Bowser (SSB4)

Bowser in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Mario
Other playable appearances	in Melee in Brawl in Ultimate
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Giga Bowser
Tier	C (24)

Bowser (クッパ, Koopa) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. His return to the series was indirectly announced during the E3 Nintendo Direct on June 11th, 2013. Bowser retains his voice clips from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, although they have been heavily altered.

Bowser is currently ranked 24th out of 55 on the tier list, placing him in the C tier. This is a significant improvement over his bottom-tier placement in Brawl, where he was ranked 33rd out of 38, and is the first time in the series that Bowser has not been ranked as a bottom-tier character, thus resulting in his best placement in the series yet. Many of Bowser's previous weaknesses have been remedied: he is much more mobile, has much greater range, and has noticeably improved combo and grab games. Aside from his new benefits, he retains his excellent endurance, overall high damage output, and very strong KOing options. Lastly, the implementation of rage supplements his already outstanding power.

However, Bowser retains an extremely poor defensive game, and it is considered among the worst in SSB4; Bowser's only effective out of shield option is Whirling Fortress, and both his rolls and sidesteps are short-distanced and grant a minimal amount of intangibility frames. His large size and status as a super heavyweight also make him extremely susceptible to combos, which is further compounded by his lack of effective combo breakers. Although Bowser retains Fire Breath as a projectile, his large size nevertheless makes him vulnerable to camping. Bowser's recovery is also unimpressive, as Whirling Fortress' general linearity and predictability make him vulnerable to gimping.

Bowser's perception in the metagame has fluctuated over SSB4's lifespan. He was initially considered a poor character in the first year of release for SSB4, but after update 1.1.3 re-purposed his up throw into a potent combo starter, even leading into kills at certain percentages when comboed into up aerial. Bowser began to experience greater tournament success and a larger playerbase. Greward has won a few regional and national tournaments, while LordMix and Nairo have been able to win difficult matchups against high-level players of top-tier characters; LordMix has defeated Vinnie's Rosalina & Luma and VoiD's Sheik, while Nairo has defeated ZeRo's Diddy Kong, Tweek's Cloud, Zinoto's Diddy Kong, and Mr.E's Marth. However, Bowser’s current tier placement is debatable, as his representation and results noticeably declined after Nairo stopped using the character. Another Bowser named Deluxemenu from Texas who mains the character placed 9th at DreamHack Austin 2017, however there is a lack of more recent results as he has attended less tournaments.

Attributes

Unlike in Melee and Brawl, Bowser boasts a respectable level of speed to go alongside his renowned power. While he retains slow walking and falling speeds, high gravity, average air speed, slow air acceleration and the slowest jumpsquat, his dashing speed and double jump's height have both been significantly increased. This grants him mobility that is average overall, yet balanced compared to most heavyweights. As the heaviest character in the game, Bowser has the greatest level of horizontal endurance, as well as the third greatest level of vertical endurance, being surpassed only by his fellow super heavyweights King Dedede and Donkey Kong.

Bowser's greatest strength is his immense power. Since most of his attacks are highly damaging, Bowser has an easy time racking up damage, especially when compared to combo-oriented characters like Luigi and Sheik. In addition, most of his moves have high knockback, granting him numerous (if not the largest number of) KOing options. Some of his moves are among the strongest of the cast, including the one of the strongest meteor smashes in his down aerial, one of the strongest semi-spikes in his back aerial and the second strongest forward smash, which is surpassed only marginally by King Dedede and maximum Aura Lucario's. The introduction of rage further amplifies the power of his moves without reducing the efficiency of his combos. Bowser's great endurance can also allow him to take full advantage of it, as it is very difficult to KO him without a strong attack. Furthermore, Bowser has great range in many of his attacks, allowing him to space opponents more easily than many other characters. Combined with the aforementioned perks, Bowser is proficient at edgeguarding.

Bowser also has a formidable grab game. While not particularly fast, his grabs have among the longest ranges in the game, with his pivot grab being notoriously effective, making it easy for him to grab opponents that are not right next to him. His pummel and his forward, back and down throws deal respectable damage. His up throw's low damage output is counterbalanced by its low knockback, which grants Bowser many reliable follow-ups until around 75%, depending mostly on the opponent's falling speed. His down throw is the optimal choice for either forcing opponents off-stage for an edgeguard or preventing his other throws from becoming stale. His back throw is among the strongest, being surpassed only by Ness, Toon Link, Mewtwo, Villager, Lucas, Dr. Mario, and Mario's, and can KO at 180% from center-stage. His forward throw is the strongest of its kind in the game, reliably KOing any character at 180% from center-stage.

Lastly, Bowser has a versatile special moveset. Fire Breath is Bowser's only projectile, which can be used to fend off opponents or gimp recoveries due to it ability to be angled, while the nerf to SDI makes it quite difficult to escape when caught up close. Flying Slam is a command grab, allowing it to ignore shields and counterattacks. Upon a successful grab, Bowser is invincible up until he jumps to perform a flipping belly-to-belly suplex that deals enough knockback to KO around 120% or even earlier if he lands on a platform. After getting grabbed, the opponent cannot do anything other than slightly alter the move's trajectory. Whirling Fortress is Bowser's primary means of recovery, granting below average vertical distance but good horizontal distance; button mashing increases the move's vertical distance if done close to the end of the move, while shortening it if done at the start. Whirling Fortress is also a phenomenal out of shield option, as well as Bowser's fastest attack. Lastly, Bowser Bomb is very powerful and can be used as an alternative to fast-falling, making it useful for grabbing the ledge while at the same time threatening edgeguarders. It also deals additional shield damage, meaning that a shield break will occur if both of its hits connect.

However, Bowser has some glaring flaws. One of his biggest problems is air-to-ground transitioning. All of his aerials have at least 20 frames of landing lag, with his back and down aerials having 40 frames each. As none of his aerials have favorable autocancel windows, returning to the ground is very difficult for him, or even impossible without air dodging and/or fast-falling, due to his slow aerial mobility. As a result, Bowser is quite vulnerable to combos and heavily susceptible to juggling, making it easy for opponents to rack up damage on him, further worsened by his large size. His down aerial is his only move that can help mitigate these issues, but its aforementioned landing lag and stall-then-fall status can make it quite unreliable most of the time. His moveset, while fast compared to most heavyweights, is slow when compared to the rest of the cast, limiting his combo starters to only up throw and jab canceled neutral attack, and making it difficult for him to keep up with faster opponents, such as Sonic. This also compounds another noticeable problem: his ability to escape pressure. Due to his slow rolls and sidestep, with the former also being short-distanced, Bowser's only real method of dealing with pressure is Whirling Fortress, which can be punished if executed too late. Some of his moves are also inevitable KOs if used off-stage, namely his two stall-then-falls, down aerial and Bowser Bomb, as well as Flying Slam. Lastly, despite his recovery being rather long-distanced, it is among the slowest of the cast, making aggressive edgeguarding more than enough to KO Bowser.

Bowser benefits greatly from custom moves. Compared to Fire Breath, Fire Shot is slower and has noticeable intervals between each fireball, but has more range and deals consistent damage, which make it better for Bowser's neutral and edgeguarding games. Dash Slam is drastically weaker, but has a lower launch angle and propels Bowser forward, making it easier for him to grab opponents. Dash Slash deals less damage, but deals high knockback, hits throughout most of its animation and maintains the default version's autocanceling, granting Bowser a very reliable move for approaching and setting up combos. Both Flying Slam alternatives can also improve his recovery. Lastly, Flying Fortress cannot be used out of shield, but grants twice as much vertical distance at high speed, significantly improving Bowser's vertical recovery.

Overall, Bowser is a surprisingly speedy powerhouse who relies on a defensive, bait and punish-oriented playstyle. As such, he requires timing his attacks carefully or focusing on punishing his opponents' mistakes in order to avoid serious punishment himself. While Bowser's overall representation in high-level and top-level play has been smaller than higher tiered characters, players such as LordMix and Nairo have managed to achieve notable results, with many players arguing his tier placement should be higher. The most notable instance of this is ZeRo, who considers Bowser to be a high-tier character.

Changes from Brawl

Bowser has been buffed significantly in the transition to SSB4. Most of his moveset and animations have been completely revamped for the better: his range has been increased and his mobility is much faster overall. His endurance and recovery have also been greatly improved, which improves his survivability, whereas his attacks have become even more powerful than they were in Melee. Lastly, Bowser now sports a significantly more reliable combo game thanks to his up throw receiving immense buffs in update 1.1.3. All of these improvements have rendered his disadvantage state and punishment games safer and more rewarding, respectively, than in previous games, while also remedying many of his flaws.

The changes to gameplay physics and mechanics brought about by SSB4 also significantly aid Bowser. The universal nerfing of campable projectiles significantly helps his approach, although he still susceptible to it because of his larger size. The removal of chain grabbing eliminates the zero-to-death or otherwise heavily damaging combos that plagued Bowser in Melee and Brawl. The changes to shield mechanics, namely the bonus shield damage and the increased shieldstun makes his attacks safer and harder to punish, as well as allowing him to shatter a shield more easily. Lastly, the introduction of the rage mechanic results in his outstanding endurance and power becoming even more useful than ever before.

Bowser has, however, received a few nerfs. While helping his endurance, his increased weight and the changes to hitstun canceling now render him more vulnerable to combos, similarly to in Melee. The frame data on his attacks is also slightly slower in general to compensate for the increased power in many of his moves. Lastly, Flying Slam also now causes Bowser to be KO'd first while the opponent does not go through their grab released animation, making Bowsercide a less viable tactic to KO an opponent. His overall damage output has also been decreased. To compound these nerfs, a great number of Brawl veterans, notably his fellow bottom-tier characters such as Mario and Captain Falcon have also been buffed to various degrees in their transition as well. These changes, however, are notably offset by the very useful buffs Bowser has received, which has resulted on him becoming much better than he ever was in previous installments.

Aesthetics

• Due to the aesthetic used in SSB4, Bowser has a sleeker design, and his overall color scheme is significantly more vibrant. Unlike in previous installments, he now stands upright, and his pupils are smaller. Altogether, these changes make Bowser virtually identical to his appearance as of Super Mario 3D Land.
• Bowser's brown alternate costume has been slightly updated. His hair is now orange, instead of red. Bowser has also received five new alternate costumes, one of which is based on Blue Bowser.
• Dash, roll, double jump, air dodge, crouch, and crawl's animations have changed. Bowser now dashes on both legs instead of shuttling along the ground, and he remains upright instead of retreating into his shell when rolling, jumping, or air dodging. Bowser's crouch also appears similar to his crouching defensive stance from Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story.
• A shadow has been added to the interior of Bowser's shell, which obscures his face (except for his eyes) whenever he withdraws into his shell.
• Aside from his star KO voice clip, Bowser's other voice clips have been updated.
• Bowser's body now faces the screen regardless of whether he's facing left or right.

Attributes

• Like other large characters, such as Donkey Kong and King Dedede, Bowser's general size in proportion to the other playable characters is also greater than in previous installments. This improves his range, but makes his hurtbox larger.
• Bowser's new upright posture has translated into his moveset, be it through a tweaked animation or a completely new move.
• Bowser now has a unique attribute, Tough Guy. It is universal armor against attacks that deal less than 19 units of knockback, such as the first hit of many neutral attacks. It is amplified if he has low damage and/or is crouching, but not while attacking or crawling. Its effectiveness wanes as Bowser receives more damage, to the point that it will eventually become unusable.
• Bowser is heavier (120 → 130). This improves his endurance, but makes him more susceptible to combos.
• Bowser walks faster (0.8 → 0.858). His walking speed while carrying heavy items also now surpasses Donkey Kong's, although DK still surpasses him in regard to jumping or falling with them.
• Bowser dashes faster (1.527 → 1.792).
• Bowser's air speed is slower (1.034 → 1.0).
• Double jump is significantly higher.
• Item throw is stronger (1.31432 → 1.33432).
• The changes to hitstun canceling both help and hinder Bowser. They significantly improve his combo potential, but make him more susceptible to combos.
• The removal of chain grabbing significantly improves Bowser's endurance.
• The 19% damage increase to shields and the increase to shieldstun make some of Bowser's attacks much better at pressuring shields.
• Bowser's ground release animation has received 10 more frames, now matching the rest of the cast. This gives him less time to counterattack.

Ground attacks

• Bowser has a new neutral attack: an alternating pair of punches. Compared to the previous neutral attack, its second hit deals more damage (5% → 6.5%).
• Forward tilt deals more damage (11% → 12%), slightly improving its KO potential.
• Forward tilt no longer has a 40% bonus trip chance when angled down.
• Up tilt deals less damage (12% → 9%), hindering its KO potential. It also has increased start-up lag (frame 8 → 11).
• Up tilt has larger coverage around Bowser, no longer whiffing against opponents right in front of him. It also has decreased ending lag (frame 51 → 41), giving it better combo potential.
• Bowser has a new down tilt: an alternating pair of hooks. Compared to the previous down tilt, this new animation properly matches its hitboxes' placements, and the second hit has more range.
• Bowser has a new dash attack, a side kick. Compared to the previous dash attack, it deals more damage (11% (clean)/8% (late) → 12%/10%), less ending lag, and significantly more range. It also has different knockback (120 (base)/30 (scaling) → 110/35) compared to the previous dash attack.
• Dash attack has more start-up lag (frame 10 → 11) and much smaller hitboxes compared to the previous dash attack.
• Bowser has a new forward smash: a dropkick. Compared to the previous forward smash, its sweetspots have more knockback scaling (81 → 98), making it much better at KOing. It also has less start-up lag (frame 27 → 22) and significantly more range. It has late hitboxes that cannot rebound, making it safer, while its sourspots have increased knockback (22 (base)/81 (scaling) → 10/103) and launch at the same angle as the sweetspots (60° → 361°).
• Forward smash only hits once, reducing its overall damage potential (33%/31% → 23%/20%). It also has more ending lag (frame 67 → 70).
• Up smash has increased knockback scaling (80 (sweetspot)/90 (sourspot) → 90/100), improving its KO potential. Additionally, its first hit has a longer duration (frames 16-22 → 16-23) and its sweetspot can now hit grounded opponents. Lastly, the first hit cannot rebound, preventing it from being canceled out by opposing attacks.
• Up smash's landing hit has more startup (frame 31 → 37), and deals less damage (12%/10% → 6%) with its base knockback only slightly compensated (60 → 80), hindering its KO potential. The move also has more ending lag (frame 53 → 58).
• Down smash's first hit has been transitioned into a separate hitbox that is active right before Bowser starts spinning, giving it faster startup (frame 15 → 10). The weakening of SDI also makes the move significantly more difficult to escape from.
• Down smash has more ending lag (frame 69 → 72), and its second to sixth hits deal less damage (2% → 1%), reducing its total damage output (21% → 16%). It also has decreased knockback scaling (140 → 130), hindering its KO potential.
• Down smash's angle was altered (65° → 48°).

Aerial attacks

• Bowser has a new neutral aerial: an aerial cartwheel. Compared to the previous neutral aerial, it consists of multiple hitboxes instead of a clean hit and late hit, increasing its overall damage potential (13% → 24%), has more range, a longer duration (frames 8-23 → 8-29), and less landing lag (24 frames → 20).
• Neutral aerial autocancels later (frame 40 → 45) compared to the previous neutral aerial.
• Neutral aerial launches at a higher angle (361° → 75°). This grants it combo potential, but removes its edgeguarding potential.
• Forward aerial has increased range. Its sweetspot also covers a significantly larger portion of Bowser's arm. These changes significantly improve its spacing, edgeguarding, and KO potential.
• Forward aerial has increased start-up lag (frame 8 → 11).
  • Despite this, its overall duration has not changed, resulting in Bowser's forward aerial having less ending lag.
• Bowser has a new back aerial, a dropkick. Compared to the previous back aerial, it deals more damage (15%/7% → 19%) and has slightly higher knockback (25 (base)/83 (scaling) → 20/88), making it significantly better at KOing. It also has less ending lag (frame 50 → 45), more horizontal range, and can autocancel from a short hop (frame 45 → 31).
• Back aerial has smaller hitboxes (9u/5u → 7u/5.5u), a shorter duration (frames 9-16 → 9-11), more landing lag (35 frames → 40), and less vertical range compared to the previous back aerial. It also no longer grants invincibility on Bowser's shell.
• Up aerial has decreased start-up lag (frame 16 → 9), improving its utility as a combo finisher.
• Up aerial deals less damage (17% → 15%) and has decreased knockback scaling (93 → 85), hindering its KO potential. It also has a smaller hitbox (7u → 6u).
• Down aerial is now a stall-then-fall that deals a single, highly damaging hit (3% (hits 1-9) → 16%), has a larger hitbox (4u → 7u), increased base knockback (10 → 30), and now meteor smashes during its first few frames (80° → 275°), while launching vertically during its later frames (270° → 56°). Altogether, these changes grant it KO, edgeguarding and anti-juggling potential, and improve its safety while on-stage. Due to being a stall-then-fall, it can also be used to down air stall.
• Due to consisting of one hit instead of nine, down aerial deals less total damage (29% → 18%). It also has slightly increased start-up lag (frame 14 → 17) and is much riskier to use off-stage, causing Bowser to self-destruct if initiated from ground height.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have increased ranges, now among the longest ranged non-tether grabs in the game.
• Dash grab has decreased ending lag (frame 50 → 48).
• Pivot grab has increased start-up (frame 9 → 11) and ending lag (frame 40 → 46).
• Bowser now grabs and holds the opponent with one arm, similarly to Koopa Klaw, instead of clinching them with his arms and mouth. Bowser also no longer falls over when he whiffs a dash grab.
• Forward throw deals more damage (10% → 12%) and has increased knockback scaling (50 → 66), granting it KO potential.
• Forward throw's animation has slightly changed. Bowser now rears his head to the side and sways it upward to throw the opponent, instead of rearing his head downward and then whipping it upward.
• Bowser has a new back throw: a one-armed throw, similar to Donkey Kong's back throw. Compared to the previous back throw, it deals more damage (10% → 12%) and has more knockback scaling (50 → 66), granting it KO potential.
• Up throw has reduced knockback (120 (set)/100 (scaling) → 25 (base)/180 (scaling)), less ending lag (frame 69 → 64) and launches at a higher angle (70° → 82°). Coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, this grants it significant combo potential. Its first seven hits also have a lower hitlag multiplier (1× → 0.5×), allowing the move to progress faster, while its eight hit has drastically increased knockback against bystanders (0 (base)/100 (scaling) → 80/200).
• Up throw's first seven hits deal less damage (1% → 0.5%), reducing the move's total damage output (10% → 6.5%).
• Down throw has increased knockback (75 (base)/30 (scaling) → 90/80).
• Down throw's damage output has been altered (12% (hit 1)/— (throw) → 10%/2%). While this further increases the knockback of the throw, it reduces the move's utility in doubles play, as the first hit deals less damage and knockback to bystanders.
• Floor attacks deal more damage (6% → 7%) and shield damage (1 → 8) per hit, with minimally compensated knockback scaling (50 → 48).
• Floor attacks' angles have been altered (361° → 48°).
• Bowser has a new edge attack, an inward slash similar to his 100%+ edge attack in previous installments. Compared to the previous edge attack, it deals less damage (8% → 7%), has less range, and drastically more startup with a shorter duration (frames 8-17 → 22-24). This significantly reduces its utility, no longer being one of the best edge attacks in the game.
• Edge attack grants more intangibility (frames 1-4 → 1-19) compared to the previous edge attack, and no longer has set knockback (110 (set)/100 (scaling) → 90 (base)/20 (scaling)).

Special moves

• Fire Breath now deals consistent damage (2% (near)/1% (far) → 1.2%).
• Fire Breath has larger hitboxes and increased range, and decreased start-up and ending lag. The weakening of SDI also makes the move significantly more difficult to escape from.
• Fire Breath now slightly pushes Bowser back while slightly pushing the opponent away, similarly to neutral infinites. This improves its safety, but hinders its damage racking ability.
• Flying Slam has increased knockback scaling (50 → 60), improving its KO potential. Additionally, upon a successful grab, it grants Bowser intangibility before he leaps, preventing the throw from being interrupted. Lastly, Bowser has more control over Flying Slam's trajectory, and it has received a hitbox during its landing that can hit bystanders. Altogether, these changes significantly improve its safety.
• Flying Slam's grabbox has decreased vertical range, making it more difficult to grab aerial opponents and removing Koopa hopping. Bowsercide now KOs Bowser first and the opponent is released from Flying Slam when this occurs, significantly hindering its utility.
• Aerial Whirling Fortress covers significantly more distance, especially vertically, as mashing the special move button now increases its height. It also ascends faster and can now grab edges from behind. Altogether, these changes significantly improve its recovery potential.
• Grounded Whirling Fortress now consists of eight hits instead of two, with the first seven hits having a different angle (180°), set knockback (50/70 (set)/100 (scaling)) and a lower SDI multiplier (0.8×) to allow them to connect reliably. However, the move still deals less damage overall (11% (hit 1)/5% (hit 2, clean)/3% (hit 2, late) → 1% (hits 1-7)/4% (hit 8)), and the last hit launches at a lower angle (80° → 60°), hindering its KO potential compared to the first hit in Brawl, despite its higher knockback scaling (80 → 150). Furthermore, it no longer deals shield damage.
• The 19% damage increase to shields drastically improves Bowser Bomb's shield pressuring ability, as due to its shield damage, it can now break even full shields in a single use if both the drop and landing hitbox connect. Bowser Bomb also descends faster, and the changes to hitstun canceling allow for the grounded version's first hit to true combo into the second hit.
• Some of Giga Bowser's attacks have decreased start-up lag and increased knockback.
• Some of Giga Bowser's attacks deal less damage. He also has a shorter duration (11 seconds → 8).

Update history

Bowser has received numerous buffs from game updates. However, he received one major nerf in update 1.0.4, as Flying Slam no longer KOs the opponent first if a Bowsercide is performed. On the flipside, Flying Slam has been significantly compensated for, as Bowser now has more control of its trajectory, it transitions faster, has a larger grab range, and now has invincibility frames before he leaves the ground. His up tilt, neutral aerial and Fire Shot have also been improved to varying degrees, while he significantly benefits from the changes on shield mechanics in updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1; the changes grant his attacks even more chances of breaking a character's shield and give him an open attacking opportunity, but weakens his out of shield punishes with his Whirling Fortress. Update 1.1.3 heavily buffed his grab game by re-purposing his up throw into a very reliable combo starter, though this was toned down somewhat in update 1.1.4. While Bowser's buffs do not address his more critical weaknesses, they have arguably helped to counterbalance them.

1.0.4

• Self-destructs using Flying Slam now KO Bowser first instead of the opponent. When Bowser is KO'd, the opponent is released from the grab, potentially allowing them to recover back onto the stage.
• Certain properties of Fire Breath have been adjusted.

1.0.6

• Bowser has more control over Flying Slam's trajectory.

1.0.8

• Up tilt deals 1% less damage: 10% → 9%, slightly hindering its KO potential.
• Up tilt's start-up: frame 12 → 11 and ending lag decreased: frame 51 → 41.

1.1.0

• Down smash's angle altered: 60° → 48°.

1.1.1

• Neutral aerial deals more damage: 5% (hits 1-4) → 6% and its landing lag decreased
• Fire Shot deals 1% more damage: 5% (clean)/4% (late) → 6%/5%; its base knockback increased: 25 → 35; its hit radius increased: 4u (clean)/3.5u (late) → 5u (both); its late hit's duration increased: 15 frames → 20; and its ending lag now matches Fire Breath's. Altogether, these changes improve its spacing potential.

1.1.3

• Up throw has less ending lag (FAF 69 → 64).
• Up throw deals less damage (1% (hits 1-7)/10% (total) → 0.5%/6.5%).
• Up throw's first seven hits have a lower hitlag multiplier (1x → 0.5x). This makes the throw faster to execute although it still remains extremely easy to react to/DI.
• Up throw's final hit deals more knockback (0 (base), 100 (scaling) → 80/200), making it more potent against bystanders.
• Up throw launches opponents at a higher angle (70° → 82°) and it has more base knockback but less knockback scaling (90 (base), 80 (scaling) → 25/155). When combined with its lower ending lag, these changes not only improve up throw's KO potential but they also transform up throw into a highly potent combo throw, granting it combo potential right up until higher percents, including KO confirms into up and back aerial.
• Flying Slam's grab to slam transition is considerably faster (38 frames → 25), now only being a few frames slower than its Brawl counterpart.
  • However, the slam to grab transition has less intangibility (frames 1-23 → 1-16), as the intangibility frames were not adjusted for the move's new frame speed multiplier.
• Bowser has more control over Flying Slam's trajectory (base air acceleration: 0.18 → 0.21).
• The opponent has more control over Flying Slam's trajectory (base air acceleration: 0.17 → 0.19).
  • However, this does not fully compensate for Bowser's greater air acceleration, giving him more control overall.
• All variations of Flying Slam now have invincibility frames before Bowser leaves the ground.
• All variations of Whirling Fortress can now grab ledges from behind drastically sooner (frame 48 (Whirling Fortress) → 8), now matching grabbing ledges from the front.

1.1.4

• Dash attack deals more damage (10% (clean)/8% (late) → 12%/10%). Its knockback values were not compensated, giving the move more knockback.
• Up throw has higher knockback scaling (155 → 180), hindering its combo potential at high percentages.
  • However, this also improves its combo potential at lower percents, in addition to allowing Bowser’s up throw, up air combo to KO at lower percents.
• All variations of Flying Slam have increased grab range.

Technical changelist 1.1.4

Change	Old value	New value
Ground Hand Hitbox Size	4/3	5/4
Large Hitbox X Position	17	17.5
Ground to Air Hand Hitbox	1/1	2/2
Outer Hitbox X Position	17	17.5
Air Hand Hitbox	5/3.5	6/4.5
Large Hitbox X Position	15	15.5

1.1.5

• Air speed (0.98 → 1).
• Weight (128 → 130).
• Max Walk speed with heavy items (1.31432 → 1.33432).

Moveset

• Bowser has a unique attribute called Tough Guy. It is universal armor against attacks that deal less than 19 units of knockback. This is most apparent when Bowser has low damage, and it can be amplified by crouching, but not while crawling or attacking. It will decrease as Bowser starts taking more damage.
• Bowser can crawl, although it has no practical use because of his large hurtbox.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			5%	Two alternating punches. Both hits render Bowser's arms are intangible throughout their durations. The first hit has set knockback and can be jab canceled into other moves, such as a dash grab or Bowser Bomb. Conversely, the second hit deals more damage, and is strong enough to KO around 140% near the edge.
			6.5%
Forward tilt			12%	A backhanded punch. Fairly powerful with fast start-up and good range, it also renders Bowser's arm intangible throughout its duration. It is based on the second hit of his Drill Claw attack in Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Can KO at around 110% near the edge.
Up tilt			9%	An overhead arcing swipe. It has respectable utility, as it can be a good combo option at low percentages either by starting and then chaining into itself, acting as a follow-up from up throw, or acting as a KOing option around 150%. It also renders his arm intangible throughout its duration. However, it has a blind spot right next to his torso.
Down tilt			14% (hit 1), 11% (hit 2)	Lays in a prone position and throws two alternating hooks. Both hits render his arms intangible throughout their durations. It has a chance to trip at low percentages, but the first hit does not connect into the second hit past medium percentages. The first hit has slightly higher base knockback, whereas the second hit has slightly longer range, making it a decent KOing option near the edge, with the first hit KOing under 100% at the edge, and even hitting players hanging on the edge.
Dash attack			12% (clean), 10% (late)	A side kick, similar to Meta Knight's dash attack. Good for hitting prone or tumbling opponents and has high base knockback.
Forward smash			23% (clean feet), 20% (clean body), 17% (late feet), 14% (late body)	A dropkick. It is the third strongest forward smash in the game, being surpassed only by King Dedede and maximum Aura Lucario's. Its outstanding damage output also threatens shields, as they will receive severe damage from it. When spaced properly, it can even hit opponents hanging on an edge or lingering just below it. Its clean hitboxes render his legs intangible, whereas its late hitboxes have anti-rebounding priority. Even from the center of the stage, it can KO at 70% uncharged.
Up smash			20% (hit 1 center), 15% (hit 1 sides), 6% (hit 2)	Lays in a prone position and then hops to thrust his shell's spikes upward. It renders his shell invincible and grants anti-rebounding priority throughout its duration, which make it all but impossible to challenge from above. However, it will still clank against a move that has invincibility frames. It also hits on both sides when Bowser lands from his hop, but these hits lack KO potential because of their significantly lower damage outputs. When sweetspotted, it can KO at 90% uncharged.
Down smash			2% (hit 1), 1% (hits 2-6), 9% (hit 7)	Withdraws in his shell and then spins around rapidly. It hits multiple times, and is strong enough to function as a fairly reliable KOing option under 150% and while near the edge.
Neutral aerial			6% (hits 1-4)	An aerial cartwheel. It can combo into forward and up aerials at low to medium percentages. It is a mechanically unusual attack, as both its third and fourth hits are present at once (on Bowser's top and bottom half respectively). As such, connecting with the fourth hit before the third hit will result in the third hit missing the opponent. Despite this quirk, it is the third most damaging aerial attack in the game, being surpassed only by maximum Aura Lucario's back aerial and Yoshi's down aerial.
Forward aerial			13% (hand), 12% (arm), 11% (body)	Swipes downward with his claws. It has quick start-up, a respectable damage output, and great range, as it can even hit opponents below him. It can also autocancel from a short hop. Altogether, these traits make arguably Bowser's most useful aerial.
Back aerial			19%	A dropkick. It is very powerful, as it can either KO around 100% from center-stage and as low as 60% at the edge, though it does not have much vertical range. The second strongest and most damaging back aerial in the game behind maximum Aura Lucario's back aerial. Autocancels from a short hop.
Up aerial			15%	An upward headbutt. Although it is not as strong as in Brawl, it is still a viable KOing option due to KOing around 100% while near the upper blast line. By extension, it is a KO confirm follow-up from up throw at high percentages.
Down aerial			16% (drop), 2% (landing)	Withdraws into his shell, turns upside down, and propels himself downward. A stall-then-fall, it emits a small shockwave on both sides when he lands. It meteor smashes during the first few frames and deals respectable diagonal knockback during its later frames. Due to its large hitbox, its meteor smashing hitbox can effectively edgeguard when near the edge. Like other stall-then-falls, it will almost certainly cause a self-destruct if used off-stage.
Grab			—	Reaches out. Bowser has a fairly large grab range for a non-disjointed or non-tether grab, especially when pivot grabbing, as his pivot grab can cover the entirety of a Battlefield platform.
Pummel			3.1%	A headbutt. Moderately slow, but one of the most damaging pummels in the game.
Forward throw			12%	Places the opponent in between his horns, rears his head back, and then powerfully sways his head forward to launch the opponent. It is the strongest forward throw in the game, KOing around 120% near the edge. However, its throw hitbox is not active until frame 36, which results in it taking longer to throw opponents than back throw.
Back throw			12%	Throws the opponent backward in a sideways motion. It has the exact same damage output and knockback values as his forward throw, which make it a viable KOing option around 120% near the edge. However, its throw hitbox is active on frame 19, enabling it to throw opponents earlier than forward throw.
Up throw			0.5% (hits 1-7), 1% (hit 8), 2% (throw)	Throws the opponent slightly upward, withdraws into his shell, and then spins rapidly in order to repeatedly stab them with his shell's spikes. While it is Bowser's least damaging throw (dealing up to 6.5% damage), it is also his best combo starter, as it can combo into up tilt, up smash, neutral aerial, up aerial, forward aerial, back aerial, and even Flying Slam. Its aerial combos are especially effective against fast-fallers, although its Flying Slam combo requires a hard read. The final hit before the throw deals very high knockback to fighters who are caught in the crossfire. On a side note, unlike in Brawl, instead of always dealing fixed knockback, the throw hitbox's knockback now grows stronger as the target's damage increases.
Down throw			10% (hit 1), 2% (throw)	Places the opponent on the ground and splashes them. Its high base knockback, low knockback scaling, and high ending lag prevent it from having any follow-ups. Despite this, it actually has KO potential unlike in Brawl, thanks to its throw hitbox now dealing damage. Its first hit can also damage nearby bystanders. It KOs around 150% near the edge, and can be used as an alternative to his forward and back throws for setting up an edgeguard.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Swipes his claws behind himself and in front of himself while stumbling to his feet.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Swipes his claws around himself while getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Swipes his claws around himself while getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	Swipes inward while climbing up. One of the longest ranged edge attacks in the game.
Neutral special	Default	Fire Breath	1.2% (loop)	Expels a stream of fire from his mouth. It gradually loses strength and range, but will slowly regain its strength when not in use. It can be angled upward or downward, which can potentially gimp recovering opponents, although the flames at the very end of the stream do not cause flinching.
	Custom 1	Fire Shot	6% (clean), 5% (late)	Expels a large Fireball from his mouth instead of a stream of fire. The Fireball pierces opponents, similarly to Super Dragon's. Unlike Fire Breath, it will not weaken over time when used in succession.
	Custom 2	Fire Roar	2.7% (clean), 1.8% (late)	Deals more damage and has longer range, but loses range quickly and takes longer to recharge.
Side special	Default	Flying Slam	18% (throw), 15% (collateral)	Grabs an opponent, jumps with them into the air and backflips repeatedly before belly-to-belly suplexing them onto the ground. It deals immense vertical knockback that can KO at 120%, making it a very reliable KOing option. Its power and launching angle makes it difficult to properly DI, especially if the user has high gravity. The suplex can also hit other opponents on the ground that it lands into for similarly powerful knockback. It can be used to dive off-stage with the opponent for a potential sacrificial KO.
	Custom 1	Dash Slam	12% (throw), 10% (collateral)	Dashes forward before performing the belly-to-belly suplex with less vertical distance, but deals less damage. Its angle is more horizontal than vertical.
	Custom 2	Dash Slash	8% (clean), 6% (late)	A dashing slash. It deals high knockback, but noticeably less damage, and can be blocked and even countered. Despite this, it is considered one of the most useful special custom moves in the game, due to its complete autocancel property and pseudo-wavedash, which makes it a fairly safe approaching option and grants it combo potential. It is comparable to Koopa Klaw, albeit without the grab.
Up special	Default	Whirling Fortress	1% (grounded hits 1-7), 4% (grounded hit 8) 10% (aerial hit 1), 3% (aerial hits 2-6), 2% (aerial hits 7-11)	Withdraws into his shell and spins around rapidly, similarly to his down smash. It is capable of moving forward or backward while doing so, which makes it a very useful out of shield option. In the air, it propels Bowser diagonally upward, while button mashing enables it to cover more vertical distance. It can travel a deceptively long distance, but can be intercepted quite easily in the air.
	Custom 1	Flying Fortress	4%	Covers more vertical distance, but at the cost of horizontal distance. It deals less damage due to only hitting once, but its single hit launches opponents. If used immediately out of knockback, the move may not offer any vertical movement at all, drastically hindering Bowser's recovery.
	Custom 2	Sliding Fortress	6%	Covers more horizontal distance, but at the cost of vertical distance. It only hits once, deals less knockback, and has increased ending lag.
Down special	Default	Bowser Bomb	4% (hop), 20% (Ground Pound), 11% (landing)	A Ground Pound. It deals immense vertical knockback to anyone hit and can KO under 100%, making it one of Bowser's most reliable KOing options. On the ground, Bowser performs a weak headbutt that drags opponents into the main attack. If performed in the air, Bowser performs the Ground Pound after a brief pause instead of leaping first. Emits a shockwave upon landing and will break full shields if all of its grounded hitboxes connect. It will almost certainly cause a self-destruct if used off-stage due to its ending lag, though it can grab ledges if Bowser directly faces one while falling, and starts the move at a full-hop height.
	Custom 1	Turbulent Bomb	4% (hop), 9% (Ground Pound), 9% (landing)	The Ground Pound emits a gale instead of a shockwave at its impact, pushing away any opponents next to where Bowser lands instead of damaging them. It deals less overall damage and knockback. Bowser also leaps lower, but it covers more horizontal distance, making it useful for gimping opponents with poor recoveries, such as Little Mac and Captain Falcon.
	Custom 2	Slip Bomb	18% (Ground Pound), 13% (landing), 2% (shockwave)	The Ground Pound trips any opponents standing near Bowser at its impact, although its high ending lag means it can still be punished by those who trip near Bowser. Bowser also leaps higher, covering more vertical distance, but at the cost of horizontal distance and its leaping hitbox.
Final Smash		Giga Bowser	—	Transforms into Giga Bowser, the final boss of Melee's Adventure Mode. Giga Bowser has total flinch resistance during his transformation. Instead of using the moves that Bowser gained in SSB4, Giga Bowser reuses all of Bowser's moves and animations from Melee and Brawl, complete with his smash attacks inflicting elemental effects. The transformation lasts for 480 frames, but some of Giga Bowser's attacks are actually inferior to Bowser's attacks in terms of damage or knockback dealt, and the attacks are far less potent when compared to a Bowser who acquires a Super Mushroom, or is made giant-sized by a Lightning Bolt.

On-screen appearance

• Emerges from a wall of flames.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Sways his head backward around while roaring and exhaling steam from his mouth.
• Side taunt: Leans forward and chomps his jaws furiously.
• Down taunt: Balances precariously on one leg, as if teetering.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Leans back and exhales steam from his mouth.
• Clenches his fists and performs posterior shoulder stretches while exhaling steam from his nostrils.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Bow-ser!	Koo-pa! *claps 3 times*
Pitch	Group chant	Male

Victory poses

A rock-based remix of the Course Clear Fanfare used in Super Mario Bros.

• Takes a step forward while swiping his right hand's claws, then takes another step forward while swiping with his left hand's claws.
• Leans forward and then rears back triumphantly.
• Repeatedly spins around in his shell, similarly to his down smash, before emerging to strike a pose while grinning.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Bowser	1211	1311	3211	3311	1212
	1213	1312	1313	2211	2311

Notable players

Active

•  Boozer - The best Bowser in Australia, ranked 15th on the Australian Power Rankings. Placed 1st at Expand Gong 2.
•  Deluxemenu - Placed 25th at Clutch City Clash, 9th at DreamHack Austin 2017 and 9th at Low Tier City 5. He has taken sets off of Zinoto and DKwill.
•  FanFan - The best Bowser player in France. Considered one of the best Bowsers in Europe.
•  FinalBoss - Ranked 1st on the New Mexico Power Rankings.
•  Fake - Ranked 8th on the Italian Power Rankings. Considered one of the best Bowsers in Europe.
•  KingKong - The best Bowser player in Canada. Placed 7th at Smash Intensifies and Smash INTENSIFIES 2, and 65th at The Big House 6. Ranked 11th on the Montreal Power Rankings. He taken sets off of Holy, SuperGirlKels and Venom.
•  Kisha - The best Bowser player in Japan. Placed 17th at Umebura S.A.T., 9th at Single Game Championships: Umebura X Single-Chu, and 17th at Umebura Japan Major 2017. He has multiple wins over Ranai and a win over Taiheita.
•  Linus - Ranked 11th on the Michigan Smash 4 Power Rankings. He has wins over Dark Wizzy and Day.
•  LordMix - One of the best Bowser players in North America and the world. Placed 4th at MomoCon 2016, 13th at Clutch City Clash, and 25th at MomoCon 2017. Ranked 3rd on the Georgia Power Rankings. He has wins over VoiD, Mew2King, Vinnie, Day, Fatality, ScAtt, Wrath, and Prince Ramen.
•  Nairo - The best Bowser player in the world. Placed 4th at UGC Smash Open, 5th at 2GGT: ZeRo Saga, 17th at GENESIS 4, and 1st at Super Smash Con 2017.
•  Paru - One of the best Bowser players in Japan. Placed 17th at Umebura Japan Major 2017.
•  Rayquaza07 - The best Bowser player in the Midwest. Ranked 8th on the Midwest Power Rankings.
•  Static - Ranked 1st on the Delaware Power Rankings.
•  Viviff The Great - Placed 49th at GENESIS 4. Ranked 1st on the Oregon Power Rankings.
•  Vreyvus - Placed 33rd at B.E.A.S.T 6 and B.E.A.S.T 7. Formerly ranked ranked 6th on the Swedish Power Rankings.

Inactive

•  Le Troof - Placed 25th at Super Smash Con 2015 and 49th at Pound 2016 prior to his hiatus.
•  Shu - Placed 13th at Umebura 20 and 25th at Umebura BenQ ZOWIE Cup before switching to Sheik.

Tier placement and history

Opinions on Bowser's viability have greatly fluctuated through SSB4's metagame, but the general opinion is that he has fared much better than in Melee or Brawl. Around the metagame's early lifespan, due to all of the top spots taken at early SSB4 tournaments (including a Bowser ditto for the Grand Finals in the pre-release San Diego Comic Con Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS tournament), Bowser was initially considered the best character in the game. Players took little time to notice the significant buffs he received, and to further compliment this, characters that were excessively challenging for him in Brawl, such as Marth, Meta Knight, Falco, the Ice Climbers and most notoriously King Dedede, were either heavily nerfed or, in the case of the Ice Climbers, removed entirely. However, as time went on, perception on Bowser's viability noticeably fell. The first instance of this came about from a significant nerf to vectoring in update 1.0.4, followed by his weaknesses starting to come afloat, which were the same as, and as exploitable as they were in previous installments. He also lacked any noteworthy results at high-level play in a heavy contrast compared to the early lifespan of the metagame, and his perception began declining much like in Brawl.

Despite his lowered perception within the community, update 1.1.3 brought immense buffs, the most notable of which were to Flying Slam, Whirling Fortress and his now-infamous up throw. These buffs allowed Bowser to perform considerably better at locals, as his playerbase managed to achieve a few placements at high-level play, largely thanks to players such as LordMix and KingKong. This ultimately culminated in Bowser being placed at 30th on the first 4BR tier list, resulting in him becoming the second lowest ranking mid-tier character; while a far cry compared to the positive opinions of his viability during the initial release, it was still his best placement in the series at the moment.

However, update 1.1.4 nerfed his infamous up throw by weakening its guaranteed KO set-ups, though it brought further buffs to Flying Slam. Update 1.1.5 also brought more buffs to his survivability and recovery by increasing his weight and air speed, respectively. Thanks to the recent results of his playerbase, Bowser only dropped slightly to 32nd on the second tier list. As the tiers were expanded for the second tier list, Bowser maintained his status as a mid-tier character despite his placement drop, with the drop being largely attributable to the inclusion of Corrin and Bayonetta into the game between the first and second tier lists.

In the current metagame, many argued that Bowser's tier placement was somewhat low, with ZeRo considering Bowser to be a high-tier character, and Nairo utilizing Bowser to great effect in a number of upsets. This was later reflected with Bowser's placement of 25th on the third tier list; in addition to becoming both the second highest ranking mid-tier character and surpassing Donkey Kong as the highest ranking super heavyweight, this tier rise was the fourth highest between the second and third tier lists. He then saw a slight rise to 24th on the fourth and current tier list; the expansion of the tiers have resulted on him now becoming a high-tier character, despite losing his status to the best super heavyweight to Donkey Kong once again.

Trophies

Bowser

The archenemy of Mario and the reason Peach spends more time kidnapped than in her own castle. His plans aren't always the best, and occasionally he even finds himself on Mario's side. In Smash Bros., he's a serious heavyweight who laughs off weaker attacks. Hit him hard to send him flying!

Mario's archnemesis and the reason Peach spends more time in "another castle" than in her own. His plans almost never work out, and occasionally he even finds himself on Mario's side. In Smash Bros., he's a serious heavyweight who laughs off weaker attacks. You've gotta hit him hard to send him flying!

Mario's princess-kidnapping arch-enemy. Yes, he's quite the villain, but he can also be a bit of a buffoon, too. And sometimes, he even ends up on Mario's side! As a serious heavyweight, he's tough to launch, and using standard attacks on him will only make him laugh. If you want to send him flying, make sure to whack him really hard!

: Super Mario Bros. (10/1985)

: Super Mario 64 (09/1996)

Bowser (Alt.)

Bowser makes good use of his heavy physique with his down special Bowser Bomb, slamming down with his bottom. If he's on the ground, he'll jump into the air before crashing down. Also, he can gain a bit of altitude if you press the special button repeatedly while executing Whirling Fortress, his up special.

Bowser makes good use of his heavy physique with his down special Bowser Bomb, slamming down with his backside. If he's on the ground, he'll jump into the air before crashing down. Also, he can gain a bit of altitude if you press the special button repeatedly while executing his up special Whirling Fortress.

Down special Bowser Bomb makes good use of Bowser's bulky physique to crush opponents. If you use it on the ground, he'll jump first, hitting anyone on the way up with his horns, then hit for a combo on the way down. When you use his Whirling Fortress up special in the air, press the button repeatedly to climb higher.

: Super Mario Bros. (10/1985)

: Super Mario 64 (09/1996)

Giga Bowser

Prepare to behold Bowser in all his Koopa glory. This fearsome form first appeared all the way back in Melee. While transformed, Bowser deals extra damage, is better at launching foes, and even gains special effects on some of his attacks. He won't flinch and can't be thrown, but he does still take damage.

The definitive way to prove that Bowser's the king. This fearsome form made its debut all the way back in Melee. While transformed, Bowser deals more damage, launches foes further, and certain attacks have extra effects like freezing opponents. He won't flinch, and he can't be thrown either, but he will still take damage.

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• 

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  Giga Bowser (Final Smash)

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• A Battle of Scale: As a tiny Olimar, the player must defeat a giant Bowser.
• All-Star Battle: Melee: Bowser is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents debuted in Melee.
• Beautification: As Rosalina & Luma, the player must flower two Bowsers and two Ganondorfs.
• Enough with the Kidnapping: As Peach, the player must defeat Bowser and Bowser Jr.
• Family Ties: As Bowser Jr., the player is aided by a giant Bowser and must defeat Mario and Luigi.
• The Final Battle: The player must defeat Bowser, Ganondorf and King Dedede.
• The Original Heavyweights: As Mario, the player must defeat Bowser and Donkey Kong.

Co-op Events

• A Lurking Menace: Mario and Luigi must defeat Bowser Jr., but if the match lasts too long, they must also defeat a giant Bowser.
• A Royal Errand: Robin and Marth must collect 500G from Bowser and Wario in a Coin Battle.
• Final Battle Team-Up: Bowser appears as an opponent to be defeated.
• Peach in Peril: Bowser and Bowser Jr. must defeat all opponents except Peach, where KOing her results in a failure.
• Solidarity: Olimar and Rosalina & Luma must defeat Mario and Luigi, and then they must defeat Bowser and Bowser Jr.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Bowser in the Nintendo Direct from April 8th, 2014.

• 

  Bowser's amiibo.

• 

  Bowser's appearance during E3.

• 

  Using his new forward smash on Mario.

• 

  Using Flying Slam on Link in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

• 

  Shielding against Mario's up smash.

• 

  Using Whirling Fortress against Fox's Blaster.

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  Using Flying Slam against Mario in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

• 

  Bowser and Samus on Arena Ferox.

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  Bowser and Mario on Battlefield.

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  Bowser being damaged by the last hit of Sonic's neutral attack.

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  Bowser, Mario, Pikachu, and Pit fighting on Pilotwings.

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  Bowser, Mega Man and Wii Fit Trainer on Wii Fit.

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  Using his down taunt alongside Peach and a Fairy Bottle.

• 

  Bowser being damaged by Diddy Kong's overcharged Peanut Popgun.

Trivia

• Although Bowser was the last veteran confirmed during the E3 2013 event, he was the first veteran to debut in Melee to be confirmed.
• Bowser is the only veteran in SSB4 who has a new victory theme.
• Bowser's alt. trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U resembles his All-Star Mode trophy in Melee.
• Bowser, Dr. Mario, and Lucina are the only characters who are not playable in a Solo Event unless selected.
  • Bowser is also the only one who isn't unlockable, or a clone.
• This marks the final appearance of Bowser as a starter character.
• Bowser's artwork in this game resembles his artwork in some Mario games, starting with Super Mario Galaxy.