Inkling (SSBU)

Inkling in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
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Universe	Splatoon
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Killer Wail

“	Attacks with a variety of weapons. Covering opponents with ink leads to more and more damage—plus these Inklings are really fashionable!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Inkling (インクリング, Inkling) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Although the default form is female, both male and female forms of this character are playable. They were first characters that were suggested to appear in the then unnamed Ultimate in its first teaser trailer at the end of the March 8th, 2018 Nintendo Direct, and officially announced as a newcomer in Ultimate's E3 2018 trailer, alongside Daisy and Ridley. Inkling is classified as fighter #64.

Yuki Tsujii voices both genders of Inkling, via voice clips from Splatoon.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Inkling being the 5th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Samus or any character in her unlock tree, being the first character unlocked.
• Have Inkling join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Inkling must then be defeated on Moray Towers.

Attributes

Inkling is a character that excels greatly in many areas, but is typically defined by quick, slippery movement and fast attack speed. As a result, most attributes are overall consistent with combo-heavy middleweights, with a focus on a fast-approach "footsies" playstyle: the Inkling has fast overall mobility due to high initial dash (16th highest) and running speeds (22nd highest), alongside high air speed (12-16th fastest, tied with Sonic, Mario, Little Mac and Donkey Kong). However, the rest of of Inkling's traits are mostly average, with middling air acceleration, fall speed, walk speed, and weight. As a result, Inkling can easily traverse large distances very quickly, but can have issues changing directions in midair; additionally, the combination of middling weight and fast fall speed do not give much of an advantage when escaping combos.

Inkling's greatest strength, is, fittingly, fast general movement and attack speed. While the range on many attacks is rather lacking, this is made up by extremely fast frame data, which allows Inkling to put the fast mobility to good use and rush opponents down in a flurry of moves. Additionally, Inkling boasts a strong ground and aerial offense, with many moves being capable of stringing together, particularly when coupled with an up throw, which is an effective combo initiator till high percents and can even KO through its setups, the Inkling's rushdown abilities are very effective. As a result, opponents can have a tough time finding openings in the Inkling's offense, since the high speed and low landing lag allow the Inkling to weave around any foe very easily, and an extremely potent combo ability easily turns any mistake on their end into a potential combo starter.

The Inkling's damage racking potential is further enhanced by the unique ink mechanic, lifted from the Inkling's game of origin, Splatoon. Select moves will cover opponents in ink, which increases damage and knockback dealt to them up to a maximum of 1.5x, though this will wear off over time. When an opponent is fully inked, many combos are capable of effectively dishing out surprising amounts of damage over a short period on careless opponents. As a downside, this ink mechanic also affects the power of certain moves such as neutral attack infinite, forward throw, special moves and smash attacks, which lose significant KO power or damage without ink (and with some moves, completely fail to do damage). Due to this, the Inkling has to recharge the ink tank by going into a "charging" stance once the ink tank is completely depleted. As this leaves Inkling wide open to attacks with no escape options till the charge animation ends, managing the ink supply with care is crucial.

Inkling also has powerful offstage capability due to the attributes. The Inkling boasts a lengthy, albeit somewhat linear recovery, being able to double jump out of Splat Roller in combination with Super Jump, allowing the recovery to be less predictable, and coupled with the sheer speed of the moves, this makes it difficult to challenge the Inkling with an offstage edgeguard. The Inkling also has one of the best air speeds to supplement this, and likewise can edgeguard very proficiently themself with Splat Bombs, aerials, and Splattershot, to name a few.

Even with a fantastic set of strengths, there are some major weaknesses as well. The Inkling's main weaknesses are that the character has to be resourceful with their tools and not waste ink with a wrong decision for a punish that can last quite a while, as without ink, Inkling sees trouble scoring kills with their Splat Roller, has mediocre damage, and contains a lack of access to their ranged tools.

It is currently unknown how well the Inkling will fare in the meta, but early looks at the character in local and regional tournaments have shown promising results, with names such as Armada, Abadango, and Xzax using Inkling as their mains. Cosmos is currently considered the best Inkling main in the world, having placed 7th at GENESIS 6, and subsequently going on to hold the initial record for most consecutive top 8 appearances in nationals; a streak that ended with MomoCon 2019. Inkling's potential in doubles was noted by Sakurai himself as being one of the character's strengths, allowing teammates to rack up damage even faster.

Update history

Despite already being considered by many to be a top tier contender in the early metagame, Inkling has received several minor buffs throughout the game's updates. Inkling's Splat Bombs received a buff in the game's day one update; predominantly in how much ink it applies to its opponents. Her most controversial move, Roller, has been subject to multiple changes. In 2.0.0, the move's base knockback was nerfed - affecting bury duration at lower percents - yet its knockback growth was buffed, making it a more potent move at higher percents. The Roller was further affected in 3.0.0, affecting the move's knockback if Inkling accelerates a second time when using it. While several changes come across as nerfs on paper, due to the way the Roller is used they are mostly considered negligible, and in the latter case actually open up some combo routes at mid percents that previously didn't exist - however, one aspect of the Roller that was an outright nerf in 2.0.0 was its scaled down hitbox, as it now needs to be at point-blank range for it to connect. Inkling's jab was buffed in 3.1.0, as part of a large scale effort to make several multi-hit moves connect more reliably.

1.1.0

• Splat Bomb deals more damage (8%-14% → 9%-15%).
• Splat Bomb applies more ink (80/140 → 110/170).

2.0.0

• Shortened the amount of time Inkling is unable to grab a ledge after using neutral air (60 frames → 56).
• Splat Roller:
  • Splat Roller has altered knockback (60 (base)/80 (scaling) → 25/105). This decreases the bury duration at lower percents, but increases it at higher percentages.
    • Decreased base knockback allows combo potential at mid percentages.
  • Splat Roller hitboxes were moved back, giving it less range.
  • The ink from the Splat Roller no longer launches specific characters such as the Ice Climbers much higher when using their respective up specials on the ink.

3.0.0

• Splat Roller deals less knockback when accelerating again. This increases its combo potential when hitting an opponent that was already buried.

3.1.0

• Neutral attack 3 has more range and connects more reliably from neutral attack 2.

Moveset

• Inkling will transform into squid form while dashing and dodging. This allows Inkling to avoid some projectiles and attacks while dashing due to a lower hurtbox, but only for a slight few frames, making it unviable as an actual tactic.
• Inkling takes continuous damage while swimming in water. This trait is shared with Charizard, Sonic, and Incineroar.
• Inkling can crawl and wall jump.
• Some of Inkling's attacks use up and apply ink. Attacks that use ink each use a set amount of the Ink Tank. If the Inkling does not have enough ink for a move, it will deal less damage and knockback, and certain moves will have no effect at all.
• The Ink Tank can be gradually replenished at any time by holding the special button while shielding, or via the Splattershot only when the Ink Tank is completely empty. This lowers the Inkling's hitbox, but lacks any defensive options apart from canceling the charge (which is punishable). It is also restored to full capacity when the Inkling is KO'd.
• The Inkling's Ink Tank is shown in the HUD and while charging ink. The red line on the tank is the minimum ink needed to throw a Splat Bomb. Once the Inkling runs out of ink, the Ink Tank will flash with a red "X" both in the HUD and on the Inkling's model.

The specifics of the ink mechanic are explained in detail after the moveset table.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2%	A two-hit combo consisting of a quick finger jab then a kick, then a roundhouse kick if the button is held. If the button is mashed, the second hit is followed by a rapid series of spurts from the Splattershot that concludes with a single blast that launches the enemy. The rapid jab covers opponents in ink. If the Inkling's Ink Tank is empty, the neutral infinite and finisher deals no damage and knockback. The first hit can lock.
			2%
			3.5%
			0.4% (loop), 2.5% (end)
Forward tilt			9%	Swings the Splattershot downwards. It has average knockback and range, and can kill at very high percentages.
Up tilt			6%	A backflipping kick. Can combo into itself up to three times at 0%, or two at low percents, and into aerials at higher percents. Has blind spots directly beside the Inkling, and is unable to hit prone opponents.
Down tilt			3% (first hit), 6% (second hit)	A breakdance that hits in front of Inkling. Hits twice, and can kill at high percents, low-profile certain moves, and hit most ledge hangs.
Dash attack			8%, 6% (late)	A lunging elbow strike after transforming back into humanoid form from squid form. Good as a burst-range attack or punish tool, although struggles to kill even at very high percents.
Forward smash		Inkbrush	16% (ink, brush), 14% (ink, handle), 12% (no ink)	Swings an Inkbrush in front, which covers opponents in ink. Has a sweetspot at the brush tip. The hitbox does not cover the splatter of paint from the Inkbrush. KOs at 90% at the edge of Final Destination (with ink available), making for a very potent kill move, especially with its disjoint.
Up smash		Blaster	4% (hit 1), 15% (hit 2, ink, center), 10% (hit 2, ink, outer) 10% (hit 2, no ink, center) 6% (hit 2, ink, outer)	Fires a burst from a Blaster above the head, which covers opponents in ink. There is a hitbox next to the Inkling that launches the enemy into the air before the shot goes off, setting the enemy up for the attack; this hitbox can even hit prone or buried opponents. KOs at 116% on Final Destination (with ink available).
Down smash		Slosher	12.5% (hit 1, ink, close), 7% (hit 1, ink, far), 11% (hit 2, ink, close), 6% (hit 2, ink, far), 10% (hit 1, no ink, close), 5% (hit 1, no ink, far), 9% (hit 2, no ink, close), 4% (hit 2, no ink, far)	Empties out a Slosher on both sides, starting with the front then the back, which covers opponents in ink. The back hit deals less damage and knockback. The first hit KOs at 104% on Final Destination (with ink available). Useful for roll reads, reading ledge options or against ledge hangs.
Neutral aerial			7%	Turns upside down and does a spinning breakdance kick in a helicopter fashion. Despite its appearance, it has no lasting hitbox, and the move only covers the Inkling's legs. Can combo into forward tilt and down tilt, or other aerials. Can be used twice alongside back aerial in a single short hop.
Forward aerial			12% (feet), 10% (legs), 7% (late)	A dropkick. Has some startup and acts as a sex kick. When sweetspotted, it is one of the Inkling's most reliable aerial KO moves. KOs at 136% at the edge of Final Destination.
Back aerial			10% (tip), 7.5% (handle)	Inkling swings the Splattershot straight behind the back. The move sports one of the larger disjointed hitboxes in Inkling's moveset, and its low landing and ending lag makes it one of the Inkling's safest moves for approaching and spacing. Is capable of a pseudo-wall of pain in certain situations. One of Inkling's best edgeguarding options due to its good knockback and frame data, and neutral aerial can be used after it if back aerial is buffered out of a short hop.
Up aerial			4.5% (hit 1), 6.5% (hit 2)	After a brief pause, performs two spinning kicks that swing in a helicopter fashion. The first hit has set knockback and sends at the autolink angle, allowing it to set up into almost any tilt or a grab. The second hit has strong knockback at higher percents, making for a decent kill option if intercepted. The hitbox can be misleading, as it mainly covers directly above the Inkling.
Down aerial			12% (tip), 10% (handle)	Briefly rears back before swinging the Splattershot straight below. The sweetspot is at the Splattershot's tip and will meteor smash, while the sourspot deals strong horizontal knockback.
Grab			—	Reaches out to seize the opponent.
Pummel			1.2%	Stomps on the opponent's foot.
Forward throw			5% (hit 1, ink), 3% (hit 2)	Fires the Splattershot directly at the opponent, angled diagonally upwards. Hits twice, with the second hit covering the opponent in ink. Without ink, the first hit deals no damage. Has very weak knockback, and will never kill, even at Sudden Death percents, although the move covering the opponent in ink grants it utility to kill earlier with other moves, if they are out of range from up throw kill confirms. The collateral hit has set knockback and will never kill, even st 999%, making it near useless in doubles.
Back throw			9%	Transforms into squid form, then spins and uses the tentacles to toss the opponent behind. Inkling's best kill throw, KOing at 129% at the edge of Final Destination.
Up throw			3% (hit 1), 3% (hit 2)	Tosses the opponent upward, then turns into squid form to headbutt them from below. Sends the opponent directly upwards. Can combo reliably into neutral aerial and up aerial at low to mid percents, and at higher percents up aerial can kill out of up throw.
Down throw			7%	Slams the opponent head-first into the ground with one hand. Sends the opponent in front, allowing it to combo into forward or down tilt.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Shoots the Splattershot on both sides of the Inkling. Despite its appearance, the move does not apply ink to opponents.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Shoots the Splattershot on both sides of the Inkling. Despite its appearance, the move does not apply ink to opponents.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Shoots the Splattershot on both sides of the Inkling. Despite its appearance, the move does not apply ink to opponents.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Swings the Splattershot.
Neutral special		Splattershot	0.3% (above Ink Tank line), 0.2% (below Ink Tank line), 0.1% (almost empty)	Rapidly fires the Splattershot in front of Inkling, which covers hit opponents in Ink at a fast pace. Only causes hitstun at very close range (3 character lengths), and slowly pushes opponents back at any further distance. Due to its high fire rate, it can lock opponents in shieldstun. Can be angled up and down, but the projectiles disappear after a set distance. Slowly loses travel distance and damage once the Ink Tank goes below the labeled line. If this move is used without any ink, the Inkling will begin charging ink.
Side special		Splat Roller	11% (grounded, ink), 2-3% (moving after Ink Tank is empty)	Takes out a Roller and begins to slide it across the ground. The roller spreads ink across the floor, with inked surfaces slowing opponents down. The move will bury grounded opponents and cover them in ink, allowing for followups; buried opponents can be hit by the Roller again to deal good knockback. The amount of ink opponents get covered in is determined by how fast the Inkling is moving while using the move. The Inkling can turn while using the move and can change velocity by pressing forward or back. In the air, the Splat Roller can only be used once before landing and deals no damage, but grants horizontal movement and a hop that does not use a mid-air jump, allowing it to extend Inkling's recovery. Pressing the special button will put the Roller away. Without ink, the Roller will not deal damage (unless the Inkling was moving before running out of ink), and the Inkling will slowly walk forward with a dejected look; this also stops most aerial momentum. Overall, the Splat Roller is one of the core components of the Inkling's metagame, and is primarily used to finish off opponents at higher percents with a smash attack.
Up special		Super Jump	8% (close), 6% (far), 8% (landing hit)	The Inkling shoots upwards in squid form. The move deals minor damage and knockback on startup, and also when the Inkling lands, giving it some safety. The rising and falling animation themselves do not deal damage. It rises very high into the air, and can be angled left or right.
Down special		Splat Bomb	9.4-15%	Flings a pyramid-shaped ink bomb, which explodes on contact or after a fixed time. The trajectory of the bomb depends on how long the player holds the special button: a toss upward with no charge, and a long-distanced throw forward if fully charged. The bomb gains damage as it is charged, and also covers opponents in ink, the amount of which is determined by how long the move was charged. Has multiple uses, including edgeguarding, setting traps, or KOing at high percents. If the Ink Tank is below the labeled meter, the Inkling will be incapable of throwing a bomb, and will instead look back at the Ink Tank, leaving Inkling open for attack. When fully charged, the bomb KOs at 143% at the edge of Final Destination.
Final Smash		Killer Wail	1% (hits 1-32), 8% (final hit)	Pulls out the Killer Wail, a large megaphone-like machine, which proceeds to launch a beam of damaging soundwaves, which after a short period of time, are replaced with ink. The player has full control of the Inkling while it is active, and can also move the beam's angle up and down. The looping hits cover opponents in ink, but only the final hit has KO potential, KOing at around 60%.

Ink mechanic

Inkling has a unique character mechanic: a handful of attacks will cover opponents in ink. Characters affected by ink are shown being coated with varying amounts of brightly colored liquid (which varies on the Inkling's alternate costume), and can be repeatedly inked until they are fully coated. Inked opponents take additional damage proportional to the amount of ink covering them. However, the damage/knockback multiplier (up to 1.5x) is maxed out after the victim is coated by roughly 60% of the maximum value. Applying more ink only lengthens the duration of being coated, and has no further effect on damage and launch rate.

Ink gradually disappears over time, from around 5s for the smallest application, to around 20s for a completely covered character. Ink can also be applied onto some Assist Trophies.

Once the Inkling runs out of ink, the only ways to regain charge are to be KO'd, or manually recharge it by holding the shield and special button at once (or via the special button with an empty tank). The charge animation lowers the Inkling's hurtbox enough to dodge grabs and projectiles, but it can can only be done on the ground, prevents the Inkling from dodging or moving, and has noticeable ending lag, making it very punishable.

The ink mechanic affects:

• All smash attacks. Without ink, all of them do significantly lower damage and knockback, but still feature "ink splatter" effects.
• All special attacks. Without ink, Inkling’s special moves (apart from Super Jump) are negatively affected:
  • Splattershot will gradually lose damage and range once it passes the line of the Ink Tank, and will not fire any projectiles when no ink is remaining. Pressing the special button once this happens will cause the Inkling to charge ink.
  • Splat Roller will slowly lose speed once it passes the line of the Ink Tank, and becomes completely harmless when no ink remains. This will also cause the Inkling to walk forward slowly and dejectedly.
  • Splat Bomb cannot be thrown if the Inkling has less ink than the line of the Ink Tank. If attempted, the Inkling will quickly look back at the ink tank, giving opponents a chance to attack freely.
• Forward throw. Without ink, the Splattershot's hitbox deals no damage and will not cover opponents in ink.
• Neutral attack infinite. Without ink, the infinite and infinite finisher will have no hitboxes at all, and therefore deal no damage or knockback.

On-screen appearance

Lands with a splash of ink in squid form before transforming back, then flaps both arms excitedly before drawing the Splattershot. This is the Inkling's entrance animation from Octo Valley in Splatoon.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Raises the Splattershot several times into the air in a celebratory cheer. Based on the "C'mon!"/"This Way!" signal from Splatoon and Splatoon 2.
• Side taunt: Fires the Splattershot into the air with one hand and holds the other in the air.
• Down taunt: Jumps happily on the spot while smiling. Based on the "Booyah!" signal from Splatoon and Splatoon 2.

Idle poses

• Briefly looks the other way, then turns back.
• Casually poses with the Splattershot pointing upwards, with the other hand on resting on Inkling's hip.

The Inkling Boy has an altered standing stance, where he does not shake his hips as much as the Inkling Girl. However, this does not apply when holding a small item.

Victory poses

All of Inkling's animations are based on the victory poses when using particular weapons in Splatoon and its sequel. The animations vary slightly between female costumes and the male costumes.

• Jumps for joy twice, spins around, and poses with the Splattershot. Directly based on the victory animation when using a Shooter-type weapon in Splatoon 2. The initial animation is based off the male Inkling's animation with the weapon of the same type in Splatoon. This pose is slightly altered for the male Inkling.
• Sways the Splat Roller from side to side, before striking a pose while resting the Roller's handle against a shoulder. This victory pose combines the victory animations in Splatoon and Splatoon 2 when the Inkling uses a Roller-type weapon.
• Tosses the Slosher upward, then poses with an arm on a hip while the Slosher spins on a finger. Based on the female Inkling's victory animation when using a Slosher-type weapon in Splatoon.

A remix of the Online victory jingle introduced in Splatoon.

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In competitive play

Notable players

Active

•  Abadango - One of the best Inkling players in the world. Placed 3rd at Stunfest 2019, 9th at Umebura SP, 13th at Sumabato SP, and 25th at GENESIS 6.
•  Armada - Placed 9th at Smash Ultimate Summit. Has wins over ZD and ZeRo.
•  Cosmos - The best Inkling player in the world. Placed 4th at Umebura Japan Major 2019, 5th at Frostbite 2019, 7th at GENESIS 6 and Get On My Level 2019, and 9th at Glitch 6.
•  cyve - Placed 1st at Calyptus Cup Ultimate and 5th at Valhalla II.
•  dyr - Placed 2nd at Pre-Genesix, 5th at GatorLAN Spring 2019, 17th at Smash Conference United, and 65th at GENESIS 6 with solo Inkling.
•  JDB - Placed 5th at Kumite in Tennessee 2019, 7th at Midwest Mayhem Ultimate, and 9th at COST 2019 with Inkling.
•  Mr.R - Plays Inkling as a secondary. Placed 1st at Regen 2019, 9th at both 2GG: Prime Saga and Thunder Smash using Inkling as one of his characters.
•  Space - Ranked 1st in the Dutch Power Rankings. Placed 3rd at Tech Republic IV and 4th at Elysium: Yggdrasil.
•  Xzax - Placed 2nd at NorCal Regionals 2019, 5th at Super Splat Bros, and 7th at Kawaii Kon 2019. Ranked 3rd on the NorCal Ultimate Power Rankings.

Inactive

•  falln - Placed 1st at Poi Poundaz 2 and 9th at SoCal Chronicles prior to his retirement.

Classic Mode: An Inkredible Journey

Inkling fights fighters with differently colored alternate costumes matching the general color scheme of the stage, referencing the concept of Turf War from the Splatoon games. The boss of this route, Marx, also fits in with this theme due to his multicolored wings.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Lucario and Sheik	Yoshi's Island	Splattack! (Original)
2	Greninja	Magicant	Ink or Sink
3	Wario and Duck Hunt	Norfair	Metalopod
4	Giant Yoshi	Summit	Seaskape
5	Shulk , Ness , and Mewtwo	Fountain of Dreams	Kraken Up
6	2 Inklings	Moray Towers	Ink Me Up	Free-for-all. When either of these costumes are being played as, the default Inkling Girl and Boy will be used instead.
Bonus Stage
Final	Marx	?	Calamari Inkantation

Note: Every stage except for the Bonus Stage plays a track from the Splatoon universe, no matter what universe it originates from. The boss battle against Marx also plays Calamari Inkantation instead of his standard boss theme.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Inkling has Bomb Rush Blush accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

Finding Inkling in World of Light

The Inklings (both female and male) were among the fighters that were summoned to fight the army of Master Hands.

During the opening cutscene, the Inklings were present when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. They decided to each hide in a puddle of their own ink; however, this proved ineffective when the beams of light destroyed the cliff they were on. Both were then placed under Galeem's imprisonment alongside the rest of the fighters, except for Kirby.

In the mode proper, the female Inkling can be fought in a city area, in a space that clearly is Moray Towers.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
64		Inkling	Attack	3,300	Moray Towers (Ω form)	Splattack!

Spirits

Inkling's Fighter Spirits can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. They are also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Inkling in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As Fighter Spirits, they cannot be used in Spirit Battles and are purely aesthetic. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate.

Additionally, the Squid form of the default Inkling appears as a Support Spirit.

• Inkling Girl Spirit.png

  1,025. Inkling (Girl)

• Inkling Boy Spirit.png

  1,026. Inkling (Boy)

• 

  1,027. Inkling

In Spirit battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
40	File:Blooper spirit.png	Blooper	Super Mario series	•Tiny Inkling (×3)		2,600	Delfino Plaza (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Low Gravity	•Timed battle •Gravity is reduced •The enemy tends to avoid conflict	Underwater Theme - Super Mario Bros
61		Kamek	Super Mario series	•Inkling Team (x4)		3,300	Mushroom Kingdom U (Slide Lift Tower)	•Easy to Launch •Item: Star Rod	•All fighters are easy to launch after a little while •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •The enemy starts the battle with a Star Rod	Fortress Boss - Super Mario World
102	File:Huey Spirit.png	Huey	Paper Mario series	•Inkling Team (x4) ()		1,900	Moray Towers	N/A	•The enemy favors special moves	Battle! - Paper Mario: Color Splash
237		Yuga	The Legend of Zelda series	•Inkling •Giant Inkling		9,600	Kalos Pokémon League (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy's side special has increased power •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd	Yuga Battle (Hyrule Castle)
239		Mipha	The Legend of Zelda series	•Inkling		3,900	Great Bay (Battlefield form)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy heals over time	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
284		Phantoon	Metroid series	•Clear Inkling		3,500	Frigate Orpheon	•Item: Hothead	•The enemy is invisible	Lockdown Battle Theme
480		Smeargle	Pokémon series	•Inkling		1,700	WarioWare, Inc. (hazards off)	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Vince)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy favors side smash attacks	Pokémon Gold / Pokémon Silver Medley
540	File:Inkay Spirit.png	Inkay	Pokémon series	•Inkling		3,400	Kalos Pokémon League (hazards off)	•Earthquake	•Periodic earthquakes will shake the stage after a little while •Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Inkay)	Battle! (Wild Pokémon) - Pokémon X / Pokémon Y
573		Jeff	Earthbound series	•Inkling (×3)		13,200	Onett	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Jeff) •Item: Shooting Types	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy's shooting items have increased power •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Onett Theme / Winters Theme
687		Tsubasa Oribe	Tokyo Mirage Sessions ♯FE	•Inkling		1,600	Boxing Ring (Battlefield form)	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Squid Sisters)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear	Style Savvy: Trendsetters
779	File:Amy Spirit.png	Amy	Sonic the Hedgehog series	•Inkling		9,400	Windy Hill Zone	•Item: Hammer	•The enemy starts the battle with a Hammer •The enemy can swing the Hammer for a long time •The enemy has increased move speed	Open Your Heart
785	File:Chaos Spirit.png	Chaos	Sonic the Hedgehog series	•Metal Inkling		4,200	Fourside (Battlefield form)	•Giant	•The enemy is giant when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy is metal	Open Your Heart
1,030		Squid Sisters	Splatoon series	•Inkling (×4)		13,700	Moray Towers	•Assist Trophy Enemies •Easy to Launch	•You are easy to launch •Hostile assist trophies will appear	Ink Me Up
1,032		Sheldon	Splatoon series	•Inkling Team (×4) ()		8,000	Moray Towers (Battlefield form)	•Item: Shooting Types	•The enemy's ranged weapons have increased power	Seaskape
1,034		Jelonzo	Splatoon series	•Inkling (×2) ()		2,500	Saffron City (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Poison Floor	•The floor is poisonous	Seaskape
1,035		Crusty Sean	Splatoon series	•Inkling		3,600	Saffron City	•Move Speed ↑ •Item: Food	•The enemy becomes more powerful after eating •All fighters have increased move speed after a little while •The enemy is easily distracted by items	Rip Entry
1,042		Octoling	Splatoon series	•Inkling Team (×4)		4,000	Midgar (Battlefield form)	•Item: Shooting Types	•Stamina battle •The enemy favors neutral specials	Octoweaponry
1,047		Octoling Girl & Octoling Boy	Splatoon series	•Inkling (×2) ()		9,400	Midgar (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy's special moves have increased power	Undertow
1,185		Mermaid	The Legendary Starfy series	•Inkling		1,700	Wuhu Island (Rocks at sea)	N/A	•The enemy heals over time	Tortimer Island Medley
1,314	File:Futaba Persona 5.png	Futaba Sakura	Persona series	Inkling		2,900	Mushroomy Kingdom (Battlefield form)	•Item Tidal Wave (Boss Galaga) •Assist Trophy Enemies (Wily Capsule)	•Timed battle •Hostile assist trophies will appear •Items will be pulled toward the enemy	Beneath the Mask

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
238	File:Botwzelda.png	Zelda (Breath of the Wild)	The Legend of Zelda series	•Zelda •Link •Inkling •Donkey Kong •Falco •Zero Suit Samus		9,200	Great Plateau Tower	N/A	•Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •Defeat an army of fighters	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild	Mipha
1,029		Li'l Judd	Splatoon series	•Tiny Mr. Game & Watch •Inkling (×2) ()		9,100	Moray Towers	N/A	•The enemy favors side specials	Now or Never! (Splatfest Version) - Splatoon 2	Inkling
1,237		Vince	Art Academy series	•Mii Swordfighter (Vince's Hat, Vince's Outfit) •Inkling		3,500	PictoChat 2	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Vince)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Swan Lesson	Paint as seen in Vince's official artwork

Alternate costumes

All of the Inkling's alternate costumes feature wearable gear that can be found in Splatoon and Splatoon 2. Each of the costumes has a different Ink color, which matches the color of their hair and squid form.

Gallery

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  Inkling character poster, as posted on the official Splatoon Twitter account.

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  Inkling artwork, as posted on the official English Nintendo Versus Twitter account.

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  Inkling's amiibo.

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  Inkling's fighter card.

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  Female Inkling on Moray Towers.

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  Male Inkling using his forward smash on Luigi at Luigi's Mansion.

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  Dodging Squirtle's Water Gun on Pokémon Stadium 2.

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  Male Inkling using down smash on 3D Land.

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  Two Inklings on Moray Towers.

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  Female Inkling using Splat Roller on Link, Samus and Mario on Figure-8 Circuit.

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  With Isabelle and Joker in his school outfit on Delfino Plaza.

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  Female Inkling watching Young Link drink Lon Lon Milk on Temple.

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  Female Inkling, Link, Pikachu and Bowser being attacked by Rathalos on Tortimer Island.

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  Female Inkling getting Screen KO'd on Moray Towers.

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  Female Inkling with Mario, Donkey Kong, Link, Samus, Ice Climbers, Pit and Villager on Battlefield.

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  With Kirby, Mario, Link, Marth, Pit, Ridley and Villager on Battlefield.

Trivia

• Inkling can swim in water in Ultimate. This contradicts attributes established in Splatoon, in which Inklings can only swim in Ink (in Squid Form) and dissolve when they touch water. However, in reference to this attribute, Inkling takes gradual damage while swimming in water and has an animation akin to other drowning animations as the basic swim animation.
  • The animation speeds up once Inkling begins to drown.
• Inkling is currently the only newcomer in Ultimate to have received a Smash Bros. 4-style character poster to promote their inclusion as a playable character.
• At E3 2018, some of the demonstration videos for Inkling show both the Splattershot and the Splat Roller leaving ink on the ground. However, it was later confirmed that only the Splat Roller can do this. The reason for the Splattershot losing this attribute is unknown.
• Inkling is the first newcomer in Ultimate that was previously featured as a Mii Fighter costume in Super Smash Bros. 4. The others are Chrom, King K. Rool, and Isabelle.
  • She is also the only sole representative to have this trait.
• Inkling was the only newcomer to be in the panoramic group artwork when it was first shown off in the E3 2018 Direct, due to being the only newcomer revealed at the time.
• Inkling is currently one of the only two newcomers in Ultimate to not have splash art and an introduction tagline, the other being Daisy.
  • For Inkling, this is most likely due to the fact that technically the Inklings were revealed in the first Ultimate teaser trailer.
• Inkling is one of two newcomers (the other being Ridley) to be in a veteran's gallery on the official website, specifically Young Link's.
• Coincidentally, Inkling's fighter number, 64, is the same as the number of the female Inkling’s costume in Super Mario Maker. She shares this distinction with Greninja.
• Inkling is the only character to have an alternate costume appear in the World of Light introduction cutscene, as the male Inkling appears alongside the default female Inkling.
  • Despite the male Inkling appearing as a separate character from the female Inkling in said scene, he does not have a Smash amiibo of him.
• When Inkling is KO'd in Stamina Mode, a ghostly squid can be seen drifting out of the KO explosion. In Splatoon, this occurs when an Inkling's health is depleted (known in that game as being "splatted").
• Inkling is one of the few fighters to spin forwards instead of away from the screen in their Star KO (similarly to how Star KOs acted in Smash 4). This trait is shared with Cloud, Corrin, Incineroar and Shulk.
• Depending on which costume the player chooses when doing Inkling's Classic Mode route, two different colors of Inkling will appear as the penultimate battle. The orange, pink, and purple Inklings face off against their yellow and green counterparts, the blue and yellow Inklings face off against the orange and green ones, and the green, cyan, and indigo Inklings face off against the orange and blue ones.
• Inkling is the only non-DLC newcomer to be a sole representative of a new universe.
• Inkling, Ike and Pokémon Trainer are the only characters to have alternate costumes with different animations. Some of the male Inkling's animations are altered from the female Inkling, including his idle pose, certain victory poses and Screen KO.
• In German, Spanish and Italian, the name tag and voice clip from the announcer on the victory screen is slightly different from the one used on the character select screen, instead featuring a noticeable translation of "the" ("die/der Inkling", "la Inkling chica"/"el Inkling chico" and "la Ragazza Inkling"/"il Ragazzo Inkling"). Inkling shares this trait with Wii Fit Trainer, Pokémon Trainer, Villager, and the Mii Fighters.
• In the Japanese version, Inkling's voice actor is not listed in the Sound Test.
• The costumes for Inklings were decided along with the Splatoon development team.
• Inkling is the only character whose Final Smash background changes color depending on alternate costumes; female Inklings will have a blue background while male Inklings will have a green one.
• With the addition of the DLC Futaba Sakura Spirit, Inkling is now one of the few characters who can appear in their default costume as a puppet in Spirit battles. The others are Mr. Game & Watch, Bowser Jr., Yoshi, Peach, Mario, Luigi, Robin and Joker. Like Robin, and Joker, the Spirit battle is exclusive to DLC spirits.
  • This is not counting Alph and female Corrin, who use their main colors in a few spirit battles, but themselves are alternate costumes, or R.O.B., who has several spirit battles that use either his Famicom or NES costumes, but which one is used is the one that is not his default in that version.
  • Although the default female Inkling was not used in any spirit battles prior to version 3.0, the default male Inkling was.
    • This makes Inkling the only fighter with two costumes with alternate colors to use a default palette for both costumes in spirit battles.
• Inkling is one of the only two non-DLC newcomers that can wall jump; the other one is Dark Samus.
• Not counting the male Inkling, the female default Inking is one of the four female fighters not to face Master Hand (and Crazy Hand if the difficulty is 7.0 or higher) as the final boss in Classic Mode, the other three being Zelda, Rosalina & Luma and Bayonetta.
• During Smash Ball stand by, Inkling's head will glow with a colored aura equivalent to that of her ink. The phase is nearly identical to that when Inklings max out their special attack meter in Splatoon, with the animation in Smash lacking her tentacles splaying about wildly.
• In World of Light, Inkling is the only character who does not use their dashing animation when moving around on the map.
• Inkling and Snake are the only characters who cannot angle their shield by holding the special move button while shielding. In Inkling's case, this is due to the shield and special button combination being used to refill their ink gauge.
• If an Inkling opponent gets KO'd in either a Horde Battle or in Mob Smash, their ink gauge will not be shown at zero level.