SDR Character Preview #11: Yoshi

Yoshi, he's that green dinosaur always seen with Mario and company, isn't he? He's quite a charming critter with his distinguished fashion sense. Since when did dinosaurs wear shoes anyway?

Ehm, Yoshi has received quite a few changes that will appeal to the diehard dino-fan. Even in SD Remix, Yoshi remains one of the most difficult characters to play. But Yoshi has a few tricks that may surprise you.

 

Forward Aerial has very little start-up, so get to clobbering!

Firstly, Yoshi now has the undisputed best aerial mobility in the game. For a strange green dinosaur that waddles his legs about to propel his body, he's quite nimble! Have fun chasing after foes and baiting them into attacks just to evade at the last moment.

Secondly, Yoshi's moves have all received numerous little modifications. By "little," I mean it's a big deal.

Up Smash is active for the entirety of the head swing, so Yoshi can hit foes in front of him. It packs a lot of heat, so do be careful where you stand.

 Place trust into your shoes and leave the rest to destiny.

Neutral Air has a hitbox over Yoshi's foot. No doubt the concern of every Melee player since the turn of the century, the quirk has now been remedied.

Back Air connects more consistently due to numerous knockback changes. Combine this with Yoshi's superior aerial mobility, and Yoshi will now deal more damage and pain than before.

Yoshi's grab functions a little differently. Yoshi can now capture airborne opponents with any section of his tongue, and the hitbox lingers!

Standing grab has much less start-up compared to the original.

 Running grab has a hitbox inside Yoshi's mouth.

Special Moves

<Standard Special Move: Egg Lay>

 

Yoshi's Neutral Special Egg Lay makes foes susceptible to more damage while inside the egg compared to before. Furthermore, the opponent is only invincible for 1 frame after escaping the egg, compared to 14 frames in Super Smash Bros Melee. If you anticipate them making their escape, you can follow up with a move as they pop out!

<Side Special Move: Egg Roll>

Yoshi's Side Special Egg Roll has some horizontal momentum in the air, and no longer puts Yoshi into free fall state. Use it after being knocked away high from the stage before using your double jump. Doesn't it feel good to be alive?

SDR Character Preview #10: Samus

One of the galaxy's strongest bounty hunters. Samus Aran returns with some little additions to her arsenal that will make space pirates quiver!

As you might have imagined, not much has changed about Samus. Her Grapple Beam does connect on airborne foes now, so maybe you could have some new ways to abuse that Extender glitch? Hmm.

Link has been an unsavory character lately. Maybe beat some sense into him?

Link, we need to talk...

Ehm, moving on, a new delight to feast your eyes on is Samus's Up Tilt. See the blue on her shin? That hurtbox is now completely invincible during the move's active frames.

Essentially, you run very little risk of trading against an opponent's recovery move as you edge guard them. That's scary for your opponents, but great for you! Winning feels amazing, no?

Of course, Samus's Up Smash has changed, for the better it seems. Blast your foes away and maybe juggle them around a bit. After all, they've caused you a lot of trouble.

 As you can imagine, it's an anti-air attack with astonishing, alliterative application.

Let's take a look at one of glook's videos to demonstrate!

Special Moves 

<Standard Special Move: Charge Shot>

 

Samus's Charge Shot is a little stronger too. For every charge level completed, the move has extra damage, plus some shield damage!

<Side Special Move: Homing Missile>

Samus's Homing Missiles have changed. With an upgrade here and there, their accuracy has greatly increased! Perhaps Fox and Falco players should pay a little more attention now.

SDR Character Preview #9: Luigi

Ah Luigi, the second fiddle to the world-renown Mario. Years in his brother's shadow have made Luigi formidably...unpredictable.

For the SD Remix Luigi player though, unpredictability has become versatility. Perhaps a cunning mind can usher another Year of Luigi? Who knows.

Anyhow, let's get down to business. A video will suffice too.

Luigi players will immediately notice that Luigi's aerial mobility is much improved. In fact, it has gone from one of the worst in Super Smash Bros Melee to one of the best. Players may also like that Luigi's initial dash duration has increased, allowing for more diverse ground approaches by combining his longer dashdance in tandem with his impressive wavedash.

Let's quickly go over some of the various moveset improvements:

• Dash Attack connects much better now.
• Forward Tilt angled downward no longer has weight-dependent knockback. It works correctly now!
• You can use two Forward Aerial attacks within one short hop.

The earlier cancel window on Forward Aerial will prove useful with some creativity.

Down Aerial may surprise some Luigi players. The priority of the meteor hitbox and the 'normal' hitbox have been flipped.

What does that mean exactly?

It means you need to space better to get the horizontal-sending hitbox! If you hit the opponent where the two hitboxes overlap, the Meteor Smash will now occur over the horizontal launch. But it also means it is more feasible to get the "secret" Meteor Smash to extend combos and edge guard foes.

Special Moves

<Standard Special Move: Fireball>

Luigi's special moves have changed a fair bit as well. Don't doze off now!

Aerial Fireball now has no landing animation! Think of it like Fox's and Falco's short hop lasers. Use the fireball as cover as you approach, or force a guaranteed grab on opponent's shields. Just have fun and think of something!

<Side Special Move: Green Missile>

Luigi's Green Missile Side Special hasn't really changed at all. The probability of receiving a misfire has increased by a bit though...for better or for worse. Do be careful, okay?

Doesn't it look a little, I don't know, bigger?

The Super Jump Punch is Luigi's trump card. The sweetspot hitbox is bigger, but the real change is that his aerial Super Jump Punch is stronger now, and it has the Homerun sound effect! If that's not exciting, then maybe you should lighten up a little, yeah?

It also sends Luigi a little more horizontally now. Not that you can tell from here!

<Down Special Move: Luigi Cyclone>

Finally, Luigi Cyclone is always "charged" in the air. It works exactly like Mario's Mario Tornado now. If you're in the air and need a vertical boost, just mash B to lift yourself up. No need to use the move on the ground first before being allowed to get vertical lift.

Secondly, the grounded version's finale has moved one of the moves hitbox's to Luigi's head. This will allow players to combo into the final hit more consistently to reduce the move's risk. Plus, you might be able to land some silly combo afterwards. Truly an offer you can't refuse.