Link (SSB4)

Link in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	The Legend of Zelda
Other playable appearances	in SSB in Melee in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Triforce Slash

Link (リンク, Link) was confirmed to be a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4 on June 11th, 2013 during the E3 2013 Nintendo Direct. He was also among the first wave of amiibo figures that are compatible with SSB4. Akira Sasanuma reprises the voice of Link, but through reused voice clips from Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Changes from Brawl

While Link has, aside from Melee, been considered one of the more sub-par characters in the history of Super Smash Bros., the transition from Brawl to SSB4 has given him a great deal of buffs. While he has also gained some nerfs as well, the potency of his buffs has noticeably improved him regardless, such as some of his attacks having been weakened slightly, yet have had both their speed and knockback increased. Both his ground and aerial games have been improved, and his combo ability has strengthened as a whole. His grab game has also been considerably buffed, with some grabs having better angle placements or knockback altogether. He also is one of the more potent edge-guarders in the game, with a new meteor smash to boot, as well as more offensive options against opponents on the ledge.

Lastly, the transition to SSB4 has also given Link a subtle but effective buff in that he is one of the few characters that benefit heavily from the rage mechanic, as most of his attacks with rage will KO early, even at the middle of the stage; this is especially evident with his up tilt, forward tilt, dash attack, smashes, and some of his aerials. Thanks to his heavy weight, he is capable of withstanding most hits with proper DI to ensure the best use of rage.

Aesthetics

• Link once again appears as his Twilight Princess incarnation. However, instead of retaining the subdued color scheme that was used in Twilight Princess and carried over to Brawl, his overall color scheme is, like a number of other characters, now noticeably brighter to appear in line with the more vibrant aesthetics used within SSB4.

Attributes

• Link has overall greater speed in both the air and on the ground, alongside overall less lag in his attacks.
• Link jumps much higher than he did previously.
• Link's roll animations are now based on the abilities of the Link from Ocarina of Time.
• Link will now flinch when a projectile or bomb explosion hits his Hylian Shield, making his Hylian Shield more reliable when attempting to block multiple projectiles. It will normally block any projectile in front of him, no matter where it is placed or if he's crouching or not and idle poses will no longer render it useless. His shield can now block projectiles even when walking.

Ground attacks

• Forward tilt has less ending lag.
• Dash attack is far stronger, to the point that it can KO under 150%. Also, it can hit horizontally, vertically, diagonally or even backwards depending on which hitbox connects.
• Up tilt is capable of KOs at even lower percentages now.
• Dash attack has considerably more start up.
• Dash attack now resembles the Jump Attack used by the Link from Ocarina of Time, as it is now a jumping slash rather than a running stab.
• Forward smash is stronger, and the second hit can be comboed into from the first hit like Toon Link's.
• Forward smash's second hit has more ending lag.
• Both hits of forward smash deal less damage (from 15%/20% to 14%/13%), and the first hit can only KO if it hits close to or at the tip.
• The window of time that the A button can be pressed after the first hit of forward smash in able to activate the second hit has been significantly tightened, leading to less accidental activations of the second hit, but making it so that one cannot use the delay as much in order to hit with the second hit.
• Up smash's final hit deals 1% more damage and deals much more knockback.
• Down smash is now a powerful semi spike during the second hit and deals more knockback at the base on the first.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial's clean hit has been split into two parts: the front half does 11% damage, while the back half does 9% damage (previously, it did 10% damage overall).
• However, the attack's late hits have lower knockback overall and are capable of setting up combos, thanks to its very low ending lag.
• Forward aerial is much faster and has less ending lag and landing lag.
• Forward aerial does less damage (from 9%/12% to 8%/10%).
• Back aerial comes out much faster.
• Back aerial does less damage (from 11% to 8%).
• Down aerial has an added meteor smash during the start of the attack, similar to Toon Link's in Brawl. Link's down aerial also experiences significantly less ending lag and landing lag, providing him now with a safer attack when bouncing off opponents, and allowing him to recover if falling off the stage.
• Outside the new meteor, down aerial is significantly weaker overall, dealing a maximum of 18% damage as opposed to 22%. The strong hit can KO in the 110-130% range instead of under 75% and is more difficult to land.
• Up aerial's hitbox is more disjointed, allowing for Link to get in better KOs, as well as being his primary KO move in general. It also has shorter landing lag than before, makes Link's hitbox shorter for a bit, has less ending lag and can even be capable of juggling, all of which improves the move overall.
• Grab aerial covers much more distance when used as a tether and comes out much faster as an attack.
• Grab aerial does less damage (from 10% to 6%).

Throws/other attacks

• Grab has less startup and far less ending lag.
• In the 3DS version, the Clawshot no longer falls to the ground as it retracts, like the Hookshot in SSB.
• Link has a new edge attack based on the Crouch Stab used by the Link from Ocarina of Time.

Special moves

• Hero's Bow charges faster.
• Gale Boomerang has increased knockback.
• Link's recovery with Spin Attack is much better overall, as it needs much less momentum than before and its vertical and horizontal reaches are much higher and farther, respectively, compared to Brawl.
• Spin Attack has a slightly altered animation in which Link spins his sword at subtly different heights. However, it has no obvious change in power or range compared to Brawl.
• If a Bomb explodes due to colliding with an opponent, the explosion does not hurt Link.
• Bomb fuses are shorter and Link can attack and explode his own bombs in the air after throwing them, improving his bomb-aided recovery.
• Bombs only deal 5% damage at point-blank range, but deal 8% damage when hitting the feet of the opponent.
• Bombs will absorb blasts from a fully charged Charge Shot and Aura Sphere, aiding his defensive and camping options threefold.
• Triforce Slash's damage has been lowered from 83% to 69%.

Version exclusives

• In the Wii U version of the game, Bombs are bigger.
• In the Wii U version of the game, Clawshot, as a grab, will come out shorter and will droop, but end quicker.

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.5%	A diagonal sword slash followed by a horizontal slash, with a lunging stab finisher. Loosely based on Link's final blow to Ganon in Ocarina of Time. Is a natural combo with fast startup and little knockback.
			2.5%
			5%
Forward tilt		rowspan="1"	13%	An overhand sword swing with slow startup but high knockback.
Up tilt		rowspan="1"	9%	A half-moon slice above Link's head. Good for low percent juggles.
Down tilt		rowspan="1"	12%	A low sword swipe across the ground with vertical knockback. Meteor smashes opponents in contact with Link's body.
Dash attack			14% (tip), 13% (non-tip)	Link performs a leaping downward slash (his "Jump Attack" from Ocarina of Time). Deals horizontal knockback when tipped and vertical knockback when hit close.
Forward smash			14% (tip), 7% (non-tip)	Link lunges forward with a wide sword swing in front of him, dealing good damage and knockback when tipped. The base of his sword has extremely little knockback, designed to naturally combo into an optional second hit: a sword swing with greater KO power.
			13% (tip), 12% (non-tip)
Up smash			4% (hit 1), 3% (hit 2), 11%/10%/9% (hit 3)	Three half-moon sword swings above Link's head.
Down smash			17%/16%/14% (hit 1), 12%/11%/10% (hit 2)	A low slash in front and then behind Link. First hit sends opponents at a vertical trajectory while having slightly increased damage and knockback the closer one is to Link. Second hit is a powerful semi-spike with slightly increased damage and knockback on his blade.
Neutral aerial		rowspan="1"	11%/9% (clean), 6% (late)	Link thrusts his leg out in front of him for an extended time. Is a sex kick with relatively fast startup and little landing lag. Deals more damage closer to his boot.
Forward aerial		rowspan="1"	8% (hit 1), 10% (hit 2)	Swings his sword twice while spinning 360˚. While the second hit has more knockback, it is inconvenient to use, as it can only be landed if the first hit misses.
Back aerial			3% (hit 1), 5% (hit 2)	A two kick combo behind Link with very little landing lag and low damage.
Up aerial			15% (clean), 13% (late)	Link thrusts his sword up for a long duration. Moderate landing lag unless used alongside a full hop.
Down aerial			15% (early), 18% (clean), 15% (late)	Aims his sword directly below him for a long duration, based on his "Downthrust" from Zelda II: The Adventures of Link. It's possible for Link to "bounce" on opponents into a second hit. The early hit is a powerful meteor smash. If the strong non-meteor hitbox lands, it results in considerable knockback being capable of KOing under 130%. However, it is difficult to land a strong non-meteor hitbox than the meteor hitbox, as it requires Link to hit with the rising hilt on startup, or immediately after the initial meteor hit, but before the Weak hit.
Grab aerial			2.5% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	Fires his Clawshot forward in the air with great range and no landing lag. Link can cancel his air dodge at any point via his tether, however it will not cancel the landing lag suffered from the dodge. The Clawshot also serves as a tether recovery that auto-snaps the ledge, covering great horizontal distance.
Grab			—	Link fires his Clawshot forwards. In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, the chain snaps straight back once fully extended, like the Hookshot from Super Smash Bros.; in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, the chain drags on the ground as it does in Melee and Brawl.
Pummel			2.1%	Hits opponent with the hilt of the Master Sword. A fairly fast pummel.
Forward throw			3% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Link releases the opponent from his pummel and kicks them away.
Back throw			3% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	Link takes his opponent behind him and kicks them away.
Up throw			5%/4% (hit 1), 2% (throw)	Link raises the opponent above him and slashes upward.
Down throw			3% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Link takes the opponent onto the ground and elbow drops them.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Does two slashes front and back.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Does another two slashes front and back.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Essentially the same as his other two floor attacks.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	Stabs forwards while climbing up.
Neutral special	Default	Hero's Bow	4%-12%	Link equips his bow, with the arrows serving as projectiles. Charging increases the speed, distance and damage dealt by an arrow.
	Custom 1	Power Bow	4%-20%	Compared to the default, arrows deal more knockback at the expense of range and speed. When fully charged, they deal very heavy knockback.
	Custom 2	Quickfire Bow	4%-8%	Compared to the default, these arrows go straight and can go through enemies and projectiles. However, they have a very short range and deal no knockback.
Side special	Default	Gale Boomerang	7% (near), 5% (middle), 0% (far/return)	A projectile which damages opponents as it flies away and drags opponents towards Link during its return. Can be angled up or down. A "smash throw" (similar to performing a smash attack) increases the distance the boomerang can travel.
	Custom 1	Boomerang	9% (near), 7% (middle), 5% (far), 3% (return)	Travels on the same route as the Gale Boomerang, however, unlike the Gale Boomerang, this one retains its properties from both Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee, where there are no whirlwind effects whatsoever but there is damage on the boomerang's return. It has less knockback, but a better angle.
	Custom 2	Ripping Boomerang	4% (near), 2% (middle), 1.5% (far), 0.7% (return)	Travels across a much shorter range than the Gale Boomerang, but also deals multiple hits of low damage and adds stun to the opponents.
Up special	Default	Spin Attack	12%/9%/7%/5% (ground), 4% (air hit 1), 2% (air hits 2-8), 4% (air hit 9)	This move functions differently when grounded and airborne; an aerial Spin Attack is used as recovery which grants Link great vertical distance. Hits 5 times in the air. A grounded Spin Attack is akin to most Zelda games, and functions similarly to a smash attack with great knockback.
	Custom 1	Shocking Spin	14%/9%/7%/5% (ground), 4% (air hit 1), 1% (air hits 2-4), 6% (air hit 5)	A much more powerful version of the Spin Attack, where Link is able to deal much more knockback with an electric effect and can charge the move more quickly. The downside however is the fact that Link's recovery is much shorter and has poor horizontal motion. The aerial version can semi-spike.
	Custom 2	Whirling Leap	0%	A special type of Spin Attack that can only be used as a recovery move. It produces no hits and thus, no damage whatsoever, but actually travels much higher and much further than the normal recovery, even to the point of not relying on momentum and performing multiple left and right movements.
Down special	Default	Bomb	5% (upper body), 8% (feet)	An item based projectile Link pulls out, with its design from Twilight Princess. An explosion deals damage when in direct contact with an opponent, though it's possible to get additional damage from an indirect hit from a blast. Link can hurt himself with this move, which can grant him an extra Spin Attack if used skillfully. An odd function is that it will deal 8% damage when it hits the feet.
	Custom 1	Giant Bomb	8%-10%	A bomb that has grown to massive size, increasing its hitbox and properties, though it remains practically the same. However, they cannot blow up when thrown at the opponent, and need time or another explosion to blow up. They deal damage based on range.
	Custom 2	Meteor Bomb	5%	Weaker versions of the bombs at lower percents with a noticeably short fuse. However, they have the unique property of causing a meteor to happen, which can damage Link as well. It is not practical for recoveries in any way, though it provides a new tool for Link's arsenal.
Final Smash		Triforce Slash	1% (snag), 30% (last hit)	Link locks onto an opponent and proceeds to slash them repeatedly with his Master Sword. A luminous image of the Triforce appears around the opponent as Link slashes them. The final strike launches the opponent.

Taunts

• Swings his sword twice and twirls the sword before sheathing it. Similar to his Twilight Princess victory pose, which he performs after defeating a boss, learning a hidden sword technique, or sheathing his sword upon the defeat of harder-to-defeat enemies.
• Link pulls in his right knee and draws his sword back behind his head in a threatening battle pose. It originates from Super Smash Bros. and may be loosely based on the attacking pose used by the Link from Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.
• Link takes out a fairy that appears similar to Navi from Ocarina of Time. The fairy then proceeds to fly around as Link watches it until it returns to his pocket.

On-Screen Appearance

Small whirlwinds appear on the battlefield, from which Link appears. Link then proceeds to equip his sword and shield.

Victory Fanfare

A flourished remix directly from Brawl. It is a remix of the tune that will play when Link obtained a Triforce Piece in The Legend of Zelda for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is shared with Zelda, Sheik, Ganondorf, and Toon Link.

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• A Fated Battle: Link must fight Ganondorf in a 2 stock battle. If the battle lasts through the third portion, two Dark Links will appear.
• All-Star Battle: Regulars: Link is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents are starter characters from the original Super Smash Bros. game.
• Princess Punch-Up!: Link serves as an ally in a 1 stock battle against Peach and Mario.
• The Demon King and the Goddess: Ganondorf must initially defeat a team of Link and Zelda. After the two are defeated or some time has passed, Giant Palutena appears and the player must defeat her as well.
• The Ultimate Swordsman: Link is one of the fighters Ike must defeat. All opponents wield swords.

Co-op Events

• A Fairy Nice Trip: Link and Pac-Man must survive against 4 Kirbys until the stage reaches Fairy-Land.
• Final Battle Team-Up: Link (in his dark alternate costume) is one of the opponents that two players fight in this event. All opponents are antagonists in their respective universes.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players choose a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Trophies

Super Smash Bros. 4 trophy descriptions

Link's regular trophy can be obtained by completing Classic Mode and his alternative trophy can be obtained by completing All-Star mode.

Link

Green clothes? Pointy hat? Yep, it's Link, all right! In this game, his sword and shield make for effective attacking and blocking, and his bow, bombs, and boomerang will spice up any battle. He's even brought his Clawshot for grabbing enemies and edges. Jeez, just how much stuff can Link carry?

Link (Alt.)

If Link was on a desert island and could only pick one item, it'd be his powerful sword. This weapon is key to his down-air attack, a move with great launching potential and the ability to strike twice. He can also strike twice with his side smash—the second blow deals more damage and launches harder.

• 

  Classic

• LinkTrophy3DS2.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

Update history

1.0.4

• The non-tip of the first hit of forward smash has significantly reduced base knockback (from 60 to 47). This causes it to more easily set up the second hit, which reduces its KO'ing ability even further.

1.0.5

• Quickfire Bow and Power Bow have been changed to match how they function in the Wii U version.

Gallery

• 

  Link in the Nintendo Direct from April 8th, 2014.

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  Link's amiibo.

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  Link's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

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  Link's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Link's up special in the Wii U version.

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  Link and Pit preparing their arrows.

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  Link's forward tilt with Kirby watching.

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  Link's Spin Attack colliding with Toon Link's against Donkey Kong.

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  Toon Link throws a Bomb at Link.

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  Toon Link and Link use their Spin Attack on the ground.

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  Link's down aerial showing its new meteor smash effect on Samus.

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  Link using his neutral attack 1 while Marth performs his dash attack.

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  Link using his Clawshot.

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  His side taunt.

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  Link and Peach on Battlefield.

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  His appearance in the 3DS version, posing with Toon Link.

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  Link stealing a ledge from Mario.

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  Link's and Pit's arrows colliding in the air.

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  Forward aerial.

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  Link using the Gale Boomerang.

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  Link and Samus simultaneously grabbing a ledge with their tether recoveries.

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  The clothes inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.

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  The Dark Link costume.

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  Link as he appears on the 3DS cover.

Trivia

• Link is one of the three characters to lose a costume that had been present in the Super Smash Bros. series since the beginning, along with Mario and Fox. In Link's case, he lost his lavender costume.
• Link's Alt. trophy in the Wii U version resembles his All-Star trophy in Melee except with a different costume.