On-screen appearance
The on-screen appearance, also known as an intro or entrance, is a minor feature in Super Smash Bros., Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. 4 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It was not present in Super Smash Bros. Melee, where instead, characters become animated from their trophy forms as seen in the opening movie. It includes a small animation unique for each character entering the battle field during the announcer's three-second countdown before the match begins. In Smash 64 and Brawl, as the announcer counts down before a match starts, the camera will either pan far enough away from the stage to show each entrance or zoom in on each character during the first few frames of their entrance. In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, when a match starts, the screen will occasionally focus on the player's own on-screen appearance for the entire duration of the countdown, rather than moving between each character as they appear or showing the entire screen.[1] It usually has no effect whatsoever on gameplay other than visually dramatic and comedic purposes. The exceptions to this rule are Zero Suit Samus's entrance in Brawl, which allows the players to hit their opponents with the fallen pieces of the power suit; Wario's entrance, which lets Wario charge up his Wario Waft the moment he appears; and Olimar's entrance, which automatically has him pluck three Pikmin. Each entrance usually relates to that character's universe, such as Mario entering in through a warp pipe the way he does at the beginning of Super Mario 64.
In Super Smash Bros.
Character name | Description |
---|---|
Captain Falcon | Jumps out of his vehicle, the Blue Falcon. |
Donkey Kong | Breaks out of a DK Barrel, similar to his entrance from Donkey Kong Country. |
Fox | Ejects out of an Arwing. |
Jigglypuff | Emerges from a Poké Ball just like Pikachu. |
Kirby | Crash-lands a Warp Star into the ground. |
Link | Descends from a column of light, similar to the end-of-dungeon teleports in Ocarina of Time. |
Luigi | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe just like Mario. |
Mario | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe, similar to his entrance from the beginning of Super Mario 64. |
Ness | Uses Teleport and crashes onto the stage. |
Pikachu | Emerges from a Poké Ball just like the other Pokémon. |
Samus | Exits a Super Metroid-style save point. |
Yoshi | Breaks out of a Yoshi Egg, similar to his entrance from Super Mario World. |
Gallery
In Super Smash Bros. Melee
Unique character based entrances were removed in Melee. Instead, all playable characters briefly start as trophies that "come to life" at the start of the match, a reference to the game's introduction. Only Master Hand and Crazy Hand have "true" on-screen appearances, where they both gradually enter the stage from the background, laughing.
Sheik has the same on-screen appearance as every other character, but it should be noted that the sound played when Zelda transforms into Sheik is played when Sheik appears.
Giga Bowser, when fought in The Showdown and Adventure Mode, does not have any on-screen appearance of any type; when the countdown starts, he's already standing on the stage, although he does have an introduction clip before being fought in Adventure Mode, which consists of Giant Bowser's trophy being flung back onto the stage, transforming into Giga Bowser. Taking advantage of hacks, Giga Bowser may be fought in Vs. Mode. He then appears as a trophy when the "Must be ON" code from Action Replay is not turned on. When this happens, he will be in a T-pose upon trophy appearance. This freezes on stages that are not part of the Smash universe. The CPU players, including allies, in Event matches are already in the fight when the countdown starts. In Event 50: Final Destination Match, the hands' "true" appearances don't occur; they are already in the fight.
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl
The on-screen appearances in Brawl appear in VS matches only. The single player modes instead use a quicker appearance method similar to Melee's. The characters are simply already present when the match/mode start or characters will spontaneously spawn out of nowhere during the match.
Character name | Description |
---|---|
Bowser | Emerges from a wall of flames. |
Captain Falcon | The Blue Falcon spins to a stop, Captain Falcon jumps out, and then Blue Falcon speeds off. |
Diddy Kong | Breaks out of a Donkey Kong Country-style DK Barrel and claps his hands. |
Donkey Kong | Breaks out of a Donkey Kong Country-style DK Barrel, grunts and makes a strongman pose. |
Falco | Ejects from an upside-down Arwing, much like the way he appears in the Subspace Emissary. Nearly identical to Fox and Wolf's appearances. |
Fox | Ejects from an Arwing. Nearly identical to Falco and Wolf's appearances. |
Ganondorf | Emerges from a portal of dark magic. |
Ice Climbers | The condor flies in with them hanging from his feet, then they jump off. |
Ike | Warps onto the stage using warp magic and then slashes his sword. The warp magic resembles that used by the Black Knight in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance. |
Jigglypuff | Emerges from a Poké Ball, then does a short, bouncy dance. |
King Dedede | Is carried in on a palanquin by four Waddle Dees, then jumps off, scattering them. |
Kirby | Crash-lands a Warp Star to the ground. |
Link | Appears in a whirlwind and unsheathes his sword. A whirlwind was used to teleport among dungeons in The Legend of Zelda. Also, a whirlwind was used to teleport Link in games where he makes use of his Ocarina, particularly through the Song of Soaring. |
Lucario | Teleports on stage, floats for a second, gathers aura in its hands then lands. This is unusual because all other Pokémon come in from Poké Balls. |
Lucas | Rides in on a Mr. Saturn-style coffee table, then hops off. The table is based on the one that Lucas rides to Saturn Valley in Mother 3. |
Luigi | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe in a scared pose, saying "Let's-a go." in an uneasy voice. His pose is similar to Luigi's face on the cover of Luigi's Mansion. Similar to Mario's appearance but his pose is different. |
Mario | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe punching his right fist into the air while shouting "Let's-a go!". His pose is similar to his artwork from New Super Mario Bros.. Luigi's appearance is similar but different. |
Marth | Warps onto the stage using warp magic with a twirl and unsheathes his sword. |
Meta Knight | Teleports in wrapped in his cape. This is similar in appearance to his up taunt. |
Mr. Game & Watch | Moves along a row of faded Game and Watch LCD frames until he reaches the foreground. |
Ness | Arrives having used Teleport, then shakes off the soot he gathered after crashing. |
Olimar | Olimar exits the Hocotate Ship and plucks three Pikmin from the ground. |
Peach | Appears spinning out of a shower of hearts, then winks and poses with her parasol saying "Hi!". |
Pikachu | Emerges from a Poké Ball and emits sparks from its cheeks. |
Pit | Appears onstage from a beam of light from the heavens while looking upwards. |
Pokémon Trainer | Throws out his first Pokémon, yelling "Go Squirtle!", "Go Ivysaur!", or "Go Charizard!" |
R.O.B. | Assembles piece by piece as his parts drop from the sky. This may be a reference to his appearance in Kirby's Dream Land 3. |
Samus | Arrives from a Super Metroid-style save point, though the design is somewhat altered. |
Sheik | Appears in magical sparks. |
Snake | Appears kneeling with lighting and sparks around him. He also appears to be turning visible. This is a reference to the opening scene in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty when Snake is using stealth camouflage and he does a freefall jump onto a ship. The impact from the landing causes the stealth camouflage to malfunction. Snake also sometimes says, "Kept you waiting, huh?" which is what Snake said to Otacon after the freefall jump. |
Sonic | Jumps onto the stage (in ball form) from the foreground and gives the thumbs-up. |
Toon Link | Appears in a cel-shaded, The Wind Waker-style explosion, then unsheathes his sword. |
Wario | Rides in from the foreground on his bike, then falls off. The bike then explodes and Wario dusts himself off. |
Wolf | Ejects from a Wolfen. Nearly identical to Fox and Falco's appearances. |
Yoshi | Breaks out of a Yoshi Egg. Even if a Yoshi is selected with a color other than green, he will still break out of a white egg with green spots. |
Zelda | Teleports in using Farore's Wind with Din's Fire in her hand. |
Zero Suit Samus | Stands up from a kneeling position as her Power Suit falls off. Power Suit Pieces are scattered around Samus, which the player can then throw at their opponents. |
Gallery
In Super Smash Bros. 4
On-screen appearances return in Super Smash Bros. 4 and it can only be used in VS matches, similar to Brawl. Single player modes used Melee's quicker version.
Character name | Description |
---|---|
Bayonetta | Emerges from Bat Within form and produces a purple symbol that represents Umbra Witch magic. |
Bowser | Emerges from a wall of flames hunched over, before standing up right. |
Bowser Jr. | Flies onto the stage in his Junior Clown Car and makes a face. |
Captain Falcon | The Blue Falcon spins to a stop, Captain Falcon jumps out, and then Blue Falcon speeds off. |
Charizard | Emerges from a Poké Ball, then stomps. |
Cloud | Falls out of the sky and catches his Buster Sword. |
Corrin | Falls onto the stage in dragon form, then transforms into human form. |
Dark Pit | Appears onstage from a beam of darkness from somewhere. |
Diddy Kong | Breaks out of a DK Barrel, clapping. |
Donkey Kong | Breaks out of a DK Barrel, making a pose. |
Dr. Mario | Megavitamins build up on the ground in the shape of the bottom of the bottles from the Dr. Mario games, and Dr. Mario appears when they recede. |
Duck Hunt | The dog jumps onto the stage from the foreground into some 8-bit grass, then does his infamous laugh. |
Falco | Ejects from an upside-down Arwing. Nearly identical to Fox and ZSS's appearances. |
Fox | Ejects from an Arwing. Nearly identical to ZSS and Falco's appearances. |
Ganondorf | Emerges from a portal of dark magic. |
Greninja | Emerges from a Poké Ball and does a ninja pose. |
Ike | Warps onto the stage using warp magic, then slashes his sword. |
Jigglypuff | Emerges from a Poké Ball, then does a short, bouncy dance. |
King Dedede | Is carried in on a palanquin by four Waddle Dees, then jumps off, scattering them. |
Kirby | Crash-lands a Warp Star to the ground. |
Link | Appears in a whirlwind and unsheathes his sword. |
Little Mac | Jogs onto the stage and throws off his pink training suit (unless the player chose to wear it at the character select screen, in which case Mac simply does the throwing motion without removing the suit). |
Lucario | Teleports on stage, floats for a second, gathers aura in its hands then lands. |
Lucas | Rides in on a Mr. Saturn-style coffee table, then hops off. |
Lucina | Warps while masked onto the stage using warp magic with a twirl, removes her mask, and unsheathes her sword. |
Luigi | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe with hands on face saying "Let's-a go." |
Mario | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe punching his right fist in the air while shouting "Let's-a go!". |
Marth | Warps onto the stage using warp magic with a twirl and unsheathes his sword. |
Mega Man | Warps into the stage, resembling the way Mega Man warps in when he starts a stage in the Mega Man games. |
Meta Knight | Teleports in wrapped in his cape. |
Mewtwo | Teleports onto the stage using dark energy. |
Mii Brawler | Lands with an explosion then performs attacks towards the screen. |
Mii Gunner | Emerges from an orb of energy, then point their arm cannon towards the screen. |
Mii Swordfighter | Appears from a whirlwind, then unsheathes their sword. |
Mr. Game & Watch | Moves along a row of faded Game and Watch LCD frames until he reaches the foreground. Unlike in Brawl, the color of the frames match the alternate costume. |
Ness | Arrives having used Teleport, then shakes off the soot he gathered after crashing. |
Olimar | Olimar exits the Hocotate Ship and plucks three Pikmin from the ground. |
Pac-Man | Starts out as the classic Pac-Man sprite and then jumps out of it into his normal form. |
Palutena | Walks out of a golden door with a heavenly glow surrounding her. |
Peach | Appears spinning out of a shower of hearts, then winks and poses with her parasol saying "Hi!". |
Pikachu | Emerges from a Poké Ball and emits sparks from its cheeks. |
Pit | Appears onstage from a beam of light from the heavens. |
R.O.B. | Assembles piece by piece as his parts drop from the sky. |
Robin | Warps onto the stage using warp magic. |
Rosalina | Glides in from some stars and does a twirl. |
Roy | Warps onto the stage using warp magic, and pulls his sword out of the ground. |
Ryu | Walks onto the stage from some mist in the background, then gets into a fighting stance. |
Samus | Arrives from a save point. |
Sheik | Appears in a whirl of smoke. |
Shulk | Jumps down with the Monado, then places it on his back after it deactivates. |
Sonic | Jumps onto the stage (in ball form) from the foreground and gives the thumbs-up. |
Toon Link | Appears in an explosion, then unsheathes his sword. |
Villager | Exits out of a house and cheers to the camera. |
Wario | Rides in from the foreground on his bike, then falls off. The bike then explodes and Wario dusts himself off. |
Wii Fit Trainer | Steps off of the living Wii Balance Board seen in the Wii Fit series, who then jumps behind the stage waving goodbye and disappears. |
Yoshi | Breaks out of a Yoshi Egg. The color of the Yoshi will determine the color of the spots on the egg. |
Zelda | Teleports in with magic in her hands. |
Zero Suit Samus | Jumps out of her gunship and lands with her jet boots, similar to Fox and Falco's appearances. |
Gallery
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
On-screen appearances are set to return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and can only be used in VS matches, similar to Brawl.
Character name | Description |
---|---|
Bayonetta | Emerges from Bat Within form and produces a purple symbol that represents Umbra Witch magic. |
Bowser | Emerges from a wall of flames hunched over, before standing up right. |
Chrom | Warps onto the stage using warp magic, and pulls his sword out of the ground. Nearly identical to Roy's appearance. |
Cloud | Falls out of the sky and catches his Buster Sword. |
Corrin | Falls onto the stage in dragon form, then transforms into human form. |
Daisy | Appears spinning out of a shower of flower petals, then winks and enthusiastically waves to the camera saying "Yo-ooo!". |
Dark Samus | Warps onto the stage from a dark portal. |
Donkey Kong | Breaks out of a DK Barrel, making a pose. |
Fox | Ejects from an Arwing. Nearly identical to Wolf's appearance. |
Ganondorf | Emerges from a liquid-like vortex of darkness. |
Ice Climbers | The condor flies in with them hanging from his feet, then they jump off, and give each other a high-five. |
Ike | Warps onto the stage using warp magic, then slashes his sword. |
Inkling | Lands with a splash of ink in her squid form before transforming back, then flaps her arms excitedly before drawing her Splattershot. This is the Inkling's entrance animation from Octo Valley in Splatoon. |
Isabelle | Exits out of the Town Hall and cheers to the camera. |
King K. Rool | Drops from the sky with his arms crossed before chuckling. His pose is based on how he appears in Donkey Konga. |
Kirby | Crash-lands a Warp Star to the ground. |
Link | Glides using the Paraglider onto the stage. |
Little Mac | Jogs onto the stage and throws off his pink training suit (unless the player chose to wear it at the character select screen, in which case Mac simply does the throwing motion without removing the suit). |
Lucina | Warps while masked onto the stage using warp magic with a twirl, removes her mask, and unsheathes her sword. |
Mario | Jumps out of a Warp Pipe punching his right fist in the air while shouting "Let's-a go!". |
Marth | Warps onto the stage using warp magic with a twirl and unsheathes his sword. |
Mega Man | Warps into the stage, resembling the way Mega Man warps in when he starts a stage in the Mega Man games. |
Mewtwo | Teleports onto the stage using dark energy. |
Ness | Arrives having used Teleport, then shakes off the soot he gathered after crashing. |
Pac-Man | Starts out as the classic Pac-Man sprite, makes a slow chomp, and then jumps out of it into his normal form. |
Peach | Appears spinning out of a shower of hearts, then waves at the screen. |
Pichu | Jumps out from a Poké Ball and punches both fists in the air with joy before landing. |
Pikachu | Emerges from a Poké Ball and emits sparks from its cheeks. |
Pit | Appears onstage from a beam of light from the heavens. |
Pokémon Trainer | Throws out his/her first Pokémon, yelling "Go Squirtle!", "Go Ivysaur!", or "Go Charizard!" |
Ridley | Swoops down at an angle, before landing and letting out a roar. |
Ryu | Walks onto the stage from some mist in the background, then gets into a fighting stance. |
Samus | Arrives from a save point. |
Sheik | Appears in a whirl of smoke. |
Snake | Appears kneeling with lighting and sparks around him. He also appears to be turning visible. Snake also sometimes says, "Kept you waiting, huh?" |
Sonic | Jumps onto the stage (in ball form) from the foreground and gives the thumbs-up. |
Villager | Exits out of a house and cheers to the camera. |
Wolf | Ejects from a Wolfen. Nearly identical to Fox's appearance. |
Young Link | Descends from a column of light, similar to the end-of-dungeon teleports in Ocarina of Time. Nearly identical to Link's appearance in Smash 64. |
Zelda | Teleports in with magic in her hands. |
Trivia
- In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, if there is at least one human player in the battle, then only Player 1's on-screen appearance will be focused on onscreen, before showing the other fighters standing in place. However, if the battle consists of only CPUs then all on-screen appearances will be shown one after another.
- When in a battle to unlock a fighter, however, the opposing fighter's on-screen appearance is focused on onscreen instead.
- Link, Zero Suit Samus and Sheik are the only characters to change their on-screen appearance.
- Of these, Link is the only one not to change from Brawl to SSB4. Link is also the only one to change in multiple games.
- In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, there was a small error regarding Toon Link's entrance. If one looks closely at the explosion, one can clearly see that both his sword and shield are not sheathed even though they should be. This was fixed in both versions of Super Smash Bros. 4.
- Although Little Mac's entrance animation shows him flinging off his pink sweatshirt, he does not do so if his currently chosen palette swap has him wearing it permanently (both wireframe and non-wireframe versions included). More interestingly, in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Little Mac's gloves only change color to match his currently chosen palette swap after he throws his sweatshirt off, meaning he always enters the stage wearing green gloves and a pink hoodie when not using a wireframe costume, and pink gloves with a green hoodie when using a wireframe costume.
- Corrin is the only character from the Fire Emblem series to not use Warp magic in his on-screen appearance.
- Because Melee uses the same on-screen appearance for every fighter, this made Young Link and Pichu the only fighters not to have a unique on-screen appearance prior to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.