Tier list

A tier list is a ranking of each character's metagame, based on tournament settings. It is an indicator of how each character is expected to perform, under tournament settings, in relation to the rest of the cast. It should be noted that tiers measure the potential of each character based on all known techniques and strategies in the current metagame.

The tier list does not say anything about any single matchup, however. That is, if two players are equally matched in skill, and one uses Fox and the other uses Pichu, the tier list can not be used to accurately predict the outcome of the match. This is because the tier list looks at a character's overall potential and effectiveness, and individual matchups can be soft or hard counters that effect but do not determine a character's ranking. For instance, in the aforementioned example, if the Fox vs. Pichu matchup was dramatically tipped in Pichu's favor, but Pichu suffered from poor matchups against every other character in the game, it would mean that Pichu beats Fox, but Pichu is still worse than Fox.

SSB tier list
This list is cited from a GameFAQs post and generally reflects the sentiments of top-level SSB players.

SSBM tier list
This is the current Smash Back Room NTSC tier list, the eighth since its inception. It is current as of 7/10/2006, but it is subject to change at any time.

SSBB tier list
Although Sakurai has stated that he does not want Super Smash Bros to be competition-driven, a competitive scene has developed. A tier list will doubtless be produced as the competitive scene develops for Brawl.

Controversy of the Existence of Tiers
Controversy arises periodically over the existence of tiers, most notably during the "tier wars" at GameFAQs and Smashboards. Some smashers, called "anti-tiers," argue that every character can be played equally well. In support of this argument, they claim that the tier list creates a cycle in which players choose only higher-tiered characters, and thus only those characters develop an advanced metagame, thereby reinforcing the tier list.

The unanimous consensus of competitive players, however, is that tiers do exist. They argue that it would be almost impossible to balance a game of unlike characters - without specific redesign, characters would have the tendency to fall into tiers, by dint of their myriad variables (differing attack power, running speed, etc.). Furthermore, the developers cannot foresee top-level strategies, and thus even their deliberate efforts could fail to balance the game at a professional level. Years of empirical results support this conclusion as well; national tournament-winners of Melee almost always use Marth, Fox, Falco and Sheik.

The list itself, of course, is subject to change at any time: the metagame shifts largely, changing the tier list throughout the years. Anti-tiers use this point to argue that the tier list can't be true if it changes. Pro-tiers respond by pointing out that it may be true for a particular, static metagame, and that this argument doesn't weigh against the existence of tiers themselves, but merely against a particular meta-game.

Tiers exist at all levels of play, though the rankings are highly changed from casual play to competitive play, due to different strategies and a different metagame from the tournament level.