Incineroar (SSBU)

Incineroar in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Pokémon
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Max Malicious Moonsault

“	Incineroar Enters the Ring!	”
—Introduction Tagline

“	A fighter with many special moves that appear to come from the world of pro wrestling. Incineroar has many moves from its original game, like Darkest Lariat, Cross Chop, and Revenge. Its Final Smash is Max Malicious Moonsault. Let the Z-Power explode and deliver a powerful blow!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Incineroar (ガオガエン, Gaogaen) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It was confirmed as a playable character alongside Ken and Piranha Plant on November 1st, 2018. Incineroar is classified as fighter #69.

H.D. Quinn, who voiced Ash's Incineroar and Professor Kukui's Incineroar in the Sun and Moon anime, reprises his role as the Pokémon in English. In Japanese, it is voiced by Unshō Ishizuka, who passed away 2 months and 19 days before Incineroar's reveal. Incineroar also has different voice actors for the French and German versions due to its name being different in those languages.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Incineroar being the 46th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Samus or any character in her unlock tree, being the 4th character unlocked after Pit.
• Have Incineroar join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Incineroar must then be defeated on Boxing Ring.

Attributes

Incineroar draws many comparisons to some of the slowest, hardest-hitting fighters in Super Smash Bros. history: it is a super-heavyweight with the sixth-highest weight (tied with Charizard), the nineteenth-fastest falling speed (therefore classifying it as a fast-faller), and average air acceleration. However, it is the overall slowest character in the game, with the slowest walking and dashing speeds in the base game, the eighth-slowest air speed, and the twelfth-slowest initial dash speed.

As a character that pays homage to professional wrestling, Incineroar's moveset boasts an abundance of single-hit attacks and throws, and its attacks have respectably large hitboxes for a close-range fighter of its mobility. Contrary to its sluggish movement, its frame data is fast, and almost all of its moves are heavily damaging and capable of KOing very early, while also having a respectable lag in spite of their power. Unlike most other hard hitters, Incineroar's weaker attacks are very reliable combo starters that work at a wide percent range, giving its moveset an excellent amount of utility.

Unsurprisingly, Incineroar has a multitude of KO options. Its smash attacks are all powerful in their own right, and each have their unique perks: forward smash comes out surprisingly quickly, kills extremely early, and deals good shield damage; up smash has a wide hitbox that is useful for both anti-air tactics and damage racking; and down smash momentarily shifts Incineroar's hurtbox upwards, allowing it to dodge grabs, attacks, and even projectiles to act as a hard punish. When sweetspotted, Incineroar's neutral aerial can be used to KO; if not, it can still function as a powerful combo starter, especially for an out of shield option. Its forward aerial, and back aerial both deal good damage and are capable KO options, while offering Incineroar range to outspace opponents. Its down aerial is a powerful meteor smash that can still KO even if the sourspot hits. Forward tilt is Incineroar's quickest KO option on the ground due to its knockback growth and semi-spike angle, and dash attack can KO at high percents.

Incineroar's combo starters make up the rest of its moveset and are notable for their reliability. Up tilt's wide hitbox allows it to function as an anti-air, and easily combos into itself or aerials at low-mid percents. Down tilt has good range, lowers Incineroar's hurtbox, and has excellent combo potential throughout all percent ranges, allowing combos into up tilt or up smash at low percents or aerials at high percents. Up aerial is Incineroar's go-to aerial juggle option due to its wide hitbox, the capability of comboing from up and down tilts, and can even KO outright at higher percents.

Of note are Incineroar's throws: despite its average grab, Incineroar is notorious for having one of the best sets of throws in the game. Apart from down throw, all of Incineroar's throws are KO options for any given situation: forward throw has high base knockback and can KO at high percents; back throw when performed at the ledge rivals Ness's back throw as the strongest throw in the game, and can KO the lightest fighters exceptionally early. However, due to its launch angle, low knockback growth, and lack of resistance to DI, it can be survived if done mid-stage and technically can be considered inferior to Ness's. Up throw easily KOs with the assistance of high platforms and low top blast lines; and down throw, being Incineroar's only combo throw, allows it to combo forward smash, Darkest Lariat, or dashing up smash on fresh stocks, dealing as much as 35% during 1v1s just from two hits. It can also potentially lead to a risky sacrificial KO with Cross Chop, which will always result in the opponent being KO'd first.

Incineroar's special moves complete its moveset with versatile tools. Darkest Lariat is Incineroar's get-off-me option, possessing fast startup, a long duration, transcendent priority throughout its hitboxes, invincibility for its arms, and a strong early hit. Though its power gradually weakens over time, its perks allow it to outprioritize many moves (even weak projectiles) while hitting hard. Alolan Whip is a unique command grab that has varying effects based on Incineroar's input: the strongest version (a lariat) KOs extremely early, while the second version (a back body drop) can KO easily near the top blast line.

Cross Chop can contest against other attacks due to its super armor during the start, and the descending tackle deals high knockback. It is also a powerful combo finisher or sacrificial KO, as the initial descent's high base knockback allows it to gimp any character at 0% should the descending hit connect. Revenge is a unique counterattack that retaliates with a weak hit, but stores a stackable power increase that affects Incineroar's next move; with a sufficiently strong buff, it gains exorbitantly powerful punishes, with moves such as forward smash, Darkest Lariat, Alolan Whip, and most infamously back throw turning into some of the strongest attacks in the game. Finally, it should be noted that none of Incineroar's moves render it helpless under normal circumstances, allowing it to mix up Cross Chop, Alolan Whip, and a directional air dodge while recovering.

However, Incineroar's strong abilities come at a cost. Its aforementioned abysmal mobility and lack of a projectile make it extremely easy to zone out and causes it to have a terrible approach, giving it issues similar to what Ganondorf had in SSB4, in which it has trouble getting close to opponents, to begin with. While it has less of an issue breaking out of combos or faring against rushdown tactics due to its better frame data and special moves, any sort of projectile or sufficiently long disjointed range is enough to keep Incineroar at bay in general, since its only options to break through such tactics is Darkest Lariat, Cross Chop, and Revenge. Adding to this issue is its limited and linear recovery, which has limited angles and is one of the most unreliable in the game despite the ways it can be mixed up; Cross Chop turns into an inevitable self-destruct if Incineroar is not directly below the ledge or above stage level, while Alolan Whip grants mediocre distance and has high ending lag. As a result, a semi-spike of sufficient strength is all it takes for Incineroar to be KO'd, and any combo that drags it offstage is usually fatal. Finally, Incineroar's moveset is not perfect despite its strengths, with some attacks having issues like small horizontal hitboxes (up tilt and up aerial), tendency to whiff (neutral attack's hits and Cross Chop at certain positions), and variable performance (Darkest Lariat is extremely laggy despite its out-prioritizing ability, Alolan Whip can fail outright or turn into a different move, and Revenge is completely lost once an attack lands or Incineroar is thrown from a grab, making it possible to waste it entirely).

Overall, Incineroar falls within the "grappler" playstyle archetype: it excels when taking advantage of close-range openings, where it can land powerful blows or start consistent combos that rack up damage quickly in only a few hits, all while being difficult for an opponent to shove off due to its staying power and heavy punish abilities. Its excellent strength and combo potential make it formidable once it wins the neutral game, but it is just as easily kept in control by its weak mobility, and an opening on its end is costly due to its extremely limited recovery, similarly to Ganondorf.

Update history

Incineroar has been buffed by game updates. Update 2.0.0 increased the power of up smash and up throw, and made down aerial auto-cancel properly. The most notable buff, however, was Cross Chop's increased overall travel distance, improving Incineroar's notoriously weak recovery at certain angles (although lower angles that are not directly below the edge are still almost impossible to recover from) and especially its vertical recovery. As part of a near-universal buff to multi-hit attacks, update 3.1.0 buffed neutral attack by adjusting its hits in order for them to connect more reliably.

Update 6.0.0 further buffed Incineroar in a number of ways. Neutral attack's third hit became more powerful, thus noticeably improving its reliability in regard to warding off opponents. Forward aerial gained a late hitbox, which makes the move function similarly to Diddy Kong's forward aerial, while down aerial's meteor smashing hitbox is now significantly easier to land. Finally, Darkest Lariat's clean hit has increased power and range, while Revenge became safer via increases to its active frames and knockback alongside decreased ending lag. As a result of these changes, Incineroar fares better than it initially did during the game's release.

2.0.0

• Up smash has more knockback.
• Incineroar can grab edges earlier after using up aerial (frame 58 → 56).
• Down aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 59 → 45), matching the move's interruptibility.
• Up throw has more knockback.
• Cross Chop travels farther vertically and horizontally (Height multiplier: 0.81× → 1×). While this hinders its potential as a KO confirm follow-up from down throw, this more prominently improves its recovery potential.

3.0.0

• The glitch that allowed the opponent to lose 2 stocks using Alolan Whip collision glitch with Fishing Rod in Stamina matches has been fixed.

3.1.0

• Neutral attack's hits connect more reliably.
• A glitch involving Alolan Whip and Mii Brawler's Counter Throw putting a fighter in a state where the game will crash if they are KO'd has been fixed.

6.0.0

• Neutral attack's third hit deals more damage (4.7% → 6.7%) and knockback (75 base/50 scaling → 80/60).
• Forward aerial has gained a late hit on frames 11-14 that deals less damage (12%/13% → 9%/9.6%), increasing the move's duration and allowing it to lock more effectively.
• Down aerial's sweetspot takes priority over the sourspot, making the meteor smash easier to land.
• Darkest Lariat:
  • Darkest Lariat's clean first hit deals more damage (16%/12% → 17%/13%) with no compensation on knockback.
  • The clean first hit's hitboxes on Incineroar's arms are larger (4.6u/4.2u → 5.8u/5.4u) and placed higher (Y offset: 10u → 11u), increasing its range.
  • The late first hit's arm hitboxes are placed higher (Y offset: 10u → 11u). While this better matches the move's animation, it more prominently makes it slightly worse at hitting small characters.
• Revenge:
  • Revenge's counter window lasts longer (frames 3-22 → 3-27), and the move has reduced ending lag both when missed (FAF 59 → 54) and successful (FAF 29 → 26).
  • The counterattack launches at a marginally lower angle (52°/56° → 51°/54°) with slightly more knockback (36/34 base/38/36 set → 40/38/40/38), and uses weight-independent knockback, making it consistent across the cast.

7.0.0

• Alolan Whip's hitboxes have altered knockback against bystanders (80 base/50 scaling → 128/34 (back body drop), 20/76 → 88/38 (lariat)), making them safe on hit at low percents.
  • However, this also severely weakens the lariat collateral's KO potential.

8.0.0

• Up smash has altered knockback (94 base/53 scaling → 89/61), increasing it overall.
• All grabs have one frame faster startup (frame 8 → 7 (standing), 12 → 11 (dash), 13 → 12 (pivot)), with their total duration reduced as well (FAF 39/47/45 → 38/46/44).
• Forward throw has more knockback scaling (52 → 58).
• Alolan Whip:
  • The move has faster startup (frame 18 → 16), with its total duration reduced as well (FAF 60 → 58).
  • The lariat attack has more knockback scaling on both grabbed opponents (440 → 454) and bystanders (38 → 40).
• Revenge:
  • The move has less ending lag if it misses (FAF 54 → 50).
  • It applies a larger damage multiplier to the next attack (1 + (0.25 + 0.075 * damage) → 1 + (0.5 + 0.075 * damage)).

Moveset

• Incineroar continuously receives damage while swimming. This trait is shared with Charizard, Sonic, and Inkling.
• Incineroar will display various animations after using certain attacks, such as striking a boastful pose if it hits, or expressing frustration if it misses. Aside from the neutral attack's third hit, all of these animations are interruptible. All pose-inducing attacks (excluding neutral attack's third hit) also result in a crowd (separate from the standard crowd) cheering in response.

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

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

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.5%	A knifehand strike, followed by a knee lift, followed by the sok ngat, an uppercut-style elbow strike used in Muay Thai. If the third hit lands, Incineroar will taunt by pointing its finger towards the ground. Unlike many neutral attacks, holding the attack button only causes Incineroar to do a single attack unless it connects. The first hit can jab reset.
			2.8%
			6.7%
Forward tilt			13% (hand), 12% (arm)	A knifehand thrust. It is a semi-spike and deals high damage for a tilt attack of its speed. These traits make it capable of KOing at 80% from the edge of Final Destination. It appears almost identical to the Pokémon anime's depiction of Throat Chop.
Up tilt			9%	A hopping, upward arcing headbutt. Has a wide hitbox above Incineroar and grants Incineroar's head intangibility (frames 6-11), allowing it to fend off aerial approaches. Combos into itself at 0%, or a neutral aerial or up aerial from 25%-75%. The move has blind spots directly beside Incineroar's legs, meaning it can miss short or prone enemies due to its very minimal horizontal range.
Down tilt			9%	A legsweep. Has impressive combo potential, allowing follow-ups into neutral attack or grab at 0%, up tilt from 18%-90%, up smash from 50%-69%, forward aerial from 30%-145%, back aerial from 40%-170%, and up aerial at percentages as high as 210%. Despite only using one leg for the attack, both of Incineroar's legs gain intangibility during the move (the attacking leg lasts on frames 8-11, while the other leg lasts on frames 9-11).
Dash attack			13% (clean), 9% (late)	A knee strike. The clean hit KOs at 102% from the edge of Final Destination, the late hit has underwhelming power. If it lands, Incineroar will kneel on one knee, and point its thumb towards itself while gloating.
Forward smash			16% (leg), 20% (foot)	An enzuigiri. If it lands, Incineroar will gloat with its arms spread out, similarly to its down taunt. It has a decent range and has a sweetspot on Incineroar's foot, which does high shield damage. Extremely powerful, the sweetspot KOs at 39% from the edge of Final Destination. It is also fairly fast in spite of its power, thanks to it coming out on frame 16. However, it has high ending lag, making it easy to punish. Despite having a respectable damage output, the sourspot's power is underwhelming in comparison and, although it is small, it takes priority over the sweetspot.
Up smash			17%	An upward double axe handle. If it lands, Incineroar will look to the sky and point upward, and it will clench its fists in dismay if it misses. It starts at ground level and has a rather big hitbox that covers the front of Incineroar and even reaches slightly behind it, all while gaining intangibility on its arms and hands (frames 13-18). Keeps consistent power throughout the move, but its knockback is only moderate for an up smash despite its high damage output, KOing at 116% on Final Destination.
Down smash			16%	A jumping splash. If it lands, Incineroar will point its finger upwards while on the floor, and it will pound its fist on the ground angrily if it misses. As Incineroar leaves the ground while using the move, it can dodge ground attacks and act as a hard punish. Deals moderately high shield damage and, like forward smash, it is incredibly powerful, KOing at 62% from the edge of Final Destination. However, it has considerable start-up and ending lag.
Neutral aerial			13% (clean), 7% (late)	A splash. Very fast start-up and acts as a sex kick. Useful for breaking out of combos. Auto-cancels with a jump.
Forward aerial			12% (clean legs), 13% (clean feet), 9% (late legs), 9.6% (late feet)	A dropkick. Deals more damage and knockback if the feet hitbox lands. It starts fast enough to hit opponents if buffered from a short hop. Auto-cancels if Incineroar lands before the hitbox comes out, allowing it to cancel tumbling. It can KO at 110% from the edge of Final Destination.
Back aerial			11% (leg), 13% (foot)	A back kick. Like forward aerial, it deals more damage and knockback if the foot hitbox lands. It starts fast enough to hit opponents if buffered from a short hop. KOs at 89% from the edge of Final Destination, and auto-cancels with a jump.
Up aerial			8%	An outside crescent kick. It has a wide arc, covering above Incineroar, but cannot hit opponents directly next to it. Auto-cancels from a short hop. Can juggle into itself, but opponents can react out of it. Generally useful for combo chains.
Down aerial			15% (clean, feet), 14% (clean, legs), 9% (late, feet), 8% (late, legs)	A double foot stomp. It has rather slow start-up, but it is a powerful meteor smash if the feet hitbox lands. The body hitbox launches opponents diagonally.
Grab			—	Reaches out with both arms to clinch the opponent. Somewhat slow for a non-tether grab, it has noticeable ending lag, while its dash and pivot grabs come out on frame 11 and 12, respectively.
Pummel			1.6%	A headbutt. Powerful, but slow.
Forward throw			12% (throw), 6% (front collateral), 4% (back collateral)	A giant swing. Deals collateral damage to bystanders, with the back hit dealing less damage. Sends too far for any follow-ups apart from a dash attack at 0% if the opponent misses a tech. Powerful for a throw, KOing at 133% from the edge of Final Destination.
Back throw			14% (hitbox), — (throw)	A German suplex. When used right at the edge, it is potentially even stronger than Ness' back throw, being capable of KOing at 90% from the edge of Final Destination. It can even OHKO the lightest characters at the edge of stages while under the influence of Revenge. However, further away from the edge Ness' back throw is still stronger, Incineroar has higher knockback until about 120% thereafter, Ness' back throw becomes stronger due to higher damage. It can also hit bystanders, as it launches them at a lower angle and KOs them even earlier (at 75%).
Up throw			12%	An Argentine backbreaker rack drop. Incineroar poses with its arms raised and fists clenched upon completion. It has too much ending lag to combo reliably, but can follow up into an up aerial or Cross Chop if the opponent does not react in a sufficient amount of time. Like forward and back throws, it is extremely powerful, KOing at 139% on Final Destination, and KOs significantly earlier when used on a platform.
Down throw			9%	A chokeslam. Incineroar pumps its fist upon completion. Unlike Incineroar's other throws, it is a combo starter instead of a KOing option. It has forward smash or dashing up smash as true follow-ups at 0%. It can also combo reliably into Darkest Lariat and neutral aerial at low percents, and forward and up aerials at low to medium percents. Due to Incineroar's overall slow speed, however, it loses its combo potential past medium percents or if Incineroar has rage. Prior to update 2.2.0, down throw could KO confirm into Cross Chop as a sacrificial KO, though with the increased vertical distance of Cross Chop after the said patch, it now usually only works as a mix-up if the opponent reacts poorly.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Swipes around itself.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Swipes around itself.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Swipes behind itself then punches forward.
Edge attack Edge getups			10%	Swipes forward.
Neutral special		Darkest Lariat	17%/13% (clean hit 1), 12%/10% (late hit 1, hit 2), 11%/9% (hits 3-4), 10%/8% (hits 5-6), 8%/6% (hits 7-8)	Spins rapidly to perform a series of discus lariats. It hits multiple times, with each hit becoming progressively weaker, but they launch opponents away instead of linking into each other. Incineroar gains invincibility during the move (frames 5 and 6 on its whole body, frame 7 on its head and arms, and frames 8-57 on its arms). It has extremely minimal start-up, and the entire move possesses transcendent priority, allowing it to break through opposing attacks (and weaker projectiles) apart from moves with sufficient range. Incineroar can slowly move left or right by holding a direction, and the move also slows its descent, though its slow speed means it is not suitable for recovery. The early hit KOs at 108% from the edge of Final Destination.
Side special		Alolan Whip	20% (lariat), 12% (back body drop), 4% (collision)	A command grab involving Incineroar lunging a short distance forward to grab opponents. Victims are thrown against wrestling ropes that appear after the grab connects. Depending on when the special or attack button is pressed after grabbing an opponent, Incineroar will perform one of three different moves: a lariat that launches the opponent the direction Incineroar is facing (input just as the opponent touches Incineroar); a back body drop that launches the opponent vertically (input any time after the opponent rebounds); or a failed attempt that causes the victim to collide against Incineroar's head, dealing 4% to both (too late/no input). Upon executing the lariat, Incineroar poses with its arms in the air and performs "devil horn" signs with both its paws, while tilting its head upwards. The lariat deals 20% and can KO at 72% from the edge of Final Destination. The back body drop deals 12% and can KO at 159% (or earlier with a low ceiling). Although the collision cannot KO at all, it can be used to simultaneously help Incineroar recover and gimp the opponent. During the throw, Incineroar gains 11.99% heavy armor, and if the opponent is hit out of the move, Incineroar will shrug towards the screen. It does not cause helplessness, which allows Incineroar to use it to extend its recovery.
Up special		Cross Chop	2.5%/3%/4%/5% (ascent), 3.5% (descent), 11% (Cross Chop), 9% (close explosion), 5.5% (far explosion)	Leaps upward while engulfed in flames before descending diagonally to perform a cross chop. Incineroar gains damage-based armor a few frames after its initial ascent (frames 4-15), and Incineroar can change its direction right after starting the move. It causes a large explosion if Incineroar lands while the descending hitbox is still active. The rising and descending hits have set knockback, with the descending hit having extremely high base knockback; this is capable of gimping opponents even at 0% for a sacrificial KO, with Incineroar always being KO'd after its opponent. Incineroar's descending body hitbox is similarly powerful, KOing at 75% from the edge of Final Destination, with the explosion being almost as powerful. However, the move has a high ending lag. Unlike most up specials, Cross Chop does not render Incineroar helpless (unless Incineroar lands during its descent and does not touch the solid ground), though its awkward angle requires it to be used extremely high for the recovery, as it is a self-destruct any other way.
Down special		Revenge	2.4% (counterattack)	Points its chest outward, retaliating against incoming attacks or projectiles. Functions as a counterattack, albeit much differently: Incineroar retaliates with a weak burst of flame after receiving significantly reduced damage from the retaliated attack, and its next move is powered up. As a visual indicator, Incineroar's body radiates an orange glow. This buff can stack depending on the number of countered moves and damage resisted. The buff lasts for a very long time (approximately 60 seconds), though its duration is reduced slightly each time Incineroar gets hit and lost entirely if Incineroar is grabbed and thrown. Once a powered up move lands, the buff is removed. If a smash attack, Cross Chop, or Alolan Whip's lariat hits while Revenge is active, the camera will perform the Special Zoom. With maximum stacks, Incineroar is able to do about 70% with just a single smash attack, giving it some of the strongest possible attacks in standard matches. The flame attack also grants intangibility (frames 1-19).
Final Smash		Max Malicious Moonsault	3% (start-up), 2% (initial grab), 7% (hit 1-4)	Activates its Incinium Z and lunges forward. Upon grabbing the first victim it comes in contact with, the victim is thrown against the ropes of a wrestling ring. Incineroar then uppercuts the victim upward, dropkicks them even further upward, uppercuts them again, and then finishes with a diving battering ram that sends it and the victim crashing into the ring to generate an explosion within the ring as a boxing bell chimes. The victim is sent flying alongside any bystanders. Can KO as early as 20%. If Incineroar misses on the ground, it slaps its knee in frustration.

On-screen appearance

• Emerges from a Poké Ball and struts while smirking.

• 

  Incineroar's on-screen appearance

Taunts

• Up taunt: Points to the sky as its flame belt ignites.
• Side taunt: Pounds its chest then raises its fist triumphantly while facing forward.
• Down taunt: Kneels and poses with its arms out, as if calling to the crowd.

• 

  Incineroar's up taunt.

• 

  Incineroar's side taunt.

• 

  Incineroar's down taunt.

Idle poses

• Flexes its muscles in the "crab pose", a variant of the "Most Muscular" bodybuilder pose.
• Wiggles the fingers of one of its paws, a common taunt used to initiate a wristlock-based test of strength.

• 

  Incineroar's first idle pose

• 

  Incineroar's second idle pose

Victory poses

• Left: Roars as its flame belt ignites, then throws a punch towards the camera while grinning.
• Up: Laughs while triumphantly raising a championship belt above its head, then makes a beckoning gesture while grinning.
• Right: Swings both its arms left and right, before kneeling and roaring.

A small excerpt of the title theme of Pokémon Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green Versions, a track which would go on to become the Pokémon main theme and the title theme for the entire series.

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In competitive play

From the start of Ultimate, Incineroar has usually been considered a mid-tier by most professionals, with access to moves that have the potential to deal high knockback and damage thanks to Revenge, a powerful back throw that can potentially KO earlier than Ness', and a suicide KOing option in the form of Cross Chop, which can be performed out of a down throw. It also had a decent amount of success from players, especially Magister, who placed well at both regional and national tournaments.

Despite this, as the metagame progressed, Incineroar's representation has been noticeably limited overall, with below-average results at major tournaments. Magister also started attending less tournaments while placing worse at the tournaments that he did attend. In spite of this, its combo potential and power balancing its poor recovery has helped it. However, it has poor representation and few notable results, so it is widely considered a low tier or bottom tier character by professionals.

Notable players

Active

•  brandon - One of the best Incineroar players in the United States. Placed 49th at 2GG: Prime Saga. He has taken sets off of players such as Trela, Lui$, MrConCon, Klaatu, and Legit. Formerly ranked 6th on the NorCal Smash Ultimate Power Rankings.
•  Kusari Katabira - One of the best Incineroar players in Japan. Placed 5th at Shulla-bra SP 5, 13th at KVOxTSB 2019, and 17th at Sumabato SP 4 with mainly Incineroar.
•  Magister - Currently the best Incineroar player in the world. Placed 5th at Kawaii Kon 2019, 7th at Don't Park on the Grass 2018, 25th at GENESIS 6, and 33rd at Glitch 8 - Missingno. He has taken sets off of players such as MVD, ANTi, Larry Lurr, Stroder, Sonido, and Locus.
•  Jut - Placed 17th at The Scarlet Classic V. Has wins over Dabuz, Mr. E, Dill, Zomba, and The Great Gonzales.
•  Nanon - Placed 5th at BIT MASTER MTY 7 and 33rd at Smash Factor 8.
•  OKD - Placed 13th at Seibugeki 4 with a win over karupis.
•  Puya - Placed 5th at Calyptus Cup Begone! and 9th at Unismash 7: Ultimate Birthday. Has wins over Hirschulat and Yikarur.
•  Sekawa - Has a strong Incineroar secondary. Placed 17th at Sumabato SP 12 and 25th at Sumabato SP 11 with Incineroar as one of his characters.
•  Sharpyzard - The best Incineroar player in Dominican Republic. Placed 9th at First Attack 2019. Ranked 5th on the Dominican Republic Smash Ultimate Power Rankings.
•  Skyjay - Placed 9th at Mexican Gaming Championship and 33rd at Smash Factor 8. Has wins over Chag and Serge.

Inactive

•  6WX - Used to play Incineroar as a secondary before regulating it to a rare counterpick. Has won sets against YoutubeMan, Juice, and Enzo using Incineroar, and was also ranked 2nd on the Philadelphia Ultimate Power Rankings using it as a secondary.
•  JTreezy - Placed 13th at Heroes VS Villains 2019 and 33rd at Get On My Level 2019. Has wins over Signas, Duwang, and Kantrip.
•  Regerets - Placed 1st at Doriyah! and 3rd at Gamebookr's Mid-Year Smash Tournament with a win over NBD. Ranked 2nd on the Filipino Power Rankings.
•  Shin - Placed 9th at Sumabato SP 3 with wins over Yoshidora and Shachi.

Classic Mode: Burning Pro Wrestling Spirit!

Incineroar's congratulations screen.

Incineroar's opponents are all heavy characters and are stylized in a way as if it was similar to a Championship Tournament. Additionally, all rounds aside from the final round take place on Boxing Ring.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Bowser	Boxing Ring	The Grand Finale
2	Ganondorf	Boxing Ring	Molgera
3	Morton and Ludwig	Boxing Ring (Battlefield form)	Fortress Boss - Super Mario World	Greninja is a CPU ally.
4	King K. Rool	Boxing Ring (Battlefield form)	Gang-Plank Galleon
5	Donkey Kong	Boxing Ring (Ω form)	Boss 2 - DK: Jungle Climber
6	Incineroar	Boxing Ring (Ω form)	Battle! (Lorekeeper Zinnia)	If using the purple alternate costume, the opponent will be default Incineroar .
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand and Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Master Hand / Crazy Hand	Greninja is a CPU ally.

Note: Incineroar teams up with Greninja in the third and final round.

Note 2: Each round uses a track taken from the series the characters are fought in their respective round.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Incineroar has The Battle at the Summit! accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

Finding Incineroar in World of Light

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

Incineroar was one of the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. It can be found on the southwest path of the Dark Realm, where the spirit of Caeda must be beaten to access it.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
69		Incineroar	Attack	12,500	Spear Pillar (Ω form)	The Battle at the Summit!

Spirit

Incineroar's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Incineroar 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. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

• Incineroar Spirit.png

  419. Incineroar

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
520		Victini	Pokémon Series	•Incineroar		13,400	Prism Tower (Battlefield form)	•Easy to Launch	•You are easy to launch •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Victini)	N's Castle
557		Solgaleo	Pokémon Series	•Gold Incineroar		9,400	Spear Pillar (hazards off)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy favors special moves •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Solgaleo)	Battle! (Elite Four) / Battle! (Solgaleo/Lunala)
733	File:9volt18voltspirit.png	9-Volt & 18-Volt	WarioWare Series	•Incineroar •Villager		9,000	Gamer (Battlefield form)	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Sheriff) •Item: Boss Galaga	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy is easily distracted by items	WarioWare, Inc.	18-Volt
783	File:Big Spirit.png	Big the Cat	Sonic The Hedgehog Series	•Giant Incineroar		2,600	Windy Hill Zone (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Slumber Floor	•The floor is sleep-inducing •The enemy is giant	Open Your Heart
803		Red Pikmin	Pikmin Series	•Tiny Incineroar Team (×12)		3,900	Garden of Hope (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava •The enemy's explosion and fire attacks have increased power •Stamina battle	Main Theme - Pikmin (Original)
828		Tom Nook	Animal Crossing Series	•Tail Incineroar		3,600	Smashville	•Sudden Final Smash •Item: Food	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash •The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly •The enemy's melee blows will heal them when they hit	Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store - Animal Crossing: Wild World
939	File:Great Tiger.png	Great Tiger	Punch-Out!! Series	•Incineroar (×3) (,x2)		3,400	Boxing Ring	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Minor Circuit
983		Zangief	Street Fighter Series	•Incineroar		9,100	Boxing Ring	•Jump Power ↓	•The enemy's throws have increased power •The enemy's physical attacks have increased power •Stamina battle	Zangief Stage Type A
993		T. Hawk	Street Fighter Series	•Incineroar		1,800	New Donk City Hall (hazards off)	•Jump Power ↓	•The enemy's up special has increased power •The enemy's throws have increased power •Stamina battle	T. Hawk Stage Type B
1,358		Joe Higashi	Fatal Fury Series	•Incineroar		2,000	Kongo Falls (Ω form)	•Jump Power ↓	•Stamina battle •All fighters have reduced jump power •The enemy starts the battle with an Ore Club	A New Poem That the South Thailand Wants to Tell - FATAL FURY 2
1,405	File:Dragaux Spirit.jpeg	Dragaux	Ring Fit Adventure	•Incineroar		9,500	Find Mii (Ω form)	•Metal Shift •Giant •Item: Food	•The enemy is giant when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy will occasionally turn metal when the enemy's at high damage •Stamina battle	Battle Start - Fossil Fighters: Frontier
1,412	File:Kevin Charlotte Spirit.jpg	Kevin & Charlotte	Mana Series	•Incineroar •Tiny Robin		9,100	Hyrule Castle (hazards off)	•Health Recovery •Attack Power ↑	•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy is healed significantly when the enemy's at high damage.	Preparing to Advance	Kevin

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
482		Raikou, Entei, & Suicune	Pokémon Series	•Greninja •Incineroar •Pikachu		9,900	Suzaku Castle	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava	Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue Medley	Entei
696		Lion	Game & Watch Series	•Mr. Game & Watch •Incineroar		3,600	Flat Zone X (Lion)	N/A	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Flat Zone 2	Lion
969		Nia	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	•Mii Brawler (Moveset 2122, Nia Wig, Nia Outfit, High Voice Type 2) •Incineroar		9,100	Gaur Plain (hazards off)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy heals over time	Battle!! - Xenoblade Chronicles 2	Dromarch
1,053		Maria Renard	Castlevania Series	•Zelda •Falco •Charizard •Incineroar		3,700	Reset Bomb Forest (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy starts the battle with a Cucco	Slash	Cat
1,199	File:Baxter&co.png	Baxter & Forthington	Rhythm Heaven Series	•Duck Hunt •Tiny Incineroar		1,500	Pilotwings	•Item: Throwing Types	•The enemy is easily distracted by items	Monkey Watch	Forthington
1,309		Morgana	Persona Series	•Pikachu •Giant Incineroar		11,500	Mementos (hazards off)	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Dangerously high winds are in effect after a little while •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Last Surprise	Zorro
1,369	File:Grookey, Scorbunny, Sobble.png	Grookey, Scorbunny, & Sobble	Pokémon Series	•Diddy Kong •Bunny Incineroar •Squirtle		9,600	Onett (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy has increased attack power when badly damaged •Reinforcements will appear during the battle •The enemy starts the battle with a Lip's Stick	Road to Viridian City - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue	Scorbunny

Alternate costumes

Reveal trailer

“	So, you wanna fight fire with fire, huh?	”
—Ken

Gallery

• 

  Incineroar's splash art.

• 

  Artwork of all playable Pokémon characters and Poké Ball Pokémon, as posted by the official Pokémon Twitter account.

• 

  Incineroar's amiibo.

• 

  Incineroar's fighter card.

• 

  Incineroar's unlock notice.

• 

  Incineroar on Kongo Falls.

• 

  Using its dash attack on Little Mac on Big Blue.

• 

  Using Alolan Whip on Falco on Pirate Ship.

• 

  Using its down taunt alongside multiple Pikachu and Pichu on Paper Mario.

• 

  Rolling next to a Smoke Ball on Wii Fit Studio.

• 

  Using Revenge on Mushroom Kingdom U.

• 

  Being hit by Luminary's up aerial on Coliseum.

Trivia

• Masahiro Sakurai references Red Cyclone, the nickname of Street Fighter wrestling character Zangief, when explaining Incineroar's neutral special, Darkest Lariat.
  • Additionally, Zangief's spirit is placed within an Incineroar puppet fighter for his Spirit battle.
  • Aside from Zangief, Incineroar happens to have few similarities as another grappler-based Street Fighter character, Alex, such as having similar mobility and even sharing few moves, such as Flying Cross Chop (albeit with different properties).
• Prior to the addition of DLC, Incineroar was the fighter with the most recent games of origin, Pokémon Sun and Moon, which were released on November 18, 2016 for the Nintendo 3DS. Incidentally, Greninja also held this title in Smash 4. Both are part Dark types who are the final evolutions of starter Pokémon, they were the only Pokémon debutants in their Smash debut and they appear slightly tilted in their damage meter compared to their character artwork.
• Leaked artwork of Alola's fully evolved starter Pokémon depicts Incineroar using a giant swing and an Argentine backbreaker rack drop. In Ultimate, it uses these moves as its forward and up throws, respectively.
• Unshō Ishizuka provided the Japanese voice for Incineroar in Ultimate before his unexpected passing on August 13, 2018. Ishizuka recorded all of his voice clips for the game before his death.
  • Inexplicably, Incineroar's Japanese voice clips are much more muffled and lower in quality than other languages, especially given how they appear to be in a much higher quality in the Japanese version of its reveal trailer. This is likely because Ishizuka was not able to return for ADR before his passing, resulting in them having to use the voice clips in the way they originally were.
• Incineroar's double jump fall animation notably has it lower down in the air than in its regular falling animation. This can result in it hitting the lower blast zone slightly earlier if it attempts to recover low on certain stages.
• Incineroar is the only playable Pokémon that does not have a special move based on a Pokémon move of its primary type.
  • It is also the only playable Pokémon to not have a special move that originated from Generation I.
• Incineroar has the lowest run speed of all the Pokémon in Ultimate, though in Pokémon Sun and Moon, Incineroar's base speed is tied with Pichu and Ivysaur.
• Incineroar and Ken are the first pair of unrelated characters who share a trailer.
• Incineroar is the only first-party newcomer in the base game for Ultimate who was not represented in any way in previous Super Smash Bros. installments, due to not existing at the time.
• Incineroar is the only Pokémon who is not fought in any of its series' home stages when being unlocked. It is instead fought on Boxing Ring, Little Mac's home stage, as a reference to its reveal trailer and wrestling influences.
• Incineroar travels to the lowest number of stages in its Classic Mode route, traveling only to Boxing Ring (in all three forms).
• Incineroar, along with Wario and King K. Rool, features a Classic Mode route themed around super-heavyweight fighters.
• Morton and Ludwig are only characters in Incineroar's Classic Mode route that aren't a super-heavyweight, instead being a normal heavyweight. However, this can be a reference to how they (along with Roy Koopa) are portrayed heavier than the rest of the Koopalings in the Mario series.
• Incineroar, Bowser, Zero Suit Samus, Mega Man, Bowser Jr., Ridley, Joker, and Banjo & Kazooie are the only characters who make any sounds during their idle animations.
• Due to an error on the American official site blog, Incineroar does not have its own fighter tag on its blog entry, and is thus not listed when sorting the "By Fighter" category. This also applies to Falco.
• Incineroar is the only playable character who was not in the game's original project plan when it was drafted in December 2015. When choosing characters, Sakurai wanted to pick a character from a newer game, and with the upcoming release of Pokémon Sun and Moon, a Pokémon spot was reserved to be determined later. Although Sakurai did consider Decidueye, he ended up choosing Incineroar, mostly because he has never done a wrestling-oriented fighter before.
• Incineroar is the second fighter to brandish a championship belt in their victory pose, the first being Little Mac. However, their designs are very different.
• Excluding touching a red trampoline from Pac-Jump, Incineroar cannot render itself helpless apart from a very specific condition, this being landing with a Cross Chop and failing to touch solid ground during the initial rebound. It shares this trait with Kirby, who can only experience helplessness if he slides off an edge during Final Cutter (or with certain Copy Abilities).
• Excluding use of a Boss Galaga, Incineroar is one of the few fighters to spin differently in their star KO: it spins forwards instead of away from the screen, similarly to how star KOs acted in SSB4. It shares this trait with Cloud, Corrin, Shulk, Inkling, and Joker.
• There is a visual glitch with Incineroar's eyes in Spirit Battles where it gains multiple irises when hit.
• Zooming in around Incineroar's neck during its reverse knockback animation reveals a gap between its neck and body.
• Incineroar's base costume in Ultimate features a white-to-dark color gradation for its fur around its torso, which is inconsistent with any of its official appearances in Pokémon. Its eighth palette swap is more consistent with the official appearance of a Shiny Incineroar, with dark gray fur as well as white markings.
• Incineroar's feet are briefly shown to have claws on the ends of them during its forward smash, back aerial, and the dropkick during Max Malicious Moonsault. Interestingly, Incineroar's model in Pokémon Sun and Moon also has these toe claws, though no animations seem to make them appear whatsoever, rendering them unused.