Zero Suit Samus (SSBU)

Zero Suit Samus in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	Metroid
Other playable appearances	in Brawl in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Zero Laser

“	Although not as powerful as Samus, her speed is exceptional! Her Paralyzer not only has the ability to stun opponents, but it can also turn into a whip. For her Final Smash, she dons her suit and fires a powerful laser!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Zero Suit Samus (ゼロスーツサムス, Zero Suit Samus) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, officially confirmed on June 12th, 2018. Once again, Zero Suit Samus is unconnected to the standard playable Samus, although she temporarily transforms into the latter during her Final Smash. Zero Suit Samus is classified as fighter #29.

As in Smash 4, Alésia Glidewell's portrayal of Zero Suit Samus from Brawl was repurposed for Ultimate.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Zero Suit Samus being the 19th character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Fox or any character in his unlock tree, being the 2nd character unlocked after Captain Falcon.
• Have Zero Suit Samus join the player's party in World of Light.

With the exception of the third method, Zero Suit Samus must then be defeated on Brinstar.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4

Although being considered a dominating top tier character throughout the lifetime of SSB4 (6th out of 55 characters), Zero Suit Samus has received a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition to Ultimate, but making her one of the few SSB4 top-tier character to be only slightly nerfed overall thanks to the new mechanics. She has received some big direct and indirect nerfs, and the most notable was to her outstanding combo and punish game, which while still potent, were been toned down overall. Her down throw can no longer combo as reliably as in the previous game past very low percentages, her up aerial has more ending lag and her down smash has less hitstun and knockback, worsening several of her setup moves and making it more difficult to capitalize on them. Furthermore, the changes to the knockback physics make it more difficult for her to string her moves into the other. Zero Suit Samus's recovery, previously one of the best in the game, was also nerfed, as Plasma Whip takes much longer to grab an edge and has reduced tether range. Lastly, nerfs to her forward smash's new sourspot, forward aerial's power, and back aerials and Boost Kick's hitboxes and reduced knockback, make it harder for her to score KOs, reducing her poor KO ability even further.

However, Zero Suit Samus does benefit overall from the universal changes to gameplay mechanics. The faster movement speed further enhances her already excellent mobility (now possessing the fastest initial dash in the game and a usable dash-dance), improving her approach and as such, her "hit and run" playstyle. The reintroduction of directional air dodging improves her juggling capabilities, and the universally reduced landing lag allows her to retain some of her combo game while improving on her mediocre neutral game - one of her most notable weaknesses in Smash 4. She has also directly received some useful buffs: her down tilt, arguably her worst move in SSB4, has reduced lag that gives it newfound combo potential. Aside from her lost ability to string lengthy and devastating punishes off of a down throw, Zero Suit Samus' grab game has been improved as a whole; her grab, previously one of the laggiest in the game, has been sped up, making it less risky to use, and her up throw has increased knockback, granting her a new KO move. Finally, her special moveset has seen many improvements, as Paralyzer charges and fires shots faster, while Plasma Whip can now send opponents towards her for new setups if the button is held, and has restored some of its lost KO power from Brawl and SSB4'.

In the end, Zero Suit Samus remains a high-risk, high-reward character whose learning curve is higher than in SSB4, with a wider and more intricate array of neutral, combo and punish options, as opposed to her more polarized kit in SSB4 that necessitated a more linear gameplan. Much like Mario and Fox, and in contrast to how other former SSB4 top tier characters were nerfed much more heavily, Zero Suit Samus continues to be an effective character; while Juice and even moreso Marss have been highly successful with ZSS in the Western tournament scene, her perception is even more favorable in Japan, with multiple players including Choco finding notable tournament success with her. Due to Marss' dominance with the character, Zero Suit Samus is widely regarded as a top-tier or upper high-tier character once again, and has been one of the most successful fighters in Ultimate relative to her low representation. This is taken even further in Japan, where she is frequently regarded as the best character in the game, if not one of the best.

Aesthetics

• As with all veterans returning from SSB4, Zero Suit Samus's model mostly features a more subdued color scheme, though her eyes are a more vibrant green and less blue. Most of her suit is now a lighter shade of blue with a matte texture, which matches her in-game design in Metroid: Samus Returns.
• While Zero Suit Samus retains some design elements from SSB4, the material of her Zero Suit no longer looks homogeneous. Her physique has been altered as well, with her figure now being leaner and more muscular, as in Samus Returns concept art.
• Zero Suit Samus has a new idle animation. She now holds the Paralyzer in a high ready position, similar to one of her idle poses and victory animations.
• Zero Suit Samus's grab aerial now droops and lays on the ground during landing lag.
• Zero Suit Samus's walking and running animations have been altered slightly; she now bobs with each step.
• Zero Suit Samus propels herself forward using her jet boots when performing a forward roll.
• Zero Suit Samus now strikes a pose during her down taunt animation.

Attributes

• The changes to powershielding both help and hinder Zero Suit Samus. They make it easier for her to punish out of shield due to her quick attack speed, but also make her easier to be punished out of shield due to her reliance on landing aerials.
• Like all characters, Zero Suit Samus's jumpsquat animation now takes three frames to complete (down from 4).
• Zero Suit Samus runs significantly faster (2.1 → 2.31).
  • Zero Suit Samus's initial dash is significantly faster (1.7 → 2.42), now being the fastest in Ultimate.
• Zero Suit Samus walks slightly faster (1.4 → 1.47).
• Zero Suit Samus' air speed is slightly faster (1.2 → 1.26).

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • The first hit can lock, at least on an incline.
  • The entire move can no longer cross up shields, and its travel distance shortened.
  • Its first and last hits also have slightly more ending lag (FAF 21 (first hit)/32 (third hit) → 24/35).
  • The first two hits no longer have set knockback.
  • The final hit has altered hitboxes (size: 4.2u/3u → 4u/3.5u, Z offset: 6/2 → 8/2), increasing its range overall.
• Dash attack:
  • The internal hitbox now extends downwards (Y offset: 10 → 5-10), and the late version is larger (4.1u → 4.5u), allowing it to hit downed opponents better.
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt no longer grants intangibility on her legs, and can now rebound with other moves, reducing its safety, especially against aerial attacks. This makes it much less effective as an anti-air.
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt has less ending lag (FAF 36 → 30).
  • It sends at a more vertical angle (60° → 70°). Coupled with the above change, this gives the move combo potential.
  • It has a different animation: Zero Suit Samus uses her left leg for her down tilt instead of her right. It also moves her forward a much shorter distance and returns her to her original position. This hinders its range and makes its effect as a pseudo-crawl negligible but improves its spacing potential.
• Forward smash:
  • Forward smash's second hit can be angled, allowing her to both hit characters in the air more reliably when angled up, and hit smaller characters easier when angled down.
  • It has slightly less startup lag (frame 14 → 13).
  • Its travel distance was shortened, making it harder to hit opponents from further away.
  • It has a sourspot when hit up close that has less knockback scaling (106/109 → 106/97).
  • It has slightly more ending lag (FAF 63 → 65).
• Up smash:
  • The last hit deals more knockback (70 base/145 scaling → 45/212), no longer being the weakest up smash in the game.
• Down smash:
  • Down smash now applies freeze frames to the user as well as the opponent.
  • It deals no longer has base knockback (50/40 base/ 90/50 scaling → 0/ 90/85), which significantly reduces its stun time and as such, hinders its combo potential.

Aerial attacks

• All aerials have less landing lag (10 frames → 6 (neutral), 16 → 10 (forward), 11 → 10 (back), 9 → 5 (up), 30 → 24 (down)).
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial's first hit has set-ups and KO confirms due to its lower landing lag.
  • Forward aerial has an altered animation. The animation's positioning is also lower compared to SSB4, allowing her to hit shorter characters when performed in a rising short hop.
  • The first hit transition faster into the second (frame 16 → 13).
    • However, the move's duration was not compensated, effectively increasing the move's ending lag (by 3 frames), diminishing its combo potential when not landing with it.
  • The second hit has less knockback scaling (116 → 104). However, the move's increased ending lag still renders the move incapable of comboing effectively in the air, while also KOing later.
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial has a slightly altered animation. Zero Suit Samus is more upright while kicking and her left leg is more inward.
  • The sourspot is larger (2.5u → 3.5u) and now takes priority over the sweetspot, making the sweetspot harder to land overall.
  • The sourspot was moved inwards (X offset: 1.5 → -1), which combined with its larger hitbox removes the move's blindspot.
• Up aerial:
  • It has slightly more ending lag (FAF 34 → 35). This makes it more difficult to combo and juggle her opponents, severely hampering her ability to pull off her notoriously fatal Stairway to Heaven.
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial's lower landing lag, combined with Zero Suit Samus's faster jumpsquat, means the landing hit can combo into forward aerial at lower percentages.
  • Down aerial's landing hitbox is larger (8u → 9u), extends further (Z offset: -1–1 → -1.5–1), and is positioned higher (Y offset: 6 → 7), improving its range, especially against opponents above or behind Zero Suit Samus.
• Grab aerial:
  • Grab aerial deals consistent damage (3% early/6% clean → 5%). It deals less damage than the previous clean hit, but more damage than the early hit.
  • It has less ending lag, make it more useful to start combos without being used on landing.
  • It bounces off of the first thing it hits, therefore it can only hit one thing before Zero Suit Samus uses the move again.
  • It has less tether range.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have less ending lag, especially her pivot grab (FAF 69 standing/72 dash/80 pivot → 59/67/62).
• The inability to pass through other fighters helps prevent dash grab from whiffing when used too close to the opponent.
• Forward throw:
  • Zero Suit Samus has a new forward throw: a kick to the opponent's chest.
  • Forward throw's first hit deals more damage, with the second dealing less damage (2%/7% → 5%/4%).
    • The second hit's base knockback has not been fully compensated (50 → 58). Combined with the more horizontal angle (45° → 33°), this allows it to set up tech chase situations.
• Up throw:
  • Up throw deals more knockback (80 base/60 scaling → 65/93), being able to KO before Sudden Death percents.
• Down throw:
  • Down throw deals more damage (2% (hit 1), 3% (throw) → 4% (both)).
    • However, the throw's knockback was not compensated, and it has more ending lag (FAF 46 → 52). This severely worsens its combo potential past very low percentages. It has gone from being one of her best moves, to arguably becoming her worst, and definitely her least useful throw.

Special moves

• Paralyzer:
  • Paralyzer charges more quickly.
  • Paralyzer's shots are more orange in color.
• Plasma Whip:
  • Plasma Whip's final hit deals slightly more damage (7.5% → 8%) and significantly more knockback (45 base/105 scaling → 47/138).
  • Plasma Whip's final hit is larger (4.6u → 6u).
  • If the special move button is held during the move, it sends the opponent up and towards her, giving an opportunity for followups, similar to her Whip Lash custom move from SSB4. This version has more ending lag, but the hitbox lasts longer.
  • The move takes much longer to tether to the ledge, and its tether range was also reduced. This makes the move much worse for recovery.
• Boost Kick:
  • Boost Kick no longer has RCO lag.
    • However, the aerial version has more landing lag (22 frames → 30), making it identical to the RCO lag variant despite the removal.
  • Its hits connect more reliably.
  • The initial hit has lost its farthest hitbox, reducing its range to the point Zero Suit Samus has to be right next to the opponent in order for it to connect.
  • The aerial version has less knockback scaling (209 → 184).
• Flip Jump:
  • Flip Jump travels slightly faster and can be interrupted sooner (FAF 50 → 39).
  • The manual kick can be inputted earlier (frame 19 → 14).
  • The bounce from the footstool stomp is significantly shorter, granting it better followup potential.
  • It can no longer be edge-canceled. [1]
  • The kick has a shorter duration (frames 9-14 → 9-12).
  • It no longer grants intangibility on Zero Suit Samus's legs after the full body intangibility ends.
  • The bury deals altered knockback (60 base/100 scaling → 25/145), hindering its follow-up potential at lower percents, but improves it at higher percents.
• Final Smash:
  • Zero Suit Samus has a new Final Smash, Zero Laser. She summons her gunship, but temporarily dons her Varia Suit (using the same model as the playable version) and fires a single, long-lasting laser from the top of the ship, similarly to Aura Storm. The players choose where to aim the laser with a targeting reticle.
  • Zero Laser deals significantly increased damage compared to a single laser (0.8% loop hits/10% last/17.2% total → 1.2%/1.6% loop hits/20%/25% last/51.2-66.6% total), and the last hit has much higher knockback, making it more powerful.
  • Zero Laser only has a single use compared to Gunship's maximum of five shots, making it deal less total damage if all hits connect (86% → 66.6%). The last hit also has a delay before being fired, meaning the Final Smash can miss. This makes it less versatile and consistent.

Update history

Zero Suit Samus has received a mix of buffs and nerfs via game updates, but has been slightly buffed overall.

Patch 2.0.0 nerfed her forward smash by adding a sourspot at close range while her Flip Jump has reduced base knockback, hindering her ability to KO aerial opponents at an early percentage from a back throw. Patch 3.0.0 nerfed her Flip Jump further as it travels a less horizontal distance, hindering her recovery.

However, her buffs in patch 2.0.0 allow her to grab ledges earlier when using forward aerial and up aerial while patch 3.1.0 allows her Plasma Whip to connect more reliably. Her Flip Jump has been reverted to how it was before patch 3.0.0 improving her recovery.

2.0.0

• Forward smash received a sourspot at close range.
• Zero Suit Samus can grab the edge earlier after using forward (73 frames → 71) and up aerials (75 frames → 59).
• Flip Jump has altered knockback (60 (base)/100 (scaling) → 25/145). This increases its burial duration at high percents, but decreases it at low percents.
  • However, its reduced base knockback hinders its KO potential against airborne opponents at low percents.

3.0.0

• Adjusted Grapple Beam's animations.
• Flip Jump's horizontal travel distance is shorter (horizontal control speed: 0.7 → 0.5).

3.1.0

• Plasma Whip's hits connect more reliably.
• Flip Jump has reverted to its pre-3.0.0 behavior.

4.0.0

• Down aerial no longer has its downward movement disabled when used out of hitstun.

6.0.0

• Fixed a glitch where Flip Jump's burying hitbox would be active during landing lag if Zero Suit Samus landed before the hitbox was deleted.

Moveset

• Zero Suit Samus can crawl and wall jump.
• Zero Suit Samus possesses a tether attack and grab.

For a gallery of Zero Suit Samus' hitboxes, see here.

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

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			1.5%	A knifehand strike, followed by a pistol-whip with her Paralyzer, followed by a 12-6 elbow. Is tied with Little Mac for the fastest jab, coming out instantly on frame 1. The first hit can lock, but the height of the hitbox causes it to miss small or crouching opponents on non-slanted terrain. It also has a terrible damage output, only dealing a total of 6% if all three hits connect.
			1.5%
			3%
Forward tilt	↗		8% (leg), 6.5% (body)	A roundhouse kick. Can be angled. The down-angled version may cause tripping at low percentages.
	→		7% (leg), 6% (body)
	↘		8% (leg), 6.5% (body)
Up tilt			5% (hit 1), 7% (hit 2)	A butterfly kick-styled scissor kick performed from a variation of the 2000, a breakdancing move. It hits on frame 3, making it Zero Suit Samus' fastest tilt attack. It is also one of only two moves that hits in front of and behind her, with the other being neutral aerial, making it a good replacement to her down smash to hit both sides.
Down tilt			8% (leg), 6% (foot)	A legsweep. This lowers her hurtbox moreso than her crouch, allowing her to duck under most projectiles with proper timing. This move is great for setting up combos.
Dash attack			8% (clean), 5% (late)	Activates her Jet Boots to perform a jet-propelled knee strike.
Forward smash			5% (hit 1), 11% (hit 2)	A mid-level side kick, followed by a spinning side kick at a slightly higher angle. Due to it activating her Jet Boots, the second hit has a visible sweetspot in the form of a small, fiery blast at the tip of her foot. Unlike typical sweetspots, it has the same damage output as the sourspot; the only change is that it has slightly higher knockback scaling. Her side smash can be angled, but only the second kick changes in angle.
Up smash			4% (hit 1), 0.8% (hits 2-6), 3% (hit 7)	Spins in place while twirling her Plasma Whip overhead.
Down smash		Slant Paralyzer	8% (near), 6% (far)	Aims her Paralyzer downward in front of herself and fires a paralyzing energy blast at the ground. This move has poor KO potential, instead being used to initiate combos. Opponents are paralyzed much longer at higher percentages.
Neutral aerial			8%	Spins in midair, swinging her Plasma Whip laterally around herself. Has low ending lag, allowing for combo opportunities if used from a short-hopped fast fall. It does not autocancel in a short hop.
Forward aerial			5% (hit 1), 7% (hit 2)	A hook kick, followed by a roundhouse kick.
Back aerial			12% (foot), 10% (leg)	A spinning hook kick behind herself.
Up aerial			6.5%	A bicycle kick. Thanks to its minimal start-up and ending lag, very low base knockback and very high knockback scaling, and low landing lag, it boasts excellent juggling potential.
Down aerial		Slash Dive	6%, 5.5% (landing)	A diagonal flying kick, similar to Sonic and Sheik's down aerials. The hitbox at the beginning can meteor smash. Has the slowest startup lag of all of her aerials. Due to this move being a stall-then-fall, it is extremely risky to use off-stage, so it is rarely used as a meteor smash as most of times it can lead to a self-destruct. Even when she lands on the ground, there is high landing lag, making it easy to punish. Despite this, its extremely fast descent speed can enable it to counter a juggle if there is sufficient distance between Zero Suit Samus and the opponent.
Grab aerial		Plasma Whip	5%	Lashes in front of her with the Plasma Whip.
Grab		Plasma Whip	—	Performs a kneeling lunge to unfurl the Plasma Whip. A hitbox appears at her hand, allowing her to grab opponents with less lag.
Pummel			1.3%	A knee strike.
Forward throw			5% (hit), 4% (throw)	Kicks the opponent away. It can tech-chase at low to mid percentages, and at high percents it can edgeguard.
Back throw			2% (hit), 6% (throw)	A mid-level roundhouse kick.
Up throw			2% (hit), 8% (throw)	A backflip kick. The most damaging out of all of her throws, as well as her strongest throw.
Down throw			4% (hit), 4% (throw)	Pins the opponent on the ground, and performs an axe kick. Its increased ending lag and knock back have caused it to lose all its combo potential outside of very low percents.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	A modified butterfly kick performed from a windmill (a breakdancing move).
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Same as her frontal floor attack.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Performs a spinning low-level roundhouse kick.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Performs a low-level roundhouse kick while climbing up.
Neutral special		Paralyzer	4~6%	Assumes a kneeling position to fire a paralyzing energy blast from her weapon. It can be charged, which increases its damage output the duration of its paralysis, but at the cost of lowered speed. Targets hit by paralysis cannot be paralyzed again until making contact with the stage.
Side special		Plasma Whip	2% (arm), 3.2% (whip, base), 1.2% (whip, middle), 4% (whip, held tip), 8% (whip, pressed tip)	Performs a kneeling lunge to unleash the Plasma Whip forward in a swirling motion. The whip hits repeatedly, while its sweetspot, which is located at the whip's tip, launches opponents away, and can KO at high percentages. Alternatively, holding down the special move button will have the tip of the whip snap upwards, knocking opponents up and towards her. While the held version deals less damage, it gives Zero Suit Samus an opportunity for followups.
Up special		Boost Kick	5% (hit 1), 1.2% (hits 2 - 6), 4% (hit 7)	Activates her Jet Boots to perform a jet-propelled diagonal split-legged flying kick, followed by a spinning hook kick. One of her best KO moves against a midair opponent. It can also be angled forward or backward, which allows it to catch an opponent's air dodge, rolls and edge get-up reactions.
Down special		Flip Jump	8% (stomp), 14% (kick)	A 720° Ce Kong Fan[2], a jumping technique used in contemporary Wushu. It functions as a third jump and grants intangibility on frames 3-12. It can deal damage in two ways: upon contact at the end of the jump, or by pressing either the attack button or special button during the jump. Upon contact, Zero Suit Samus performs a footstool stomp, which buries grounded opponents and meteor smashes aerial opponents. Pressing the attack or special buttons makes her perform a diagonal flying kick, which is very powerful. The flying kick also has a sweetspot at her foot that can meteor smash aerial opponents, but has slightly less knockback against aerial opponents.
Final Smash		Zero Laser	1.2/1.6% (laser loop), 20/25% (final burst)	Zero Suit Samus leaps up, rising into the air, then appears atop her Gunship in the background, wearing her Power Suit. A player-controlled crosshair then appears, and after a short amount of time (or when the attack button is pressed), the now-suited Samus begins firing her Zero Laser with an area roughly equal to that of the crosshair. Like the version used by her suited counterpart, it hits multiple times. Opponents take more damage closer towards the center of the crosshair. At the end of the move, there is a brief pause, then one final burst is fired with enough power to launch opponents. Once the move concludes, Samus reverts to her Zero Suit and returns to her previous position.

On-screen appearance

• Jumps out of her Gunship and uses her Jet Boots to briefly hover before landing.

Taunts

• Up Taunt: Tosses her Paralyzer into the air, spins once, and catches it behind herself while saying "Is that all?"
• Side Taunt: Swings the Plasma Whip in a circular motion while saying "Try me."
• Down Taunt: Holds her Paralyzer near her waist, and then performs a pirouette while twirling the Plasma Whip around her body and saying "You're mine."

• 

  Zero Suit Samus's up taunt.

• 

  Zero Suit Samus's side taunt.

• 

  Zero Suit Samus's down taunt.

Idle poses

• Stands up straight and looks around, holding her Paralyzer towards her face.
• Makes configurations to her Paralyzer.

• 

  Zero Suit Samus's first idle pose

• 

  Zero Suit Samus's second idle pose

Victory poses

• Left: Slashes the air twice with her Plasma Whip and says "Be still."
• Up: Uses Flip Jump and then performs a jet-propelled somersault while grunting.
• Right: Performs a stretch kick and then swings her leg into position to perform a modified passé while grunting. Her leg motions and ending pose seems to "draw out" her series symbol, with the stretch kick being the "circle" and the ending pose being the "S".

A flourished remix of the theme that would play when Samus Aran obtained a new power-up or addition to her Power Suit. It would also play when Samus defeated Ridley or Kraid.

• 
• 
• 

In competitive play

When the game got released, Zero Suit Samus was considered to be moderately nerfed from her last appearance, where she was a top tier character. Many players noted how many of her tools were watered down, most notably her combo potential. This resulted in her being a mid tier character at best while having low tournament representation in the West, although her representation and reputation in Japan were much higher to begin with.

As the meta advanced, many dedicated players such as Marss and Choco have played well in tournaments and dominated with the character, which was helped by nerfs to her most difficult matchups such as Pichu. As a result, Zero Suit Samus was given a considerably better reception, being an upper-high tier character as the general consensus, while other professionals such as ZeRo and Mew2King call her a top-tier character, noting the character’s success. Many top Japanese players have Zero Suit at the top of their tier lists as well. Regardless, she is still considered to be slightly worse than her Smash 4 iteration.

Notable players

Any number following the Smasher name indicates placement on the Spring 2019 PGRU, which recognizes the official top 50 players in the world in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate from February 1st, 2019 to July 7th, 2019.

•  Choco - The best Zero Suit Samus player in Japan. Placed 2nd at Umebura SP, 3rd at Umebura SP 5, 5th at Umebura SP 4, and 9th at Umebura SP 2, Umebura SP 7 and Umebura Japan Major 2019.
•  Es - Placed 17th at both Umebura SP 3 and Umebura SP 6.
•  Exodia - One of the best Zero Suit Samus players in Canada. Placed 1st at Animethon 26, 3rd at Canada Cup 2019, 9th at The Pinnacle 2019, and 17th at VORTEX. Ranked 18th on the Smash Canada Rankings Ultimate.
•  Juice - The best Zero Suit Samus player in Philadelphia, and one of the best in the United States. Placed 9th at Suplex City Smash, 17th at both Glitch 6 and Collision 2019.
•  king_chris - The best Zero Suit Samus player in Canada. Placed 7th at VORTEX, and 33rd at both Get On My Level 2019 and CEO 2019. Ranked 12th on the Smash Canada Rankings Ultimate.
•  Kuro - One of the best Zero Suit Samus players in Japan. Placed 1st at Umebura SP 6, 7th at both EGS Cup 2 and Umebura SP 7, 9th at EGS Cup, and 17th at both Umebura SP 3 and Umebura SP 4.
•  Marss (#3) - The best Zero Suit Samus player in the world. Placed 1st at Collision 2019, Full Bloom 5, and Smash Factor 8, 2nd at Heart of Battle, 3rd at Pound 2019, 13th at EVO 2019, and 25th at GENESIS 6.
•  Nairo (#8) - Uses Zero Suit Samus as a secondary. Placed 4th at both Let's Make Moves and 2GG: Prime Saga, as well as 5th at MomoCon 2019 using Zero Suit Samus as one of his characters.
•  quiK - Uses Zero Suit Samus as a secondary and is considered the best Zero Suit Samus player in Europe. Placed 7th at Elysium: Yggdrasil, 9th at 2GG: Prime Saga Kickoff, and 17th at 2GG: Prime Saga.
•  shky - One of the best Zero Suit Samus players in Japan. Placed 9th at Umebura SP 4, 17th at Umebura Japan Major 2019, and 33rd at both Umebura SP 2 and Umebura SP 3.
•  Shoe - The best Zero Suit Samus player in Colorado. Placed 5th at Crown, 33rd at 2GG: Prime Saga, 49th at Low Tier City 7, and 97th at EVO 2019.
•  Yamanyon - Placed 7th at EGS Cup, 13th at Umebura SP 2, 17th at Umebura SP 3, and 25th at Umebura Japan Major 2019, Umebura SP 5, and Umebura SP 6.

Classic Mode: Grapplers! Whips! Claws!

Zero Suit Samus' congratulations screen.

Zero Suit Samus's opponents are largely characters who use tether grabs or recoveries. The only exception is Little Mac, who represents the theme of "wires" by using his wireframe outfit.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Young Link and Toon Link	Skyloft	Dark World (for 3DS / Wii U)
2	Ivysaur	Spear Pillar	Pokémon Gym/Evolution - Pokémon Red / Pokémon Blue
3	Dark Samus	Brinstar Depths	Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior
4	Yoshi	Peach's Castle	Super Mario World Medley
5	Simon and Richter	Dracula's Castle	Simon Belmont Theme (The Arcade)
6	Little Mac (x3) (x3)	75m (Battlefield form)	Tunnel Scene - X	Items do not appear.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand	Final Destination	Master Hand (Less than 7.0 intensity) Master Hand / Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, Crazy Hand fights alongside Master Hand.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Zero Suit Samus has Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

Finding Zero Suit Samus in World of Light

Although Zero Suit Samus does not appear in the World of Light opening cutscene, she was vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (sans Kirby) when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. Zero Suit Samus' awakening battle is separate from that of Samus, who is vaporized in the opening cutscene.

Zero Suit Samus can be found and awakened in the upper-right volcanic area in the World of Light after defeating the Metroid spirit.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
29		Zero Suit Samus	Grab	7,500	Brinstar Depths (Ω form)	Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior

Spirits

Zero Suit Samus's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Zero Suit Samus in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate. While Samus herself appears in a number of Spirits, including an unarmored "Young Samus" spirit portrayed by a Zero Suit Samus puppet fighter, the Zero Suit itself only appears in Zero Suit Samus' Fighter Spirit.

• 

  266. Zero Suit Samus

In Spirit battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
242		Urbosa	The Legend of Zelda series	•Zero Suit Samus		4,400	Gerudo Valley (Battlefield form)	•Item: Lightning •Hazard: Zap Floor	•The floor is electrified •Stamina battle •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
274		Young Samus	Metroid series	•Zero Suit Samus •Snake		3,400	Frigate Orpheon	N/A	•The enemy falls slowly	Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior
595		Jody Summer	F-Zero series	•Zero Suit Samus •Captain Falcon		9,400	Big Blue	N/A	•The enemy has increased move speed and reduced weight	White Land (Remix)
645		Lyn	Fire Emblem series	•Zero Suit Samus		9,400	Gaur Plain (Battlefield form)	•Attack Power ↑ •Assist Trophy Enemies (Lyn)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge	Attack - Fire Emblem
728		Mimicutie	Kid Icarus series	•Zero Suit Samus		1,700	Skyworld	•Item Tidal Wave	•The enemy's kicks and knee strikes have increased power •The enemy favors side smash attacks •Certain items will appear in large numbers after a little while	In the Space-Pirate Ship
754		Meryl Silverburgh	Metal Gear Solid series	•Zero Suit Samus		1,700	Shadow Moses Island	•Sudden Damage	•All fighters occasionally take sudden damage after a little while	Encounter
757		Rosemary	Metal Gear Solid series	•Zero Suit Samus		1,600	Living Room	•Defense ↓ •Item: Food	•All fighters have reduced defense after a little while	MGS4 ~Theme of Love~
760		The Boss	Metal Gear Solid series	•Zero Suit Samus		13,900	Garden of Hope (Ω form)	•Defense ↑ •Hazard: Poison Floor	•The floor is poisonous •Timed Stamina battle •The enemy has increased defense when the enemy's at high damage	Snake Eater
761	File:Evaaa.png	EVA	Metal Gear Solid series	•Zero Suit Samus •Snake		3,600	Garden of Hope	•Item: Food	•Defeat the main fighter to win •The enemy becomes more powerful after eating	Snake Eater
918		Mega Man Zero	Mega Man Zero series	•Zero Suit Samus		9,400	Midgar (Battlefield form)	•Assist Trophy Enemies	•Stamina battle •Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy starts the battle with a Beam Sword	Zero (Theme of ZERO (from Mega Man X))
955		Sharla	Xenoblade Chronicles series	•Zero Suit Samus		3,700	Gaur Plain	•Item: Ray Gun	•The enemy's shooting items have increased power •The enemy starts the battle with a Ray Gun	Gaur Plain
980	File:Chun Li Alpha Spirit.png	Chun-Li (Street Fighter Alpha)	Street Fighter series	•Zero Suit Samus		3,600	Onett (Ω form)	•Jump Power ↓	•The enemy's kicks and knee strikes have increased power •Stamina battle •All fighters have reduced jump power	Chun-Li Stage Type B
1,202	File:AlexandraRoivas.png	Alexandra Roivas	Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem	•Zero Suit Samus		1,800	Luigi's Mansion	•Hazard: Screen Flip	•The screen will suddenly flip when the enemy's at high damage	Main Theme - Luigi's Mansion (Brawl)
1,296		Shantae	Shantae series	•Zero Suit Samus		9,400	Pirate Ship	•Item: Transforming Types	•The enemy's battering items have increased power •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge	Mob Smash
1,311	File:Ann Persona 5.png	Ann Takamaki	Persona series	•Zero Suit Samus •Peach		4,500	Castle Siege	•Item: Fire Flower	•Defeat the main fighter to win	Last Surprise
1,350	File:High Line.png	High Line (Guns Empress)	DAEMON X MACHINA	•Zero Suit Samus •Ridley		4,200	Halberd	•Move Speed ↑ •Assist Trophy Enemies (Jeff) •Item: Shooting Types	•Hostile assist trophies will appear •The enemy starts the battle with a Killing Edge	Metalopod
1,353		S-Tetrimino & Z-Tetrimino	Tetris series	•Zero Suit Samus •Samus		4,300	Mushroom Kingdom U (Slide Life Tower)	•Sudden Final Smash •Item: Screw Attack	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash	Chill (for 3DS / Wii U)	Z-Tetrimino

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	Urbosa
288	File:Adam malkovich.png	Adam Malkovich	Metroid series	•Snake •Zero Suit Samus		1,600	Shadow Moses Island	N/A	•Defeat the main fighter to win	Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior	Young Samus Aran
1,306		Phantom Thieves of Hearts	Persona series	•Joker •Pikachu •Captain Falcon •Zero Suit Samus •Chrom •Sheik		13,300	Mementos	•Sudden Final Smash •Item: Daybreak Parts	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash when the enemy's at high damage •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Wake Up, Get Up, Get Out There	Ann Takamaki
1,328	File:Hero's Comrades Spirit.png	Hero's Comrades	DRAGON QUEST series	•Ike •King Dedede •Zero Suit Samus •Sheik •Robin •Zelda •Link		13,300	Yggdrasil's Altar	N/A	•The enemy has increased melee-weapon damage and move speed •The enemy's smash attacks have increased power •Stamina battle	The Hero Goes Forth with a Determination	Jade

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Zero Suit Samus' fighter card.

• 

  Zero Suit Samus on Wrecking Crew.

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  Performing her down tilt on Coliseum.

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  Performing down smash on Frigate Orpheon.

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  With Samus on Gaur Plain.

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  Crawling with Snake on Shadow Moses Island.

• 

  Using her back aerial on Sheik on Luigi's Mansion.

Trivia

• Ridley's reveal trailer marks Zero Suit Samus' first appearance in a cinematic CGI Smash trailer since Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
• Despite no longer being linked by in-battle transformation, Zero Suit Samus temporarily dons the Varia Suit during her Final Smash.
  • This makes Zero Suit Samus the only playable alter-ego of a different character to make a limited appearance as said character during her Final Smash only.
• Zero Suit Samus is the only alternate incarnation or alter-ego of a starter character to not be in that character's Classic Mode character unlock sequence, as she is in Fox's rather than Samus'. This may be due to her unique moveset, as Dr. Mario, Young Link, Toon Link and Pichu are all clones or semi-clones.
• For unknown reasons, Zero Suit Samus's taunt voice clips aren't present in the Sound Test.
• Zero Suit Samus is one of four characters to have appeared since Brawl to have a different Final Smash across every installment; the other three are Pit, King Dedede, and R.O.B..
• In the Japanese version of Ultimate, characters' voice actors and actresses are credited by name. In the case of Zero Suit Samus, Alésia Glidewell's name was cut short, resulting in "Alesia Glidew". This has since been fixed.
• Zero Suit Samus' character showcase video, unlock battles and Classic Mode credits use "Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior" from Super Metroid, a game where the Zero Suit did not yet exist. This may be a reference to how Samus would appear in various states of undress during the game's ending sequence, as "Theme of Samus Aran, Space Warrior" serves as the end credits theme for that game.
• Zero Suit Samus being unlocked in Fox's unlock column is a reference to Round 4 of the latter's Classic Mode route, as she serves as a CPU ally for Fox when fighting a Giant Dark Samus.
  • Unlocking Zero Suit Samus using/immediately after Captain Falcon may be a reference to how the two have been depicted as "rival" bounty hunters in Event Matches in Brawl and for Wii U (along with Samus' suited self in Melee).
• Although Zero Suit Samus's Classic Mode contains mostly characters with tether abilities, ignoring her original Varia Suit counterpart, the Ice Climbers, Lucas, and Isabelle do not appear as her opponents.
• This is the first game where Zero Suit Samus's default head icon depicts her hair tie as its natural red, as both previous depictions have matched the Zero Suit's cyan.
• Zero Suit Samus is the only Metroid character to not travel to Norfair in her Classic Mode route.

Notes

1.^ translates to "Aerial Cartwheel" or "Side Somersault"