Final Destination (SSBM)

Final Destination
Universe	Super Smash Bros.
Appears in	Melee
Availability	Unlockable
Unlock criteria	Complete the Event 51: The Showdown.
Tracks available	Final Destination Multi-Man Melee 2 (Alternate) Giga Bowser (When facing Giga Bowser in Adventure Mode)
Tournament legality Melee Singles: Neutral Doubles: Neutral

Final Destination (終点, Endpoint), sometimes abbreviated as FD or Final D, is a stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Master Hand and Crazy Hand are fought on this stage in Classic Mode, Bowser and Giga Bowser in Adventure Mode, Roy and any of his teammates in All-Star Mode, Ganondorf and Mewtwo for their unlocking battles. Some event matches, including two All-Star Matches, are also played here.

Stage layout

Final Destination is a flat, medium sized stage, very similar to its Smash 64 counterpart but much larger. It features a single, octagonal solid platform, under which a black orb floats. While having no effect on gameplay, the background of the stage changes during matches; a full cycle lasts about 216 seconds.

Tournament legality

Throughout Melee's history, Final Destination has always been a legal stage for tournament play, due to its lack of stage hazards and simplistic design that allow for straightforward singles matches. In the modern metagame, it is always one of five starter stages in singles, alongside Yoshi's Story, Battlefield, Dream Land, and Fountain of Dreams.

Final Destination is considered one of the best stages for projectile users and characters with chain grabs, as there are no platforms for opponents to escape to that can allow for alleviation of such pressures. It is also a solid stage choice for characters who have largely grounded neutral game options. On the other hand, Final Destination is a bad stage for characters who rely on platforms to continue combos, or lose defensive options due to the lack of such platforms. Final Destination is considered Ice Climbers' best stage, one of Marth's best stages, and a bad stage for Jigglypuff and Sheik against other top tiers, particularly Fox and Falco. Final Destination is particularly bad for Yoshi, who relies on shield dropping from platforms to make up for the inability to jump out of shield.

In the past, there was slight controversy over Final Destination's status as a neutral stage. Detractors argued that the completely flat geometry gives a disproportionate advantage to the aforementioned projectile and chain grab users; based on this, they vouched that it should be reserved for counterpicks instead. However, no strategy has been proven to be completely unbeatable on Final Destination compared to other stages, and the advantages that it gives in certain matchups are comparable to other situational advantages that other legal stages offer in different matchups, such as Dream Land's advantages for floaty characters. As such, the majority of professionals and tournament hosts agree that it is a reasonable starter stage.

Trophy information

The Final Destination trophy is unlocked by clearing Classic Mode on Hard or Very Hard difficulty without continuing.

Trophy in Melee.

Final Destination

As time passes on this stage, the level appears to travel through a wormhole from the imaginary Super Smash Bros. Melee world into reality. You move through a cloud-filled sky over a vast mountain range, then into a deep-space vista of dark blues and purples. The scenery is as real as you get in this fantastical world.

Gallery

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  First background.

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  First background transforming into the second.

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  Second background.

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  Third background.

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  Fourth background.

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  Fifth background.

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  Fifth background transforming into the sixth.

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  Sixth background.

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  Final background.

Trivia

• It is possible to jump under Final Destination with Jigglypuff, Peach, Samus, and Mewtwo. This can also be done by Kirby if he copies Mewtwo's Shadow Ball.
• The track for Final Destination is a remix of Super Smash Bros. 64's Credits theme. This is most evident during the end verse.
• Super Smash Bros. Melee is the only game in which Final Destination is an unlockable stage.
• Final Destination is the only stage of five neutral stages whose stage design is not similar to that of Battlefield's.