Keyboard

Players using keyboards on a Smash 64 setup at Apex 2015.

Keyboard play is the act of playing a Super Smash Bros. game with a standard computer keyboard as the controller. Keyboard play is generally seen through the use of emulators run on personal computers, such as in Project 64 and Dolphin, thus allowing for keyboard play in Smash 64, Melee, Brawl, and Project M; furthermore, Citra and CEMU, experimental emulators for the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U respectively, could potentially allow for keyboard play to occur in Smash 4. Keyboard play is especially prominent in the Smash 64 community, due to the reliance of emulators for play.

While generally associated with emulators, keyboard play has seen some use in tournaments, particularly in Smash 64.

Comparison to actual controllers

Keyboard play is considered by most players to be more difficult than standard controller play. In addition to most users already being used to the standard controllers for the games, the setup of the keys on a keyboard can be considered counter-conductive to gameplay; on the standard GameCube controller, for instance, shielding merely consists of pushing the L or R buttons with one's index finger, whereas on a keyboard, this can require movement of a player's fingers in order to reach around other keys. Outside of this, keyboard play requires the player to use the standard arrow keys of the device, which grant considerably less precise control compared to the control stick found on official controllers.

Playing with a keyboard, however, does yield some interesting benefits compared to a controller. Button mashing, for instance, is more efficient on a keyboard than a controller, allowing for improved operation of attacks such as Mario Tornado, as well as allowing for players to more easily escape from throws in Melee and Brawl. In addition to this, SDI is easier to perform, due to keyboards only having the ability to "tap" when a key is pressed; this is particularly useful in the original game, as Smash DI is the only DI present in the game. The ability to easily configure keys can also get around some limitations of the natural keyboard layout; in Project 64, for instance, the C buttons are mapped to the Home, Delete, End and Page Down keys, all of which are found above the arrow keys on many keyboards, allowing for players to more easily SHFFL.

Use in tournaments

While tournaments prefer the use of the original console in tournament setups, the use of emulators are not unheard of in competitive play, particularly in the case of Smash 64, where keyboard play is especially popular. As such, keyboard play has sometimes seen use in professional tournaments, though most players instead use alternative controllers to play the game.

The use of keyboards on actual consoles is also possible. Smash 64 player Herbert Von Karajan developed an adapter for the Nintendo 64 that allows for players to use USB keyboards on the console, and this adapter is used by multiple professional Smash 64 players, such as Killer, Star King, and KoRoBeNiKi. This adapter can also allow for the use of other USB devices to control Smash 64; smasher LD uses the Xbox 360 controller, for instance.

The Canadian smasher SuPeRbOoMfAn notoriously fought against American smasher Sensei with a keyboard in the grand finals of Zenith 2013's Smash 64 bracket. SuPeRbOoMfAn lost by a small margin, and he elected to switch to a regular controller towards the end of the set.

Notable keyboard players

•  Bane
•  Killer
•  KoRoBeNiKi
•  Nephiros
•  Star King
•  SuPeRbOoMfAn (uses the alias KeyboardKing)
•  Unreal