The Smash Bros Ultimate Demo has now been available at multiple events, including tournaments at EVO 2018 and E3 2018. Many pros have had the chance to test it for themselves and some have even made their own Smash Bros Ultimate Tier List.
Melee legend Mew2King and Smash 4 champ Salem worked together on their prospective tier list for the game. ESAM, who played in the Smash Bros Ultimate Exhibition at EVO, also made his own tier list.
Of course, a lot can change between now and the game’s release in December, but here’s an idea of what the Smash 5 character tier lists could look like.
Smash Bros Ultimate Tier List by MVG Mew2King and Salem
Top Tier: Bayonetta, Pokemon Trainer, Ryu, Inkling, Marth, Pikachu, Sheik, Mario, Mega Man, Zelda, Little Mac
High Tier: Mewtwo, Snake, Link, Ike, Ganondorf, Pit, Sonic, Ness, Corrin, Cloud
Mid Tier: Ice Climbers, Ridley, Donkey Kong, Bowser, Villager, Pac Man
Low Tier: Fox
Bottom Tier: Kirby, Samus
Both M2K and Salem agreed that Bayonetta is the best in the game, although she’s likely to get a nerf before the release.
Pokemon Trainer is also ranked highly thanks to being able to switch between Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard lag-free.
Newcomer Inkling is hailed for having no serious weaknesses and being able to boost their partner’s damage, making them especially powerful for doubles.
Surprisingly Fox has been nerfed to the low tier, with only Kirby and Samus considered worse.
Smash Bros Ultimate Tier List by PG ESAM
Top Tier: Pikachu, Bayonetta, Sheik, Snake, Marth
High Tier: Ryu, Ganondorf, Ike, Pokemon Trainer, Little Mac
Upper-Mid Tier: Cloud, Corrin, Mewtwo, Ridley, Inkling, Ness, Link
Lower-Mid Tier: Sonic, Mario, Zelda, Mega Man, Fox
Low Tier: Donkey Kong, Villager, Bowser, Kirby
Bottom: Samus, Pac Man, Ice Climbers
ESAM also considers Bayonetta one of the strongest characters in the game, although he personally prefers Pikachu.
Much like M2K and Salem’s list, Sheik and Marth are rated highly while Kirby and Samus are amongst the lowest- although he considers Ice Climbers and Pac Man the absolute worst.
ESAM recently got to test out multiple characters at the Smash Bros Ultimate EVO 2018 Exhibition.
What will the final Smash Bros Ultimate Tier List look like?
Some other pros have also given their input on the Smash Bros Ultimate Character Tiers. ESAM noted that Nairo agreed Pikachu is in the top three characters.
TSM ZeRo recently won the E3 2018 Smash Bros Ultimate Invitational, taking out MkLeo’s Pokemon Trainer with Ike.
ZeRo mentioned in a recent video that Marth was particularly powerful in Ultimate due to the new mechanics, which punish for dodging and blocking while rewarding aggression.
With more characters to be introduced and even more returning, the final tier list could look drastically different. We may see a new character today after the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct 8.8.2018!