Little Mac (SSB4)

Little Mac in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Punch-Out!!
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Giga Mac

“	Little Mac Punches In!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Little Mac (リトル・マック, Little Mac) is a newcomer in Super Smash Bros. 4. He was revealed on February 13th, 2014 during a Nintendo Direct, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Punch Out!! franchise, which had debuted in Japan that month in 1984.

Little Mac is voiced by Kosuke Toriumi in all versions of SSB4. His design is primarily based off his appearance in Punch Out!! for the Wii, and has alternate costumes in the form of "Wireframe Mac" based on the protagonist from the original arcade version of Punch-Out!!, whom the player saw from a first person perspective. When in wireframe form, Little Mac's voice clips are replaced by 8-bit noises.

Attributes

As advertised in his trailer, Little Mac is a wildly polarized character. With blinding speed in both movement and ground attacks that are equally difficult to interrupt and have high KO potential, he possesses a powerful ground game. This is counteracted by Little Mac's air game, which is unarguably the worst in the game. Due to this, he has a high learning curve, being extremely difficult to play correctly even when used by an experienced player, as one wrong move in the air can cost him his stock.

Little Mac's grounded game is one to be feared; he plays as a brute-force fighter unlike most of the cast, who depend on combos to rack up damage. Although his ground moves are largely lagless, they possess some of the highest knockback scalings in the game (many hitting as hard as Ganondorf's smash attacks) and most can KO as early as 80%, making his moves absurdly powerful for their speed-- his smash attacks even gain super armor during startup, so an opponent is almost guaranteed to take a blow at close range. His special attacks include one that gives him a window of intangibility (Jolt Haymaker) along with a counter (Slip Counter), giving him options to keep in control of the ground-- especially since he also has his Power Meter, which can turn the tides of battle almost instantly once he gains his KO Uppercut, even if he's taken a lot of damage. He can be equally difficult to hit as well, as Little Mac has a fittingly small frame, terrific dash speed and possesses long-ranged dodges that are one of the fastest in Smash 4, making him one of the slipperiest grounded fighters in the series. Little Mac's speed and power allow him to close in on opponents quickly, sock them with a damaging attack, then retreat or dodge all in a matter of seconds, making his fighting style one of the simplest, yet most rewarding out of many fighters in Smash 4.

Unfortunately, to compensate for his dominance on the ground, Little Mac has one glaring flaw: a horridly pathetic air game. His aerials are all extraordinarily weak with wretchedly short reach and KO potential, (even being told in his release trailer by Doc Louis that he "ain't no air fighter", and Sakurai later stating such on Miiverse), making Little Mac easy to juggle as he has no options to protect himself while in the air. But surprisingly almost all of Little Mac's aerials auto-cancel out of a short hop and the only exception being his up aerial. Little Mac's recovery is also hampered as he has low jumps, poor aerial physics, and no good recovery moves-- his specials become considerably less effective when used in midair, and are perhaps the worst recovery moves in the entire Smash series due to the sheer lack of distance they give. Because of Mac's inability to hold a dogfight, his moveset is cut by half as his only reliable attacks are grounded, and as Little Mac cannot hold back spacing and camping options in the air, it gives him a predictable approach. Even his grounded game has flaws: although wickedly powerful, all his ground attacks hit too hard for Little Mac to have any kind of combo ability (with the exception of heavyweights or fastfallers, which he can chain a few tilts onto), and his grab has mediocre reach and speed, additionally not sending opponents at angles that allow followups. Despite his strength, Little Mac does not do much shield damage either, making it simple for opponents to shield grab Mac once he starts attacking; he is noticeably susceptible to said grabs, which are easy to land on a fighter that must always stay in melee range, and can send him into the air where he is powerless to prevent every followup imaginable. Tether grabs, in specific, can be very deadly. Finally, Little Mac is infamous for accidental self-destructs, due to Jolt Haymaker not stopping at a ledge.

In essence, Little Mac is one of the more fear-inducing characters in the game when handled properly - he has to use his speed to be a tricky fighter to hit and must watch out for grabs as they can send him into the air where he becomes a laughable opponent. He is a fighter to be kept on the ground for as long as possible, and brought down to the ground whenever possible.

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2%	Two jabs, followed by either a single upwards jab or a series of rapid punches ending with an uppercut. Has very good knockback for a jab.
			2%
			7%
			1% (loop), 3% (last)
Forward tilt			4% (hit 1), 8% (hit 2)	Two jabs, the second of which has moderate knockback. A dependable KO move with the most range out of Mac's tilts.
Up tilt			9%	Swipes his fist above his head. Covers Mac's entire body.
Down tilt			8%	Punches along the ground. This move pops opponents up into the air, and can actually lead into many of Mac's attacks (including a KO Uppercut) if the opponent has a high enough falling speed.
Dash attack			10%	A swinging overhead punch. Fast and one of Mac's only approach options, but predictable and easily punishable with a shield grab.
Forward smash	↗		19% (hand), 17% (arm)	A straight punch. When angled, produces significantly different attacks: angling up is an uppercut with vertical knockback, while angling down is a body hook that does more damage but much less knockback-- the body hook does enough shield damage to break shields more reliably that any of Little Mac's other attacks. All three variants, along with his two other smash attacks, have super armor powerful enough to shrug off four Blast Box explosions at the same time.
	→		19% (hand), 17% (arm)
	↘		22%
Up smash			20% (clean), 15% (late)	Punches above himself. The first frame of the attack has a powerful sweetspot that deals Flame damage.
Down smash			12%	Punches in front of and behind himself along the ground. Weak compared to his other smashes, but is a semi-spike, making it useful for edgeguarding.
Neutral aerial			2%	A short jab angled downwards. A very weak attack that can be used to edgeguard off stage with limited efficacy. However, its incredible speed allows it to drag aerial opponents back onto the ground with its quick hits and follow up with a footstool jump.
Forward aerial			5% (hand), 4% (arm)	A swinging punch forwards. Slight startup lag, and extremely weak with bad reach.
Back aerial			6% (hand), 4% (arm)	A swinging backhand punch behind himself. Similar to forward air, though will less startup lag.
Up aerial			5% (hand), 4% (arm)	A sweeping punch upwards. Hitbox starts on the first frame, but has terrible endlag.
Down aerial			5% (hand), 4% (arm)	Quickly punches downwards. The middle hitbox is a meteor smash, though it is the most ineffective Meteor Smash in the game, and possibly the entire series. An experienced player can use this move as a lock by short hopping and hitting a floored opponent, trapping them into using their standard stand up option, and then finishing them off with any of Little Mac's smash attacks or a KO Uppercut.
Grab			—
Pummel			2.1%	A body shot.
Forward throw			4% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Punches the opponent forwards.
Back throw			4% (hit 1), 5% (throw)	Turns around with the opponent and uppercuts them.
Up throw			4% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Quickly uppercuts the opponent.
Down throw			4% (hit 1), 5% (throw)	Smashes the opponent's head with both fists. With luck, can combo into a Rising Uppercut.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%
Edge attack Edge getups			7%
Neutral special	Default	Straight Lunge	14%/12%/9% (uncharged ground), 25%/20% (fully charged ground), 10%/7% (uncharged air), 15% (fully charged air), 35% (KO ground), 13% (KO air)	A chargeable, dashing punch which distance increases as it charges. If the Power Meter is fully charged, turns into the KO Uppercut instead. This attack has powerful super armor and high endlag when fully charged, but is one of the strongest moves in Smash 4 if fully charged.
	Custom 1	Flaming Straight Lunge	1.5%/3% (uncharged ground loop/last), 1.8%/6% (fully charged ground loop/last), 1.2%/3% (uncharged air loop/last), 1.4%/5% (fully charged air loop/last), 35% (KO ground), 13% (KO air)	Charges faster and deals multiple hits. It also inflicts fire damage.
	Custom 2	Stunning Straight Lunge	10%/7% (uncharged ground), 20%/18% (fully charged ground), 8%/5% (uncharged air), 12% (fully charged air), 35% (KO ground), 13% (KO air)	Travels farther and faster, and stuns targets when fully charged before knockback kicks in.
Side special	Default	Jolt Haymaker	14%	A lunging overhand punch similar in appearance to a Superman punch. It propels Mac quite a distance and can dodge any projectile while he is in the air. When used in the air, its distance and speed are much shorter and slower, respectively. Both versions have good KO potential. It is advised not to use this attack around the edge of a stage, since it sends him into helplessness.
	Custom 1	Grounding Blow	9%	Has a much higher leap compared to the Jolt Haymaker and buries opponents into the ground if done on land. While in air, it will result in a meteor smash if it connects with an opponent. It has great vertical height that is compensated by its lack of horizontal movement, making it a better recovery somewhat. It is also much safer to use near the edge due to the movement.
	Custom 2	Guard Breaker	18%	Distance and speed are much shorter and slower, respectively. However, it is unblockable and powerful. Does not give Mac any distance if used immediately out of hitstun.
Up special	Default	Rising Uppercut	1% (loop), 3% (last)	A corkscrewing vertical punch. When used on the ground, it goes much higher, moves more horizontally and deals more damage. Conversely, it is worse overall when used in the air. Deceptively powerful and Little Mac's only reliable aerial finisher.
	Custom 1	Tornado Uppercut	3%/4%	Travels farther, but does less damage and knockback. A gust of wind shoves back opponents on the ground. The aerial version's distance is comparable to the Rising Uppercut's ground distance.
	Custom 2	Rising Smash	16% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	Does much more damage and knockback, but travels even less far and has a lot of start up and ending lag.
Down special	Default	Slip Counter	1.3x (min 10%)	Dodges backward to avoid a hit, then counterattacks with an invincible uppercut. In the air, this can be used to either give him a better recovery or hinder him due to its slide and the direction his opponent is at.
	Custom 1	Compact Counter	1.3x (min 4%)	Less damage and knockback, but is faster overall and also provides him with a faster recovery overall as well. Can be used to initiate follow-ups.
	Custom 2	Dash Counter	1.3x (min 7%)	Dashes forwards upon countering, giving him a far better recovery than before if used in the air.
Final Smash		Giga Mac	—	Transforms Little Mac into Giga Mac, which is even more powerful than his normal form. Some attacks with Giga Mac can One-Hit KO opponents at full charge (Namely his fully charged forward smash angled up and a fully charged Straight Lunge).

Power Meter

As stated in the introduction, Little Mac has a Power Meter, that when fully charged, replaces his neutral special with a new, one-shot attack.

• Neutral Special: KO Uppercut; an extremely powerful uppercut that can KO opponents at low damages, though the higher the weight, the more damage is needed to KO them (characters can be KO'd as low as 12%). The attack has drastically lower knockback and damage when used in the air, and it cannot kill unless the opponent has at least around 150% damage. It was claimed by Masahiro Sakurai to have the power to OHKO opponents.
• The meter charges both by hitting enemies with Mac's attacks and getting hit by their attacks. When Little Mac is attacked, it is double to quadruple the amount he would if he would hit an opponent, his meter goes to maximum if taken damage from exactly 100% damage.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Turns his back to the screen, bends down, then raises his fist triumphantly. Doc Louis may say "Hit 'em, baby!".
• Side taunt: Adjusts his boxing gloves while crossing his fists and scoffing. Doc Louis may say "Let 'em have it, Mac!".
• Down taunt: Performs a series of punches while facing the screen. Doc Louis may say "Show 'em what you've got, Mac, baby!".

Update history

1.0.4

• Neutral attack 2 damage: 3% → 2%
• Neutral attack 3 damage: 8% → 7%
• Forward tilt hit 1 hitbox 2 x-offset: -5.0 → -3.8
• Forward tilt hit 2 hitbox 1 x-offset: -5.0 → -3.8
• Neutral aerial SDI multiplier: 1.0 → 2.0
• Distance of aerial Jolt Haymaker has been reduced by 10% and travels at a slower speed​

1.0.6

• Jolt Haymaker deals more knockback.

Trophies

Little Mac

This little boxer from the Punch-Out!! series makes up in heart what he lacks in height. He wasn't afraid to take on the boxing champs, and he's not afraid of the Nintendo stars. In Smash Bros., he packs a serious punch. When his KO Meter fills up, wade in and trigger a devastating uppercut.

The little guy from Punch-Out!! has come a long way since his humble beginnings fighting the almost literal boxing giants. Above his damage display, you'll notice he has a little meter that fills up as he fights. When it's full, you'll see a flashing "KO" there. That means you can unleash a devastating uppercut!

: Punch-Out!! (10/1987)

: Punch-Out!! (05/2009)

Little Mac (Alt.)

No matter his opponent, Little Mac always puts his best fist forward. He enters a charge state before unleashing his Straight Lunge special and can unleash it while charging by pressing the button again. He won't flinch while charging. At max charge, the launching power of this move is scary!

Little Mac always puts his best fist forward, especially when you use Straight Lunge! You start by charging, then unleash the punch whenever you press the button again. Charge it to the max and its launching power is formidable! Also, attacks won't make you flinch while you're charging or once you've fully charged the move.

: Punch-Out!! (10/1987)

: Punch-Out!! (05/2009)

Giga Mac

This Final Smash turns Little Mac into a hulking monster of a man. In Punch-Out!! for Wii, Little Mac could take this form by building up the gauge with some well-timed blows. In this game, it seriously powers up his attacks and makes him even faster. He'll completely dominate on the ground, but air battles are outside his weight class.

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• LittleMacAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  Giga Mac

Gameplay Trailer

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In Event Matches

Solo Events

• Below the Belt: The player, as Mario, must protect a damaged Little Mac from a giant Little Mac.
• New Challengers 1: Little Mac is one of the seven opponents fought in this event, alongside Villager, Wii Fit Trainer, Rosalina & Luma, Lucina, Bowser Jr., and Duck Hunt.
• No Mere Sparring Match: The player controls a Little Mac with boosted damage, and must defeat 3 other Little Macs in a stock battle.

Co-op Events

• Getting Healthy: Wii Fit Trainer and Little Mac must defeat Kirby and Pac-Man.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Artwork of Little Mac used on the website.

• 

  Little Mac's introduction picture.

• 

  Artwork of Little Mac from the 3DS version's boxart.

• 

  Wireframe Little Mac alternate costume.

• 

  Little Mac's amiibo.

• 

  The pic of the day shown during Little Mac's reveal.

• 

  Sweatshirt Little Mac alternate costume.

• 

  A second pic posted on the initial Miiverse post pointing out what happens when his Power Meter gets fully charged up.

• 

  Little Mac in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• 

  Wireframe Little Mac punching Link.

• 

  Little Mac's charging punch attack.

• 

  Little Mac's special move Uppercut.

• 

  Using the uppercut on Sonic.

• 

  Little Mac begins to spin...

• 

  ...and finishes with an uppercut.

• 

  However, the move does not offer very strong recovery.

• Little Mac Counter.png

  His counterattack.

• 

  About to transform into Giga Mac.

• 

  His Final Smash, Giga Mac.

• 

  A jab.

• 

  His forward smash angled downward.

• 

  Dash attack.

• 

  Little Mac tumbling.

• 

  Little Mac facing the screen.

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  Punching with Villager.

• 

  A size comparison.

• 

  "Little Mac can deliver some solid punches while fighting on the ground."

• 

  "...However, he's not the strongest fighter while airborne."

• 

  Side by side with Samus.

• 

  With Diddy Kong.

• 

  The three different variations of Little Mac's forward smash.

• 

  A trophy depicting Little Mac in Captain Rainbow.

Trivia

• Little Mac's promotional poster image is a reference to both the arcade Punch-Out!!, and Punch-Out!! Wii, where Donkey Kong appeared as a hidden fighter. Coincidentally, he was revealed on the same day that Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze was released in Japan.
• Samus's appearance in Little Mac's introduction trailer is a reference to an image of her and Little Mac on his Assist Trophy Character profile, with her questioning his ability to fight due to his small size (in the trailer, she pats his head and examines him from an angle, seeming to pose a similar question).
  • This was even further referenced in a picture that Sakurai posted on Miiverse.
• According to Masahiro Sakurai, Little Mac has the lowest online win ratio of all characters as of November 2014.
• Although being "no air fighter", Little Mac's neutral air is surprisingly fast, and skilled players can actually use it to perform intricate combos, as publicized by some montages.
• In past versions of SSB4, whenever Little Mac grabs a Hammer, he will not properly hold the hammer as it will be on the side of him instead of between his hands. This was fixed in the 1.0.5 patch in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and in the 1.0.6 patch in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
• Oddly, Little Mac shares a few animations with Captain Falcon. This includes some of his poses when knocked back with a weak attack, swing animations for battering items such as the Beam Sword and Home Run Bat, being buried and while stunned.
• Upon closer inspection of Wireframe Mac's model in the Wii U version, it can be seen that he has a "mouth" of sorts.
• Little Mac has the most Alternate Costumes out of any fighter, with 16 instead of the standard 8 per character.
• Little Mac is the only character in Smash 4 to get visual "battle damage" as he gets damaged and KO'd: bandages and bruises appear on his head the more he gets hit. This is a reference to the Wii version of Punch-Out!!, where Little Mac will gradually begin getting bruised and battered if he fights against an opponent and gets hit too many times.
• As heard in his official newcomer trailer, Little Mac's pummel is referred to by Doc Louis as a "body blow", (a boxing term referring to a punch to the chest or stomach). However, if Little Mac uses this attack on tall characters (such as Marth and Zero Suit Samus) it humorously looks as if he is punching them in the groin or breast.