Dr. Mario (SSB4)

Dr. Mario in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Mario
Other playable appearance	in Melee
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Doctor Finale

Dr. Mario (Dr. マリオ, Dr. Mario) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. He was officially confirmed on October 9th, 2014 alongside Dark Pit in a post-release announcement. Dr. Mario is also the first of three cut veterans to return for Super Smash Bros. 4 returning from Melee, alongside Mewtwo and Roy.

While Mario continues to use his updated moveset from Brawl, Dr. Mario retains the old Melee-style moveset with moves such as Dr. Tornado, albeit with a Final Smash now. His Final Smash, Doctor Finale, is similar to Mario's Mario Finale, but instead uses enormous Megavitamins rather than fire.

Like Mario, he is once again voiced by Charles Martinet, albeit via Mario's voice clips from Brawl, which are essentially the same in this game.

How To Unlock

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• Play 60 VS Matches.
• Clear Classic Mode as Mario on difficulty 4.0 or higher.

Dr. Mario must then be defeated on Mushroomy Kingdom.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

• Play 50 VS Matches.
• Clear Master Orders on Hard difficulty.

Dr. Mario must then be defeated on Delfino Plaza.

Changes from Melee

Dr. Mario's buffs and nerfs seem to indicate an increase in the difference between him and Mario. Many of these buffs and nerfs try to make Dr. Mario like he was originally intended to be in Melee: a slower yet stronger Mario. Although Dr. Mario has a few moves and functions that set him apart from being a complete clone of Mario, he is still very similar to him in most aspects. However, the increase in difference between him and Mario sees Dr. Mario ultimately wind up being nerfed overall in comparison to his appearance in Melee due to the very noticeable nerfs to his speed and mobility alongside the removal of Melee specific techniques such as wavedashing, but not without a few buffs to several of his moves: namely his Dr. Tornado and Super Jump Punch.

Aesthetics

• Dr. Mario's design has been updated to include the red tie he has had since Dr. Mario 64, while still retaining his black pants from Melee. However, his pants are now rolled up, revealing their lighter insides. His hair is a lighter shade of brown, and his head mirror's band is now black. Additionally, his stethoscope is now black instead of blue, as it was in Melee.
• Megavitamins are much more brightly colored and appear to be shorter, but more rounded. They also lack the see-through half in the 3DS version.
• Dr. Mario now backflips three times as opposed to once when he jumps.
• Dr. Mario has now a on-screen appearance.
• He has a different walking animation, just like Mario in Brawl.
• Dr. Mario has a new idle pose, he pounds his fist into his open palm.

Attributes

• Dr. Mario's character model is slightly smaller than it was in Melee.
• Dr. Mario's falling speed and gravity are lower compared to Melee (1.7 → 1.5 and 0.095 → 0.08715 respectively), due to the physics change in SSB4.
• Dr. Mario is slightly lighter than he was in Melee, with his weight being changed from 100 to 98 to match Mario's in SSB4, lowering his survivability, but slightly less vulnerable to combos.
• Dr. Mario jumps slightly higher.
• He has decreased walking (1.1 → 0.9) and dashing speed (1.5 → 1.3), making Dr. Mario much slower and less mobile overall.
• The loss of wavedashing has hindered Dr. Mario's approach and mobility options.
• Air speed is slightly higher (0.9 → 0.943).
• He can now wall jump, aiding his recovery.
• Like Mario, Dr. Mario's traction has been significantly decreased (0.6 → 0.45), making it harder for him to punish out of shield.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack, up tilt, and down tilt deal less damage.
• Neutral attack has a consecutive jab and is overall faster.
• Forward tilt is faster.
• Up tilt no longer sends the opponent forward if the opponent is hit in front of Dr. Mario. Instead, the move sends the opponent up no matter where it hits, whereas in Melee the move had different trajectories depending on where it hit the opponent. This reduces its versatility in exchange for allowing more combo potential.
• Down tilt is faster making it much more safe at close range for spacing. It can no longer sends the opponent behind Dr. Mario, but instead launches them into the air, making it a better combo starter.
• Forward smash has slightly more range and does more damage especially if tilted upwards or downwards.
• Forward smash has less knockback (30 base/97 growth → 25/96), slightly more start up, and ending lag. It also now has a sourspot located in Dr. Mario's hand.
• While his up smash no longer spikes as of the 1.06 update, it now also has more horizontal knockback allowing for easier side KOs in addition to sending opponents over Dr. Mario.
• Up smash deals more damage.
• Both hits of down smash deal much less damage (18/15% → 11/13%).
• Down smash has less base knockback (50 → 30) but much more knockback growth (75 → 100) which makes it stronger at KOing percents.)
• Down smash sweet and sourspots are reversed with the front hit being weaker and the back hit being stronger.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral, up, and down aerials deal less damage (10/14%, 11%, 18% → 5/8%, 7%, and 10% respectively.)
• Forward aerial now necessitates landing a sweetspot to be strong at all. Its sourspots and sweetspots do less damage (17/16% → 16/11/10%) and knockback (50 base/100 growth (sweetspot) and 40/100 (sourspot) → 30/102 (sweetspot) and 20/95 (sourspot)).
• Back aerial deals 5% more damage and knockback (43 base/65 growth → 10 base/95 growth), allowing it to function as a KO move.
• Back aerial no longer semi-spikes (angle was changed to 361 degrees) reducing its edgeguarding potential. It also has a late hitbox that deals less damage.
• Dr. Mario uses Mario's back aerial animation from Brawl instead of using the back aerial animation from Melee.
• Up aerial deals more base knockback (0 base/100 growth → 9 base/100 growth).
• Up air angle was changed to 45 degrees instead of 55.
• Down aerial has stronger knockback. It is also much harder to DI out of the attack.

Throws/other attacks

• Dr. Mario now grabs with one hand as opposed to two, has a higher grab range, and his throws have less ending lag.
• Back throw has much less knockback compared to Melee (80 base/72 growth → 70 base/60 growth) much like Mario's back throw in Brawl, though it still is one of the strongest throws in the game.

Special moves

• Megavitamins deals less damage (8% → 4-6% damage), based on distance.
• Megavitamins are now slightly larger and have longer range.
• Megavitamins are no longer absorbable.
• Dr. Mario's Super Sheet does not stall him while he is in mid-air, while it previously did in Melee on the first use, greatly hindering his recovery. It also deals less damage.
• Super Jump Punch now consists of one strong hit that can KO reliably before 150% from neutral and around 100% at the edge. It is now a viable option for combo ending and tech chasing, much akin to Dolphin Slash.
• Super Jump Punch cannot be cancelled like its Melee counterpart, and has significantly increased landing lag. While Mario's Super Jump Punch had an increase in vertical distance, Dr. Mario's version of the move has the same vertical distance in Melee, meaning his Super Jump Punch covers less distance overall.
• Dr. Tornado has a faster start up and a slightly longer duration. The move itself is also harder to escape from, while having increased KO potential, reliably KOing at 100% offstage.
• Dr.Tornado can now be cancelled faster with a double jump.
• Dr. Tornado deals less damage and does not travel as high when rising, due to the lengthier animation.
• Dr. Mario now has a Final Smash, which acts similar to Mario Finale, but uses two massive Megavitamins instead of fire.

Differences from Mario

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Aesthetics

• Dr. Mario's victory poses, idle poses, on-screen appearance and taunts are different.
• Dr. Mario is less vocal than Mario.

Attributes

• Dr. Mario is stronger overall compared to Mario, as he has higher damage percentages on moves such as his up tilt, up smash, back aerial, up aerial, forward tilt and all of his throws.
• Dr. Mario's horizontal movement speeds are 18% slower than Mario's.
• Dr. Mario does not jump as high as Mario, negatively affecting his overall recovery.
• Dr. Mario's short hop is lower, making it easier for him to perform short hopped aerials.
• Dr. Mario does not crouch as low as Mario.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack combo deals more damage and knockback than Mario's. It also slightly launches the opponent with set knockback for the first two hits, allowing Dr. Mario easier followups afterwards.
• Neutral attack is slower and has slightly more ending lag, and cannot jab lock.
• Dash attack sends opponents completely vertically instead of obliquely, increasing his combo ability.
• Forward smash is more powerful, dealing 5% more damage uncharged and 7% more damage when fully charged.
• Forward smash has less range.
• The sweetspot of Dr. Mario's forward smash is at his arm, where Mario's sweetspots on the flame effect, which means that the sweetspot attack has to be at closer range.
• Forward smash is an electric attack rather than a flame attack.
• Dr. Mario's up smash launches opponents at a more horizontal angle compared to Mario's.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial (sex kick) does more damage and knockback the longer it sticks out compared to Mario's, which functions oppositely.
• Forward aerial does not meteor smash, while instead dealing more damage and launching the opponent at an oblique angle when sweetspotted.
• Dr. Mario's down aerial is a drill kick while Mario's down aerial has been Mario Tornado since Brawl. As a result, Dr. Mario's down aerial sends the opponent at a different angle compared to Mario's.
• Down aerial does slightly more damage than Mario Tornado.
• Down aerial deals much less knockback and has slower startup than Mario Tornado.

Grabs and throws

• Up, back, and forward throws do 1% more damage.
• Down throw has more knockback, giving Dr. Mario different followups compared to Mario. At higher percents, Dr. Mario's down throw has less horizontal knockback growth compared to Mario's allowing for easier aerial followups.

Special moves

• Dr. Mario's Megavitamins are now classified as physical projectiles rather than energy projectiles like Mario's Fireballs are, which means that Megavitamins are no longer absorbable.
• Megavitamin bounces twice while Fireball bounces three times.
• Dr. Mario's Super Sheet does more damage and has more vertical range than Mario's Cape.
• Super Sheet does not stall him in the air like Mario's Cape does and has less horizontal range.
• Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch has only two hitboxes, and does more damage at the start of the attack, just like Luigi's. It deals more damage than Mario's and has more knockback, making it an a effective KO move.
• Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch has less vertical distance than Mario's.
• Super Jump Punch does not make a coin sound when used on an opponent.
• Dr. Mario has Dr. Tornado as his down special rather than F.L.U.D.D..
• Dr. Mario's Doctor Finale deals more damage than Mario's Mario Finale.

Other

• Dr. Mario uses Ties as defensive Equipment rather than Overalls.

Moveset

For unknown reasons, instead of Dr. Mario having notably different damage values as compared to Mario, all the damage values of his moveset are multiplied by 1.12. (source) This does not apply to items or reflected attacks.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.8%	Dr. Mario jabs with one fist, his other fist, and then finishes with a forward kick. The first two jabs have set knockback which lightly pop the opponent into the air, allowing for Dr. Mario to potentially perform followups such as a grab. Startup of 3 frames.
			1.68%
			4.48%
Forward tilt			7.84%	Dr. Mario performs a quick spinning kick. Sends opponent at a sakurai angle, but this is only apparent at higher percents. Low KO potential, but can be used to space opponents and serve as a defensive move. Startup of 5 frames.
Up tilt			7.056%	Dr. Mario performs a spinning uppercut. Does more damage than Mario's, allowing for more hitstun for utilt juggles. Gains KO potential around 160%. Startup of 5 frames.
Down tilt			5.6% (foot), 7.84% (body)	Dr. Mario sweeps with his leg low to the ground, popping the opponent into the air. Relatively fast as it starts up in 5 frames, can be used to for a variety of followups at early to mid percents, such as Dr. Mario's jab combo or Super Jump Punch.
Dash attack			8.96% (clean), 6.72% (late)	Dr. Mario slides forward and kicks with both feet. Sends opponent at a purely vertical angle. Fair amount of endlag.
Forward smash	↗		19.992% (arm), 16.464% (hand)	Dr. Mario thrusts his arm forward and produces a small blast of electricity. It has longer range than in Melee, but now has a sweetspot at Dr. Mario's arm with the sourspot being the electricity. Gains KO potential from the center of the stage at 85-90%, but can kill early at around 75% near the edge.
	→		19.04% (arm), 15.68% (hand)
	↘		19.6112% (arm), 16.1504% (hand)
Up smash			15.68%	Dr. Mario performs a standard headbutt skyward, sending opponents horizontally towards him as of the 1.06 update. Dr. Mario's head has intangibility frames. Because it can potentially send the opponent over Dr. Mario it can be used to attack an opponent with their back towards Dr. Mario.
Down smash			11.2% (hit 1), 13.44% (hit 2)	Dr. Mario performs a breakdance sweep. While the damage is rather low for a down smash, it gains rather high KO potential around 100% near the edge in addition to sending the opponent at a somewhat horizontal angle. Regardless, down smash is relatively fast at 5 frames allowing it to be used as a quick punish.
Neutral aerial			5.6% (clean), 8.96% (late)	Does an inverted sex kick, which increases in power the longer it's held out. The early attack frames allow it to be used to start combos, while the late attack frames can be used as an edgeguard option.
Forward aerial			11.2% (early), 16.8% (clean), 10.08% (late)	Winds up and punches forwards. It knocks the opponent away at an upwards angle, instead of having a meteor smash effect like Mario's. The sweetspot is when Dr. Mario's fist is in front of him. A slow, but brutish tool that can KO at 80% near the edge.
Back aerial			13.44% (clean), 7.84% (late)	Dr. Mario spins and kicks backwards. Can KO near the edge at 100% and above if clean. Very fast startup and endlag with high knockback, bair can be used for edgeguarding or reverse aerial rush.
Up aerial			7.84%	Dr. Mario performs a somersault and kicks backward. Sends the opponent up at an oblique angle, decent for juggling opponents at low percents.
Down aerial			1.904% (loop hits), 3.36% (last hit), 2.24% (landing)	Dr. Mario spins around in the air repeatedly, hitting the opponent multiple times. It has a sweetspot at his feet which is difficult to land.
Grab			—
Pummel			3.64%	Headbutts opponent. When rounded to 4%, it is the strongest pummel in the game, though Dr. Mario's slow pummel speed can hinder this.
Forward throw			8.96%	Dr. Mario spins his opponent around once and tosses the opponent forward. At certain percents it can be followed with a dash attack or an aerial attack. Can be useful for forcing opponents offstage, or reading their action after the throw.
Back throw			12.32% (throw), 8.96% (collateral)	A powerful throw that has Dr. Mario spinning the opponent several times while damaging bystanders and throwing the opponent in the opposite direction grabbed. While it has lost most of the knockback it had in Melee, it still is a very strong throw. Has KO potential near the edge around 140%.
Up throw			7.84%	Dr. Mario throws his opponent high into the air with both hands. Decent against fast fallers for aerial followups.
Down throw			5.6%	Dr. Mario slams his opponent into the ground. Pops the opponent much higher than Mario's down throw, allowing for aerial followups more easily.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7.84%	Gets up then kicks behind him, then in front of him.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7.84%	Gets up then punches behind him, then in front of him.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5.6%	Kicks behind him, then in front of him while getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			7.84%	Does a somersault and then kicks upwards, from a laying down position.
Neutral special	Default	Megavitamins	5.6% (early), 4.48% (late)	Dr. Mario fires a weak bouncing capsule from his hand, similar to Mario's fireballs. They have a unique bouncing arc that allows it to cover different angles.
	Custom 1	Fast Capsule	3.36% (early), 2.576% (mid), 1.68% (late)	Dr. Mario quickly fires a weaker capsule ahead that doesn't bounce on the ground, similar to Falco's Blaster. Lower damage and hitstun compared to Megavitamins, but can be easily spammed and the projectile moves faster.
	Custom 2	Mega Capsule	1.68% per hit	A slow but large megavitamin is launched from Dr. Mario's hand. It will damage any opponent it hits in its predetermined path until it vanishes, because unlike the other two variants it does not disappear upon impact. It has slow startup and ending lag.
Side special	Default	Super Sheet	7.84%	Dr. Mario swings a defensive sheet that reflects projectiles and reverses enemies. It has a taller hitbox than Mario's, but covers less horizontal distance. Unlike in Melee, the Super Sheet no longer moves Dr. Mario up for recovery and instead keeps his current momentum.
	Custom 1	Shocking Sheet	12.544%	An offensive variant of the sheet that shoots electricity. Instead of reflecting projectiles, it will destroy them. Has more endlag than Super Sheet.
	Custom 2	Breezy Sheet	5.6%	Dr. Mario shoots a small gust of wind from his sheet, pushing his opponent back in addition to turning them around. The sheet deals slightly less damage, while also having more endlag.
Up special	Default	Super Jump Punch	13.44% (clean), 6.72% (late)	Dr. Mario performs a strong rising punch. It travels less distance than Mario's and only hits once, but can be sweetspotted for extra damage, like Luigi's. Has KO potential starting at above near 140% on middleweight characters.
	Custom 1	Super Jump	0%	A recovery giving more distance than the standard Super Jump Punch, at the cost of not having a hitbox.
	Custom 2	Ol' One-Two	8.96% (hit 1), 14.56% (hit 2)	A much stronger punch that causes explosive fire damage, at the cost of recovery distance. This uppercut hits twice, at the start and at its apex.
Down special	Default	Dr. Tornado	1.344% (loop hits), 3.36% (last hit)	Performs a multi-hit spinning attack. It also traps the opponent, hitting them constantly, before knocking them back. Dr. Mario can move around on the ground while spinning, and can hover in the air by repeatedly pressing the B button while using it. While the move has a startup of 10 frames and has some considerable endlag, the attack has quite some range that allows it to beat out attacks. Gain KO potential at around 130% near the edge. Because of it's high knockback growth on the last hit, it can be used to edgeguard efficiently.
	Custom 1	Soaring Tornado	0% (loop hits), 6.72% (last hit)	A rapidly spinning move that launches Dr. Mario into the air. It has much greater vertical mobility, at the cost of horizontal movement. The hitboxes are replaced with a wind hitbox except for the last hit, which has much more knockback than the regular Dr. Tornado. Incredible edgeguarding tool that can kill at 30% if near the edge, and around 85% at the center of the stage.
	Custom 2	Clothesline Tornado	8.96% (loop hits), 8.96% (last hit)	A slower tornado that deals higher knockback, at the cost of having less vertical and horizontal mobility.
Final Smash		Doctor Finale	3.36% (bigger pill), 2.24% (smaller pill)	Dr. Mario shoots two massive megavitamins, which move forwards and spiral outwards, creating exploding capsule effects as it travels across the stage. Similar to the Mario Finale, with giant pills replacing fireballs.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Grinds his shoe on the ground.
• Side taunt: Dr. Mario pulls out a randomly colored Megavitamin, rolls it down his arm, uses his shoulder to toss it into the air, then catches it. This taunt returns from Melee.
• Down taunt: Pats his shoulder with his fist.

On-Screen Appearance

A large stack of capsules appear on stage. Another capsule lands on the top, causing a chain reaction which wipes away the entire stack, revealing Dr. Mario from behind them.

Victory Fanfare

A flourished remix directly from Brawl based on the sound clip that would play when Mario reaches the end of a level in Super Mario Bros. It is shared with Mario, Luigi, and Peach.

In Competitive Play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Dr. Mario	2312	2332	2212	2232	2211
	1311	1332	1212	1211	2322

Trophies

Dr. Mario

In the 1990 puzzle game Dr. Mario, Mario threw on a white coat and decided to take a shot at that whole "medicine" thing. In this game, he's a balanced fighter who can throw Megavitamin capsules and nimbly deflect blows with his Super Sheet. He's not quite as quick as normal Mario, but his attacks deal a bit more damage.

In Dr. Mario, released in Europe in 1991, Mario threw on a white coat and decided to have a bash at the whole medicine thing. In this game, he's an all-rounder who can throw Megavitamin capsules and nimbly deflect blows with his Super Sheet. He's not quite as quick as normal Mario, but his attacks deal a bit more damage.

: Dr. Mario 10/1990

: Dr. Mario Online Rx 05/2008

Dr. Mario (Alt.)

Mario and Dr. Mario are only slightly different. Basically, Dr. Mario is stronger, but his MD slows his speed and lowers his jump. He also has a move Mario doesn't: Dr. Tornado, a down special that can trap opponents before launching them. You can move left and right while doing it and press the button repeatedly to rise into the air.

Mario and Dr. Mario are only slightly different. Basically, Dr. Mario is stronger, but his heavy coat affects his speed and jumping. He also has a move Mario doesn't: Dr. Tornado, a down special that can trap opponents before launching them. You can move left and right while doing it and press the button repeatedly to rise into the air.

: Dr. Mario 10/1990

: Dr. Mario Online Rx 05/2008

Doctor Finale

In Dr. Mario's Final Smash, he spreads his arms wide and then lets loose a pair of giant vitamin capsules that spiral through the air, taking out any pesky "viruses" in their path. The wide range makes it tough for foes to avoid, and opponents they strike will take multiple hits, possibly even being pushed right off the screen!

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• DrMarioAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  Doctor Finale

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Secret: Dr. Mario is one of the fighters fought in this event.
• Doctor Schmoctor Dr. Mario appears as Wario's opponent and Wario is constantly taking damage due to lipstick on his head.

Co-op Events

• Viral Visitors Player 1 controls Dr. Mario and Player 2 controls Peach, and they must defeat 4 "unmasked Meta Knight" Kirby alternatives within the time limit.
• The Ultimate Battle Dr. Mario is one of the opponents in the event.

Update history

1.0.4

• Forward aerial deals slightly more knockback.
• Down aerial can only hit the target 5 times instead of 7 times.
• Down aerial's landing lag has been decreased.

1.0.6

• Forward aerial (clean) damage: 15.68% → 16.8%
• Angle of up smash is more horizontal.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Dr. Mario's amiibo

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  In Fighting Stance

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  Fighting Charizard

• 

  Fighting Mega Man

• 

  Using his Super Jump Punch on Bowser.

• 

  With King Dedede, Kirby and Wii Fit Trainer

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  Attacking Fox.

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  Taunting with Little Mac and Captain Falcon

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  Using his Final Smash.

• SSB4 - Dr. Mario Screen-9.jpg

  His On-screen appearance.

• SSB4 - Dr. Mario Screen-10.jpg

  Using Megavitamins on two Kirbys (a nod to the viruses).

Trivia

• Dr. Mario appears to have his shirt and tie done up on the artwork, but in gameplay, his collar is open and tie is loose.
• Dr. Mario was originally planned to be an alternate costume of Mario, but was made separate late in development as it was felt that reducing him to a model swap would be insensitive to players who enjoyed his moveset in Melee. After Lucina, he was the second planned skin to be made into an individual character, with Dark Pit being the final of the three.
• While Dr. Mario has a unique fighting stance that looks like Mario's but a bit slower in speed, it goes back to Mario's stance when he is holding onto a tiny item like a Capsule or a Beetle.
• Dr. Mario is the only returning Melee character that is not a DLC fighter.