Counter (matchup)
- For the move used by Marth, Roy (SSBM), and Ike (SSBB), see Counter.
In relative terms, a counter is a character that can be used with reasonable success and/or ease against another character. Match-ups are typically measured in a ratio to determine counters.
Hard counter
A counter or hard counter is a character that holds a strong advantage against another. It is always used in relative terms - in Melee, for instance, Peach is often said to be a hard counter to the Ice Climbers; Peach counters the Ice Climbers. An example in Brawl is that the Ice Climbers are a hard counter to Ganondorf. A hard counter usually has some element, such as an infinite or "zero-death" (from zero damage to death) chain grab, an especially high imbalance in attack priority, or inability for the countered character to approach effectively, that makes the match extremely difficult for the countered character. A hard counter is usually considered to be a match-up that is 35-65 or worse.
More examples of hard counters in all three Super Smash Bros. games
- In Super Smash Bros., Donkey Kong and Luigi hard counter Jigglypuff and Kirby hard counters Yoshi. Donkey Kong can cargo release and then re-grab into a Giant Punch from 0% to KO while Luigi kills Jigglypuff with his Super Jump Punch as low as 30%. Kirby's up tilt out-prioritizes all of Yoshi's moves preventing Yoshi from approaching. Many characters hard counter Samus and Link and no one hard counters Fox, Kirby or Pikachu. Most hard counters are due to range in Super Smash Bros. or the easiness of one character to "zero to death" another one.
- In Super Smash Bros. Melee, Kirby is hard countered by Fox and Marth hard counters Luigi. Kirby's light weight allows Fox to kill him very quickly while Luigi struggles with approaching characters with priority and high range. Sheik, due to chain grabs, also hard counters various characters, most notably Bowser. Hard counters in Melee vary from range to priority to approach.
- In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Pikachu hard counters Fox due to a "zero to death" chain grab and a majority of characters hard counter Ganondorf and Captain Falcon. Among the worst match-ups in all the Super Smash Bros. games is the Ice Climbers versus Ganondorf, usually considered to be 90-10 in the Ice Climbers' favor as Ganondorf does not have enough range to avoid being shield grabbed and infinite chaingrabbed to a KO. Most hard counters in Brawl are due to chain grabs, as there are many characters who do not have the range to avoid being grabbed.
Soft counters
A soft counter indicates a match-up that favors one character noticeably, but only slightly. It also sometimes indicates an even match-up between two characters far away from each other on the tier list - in Melee, for instance, Donkey Kong can be said to counter or soft counter Fox, though the match-up is generally considered about even. In Brawl, Meta Knight is said to be a soft counter to Snake, but the match is generally accepted as even. A soft counter tends to fare better, usually through an advantage that can't be capitalized on as easily. In terms of numbers, soft counters are usually 55-45 or 60-40 match-ups. These match-ups also tend to change per stage. As with the Meta Knight versus Snake match-up, it is routinely said that Snake has an advantage on Halberd due to its low ceiling. Regarding match-ups in which Marth soft counters his opponent, many of these match-ups are slightly more in his favor on Battlefield. Most soft counters are defined as being soft counters on the neutrals, as there is a slightly greater chance of the advantageous character winning on the neutral.
Players often switch to a counter when counterpicking.
Examples of soft counters in all three Super Smash Bros. games
- The majority of match-ups in Super Smash Bros. are soft counters outside the examples said above. This is due to the easiness of "zero to deaths" in the game and the equally high priority moves of basically all characters outside of Pikachu, who hard counters multiple characters, and Samus, who is said to counter no one.
- Most of the higher-tier versus middle-tier match-ups in Melee are soft counters.
- In Brawl, soft counters tend to change per stage. King Dedede is usually said to soft counter Snake, but this may change on stages where Snake can more easily escape chain grabs.
