Homing Attack
| Homing Attack | |
|---|---|
 Homing Attack in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. | |
| User | Sonic |
| Universe | Sonic |
Homing Attack (ホーミングアタック, Hōmingu Atakku) is Sonic's neutral special move and is a basic attack in many of his games.
Overview
When used, Sonic curls up into a ball, hovers momentarily while slowly moving upwards, then shoots towards the opponent closest to him causing 8% damage at its freshest and goes down by 1% as it stales up to 3% at its stalest when it connects. If there are no characters within range of the attack instead of homing in on the closest target, Sonic will simply shoot downwards at a diagonal angle. Whether or not the move hits or misses, Sonic will stall after it is used, leaving him open, making it easily punishable in team battles or even in a one on one if it connects on an opponent at low damage percentages. This move can be used an unlimited amount of times in the air, thus making it a good move to use against anybody who tries to edge guard Sonic, as well as making a good edgeguarding tool itself. If two Sonics (or Kirbys with Sonic's ability) attack each another with this move, they will slowly jump upwards until they reach the top of the screen, in a manner similar to the Luigi Ladder. It also possesses a unique quality in that it tries to hit the opponent's side facing away from Sonic by traveling over them. This property means that it only hits effectively when the opponent is moving away from him on the ground, or traveling towards him in the air.
It should be noted that the Homing Attack can be used to stall indefinitely underneath platform stages by shooting into the underside of the stage. When Sonic is about to use Homing Attack, tap the control stick or d-pad left or right, depending on the way the player wants to go, and then press the special move button. Sonic will change his direction, and attempt to home on an enemy in that direction, or, if there is no enemy in range, dash downwards at a diagonal angle. As this constitutes stalling, usage of this technique for this purpose is banned in most tournaments.
Origins
The Homing Attack made its debut in Sonic Adventure as Sonic's new main method of dealing with enemies and solving puzzles replacing the traditional Spin Dash he had in his sidescrolling days. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic had an attack similar to the Homing Attack that could be used when Sonic had a Fire Shield, this attack was used in the same manner as the Homing Attack,one would simply have to press the jump button again while in the air and Sonic would curl up and shoot forward surrounded by fire. In Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic could charge towards enemies on the ground after collecting a Golden shield. Although these attacks resemble the Homing Attack, they did not lock on to the target, like the Homing Attack, therefore not truly making them "homing" attacks. The version featured in Super Smash Bros is different from the ones featured in the Sonic games due to its start up time, where in the Sonic games it is a near immediate attack.
One of the custom variants, the stomp, is a reference to a move in Sonic Unleashed, Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations. Sonic could only do it in the 2D sections of levels and it would cause him to kick downwards to the ground until he hits it.
Trivia
- In Home-Run Contest, this attack does not home on the Sandbag because in Brawl, it is functionally an item, not a character like in Melee.
- While Sonic is preparing for Homing Attack, pressing the attack button will make him use the attack faster. It will, however, slightly decrease its accuracy.
- The player can slightly ascend if two or more players collide with this move simultaneously. This may be a hidden reference to Sonic games like Sonic Heroes or Shadow the Hedgehog, where the same effect would occur.
- This is Sonic's only special attack not to start with an "S".
