Erase Data

Erase Data, previously known as Backup Clear in Super Smash Bros., is an option in the first three installments of the Super Smash Bros. series. It allows the player to erase any specific data in the game, such as high scores, trophies, unlockable characters, and unlockable stages. In all three appearances, the option to erase singular categories of data is available, alongside an "Erase All" ("ALL Data Clear" in Smash 64) option.

When the player erases all game data (once "Erase All" is performed), then there is no way to recover it. As such, Super Smash Bros. Melee advises players to save a copy of game data onto a separate memory card. However, while that is possible in Melee, this is not possible in Smash 64 nor Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The game data is directly saved to the Nintendo 64 game cartridge for Smash 64 (without a memory card), and the game data cannot be copied from one Wii to another (nor to an SD Card) in Brawl.

Neither version of Super Smash Bros. 4 nor Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has an "Erase Data" option, making it impossible to selectively erase any specific data. In Smash 4, players can erase all game data by holding A, B, X, and Y on startup (on the 3DS in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS or the Wii U GamePad in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U) and selecting "Yes" three times when prompted (just like in Brawl for "Erase All"). However, the only way to erase data in Ultimate, is to erase its data file through the "Manage Save Data/Screenshots and Videos" section of "Data Management," which is located under the Nintendo Switch system's "System Settings".

Gallery

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  The Backup Clear option in Smash 64.

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  The Erase Data menu in Melee

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  The Erase Data menu in Brawl

Trivia

• Due to the way unlockable characters appear in The Subspace Emissary, it is not possible to reset the unlockable characters and unlockable stages in Brawl (unlike in the first two installments; Smash 64 and Melee).
• If the player chooses to erase all data in Brawl, the game asks the player three times if they are sure they want to lose that data. The first input plays a siren, the second plays a sped-up version of the siren, and the third and final input plays an alarm similar to Melee's "challenger approaching" theme. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (for the Wii U Game Pad only), similarly present three prompts (like in Brawl for "Erase All"). But they both only have the siren and sped-up siren on the second and third prompts.