A character is one of the fighters in the Super Smash Bros. series. Characters can be sorted into playable and non-playable, which distinguishes whether characters can be used without the use of a cheat device (like Action Replay) or not. Playable characters can further be divided into starter, unlockable, and downloadable, which distinguishes whether characters can be played right away, whether they need to be unlocked, or whether they need to be downloaded.
Playable characters
This is a list of the playable characters in the Super Smash Bros. series, commonly known in official sources as fighters. For the first three games, shaded cells denote unlockable characters. For SSB4, red cells denote characters that only need to be unlocked in the 3DS version, blue ones denote those that need to be unlocked in both it and the Wii U version, and yellow ones denote downloadable characters. Characters that are noted to have been "intended" in a Smash game were planned by Sakurai to be included in that game as a playable character at some point, before being cut for whatever reason.
Notes
- ^ a b c As part of the Pokémon Trainer
- ^ a b c While there hasn't been any official confirmation that Mewtwo, Roy, and Dr. Mario were intended to be in Brawl, unused data on Brawl's disc labelled for each of them strongly implies that the characters were developed to some degree for Brawl. This unused data also includes unused fanfares for the former two characters and unused sounds for Mewtwo. When combined with confirmation from Sakurai that there were many characters that were planned for inclusion in Brawl who got scrapped, it is virtually certain these three were among the intended characters who were scrapped mid-development.
- ^ Sakurai stated that, while the Ice Climbers could run smoothly on the Wii U version, the 3DS could not handle the "two-in-one" coding of the duo, and, in order to keep the roster the same between the two versions, they had to be cut from the roster.
- ^ Sakurai has stated that he originally intended to replace Ness with the new protagonist of Mother 3 (Lucas) in Melee, though Mother 3's delay caused him to go back on the idea and keep Ness.
Non-playable characters
The following characters can fully interact with playable characters in-game, but are normally non-playable. These include boss characters and enemy teams, among others. Hacking, however, may allow these characters to be played to varying degrees of functionality.
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h appears as a stage hazard
- ^ a b While Giant DK and Metal Mario were unplayable in the original Super Smash Bros., they are effectively playable in the following installments by picking up a Super Mushroom or a Metal Box, respectively.
- ^ Giga Bowser is playable in Brawl and SSB4 as Bowser's Final Smash.
- ^ Master Hand is playable in Melee through the Name Entry glitch.
- ^ Sandbag is mechanically considered an item in Brawl and SSB4, not a character.
Newcomers and veterans
A newcomer is a character who appears as playable for the first time in the series in a given game. A veteran is the opposite: a character who has been playable in a previous game. For example, Olimar is a newcomer in Brawl, as he did not appear as playable in any previous games, but is a veteran in all subsequent and future games. Note that the definition of newcomers is distinct from that of "unlockable" or "secret" characters, which are playable characters who must be unlocked by completing certain tasks; every game starting with Melee has had starter veterans, starter newcomers, unlockable veterans, and unlockable newcomers.
The term newcomer was originally used to describe the unlockable characters in the original Super Smash Bros. by the data deletion menu. It was later used in the first trailer for Super Smash Bros. Brawl, in which new characters were introduced with the title "Newcomer" atop their name. The word newcomer was later used on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! site to classify new characters whether unlockable or not. This use of the term has become the community-preferred usage for other games in the series.
"Perfect-attendance crew"
Less commonly, the term "veteran" can also denote the "eight regulars" or "perfect-attendance fighters", terms which refer to the eight starter characters in the original Super Smash Bros. which have been in all subsequent games of the series. The terms originated in the description for the 10th Brawl event match All-Star Battle Regulars, reading: "The Smash Bros. perfect-attendance crew! Fight the eight regulars in order!" A popular, unofficial term referring to this group is "The Original 8" (Mario, Pikachu, Kirby, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, and Fox), which may also be called "The Original 12" if including the four unlockable characters (Luigi, Jigglypuff, Captain Falcon, and Ness). Super Smash Bros. for Wii U is the first game where all the "Original 12" are starter characters.
Trivia
- Roy is the only "non-native" character to appear in a Super Smash Bros. game before appearing in any other series, having been put into Melee as a promotional gimmick designed to showcase a new Fire Emblem game (Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade) released shortly after Melee.
- Dr. Mario and Mewtwo are the only characters to skip an installment, being playable in Melee but not Brawl, before returning in Smash 4 thirteen years later.
- Ice Climbers are the only characters to be cut after appearing in multiple games.
- Captain Falcon (in SSB) and the Mii Fighters are the only characters to use head icons that don't portray their faces.
- Dr. Mario, Falco, Mr. Game & Watch, and R.O.B. are the only characters that have been in multiple Super Smash Bros games to have always been unlockable characters.
- Snake is the only third party character who does not appear in a television show.
- Sonic is the only third party character to appear in multiple titles.