Technical skill
- "Tech skill" redirects here. For the maneuver, see Tech.
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Technical skill, also referred to as just tech skill, is one's ability to manipulate a controller and produce their desired inputs. Players with greater technical skill are able to more reliably produce their intended inputs, and more efficiently perform maneuvers that require more complicated inputs (such as advanced techniques). Players with lesser technical skill are more prone to input mistakes, and are less able to utilise complicated maneuvers; such players tend to rely on superior cerebral play (such as utilising mindgames) to overcome their technical shortcomings. Technical skill is just one of the many skills required to excel at Smash; technical skill alone will not bring a player much success. However, it is common for inexperienced players to overrate the value of technical skill, and in some extreme cases, see it as the only "true" skill, completely neglecting the importance of other skills despite players often losing to others with less technical skill.
Technical skill in relation to characters
The amount of technical skill necessary to be successful in competitive play is largely dependent on the characters a player uses. Some characters require greater precision, faster fingers, and have a greater reliance on advanced techs, and as such, will demand a greater amount of technical skill to play successfully at a high level of play. In Melee, the prime examples of such characters are Fox and Falco, both of which demand an incredible amount of technical skill to play at even lower levels of competitive play, each relying on incredibly quick movement and heavy utilisation of their Shine combos. In Brawl, the prime examples would be the Ice Climbers, who rely on desynching and chain throws that demand precise timing, and Diddy Kong, who relies on heavy utilisation of his banana combos and locks. In Smash 4, Rosalina uses desyncing much like the Ice Climbers in previous games, and Ryu relies on chaining unusual button inputs into intricate combos.
On the other end, some characters also have a lower technical demand, as they rely on more cerebral play with less utilisation of advanced techs and less frequent inputs. In Melee, such examples would be Jigglypuff, who instead has a reliance on aerial pressure and spacing as well as its wall of pain, and Marth, who relies on spacing with his superior reach and utilising his less complicated but deadly combos, such as the infamous Ken combo. In Brawl, Marth is again a prominent example of a character with less technical demands for similar reason as in Melee, and Meta Knight is a particularly noteworthy example as well, as he tends to rely on overwhelming opponents with his incredibly quick and superior moveset, without much utilisation of complicated advanced techs; Meta Knight's particular ease-of-use for a character on the top of the tier list was a frequently cited point for the subsequent banning of the character. In Smash 4, Captain Falcon is an example of a character with low technical demands, as he relies largely on uncomplicated combos (typically initiated from a dash grab) and occasional punishes. Diddy Kong was an example prior to his nerfs in version 1.0.6, as his metagame almost entirely revolved around his various throw combos, which were easy to learn and initiate.
Necessary technical threshold
From the transition of Melee to Brawl, the game became slower, with lower falling speeds and the removal of L-cancelling and wavedashing (universal advanced techs that sped up characters in general), as well as a lowered emphasis on combos (with the added ability to air dodge or use an aerial out of hitstun). It is universally agreed that Melee requires a greater amount of technical skill than Brawl, while Brawl requires a greater amount of cerebral skills, with its greater emphasis on outreading the opponent. This has led to one of the most contentious debates in the Smash community; the amount of technical skill that should be necessary in the game. Those who prefer Melee often criticize Brawl for its lesser technical demands, seeing it as making the game "easier", and making the game more "casual" (and as such, less competitive). Supporters of Brawl argue that the lesser technical demands give a greater focus to the "more important" skills that truly determine who the better player is, while allowing slower and less precise players to enjoy success in competitive Smash.
