For other uses of the term, see Stage (disambiguation).
The Final Destination stage in Super Smash Bros. Brawl is an example of a typical stage in the Super Smash Bros. series.

A stage (ステージ, Stage), also called a level, map, arena, stadium, or board, is a location in which characters fight or complete objectives. The word "stage" refers to the entire loaded location, but can also refer to the ground or large central platform within the level. Though versus mode stages are the most commonly recognized and utilized, single-player mode stages such as Race to the Finish or Trophy Collector exist as well for purposes other than fighting others.

Versus mode stagesEdit

Most versus mode stages in each of the Super Smash Bros. series games are available from the start, though a small number must first be unlocked by completing certain objectives. Since Super Smash Bros. 4 some stages are (or were in SSB4's case) made available through updates and are (were) downloadable. Most stages, like Princess Peach's Castle, are derived from places in playable characters' universes. Super Smash Bros. Melee introduced two stages unique to the Super Smash Bros. universe — Battlefield and Final Destination. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, stages derived from universes without associated playable characters were introduced, namely Smashville, Hanenbow, and PictoChat. Additionally, not every playable character has a stage from their own universe; the Fire Emblem universe lacked one in Melee (though one was planned), and the R.O.B. universe has, for unknown reasons, never had a stage. Since Melee, each Smash game has included several Past Stages that debuted in previous games. These stages have either no or minor alterations (an example being Dream Land in Smash 4, where the top blast line is much closer to the stage than it was in 64 or Melee). Super Smash Bros. Ultimate changes this, giving older stages a more refined and detailed design.

Stages range in size from the large The Great Cave Offensive and Rumble Falls to the small Yoshi's Story and Peach's Castle. Typically, stages involve a large central platform with ledges, multiple smaller platforms, and blast lines above, below, and to the left and right of the visible area. Some stages, such as Mushroom Kingdom and Coliseum, have floors that continue past the edge of the visible area and pass through a side blast line. These edges are known as "walk-off edges" or "walk-offs" because characters can walk offscreen without the need to become airborne. Stages with walk-off edges on both the left and right, like Bridge of Eldin, are referred to as "walk-off stages", and only a select few, like Yoshi's Island, have only one walk-off. Some walk-off stages, such as Onett, have lower blast lines that are inaccessible normally, while others, such as Green Hill Zone, only infrequently have the lower blast lines introduced; still others, such as Mushroom Kingdom, have permanently-accessible gaps where players can fall past the lower blast line while still having solid ground covering most of the lower blast line, including its intersections with the left and/or right blast lines.

In Melee, moving and transforming stages were introduced. Big Blue and Rainbow Cruise consist entirely of platforms that move or appear on and offscreen, while stages like Icicle Mountain and PAC-LAND scroll continuously up, to the side, or down. Other stages, such as Pokémon Stadium, undergo partial transformations at certain intervals, while others, such as Castle Siege and Paper Mario, cycle through complete transformations. Similarly, stages like Delfino Plaza and Skyloft will take players to various areas via moving platforms. Mushroomy Kingdom may be one of two stages either randomly or based on a player's input prior to the match. Tortimer Island's, Gamer's, Balloon Fight's, Garden of Hope's, and Minecraft World's layouts are randomized to varying degrees for each battle as well.

Other stage elements include breakable barriers and platforms, such as the pillars of Luigi's Mansion and the stone floors of Skyworld; stage hazards and enemies, such as lasers, cars, and Klaptraps; local items such as apples; and interactive objects such as Barrel Cannons and switches. While water has no effect on movement in Melee outside of the flowing river in Jungle Japes, Brawl introduced swimming; a few stages, such as Delfino Plaza, feature bodies of water that characters can swim in.

From Brawl onwards, the appearance of some items, namely crates and barrels, differs depending on the aesthetic style of the stage they appear on.

In competitive play for every game, many tournament organizers prohibit the majority of stages (and in 64's case, all but one) from being selected due to being considered disruptive, unfair, or unbalanced by many high-level players[citation needed] (see stage legality). Ultimate tournaments often also require stage hazards to be disabled.

List of versus mode stagesEdit

This is a list of multiplayer stages in the Super Smash Bros. series.

The following does not include some single-player stages which can be playable with more than one player.

If there is an icon of a certain game in the chart ( ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ) (not the top ones), that means a new version of the stage appears in that game.

The Smash 4 icon   means the new version appears in both the 3DS and the Wii U version.

Some stages have different names in different games. The stage's name will be marked with the game's symbol to indicate which game had which name.

Starter Unlockable Paid DLC Free DLC Single-player only
Stage Universe            
3D Land  Mario            
75m  Donkey Kong            
Arena Ferox  Fire Emblem            
Balloon Fight  Balloon Fight            
Battlefield    
Duel Zone 
 Super Smash Bros.[1]          
Big Battlefield  Super Smash Bros.            
Big Blue  F-Zero          
Boxing Ring  Punch-Out!!          
Bridge of Eldin  The Legend of Zelda            
Brinstar  Metroid            
Brinstar Depths  Metroid          
Castle Siege  Fire Emblem            
Cloud Sea of Alrest  Xenoblade Chronicles          
Coliseum  Fire Emblem            
Corneria  Star Fox            
Delfino Plaza  Mario            
Distant Planet  Pikmin            
Dracula's Castle  Castlevania          
Dream Land   
Dream Land (64) 
 Kirby          
Dream Land GB 
Dream Land 
 Kirby            
Duck Hunt  Duck Hunt            
Figure-8 Circuit 
Mario Circuit (Brawl) 
Mario Circuit 
 Mario            
Final Destination  Super Smash Bros.          
Find Mii 
StreetPass™ Quest 
 StreetPass Mii Plaza            
Flat Zone  Game & Watch          [2]  [2]
Flat Zone 2  Game & Watch          [2]  [2]
Flat Zone X  Game & Watch            
Fountain of Dreams  Kirby          
Fourside  EarthBound          
Frigate Orpheon  Metroid          
Gamer  Wario            
Garden of Hope  Pikmin            
Garreg Mach Monastery  Fire Emblem          
Gaur Plain  Xenoblade Chronicles          
Gerudo Valley  The Legend of Zelda            
Golden Plains  Mario            
Great Bay  The Legend of Zelda          
Great Plateau Tower  The Legend of Zelda          
Green Greens  Kirby          
Green Hill Zone  Sonic the Hedgehog            
Halberd  Kirby            
Hanenbow  Electroplankton          
Hollow Bastion  Kingdom Hearts          
Hyrule Castle  
Hyrule Castle (64) 
 The Legend of Zelda          
Icicle Mountain  Ice Climber          
Jungle Hijinxs  Donkey Kong            
Jungle Japes  Donkey Kong            
Kalos Pokémon League  Pokémon            
King of Fighters Stadium  Fatal Fury          
Kongo Falls 
Kongo Jungle 
 Donkey Kong          
Kongo Jungle  
Kongo Jungle 64 
Congo Jungle 
 Donkey Kong            
Living Room  Nintendogs            
Luigi's Mansion  Mario            
Lylat Cruise  Star Fox            
Magicant  EarthBound            
Mario Bros.  Mario          
Mario Circuit    Mario            
Mario Galaxy  Mario            
Mementos  Persona          
Midgar  Final Fantasy          
Miiverse  Miiverse            
Minecraft World  Minecraft          
Mishima Dojo  Tekken          
Moray Towers  Splatoon          
Mushroom Kingdom    Mario          
Mushroom Kingdom   Mario          
Mushroom Kingdom II  Mario          
Mushroom Kingdom U  Mario            
Mushroomy Kingdom[3]  Mario            
Mute City   F-Zero          
Mute City SNES 
Mute City 
 F-Zero            
New Donk City Hall  Mario          
New Pork City  EarthBound          
Norfair  Metroid            
Northern Cave  Final Fantasy          
Onett  EarthBound            
Orbital Gate Assault  Star Fox            
Pac-Land  Pac-Man            
Pac-Maze  Pac-Man            
Palutena's Temple  Kid Icarus            
Paper Mario  Mario            
Peach's Castle  
Peach's Castle (64) 
 Mario          
PictoChat  Nintendo DS          
PictoChat 2  Nintendo DS            
Pilotwings  Pilotwings            
Pirate Ship  The Legend of Zelda            
Planet Zebes  Metroid          
Poké Floats  Pokémon          
Pokémon Stadium  Pokémon          
Pokémon Stadium 2  Pokémon            
Port Town Aero Dive  F-Zero            
Princess Peach's Castle  Mario          
Prism Tower  Pokémon            
Pyrosphere  Metroid            
Rainbow Cruise  Mario          
Rainbow Road  Mario            
Reset Bomb Forest  Kid Icarus            
Rumble Falls  Donkey Kong          
Saffron City  Pokémon          
Sector Z  Star Fox          
Shadow Moses Island  Metal Gear          
Skyloft  The Legend of Zelda            
Skyworld  Kid Icarus            
Small Battlefield  Super Smash Bros.          
Smashville  Animal Crossing            
Spear Pillar  Pokémon          
Spiral Mountain  Banjo-Kazooie          
Spirit Train  The Legend of Zelda            
Spring Stadium  ARMS          
Summit  Ice Climber          
Super Happy Tree 
Yoshi's Island  
 Yoshi          
Super Mario Maker  Mario          
Suzaku Castle  Street Fighter          
Temple  The Legend of Zelda            
The Great Cave Offensive  Kirby            
Tomodachi Life  Tomodachi            
Tortimer Island  Animal Crossing            
Town and City  Animal Crossing            
Umbra Clock Tower  Bayonetta          
Unova Pokémon League  Pokémon            
Venom  Star Fox          
WarioWare, Inc.  Wario            
Wii Fit Studio  Wii Fit            
Wily Castle  Mega Man        [4]  [5]
Windy Hill Zone  Sonic the Hedgehog            
Woolly World  Yoshi            
Wrecking Crew  Wrecking Crew            
Wuhu Island  Wii Sports            
Yggdrasil's Altar  Dragon Quest          
Yoshi's Island (Melee) 
Yoshi's Island   
 Yoshi            
Yoshi's Island     Yoshi            
Yoshi's Story  Yoshi          
New Stages 9 26 31 30 34 19
Returning Stages 0 3 10 12 21 96
Total Stages 9 29 41 42 55 115

NotesEdit

  1. ^ In Melee, this stage used the   Special Stages series symbol instead of the normal Super Smash Bros. one.
  2. ^ a b c d Appears as part of Flat Zone X.
  3. ^ In Brawl, the stage has an additional underground version based on World 1-2 alongside the standard World 1-1 version. The version will normally be selected randomly, though either version can be forced by holding down a certain button when selecting the stage. World 1-2 was removed in for 3DS and Ultimate
  4. ^ In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Wily Castle is set during the day and has a variety of moving platforms. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Wily Castle is set during the night and has platforms moving along rails, as well as the Yellow Devil.
  5. ^ In Ultimate, Wily Castle is set during the night and has the hazards from both versions of Smash 4.

Versus mode stages by gameEdit

In Super Smash Bros.Edit

 
The stage select screen in Smash 64.

There are nine versus stages in the original Super Smash Bros.; eight starters and one unlockable stage: Mushroom Kingdom, shown in bold.

  Stages

  Peach's Castle
  Congo Jungle
  Hyrule Castle
  Planet Zebes
  Yoshi's Island
  Dream Land
  Sector Z
  Saffron City
  Mushroom Kingdom

In MeleeEdit

 
The stage select screen in Melee.

There are 29 versus stages in Super Smash Bros. Melee; 18 starters and 11 unlockable stages, shown below in bold. The three past stages are unlockable. Unlike the other games, each stage has a greater location listed as its stage prefix rather than which game it is from.

  Melee Stages

  Special Stages Battlefield
  Special Stages Final Destination
  Mushroom Kingdom Princess Peach's Castle
  Mushroom Kingdom Rainbow Cruise
  Mushroom Kingdom
  DK Island Kongo Jungle
  DK Island Jungle Japes
  Termina Great Bay
  Hyrule Temple
  Planet Zebes Brinstar
  Yoshi’s Island Yoshi's Island
  Yoshi’s Island Yoshi's Story
  Dream Land Fountain of Dreams
  Dream Land Green Greens
  Lylat System Corneria
  Lylat System Venom
  Kanto Pokémon Stadium
  F-Zero Grand Prix Mute City
  Eagleland Onett
  Infinite Glacier Icicle Mountain
  Mushroom Kingdom II
  Planet Zebes Brinstar Depths
  Kanto Skies Poké Floats
  F-Zero Grand Prix Big Blue
  Eagleland Fourside
  Superflat World Flat Zone

  Past Stages

  Kongo Jungle
  Yoshi's Island
  Dream Land

In BrawlEdit

 
The stage select screen in Brawl.
 
The Melee Stages screen in Brawl.

There are 41 versus stages in Super Smash Bros. Brawl; 29 starters and 12 unlockable stages, shown below in bold. None of the original Super Smash Bros. stages or the original Super Smash Bros. music stage themes return, but there are 10 stages from Melee, one from each universe involved in the original game. Super Smash Bros. Brawl also remixed several of the music stage themes from Melee.

  Brawl Stages

  Battlefield
  Final Destination
  Delfino Plaza
  Mushroomy Kingdom
  Mario Circuit
  WarioWare, Inc.
  Rumble Falls
  Bridge of Eldin
  Norfair
  Frigate Orpheon
  Yoshi's Island
  Halberd
  Lylat Cruise
  Pokémon Stadium 2
  Port Town Aero Dive
  Castle Siege
  Distant Planet
  Smashville
  New Pork City
  Summit
  Flat Zone 2
  Skyworld
  Shadow Moses Island
  Luigi's Mansion
  Pirate Ship
  Spear Pillar
  75m
  Mario Bros.
  PictoChat
  Hanenbow
  Green Hill Zone

  Melee Stages

  Rainbow Cruise
  Jungle Japes
  Temple
  Brinstar
  Yoshi's Island
  Green Greens
  Corneria
  Pokémon Stadium
  Big Blue
  Onett

In Smash 4Edit

 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, showing the normal stages.
 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, showing the extra stages.
 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, showing the normal stages.
 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, showing the extra stages.

Stages in Super Smash Bros. 4 differ depending on the version. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS features 42 stages total (seven of which are unlockable, shown in bold, and eight of which were downloadable content). Super Smash Bros. for Wii U features 55 stages (six of which are unlockable, shown in bold, and nine of which were downloadable content). Bold and italic text denotes stages that are unlockable in one version, but a starter/downloadable stage in the other. 13 stages appear in both versions (with some having changes), however, the majority of stages are exclusive to each version, with 3DS stages primarily pulled from handheld games and Wii U stages from console games (though, there are some exceptions). In addition, this is the first game where stages from all the past entries return at once.

As of March 27th, 2023, due to the discontinuation of the Nintendo eShop for the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U systems, downloadable stages can no longer be purchased.

All stages now have an optional Ω form (Omega Form), changing their layout to be similar to Final Destination - some have walls that go all the way down to the bottom blast line, while others are basically floating islands.

Most stages can be played with up to eight players in the Wii U version, though some are too complex or too small to handle that many fighters at once and will be disabled in the stage select when more players than allowed are present. Normally this is the traditional four (marked 4P below), but some stages will still allow up to six (6P). Conversely, some others are restricted to four players even on their Ω forms (), whereas most stages still allow the full eight on their Ω form even if restricted otherwise.

Starting from this game is the disabling of Star KOs and Screen KOs on certain stages.

  Both Versions

  Battlefield
  Final Destination
  Boxing Ring
  Gaur Plain
  Duck Hunt (  added in version 1.1.1 /   available at release)
  4P Wily Castle
  Super Mario Maker (DLC)
  Suzaku Castle (DLC)
  Midgar (DLC)
  Umbra Clock Tower (DLC)
Familiar stages
    Peach's Castle (64) (DLC)
    Hyrule Castle (64) (DLC)
    Dream Land (64) (DLC)

  Nintendo 3DS Stages

  3D Land
  Golden Plains
  Rainbow Road
  Paper Mario
  Gerudo Valley
  Spirit Train
  Dream Land
  Unova Pokémon League
  Prism Tower
  Mute City
  Magicant
  Arena Ferox
  Reset Bomb Forest
  Tortimer Island
  Balloon Fight
  Living Room
  Find Mii
  Tomodachi Life
  PictoChat 2
  Pac-Maze
Familiar stages
    Jungle Japes
    Brinstar
    Corneria
    Mushroomy Kingdom
    WarioWare, Inc.
    Yoshi's Island
    Distant Planet
    Flat Zone 2
    Green Hill Zone

  Wii U Stages

  Big Battlefield
  4P Mushroom Kingdom U
  Mario Galaxy
  Mario Circuit
  4P Jungle Hijinxs
  4P Skyloft
  Pyrosphere
  4P Woolly World
  The Great Cave Offensive
  4P Orbital Gate Assault
  4P Kalos Pokémon League
  Coliseum
  6P Flat Zone X
  Palutena's Temple
  4P Gamer
  4P Garden of Hope
  Town and City
  Wii Fit Studio
  4P Wrecking Crew
  4P Pilotwings
  Wuhu Island
  Windy Hill Zone
  6P Pac-Land
  Miiverse (added in version 1.0.8)
Familiar Stages
    Kongo Jungle 64
    Temple
    Yoshi's Island
    Onett
    4P Delfino Plaza
    Mario Circuit (Brawl)
    Luigi's Mansion
    75m
    Bridge of Eldin
    Pirate Ship (DLC)
    Norfair
    4P Halberd
    Lylat Cruise
    Pokémon Stadium 2
    4P Port Town Aero Dive
    Castle Siege
    6P Skyworld
    Smashville

In UltimateEdit

 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, showing the normal stages.
 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate with Stage Morph enabled.
 
The stage select for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate with the "First to" rule set to 3 Wins or more.

There are 115 versus stages in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. 19 stages are unique to Ultimate while the other 96 comprise nearly every stage from previous Smash games: 7 from Super Smash Bros., 19 from Super Smash Bros. Melee, 26 from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and 44 from Super Smash Bros. 4 (18 from the 3DS version, 18 from the Wii U version, and eight that are in both versions). Ω forms return for each stage, along with a new Battlefield form for every stage. All Battlefield and Ω forms have the same size and terrain as Battlefield and Final Destination, respectively. All stages now allow eight players.

Not counting either single-player only stages or previous versions of Battlefield and Final Destination, there are only 15 stages that do not return in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate; two from Smash 64 (Planet Zebes and Sector Z), four from Melee (Icicle Mountain, Mute City, Mushroom Kingdom and Poké Floats), two from Brawl (Rumble Falls and PictoChat), two from for Nintendo 3DS (Rainbow Road and Pac-Maze), and five from Smash for Wii U (Miiverse, Woolly World, Orbital Gate Assault, Jungle Hijinxs and Pyrosphere). Flat Zone and Flat Zone 2 do not return either, but Flat Zone X is an amalgam between them. Another unique case are the World 1-2 version of Mushroomy Kingdom and the black and white version of Dream Land GB that are also absent.

A new rules option allows stage hazards to be turned off. Stages are ordered by when they first appeared in the Super Smash Bros. series. Unlike previous entries, all stages are available from the start. Ultimate also introduces Stage Morph, an option that allows players to choose two different stages which will transition back and forth over the course of a battle.

The stage selection screen now precedes the character selection screen unlike in previous titles.


  Ultimate Stages

  Battlefield
  Small Battlefield (added in version 8.1.0)
  Big Battlefield
  Final Destination
  New Donk City Hall
  Great Plateau Tower
  Moray Towers
  Dracula's Castle
  Mementos (DLC)
  Yggdrasil's Altar (DLC)
  Spiral Mountain (DLC)
  King of Fighters Stadium (DLC)
  Garreg Mach Monastery (DLC)
  Spring Stadium (DLC)
  Minecraft World (DLC)
  Northern Cave (DLC)
  Cloud Sea of Alrest (DLC)
  Mishima Dojo (DLC)
  Hollow Bastion (DLC)

Familiar Stages

    Peach's Castle
    Kongo Jungle
    Hyrule Castle
    Super Happy Tree
    Dream Land
    Saffron City
    Mushroom Kingdom
    Princess Peach's Castle
    Rainbow Cruise
    Kongo Falls
    Jungle Japes
    Great Bay
    Temple
    Brinstar
    Yoshi's Island (Melee)
    Yoshi's Story
    Fountain of Dreams
    Green Greens
    Corneria
    Venom
    Pokémon Stadium
    Onett
    Mushroom Kingdom II
    Brinstar Depths
    Big Blue
    Fourside
    Delfino Plaza
    Mushroomy Kingdom
    Figure-8 Circuit
    WarioWare, Inc.
    Bridge of Eldin
    Norfair
    Frigate Orpheon
    Yoshi's Island
    Halberd
    Lylat Cruise
    Pokémon Stadium 2
    Port Town Aero Dive
    Castle Siege
    Distant Planet
    Smashville
    New Pork City
    Summit
    Skyworld
    Shadow Moses Island
    Luigi's Mansion
    Pirate Ship
    Spear Pillar
    75m
    Mario Bros.
    Hanenbow
    Green Hill Zone
    Boxing Ring
    Gaur Plain
    Duck Hunt
    Wily Castle
    Super Mario Maker
    Suzaku Castle
    Midgar
    Umbra Clock Tower
    3D Land
    Golden Plains
    Paper Mario
    Gerudo Valley
    Spirit Train
    Dream Land GB
    Unova Pokémon League
    Prism Tower
    Mute City SNES
    Magicant
    Arena Ferox
    Reset Bomb Forest
    Tortimer Island
    Balloon Fight
    Living Room
    Find Mii
    Tomodachi Life
    PictoChat 2
    Mushroom Kingdom U
    Mario Galaxy
    Mario Circuit
    Skyloft
    The Great Cave Offensive
    Kalos Pokémon League
    Coliseum
    Flat Zone X
    Palutena's Temple
    Gamer
    Garden of Hope
    Town and City
    Wii Fit Studio
    Wrecking Crew
    Pilotwings
    Wuhu Island
    Windy Hill Zone
    Pac-Land

Single-player stagesEdit

In the single-player modes and challenges, a number of stages appear that aren't available in versus mode without hacking or accessing it via the Debug menu.

  • The Home-Run Contest stages in Melee, Brawl, SSB4, and Ultimate involve a central platform from which Sandbag is hit, and a very long stretch of ground to the right of the platform for it to land upon.
  • In Melee's "trophy tussle" event matches, the player fights CPUs upon a stage that takes the form of a giant object, the trophy for which he or she wins after completing the event.
  • The original Super Smash Bros. Board the Platforms stages function as agility tests, and there are 12 in total - each one is designed to challenge the player's character.
  • Like Board the Platforms, Break the Targets and Target Test stages of the original Super Smash Bros. and Melee respectively are tailored to challenge each character - 12 exist in the original and 25 in Melee. Some of Melee's Target Test stages are decorated in reference to their character's universe; Pikachu's, for example, has decorative Poké Balls in its walls, while the Ice Climbers' look like a level from the game Ice Climber. Brawl, however, simply has five Target Smash! stages for all characters, each representing a different difficulty level.
  • Areas in Adventure Mode and the Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary are technically defined as stages.
  • The Online Practice Stage in Brawl, SSB4, and Ultimate is playable only while waiting for an online match to load.
  • The controls test stage in Brawl, SSB4, and Ultimate is playable only for the purpose of testing custom controls, and only as Mario, or as Mii Fighters in SSB4 and Ultimate.

In Super Smash Bros.Edit

In MeleeEdit

In BrawlEdit

Note: In Brawl, most of these stages can be played with two players.

In Smash 4Edit

Note: As with Brawl, most of these stages can be played with two players.

In UltimateEdit

Note: As with Brawl and the Wii U version, some of these stages can be played with two players.

Non-playable stagesEdit

Some stages are inaccessible through normal means. These non-playable stages are accessible only through the use of hacks and debug programs, such as Action Replay. Some, such as "Test", were presumably used for testing during game development, while others, such as the "Tutorial Stage", are used in the game but not for the purpose of gameplay.

In Super Smash Bros.Edit

In MeleeEdit

In BrawlEdit

  • 1-Player Mode Credits - the file name of the single-player mode credits is "STGCHARACROLL.pac", which technically defines it as a stage.
  • Results Screen - the results screen that appears after a match is a stage, playable only through hacking [1]

In for Wii UEdit

  • Photo Studio backgrounds - The backgrounds are all considered separate stages, and can only be played by hacking.

In UltimateEdit

  • Results Screen - Similar to Brawl, this is programmed in as a nearly fully-playable stage, accessible only by hacking. There are also separate variants of the stage specifically for Joker and Sephiroth's victory poses.[2]
  • Free the Spirit screen - This is also programmed in as a stage, only accessible by hacking.[3]
  • Staff Roll screen - This is also programmed in as a stage, only accessible by hacking. It has at least a bottom blast line programmed in, but no other surfaces.[4]

Custom StagesEdit

Brawl introduced the Stage Builder, a tool that allows players to build their own stages, for use in multiplayer matches, using sets of provided objects, some unlockable. Brawl includes a set of Sample Stages that were built using the Stage Builder. The stage builder can also be used to build No KO stages and "CD Factories" - exploitative stages used for quickly obtaining CDs. The Stage Builder returns in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, with some features removed and other features added. In version 3.0.0 of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the stage builder was released with most features found in the Wii U version and significantly more features to make it the most robust version in the series.

In competitive playEdit

Only Versus Mode stages are even considered to be tournament legal, as hacking the game to use single player stages and the requirement for each what would be tournament legal custom stage to be on each console are too much of a hassle for tournament organizers. After that, the general requirements for stage legality are usually minimal random events, no significant mid-match layout alterations, no design aspects that promote camping or stalling, and no design aspects that give a player an unfair advantage over their opponent. For these reasons, relatively few stages are universally agreed as tournament legal, with the rest being banned. While the legality of every stage will forever be contested and debated, most major tournaments abide by the same stage setlist and must unanimously agree to ban or unban a stage.

TriviaEdit

  • Ultimate is the only installment to not have any unlockable stages.
  • From Brawl onward (except in for Nintendo 3DS), stages on the stage select screen show the logo of their origin game (or origin series). However, due to localization differences or certain games not being released in certain regions, various inconsistencies show up:
    • If the language is set to Latin American Spanish or Canadian French, all logos will use their US English version.
    • If the language is set to Castilian Spanish, European French, UK English, German, or Italian, all logos will use their properly translated European versions.
    • If the language is set to Dutch or Russian, all logos will use the UK English version. (Differences between US English and UK English logos can be seen for games such as Pokémon Red and Blue versions, Tomodachi Life, Xenoblade Chronicles, WarioWare, Inc., and Fire Emblem Awakening.)
    • If the language is set to Korean, games not released in South Korea use an inconsistent mixture of Japanese, US English, and UK English logos, for example using the UK English logo for Xenoblade Chronicles, the US English logo for Fire Emblem Awakening, and the Japanese logo for Super Mario USA and Made in Wario.
    • If the language is set to Traditional or Simplified Chinese, a different inconsistent mixture appears, such as using the UK English logo for Tomodachi Life and the Japanese logo for Xenoblade Chronicles.
      • As a unique difference between Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese translates the logo for Nintendogs into Chinese, while Traditional Chinese leaves the logo untranslated.
    • If the language is set to either Japanese or Chinese, the origin game for Magicant is listed as Mother. If the language is set to Korean or any Western language, the origin game is instead listed as EarthBound (and not EarthBound Beginnings), despite those being two completely different games.
    • The logo for the game Find Mii is the only one to differ in all 14 languages.
    • Despite these changes, Kirby Super Star uses its American logo even when the regional settings are set to Europe or Australia, where it is known as Kirby's Fun Pak.
  • Port Town Aero Dive has its origin game listed as both F-Zero GX and F-Zero AX, and is the only stage to list more than one title outside of Pokémon series stages.
  • The R.O.B. universe is the only franchise with a playable character to have never had a stage in any game whatsoever.
    • Somewhat on the contrary, the Nintendo DS universe is technically the only franchise with more than one stage to never have a character in any game whatsoever (though many characters in the series did make their debut on the system).
  • Yoshi has the highest amount of stages among the franchises that only have a single fighter, with an amount of 5.
    • However, if Mario sub-franchises are discounted, then F-Zero has the highest amount of stages among the franchise with only a single fighter, with an amount of 4.
  • In Ultimate, certain Poké Ball Pokémon and Assist Trophy characters cannot be summoned on certain stages, either due to the stage design hindering their abilities or another of them already appearing the stage's background. For example, Nikki cannot appear in Fourside due to the dark background obscuring her drawings, Alucard cannot appear in Wii Fit Studio due to the giant mirror in the background (since he is a vampire, which does not have a reflection), and Knuckles and Palkia cannot appear on Green Hill Zone and Spear Pillar, respectively, due to already appearing on those stages.

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit