Spot dodge
A spotdodge (also called a spot dodge or a sidestep, officially known as a sidestep dodge in Melee[1] and Brawl[2], known as an on-the-spot dodge in Japanese (その場回避)[3] and in Ultimate[4], and named EscapeN by Melee's Debug Menu and Brawl and Smash 4's internal character files) is a maneuver in Melee, Brawl, Smash 4, and Ultimate that renders the character intangible for a few frames, with the duration varying based on the game and character. Functionally similar to an air dodge, it is performed by pressing down while shielding, and can be employed to evade any and all harm of short duration. It is perhaps most useful in dodging projectiles and items along with quickly counter-attacking foes during the ending lag of their missed attack.
The spotdodge is the shortest and fastest of the three dodges (roll, spotdodge, and air dodge), and the only one where the player effectively remains stationary.
Though the spotdodge animation shows the character leaning into the back or foreground, the intangibile state gained allows the character to dodge all attacks, including those that come from the foreground or background, such as the lava wave in Norfair. The character's leaning position after the intangibility ends can also result in evading attacks due to the three-dimensional nature of hitboxes, most notably King Dedede being significantly outside the playing plane for most of his spotdodge's ending lag.
Spotdodge frame list in Melee
| Characters | Intangibility Frames | Total Frames | Total Intangibility Frames | Ending Vulnerability Frames | % Vulnerability vs Intangibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Mario | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Falco | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Fox | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Kirby | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Link | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Luigi | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Mario | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Pichu | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Pikachu | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Samus | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Sheik | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Yoshi | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Young Link | 2-15 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Jigglypuff | 2-15 | 27 | 14 | 12 | 85.7% |
| Ice Climbers | 2-18 | 27 | 17 | 9 | 52.9% |
| Marth | 2-18 | 27 | 17 | 9 | 52.9% |
| Ness | 2-18 | 27 | 17 | 9 | 52.9% |
| Peach | 2-18 | 27 | 17 | 9 | 52.9% |
| Roy | 2-18 | 27 | 17 | 9 | 52.9% |
| Mr. Game & Watch | 2-12 | 32 | 11 | 20 | 181.81% |
| Ganondorf | 2-20 | 32 | 19 | 12 | 63.1% |
| Captain Falcon | 3-20 | 32 | 19 | 12 | 63.1% |
| Zelda | 3-20 | 32 | 19 | 12 | 63.1% |
| Mewtwo | 2-21 | 37 | 20 | 16 | 80% |
| Donkey Kong | 2-23 | 37 | 22 | 14 | 63.63% |
| Bowser | 4-24 | 42 | 21 | 18 | 85.7% |
Spotdodge frame list in Brawl
| Characters | Intangibility Frames | Total Frames |
|---|---|---|
| Falco | 2-20 | 22 |
| Link | 2-20 | 22 |
| Pikachu | 2-20 | 22 |
| Toon Link | 2-20 | 22 |
| Yoshi | 2-20 | 22 |
| Marth | 2-20 | 24 |
| Captain Falcon | 2-20 | 25 |
| Charizard | 2-20 | 25 |
| Diddy Kong | 2-20 | 25 |
| Fox | 2-20 | 25 |
| Ganondorf* | 2-20 | 25 |
| Ice Climbers | 2-20 | 25 |
| Ike | 2-20 | 25 |
| Ivysaur | 2-20 | 25 |
| Kirby | 2-20 | 25 |
| Lucario | 2-20 | 25 |
| Lucas | 2-20 | 25 |
| Luigi | 2-20 | 25 |
| Mario | 2-20 | 25 |
| Meta Knight | 2-20 | 25 |
| Mr. Game & Watch | 2-20 | 25 |
| Ness | 2-20 | 25 |
| Peach | 2-20 | 25 |
| Pit | 2-20 | 25 |
| R.O.B. | 2-20 | 25 |
| Samus | 2-20 | 25 |
| Sheik | 2-20 | 25 |
| Snake | 2-20 | 25 |
| Sonic | 2-20 | 25 |
| Squirtle | 2-20 | 25 |
| Wario | 2-20 | 25 |
| Wolf | 2-20 | 25 |
| Zelda | 2-20 | 25 |
| Zero Suit Samus | 2-20 | 25 |
| Jigglypuff | 3-16 | 25 |
| Olimar | 3-20 | 25 |
| King Dedede** | 2-20 | 27 |
| Donkey Kong | 2-23 | 30 |
| Bowser | 3-24 | 32 |
* Moves back slightly.
** Moves significantly back on the Z-axis, to where he's intangible to most attacks for all but 1 frame in his spotdodge. Attacks need to have wide hitboxes that reach far into the Z-axis, or hit low enough to hit Dedede's foot that sticks out, to hit him during his vulnerable frames in his spotdodge.
Spotdodge frame list in Smash 4
This is the frame data of spotdodges as of version 1.1.5 of both Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Note that, prior to version 1.1.0, all spotdoges had 1 more frame of intangibility.
| Characters | Intangibility Frames | Total Frames |
|---|---|---|
| Duck Hunt | 2-16 | 24 |
| Fox | 2-15 | 24 |
| Little Mac | 2-15 | 24 |
| Meta Knight | 2-15 | 24 |
| Pikachu | 2-15 | 24 |
| Sheik | 2-15 | 24 |
| Sonic | 2-15 | 24 |
| Toon Link | 2-15 | 24 |
| Zero Suit Samus | 2-15 | 24 |
| Mewtwo | 2-14 | 24 |
| Dark Pit | 2-16 | 25 |
| Diddy Kong | 2-16 | 25 |
| Falco | 2-16 | 25 |
| Greninja | 2-16 | 25 |
| Mr. Game & Watch | 2-16 | 25 |
| Pit | 2-16 | 25 |
| Wii Fit Trainer | 2-16 | 25 |
| Dr. Mario | 2-17 | 26 |
| Kirby | 2-17 | 26 |
| Lucina | 2-17 | 26 |
| Luigi | 2-17 | 26 |
| Mario | 2-17 | 26 |
| Marth | 3-17 | 26 |
| Mii Brawler | 2-17 | 26 |
| Mii Gunner | 2-17 | 26 |
| Olimar | 2-17 | 26 |
| Pac-Man | 2-17 | 26 |
| R.O.B. | 2-17 | 26 |
| Rosalina | 2-17 | 26 |
| Roy | 2-17 | 26 |
| Samus | 2-17 | 26 |
| Wario | 3-17 | 26 |
| Lucario | 2-15 | 26 |
| Corrin | 3-17 | 26 |
| Bowser Jr. | 3-18 | 27 |
| Captain Falcon | 3-18 | 27 |
| Charizard | 3-18 | 27 |
| Cloud | 3-18 | 27 |
| Ike | 3-18 | 27 |
| Link | 3-18 | 27 |
| Lucas | 3-18 | 27 |
| Mega Man | 3-18 | 27 |
| Mii Swordfighter | 3-18 | 27 |
| Ness | 3-18 | 27 |
| Palutena | 3-18 | 27 |
| Peach | 3-18 | 27 |
| Robin | 3-18 | 27 |
| Shulk | 3-18 | 27 |
| Villager | 3-18 | 27 |
| Yoshi | 3-18 | 27 |
| Zelda | 3-18 | 27 |
| Ryu | 3-17 | 27 |
| Bowser | 4-19 | 28 |
| Donkey Kong | 4-19 | 28 |
| Ganondorf | 4-19 | 28 |
| Jigglypuff | 4-19 | 28 |
| King Dedede | 4-19 | 28 |
| Bayonetta* | 5-19 | 29 |
*Activates Bat Within if hit on frames 1-4.
References
- ^ Super Smash Bros. Melee How to Play video
- ^ "Shielding & Dodging" page on Smash Bros. DOJO!! (October 4, 2007). Retrieved on December 16, 2018.
- ^ "Shielding & Dodging" page on the Japanese version of Smash Bros. DOJO!! (October 4, 2007). Retrieved on December 16, 2018.
- ^ "On-the-Spot Dodge Into Counter Attack" tip from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ("If you dodge on the spot, you can quickly cancel it with an attack. You can smoothly move from a dodge into a counterattack".)
