Move.png It has been suggested that this article should be moved to Fast fall.
The reason given for the move is: You don't do a fast falling, you do a fast fall (Discuss)
Not to be confused with falling speed, which measures how fast a character falls naturally.
Differences with fast falling: the Samus on the left uses the technique, while the Samus on the right does not.

Fast falling is the act of falling quicker than usual in mid-air. It is performed by tapping down on the control stick while falling. The character will continue to fast fall until landing on the platform or taking a hit. Gravity is ignored once a fast fall is begun; the character's downward velocity is simply set to their fast falling speed without accelerating. Fast falling is a technique commonly used to speed up a character's game, especially after a short hop. It is a part of SHFFL'ing, an advanced technique.

Stall-then-fall aerials have an effect similar to fastfalling, though the move is an attack, and most of the time cannot be stopped or slowed.

If players press down while hanging from a ledge, their character will begin to fast fall, whereas if pressed in the opposite direction of the ledge, the character will merely let go of the ledge. This also works with down + B attacks, except for ones that slow down falling or gain height. (An example is Fox's Reflector or Luigi's Luigi Cyclone.)

In Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. 4[1], the character will flash and a white star will appear at his or her torso when fast-falling (in Smash 4, the stars can appear in several places, but all are still located near the fast-falling character's midsection). In Super Smash Bros. Melee, a "whoosh" sound will be heard when fast falling, but there is no visual indicator, making it harder to pick up on, especially with other surrounding sound effects. There is no indicator in Super Smash Bros. Brawl whatsoever.

In Super Smash Bros. 4, characters can cancel a fastfall by using an aerial attack. This will set their falling speed to the normal maximum.

Fast falling speeds in SSB

JPN

Rank Character Regular Falling Speed Fast Falling Speed Speed Increase
1 Link 64 102 59.375%
2 Captain Falcon 60 100 66.7%
3 Fox 60 96 60.0%
4 Donkey Kong 56 89 58.9%
5 Ness 55 88.25 60.45%
6 Yoshi 55 88 60.0%
7 Pikachu 52 83 59.6%
8 Kirby 48 79 64.583%
9 Mario 44 70 59.09%
10 Luigi 42 67.5 60.7%
11 Samus 42 67 59.5%
12 Jigglypuff 38 60 57.9%

NTSC

Rank Character Regular Falling Speed Fast Falling Speed Speed Increase
1 Link 64 102 59.375%
2 Captain Falcon 66 100 51.51%
3 Fox 60 96 60.0%
4 Donkey Kong 56 89 58.9%
5 Ness 55 88.25 60.45%
6 Yoshi 58 88 51.72%
7 Pikachu 52 83 59.6%
8 Kirby 48 76 58.3%
9 Mario 44 70 59.09%
10 Luigi 42 67.5 60.7%
11 Samus 42 67 59.5%
12 Jigglypuff 38 60.5 59.21%

Notes

  • Oddly enough, Metal Mario's fast falling speed (70) is lower than his regular falling speed (100). This means that he would actually slow down by fastfalling, though he would probably then quickly re-accelerate to his regular falling speed.
  • Giant Donkey Kong's fall speed and fast falling speeds are 72 and 100, respectively.

Fast falling speeds in Melee

Rank Character Regular Falling Speed Fast Falling Speed Speed Increase
1-2 Falco 3.1 3.5 12.9%
1-2 Captain Falcon 2.9 3.5 20.7%
3 Fox 2.8 3.4 21.4%
4-5 Link 2.13 3 40.8%
4-5 Sheik 2.13 3 40.8%
6 Donkey Kong 2.4 2.96 23.3%
7 Yoshi 1.93 2.93 51.8%
8 Roy 2.4 2.9 20.8%
9 Pikachu 1.9 2.7 42.1%
10 Ganondorf 2 2.6 30.0%
11-12 Pichu 1.9 2.5 31.6%
11-12 Marth 2.2 2.5 13.6%
13 Bowser 1.9 2.4 26.3%
14-18 Mario 1.7 2.3 35.3%
14-18 Dr. Mario 1.7 2.3 35.3%
14-18 Samus 1.4 2.3 64.3%
14-18 Mewtwo 1.5 2.3 53.3%
14-18 Mr. Game & Watch 1.7 2.3 35.3%
19-20 Young Link 2.13 2.2 3.3%
19-20 Ness 1.83 2.2 20.2%
21-24 Luigi 1.6 2 25.0%
21-24 Peach 1.5 2 33.3%
21-24 Kirby 1.6 2 25.0%
21-24 Ice Climbers 1.6 2 25.0%
25 Zelda 1.4 1.85 32.1%
26 Jigglypuff 1.3 1.6 23.1%

Notes

  • Giga Bowser and Wireframes have fast falling speeds that equal their regular falling speeds. Because of this, fast falling with them does not have any effect except for slightly increasing how fast they reach their regular falling speed.
  • Not only is Young Link's unusually low speed change the lowest in Melee, but also the entire series. It is the only change lower than 10%, other than Wolf in Brawl.

Fast falling speeds in Brawl

Rank Character Regular Falling Speed Fast Falling Speed Speed Increase
1 King Dedede 1.95 2.73 40.0%
2 Link 1.6 2.666 66.625%
3 Captain Falcon 1.837 2.5718 40.0%
4 Fox 1.831 2.5634 40.0%
5 Snake 1.73 2.422 40.0%
6 Falco 1.708 2.3912 40.0%
7 Pikachu 1.5 2.379 58.6%
8-9 Ganondorf 1.65 2.31 40.0%
8-9 Ike 1.65 2.31 40.0%
10-11 Donkey Kong 1.58 2.212 40.0%
10-11 Sheik 1.58 2.212 40.0%
12-13 Squirtle 1.3 2.1 61.5%
12-13 Marth 1.5 2.1 40.0%
14-15 Diddy Kong 1.43 2.002 40.0%
14-15 Zero Suit Samus 1.43 2.002 40.0%
16 Sonic 1.45 2 37.9%
17 Pit 1.42 1.988 40.0%
18 Wario 1.4 1.96 40.0%
19-20 Bowser 1.39 1.946 40.0%
19-20 Meta Knight 1.39 1.946 40.0%
21 Lucas 1.37 1.918 40.0%
22-24 Kirby 1.2 1.9 58.3%
22-24 Toon Link 1.28 1.9 48.4375%
22-24 Wolf 1.8 1.9 5.556%
25-26 Ivysaur 1.35 1.89 40.0%
25-26 Charizard 1.35 1.89 40.0%
27 Ness 1.31 1.834 40.0%
28 Olimar 1.3 1.82 40.0%
29 Yoshi 1.29 1.806 40.0%
30 Mario 1.28 1.792 40.0%
31 Mr. Game & Watch 1.24 1.736 40.0%
32 Luigi 1.22 1.708 40.0%
33-35 Lucario 1.2 1.68 40.0%
33-35 Ice Climbers 1.2 1.68 40.0%
33-35 R.O.B. 1.2 1.68 40.0%
36 Zelda 1.13 1.582 40.0%
37 Samus 1.07 1.498 40.0%
38 Peach 1.05 1.47 40.0%
39 Jigglypuff 0.98 1.372 40.0%

Notes

Fast falling speeds in SSB4

Rank Character Regular Falling Speed Fast Falling Speed Speed Increase
1 Fox 2.05 3.28 60%
2 King Dedede 1.95 3.12 60%
3 Link 1.6 3.04 90%
4 Greninja 1.85 2.96 60%
5 Captain Falcon 1.837 2.9392 60%
6-9 Falco 1.8 2.88 60%
6-9 Little Mac 1.8 2.88 60%
6-9 Mega Man 1.8 2.88 60%
6-9 Roy 1.8 2.88 60%
10-11 Sheik 1.75 2.8 60%
10-11 Diddy Kong 1.75 2.8 60%
12 Zero Suit Samus 1.7 2.72 60%
n/a Mii Brawler 1.7 2.72 60%
13 Meta Knight 1.66 2.656 60%
14-17 Bowser Jr. 1.65 2.64 60%
14-17 Ganondorf 1.65 2.64 60%
14-17 Ike 1.65 2.64 60%
14-17 Duck Hunt 1.65 2.64 60%
18 Donkey Kong 1.63 2.608 60%
19 Wario 1.61 2.576 60%
20 R.O.B. 1.6 2.56 60%
n/a Mii Swordfighter 1.6 2.56 60%
21-22 Marth 1.58 2.528 60%
21-22 Lucina 1.58 2.528 60%
23 Lucario 1.56 2.496 60%
24 Pikachu 1.55 2.48 60%
25-29 Mario 1.5 2.4 60%
25-29 Dr. Mario 1.5 2.4 60%
25-29 Mewtwo 1.5 2.4 60%
25-29 Robin 1.5 2.4 60%
25-29 Shulk 1.5 2.4 60%
30-31 Pit 1.48 2.368 60%
30-31 Dark Pit 1.48 2.368 60%
32 Sonic 1.45 2.32 60%
n/a Mii Gunner 1.45 2.32 60%
33-35 Charizard 1.4 2.24 60%
33-35 Palutena 1.4 2.24 60%
33-35 Ryu 1.6 2.24 40%
36 Bowser 1.39 2.224 60%
37 Lucas 1.37 2.192 60%
38-40 Zelda 1.35 2.16 60%
38-40 Olimar 1.35 2.16 60%
38-40 Pac-Man 1.35 2.16 60%
41 Villager 1.32 2.112 60%
42 Ness 1.31 2.096 60%
43 Wii Fit Trainer 1.3 2.08 60%
44 Yoshi 1.29 2.064 60%
45 Toon Link 1.28 2.048 60%
46-47 Luigi 1.25 2.0 60%
46-47 Samus 1.25 2.0 60%
48 Mr. Game & Watch 1.24 1.984 60%
49 Kirby 1.23 1.968 60%
50 Rosalina 1.2 1.92 60%
51 Peach 1.15 1.84 60%
52 Jigglypuff 0.98 1.568 60%

Notes

  • Ryu is the only character in SSB4 to have a fast-fall increase lower than 60%, with 40%. Similarly, Link is the only character with a higher fast-fall increase, with 90%.

References