Mr. Game & Watch (SSBB)

Mr. Game & Watch in Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Universe	Game & Watch
Other playable appearance	in Melee
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Octopus
Tier	C (16)

Mr. Game & Watch (Mr.ゲーム＆ウォッチ, Misutā Gēmu ando Wotchi) is a character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Mr. Game & Watch was indirectly revealed from a leaked copy of the game. One of the leaked screenshots shows his Final Smash, in which Mr. Game & Watch transforms into an Octopus.

He was officially confirmed on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website on March 10, 2008, one day after Brawl was released in North America.

He is currently ranked as 16th on Brawl’s tier list in the upper-mid tier, which is a huge leap from Melee (where he is currently 22nd in low tier). The largest benefit Mr. Game & Watch gained in Brawl were the physics changes, where he is significantly less vulnerable to combos, his back aerial is significantly more useful due to hitlag, and the leaning towards defensive gameplay boosts Mr. Game & Watch's strengths in general. For some of his individual traits, Mr. Game & Watch possesses large and disjointed hitboxes in most of his attacks, with his attacks being rather fast in start-up lag and the majority being quite powerful (especially his brutal smash attacks, all of which can reliably KO under 100% while none being particularly slow). Mr. Game & Watch additionally possesses amazing survivability for a character of his weight class, as his amazing Bucket Braking momentum cancelling gives him the horizontal endurance potential of a lighter heavyweight, while his recovery covers great distance and provides great protection against edge guarding. Mr. Game & Watch also possesses above average movement speed and good mobility, effective tilts and aerial attacks, and a down throw that can force a tech chase opportunity on anyone at any percent. While Mr. Game & Watch's attacks are fast in start-up lag, they are particularly heavy in ending lag, with his aerials also all possessing high landing lag with the exception of his neutral aerial. His attacks, despite possessing large hitboxes, additionally mostly have poor to mediocre reach. This results in him being easily punished when his attacks are shielded, and complicates safe approaches. His projectile is also laggy and short ranged, while being mostly ineffective, preventing him from being able to outcamp most characters to cover his approaching difficulties. Additionally, he is very susceptible to vertical KO moves as his vertical endurance is among the worst (Bucking Braking is significantly less effective when launched vertically), his grab and throw game is rather poor in general (he possesses one of the shortest reaching grabs and near useless throws outside his d-throw), and his rolls are rather slow while gaining among the shortest distance. Regardless, Mr. Game & Watch's pros outweigh his cons, resulting in overall strong matchups, that are dominating against characters below him on the tier list, while being lackluster against characters above him (particularly losing to all of the top tier plus the two highest of the high tier, while countered by four of them), and he has achieved above average tournament results.

How to Unlock

In order to unlock Mr. Game & Watch, the player must complete one of the following:

• Fight in 250 Brawls. Defeat him to unlock him.
• Clear Target Smash!! with 30 different characters on any single difficulty level. Mr. Game & Watch must then be fought; defeat him to unlock him.
• Have Mr. Game & Watch join the party in The Subspace Emissary (Battleship Halberd Bridge).

With the exception of the third method, the player has to face Mr. Game & Watch in a brawl on Flat Zone 2.

Attributes

Mr. Game & Watch packs a punch. In general, his attacks possess favorable hitboxes, low lag, and high knockback; however, his roll and dash attack are rather poor. Many of his attacks can hit multiple times. His erratic, instant movement makes him nearly impossible to predict in nearly anything that isn't his approach. Most of Mr. Game & Watch's tilts follow the pattern of his other attacks, being quick and powerful, while also possessing disjointed hitboxes. He has very powerful smashes, two of them hard to punish if they miss due their hitboxes having long duration, and the down smash is very fast. Additionally, Mr. Game & Watch is able to negate projectiles easily using Oil Panic (although this only works on energy projectiles) or simply ducking underneath most projectiles. Oil Panic can also easily provide one-hit KOs in doubles if Mr. Game & Watch's teammate possesses an energy projectile. Mr. Game & Watch does have a projectile, Chef, but it is rarely used because of its short range and random trajectory. The move Judge randomly produces one of nine attacks, doing anything from hurting himself (1) to being a one-hit KO (9). His up special move, Fire is a superior out of shield option that can be used to plank. With his Bucket Braking and directional influence, he can be hard to KO despite being the 2nd lightest character in the game (tied with Squirtle). Being both quick and a small target, Mr. Game & Watch can be difficult to hit.

Changes from Melee to Brawl

Mr. Game & Watch received a major buff, especially from Brawl’s new physics. His down tilt has much weaker knockback but is now a semi-spike. His down smash is much easier to sweetspot, and both the sweetspot and sourspot are more powerful. His down aerial is now a stall-then-fall, adding to a great aerial game. His down throw now sends opponents to the ground, rather than the air, and can now meteor smash. His neutral aerial has been changed to the Tropical Fish, and is a good multi-hitting attack (although weaker than its Melee counterpart). Most of his specials have incurred a minor change. For Chef, he tosses other foods besides sausage. Oil Panic can now be used to stop all knockback in air, which is known as Bucket Braking. Oil Panic's maximum damage has been reduced from 200% to 60%. Fire was changed greatly, giving Mr. Game & Watch a parachute to slow his descent as well as not putting him into helpless mode. His Judge "7" will always generate an apple if it hits while on the ground, regardless of item configuration. In addition, Judge "9" does more damage. He is also slightly larger, and his shield fully covers him.

Other changes are mostly cosmetic. His outline is brighter and thicker, and he has two new costumes (Cyan and Dark Yellow). His edge recovery attack and Judge "9" both make a similar ringing noise to his taunt. He no longer makes a noise when KO'd anywhere except for a Star KO. He has a new victory theme as well.

Moveset

All of Mr. Game & Watch's moves use objects from games in the Game & Watch series, making him the only character to have every single move in his arsenal based on a game he appeared previously before.

Ground Attacks

Normal

• Neutral attack - Greenhouse: Mr. Game & Watch rapidly presses an insecticide pump. 3% for the first hit, 1% for each subsequent hit. Good spamming move and hard to get out of. Low ending lag, this can lead into a grab or tilt attack. First hitbox out on frame 4.
• Dash attack - Helmet: Mr. Game & Watch "slides" his head along the ground while wearing a helmet. Laggy and easy to predict, a long time to finish, though its hitbox has a long duration. Can combo into moves vs fast fallers. 11% damage. Can stage spike if used in the edge, being a effective KO move. Hits on frame 6-29.
• Forward tilt - Lion: Mr. Game & Watch thrusts a chair in front of him, has light potential to KO at very high damages. Some noticeable ending lag. Like his other tilts, it has a hitbox with a long duration. 10% damage. Hits on frame 10-15.
• Down tilt - Manhole: Mr. Game & Watch flips a manhole cover in front of him. A very good move to space, especially against characters with low reach. The manhole lid is actually a 3-D object, unlike any of his other moves, which are all 2D objects. It is no longer a good KO move as it was in Melee, but it does annoy foes and is effective at edgeguarding due to being a semi-spike, having good base knockback, a hitbox with long duration, and very low cooldown. Good for anti-air attack; deals more damage if the opponent is in the air. Does 6% damage to grounded opponents; 9% if the opponent airborne. Has a start-up of 6 frames and it ends on frame 15.
• Up tilt - Flagman: Mr. Game & Watch waves a flag above him. Combos into itself with fast fallers and heavy weights at lower percentages. Usually used into a neutral air or up air otherwise, can even KO at higher %´s. At low percentages, can be used for juggling. 8% damage. Hits on frame 13-21.

Smash

• Forward smash - Fire Attack: Mr. Game & Watch attacks with a lit match. Great base knockback and even greater kockback scaling as well as lasting longer than expected, making it hard to punish. Has a disjointed hitbox at the end of the move causing very low damage but with good knockback. Usually used after down air, down throw, or up air. Its great knockback scaling and diagonal trajectory makes momentum canceling very ineffective against it. It is arguably the best forward smash in the game despite its slow start-up (frame 18, slower than it was in Melee), but it has good reach and great knockback, being capable of KOing any character under 100%. Does 18% damage uncharged, 25% fully charged. Though rare, this attack has a sourspot when only the pole hits. This only happens if a character is small enough to stay between the flame and Mr.Game & Watch himself touching only the pole. Deals 14% damage uncharged and 19% damage charged and has slightly less knockback.
• Up smash - Octopus: Mr. Game & Watch's head becomes a diving helmet and bashes the enemy with his head, with the hitbox extending a short ways above the helmet. Has noticeable start-up lag (hits on frame 24-28), but is the third strongest up smash in the game KO percentage wise (only Ivysaur's and Lucas's KO faster) and it has the highest knockback scaling of any up smash in the game. This is usually Mr. Game & Watch's fastest KOing smash attack, depending on the character and stage. Usually used after up aerial or neutral aerial. Very useful for tech chases due to its wide hitbox and good duration. 18% uncharged, 25% fully charged.
• Down smash - Vermin: Mr. Game & Watch takes out two hammers and slams them down on both sides. The handle is the sourspot with less damage and much less power with horizontal knockback. The tip is the sweetspot with very powerful vertical knockback. If sourspotted, this attack is a rather powerful semi-spike and can KO early when on the edge. When sweetspotted, this is one of the most powerful down smashes in the game, being one of the few that can reliably KO under 100%. Very fast IASA, which can surprise people by using it again after a missed one. It is effective at edgeguarding as the semi-spike is powerful and even though the sweetspot has vertical knockback, its great knockback can still KO a recovering opponent. Can combo out of the last hits of neutral aerial and also with down throw vs. anyone who doesn't have a long enough roll and who doesn't tech it. Deals 13% uncharged, 18% fully charged when the handles (sourspot) hit. When the tip (sweetspot) hits, it deals 15% uncharged and 21% fully charged. Has a start-up of 15 frames.

Other

• Floor attack - Vermin 2: Mr. Game & Watch gets out a hammer and slams it in front of him, then behind him. It is very fast. 6% damage
• Ledge attack - Alarm: Mr. Game & Watch climbs up the ledge, then hits the opponent with his alarm bell. 8% damage.
• 100% ledge attack - Alarm 2: Mr. Game & Watch climbs up the ledge, charges, then hits the opponent with his alarm bell; it takes a little longer to execute than Alarm. 10% damage
• Trip attack - Vermin 3: Mr. Game & Watch gets out a hammer and slams it in front of him, then behind him; just like his Floor Attack. 5% damage.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial - Tropical Fish: Two fish will come out of both sides of a bowl, hitting multiple times. The last hit has moderate knockback. If the last hit does not hit, it can combo into other aerials and smashes. Its large hitbox and light vertical knockback allows it to juggle very well. Great shield stabber. Does 17% damage if all hits connect. Has a start-up of 7 frames.
• Up aerial - Spitball Sparky: Mr. Game & Watch raises a pump above him, blowing puffs of air above him twice. It pushes characters above Mr. Game & Watch upwards if they are out of range of being damaged. This can actually push a player out of Ike's Great Aether, and, when high enough, can push opponents above the upper blast line for a Star KO. The wind hitbox can be used to help teammates with their vertical recovery. 7% for first hit, 9% for the second hit, 16% total. Second hit has very high knockback but is very difficult to land due to the wind effect of the first hitbox. First hit on frame 6, second hit on frame 20.
• Forward aerial - Mario Bros.: Mr. Game & Watch takes out a box and attacks with it. The sweetspot is the initial hitbox with very powerful horizontal knockback while the subsequent hitbox is the sourspot with very low knockback. It can do damage regardless of exactly which side of his body the enemy is hit by. Has the greatest KO potential of all his aerials (other than a meteor smashed down aerial) if sweetspotted. Great for edgeguarding and it can WoP opponents at low to mid percentages. It has long landing lag but its aerial ending lag is not as bad. 16% damage, 6% if not sweetspotted. Hits on frame 10-32.
• Back aerial - Turtle Bridge: Mr. Game & Watch takes out a turtle and attacks behind him. Hits multiple times and has great horizontal reach with a large hitbox. When being shielded, opponents often drop their shields too soon due to the turtle's hitlag causing it to have unexpected duration when it is landed. Can be DI'd out of though. Its possible to powershield the last hit, but is very difficult to perform. Does 15% worth damage if all hits connect. Has a start-up of 10 frames.
• Down aerial - Donkey Kong Jr.: A Stall-Then-Fall. Mr. Game & Watch takes out a key and slams it downward. This Stall-Then-Fall attack propels Mr. Game & Watch downwards and is a meteor smash if the initial hitbox is landed and sweetspotted. Can be moved left or right a bit. If used while halfway through a thin platform (after hitting down so he falls through it), he will move upwards and land on top of the platform, without the animation changing. 20% damage if opponent is meteor smashed to the ground and is hit by the landing hitbox. 14% for first hit, 6% for the second. 13% if it hits late. Can perform the Stall-Then-Fall Glitch. Can KO at high percentages, being one of the strongest Stall-Then-Fall moves in the game. First hit on frame 12.

Grabs and Throws

Interestingly, the speed at which Mr. Game and Watch juggles his opponent in his throws depends on his foe's weight. Mr. Game & Watch juggles his foes clockwise when performing a forward or down throw, and counterclockwise when performing an up or back throw.

• Pummel - Alarm: Mr. Game & Watch bashes the enemy with his alarm bell, somewhat slowly. 3%
• Forward throw - Ball: Mr. Game & Watch juggles the enemy as a ball and then the enemy is launched forward. 8%
• Up throw - Ball: Mr. Game & Watch juggles the enemy as a ball and then the enemy is launched upward. Only up throw in the game to release opponent at an angle. 8%
• Back throw - Ball: Mr. Game & Watch juggles the enemy as a ball and then the enemy is launched backward. 8%
• Down throw - Ball: Mr. Game & Watch juggles the enemy as a ball and throws the opponent onto the ground. Can tech chase into an up smash, down smash, forward smash, down tilt, or even neutral aerial. Can meteor smash opponents near the edge. 6%.

Special Moves

Mr. Game & Watch's special moves

Neutral special	Chef
Side special	Judgment	Judge
Up special	Fire
Down special	Oil Panic
Final Smash	—	Octopus

Taunts

• Up: Rings his bell high.
• Down: Jumps once, opening his hands, in a cheery way.
• Side: Rings his bell low. (same as Melee)

In Competitive play

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Character Matchups

Avg.

Role in Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary

Mr. Game & Watch in the SSE

The Shadow Bugs trophy description explains that Mr. Game & Watch embodies a limitless supply of Shadow Bugs inside of him, which can be extracted incessantly. Shadow Bugs are a substance which can replicate characters or even create new dark creatures. Tabuu discovered this and captured Mr. Game & Watch in the prologue, using the Shadow Bugs to build the Subspace Army.

Solid Snake, Meta Knight and Lucario enter the Halberd's control room to discover a gang of Mr. Game & Watches are piloting the ship. Snake quickly charges at them and knocks them all out the window. They fall onto the main deck, interrupting Sheik's, Fox's and Princess Peach's tea party. The clones then revert to Shadow Bugs and form into a giant metal monster called Duon. Snake and Lucario jump down to help, along with Falco who ejects from an Arwing. Once the robot is defeated, the Shadow Bugs float away, leaving behind Mr. Game & Watch's trophy. Fox prepares to shoot it with his blaster, but Peach revives it. Upon being revived, Mr. Game & Watch wonders where he is until Peach scolds him for the trouble he created, causing him to look down in shame. Then Peach gives him her parasol to cheer him up.

At the entrance to Subspace, Mr. Game & Watch, along with the rest of his team, prepares to attack Tabuu, but is effortlessly turned into a trophy by the Off Waves. He is later revived thanks to Luigi, Ness, and King Dedede. After that, he accompanies the heroes through the Great Maze and the showdown with Tabuu.

It was confirmed on the "DOJO!!" that the reason Mr. Game & Watch was manipulated so easily by Tabuu is that he has no understanding of good or evil, despite the fact that Mr. Game & Watch has shown moral behaviour in many of his games.

Exclusive Stickers

These stickers can only be used by Mr. Game & Watch or a select few including him:

• Chef (Game & Watch): [Specials: Indirect] Attack +25
• Donbe: [Slash] Resistance +26
• Duck: Launch Resistance +20
• Forward Type: [Throwing] Attack +22
• Flag Man: [Specials: Indirect] Attack +4
• Lion: [Specials: Direct] Attack +13
• Vermin: [Weapon] Attack +15
• Wild Gunman: [Specials: Indirect] Attack +5
• Yakuman Player: [Electric] Resistance +28

Costumes

Mr. Game & Watch's alternate costumes in SSBB

Trivia

• Mr. Game & Watch is the only character who is always 2D in appearance, even in his trophy form. Although Mr. Game & Watch usually appears in 2D, the effect is achieved by flattening a 3D character model. He is also the only character with no textures or shading; he is simply one solid color and outline.
• With Mr. Game & Watch's design originating from characters that first appeared in 1980, he can be considered the "oldest" character in Brawl's roster - which is why he is the first character to be fought in All-Star mode. Interestingly enough, he is the last character to be fought in Melee’s All Star Mode.
• While almost all of Mr. Game & Watch's animations use a frame-by-frame style, there are times when he animates smoothly: when being thrown, when being grabbed by Snake, and when using a Cracker Launcher. The first two are due to using animations shared by all characters, while the third is due to the mechanic of angling the Cracker Launcher.
• Mr. Game & Watch, R.O.B., Olimar, and Samus are the only characters that never talk or make vocal sounds. He instead makes beeping sounds.
  • As a result, Mr. Game & Watch is the only character whose sound cues do not seem to be affected by a Metal Box.
• When Mr. Game & Watch is grabbed, he's grabbed by his nose.
• Mr. Game & Watch is the only character who doesn't move when charging his smash attacks.
• In The Subspace Emissary, Mr. Game & Watch is the only playable character who didn't have an immediate presentation screen.
• When wearing a badge, it hovers in front of Mr. Game & Watch's body, due to being attached to where his body would be if not flattened.
• When the black costume/color of Mr. Game & Watch is used on the underground version of Mushroomy Kingdom, he appears to be dark yellow. Oddly, when in photo mode, the color changes back to black.
• When Mr. Game & Watch falls asleep, instead of bubbles coming from his mouth, Z's come out.
• Mr. Game & Watch, Kirby, and Yoshi are the only characters that change their whole body color when a different palette is selected.

External links

• Mr. Game & Watch's Smash Bros Dojo!!
• Mr. Game & Watch Character Guide on SWF
• Mr. Game & Watch's hitbox sizes
• Mr. Game & Watch's Moves - History Behind Super Smash Bros. Brawl, by CrappyCaptureDevice