Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Kirby (SSBU): Difference between revisions

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However, Kirby has poor endurance, as his light [[weight]] makes him susceptible to early KOs. His poor air and ground speed, as well as a lack of projectiles and ranged attacks, presents a host of problems in [[Neutral game|neutral]] and offstage, as Kirby has trouble approaching and fighting those that can outrange him. Finally, Kirby's recovery, though far-reaching, is rather predictable, and his poor air speed and [[floatiness]] make Kirby very vulnerable to edgeguarding.
However, Kirby has poor endurance, as his light [[weight]] makes him susceptible to early KOs. His poor air and ground speed, as well as a lack of projectiles and ranged attacks, presents a host of problems in [[Neutral game|neutral]] and offstage, as Kirby has trouble approaching and fighting those that can outrange him. Finally, Kirby's recovery, though far-reaching, is rather predictable, and his poor air speed and [[floatiness]] make Kirby very vulnerable to edgeguarding.


Overall, Kirby's weaknesses undermine some of his strengths. As a result, he has consistently placed near the bottom in terms of competitive representation. Nevertheless, Kirby has still seen success from dedicated mains such as {{Sm|Guilheww}}, {{Sm|JeJaJeJa}}, and {{Sm|Konokururu}}.
Overall, Kirby is a close-range character who can rack up impressive damage at close range, complemented with his quick frame data, but struggles to make use of his strengths due to his unimpressive range, slow air speed, and built-in lightweight properties. As a result, Kirby is a rarity within the metagame. Nevertheless, he has still seen success from dedicated mains such as {{Sm|Guilheww}}, {{Sm|JeJaJeJa}}, and {{Sm|Konokururu}}.


==Attributes==
==Attributes==
Kirby is known for being a small [[weight|lightweight]], being tied for the eighth-lightest character in the game. True to his franchise, Kirby is a slow, yet floaty character. He has the 31st slowest [[walk]]ing speed, 42nd fastest [[dash]]ing speed, and 43rd slowest [[Dash#Initial dash|initial dash]]. He also has the 5th slowest [[air speed]], 20th highest [[air acceleration]], 3rd lowest [[gravity]], the 5th lowest [[falling speed|falling]] and [[fast fall]]ing speeds, and above average [[traction]]. Due to these statistics, Kirby has difficulty approaching opponents. Kirby's [[recovery]] is versatile: despite his slow air speed and low jump height rendering him susceptible to edgeguarding, his five midair jumps, slow falling speed, long vertical airdodge, and [[Final Cutter]]'s decent distance give him good stalling capabilities and decent safety.
Kirby is known for being a small [[weight|lightweight]], being tied for the eighth-lightest character in the game. True to his franchise, Kirby is a slow, yet floaty character. He has a slightly below-average [[walk]] speed (31st slowest), average [[dash]]ing and [[Dash#Initial dash|initial dash]] (42nd fastest and 43rd slowest). He also has the 5th slowest [[air speed]], above-average [[air acceleration]], 3rd lowest [[gravity]], the 5th lowest [[falling speed|falling]] and [[fast fall]]ing speeds, and above average [[traction]]. Due to these statistics, Kirby has difficulty approaching opponents. Kirby's [[recovery]] is versatile: despite his slow air speed and low jump height rendering him susceptible to edgeguarding, his five midair jumps, slow falling speed, long vertical airdodge, and [[Final Cutter]]'s decent distance give him good stalling capabilities and decent safety.


Kirby's greatest strengths are his quick frame data, high combo potential, and the versatility of his moveset. The majority of Kirby's attacks are characterized by speed, with his tilts being among the fastest in the game, while his slowest moves instead boast high power as a trade-off, while still being quite fast for their power. Neutral attack and forward tilt are fast and have decent range, allowing Kirby to quickly distance opponents, with the latter being used for tech chase setups. Up tilt's low knockback and high speed allow it to combo into multiple moves, such as itself, an aerial attack, or an Inhale. Down tilt's low power is compensated by its very fast speed and it launching opponents at the [[Sakurai angle]], which allows it to [[trip]] most opponents even over 80%. Should he trip his opponents with it, he can follow up with a variety of attacks, such as a dash attack, grab, or forward smash. Dash attack’s early hit is excellent for whiff punishing and scoring a KO, potentially KOing opponents starting at 90%, while the late hit can set up into an Inhale. His [[smash attack]]s have good range, high power, and great speed, making them excellent at scoring a KO. Kirby is also very small, making him hard to hit, and his very low crouch allows him to avoid almost all grabs and several attacks. As a result, Kirby has an excellent ground and defensive game thanks to his quick frame-data and evasive [[crouch]], requiring opponents to be careful when approaching him in neutral.
Kirby's greatest strengths are his quick frame data, high combo potential, and the versatility of his moveset. The majority of Kirby's attacks are characterized by speed, with his tilts being among the fastest in the game, while his slowest moves instead boast high power as a trade-off, while still being quite fast for their power. Neutral attack and forward tilt are fast and have decent range, allowing Kirby to quickly distance opponents, with the latter being used for tech chase setups. Up tilt's low knockback and high speed allow it to combo into multiple moves, such as itself, an aerial attack, or an Inhale. Down tilt's low power is compensated by its very fast speed and it launching opponents at the [[Sakurai angle]], which allows it to [[trip]] most opponents even over 80%. Should he trip his opponents with it, he can follow up with a variety of attacks, such as a dash attack, grab, or forward smash. Dash attack’s early hit is excellent for whiff punishing and scoring a KO, potentially KOing opponents starting at 90%, while the late hit can set up into an Inhale. His [[smash attack]]s have good range, high power, and great speed, making them excellent at scoring a KO. Kirby is also very small, making him hard to hit, and his very low [crouch]] allows him to avoid almost all grabs and several attacks. As a result, Kirby has an excellent ground and defensive game thanks to his quick frame data and evasive crouch, requiring opponents to be careful when approaching him in neutral.


The usefulness of Kirby's ground game also extends to his [[grab]] game. His grabs have short range but are among the fastest in ''Ultimate'', while his pummel's meager damage output is counterbalanced by its very fast speed. His [[forward throw]], unlike most other forward throws in the game, has combo potential, leading into aerial attacks from low to mid percentages. [[Back throw]] can be followed up by a back aerial at 0% on certain characters, can KO at high percents, and can send opponents offstage. [[Up throw]] is his strongest throw and is able to KO almost all characters around 170%, or even earlier if it lands on a platform. Lastly, while [[down throw]] has no combo potential, it is reliable for damage-racking when no other throw can yield better results.
The usefulness of Kirby's ground game also extends to his [[grab]] game. His grabs have short range but are among the fastest in ''Ultimate'', while his pummel's meager damage output is counterbalanced by its very fast speed. His [[forward throw]], unlike most other forward throws in the game, has combo potential, leading into aerial attacks from low to mid percentages. [[Back throw]] can be followed up by a back aerial at 0% on certain characters, can KO at high percents, and can send opponents offstage. [[Up throw]] is his strongest throw and is able to KO almost all characters around 170%, or even earlier if it lands on a platform. Lastly, while [[down throw]] has no combo potential, it is reliable for damage-racking when no other throw can yield better results.
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Kirby's aerial game is also notable. Despite his poor [[air speed]], his [[air acceleration]] is high and his aerial attacks also have great versatility. [[Neutral aerial]] has a long-lasting hitbox, the clean hit is disjointed and relatively strong, very low landing lag, and good coverage, making it a safe landing option. The weak hit of neutral air can combo into his tilts, grab, or even a smash attack. It can also be used as a combo finisher and as a KO move at high percents. Due to the move lasting longer compared to his other aerials, it can safely pressure shields. [[Forward aerial]] is Kirby’s most reliable approaching tool. Despite its moderately slow startup, it has disjointed hitboxes on Kirby’s feet, has a long lasting hitbox that can lead to a wall of pain at low percents, the final hit can lead to a KO at high percents, and has very little landing lag, which makes it very safe on shield and hard to punish. [[Up aerial]] has good vertical knockback, low landing lag and a fairly quick [[auto-cancel]] window, allowing for several potential follow-ups and even opportunities to KO when near the upper blast line. [[Back aerial]] has decent range, high knockback on the clean hit, and is Kirby's fastest aerial, making it one of his strongest options overall. Lastly, [[down aerial]] has considerable startup, but has multiple hits that drag opponents downward before the final hit [[meteor smash]]es them and has low ending lag, making it a deceptively powerful [[edgeguarding]] tool as well as a reliable combo starter with follow-ups on grounded opponents.
Kirby's aerial game is also notable. Despite his poor [[air speed]], his [[air acceleration]] is high and his aerial attacks also have great versatility. [[Neutral aerial]] has a long-lasting hitbox, the clean hit is disjointed and relatively strong, very low landing lag, and good coverage, making it a safe landing option. The weak hit of neutral air can combo into his tilts, grab, or even a smash attack. It can also be used as a combo finisher and as a KO move at high percents. Due to the move lasting longer compared to his other aerials, it can safely pressure shields. [[Forward aerial]] is Kirby’s most reliable approaching tool. Despite its moderately slow startup, it has disjointed hitboxes on Kirby’s feet, has a long lasting hitbox that can lead to a wall of pain at low percents, the final hit can lead to a KO at high percents, and has very little landing lag, which makes it very safe on shield and hard to punish. [[Up aerial]] has good vertical knockback, low landing lag and a fairly quick [[auto-cancel]] window, allowing for several potential follow-ups and even opportunities to KO when near the upper blast line. [[Back aerial]] has decent range, high knockback on the clean hit, and is Kirby's fastest aerial, making it one of his strongest options overall. Lastly, [[down aerial]] has considerable startup, but has multiple hits that drag opponents downward before the final hit [[meteor smash]]es them and has low ending lag, making it a deceptively powerful [[edgeguarding]] tool as well as a reliable combo starter with follow-ups on grounded opponents.


Kirby's [[special move]]s can provide some unique strengths. {{B|Inhale|Kirby}} is his most notable example; it allows him to either [[List of Copy Abilities|copy]] the [[neutral special move]] of any character he inhales, or spit them out as a weight-dependent [[projectile]]. Depending on what character he inhales, the copy ability can give Kirby a move that helps him in matchups to various degrees, such as useful projectiles to counter-camp his opponent ([[Needle Storm]], [[Charge Shot]], {{SSBU|Wolf}}'s {{b|Blaster|Wolf}}), powerful punish options ([[Giant Punch]], [[Homing Attack]]), a reflector ([[Nayru's Love]]), or other benefits ([[Monado Arts]]). In addition, Kirby's version of the opponent's neutral special has a 1.2× damage multiplier. Kirby can also inhale projectiles; smaller projectiles will be swallowed, allowing him to heal himself, while larger ones (such as a fully-charged Charge Shot) can be stored in his mouth and spat out, essentially giving Kirby a reflector. The spat projectiles can be used to punish opponents at mid-range and can launch them away with high knockback. Inhale can also be used to [[Kirbycide]] or spit the opponent out offstage, although the opponent can escape by [[mashing]]. [[Hammer Flip]] is very powerful, especially when fully charged, and Kirby can move and jump while charging. However, its high startup and endlag, along with its short range and Kirby's already-sluggish movement being further slowed when charging, makes it difficult to land outside of a [[shield break]], covering ledge options, or after a jab lock. Final Cutter is his primary means of [[recovery]], granting good vertical distance, as well as a disjoint in front of him during his ascent and descent. It also emits a shockwave projectile upon landing, making it difficult to [[punish]] if the opponent is not behind Kirby. Lastly, [[Stone]] causes Kirby to turn into an object and ignore up to 25% damage. It is also a strong attack, especially in the air, and can be canceled shortly after Kirby begins his descent, although these benefits are limited by its slow startup and ending lag, and Kirby is still vulnerable to grabs while transformed. It can also be used on the ground, where it has faster startup due to creating a shockwave and it launches at a semi-spike angle.
Kirby's [[special move]]s can provide some unique strengths. {{B|Inhale|Kirby}} is his most notable example; it allows him to either [[List of Copy Abilities|copy]] the [[neutral special move]] of any character he inhales, or spit them out as a weight-dependent [[projectile]]. Depending on what character he inhales, the copy ability can give Kirby a move that helps him in matchups to various degrees, such as useful projectiles to counter-camp his opponent ([[Needle Storm]], [[Charge Shot]], {{SSBU|Wolf}}'s {{b|Blaster|Wolf}}), powerful punish options ([[Giant Punch]], [[Homing Attack]]), a reflector ([[Nayru's Love]]), or other benefits ([[Monado Arts]]). In addition, Kirby's version of the opponent's neutral special has a 1.2× damage multiplier. Kirby can also inhale projectiles; smaller projectiles will be swallowed, allowing him to heal himself, while larger ones (such as a fully-charged Charge Shot) can be stored in his mouth and spat out, essentially giving Kirby a reflector. The spat projectiles can be used to punish opponents at mid-range and can launch them away with high knockback. Inhale can also be used to [[Kirbycide]] or spit the opponent out offstage, although the opponent can escape by [[mashing]]. [[Hammer Flip]] is very powerful, especially when fully charged, and Kirby can move and jump while charging. However, its high startup and endlag, along with its short range and Kirby's already-sluggish movement being further slowed when charging, makes it difficult to land outside of a [[shield break]], covering ledge options, or after a jab lock. Outside his jumps, Final Cutter is his primary means of [[recovery]], granting good vertical distance, as well as a disjoint in front of him during his ascent and descent. It also emits a shockwave projectile upon landing, making it difficult to [[punish]] if the opponent is not behind Kirby. Lastly, [[Stone]] causes Kirby to turn into an object and ignore up to 25% damage. It is also a strong attack, especially in the air, and can be canceled shortly after Kirby begins his descent, although these benefits are limited by its slow startup and ending lag, and Kirby is still vulnerable to grabs while transformed. It can also be used on the ground, where it has faster startup due to creating a shockwave and it launches at a semi-spike angle.


Kirby's most notable flaw, however, is his poor approach. Characters who have high mobility or who can camp with projectiles can wall out Kirby, such as {{SSBU|Mii Gunner}} and {{SSBU|Samus}}. Kirby's lack of reliable burst options makes his approach in these matchups problematic and sometimes predictable. In addition, characters with long [[disjointed hitbox]]es such as {{SSBU|Ike}} can outrange and wall out Kirby since his range is short relative to the cast. Final Cutter's projectile has decent range and moves quickly, but has somewhat slow startup due to it requiring Kirby to perform the entire rising and falling portions of the move beforehand, and he lacks other projectiles outside of spitting inhaled projectiles/opponents, or from a copy ability. This requires conscientious use to avoid punishment. Despite having great air acceleration, Kirby's air speed is also too slow for him to take advantage of it, hindering his aerial approach and recovery despite possessing five midair jumps. Kirby also has several KO moves, but some can be hard to land without a setup due to their short range. [[Rage]] further compounds these issues, as Kirby will be launched even further by a high-damage opponent, and his low weight means he will sometimes not survive long enough to take advantage of his own rage.
Kirby's most notable flaw, however, is his poor approach. Characters who have high mobility or who can camp with projectiles can wall out Kirby, such as {{SSBU|Sonic}} and {{SSBU|Samus}}. Kirby's lack of reliable burst options makes his approach in these matchups problematic and sometimes predictable. In addition, characters with long [[disjointed hitbox]]es such as {{SSBU|Cloud}} can outrange and wall out Kirby since his range is short relative to the cast. Final Cutter's projectile has decent range and moves quickly, but has somewhat slow startup due to it requiring Kirby to perform the entire rising and falling portions of the move beforehand, and he lacks other projectiles outside of spitting inhaled projectiles/opponents, or from a copy ability. This requires conscientious use to avoid punishment. Despite having great air acceleration, Kirby's air speed is also too slow for him to take advantage of it, hindering his aerial approach and recovery despite possessing five midair jumps. Kirby also has several KO moves, but some can be hard to land without a setup due to their short range. [[Rage]] further compounds these issues, as Kirby will be launched even further by a high-damage opponent, and his low weight means he will sometimes not survive long enough to take advantage of his own rage.


In addition, Kirby also has poor endurance. While being light and floaty can help him escape combos from other characters, this also means he risks getting KOed earlier. He is also vulnerable to [[juggling]], due to his aforementioned slow falling and air speeds. This imposes as a risk in approaching opponents in the air, while also preventing Kirby's aerials from being used effectively when in a disadvantage state, often forcing him to rely on his jumps, Stone, or neutral aerial to escape and return to the ground or ledge.
In addition, Kirby also has poor endurance. While being light and floaty can help him escape combos from other characters, this also means he risks getting KOed earlier. He is also vulnerable to [[juggling]], due to his aforementioned slow falling and air speeds. This imposes as a risk in approaching opponents in the air, while also preventing Kirby's aerials from being used effectively when in a disadvantage state, often forcing him to rely on his jumps, Stone, or neutral aerial to escape and return to the ground or ledge.
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Kirby's buffs lie in the increased utility of his moveset as a whole, with overall improved frame-data and KO power on his finishers. The first two hits of his [[neutral attack]] can now [[jab lock]] and connect better into the looping hits (albeit at the cost of reduced damage output), while [[forward tilt]] is a stronger poke and KO option due to its reduced endlag and its increased knockback. His [[dash attack]] has been mostly reverted back to its ''Melee'' iteration, however, it is significantly faster, stronger, has less startup, far longer duration compared to his previous dash attack in ''SSB4'', can cross-up on shields, covers more ground, and is more reliable for catching opponents thanks to only consisting of a single, long-lasting hitbox—these changes make it a stronger punish tool and a much more versatile move overall. His [[smash attack]]s are now stronger punish options, with [[forward smash]] having much more range, [[up smash]] having faster start-up, and [[down smash]] regaining its semi-spike angle, restoring its utility at edgeguarding. His smash attacks also have improved KO power, with forward and up smash dealing more knockback, and down smash's altered angle KOing earlier at the edge despite its reduced knockback. Several of Kirby's attacks, such as up tilt and all his aerials (except for up aerial) also have more range, partially alleviating one of his weaknesses from ''SSB4''.
Kirby's buffs lie in the increased utility of his moveset as a whole, with overall improved frame-data and KO power on his finishers. The first two hits of his [[neutral attack]] can now [[jab lock]] and connect better into the looping hits (albeit at the cost of reduced damage output), while [[forward tilt]] is a stronger poke and KO option due to its reduced endlag and its increased knockback. His [[dash attack]] has been mostly reverted back to its ''Melee'' iteration, however, it is significantly faster, stronger, has less startup, far longer duration compared to his previous dash attack in ''SSB4'', can cross-up on shields, covers more ground, and is more reliable for catching opponents thanks to only consisting of a single, long-lasting hitbox—these changes make it a stronger punish tool and a much more versatile move overall. His [[smash attack]]s are now stronger punish options, with [[forward smash]] having much more range, [[up smash]] having faster start-up, and [[down smash]] regaining its semi-spike angle, restoring its utility at edgeguarding. His smash attacks also have improved KO power, with forward and up smash dealing more knockback, and down smash's altered angle KOing earlier at the edge despite its reduced knockback. Several of Kirby's attacks, such as up tilt and all his aerials (except for up aerial) also have more range, partially alleviating one of his weaknesses from ''SSB4''.


The universal reduction to [[landing lag]] has also greatly benefited his aerials, which already had among the lowest landing lag in ''SSB4''; his aerials are not only safer, but now capable of leading into followups, with [[forward aerial]]'s first two hits now being able to follow up into a grab or forward smash. His neutral aerial (being one of his most situational attacks) is now faster, has more range, has less endlag, and deals more knockback (the clean hit being one of the strongest neutral aerials in ''Ultimate''). Up aerial received many of the same buffs as forward aerial along with higher damage, regaining some of the KO power. Forward aerial also received more damage.
The universal reduction to [[landing lag]] has also greatly benefited his aerials, which already had among the lowest landing lag in ''SSB4''; his aerials are not only safer, but now capable of leading into followups, with [[forward aerial]]'s first two hits now being able to follow up into a grab or forward smash. His neutral aerial (being one of his most situational attacks) is now faster, has more range, has less endlag, and deals more knockback (the clean hit being one of the strongest neutral aerials in ''Ultimate''). Up aerial received many of the same buffs as neutral aerial and both it and forward aerial deal more damage, regaining some of their lost KO power from ''Melee''.


For Kirby's special moves, [[Inhale]] has been significantly buffed with faster startup, less ending lag, a much longer grace period in which Kirby cannot lose his Copy Ability, a lower probability of losing said ability after this period has ended, and a new 1.2× multiplier to his copied [[neutral special]] compared to his opponent (albeit without a corresponding increase to knockback), giving him a greater incentive and a higher reward from inhaling opponents. Furthermore, he can now eat the projectiles he swallows to heal himself (and store certain ones in his mouth as well, enabling him to spit them out as stars). [[Hammer Flip]] now renders Kirby nigh-impossible to stop for a longer time as long as he's grounded. [[Final Cutter]] is faster, snaps to the ledge slightly sooner, and its landing hit is much more powerful, which improves its utility. And [[Stone]]'s aerial variant now has super armor during its startup, making it more difficult to interrupt Kirby out of the attack, as in previous ''Smash'' games he could be interrupted even when he fully transformed.
For Kirby's special moves, [[Inhale]] has been significantly buffed with faster startup, less ending lag, a much longer grace period in which Kirby cannot lose his Copy Ability, a lower probability of losing said ability after this period has ended, and a new 1.2× multiplier to his copied [[neutral special]] compared to his opponent (albeit without a corresponding increase to knockback), giving him a greater incentive and a higher reward from inhaling opponents. Furthermore, he can now eat the projectiles he swallows to heal himself (and store certain ones in his mouth as well, enabling him to spit them out as stars). [[Hammer Flip]] now renders Kirby nigh-impossible to stop for a longer time as long as he's grounded. [[Final Cutter]] is faster, snaps to the ledge slightly sooner, and its landing hit is much more powerful, which improves its utility. And [[Stone]]'s aerial variant now has super armor during its startup, making it more difficult to interrupt Kirby out of the attack, as in previous ''Smash'' games he could be interrupted even when he fully transformed.


However, Kirby has also received several noteworthy nerfs. The most notable were to his already below-average [[grab]] game: his already mediocre grab range has been worsened (most notably on his pivot grab), and [[forward throw]] has him jump up higher after the throw, which runs the risk of possibly landing on top of a soft platform, negating all follow-ups when it happens too early (although following up neutral air or up aerial can allow more follow-ups), while [[back throw]] has lost most of its combo setups due to changes to the animation. Altogether, this grants Kirby a less effective combo game off of his grabs overall. Other nerfs include: Stone no longer hitting shielding opponents twice, reducing its shield pressure considerably; [[back aerial]] deals less knockback (although it has more range and the clean hit now lasts for slightly longer to compensate); and [[down aerial]], one of his most reliable combo starters in ''SSB4'', has more range on the looping hits, but slightly less on the final hit and is less advantageous on landing due to the removal of [[frame cancel]]ing, reducing the effectiveness of its follow-ups since its landing lag was not reduced enough to compensate properly. Furthermore, Kirby still retains many of the same issues that plagued him in ''SSB4'', with mediocre range, sluggish aerial mobility and a high susceptibility to being camped.
However, Kirby has also received several noteworthy nerfs. The most notable were to his [[grab]] game: his already mediocre grab range has been worsened (most notably on his pivot grab), and [[forward throw]] has him jump up higher after the throw, which runs the risk of possibly landing on top of a soft platform, negating all follow-ups when it happens too early (although following up neutral air or up aerial can allow more follow-ups), while [[back throw]] has lost most of its combo setups due to changes to the animation. Altogether, this grants Kirby a less effective combo game off of his grabs overall. Other nerfs include: Stone no longer hitting shielding opponents twice, reducing its shield pressure considerably; [[back aerial]] deals less knockback (although it has more range and the clean hit now lasts for slightly longer to compensate); and [[down aerial]], one of his most reliable combo starters in ''SSB4'', has more range on the looping hits, but slightly less on the final hit and is less advantageous on landing due to the removal of [[frame cancel]]ing, reducing the effectiveness of its follow-ups since its landing lag was not reduced enough to compensate properly. Furthermore, Kirby still retains many of the same issues that plagued him in ''SSB4'', with mediocre range, sluggish aerial mobility and a high susceptibility to being camped.


Universal changes to the game's mechanics both benefit and hinder Kirby. The revamped [[air dodging]] mechanics have significantly improved his innate ability to [[edgeguard]] opponents more effectively, and directional air dodges have also given him a secondary recovery option, but this also makes him more susceptible to juggling and edgeguarding as well, due to his short-ranged aerials, predictable landing options, and his air dodges being among the slowest in the game. The changes to downwards velocity KOing opponents faster from the bottom [[blast line]] now render Final Cutter as a significantly more deadly edgeguarding and [[sacrificial KO]] option, further improving its utility. The increased [[shieldstun]] and increased startup on shield grabbing notably benefits Kirby's safety on hit, due to his moveset's naturally high damage and low ending lag, making him harder to shrug off and punish accordingly. Conversely, the changes to grabs' ending lag make Kirby's own grab riskier to throw out, as their ending lag can prove more punishable. The increase in mobility is a mixed bag for Kirby, as while his mobility has improved overall relative to the cast (most notably his aerial mobility), his problems with camping from the previous incarnation remain, exhibited with the increased prevalence of zoners. Overall, his edgeguarding and defensive options have been improved at the cost of his range issues becoming even more prevalent than in ''SSB4''.
Universal changes to the game's mechanics both benefit and hinder Kirby. The revamped [[air dodging]] mechanics have significantly improved his innate ability to [[edgeguard]] opponents more effectively, and directional air dodges have also given him a secondary recovery option, but this also makes him more susceptible to juggling and edgeguarding as well, due to his short-ranged aerials, predictable landing options, and his air dodges being among the slowest in the game. The changes to downwards velocity KOing opponents faster from the bottom [[blast line]] now render Final Cutter as a significantly more deadly edgeguarding and [[sacrificial KO]] option, further improving its utility. The increased [[shieldstun]] and increased startup on shield grabbing notably benefits Kirby's safety on hit, due to his moveset's naturally high damage and low ending lag, making him harder to shrug off and punish accordingly. Conversely, the changes to grabs' ending lag make Kirby's own grab riskier to throw out, as their ending lag can prove more punishable. The increase in mobility is a mixed bag for Kirby, as while his mobility has improved overall relative to the cast (most notably his aerial mobility), his problems with camping from the previous incarnation remain, exhibited with the increased prevalence of zoners. Overall, his edgeguarding and defensive options have been improved at the cost of his range issues becoming even more prevalent than in ''SSB4''.
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|fsmashname=Smash Kick ({{ja|スマッシュキック|Sumasshu Kikku}})
|fsmashname=Smash Kick ({{ja|スマッシュキック|Sumasshu Kikku}})
|fsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|15}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|11}} (late)
|fsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|15}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|11}} (late)
|fsmashdesc=Based on the Spin Kick from the Fighter ability from ''Kirby Super Star''. Due to becoming active at frame 13, it is quite fast for a forward smash. It can be angled, moderately moves Kirby forward, and the clean hit is slightly disjointed, giving it deceptively good range. Its clean hitbox also deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth, which makes it a powerful and reliable KOing option. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights starting at around 70%. However, its late hitbox lacks reliable KO potential due to its high base knockback at the expense of very low knockback scaling. The hitbox also has a deceptively short duration compared to what it seems, and has noticeable ending lag (29 frames), making it unsafe on shield and punishable if not used correctly. A powerful punish option that is also capable of 2-framing reliably if angled downwards.
|fsmashdesc=Based on the Spin Kick from the Fighter ability from ''Kirby Super Star''. Due to becoming active at frame 13, it is quite fast for a forward smash. It can be angled, moderately moves Kirby forward, and the clean hit is slightly disjointed, giving it deceptively good range. Its clean hitbox also deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth, which makes it a powerful and reliable KOing option. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights starting at around 70%. However, its late hitbox lacks reliable KO potential due to its high base knockback at the expense of very low knockback scaling. The hitbox also has a deceptively short duration, and it has noticeable ending lag (29 frames), making it unsafe on shield and punishable if not used correctly. A powerful punish option that is also capable of 2-framing reliably if angled downwards.
|usmashname=Somersault Kick ({{ja|サマーソルトキック|Samāsoruto Kikku}})
|usmashname=Somersault Kick ({{ja|サマーソルトキック|Samāsoruto Kikku}})
|usmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|15}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|13}} (mid), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|13}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|12}} (late)
|usmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|15}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|13}} (mid), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|13}}/{{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|12}} (late)
|usmashdesc=A bicycle kick. It can hit behind Kirby, while its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth akin to forward smash, KOing middleweights at around 100% from anywhere on Final Destination. Kirby's foot is also rendered intangible throughout its duration. Has moderate startup and ending lag, coming out on frame 12 and having 27 frames of ending lag, which gives it the fastest interruptibility of Kirby's smash attacks. Its middle hit is noticeably weaker, but still has surprisingly respectable KO power for an up smash, KOing middleweights at around 120% from anywhere on Final Destination. The late hit has extremely low knockback, not KOing opponents even at Sudden Death percentages.
|usmashdesc=A bicycle kick. It can hit behind Kirby, while its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth akin to forward smash, KOing middleweights at around 100% from anywhere on Final Destination. Kirby's foot is also rendered intangible throughout its duration. Has moderate startup and ending lag, coming out on frame 12 and having 27 frames of ending lag, which gives it the fastest interruptibility of Kirby's smash attacks. Its middle hit is noticeably weaker, but still has surprisingly respectable KO power for an up smash and launches at a more favourable angle, KOing middleweights at around 120% from anywhere on Final Destination. The late hit has extremely low knockback, not KOing opponents even at Sudden Death percentages, and the move has a sourspot at the tip of Kirby's foot that deals less damage.
|dsmashname=Propeller Kick ({{ja|プロペラキック|Puropera Kikku}})
|dsmashname=Propeller Kick ({{ja|プロペラキック|Puropera Kikku}})
|dsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|10}} (late)
|dsmashdmg={{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|14}} (clean), {{ChargedSmashDmgSSBU|10}} (late)
|dsmashdesc=A spinning split kick. It hits in front of and behind Kirby, and its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth like his forward and up smashes. Comes out on frame 7, with the fastest startup of his smash attacks. It semi-spikes with above average power, with its clean hitbox KOing middleweights starting at around 100% from the edge of Final Destination, and is additionally a reliable 2-framing option that is very useful for edgeguarding as a result. It also renders Kirby's feet intangible for 10 frames starting from frame 5 until the clean hit ceases at frame 14. However, its late hitbox has significantly lower KO potential due to its lower damage, not KOing middleweights on the ledge of Final Destination until around 140%. Due to it having 31 frames of ending lag, it has the highest ending lag of Kirby's smash attacks, and combined with its long duration, it's very punishable if shielded or whiffed.
|dsmashdesc=A spinning split kick. It hits in front of and behind Kirby, and its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth like his forward and up smashes. Comes out on frame 7, with the fastest startup of his smash attacks. It semi-spikes with above average power, with its clean hitbox KOing middleweights starting at around 100% from the edge of Final Destination, and is additionally a reliable 2-framing option that is very useful for edgeguarding as a result. It also renders Kirby's feet intangible starting from frame 3 until the clean hit ceases at frame 11. However, its late hitbox has significantly lower KO potential due to its lower damage, not KOing middleweights on the ledge of Final Destination until around 140%. Due to it having 31 frames of ending lag, it has the highest ending lag of Kirby's smash attacks, and combined with its long duration, it's very punishable if shielded or whiffed.
|nairname=Twinkle Star ({{ja|ティンクルスター|Tinkuru Sutā}})
|nairname=Twinkle Star ({{ja|ティンクルスター|Tinkuru Sutā}})
|nairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|10}} (clean), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|8}} (mid), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|6}} (mid-to-late), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|4}} (late)
|nairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|10}} (clean), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|8}} (mid), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|6}} (mid-to-late), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|4}} (late)
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|dairname=Screwdriver ({{ja|スクリュードライバー|Sukuryūdoraibā}})
|dairname=Screwdriver ({{ja|スクリュードライバー|Sukuryūdoraibā}})
|dairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|1.3}} (hits 1-5), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|2}} (hit 6), 2% (landing)
|dairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|1.3}} (hits 1-5), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|2}} (hit 6), 2% (landing)
|dairdesc=A diagonal corkscrew dropkick. A decent combo starter on grounded opponents due to its low ending lag. The final hit is a weak meteor smash, which makes it useful for edgeguarding and allows it to gimp characters with short recoveries. It can even lead into a [[footstool jump]] on fast-fallers and heavyweights. While it has the highest amount of start-up lag out of Kirby's aerials due to coming out on frame 18 and can't auto-cancel in a short hop, it has landing hitboxes, giving Kirby a decent window to safely land. The landing hit has low fixed knockback, giving it some combo potential. While possessing a rather good auto-canceling window and being good for edgeguarding, its usage offstage is only serviceable against characters with slow or exploitable recoveries, as the final hit cannot reliably KO characters even as high as 180% offstage. It has the highest landing lag of of Kirby's aerials and, despite its low endlag, it's unsafe on shield, making it punishable when used recklessly.
|dairdesc=A diagonal corkscrew dropkick. A decent combo starter on grounded opponents due to its low ending lag. The final hit is a weak meteor smash, which makes it useful for edgeguarding and allows it to gimp characters with short recoveries. It can even lead into a [[footstool jump]] on fast-fallers and heavyweights. While it has the highest amount of start-up lag out of Kirby's aerials due to coming out on frame 18 and can't auto-cancel in a short hop, it has landing hitboxes, giving Kirby a decent window to safely land. The landing hit has low fixed knockback, giving it some combo potential. While possessing a rather good auto-canceling window and being good for edgeguarding, its usage offstage is only serviceable against characters with slow or exploitable recoveries, as the final hit cannot reliably KO characters even as high as 180% offstage due to its weak damage output. It has the highest landing lag of of Kirby's aerials and, despite its low endlag, it's unsafe on shield due to the final hit's low damage output, making it punishable when used recklessly.
|grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}})
|grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}})
|grabdesc=Reaches out with one hand. Based on the startup animation of the Torent Lariat from the Suplex ability from ''Kirby Super Star''. It's one of the fastest grabs, but has somewhat short range.
|grabdesc=Reaches out with one hand. Based on the startup animation of the Torrent Lariat from the Suplex ability from ''Kirby Super Star''. It's one of the fastest grabs, but has somewhat short range.
|pummelname= Grab Slap ({{ja|つかみビンタ|Tsukami Pinta}})
|pummelname= Grab Slap ({{ja|つかみビンタ|Tsukami Pinta}})
|pummeldmg=1%
|pummeldmg=1%
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<!--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 -->
<!--This character has a ten player limit for this section. Before adding and/or removing a player, read these guidelines: https://www.ssbwiki.com/SmashWiki:Notability#%22Most_historically_significant_players%22_guidelines -->
:''See also: [[:Category:Kirby players (SSBU)]]''
:''See also: [[:Category:Kirby players (SSBU)]]''
 
*{{Sm|Guilheww|Mexico}} - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, being the only solo Kirby player to ever be ranked in the top 100 of a notable global ranking, ranking 93rd on the [[LumiRank 2024.1]]. His 13th-place finish at {{Trn|S Factor 11}} is the highest placement for a Kirby player at a major event. In addition, he won the superregional {{Trn|Trick or Fortune}}, the first Kirby player to win a superregional.
*{{Sm|Ferretkuma|Japan}} - Although his overall activity has been limited, he notably placed 17th at the major {{Trn|Umebura SP 7}}.
*{{Sm|JeJaJeJa|USA}} - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, having placed well at many events, including 33rd at the supermajors {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2022}}, {{Trn|Let's Make Big Moves 2023}}, {{Trn|Collision 2024}}, and {{Trn|Riptide 2024}} as well as 17th at {{Trn|Port Priority 7}}. He is the first Kirby player to win a ranked event, doing so at {{Trn|Afterburner 2024}}, and has also won the superregional {{Trn|Ring Out}}. In addition, he was ranked 115th on the [[LumiRank 2024.1]], the second-highest Kirby player ranked on a global ranking.
*{{Sm|Guilheww|Mexico}} - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, consistently placing highly at Mexican events including 2nd at the regional {{Trn|Hooters Ultimate Tournament}} while upsetting {{Sm|Maister}}. His 13th-place finish at the supermajor {{Trn|S Factor 11}} is the highest placement for a Kirby player at a major event.  
*{{Sm|Jesuischoq|France}} - Considered the best Kirby player in the early metagame. Prior to his inactivity, he regularly placed highly at European events, including 2nd at the regional {{Trn|Smash4Glory - Ultimate Edition}} upsetting {{Sm|Glutonny}}, and 13th at the superregional {{Trn|VCA 2019}}.
*{{Sm|JeJaJeJa|USA}} - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, having placed well at many events, including 33rd at the supermajors {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2022}}, {{Trn|Let's Make Big Moves 2023}} and {{Trn|Collision 2024}}, as well as 17th at {{Trn|Port Priority 7}}. He also won the regional {{Trn|Afterburner 2024}}, the largest tournament Kirby has won.  
*{{Sm|Konokururu|Japan}} - One of the best Kirby players in the world in the post-online metagame and the best Kirby player in Japan. Although his placements have been less consistent than JeJaJeJa and Guilheww, he has placed well at several supermajors including 17th at {{Trn|Kagaribi 7}}, 33rd at {{Trn|Kagaribi 9}}, and 25th at {{Trn|Kowloon 12 with Kagaribi}}.
*{{Sm|Jesuischoq|France}} - One of the best Kirby players in the world in the early metagame who regularly placed highly at European events, including 2nd at the regional {{Trn|Smash4Glory - Ultimate Edition}} upsetting {{Sm|Glutonny}}, and 13th at the superregional {{Trn|VCA 2019}}.
*{{Sm|Konokururu|Japan}} - One of the best Kirby players in the world in the post-online metagame. Although his placements have been less consistent than JeJaJeJa, he placed 17th at the supermajor {{Trn|Kagaribi 7}}.


===Tier placement and history===
===Tier placement and history===
Since the release of ''Ultimate'', several professionals immediately noticed Kirby's significant flaws from the previous installment had been retained, in spite of the mechanics suiting him better in comparison to ''SSB4''. In addition, players notified his vulnerability to being camped, poor range, slow air speed, as well as platforms potentially negating all follow-ups should he start a combo with a forward throw. Despite some representation and decent results from players such as {{Sm|Jesuischoq}} and {{Sm|Ferretkuma}}, most of the community considered Kirby to be a low or bottom-tier in the early metagame, with some going as far as to consider Kirby could be one of the worst characters in the game.
Since the release of ''Ultimate'', several professionals immediately noticed Kirby's significant flaws from the previous installment had been retained, in spite of the mechanics suiting him better in comparison to ''SSB4''. In addition, players notified his vulnerability to being camped, poor range, slow air speed, as well as platforms potentially negating all follow-ups should he start a combo with a forward throw. Despite some representation and decent results from players such as {{Sm|Jesuischoq}} and {{Sm|Ferretkuma}}, most of the community considered Kirby to be a low or bottom-tier in the early metagame, with some going as far as to consider Kirby could be one of the worst characters in the game.


However, Kirby would receive significant buffs in balance patches, more than almost every other character, especially in patches 6.0.0 and 8.0.0. These patches would give him major improvements, improving his overall frame data, KO power and versatility to many of his attacks, allowing him to be more consistent in closing stocks and starting comboes. In addition, although Kirby's representation remained rather small and was often in the bottom 10, he began seeing more success both online and offline from players such as {{Sm|Guilheww}} and {{Sm|JeJaJeJa}}, who were able to achieve strong results with him in national tournaments and in majors. These small positives were enough to raise opinions on Kirby's viability slightly. As such, although Kirby continues to have little impact on the metagame, he is usually not thought of as a candidate for the worst character in the game. This is reflected in Kirby's placement on the first tier list, where he is ranked 76th as a low-tier character, and he rose just one position in the second and current tier list, although gradually improving results from dedicated players have led a few players to believe Kirby should be ranked higher thanks to his improved advantage state.
Kirby later received many significant buffs in balance patches, more than almost every other character, especially in patches 6.0.0 and 8.0.0. These patches greatly improved his overall frame data, KO power and versatility to many of his attacks, allowing him to be more consistent in closing stocks and starting combos. In addition, although Kirby's representation remained rather small and was often in the bottom 10, he began seeing more success both online and offline from players such as {{Sm|Guilheww}} and {{Sm|JeJaJeJa}}, who were able to achieve strong results with him in national tournaments and in majors. These small positives were enough to raise opinions on Kirby's viability slightly. As such, although Kirby continues to have little impact on the metagame, he is usually not thought of as a candidate for the worst character in the game. This is reflected in Kirby's placement on the first tier list, where he is ranked 76th as a low-tier character. Although he only rose one spot to 75th on the second tier list, gradually improving results from dedicated players had led some players to believe Kirby should be ranked higher thanks to his improved advantage state.


=={{SSBU|Classic Mode}}: Gourmet Clash==
=={{SSBU|Classic Mode}}: Gourmet Clash==
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*Unlike other characters, Kirby can actually taunt online when playing outside of arenas, but only to discard his copy ability.
*Unlike other characters, Kirby can actually taunt online when playing outside of arenas, but only to discard his copy ability.
*As a result of not being captured, Kirby is one of the few characters that doesn't have copies of him produced by Dharkon or Galeem during their boss fights.
*As a result of not being captured, Kirby is one of the few characters that doesn't have copies of him produced by Dharkon or Galeem during their boss fights.
*Kirby's neutral item swing when using battering items has 2 fewer frames of ending lag, with an FAF of 24 as opposed to 26 for the rest of the cast.
*Since Kirby was never possessed by Galeem like everyone else, his presence in many spirit battles went unclear for some time, until Masahiro Sakurai addressed this in an interview; stating that Galeem managed to analyze Kirby halfway through the story, making it possible to create puppets of him.<ref>https://twitter.com/PushDustIn/status/1098252915532165120?s=20</ref>
*Since Kirby was never possessed by Galeem like everyone else, his presence in many spirit battles went unclear for some time, until Masahiro Sakurai addressed this in an interview; stating that Galeem managed to analyze Kirby halfway through the story, making it possible to create puppets of him.<ref>https://twitter.com/PushDustIn/status/1098252915532165120?s=20</ref>
**Ironically, Kirby has the most spirit battle appearances of all characters, with 64 total.
**Ironically, Kirby has the most spirit battle appearances of all characters, with 64 total.
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*If the spirits in the collection are in numerical order, Kirby is the last character to be in a spirit battle as the main opponent, which is Wonder Flower & Talking Flower.
*If the spirits in the collection are in numerical order, Kirby is the last character to be in a spirit battle as the main opponent, which is Wonder Flower & Talking Flower.
**It is also the last character to be in a spirit battle as a minion, which is Peach & Stella.
**It is also the last character to be in a spirit battle as a minion, which is Peach & Stella.
*Masahiro Sakurai revealed in a [[YouTube]] video that Kirby's [[Sora]] copy ability initially had hair that clipped into his eyes, and this was adjusted before the final release.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqjXBzWX3_A&t Odds and Ends of Supervising: Sora Edition <nowiki>[Graphics]</nowiki>]</ref>


==References==
==References==

Latest revision as of 10:20, November 19, 2024

This article is about Kirby's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. For the character in other contexts, see Kirby.
Kirby
in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Kirby SSBU.png
KirbySymbol.svg
Universe Kirby
Other playable appearances in SSB
in Melee
in Brawl
in SSB4
Availability Starter
Final Smash Ultra Sword
Tier D- (75)
Kirby (SSBU)

Kirby (カービィ, Kirby) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Like all veterans, he was confirmed on June 12th, 2018. Kirby is classified as Fighter #06.

Kirby is voiced in all regions once again by Makiko Ōmoto, using a combination of new voice clips and ones recycled from Super Smash Bros. 4.

Kirby is currently ranked 75th out of 82 on the Ultimate tier list, placing him in the D- tier and making him the lowest ranking of the perfect-attendance crew. This is roughly similar to his placement in the previous game, where he was ranked 49th out of 54. Kirby possesses fast tilts and low ending lag on his aerials, granting him access to quick and powerful combos, while his back air and dash attack grant him strong KO options. Kirby's relatively small size and low crouch also makes him hard to hit; his crouch especially allows him to avoid most grabs and some attacks. Finally, Kirby's Inhale grants him his opponent's neutral special move, which not only deals more damage than the opponent's, but can also be used to alleviate some of Kirby's weaknesses.

However, Kirby has poor endurance, as his light weight makes him susceptible to early KOs. His poor air and ground speed, as well as a lack of projectiles and ranged attacks, presents a host of problems in neutral and offstage, as Kirby has trouble approaching and fighting those that can outrange him. Finally, Kirby's recovery, though far-reaching, is rather predictable, and his poor air speed and floatiness make Kirby very vulnerable to edgeguarding.

Overall, Kirby is a close-range character who can rack up impressive damage at close range, complemented with his quick frame data, but struggles to make use of his strengths due to his unimpressive range, slow air speed, and built-in lightweight properties. As a result, Kirby is a rarity within the metagame. Nevertheless, he has still seen success from dedicated mains such as Guilheww, JeJaJeJa, and Konokururu.

Attributes[edit]

Kirby is known for being a small lightweight, being tied for the eighth-lightest character in the game. True to his franchise, Kirby is a slow, yet floaty character. He has a slightly below-average walk speed (31st slowest), average dashing and initial dash (42nd fastest and 43rd slowest). He also has the 5th slowest air speed, above-average air acceleration, 3rd lowest gravity, the 5th lowest falling and fast falling speeds, and above average traction. Due to these statistics, Kirby has difficulty approaching opponents. Kirby's recovery is versatile: despite his slow air speed and low jump height rendering him susceptible to edgeguarding, his five midair jumps, slow falling speed, long vertical airdodge, and Final Cutter's decent distance give him good stalling capabilities and decent safety.

Kirby's greatest strengths are his quick frame data, high combo potential, and the versatility of his moveset. The majority of Kirby's attacks are characterized by speed, with his tilts being among the fastest in the game, while his slowest moves instead boast high power as a trade-off, while still being quite fast for their power. Neutral attack and forward tilt are fast and have decent range, allowing Kirby to quickly distance opponents, with the latter being used for tech chase setups. Up tilt's low knockback and high speed allow it to combo into multiple moves, such as itself, an aerial attack, or an Inhale. Down tilt's low power is compensated by its very fast speed and it launching opponents at the Sakurai angle, which allows it to trip most opponents even over 80%. Should he trip his opponents with it, he can follow up with a variety of attacks, such as a dash attack, grab, or forward smash. Dash attack’s early hit is excellent for whiff punishing and scoring a KO, potentially KOing opponents starting at 90%, while the late hit can set up into an Inhale. His smash attacks have good range, high power, and great speed, making them excellent at scoring a KO. Kirby is also very small, making him hard to hit, and his very low [crouch]] allows him to avoid almost all grabs and several attacks. As a result, Kirby has an excellent ground and defensive game thanks to his quick frame data and evasive crouch, requiring opponents to be careful when approaching him in neutral.

The usefulness of Kirby's ground game also extends to his grab game. His grabs have short range but are among the fastest in Ultimate, while his pummel's meager damage output is counterbalanced by its very fast speed. His forward throw, unlike most other forward throws in the game, has combo potential, leading into aerial attacks from low to mid percentages. Back throw can be followed up by a back aerial at 0% on certain characters, can KO at high percents, and can send opponents offstage. Up throw is his strongest throw and is able to KO almost all characters around 170%, or even earlier if it lands on a platform. Lastly, while down throw has no combo potential, it is reliable for damage-racking when no other throw can yield better results.

Kirby's aerial game is also notable. Despite his poor air speed, his air acceleration is high and his aerial attacks also have great versatility. Neutral aerial has a long-lasting hitbox, the clean hit is disjointed and relatively strong, very low landing lag, and good coverage, making it a safe landing option. The weak hit of neutral air can combo into his tilts, grab, or even a smash attack. It can also be used as a combo finisher and as a KO move at high percents. Due to the move lasting longer compared to his other aerials, it can safely pressure shields. Forward aerial is Kirby’s most reliable approaching tool. Despite its moderately slow startup, it has disjointed hitboxes on Kirby’s feet, has a long lasting hitbox that can lead to a wall of pain at low percents, the final hit can lead to a KO at high percents, and has very little landing lag, which makes it very safe on shield and hard to punish. Up aerial has good vertical knockback, low landing lag and a fairly quick auto-cancel window, allowing for several potential follow-ups and even opportunities to KO when near the upper blast line. Back aerial has decent range, high knockback on the clean hit, and is Kirby's fastest aerial, making it one of his strongest options overall. Lastly, down aerial has considerable startup, but has multiple hits that drag opponents downward before the final hit meteor smashes them and has low ending lag, making it a deceptively powerful edgeguarding tool as well as a reliable combo starter with follow-ups on grounded opponents.

Kirby's special moves can provide some unique strengths. Inhale is his most notable example; it allows him to either copy the neutral special move of any character he inhales, or spit them out as a weight-dependent projectile. Depending on what character he inhales, the copy ability can give Kirby a move that helps him in matchups to various degrees, such as useful projectiles to counter-camp his opponent (Needle Storm, Charge Shot, Wolf's Blaster), powerful punish options (Giant Punch, Homing Attack), a reflector (Nayru's Love), or other benefits (Monado Arts). In addition, Kirby's version of the opponent's neutral special has a 1.2× damage multiplier. Kirby can also inhale projectiles; smaller projectiles will be swallowed, allowing him to heal himself, while larger ones (such as a fully-charged Charge Shot) can be stored in his mouth and spat out, essentially giving Kirby a reflector. The spat projectiles can be used to punish opponents at mid-range and can launch them away with high knockback. Inhale can also be used to Kirbycide or spit the opponent out offstage, although the opponent can escape by mashing. Hammer Flip is very powerful, especially when fully charged, and Kirby can move and jump while charging. However, its high startup and endlag, along with its short range and Kirby's already-sluggish movement being further slowed when charging, makes it difficult to land outside of a shield break, covering ledge options, or after a jab lock. Outside his jumps, Final Cutter is his primary means of recovery, granting good vertical distance, as well as a disjoint in front of him during his ascent and descent. It also emits a shockwave projectile upon landing, making it difficult to punish if the opponent is not behind Kirby. Lastly, Stone causes Kirby to turn into an object and ignore up to 25% damage. It is also a strong attack, especially in the air, and can be canceled shortly after Kirby begins his descent, although these benefits are limited by its slow startup and ending lag, and Kirby is still vulnerable to grabs while transformed. It can also be used on the ground, where it has faster startup due to creating a shockwave and it launches at a semi-spike angle.

Kirby's most notable flaw, however, is his poor approach. Characters who have high mobility or who can camp with projectiles can wall out Kirby, such as Sonic and Samus. Kirby's lack of reliable burst options makes his approach in these matchups problematic and sometimes predictable. In addition, characters with long disjointed hitboxes such as Cloud can outrange and wall out Kirby since his range is short relative to the cast. Final Cutter's projectile has decent range and moves quickly, but has somewhat slow startup due to it requiring Kirby to perform the entire rising and falling portions of the move beforehand, and he lacks other projectiles outside of spitting inhaled projectiles/opponents, or from a copy ability. This requires conscientious use to avoid punishment. Despite having great air acceleration, Kirby's air speed is also too slow for him to take advantage of it, hindering his aerial approach and recovery despite possessing five midair jumps. Kirby also has several KO moves, but some can be hard to land without a setup due to their short range. Rage further compounds these issues, as Kirby will be launched even further by a high-damage opponent, and his low weight means he will sometimes not survive long enough to take advantage of his own rage.

In addition, Kirby also has poor endurance. While being light and floaty can help him escape combos from other characters, this also means he risks getting KOed earlier. He is also vulnerable to juggling, due to his aforementioned slow falling and air speeds. This imposes as a risk in approaching opponents in the air, while also preventing Kirby's aerials from being used effectively when in a disadvantage state, often forcing him to rely on his jumps, Stone, or neutral aerial to escape and return to the ground or ledge.

Overall, Kirby tends to run hot and cold. He can inflict an impressive amount of damage if he gets close to his opponent thanks to his excellent frame data and potent combo game, but doing so is challenging for him due to his poor approach. As such, Kirby functions well with a bait-and-punish playstyle, although being unprepared for an opponent's approach can be hazardous due to his low survivability.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4[edit]

Near the end of SSB4's metagame, Kirby had been considered a low-tier character due to a combination of lackluster attributes and underwhelming moveset despite its power. Likely owing to this, Kirby has been granted a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition to Ultimate, being overall buffed, though not enough to raise his standing on the tier list.

Kirby's buffs lie in the increased utility of his moveset as a whole, with overall improved frame-data and KO power on his finishers. The first two hits of his neutral attack can now jab lock and connect better into the looping hits (albeit at the cost of reduced damage output), while forward tilt is a stronger poke and KO option due to its reduced endlag and its increased knockback. His dash attack has been mostly reverted back to its Melee iteration, however, it is significantly faster, stronger, has less startup, far longer duration compared to his previous dash attack in SSB4, can cross-up on shields, covers more ground, and is more reliable for catching opponents thanks to only consisting of a single, long-lasting hitbox—these changes make it a stronger punish tool and a much more versatile move overall. His smash attacks are now stronger punish options, with forward smash having much more range, up smash having faster start-up, and down smash regaining its semi-spike angle, restoring its utility at edgeguarding. His smash attacks also have improved KO power, with forward and up smash dealing more knockback, and down smash's altered angle KOing earlier at the edge despite its reduced knockback. Several of Kirby's attacks, such as up tilt and all his aerials (except for up aerial) also have more range, partially alleviating one of his weaknesses from SSB4.

The universal reduction to landing lag has also greatly benefited his aerials, which already had among the lowest landing lag in SSB4; his aerials are not only safer, but now capable of leading into followups, with forward aerial's first two hits now being able to follow up into a grab or forward smash. His neutral aerial (being one of his most situational attacks) is now faster, has more range, has less endlag, and deals more knockback (the clean hit being one of the strongest neutral aerials in Ultimate). Up aerial received many of the same buffs as neutral aerial and both it and forward aerial deal more damage, regaining some of their lost KO power from Melee.

For Kirby's special moves, Inhale has been significantly buffed with faster startup, less ending lag, a much longer grace period in which Kirby cannot lose his Copy Ability, a lower probability of losing said ability after this period has ended, and a new 1.2× multiplier to his copied neutral special compared to his opponent (albeit without a corresponding increase to knockback), giving him a greater incentive and a higher reward from inhaling opponents. Furthermore, he can now eat the projectiles he swallows to heal himself (and store certain ones in his mouth as well, enabling him to spit them out as stars). Hammer Flip now renders Kirby nigh-impossible to stop for a longer time as long as he's grounded. Final Cutter is faster, snaps to the ledge slightly sooner, and its landing hit is much more powerful, which improves its utility. And Stone's aerial variant now has super armor during its startup, making it more difficult to interrupt Kirby out of the attack, as in previous Smash games he could be interrupted even when he fully transformed.

However, Kirby has also received several noteworthy nerfs. The most notable were to his grab game: his already mediocre grab range has been worsened (most notably on his pivot grab), and forward throw has him jump up higher after the throw, which runs the risk of possibly landing on top of a soft platform, negating all follow-ups when it happens too early (although following up neutral air or up aerial can allow more follow-ups), while back throw has lost most of its combo setups due to changes to the animation. Altogether, this grants Kirby a less effective combo game off of his grabs overall. Other nerfs include: Stone no longer hitting shielding opponents twice, reducing its shield pressure considerably; back aerial deals less knockback (although it has more range and the clean hit now lasts for slightly longer to compensate); and down aerial, one of his most reliable combo starters in SSB4, has more range on the looping hits, but slightly less on the final hit and is less advantageous on landing due to the removal of frame canceling, reducing the effectiveness of its follow-ups since its landing lag was not reduced enough to compensate properly. Furthermore, Kirby still retains many of the same issues that plagued him in SSB4, with mediocre range, sluggish aerial mobility and a high susceptibility to being camped.

Universal changes to the game's mechanics both benefit and hinder Kirby. The revamped air dodging mechanics have significantly improved his innate ability to edgeguard opponents more effectively, and directional air dodges have also given him a secondary recovery option, but this also makes him more susceptible to juggling and edgeguarding as well, due to his short-ranged aerials, predictable landing options, and his air dodges being among the slowest in the game. The changes to downwards velocity KOing opponents faster from the bottom blast line now render Final Cutter as a significantly more deadly edgeguarding and sacrificial KO option, further improving its utility. The increased shieldstun and increased startup on shield grabbing notably benefits Kirby's safety on hit, due to his moveset's naturally high damage and low ending lag, making him harder to shrug off and punish accordingly. Conversely, the changes to grabs' ending lag make Kirby's own grab riskier to throw out, as their ending lag can prove more punishable. The increase in mobility is a mixed bag for Kirby, as while his mobility has improved overall relative to the cast (most notably his aerial mobility), his problems with camping from the previous incarnation remain, exhibited with the increased prevalence of zoners. Overall, his edgeguarding and defensive options have been improved at the cost of his range issues becoming even more prevalent than in SSB4.

In the end, Kirby's changes now render his punish game much more deadly, make him much harder to shake off once he gains the advantage, and allow him to seal stocks at much more varied percentages, but the universal changes to the game's engine have made it slightly easier for opponents to keep him away and have rendered said punish game slightly more inconsistent. Because of this, Kirby is agreed to have not significantly improved from his appearance in SSB4, which, combined with several veterans being buffed to varying degrees, has resulted in Kirby being in a similar position overall, despite several game updates handing Kirby a myriad of buffs.

Aesthetics[edit]

  • Change Kirby's appearance is largely the same as it was in SSB4, though his model features a more subdued color scheme. His feet have a pinkish tint, and his blush marks are slightly blurred. These changes make Kirby more closely resemble his appearance in recent Kirby games.
  • Change Like many other characters, Kirby is more expressive, both with his face and his movement.
  • Change Some of Kirby's animations, particularly his dash and initial jump, have been tweaked to closer resemble his appearance from Kirby's Return to Dream Land onward.
  • Change One of Kirby's voice clips when taking high knockback has been changed to his alternate KO sound from SSB4.
    • Change As a result, he gains a new KO clip, which sounds similar to one of his unused high knockback voice clips from Brawl.
    • Change Kirby's unused damage yell from Smash 4 is used when he takes medium knockback.
  • Change Kirby's on-screen appearance has a more intense, fiery explosion than in previous games. The large, cartoony stars that appear have been removed, and while the sparkle effects are still present, they have been drastically toned down. All in all, it more closely resembles how it appeared in Super Smash Bros.
  • Change Up taunt has been shortened, with Kirby striking the ending pose without dancing first. The pose itself has been tweaked; Kirby raises one of his feet, resembling the pose he makes when gaining abilities in his games.
  • Change Kirby smiles during his side taunt.
  • Change Kirby's victory poses have been modified. Two new dances are used, one with Kirby waving his arms and breakdancing, and another with Kirby moonwalking and sliding, both based on Kirby’s Return to Dream Land and ending in a unique pose. Kirby also splits into three separate Kirbys when not in team battles, referencing his home series. This is the first and only game to have Kirby's victory poses finish differently.
    • Change Kirby's idle pose at the end of his victory animation is more animated, with a gentle squash-and-stretch effect leading to a more rubbery feeling.
    • Change Kirby faces forward instead of away when "wiggling" in one of his victory poses.
  • Change When Kirby gains a new Copy Ability, he briefly poses as he does in his home series. This animation can be canceled.
  • Change Some Copy Ability hats have been changed.
    • Change His Samus helmet has a fully opaque visor, as it was in Super Smash Bros.
    • Change His Captain Falcon helmet has triangular eyes, and the visor is opaque as in Super Smash Bros.
    • Change Unlike Smash 4, his Jigglypuff cap matches his costume color, as in previous games up to Brawl.
    • Change His Zelda cap has been changed from the wimple she wore as a child in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to a hairstyle matching her new A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds-inspired look.
    • Change His Ganondorf cap is consistent with Ganondorf's Ocarina of Time appearance, effectively reverting to its design in Melee.
    • Change His Ike cap uses the hairstyle from his Path of Radiance design, as in Brawl.
    • Change His Wolf cap matches Wolf's Star Fox Zero-based appearance.
    • Change His Robin cap, upon exhausting the Thunder tome, will disappear as it does in all other cases, instead of just disappearing with no animation.
  • Change Kirby's Boxing Ring alias has been changed to "The Pink Demon", a direct translation of the Japanese title, for consistency with its appearance in Kirby: Planet Robobot.

Attributes[edit]

  • Buff Like all characters, Kirby's jumpsquat takes 3 frames to complete (down from 4).
  • Buff Kirby runs faster (1.57 → 1.727).
    • Buff His initial dash is noticeably faster (1.5 → 1.9).
  • Buff Kirby walks faster (0.93 → 0.977).
  • Buff Kirby's air speed is slightly faster (0.8 → 0.84).
  • Buff Kirby's traction is much higher (0.0493 → 0.116), going from below average to being tied for the 17th highest, making easier for him to punish out of shield.
  • Buff The changes to taunt interruptibility benefit Kirby more than any other returning veteran, as he can act quicker after discarding a Copy Ability.
  • Nerf Forward roll grants less intangibility (frames 4-17 → 4-15).
  • Nerf Back roll has more startup with less intangibility (frames 4-17 → 5-16), and more ending lag (FAF 31 → 36).
  • Buff Air dodge grants more intangibility (frames 3-27 → 3-29).
  • Nerf Air dodge has significantly more ending lag (FAF 33 → 63), being tied with Rosalina for the second slowest air dodge in the game duration-wise, only behind Jigglypuff.

Ground attacks[edit]

  • Neutral attack:
    • Buff Neutral attack's first and second hits have altered angles (55° → 361°/180° (hit 1), 70° → 361° (hit 2)) and knockback (8 base/30 scaling → 20 base/25/20 scaling (hit 1), 15/30 → 25/15 (hit 2)) to keep opponents close to Kirby, akin to other neutral attacks. This allows them to jab lock, and noticeably improves their previously poor linking ability.
    • Buff The first hit has less startup lag (frame 3 → 2), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 16 → 15).
    • Buff The second hit transitions faster into the infinite (frame 8 → 5) and has a lower SDI multiplier (1× → 0.3×), although with a slightly higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 1.2×).
    • Buff The infinite has shorter gaps between hits (4 frames → 2), a consistent angle (55°/68°/80° → 361°), a lower hitlag multiplier (1× → 0.5×) and SDI multiplier (1× → 0.4×), and deals less knockback (6/4/2 base/100 scaling → 7 base/35 scaling). This allows it to connect more reliably and makes it much harder to escape.
    • Buff The infinite's finisher has less startup (frame 5 → 3) and ending lag (FAF 51 → 40).
    • Buff The finisher deals more damage (2% → 3%) and launches at a lower angle (45° → 361°), with knockback not fully compensated (80 base/120 scaling → 70/115), improving its KO potential.
    • Nerf All hits except the finisher deal less damage (2% → 1.8% (hit 1), 3% → 1.6% (hit 2), 1% → 0.2% (infinite)).
    • Nerf The first hit has a higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 1.7×), giving opponents more time to SDI it.
    • Nerf The second hit and each hit of the infinite have a shorter hitbox duration (2 frames → 1), and the latter also has one frame more startup (frame 6 → 7), although this is compensated by its faster transition from the second hit.
    • Nerf The finisher has smaller hitboxes overall (4.5u/6.5u/5.5u → 5u/5u/5u).
    • Nerf The finisher has a much higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 3×), making it easier to DI after SDIing the infinite.
    • Change The infinite has gained a shieldstun multiplier of 7×. This allows it to lock opponents into their shields between each hit, and thus pressure them more effectively, but also allows them to cancel shieldstun and punish Kirby more easily if they shield 10 hits or more.
    • Change Kirby's punching hand disappears during his rapid jab; instead, the visual effects have been made thicker.
  • Forward tilt:
    • Buff Forward tilt has less ending lag (FAF 28 → 24). Combined with the increased shieldstun for ground attacks, this makes it much safer on shield.
    • Buff It has much more base knockback (12 → 40), improving its KO potential.
  • Up tilt:
    • Buff Up tilt's closest hitbox is larger (4u → 4.8u), slightly surpassing the late hit in Brawl.
    • Buff The late hit and foot intangibility last one more frame (frames 6-9 → 6-10), matching its duration from Brawl.
    • Buff It has less base knockback (40 → 30/26 (clean), 26 (late)) and more knockback scaling (116 → 132/125 (clean), 110 → 130/119 (late)), allowing it to combo better into his aerials from low to mid percents, while also improving its KO potential at very high percents.
    • Change The hitbox at the tip of Kirby's foot launches at a slightly different angle (100° → 98° (clean), 88° → 86° (late)).
  • Down tilt:
    • Buff Due to the increased traction across the cast, opponents do not slide back as much upon tripping from down tilt, improving its reliability for starting combos.
    • Change It has more knockback scaling (30 → 43), causing it to stop tripping opponents sooner, but improving its combo potential at higher percents if it doesn't trip due to the aforementioned change.
  • Dash attack:
    • Change Dash attack has reverted to its Melee iteration, where Kirby does a flaming tackle identical to the Burning copy ability from his home series, although it does not drop him off edges.
    • Buff It hits only once instead of six times, possessing a clean hit, mid hit and late hit. This makes it more reliable overall than the previous dash attack, which could sometimes miss its last hit due to the looping hits' poor linking ability.
    • Buff It propels Kirby a much farther distance forward, increasing its range.
    • Buff It has less startup lag with its hitboxes active fully throughout (frames 12, 15, 19, 24, 30, 35-37 → 9-17 (clean)/18-26 (mid)/27-34 (late)).
      • Nerf However, the total duration has not been fully compensated, giving it 1 frame more ending lag despite the shorter total duration (FAF 54 → 52).
    • Buff It has larger hitboxes (3.5u/3.5u/3.3u (hits 1-5), 3u (hit 6) → 5u (clean), 3.5u (mid & late)).
    • Buff It has lower hitlag multipliers (2× → 1.3× (clean)/1× (mid)/0.8× (late)). In combination with its faster startup and consisting of a single hit, this makes it harder to DI.
    • Buff The clean hit deals more damage (1% (hits 1-5), 4% (hit 6); 9% total → 12%), with knockback not fully compensated (100 base/70 scaling → 82/71), and launches at a more horizontal angle (65° → 46°). This turns it into a much stronger finisher, KOing opponents at around 160% from center stage and 105% near edges, compared to being unable to KO under 280% regardless of horizontal positioning.
    • Buff The mid and late hits deal more damage than the previous dash attack's last hit (4% → 9% (mid), 6% (late)), and the former launches at a higher angle (65° → 76°), allowing it to KO slightly earlier despite its lower knockback values (100 base/70 scaling → 80/50).
    • Nerf The late hit deals much less knockback (100 base/70 scaling → 80/50), hindering its KO potential despite launching at a higher angle (65° → 76°).
  • Forward smash:
    • Buff Forward smash's clean hit deals more knockback (30 base/102 scaling → 32/109), improving its KO potential.
    • Buff Kirby lunges farther forward, giving it more range.
    • Buff It deals more damage when angled down (14% → 15% (clean), 10% → 11% (late)).
    • Nerf It deals less damage when angled up (16% → 15% (clean), 12% → 11% (late)), although the clean hit is still slightly stronger than in Smash 4 due to its higher knockback values.
    • Nerf The clean hit has a higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 1.2×), making it easier to DI.
    • Change It has a different startup animation: Kirby pulls back before executing a thrust kick instead of performing a spin first, resembling Smash Kick, one of Smash Bros. Kirby's attacks in Kirby: Planet Robobot.
  • Up smash:
    • Buff Up smash has less startup (frame 14 → 12), with its leg intangibility frames moved accordingly (frames 14-19 → 12-17) and its total duration reduced (FAF 48 → 46).
    • Buff The clean hit has a longer duration, with the late hit having a shorter duration instead (frame 14 (clean)/15-16 (mid)/17-19 (late) → 12-14/15-16/17). This improves its utility as an anti-air, as the clean hit remains active when the hitboxes go above Kirby.
    • Buff The clean hit deals more knockback (33/30 base/104/99 scaling → 36 base/104 scaling), improving its KO potential.
    • Buff The mid hit's sourspot (12% → 13%) and late hit (12%/11% → 13%/12%) deal more damage.
  • Down smash:
    • Buff Down smash launches at a semi-spike angle like its foot hitboxes in Melee and Brawl (69° → 29°), significantly improving its edgeguarding ability and allowing it to KO earlier near edges.
    • Buff It has less startup lag (frame 10 → 7) with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 54 → 51).
    • Nerf It has much less knockback scaling (110 → 94), hindering its KO potential from center stage and across the stage.

Aerial attacks[edit]

  • Buff All aerials have less landing lag (10 frames → 6 (neutral), 13 → 8 (forward), 17 → 10 (back), 12 → 7 (up), 17 → 16 (down).
  • Neutral aerial:
    • Buff Neutral aerial has less startup (frame 10 → 8) and significantly less ending lag (FAF 73 → 53).
    • Buff The clean hit deals significantly more knockback (30 base/90 scaling → 35/117), allowing it to KO reliably at around 150% from center stage.
    • Buff All hitboxes are bigger (8u → 9u (clean), 7u → 8u (mid), 6u → 7u (mid-to-late), 5u → 6u (late)).
    • Buff It auto-cancels earlier (frame 56 → 51).
  • Forward aerial:
    • Buff Forward aerial's first hit launches at a higher angle (45°/80° → 53°/84°) and deals less knockback (35 base/50 scaling → 43/39 (close), 35/38 (far)), allowing it to connect into the second hit more reliably.
    • Buff The first and second hits have lower hitlag (1× → 0.8×) and SDI multipliers (1× → 0.5×), making them harder to escape.
    • Buff The first and third hits have larger hitboxes (4.3u/4.3u → 5u/4.4u (hit 1), 4.9u → 5.1u (hit 3)), with the latter extending further horizontally (Z offset: 8u-12u → 7u-13u) and vertically (Y offset: 3.9u-4.2u → 3u-4.2u), improving their range.
    • Buff Due to its reduced landing lag, and forward smash's improved range and knockback, the first hit has gained a KO setup into it at high percents.
    • Buff The second hit extends further outwards (Z offset: 8u-12u → 7u-13u) and below Kirby (Y offset: 3.7u-4.2u → 2.8u-4.1u), improving its horizontal range, and allowing it to hit short or crouching characters, even in a rising short hop.
    • Buff The second and third hit deal more damage (3% → 4% (hit 2), 5% → 6% (hit 3).
    • Buff The third hit has a longer duration (frames 25-26 → 25-27).
  • Back aerial:
    • Buff Back aerial has larger hitboxes (4u → 4.5u (clean), 3.4u → 3.5u (late)), and they extend further horizontally (Z offset: 7u-10.5u → 6u-13u (clean), 7u-10u → 6u-11u (late)), noticeably improving its range.
    • Buff The clean hit has a longer duration (frames 6-7 → 6-8).
    • Nerf The clean hit has slightly less base knockback (20 → 15), hindering its KO potential.
    • Nerf The clean hit has a higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 1.2×), making it easier to DI.
    • Nerf The late hit has a shorter duration (frames 8-14 → 9-12).
  • Up aerial:
    • Buff Up aerial has less startup (frame 10 → 8), less ending lag (FAF 40 → 36), and auto-cancels earlier (frame 22 → 20).
    • Buff It deals more damage (9% → 10%) and has noticeably more knockback scaling (100 → 115), greatly improving its KO ability, without worsening its combo ability due to its reduced lag.
  • Down aerial:
    • Buff Down aerial's looping hits deal more damage (1% → 1.3%, total: 7% → 8.5%), with knockback scaling compensated (107 → 100).
    • Buff The looping hits have a noticeably lower hitlag multiplier (1.5× → 0.8×), alongside a larger hitbox (5u → 6u), increasing their range and making them harder to escape from.
    • Nerf It can no longer be frame canceled, with its landing lag not reduced enough to compensate. As a result, it has more landing lag relative to Smash 4 if the landing hit connects, hindering its combo potential.
    • Nerf The last hit has a smaller hitbox (6.2u → 5.6u).

Throws and other attacks[edit]

  • Grabs:
    • Nerf All grabs have more ending lag (FAF 28 → 34 (standing), 39 → 42 (dash), 33 → 37 (pivot)), albeit they are still among the fastest in the game.
    • Nerf All grabs have less range (Z2 offset: 10.2u → 9.4u (standing), 12.1u → 11u (dash), -17.9u → -15.7u (pivot)).
    • Nerf Dash grab has slightly more startup lag (frame 8 → 9).
  • Pummel:
    • Nerf Pummel deals less damage (1.55% → 1%).
    • Nerf It has less startup (frame 9 → 1) and ending lag (FAF 10 → 6), but deals considerably more hitlag (4 frames → 11), increasing its effective duration.
  • Forward throw:
    • Nerf Forward throw has Kirby jump slightly higher and further backwards at the end of the animation, able to reach the height of Battlefield's lower platform. The additional height weakens its combo potential at low percents, while the additional backwards distance prevents him from benefitting from the extra height at higher percents.
  • Back throw:
    • Nerf Back throw has Kirby jump immediately after releasing the opponent, as opposed to a few frames later, causing him to be much higher in the air after the move ends. Additionally, Kirby lands a short distance forward relative to where the throw is initiated from, rather than in the same spot. This almost completely removes the throw's followups at low percents, and weakens its edgeguarding potential, as it pushes Kirby away from edges.
    • Change It has an altered animation where Kirby doesn't squish as much upon slamming the opponent to the ground.
  • Up throw:
    • Buff Up throw has gained a collateral hitbox upon landing that deals 7%, similar to Meta Knight's up throw, increasing its effectiveness in battles with multiple opponents.
  • Down throw:
    • Buff Down throw's first nine hits deal more damage (0.8% → 1%, total: 10.2% → 12%).
  • Edge attack:
    • Buff Edge attack deals more damage (7% → 9%).
    • Nerf It no longer inflicts 4 frames of hitlag on the opponent upon release, slightly reducing its hit advantage.

Special moves[edit]

  • Inhale:
    • Buff Inhale has less startup lag (frame 14 → 10), making it much easier to combo into.
    • Buff It has a larger vortex hitbox (7u → 8.5u) with altered hitbox placements (Y offset: 7.5u → 7u, Z offset: 13u → 15.5u), and an additional vortex hitbox, increasing its range.
    • Buff It has less ending lag when failing to inhale anything (FAF 73 → 64), and after copying an opponent (FAF 30 → 21), preventing the copied opponent from being able to hit Kirby before he can move.
    • Buff The swallowing hitboxes are larger (4.2u/4.6u → 5.3u/5.8u), increasing the safety of copying an opponent when others are nearby.
    • Buff It can catch projectiles to heal Kirby, albeit with noticeable ending lag.
      • Buff Kirby can keep certain projectiles, like a fully charged Charge Shot, inside his mouth and then choose to spit them out as a star that deals damage or swallow them to heal himself.
    • Buff Kirby dies later when performing a Kirbycide, though he still dies first. This gives the opponent less time to recover after Kirby is KO'd.
    • Buff Kirby receives a 1.2× damage multiplier for his Copy Abilities compared to the copied opponent's neutral special.
    • Buff Kirby cannot lose his Copy Ability by getting hit for 20 seconds after receiving it, allowing him to keep it much more efficiently.
    • Buff The distance an opponent travels in a star scales with damage, allowing Kirby to KO spat opponents near edges more effectively at higher percents.
    • Nerf Rather than a 3.125% chance regardless of move, the chance for Kirby to lose his Copy Ability by getting hit is equal to the damage % taken, thus increasing it for hits that deal more than 3.125% damage.
      • Buff This also means moves that deal less than 3.125% (like some multi-hit moves) are less likely to make Kirby lose his ability.
    • Change Inhale has a more opaque visual effect.
    • Change Kirby mouth's now uses the same texture used for his mouth. As a result, with the exception of both his default and P8 alternate costume, the color of Kirby's mouth no longer matches the color of his feet.
  • Hammer Flip:
    • Buff Hammer launches at a lower angle when not fully charged (53° → 48° (grounded), 55° → 50° (aerial)), slightly improving its KO potential.
    • Buff The grounded version has intangibility (frames 2-10) and more super armor (frames 11-13 → 11-17) when fully charged.
    • Buff The aerial version deals slightly more damage (15%-27% → 16%-28%) with no compensation on knockback.
    • Nerf The aerial version sends at a higher angle when fully charged (45° → 50°), slightly reducing its KO potential despite its increased damage.
    • Change Kirby may use his uncharged or fully charged voice lines from Smash 4 when swinging an uncharged Hammer.
    • Change A fully charged Hammer triggers Special Zoom.
  • Final Cutter:
    • Buff Final Cutter has less landing lag (34 frames → 30).
    • Buff It can snap to the ledge earlier (frame 36 → 33).
    • Buff The rising hit has a longer duration (frames 23-24 → 23-26). The set knockback during the additional active frames is lower (117/102 → 60/50) to link into the falling hit as well.
    • Buff The landing hit no longer has set knockback (120 set/100 scaling → 85 base/95 scaling).
    • Nerf The falling hit has smaller hitboxes (6.5u → 6u (meteor), 6u → 5.5u (late)).
    • Nerf The falling hit's meteor smash portion has slightly less set knockback (100 → 96).
    • Change The projectile has a lower hitlag multiplier (1× → 0.7×), although this is compensated by the universal increase to hitlag.
  • Stone:
    • Buff Aerial Stone has super armor during startup (frames 19-28).
    • Buff It deals more knockback while falling (65 base/70 scaling → 69/76).
    • Buff The landing hit launches at a higher angle (0° → 25°) and has much more base knockback (40 → 86), although with its knockback scaling partly compensated (40 → 30), allowing it to set up edgeguards more effectively, while also increasing its KO power.
    • Nerf The aerial hit can no longer combo into the landing hit, significantly decreasing its shield damage.
    • Change If Stone is hit with a reversing move such as Cape, the transformation will visually spin around.
    • Change Stone can transform into a Treasure Chest found in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild's shrines.
    • Change If Kirby is metal when using Stone, the transformation will also be metal.
    • Change Kirby doesn't change back to normal if he lands underwater.
    • Change Kirby briefly does his guarding pose in the startup animation, referencing the animation that plays after obtaining the Stone ability in Kirby Super Star.
  • Ultra Sword:
    • Nerf The final hit has less knockback scaling (100 → 95), hindering its KO potential.
    • Change It features a special background effect upon usage, in a similar fashion to the use of Super Abilities in Kirby's Return to Dream Land.

Update history[edit]

Aside from glitch fixes, Kirby has been buffed significantly via game updates. Update 2.0.0 improved his ground game by reducing the ending lag of his forward tilt, along with granting it increased base knockback, giving it newfound KO potential at very high percentages, while also boosting its safety at low percents. Dash attack's clean hit was also given a larger hitbox, and its damage output was increased overall. Update 3.0.0 improved the duration of his up smash's clean hit, making it easier to land on aerial opponents, and reduced the ending lag on his neutral aerial. Inhale's Copy Ability grace period was also extended, allowing Kirby to safely keep his abilities for longer, and the probability of him losing them when receiving damage was also reduced. Furthermore, his down throw's damage output was increased, and Final Cutter can grab ledges earlier, making it safer for recovery.

Update 6.0.0 granted Kirby some of his most significant improvements. Both neutral and up aerials had their startup reduced and their knockback increased, improving their combo and KO potential. Inhale had its startup reduced as well, and the grace period for Copy Ability was further increased, along with a further reduction to the probability of losing his abilities. Up smash's sourspot had its knockback increased, improving its consistency, and neutral attack's startup was reduced by 1 frame. Following this, update 7.0.0 enlarged Kirby's shield, making him much less susceptible to shield pokes.

Kirby has been buffed once more in update 8.0.0, strengthening a handful of his finishers such as down smash, back aerial, and Stone, with the former having decreased start-up, alleviating the nerfs they initially received in the transition to Ultimate. Dash attack had its clean hit's knockback increased and its previously high endlag reduced, with cross-ups now being much safer and as well as giving the late hit follow-up potential. Although forward aerial's increased damage output and knockback on the final hit makes it harder for him to follow up with his combos at low percents, it is an overall benefit since it renders his finishers to be more potent, while indirectly giving his other combo tools more flexibility. Update 13.0.1 added a minor buff/bug fix of Kirby's version of Lightning Buster less ending lag to match Mythra.

Overall, Kirby fares significantly better than he did at the launch of Ultimate, with his combo potential and mobility being greatly improved, as well as the combos doing more damage, which makes his neutral game more viable and leaves him less reliant on gimmicks to consistently close stocks.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 1.1.0

  • Buff Up aerial has less ending lag (FAF 40 → 38).
  • Change The animation for Final Cutter has been adjusted.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 1.2.0

  • Bug fix After copying Pac-Man's Bonus Fruit, Key will no longer be discarded when it is recycled.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 2.0.0

  • Buff Kirby's Dash attack has greater range and all hitboxes deal 2% more damage (10%/7%/4% → 12%/9%/6%), with knockback not fully compensated.
  • Buff Forward tilt has increased base knockback (12 → 40) and reduced ending lag (frame 28 → 24). This improves its safety as a spacing tool, and even allows it to KO at higher percents.
  • Buff Stone now has damage-based armor starting on frame 19 when used in the air. This makes the move harder to intercept.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 3.0.0

  • Buff Up smash's clean hit has a longer duration, with the late hit having a shorter duration instead (frame 12 (strong)/13-14 (mid)/15-17 (late) → 12-14/15-16/17).
  • Buff Neutral aerial has less ending lag (FAF 63 → 55) and auto-cancels earlier (frame 56 → 51).
  • Buff The first 9 hits of down throw deal more damage (0.8% → 1%, total: 10.2% → 12%).
  • Inhale
    • Buff Kirby dies later when performing a Kirbycide with Inhale, though he still dies first (distance from the blastzone: (-10 → -4). This gives the opponent less time to recover after Kirby is KO'd.
    • Buff Kirby cannot lose Copy Abilities received by Inhale for a longer period of time (5 seconds → 10).
    • Buff Kirby is less likely to lose Copy Abilities when getting hit (Chance to lose: Damage Received/70 * 1.3 → Damage Received/70).
    • Bug fix Fixed multiple Inhale Glitches:
      • Bug fix Fixed a visual glitch where Kirby would retain parts of Metal status with Wii Fit Trainer.
      • Bug fix Fixed a visual glitch where Kirby’s Bandana from Snake would move during the camera view of each frame.
      • Bug fix Opponents now properly gain intangibility when caught by Inhale; previously opponents would become stuck in a hitstun during Inhale.
      • Bug fix Removed Infinite floating glitch that occurs when Kirby uses multiple copied Mii Swordfighter's Gale Strikes in the air after perfoming a throw that left him in the air.
      • Bug fix Removed Gliding glitch when Kirby uses a copied and B-reversed Mii Swordfighter's Gale Strike while running.
  • Buff Final Cutter can snap to the ledge earlier (frame 36 → 33).

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 3.1.0

  • Nerf Kirby can no longer perform the initial dash cancel to Pikmin Throw.
  • Bug fix Fixed an issue that resulted in Kirby being unable to perform air dodges, shield and crouch after attempting to change then losing the chosen Monado Art.
  • Bug fix Scenarios where the opponent would not escape from Inhale after Kirby gets hitstunned at a specific frame has been fixed.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 6.0.0

  • Buff Neutral attack's first hit has less startup (frame 3 → 2), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 16 → 15).
  • Buff Up smash's clean sourspot deals more knockback (30 base/99 scaling → 36/104), with the knockback values matching the sweetspots.
  • Buff Neutral aerial has less startup (frame 10 → 8) with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 55 → 53), and the clean hit has more knockback scaling (100 → 117), KOing under 150% from the center of Final Destination.
  • Buff Up aerial has less startup (frame 10 → 8) with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 38 → 36), and deals more damage (9% → 10%) with more knockback scaling (108 → 115), KOing under 160% from ground level.
  • Buff Inhale has less startup (frame 14 → 10) with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 68 → 64).
  • Buff Kirby cannot lose Copy Abilities received by Inhale for a longer period of time (10 seconds → 20).
  • Buff Kirby is less likely to lose Copy Abilities when getting hit (Chance to lose: Damage Received/70 * 100% → Damage Received/70 * 70%).

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 7.0.0

  • Buff Overall shield size has been increased.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 8.0.0

  • Dash attack:
    • Buff Dash attack has less ending lag (FAF 60 → 52).
    • Buff The clean hit has more knockback scaling (66 → 71).
  • Down smash:
    • Buff Down smash has less startup (frame 10 → 7), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 54 → 51).
    • Buff It has more knockback scaling (89 → 94).
  • Buff Forward aerial's second and third hit deal more damage (3% → 4% (hit 2), 5% → 6% (hit 3); total: 12% → 14%), with base knockback on the third hit not fully compensated (30 → 24).
  • Buff Back aerial's sweetspot has more knockback scaling (100 → 104).
  • Buff Stone deals more knockback (65 base/70 scaling → 69/76 (aerial), 24 scaling → 30 (shockwave)).

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 13.0.1

  • Buff Kirby's version of Lightning Buster has less ending lag (FAF 71 → 69), now matching Mythra's.

Moveset[edit]

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

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

  Name Damage Description
Neutral attack Punch (パンチ) / Follow-Up Punch (追いパンチ) / Vulcan Jab (バルカンジャブ) / Vulcan Finish (バルカンフィニッシュ) 1.8% A one-two combo. When button mashed, Kirby performs the Vulcan Jab from the Fighter ability before concluding with the Smash Punch. It is very quick due to coming out on frame 2, and its first two hits have very minimal ending lag. These traits make it effective for jab canceling or as an out of shield option. Both hits can also jab lock.
1.6%
0.2% (loop), 3% (last)
Forward tilt Spinning Kick (スピニングキック) 8% (base), 7% (tip) Throws a spinning roundhouse kick. It is quick, due to coming out on frame 5, having very little ending lag and can be angled. The tip of Kirby's foot is a sourspot, but it is out-prioritized by the other hitboxes. Due to its above average knockback, it can KO middleweights starting at around 140% at the edge of Final Destination when sweetspotted; this makes it a useful 2-framing option when angled downwards.
Up tilt Kirby Tail (カービィテイル) 5% (clean), 4% (late) A scorpion kick. Although its damage output is low, it is a very useful combo starter at low percents, due to it coming out on frame 4 and having both very minimal ending lag and disjointed range which also reaches in front of him. It also renders Kirby's foot intangible throughout its duration, which can give him protection above him and allows it to be used as an anti-air tool despite its rather poor range.
Down tilt Squish Kick (ローキック, Low Kick) 6% A crouching shin kick. It is fairly spammable due to coming out on frame 4 and having minimal ending lag. It also moves Kirby marginally forward when using it. When coupled with its tripping potential, and the fact that Kirby's crouch allows him to dodge many attacks with high hitboxes, it can be a very useful set-up option, especially after a crouch.
Dash attack Burning (バーニング) 12% (clean), 9% (mid), 6% (late) The Burn attack from the Burning ability from Kirby's Adventure. It has decent startup at frame 9 with a long-lasting hitbox that grows weaker over time. Its clean hitbox is one of the strongest dash attacks in the game, KOing middleweights at around 100% from the edge of Final Destination, though it is extremely punishable on shield due to its endlag. Unlike Melee, it does not slide off of edges.
Forward smash Smash Kick (スマッシュキック) 15% (clean), 11% (late) Based on the Spin Kick from the Fighter ability from Kirby Super Star. Due to becoming active at frame 13, it is quite fast for a forward smash. It can be angled, moderately moves Kirby forward, and the clean hit is slightly disjointed, giving it deceptively good range. Its clean hitbox also deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth, which makes it a powerful and reliable KOing option. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights starting at around 70%. However, its late hitbox lacks reliable KO potential due to its high base knockback at the expense of very low knockback scaling. The hitbox also has a deceptively short duration, and it has noticeable ending lag (29 frames), making it unsafe on shield and punishable if not used correctly. A powerful punish option that is also capable of 2-framing reliably if angled downwards.
Up smash Somersault Kick (サマーソルトキック) 15%/14% (clean), 14%/13% (mid), 13%/12% (late) A bicycle kick. It can hit behind Kirby, while its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth akin to forward smash, KOing middleweights at around 100% from anywhere on Final Destination. Kirby's foot is also rendered intangible throughout its duration. Has moderate startup and ending lag, coming out on frame 12 and having 27 frames of ending lag, which gives it the fastest interruptibility of Kirby's smash attacks. Its middle hit is noticeably weaker, but still has surprisingly respectable KO power for an up smash and launches at a more favourable angle, KOing middleweights at around 120% from anywhere on Final Destination. The late hit has extremely low knockback, not KOing opponents even at Sudden Death percentages, and the move has a sourspot at the tip of Kirby's foot that deals less damage.
Down smash Propeller Kick (プロペラキック) 14% (clean), 10% (late) A spinning split kick. It hits in front of and behind Kirby, and its clean hitbox deals respectable damage and has very high knockback growth like his forward and up smashes. Comes out on frame 7, with the fastest startup of his smash attacks. It semi-spikes with above average power, with its clean hitbox KOing middleweights starting at around 100% from the edge of Final Destination, and is additionally a reliable 2-framing option that is very useful for edgeguarding as a result. It also renders Kirby's feet intangible starting from frame 3 until the clean hit ceases at frame 11. However, its late hitbox has significantly lower KO potential due to its lower damage, not KOing middleweights on the ledge of Final Destination until around 140%. Due to it having 31 frames of ending lag, it has the highest ending lag of Kirby's smash attacks, and combined with its long duration, it's very punishable if shielded or whiffed.
Neutral aerial Twinkle Star (ティンクルスター) 10% (clean), 8% (mid), 6% (mid-to-late), 4% (late) A cartwheel that also appears in the Smash Bros. ability. Its very low landing lag makes it a decent set-up option at low percents or a tool for shield pressure when short hopped, while its very high knockback growth makes it a decent anti-pressure option. In addition, on Final Destination, it can KO middleweights under 160% at center stage and at around 110% at the ledge if landing the clean hitbox, making it one of the strongest neutral aerials in the game, which also makes it a powerful out of shield option. It has large hitboxes that cover Kirby's body, especially at the beginning, giving good protection and coverage around him, and it can also edgeguard. It has properties of a sex kick and autocancels in a full hop. Due to coming out on frame 8, it has the second fastest startup of Kirby's aerials, although this also makes it slower in comparison to other sex kicks.
Forward aerial Triple Attack (トリプルアタック) 4% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2), 6% (hit 3) A series of three consecutive aerial kicks. Due to coming out on frame 10, it has the second slowest startup of Kirby's aerials. The first two hits have low knockback, which allows them to connect reliably into the third hit; however, they are notably inconsistent and the first hit doesn't use the autolink angle, meaning that it might experience fallouts as a result. Its low landing lag also allows the first or second hit to be used as set-up options into other moves, such as an up smash or forward smash at high percents. A versatile aerial that is good for combos and edgeguarding, it is capable of connecting into itself for a wall of pain in certain instances. As of update 8.0.0, it deals the highest damage of Kirby's aerials and, while this makes it more difficult to connect two forward aerials at low to mid percents, is able to KO middleweights near the edge of Final Destination around 130% or 170% near the center. It can also be used as an out-of-shield option if Kirby is too far away to hit the opponent with neutral aerial or up aerial, and its multiple hits can pressure shields when retreating. It auto-cancels in a full hop.
Back aerial Drop Kick (ドロップキック) 13% (clean), 8% (late) A dropkick. It functions as a sex kick, but it also has the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Kirby's aerials, due to it coming out on frame 6. It can autocancel in a short hop and its clean hitbox possesses very high knockback growth, which make it a viable KOing option. While near the edge of Final Destination, its clean hitbox KOs middleweights at around 105-110%, which is around the same KO percentages of Kirby's clean neutral aerial. It also boasts good range due to its slightly disjointed hitbox, which makes it a viable edge-guarding option, and allows it use in a wall of pain, as well as a good approaching option if used in a reverse aerial rush. These attributes make it one of Kirby's best finishers.
Up aerial Air Cutter (エアカッター) 10% A bycicle kick similar to his up smash. Comes out on frame 8, tied with neutral aerial for having the second lowest startup of Kirby's aerials. A decent juggling option, it can also be used for continuing a combo due to its low landing lag. Can be used as an out-of-shield option if the opponent has a large enough hurtbox. Due to its decent damage and knockback, it is strong enough to KO middlweights at around 150% on Final Destination on ground level, making it a useful KO option after a full hop, or above platforms. It can auto-cancel in a short hop fast fall.
Down aerial Screwdriver (スクリュードライバー) 1.3% (hits 1-5), 2% (hit 6), 2% (landing) A diagonal corkscrew dropkick. A decent combo starter on grounded opponents due to its low ending lag. The final hit is a weak meteor smash, which makes it useful for edgeguarding and allows it to gimp characters with short recoveries. It can even lead into a footstool jump on fast-fallers and heavyweights. While it has the highest amount of start-up lag out of Kirby's aerials due to coming out on frame 18 and can't auto-cancel in a short hop, it has landing hitboxes, giving Kirby a decent window to safely land. The landing hit has low fixed knockback, giving it some combo potential. While possessing a rather good auto-canceling window and being good for edgeguarding, its usage offstage is only serviceable against characters with slow or exploitable recoveries, as the final hit cannot reliably KO characters even as high as 180% offstage due to its weak damage output. It has the highest landing lag of of Kirby's aerials and, despite its low endlag, it's unsafe on shield due to the final hit's low damage output, making it punishable when used recklessly.
Grab Grab (つかみ) — Reaches out with one hand. Based on the startup animation of the Torrent Lariat from the Suplex ability from Kirby Super Star. It's one of the fastest grabs, but has somewhat short range.
Pummel Grab Slap (つかみビンタ) 1% A punch. Fast but weak.
Forward throw Power Bomb (パワーボム) 5% A throw resembling the Rock Drop from the Suplex ability from Kirby Super Star. Unlike the majority of forward throws, it possesses combo potential. Its most reliable follow-ups are neutral, forward and down aerials at low percents, and up aerial and Final Cutter at medium percents. Using it below a Battlefield platform will have Kirby land on said platform, hindering followups at lower percents. However, as of patch 6.0.0, the faster start-up on neutral and up aerials allow him to combo with them if he lands on a platform, but those follow-ups depend on the character.
Back throw Brain Buster (ブレーンバスター) 8% A back throw resembling the backwards dive from the Backdrop ability from Kirby's Adventure. Despite habing an average damage output and very low base knockback, it has very high knockback growth. As a result, it has decent KO potential. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at around 140%.
Up throw Air Drop (いずな落とし, Izuna Drop) 10% (throw), 7% (landing) The Air Drop from the Ninja ability from Kirby Super Star. Like Meta Knight's up throw, it can damage and launch bystanders upon landing. It is weaker than his back throw when used at the edge, but it is consistently strong regardless of where it is used on the stage. Great knockback, KOing middleweights at around 160% from anywhere on Final Destination without rage, though it is extremely susceptible to DI due to the long duration. Because Kirby jumps up to perform it, he can land onto platforms above him upon descending, which enables it to KO even earlier.
Down throw Fury Stomp (もうれつストンピング, Fury Stomping) 1% (hits 1-10), 2% (throw) The Fury Stomp from the Suplex ability from Kirby Super Star. It is Kirby's most damaging throw at 12%, which makes it useful for damage-racking when his other throws cannot do so. It can also damage nearby opponents. Due to its high knockback and unfavorable angle in comparison to other down throws, it launches too high for followups, so it is his most situational throw. However, it has enough knockback to KO middleweights at around 200% on Final Destination if Kirby has no rage, so it can be used as a situational KO option, but only on certain high platforms. On the top platform of Battlefield, it will KO middleweights at around 170-175% without rage.
Forward roll
Back roll
Spot dodge
Air dodge 		— —
Techs — —
Floor attack (front)
Floor getups (front) 		  7% Performs a spinning kick before getting up.
Floor attack (back)
Floor getups (back) 		  7% Performs a Kicks on one side and then the other before getting up.
Floor attack (trip)
Floor getups (trip) 		Break Spin 5% The Break Spin from the yo-yo ability from Kirby Super Star.
Edge attack
Edge getups 		  9% Performs a cartwheeling kick while climbing up. It has surprisingly good range compared to several other characters' edge attacks.
Neutral special Inhale 10% (swallow), 6% (spit) Inhales the opponent. It has a grabbox and can be held indefinitely. Upon Inhaling an opponent, Kirby can spit them out as a star to deal damage to them and any nearby opponents, copy their neutral special move, or walk around slowly and/or perform a short hop. However, the opponent can escape from Kirby's mouth via button mashing. Some characters will give Kirby a slight variation of their neutral special due to mechanics that would not work properly when copied, such as Luma Shot and Pikmin Pluck. When inhaling projectiles, Kirby will heal off a small amount of percentage, and when inhaling large projectiles, such as Samus's fully charged Charge Shot, it can be spat out as a star. Kirby's copied neutral special's damage output has a x1.2 multiplier compared to the opponent's version.
Side special Hammer Flip 19% (grounded uncharged), 16% (aerial uncharged), 35% (grounded fully charged), 28% (aerial fully charged) The attack of the same name from the Hammer ability. It is chargeable and, when fully charged, Kirby's hammer will ignite and deal recoil damage. He can also slowly walk and jump while charging. When it is used in midair, Kirby will swing his hammer twice, with each hit being equally powerful. While near the edge of Final Destination, uncharged Hammer Flip KOs middleweights at around 65%. Fully charged Hammer Flip KOs middleweights at around 6%. Although weaker, aerial Hammer Flip nevertheless possesses impressive KO potential. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at around 86%. Its fully charged version KOs them at around 33%. When fully charged and on the ground, it makes Kirby invincible from frame 2-10 and gives him super armor from frame 11-17. To counteract its power, it has long startup and endlag, making its usage in competitive play very limited outside of shield break punishes or covering get-up options from ledge.
Up special Final Cutter 5% (ascent), 2% (descent), 5% (landing), 6% (shockwave) The attack of the same name from the Cutter ability. It weakly meteor smashes any opponents he comes into contact with upon descending, which is somewhat useful as a sacrificial KO or to edgeguard opponents who run out of ledge invincibility, though not to the extent of similar moves like Aether. The sword also emits a shockwave upon hitting a solid surface, which is Kirby's only projectile aside from spitting out an Inhaled opponent. Solid vertical recovery distance and has serviceable horizontal distance when angled. Can also punish improper aerial approaches, but overuse will render Kirby vulnerable to punishment due to the high start-up. Because the attack doesn't have hitboxes covering Kirby when ascending and he cannot sweetspot the edge until the peak, he is vulnerable to edgeguarding. If the platform beneath Kirby disappears or if he is pushed off while he is still in the landing animation, he will be rendered helpless.
Down special Stone 18% (impact), 14% (shockwave) The Stone Change (while Kirby is on the ground) and the Stone Smash (while Kirby is in the air) from the Stone ability. While transformed, Kirby gains armor that can withstand at least 25%, though he can be grabbed while transformed. Stone Smash also grants super armor during startup (frames 19-28), and can also be canceled in midair by pressing the special button, which can be used for mindgames. Thanks to its high damage output, Stone Smash KOs middleweights at around 100% and deals considerable shield damage. Although Stone Change is considerably weaker, it is still a relatively potent semi-spike and comes out much faster thanks to its shockwave (frame 11 instead of 29). Stone's usage include combating juggles, or being used as a landing/edgeguarding tool; however, due to its high overall lag and predictability, it is not often used in competitive play.
Final Smash Ultra Sword 3% (stun), 5% (hit 1), 2.5% (hits 2-9), 16% (hit 10) The Super Ability of the same name. Kirby wields a gigantic sword to repeatedly slash the opponent before enlarging the sword and then concluding with a powerful downward slash. While near the edge of Final Destination, it KOs middleweights at around 15%.

Stats[edit]

Kirby's gravity and falling speed are set to 0.068544 and 1.8, respectively, during hitstun when launched at angles between 70°-110°.

Stats Weight Dash speed Walk speed Traction Air friction Air speed Air acceleration Gravity Falling speed Jumpsquat Jump height Double jump height
Value 79 1.9 – Initial dash
1.727 – Run 		0.977 0.116 0.015 0.84 0.03 – Base
0.065 – Additional 		0.064 1.23 – Base
1.968 – Fast-fall 		3 25.37 - Base
12.24 - Short hop 		21.06378125, 18.528125, 15.931125, 13.34569531, 10.82288281

Announcer call[edit]

Sound.png This article could use additional or higher-quality audio files.
The editor who added this tag suggests: Needs announcer calls from other languages.
If you have a good audio file for this article, upload it here.

  • English/Japanese/Chinese

On-screen appearance[edit]

  • Kirby rides in on his classic Warp Star, followed by a small explosion while flipping off of it.
  • Kirby's on-screen appearance

    Kirby's on-screen appearance

Taunts[edit]

All taunts remove Kirby's Copy Ability if he has one.

  • Up taunt: Smiles and poses, producing a star.
  • Side taunt: Spins around playfully, then says "Nyum!" while standing on one foot. Based on his "character chosen" animation in the original Super Smash Bros.
  • Down taunt: Leans toward the screen and says "Hi!" while waving his arms.
  • Kirby's up taunt.

    Kirby's up taunt.

  • Kirby's side taunt.

    Kirby's side taunt.

  • Kirby's down taunt.

    Kirby's down taunt.

Idle poses[edit]

  • Dozes off, then shakes his head awake.
  • Turns to face away from the screen, then turns back.
  • Kirby's first idle pose.

    Kirby's first idle pose.

  • Kirby's second idle pose.

    Kirby's second idle pose.

Crowd cheer[edit]

Cheer (English) Cheer (Japanese/Chinese) Cheer (Italian) Cheer (Dutch) Cheer (French)
Cheer
NTSC

PAL
Description Kir - by! Ka - a - bii! Kir - by! Kirby! Kirby! Kirby! Kir - by!
Cheer (German) Cheer (Spanish) Cheer (Russian) Cheer (Korean)
Cheer
NTSC

PAL
Description Kir - by! Kir - by! Kir - by! Kir - by! Keo - bi!

Victory poses[edit]

Note: Outside of team battles, Kirby's victory poses have three separate Kirbys, referencing the Kirby Dance from his home series.

  • Left: Moonwalks to the left, twists, slides to the right, and jumps into a pose where he stands on one foot. Based on Kirby's dances in Kirby's Return to Dream Land and ends with a pose similar to his Brawl render and his character select animation in Super Smash Bros., albeit much more subtle.
  • Up: Cartwheels to the left twice, wiggles, and does a front flip before posing. The ending pose originated from the Kirby Dance in Kirby's Adventure.
  • Right: Jumps twice, shuffles backwards, performs a breakdance, and poses. Based on Kirby's dances in Kirby's Return to Dream Land, with the ending pose also appearing in said game.
The victory theme of the Kirby universe is a cover of the short recurring theme that plays when Kirby completes a stage or defeats a boss, debuting in Kirby's Dream Land, though the shortened version that this track is based on debuted in Kirby's Adventure.
  • KirbyVictoryPose1SSBU.gif
  • KirbyVictoryPose2SSBU.gif
  • KirbyVictoryPose3SSBU.gif

In competitive play[edit]

Most historically significant players[edit]

See also: Category:Kirby players (SSBU)
  • Mexico Guilheww - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, being the only solo Kirby player to ever be ranked in the top 100 of a notable global ranking, ranking 93rd on the LumiRank 2024.1. His 13th-place finish at S Factor 11 is the highest placement for a Kirby player at a major event. In addition, he won the superregional Trick or Fortune, the first Kirby player to win a superregional.
  • USA JeJaJeJa - One of the two best Kirby players in the post-online metagame, having placed well at many events, including 33rd at the supermajors Super Smash Con 2022, Let's Make Big Moves 2023, Collision 2024, and Riptide 2024 as well as 17th at Port Priority 7. He is the first Kirby player to win a ranked event, doing so at Afterburner 2024, and has also won the superregional Ring Out. In addition, he was ranked 115th on the LumiRank 2024.1, the second-highest Kirby player ranked on a global ranking.
  • France Jesuischoq - Considered the best Kirby player in the early metagame. Prior to his inactivity, he regularly placed highly at European events, including 2nd at the regional Smash4Glory - Ultimate Edition upsetting Glutonny, and 13th at the superregional VCA 2019.
  • Japan Konokururu - One of the best Kirby players in the world in the post-online metagame and the best Kirby player in Japan. Although his placements have been less consistent than JeJaJeJa and Guilheww, he has placed well at several supermajors including 17th at Kagaribi 7, 33rd at Kagaribi 9, and 25th at Kowloon 12 with Kagaribi.

Tier placement and history[edit]

Since the release of Ultimate, several professionals immediately noticed Kirby's significant flaws from the previous installment had been retained, in spite of the mechanics suiting him better in comparison to SSB4. In addition, players notified his vulnerability to being camped, poor range, slow air speed, as well as platforms potentially negating all follow-ups should he start a combo with a forward throw. Despite some representation and decent results from players such as Jesuischoq and Ferretkuma, most of the community considered Kirby to be a low or bottom-tier in the early metagame, with some going as far as to consider Kirby could be one of the worst characters in the game.

Kirby later received many significant buffs in balance patches, more than almost every other character, especially in patches 6.0.0 and 8.0.0. These patches greatly improved his overall frame data, KO power and versatility to many of his attacks, allowing him to be more consistent in closing stocks and starting combos. In addition, although Kirby's representation remained rather small and was often in the bottom 10, he began seeing more success both online and offline from players such as Guilheww and JeJaJeJa, who were able to achieve strong results with him in national tournaments and in majors. These small positives were enough to raise opinions on Kirby's viability slightly. As such, although Kirby continues to have little impact on the metagame, he is usually not thought of as a candidate for the worst character in the game. This is reflected in Kirby's placement on the first tier list, where he is ranked 76th as a low-tier character. Although he only rose one spot to 75th on the second tier list, gradually improving results from dedicated players had led some players to believe Kirby should be ranked higher thanks to his improved advantage state.

Classic Mode: Gourmet Clash[edit]

Kirby's congratulations screen.

Kirby's opponents are characters who, like him, are known for their gluttonous appetites in their respective series. For each battle, Kirby and his opponent each spawn with 35% damage and several food items appear on the stage as the match begins.

Round Opponent Stage Music
1 Pac-Man (SSBU) Pac-Man Pac-Land PAC-MAN
2 Giant Yoshi (SSBU) Yoshi Yoshi's Island Ground Theme - Super Mario World
3 Donkey Kong (SSBU) Donkey Kong Jungle Japes Jungle Hijinxs
4 Giant Wario (SSBU) Wario Gamer WarioWare, Inc.
5 King K. Rool (SSBU) King K. Rool Kongo Jungle Mangrove Cove
6 Giant King Dedede (SSBU) King Dedede Fountain of Dreams Gourmet Race (64)
Bonus Stage
Final Marx Mysterious Dimension Vs. Marx

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Kirby has Staff Credits - Kirby's Dream Land accompany the credits.

Character unlock tree[edit]

Kirby's Classic Mode character unlock tree includes the following characters in order:

  1. Ness
  2. Jigglypuff
  3. Pac-Man
  4. Zelda
  5. Robin
  6. Corrin
  7. Lucas
  8. Palutena

Each character can be unlocked by clearing Kirby's Classic Mode, or the Classic Mode of any preceding character, if all preceding characters have been unlocked. Once all the above characters are unlocked, clearing Classic Mode with any of them will default to Mario's character unlock tree, starting with Sonic.

Role in World of Light[edit]

Kirby facing the World of Light, from the mode's opening cutscene.
Kirby in the start of World of Light's gameplay

Kirby was among the fighters summoned to the cliffside to assist in defeating an army of Master Hands.

After Galeem absorbed all of the Master Hands during the opening cutscene, he began to unleash beams of light that vaporized all of the fighters and later imprisoned all of them. Kirby was the sole survivor after escaping on his Warp Star, barely warping away from the beams before they could engulf him. Despite being the sole survivor, Kirby is still seen as a puppet in a few areas of the mode. It was later explained that Galeem had analyzed Kirby at some point during the story and was able to make puppet fighters in his image without needing Kirby himself.

Kirby crash-lands in a canyon area, and begins his quest to save the other fighters as the initial starting protagonist.

He is later seen alongside several other fighters, preparing their final stand against Galeem and Dharkon.

Spirits[edit]

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

Additionally, Kirby makes an appearance in various support spirits.

  • 323. Kirby

    323. Kirby

  • 326. Warp Star

    326. Warp Star

  • 327. Star Rod

    327. Star Rod

  • 328. Ultra Sword

    328. Ultra Sword

  • 329. Robobot Armor

    329. Robobot Armor

In Spirit Battles[edit]

As the main opponent[edit]

Spirit Battle parameters Inspiration
No. Image Name Series Enemy Fighter(s) Type Power Stage Rules Conditions Music Character
48
SSBU spirit Boo.png
 Boo Super Mario Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 1,800 Mushroom Kingdom U (Slide Lift Tower) •Invisibility •The enemy is invisible
•The enemy's shield has extra durability 		Main Theme - Luigi's Mansion (Brawl)
50
SSBU spirit Bob-omb.png
 Bob-omb Super Mario Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×3
Grab
 3,500 Mushroom Kingdom •Item: Bob-omb •The enemy's throwing-type items have increased power
•The enemy has increased move speed 		Airship Theme - Super Mario Bros. 3
66
SSBU spirit King Bob-omb.png
 King Bob-omb Super Mario Series •Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 4,100 Peach's Castle •Item: Bob-omb •The enemy is giant
•The enemy is easily distracted by items 		Main Theme - Super Mario 64
69
SSBU spirit Piantas.png
 Piantas Super Mario Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×2 Kirby (SSBU)×2 Kirby (SSBU)×2 Kirby (SSBU)×2
Shield
 1,600 Delfino Plaza •Item Tidal Wave
•Item: Mushrooms 		•Certain items will appear in large numbers after a little while Delfino Plaza (Original)
71
SSBU spirit Luma.png
 Luma Super Mario Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Shield
 3,500 Mario Galaxy •Item: Stars •Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle Rosalina in the Observatory / Luma's Theme
74
SSBU spirit Lubba.png
 Lubba Super Mario Series •Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Shield
 4,100 Mario Galaxy •Hazard: Low Gravity
•Item: Super Launch Star 		•Gravity is reduced
•The enemy starts the battle with a Super Launch Star
•The enemy is giant 		The Starship Sails
116
SSBU spirit Viruses.png
 Viruses Dr. Mario Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 4,000 Mario Bros. (Battlefield form) N/A •Timed battle (1:30) Fever Chill Virus (blue costume)
Weird Virus (yellow costume)
Fever Virus (red costume)
285
SSBU spirit X Parasite.png
 X Parasite Metroid Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×10
Attack
 2,100 Lylat Cruise N/A •The enemy favors neutral specials
•Defeat an army of fighters 		Sector 1
327
SSBU spirit Star Rod.png
 Star Rod Kirby Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Attack
 9,200 Fountain of Dreams N/A •The enemy starts the battle with a Star Rod Gourmet Race (Melee) Kirby/Star Rod's shards
329
SSBU spirit Robobot Armor.png
 Robobot Armor Kirby Series •Metal Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4 (40 HP)
Attack
 4,000 Halberd •Item: Drill •Stamina battle
•The enemy is metal 		Pink Ball Activate!
331
SSBU spirit Dragoon.png
 Dragoon Kirby Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 13,500 Pilotwings •Item: Dragoon Parts •Items will be pulled toward the enemy
•The enemy has increased move speed 		The Legendary Air Ride Machine Kirby
335
SSBU spirit Gooey.png
 Gooey Kirby Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 4,200 Dream Land N/A •Timed battle (2:00)
•The enemy favors neutral specials 		Gourmet Race (64)
339
SSBU spirit Whispy Woods.png
 Whispy Woods Kirby Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×5
Shield
 9,300 Green Greens •Hazard: Heavy Wind •Dangerously high winds are in effect
•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd 		Boss Theme Medley - Kirby Series Whispy Woods's apples
341
SSBU spirit Nightmare's Power Orb.png
 Nightmare's Power Orb Kirby Series •Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 4,000 Fountain of Dreams •Assist Trophy Enemies (Nightmare) •Hostile assist trophies will appear after a little while
•The enemy is giant
•The enemy starts the battle with a Star Rod 		Vs. Marx
360
SSBU spirit Waddle Dee.png
 Waddle Dee Kirby Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Neutral
 3,700 Dream Land GB N/A •Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle Kirby Retro Medley (Green Greens)
362
SSBU spirit Waddle Doo.png
 Waddle Doo Kirby Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×3
Attack
 2,500 Dream Land •Hazard: Zap Floor •The floor is electrified
•The enemy starts the battle with a Super Scope 		Butter Building (for 3DS / Wii U)
366
SSBU spirit Scarfy.png
 Scarfy Kirby Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)×3
Shield
 1,400 Dream Land N/A •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd Green Greens (Melee) Angry Scarfy (red Kirby)
368
SSBU spirit Rocky.png
 Rocky Kirby Series •Metal Kirby Kirby (SSBU) (120 HP)
Shield
 2,600 The Great Cave Offensive (Battlefield form) N/A •Timed stamina battle (1:00)
•The enemy favors down specials
•The enemy is metal 		The Great Cave Offensive
370
SSBU spirit Bomber.png
 Bomber Kirby Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 3,500 Dream Land GB •Item: Bomber •The enemy starts the battle with a Bomber Butter Building (Brawl)
380
SSBU spirit Prince Fluff.png
 Prince Fluff Kirby's Epic Yarn •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 1,900 Super Happy Tree N/A •The enemy's throws have increased power
•The enemy favors grabs and throws 		Green Greens (for 3DS / Wii U)
432
SSBU spirit Dugtrio.png
 Dugtrio Pokémon Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×3
Shield
 1,500 Pokémon Stadium 2 (Ground type) •Earthquake •Periodic earthquakes will shake the stage after a little while Pokémon Gym/Evolution - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue
438
SSBU spirit Geodude.png
 Geodude Pokémon Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Shield
 1,400 Pokémon Stadium 2 (Ground type) N/A •The enemy favors down specials Pokémon Gym/Evolution - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue
458
SSBU spirit Ditto.png
 Ditto Pokémon Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 3,400 Pokémon Stadium N/A •The enemy favors neutral specials
•Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Ditto) 		Road to Viridian City - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue
470
SSBU spirit Marill.png
 Marill Pokémon Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Shield
 1,700 Pokémon Stadium 2 N/A •Water and ice attacks aren't as effective against the enemy Pokémon Gold / Pokémon Silver Medley
546
SSBU spirit Diancie.png
 Diancie Pokémon Series •Reflect Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×2
Grab
 3,900 Kalos Pokémon League (hazards off) N/A •The enemy reflects projectiles
•The enemy favors down specials
•The enemy takes less damage while in the air 		Battle! (Champion) - Pokémon X / Pokémon Y
553
SSBU spirit Pyukumuku.png
 Pyukumuku Pokémon Series •Tiny Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Shield
 1,600 Wuhu Island (Frisbee Dog Park) N/A •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Pyukumuku) Battle! (Wild Pokémon) - Pokémon Sun / Pokémon Moon
559
SSBU spirit Nihilego.png
 Nihilego Pokémon Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×3
Grab
 4,100 The Great Cave Offensive (Ω form) •Hazard: Poison Floor •The floor is poisonous
•The enemy loves to jump
•The enemy falls slowly 		The Battle at the Summit!
623
SSBU spirit Wrys.png
 Wrys Fire Emblem Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU) (30 HP)
Shield
 2,500 Temple N/A •Timed stamina battle (1:30)
•The enemy tends to avoid conflict
•The enemy heals over time 		Shadow Dragon Medley
806
SSBU spirit White Pikmin.png
 White Pikmin Pikmin Series •Tiny Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×13 (10 HP)
Grab
 4,400 Distant Planet (Battlefield form) •Item: POW Block
•Hazard: Poison Floor 		•The floor is poisonous
•Timed stamina battle (1:00)
•The enemy favors dash attacks 		Forest of Hope
809
SSBU spirit Rock Pikmin.png
 Rock Pikmin Pikmin Series •Tiny Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×8 (10 HP)
Grab
 1,800 Garden of Hope (hazards off) •Hazard: High Gravity •Stamina battle
•Your jumping power decreases
•The enemy favors down specials 		Garden of Hope (Original)
948
SSBU spirit Ghosts.png
 Ghosts PAC-MAN Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Jigglypuff Jigglypuff (SSBU)
•Squirtle Squirtle (SSBU)
•Pac-Man Pac-Man (SSBU)
Shield
 3,500 Pac-Land (Battlefield form) •Assist Trophy Enemies (Ghosts) •Hostile assist trophies will appear PAC-MAN Blinky
1,122
SSBU spirit Unira.png
 Unira Clu Clu Land Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Attack
 1,800 75m •Item Tidal Wave
•Item: Unira 		•Certain items will appear in large numbers
•The enemy is easily distracted by items 		Clu Clu Land
1,155
from the game's files
 Hakkun Sutte Hakkun •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 2,100 Yoshi's Island •Invisibility •Timed battle (2:00)
•You are invisible after a little while 		Flower Field
1,180
Spirit of Tomatrio from Tomato Adventure
 Tomatrio Tomato Adventure •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 1,600 Yoshi's Island (Melee) (Battlefield form) •Item: Maxim Tomato •The enemy is easily distracted by items Mixed-Up Scramble
1,186
from the game's files
 Mattel The Legendary Starfy Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 1,800 Delfino Plaza (Large Island) •Assist Trophy Enemies (Starfy) •Hostile assist trophies will appear Tortimer Island Medley
1,226
from the game's files
 Magkid Slide Adventure MAGKID •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Neutral
 1,800 PictoChat 2 •Assist Trophy Enemies (Devil) •Hostile assist trophies will appear
•The enemy can deal damage by dashing into you
•The enemy has increased move speed 		PictoChat
1,278
from the game's files
 Qbby BOXBOY! Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Grab
 9,300 Wii Fit Studio •Item Tidal Wave •Certain items will appear in large numbers Ice Cream Island
1,330
SSBU spirit Slime (Dragon Quest).png
 Slime (Dragon Quest) DRAGON QUEST Series •Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×5 (50 HP)
•Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU) (150 HP)
Grab
 1,700 Gaur Plain (Battlefield form) N/A •Stamina battle
•The enemy favors neutral air attacks
•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd 		Fighting Spirits - DRAGON QUEST III King Slime (Giant Kirby)
1,336
SSBU spirit Liquid Metal Slime.png
 Liquid Metal Slime DRAGON QUEST Series •Metal Kirby Kirby (SSBU) (8 HP)
Neutral
 5,700 The Great Cave Offensive (Battlefield form) •Move Speed ↑
•Defense ↑
•Attack Power ↓ 		•The enemy has super armor and is hard to launch or make flinch
•The enemy starts the battle with a Franklin Badge
•Timed stamina battle (0:30) 		Battle for the Glory - DRAGON QUEST IV
1,343
SSBU spirit Jiggy.png
 Jiggy Banjo-Kazooie Series •Gold Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×5 (10 HP)
Shield
 2,000 The Great Cave Offensive N/A •Timed stamina battle
•The enemy falls slowly 		Treasure Trove Cove
1,355
SSBU spirit O-Tetrimino.png
 O-Tetrimino Tetris Series •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Shield
 2,000 Mushroomy Kingdom •Assist Trophy Enemies (Thwomp)
•Item: POW Block 		•Hostile assist trophies will appear
•The enemy favors down specials in the air 		Tetris: Type B
1,433
SSBU spirit Slime (Minecraft).png
 Slime (Minecraft) Minecraft Series •Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU) (120 HP)
•Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×3 (60 HP)
•Tiny Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×6 (30 HP)
Grab
 3,300 Minecraft World (Taiga) N/A •Stamina battle
•The enemy favors neutral air attacks
•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd 		Halland / Dalarna
1,473
SSBU spirit Kittens.png
 Kittens Super Mario Series •Tail Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 1,900 Delfino Plaza (Large Island) •Item: Balls •The enemy has increased move speed and reduced weight
•Defeat an army of fighters 		Main Theme - Super Mario 64 (Remix)
1,490
SSBU spirit Tama.png
 Tama Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin •Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Clear Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 1,500 Garden of Hope (Ω form) N/A •The enemy favors air attacks
•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd
•The enemy is invisible 		The Mysterious Murasame Castle Medley Holy Sword Tama (Clear Kirby)
1,517
SSBU spirit Oatchi.png
 Oatchi Pikmin Series •Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Alph Olimar (SSBU)
Shield
 8,800 Distant Planet (Ω form) •Item: Hocotate Bomb •The enemy favors dash attacks
•The enemy can deal damage by dashing into you 		Garden of Hope (Original)
1,528
SSBU spirit Wonder Flower & Talking Flower.png
 Wonder Flower & Talking Flower Super Mario Series •Tiny Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Tiny Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×20
Neutral
 1,900 Mushroom Kingdom U •Assist Trophy Enemies (Skull Kid)
•Item: Fire Flower 		•Defeat the main fighter to win
•The enemy has super armor and is hard to launch or make flinch
•Hostile assist trophies will appear 		Pandemonium Wonder Flower (Blue Kirby)
Talking Flowers (Yellow Kirby)

As a minion[edit]

Spirit Battle parameters Inspiration
No. Image Name Series Enemy Fighter(s) Type Power Stage Rules Conditions Music Character
67
SSBU spirit Shine Sprite.png
 Shine Sprite Super Mario Series •Rosalina & Luma Rosalina (SSBU)
•Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 13,100 Delfino Plaza (roof) •Temporary Invincibility
•Sudden Final Smash
•Item: Stars 		•Defeat the main fighter to win
•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash
•The enemy will occasionally be invincible 		Delfino Plaza (Remix) Coins
72
SSBU spirit Hungry Luma.png
 Hungry Luma Super Mario Series •Rosalina & Luma Rosalina (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 1,900 Mario Galaxy •Item: Super Launch Star •Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle Egg Planet Hungry Luma
104
SSBU spirit Geno.png
 Geno Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars •Sheik Sheik (SSBU)
•Peach Peach (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Bowser Bowser (SSBU)
•Mario Mario (SSBU)
Attack
 13,700 Mario Galaxy (Battlefield form) N/A •Defeat the main fighter to win
•Timed battle (2:30)
•The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly 		Rainbow Road Medley Mallow
332
SSBU spirit Rick.png
 Rick Kirby Series •Pikachu Pikachu (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 4,100 Green Greens •Hazard: Ice Floor •The floor is frozen
•The enemy starts the battle with a Fire Flower
•The enemy has increased move speed 		Planet Popstar Kirby
333
SSBU spirit Kine.png
 Kine Kirby Series •Squirtle Squirtle (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Shield
 3,600 Wuhu Island (Rocks at sea) •Buoyancy Reduced •You can't swim
•The enemy starts the battle with a Freezie 		Kirby Retro Medley (Float Islands) Kirby
334
SSBU spirit Coo.png
 Coo Kirby Series •Falco Falco (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 4,100 Dream Land •Hazard: Heavy Wind •Dangerously high winds are in effect
•The enemy loves to jump
•The enemy falls slowly 		Forest/Nature Area Kirby
690
SSBU spirit Ball.png
 Ball Game & Watch Series •Mr. Game & Watch Mr. Game & Watch (SSBU)
•Pac-Man Pac-Man (SSBU)
•Jigglypuff Jigglypuff (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 3,900 Flat Zone X (hazards off) •Item: Balls •The enemy favors grabs and throws
•The enemy's throwing-type items have increased power 		Flat Zone 2 Ball
723
SSBU spirit Viridi.png
 Viridi Kid Icarus Series •Mii Swordfighter Mii Swordfighter (SSBU) (Moveset 1232, Viridi Wig, Viridi Outfit, High Voice Type 6)
•Giant Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 13,700 Reset Bomb Forest N/A •Defeat the main fighter to win
•The enemy's special moves have increased power
•Timed battle (0:55) 		Wrath of the Reset Bomb Cragalanche
1,107
SSBU spirit Fighting Alloy Team.png
 Fighting Alloy Team Super Smash Bros. Series •Captain Falcon Team Captain Falcon (SSBU)×4
•Zelda Team Zelda (SSBU)×4
•Mario Team Mario (SSBU)×4
•Kirby Team Kirby (SSBU)×4
Attack
 3,300 Final Destination (Battlefield form) N/A •Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle Cruel Smash Green Alloy
1,119
SSBU spirit Devil.png
 Devil Devil World •Ridley Ridley (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×2
Shield
 3,900 75m (Battlefield form) •Assist Trophy Enemies (Devil) •Hostile assist trophies will appear 25m Theme Medaman
1,197
Munchymonk
 Munchy Monk Rhythm Heaven Series North America
Rhythm Paradise Series PAL 		•Ken Ken (SSBU)
•Tiny Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×3
Shield
 1,500 Spirit Train •Item: Food •Defeat the main fighter to win
•The enemy favors up specials
•The enemy is easily distracted by items 		Fruit Basket Dumplings
1,216
drlube
 Dr. Lobe Big Brain Academy Series •Dr. Mario Dr. Mario (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 3,400 PictoChat 2 •Hazard: Low Gravity
•Hazard: High Gravity 		•All fighters have reduced jump ability
•Gravity is reduced after a little while 		Title Theme - Big Brain Academy Floating Objects (Shadow Shift)
1,286
Snipclip
 Clip & Snip Snipperclips - Cut it out, together! Series •Pac-Man Pac-Man (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Attack
 3,600 PictoChat 2 N/A •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge Noisy Notebook Snip
1,301
SSBU spirit River Survival.png
 River Survival Super Mario Series •Bowser Bowser (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
•Yoshi Yoshi (SSBU)
•Rosalina & Luma Rosalina (SSBU)
Shield
 5,500 Kongo Falls (Ω form) •Bob-omb Festival
•Item Tidal Wave
•Item: Food 		•Survive until the timer runs out (1:00)
•Bob-ombs will rain from the sky after a little while 		Slide Goomba
1,411
SSBU spirit Duran & Angela.png
 Duran & Angela Mana Series •Roy Roy (SSBU)
•Zelda Zelda (SSBU)
•Tiny Bunny Kirby Kirby (SSBU)×2
Attack
 9,200 Gaur Plain (Ω form) •Item: Ramblin' Evil Mushroom •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd Filled with Hope Rabites
1,450
SSBU spirit Chocobo & Moogle.png
 Chocobo & Moogle FINAL FANTASY Series •Mii Brawler Mii Brawler (SSBU) (Moveset 3122, Isaac Wig, Yellow Tracksuit)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 1,600 Garden of Hope •Item: Cucco •Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle
•The enemy starts the battle with a Bob-omb 		Flower Field Moogle
•Mii Brawler Mii Brawler (SSBU) (Moveset 3122, Chocobo Hat, Yellow Tracksuit)[SB 1]
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
1,524
SSBU spirit Sprigatito, Fuecoco, & Quaxly.png
 Sprigatito, Fuecoco, & Quaxly Pokémon Series •Ivysaur Ivysaur (SSBU)
•Squirtle Squirtle (SSBU)
•Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Neutral
 3,700 Delfino Plaza (Courtyard) N/A •The enemy favors side specials Battle! (Trainer) - Pokémon Sun / Pokémon Moon Fuecoco
1,525
SSBU spirit Peach & Stella.png
 Peach & Stella Super Mario Series •Peach Peach (SSBU)
•Tiny Kirby Kirby (SSBU)
Grab
 12,800 Luigi's Mansion •Assist Trophy Enemies (Lyn, Chef Kawasaki, Akira Yuki) •Hostile assist trophies will appear
•The enemy favors up smash attacks 		Fossil Falls Stella
  1. ^ This alternative occurs when the corresponding DLC has been purchased and downloaded.

Alternate costumes[edit]

Alternate costume (SSBU)
Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU) Kirby (SSBU)

Gallery[edit]

Fighter Showcase Video[edit]

Trivia[edit]

  • Kirby's stock icon is one of only six to show eyes (the others being Meta Knight, R.O.B., Sonic, Zombie, and Enderman). The most likely reason is to actually tell that it is his stock icon, as it is otherwise a simplistic pink circle.
    • It also greatly resembles his stock icon in the original Super Smash Bros.
    • This is also not counting Captain Falcon or Larry, as the eyes depicted for the former are not his actual eyes, and the latter lacks his irises.
  • Kirby's pose resembles his character artwork in Kirby Super Star, but rotated to slightly face the screen. Coincidentally, this was also used for his character select artwork in the original Super Smash Bros.
    • Coincidentally, his pose is also used for his Wrestler artwork in Kirby Fighters 2 (with the difference between the mask and the angry frown).
  • Kirby is the only Kirby series character to keep his Final Smash between Smash 4 and Ultimate.
  • Since Kirby is the starter character of World of Light and part of the starter roster, he is the only character that is not unlockable in the game for any mode.
    • This also makes Kirby the only character in the entire series that is never unlocked in any mode.
      • This means it is impossible to see the message saying that "Kirby Joins the Battle!". Modding the game to display this message (through setting Kirby's fighter spirit to rematchable) will reveal that Kirby does not have a text string for this instance, and the message will simply read "Joins the Battle!"
    • Despite his status as the mode's starter character and the closest thing to the main character, Kirby's depiction in marketing or artwork for Ultimate is no more prominent than any of the other starter characters, apart from Mario and Link who collectively serve as the game's mascots.
  • Due to his various Copy Abilities, Kirby has the highest amount of voice clips for any character in the game, with 95 clips (121 if DLC is included).
  • Because of the copy ability, Kirby has the most unique character models for any character in the game. There are 81 different models, with 648 models if alternate costumes are counted.
  • Barring Yoshi who is the only fighter of the Yoshi series, Kirby is the only starter character in Ultimate whose universe has more than one character to not include any characters in their Classic Mode unlock table, as Meta Knight is in Link's, and King Dedede is in Donkey Kong's.
  • Unlike other characters, Kirby can actually taunt online when playing outside of arenas, but only to discard his copy ability.
  • As a result of not being captured, Kirby is one of the few characters that doesn't have copies of him produced by Dharkon or Galeem during their boss fights.
  • Kirby's neutral item swing when using battering items has 2 fewer frames of ending lag, with an FAF of 24 as opposed to 26 for the rest of the cast.
  • Since Kirby was never possessed by Galeem like everyone else, his presence in many spirit battles went unclear for some time, until Masahiro Sakurai addressed this in an interview; stating that Galeem managed to analyze Kirby halfway through the story, making it possible to create puppets of him.[1]
    • Ironically, Kirby has the most spirit battle appearances of all characters, with 64 total.
  • Kirby is one of the five veterans from Smash 4 to have their Boxing Ring alias changed in Ultimate, the others being Link, King Dedede, Mega Man, and Ryu.
  • If the spirits in the collection are in numerical order, Kirby is the last character to be in a spirit battle as the main opponent, which is Wonder Flower & Talking Flower.
    • It is also the last character to be in a spirit battle as a minion, which is Peach & Stella.
  • Masahiro Sakurai revealed in a YouTube video that Kirby's Sora copy ability initially had hair that clipped into his eyes, and this was adjusted before the final release.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ https://twitter.com/PushDustIn/status/1098252915532165120?s=20
  2. ^ Odds and Ends of Supervising: Sora Edition [Graphics]


v • d • e
Fighters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Veterans Bayonetta · Bowser · Bowser Jr. · Captain Falcon · Cloud · Corrin · Dark Pit · Diddy Kong · Donkey Kong · Dr. Mario · Duck Hunt · Falco · Fox · Ganondorf · Greninja · Ice Climbers · Ike · Jigglypuff · King Dedede · Kirby · Link · Little Mac · Lucario · Lucas · Lucina · Luigi · Mario · Marth · Mega Man · Meta Knight · Mewtwo · Mii Fighter (Mii Brawler · Mii Gunner · Mii Swordfighter) · Mr. Game & Watch · Ness · Olimar · Pac-Man · Palutena · Peach · Pichu · Pikachu · Pit · Pokémon Trainer (Charizard · Ivysaur · Squirtle) · R.O.B. · Robin · Rosalina & Luma · Roy · Ryu · Samus · Sheik · Shulk · Snake · Sonic · Toon Link · Villager · Wario · Wii Fit Trainer · Wolf · Yoshi · Young Link · Zelda · Zero Suit Samus
Newcomers Banjo & Kazooie · Byleth · Chrom · Daisy · Dark Samus · Hero · Incineroar · Inkling · Isabelle · Joker · Kazuya · Ken · King K. Rool · Min Min · Piranha Plant · Pyra / Mythra  · Richter · Ridley · Sephiroth · Simon · Sora · Steve · Terry
v • d • e
Kirby (universe) Kirby universe
Fighters Kirby (SSB · SSBM · SSBB · SSB4 · SSBU) · Meta Knight (SSBB · SSB4 · SSBU) · King Dedede (SSBB · SSB4 · SSBU)
Assist Trophies Knuckle Joe · Nightmare · Chef Kawasaki
Bosses Giant Kirby · Marx
Stages Dream Land · Fountain of Dreams · Green Greens · Halberd · Dream Land GB · The Great Cave Offensive
Items Maxim Tomato · Star Rod · Parasol · Warp Star · Apple · Dragoon · Superspicy Curry · Bomber
Enemies Bonkers · Bronto Burt · Gordo · Parasol Waddle Dee · Plasma Wisp · Shotzo · Tac · Waddle Dee · Waddle Doo
Other Gourmet Race · Whispy Woods
Trophies, Stickers and Spirits Trophies (SSBM · SSBB · SSB4) · Stickers · Spirits
Music Brawl · SSB4 · Ultimate
Masterpieces Kirby's Dream Land · Kirby's Adventure · Kirby Super Star
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