R.O.B. (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)


 * This article is about R.O.B.'s appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. For other uses, see Ancient Minister or R.O.B.

R.O.B. (Robot, Robotto) is a newcomer in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. His full name is Robotic Operating Buddy, and he's based off the R.O.B. NES peripheral. He was unveiled in a mass leak prior to the Japanese release of Brawl.

R.O.B. was confirmed on the DOJO!! March 6, 2008.

How to Unlock
Complete one of the following:
 * Play 160 brawls, then defeat R.O.B.
 * Get 250 different trophies
 * Get R.O.B. to join your party in The Subspace Emissary

Role in the Subspace Emissary
R.O.B.s appear as members of the Subspace Army. Throughout the Subspace Emissary, two R.O.B.s are used to activate and detonate the Subspace Bombs left by the Ancient Minister. The R.O.B.s that set off the bomb are sucked into subspace. R.O.B.s are also enemies confronted by Samus Aran and Pikachu in the Hidden Base and Subspace Bomb Factory.

The playable R.O.B. in the Subspace Emissary mode is actually the true form of the Ancient Minister, who broke free from Ganondorf's control and refused to detonate more Subspace Bombs. However Ganondorf took control of the R.O.B. Squad and started a mass countdown of multiple bombs. When the Ancient Minister interfered, he was attacked and his disguise was burned off. After the attack, Captain Falcon and Olimar, Pikachu, Samus and the Kongs fought off the R.O.B. Squad and escaped the Ancient Minister's base. It then helps the others defeat Tabuu. 

Pros:

 * Multiple uses of the Up-B and the ability to attack between them gives R.O.B. an incredible recovery
 * Bair also pushes R.O.B. forward, aiding his already great recovery
 * Side B moves him up a bit, also adding to recovery
 * Several powerful aerials, smashes, and tilts
 * Other aerials, smashes, and tilts are good, quick damage builders
 * Two solid projectiles
 * Robo Beam can be angled up or down
 * Side B reflects projectiles
 * Fairly heavy
 * Can use Wall of Pain (because of Robo Burner)
 * Has very good range
 * Up and Down smashes are very fast
 * B Neutral can hit several enemies at once
 * Has many quick acting A attacks: down tilt, sair, uair, dash attack, up tilt, neutral
 * Edge recovery attack, under 100%, has great horizontal range
 * Charge time for up B is only two seconds to have a full tank of gas

Cons:

 * Slow
 * Fairly large target
 * Some kill moves have a lot of start-up lag
 * Both projectiles are non-spammable
 * Easily juggled
 * Easy character to combo
 * All but 1 special move needs to be charged
 * His Gyro can be used against him

Ground Attacks

 * Dash A - R.O.B. does a quick swing of his arms
 * Neutral A - A couple of quick slaps with his arms
 * Forward Tilt - Leans forward and swings arms
 * Up Tilt - Arms point upwards and his "torso" moves up on his "spine", causing this to pop up a bit. Can hit twice
 * Down Tilt - Quickly pushes his arms forward along the ground
 * Forward Smash - Shoots a short beam from his eyes
 * Down Smash - Lowers torso on his spine and extends arms, spinning them. Low damage and knockback, but decent range and multiple hits
 * Up Smash - Plants hands on ground and does a handstand, shooting boosters out of his base upwards

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial - Shoots his boosters out diagonally down in front of him, and spins with them going
 * Down Aerial - Boosts R.O.B. up a little bit, shooting his boosters down where he was. Powerful, yet slow, and can spike, yet not quickly
 * Up Aerial - Raises arms repeatedly above his head, hitting multiple times
 * Forward Aerial - Looks like his forward tilt, just in the air
 * Back Aerial - Aims his base behind him and fires his boosters. Seems to push R.O.B. forward a little bit. This can be used for recovery in between Robo Burners, creating virtually the best horizontal recovery move in the game

Grabs and Throws

 * Down Throw: Drills opponent into the ground in front of him.
 * Up Throw: Grabs opponent, flies them into the air, turns them upside down, then crashes them into the ground. (Similar to Kirby or Metaknight's up throw)
 * Forward Throw: Tosses opponent forward.
 * Back Throw: Tosses opponent backward.

Strategies & Tips
Remember that although R.O.B. is fairly heavy, his attacks can be somewhat weak, so don't play him like Ganondorf or Bowser.

Don't be afraid to use the Wall of Pain; R.O.B. can easily return to the stage with his Robo Burner.

Although his Gyromite disks are a strong attack when charged, they take a long time to do so. It can be quicker to fire immediately, pick it up off the ground, and use it again several times. However, your opponents can throw this back at you so mix it up.

Use precision in your aerial attacks: many of of them (like his down air) although powerful, pause before attacking, so plan what you are going to do ahead of time.

Robo Beam can go diagonally down or upward by pressing up or down, respectively, before firing. If you make the beam go diagonally-downward, when it hits the floor, the beam will bounce off the floor, giving numerous approaches and mind games.

Taunts
Up: Faces the screen, and spins his head and arms in opposite directions.

Side: Faces the screen, and shoots lasers out of his eyes in an arc.

Down: Faces the screen, drops his arms, and it spirals up his torso. (kind of similar to his Mario Kart DS "victory taunt", but in reverse)

On-Screen Appearance
Assembles from pieces dropped from the sky.

Victory Pose

 * Fires blue beams, then flexes it's upper body
 * Spins around up a slight inch in the air, then lands
 * Spins its arms, moves them in a strongman pose

Wii Remote Choice
Makes an odd robotic noise, then makes a lower pitch robotic noise. Noises uncomparable to any in-game sounds.

Trivia

 * R.O.B.'s normal colors are based on his Famicom appearance, the words on his base even says Family Computer Robot
 * One of R.O.B.'s color changes is his North American look with gray arms. Even the words on his base say Robotic Operating Buddy.
 * R.O.B. is the only character without a stage representing his universe. Instead, the Mario Bros. stage doubles as his stage.
 * According to the last update on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website, R.O.B.'s symbol is to both represent one of his Gyros, and an altered version of the mark for the Subspace Emissary.
 * Although Pit's recovery move can cover more distance than R.O.B.'s, Robo Burner may be better for recovery than Wings of Icarus for two reasons. 1. When used in the air, Wings of Icarus makes Pit fall for about a half of a second before flying up. Robo-Burner does not. 2.If Pit attacks, or is attacked, when using his recovery move, he becomes helpless, even if he is attacked again. R.O.B. can stay in the air as long as he has fuel, regardless of the amount he attacks/gets attacked.