Heart Container
Heart Container Skyward Sword.png
The Legend of Zelda (universe)
A Heart Container from Skyward Sword.
Universe The Legend of Zelda
Appears in SSB
Melee
Brawl
SSB4
Ultimate
Item class Damage Recovering
Article on Zelda Wiki Heart Container
The Heart Container recovers all of your strength, returning your Damage Meter to 0%.
Super Smash Bros.'s instruction manual

The Heart Container (ハートのうつわ, Heart Container), known simply as Heart in the original Super Smash Bros., is an item that will reduce the damage of the character who picks it up. Its operation has remained functionally identical, but the nuances of its healing have changed in some of the games.

Origin

 
A Heart Container (to the right of Link), as it originally appeared in The Legend of Zelda.

The Heart Container made its first appearance in The Legend of Zelda. At the beginning of The Legend of Zelda, Link starts off with a maximum health capacity of three hearts. When Link finds a Heart Container, it gives him another heart of capacity, allowing him to sustain more damage before dying. Since its debut, Link is often awarded with a Heart Container after defeating a dungeon's boss. Starting in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Heart Containers would also replenish Link's health to full upon collection. In Super Smash Bros. and Melee, the Heart Container's design is based around Ocarina of Time's Heart Containers. Its appearance changed in Brawl to the design in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, like most Zelda content. The design of the Heart Container changed once again in Super Smash Bros. 4 to match its appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, giving it a slightly thicker and more detailed aesthetic. The Heart Container retains its Skyward Sword design, also used in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, in Ultimate.

In Super Smash Bros.

 
Heart Container in Smash 64.

Heart Containers take on their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. They spawn above the ground and float down slowly, creating a delay before they land. While this has little effect in later games since in them, items can be grabbed in the air, it means that in the original Super Smash Bros. players must fight for the area where it will land as it falls.

Once grabbed, the Heart Container heals the user, recovering damage all the way down to 0% (even if the player is hit during this time).

In Super Smash Bros. consuming at least two or three Heart Containers in a match (respectively) gives the player the Heartthrob bonus, worth 17,000 points in SSB (8,000 points in the Japanese version of SSB) and 2,800 points in Melee. As the Heart Container is the only healing item in Melee that is not also a "food" item, consuming three Heart Containers is the only way to attain the Wimp bonus, worth 1,500 points; as a result, the Wimp bonus always overlaps with Heartthrob.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

 
Heart Container in Melee on Final Destination.

Heart Containers again take on their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Heart Containers function similarly to 64. However, it now only heals a total of 100%. The player is given three Heart Containers in the All-Star Rest Area that can heal all of their damage instead of the standard 100%. Due to a glitch, entering the teleporter in Melee will interrupt the Heart Container's healing and thus not fully heal the player. Completing All-Star Mode in Melee without using a Heart Container or Continuing gives the player the Melee Master bonus, worth 100,000 points.

Trophy

The Heart Container appears as a collectable trophy.

 
Heart Container's trophy in Melee
Heart Container
Heart Containers drift toward the ground slowly and replenish 100 percentage points of health. In The Legend of Zelda, these items beefed up Link's life meter; in most cases, Link found them in the possession of bosses or hidden in secret areas. Heart Containers are often scattered across the land in several fragments.
The Legend of Zelda (7/87)

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

 
Heart Container in Brawl on Final Destination.

Heart Containers take on their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and they function the same as in Melee. If All Star and Boss Battles are done in Co-op mode, there are more Heart Containers (six instead of three). There are six with the new three Heart Containers appearing under the platforms which the normal three (from solo mode) hold. Heart containers will now fully heal the user in both modes even should they enter the teleporter while healing.

Trophy

The Heart Container appears as a collectable trophy.

 
Heart Container's trophy in Brawl
Heart Container
  The best recovery item! Grab this and heal 100 percentage points of damage. It falls slowly, so it's best to grab it in midair. Damage recovery won't happen instantly, though, so try not to get launched while your damage is counting down. In the Legend of Zelda series, Heart Containers raise the player's maximum health. Bosses always have one in their possession.
  The best recovery item! Grab this and heal a minimum of 100 percentage points of damage. It falls slowly, so it's best to grab it in midair. Damage recovery won't happen instantly though, so try not to get launched while your damage is counting down. In the Legend of Zelda series, Heart Containers raise the player's maximum health. Bosses always have one in their possession.
 : The Legend of Zelda
 : The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Sticker

A sticker depicting a Piece of Heart Container can be attained in Brawl. Usable only by Link, Zelda, Ganondorf and Toon Link, the sticker causes Heart Containers to heal 150% damage instead of only 100% damage.

Name Game Effect Fighter(s)
Piece of Heart Zelda: Twilight Princess SpecialHeartContainerEffect+050  +50 Link Zelda Ganondorf Toon Link     
 
Piece of Heart
(Zelda: Twilight Princess)

In Super Smash Bros. 4

 
Meta Knight and Kirby standing next to a Heart Container in for Wii U.

Heart Containers take on their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and they function the same as in Brawl. Heart Containers are not affected by equipment that increases damage healed in SSB4, as they are not "food". This classification goes to the Fairy Bottle too. In Smash 4's All-Star Mode, the player receives only one Heart Container initially and gets two if playing after unlocking all characters, but they also receive a Maxim Tomato and Fairy Bottle.

Vs. Master Fortress

In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, a Heart Container will drop on the stage when Master Fortress appears, which fully heals the player like in All-Star Mode. It can be left alone and used in later phases, if the player returns to the stage proper.

Trophy

The Heart Container appears as a trophy in both versions.

 
Heart Container's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
 
Heart Container's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
Heart Container
  An important item in the Legend of Zelda series, this item would appear when you beat a boss and increase your life by one when collected. In Smash Bros., grabbing this will heal 100 points of damage. Grab it as it gently floats to the ground!
 : The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons/Ages (05/2001)
 : The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (11/2006)
  A quintessential item from the Legend of Zelda series that raises your max health. In those games, you have to defeat bosses to get them, but in this one, they'll just fall from the sky, which makes things a whole lot easier. If you see one, grab it quick – in mid-air if you can! Why? To take 100 off your damage – that's why!
 : The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons/Ages (10/2001)
 : The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (12/2006)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

 
Link pretending to hold up a Heart Container in Ultimate.

Heart Containers again take on their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and they function the same as in Smash 4.

In World of Light

In the second phase of the final stage of World of Light, a Heart Container spawns on the stage after every 2 bosses that are defeated. Each Heart Container that spawns stays on the stage between fights until used or until the phase ends, after defeating all 6 bosses.

Gallery

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
  Japanese ハートのうつわ Heart Container
  English Heart Container
  French Réceptacle de cœur Heart Container
  German Herzcontainer Heart Container
  Spanish Contenedor de corazón Heart Container
  Italian Portacuori Heart Container
  Chinese 心之容器 Heart Container
  Korean 생명의 그릇 Life Container
  Dutch Hartje Heart
  Russian Капсула сердца Heart Capsule