Wario (SSBU)

Wario in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Wario
Other playable appearances	in Brawl in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Wario-Man
Tier	A+ (24)

Wario (ワリオ, Wario) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He was officially revealed on June 12th, 2018 alongside Little Mac and the rest of the returning roster. Wario is classified as Fighter #30.

As in Super Smash Bros. 4, Charles Martinet's portrayal of Wario from Super Smash Bros. Brawl was repurposed for Ultimate.

Wario is currently ranked 24th out of 82 characters on the current Ultimate tier list; a significant improvement from his tier placement in Smash 4 where he was ranked 40th out of 54, and is his best placement in the series. Wario's greatest strength is his aerial game: he has one of the fastest air acceleration and air speed in the game which, coupled with a set of strong and versatile aerials, allows him to dominate in the air. In addition, his strong aerial movement and short stature makes it harder for opponents to hit him, while his heavyweight status and passive healing through Chomp allows him to live longer compared to the rest of the cast. Finally, Wario is also notorious for his combo potential, which can not only rack up damage quickly but also set up into a KO confirm, most notably Wario Waft. As such, Wario has the best comeback potential in the game.

Despite these strengths, Wario has several weaknesses that hold him back. The most notable weakness is his poor neutral game: his relatively short range and lack of projectiles make him vulnerable towards characters that can overwhelm, juggle, or outrange him. In addition, Wario's best KO options all have their drawbacks: his forward tilt, back air, and all his smash attacks have either high end lag or slow startup while dash attack has noticeable sourspots. Finally, whiffing Waft means Wario loses his best comeback factor, as it can take a bit to even get to half-Waft.

Overall, Wario's strengths largely overshadow his weaknesses. Although very popular in the early metagame, subsequent nerfs via patch updates shrank his playerbase at a top level. However, he remained a viable character with decent representation, in particular amassing consistently high results from Glutonny.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Wario being the 24th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Samus or any character in her unlock tree, being the 7th character unlocked after Cloud.
• Have Wario join the player's party in World of Light.

Wario must then be defeated on WarioWare, Inc. (the Ω form is used in World of Light).

Attributes

Wario is a short heavyweight character with a great air game and surprisingly fantastic movement in the air. He boasts the 8th fastest air speed in the game, in addition to being tied for the 2nd best air acceleration. Wario also sports an above average falling speed and the 26th highest gravity, which alongside the previous attributes gives him an amazing aerial prowess despite having low jumps. However, his grounded mobility pales in comparison, as his dashing speed and traction are average at best, and his walking speed is the 12th slowest in the game. Using his high mobility and versatile aerial attacks, Wario is able to dip in and out of the fray to bait attacks and punish. Wario's attacks in general also tend to be disjointed, as his hands don't have a hurtbox. He's also fairly hard to hit since he's relatively nimble and short for a heavy character, though fairly wide, meaning he can still be vulnerable to combos and juggles.

Furthermore, Wario boasts strong aerials, with his down, and back aerials being potent kill moves, while the up aerial is a highly damaging juggling and combo extension tool, with limited killing ability as well. Thanks to Ultimate's universal 3-frame jumpsquat, he can finally utilize his forward and neutral aerials as fast moves that can combo and pressure his opponents. Wario's air control and quick aerials also make him very effective at edgeguarding.

Wario's ground game contrasts with his air game in that it focuses more on power than speed. His forward tilt and forward smash are among the strongest in the cast, although both are rather slow, and the latter is best suited for hard reads. His up and down tilts are great combo tools that could potentially lead into kill moves, and his new shoulder tackle dash attack is both extremely fast in terms of startup and one of the strongest dash attacks in the game.

Wario's grabs are not particularly fast but have above average range. His throws have their fair share utility, with his up throw being able to combo into his up aerial and his down throw being both quite damaging and great for keeping opponents close to pressure them further. Forward throw deals decent damage, and back throw having a strong collateral hitbox that is good at knocking away other combatants.

Wario's special moves are also very unorthodox, and they demand practice to be usable at their highest potentials. Chomp is one of the best command grabs in the game, having deceptively long range and decent startup. It heals Wario if it connects, can effectively cover certain edge recoveries and even kill at high percents, negate certain attacks such as Wonderwing, and absorb many projectiles, often with the benefit of further healing him and slightly increasing the charge of his Wario Waft. His Waft is his most significant move because, with time, it is a highly damaging kill move with an extremely fast startup. With Waft in his arsenal, any match can be turned around with the right read. Wario Bike gives Wario an unorthodox approach option that covers for his fairly slow ground movement, and the bike itself continues to move forward and hit opposing fighters even after Wario dismounts it. This gives him a large pseudo-projectile which can apply pressure when used effectively, but the bike has a respawn time which prevents this from being used as a normal projectile. It can be used to surprise unsuspecting players as an approach tool that can blow past some projectiles, dismounted and thrown like an item with kill power, a very effective recovery tool, and a way for Wario to heal and charge his Waft when he eats it. On the flip side, Wario cannot shield or dodge while on the bike and is vulnerable, opponents can throw it right back at him, and if it's destroyed, he has to wait six seconds before using it again, which can leave him helpless while recovering as his up special, the Corkscrew is rather lackluster as a recovery on its own (although it is a decent out-of-shield option as it is his fastest recovery move).

For all of his strengths, Wario does have several weaknesses to counterbalance them. His range is rather mediocre, especially in moves such as neutral aerial and forward aerial, and he lacks projectile attacks outside of a dismounted Wario Bike and thus must take a risk to deal damage. While his bike recovery can go a far distance, it is fairly easy to gimp him when he uses it, so Wario players have to be careful with when and how it is used. While Wario does have some fast moves, he is certainly slower and heavier on average than most characters that share his weaknesses, so he can sometimes be overwhelmed in the neutral against small characters with better range than him. Wario will have to use his overall high mobility to bait his opponents into making mistakes and capitalize on them with his highly damaging combos and powerful kill moves.

Despite having a variety of KO moves, Wario can have a difficult time landing them. Firstly, he is burdened with a rather poor set of smash attacks. All three have extremely high ending lag and are very unsafe on shield making them easily punishable while only having average or slightly above average power. Forward smash is very strong but suffers from slow startup and very high ending lag with deceptively short range, up smash has decent startup and grants Wario head intangibility, but has massive ending lag to the point where Wario will be standing at the end of the animation of the move and still be in lag. Finally, down smash has fast startup coming out on frame 8, but has extreme ending lag and very mediocre power which makes it one of Wario's least useful moves. His other KO moves such as his Back aerial, forward tilt and Dash attack also suffer from being sluggish or predictable on top of lacking legitimate kill throws as his forward throw has had its knockback reduced from its previous iteration. This means Wario can often be reliant on Wario Waft for an easier, early KO and is left with a more difficult process of finishing off opponents should it miss.

All in all, Wario is a quite mobile and versatile heavyweight brawler that rewards patient players who know how to use his movement and signature Waft to their fullest potentials. His damage-racking ability and kill power also rewards players heavily for finding creative ways to get around his rather poor range and lack of a proper projectile, and his versatile options and movement give players just the tools to do it.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4

Possibly due to his lower tier status in Smash 4 (41st out of 55 characters), Wario has been significantly buffed in his transition to Ultimate. His combo game has been strengthened drastically, and the changes to gameplay mechanics benefit both the aggressive and patient sides of his playstyle.

Wario has received both direct and indirect changes that grant him a much more dangerous offensive game, which he previously did not boast about in previous installments. His neutral aerial has been altered, possessing more range, both hits lingering for much longer, and the move now having an extremely lenient amount of ending lag of only four frames; while up tilt has had its knockback reduced to the point that, despite losing all of its KO power, has gained drastically more combo potential at low to mid-percentages. These two moves are now some of the game's best combo starters, with their late hits leading into a repertoire of moves even at high percentages. The power of his moveset has also been strengthened overall; most notably, his new forward tilt, back aerial and new dash attack all deal greater knockback; the former also has more range that's disjointed, allowing it to 2 frame punish with more ease when angled, and the latter can be used as an effective tech-chasing tool. Chomp now has actual KO potential and heals damage from Wario when biting an opponent or eating projectiles, overall improving his already good survivability. Wario Bike now possesses actual knockback, allowing it to be used situationally as a projectile.

The changes to the game's engine benefit Wario. As with the rest of the cast, Wario's overall mobility has been improved, with his faster grounded and aerial mobility, and streamlined 3-frame jumpsquat, allowing for a safer approach and utilization of his strong aerial game; the former change also allows Wario to camp opponents and build up his Wario Waft, while the latter change gives him a more viable out of shield game. Directional air dodges also add a new option to his already great and versatile recovery. The universal lower landing lag on aerial attacks benefits Wario the most, as this has granted his neutral, forward and up aerials more reliable combo potential such as into his other aerials and, most infamously, Wario Waft.

In spite of this, Wario did receive a few notorious nerfs to his best moves in SSB4. Wario Bike, similarly to its Brawl incarnation, can no longer be used immediately after despawning or being destroyed, forcing Wario to wait six seconds before it can be used again, which limits Wario's recovery should he end up offstage while its cooldown is in effect. Forward throw, previously his only throw with consistently good KO potential, is much weaker due to its redistributed damage output; this hinders his grab game, as he no longer has any reasonably viable kill throws, and forces him to rely on Chomp to KO an opponent. Finally, game updates have caused Wario Waft's higher levels of charge to possess slower startup, impairing their usage as standalone moves such as out of shield, though the move still retains its fear factor through Wario's newfound combo game allowing it to confirm into it. Wario also retains a few weaknesses from SSB4, notably a vulnerability to camping.

Overall, Wario has become a more reliable "lightning bruiser", with an intrincate combo game that can lead into devastatingly low percentage KOs as well as having more reliable kill power at high percentages, though at the cost of a few of his tools from the previous game being toned down. Game updates have watered down a bit the effectiveness of Wario's kit, but they haven't dramatically impacted his viability. All in all, his buffs outweigh his nerfs, and he has been a very successful character in competitive play, in stark contrast to his mediocre SSB4 iteration.

Aesthetics

• Wario's appearance is largely the same as it was in SSB4, though his model features a more vibrant color scheme. Similarly to his appearance in Brawl, his clothing and hair feature subtle detailing.
• Like Mario and Luigi, Wario's overalls in his classic outfit have greater denim detailing; they are also a brighter shade of purple, more closely resembling his appearance in the Mario and Wario series.
• Wario's alternate costumes have been re-ordered; his classic outfit now occupies his even-numbered costumes instead of the second half, similar to Cloud.
• In his biker outfit, Wario's jacket and helmet straps have more physics-based movement.
• Down taunt has a more comical, "poppier" animation, and is much faster. Wario also now vocalizes as fast as Luigi's up taunt.
• Air dodge and footstooled animations have changed. Additionally, Wario fully closes his eyes while asleep.
• Wario's left-inputted victory pose now begins with him walking forward for the victory animation before patting his belly, then farting. He also keeps a shocked expression throughout and takes slightly longer to sniff and scratch his head.
• Wario's Palutena's Guidance conversation has slightly been modified (see here).

Attributes

• Like all characters, Wario's jumpsquat animation takes 3 frames to complete (down from 6).
• Wario runs faster (1.5 → 1.65).
  • Wario's initial dash is significantly faster (1.3 → 1.837).
• Wario walks slightly faster (0.847 → 0.889).
• Wario crawls faster (forward: 0.7 → 0.83; backwards: 0.5 → 0.83). This notably makes him the fastest crawler in the game.
• Wario's air speed is higher (1.21 → 1.271).
• Wario's gravity is higher (0.092 → 0.107). This allows him to land more safely, but worsens his vertical endurance and reduces his jump height.
• Wario's traction has increased (0.07 → 0.106), improving his ability to punish out of shield. However, it is much lower relative to the cast, going from the 3rd highest to the 42nd highest.
• Forward roll grants less intangibility (frames 4-16 → 4-15) and has more ending lag (FAF 30 → 31).
• Back roll has more startup with less intangibility (frames 4-16 → 5-16), and more ending lag (FAF 30 → 36).
• Spot dodge has less ending lag (FAF 28 → 27).
• Air dodge grants more intangibility (frames 3-27 → 3-29).
• Air dodge has significantly more ending lag (FAF 33 → 51).

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack deals more damage (4.0%/5.0% → 5.0%/7.0%).
  • The first hit transitions into the second hit faster (frame 14 → 11).
  • The first hit has altered angles (55°/72° → 361°) and knockback (45/38 base/50/40 scaling → 40/38 base/20 scaling) to keep opponents on the ground and closer to Wario, akin to other neutral attacks. This allows it to connect better into the second hit and jab lock.
  • The first hit has three hitboxes instead of two, with the existing ones being smaller (4u/5u → 2.2u/2.2u/2.8u), and they are placed farther horizontally (Z offset: 5u/10u → 7u/9.2u/12u). While this reduces its vertical range, it increases its horizontal range and gives it more favorable hitbox placements overall.
  • The second hit's farthest hitbox follows Wario's hand instead of covering a static area, increasing its vertical range.
  • Both hits have a higher hitlag multiplier (1× → 1.6× (hit 1), 2× (hit 2)), giving opponents more time to SDI the first hit and DI the second hit.
  • The second hit's hitbox on Wario's shoulder has been removed; however, the hitbox on his arm has been moved closer to compensate (Z offset: 8u → 6u).
• Forward tilt:
  • Wario has a new forward tilt: a heavy-handed slap.
  • It deals more knockback (22 base/98 scaling → 20/102), allowing it to KO slightly earlier.
  • It consists of only two hitboxes instead of four, but they are placed farther apart from each other (X offset: -3u/0u/1u/1.8u → -0.5u/2.3u), and the sweetspot is larger (5.5u → 5.7u). Additionally, Wario no longer keeps his arm in front of him after the hitboxes cease. As a result, the move has more favorable hitbox placements overall, with more horizontal range and disjoint.
  • The sourspot deals more damage when the move is angled down (10% → 11%), matching the other angles.
  • The sweetspot deals consistent damage across every angle (13% (not angled)/14% (angled up)/12% (angled down) → 13%). This reduces the angled up variant's KO potential, but improves the angled down variant's.
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt has less startup (frame 12 → 8) and ending lag (FAF 36 → 28). In combination with Wario's faster jumpsquat, this greatly improves its combo potential, even allowing it to chain into itself.
  • The clean hit's body hitbox has increased horizontal range (Z offset: 0 → -1.5 - 1.5) and launches at a lower angle (92° → 95°), allowing it to better hit grounded opponents at Wario's sides and lead into subsequent up tilts.
  • The late hit deals more knockback (30 base/50 scaling → 20/120) and launches at a higher angle (80° → 90°), granting it situational KO potential at very high percents, without hindering its combo potential due to the move's reduced ending lag.
  • The late hit has a shorter duration (9 frames → 5 frames).
  • It deals less damage (10% → 6% (clean), 6% → 5% (late)).
  • It no longer grants intangibility on Wario's head or arms.
  • The clean hit has altered knockback (65 base/74 scaling → 28/130). Combined with the reduced damage, it does noticeably less knockback at all relevant percents, which removes its weak KO potential, but further improves its combo potential when coupled with the aforementioned changes, granting it a KO setup into a half charged or fully charged Wario Waft at mid to high percents.
• Dash attack:
  • Wario has a new dash attack: his "Shoulder Tackle" Dash Attack from the Wario Land series, which was previously the basis of his forward smash in Brawl.
  • It deals more damage (7% → 11% (clean), 4% → 5% (late)) and knockback, with the late hit no longer having set knockback (80 base/70 scaling (clean), 50 set/100 scaling (late) → 60 base/97 scaling). This significantly improves the clean hit's KO potential, allowing it to KO at around 145% from the center of Final Destination, making it one of the strongest dash attacks in the game.
  • It provides more forward momentum, effectively increasing its horizontal range, despite the hitboxes being smaller (4.5u/4u → 4u/4u (clean), 4u/3u (late)) and located closer to Wario (Z offset: 6u/11u → 5.8u/2u (clean), 6u/9u → 4.8u/2u (late)).
  • The clean hit has a longer duration, with the late hit having a shorter duration instead (frames 4-5 (clean)/6-23 (late) → 5-8/9-23).
  • The move has one frame more startup (frame 4 → 5).
  • The clean hit has a sourspot on Wario's body that deals less damage (7% → 5%), although it is outprioritized by the sweetspot.
  • The late hit launches at a different angle (180° → 70°), matching the previous clean hit.
  • The late hit no longer has a 100% trip chance, and in combination with its altered angle and knockback, it can no longer trip opponents in any capacity whatsoever. This removes its setup potential.
  • The late hit has a lower hitlag multiplier (1.2× → 1×).
• Forward smash:
  • Forward smash deals more damage (19% → 20%).
  • It has less knockback scaling (99 → 93), marginally reducing its KO potential despite its higher damage.
  • Wario's fist enlarges more, although this does not give the move more range. Both of his feet remain on the ground when he punches, only lifting the back leg after the blow.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash's clean hit deals more damage (16% → 17%), with only base knockback compensated (40 → 35), marginally improving its KO potential.
  • The late hit has less base knockback like the clean hit (40 → 35), hindering its KO potential.
• Down smash:
  • Down smash has less ending lag (FAF 68 → 62).
  • The clean hit has a lower hitlag multiplier (1× → 0.85×), making it slightly harder to DI.
  • The clean and mid hit's hitboxes have been extended horizontally, and have varying horizontal offsets throughout the move instead of a static one. This increases the move's horizontal range and disjoint.
  • The late hit has a marginally bigger hitbox (2.5u → 2.6u).
  • Wario has a surprised facial expression when using down smash.

Aerial attacks

• All aerials have less landing lag (12 frames → 7 (neutral, up), 16 → 10 (forward), 27 → 16 (back), 19 → 18 (down)).
• Neutral aerial:
  • Neutral aerial has less ending lag (FAF 50 → 46).
  • It auto-cancels one frame earlier (frame 44 → 43).
  • Both hits deal slight shield damage (0 → 0.7).
  • The first hit's body hitbox is much larger, and it has gained two additional hitboxes for Wario's respective hands (3u → 4.5u/3u/3u). This significantly increases its range all around, improving its utility for approaching.
  • The first hit has a significantly longer duration (frame 4 → frames 4-17), with a late hit on frames 13-17 that deals 3% if Wario's arms hit; the second hit has more startup instead (frame 15 → 20). This covers a large part of the gap between it and the second hit, further improving its utility as an approach option.
  • The second hit has more startup with a shorter duration (frame 15-38 → 20-42), causing it to connect less reliably from the first hit's early frames at low percents.
    • However, combined with the aforementioned changes, this further reduces the move's ending lag to only three frames, and allows it to auto-cancel immediately after the hitboxes cease. This considerably improves its combo potential on all accounts.
  • The second hit has a stronger late hit during frames 27-42, dealing 5% damage. While this also increases its knockback, the move still has improved combo potential due to its lower ending and landing lag.
  • The first clean hit deals slightly less damage (6.5% → 6%).
  • The second hit has a smaller hitbox (4.5u → 3.5u).
• Back aerial:
  • Wario's head enlarges slightly less during the move, but the hitbox placements remain unchanged, slightly increasing its disjoint and making it safer to use.
  • It deals more knockback (20 base/100 scaling → 21/106), improving its KO potential.
  • Its initial auto-cancel window is one frame shorter (frames 1-5 → 1-4).
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial has a slightly different animation, with Wario putting his arms around his head, and his hands together in a diving pose.

Throws and other attacks

• Grabs:
  • All grabs are active for three frames instead of two.
  • They have increased horizontal range (Z2 offset: 9.3u → 10.3u (standing), 11.3u → 12u (dash), -15.8u → -15.9u (pivot)).
  • They have more ending lag (FAF 30 → 36 (standing), 37 → 44 (dash), 35 → 39 (pivot)).
  • Dash and pivot grab have more startup (frame 8 → 11 (dash), 12 (pivot)). As a result, Wario no longer has the same startup for all his grabs, nor has the fastest pivot grab in the game.
  • Wario's hand is placed lower when grabbing an opponent.
• Pummel:
  • Pummel deals less damage (2% → 1.6%).
  • It has much less startup (frame 5 → 2) and ending lag (FAF 19 → 8), but deals considerably more hitlag (4 frames → 15), keeping its effective duration unchanged. Relative to the rest of the cast, Wario's pummel is now among the slowest but most damaging, rather than average on both accounts.
  • Wario's finger points slightly higher when pummeling the opponent.
• All of Wario's throws have been altered with more exaggerated animations.
• Forward throw:
  • Forward throw consists of a hitbox before the throw, like back throw in Brawl, allowing it to hit bystanders. Its total damage remains unchanged (12% → 4% (hit 1), 8% (throw)).
  • The throw portion's knockback scaling has not been fully compensated for its lower damage output (65 → 70). This significantly hinders its KO potential, no longer being one of the strongest forward throws in the game.
  • While the move's lag remains the same, it inflicts hitlag due to the new hitbox, making it easier to DI.
• Up throw:
  • Due to Wario's faster jumpsquat, up throw has gained utility as a combo starter, with followups into up aerial from low to mid percents.
  • The throw portion deals less damage (7% → 4%; 11% total → 8%).
  • The throw portion has more knockback scaling (72 → 105), allowing it to KO slightly earlier despite its lower damage.
• Down throw:
  • The throw portion deals more damage (4% → 7%; 8% total → 11%).
  • It has a more forceful animation, with Wario clenching his fists upon contact, better resembling the Ground Pound from the Wario Land games.
• Edge attack:
  • Edge attack deals more damage (8% → 10%).

Special moves

• Chomp:
  • Both biting opponents and eating projectiles now heals Wario; the former heals him by 0.6% per bite, while the latter does by 1%, like eating non-explosive items.
  • The throw has much more knockback scaling (76 → 109), allowing it to KO at high percents.
  • It has less ending lag after eating a projectile (FAF 36 → 26).
  • The explosion from eating explosive items has less startup (frame 18 → 17), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 73 → 72).
  • Eating explosive items deals less recoil damage (5% → 3%).
  • It has more ending lag if it misses (FAF 38 → 42).
  • It no longer grants intangibility on Wario's head.
• Wario Bike:
  • A thrown bike has noticeably altered knockback (50 (base)/0 (scaling) → 48/68), no longer being unable to scale with percent, and thus allowing it to KO at high percents. The launch angle was also changed (361° → 43°).
  • The wheelie slam comes out faster, to where it can hit opponents as soon as the bike drops down, allowing it to hit aerial opponents more easily.
  • The start of the wheelie deals slightly more damage (8% → 8.3%).
  • After the bike is destroyed or disappears, it has a cooldown of six seconds before it can be used again.
  • The bike no longer bounces as much when thrown, giving fewer options as a projectile.
  • It no longer slightly bounces to the side in front of him when thrown downwards, meaning he can no longer edgeguard recoveries by throwing the bike downward.
  • Aerial Wario Bike has physics when Wario is not riding it, rather than staying static in animation.
  • Wario gets thrown forward and put into tumble if he hits a wall whilst riding the bike.
  • The bike releases smoke and sparks to signify how much damage it has taken.
  • Wario continually pumps his fist while performing a wheelie with the bike.
• Corkscrew:
  • The looping hits use five hitboxes instead of a single one, which are smaller (6.5u → 4u/4u/4u/4u), but spread farther around Wario (Y offset: 11u → 7u/7u/13u/13u, Z offset: 0u → 4u/-3u/4u/-3u), increasing their range.
  • Both the first hit and looping hits have altered angles (85°/115°/85°/105° → 127° (first hit), 104° → 115°/115°/145°/145° (looping hits)) and are weight-independent, and the latter also has a lower hitlag multiplier (1× → 0.6×) and SDI multiplier (0.5× → 0.3×). This allows them to connect more reliably.
  • The looping hits' hitboxes deal different damage each (1% → 1.2%/1.3%/1.4%/1.5%). This increases its total damage output, although it is much more inconsistent as a result.
  • The last hit no longer has two separate hitboxes on each of Wario's hands, instead having one hitbox that extends between them. The body hitbox is also larger (4u → 8u) and placed lower (Y offset: 8u → 7u). Altogether, this increases the last hit's range, especially above Wario.
  • The last hit's hand hitbox has a lower hitlag multiplier (2.5× → 2×).
  • The last hit is weight-independent, hindering the move's KO potential against lighter targets, but improving it against heavier ones.
  • Wario's hands no longer expand for the last hit.
• Wario Waft:
  • Wario Waft's fart cloud's visual effects have been redone.
  • A stage three Waft has more startup (frame 5 → 8) and ending lag (FAF 50 → 55).
  • A fully charged Waft has more super armor (frames 5-10 → 4-13).
  • Wario turns away from the screen when executing a fully charged Wario Waft.
  • A fully charged Waft triggers Special Zoom.
  • A fully charged Waft has more startup (frame 9 → 12) and ending lag (FAF 60 → 64).
• Wario-Man:
  • Wario-Man has been significantly overhauled. Instead of a transformation, it is a cinematic Final Smash where Wario dashes forward, hitting caught opponents several times in a comic book style and launching them away at the end, similar to Stampede!.
  • Wario-Man is significantly less effective overall, no longer giving Wario access to a stronger version of himself with invincibility and extremely fast attacks, instead limiting him to a ramming attack that has merely average power and is much easier to avoid.
  • Wario once again vocalizes "Oooooh..." at the end of the move like in Brawl, though it now plays during the final hit of cinematic rather than the deactivation itself.
  • As a result, the undead glitch on the Stamina Mode, and results screen glitch on the timed team battle have been removed.

Update history

Wario received buffs, nerfs and a few glitch fixes, but was nerfed overall. Update 2.0.0 made Wario grab the ledge sooner after using down aerial. Update 3.0.0 brought slight buffs to Chomp, increasing its swallow box size and giving it less ending lag after eating a small projectile. 3.0.0 also made it so Wario would flash yellow when Wario Bike was ready to use again. Update 8.0.0 fixed Wario's forward throw so that the hitbox no longer blatantly misses characters like Ganondorf, and lowered the ending lag when Wario ate food using Chomp. Update 9.0.0 buffed Corkscrew so that now it links more reliably and deals more damage overall.

While most changes were negligible, patch 11.0.0 affected Wario the most. His up tilt was given less active frames, and the third and max level of Wario Waft have more startup and ending lag. Though as compensation, the super armor on the max Waft now starts earlier and lasts longer. All these changes together nerfed one of Wario's notoriously dangerous and easiest set-ups, and making Wario Waft less effective overall.

Update 13.0.1 graced Wario with small buffs for one last time, making his neutral attack deal more damage (to the point that it is tied for the third most damaging non-infinite neutral attack in the game) and have less ending lag.

While Wario was made a somewhat less effective character overall, it was not enough to massively dent Wario's status and prowess in competitive play, and Wario is still seen as a top tier character with fantastic results to this day.

2.0.0

• Wario can grab ledges faster after using down aerial (76 frames → 72).

3.0.0

• Chomp:
  • Wario can eat projectiles more easily (Swallow box size: 4.5u → 6u; offsets: -2u/2u/1.5u → -2.75u/2.75u/2.25u).
  • decreased ending lag after eating a projectile (FAF 35 → 25).
• A yellow flash will manifest when Wario Bike is usable again.
• Wario is now able to consume the Staff with Chomp.
• The grounded state glitch has been fixed.
• Self-Destruct glitch with Wario-Man in Fourside has been fixed.

3.1.0

• Fixed a rare glitch where Wario's bike would instantly turn sideways.

7.0.0

• Wario's head animation during hitstun was shifted.

8.0.0

• Forward throw's first hit has altered placements (X offset: 1u → 0u; Y offset: -1u → -3u), preventing it from missing characters such as Ganondorf.
• Wario recovers faster from eating food (FAF 50 → 36).

9.0.0

• Corkscrew:
  • The looping hits have different angles (105°/115°/105°/115° → 115°/115°/145°/145°) and higher set knockback (110 → 130), and the last hit's body hitbox is considerably larger (5u → 8u), allowing the move to connect much more reliably.
  • The looping hits' 1% damage hitbox (which had the highest priority) has been removed, allowing them to deal more damage overall.

11.0.0

• Up tilt's late hit has a shorter hitbox duration (frames 11-19 → 11-15).
• Wario Waft:
  • The third level charge has more startup (frame 5 → 8) and ending lag (FAF 50 → 55).
  • The max charge has more startup lag (frame 9 → 12) with its total duration increased as well (FAF 61 → 64).
    • The super armor starts a frame earlier and lasts longer (frames 5-10 → 4-13).

13.0.1

• Neutral attack:
  • The first hit deals more damage (4% → 5%) and has less ending lag (FAF 30 → 28).
  • The second hit deals more damage (5% → 7%) and has less ending lag (FAF 34 → 30).

Moveset

• Wario can crawl.

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

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

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Fist (げんこつ) / Jaw Smash (あごくだき)	5%	A downward punch and a uppercut. Among one of the worst neutral attacks in the game, due to its slow startup (frame 8) and lack of range, although it provides more reward than down tilt at lower percentages since down tilt cannot combo reliably until then.
			7%
Forward tilt		Slap (ひっぱたき)	13%	A quick, heavy-handed slap. The move can be angled, has considerable range and is a versatile kill option at the ledge, with the downward-angled variant hitting every single ledge hang. Also disjointed due to his hand not possessing a hurtbox and a big hitbox that reaches far from the hand.
Up tilt		Banzai Hit (ばんざいヒット)	6% (clean), 5% (late)	Wario thrusts his outstretched hands upwards. It provides little knockback but is a potent combo starter, linking into many aerials and most notably, can confirm into Wario Waft. It also has a hitbox that lasts a relatively long time and the disjointed hands make it a good anti-air move. Possibly based off of Wario's victory animation in Wario Land II upon unlocking Time Attack mode.
Down tilt		Cockroach Crusher (ゴキブリつぶし)	4%	Wario violently pokes the ground with his index finger, damaging opponents as he does so. It provides very little knockback and can combo into aerials and ground moves, most notably dash attack. It also has long horizontal range and provides disjoint due to the hands lacking a hurtbox, although the hitbox itself is very narrow and can miss opponents that are even slightly above it.
Dash attack		Shoulder Tackle (ショルダータックル)	11% (clean), 5% (late/early, body)	Wario performs his signature Dash Attack from the Wario Land series. A powerful kill move with extremely short startup on frame 5. The late hit is weaker but launches opponents at an upward angle, where Wario can potentially follow up with a juggle situation. The early hit has a sourspot inside Wario's body that is hard to hit and deals 5%. It has long range due to Wario's momentum as he charges forward, allowing it to cross-up shields.
Forward smash		Full-Power Back Knuckle (全力バックナックル)	20%	Wario winds back greatly with his fist, and delivers an enormous backhanded punch. Nearly the same range as his forward tilt, with a large hitbox that goes over Wario's fist. It has high ending lag and the slowest startup of Wario's smash attacks, but is very powerful. The winding back can allow moves to whiff, thus being punished by the attack. Due to coming out on frame 18 and having 46 frames of ending lag, it is very punishable if missed.
Up smash		Big Head (ビッグヘッド)	17% (early), 13% (late)	A hard-hitting, arcing headbutt. Wario's head enlarges significantly during the attack and extends upward, has a large hitbox and has head intangibility, making it very disjointed. The attack has high launching power and covers a fair amount of both vertical and horizontal range, but has a significant amount of ending lag (45 frames), to the point where Wario would be standing and still be in lag. May be based on the third hit of his basic attack combo in Wario World.
Down smash		Wario Spin (ワリオスピン)	13% (early), 10% (late)	Spins on the ground thrice, bashing foes with his head. The move consists of three hits, though only one hit can connect. While the first hit is capable of KO'ing at high percents, its power is very low for a smash attack while subsequent hits are even weaker. Hits most ledge hangs, although it possesses high ending lag, and the poor range makes it an unsafe move to use for the most part, although it is Wario's fastest smash attack at 8 frames. Due to the move's weak power, poor range, high ending lag, and being extremely unsafe on shield, it is one of the worst down smashes in the game as it carries very high risk while offering very low reward in return.
Neutral aerial		Overweight Body (メタボボディ)	6% (hit 1, early/late, body), 3% (hit 1, late, arms), 4% (hit 2; early) 5% (hit 2; late)	Wario inflates his belly and spins in the air with his arms and legs spread wide. Very fast startup, coming out on frame 4. The attack has two hits, further divided between a clean hit and late hit that act independently from each other. Unlike the second hit, which only has a hitbox on Wario's belly, the first hit has two additional hitboxes that cover his arms as well. Both hits can combo into each other at low and mid percents if Wario moves back and forth in the air, and has almost no ending lag, as he can act just 4 frames after the hitboxes cease, making it an excellent tool for combos and racking up damage. The late hit can lead to another aerial and even Wario Waft. It autocancels at frame 43, immediately after the hitboxes cease. Visually similar to Wario's crouch-jump from Virtual Boy Wario Land and Wario Land: Shake It!.
Forward aerial		Pig's Foot Kick (とんそくキック)	7% (clean), 4.5% (late)	A quick kick forwards. The first few frames do more damage and knockback. Low knockback and poor range, lacking a hitbox on the tip of the foot, but starts up very fast, making it useful for gimping or escaping pressure, as well as being a decent poking tool. The late hit can lock and also combos easily into other aerials at low percents. It autocancels in a short hop.
Back aerial		Falling Headbutt (たおれずつき)	12%	Wario propels his head backward. A viable KO move as it is his strongest aerial knockback-wise. It also has relatively quick startup at frame 9 and sends at a somewhat low angle, but it has high ending lag and Wario can be hit, as his head enlarges and then slightly moves around. Autocancels if used at the peak a short hop.
Up aerial		Hand Slap (ハンドパッチン)	13%	Wario claps his hands and feet together in mid-air. His strongest aerial damage-wise with the best vertical knockback as well. A potent combo starter. If used after a fast fall, it can lead to an aerial and Wario Waft at low-mid percents. It also possesses a large hitbox and is disjointed due to the hands not having a hurtbox. Fast for its power, coming out on frame 8, but has 38 frames of ending lag, which can make it punishable.
Down aerial		Upside-Down Drill (さかさまドリル)	1.3% (hits 1-6), 4% (hit 7)	Wario puts his hands above his head and spins while upside down, drilling with his hands and head. The last hit has powerful diagonal knockback that can KO at high percents. When landing with it before the final hit, it can often lead to a half waft, albeit not on heavier characters due to lack of hitstun. If the move fails to connect into the subsequent hits, it can also weakly meteor smash the opponent, although it cannot get stronger due to its set knockback. The move is visually similar to Wario's animation upon getting a birdie in Mario Golf (GBC).
Grab		Grab (つかみ)	—	Grabs the opponent by the torso with one hand.
Pummel		Grab Poke-Poke (つかみつんつん)	1.6%	Pokes the opponent in the gut with his index finger.
Forward throw		Heavy Buttocks (ヘビーどんけつ)	8% (throw), 4% (collateral)	Launches the opponent forward with his rear-end. Can kill lightweights at higher percents, but struggles to kill mid and heavyweights. Also Wario's highest damage throw, useful for damage racking.
Back throw		Wild Swing Ding (ジャイアントスイング, Giant Swing)	7% (throw), 8% (collateral)	The Wild Swing Ding attack from Wario World. Grabs the opponent by the legs, spins them around three times and launches them behind himself, damaging those who come in contact with the spin, which can be good for getting opponents away if in a match with more than 2 characters. Despite being similar to Mario's back throw, it is surprisingly weak in damage and knockback, being unviable for killing.
Up throw		Double Punch (ダブルパンチ)	4% (throw), 4% (collateral)	Wario tosses the opponent up and punches them upwards with enlarged fists. Can link into up airs at low to mid percents.
Down throw		Butt Press (しりプレス)	7% (throw), 4% (collateral)	Throws the opponent on the ground and slams them with his rear end. Hits the opponent at a low angle behind Wario, which can lead to follow-ups via reading the opponent's options afterward. The move and exaggerated animation are based on the ground pound move from Wario Land and Wario World.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Wario gets up and pokes his finger both forwards and backward.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Wario spins around, punching with his fist extended.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Wario thrusts his fists in front of him, then kicks his legs behind him.
Edge attack Edge getups			10%	Crawls up the ledge and flips onto his back, attacking with his fists. Among the fastest ledge attacks in the game.
Neutral special		Chomp	2.4% (each bite), 5% (throw), 0.6% (self-heal), 13% (eating explosive), 3.6% (explosive self-damage)	Wario opens his mouth and closes it upon the opponent, chewing on those who are caught, healing 0.6% damage per bite. It has long range and very fast startup (8 frames). It can be used to consume items and projectiles, healing 1% damage from items, and a third of the damage by a projectile's base damage. Eating explosives will cause them to detonate inside of Wario, harming him, but the explosion will damage nearby foes, providing good knockback. Healing items consumed with Chomp heal 1.5x more damage than normal. Consuming items lessens the time necessary to charge the Wario Waft. Based on the Hot Dog Hog microgame from the WarioWare series and the Hyper Suction move from Wario World.
Side special		Wario Bike	0.6%-11.2% (ram, varies depending on acceleration and timing, full speed consistently deals 11.2%), 8.3% (wheelie beginning, can combo with ram), 5% (wheelie), 13% (wheelie ground slam), 7% (turn), 3% (turn late, can hit twice), 3.5% (jumped off)	Wario climbs aboard his trademark Wario Bike and races around the stage, damaging opponents in his path. During this, from frame 1, Wario gains a small amount of knockback-based armor, able to take up to 20 units of knockback. Tilting the opposite direction on the ground will make him turn around, dealing damage and killing at high percents, and tilting in the air can adjust the angle of the Wario Bike and his jump afterward. Holding up will produce a wheelie, and pressing down during a wheelie makes the bike perform an extremely powerful ground slam. After dismounting the bike, Wario can destroy it, throw it at opponents, or eat it with Chomp. The bike has 18 HP and is unaffected by the 1v1 multiplier. When thrown, the Wario Bike can launch opponents a fair distance, even KO'ing them at high percents. In the air, the bike gives a small initial vertical hop along with a free jump via dismounting it. After losing the Wario Bike, Wario cannot summon another bike for 6 seconds, and only if he touches the ground again. If the player tries to do so before the cooldown ends or a Bike is already out, not within his reach, Wario will instead look helplessly around the stage for his bike. The look animation can be canceled if landing on the ground after initiating it in the air, or performing it in the air and reaching maximum fall speed.
Up special		Corkscrew	5% (first hit), 1%-1.5% (hits 2-5), 4% (final hit)	Wario launches himself into the air, hitting enemies multiple times while spinning. The final hit has decent diagonal knockback with the hands, KO'ing at high percents. Wario's body has a hitbox that launches up, although is very difficult to hit due to the hand hitboxes taking priority. The move can be steered diagonally left or right.
Down special		Wario Waft	0% (no charge), 12%-15.5% (minor charge), 20%-29.9% (moderate charge), 27% (maximum charge), 20% (maximum charge headbutt)	Flatulence that grows in strength and knockback the longer it goes unused. Its charge cannot be lost in any way without using the move itself. By Chomping items, the Wario Waft charges faster by 1.5 seconds. There are 4 levels of charge, all with varying effects: at no charge, the waft will always trip opponents but deals no damage and is the slowest waft (frame 16), the second level is the second slowest (frame 10), the third level (half-charged) is the fastest (frame 8) and has good KO potential, and the fully charged waft deals the most damage and knockback, has a huge hitbox below and super armor (frame 4-13), and also sends Wario flying upwards with a headbutt that has equally powerful KO potential, although is slower than the third level of charge (frame 12). If the fully charged waft is used near the upper blast line, Wario will be KO'd by the upper blast line.
Final Smash		Wario-Man	10% (tackle), 20.8% (successive hits; 1.3% each), 12% (fart), 10% (release), 52.8% (total)	Wario consumes a bulb of garlic and propels himself into his opponents. If the move connects, Wario transforms into the masked anti-hero, Wario Man from the WarioWare series and splits himself into multiple copies, dealing a series of blows to opponents caught into the attack. The final blow is delivered by an explosive fart that launches the opponents, KO'ing them at mid to high percents. The strength of the final fart is not affected by the charge of Wario's down special.

Stats

Stats	Weight	Dash speed	Walk speed	Traction	Air friction	Air speed	Air acceleration	Gravity	Falling speed	Jumpsquat	Jump Height	Double jump Height
Value	107	1.837 – Initial dash 1.65 – Run	0.889	0.106	0.04	1.271	0.04 – Base 0.08 – Additional	0.107	1.61 – Base 2.576 – Fast-fall	3	30.5 - Base 14.7 - Short hop	30.5

Announcer call

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

• Crashes onstage with his bike while laughing. Wario then jumps off and his bike explodes as he dusts himself off.

• 

  Wario's on-screen appearance

Taunts

• Up taunt: Laughs so hard that his jaw unhinges, then forces his mouth shut with his hands.
• Side taunt: Shakes his rear end at the screen with his hands extended in each direction while making an "Unh-unh!" kind of noise.
• Down taunt: Faces the screen and shouts "Wah!" three times, with the third "Wah!" having the most enthusiasm. For each "Wah!" Wario holds up three fingers forming a "W" (his initials), first with his left hand, then his right, then both hands simultaneously.
• Bike taunt: Laughs and faces the screen while doing his signature "W" hand sign with both hands, and then picks his nose with his left hand.

• 

  Wario's up taunt.

• 

  Wario's side taunt.

• 

  Wario's down taunt.

• 

  Wario's bike taunt.

Idle poses

• Bashes his fists together twice.
• Scratches his bottom while looking towards the screen.

• 

  Wario first idle pose.

• 

  Wario second idle pose.

Crowd cheer

	Cheer (English)	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian)	Cheer (Dutch)	Cheer (French)
Cheer
Description	Wa - ri - o!	Wa - rio!	Wa - rio! Cha - cha - cha!	Wa - ri - o!	Wa - rio! Cha - cha - cha!

	Cheer (German)	Cheer (Spanish)	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer
Description	Wa - ri - o! Cha - cha - cha!	Wa - rio! Cha - cha - cha!	Wario! *clap 2 times*	Wa - ri - o!

Victory poses

• Left: Walks forward, pats his belly twice, then farts, sniffs his behind, and scratches his head, saying "Ooh!" in surprise.
• Up: Spins around with his motorcycle, stops while facing the screen saying "Yes!", plucks the end of his mustache, and holds up three fingers in the shape of a W.
• Right: Laughs gloatingly and then falls over, rolling on his back.

A track that first appeared in Brawl, would later been incorporated into Wario Land: Shake It! after Brawl's release.

• 
• 
• 

In competitive play

Most historically significant players

See also: Category:Wario players (SSBU)

•  Abadango - Known for having a wide variety of characters and used Wario in his lineup in the latter half of 2019. He was one of the best Wario players from Japan during this time, most notably winning the major Umebura SP 4 primarily using Wario, defeating KEN and Kameme along the way, and placing 5th at Smash Factor 8 with mostly Wario and 9th at EVO 2019 with solo-Wario.
•  crêpe salée - The second-best Wario player in Europe, co-maining the character alongside Steve since 2023. He notably defeated Zomba with Wario at Tera, ultimately placing 13th, and has also placed highly at several European events such as 7th at Tech Republic VI. He is the third Wario player ranked in the top 100 in the post-online metagame, ranking 99th on the LumiRank 2023.
•  Glutonny - The best Wario player of all time and one of the best Ultimate players of all-time. He has won majors thoughout all of competitive Ultimate, including Albion 4, Pound 2022, and Tera.
•  Huto - The best Wario player in Japan in the post-online metagame. He has some of Wario's best results outside of Glutonny during this time, most notably 5th at the supermajor Kagaribi 7 and 7th at the majors Kagaribi 3 and Seibugeki 12. However he is generally inconsistent, and as such has not be ranked as high, with his highest being 58th on the OrionRank Ultimate: Eclipse.
•  kameme - One of the best Wario players in Japan in the early metagame, using Wario as a counterpick for Mega Man. He won the supermajor Umebura Japan Major 2019 and the major 2GG: SwitchFest 2019 using Wario in crucial sets. He dropped Wario in the post-online metagame and has only pulled out the character on occasion..
•  loaf - The best Wario player in North America in the post-online metagame following his 13th-place finish at the supermajor Riptide. He also has a strong resume of regional and superregional placements, including 4th at Dragun House Monthly (December Edition 2023) defeating MuteAce and Kurama, 7th at The Big House 11, and 9th at GENESIS: BLACK at Guildhouse defeating Umeki.
•  Tweek - The best Wario player in the world in the early metagame. He is the first Wario player to win a major, doing so at Let's Make Moves, and has won multiple other majors with Wario in 2019. He dropped Wario from his lineup in 2021, although he occasionally pulls out Wario as a counterpick with little success.
•  Zackray - Used Wario alongside a variety of other characters. Although he used Wario to win a few crucial sets in 2019, his most notable Wario usage was in 2021, where he co-mained Wario alongside Joker to win the Eastern Powerhouse Invitational FINAL, and also primarily used Wario to place 4th at the major Kagaribi 3.

Tier placement and history

Wario in Ultimate is widely considered superior to his previous iterations due to his more consistent KO options, his already fast speed being further increased, and his stronger, more reliable combo game. In addition, Wario greatly benefited from having a frame 3 jumpsquat as he can now make more use out of his air game. Finally, Wario's waft became notorious as a comeback mechanic for closing out stocks when in a dire or last stock situation, and there were several moves that could set up to it at early-to-mid percents. As such, Wario was widely considered one of the best characters in the early metagame, with many players ranking the character among the top 5. Wario's representation was also rather large at a national level; notably, four different players had won a major using Wario in crucial sets during this period. These players include Tweek and Glutonny, who were two of the best players in the world during this period.

Nerfs to Wario's up tilt and waft hindered several of his setups into Waft, making it harder to hit compared to before. In addition, metagame shifts were also less favorable towards Wario as more characters with an oppressive gameplan became more common in competitive play. The nerfs and metagame shifts led to a noticeable decline in Wario's top level representation as many of his veteran players dropped the character, most notably Tweek. In addition, although Glutonny remained a strong player, his results within the next several months after the nerfs were less dominant than before. As such, Wario's position in the metagame began to fall as the community agreed that Wario, while still a great character, was not as strong as he once was. This was reflected in Wario's current standing on the tier list, where he is ranked 24th out of 82 near the top of high-tier.

Wario's placement was not without detractors. Many players pointed out how Glutonny's performances following his slump, which have been just as good if not better than his earlier results, prove Wario's nerfs were not as severe as once perceived. In addition, newer Wario players also rose into the spotlight, most notably Huto in Japan, loaf in North America, and crêpe salée in Europe. These players kept Wario's representation strong, albeit not as dominant as the early metagame. These positive developments have since led many in the community to believe Wario is underrated in the current metagame and should still be ranked as a top tier.

Classic Mode: I'm-a Gonna Win!

Wario's congratulations screen.

All of Wario's opponents are champions who utilize brute strength and hard, heavy-hitting attacks, much like Wario himself. The only base roster heavy characters absent are Donkey Kong and Bowser.

While the English title refers to Wario's catchphrase in the international version of Mario Kart 64: "I'm-a Wario! I'm-a gonna win!", the Japanese title (オレ様怪力ナンバーワン！) more accurately reflects the theme of the route, translating roughly to "My super strength is number one!"

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Ganondorf	Coliseum	Death Mountain
2	Charizard	Pokémon Stadium 2	Victory Road - Pokémon Ruby / Pokémon Sapphire	Charizard's Pokémon Trainer is absent.
3	Ike	Arena Ferox	Against the Dark Knight
4	King Dedede	Fountain of Dreams	Gourmet Race (Melee)
5	King K. Rool	Kongo Falls	Crocodile Cacophony
6	Incineroar	Pokémon Stadium	The Battle at the Summit!	Items do not appear.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand	Final Destination	Master Hand (Less than 7.0 intensity) Master Hand / Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, Crazy Hand fights alongside Master Hand.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Wario has Ruins - Wario Land: Shake It! accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

Finding Wario in World of Light

Although Wario does not appear in the World of Light opening cutscene, he was vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (except Kirby) when Galeem unleashed his beams of light.

Wario was one of the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. He can be found in the Dracula's Castle sub-area. A switch must be pressed to change the orientation of the lever blocking him.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
30		Wario	Attack	10,100	WarioWare, Inc. (Ω form)	WarioWare, Inc.

Spirits

Wario's default fighter spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Wario has been unlocked. Unlocking Wario in World of Light 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 classic outfit has a fighter spirit of its own, available through the shop. Each fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

Wario also makes an appearance as a legend-class primary spirit as his alter ego, Wario-Man.

• 

  729. Wario

• 

  730. Wario (Overalls)

• 

  738. Wario-Man

In Spirit Battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
59		Chargin' Chuck	Super Mario Series	•Wario Team ×4		1,800	Super Mario Maker (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy favors dash attacks	Ground Theme - Super Mario World
87		Standard Bike	Mario Kart Series	•Wario ×4		2,100	Figure-8 Circuit	N/A	•The enemy's side special has increased power •The enemy has increased move speed	Mario Kart Stadium - Mario Kart 8	Waluigi
115		Eggplant Man	Wrecking Crew Series	•Wario Team ×6		1,900	Wrecking Crew (Battlefield form)	•Item: Golden Hammer	•Defeat an army of fighters	Wrecking Crew Medley
226		King Bulblin & Lord Bullbo	The Legend of Zelda Series	•Wario		2,000	Bridge of Eldin	N/A	•The enemy favors dash attacks	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
232		Groose	The Legend of Zelda Series	•Wario		3,800	Skyloft	•Item: Exploding Types	•The enemy starts the battle with a Bomber •The enemy's throwing-type items have increased power •The enemy loves to jump	Ballad of the Goddess (Original)
396		Pigma Dengar	Star Fox Series	•Wario •Wolf		4,300	Lylat Cruise (Battlefield form)	•Move Speed ↑	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy has increased move speed when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy tends to avoid conflict	Star Wolf (Brawl)
448		Weezing	Pokémon Series	•Wario		2,200	Pokémon Stadium (hazards off)	•Hazard: Poison Cloud	•The stage is covered in a poisonous cloud	Main Theme - Pokémon Red & Pokémon Blue (Brawl)
580		Master Belch	EarthBound Series	•Wario		4,200	Mario Bros. (Battlefield form)	•Defense ↓ •Hazard: Sticky Floor	•The floor is sticky •You have reduced defense after a little while	Unfounded Revenge / Smashing Song of Praise
599		Mr. EAD	F-Zero Series	•Giant Wario •Giant R.O.B.		3,800	Big Blue	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy's dash attacks have increased power •The enemy can deal damage by dashing into you	Brain Cleaner
719		Specknose	Kid Icarus Series	•Wario ×3		1,800	Reset Bomb Forest	N/A	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Kid Icarus Retro Medley
734		Dribble & Spitz	WarioWare Series	•Wario •Pikachu		4,000	Saffron City	•Uncontrollable Speed	•All fighters move faster and can't stop quickly after a little while •The enemy favors side specials	WarioWare, Inc.	Dribble
738		Wario-Man	WarioWare Series	•Wario		13,700	WarioWare, Inc. (hazards off)	•Sudden Final Smash	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash •The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly	WarioWare, Inc.
747		Count Cannoli	Wario Land Series	•Wario		1,800	WarioWare, Inc. (hazards off)	•Item: Transforming Types	•Items will be pulled toward the enemy	Ashley's Song
856		Frillard	Animal Crossing Series	•Wario •Isabelle •Villager		2,400	Town and City	N/A	•The enemy loves to taunt	Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store - Animal Crossing: Wild World
944		Soda Popinski	Punch-Out!! Series	•Wario (160 HP)		9,300	Boxing Ring	•Item Tidal Wave	•Stamina battle •The enemy becomes more powerful after eating •Certain items will appear in large numbers	World Circuit Theme
1,123		Excitebike	Excitebike Series	•Wario Team ×2		3,800	Mario Circuit	N/A	•The enemy favors side specials	Excitebike - Mario Kart 8
1,184		Old Man Lobber	The Legendary Starfy Series	•Wario ×3		3,800	Tortimer Island	N/A	•The enemy's throws have increased power •The enemy favors grabs and throws	Tortimer Island Medley

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
586		Salsa	EarthBound Series	•Diddy Kong •Wario		1,700	Gerudo Valley (Battlefield form)	•Item: Banana Peel	•The enemy favors special moves	Mother 3 Love Theme	Fassad
655		L'Arachel	Fire Emblem Series	•Robin •Sheik •Wario		1,600	Castle Siege	•Health Recovery	•The enemy is healed when the enemy's at high damage	Preparing to Advance	Dozla
736		Dr. Crygor	WarioWare Series	•Dr. Mario •R.O.B. •Wario		3,400	WarioWare, Inc. (hazards off)	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win	Mike's Song	Wario
746		Princess Shokora	Wario Land Series	•Peach •Mr. Game & Watch •Wario		2,900	Mushroom Kingdom II	•Item: Transforming Types	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Timed battle (1:30) •The enemy tends to avoid conflict	Ruins - Wario Land: Shake It!	Wario
1,154		Dion, Max, & Jack	Marvelous: Mouhitotsu no Takarajima	•Villager •Luigi •Wario		1,800	Tortimer Island	•Item: Beastball	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Village of the Blue Maiden	Max
1,313		Makoto Niijima	Persona Series	•Sheik •Giant Clear Wario		3,000	Dracula's Castle (Ω form)	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy is invisible	Last Surprise	Johanna/Junya Kaneshiro

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Wario's fighter card.

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  Wario's unlock notice.

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  Wario taunting on WarioWare, Inc.

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  Wario charging a forward smash on 3D Land.

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  Wario attacking Pit with his new forward tilt on Onett.

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  Wario performing Chomp on the shark of Tortimer Island.

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  Wario riding his Wario Bike ahead of Mario on Big Blue.

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  Wario teetering on the Spirit Train.

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  Wario's new dash attack.

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  Being kicked by Ken on Onett.

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  Wario getting attacked by Giga Mac.

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  Luigi kicking Wario on the Bridge of Eldin.

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  Wario struck by Pichu's up smash on Pilotwings.

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  Piranha Plant attempts to bite a chomping Wario trying to eat a Maxim Tomato on Skyloft.

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  Wario buried near R.O.B. on Gaur Plain.

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  Ryu kicking a bike-riding Wario on Suzaku Castle.

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  Wario using Chomp to eat Young Link's bomb on Castle Siege.

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  Wario riding his bike behind Bewear on the Bridge of Eldin.

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  Wario performing his neutral aerial in Town and City.

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  Being attacked by Erdrick while Eleven attacks Robin on Yggdrasil's Altar.

Trivia

• Wario's entry on the Japanese Super Smash Blog was on August 2nd, 2018, the same day WarioWare Gold was released in Japan.
• Wario's buttons on his overalls in the E3 video, his showcase video, and one of his website screenshots were incorrectly gold, as opposed to their usual white. However, in the final game, the error was corrected.
• Wario, along with King K. Rool and Incineroar, each have a Classic Mode route that consists almost entirely of super-heavyweight fighters.
• One of the Japanese website screenshots that show Wario using his neutral aerial shows him doing the move with an angry expression on his face, which was changed in the final release with Wario having a happy expression while using the move.
• Despite receiving non-English voice actors in non-English versions of WarioWare Gold, Wario is still voiced by Charles Martinet in all versions of Ultimate.
• Wario's overalls outfit has odd properties with his face in covering textures such as ink and the Metal Box's activation, with his face being covered instantly by these instead of gradually.
• Prior to 8.0.0, Wario's forward throw did not work correctly on Ganondorf due to the first hit not connecting properly.
• Wario and R.O.B. are the only first-party sole fighters of their series that can be found in The Dark Realm.
• In Wario's biker outfit, because his jacket has been given more physics-based movement, certain animations will cause it to disconnect, exposing a gap underneath his arm.