Mr. Game & Watch (SSBB)

Mr. Game & Watch in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Universe	Game & Watch
Other playable appearances	in Melee in SSB4 in Ultimate
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Octopus
Tier	C (16)

Mr. Game & Watch (Mr.ゲーム＆ウォッチ, Mr. Game & Watch) is a veteran playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, returning from his debut in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Initially, Mr. Game & Watch was indirectly revealed from a leaked copy of the game. However, he was officially confirmed on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website on March 10, 2008, one day after Brawl was released in North America.

Mr. Game & Watch is ranked 16th on the game's tier list, which is a high leap from Melee (where he is ranked 19th in low-tier). The largest benefit Mr. Game & Watch gained in Brawl were the universal changes to physics, where he is significantly less vulnerable to combos, his back aerial is significantly more useful due to hitlag, and the leaning towards defensive gameplay boosts Mr. Game & Watch's strengths in general. For some of his individual traits, Mr. Game & Watch possesses large and disjointed hitboxes in most of his attacks, with his attacks being rather fast in start-up lag and the majority being quite powerful (especially his brutal smash attacks, all of which can reliably KO under 100% while none being particularly slow). Additionally, Mr. Game & Watch possesses amazing survivability for a character of his weight class, as his amazing momentum cancelling ability gives him the horizontal endurance potential of a lighter heavyweight via Bucket Braking, while his recovery covers great distance and provides great protection against edgeguarding. Mr. Game & Watch also possesses above-average movement speed and good mobility, effective tilts and aerial attacks, and a down throw that can force a tech-chasing opportunity on all characters at all percentages. While Mr. Game & Watch's attacks are fast in start-up lag, they are particularly heavy in ending lag, with his aerials also possessing high landing lag with the exception of his neutral aerial and up aerial. His attacks, despite possessing large hitboxes, have rather poor/mediocre reach. This results in him being easily punished when his attacks are shielded, and complicates safe approaches. His projectile is also laggy and short-ranged, while being mostly ineffective, preventing him from being able to outcamp most characters to cover his approaching difficulties. Additionally, he is susceptible to early vertical KOs as his vertical endurance is among the worst (Bucket Braking is significantly less effective when launched vertically), his grab and throw game is rather poor in general (he possesses one of the shortest-reaching grabs and near useless throws outside his down throw), and his rolls are rather slow while gaining among the shortest distance. Regardless, Mr. Game & Watch's strengths outweigh his flaws, resulting in overall strong matchups, that are dominating against characters below him on the tier list, while being lackluster against characters above him (especially losing to eight of the top 10 characters, while countered by four of them), and he has achieved strong tournament results. In particular, Mr. Game & Watch is especially considered a high-tier in the European and Japanese tier lists.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play 250 VS. matches.
• Clear Target Smash!! with 30 different characters on any single difficulty level.
• Have Mr. Game & Watch join the player's party in the Subspace Emissary (Battleship Halberd Bridge).

With the exception of the third method, Mr. Game & Watch must then be defeated on Flat Zone 2.

Attributes

Mr. Game & Watch packs a punch. In terms of mobility, he has above-average walking and dashing speeds, the seventh-fastest air speed, high air acceleration, slow falling speed and below-average gravity. Altogether, these stats collectively make Mr. Game & Watch's mobility exceptional for a lightweight.

In general, his attacks possess favorable and disjointed hitboxes, low lag, and high knockback; however, his roll and dash attack are rather poor. Several of his attacks can hit multiple times, which allows him to rack up high damage in seconds, but render then vulnerable to SDI. His erratic and instant frame-by-frame movement makes him almost impossible to predict in almost all situations, excluding approaching. Mr. Game & Watch's tilts follow the pattern of his other attacks: being quick and powerful, while also possessing disjointed hitboxes. Mr. Game & Watch arguably has the most powerful set of smash attacks in Brawl, with all of them being able to KO reliably under 100%. In turn, his down smash is especially the strongest (of all down smashes) in terms of knockback while possessing the lowest duration out of all down smashes in the game, while his up smash and forward smash are among the strongest, with the former granting intangibility on his head. Mr. Game & Watch's aerials are powerful and versatile, although most of them are burdened with moderate/high landing lag. Mr. Game & Watch's grab game is not especially effective, excluding his down throw, which can tech-chase all characters regardless of precentage, and if the player can predict the opponent's rolls, it can be used for an infinite chain grab (like Snake's down throw). His down throw also allows him to follow up with several moves, like an easy down tilt, a smash attack, or a neutral aerial (by buffering a dash into a short hop).

Mr. Game & Watch is able to negate projectiles easily using Oil Panic (although exclusively against energy-based projectiles) or simply ducking underneath most projectiles using his low crouch. Oil Panic can also easily provide one-hit KOs in doubles if Mr. Game & Watch's teammate possesses an energy-based projectile. Mr. Game & Watch does possess a versatile projectile, Chef, but it is burdened by its short range, lag and randomized trajectory. His side special, Judge, is infamously polarizing due to being luck-based: its effects range from damaging Mr. Game & Watch himself (1) to being a one-hit KO (9). His up special, Fire, is a superior out of shield option and excellent recovery that can be used to plank or KO at high precents near the horizontal blast zones.

Using Bucket Braking and directional influence, he can be hard to KO despite being the 2nd-lightest character in the game (tied with Squirtle). Possessing both quick mobility and a small size, Mr. Game & Watch can be difficult to hit.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. Melee

Mr. Game & Watch has been significantly buffed from Melee, as he benefits from the universal alterations to the physics in Brawl, along with other various buffs. The introduction of hitstun canceling and momentum canceling assists Mr. Game & Watch more than most of the other returning veterans, as it not only makes him much more difficult to combo, but it also drastically improves his endurance due to the introduction of Bucket Braking. The introduction of other mechanics introduced to Brawl also prove to be beneficial to Mr. Game & Watch, such as B-reversing, and the removal of certain mechanics from Melee, such as L-canceling, affects him less than the other returning characters. His defensive game has received rather considerable improvements: his shield has a much larger size to cover his entire body, and his spot dodge has been altered from being one of the worst in Melee to being one of the best in Brawl.

However, Mr. Game & Watch received a few nerfs, as some of his attacks are either weaker or are burdened with additional lag. In addition, while the removal of L-canceling has affected Mr. Game & Watch less than the other returning veterans, this aforementioned change does not provide full compensation on his forward and down aerials, which are Mr. Game & Watch's only aerials capable of L-canceling in Melee. However, he did not receive huge nerfs that drastically hinder him, aside from some of his moveset (including his down tilt and neutral aerial) losing their KO power in exchange for improved frame-data.

Overall, Mr. Game & Watch's aforementioned buffs have exponentially rendered him much more dominating than in Melee. Due to these aforementioned improvements and possessing the largest jump between tier lists from Melee and Brawl, Mr. Game & Watch holds the distinction of being the most buffed character among the entire cast during the transition to Brawl, going from from a bottom-tiered character in Melee to a solid high-tier character in Brawl, with early tier lists ranking him as among the best characters in the game.

Aesthetics

• Mr. Game & Watch's design has remained virtually intact since Melee, although his outline is brighter and thicker in Brawl. His body is smoother and nose is slightly smaller.
• Mr. Game & Watch no longer emits a noise when receiving knockback, stunned or getting KO'd aside from his Star KO. He is also now silent when waking out of sleeping status.
  • Mr. Game & Watch's Star KO voice-clip has been altered.
• Mr. Game & Watch's alternate costumes have been altered: the coloratins of his alternate costumes are darker, and he has new yellow and baby-blue skins.
• Mr. Game & Watch's previous taunt has been transitioned to his side taunt.
• Mr. Game & Watch has a different animation when carrying heavy items. He now carries them in front of himself rather than over his head, as well as flattening himself when carrying them.

Attributes

• Mr. Game & Watch is slightly bigger, increasing his range, but also increasing his hurtbox.
  • Due to Mr. Game & Watch's hitboxes being larger and more disjointed, Mr. Game & Watch's larger size significantly improves his range.
• Mr. Game & Watch is significantly heavier (60 → 75), though he still remains as the second-lightest character in the game, tied with Squirtle.
• Mr. Game & Watch dashes slightly faster (1.5 → 1.553).
• Mr. Game & Watch's air speed is slightly faster (1 → 1.081).
• Mr. Game & Watch's air acceleration is higher (0.02 → 0.07 (base), 0.05 → 0.1 (total)).
• Mr. Game & Watch falls significantly slower (1.7 → 1.24), although relative to the cast, Mr. Game & Watch falls faster. This makes him more vulnerable to combos, but due to his increased weight and Bucket Braking, this drastically improves his endurance despite this, and it improves his vertical endurance.
• Mr Game & Watch's gravity is lower (0.095 → 0.07505).
• His jumpsquat is longer (4 frames → 5).
• Mr. Game & Watch's shield has greatly increased size, now fully covering his hurtbox.
• Mr. Game & Watch's traction has been unchanged (0.06). Compared with the returning veterans, however, Mr. Game & Watch's traction is significantly higher, making it easier for him to punish out of shield.
• Spot dodge grants much more intangibility (frames 2-12 → 2-20) and has less ending lag (FAF 33 → 26), making him much less vulnerable after using it.
• Mr. Game & Watch gains much more distance from a glide toss, and is now capable of super glide tossing.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack's hitboxes are larger overall (4.8/3.6/3.2u → 5.5/4/3u).
  • The infinite no longer deals consistent damage (3% → 1%/2%/3%).
• Dash attack:
  • Dash attack has less base knockback, but has more knockback scaling (70 (base)/30 (base) → 50/50).
  • It deals more damage (9% → 11%).
  • The hitbox is larger (5.2u → 6.24u), and is positioned further in front of Mr. Game & Watch (-4u (X-offset) → 4u).
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt has less startup lag (frame 13 → 10) and less ending lag (FAF 42 → 37).
  • It has increased base knockback (10 → 20), improving its KO potential.
  • It has a much shorter hitbox duration (frames 13-30 → 10-15).
  • The move's angles have been altered (361° → 45°/37°/37°/37°).
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt's hitboxes have been increased (5.2/3.6/3.2u → 6.5/4.6/3.8u).
  • It has more startup lag with a shorter duration (frames 9-29 → 13-21).
  • It deals less damage (9% → 8%).
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt has a longer duration (frames 6-13 → 6-15).
  • The hitboxes have been increased (6.4u (ground)/6.4u (air) → 8/9u).
  • The grounded hitbox deals much less damage (12% → 6%) and drastically less knockback (65 (base)/100 (growth) → 50/50), no longer KOing even at Sudden Death-inflicted percentages.
  • The grounded hitbox launches at a much lower angle (85° → 20°), allowing it to set up edgeguards at the expense of removing its ability to set up into juggles.
• Forward smash:
  • Forward smash's late hit deals 2% more damage (6% → 8%).
  • It has larger hitboxes (4.8/4/2u → 6/5/3u (early), 3.2/2.8/1.6u → 4/3/2u (late)) that are positioned further (16/10/0u → 17/10/0u (early), 12/8/0u → 15/8/0u (late)).
  • Forward smash has more base knockback, with only marginally less knockback scaling (44 (base)/100 (growth) → 48/98), improving its KO potential.
  • Forward smash has more startup lag with a shorter duration (frames 13-33 → 17-27).
• Up smash:
  • Up smash has slightly more knockback scaling (96 → 97), improving its KO potential.
  • It has slightly less ending lag (frame 40 → 39).
  • Mr. Game & Watch's nose is now intangible, along with his head, granting it much more protection while its hitboxes are active.
  • The move has an additional static-hitbox above Mr. Game & Watch's head, drastically increasing its vertical range.
  • The move's head-hitbox has been increased (5.2u → 6.24u).
• Down smash:
  • Down smash has larger hitboxes (4/4/5.6/5.6u → 4.5/4.5/7/7u) that are positioned further (-10.8/10.8u → -12/12u).
  • The sourspot deals more damage (10% → 13%) and much more knockback (10 (base), 50 (scaling) → 60/68), making it a viable KO option when the sweetspots are not serviceable.
  • The sweetspots deal less damage (16% → 15%), although with compensation on their knockback (90 → 98).

Aerial attacks

• All of Mr. Game & Watch's aerials have less landing lag (15 frames → 9 (neutral), 25 frames → 22 (forward), 18 frames → 12 (back), 18 frames → 9 (up), 20 frames → 15 (down)). Additionally, the removal of L-canceling affects Mr. Game & Watch less than all other returning veterans due to his inability of L-canceling neutral, back and up aerials, although the landing lag on his forward and down aerials were not fully compensated.
• All aerial attacks, excluding forward aerial and down aerial, are now programmed as aerial attacks instead of special moves.
• Neutral aerial:
  • Mr. Game & Watch possesses a new neutral aerial: Tropical Fish. It is a versatile multi-hitting aerial that has drastically less startup lag with a longer duration (frames 20-29 → 7-10/12-15/17-20/22-25), deals 1% more damage (16% → 17%), and can be followed up from much more effectively.
  • It also has less ending lag (FAF 45 → 35), and can now auto-cancel out of a short hop.
  • The final hit deals more knockback compared to his previous neutral aerial (20 (base)/100 (scaling) → 40/150).
    • However, the final hit deals much less knockback relative to the cast, hindering its KO potential.
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial's looping hits deal less knockback (60 (base)/60 (scaling) → 25/40), allowing them to connect much more reliably with the final hit, which deals more knockback (60 (base)/60 (scaling) → 30/170).
  • The landing hit deals much more knockback (80 (base)/60 (scaling) → 90/120), allowing it to KO at very high precents.
  • Back aerial deals less damage per-hit (5% → 3%), but has 5 hits instead of 4 (20% → 15% (total)).
• Up aerial:
  • Both hits of up aerial come out 1 frame earlier (frame 7 → 6 (first), frame 21 → 20 (second)).
  • The first hit deals much less knockback (12 (base)/100 (scailing) → 20/60), allowing it to connect more consistently to the second hit.
  • It now has large windboxes above him, giving the move more utility.
  • The first hit has a shorter duration (frames 7-16 → 6-7).
  • The second hit has less knockback scaling (100 → 98), hindering its KO potential.
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial is now a stall-then-fall. This makes it more versatile for edgeguarding and gimping recoveries, but makes it more risky to use offstage, especially without his dobule jump available.
  • The move is now capable of performing the down air stall.
  • The landing hit has more knockback scaling (30 → 50).

Throws/other attacks

• Grab:
• All grabs have less startup (frame 7 → 6 (standing), frame 11 → 9 (dash)) and ending lag (frame 31 → 30 (standing) frame 41 → 35 (dash)).
• Pummel:
• Pummel has less slightly startup lag (30 frames → 29), though it is still the slowest pummel in the game.
• Down throw:
• Down throw meteor smashes opponents into the ground, giving it significantly better follow-up options and Mr. Game & Watch a tech-chasing tool against all characters. This is especially beneficial considering the introduction of hitstun canceling.
• Down throw deals less damage (8% → 6%).
• Ledge attack:
• Ledge attacks now emit a new sound effect: an alarm bell with a high pitch, which is shared with Judge when rolling a #9.
• Below 100% Ledge attack has much less startup lag (frame 42 → 24).
• Below 100% Ledge attack grants less invincibility (39 frames → 21 frames).
• Above 100% Ledge attack grants more invincibility (53 frames → 59 frames).

Special moves

• All of Mr. Game & Watch's special moves are capable of B-reversing, improving their utility.
• Chef:
  • Chef now tosses other kinds of food besides bacon.
  • Chef no longer resets Mr. Game & Watch's vertical velocity.
• Judge:
  • Judge has a shorter hitbox duration (14 frames → 8 frames/11 frames (5)).
  • Judge #2 now has a 20% chance of tripping opponents.
  • Judge #3 deals more shield damage (20 → 25).
  • Judge #7 will always generate an apple and can only be generated if it hits while on the ground, regardless of item-configuration.
  • Judge #8 deals much more damage (4% → 9%), freezing opponents for a longer period of time as a result.
  • Judge #9 now emits a unique sound effect: the alarm bell of his up/side taunts, with an increased pitch.
• Fire:
  • Fire now grants Mr. Game & Watch a parachute to slow his descent during the apex of the jump. He can cancel the parachute by either hitting down on the control stick or by using an aerial. If he cancels the parachute, it lacks helplessness, allowing him to perform an air dodge and another attack other than Fire.
  • It grants 9 frames of invincibility, starting from frame 5.
  • Mr Game & Watch can now reuse Fire if he is hit with certain moves with low knockback after using it, such as Mario's Cape or Fox's Lasers.
  • Fire has much more startup lag with a shorter duration (frames 1-37 → 9-29).
  • Mr Game & Watch now suffers from the grab release glitch, meaning that he cannot reuse Fire if he is grab released out of it in midair.
• Oil Panic:
  • Oil Panic starts absorbing projectiles later (frame 5 → 7).
  • Oil Panic has a shorter looping animation (33 frames → 30), making it slightly safer to use.
  • Mr. Game & Watch absorbs projectiles slightly faster (25 frames → 24).
  • Mr. Game & Watch can now absorb multiple projectiles in a row.
  • Oil Panic's absorption radius is drastically larger (5.5u → 22u).
  • Oil Panic has a much higher absorption multiplier (1.5x + 5 → 2.8x).
  • Oil Panic's minimum damage output is higher (12% → 18%).
  • Oil Panic's maximum damage is now capped at 60%, greatly reducing its damage potential against more damaging projectiles.
    • However, this subsequently removes the kamikaze exploit, no longer allowing Game & Watch to self-destruct against shielding opponents.
  • Due to the introduction of momentum canceling, Oil Panic can now be used to negate all knockback in the air (known as Bucket Braking). This greatly improves Mr. Game & Watch's horizontal endurance, giving him greater horizontal endurance than even most middleweights despite being the second-lightest in the game.
  • Mr. Game & Watch is now intangible for the first six frames of his oil spill.
  • The oil spill has larger hitboxes (2.7342u (hit 1)/3.906u (hit 2)/6.6402u (hit 3) → 3.36u/4.8u/8.16u), which are positioned slightly further away from Mr. Game & Watch (z offset: 11.718 (hit 1)/19.53 (hit 2)/31.248 (hit 3) → 12/20/32).
  • The aerial oil spill’s second and third hitboxes now have their damage properly scaled, rather than typically dealing 1%. This drastically improves their KO potential (even at minimum power).
  • The oil spill has a shorter duration (frames 2-10 (hit 1)/11-22 (hit 2)/23-37 (hit 3) → 2-7/8-14/15-26).
  • The oil spill now has a clean hit, a mid-hit and a late hit rather than three separate hitboxes. This prevents oil spill from connecting multiple times.
  • An aerial oil spill deals less knockback (40 (base), 100 (scaling) → 30/80), now matching the grounded version. This hinders the near hit’s KO potential.

Moveset

• All of Mr. Game & Watch's moveset depict in using objects from the Game & Watch titles, making him the only character to feature all attacks in his arsenal based on a game he made his previous appearance before.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Greenhouse (グリーンハウス)	3%	Mr. Game & Watch rapidly presses an insecticide pump, spraying gas onto the opponent. Excellent for escaping pressure and hard to escape from, making it useful for racking up damage. However, subsequent hits push the opponent from Mr. Game & Watch, meaning that the opponent can still fall out in conjunction with SDI. Low ending lag; this can lead into a grab or tilt attack. Originates from Greenhouse.
			1-3% (loop)
Forward tilt		Lion (ライオン)	10%	Mr. Game & Watch thrusts a chair in front of him. It is powerful and the chair is a fully disjointed hitbox. Has decent KO potential at high percents when clean, especially near the edge, KOing middleweights at around 116% by the edge of Final Destination. Like his other tilts, the hitbox has a long duration. Originates from Lion.
Up tilt		Flagman (フラッグマン)	8%	Mr. Game & Watch waves a flag overhead. It combos into itself with fast-fallers and heavyweights at lower percentages. It is typically followed up into a neutral air or up air otherwise, can even KO at higher percentages. At low percentages, it is useful for juggling and as an anti-air. Originates from Flagman.
Down tilt		Manhole (マンホール)	6% (grounded), 9% (aerial)	Mr. Game & Watch flips a manhole in front of him. An excellent move for spacing, especially against characters with low reach, like Mario. The lid is revealed to be a 3D-rendered object, unlike the rest of his moveset, which all depict Mr. Game & Watch using 2D-rendered objects. It is no longer a strong KO option like in Melee, but it has become more effective at edgeguarding due to being a semi-spike, possessing good base knockback, a hitbox with a long duration, and minimal cooldown. Good for being an anti-air; it deals more damage if the opponent is in the air, and the aerial hitbox can KO at high precents near the edge. Originates from Manhole.
Dash attack		Helmet (ヘルメット)	11%	Mr. Game & Watch performs a sliding headbutt while wearing a helmet. It has good range and is extremely quick with minimal start-up lag and low ending lag, sliding Mr. Game & Watch forward in a choppy frame-by-frame manner, making it difficult to react to. This move is a tool for both risky approaching and safe punishing. It also lowers Mr. Game & Watch's hurtbox, allowing him to low-profile several attacks. Can combo into various attacks on fast-fallers. Can stage spike if performed near the edge, being an effective KO move. Additionally, it is useful for edgeguarding or 2-framing before an opponent can grab the edge. Originates from Helmet.
Forward smash		Fire Attack (ファイアアタック)	18%/14% (clean head/handle), 8% (late)	Mr. Game & Watch swings a lit torch forward. Great base knockback and even greater knockback scaling, as well as possessing a hitbox that lasts longer than expected, making it hard to punish. Has a disjointed late hitbox at the end of the move, inflicting low knockback at the expense of good knockback. It is typically a follow-up after down air, down throw, or up air. Its great knockback scaling and diagonal trajectory makes momentum canceling very ineffective against it. It is arguably the best forward smash in the game, as it has good reach and great knockback, being capable of KOing any character under 100%. Though it is a rare occurrence, this attack has a sourspot when only the pole hits. This only happens if a character is small enough to remain between the flame and Mr. Game & Watch himself, touching only the pole. Deals slightly less knockback. Originates from Fire Attack.
Up smash		Octopus (オクトパス)	18%	Mr. Game & Watch performs an upward-arcing headbutt while wearing a diving helmet. The hitbox extends a short distance above the helmet. Has noticeable start-up lag (even compared to his other smash attacks), but is the third-strongest up smash in the game (behind Ivysaur's and Lucas' up smashes, respectively), KOing as early as under 92%. The move has a pair of fairly large hitboxes, one which is attached to Mr. Game & Watch's head and another static hitbox which floats above him. The move provides intangibility to Mr. Game & Watch's head while the hitboxes are out, making it a decent anti-air. It has minimal ending lag, especially considering its strength. When combined with its high pushback on shield, this makes the move practically safe on shield requiring the player to shield SDI in order to punish it (assuming they are not pushed off an edge). Its low ending lag also means that the move is difficult to whiff-punish, allowing Mr. Game & Watch to either throw out another move or to defend himself. It is typically useful as an anti-air or as a raw KO move. It is extremely useful for tech-chases due to its wide hitbox and good duration. Originates from Octopus.
Down smash		Vermin (バーミン)	15% (hammer), 13% (handle)	Mr. Game & Watch slams a pair of hammers on the ground on both sides. Solid range. Hammer-heads deal vertical knockback while the handles semi-spike. If sourspotted, this attack is a rather powerful semi-spike and can KO early when on the edge, killing middleweights at around 95% by the edge of Final Destination. When sweetspotted, this is one of the most powerful down smashes in the game, KOing under 105%. It has relatively fast startup lag and minimal ending lag (possessing the shortest total duration out of all down smashes), which can surprise opponents by using it again after a missed one. It is effective at edgeguarding as the semi-spike is powerful and even though the sweetspot has vertical knockback, its great knockback can still KO a recovering opponent. Can combo out of the last hits of neutral aerial and also with down throw on certain characters who lack a long enough roll and who fail to tech it. Originates from Vermin.
Neutral aerial		Tropical Fish (トロピカルフィッシュ)	5% (hit 1), 4% (hits 2-4)	Tosses out a pair of fish from a bowl. Multiple hitboxes enable it to cover all areas excluding below him. This move deals 17% if all four hits connect with each other, making it a potent follow-up out of a down throw. It also combos into itself at mid-range percents, making it excellent for juggling and racking up damage. However, the hits fail to connect together at high percents, and the opponent will often fall out using SDI. The last hit deals moderate knockback, allowing it to KO at high percents. If the last hit does not hit, it can combo into other aerials and smash attacks. Great shield stabber. Originates from Tropical Fish.
Forward aerial		Cement Factory (セメントファクトリー)	16% (clean), 6% (late)	Mr. Game & Watch swings a boxed package forward. The initial hitbox deals very powerful horizontal knockback, while the subsequent hitbox deals minimal knockback, but is capable of locking after a footstool. It can deal damage regardless of whatever side the move hits the opponent. Has the greatest KO potential of all his aerials if clean, KOing middleweights under 102% by the edge of Final Destination. Great for edgeguarding and it can lead into a wall of pain opponents at low to medium percentages. It has long landing lag, but its aerial ending lag is not as bad. According to the official Melee website, this move originates from Mario's Cement Factory. However, the object looks closer to the boxes from the Game & Watch version of Mario Bros.
Back aerial		Turtle Bridge (タートルブリッジ)	3% (hits 1-5), 3% (landing)	Mr. Game & Watch swings a snapping turtle behind himself as it bites, hitting multiple times. The last hit can KO at high precents near the edge. With proper spacing, it is quite safe on shield as well despite a lack of shieldstun. Can combo into itself up to 3 or even 4 times depending on the opponent's DI. The landing hitbox launches opponents vertically, while landing the final aerial hitbox launches opponents horizontally. Because of the last aerial hitbox's properties, it can be used for a wall of pain in conjunction with reverse aerial rush effectively. Has great horizontal reach with a large hitbox. When being shielded, opponents often drop their shields too soon due to the turtle's hitlag causing it to have unexpected duration when it is landed. Can be DI'd out of though. It is possible for grounded targets to powershield the last hit, but this is very difficult to perform. Originates from Turtle Bridge.
Up aerial		Spitball Sparky (スピットボールスパーキー)	7% (hit 1), 9% (hit 2)	Mr. Game & Watch raises a pump above him, blowing puffs of air above him twice. Notorious for its huge windboxes outside the damaging hitbox, with the wind being more powerful the closer the opponent is to Mr. Game & Watch, while its second hit deals high knockback. Connecting both hits can KO from 70%-120%, although getting the second hit is difficult without proper alignment due to the windboxes' properties and the damaging hitboxes being rather small. The windboxes can actually push a player out of Ike's Great Aether, and, when high enough, can push opponents above the upper blast line for a Star KO. Spamming this move can make it difficult for opponents to land. The windboxes can be used to assist teammates with their vertical recovery, and can also be used to possibly gimp certain character's recoveries like Ness or Lucas' should they not be ready to change the direction of PK Thunder's arc. Originates from Spitball Sparky.
Down aerial		Donkey Kong Jr. (ドンキーコングＪｒ．)	14% (sweetspot), 13% (sourspot), 6% (landing)	Mr. Game & Watch drops downward while holding a key beneath himself. A stall-then-fall, it meteor smashes powerfully on the first frames. Can be moved left or right a bit. While it can cause Mr. Game & Watch to potentially self-destruct while using it off-stage, his effective recovery, combined with the move's minimal ending lag and descending slower than other stall-then-falls makes this unlikely. It is a safe option when edgeguarding and while the meteor smash KOs as early as 65%, the late hit has KO potential at high percents, killing at around 140%. If performed while halfway through a thin platform (after hitting down so he falls through it), he will move upwards and land on top of the platform, without the animation changing. Can perform the stall-then-fall glitch. Originates from Donkey Kong Jr.
Grab		Grab (つかみ)	—	Reaches out. All of Mr. Game & Watch's grabs are extremely quick, albeit short-ranged. Originates from Mario's Cement Factory.
Pummel		Alarm (アラーム)	3%	Mr. Game & Watch bashes the opponent with an alarm bell. It is one of the most damaging pummels in the game. However, it is the slowest pummel in the game. Originates from the Game & Watch's alarm feature.
Forward throw		Ball (ボール)	8%	Mr. Game & Watch juggles the opponent and tosses them forward. It has little utility outside of setting up edgeguards or dealing damage. Originates from Ball.
Back throw		Ball (ボール)	8%	Mr. Game & Watch juggles the opponent and tosses them backward. Like forward throw, it has little utility outside of setting up edgeguards or dealing damage. Originates from Ball.
Up throw		Ball (ボール)	8%	Mr. Game & Watch juggles the opponent and tosses them upward. It follows up into Fire, as well as up aerial and rarely neutral aerial at low percents. This makes it good for short and damaging burst combos early on. It can KO at very high precentages while standing on high platforms. Originates from Ball.
Down throw		Ball (ボール)	6%	Mr. Game & Watch juggles the opponent and drops them straight to the ground. Deals less damage in comparison to his other throws, but makes up for this with its impressive tech-chasing potential. Tech-chases include a smash attack, neutral attack, Judge, Oil Panic, forward tilt, down tilt, or even neutral aerial, forward aerial and down aerial. Tech-chasing into a smash attack also allows Mr. Game & Watch to achieve a guaranteed free KO at high precents. Can meteor smash opponents near the edge. Originates from Ball.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			6%	Mr. Game & Watch gets out a hammer and slams it in front of him, then behind him. An extremly quick floor attack. Originates from Vermin.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			6%	Mr. Game & Watch gets out a hammer and slams it behind him, then in front of him. Originates from Vermin.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Mr. Game & Watch pulls a hammer in front of him, then behind him. Originates from Vermin.
Edge attack (fast) Edge getups (fast)			8% (bell), 6% (body)	Swings an alarm bell forward while climbing up. Originates from the Game & Watch's alarm feature.
Edge attack (slow) Edge getups (slow)			10%	Swings an alarm bell forward while climbing up. Similar to his floor attack, albeit slower. Originates from the Game & Watch's alarm feature.
Neutral special		Chef	5% (pan), 4% (food)	Flips various food-shaped projectiles out of a frying pan, moving slowly through the air at varying trajectories. By tapping the special button, the food will be flung at a faster frequency. The food can be used defensively to cancel attacking animations of opponents as a zoning tool, rack up damage if more than five projectiles hit as a damage-racking tool, as well as to prevent aerial approaches as an anti-air tool, and can be used for edgeguarding against opponents with linear recoveries. Hitting with the pan itself is much more rewarding when edgeguarding, as the pan is a semi-spike and can gimp opponents with short-ranged recoveries, such as Ganondorf.
Side special		Judge	2-32% (Varies)	Swings a hammer in front of him in an arc, and raises a digital display with a random number from 1-9 with his other hand. It can have any one of 9 effects, which vary based on the displayed number; 1 only damages himself, while 9 boasts extreme enough power to be a virtual one-hit KO. An infamous follow-up from his down throw, but timing for a true combo is very strict.
Up special		Fire	6%	Bounces off a trampoline held by a pair of firefighters, then deploys a parachute at the apex of the jump while descending. Significant vertical and horizontal recovery. Capable of canceling into any move when falling. The ascending hitbox deals decent knockback, KOing middleweights at aroud 116% near the left/right blast lines. It is formidable at stage spiking, due to out-prioritizing most aerials and dealing strong knockback. When combined with the fact that Mr. Game & Watch briefly becomes intangible during his ascent, this makes Mr. Game & Watch very difficult to edgeguard while making Fire a good edgeguarding move offstage itself. The move can also be used as a possible follow-up option after up throw at low percentages against fast-fallers and heavyweights.
Down special		Oil Panic	18%-60% (2.8x multiplier)	Holds an oil drum, which absorbs energy-based projectiles. Once three units are absorbed, it turns into a powerful counterattack consisting of Mr. Game & Watch sending out a large splash of oil from his oil drum. It has very minimal start-up lag that inflicts 2.8× the accumulated damage of the absorbed attacks, capping to 60%. OHKOs and destroys full shields when it inflicts 60%, while the least powerful Oil Panic can KO middleweights at the ledge around 95%. Despite its appearance, the oil spill is not a projectile and thus cannot be reflected. Stored energy isn’t lost upon being KOed. Capable of Bucket Braking, eliminating all momentum received from knockback at the time the move is performed. Collectively, these traits makes Oil Panic an incredibly dangerous move.
Final Smash		Octopus	16%	Transforms into the giant octopus that originates in its eponymous game, Octopus. It lasts for 17 seconds and damage is dealt on contact. As in Brawl, pressing the attacking input will extend the length of the tentacles. Touching the main body will just deal damage. Its frontal tentacles have the highest maximum range, and vice versa. The Octopus is also able to float on top of water during its duration, and can fast-fall.

Judge Damage Values

Number	Damage	Description
#1	2%	An extremely weak swing that does not make the opponent flinch. It is the least damaging Judge attack and deals 12% recoil damage regardless of whether or not it hits.
#2	4%	A weak swing that deals minimal knockback. It has a 20% chance of tripping the opponent.
#3	6%	A weak swing. It sends opponents in the opposite direction from where Mr. Game & Watch is facing. It deals 25% shield damage.
#4	8%	A swing that has a slash effect and launches opponents diagonally forward.
#5	3% (hits 1-4)	A swing that has an electric effect and hits multiple times.
#6	12%	A swing that has a flame effect and is a semi-spike. Deals the second strongest knockback of all Judge attacks. KOs at around 112% near the edge.
#7	14%	A swing that deals moderate knockback and produces an apple if it hits the opponent. The apple heals 4%.
#8	9%	A swing that has a freeze effect and deals minimal knockback. Emits the "ping" sound effect heard from a Freezie making contact, which is typically associated with one-hit KOs. The only swing with a lower total damage output than previous numbers.
#9	32%	An extremely powerful swing that deals huge knockback, bein a OHKO in certain situations. It is the most damaging Judge attack and emits the "ping" sound effect like Judge 8. Similar in nature to a charged swing from the Home-Run Bat, but the hit's base knockback is much lower, which prevents it from KOing at 0% without edgeguarding. In addition, this number has smaller hitboxes than the other numbers.

Announcer call

This article could use additional or higher-quality audio files. The editor who added this tag suggests: Needs announcer calls from other languages. If you have a good audio file for this article, upload it here.

• English/Japanese

Wii Remote selection sound

• Mr. Game & Watch makes five beeps.

Mr. Game & Watch's selection sound

On-screen appearance

• Progresses along a line of Game & Watch LCD frames until reaching the foreground.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Rings his bell at a high angle. Similar to his side taunt, it originates from the Game & Watch's alarm feature.
• Side taunt: Rings his bell at a low angle. Similar to his up taunt, it originates from the Game & Watch's alarm feature.
• Down taunt: Jumps in the air with his arms and legs outstretched.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Briefly looks behind himself with a concerned expression.
• Hops in place.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Mis-ter Game-and-Watch!	Game-and-Watch!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

Rather than using pre-existing music, this track is unique to Brawl. An original flourished medley based on the typical beeping noises emitted by Game & Watch characters and/or objects.

• Up: Bows to the right, then to the left, as if thanking an applauding audience. He then proceeds to retain his balance by leaning on his left foot.
• Left: Rings his bell horizontally at a left and right angle, simultaneously turning around.
• Right: Jumps with his legs high in the air with outstretched hands, similar to the Ice Climbers.

Up	Left	Right

In competitive play

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Character Matchups

Avg.

Mr. Game & Watch has a slightly positive matchup spread. He is countered by 4 characters, soft countered by 5, has 6 even matchups, soft counters 11, counters 7, and hard counters 3. Mr. Game & Watch's oddities as a character help him stand out. He can fight characters that are air based better than ground based characters in most cases, as his fast aerials allow him to beat floaty characters like Lucario. However, he has trouble in the neutral game against opponents like Marth, Diddy Kong, and Ice Climbers, however, because of his inability to camp and approach. He also can't keep up with the options Meta Knight has. Overall, however, he has good matchups.

Notable players

See also: Category:Mr. Game & Watch players (SSBB)

•  Alphicans - a top Canadian Mr. Game & Watch player. While he didn't travel outside of Canada often, he notably placed 13th at Apex 2015, 4th at Get On My Level 2016, and 9th at Get On My Level 2018.
•  Boss
•  Gardex - a top Mr. Game & Watch player from Norway.
•  GimR - placed 25th at GENESIS 2.
•  Nekokatsu
•  Penta
•  TeeVee
•  UTDZac - A top Mr. Game & Watch player from Texas. Notable for being one of the original Game & Watch mains during the pre-MLG era. Placed 17th at Apex 2009, 9th at GENESIS, and 17th at MLG Dallas 2010.
•  Vex Kasrani - While known for being a top King Dedede main, he used Mr. Game & Watch as a strong secondary.
•  Vinnie - Was widely considered the best Mr. Game & Watch player in the world after the pre-MLG period. Placed 13th at MLG DC 2010, 4th at KTAR 6, and 5th at WHOBO 3. He switched to Ice Climbers in the later period of Brawl.
•  YoshiFreak

Tier placement and history

Mr. Game & Watch was at first considered to be a top tier character, ranking as high as 4th place on the first tier list, which is also his highest placing so far. This was due to his disjointed reach, disproportionately high power, great aerial game and Bucket Braking capabilities, which made him very difficult to KO as well as edge-guard, while also being efficient on both points. His position, however, started to decline starting on the second tier list, where he was ranked at 5th place: while he possessed several advantages that made him a formidable threat, his weaknesses later became more and more exploitable. His largest tier drop occurred on the transition to the fourth tier list, dropping from 8th to 12th from the third one. He would later rise negligibly on the fifth tier list to 11th, before starting to drop again on subsequent versions. Currently, he is ranked 16th on the tier list: while he is still a relatively viable character, his notable disadvantages don't let him easily beat other top tiered characters, most notably Meta Knight, Ice Climbers and Marth, though his strengths are enough to face other top and high tiered threats like Pikachu, Lucario, Wario and King Dedede.

Role in The Subspace Emissary

Mr. Game & Watch in SSE.

The Shadow Bugs trophy description explains that Mr. Game & Watch embodies a limitless supply of Shadow Bugs inside of him, which can be extracted incessantly. Shadow Bugs are a substance that can replicate characters or even create new dark creatures. Tabuu discovered this and captured Mr. Game & Watch in the prologue, using the Shadow Bugs to build the Subspace Army.

Snake, Meta Knight and Lucario enter the Halberd's control room to discover a quintet of false Mr. Game & Watches piloting the ship. Snake quickly charges at them and knocks them all out the window. They fall onto the main deck, interrupting Zelda (disguised as Sheik), Fox, and Peach's tea party. The clones then revert to Shadow Bugs and form into Duon. Snake and Lucario jump down to help, along with Falco who ejects from an Arwing. Once the monster is defeated, the Shadow Bugs float away, leaving behind Mr. Game & Watch's trophy. Fox prepares to shoot it with his blaster, but Peach revives him. Upon his revival, Mr. Game & Watch wonders where he is until Peach scolds him for the trouble he created, causing him to look down in shame. Then Peach gives him her parasol to cheer him up.

At the entrance to Subspace, Mr. Game & Watch, along with the rest of his team, prepares to attack Tabuu, but is effortlessly turned into a trophy by the Off Waves. He is later revived thanks to Luigi, Ness, and King Dedede. After that, he accompanies the heroes through the Great Maze and the showdown with Tabuu.

It was confirmed on the "DOJO!!" that the reason Mr. Game & Watch was manipulated so easily by Tabuu is that he has no understanding of good or evil.

Playable appearances

Mr. Game & Watch first appears in Battleship Halberd Bridge and then joins the player's team after, but isn't playable until all the characters are reunited with each other after the events of The Subspace Bomb Factory (Part II), where they then invade Subspace in Entrance to Subspace.

• Entrance to Subspace
• The Great Maze (if rescued in Subspace (Part I))

Exclusive stickers

These stickers can only be used by Mr. Game & Watch or a select few including him:

• Chef (Game & Watch): [Specials: Indirect] Attack +25
• Donbe: [Slash] Resistance +26
• Duck: Launch Resistance +20
• Forward Type: [Throwing] Attack +22
• Flag Man: [Specials: Indirect] Attack +4
• Lion: [Specials: Direct] Attack +13
• Vermin: [Weapon] Attack +15
• Wild Gunman: [Specials: Indirect] Attack +5
• Yakuman Player: [Electric] Resistance +28

In Solo Modes

Classic Mode

In Classic Mode, Mr. Game & Watch can appear as an opponent in Stage 9 if he has been unlocked on Flat Zone 2. Mr. Game & Watch can also appear as an opponent in Stage 11, but only if he hasn't appeared in Stage 9.

All-Star Mode

In All-Star Mode, Mr. Game & Watch is fought in Stage 1 on Flat Zone 2.

Event Matches

Solo Events

• Event 32: Bird in Darkest Night: As Falco (with a dark alternative costume), the player must defeat Mr. Game & Watch on Brinstar. The stage gets dark frequently throughout the match.
• Event 34: All-Star Battle Melee: Mr. Game & Watch is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents are newcomers from Super Smash Bros. Melee.
• Event 35: The Visitor to Flat Zone: Mr. Game & Watch must defeat blacked out versions of Peach, Toon Link, and Jigglypuff on Flat Zone 2.

Co-Op Events

• Co-Op Event 16: Jigglypuff's Great Comeback: Jigglypuff and Mr. Game & Watch start out tiny and must defeat Lucas and Ness, who are giant, on Castle Siege. During each background change, Jigglypuff will grow while Ness and Lucas will shrink, but Mr. Game & Watch remains the same size.
• Co-Op Event 21: The True All-Star Battle: Both players select a character and take on the entire roster on Battlefield.

Ending Images

• 

  Classic Mode

• 

  All-Star Mode

Trophies

Mr. Game & Watch's main and Final Smash trophies can be obtained by clearing Classic Mode and All-Star mode respectively with Mr. Game & Watch.

Classic Mode trophy

Mr. Game & Watch

The monochrome hero of the Game & Watch series, a fellow who oozes personality. First appearing in 1980, the series were the original portable game systems. The first games in the series were quite simple, but as time passed, technology evolved. The multiscreen series featured game play on dual screens. As the name states, the games also kept time.

: Game & Watch Gallery

Octopus trophy

Octopus

Mr. Game & Watch's Final Smash. He turns into the huge cephalopod that made its debut in the Game & Watch game Octopus. Of course, you can damage enemies by running into them, but you can do more damage by pressing the attack button to extend four arms and launch foes. In the original Octopus game, you had to avoid the octopus while salvaging treasure from the sea.

: Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch taunting in Luigi's Mansion.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch taunting in Green Hill Zone with three Pikmin.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using his up air in Mario Circuit.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using his neutral air against Falco in Final Destination.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using Judge in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using Oil Panic in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using Oil Panic being used against Mario in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch filling Oil Panic with Mario and Luigi in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch's Final Smash, Octopus in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using his Final Smash, Octopus in Mushroomy Kingdom.

• 

  Mr. Game & Watch using his Final Smash, Octopus in Flat Zone 2.

Trivia

• His official artwork resembles his Melee artwork.
• As in Melee, Mr. Game & Watch is the only character who is always 2D in appearance, even in his trophy form. Although Mr. Game & Watch usually appears in 2D, the effect is achieved by flattening a 3D character model. He is also the only character with no textures or shading; he is simply one solid color and outline.
  • Mr. Game & Watch appears 3D, however, when he is caught in Bowser's down throw or he is played using moveset swaps. His Subspace clone and Metal Box form also make him appear 3-D.
• With Mr. Game & Watch's design originating from characters that first appeared in 1980, he can be considered the "oldest" character in Brawl's roster - which is why he is the first character to be fought in All-Star Mode. Interestingly enough, he is the last character to be fought in Melee’s All Star Mode.
• While almost all of Mr. Game & Watch's animations use a frame-by-frame style, there are times when he animates smoothly: when being thrown, when being grabbed by Snake, and when using a Cracker Launcher. The first two are due to using animations shared by all characters, while the third is due to the mechanic of angling the Cracker Launcher.
• Mr. Game & Watch, R.O.B., Olimar, and Samus are the only characters that never talk or make vocal sounds. He instead makes beeping sounds.
  • As a result, Mr. Game & Watch is the only character whose sound cues do not seem to be affected by a Metal Box.
• Mr. Game & Watch is the only character who does not move when charging his smash attacks.
• In The Subspace Emissary, Mr. Game & Watch is the only playable character who does not have an immediate presentation screen.
• When wearing a badge, it hovers in front of Mr. Game & Watch's body, due to being attached to where his body would be if not flattened.
• When the black costume of Mr. Game & Watch is used on the underground version of Mushroomy Kingdom, he appears to be dark yellow. This could possibly be a reference to the color-changing characters in the original Super Mario Bros.
  • Oddly, when in Camera mode, the color changes back to black.
• Mr. Game & Watch and Jigglypuff are the only returning characters who can no longer become helpless via any of their special moves in their transitions from Melee to Brawl.
• Curiously, the manhole cover (down tilt) is the only item from Mr. Game & Watch's arsenal that is rendered in true 3D while retaining the solid color palette. In Melee, it was rendered 2D, as with the rest of his moves. This unique trait was carried over into his future appearances.
• Mr. Game & Watch and Yoshi are the only characters to have a better average matchup spread than a character above them in the tier list. In this case, Mr. Game & Watch has a better average matchup spread than Fox.
• Mr. Game & Watch, the Ice Climbers, Meta Knight, Ganondorf, and Samus are the only characters whose icon in the Subspace Emissary and the Sticker menu is not based on their renders.

External links

• Mr. Game & Watch's Smash Bros Dojo!!
• Mr. Game & Watch Character Guide on SmashBoards
• Mr. Game & Watch's hitbox sizes
• Mr. Game & Watch's Moves - History Behind Super Smash Bros. Brawl, by CrappyCaptureDevice