Falco (SSBU)

Falco in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Star Fox
Other playable appearances	in Melee in Brawl in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Team Star Fox

“	He's a talented aerial fighter with amazing jumping ability, but Falco is a bit slower on the ground. His final smash is an all-out attack using an unorthodox formation of Arwings!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Falco (ファルコ, Falco) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Falco is classified as fighter #20.

Mark Lund and Kōsuke Takaguchi, Falco's voice actors from Star Fox 64 3D, Star Fox Zero, and, for the former, Starlink: Battle for Atlas reprise their roles with new voice clips, with the latter replacing Hisao Egawa.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Falco being the 32nd character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Fox or any character in his unlock tree, being the 4th character unlocked after Peach.
• Have Falco join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Falco must then be defeated on Corneria.

Attributes

Falco is a lightweight character with the highest jump in the game, a fast initial dash, tenth fastest walking speed, eleventh highest gravity and falling speed, twelfth highest traction and ninth fastest air acceleration; but in contrast has average running and below average air speed. This makes his movement somewhat polarizing as he has sluggish horizontal movement while airborne, but excels in reaching high vertical distance.

Although Falco's ground game looks limited, he has a handful of respectable options at his disposal. Neutral attack comes out exceedingly quick and its first two hits can lock. Forward tilt can be angled and is relatively fast, allowing it to be a decent spacing option; it is capable of locking as well. Up tilt is his most potent combo starter with its great coverage, fast startup and low ending lag, and low knockback, allowing it to combo into itself and his aerials (most notably his up aerial for juggles or his back aerial for KOs). His down tilt is his most powerful tilt and covers a good distance in front of Falco, allowing him to burst KO grounded opponents or call out low recoveries aiming for the ledge. Dash attack has a long duration, allowing it to catch dodges and landings, with its clean hit sending at a favorable angle for juggles and its late hit sending opponents at a much lower angle for edgeguards. In contrast to his fast and combo oriented moves, Falco's smash attacks are slow but quite powerful. Forward smash has a wide front hitbox and can kill fairly early if performed near the ledge. Up smash comes out fast and has high vertical reach, allowing it to work as an anti-air. Down smash is also quick and sends at a semi-spike angle, working as another burst KO option and heavily threatening those with poor recoveries.

Complementing Falco's grounded moves are his grabs. Forward throw and down throw can lead to follow-ups at low percents. Back throw's first hit is a semi-spike, while its second hit can outright KO at high percents near the blastzone. Up throw is Falco's best throw, as much like up tilt, it is an effective combo starter at all percents and can lead to KO setups or even outright KO with its second hit.

Falco's aerial moveset provides advantages that his grounded kit doesn't have. Neutral aerial has a large, lasting hitbox that covers Falco and is a fast multi-hit, making it a good disruptor and combo extender/finisher. It can also drag opponents downward, allowing it to start combos on stage. Forward aerial has decent horizontal range and is also a lasting multi-hit, allowing it to edgeguard and KO reliably. Like his neutral aerial, it can drag opponents downward as well, putting offstage opponents in a very bad spot. Back aerial is one of the strongest aerials of its kind and can reliably KO even from center-stage. Up aerial has low knockback and overall lag, allowing it to effectively combo and juggle opponents from low to medium percents. At high percents, it can kill near the upper blast line. Lastly, down aerial, while nowhere near as notorious as its previous iterations, comes out fast and is a weak meteor smash, giving it the ability to start combos onstage and score early KOs against poor recoveries.

Falco's special moveset can also provide unique benefits. Blaster is his primary ranged option, with it being an effective disruptor due to its fast projectile and greatly reduced ending lag. Its shots can be used to pressure camping, halt approches, snipe double jumps, or even outright gimp poor recoveries. Falco Phantasm has Falco dash very quickly, making it great for horizontal recovery. Its grounded version can start combos at low to mid percents and even setup KOs with back aerial at high percents, while its aerial version can meteor smash careless edgeguarders. Fire Bird is his main recovery option and grants respectable distance in any chosen direction. It also can work as a niche damage option due to having damaging hitboxes throughout and can deal well over 30% if all hitboxes connect. Lastly, Reflector allows Falco to counter camping and as well as having a hitbox that serves as a decent poking tool.

In spite of Falco's well-balanced strengths, he has numerous weaknesses. His most prominent flaws are his survivability and his inconsistency. Despite being a lightweight, Falco is vulnerable to combos due to his fast falling speed and lack of escape options. Although Falco's recovery grants respectable distance, it is very linear. Falco Phantasm no longer passes shields, making it far easier to corner Falco from his recovery. Without his double jump, Falco is in great danger offstage due to the nerfs to air dodging and how Fire Bird is still slow and predictable.

Regarding his moveset, Falco has several moves that do not function properly and can even work against him. Up tilt has a sourspot near the end of the its first hit with set knockback, making it unsafe on hit. Up smash has large blindspots that only allow medium sized or larger characters that are directly next to and only in front of Falco to be hit, leaving him extremely vulnerable against small or crouching opponents. Additionally, plaguing him since Smash 4, both up tilt and up smash are prone to failing to properly connect against aerial opponents. While Blaster and Reflector have reduced lag, the former is still unsafe on hit even from a distance, while the latter still has a misleadingly small hitbox and its removed trip chance ironically make it even more unsafe on hit overall than in Smash 4. Most notoriously however, are Falco's back and up throws. Due to changes in the game's physics, the laser from both throws are even more prone to being DI'd than before, allowing opponents to survive in excess of what would've been a KO.

These aforementioned problems compounds Falco's other more defined weakness of struggling to secure a KO. Like fellow representatives Fox and Wolf, Falco's strongest moves are also his slowest in terms of startup and/or endlag, requiring careful execution to avoid heavy punishment. Lastly, Falco's damage output and range have been nerfed from Smash 4. This is especially noteworthy due to most of the cast receiving various buffs not limited to these aspects and the prominence of swordfighters and zoners in Ultimate.

Overall, Falco has the tools that let him defensively pressure his opponent, then effectively capitalize on their errors with his strong juggling and edgeguarding capabilities. Although he can score early KOs through a well-executed edgeguard or hard read, Falco must be careful not to let opponents take advantage of his own weaknesses to avoid being combo'd and KO'd early himself.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4

Likely owing to his low-tier placement in SSB4, Falco has received a mix of buffs of nerfs in the transition to Ultimate, being buffed overall.

Falco's buffs mainly address his weakened tools that affected his previous transition from Brawl to SSB4, notably to his notoriously nerfed Blaster and down aerial: Blaster has faster startup, fires at a faster rate while grounded, and has much lower ending lag, drastically improving one of his staple moves and making it less punishable. Additionally, down aerial is much faster (now being half as fast as in Brawl) and has regained its ability to autocancel from a short hop. These changes allow both to function as tools for approaching or walling once again, instead of being limited to only edgeguarding and hard reads. Many of his other moves have been made more usable as well: his neutral attack's first two hits can lock, and its infinite portion connects more consistently. Down tilt, forward smash and up smash deal more damage, while forward tilt and up tilt have reduced ending lag (greatly improving their spacing and combo potential, respectively), and forward aerial starts faster. Falco's grounded movement is noticeably faster, and the universal 3-frame jumpsquat and reduction to landing lag improve his strong aerial game, allowing him to easily juggle aerial foes while leaving him less vulnerable when landing; this also makes his short hop combos more effective. Finally, the nerfs to air dodging further compliment his aerial game, allowing him to once again abuse his edgeguarding capabilities. As a result, Falco's neutral game is more consistent, improving on one of his biggest weaknesses from SSB4.

However, Falco has received noticeable nerfs as well, which worsen some of his weakest traits, including his recovery. Though he does possess the highest jump in the game, Falco has had his already poor recovery nerfed as Falco Phantasm now travels slightly less distance and stops on shield, making it even easier to intercept and more punishable. Meanwhile, Falco's other recovery option in Fire Bird is also still extremely linear and easy to exploit. Furthermore, the nerfs to air dodges make both of his recovery options even more linear and exploitable than before. Additionally, while many of his combo-centric moves were made more effective through reduced lag, they have also been weakened (forward tilt, up tilt, up aerial), requiring him to deal more hits to acquire damage. This ties in with Falco's KO ability, which has also been toned down: moves such as forward aerial and back throw do less knockback, while his strongest attacks have higher startup lag (down tilt, down smash, and most notably back aerial), making it even harder for him to close a stock. Moves such as neutral attack and forward smash no longer move him forward as much, reducing their range, while up smash's hitbox was altered to such an extent that it will completely miss against grounded opponents unless they are right in front of Falco. Finally, Reflector no longer has a bonus chance to trip opponents, removing its utility for followups and worsening its overall safety. As a result, while Falco may have more effective combos and spacing abilities than before, many of his weaknesses are even more defined.

Overall, Falco is considered to be much better than his appearance in SSB4, since his key strengths are more threatening than before, and his neutral game has seen noticeable improvements. Although his playerbase is still somewhat small, he has still achieved good results thanks to many players such as Larry Lurr, Kofi, PiXL, and Juice. Several top players also think very highly of Falco, as they believe that he has the tools to be a viable threat in the metagame. This, however, is debatable.

Aesthetics

• Falco now wears his flight suit and headset from Star Fox Zero and his eyes are now colored green, although he still retains some elements of his appearance in Super Smash Bros. 4. His feathers feature simple detailing, similar to Brawl. Lastly, the aesthetic used in Ultimate has resulted in Falco's overall color scheme being more subdued.
• Falco's holster has been redesigned indigo with vegas gold tints, and his headset is now entirely gray. These changes are unique to Ultimate.
• Idle, sidestep, and roll animations have changed slightly. However, he will revert to his idle animation from Brawl while holding a small item.
• Falco's initial and secondary falling animations have been altered.
• Much like in Melee, Falco has a voice clip when performing his midair jump. Due to the changes in the last game, he now vocalizes occasionally.
• Falco now says "Come on!" during his side taunt instead of "Get some!".
• Falco now does a different pose in his jumping in the air victory animation.
• Falco has a new victory pose. He walks up to the camera, shrugs, and says "Sorry! Gotta jet!" while crossing his arms. This line replaces his "You aren't worth the trouble." line from previous games.

Attributes

• Like all characters, Falco's jumpsquat animation takes 3 frames to complete (down from 6).
• Falco runs much faster (1.472 → 1.619).
  • His initial dash speed is faster (1.9 → 2.035).
• Falco walks slightly faster (1.28 → 1.344).
• Falco's air speed is slightly higher (0.93 → 0.977).
• Falco's traction is significantly higher (0.065 → 0.127).
• Forward roll grants less intangibility (frames 4-16 → 4-15).
• Back roll has more startup with less intangibility (frames 4-16 → 5-16), and more ending lag (FAF 30 → 35).
• Back roll has a new animation in which Falco jumps backwards after the initial flip. As such it covers even more distance.
• Spot dodge has more startup (frame 2 → 3).
• Air dodge grants more intangibility (frames 2-26 → 2-27).
• Air dodge has more ending lag (FAF 32 → 44).

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • The first hit transitions into the second faster (frame 9 → 5), which transitions into the neutral infinite faster (frame 10 → 7). The second hit's automatic transition into the infinite (by holding the button when it hits) is also faster (frame 18 → 7).
  • The neutral infinite has faster startup (frame 8 → 5), a much shorter gap between hits (5 frames → 2), and deals less hitlag, in addition to keeping opponents on the ground, allowing it to connect much more reliably and making it harder to escape.
  • The neutral infinite's finisher has a new animation: Falco performs a spinning downwards kick instead of a knifehand strike, and backflips upon finishing the attack.
  • Neutral infinite's finisher connects better due to its hitbox change, as it was prone to missing in Smash 4.
  • All hits except the finisher deal less damage (3% → 1.5% (hit 1), 2% → 1.5% (hit 2), 0.4% → 0.3% (infinite)).
  • Falco no longer moves forward when performing each hit of neutral attack, decreasing its range. Additionally, the first two hits have a shorter duration (frames 2-4 → 2 (hit 1), frames 3-5 → 3-4 (hit 2)).
  • The neutral infinite's finisher has one frame more ending lag (FAF 40 → 41).
  • The first and second hits have altered angles (68°/77°/80° (hit 1), 80°/50°/45° (hit 2) → 361°/180° (both)) and knockback (35 (base), 30 (scaling) (hit 1), 30/30 (hit 2) → (25/20)/(30/25/20) (both)) to keep opponents close to Falco, akin to other neutral attacks. This allows them to connect better and jab lock, but hinders their guaranteed jab cancel setups.
  • Neutral infinite has a much larger "wind" particle around Falco while he spins.
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt has less ending lag (FAF 28 → 25).
  • It deals less damage (9% → 6%), with altered knockback (0 (base), 100 (scaling) → 42/60). While this makes forward tilt slightly safer at lower percents, it hinders its locking potential and greatly reduces its KO potential to the point it can no longer KO under 300% from center stage.
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt has much less ending lag (FAF 37 → 30), significantly improving its combo potential.
  • It deals less damage (4% → 3.5% (hit 1), 3% → 2.7% (hit 1, late tip), 5% → 4% (hit 2)).
    • The second hit's knockback was not compensated, further aiding in combos but reducing its KO potential.
• Down tilt:
  • All of down tilt's hitboxes deal more damage (12%/11%/9% (near/mid/far) → 13%/12%/10.5%) and the mid hits have higher base knockback (35 → 40). This improves the move's KO potential, while keeping its combo potential intact due to Falco's faster jumpsquat.
  • Down tilt has more startup (frame 7 → 10), with its total duration increased as well to match the change to startup (FAF 29 → 32).
• Forward smash:
  • Forward smash deals more damage (15% → 16% (clean), 10% → 12% (late)), with its knockback scaling not fully compensated (90/93/96 → 89/91/93), improving its KO potential.
  • It has an altered animation where Falco does not move as far forward, hindering its range.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash has a new animation: a 540 kick while facing the camera (if facing left, his back is toward the camera). In terms of execution, it is similar to Captain Falcon's up smash.
  • Up smash's second hit deals slightly more damage (12% → 13%), although with its knockback compensated (31 (base), 104 (scaling) → 28/102).
  • Its animation change lifts its hitboxes much higher from the ground. This prevents it from hitting behind Falco, and reduces its horizontal reach in front of him, with up tilt's first hit having more range; it also limits his ability to hit shorter, crouching or prone opponents with the move, even if they are directly in front of him. This drastically reduces up smash's utility.
  • The second hit has a shorter duration (frames 13-20 → 13-18).
• Down smash:
  • Down smash has one extra frame of intangibility (frames 3-7 → 3-8).
  • It has more startup lag (frame 7 → 8).
  • The sourspot's angle has been altered (80° → 361°).
  • Falco's torso faces the camera while performing down smash. He also spreads his palms out towards the camera, with one arm on the ground.

Aerial attacks

• All aerials have less landing lag (15 frames → 9 (neutral, up), 25 → 15 (forward), 15 → 13 (back), 23 → 14 (down)).
• Neutral aerial:
  • Neutral aerial's third and fourth hits have less startup lag (frame 14 → 10 (hit 3), frame 23 → 19 (hit 4)).
    • However, the move's total duration remains the same, thus increasing its ending lag. This worsens its ability to combo into other attacks without landing.
  • Its reduced landing lag allows it to combo into itself repeatedly near the ground from low to mid percents, drastically improving its damage racking potential.
  • Due to Falco rising faster from his jumps, opponents are more likely to fall out of neutral aerial's looping hits, making it harder to connect.
  • It has a larger "wind" particle around Falco while he spins.
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial has less startup lag (frame 10 → 7).
    • However, its total duration remains the same, thus slightly increasing its ending lag.
  • It auto-cancels earlier (frame 46 → 42).
  • The landing hit deals more base knockback (30 → 50), allowing it to KO more reliably near edges.
  • The initial auto-cancel window is shorter (frames 1-5 → 1-4).
  • The last hit has lower knockback scaling (145 → 137).
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial has significantly increased startup lag (frame 4 → 9). This makes it harder for him to hit opponents out of a short hop with the move, and it is no longer one of the fastest-starting back aerials in the game.
    • However, its total duration remains the same, thus reducing its ending lag compared to the hitbox, slightly improving its followup potential.
  • It auto-cancels later (frame 15 → 20).
  • It has a slightly altered animation, with one of Falco's arms facing the camera while he looks back over his shoulder.
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial does less damage (10% → 9%), with its knockback compensated (35 (base), 90 (scaling) → 38/95).
  • It has an altered animation where Falco's body faces the side of the screen more than in SSB4, matching the hitboxes more closely.
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial has significantly faster startup (frame 16 → 10), being only twice the startup of Falco's down aerial in Brawl.
    • However, its total duration remains the same, thus increasing its ending lag.
  • It auto-cancels earlier (frame 38 → 30), restoring its ability to auto-cancel from a short hop. Combined with its faster startup and lower landing lag, this significantly improves its previously situational use, making it more reliable for approaching and contesting opposing attacks.
  • Down aerial's clean hit on grounded opponents has more base knockback, but less knockback scaling (10 (base), 80 (scaling) → 55/50). This allows it to start combos at a wider range of percents, but hinders its KO potential.

Throws and other attacks

• All grabs have less startup lag (frame 8 → 6 (standing), frame 10 → 9 (dash), frame 11 → 10 (pivot).
• Standing and dash grab have more ending lag (FAF 32 → 35 (standing), 40 → 43 (dash)).
• Pummel:
  • Pummel deals less damage (2% → 1.3%).
  • It deals more hitlag (4 frames → 14), but has much less startup (frame 5 → 1) and ending lag (FAF 16 → 7).
• As a consequence of the faster knockback physics, back throw and up throw's lasers stop connecting earlier.
• Back throw:
  • Back throw's release deals less knockback. However, due to the aforementioned change, this fails to make it connect better into the laser, while reducing the move's KO potential.
• Up throw:
  • Up throw has increased combo ability due to Falco's faster jumpsquat and jump speed.
• Down throw:
  • Down throw has an altered animation. Falco lays the opponent on the ground and fires a point-blank Blaster shot without slamming the opponent downwards.
• Edge attack:
  • Edge attack deals more damage (7% → 9%).

Special moves

• Blaster:
  • Grounded Blaster fires faster (frame 11 → 8) and has significantly lowered ending lag (FAF 59 → 42).
  • Aerial Blaster fires faster (frame 9 → 7) and has drastically lowered ending lag (FAF 50 → 39). As a result, short hop Blaster shots now cause Falco to experience only 6 frames of landing lag.
    • Consecutive aerial Blaster shots fire slower.
  • The grounded version has a shorter delay between consecutive shots (29 frames → 26).
  • Blaster has different sound effects when fired and when hitting an opponent.
• Falco Phantasm:
  • Grounded Falco Phantasm has less ending lag on the ground (FAF 61 → 56).
  • The grounded version has altered knockback (40 (base), 100 (scaling) → 83/50). Combined with the aforementioned change, and Falco's faster jumpsquat and jump speed, this grants it combo potential from low to mid percents if it hits near the end of the dash.
  • Aerial Falco Phantasm travels a slightly shorter distance.
  • It no longer travels through shields, making it extremely unsafe if blocked.
• Fire Bird:
  • The charging portion's looping hits launch opponents towards Falco instead of away from him, allowing them to connect much more reliably.
  • The dashing portion's looping hits connect significantly more consistently, due to using a different autolink angle that lifts opponents off the ground, though it is still prone to launching opponents away at very high percents.
  • Fire Bird is able to deal more damage (31% → 33%)
• Reflector:
  • Reflector has reduced ending lag (FAF 51 → 47), improving its safety both defensively and offensively.
  • It can no longer be reflected.
  • It no longer has a bonus trip chance, removing its followups and safety on hit at close range.
  • It now deals hitlag.
  • Reflector's ending animation has been altered, with Falco standing upright to catch his Reflector while turned slightly.
• Final Smash:
  • Falco has a new Final Smash, Team Star Fox, which involves him leading an Arwing strike in a similar manner to Fox's Final Smash, but with a more erratic and aggressive flight pattern. Unlike Fox's version, Falco's sends opponents almost vertically.
  • Upon activating, Falco yells, "Showtime!" If the Arwings successfully catch their target, Falco yells, "Time for a little payback!", one of Falco's famous quotes from Star Fox 64 with it captioned on screen during the cinematic.
    • If the Final Smash hits multiple opponents, he will yell "We've got multiple bogies inbound!". [2]
  • Team Star Fox can potentially deal more damage than Landmaster (although it could also deal a lot less), and the single hit has increased KO power, making it more consistent.
  • It is much easier to avoid compared to Landmaster, and is overall less versatile.
  • Due to being a cutscene Final Smash, Falco can no longer accidentally self-destruct like he could in the Landmaster.

Moveset

• Falco can wall jump.

For a gallery of Falco's hitboxes, see here.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			1.5%	Performs two knifehanded strikes before spinning his whole body to perform a series of knifehand strikes, with a final downward axe kick that sends the opponent away. The first two jabs can lock. The first hit starts on frame 2, making it one of the fastest neutral attacks in the game. At mid percents, it can be followed up with Blaster to lock opponents who miss a tech. As Falco's neutral attack will only transition into an infinite and has high ending lag if canceled on the second hit, it can be punishable on shield. Regardless, its speed makes it a reliable close-range interceptor.
			1.5%
			0.3% (loop), 3% (last)
Forward tilt			6%	A roundhouse kick that can be angled both up and down. The angled versions send Falco's leg at very strong angles, being capable of missing medium-sized characters like Mario if aimed up, but being able to hit any grounded character when aimed down. It is fast (frame 6) and has rather low ending lag (19 frames), but will not cause tumbling until around 70%, making more suited for creating space at lower percents. At higher percents, it can set up a tech-chase situation.
Up tilt			3.5% (hit 1), 2.7% (hit 1 sourspot), 4% (hit 2)	Swings his wings up in the air, one after the other. Very fast (frame 5) with wide hitboxes that can hit prone opponents in front, and medium-sized characters from behind. One of Falco's best combo initiators due to its speed, low ending lag and low knockback, allowing him to follow up with his capable aerial moves. It can combo into itself or neutral aerial at low percents, most aerials at mid percents, and even up aerial at around 110% as a KO setup. Hit 1 has a sourspot near the end of its hitbox duration that deals 2.7%, and has set knockback with no followups.
Down tilt		Tail Cutter	13% (near), 12% (mid), 10.5% (far)	Crouches on the floor and swipes with his tail feathers. A very strong down tilt with high damage and knockback, though it is rather slow (frame 10). Deals more damage and knockback the closer the opponent is to Falco, with the sweetspot being capable of KOing Mario at around 128%, and the sourspots being able to start aerial combos.
Dash attack			9% (clean), 6% (late)	A flying kick. Has decent knockback and is a usable approach option due to its speed (frame 8) and the distance Falco moves. The clean hit sends at a diagonal trajectory, while the late hit sends at a semi-spike angle. However, it is punishable on shield and cannot KO until extremely high percentages.
Forward smash			16% (clean), 12% (late)	Uses both wings to perform a wide knifehanded swing in front of himself. Hits on frame 17. Unlike the version in SSB4, Falco does not move forward as much, reducing its range. Regardless, the clean hit is one of Falco's strongest finishers, KOing Mario at 100% from the middle of Final Destination. The late hit sends at a semi-spike angle and still has respectable KO potential near the ledge, doing so at around 130%.
Up smash			4% (hit 1), 13% (hit 2)	Performs a 540 kick while facing towards/away from the camera (the former if he is facing right). Very fast for a smash attack, hitting on frame 7. However, its hitbox has been moved significantly upwards, heavily reducing its utility from SSB4 as it will now completely miss medium-sized opponents touching his back, opponents one character length away from him, and even fully prone opponents directly next to Falco's legs. As a result, it is mostly used to punish landings from above Falco, and can no longer be used as an all-purpose smash attack, Furthermore, up smash is known to occasionally fail in the conversion from the first hit to the second, which weakens it as a finishing move. The second hit KOs Mario at 117%.
Down smash			15% (feet), 12% (legs)	A split kick. Falco's feet are intangible during the attack. Comes out fast (frame 8) and sends at a semi-spike angle with reasonable knockback, making it effective against fighters with poor horizontal recovery. However, its range is extremely lacking, with both his forward and down tilts outranging it. KOs Mario at 104% from the edge of Final Destination. It has a sourspot on Falco's legs, though this is very hard to land due to the sweetspot outprioritizing it.
Neutral aerial		Spinning Falco Chop	3% (hits 1), 2% (hit 2-3), 4% (hit 4)	Spins his entire body clockwise to perform a series of spinning knifehanded strikes. Despite its looks, it has difficulty hitting opponents from behind. Extremely fast startup (frame 3) with low landing lag (9 frames), hitboxes that cover most of his upper body, and a good damage output. It is an overall effective move for aerial offense, as it can be used out of a short hop as a walling option, follow up into other moves, catch opponents out of shield, and KO offstage at around 90%. The looping hits use the autolink angle, allowing it to start combos while falling; however, the hits now transition faster, making this difficult to do consistently. Opponents may also fall out of the move if Falco fast-falls. Auto-cancels from a full hop fast-fall, though the timing is rather strict.
Forward aerial			1% (hits 1-5), 4% (hit 6), 3% (landing hit)	Spins in a drill-like formation, hitting multiple times with his beak. It is relatively fast (frame 7) with a further-reaching hitbox than neutral aerial. The hits use the auto-link angle and therefore connect reliably, and can be used to gimp recovering opponents while falling; trading hits with forward aerial usually results in the opponent being sent diagonally downwards. The final hit deals decent knockback and can KO at 135% near the edge. This move has rather high landing lag (15 frames) and cannot auto-cancel; instead, landing causes a grounded hit in front of Falco which deals moderate knockback. This makes it safer on shield, and can KO at the edge of the stage from 154%.
Back aerial			13% (clean), 7% (late)	Faces backwards to perform a kick behind himself. Its renowned power from SSB4 has been retained, being one of the strongest back aerials in the game. This makes it Falco's best aerial KO option, doing so on Mario at 85% at the edge of Final Destination. However, its utility has been toned back due to an increase of startup lag, now making its speed rather average (frame 9) and makes it more difficult to hit most characters out of a short hop. Back aerial is also a sex kick, allowing it to wall out opponents while landing. Auto-cancels from a short hop.
Up aerial			9%	A somersault kick from back to front above himself. Sends at a slightly diagonal trajectory upwards. Hits on frame 7, auto-cancels from a short hop, has low landing lag (9 frames) and possesses a deceptively wide hitbox which can catch opponents if used right before landing. These factors make it an excellent aerial juggling tool, as it can knock opponents into the air for additional followups, including into itself. Due to Falco's impressive jump height, it can act as a KO option at around 130% near the upper blast line. However, it will not hit medium-sized characters during a short hop unless Falco directly touches his foe.
Down aerial		Corkscrew Meteor	13% (clean), 8% (late)	A downward corkscrew kick that hits once. Has sex kick properties, with the clean hit dealing a powerful diagonal meteor smash against aerial opponents. Previously infamous for being heavily nerfed from Brawl to SSB4, down aerial has been significantly buffed in Ultimate: it now auto-cancels in a short hop and has twice the startup of the iteration in Brawl (frame 10). As a result, it is an excellent tool in the neutral game, allowing Falco to put out a lasting hitbox with little risk of punishment. It is also a potent edgeguarding tool due to the meteor smash's sheer speed. On grounded opponents, the move instead launches them directly upward at a slight angle with higher base knockback but much lower knockback scaling, granting it combo potential at a wide variety of percents, including into a second down aerial as a KO combo. However, the move has notably high ending lag, noticeable landing lag (14 frames) and very poor horizontal range. Regardless of these factors, down aerial is once again one of Falco's staple moves.
Grab			—	Reaches forward with his right wing. A fast grab.
Pummel			1.2%	Knees the opponent. Rather slow for a pummel.
Forward throw			4% (hit), 3% (throw)	Slams the opponent forward with his right arm. Has no true followups at 0%, though it can followup with dash attack. At around 40%, it causes opponents to tumble, allowing setups such as a lock from neutral attack or Blaster, or tech chases if the opponent rolls. Otherwise, this throw is mostly used to send opponents offstage.
Back throw			6% (throw), 3% (Blaster shot)	Throws the opponent behind him before firing a Blaster shot towards them. The laser can KO at extremely high percentages near the edge, though opponents can DI'd out of it. It is otherwise used to send opponents offstage, like forward throw.
Up throw			4% (throw), 4% (Blaster shot)	Throws the opponent above him before firing a Blaster shot towards them. An effective aerial combo initiator, as it can combo into aerials from 0% till as high as 120% if the laser connects. At high percents, up aerial can KO an opponent after an up throw. However, opponents can DI away from the laser, much like back throw.
Down throw			2% (throw), 3% (Blaster shot)	Lays the opponent on the ground before firing a point blank Blaster shot. It is an effective combo throw like up throw, though it is more focused on grounded followups. Combos into neutral attack, dash attack, forward tilt, up smash, neutral aerial, forward aerial, Blaster, and Falco Phantasm. Can also set up for Blaster locks.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Gets up and does a thrust kick behind him with one leg, and then in front of him with the other.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Similar to his frontal floor attack, but he kicks in front of himself first.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Does a sweep kick forward, then backwards.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Lifts his entire body onto the stage to attack with a corkscrewing dropkick, before returning onto his feet from a back handspring.
Neutral special		Blaster	3%	Pulls out his Blaster and fires a slim blue laser projectile. Compared to Fox's Blaster, it fires at a much slower rate but causes hitstun and deals electric damage. It is very laggy on the ground, making it very punishable if the opponent is close or at a low percentage. However, it is much more effective in the air, as it can be fired marginally faster while airborne and has significantly lower ending lag, with short hop Blaster shots causing Falco to experience only 6 frames of landing lag. This is one of Falco's main tools with multiple uses, including deterring approaches, gimping offstage opponents, tacking on damage, and locking failed techs.
Side special		Falco Phantasm	7% (grounded), 6% (aerial)	Rears back before launching himself forward in a blue blur of afterimages. The grounded move will stop if Falco reaches a ledge. Compared to Fox Illusion, Falco Phantasm starts up faster and deals less knockback when grounded, but will weakly meteor smash aerial opponents, allowing it to be used for gimps. As the grounded version moves opponents slightly towards Falco, it can be used to initiate combos. It is also an excellent horizontal recovery option, as it does not cause helplessness. However, it can only be used once in midair before landing, will cause Falco to stop in front of a shielding opponent, and has a predictable trajectory. As a result, it is easily punishable if used carelessly. Despite its looks, the hitbox stops short near the end of the move when Falco begins to slow down. After concluding the dash, Falco does a cancellable animation where he fist pumps both his arms towards his sides.
Up special		Fire Bird	2% (charging loop), 3% (tackle startup), 2% (tackle loop)	Engulfs himself in an aura of flame before launching himself in a fiery tackle. The trajectory of the move can be chosen before Falco launches himself, with up to 16 angles to choose from. After the move ends, Falco becomes helpless. Compared to Fire Fox, Fire Bird travels less distance, deals multiple hits and has almost no KO potential, though it does a high amount of total damage if every hit lands (does a maximum of 33%, being the most damaging up special in the game). It can therefore be used as a niche damage-racking option, though the looping hits sometimes have issues keeping the opponent trapped in the move.
Down special		Reflector	5% (Reflector), 1.2× reflected projectile	Activates his Reflector and kicks it forward, reflecting any projectiles back towards opponents and doing minimal electric damage to opponents that make contact. It then returns to him as if it was magnetized. It can also be used as a poking tool that can lock floored opponents.
Final Smash		Team Star Fox	3% (trapping hit), 30% (Arwings), 10% (end)	Upon activation, Falco announces "Showtime!" and targets in front of himself with a green reticle. Three Arwings fly in an unorthodox formation from behind the screen in the area where the reticle is located. Upon hit, both Falco and his victims are sent skywards, and a cinematic begins with Falco and his team flying in a group of Arwings. Falco then announces "Time for a little payback!" (single victim), or "We've got multiple bogeys inbound!" (multiple targets), as all of the members then fire lasers at the trapped opponents, damaging them heavily. Compared to Fox's version, Falco's Arwing flight has a more erratic flight pattern, and the launching hit causes vertical knockback.

On-screen appearance

Ejects from an upside-down Arwing.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Kicks his reflector around and says "Piece of cake." (楽勝だぜ。, An easy win.) before catching it.
• Side taunt: Holds out his hand and slowly raises it, saying "Come on!" (かかってきな。, Come bring it.)
• Down taunt: Spins on one foot, then poses with one of his arms/wings before him, stating "Hands off my prey!" (俺の獲物に手を出すな！, Get your hands off my prey!) while doing so.
  • Smash Taunt: Kneels down before contacting Team Star Fox. This can only be done on Star Fox stages, and is performed by tapping the down taunt command. Falco will hold a pose for a few seconds, then a conversation will begin. This can only be done once each round and if the player is hit while Falco is holding his pose before the conversation starts, it is canceled.

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  Falco's up taunt.

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  Falco's side taunt.

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  Falco's down taunt.

Idle poses

• Slightly turns to his side.
• Moves his wing in front of his face.

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  Falco's first idle pose

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  Falco's second idle pose

Victory poses

• Left: Does a flurry of rapid kicks then poses, saying "Had enough already?" ("くたばるのはまだ早ぇぜ。", Too early to kick the bucket just yet.).
  • If Fox was present in the match, there's a chance he will say "You're off your game, Fox!" ("腕が落ちたな、フォックス。", Your skills have fallen off, Fox.).
• Up: Jumps high into the air and poses on the ground, scoffing. His ending pose is reminiscent of his artwork in Smash 4 and his old spotdodge animation. Due to this, it looks like he still "dabs" in Ultimate, despite having his spotdodge animation changed.
• Right: Walks up towards the camera, shrugs, and crosses his arms, saying "Sorry! Gotta jet!" ("付き合ってらんねぇな。", Not worth associating with.).

This victory theme is based upon the main theme of Star Fox 64, most specifically the title theme. It is also reminiscent of the music that would play when a mission was completed or accomplished.

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In competitive play

Notable players

•  FILIP - Placed 25th at Sumabato SP 2, 33rd at both Umebura SP 4 and Umebura SP 5 with solo Falco.
•  Ismon - Co-mains Falco alongside Wario; placed 5th at Standoff 2019, 13th at Low Tier City 7, 17th at Glitch 7 - Minus World, and 25th at The Big House 9; defeated MVD using Falco.
•  Jaxter - The best UK Falco player, ranked #1 in the East of England region. Placed 1st at Impact 7 and 4th at Pixelpokal Summer Invitational.
•  Juice - Co-mains Zero Suit Samus with Falco and is considered one of the best Falco players in the world. Placed 7th at Smashadelphia 2019, 13th at Shine 2019, 17th at Glitch 6, and 33rd at Smash 'N' Splash 5. He has defeated players such as LeoN and LingLing using only Falco.
•  Kofi - One of the best Falco players in the world. Placed 9th at both Overclocked Ultimate and Smash at The Paramount, 17th at Suplex City Smash, and 65th at GENESIS 6.
•  Larry Lurr - Co-mains Falco alongside Wolf and is considered one of the best Falco players in the world. Placed 2nd at Super Splat Bros, 7th at both Goodwill of Orange County's Charity Invitational and The Kid, the Goat, and the Mang0, 9th at DreamHack Dallas 2019, and 17th at 2GG: Prime Saga. Has wins over VoiD, Charlie, Prodigy, YB, and Lui$.
•  Lazyboredom - Placed 3rd at Just Roll With It! 10 and 9th at Just Roll With It! 11 with both Falco and Little Mac. Ranked 2nd on the North Carolina Ultimate Power Rankings.
•  Lui$ - Placed 7th at Super Smash Con 2019 and 33rd at Mainstage using Falco as one of his characters. Has wins over 8BitMan and Mew2King.
•  PiXL - Placed 7th at Pre-Genesix and 17th at Crown.
•  Seven - One of the best Falco players in the world. Placed 25th at EVO 2019 with wins over Charlie, Cyro, and Prodigy.

Classic Mode: Soar Above the Darkness

Falco's congratulations screen.

All of Falco's battles are against "dark" forms of main characters. Referencing how Crazy Hand is the chaotic version of Master Hand, he is encountered instead of Master Hand on lower difficulties.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Dark Samus	Frigate Orpheon	Multiplayer - Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
2	Dark Pit	Reset Bomb Forest	Dark Pit's Theme
3	Link and Toon Link	Bridge of Eldin	Dark World (for 3DS / Wii U)	References Dark Link from various Legend of Zelda titles.
4	Lucas	New Pork City	Porky's Theme	References the Masked Man from Mother 3.
5	Captain Falcon	Port Town Aero Dive	Devil's Call in Your Heart	References Blood Falcon.
6	Giant Mr. Game & Watch	Find Mii	Flat Zone
Bonus Stage
Final	Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Crazy Hand (Less than 7.0 intensity) Master Hand / Crazy Hand (7.0 or higher intensity)	On intensity 7.0 or higher, Master Hand teams up with Crazy Hand.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Falco has Main Theme - Star Fox 64 (Brawl) accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

Finding Falco in World of Light

Falco was among the fighters summoned to the cliffside to fight an army of Master Hands.

During the opening cutscene, Falco was present when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. Falco attempted to flee the scene immediately, as he was already seated in his Arwing; however, Galeem destroyed his aircraft and vaporized him, placing him under Galeem's imprisonment along with the rest of the fighters, excluding Kirby.

Falco is unlocked in the space area of the World of Light on the planet resembling Titania, a callback to the Star Fox games where Fox rescues a teammate on said planet if they were shot down in certain levels. The player must have a Slippy Toad or ROB 64 spirit to ride the Great Fox to navigate this sector. Then, the player must defeat the Starship Mario and the Aparoid spirits to access his unlock stage.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
20		Falco	Attack	7,500	Lylat Cruise (Ω form)	Space Armada

Spirits

Falco's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Falco in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

• Falco Spirit.png

  383. Falco Lombardi

In Spirit Battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
153	File:Expresso spirit.png	Expresso	Donkey Kong series	•Falco		1,800	Green Hill Zone	•Slippery Stage	•The stage's platforms are very slippery •The enemy has increased move speed •The enemy falls slowly	The Map Page / Bonus Level (Remix)
186	File:Cucco Spirit.png	Cucco	The Legend of Zelda series	•Tiny Falco Team (×5)		2,200	Skyloft (hazards off)	•Item: Cucco	•The enemy favors neutral air attacks •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •The enemy is easily distracted by items	Termina Field
231		Loftwing	The Legend of Zelda series	•Giant Falco		2,800	Skyloft	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect •The enemy is giant	Ballad of the Goddess (Original)
241		Revali	The Legend of Zelda series	•Falco		4,400	Skyloft (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect •Stamina battle	Kass's Theme
334		Coo	Kirby series	•Falco •Kirby		4,100	Dream Land	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect •The enemy loves to jump •The enemy falls slowly	Forest/Nature Area
442	File:FarfetchdSpirit.png	Farfetch'd	Pokémon series	•Falco		1,800	Golden Plains (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy starts the battle with a Lip's Stick	Main Theme - Pokémon Red & Pokémon Blue (Brawl)
478		Skarmory	Pokémon series	•Metal Falco		2,500	Unova Pokémon League (Battlefield form)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy is metal	Pokémon Gold / Pokémon Silver Medley
484		Lugia	Pokémon series	•Giant Falco		10,000	Pirate Ship	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect after a little while •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Lugia) •The enemy is giant	Pokémon Gold / Pokémon Silver Medley
838	File:Gulliver.png	Gulliver	Animal Crossing series	•Falco		4,200	Tortimer Island	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect after a little while	Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store - Animal Crossing: Wild World
852	File:Brewster Spirit.png	Brewster	Animal Crossing series	•Falco •Villager (x2) () •Isabelle		8,800	Luigi's Mansion	•Item Tidal Wave	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Reinforcements will appear during the battle •Certain items will appear in large numbers after a little while	The Roost - Animal Crossing: Wild World
870	File:Beat.png	Beat	Mega Man series	•Falco •Mega Man		3,900	Wily Castle (Ω form)	•Hazard: Heavy Wind	•Dangerously high winds are in effect •The enemy favors grabs and throws	Mega Man 4 Medley
1,323		Owl	The Legend of Zelda series	•Falco		3,500	Wuhu Island (Swaying Bridge)	N/A	•Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Kyogre) •The enemy falls slowly	Woodlands - The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
238	File:Botwzelda.png	Zelda (Breath of the Wild)	The Legend of Zelda series	•Zelda •Link •Inkling •Donkey Kong •Falco •Zero Suit Samus		9,200	Great Plateau Tower	N/A	•Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •Defeat an army of fighters	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild	Revali
386		Peppy Hare	Star Fox series	•Bunny King Dedede •Fox •Falco		8,800	Venom	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Main Theme - Star Fox 64 (Melee)	Falco Lombardi
387		Krystal	Star Fox series	•Fox •Falco		13,100	Corneria	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Krystal)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear	Theme from Area 6 / Missile Slipstream	Falco Lombardi
388		ROB 64	Star Fox series	•R.O.B. •Falco •Fox		3,300	Corneria (Battlefield form)	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Area 6 - Star Fox 64	Falco Lombardi
1,053		Maria Renard	Castlevania series	•Zelda •Falco •Charizard •Incineroar		3,700	Reset Bomb Forest (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy starts the battle with a Cucco	Slash	Suzaku
1,130	File:Donbe hikari.png	Donbe & Hikari	Famicom Mukashibanashi Series	•Young Link •Villager •Falco •Diddy Kong •Duck Hunt		3,500	Duck Hunt (hazards off)	N/A	•Defeat an army of fighters	Shin Onigashima Medley	Ohana
1,365		Nakoruru	SAMURAI SHODOWN series	•Zelda •Tiny Falco		3,800	Yoshi's Island (winter)	•Attack Power ↑ •Item: Swords	•Defeat the main fighter to win •Stamina battle •The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage	Banquet of Nature - SAMURAI SHODOWN	Mamahaha

As an ally

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
395		Leon Powalski	Star Fox series	•Yoshi •Wolf •Ally: Falco		3,700	Venom (Ω form)	N/A	•You lose if your CPU ally is KO'd	Star Wolf (Brawl)	Falco Lombardi

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Falco's fighter card.

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  Falco on Battlefield after catching his Reflector.

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  Firing his Blaster on Pokémon Stadium 2.

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  Performing Falco Phantasm next to Sonic on Prism Tower.

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  Air dodging on The Great Cave Offensive.

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  Attacking Captain Falcon with Falco Phantasm on Pokémon Stadium.

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  Performing Fire Bird on the Great Plateau Tower.

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  Taunting on Lylat Cruise.

Trivia

• Unlike in previous Smash games, where he was confirmed post-release, Falco was the 8th character to be confirmed for Ultimate, and the second outside of the perfect-attendance crew.
• One of the pictures of Falco from his fighter page on the Ultimate website features him using Fire Bird above the Great Plateau Tower. This is a likely homage to Revali, a similar looking character from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Falco also represents Revali in his Spirit battle.
• A section of Falco's trailer pictures him showing frustration by charging Fire Bird once he notices a roast chicken food item on the ground. This is a recurring joke from Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, as Falco's clear movie shows him crouching near the roast chicken food item, as well as Roy's clear movie, where he is seen "turning" into a roast chicken item upon being hit by Flare Blade.
• In Falco's character showcase video, frame-by-frame inspection reveals that the hitbox visualization of Falco's Blaster lasers and Falco Phantasm are visible while Falco fights Cloud. [3][4]. This is likely an error that went unnoticed during editing.
• Falco and Dark Pit are the only clones in World of Light that appear in the opening cutscene. In Falco's case, he briefly appears when he is trying to escape from the beam of light.
• Falco's artwork was one of the three that have been updated on the official site, alongside Palutena and Shulk. In his case, he is covered with more feathers, his forehead appears slightly larger, the gaps in his wings were made smaller, and his body and beak have more saturated colors.
• Due to an error on the American official site blog, Falco does not have his own Fighter tag nor the general "Fighter" tag on his blog entry, thus not being listed when sorting the "By Fighter" category. The former also applies to Incineroar.
• The afterimages of Falco's Falco Phantasm still uses his model from Smash 4 rather than his Ultimate model. This is shared with Fox's Fox Illusion.
• Falco's zipper will sometimes detach from his jacket on certain animations such as hanging on an edge. This also happens with Wolf.
• Falco, Peach, Zelda, Olimar, Duck Hunt, and Dark Pit are the only fighters to appear as allies in spirit battles.
• Falco and Squirtle are the only fighters not to receive any changes through updates, as of 6.0.0.
  • Due to Squirtle itself is part of Pokemon Trainer's team, Falco is the only solo fighter that has received no changes since Ultimate's release.
• Falco and Ken are the only two fighters to face a lone Crazy Hand as their final boss in Classic Mode.