Mr. Game & Watch (SSBM)

Mr. Game & Watch in Super Smash Bros. Melee
Universe	Game & Watch
Other playable appearances	in Brawl in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Tier	B (22)

“	A resident of a totally flat world, Mr. Game & Watch's frame-by-frame movements is distinctive.	”
—Description from Mr. Game & Watch's trophy.

Mr. Game & Watch (Mr. ゲーム＆ウォッチ, Mr. Game & Watch) is a character in Super Smash Bros. Melee. He was designed as a composite representation of various generic characters featured in the Game & Watch series, created by Gunpei Yokoi in 1980. He is the last character to be unlocked in the game.

Mr. Game & Watch is currently ranked 22nd in Melee's tier list. Mr. Game & Watch's positive attributes include extremely powerful KO moves that have a long duration as well as a slew of moderately effective special moves, two of which (Judge and Oil Panic) can give a OHKO. However, Mr. Game & Watch's flaws are due to how he was translated to Melee; he has a bad approach due to his slow overall speed, and outside of his throws, he is rather predictable. His high hitstun and light weight also make him an easy target for combos. Mr. Game & Watch also has the dubious distinction of being the only character in the game who cannot L-cancel all of his aerial attacks, and is considered to have one of the worst shields in the game, as it fails to completely cover his entire body after even slight damage. All of this gives him very poor matchups against a majority of the cast, including three nearly unwinnable matchups, although there are five matchups in his favor.

How to Unlock

To unlock Mr. Game & Watch, players have to clear Classic mode, Adventure Mode or Target Test with all the other twenty four characters they have unlocked. Alternatively, players can complete 1000 Versus Mode matches.

When fighting Mr. Game & Watch, he will be fought at Flat Zone.

Attributes

Mr. Game & Watch generally acts as a speedy, weak character; however, he does have some incredibly powerful KO moves, most of which are slow (with the exception of his down tilt). Mr. Game & Watch's attributes tend to be scattered; he has an average falling speed, an above average air speed, an average traction, and the second lightest weight in the game (second to Pichu, and tied with Jigglypuff). As a result of these attributes, Mr. Game & Watch has a wavedash that grants decent distance and speed.

Mr. Game & Watch is notable for having unusual properties in most of his attacks; his forward tilt and smash, for instance, have Sex kick properties, harming others even after the primary hitbox dissipates. Additionally, his up smash and nair have long hitboxes that do not run out of power, making them good KO options. Additionally, Mr. Game & Watch has many disjointed hitboxes in his attacks (particularly his down smash), giving him a surprisingly and sometimes deceptively good range.

Mr. Game & Watch's aerial game is his strongest asset, as his aerials have large disjointed hitboxes (especially his neutral aerial). His neutral aerial is the most powerful neutral aerial in the game, often KO'ing under 125%, while having a very large hitbox that covers him. His forward aerial is his best approaching tool as it can be L-canceled and has fast startup (but has heavy landing lag when not L-canceled). His back aerial is multi-hitting and has a disjointed hitbox, making it somewhat unpredictable to counter. His up aerial is a two-hit attack, with the second hit having high KO power. It can also be used to juggle fast fallers and heavy characters. Lastly, his meteor smashing down aerial is effective at countering foes from below and KO'ing (the sourspot is slightly weaker than the sweetspot and sends foes on a diagonal trajectory). The down aerial's landing hitboxes add 5%-6% more damage (for a total of 19%-20% if the primary hitbox strikes first).

Mr. Game & Watch's specials also allow for significant power; Oil Panic can absorb projectiles and result in a powerful resulting projectile, and his Judgement has OHKO potential, as well as many other options. Adding in with his specials, Mr. Game & Watch also has a rather good recovery from Fire; despite a lack of options and general predictability, it sends him a significant distance upwards. The low hitstun and knockback, as well as an unpredictable trajectory gives Chef potential edgeguard capability.

Mr. Game & Watch's grab game is also decent, despite his below-average grab range. The resulting trajectories of his throws gives him solid chaingrab and combo potential, and as all his throws look identical, he can perform mindgames on opponents by challenging the player's perception of where they will end up.

Mr. Game & Watch's main flaw, however, is his awful approach. A slow, jerky dash and an average wavedash, as well as slow, weak tilts on the ground (except for his down tilt) give Mr. Game & Watch a very poor approach on the ground; his poor dash also makes him reliant on dashdancing and foxtrotting to traverse stages. His aerial approach is just as poor; despite an above average falling speed and an average short hop, Mr. Game & Watch has among the worst SHFFLs in the game, primarily due to the fact that his aerials have significant ending lag, and that his neutral, back, and up aerials have the dubious distinction of not having the ability to be L-cancelled due to a programming error that lists them as special moves.

Mr. Game & Watch's defensive game also suffers; despite a relatively small size and a very low crouch, he is very easy to shield stab, and his remaining defensive capabilities are poor, with short, slow rolling dodges and an equally short sidestep dodge. Mr. Game & Watch, due to his slow tilts and smashes and mostly situational specials, has poor out of shield options. His recovery also suffers; despite granting significant vertical distance and average horizontal distance, Fire is very predictable and easy to read, inviting edgeguarders.

Mr. Game & Watch also suffers due to his ability to be easily combo'd; his light weight and high periods of hitstun makes him a viable target for combos and juggles, and his light weight also makes him very easy to KO, only making him all the more vulnerable.

Moveset

For a gallery of Mr. Game & Watch's hitboxes, see here.

Mr. Game & Watch's aerial attacks

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack		Green House	1-3% per hit	Pulls out an insecticide pump and presses on it, shooting a puff of insecticide out. If the button is mashed, Mr. Game & Watch will fire the insecticide quickly. Originates from Greenhouse.
Forward tilt		Lion	10%	Thrusts a chair forwards. Has a long range, but significant starting lag. Originates from Lion.
Up tilt		Flagman	9%	Pulls out a number one flag and waves it upwards. A good move for juggling. Originates from Flagman.
Down tilt		Manhole	12%	Flips a manhole cover in front of him. Good vertical knockback, and can be continuously flipped if the A button is mashed. Valuable combo starter at low percentages, and can KO above 100%. Originates from Manhole.
Dash attack		Helmet	9%	Puts on a helmet and charges forwards. Low knockback, sends opponents behind him, good for racking up damage. Originates from Helmet.
Forward smash		Fire Attack	18%	Pulls out a torch and swings it forwards. Very powerful, often KO'ing lightweights at 70%. In terms of knockback (not KO percentage), it is the third most powerful side smash in the game (along with Captain Falcon). Otherwise (due to its diagonal knockback), it is the 11th most powerful side smash in the game. This is Mr. Game & Watch`s most reliable smash attack, as it is faster and stronger than his other two smash attacks. The move lasts for a second after it is executed, where the opponent can still get hit. Originates from Fire Attack.
Up smash		Octopus	18%	With a diving helmet on, leans backwards, then swings his head forwards. Has some start-up lag but also has high knockback, as well as a long duration. Originates from Octopus.
Down smash		Vermin	8% at the sweetspot, 5% at the handles	Pulls out two hammers and swings them down on both of his sides. If the opponent is hit on the tips of the hammers, the opponent is hit upwards with high knockback (sweetspot), but if the enemy is hit with the handles, they are very feebly propelled horizontally. Its power is comparable to Bowser`s down smash. Originates from Vermin.
Neutral aerial		Parachute	16%	Opens a parachute. High horizontal knockback (can KO under 125%), but comes with a bit of start-up lag. Its hitbox covers all sides of Mr. Game & Watch. This attack cannot be L-canceled, though its landing lag is rather short (15 frames). Overall the most powerful neutral aerial in Melee and is one the most powerful aerials in the game. Originates from Parachute.
Forward aerial		Cement Factory	16% at the start, 6% near the end	Whips out a cake box forwards. If hit when it first comes out, it has high damage, but if DI'd into, the opponent will be hit for minor damage with very low knockback. Originates from Mario Bros.
Back aerial		Turtle Bridge	Up to 18%	Thrusts a turtle backwards, which bites many times. Multi-hitting move, and the last hit has light knockback. Like his neutral and up aerials, cannot be L-canceled. Originates from Turtle Bridge.
Up aerial		Spitball Sparky	15% total	Blows upwards twice. The second hit has medium knockback. The first hit has knockback growth, making it less likely to lead into the second hit at higher percentages. However, the second hit can be landed without the first hit, if timed correctly. Like his neutral and back aerial, cannot be L-canceled. Originates from Spitball Sparky.
Down aerial		Donkey Kong Jr.	14% + another 5-6% if Mr. Game & Watch hits the ground	Pulls out a key and plunges downwards. If the opponent is under Mr. Game & Watch and gets hit right when the move comes out, it is a Meteor Smash. Originates from Donkey Kong Jr.
Grab			—
Pummel			2-3% per pummel	Pulls out a bell and hits the opponent with it. Somewhat slow for a pummel.
Forward throw		Ball	4-8%	Juggles the enemy as a ball, then launches the opponent forwards. Originates from Ball.
Back throw		Ball	4-8%	Juggles the enemy as a ball, then launches the opponent backwards. Originates from Ball.
Up throw		Ball	4-8%	Juggles the enemy as a ball, then launches the opponent upwards. Only up throw in the game to release opponent at an angle. Can chaingrab fastfallers. Originates from Ball.
Down throw		Ball	4-8%	Juggles the enemy as a ball, then launches the opponent downwards. Above 100%, it can chaingrab fastfallers. Originates from Ball.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			6%	Pulls out a hammer and hits on both of his sides.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			6%	Pulls out a hammer and hits on both of his sides.
Edge attack (fast) Edge getups (fast)			8%	Climbs onto the ledge, and hits forwards with a bell. Strangely, this ledge attack has knockback scaling, so it may be able to KO at extremely high damages, such as 300%.
Edge attack (slow) Edge getups (slow)			8%	Same as above, but slower. This attack also has knockback scaling.
Neutral special		Chef	4-8% per sausage; 9% if burnt by the pan.	Mr. Game & Watch's main projectile. Pulls out a frying pan and tosses sausages, which fly erratically through the air. The sausages do low amounts of damage, but they can be used to deter angled attacks. Can toss up to 5 sausages at a time. If an opponent touches the pan, the attack will deal extra fire damage.
Side special		Judgment	—	Attacks with his hammer and holds up a digital display with a random number on it. Effects change depending on the number shown.
Up special		Fire	5%	Jumps upwards on a trampoline.
Down special		Oil Panic	Depends on projectiles absorbed	Collects absorbable attacks and dumps them on opponents. The move's power is dependent on the power of the attacks absorbed. This attack can be a One-Hit KO move if it's at full power.

Judgment

Number	Damage	Description
#1	2%	A weak hit with no knockback. Causes 12% recoil damage.
#2	4%	Has very weak knockback.
#3	6%	Another weak knockback attack, although this one causes significant shield damage. Opponents are launched backwards towards Mr. Game & Watch.
#4	8%	A slashing attack that launches foes diagonally forward.
#5	12% (Total)	An electric attack that hits 4 times.
#6	12%	A flame attack that semi-spikes. Has the second strongest knockback of all judge attacks.
#7	14%	A moderate knockback attack that produces apples if it hits a foe while Mr. Game & Watch is grounded.
#8	4%	A freezing attack with low knockback.
#9	32%	A very, very high knockback attack that was designed to be similar to the home-run bat. While this attack is not a OHKO move, it can KO foes with single digit damages. The attack does, however, have a smaller hitbox.

Taunt

Mr. Game and Watch pulls out his bell and rings it.

Victory Theme

Considering that the Game & Watch series did not have music, this flourish originated in Melee. It features bleeping noises that resemble the sound effects from Game & Watch games. It also resembles the music found on the Flat Zone stage.

In Competitive play

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. Melee Character Matchups

Avg.

Notable players

See also: Category:Mr. Game & Watch professionals (SSBM)

Active

•  GimR
•  j00t
•  Qerb

Inactive

•  DireVulcan

Tier placement and history

Mr. Game & Watch has never surfaced out of the lower tiers; his negative attributes, such as his ease in getting KOed, terrible approaching options, lag in his attacks, and the inability to L-cancel some of his aerials make many professional smashers overlook him in favor of other characters that are as equally as powerful but do not share his negative traits, such as Ganondorf. Mr. Game & Watch's metagame is thus quite undeveloped compared to other Melee characters, and he has one of the worst representations in tournaments of all the characters, including the bottom tiers, as almost no active Smasher plays him consistently; he has made almost no impact in the top 96 placements of major, international tournaments, and seldom even places in regionals. As such, even though he is in the B tier, he has by far one of the smallest notable player bases.

In single-player modes

In Classic Mode

Mr. Game & Watch can appear as an ally in the team battle and the giant battle. However, he only appears as an opponent in the multi-character battle, where he is fought on Flat Zone.

In Adventure Mode

Adventure Mode makes no concessions to Mr. Game & Watch when he is unlocked.

In All-Star Mode

In All-Star Mode, Mr. Game & Watch appears as the final character the player fights against; his battle is the only one guaranteed to occur at the end, and he does not ally with any other character. The player must fight against a team of twenty five Mr. Game & Watches, five at a time, on Flat Zone. Defeating all of them allows the player to complete the mode.

In Event Matches

Mr. Game & Watch appears in the following event matches:

• Event 40: All-Star Match 4: Mr. Game & Watch is the last opponent fought in this series of staged battles. The selected character battles him on the Flat Zone stage with a stock of 2 while Mr. Game & Watch has 1. With a timer of four minutes, the player must defeat him and the other four characters one-by-one with the overall time and damage: Marth, Luigi, Jigglypuff, and Mewtwo.
• Event 45: Game & Watch Forever!: Mr. Game & Watch is the player's character, going up against twenty five other Mr. Game & Watches, similar to the final battle of All-Star Mode. However, the player's Mr. Game & Watch, while having three lives, is also light, allowing him to be KO'd easily.

Ending images

• GWClassicMode.jpg

  Classic Mode.

• FireMelee.jpg

  Adventure Mode.

• GWAllStarMode.jpg

  All-Star Mode.

Trophies

Trophy #177: First appearing in 1980, the Game & Watch series is the father of all portable liquid crystal games. The main character is simple and monochrome but has a timeless individuality. There are 39 different games in the series and they've sold over 43 million units worldwide. Pictured at left is the particularly popular Fire model.

• Games: Game & Watch (1980)

Smash Red

Trophy #178: A resident of a totally flat world, Mr. Game & Watch's frame-by-frame movements is distinctive. His image is known far and wide, and respected by gamers everywhere. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, he hurls sausages with his Chef technique. The random strength of his Judgement is determined by the number displayed; food appears on lucky 7.

Smash Blue

Trophy #179: A man of great stature in the world of Nintendo characters, Mr. Game & Watch is a comparatively light fellow and doesn't feature many powerful attacks. When he's in danger of falling, Fire calls out a rescue brigade to send him skyward once more. He can also catch missile weapons with Oil Panic; once he's caught three, he can dump the bucket on his foes.

• 

  Classic

• 

  Adventure

• 

  All-Star

Alternate costumes

Mr. Game & Watch's palette swaps in SSBM

Trivia

• Mr. Game & Watch, along with Roy and Pichu, are the only characters in Melee to have an attack that damages themselves. Kirby also counts, if he copies Roy's or Pichu's neutral B moves.
  • Mr. Game & Watch's self-damaging move is the only one that can't be copied by Kirby.
• Mr. Game & Watch's and Jigglypuff's "head sprites" are the only ones to show their entire bodies.
• Mr Game & Watch's All-Star trophy is the only All-Star Trophy that doesn't show him with an alternate costume.
• Melee reads Mr. Game & Watch's neutral, back, and up aerials as special moves, not as aerial attacks; this explains why they cannot be L-canceled. This error was fixed in Brawl.
• Mr. Game & Watch actually uses a fully animated 3D model, despite his 2D appearance. This can best be seen when he's turning while using a Hammer.
• Mr. Game & Watch and Young Link are the only characters in Melee that don't finish their defeat noises upon being KO'd horizontally or falling.

External links

• Nintendorks' page on Mr. Game & Watch