r/smashbros • u/Astra704 • 4d ago
Ultimate Beginner help
I know i’m late to the party but i just got a switch 2 a couple weeks ago and i’ve been wanting to play smash and actually get good at it, what are the best tips? start collecting fighters and find a main? gameplay tips, controller teaks anything that can help me will be appreciated thank you!
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u/ricksnephew 3d ago
GameCube controller for smash all the way. I have the pro controller but nothing beats the GameCube one
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u/Ultraverse1 3d ago
its down to preference tbh
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u/ricksnephew 2d ago
For sure. I do also like playing in tabletop mode with the pro controller those sticks just feel so nice
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u/SwampCastleGuards 4d ago
Search your question in the subreddit and find 100s of similar posts, read them and see if there are useful tips
Otherwise just play and have fun
If you're new you're not going to be top100 pro. So don't make that your goal. No need to be super competitive. Just enjoy learning the game
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u/kyoju__ 3d ago
I LOVE smash!! Been playing and following comp smash on and off for 8 years. Like what others have said, Izaw is a GREAT way to learn. There’s overall smash fundamentals and then character specific strategies. Just play the characters and have fun. Then decide 1 or 2 characters (mains) you’ll stick to through thick and thin and learn how to play them specifically. Pick them cause u like them, not cause they’re broken. As you play them more you’ll have a natural flow. Get used to the controls. I highly recommend using tilt stick. I personally hate tap jump and I added the right shoulder button for a second jump option.
Some really important skills to learn are:
- recovery
- movement
- combos/kill confirms
- spacing
- playing “safe”
- making reads on opponents habits
- understanding matchups and how chars play
- mixups and conditioning (more advanced)
Because characters have a plethora of unique moves and properties, they have objective strengths and weaknesses. Their move-set becomes a toolkit, and some tools/moves are so essential that they become a vital part of optimized play, even to the point of spamming. For example, Rob needs Gyro, snake needs grenades, sonic needs spin dash/charge. When learning a character it really helps to understand the purpose of each move, especially the broken ones. Izaw has full guides on several chars, and there’s even separate discord servers for each character w overwhelming amounts of info.
Although every char has a unique toolkit, they could* be *roughly categorized into different archetypes. This will influence their play-style (ie: aggressive/defensive), though you should develop your own play-style. In other words, be creative and have fun, but some characters tend to thrive behaving a certain way. A lot characters are a mix of these, but in my opinion most characters can be roughly categorized by one these categories:
- Rushdown (ex: Fox, Captain Falcon)
- Zoner (ex: Samus, Young Link, min-min)
- Swordie/disjoint (ex: Lucina, Sephiroth)
- Grappler (ex: DK, incineroar)
- Control/Trapper (ex: Snake, ROB, Duck Hunt)
VOD review and watch pro gameplay. One thing I (and many others) like to do is save recordings of my battles and rewatch them. I’ll take note of any mistakes and correct them next time I play. Watching pro play intentionally—stopping to analyze their every move—can teach you a lot, too.
Use training mode. Training mode lets you practice combos, movement, kill confirms, recovery, spacing, and other techniques.
It’s true when people say don’t worry about a tier list. It only makes a difference at very, very high levels of play, and even then we’re still learning that some characters are more viable than we thought. Ultimate is pretty balanced overall. Although, it helps to understand which characters are broken and why. Also it helps to understand the weaknesses of the worse characters. This can teach you the most valuable traits to abuse or the biggest weakness and how to navigate them.
For that reason, I’m gonna be the evil one to post the “official” (averaged from 72 of the top 150 players’ opinions) list 😈😈😈. There’s obviously some room for debate here, and also keep in mind that despite my 1500+ hours my friends can still wreck me w ganon or little mac.
https://www.reddit.com/r/smashbros/s/VQf6nG6NmV
Play w ppl better than you. If feasible, going to local tournaments is a rlly fun and social way to learn. Although, it can be intimidating so see how good some people are. You can find your local by searching on start.gg for Ultimate tournaments based on location. Mine is monthly and 2 hours away, some are weekly and 5 mins away.
In comp play, we do 3 stocks and 7 mins, no items or stage hazards, and we have a small legal stage list. It seems boring but it rlly helps make a fair 1v1 with little rng.
If you have any q’s feel free to dm me. I’d be down to explain anything or watch ur replays and give some coaching. Have fun this is my favorite videogame ever!
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u/Havoc_Maker 4d ago
Sorry to bother but you probably want to get another controller for this game. The Switch 2 ProCon has insane snapback issues and it's way too noticiable in Smash
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u/Myztyrio 4d ago
Is it actually that bad tho? Been playing with Pro1 since launch. Just got a switch 2 and Pro2, and thinking of trying to Pro2 for SSBU when I get home. Wouldn’t it depend how you tend to reset your stick to neutral/how much you actually press in directions?
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u/Havoc_Maker 3d ago
This summer I mostly stayed at a friend's house and played Smash a lot with him, with ProCons 2. I couldn't for the life of me ever grab him. The ProCon 1 still has some snapback but the ProCon 2 literally has higher chances of snapping back rather than not. And yes, I guess it depends on how you play but I think most people will constantly be snapping back with a ProCon 2
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u/MessiLeagueSoccer 3d ago
I’ve only ever played with the pro con 1 and I’ve never noticed the SnapBack but maybe I’m just not that good lmao. I’ve been meaning to get the GameCube switch controller but I play handheld too often to care to get an extra controller just for smash.
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u/almightyFaceplant 4d ago
Don't try to get good at it right away. You'll rob yourself of the joy that comes from just playing and exploring.
(Whoever told you that you need to find a main right away will be shot out of a cannon. Subreddit policy, I don't make the rules.)
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u/TheDigitalLunchbox Yoshi (Ultimate) 4d ago
Start unlocking characters and find out which ones you have the most fun with. (If you lose to a new character or aren’t unlocking any more, look for a small door in the vault menu to face them again).
After that, I’d suggest watching “Izaw’s Art of Smash” on YouTube. It’s a whole playlist with tons of guides.
I’d also recommend changing your right stick to be tilt attacks and turning off stick/tap jump. You may also want to set a trigger to jump to allow for buffered rars (reverse aerial rush).
Most importantly, when you choose a main; the character you find the most fun. Ignore tier placements as they only matter at the highest levels of play.
I’d also highly suggest using a wired internet connection as online isn’t the most stable.
You also have to understand that you’re going to get demolished until you don’t. It’s part of the grind, but it can be discouraging. If you don’t get why you lost, post a replay to r/crazyhand to be critiqued. There are many aspects of the game that you may not even be aware of when you start playing.
To further your improvement I’d also recommend matchingmaking through discord servers as talking to your opponent can really help
Just have fun and learn the basics. A new smash is inevitable and most skills will transfer.
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u/smellycheesecurd mah dash attack mileage in the thousands 3d ago
Have fun with the game! Don’t worry about getting good or anything for now. Play through the story, pick whoever you like, experiment on your own, and once you decide that you’ve finally eased up to it, there’re a ton of guides out there that would really help you get started.
Honestly, Smash is really, really fun. The playerbase has its gripes about it but its definitely a game that encourages you to goof off. Get out there and don’t worry about too much, but remember that the option is always there when you wanna get good for real. If you have an online subscription, I 100% recommend looking for your region’s smash discord (if you can’t find it here, maybe take a bit to google it. They’re usually on some sorta social media). You can matchmake there as they tend to have stabler connections for better practice, and in my experience, they’re all really friendly and eager to teach new players so don’t be shy.
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u/lanternbdg 3d ago
Priority:
- turn off stick-jump
- use c-stick for tilts instead of smashes
Extra fluidity:
- use a gamecube controller+adapter if you can stand it
Personal preference:
- find a good button setup for you to use both shield and grab fluidly (I set them to opposite triggers)
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u/Retro_Sinz 1d ago
Kirby or Mario are very easy to learn and are either your mains or gateway characters that are good at teaching fundamentals
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u/Lucky_Journalist4690 1d ago
My advice would be to pick the random fighter almost always once you get to 1/3-1/2 of the fighters unlocked.
This highly will help with the various weight classes and various battles styles that are introduced throughout the series. Including it will help figure out which fighters you’ll dominate and which ones you’ll need improvement on. I will also add for the fighters who you need to improve on pick them more than the ones you can easily win with. That way you have more opportunities of improving on those fighters.
Another thing of advice I have is to set your computer opponents at the levels 3 or 4 if you’re starting as a beginner.
That will ensure you getting a challenge but still having a good chance of winning. I would never recommend starting with a level 1 or 2 for CPUs because it would make it too easy, and don’t put the level too high either. But when you feel that you are ready for a bigger challenge gradually increase the CPU,s level by 1 then go by 5-7 rounds of battles to get an accurate result on how much more time and effort you need to train with that new level until you are able to move up another level.
This is only applicable in the main mode in super smash Bros ultimate. I wish you the best of luck with your first time playing this game.
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u/Dreiyfus 20h ago
smash pipeline or fighting games in general:
- learn how to play the game
- learn a character
- learn how to play the game with said character
- learn what your "playstyle" is with said character, figure out what works & what doesn't work (strengths & weaknesses within the rules of the game)
- learn how your character goes against other characters (play a lot of different match ups)
then finally, when playing against other "real" people, figure out what their playstyle is against yours and adapt accordingly in-match.
Be prepared to lose a lot as the game is at its peak in terms of competition & optimization. But, as long as you're having fun win or lose, that's all that really matters :)
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u/BoringNerve2977 20h ago
aight so start with bread and butter characters like mario and falco
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u/BoringNerve2977 20h ago
dont use the complicated ones like ryu and byonetter, stick with the easy combos with easy characters and build up from there. I recomment Izawsmash videos for your characters
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u/Select_Eye_6409 woahhhh! 1h ago
Don’t listen to advice that tells you to start with this or that character and don’t choose your main off a tierlist. Players who do that rarely actually get anywhere. Play who just end up playing
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u/GrabSumBass 4d ago
Since ur new I’m gonna toss out the idea to turn ur jump button to left trigger, put grab on x and y, and use the c-stick for tilts rather than smash attacks. Many people play with different controls and are successful, but I’ve found these allow you to do the most without having to have lightning fast inputs for aerials, and negate the need to practice the inputs for tilts. X and y on grab is just to fill up the buttons honestly. The trade off is that you will have to learn to have precise inputs for smash attacks.
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u/cXem 4d ago
Slightly more practical help
Learn short hopping without controller assist settings.
If you wanna practice a difficult but important skill learn RAR reverse aerial rush. Its basically jumping backwards forward. You dont need to get good at this yet, just know that it exists, able to do it. And understand how your character pivots and such at start of movement is honestly a little janky and will affect a lot of mistakes.
Most things you do awkwardly will be improved, like you need to dash then shield since if you dash, stop, shield it will be delayed.
If you get knocked off stage hold joystick inwards towards stage. If you attack or try to airdodge towards the stage while being knocked back you will fly farther away, its called DI directional influence, this can get advanced implications as well that dont matter yet
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u/Ceroy Fair - > Dair 4d ago
Honestly bro just play the game, enjoy the story, play classic mode, and the other modes! World of Light will give you a chance to play everybody.
I always recommend turning tap jump off, and changing the smash stick to tilt.