10 Most Broken Super Smash Bros Characters

The 10 Most Broken Super Smash Bros. Characters

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today, were taking a look at the 10 most busted characters in Smash Bros. history! Welluntil the next game comes outwhenever that is.

Kirby

Super Smash Bros. (1999)

In the old days of Smash, Kirby was widely considered to be one of the best characters in the game. Not that that was a high bar to reach to begin with. Regardless, Kirby was an exceptional fighter on account of his great recovery and aerial mobility. Plus, you had his trademark Copy ability that gave him access to his opponents Neutral Special. Not every one of these was useful, of course, but this mix of traits and abilities made him a formidable foe in what few tournaments were held for this title. Some even went so far as to ban the pink Puyo, mostly in Doubles tournaments. Since then, Kirby hasnt really been close to the top of tier lists.

Marth

Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)

Though not the first character that comes to mind when thinking about Melee and its debatably busted fighters, Marth has frequented many a tier list for good reason. For starters, Marth has insanely quick startup animations, giving players very little time to react to his attacks. On top of that, the fighter from Fire Emblem boasts impeccable reach in his kit. So, while the pointy end of his sword does inflict the most damage, he can easily rack up some damage both up-close and from a distance. That said, beware of players that know how to edgeguard and make use of that tip.

Bayonetta

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Wii U & 3DS (2014)

Oh, man, when Bayonetta was revealed as the final DLC character for Smash 4, we had no idea how bad the competitive scene was about to become. For a while, Bayonetta was absolutely broken with her aerial movement and ridiculous flexibility in stringing attacks together. True to the character, yes, but it came at the cost of tournaments quickly becoming stale. From small events to big tourneys like EVO, Bayonetta was suddenly every pro Smash players main. Needless to say, folks were not happy, and it led to her being banned across many other tournaments.

Ice Climbers

Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008)

We can easily point to players like 9B or Miyacchi as the reasons why the Ice Climbers were considered broken, but it depends on the situation, really. For a time, Ice Climber mains discovered a way to chain grab opponents using Nanas slightly delayed reaction to Popos actions. They essentially became touch-of-death characters. Despite this, the Ice Climbers were never banned because of one major trade-off players had to deal with: once Nana is KOd, Popo becomes severely compromised with almost no recovery. So, we suppose it balanced everything out? (Fun fact, btw: 9B, along with a few other pro players, was one of the playtesters for Smash Bros. Ultimate!)

Pikachu

Super Smash Bros. (1999)

Of the few official tier lists ever made for the OG Smash, Pikachu has universally been considered to be top-tier, the absolute highest of the few S-tier fighters every single time. In addition to his exceptional speed, Pikachu excels greatly in edgeguarding and recovery to the point where he can basically bully fighters out of the game, not to mention some of the incredible combos that are possible between normals and specials. These are the traits that led Pikachu to be banned alongside Kirby in Doubles tournaments and more often in Singles tournaments. Pikachu isnt a part of the meta - he IS the meta.

Fox McCloud

Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)

While were on the subject of metas, Fox has become a notorious face when talking about Melee and its die-hard fanbase. See, theres a reason why people gravitated to the often memed Final Destination, Fox only, No Items rule set: its because Fox is the fastest character in a game known for its high speed. But Fox is grueling to fight against under other stages, most infamously Temple. Temple gives Fox so much room to run away from rivals and slowly rack up damage with his blaster from a distance before gunning for the KO. Surprisingly, this was not enough to get Fox banned from tournaments. Instead, most tournaments simply chose to ban Temple itself from the stage selection! Fox would retain his speedy demeanor in later games, but hes never gotten this close to being broken after Melee.

Pyrrha & Mythra

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018)

While Ultimate is arguably the most balanced game in the series, Pyrrha and Mythra have been a frequent point of discussion in whether they should be banned, nerfed, or even buffed. The problem many have had with the two Xenoblade waifus is how insanely easy they are to use. Truly, there is almost no skill ceiling to using them as several of their moves can inflict a ton of damage from a simple input or two. Some players have even managed to find devastating setups and combos without ever having to transform to the other girl. Good thing theres custom balancing options.

Meta Knight

Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008)

For the longest time, Meta Knight was the poster child for busted Smash characters, and honestly, he really was a nightmare to deal with. Meta Knight had just about every trait that made for a powerful Smash fighter - excellent recovery with his Up and Side Special, insane speed to rack up damage quickly, almost no startup animations to give opponents time to react, and great aerial mobility with his wings. All of this resulted in Meta Knight being banned across almost every single Smash tournament under the sun until Smash 4. But worse fighters were on the horizon at that point, and we arent just talking about Bayonetta.

Cloud Strife

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Wii U & 3DS (2014)

Cloud was the menace of every Doubles competitor during Smash 4s tenure. On his own, Cloud is indeed a strong fighter with his potential in zoning and how the Limit Break variants of his Specials can help him turn the tide of battle in his favor. He is a fighter that can play it safe and still be lethal. However, when in a 2v2 match, that is when Cloud becomes broken. No matter which character you pair him up with, Cloud gains even more advantages just by having an ally. You can lean into zoning a lot more heavily as your ally focuses on closing the distance, or your ally can choose a ranged character and just double up on the zoning. The ability to create all kinds of busted teams with Cloud is what led him to being banned across many Doubles tournaments and even a few Singles tournaments. But no character has proven to be as controversial as our final entry.

Steve

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018)

While Meta Knight captured tumultuous tournament matches at a specific point in Smash history, Steve has caused a massive debate across the community on whether he should be legal or not. The reason? Steve is the only character to ever possess almost complete stage manipulation. Yes, his whole ability to build blocks anywhere on the stage has led to many Smash pros discovering setups where Steve becomes virtually unbeatable. Its made him perhaps the most frustrating character to fight since the series inception. Although, what was truly infuriating players was the existence of a bug that became known as Phantom MLG. Through this glitch, Steve players could cancel whatever hitstun they suffered from and immediately retaliate. Many organizations quickly banned Steve from their tournaments once the glitch garnered widespread attention. However, with so few Steve competitors and even fewer that could even replicate it during competitive play, some have chosen to ignore the glitch and lift their bans.

Which of these Smash fighters do you think needs to be banned from tournament play for good? Were there any you felt were unfairly banned? Personally, if I was running a Melee tournament, Fox would be banned, Temple would be banned, and were playing with all items on. Under my roof, we play the game as is - get good or get bullied with Mr. Saturn. Let us know what you think down in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great videos everyday!