Kirby

Fighter Kirby in Kirby Super Star Ultra

Kirby is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Battle Royale. He was also a playable character in the first 3 games. In each game before Battle Royale, he was emphasized as an easy character to play as. Now, he has a much more complicated style, but he's still easy to use. He's much harder to use well, though.

Once again, Kirby is the Top of the B Tier in Tier List 3. However, he is ranked 4th this time, not 5th. His air game is absolutely amazing; the speed it top notch, the priority is simply outstanding, and the combo potential this guy can do in the air is insane. Edgeguarding is what makes him as demonic as he is- you get on the edge, you're likely to lose a stock. He's still the only known counter to Yoshi. However, his lackluster ground game and lack of viable options when not in the air keeps him from being in the A tier once again.

Pros and Cons (Changes from Brawl to Battle Royale)

Kirby is quite the interesting character in Battle Royale. In fact, he's one of the most unbalanced characters in the game, which is a huge departure from his Super Smash Bros. Brawl counterpart. In said game, his air game was his best aspect, but even then it wasn't anything to write home about. In Battle Royale, Kirby may possibly have the best air game in the entire... game. It surpasses Yoshi's air game, to give you a hint.

His ground game, on other hand, is total garbage. His Fsmash has retained its wonders from Brawl (very slightly nerfed and very slightly buffed), but otherwise his ground game has really gotten hindered. His Dash Attack is a surprisingly decent link into any of his aerial moves, but the only move you'll want to use on the ground (mostly) is Fsmash. To name his decent ground moves, he still has Dtilt, Utilt, Fthrow, Dthrow, Uthrow, and Ftilt. To be fair, those moves are actually pretty good, but they all have their setbacks.

His weight is also laughable. He's in the Bottom 10 Characters on the Battle Royale weight chart. This does make him a floaty character, which is good; he still has his five jumps and Final Cutter, which can no longer be gimped. It still leaves Kirby wide open, though; it's an easily punishable move. It does make for a decent projectile, though.

However, Kirby's biggest asset is - still - his Inhale. It's received an insane amount of changes, some for good and some for bad. Regardless, you cannot deny that this move has been totally changed since Brawl. It's a contender for the most changed move since Brawl (it's also quite changed from Melee, although some of its features are taken from that).

Overall, Kirby is still a fantastic character, despite his glaring issues. He's ranked 4th on the current tier list for a reason. If Kirby can get the opponent into the air, they can possibly say goodbye to stock from the get-go. He can't much to work on the ground, but he can still do some nasty stuff in the air.

Pros/Buffs

• Uair can kill like it can in Melee.
• Aerial priority on all moves is increased.
• Bair has some of the best priority in the game.
• Dair starts 7 frames less (10 frames).
• Dair is a better meteor smash.
• Aerial game is faster (he's in the Top 5 for aerial speed).
• Stone starts on Frame 6 instead of 13, and has much less ending lag.
• Final Cutter cannot be gimped.
• Dsmash has less ending lag.
• Fsmash has less ending lag.
• Dash attack can be linked to any aerial move that isn't a special, and cannot be blocked on the final hit.

Cons/Nerfs

• All ground moves have less priority.
• All ground moves start 1 frame slower.
• Utilt cannot juggle anymore.
• Dtilt no longer trips, so comboing into a tilt is harder.
• Usmash has more ending lag.
• Dsmash no longer launches the opponent vertically (no Star KOs). This means KOing with it is hard.
• Overall damage on all smashes is decreased (hurts Fsmash the least).
• Dash is slower.

Moveset

Taunts

Utaunt: Kirby spins in a quick circle. He then leans forward and slightly moves in the direction he was facing. He then spins again, and thrusts his arm (or stub) upward. Adorably cute.

Dtaunt: Kirby flails his arms in the air, saying HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAI!. It's even more annoying than it was in Melee; truly a large part of Kirby's competitive gameplay.

Ltaunt: Kirby spins in 7 circles (very quickly) and then points his finger forward, in the direction he's facing. He makes a cute grunt and returns to his neutral stance.

Rtaunt: Kirby puts on his Sleep hat (Sleep ability, basically) and falls asleep. A Waddle Doo forms from his dream cloud and whacks him with a hammer, causing Kirby to spring up. Doesn't hurt him, actually.

Ground Game

• Jab: Kirby quickly punches forward; is you press the Attack button again, Kirby will perform another quick punch. If you press it again, Kirby will perform a flurry of punches, known as the Vulcan Jab. The first two punches have little value, as they can't really link in or out of anything. The Vulcan Jab has its uses, especially if you can corner your opponent, but overall it's just okay. Range has been nerfed from Brawl, hindering its use. The first punch deals 2%, the second deals 3%, and the Vulcan Jabs deal 3%, 2%, 1%. . . respectively.

• Dash Attack: Kirby's Dash Attack has once again been changed (He's had a different Dash Attack in every single game). Now, Kirby performs a Rising Break with his feet (he kicks upward while jumping). He doesn't jump very far, and when the move finishes he's on the ground. A pretty good Dash Attack, probably your best way to get an air combo started air aside from grabbing. The attack deals 7%.

• Utilt: Kirby lifts his leg upward from behind, as an attack. It's a good juggler, and a very good way to get an opponent into the air. Best link is from Dthrow. Damage and priority nerfed from Brawl, though. Still, the range is pretty good; the move is still not bad. The attack deals 4% if they're close to Kirby, and 5% if they're far away from Kirby (but still in range of the move).

• Dtilt: Kirby crouches and performs a "slicing" kick. The range is heavily nerfed from Brawl; now, the range is actually the size of Kirby's leg and not 3x the size. Still, if you can manage to land this you can start a pretty decent combo, or even grab out of it to start a lethal combo. Another okay move for Kirby. The attack deals 6-7%.

• Ftilt: Kirby performs a very fast roundhouse kick. This is actually quicker than it is in Brawl, making it extremely fast. Like most of his ground moves, the range is nerfed, although this is still a very good move. It's actually stronger than the Brawl counterpart, although the knockback is just barely increased, so you can't combo off of it. The attack deals 8%.

• Dsmash: Like in the other games, Kirby does a breakdance-ish move. This move has less ending lag than it did in Brawl. In exchange for this, it's much harder to KO with; the damage and knockback are pathetic compared to what they used to be (moreso the knockback). Sadly, you won't to be using this move very much unless you're having a Breakdancing contest. In that case, this move is cheap. The attack deals 12% uncharged, and 15% charged.

• Fsmash: Kirby lunges forward, delivering a mighty kick towards the opponent. This move has been both nerfed and buffed from Brawl. On the good side, there's less ending lag to it, meaning it's much less punishable. Damage scaling doesn't hurt it very much, and the knockback and damage are still very good. However, the damage and knockback are nerfed from Brawl; it's impossible to combo out of this move. The priority is slightly worse, and Stale Move Negotiation hurts it quite a bit. Still, it's Kirby best move to use on the ground (aside from maybe his Fthrow). The attack deals 10% uncharged and 16% charged.

• Usmash: Kirby performs a quick, short backflip while performing an upward kick. This move is very, very bad. It's a bad anti-air, it's slow, the damage isn't very worth it (although it is good), it's hurt by Stale-Move Negotiation, it's just a mess. Really nerfed from Brawl, never use this move. On the bright side, though, the sex kick property is gone; no matter where the opponent is, if the attack lands it will do the same damage. Said attack deals 13% uncharged and 18% charged.

Aerial Game

• Nair: Kirby spins in an aerial circle, smiling. The attack has sex-kick properties, and actually has IASA Frames, surprisingly. For that reason alone it's a good enough move, nonetheless it's a decent KO tool if the inital part of the attack hits. Definitely a move Kirby will be using. The attack deals 12%, the sex kick deals 5%.

• Fair: Kirby performs a triple kick in the forward direction. This move was very good in Brawl, and was also good in Melee. In Battle Royale, it's the heart of Kirby's devastating aerial links. You can link five of these things in one combo; the things you can do with this move are downright scary. There's really not much wrong with it, aside from the off chance that a hit will miss. In that case, it's rather punishable, but not too bad. The first kick deals 3%, the second deals 2%, and the final one deals 5%.

• Uair: Kirby performs an aerial backflip, while attacking upward with his foot. This move has the KO potential from Melee at the cost of losing the juggle potential from Brawl. So now it's more of a combo ender than a combo starter/continuer. It isn't the best of trades, but it's still a helpful move that Kirby players will be using quite often to end their combo's. The attack deals 11%.

• Bair: Kirby sticks his foot out backwards extremely quickly. This move is phenominal, putting it simply. The priority is good, it's a wonderful KO tool, it has combo potential, it's fast, great priority, the Fence of Pain, the hitbox is large, the works. Do note that Stale Move Negotiation does hurt this move, although it doesn't hurt it much. Kirby's best move (beating the Fsmash, even), the attack deals 12%.

• Dair: Kirby positions his legs as if they were a drill, and moves them in the motion of a drill. This is called the Drill Kick. While this move isn't broken like in the original Smash Bros., it starts on Frame 10 now, rather than 17. Aside from the huge speed boost, there's also a tad less bit of ending lag to it. It's still pretty eh as a meteor smash, but as a move it's wonderful. The move hits 6 times; each kick deals 3% for a max total of 18%. Admittedly, it's harder to land all of the hits than it used to be.

Throws

• Grab: Kirby (strangely) performs a "fist pump" sort of grab with his adorbale arm. It's not very good; his dash grab and pivot grab, though, are very good.

• Pummel: Kirby punches his opponent. Very simple pummel; fast and weak. It deals 2%, on a rare occasion it deals 3%.

• Uthrow: Kirby jumps high in the air, taking his opponent (and the camera, which is 100% awesome) with him. He then slams him/her into the ground and jumps in the air, doing a quick flip. You can link a Fair into it, although only the last kick will connect. That's about the only use this move has; it doesn't go through impassable walls, it isn't very long, and at best it's a combo ender. The attack deals 10%.

• Dthrow: Kirby jumps on top of his opponent. He then stomps on them several times before jumping on them. This move sends the opponent straight up. This grab is Kirby's best; you can basically start an air combo with this. Dthrow -> Utilt is one of Kirby's best ways to begin an air combo. Use this throw quite often, it's great. Said grab deals 11%; if you link several Dthrows into eachother, they each deal 4% less consecutively.

• Fthrow: Kirby takes the opponent into the air (very short distance), and flips. He then slams his opponent into the ground. Remains unchanged from Brawl, although with the added hitstun, the Gonzo Combo (Fthrow -> Uair -> Fthrow -> Uair -> Fsmash) can be performed. Kirby's second best throw, which should also be used quite often. It deals 8%.

• Bthrow: Kirby picks up his opponent, jumps backwards, and slams him/her into the ground. Unlike Kirby's other throws, there's really only one bit of usage on this move, and it's awkward. This is Kirby's second method of Kirbycide, and it's quite reliable. You can no longer float back onto the stage, though, so make sure you're in the lead. The attack deals 8%.

Specials Changes

• Special: Inhale. Kirby "opens wide" as he absorbs in front of him. Any opponent sucked into his mouth will be stuck in there until Kirby lets them go. After inhaling your opponent, you can do one of three things:
  • Spit them out (they turn into a star). If this star hits your opponent, it will deal 10%. A tiny star will appear behind Kirby, which will deal a whopping 3%.
  • Swallow them and copy their power! This will deal 6% to your opponent. This will also give Kirby your opponent's Special move, each with a unique twist to it. Some are important to gameplay, and others are just visual changes.
  • Do nothing. Your opponent will jump out eventually, after all. This can actually link into some of Kirby's aerials (all but Dair), although you can't start a link of Fair's with it. The opponent jumping out of Kirby's mouth deals 6% to the opponent.

You can also opt to "Kirbycide" with this move. If you Inhale your opponent and walk off the stage, they may get KO'd with you. Kirbycide is no longer reccomended, however, since it now takes away all of Kirby's jumps, no matter what. A decent idea if you're in the lead, but totally useless in a Coin Match. Also, you can Guard Cancel into this move if you're on the ground. In the air, you can actually aim Kirby's Inhale: Up, Down, Left, and Right. It's a nice trick that does Kirby some good. However, if you aim it, it leaves Kirby in a helpless state (I had to nerf it somehow).

It has received some other changes from Brawl into Battle Royale, though. After inhaling for 3 seconds, Kirby's Inhale becomes Mega Inhale. The positives to this are the range is increased, and Kirby can eat larger items and even some mini-bosses! The downside is that, after a second and a half, Kirby will stop inhaling and crouch in pain. This lasts about a second, so watch out for attacks in the meantime. Risky yet rewarding. It can only be used on the ground; in the air, Kirby cannot Mega Inhale.

Most other changes are minor. The sound of the inhale has changed, although what it's changed to will be revealed later. Kirby flails his arms around while he uses the Mega Inhale, and he sticks his hands upward when using the regular Inhale. The range on the regular inhale has been slightly nerfed, and your opponent can dodge roll past it (if they mess up they'll be inhaled); however, during the first 7 frames (basically, until Kirby actually starts inhaling), Kirby will be invincible (he'll still take damage, like in the other games).

Overall, this is far and away Kirby's trademark move that people will be looking out for. Use it wisely, and you can totally change a matchup, whether it's by gaining a projectile, a counter, a rushdown move, an edguarding tool, etc. When used against Mega Man, an 8-bit text bubble appears, saying, "Now you've got my weapon!".

• Side Special: Hammer. Kirby takes out a Hammer (from the Kirby games, of course) and swings it forward. If used in the air, he swings it twice; both deal half damage. On the ground, this move is laggy but extremely powerful; in the air, it's a quick and weaker version. Overall, the air version is better as it's still a reliable KO method, but the ground one isn't bad.

Linking this move can be tricky, as the startup is noticeable enough to hinder that, and the ending lag makes it so you cannot combo out of this move under any circumstance. However, that's not really what its use is. It's there as a KO tool, and as a KO tool (or should I say, weapon) it's a very good one. Reliable and gets the job done quickly, that's all you need.

On the ground, this attack deals 20%; the aerial hammers deal 10% each.

• Down Special: Stone. Kirby turns into a Stone. Simple enough. What type of Stone he turns into is chosen at random, although regardless of what stone he turns into it, it has the same effects. He can turn into a Thwomp, a regular stone, a spiked ball, a 100 ton weight, a garbage block, or a Golden Kirby Statue. This move has two different, yet very basic, functions.

• It can be used as an attack to "fall from the air". The falling speed of Stone is REALLY fast; you can speed up your falling speed with this. Kirby is 100% safe while in Stone Form (unless grabbed, which you can't be grabbed in the air), so this is a good method to use against those preparing an Anti-Air. Don't become too predictable, because it's very punishable. When used in the air, it starts on Frame 6.

• It can be used as a "get off of me" move. If used on the ground, that's basically what this is. It stats up slowly (Frame 13, like in Brawl) but the range is better.

Overall, Stone is the same type of move it was in Brawl, just a bit buffed in the air. The attack still deals 18%.

• Up Special: Final Cutter. Kirby takes out a sword and prepares for an upward slice. He then jumps upward with it, performs a flip, and descends very quickly to the ground. The horizontal and vertical distance are (thankfully) taken from Brawl. It can't be gimped while in motion, though; beware of that. It can, however, be interrupted with an attack. Like in Melee and the original Smash, being hit while using this move rids Kirby of all of his jumps. You can also turn around in the air like you could in Melee.

Overall, this is probably Kirby's worst special, but it does make his already awesome recovery better. Just beware of the jumping issues and you'll be okay. The hit upward deals 8%, the flip deals 2%, and the smack downward deals 5%. The projectile deals 6%. This is a very powerful move if you can get every hit to land (which you can actually do now). Can also meteor smash if the move hits a ledgeguarding opponent.

Final Smashes

• Final Smash: Cook Kirby. Kirby dons a chef's hat, as a pot and a pan, and a huge cauldron appear. He bangs the pot and pan together, as all enemies from a certain reach are absorbed into the cauldron to stew. Kirby mixes some salt and pepper into the cauldron while stirring; when he's done, he will "show his masterpiece" as enemies and (maybe) items come flying out. If items are set on and some fly in, than en equal amount of items (chosen randomly) will soar out.

It's still one of the worst Final Smashes in the game. The range isn't "oh my goodness" cheap, nor is it really very good. It really hasn't been touched in Brawl, which is why it's still a poor move. To be fair, this actually works as a combo finisher now, although the damage scaling hinders the knockback extremely. It's still bad, and Kirby's other Final Smashes are better. For the most part, just avoid this. In 3 or 4 Player matches, it's slightly more useful.

The Final Smash deals an overall (buffed) damage of 40%.

• Battle Attack: Slash of the Sword.: Kirby takes out his sword and swings. If he hits, he will attack the foe with a barrage of sword slices, identical to Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. He will then slice right through his opponent; said final hit is identical, too. Kirby then does a random taunt to lose his sword hat. The slices deal 2% each (there are 20), and the final hit deals 40%. Overall, this Battle Attack deals 60%.

Sure, the damage isn't the best out there, but it's still a wonderful Battle Attack nonetheless. There are quite a few ways to combo into this, and it even hits OTG. The main hindrance of this move is that you can only use it on the ground. While that does make Kirby's ground game slightly better, it does mean that he can't use a nasty combo in the air and end with this.

Regardless, if you can get a decent string of ground combo's with this you can set up some nasty damage. Scaling doesn't hurt this very much due to the insane hit count, and there isn't much startup. It makes a lovely punisher, as well. Not the best Battle Attack out there, and it could be used for a different character (namely one with a good ground game) but it works well enough.

• Crash Kirby (5 gauges): Done by jumping and pressing special.

  

  Crash Kirby in Nightmare in Dream Land

Kirby's eyes start to glow, and he becomes angry. He then jumps into the air (or rather, he jumps again since you have to jump and use this). He flips around in a few circles, as a circular blast eminates from his body. This blast covers about 70% of Final Destination (the stage!). If your opponent is hit, he/she is instantly KO'd (very dandy for 4 player matches); however, Kirby is KO'd in the process as well. After the 70% is covered, the screen turns white for 2 seconds. Afterwards, Kirby can be seen on a Recovery Platform. You can control him again after this.

The move has a fair bit of startup that is not animation. Your opponent will likely see this coming, and avoid it. If you use this in the middle of the stage, though, there's a good chance this will land. So you can't put it into combo's; it's still a rather good Ultimate Smash. Very lovely gamble; high risk, high reward. If the reward doesn't pay off, though, say goodbye to a stock.

Also, adding a tad bit of Nightmare Fuel to this, if Kirby uses this move on his last stock and loses the match (not resulting in a Sudden Death, basically), then he will not appear on the Results screen. Seeing as how he does lose a stock after he uses this, the worst can be implied...

(You can still select Kirby normally after this, don't worry)

Other Stats

Weight

Kirby weighs 78 pounds in Version 1. He is rather pathetic, totalling in at number 51. This means he will be KOd easily, but he's very slow coming down. Stone makes him invincible and much heavier, but that's obvious.

His low weight fits in perfectly with his aerial abilities. Of course, he WILL be KO'd quickly, but the longer Kirby's in the air, the better!

In the Battle Arena (More detail)

Kirby is first seen in his battle against Pikachu. After winning (at least, that's how the storyline goes), he is not seen again until five heroes are trapped in different rooms. He fights Dedede, and if he wins, then he must fight all the villains that have won before him (canon says Ganondorf only).

He is next seen when Meta Knight is attacked by Bowser. He aids Meta Knight in beating Bowser, but Bowser's suprise attack turns Kirby into a villain. Bowser had wanted Meta Knight, but he was happier with Kirby. The next time Kirby is seen, he copied Guile's Sonic Boom and used it to fight Funky Kong. He lost the battle, although he was holding back so Bowser could demonstrate his quick recovery skills.

Shortly after, Kirby appears again and copies Akuma's power and gains the Hadoken. Despite gaining an amazing projectile, he loses the match. He cannot recover as quickly as last time, and faints. Bowser carries Kirby and runs off.

Arcade Mode

Stage 10 Boss: Drawcia

Kirby confronts Drawcia, ready for battle. Drawcia does nothing, and Kirby attacks. Drawcia counters his attack with a paint shield. Kirby lands and falls down. He gets back up, and gets ready to fight Drawcia, who is laughing.

After winning, Drawcia dissapears, defeated. Kirby smiles, and walks onward.

Kirby's Battle of Passing

Kirby's first Battle of Passing is against Dedede. Kirby is running, and then bumps into Dedede. Dedede yells at him, and Kirby simply smiles at him. Dedede scoffs, and tells Kirby that he's going off to fight Master Hand. Kirby then stands up and runs in front of Dedede, shaking his head no. Dedede glares at Kirby, and Kirby simply sighs, knowing he has to fight. After winning, Kirby kicks Dedede aside (identical to Kirby's Adventure) and moves on.

Kirby's second Battle of Passing is against Yoshi. Kirby sees Yoshi eating Maxim Tomatoes, and asks for one. Yoshi doesn't give him any. Kirby sadly walks away, and then charges at Yoshi. He knocks Yoshi out of the way, and starts eating the tomatoes. Yoshi angrily challenges Kirby to a fight. After winning, Kirby looks at the tomatoes. He goes to eat them, but then, out of kindness, gives them back to Yoshi, except for one. He then walks away, and takes a bite out of said tomato and smiles.

Reward Wall Items

Kirby has quite a lot of reward wall items. Along with every copy ability, he has allies. And more!

Coming Soon