Super Smash Bros. Melee

This article is about the Nintendo GameCube game. For the playable song in the Donkey Konga series known as "Super Smash Bros. Melee" in Donkey Konga: The Hottest Hits, see Multi-Man Melee 2.

"Melee" redirects here. For the weapon in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, see List of weapons in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle § Melee.

Super Smash Bros. Melee
For alternate box art, see the related gallery.
Developer	HAL Laboratory
Publisher	Nintendo
Platform	Nintendo GameCube
Release dates	Original release: November 21, 2001 December 3, 2001 May 24, 2002 May 31, 2002 August 23, 2002[?] 2002 Player's Choice: January 23, 2003 April 4, 2003 April 4, 2003
Languages	English Japanese French (Europe) German Italian Spanish (Europe)
Genre	Platform fighter
Ratings	ESRB: - Teen[?] PEGI: - Three years and older[?] ELSPA: - Eleven years and older[?] SELL: - All ages[?] USK: - Six years and older[?] ClassInd: - Fourteen years and older[?] GRAC: - All ages[?] ACB: - Eight years and older[?]
Mode	1-4 players simultaneous
Format	Nintendo GameCube: Optical disc
Input	Nintendo GameCube: Nintendo GameCube Controller
Serial code	DOL-GALJ-JPN

Super Smash Bros. Melee is a platform fighting game for the Nintendo GameCube. This is the second installment in the Super Smash Bros. series and is the sequel to Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64. Various characters from Nintendo's popular franchises battle on different stages, also taken from the Nintendo franchises. Many major characters of the Super Mario franchise make an appearance. The game's major focus is the multiplayer mode, while still offering a number of single-player modes.

Gameplay

In Super Smash Bros. Melee, up to four fighters battle on a side-view stage with invisible boundaries on each side. When a player hits these boundaries, the player is knocked out. Super Smash Bros. Melee and other games in the series rely on damage percentage: Whenever a player is hit, they get a certain amount of percent damage. The maximum damage that can be dealt to a player is 999%. The higher the damage percentage is, the easier it is for the player to be knocked out.

General actions

Mr. Game & Watch uses his neutral special move to attack Ness.

Players move around on the stages using the GameCube controller's control stick, and can jump by pulling it up, or pressing the X or Y buttons. Characters can jump once, though some can perform a double jump in the air. By moving the down, the player can crouch or move a layer down on the stage.

A basic attack is performed with the A button. When moving the into a direction, the player can attack upwards and downwards, or to either side. These attacks are usually weak and inflict minimal damage. When the button is pressed repeatedly, the character performs a natural combo, a fast sequence of weak attacks. When the is titled fast and the button is pressed in time, the player can perform a smash attack. These are very powerful, chargeable attacks, which cause a lot of damage.

Character special moves

SmashWiki article: Special move

Mario using his Super Jump Punch special move.

All characters have their own own set of special moves, which are performed with the button, known as a neutral special move. Moving the in a certain direction performs the side special, up special, or down special move accordingly. The special moves are influenced by the character's individual personality, and have various effects, from doing more damage than with a normal attack, attacking from a distance, or repelling projectiles. The up special move of most fighters involve moving into the air, making it possible to perform third jump as a recovery to avoid touching the blast line and being KO'd.

Item use

SmashWiki article: Item

Captain Falcon using a Parasol.

Items have various effects, and some trigger by themselves. They appear on the stage randomly, available for characters to use. Characters next to an item can pick it up by pressing . Some items have effects that are activated upon interaction. Other items can be used as weapons, which are usable with the button, or can be thrown by pressing it again with either the Z, L, or R buttons. A character can take damage from being hit by an item.

Shielding

Kirby using his shield.

When pressing the or triggers, or the button, the character's shield is activated. These can prevent any kind of attack from a character, except grabbing, or items. With precise timing, shield can reflect any items thrown and most projectile attacks. More powerful ones such as Samus' fully charged charge shot, however, will merely be absorbed by the shield. Yoshi's shield takes on the form of a Yoshi's Egg, while all other fighters use a bubble-shaped shield. A shield has decreased power every time it is used, and when the shield breaks, the character will be unable to move for a certain period of time. The longer the player waits before using the shield, the stronger it becomes. The thickness of a shield depends on how hard the player presses on the or triggers, or . Thicker shields have a shorter duration but erode slower from damage, whilst thinner shields erode more from damage but significantly less from time duration. Light characters may even be knocked out by the shield break.

Grabbing and throwing

Players are able to grab other characters and hold them, to hit the character while they are incapable of either protecting themselves or fighting back. A character can be thrown in any direction, or smashed to the ground. Other characters can be damaged when a character is thrown at them. A character can be grabbed by pressing , or and in combination with , if the player is next to them. The grabbed character can be attacked using the or buttons, as well as thrown in a direction by tilting the . It is possible to break free from a grab, unlike in Super Smash Bros. Players with less damage can escape from a grab more easily.

Other actions

In 1-P Mode, the player can use the to zoom the camera in or out. In VS mode, it is possible to move in any direction, allowing the player to perform uncharged smash attacks easily. A character can taunt if the player presses . Some fighters can perform a meteor smash, which sends opponents falling downwards, and the effectiveness of a meteor smash depends on how strong it is.

Fighting modes

SmashWiki article: Mode

A basic VS battle.

The Coin Battle mode.

There are four standard fighting modes in Super Smash Bros. Melee. These can be freely chosen in VS mode. The regular matches in 1-P mode only feature Stock matches, but the event matches have different rules. Any match that ends in a tie between two or more players causes a Sudden Death, a quick battle where the fighters (at 300% damage each) battle until only one of them remains.

Time

SmashWiki article: Time

Players gain points by knocking out other players, and lose points by getting knocked out. When the match timer runs out, the player with the most points wins. The player can set the option of whether self-destructs cause players to lose zero, one, or two points. There is an unlockable function that displays the player's points during battle. Time is used by default in VS but rarely in 1-P Mode.

Stock

SmashWiki article: Stock

Players have a set number of lives. A character loses a life whenever they are knocked out. The last player standing wins. Setting a time limit is optional. The player with the most lives by the end is the winner. This mode is featured throughout Classic and All-Star, both of which always have a set time limit.

Coin

Coin Battle Players have to collect Smash Coins and Bills, which appear by hitting an opponent. If a player gets knocked out, they will lose half of their coins. The player with the most coins by when times out is the winner. Coin mode is rarely used in the event matches of 1-P Mode, but is also available in VS matches.

Bonus

Bonus (mode) Players get points for their fighting style. There are 249 different kinds of bonus points, listed here. When the time limit has run out, the player with the most points wins. Most bonuses also have humorous names.

Characters

Playable characters

The complete character select screen roster in Multiplayer mode.

Group art of the full cast, excluding Sheik.

Main article: List of fighters debuting in Super Smash Bros. Melee

Super Smash Bros. Melee contains a total of 25 playable fighters (26 including Zelda's alter ego, Sheik); the 12 original characters return for this game, while 13 more have been added. 14 characters (15 including Sheik) are available by default, while 11 more can be unlocked. Seven of the fighters represent the Super Mario franchise and its sub-universes, being Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, Dr. Mario, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong.

Character	Series	Description	How to unlock	Special moves				Costumes
				Standard	Forward	Up	Down
Dr. Mario(new)	Super Mario	Dr. Mario is very similar to Mario. His attacks have different effects (usually electric instead of flame) but function like Mario's. Most of Dr. Mario's attacks are stronger than Mario's, though he moves slower.	Clear Classic or Adventure mode with Mario without continues Play 100 Melee matches	Megavitamins	Super Sheet	Super Jump Punch	Dr. Tornado
Mario	Super Mario	Mario is a balanced character with a variety of moves. He attacks quickly, but jumps low and has average recovery. His backwards throw can throw almost farther than any other character's throws. His Cape helps deflect oncoming attacks and shoots whatever is being shot at him back to his opponent.	Available by default	Fireball	Cape	Super Jump Punch	Mario Tornado
Luigi	Super Mario	Luigi is a character with average weight and speed and strength that is above average. His moves have many similarities to Mario's. He jumps high, but has slow air speed and low traction.	Finish the first stage of Adventure mode with ##:#2:## on the timer Play 800 Melee matches	Fireball	Green Missile	Super Jump Punch	Luigi Cyclone
Bowser(new)	Super Mario	Bowser is the heaviest and one of the slowest characters. He has powerful attacks, and he can use his weight to crush whomever he grabs. Bowser is one of the first villains to be playable in the series. His Fire Breath move burns his enemies down.	Available by default	Fire Breath	Koopa Klaw	Whirling Fortress	Bowser Bomb
Peach(new)	Super Mario	Peach has a unique recovery that makes her slowly float in the desired direction briefly. For her forward smash, Peach swings either a golf club, a tennis racket, or a frying pan.	Available by default	Toad	Peach Bomber	Peach Parasol	Vegetable
Yoshi	Yoshi	Yoshi is a heavy fighter with average speed, though he is rather weak, unlike other heavyweights. Yoshi uniquely uses a Yoshi's Egg for shielding, but he is also the only fighter who cannot jump out of shielding. Yoshi lacks a third jump, but he can jump very high.	Available by default	Egg Lay	Egg Roll	Egg Throw	Yoshi Bomb
Donkey Kong	Donkey Kong	Donkey Kong is a strong, heavy, and agile character. When grabbing opponents, he can carry them for a short distance before throwing them.	Available by default	Giant Punch	Headbutt	Spinning Kong	Hand Slap
Captain Falcon	F-Zero	Captain Falcon can run faster than any other character. His attacks are quick, and a few are particularly powerful, particularly his Knee Smash, up smash, and Falcon Punch.	Available by default	Falcon Punch	Raptor Boost	Falcon Dive	Falcon Kick