Luigi (SSBB)

Luigi in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Universe	Mario
Other playable appearances	in SSB in Melee in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Negative Zone
Tier	E (28)

Revealed on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website on February 15, 2008, Luigi (ルイージ, Luigi) is an unlockable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, who is also unlockable in Super Smash Bros. Melee and the original Super Smash Bros.. He is the brother of Mario, and the two originate from the Super Mario series, from which Princess Peach and Bowser, also hail. While his SSB64 and Melee voice is a higher pitched version of Mario's set of Super Mario 64 voice clips, Luigi's voice in Brawl is original, and is made up of a separate, unique set of sound clips voiced by Charles Martinet. Luigi's Brawl moveset has no major differences to that of Melee, except that the final hit of his dash attack now deals some knockback.

Luigi is currently ranked 28th on the current tier list on the top of lower-mid tier. Luigi is most recognizable for his very fast, yet very powerful attacks, possessing several potential finishers, some of which can reliably KO under 100% (such as his forward smash and Fire Jump Punch). Additionally, his attacks flow well together and he possesses multiple effective set up moves, giving him dangerous combo ability. However, Luigi is slow moving with poor mobility, being floaty with poor dashing speed and terrible air speed. This makes it very difficult for Luigi to approach opponents. His severe problems with approaching are exasperated by the general reach of his attacks being among the worst in Brawl, his very low traction that causes Luigi to get pushed back considerably when shielding (which also prevents him from punishing out of shield), and his projectile being too slow and short ranged to effectively camp most characters. This has resulted in mostly poor matchups, especially against characters with disjointed hitboxes and strong camping abilities (such as Meta Knight), and, when combined with his general lack of representation in tournaments, below average tournament results.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play 22 VS. matches.
• Beat Classic Mode with no continues.
• Have Luigi join the player's party in the Subspace Emissary (Subspace (Part I)).

With the exception of the third method, Luigi must then be defeated on Luigi's Mansion.

Attributes

Luigi is a surprisingly strong middleweight with very quick attack speed (almost no slow attacks), yet slow mobility and short range. While many consider Luigi a clone or semi-clone of Mario, there are some important differences between them. Like Mario, his Fireballs are spammable and help his approach, but Luigi’s travel less distance and are not affected by gravity, which can be good or bad depending on the situation. Luigi has the second highest initial jump in the game (second only to Falco's), which helps his air game. Luigi is also a good juggler due to his very fast up tilt, neutral aerial, and up aerial. Luigi's neutral aerial is a powerful sex kick and can often KO at high damage percentages on most characters. He is able to use his down throw to set up his juggles on many characters when they are at low percentages, but Luigi himself is a candidate for King Dedede's infinite chaingrab without a wall (Luigi is the only character that can be infinited by King Dedede without a wall but cannot be chain grabbed by the normal way), a major issue as King Dedede is a very common character in tournament-level play and has a huge grab range. Luigi has the ability to crawl, which can help him dodge certain projectiles. His smashes, like most of his attacks, are considered fast and unusually strong, especially his forward smash. His specials are also considered to be good overall and great for recovery. If one keeps pressing the special attack button during Luigi Cyclone while moving upward (as the movement is momentum based), Luigi will rise up, greatly aiding his recovery. His side special, the Green Missile, can be used for horizontal recovery to make up for the lack of horizontal recovery from his Super Jump Punch. However, the Green Missile requires charging and can be stopped with projectiles normally, but if he gets a misfire (which happens 12.5% of the time), it is an extremely powerful attack. A green missile misfire can be good in some situations because it has more power and covers more distance than normally, but it can also be bad because it can cause Luigi to self-destruct. His Super Jump Punch is unique in the fact that if sweetspotted, it will become the Fire Jump Punch, a much stronger version that deals fire damage and can KO at very low percentages (about 50%). However, if Luigi's Super Jump Punch does not sweetspot, it only does 1% with almost no knockback and is very punishable unless he grabs a ledge.

Luigi's main problems revolve around his unusual mobility and his poor reach. Luigi has slow falling speed (although this also has its advantages, such as preventing certain chain grabs and Kirby's throw combos, as well as aiding his overall aerial game), the second-slowest lateral air speed, slow dash speed, and the lowest traction (but low traction also has advantages, such as preventing Diddy Kong's banana follow-ups), all of which make approaching with Luigi a chore. His moves are quick, but short-ranged, so characters that can keep Luigi away with their speed and range (like Marth and Lucario) fare well.

Overall, Luigi is a character who tends to run hot and cold. If he is able to get within close distance of an opponent so that he can land his blows, he is extremely dangerous. But his abysmal approach and his poor reach leave him at a clear disadvantage if opponents can time their attacks to keep him out of range. He operates well on both the ground and in the air, but Luigi's issues with range and his overall shaky defensive game make him tough to deploy successfully.

Luigi's taunt is also unique in the sense that it can hit opponents and deal 2% of damage, but if it is used when the opponent is on the ledge or in the air, it is a meteor smash.

Changes from Melee to Brawl

In the transition from Melee to Brawl, Luigi has received a mix of buffs and nerfs, with the buffs being greater overall, as many of his attacks been made more powerful or faster, along with a significantly improved recovery. However, Luigi's loss of wavedashing has harmed him drastically, especially with the stronger defensive play of Brawl (and the defensive nature of Brawl also makes his poor traction much more of a liability, as the inability to punish out of shield with it is a more significant problem in Brawl). As such, despite the overall buffs, Luigi is a less effective character than he was in Melee.

• His slow air speed has been slightly improved, going from the worst in Melee to the second-lowest in Brawl.
• His traction has been slightly improved (although still the lowest).
• His attacks are generally stronger overall, outside a few noted exceptions, in terms of knockback (especially his forward smash, which can now reliably KO under 100%).
  • The following moves can now KO under 150%; up tilt, back aerial, and up aerial.
• The final hit of his dash attack produces real knockback (though still very minor), making the move slightly less punishable.
• His forward aerial has significantly less ending lag.
• Luigi's throws have been improved, with his forward and back throws dealing 2% more damage (for 9% and 12% total respectively), while his up throw deals 1% more damage (for 8% total). His back throw can also now KO when the opponent approaches 150%.
• Green Missile can now be held indefinitely, and it is harder to self-destruct with misfires due to the slightly less distance it travels. Luigi can now also grab ledges out of it, and Brawl's slower falling speeds allows Luigi to charge it up longer when recovering.
• Super Punch Jump allows for much more horizontal movement after the move, giving Luigi significantly more breathing room when recovering. Sweetspotted Super Jump Punch is much more powerful and can KO reliably around 50%.
• Luigi Cyclone now hits multiple times and can move faster on the ground. Additionally, it's much easier to rise with the move due to less required button mashing.
• Luigi's walking speed is slightly slower.
• Luigi is slightly lighter, now weighing 97 units instead of 100.
• His up smash now has a sourspot (which deals 3% less damage than the sweetspot), and the sweetspot deals 2% less damage than the Melee up smash (for 15% total).
• His down smash no longer hits at a pure vertical angle (instead hitting in a less desirable diagonal angle), which makes it slightly less effective at KOing.
• Sourspotted neutral aerial deals 4% less damage (for 6% damage total).
• Forward aerial deals 2% less damage (for 10% total) and much weaker knockback, no longer being able to reliably KO under 150%.
• Down aerial deals 5% less damage (for 11% total) and weaker knockback, where now opponents have to be around 150% for it to KO.
• Fireball travel slightly less distance.
• Super Jump Punch has greater landing lag, making Luigi easier to punish when he whiffs the move.
• The loss of wavedashing has adversely affected Luigi far more than any other character. It greatly limits Luigi's ability to approach, which (combined with his poor mobility and terrible reach) causes Luigi to perform significantly less effectively overall in Brawl's more defensive environment. Considering his very poor mobility, his traction now does more harm than good.
• The Super Jump Punch now has an even smaller sweet spot hitbox.
• Luigi's returning taunt (down taunt) deals drastically more set knockback, with it now being strong enough to KO offstage opponents at 0%. The move is still virtually impossible to land on offstage opponents in serious play however, making this buff negligible.
• Luigi now has the ability to crawl, though it doesn't reduce his height enough to give it real practical use.
• Luigi no longer says "Yahoo!" when using Luigi Cyclone.

Luigi's purely cosmetic changes include new animations for his back aerial (similar to that of his forward aerial from Super Smash Bros.) and down smash. Luigi has been graphically updated, with the most noticeable change being a triangular, rather than round, face. He has his own voice now as well, instead of a recycled Mario voice sped up from the last two games (although his voice actor is still Charles Martinet, as in Melee and other contemporary games). Luigi also has new costumes (purple - based on Waluigi's palette - and orange). His overalls have been changed back to purple in dark areas, and the pants legs are rolled up to the ankles.

Moveset

For a visual representation of Luigi's attack hitboxes, see this page.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3%	Punches twice with opposing hands and then turns, thrusting his buttocks out. The first hit is extremely quick. Can jab lock by jab canceling and can also be followed up by a Fire Jump Punch.
			2%
			5%
Forward tilt			9%	Luigi does a back spinning kick. Can be tilted in different directions. Pause with right timing while performing the start of the move, and the player can see Luigi spin before kicking, similarly to Mario.
Up tilt			9%	Luigi does an upwards kittenswipe that is great for juggling and it can KO at very high percentages.
Down tilt			9%	Luigi does a tripping kick for minimal damage. Acts as a meteor smash, but the largest hitbox (Luigi's foot) only does this to grounded opponents. The other two (smaller) hitboxes (the leg portion) are much more difficult to connect with.
Dash attack			1% (hits 1-6), 2% (hit 7)	Luigi flails his fists as he slows to a stop. The last hit has more knockback than Melee.
Forward smash	↗		15%	Luigi does a spearhand that can be tilted KOing in percentages as low as 75% when angled upwards. To be exact, when angled upward and fully charged, it can KO at 57%. Very fast, but has poor range and, if shielded, it is easy to punish - however, the attack does 5 extra shield damage. It is notable for its extremely high knockback scaling, being the forward smash with the third highest knockback scaling in the game. This, along with its diagonal trajectory, makes momentum canceling not very effective on it. Can be angled; angling up gives it much earlier interruptibility, making it a great move.
	→		14%
	↘		13%
Up smash			15% (head), 12% (body)	Luigi does an upwards headbutt similar to Mario's up smash, but it has higher knockback and sends foes on a more diagonal trajectory behind him. Can slide if dashes and few frames after charge it, which slides slower than Mario, but slides farther.
Down smash			16% (feet), 17% (legs)	Luigi does a twisting breakdancing sweepkick with decent vertical knockback that pulls victim behind him if sweetspotted (the first hit).
Neutral aerial			14% (clean), 6% (late)	Luigi does a sex kick that has great vertical knockback. Hits on frame 3, allowing to be an excellent combo breaker due to its almost instantaneous start-up which can break some chain throws, like Falco and Pikachu's chain throws. Unusual for a sex kick, it has pure vertical knockback. It is Luigi's most powerful aerial, capable of KOing most grounded characters under 125% when at full power and it is one of the strongest sex kicks in the game.
Forward aerial			10%	Luigi does a quick karate chop that has below average horizontal knockback and can be used in succession due to it having low start up and very little ending lag. This is Luigi's fastest aerial, duration-wise. However, this attack cannot KO until opponent is at around 150%, unless edgeguarding.
Back aerial			12% (clean), 8% (late)	Luigi does a backwards kick similar Mario's with similar knockback. Luigi's new back aerial is similar to his forward aerial in the original Super Smash Bros.
Up aerial			13% (first half), 7% (second half)	Luigi does a flip kick that is great for juggling due to its speed and vertical knockback. Like his other aerials, it has almost no start-up and ending lag. It has more vertical knockback than Mario's up aerial.
Down aerial			11%	Luigi does a quick down spin kick. It usually has average horizontal knockback, but one of the hitboxes is a meteor smash - it's rather difficult to hit with this part of the attack. The hitbox's largest portion is just off of Luigi's right hip/below his right elbow. If hit with the wrong hitbox, this attack cannot KO until opponent is at around 150%, unless edgeguarding.
Grab			—	Luigi's grab is short.
Pummel			3%	Luigi headbutts the opponent once. A slow pummel.
Forward throw			9%	Luigi spins once with his victim and throws them forward.
Back throw			12% (throw), 8% (collateral)	Luigi spins three times and throws the target behind him, reminiscent of Mario throwing Bowser in Super Mario 64. This is one of the strongest throws in the game, being capable of KOing characters under 150% from the center of most stages. But being such a slow throw causes it to be very easy to DI however, which when combined with its lowish knockback scaling, keeps it from being able to reliably KO under 150% in most situations.
Up throw			8%	Luigi tosses the enemy upward. It is a throw that is inferior to the down throw for setting up due to its higher knockback.
Down throw			6%	Luigi slams his opponent on the ground. This move is a great combo starter, as it allows him to easily follow up with a up tilt, up smash, neutral aerial, forward aerial, or up aerial at very low to medium percentages.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			6%	Two punches to either side.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			6%	Does a sweeperkick similar to his down smash.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Kicks behind him, then in front of him while getting up.
Edge attack (fast) Edge getups (fast)			8% (legs), 6% (body)	Flips over the edge, kicking the opponent during the flip.
Edge attack (slow) Edge getups (slow)			10%	Slowly gets up and kicks.
Neutral special		Fireball	6%	A small, weak projectile. Isn't affected by gravity.
Side special		Green Missile	5%-26% (normal), 25% (misfire)	Charges up and flies sideways. A 12.5% chance of misfiring.
Up special		Super Jump Punch	25% (clean ground), 20% (clean air), 1% (late)	Soars upwards, hitting enemies a bit. If the target is in the perfect spot, it becomes a Fire Jump Punch, which can KO at 57%. Otherwise, it deals pitiful damage and next to no knockback. The Fire Jump Punch can also be set up with the first hit of his neutral attack.
Down special		Luigi Cyclone	2% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	Spins around, hitting haphazardly.
Final Smash		Negative Zone	0%	Causes all kinds of status effects on opponents.

Taunts

• Up: Does a variety of humorous poses very quickly in a set order: Faces the screen with one hand on his waist, the other giving the peace symbol, next he turns to the right slightly, pointing his hands that direction. Then, he places his right hand just below his nose, as if he is thinking. Then he turns away from the screen, crouching, as if he's sad, and finally, he faces the screen once more, with both hands on his face, giving a frightened look, reminiscent to the box art of the Nintendo GameCube game Luigi's Mansion. The switch between each expression is so fast, it can't be seen unless the game speed is slowed down a bit. He also makes a sound during each expression: Hoh! Hah! Hee! Hey! Hoo! The last pose is his trophy pose in the Subspace Emissary.
• Side: Stands straight up with hands on hips, falls forward stiff on the floor, then seems to balance himself back up again (similar to his victory pose in Melee and Brawl). He says something that resembles "Pow pow".
• Down: Kicks at the ground while uttering a bashful "Hm." The kick delivers a hitbox that produces a strong meteor smash on airborne opponents and weaker knockback on grounded opponents, dealing set knockback. It is the meteor smash with the highest base knockback in Brawl, strong enough to OHKO an airborne opponent above a pit, but with pitiful reach, it can typically only be landed on opponents hanging on an edge. Landing the attack is farther complicated by its slow start-up lag. It resembles the action Luigi would perform when he "missed" in certain minigames of Mario Party 2. Deals 2%.

Idle poses

• Rubs the back of his head sheepishly.
• Pulls on his nose, stretching it and snapping it back.

Cheer

Luigi's NTSC and PAL cheer

Lu-i-gi! (male voices)

In competitive play

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Character Matchups

Avg.

Notable players

See also: Category:Luigi professionals (SSBB)

•  Big Lou
•  Boss
•  Jbandrew
•  J.Miller
•  Mr. ConCon
•  YoshQ
•  zhao_guang

Role in The Subspace Emissary

Luigi in the Subspace Emissary

Luigi first appears in a green meadow, where he pretends to threaten and attack on-coming Waddle Dees. They are harmless, and make no move to attack him, but he is frightened by them, nonetheless. Then, out of nowhere, he is attacked from behind by King Dedede, who slams Luigi with his mallet, sending him flying into the air. After he comes back down, he becomes a trophy (making him the only character to become a trophy in the same cut scene in which he is introduced). Luigi's trophy in Subspace Emissary is different from his collectible trophy. Instead of adjusting his hat, Luigi holds his hands to his face making a surprised expression, which is the last of the poses from his up taunt. This distinction is unique to Luigi. King Dedede places him on the road as bait for Wario, who is coming down the road. Wario takes the bait, and Dedede manages to steal Peach/Zelda, Ness, and Luigi's trophy along with Wario's Cargo.

Dedede places a special badge on Luigi, Ness, and Peach/Zelda, though Peach/Zelda's badge is knocked off when Bowser flies off with the princess in his Koopa Clown Car and is later swallowed by Kirby. Luigi is not seen again until much later in the story when Tabuu turns everyone into trophies, and the badges manage to revive him and Ness, revealing what they were for. The two then decide to turn King Dedede back to life in return, and the unlikely trio set off to help out Mario, Donkey Kong, Samus, Fox, Pikachu, Captain Falcon, Marth, Mr. Game & Watch, Falco, Pit, Olimar, Lucas, Diddy Kong, the Pokémon Trainer and Ike. Luigi, along with Ness, then watched as Dedede fought Bowser, and later helped him convince Wario to join them. After they turned everyone back to normal, they all fought Tabuu.

Playable appearances

Luigi was ambushed and turned into a trophy by King Dedede during the epilogue of The Battlefield Fortress, and when he was taken into King Dedede's castle, a Subspace Bomb exploded in front the castle and he was brought into Subspace in Trophy Form.

• Subspace (Part I)
• The Great Maze

Using stickers

Since Luigi's primary attacks are kicks and punches, Arm and Leg stickers have the widest effect. Using a Head sticker will only affect Luigi's up smash and Green Missile (since pummels cannot be used against most enemies), while a Fire one will affect his Fireball, the Green Missile, and the Fire Jump Punch. The Luigi Cyclone is considered a Spin attack, but seeing as it's his only Spin attack, there is minimal benefit to using a Spin sticker. Similarly, the final hit of Luigi's neutral attack is a Body attack, so applying a Body sticker will have only limited benefits.

Alternate costumes

Luigi's palette swaps in Brawl

Trophy

Luigi's main trophy is obtained by clearing Classic Mode with Luigi, while the Paper Luigi trophy is obtained randomly.

Description

Main trophy - Mario's younger twin brother. He's shy and quiet and overshadowed by his sibling, but he's actually quite talented. His jumping ability surpasses Mario's, and his all- around skills let him overcome any problem. He's a bit cowardly and really afraid of ghosts. Even so, in Luigi's Mansion, he was charged with cleaning up a whole house full of spirits.

: Mario Bros

: Luigi's Mansion

Paper Luigi trophy - The legendary hero Mario's younger brother. He's teased by Koopas and Goombas alike and is sometimes called "green mustache guy." He goes missing after Bowser and Peach's wedding. He's known for his jumping prowess—his special move is the High Jump. It's said that he has a close relationship to the masked man brainwashed by Count Bleck and known only as "Mister L."

: Super Paper Mario

Note that while this trophy says "Mister L", in the game he is actually called "Mr. L".

• 

  Luigi's trophy in Brawl

• 

  Paper Luigi trophy

Trivia

• Luigi is one of only three characters in Brawl able to perform three aerials in one short hop. He is the only one that can string any two of his aerials in a single short hop.
• The sparsity of Luigi's crowd chant (which sounds like only two or three people are cheering) and the announcer's tone of voice when announcing him (implying surprise) both contribute to the running joke in the Super Mario series that Luigi is rarely mentioned or remembered as well as his older brother.
  • The fact that Luigi is consistently considered number two to Mario is also referenced in Brawl; Luigi requires 22 brawls in order to be unlocked, and his sound effects are the 22nd to be listed in the Sound Test.
• In the Home-Run Contest, Luigi's forward smash is notable for being able to send the Sandbag farther than the Warlock Punch at extreme percentages (above 250%). This is not because it produces stronger knockback at this percentage (as it has lower base knockback and knockback scaling than the Warlock Punch), but because its extremely high knockback scaling combined with its much more vertical trajectory allows it to send the Sandbag farther at these percentages.
  • Despite this, Ganondorf still holds the solo world record at 10,499 feet (3200.1 meters). Luigi is in second place at 9,637.14 feet (2937.4 meters), as seen in this video [1].
• Like Zelda, Luigi's trophy in the SSE's cutscenes is different from that of his actual trophy; the reason for this difference is unknown, though some data on the disc shows that Luigi was intended to have a trophy with a similar pose.
• Luigi and Snake are the only characters in Brawl to have a taunt that can damage a player.
• Luigi's AI has a reputation of being the best AI of any character in the game (though Pikachu's is also debatable for this title). As such, "level nine Luigi" is often joked about in the Smash community as an unbeatable character, and it's not uncommon for players, who lack a partner, to enter doubles tournaments with a level nine CPU Luigi if the TO allows it. Level nine Luigi is also the CPU partner of choice in Melee too, though Luigi's AI has less of a mythical reputation there. The AI's success with Luigi can be attributed to the fact that the AI's extremely fast reactions is its best trait, while Luigi, with his very fast and very powerful attacks, and who is also heavily reliant on perfect shielding, is perhaps the character who benefits from such fast reactions the most.
• In Brawl, Luigi's pant-legs are rolled up to his ankles. This is a reference to the Mario & Luigi series, where Luigi's pants would never reach his shoes.
• This is the first time Luigi is given his own voice in a Super Smash Bros. game. In the past two games, his voice was simply a higher-pitched variation of Mario's voice, and in Melee, his Green Missile sound effects were taken from Pikachu's Skull Bash.

External links

• DOJO!! page
• Luigi Character Guide at SWF
• Luigi's Moves - History Behind Super Smash Bros. Brawl, by CrappyCaptureDevice