Bowser
- Series: Super Mario series
- Original Game: Super Mario Bros. (NES) — 1985
The arch-nemesis of Mario and probably the most popular of the Nintendo villains makes his reappearance in SSBB! Bowser is the definitive example of a heavyweight, boasting the highest weight and biggest model size of any character. In his transition from Melee, he has gained some speed and a new attack, the Flying Slam, while still keeping his arsenal of powerful attacks. Bowser is obviously hindered by his poor mobility, but his range and power makes him a fearsome opponent.
Captain Falcon
- Series: F-Zero series
- Debut: F-Zero - 1990
F-Zero pilot number seven makes his comeback into the game. With a great ground mobility and strong attacks he can quickly deal lots of damage. That may seem perfect, but his poor air mobility and recovery make him useless in air fights. This makes him easy to counter by simply catching him in an attack, since most of his attacks have high end lag, sending him off stage. Still, he cannot be underestimated, or you might die very quickly.
Diddy Kong
- Series: Donkey Kong series
- Original Game: Donkey Kong Country (SNES) — 1994
Donkey Kong's best buddy and partner arrives as a new character on the scene. In contrast to his tie-wearing friend, Diddy Kong is much lighter and thus much more agile than Donkey Kong. Diddy Kong has great mobility and relatively strong attacks, but what really separates him from other lightweights is his Banana Toss. While being able to spawn banana peels at will might seem like a rather tame ability, it gives Diddy Kong amazing stage control. If you're ever up against a good Diddy, watch where you're running or you'll most certainly trip.
Donkey Kong
- Series: Donkey Kong series
- Original Game: Donkey Kong (Arcade) — 1981
Being one of Nintendo's first characters and part of the original 12 in Super Smash Bros., Donkey Kong's inclusion doesn't come as much of a surprise. As in previous installments, Donkey Kong's attacks pack a punch, and his high weight makes him difficult to KO. However, unlike other heavyweights, Donkey Kong also has relatively fast movement and attacks, while his long limbs give him more physical reach than other characters. Donkey Kong is often overlooked when it comes to heavyweights as he lacks any extreme strength or unique properties, but his mix of speed, power and reach makes him a solid character at any level of play.
Falco
- Series: Star Fox series
- Debut game: Star Fox (SNES) - 1993
The most skilled pilot of the Star Fox team, Falco Lombardi, flies into action.
Fox
- Series: Star Fox series
- Original Game: Star Fox (SNES) — 1993
Since the lift off from Super Smash Bros., Fox McCloud makes his continuity consistent in Brawl. One of the series' trademark glass cannons, Fox boasts attacks that are both quick and deadly, letting him chase down his opponents or react to mistakes very quickly. However, he is still hindered by his high fall speed which, while usually beneficial for combos and surviving vertical KOs, makes him vulnerable to chaingrabs or attack chains. Regardless of these flaws, his sheer offensive power makes him a good choice for aggressive players who can fully utilize his speed.
Ganondorf
- Series: Zelda series
- Original Game: The Legend of Zelda - 1986
The King of Evil and wielder of the Triforce of Power fights his way through Brawl, bringing back powerful attacks he had from Melee. Like in Melee, part of Ganondorf's moveset is based on that on Captain Falcon, though he has now been decloned to where he is no longer a full clone of Falcon; he is now only a semi-clone, as with Falco. True to a heavyweight, Ganondorf is a character who sacrifices speed for strength, making him a feared force to be reckoned with if he utilizes his strength to its full potential. His edgeguarding game is once again great, especially when considering re-inheriting the strongest meteor smash in the game with his down aerial. Ganondorf is, however, the slowest character in the game (even slower than Bowser, surprisingly), which is solidified by his sluggish attacks and movement. He is also infamous for having one of the worst recoveries in the game; what exacerbates this fact is that he is no longer able to restore his midair jumps with his Wizard's Foot (down special) like he could in Melee, ultimately shortening his recovery options to use to get back onto the stage.
Ice Climbers
- Series: Ice Climber
- Original Game: Ice Climber (NES) — 1985
While not exactly a fan favorite, the Ice Climbers still managed to make it into Brawl. One of the most technical characters in the game, the Ice Climbers excel at 1v1 matches due to their infinite chaingrab, which lets one climber throw his opponent to the other and vice versa. This makes them extremely scary to fight against, since one mistake can mean the loss of a point or stock. Unfortunately, the Ice Climbers have two simple but crippling weaknesses: any match where there are more than one opponent and aerial stages. Both of these conditions can prevent the Ice Climbers from pulling off a chaingrab and makes it easy for them to be separated. If you primarily play 1-on-1s and are willing to put in tons of practice for a single character, the Ice Climbers is the perfect character for you to focus on.
Ike
- Series Fire Emblem series
- Original Game: Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (GameCube) — 2005
Another Fire Emblem character joins the vast Smash family, filling in the space Roy left behind. Ike is one of the strongest swordsmen in the game. His powerful sword Ragnell gives him an array of powerful attacks, which also boast great range due to the sword's length. He also has one of the best jab attacks in the game, being a quick move in contrast to his laggy sword attacks while also letting him pull off high damage combos with jab canceling. Ike suffers from the same problems as other heavyweights, namely slow attacks and a poor recovery, but his reach and power more than makes up for these flaws, especially in the hands of a patient master.
Jigglypuff
- Series: Pokémon series
- Debut: Pokémon Red and Blue (Game Boy) - 1996
King Dedede
- Series: Kirby series
- Original Game: Kirby's Dream Land (Game Boy) — 1992
The king of Dream Land, King Dedede, makes his first appearance in the Smash Bros. series, bringing with him his big, wooden hammer. As his large body might suggest, he is a heavyweight, but one who has an above average air game, possessing multiple jumps and useful air attacks. His hammer gives him great reach, more than most characters, and his weight along with his strong momentum canceling gives him the best vertical endurance in the game. King Dedede also possesses he longest grab range for characters without a tether grab, as well as an effective chaingrab, meaning he can be played as sort of a grappler character that relies on grabs for most of his damage. With good survivability overall, nice reach, great air game and a notorious chain grab, King Dedede is a strong choice against any player.
Kirby
- Series: Kirby series
- Original Game: Kirby's Dream Land (Game Boy) — 1992
Kirby is another long-time veteran character in the Super Smash Bros. series, having been in the series since the first game. Kirby is blessed with a moveset that excels in multiple aspects. His attacks have surprising reach, his KO moves pack a punch and his throws easily set up most combos. However, he still has his weaknesses, which is a lack of speed and survivability. Kirby is one of the simpler characters in the game. While he isn't noticeably stronger than other characters, his balanced moveset makes him a solid choice for newcomers and seasoned veterans alike.
Link
- Series: The Legend of Zelda series
- Original Game: Legend of Zelda (NES) — 1986
Link has been updated to match his recent Twilight Princess appearance, along with changes to some of his moves. Link's playstyle is similar to his previous appearances, being a strong but sluggish fighter complemented by a variety of projectiles. This makes Link a great defensive character who can survive lots of attacks and keep opponents at bay, while his powerful attacks makes him decent offensively. However, Link is saddled with many noticeable weaknesses, such as having a horrible recovery and very sluggish attacks. These weaknesses means that Link will have more trouble facing faster characters, but with enough practice, one can overcome or compensate for this handicap to make Link a balanced and versatile brawler.
Lucario
- Series: Pokémon
- Debut: Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (Nintendo DS) - 2006
Lucario joins the battle in Brawl using its aura powers to aid in its fighting abilities. It is considerably very unique of a fighter, as its fighting style is vastly different compared to other fighters; Lucario's aura holds the ability to gain strength as Lucario's damage increases.
Lucas
- Series: Mother series
- Original Game: Mother 3 (Japan only) (GBA) — 2006
Lucas is a newcomer to the series and the second character representing the Mother series thus far. While Lucas' specials are very similar to Ness', his normal attacks are completely different, giving him a very different playstyle compared to Ness'. Lucas has speed and agility as expected from most lightweights, but he also possesses strong KO moves. Just like Ness, Lucas also has a very versatile recovery and can combo relatively well compared to other characters. Unfortunately, like Ness, Lucas suffers from a minor nuance that causes him to take longer to recover from grab releases. He is also weak in the aerial and grabbing department, having subpar attacks for situations involving them. Overall, Lucas is a unique character that requires a bit of technical mastery, but can be a very tricky opponent to fight against.
Luigi
- Series: Super Mario series
- Debut game: Mario Bros. - 1983
While the eternal understudy has always been overshadowed by his older brother, that is no longer the case in Smash Bros., and in Brawl, Luigi has been given a moveset that differs him from Mario and gives some good tools to aid him in battle.
Mario
- Series: Super Mario series
- Original Game: Donkey Kong (Arcade) — 1981
As the most recognizable character from any Nintendo series, Mario's return in Brawl is a no-brainer, but with a new Down Special, he is not quite the same as before. Like in most multiplayer games he appeared in, Mario is a balanced fighter, with average speed, average power and specials that give him a variety of abilities like a projectile and a reflector. However, Mario is also an example of the adage: "jack of all trades, master of none", as while he has strong KO power, all his other stats are average, having a predictable recovery and just generally being outshined by characters with more specialized abilities. That said, Mario is still a solid and simple character, with the fact that he can hit like a train and his overall average abilites makes him a great character to use and to fight against for both beginners and experienced players.
Marth
- Series: Fire Emblem
- Debut: Fire Emblem
The Hero King of the Fire Emblem series makes his comeback into Brawl, once again possessing his key tool from Melee: his tipper sweetspot.
Meta Knight
- Series: Kirby series
- Original Game: Kirby's Adventure (NES) — 1993
Kirby's arch-rival makes his debut in SSBB, being one of the two newcomers from the Kirby series. Metaknight's abilities are renowned throughout the Smash Bros. fanbase, considered as the best character in the game by competitive players and respected by many casual smashers. Metaknight excels in aerial combat, having amazingly quick attacks and great reach with his sword, Galaxia. Along with his useful Mach Tornado, excellent edgeguarding, lightning-fast finishers and unbeatable recovery, Metaknight is a force to fear. Whatever weaknesses are nearly negligible. His light weight is offset by Shuttle Loop's momentum cancel, his amazing air attacks compensate for his poor air speed and his lack of projectile is negated by his many approach options and a Mach Tornado that actually dispels certain projectiles. Being the only character to have ever been banned from a standardized tournament ruleset, Metaknight is a fearsome opponent on any level of play.
Mr. Game & Watch
Ness
- Series: Mother
- Debut: Earthbound (SNES and GBA) - 1994
The boy with psychic powers receives some more tools to his moveset.
Olimar
- Series: Pikmin series
- Original Game: Pikmin (Nintendo GameCube) — 2001
Captain Olimar joins the Smash Bros. series as a newcomer, representing the relatively new Pikmin series. Olimar has a very unique playstyle that revolves around Pikmin, which are basically minions that Olimar uses to attack. This means that Olimar has little combat ability without Pikmin, but also means that he is very deadly with an army of Pikmin. Olimar has fast, powerful attacks coupled by great reach, as demonstrated by his deadly smashes and excellent grab. He can also rack up damage very quickly with Pikmin Throw. These attributes make him a strong defensive character that can KO without a problem, but his dependence on a tether recovery and his poor mobility gives him trouble against characters who can exploit these weaknesses.
Peach
- Series: Mario series
- Original Game: Super Mario Bros. (NES) — 1985
Peach returns from Melee, keeping her signature Toad, Turnips and ability to float. Peach is a character whose playstyle revolves around her versatile Turnips, which lets her camp and helps her approach enemies. Peach also has an excellent air game, as her strong air attacks and float lets her rack up damage against her opponents. Her float also gives her strong edgeguarding abilities and an effective recovery. Unfortunately, Peach has the worst air dodge in the game, having half a second of endlag, and she lacks effective KO moves, meaning that getting KOs take longer or require more precision. Peach is a tricky character to get the hang of due to her odd mechanics and moveset, but she can be a scary opponent in the hands of a master.
Pikachu
- Series: Pokémon series
- Original Game: Pokémon Red and Blue (Game Boy) — 1996
Pikachu is another veteran of the series and retains his speedy attacks and agility in this game. Being a lightweight, Pikachu is easily knocked out, and he has moderate KOing problems, but these are balanced out with great edgeguarding abilities. He also has a set of versatile specials, having a nice projectile with Thunder Jolt, a great recovery move in Quick Attack and Thunder to keep foes off of the stage. Additionally, he is one of the few characters in the game to have true combos, with certain attacks able to combo into themselves and two chaingrabs. He is also able to complement his swift movement with a technique called the Quick Attack Cancel, giving him even more mobility. However, Pikachu is held back by his overall weak attacks, his poor range, and most of his air attacks aren't very effective. Despite these drawbacks, Pikachu remains a solid character, with speed and attacks that can easily overwhelm an opponent.
Pit
- Series: Kid Icarus series
- Original Game: Kid Icarus (NES) — 1992
Pit is a newcomer, making his first appearance after being absent for almost a decade in videogames. Having multiple jumps, a glide and an excellent recovery move, Pit is wonderful at aerial combat. He also possesses arguably the best projectile in the game in Palutena's Bow, being able to alter the trajectory of its blindingly fast arrows. Pit does well in other aspects of combat, with two reflectors to counter projectiles and melee attacks that are faster than average. Pit's weaknesses is that it has some trouble KOing, and his Wings of Icarus can be disabled if it's hit by any attack. With options from a distance and up close, Pit is a well-rounded character with tools to help him in many situations.
Pokémon Trainer
- Series: Pokémon series
- Original Game: Pokémon Red and Blue (Game Boy) — 1996
The Pokémon Trainer makes an unorthodox appearance in the series, in that he doesn't actually fight. Instead, he lets his three Pokémon, Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard, do his bidding. These three Pokémon have totally different attacks and attributes, giving the Pokémon Trainer a varied playstyle. However, you can't just stick to one Pokémon forever, as the stamina feature forced you to switch between Pokémon, which means that you must be proficient in all three of his Pokémon to use him effectively.
The first of his Pokémon is Squirtle, the standard lightweight speedster. Its fast lateral air speed and attacks make it a good aerial fighter, while its unique turnaround animation gives him a couple of advanced techniques to surprise opponents. Ivysaur is the middleweight of the three, although it has the strongest KO moves and the slowest attacks. It relies more on keeping its distance and racking up damage, but a well place attack can definitely net you and early kill. Charizard is the biggest and heaviest of the trio, with slow but powerful attacks and a grab. It also possesses multiple jumps and even a glide, which is unusual for heavyweights.
R.O.B.
Samus
- Series: Metroid series
- Original Game: Metroid (NES) — 1986
The female bounty hunter Samus Aran returns to the Smash Bros. arena for the third time. As usual, she has a nice arsenal of projectiles to keep foes at bay, in addition to her excellent aerial grapple beam which serves as both an attack and a tether recovery. Samus also has moderately fast attacks, letting her hold her own when opponents get too close. Her high weight, floatiness and recovery options means she can survive much longer. However, Samus has a lot of trouble KOing her foes, with few finishers for a heavyweight. She also has a laggy grab, while her weight means she can be chaingrabbed easily. Samus requires lots of patience to use and to fight against. With a good mix of projectiles and melee attacks, she can slowly rack up lots of damage while keeping her distance until her opponents are in KO range.
Zero Suit Samus
- Series: Metroid series
- Original Game: Metroid: Zero Mission (GBA) — 2004
To use Zero Suit Samus you must play with Samus and use her Final Smash (Zero Laser). After that your space suit will fall and you will only be able to use the Zero Suit. You'll be faster and the pieces of your space suit can be picked up and thrown like items. You will be able to use a small hand held gun that can also turn into a laser whip.
If you want to start using Zero Suit Samus, press and hold a shield button in the character-selection screen and continue to the next screen. To regain your Power Suit, use her Final Smash.
Snake
- Series: Metal Gear
- Debut: Metal Gear Solid
Solid Snake from Konami's Metal Gear series makes his guest appearance in Brawl as an explosive-wielding powerhouse possessing great combat and camping techniques.
Sonic
- Series: Sonic the Hedgehog
- Debut: Sonic the Hedgehog (1991) - Sega Genesis
The world's fastest hedgehog makes his honorable guest appearance in Brawl as a third-party character, where he puts his speed to the test to dominate his foes like he did back in his games.
Toon Link
- Series: Zelda series
- Debut game: The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (Nintendo GameCube) - 2002
Toon Link is essentially Link as he appeared in Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass.
Wario
- Series: Wario series
- Original Game: Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Game Boy) — 1992
Brawl is Wario's first début in the world of Smash Bros. (although he appeared as a mere trophy in Melee). He wears the costume from the WarioWare games (his original costume is an alternate color). Nintendo stated that they aimed to give Wario some rather excessive movements, such as his motorcycle and flatulence.
His final smash turns him into Wario Man who wears a cape and is tougher than Wario.
Wolf
- Series: Star Fox
- Debut: Star Fox 64
The leader of the rivals of Star Fox joins Brawl. He may seem to be a semi-clone of Fox at first, as with Falco, but he is actually not, despite having special moves that function almost identically to those of Fox and Falco.
Yoshi
- Series: Mario series
- Original Game: Super Mario World (SNES) — 1991
Yoshi is back from Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee and he is cuter than ever, with more airtime for his egg-throwing abilities. His moves are the same in Melee, only his final smash temporarily makes him sprout wings and spit fire.
Zelda
- Series: The Legend of Zelda series
- Original Game: Legend of Zelda (NES) — 1986
Zelda, like Link, has been redesigned to match her appearance in Twilight Princess. She can use Din's fire to rack up high damage in large stages where she can stay far away from enemies and send it out, and she has a reflector (Nayru's Love) that reflects both projectiles and fired shots. While her two jumps are not very impressive, she has the amazing recovery move Farore's Wind to help her out in this aspect. Her side and up smashes, while having a small amount of ending and start up lag, have high knockback and can send opponents off the stage fairly easily once the opponent has at least 90-100% damage.
Sheik
- Series: The Legend of Zelda series
- Original Game: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64) — 1998
Even though Sheik didn't appear in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, she returns here with a new design that was made during the development of that game. Her moves are the same as in Melee, and if you want to start off with her, just press on her icon next to Zelda's.