}, ''Tail Attack'')
|utiltdmg=6%
|utiltdmg=6%
|utiltdesc=Swipes its tail above its body in an arc. Very low range and somewhat slow, though sets up for aerial combos and follow ups.
|utiltdesc=Swipes its tail above its body in an arc. Very low range and somewhat slow, though sets up for aerial combos and follow ups.
|dtiltname=&nbsp;
|dtiltname=Tail Sweep ({{ja|あしばらい|Ashibarai}}, ''Foot Sweep'')
|dtiltdmg=7%
|dtiltdmg=7%
|dtiltdesc=Swipes its tail in front of itself. Short ranged, but can act as a good method for spacing.
|dtiltdesc=Swipes its tail in front of itself. Short ranged, but can act as a good method for spacing.
|dashname=&nbsp;
|dashname=Running Headbutt ({{ja|ジャンプずつき|Janpu Zutsuki}}, ''Jump Headbutt'')
|dashdmg=8%
|dashdmg=8%
|dashdesc=Jumps and headbutts forward. Has some noticeable endlag.
|dashdesc=Jumps and headbutts forward. It has noticeable endlag and can be unsafe on hit at lower percents.
|fsmashname=&nbsp;
|fsmashname=Thundershock ({{ja|ショートでんげき|Shōto Dengeki}}, ''Electrical Short'')
|fsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|2}} (hits 1-5), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|6}} (hit 6), 2% recoil
|fsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|2}} (hits 1-5), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|6}} (hit 6), 2% recoil
|fsmashdesc=Launches a short jolt of electricity from its cheeks. Very powerful finisher, KOs at relatively low percentages. Incredible knockback when fully charged, KOs light characters at very low damages near the edge. However, this attack can be SDI'd out of. Has [[Priority#Transcendent_priority|transcendent priority]].
|fsmashdesc=Launches a short jolt of electricity from its cheeks. Very powerful finisher, KOs at relatively low percentages. Incredible knockback when fully charged, KOs light characters at very low damages near the edge. However, this attack can be SDI'd out of. Has [[Priority#Transcendent_priority|transcendent priority]].
|usmashname=&nbsp;
|usmashname=Jumping Headbutt ({{ja|ヘッドバット|Heddobatto}}, ''Headbutt'')
|usmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|16}}
|usmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|16}}
|usmashdesc=Headbutts upwards similar to Mario's up smash, except that Pichu's head has no intangibility frames. One of his best finishers and one of the strongest up smashes in the game.
|usmashdesc=Headbutts upwards similar to Mario's up smash, except that Pichu's head has no intangibility frames. One of his best finishers and one of the strongest up smashes in the game.
|dsmashname=&nbsp;
|dsmashname=Spinning Mouse ({{ja|こうそくかいてん|Kōsoku Kaiten}}, ''Rapid Spinning'')
|dsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|13}}
|dsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBM|13}}
|dsmashdesc=Quickly spins in place. It has more range than it appears and has some invincibility frames at the beginning of the move, as well as being powerful.
|dsmashdesc=Quickly spins in place. It has more range than it appears and has some invincibility frames at the beginning of the move, as well as being powerful.
|nairname=&nbsp;
|nairname=Pichu Roll ({{ja|ピチュースピン|Pichū Supin}}, ''Pichu Spin'')
|nairdmg=12% (clean), 9% (late)
|nairdmg=12% (clean), 9% (late)
|nairdesc=Curls up in a ball and does somersaults in the air. Notorious for effectively comboing into itself at almost any percent. One of the best neutral airs overall for its speed and combo ability.  
|nairdesc=Curls up in a ball and does somersaults in the air. Notorious for effectively comboing into itself at almost any percent. One of the best neutral airs overall for its speed and combo ability.
|fairname=&nbsp;
|fairname=Electric Drill ({{ja|でんげきドリル|Dengeki Doriru}})
|fairdmg=2% (hits 1-4) with 1% recoil for every hitbox
|fairdmg=2% (hits 1-4) with 1% recoil for every hitbox
|fairdesc=Does a barrel roll in the air, emitting sparks. Hits multiple times with minimal damage. Tied with Agility for the most recoil damage in Pichu's moveset.
|fairdesc=Does a barrel roll in the air, emitting sparks. Hits multiple times with minimal damage. Tied with Agility for the most recoil damage in Pichu's moveset.
|bairname=&nbsp;
|bairname=Glider ({{ja|グライダー|Guraidā}})
|bairdmg=9%
|bairdmg=9%
|bairdesc=Spins in a manner similar to its down smash. Relatively high ending and landing lag.
|bairdesc=Spins in a manner similar to its down smash. Relatively high ending and landing lag.
|uairname=&nbsp;
|uairname=Tail Chop ({{ja|しっぽはたき|Shippo Hitaki}})
|uairdmg=4%
|uairdmg=4%
|uairdesc=Swiftly swings its tail above itself in an arc. Can set up many combos on fast fallers. Lacks [[semi-spike]] properties compared to {{SSBM|Pikachu}}'s.
|uairdesc=Swiftly swings its tail above itself in an arc. Can set up many combos on fast fallers. Lacks [[semi-spike]] properties compared to {{SSBM|Pikachu}}'s.
|dairname=&nbsp;
|dairname=Electric Screw ({{ja|でんげきスクリュー|Dengeki Sukuryū}})
|dairdmg=12%, 4% (landing) (1% recoil for both the attack & landing)
|dairdmg=12%, 4% (landing) (1% recoil for both the attack & landing)
|dairdesc=Does a barrel roll, like its forward aerial, except that it is facing downwards. Creates a small shockwave that hurts nearby opponents when Pichu lands during the attack.
|dairdesc=Does a barrel roll, like its forward aerial, except that it is facing downwards. Creates a small shockwave that hurts nearby opponents when Pichu lands during the attack.
|grabname=
|grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}})
|grabdesc=
|grabdesc=
|pummelname=&nbsp;
|pummelname=Electric Shock ({{ja|つかみでんきショック|Tsukami Denki Shokku}}, ''Grab Electric Shock'')
|pummeldmg=3% (pummel), 1% recoil
|pummeldmg=3% (pummel), 1% recoil
|pummeldesc=Zaps the opponent.
|pummeldesc=Zaps the opponent.
|fthrowname=&nbsp;
|fthrowname=Electrocution ({{ja|でんきなげ|Denki Nage}}, ''Electric Throw'')
|fthrowdmg=2% (hits 1-4), 2% (throw), 1% recoil
|fthrowdmg=2% (hits 1-4), 2% (throw), 1% recoil
|fthrowdesc=Places the opponent on its back and shocks them, sending them forward. This throw hits multiple times and has low knockback. Oddly, this is Pichu's only throw that inflicts recoil, despite all of them dealing electrical damage.
|fthrowdesc=Places the opponent on its back and shocks them, sending them forward. This throw hits multiple times and has low knockback. Oddly, this is Pichu's only throw that inflicts recoil, despite all of them dealing electrical damage.
|bthrowname=&nbsp;
|bthrowname=Submission ({{ja|じごくぐるま|Jigoku Gurama}}, ''Hell Wheel'')
|bthrowdmg=9%
|bthrowdmg=9%
|bthrowdesc=Does backwards somersaults with the opponent, then flings them behind itself.
|bthrowdesc=Does backwards somersaults with the opponent, then flings them behind itself.
|uthrowname=&nbsp;
|uthrowname=Electric Skull ({{ja|でんきトス|Denki Tosu}}, ''Electric Toss'')
|uthrowdmg=5% (hit 1), 5% (throw)
|uthrowdmg=5% (hit 1), 5% (throw)
|uthrowdesc=Tosses foe up and headbutts them with electricity. Decent chaingrabbing ability, especially against fast fallers.
|uthrowdesc=Tosses foe up and headbutts them with electricity. Decent chaingrabbing ability, especially against fast fallers.
|dthrowname=&nbsp;
|dthrowname=Electric Slam ({{ja|でんきプレス|Denki Puresu}}, ''Electric Press'')
|dthrowdmg=5% (hit 1), 5% (throw)
|dthrowdmg=5% (hit 1), 5% (throw)
|dthrowdesc=Places the opponent on the ground, then jumps on them.
|dthrowdesc=Places the opponent on the ground, then jumps on them.
Line 190: Line 223:
|dsdesc=Shouts "PICHU!", then a large thunderbolt comes down on Pichu. The move in general is rather laggy. Hits multiple times and has greater vertical knockback, while Pikachu's Thunder hits once and has greater horizontal knockback. Pichu will suffer recoil damage only if the bolt hits Pichu. Has transcendent priority.
|dsdesc=Shouts "PICHU!", then a large thunderbolt comes down on Pichu. The move in general is rather laggy. Hits multiple times and has greater vertical knockback, while Pikachu's Thunder hits once and has greater horizontal knockback. Pichu will suffer recoil damage only if the bolt hits Pichu. Has transcendent priority.
}}
}}
===Stats===
'''NTSC'''
{{Attributes
|cast = 26
|weight = 55
|rweight = 26
|dash = 1.8
|rdash = 5-7
|run = 1.72
|rrun = 6
|walk = 1.24
|rwalk = 4-5
|trac = 0.1
|rtrac = 1-4
|airfric = 0.01
|rairfric = 15-20
|air = 0.85
|rair = 17-18
|baseaccel = 0.02
|rbaseaccel = 2-23
|addaccel = 0.03
|raddaccel = 13-19
|gravity = 0.11
|rgravity = 8-11
|fall = 1.9
|rfall = 12-14
|ff = 2.5
|rff = 11-12
|jumpsquat = 3
|rjumpsquat = 1-7
|jumpheight = 32.04
|rjumpheight = 13-14
|shorthop = 14
|rshorthop = 10-11
|djump = 29.44
|rdjump = 6-7
|ellag = 2
|rellag = 1
}}
'''PAL'''
{{Attributes
|cast = 26
|weight = 55
|rweight = 26
|dash = 1.8
|rdash = 5-7
|run = 1.72
|rrun = 6
|walk = 1.24
|rwalk = 4-5
|trac = 0.1
|rtrac = 1-4
|airfric = 0.01
|rairfric = 15-20
|air = 0.85
|rair = 15-17
|baseaccel = 0.02
|rbaseaccel = 2-23
|addaccel = 0.03
|raddaccel = 13-19
|gravity = 0.11
|rgravity = 8-11
|fall = 1.9
|rfall = 12-14
|ff = 2.5
|rff = 11-12
|jumpsquat = 3
|rjumpsquat = 1-7
|jumpheight = 32.04
|rjumpheight = 13-14
|shorthop = 14
|rshorthop = 10-11
|djump = 29.44
|rdjump = 6-7
|ellag = 2
|rellag = 1
}}
===[[Announcer]] call===
[[File: Pichu Announcer SSBM.wav]]


===[[Taunt]]s===
===[[Taunt]]s===
Line 223: Line 338:
|char=Pichu}}
|char=Pichu}}


==In [[Competitive play]]==
==In [[competitive play]]==
===[[Character matchups (SSBM)|Matchups]]===
===Most historically significant players===
{{SSBMMatchupTable|pichu=yes}}
<!--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 -->
Pichu has, by far, the worst matchup spread in ''Melee''. It is hard countered by a whopping twelve characters (the most out of any character in-game and nearly twice as much as Kirby, the character with the second-highest amount), countered by six, soft countered by four, and has only three matchups that are considered even. Even in the early metagame, Pichu was severely crippled by its light weight, a surprising vulnerability to combos (including chain throws), its overall terrible reach, and above all, moves that inflict recoil damage. This has resulted in Pichu being very easy to KO, especially against characters with powerful attacks like {{SSBM|Fox}} and {{SSBM|Captain Falcon}}. Several characters, like {{SSBM|Marth}} and {{SSBM|Samus}}, can easily outreach it (thus making it easy to space), while others can exploit its vulnerability to chain throws and combos (with {{SSBM|Sheik}} and {{SSBM|Ganondorf}} being notorious examples of the former category). In addition, all of its counters can take advantage of its recoil damage to bring it up to KO percentages very quickly. As such, in spite of its advantages (such as good mobility), Pichu suffers from terrible matchups overall. It is one of only two characters in-game to have no advantageous matchups (the other being Bowser) and its even matchups can be potentially seen in its opponents' favors (if by a slight margin).
====Current Metagame====
Pichu is widely agreed by the competitive community to have been underrated in the early stages of the metagame. While it still has awful matchups across the cast, players have recognized notable counterplay it has: With improvements in [[DI]] and [[SDI]] to escape combos, Pichu's long-reaching recovery has gives it more opportunities to come into play, somewhat offsetting its poor raw survivability. Pichu has very slightly improved its matchups against fast-fallers, as it can at least juggle them, chaingrab them on [[Final Destination]], and attempt to carry them off-stage with a chain of neutral aerials.


Although most players no longer see it as a contender for the worst character in the game because of these improvements, Pichu is still considered to be among the worst characters in the metagame overall. Its previously established weaknesses hold it back far too much in high-level competitive play for it to succeed in all levels of play. In addition, Pichu’s metagame continues to remain stagnant due to its only players being inactive or dropping it for a better character, leaving its capabilities to be rarely seen outside of low-tier exhibitions.
:''See also: [[:Category:Pichu players (SSBM)]]''


===Notable players===
*{{Sm|Codeman|USA}} - Has taken sets off players such as {{Sm|Wes}}, {{Sm|MacD}}, {{Sm|Excel Zero}}, and {{Sm|Rikzz}}. Has also taken games off players such as {{Sm|n0ne}}, {{Sm|Panda|p=Florida}}, {{Sm|2saint}}, {{Sm|S2J}}, and {{Sm|Kalvar}}. Currently considered the best active solo main of the character, and among the very few to reach genuine competitive notability with the character. Placed 33rd at {{Trn|Wavelength 2024}}, 49th at {{Trn|Shine 2022}}, and 65th at {{Trn|Get On My Level 2018}} and {{Trn|Get On My Level X}}; the former is the best result of any [[major]] achieved by a Pichu player.
:''See also: [[:Category:Pichu professionals (SSBM)]]''
====Active====
*{{Sm|Codeman|USA}} - Has taken a game of {{Sm|S2J}}. Currently considered the best active solo main of the character, and among the very few to reach genuine competitive notability with the character.
====Inactive====
*{{Sm|ChuDat|USA}}
*{{Sm|Delphiki|USA}}
*{{Sm|KDJ|USA}}
*{{Sm|Nicknyte|USA}}
*{{Sm|t0mmy|USA}}


===Tier placement and history===
===Tier placement and history===
Pichu was always seen as a joke character by the ''Melee'' community; from the start, many noted that it was completely outclassed by {{SSBM|Pikachu}}, who was already considered a below-average character at the time. With its poor [[approach]] coupled with many attacks that damaged itself, including its own [[recovery]], as well as its terrible overall [[reach]], extremely light [[weight]], and difficulty in putting [[pressure]] on the opponent, many professionals doubted that Pichu could ever develop a deep metagame or gain any notable professional players.  
Pichu was developed as an intentional joke character, and has historically been seen as such by the competitive ''Melee'' community. From the start, many noted that it was completely outclassed by {{SSBM|Pikachu}}, who was already considered a below-average character at the time. With its poor [[approach]] coupled with many attacks that damaged itself, including its own [[recovery]], as well as its terrible overall [[reach]], extremely light [[weight]], and difficulty in putting [[pressure]] on the opponent, many professionals doubted that Pichu could ever develop a deep metagame or gain any notable professional players. Because of this, Pichu has been almost never seen outside of sandbagging or low-tier exhibitions. Pichu's initial placements on each [[tier list]] reflected its stance, typically shifting between 25th and 26th for over a decade of ''Melee''{{'}}s lifespan, competing with characters such as {{SSBM|Bowser}}, {{SSBM|Kirby}}, and {{SSBM|Mewtwo}} for the lowest placement on the tier list, before placing 24th on the twelfth tier list in 2015.
 
While still considered to be an awful character and unused outside of [[sandbagging]], players began to recognize Pichu's strengths, namely its agility and decent set of normals. Several professionals, such as {{Sm|Mew2King}} and {{Sm|Armada}}, believe that while Pichu is still unviable, they believe that other characters, like {{SSBM|Kirby}}, {{SSBM|Zelda}}, and {{SSBM|Bowser}}, are even worse than it, [http://www.eventhubs.com/news/2014/may/02/kirby-and-zelda-are-two-worst-characters-melee-pichu-highly-underrated-mew2king-discusses-his-super-smash-bros-tier-list-pt-1/ ranking it 19th] and [https://youtu.be/17n7Tcjrifg?t=264 22nd], respectively. Pikachu's rise in the competitive scene also helped Pichu's ascent out of the bottom tier, with players noting that Pichu shared a few of the tools that ultimately made Pikachu a viable pick. Despite Pichu's theoretically worse matchup spread and barren results, most players believed that the former was attributed to a different metagame and the latter has other bottom-tier characters that have also failed to achieve significant results.  


Pichu was 25th on first [[tier list]], and has since consistently shifted from 25th to 26th and back, competing with {{SSBM|Bowser}}, {{SSBM|Kirby}}, and {{SSBM|Mewtwo}} for the lowest placement on the tier list. It currently ranks 22nd on the tier list in D tier in what is currently its best ranking on the tier list. Despite this placement, there still exists debate over Pichu's tier standing; some players believe that Pichu is still the worst character in the game due to its overall worse matchup spread than either one of its "competitors" for the position. Pichu has also failed to make an impact on any significant tournaments for several years, with none of the top 96 placers of any major ''Melee'' tournament being dedicated Pichu players, and its only players are either inactive or have better characters to choose from. Conversely, some players attest that Pichu is not the worst character in the game, due to its surprisingly powerful neutral air combos and high speed compared to Bowser or Kirby. {{Sm|Mew2King}}, arguably the world's best Pichu player, notably believes that [http://www.eventhubs.com/news/2014/may/02/kirby-and-zelda-are-two-worst-characters-melee-pichu-highly-underrated-mew2king-discusses-his-super-smash-bros-tier-list-pt-1/ Pichu is far from the worst character in the game], ranking it 19th on his personal tier list. Additionally, {{Sm|Armada}} places it at 22nd on [https://youtu.be/17n7Tcjrifg?t=264 his own tier list.]
With its strengths being recognized better, it is currently ranked 22nd on the current tier list. While universally not considered a contender for the worst character in the game, Pichu is still widely considered to be a non-viable choice in the metagame with a terrible matchup spread, with its playerbase and results only marginally improving compared to the early metagame.


==In Single Player Modes==
==In 1-P Mode==
===In {{SSBM|Classic Mode}}===
===In {{SSBM|Classic Mode}}===
In Classic Mode, Pichu can appear as an ordinary fighter in one on one battles, as an ally or as an opponent alongside {{SSBM|Kirby}} or Pikachu, as the sole opponent in a multi-character battle or as a metal opponent in the second to last stage. Barring the metal fight, Pichu always appears on [[Pokémon Stadium]], with its alternate music ''Battle Theme'' playing; when fought with Kirby it will appear on [[Fountain of Dreams]] instead.
In Classic Mode, Pichu can appear as an ordinary fighter in one on one battles, as an ally or as an opponent alongside {{SSBM|Kirby}} or Pikachu, as the sole opponent in a multi-character battle or as a metal opponent in the second to last stage. Barring the metal fight, Pichu always appears on [[Pokémon Stadium]], with its alternate music ''Battle Theme'' playing; when fought with Kirby it will appear on [[Fountain of Dreams]] instead.
Line 260: Line 365:
===In [[Event Match]]es===
===In [[Event Match]]es===
Pichu appears in the following Event Matches:
Pichu appears in the following Event Matches:
*'''[[Event 48: Pikachu and Pichu]]''': In this match, the player must fight against a team of two Pichus and one Pikachu. The goal is for the player to KO the two Pichus in the shortest time possible; Pikachu has infinite lives, while the player has two and the Pichus have one. The stage used in {{SSB|Dream Land}}, making the event the only one in the game to take place on a Past Stage.
*'''[[Event 48: Pikachu and Pichu]]''': In this match, the player must fight against a team of two Pichu and one Pikachu. The goal is for the player to KO the two Pichu in the shortest time possible; Pikachu has infinite stocks, while the player has two and the Pichu have one. The stage used is {{SSB|Dream Land}}, making the event the only one in the game to take place on a Past Stage.
*'''[[Event 49: All-Star Match Deluxe]]''': Pichu is the third opponent fought in this series of staged battles. The selected character battles him on the [[Pokémon Stadium]] stage with a stock of 2 while Pichu has 1. With a timer of four minutes, the player must defeat it and the other five characters one-by-one with the overall time and damage: {{SSBM|Dr. Mario}}, {{SSBM|Falco}}, {{SSBM|Young Link}}, {{SSBM|Roy}} and {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}.
*'''[[Event 49: All-Star Match Deluxe]]''': Pichu is the third opponent fought in this series of staged battles. The selected character battles it on the [[Pokémon Stadium]] stage with a stock of 2 while Pichu has 1. With a timer of four minutes, the player must defeat it and the other five characters one-by-one with the overall time and damage: {{SSBM|Dr. Mario}}, {{SSBM|Falco}}, {{SSBM|Young Link}}, {{SSBM|Roy}} and {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}.


===Ending images===
===[[Congratulations_screen#Super_Smash_Bros._Melee|Congratulations Screens]]===
<center><gallery>
<center><gallery>
PichuClassicMode.jpg|Classic Mode.
PichuClassicMode.jpg|Classic Mode
PichuAdventureMode.jpg|Adventure Mode.
PichuAdventureMode.jpg|Adventure Mode
PichuAllStarMode.jpg|All-Star Mode.
PichuAllStarMode.jpg|All-Star Mode
</gallery></center>
</gallery></center>


==Trophies==
==[[Trophies]]==
In addition to the normal trophy about Pichu as a character, there are two trophies about it as a fighter, unlocked by completing the [[Adventure Mode|Adventure]] and [[All-Star Mode]]s respectively with Pichu on any difficulty:
In addition to the normal trophy about Pichu as a character, there are two trophies about it as a fighter, unlocked by completing the [[Adventure Mode|Adventure]] and [[All-Star Mode]]s respectively with Pichu on any difficulty:
:'''Pichu''' ''(Smash Red)''
:''Compared with Pikachu, Pichu is a tad more nimble and a little more difficult to hit. Those are the only two advantages, however, and since Pichu damages itself when it uses electrical attacks, it's best suited for handicapped matches. Even though Pichu's tough to catch, it's easy to throw its tiny frame great distances.''
*B: [[Thunder Jolt]]
*Smash B: [[Skull Bash]]


:'''Pichu''' ''(Smash Blue)''
{{Trophy/Fighter
:''Pichu is the lightest character in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and it's top of the class in weakness, too! For Pichu, it's all about scampering here and there to pick up items that will help it survive. The first warp in Agility causes 1 point of damage to Pichu, and the second causes 3, so try to limit the number of times you use the move.''
|name=Pichu
*Up & B: [[Agility]]
|image=Pichu Trophy Melee.png
*Down & B: {{b|Thunder|Pokémon}}
|mode=Classic
|desc=(1.0/1.01 NTSC) A baby Electric-type Pokémon identifiable by its big ears, Pichu evolves into Pikachu. It's not very skilled at storing up electrical energy and will sometimes discharge it if jarred. Although it's small, it has enough electrical power to give even an adult quite a shock. It's often startled by its own power.
:(1.02 NTSC/PAL) A Tiny Mouse Pokémon identifiable by its big ears, Pichu evolves into Pikachu. It's not very skilled at storing up electrical energy and will sometimes discharge it if jarred. Although it's small, it has enough electrical power to give even an adult quite a shock. It's often startled by its own power.
|gamelist={{Trophy games|game1=Pokémon Gold & Silver|release1=10/00}}
|game=Melee
}}
{{clrl}}
 
{{Trophy/Fighter
|name=Pichu
|image=Pichu Trophy (Smash).png
|mode=Adventure
|desc=Compared with Pikachu, Pichu is a tad more nimble and a little more difficult to hit. Those are the only two advantages, however, and since Pichu damages itself when it uses electrical attacks, it's best suited for handicapped matches. Even though Pichu's tough to catch, it's easy to throw its tiny frame great distances.
|gamelist=:B: Thunder Jolt
:Smash B: Skull Bash
|game=Melee
}}
{{clrl}}


<center>
{{Trophy/Fighter
<gallery>
|name=Pichu
Pichu Trophy Melee.png|Classic
|image=Pichu Trophy (Smash 2).png
Pichu Trophy (Smash).png|Adventure
|mode=All Star
Pichu Trophy (Smash 2).png|All-Star
|desc=Pichu is the lightest character in Super Smash Bros. Melee., and it's top of the class in weakness, too! For Pichu, it's all about scampering here and there to pick up items that will help it survive. The first warp in Agility causes 1 point of damage to Pichu, and the second causes 3, so try to limit the number of times you use the move.
</gallery>
|gamelist=:Up & B: Agility
</center>
:Down & B: Thunder
|game=Melee
}}
{{clrl}}


==[[Alternate costume (SSBM)#Pichu|Alternate costumes]]==
==[[Alternate costume (SSBM)#Pichu|Alternate costumes]]==
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|{{Head|Pichu|g=SSBM|s=25px|cl=Green}}
|{{Head|Pichu|g=SSBM|s=25px|cl=Green}}
|}
|}
==Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
SSBMWebsitePichu1.jpg|[[Idle|Idling]] next to {{SSBM|Pikachu}} and {{SSBM|Kirby}} on [[Pokémon Stadium]].
SSBMWebsitePichu2.jpg|[[Dash]]ing away from {{SSBM|Fox}} and {{SSBM|Sheik}} on [[Corneria]].
SSBMWebsitePichu3.jpg|[[Crouching]] next to {{SSBM|Mario}} and {{SSBM|Luigi}} on [[Temple]].
Pichu Thunder.jpg|Using {{b|Thunder|Pokémon}} near {{SSBM|Yoshi}} on [[Onett]].
SSBMWebsitePichu5.jpg|Using its [[down aerial]] on Fox and {{SSBM|Captain Falcon}} on Temple.
SSBMWebsitePichu6.jpg|Multiple Pichus idling on [[Rainbow Cruise]].
</gallery>
</center>


==Trivia==
==Trivia==
*Pichu falls asleep when it crouches, though this is merely an animation and not an actual effect.
*Pichu falls asleep when it crouches, though this is merely an animation and not an actual effect.
*Pichu, {{SSBM|Roy}}, {{SSBM|Mr. Game & Watch}}, {{SSBM|Link}}, {{SSBM|Donkey Kong}}, {{SSBM|Peach}}, {{SSBM|Young Link}} and {{SSBM|Kirby}} (via its copy ability) are the only characters in ''Melee'' to have at least one self-damaging attack.
*Pichu, along with {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}, {{SSBM|Mewtwo}}, Young Link, and {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}}, are the only unlockable characters in ''Melee'' seen in the [[opening movie]].
*Pichu, along with {{SSBM|Ganondorf}}, {{SSBM|Mewtwo}}, Young Link, and {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}}, are the only unlockable characters in ''Melee'' seen in the [[opening movie]].
*Pichu cannot learn {{s|bulbapedia|Skull Bash}} or {{s|bulbapedia|Agility}} in the ''Pokémon'' games.


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*[https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n01/n64/software/nus_p_nalj/smash/flash/1211/index.html Pichu's page at Smabura-Ken]
*[https://sourcegaming.info/2015/09/24/meleepichusite/ Translation]
*[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=98282 Pichu Video List]
*[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=98282 Pichu Video List]
*[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=96978 Pichu Player List]
*[http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=96978 Pichu Player List]
*[https://smashboards.com/threads/a-guide-for-pichu-in-the-2019-meta.476773/ Pichu Guide for 2019]
*[https://smashboards.com/threads/a-guide-for-pichu-in-the-2019-meta.476773/ Pichu Guide for 2019]
*[[Super Pichu cheating scandal]]
{{SSBMCharacters}}
{{SSBMCharacters}}
{{EnemiesAdvSSBM}}
{{EnemiesAdvSSBM}}

Latest revision as of 19:39, December 3, 2024

This article is about Pichu's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Melee. For the character in other contexts, see Pichu.
Pichu
in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Pichu SSBM.jpg
PokemonSymbol(preBrawl).svg
Universe Pokémon
Other playable appearance in Ultimate


Availability Unlockable
Tier D (22) (North America)
H (26) (Europe)
Pichu (SSBM)

Pichu (ピチュー, Pichu) is a Pokémon character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Pichu is the "baby" pre-evolution of Pikachu, and in Melee, Pichu has a nearly identical moveset, making it a clone.

Pichu is voiced by Satomi Kōrogi, who also voiced one of the Pichu Brothers in the Pokémon anime.

Pichu is currently ranked 22nd in the D tier. Pichu has solid overall movement, complemented with some very quick attacks and an excellent neutral air. It also possesses a surprising amount of power for its weight class, with good chaingrabbing ability and a handful of strong finishers. However, all of Pichu's strengths are severely outweighed by its weaknesses. It has abysmal range and very poor endurance due to its light weight, and is unusually prone to chaingrabs itself despite its small size, due to the unusually high amounts of hitstun it sustains as a result of being the game's lightest character. It also takes recoil damage from its electric-based moves, including its own recovery move Agility, further hampering its defensive game. As a result, Pichu suffers from abysmal matchups- with nearly the entire cast taking advantage of its fragility and poor range. Historically, Pichu was considered to have the worst matchup spread in the game, with no universally agreed upon winning matchups. However, its perception has mildly improved over time due to developments in the metagame- partially because its unexpectedly fast frame data was undervalued. Regardless, Pichu's survivability remains absolutely atrocious, drastically hampering the effectiveness of any metagame developments.

Although no longer considered a contender for the worst character competitively, Pichu was intended to be a sub-par character in general, with its trophy descriptions mentioning Pichu as "top of the class in weakness" and "best suited for handicapped matches." This was confirmed in a development news update, shortly after the game's release.[1]

How to unlock[edit]

Pichu must be defeated in battle before it can be unlocked. There are two ways the player can encounter Pichu:

  • One way is to complete Event 37: Legendary Pokémon. If the player fails to defeat Pichu, they can re-fight it by completing the event again.
  • Another way is to play 200 VS. matches to completion. If the player fails to defeat Pichu, they can re-fight it by playing another VS. match to completion. If this method is used, fighters with lower VS. match quotas must be unlocked before Pichu can be fought.

Upon meeting either requirement, the player will fight against Pichu on Pokémon Stadium, with "Battle Theme" playing.

Attributes[edit]

Competitive.png This article or section may require competitive expertise.
The editor who added this tag elaborates: Most paragraphs contain partially correct information, and this section as a whole somewhat misprioritizes Pichu's drawbacks and strengths.
You can discuss this issue on the talk page or edit this page to improve it.

Pichu, as a character, falls under the archetype of being nimble, yet relatively fragile. Due to its high traction and average falling speed, Pichu has a rather short wavedash; additionally, its quick and low-lag aerials also give Pichu a good SHFFL, much like Pikachu's. As such, Pichu can easily maneuver around stages, with very low landing lag, a small frame and a rather fast dash, as well as decent jumping power, making it surprisingly difficult to hit in the hands of a capable player. However, its poor endurance due to its very light weight ensures that opponents will not have to find too many openings against it to secure KOs.

One of Pichu's main advantages is its perhaps surprising power. While its moveset generally consists of attacks that deal less knockback than its clone Pikachu or most other characters in the cast, the few strong moves it possesses can be deadly if utilized properly. Pichu's smashes are all of short range, but all are unusually powerful; its up smash and forward smash contain incredible power, being able to KO characters reliably at as little as 70 to 80 percent, while its down smash semi-spikes opponents and has invincibility frames. Pichu also has decent throws; its forward and back throws can knock opponents off stage or set up combos, while its up and down throws can chain throw fastfallers and tech chase characters respectively.

Pichu's best tool is its neutral aerial, becoming active in just three frames and has minimal landing lag, especially when L-canceled. This move serves as a viable approach option, can rack up respectable damage with long strings of just itself, and can create a pseudo-wall of pain if the player can complete a string of hits off-stage. Pichu's up aerial complements neutral aerial's utility, allowing it to juggle enemies into the air. Most of its other aerials are situational in use, but these two moves alone give Pichu quite a force in the air.

Pichu also boasts an excellent recovery. Its up special, Agility, can travel in many different directions and cover very large distances; while Pikachu's Quick Attack is superior in speed and distance, Agility is still a solid recovery tool in its own right. Pichu's Skull Bash also further aids its horizontal recovery, with surprising power and distance when charged; at full power, it deals a massive 39% damage and guarantees KOs at very low percentages. With Agility being able to seamlessly mix up edgeguarders, and Skull Bash's potential strength serving as a direct deterrent to attempted edgeguards, Pichu has one of the best recoveries in the game.

Much like Pikachu, a key weakness is its poor range. All of its best and most powerful attacks are very close to its body, and it lacks a full set of tools to consistently approach enemies to make use of these moves, making it very difficult for Pichu to KO or even find any openings against its opponents (especially against characters with disjointed hitboxes). Its neutral aerial and Thunder Jolt projectile are among its only reliable options, making Pichu's overall neutral game play very predictable; the latter also inflicts recoil damage to it, making it unreliable long-term. Pichu's grab game is also heavily hampered by its short range, at the third shortest in the game, making it difficult for players to consistently take advantage of Pichu's decent throws. Many of Pichu's poorest matchups stem from it being unable to deal with individual moves of characters (such as Sheik's forward tilt or a large portion of Marth's moveset) because it lacks tools that have enough range to counter the attacks.

Pichu's defensive game is also notoriously poor. Although it has a rather large shield for its size, it is saddled with short tech rolls and a slow, short ledge roll, making it very easy for enemies to extend punishes on Pichu with little that the Pichu player can do to escape. Furthermore, despite being a lightweight, Pichu is also quite vulnerable to combos (some of which are either infinite or zero-death, such as Ganondorf's chain throw) due to its abnormally high hitstun and average falling speed. These traits exacerbate Pichu's range issues; its problems in the neutral game are very reminiscent of Pikachu's, but Pichu is punished harder for losing exchanges by several orders of magnitude, making the risk-reward of its approaching heavily skewed against it in the vast majority of situations.

Finally, Pichu suffers from the infamous recoil damage it receives while using almost any move involving electrical hitboxes. Several of Pichu's moves, especially those that involve electricity, add at least one percent of damage to the user. For example, using both segments of Agility to recover adds four percent to Pichu each time it is used. While most of Pichu's best moves do not use electricity, making this less of a problem at higher levels of play, the threat of recoil damage reduces the utility of its electric-based attacks, and there is no way for Pichu to avoid recoil when recovering. If players are not careful with balancing Pichu's electrical and non-electrical attacks, the recoil damage can add up quickly, which can be especially crippling to Pichu. With the lowest weight in the game (being lighter than Jigglypuff) and average falling speed, Pichu's survivability is already among the worst in the game, even without recoil damage. Additionally, the extra damage taken also reduces how long it can utilize crouch cancelling.

Overall, Pichu is a very poor character at all levels of play, with its advantages being thoroughly outweighed by its numerous deficiencies. While Pichu could potentially pose a threat to the opponent with its decent frame data, evasion, and chain grabs, its horrific survivability heavily counters any benefits over higher tiered characters. The vast majority of the Melee cast can easily outrange and out-punish Pichu in nearly every instance. This is amplified by Pichu's need to sometimes win vastly more neutral interactions than the opponent to be victorious, owed to Pichu being easily comboed and knocked out at low percentiles. As such, Pichu is almost never seen at any level of play.

Differences from Pikachu[edit]

An icon for denoting incomplete things.

Pichu performs significantly worse than Pikachu, being largely outclassed in most areas by its counterpart. A key change is the added recoil damage on several of its moves, making such moves less rewarding to land and mildly punishing the user for choosing the option, regardless of whether or not it connects.

Asides from some of Pichu's recovery options dealing recoil damage, the movement of Agility is slower and has no attack hitboxes unlike Pikachu's version. Pichu however has the ability to wall jump. With wall jumping being a rather situational option, this makes Pikachu's recovery superior.

One of the key differences across Pichu's moveset is the change of some single-hit moves to multi-hit, and vice versa. The greater presence of multi-hit moves in its moveset is mostly to Pichu's detriment, allowing opponent's to use directional influence to escape the remaining hits. Perhaps most notably, it makes Forward Smash largely unsafe on hit if the opponent is on stage, as the finisher can be escaped. Neutral aerial is the same hitbox wise as his counterpart- but due to Pichu having significantly smaller damageable collision bubbles than Pikachu, the move is vastly better than Pikachu's version. This is possibly the only monumental benefit Pichu has over Pikachu that doesn't come with a significant drawback.

Pichu's up aerial lacks a semi-spike hitbox, which makes it vastly inferior to Pikachu in terms of edgeguarding, and instead launches the opponent upward in a consistent manner, making it better for setting up a follow up attack. Regardless, this loss of such an integral edgeguarding tool harms its viability noticeably, as edgeguarding is considered one of Pikachu's biggest strengths, and one of the main reasons that it can stand up to the top Melee characters at the highest levels of play.

As a result of its major flaws, it is arguably the worst clone in the game, and overall one of the worst clones in the series.

Aesthetics[edit]

  • Change Pichu's idle animations, taunt, and victory poses are all different from Pikachu's.

Attributes[edit]

  • Buff Pichu can wall jump, aiding its recovery.
  • Nerf All of Pichu's electrical attacks inflict recoil damage.
  • Nerf Pichu runs slower than Pikachu (1.8 → 1.72).
  • Nerf Pichu's fast fall speed is lower (2.7 → 2.5).
  • Change Pichu's traction is higher than Pikachu's (0.09 → 0.1). This makes it easier for Pichu to punish out of shield but it also gives Pichu a shorter wavedash.
  • Nerf Pichu is significantly lighter than Pikachu (80 → 55), giving it a much lower survivability.
  • Buff Pichu's rolls go slightly further than Pikachu's.
  • Change Pichu is slightly smaller than Pikachu, reducing its range and hurtbox.

Ground attacks[edit]

  • Nerf Pichu's jab, forward and down tilts have shorter reach than Pikachu's.
  • Nerf All three of Pichu's smash attacks deal less damage and have less reach than Pikachu's.
  • Up tilt:
    • Buff Up tilt becomes significantly more disjointed than Pikachu's from the fourth active frame onwards.
    • Nerf It deals less damage (7%/6% → 6%) and has lower knockback (45 (base)/124 (scaling) → 25/120).
  • Forward smash:
    • Nerf Forward smash strikes multiple times instead of once, and can therefore be SDI'd out of before the final blow connects.
    • Nerf It is a multi hitting move making it far less reliable than Pikachu's. It also deals less damage (21% (early), 19% (mid), 18% (late) → 2% (hits 1-5), 6% (hit 6), 14% (total)).
    • Change The final hit has increased knockback values (25 (base)/92 (scaling) → 90/140). Combined with the lower damage value, this results in the move's knockback being more base-heavy, improving its KO potential near the horizontal blastline, while worsening its KO potential from further away.
    • Nerf It causes recoil damage (2%).
  • Up smash:
    • Change Up smash is completely different; it hits the opponent with its head. Similar to Mario and his clones.
    • Buff Its sweetspot has a much larger hitbox than Pikachu's (2u/3.2u/4.8u → 5.6u).
    • Nerf It has more startup lag with a shorter duration due to it lacking a late hit (frames 8-17 → 9-11). It also deals less damage than Pikachu's clean hit (19%/18%/17% → 16%) and knockback (40 (base)/110/100 (scaling) → (50/40)/105).
  • Down smash:
    • Buff Down smash is more reliable due to consisting of a single hit and it is a semi spike (70° → 160°, sending opponents behind it, like the first hit of Ganondorf's down smash), giving it edge-guarding ability, as long as Pichu is close to the edge while facing its opponent. It also has intangibility on frames 7-10 and it deals more damage than the final hit of Pikachu's down smash (3% → 13%)).
    • Change It has one hit and it's non-electrical.
    • Nerf Its different angle has removed its combo potential. It also deals slightly less damage than Pikachu's (13.83% → 13%).
    • Nerf Despite dealing more damage than the final hit of Pikachu's down smash, it is significantly weaker than Pikachu's down smash, due to its lowered knockback values (70 (base)/170 (scaling) → 30/70).

Aerial attacks[edit]

  • Neutral aerial:
    • Buff Neutral aerial has less landing lag (15 → 12).
  • Forward aerial:
    • Buff It has less landing lag (12 → 9).
    • Nerf It causes recoil damage (4% (1% per hit)).
  • Back aerial:
    • Nerf Back aerial deals less damage (12%/9% → 9%).
    • Buff It has significantly less landing lag (30 → 18).
  • Up aerial:
    • Nerf Up aerial has a consistent angle throughout the entire attack (80°/0°/120° → 80°), slightly improving its combo ability against fast-fallers, but entirely removing its gimping ability due to not being able to semi-spike.
    • Nerf It has slightly more start-up (frame 3 → 4).
      • Buff However, its total duration remains unchanged, giving it less ending lag.
    • Buff It has a slightly longer initial auto-cancel window (frames 1-2 → 1-3).
    • Buff It has significantly less landing lag (26 → 18).
  • Down aerial:
    • Buff Down aerial has significantly less landing lag (40 → 26).
    • Nerf It causes recoil damage (1% (aerial hitbox), 1% (landing), total: 2%).

Grabs and throws[edit]

  • Buff Grab range is slightly longer than Pikachu's, although it is still one of the shortest in the game.
  • Nerf Pummel and forward throw cause recoil damage (1%).

Special moves[edit]

  • Thunder Jolt:
    • Nerf Thunder Jolt causes recoil damage (1%).
  • Skull Bash:
    • Buff Skull Bash can be charged for a longer period of time, is more powerful when fully charged, and travels a longer distance than Pikachu's.
      • Buff It deals much more damage when fully charged (29% → 39%).
    • Nerf It has more ending lag than Pikachu's.
    • Nerf It causes recoil damage (1%).
  • Agility:
    • Nerf Pichu's Agility is slower than Pikachu's Quick Attack, cannot travel as far, and inflicts neither damage nor knockback.
    • Buff It can go in more directions than Quick Attack.
    • Nerf It causes recoil damage (1% (first zip), 3% (second zip), total: 4%).
  • Thunder:
    • Nerf Thunder's lightning bolt does less damage than Pikachu's and is a multi-hit move (hitting up to 4 times), allowing opponents to Smash DI out of the move.
    • Change Its lightning bolt has a vertical knockback angle unlike Pikachu's (70° → 94°).
    • Nerf Thunder's discharge causes recoil damage (3%).
    • Nerf Thunder's discharge does significantly less damage (17% → 13%), and less base knockback (100 → 90). Combined these changes significantly hinders the discharge's KO potential.
    • Nerf Thunder's discharge hitbox size was slightly reduced (3,000 → 2,800).

Moveset[edit]

For a gallery of Pichu's hitboxes, see here.

Pichu's aerial attacks
  Name Damage Description
Neutral attack Headbutt (ずつき) 2% Does an extremely quick headbutt. Can easily chain into itself, and even infinite against some characters on walls.
Forward tilt Pichu Kick (りょうあしげり, Double Foot Kick) 9% Plants itself on its upper paws and kicks both its feet forward. Low range and knockback, though a fast move. This attack can be angled up and down.
8%
7%
Up tilt Tail Smack (しっぽアタック, Tail Attack) 6% Swipes its tail above its body in an arc. Very low range and somewhat slow, though sets up for aerial combos and follow ups.
Down tilt Tail Sweep (あしばらい, Foot Sweep) 7% Swipes its tail in front of itself. Short ranged, but can act as a good method for spacing.
Dash attack Running Headbutt (ジャンプずつき, Jump Headbutt) 8% Jumps and headbutts forward. It has noticeable endlag and can be unsafe on hit at lower percents.
Forward smash Thundershock (ショートでんげき, Electrical Short) 2% (hits 1-5), 6% (hit 6), 2% recoil Launches a short jolt of electricity from its cheeks. Very powerful finisher, KOs at relatively low percentages. Incredible knockback when fully charged, KOs light characters at very low damages near the edge. However, this attack can be SDI'd out of. Has transcendent priority.
Up smash Jumping Headbutt (ヘッドバット, Headbutt) 16% Headbutts upwards similar to Mario's up smash, except that Pichu's head has no intangibility frames. One of his best finishers and one of the strongest up smashes in the game.
Down smash Spinning Mouse (こうそくかいてん, Rapid Spinning) 13% Quickly spins in place. It has more range than it appears and has some invincibility frames at the beginning of the move, as well as being powerful.
Neutral aerial Pichu Roll (ピチュースピン, Pichu Spin) 12% (clean), 9% (late) Curls up in a ball and does somersaults in the air. Notorious for effectively comboing into itself at almost any percent. One of the best neutral airs overall for its speed and combo ability.
Forward aerial Electric Drill (でんげきドリル) 2% (hits 1-4) with 1% recoil for every hitbox Does a barrel roll in the air, emitting sparks. Hits multiple times with minimal damage. Tied with Agility for the most recoil damage in Pichu's moveset.
Back aerial Glider (グライダー) 9% Spins in a manner similar to its down smash. Relatively high ending and landing lag.
Up aerial Tail Chop (しっぽはたき) 4% Swiftly swings its tail above itself in an arc. Can set up many combos on fast fallers. Lacks semi-spike properties compared to Pikachu's.
Down aerial Electric Screw (でんげきスクリュー) 12%, 4% (landing) (1% recoil for both the attack & landing) Does a barrel roll, like its forward aerial, except that it is facing downwards. Creates a small shockwave that hurts nearby opponents when Pichu lands during the attack.
Grab Grab (つかみ)
Pummel Electric Shock (つかみでんきショック, Grab Electric Shock) 3% (pummel), 1% recoil Zaps the opponent.
Forward throw Electrocution (でんきなげ, Electric Throw) 2% (hits 1-4), 2% (throw), 1% recoil Places the opponent on its back and shocks them, sending them forward. This throw hits multiple times and has low knockback. Oddly, this is Pichu's only throw that inflicts recoil, despite all of them dealing electrical damage.
Back throw Submission (じごくぐるま, Hell Wheel) 9% Does backwards somersaults with the opponent, then flings them behind itself.
Up throw Electric Skull (でんきトス, Electric Toss) 5% (hit 1), 5% (throw) Tosses foe up and headbutts them with electricity. Decent chaingrabbing ability, especially against fast fallers.
Down throw Electric Slam (でんきプレス, Electric Press) 5% (hit 1), 5% (throw) Places the opponent on the ground, then jumps on them.
Forward roll
Back roll
Spot dodge
Air dodge
Techs
Floor attack (front)
Floor getups (front)
  6% Gets up and headbutts both sides of itself.
Floor attack (back)
Floor getups (back)
  6% Gets up and kicks both sides of itself.
Edge attack (fast)
Edge getups (fast)
  8% Quickly does a cartwheel and attacks with its foot.
Edge attack (slow)
Edge getups (slow)
  6% Slowly gets up, then flicks its tail.
Neutral special Thunder Jolt 7% (ground), 10% (aerial), 1% recoil Pichu's main projectile. Fires a jolt of electricity forward. It travels forward while bouncing along the ground, and can also travel up walls, below the edge, and along ceilings. If used in the air, it will travel diagonally down instead. Disappears after around 3 seconds. Can be used to gimp certain recoveries.
Side special Skull Bash 5-39%, 1% recoil Charges and, when the B button is released, fires itself forward like a missile. When fully charged or close to fully charged, it has KO power. The move can also be used to extend Pichu's recovery, though it does have some lag. On the ground, the attack has rather high lag and is easy to shield grab. Compared to Pikachu's Skull Bash, Pichu's Skull Bash deals more damage and covers more distance when fully charged, but takes longer to fully charge the move and suffers recoil damage.
Up special Agility 0%, 1% (recoil warp 1), 3% (recoil warp 2) Pichu's primary recovery move. Moves at warp speed in two directions that can be selected via the control stick. The main difference from Pikachu's Quick Attack is that Agility can be used in almost the same direction both times, but it deals no damage, moves slower, and inflicts recoil damage on Pichu.
Down special Thunder 4% (bolt hits 1-4), 13% (blast), 3% recoil Shouts "PICHU!", then a large thunderbolt comes down on Pichu. The move in general is rather laggy. Hits multiple times and has greater vertical knockback, while Pikachu's Thunder hits once and has greater horizontal knockback. Pichu will suffer recoil damage only if the bolt hits Pichu. Has transcendent priority.

Stats[edit]

NTSC

Stats Weight Dash speed Walk speed Traction Air friction Air speed Air acceleration Gravity Falling speed Jumpsquat Jump height Double jump height Empty landing Lag
Value 55 1.8 – Initial dash
1.72 – Run
1.24 0.1 0.01 0.85 0.02 – Base
0.03 – Additional
0.11 1.9 – Base
2.5Fast-fall
3 32.04 - Base
14 - Short hop
29.44 2

PAL

Stats Weight Dash speed Walk speed Traction Air friction Air speed Air acceleration Gravity Falling speed Jumpsquat Jump height Double jump height Empty landing Lag
Value 55 1.8 – Initial dash
1.72 – Run
1.24 0.1 0.01 0.85 0.02 – Base
0.03 – Additional
0.11 1.9 – Base
2.5Fast-fall
3 32.04 - Base
14 - Short hop
29.44 2

Announcer call[edit]

Taunts[edit]

Note: Just like Captain Falcon, Pichu's taunt will be different depending on which side it is facing, but both taunts finish at the same time and have the same IASA frames, like Captain Falcon (as both of his taunts have 60 frames apiece).

  • Left: Jumps up and down four times, while saying "Pichu!"
  • Right: Lies on the ground and squirms around, while saying "Pichu!"
Left taunt Right taunt
Pichu-Left-Taunt-SSBM.gif Pichu-Right-Taunt-SSBM.gif

Idle poses[edit]

  • Jumps while looking side to side.
  • Leans slightly forward while looking side to side for a slightly longer duration, cheerfully twitching its ears while doing so.
Pichu Idle Pose Melee 1.gif Pichu Idle Pose Melee 2.gif

Crowd cheer[edit]

English Japanese
Cheer
Description Pi-chu! Piiii-chu!
Pitch Male Female

Victory poses[edit]

An excerpt from the main theme of Pokémon.
  • Dances excitedly then jumps around three times in a circle.
  • Jumps up twice, then jump up high a third time while spinning and waves at the screen before landing.
  • Spins around twice on one foot, then jumps up twice while clapping both its feet.
Pichu-Victory1-SSBM.gif Pichu-Victory2-SSBM.gif Pichu-Victory3-SSBM.gif

In competitive play[edit]

Most historically significant players[edit]

See also: Category:Pichu players (SSBM)

Tier placement and history[edit]

Pichu was developed as an intentional joke character, and has historically been seen as such by the competitive Melee community. From the start, many noted that it was completely outclassed by Pikachu, who was already considered a below-average character at the time. With its poor approach coupled with many attacks that damaged itself, including its own recovery, as well as its terrible overall reach, extremely light weight, and difficulty in putting pressure on the opponent, many professionals doubted that Pichu could ever develop a deep metagame or gain any notable professional players. Because of this, Pichu has been almost never seen outside of sandbagging or low-tier exhibitions. Pichu's initial placements on each tier list reflected its stance, typically shifting between 25th and 26th for over a decade of Melee's lifespan, competing with characters such as Bowser, Kirby, and Mewtwo for the lowest placement on the tier list, before placing 24th on the twelfth tier list in 2015.

While still considered to be an awful character and unused outside of sandbagging, players began to recognize Pichu's strengths, namely its agility and decent set of normals. Several professionals, such as Mew2King and Armada, believe that while Pichu is still unviable, they believe that other characters, like Kirby, Zelda, and Bowser, are even worse than it, ranking it 19th and 22nd, respectively. Pikachu's rise in the competitive scene also helped Pichu's ascent out of the bottom tier, with players noting that Pichu shared a few of the tools that ultimately made Pikachu a viable pick. Despite Pichu's theoretically worse matchup spread and barren results, most players believed that the former was attributed to a different metagame and the latter has other bottom-tier characters that have also failed to achieve significant results.

With its strengths being recognized better, it is currently ranked 22nd on the current tier list. While universally not considered a contender for the worst character in the game, Pichu is still widely considered to be a non-viable choice in the metagame with a terrible matchup spread, with its playerbase and results only marginally improving compared to the early metagame.

In 1-P Mode[edit]

In Classic Mode[edit]

In Classic Mode, Pichu can appear as an ordinary fighter in one on one battles, as an ally or as an opponent alongside Kirby or Pikachu, as the sole opponent in a multi-character battle or as a metal opponent in the second to last stage. Barring the metal fight, Pichu always appears on Pokémon Stadium, with its alternate music Battle Theme playing; when fought with Kirby it will appear on Fountain of Dreams instead.

In Adventure Mode[edit]

In Adventure Mode, Pichu can appear in Stage 7 on Pokémon Stadium, appearing alongside a team consisting of Pikachu and, if unlocked, Jigglypuff. Pichu's theme, Battle Theme can also play on the stage.

In All-Star Mode[edit]

In All-Star Mode, Pichu and its allies are fought on Fourside. Unlike normal gameplay, however, Battle Theme plays here.

In Event Matches[edit]

Pichu appears in the following Event Matches:

  • Event 48: Pikachu and Pichu: In this match, the player must fight against a team of two Pichu and one Pikachu. The goal is for the player to KO the two Pichu in the shortest time possible; Pikachu has infinite stocks, while the player has two and the Pichu have one. The stage used is Dream Land, making the event the only one in the game to take place on a Past Stage.
  • Event 49: All-Star Match Deluxe: Pichu is the third opponent fought in this series of staged battles. The selected character battles it on the Pokémon Stadium stage with a stock of 2 while Pichu has 1. With a timer of four minutes, the player must defeat it and the other five characters one-by-one with the overall time and damage: Dr. Mario, Falco, Young Link, Roy and Ganondorf.

Congratulations Screens[edit]

Trophies[edit]

In addition to the normal trophy about Pichu as a character, there are two trophies about it as a fighter, unlocked by completing the Adventure and All-Star Modes respectively with Pichu on any difficulty:

Classic Mode trophy
Pichu
(1.0/1.01 NTSC) A baby Electric-type Pokémon identifiable by its big ears, Pichu evolves into Pikachu. It's not very skilled at storing up electrical energy and will sometimes discharge it if jarred. Although it's small, it has enough electrical power to give even an adult quite a shock. It's often startled by its own power.
(1.02 NTSC/PAL) A Tiny Mouse Pokémon identifiable by its big ears, Pichu evolves into Pikachu. It's not very skilled at storing up electrical energy and will sometimes discharge it if jarred. Although it's small, it has enough electrical power to give even an adult quite a shock. It's often startled by its own power.
Pokémon Gold & Silver (10/00)
Adventure Mode SMASH trophy
Pichu SMASH
Compared with Pikachu, Pichu is a tad more nimble and a little more difficult to hit. Those are the only two advantages, however, and since Pichu damages itself when it uses electrical attacks, it's best suited for handicapped matches. Even though Pichu's tough to catch, it's easy to throw its tiny frame great distances.
B: Thunder Jolt
Smash B: Skull Bash
All-Star Mode SMASH trophy
Pichu SMASH
Pichu is the lightest character in Super Smash Bros. Melee., and it's top of the class in weakness, too! For Pichu, it's all about scampering here and there to pick up items that will help it survive. The first warp in Agility causes 1 point of damage to Pichu, and the second causes 3, so try to limit the number of times you use the move.
Up & B: Agility
Down & B: Thunder

Alternate costumes[edit]

Pichu Palette (SSBM).png
Pichu (SSBM) Pichu (SSBM) Pichu (SSBM) Pichu (SSBM)

Gallery[edit]


Trivia[edit]

  • Pichu falls asleep when it crouches, though this is merely an animation and not an actual effect.
  • Pichu, along with Ganondorf, Mewtwo, Young Link, and Jigglypuff, are the only unlockable characters in Melee seen in the opening movie.

References[edit]

  1. ^ News Flash! Smash Bros. Dojo: Pichu (translated 2015-09-24; original posted 2001-12-11)

External links[edit]