Classic Mode (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)

Classic Mode (勝ちあがり乱闘 Survival Smash) is a single-player mode in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Each character now has their own predetermined set of opponents and stages to face in this mode. A unique name is given to each character's path, and there may be special rules or conditions: for example, Ryu's path references Street Fighter II by using only Ω forms and Stamina mode alongside the fighters most closely representing the characters of Street Fighter II. It is different from the Classic Mode versions found in the two versions of SSB4, shown by the return to the style of Classic Mode that was in Melee and Brawl. Just like in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Classic Mode can also be challenged by two players.

Similar to the Classic Modes for the previous entries, players can select an intensity level, indicated by the position of the lengthy mural. The highest allowed starting intensity is 5.0, and it will increase slightly after each victory, with a maximum of 9.9. The layout consists of six stages, a bonus stage, and a boss. Unlike previous entries, the boss in the last stage is not always Master Hand; each fighter has a different boss encounter at the end. Scores are also present in Classic Mode, which is displayed alongside the player's Global Smash Power. Master Hand, Crazy Hand, Giga Bowser, Galleom, Ganon, Marx, Rathalos, and Dracula are all the bosses for specific characters.

The full Classic Mode mural used for selecting the intensity of a Classic Mode play through.

Type of Battles

Regular stage

The first six stages of each route are regular Smash battles where all enemy fighters must be defeated to proceed. Some variations include Giant Battles, where at least one opponent is giant, and Horde Battles, where at least eight enemies are fought three at a time. Some specific battles have Stamina Mode ruleset.

Bonus Game

This is a challenge in the style of Race to the Finish, but rather than having a time limit, the player must outrun a void of darkness that consumes the stage behind them. Glowing orbs are scattered throughout the side-scrolling area which increase the player's score, some behind breakable blocks and bomb blocks that encourage the player to go out of their way as the void closes in. Some scattered physics objects impede progress in a similar manner to Trophy Rush. At the end of the stage, a cannon blasts the player into a portal that ends the Bonus Game.

Boss

Each fighter faces a predetermined boss fight at the end of their route. The player must deplete the boss's HP in order to defeat them. In some cases, the boss is not the only challenge in the final stage; for example, Mario and Captain Falcon's final stage features a regular battle on Final Destination against Bowser, who transforms into Giga Bowser and begins the boss fight upon his defeat. On very specific fighters' cases, it might not be a boss at all and instead have regular fighters as a boss.

Classic Mode Titles

For a more in-depth look at each character's classic mode, please see List of Classic Mode battles in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Fighter	Classic Mode Title	Theme	Final Boss
Mario	Let's-a Go!	Mario battles characters from popular Nintendo franchises. The penultimate battle is against Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings, much like how they are world bosses in the Super Mario series that lead up to the final boss, being Bowser. Much like in Melee's Adventure Mode, Bowser will transform into Giga Bowser upon defeat.	Bowser Giga Bowser
Donkey Kong	Journey to New Donk City	Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong take a trip to the city. They start in Kongo Jungle then take a plane to travel to various cities like Onett and Moray Towers before ending up in New Donk City Hall, where Master Hand and Crazy Hand are fought in its Omega form.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Link	A Quest to Seal the Darkness	All fighters have an 'evil', 'demon' or 'darkness' theme, including Ganondorf and Dark Link.	Ganon
Samus	Another Planet, Another Bounty	All battles take place in the Metroid stages and involves fighting characters that share similarities to the series bosses.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Dark Samus	The Great Poison Given Form	Dark Samus battles protagonists while she is teamed up with their dark/evil/corrupted counterpart. The penultimate battle is a free-for-all against Samus and Ridley, likely a reference to Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. The title is a reference to the Chozo's name for Phazon, which is what Dark Samus is made of.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Yoshi	Jurassic Journey	All fighters are reptilians. The penultimate battle is against a giant Bowser, a reference to his boss fights in the Yoshi's Island series.	Rathalos
Kirby	Gourmet Clash	All fighters are infamous for their gluttony (Wario, for example) or have 'eating' (King Dedede) attacks as a reference to the Gourmet Race subgame in Kirby Super Star. At the start of each battle, Kirby and his opponent start at 35% damage and several Food items will spawn. Other food items, like Banana Peels and the Superspicy Curry, will also have a higher spawn rate during the route.	Marx
Fox	Spaceborne Smash	All fighters are associated with space or other planets. The penultimate battle is against Wolf on Venom, a reference to their battle in Star Fox 64 / Lylat Wars. Master Hand represents Andross as a reference to his boss battle in Star Fox 64.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Pikachu	I Choose You!	All fighters are Pokémon characters on the Pokémon stages. All item drops are Poké Balls. The title is reference to Ash Ketchum's catchphrase as well as the title to the first episode of the Pokémon anime and the 20th movie.	Mewtwo Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Luigi	Luigi's Nightmares	All fighters are creepy or scary characters as a reference to the Luigi's Mansion series and Luigi's "scaredy cat" nature.	Dracula
Ness	Home to Onett!	Ness travels back home to Onett starting from Magicant, a reference to his Homesick status effect in EarthBound. It also refers to the ending of the game, where Ness travels back to Onett after defeating Giygas.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Captain Falcon	Up Close and Personal	All fighters specialize in close combat or have no long-ranged attacks.	Bowser Giga Bowser
Jigglypuff	All Original, All 64	All fighters are the original 12 who all debuted in the original Super Smash Bros. being fought in the original stages in a similar order to the 1P Game. The penultimate battle is the original four unlockable characters. The final battle is against Giant Donkey Kong, referencing the unique battle in 1P Game.	Giant Donkey Kong
Peach	No Damsel In Distress	All fighters are her would-be kidnappers such as Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings, Donkey Kong, and Ganondorf. The penultimate battle is her own captor, Bowser.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Daisy	Sarasaland Represent!	All fighters are princesses in their respective franchises. The title references her kingdom of Sarasaland from Super Mario Land.	Master Hand
Bowser	The Red One. Every Red One!	All fighters are affiliated with the color red, with the penultimate boss being Rathalos.	Mario Metal Mario
Ice Climbers	Duos For Days	All fighters are iconic duos from their respective series, such as Link and Zelda and Ryu and Ken.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Sheik	Masquerade	All fighters have a mask or some headwear to conceal their identity.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Zelda	Wisdom Prevails	All fighters are villains who are fought on The Legend of Zelda stages. The penultimate battle is against four Dark Links.	Ganondorf Ganon
Dr. Mario	Colorful Treatment Plan	All fighters are in red, blue, and yellow costumes based on the three viruses: Fever, Chill, and Weird. The penultimate battle is against three Warios, a possible reference to his appearance in Dr. Mario 64.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Pichu	Lightweight Fracas	All fighters are lightweights. Some stages are also sky-based, including Skyloft and Pilotwings.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Falco	Soar above the Darkness	All fighters are "dark" characters, such as Dark Pit and Lucas in his Masked Man costume.	Crazy Hand Master Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Marth	A Kingdom of Dragons	All fighters are draconic characters and fought on fantasy based stages from Fire Emblem and The Legend of Zelda. A reference to Marth's dragon slaying in his Fire Emblem games.	Rathalos
Lucina	A Path of Heroes	All fighters are from the Fire Emblem series in reverse chronological order, a possible reference to her time traveling to the past in Fire Emblem Awakening.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Young Link	Hyrule Smash!	All fighters are from The Legend of Zelda series. All stages and items also come from The Legend of Zelda.	Ganon
Ganondorf	Encroaching Darkness	All fighters are Heroes of their own series. The penultimate battle is against Link and Zelda.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Mewtwo	Psychic Control	A series of battles where one of the opponents will ally with Mewtwo in the next battle. The teammates it gains have been characters previously mind-controlled in their own games, such as Cloud (a reference to Sephiroth taking over his mind in Final Fantasy VII) and Ken (in his Violent Ken costume, a reference to him being brainwashed by M. Bison in Ultra Street Fighter II). Pikachu will join Mewtwo in the final stage, a reference to the clone of Ash's Pikachu in Pokémon: The First Movie.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Roy	A Journey of Swords	All fighters are Swordsmen.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Chrom	Fight as One	The first battle is against Lucina on Arena Ferox, a reference to their duel in Fire Emblem Awakening. Afterwards, the battles become Team Battles where Chrom's teammate alternates between Lucina and either male or female Robin.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Mr. Game & Watch	A Long Legacy	All fighters are classic characters on retro stages in reverse chronological order, starting on Dream Land GB with Kirby and ending with a Multi-Man of Mr. Game & Watches on Flat Zone X.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Meta Knight	Two Sides of the Same Coin	All fights are free-for-alls against protagonists and their dark counterparts. The penultimate battle is against two Meta Knights in their Galacta Knight and Dark Meta Knight costumes. The title refers to Meta Knight's tendency to both an ally and an antagonist in the Kirby series.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Pit	Fighting for the Goddess!	All fighters are analogous to the boss battles from Kid Icarus: Uprising (i.e. Ganondorf representing Magnus). Dark Pit will join Pit in the final stage.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Dark Pit	Created Warriors	All fighters are genetic clones or have been genetically enhanced. The penultimate battle is against Pit, who will join Dark Pit in the final stage.	Galleom
Zero Suit Samus	Grapplers! Whips! Claws!	All fighters are characters who have tether recoveries with their grapplers (Samus and Dark Samus), whips (Simon, Richter, and Ivysaur), and claws (Young Link and Toon Link).	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Wario	I'm-a Gonna Win!	All fighters are those who use brute strength. The title is a reference to Wario's catchphrase in Mario Kart 64.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Snake	Weapons and Equipment OSP	All fighters use projectile weapons and explosives. The penultimate battle is against another Snake, referencing his fight with Liquid Snake in Metal Gear Solid. The final round against Galleom is a reference to the Metal Gear machines.	Galleom
Ike	The Black-Clad Warriors	All fighters are in their black palette swaps, a reference to his rivalry with The Black Knight.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Pokémon Trainer	The Future Champion	All fighters are Pokémon. The penultimate battle is against the opposite-gendered Pokémon Trainer. All items are disabled throughout the entire route.	Mewtwo Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Diddy Kong	Hey, Little Buddy!	Diddy is accompanied by a protagonist in each fight to battle their respective villain (i.e. Diddy and Mario vs. Bowser and Bowser Jr.). The penultimate and final battles will have Donkey Kong as his ally.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Lucas	Magic, Sacred Powers, and PSI!	All fighters have some form of psychic or magical abilities. The penultimate battle is against Mewtwo, a reference to Giegue from EarthBound Beginnings.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Sonic	At the Speed of Sound	All fighters are references to either various Sonic the Hedgehog characters or the Sonic games in general. Some of his opponents also happen to be some of the fastest characters in the game.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
King Dedede	Royal Rumble	All fighters are characters with royal titles (Marth, the Hero-King), positions in royalty (Princesses Peach and Daisy), or royal-based monikers (Ganondorf, the King of Evil).	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Olimar/Alph	Planetary Explorer	All fighters are those who are space travelers in their respective series. The penultimate battle is against Alph (or Olimar if the player is using Alph).	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Lucario	Counter Encounters	All fighters are characters with counterattacks.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
R.O.B.	Unreadable Expressions	All fighters have masks or appear to be expressionless or emotionless.	Galleom
Toon Link	The Teamwork of Courage	All battles involve Toon Link teaming up with two other Toon Links, a reference to The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. The penultimate battle is against a giant Ganondorf.	Ganon
Wolf	Reunited Roster	All fighters are fighters that were cut from Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.	Galleom
Villager	Mistake to Underestimate	All fighters are those who appear unsuited for battle or unusual picks to appear in a fighting game.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Mega Man	Variable Weapons System: Online!	All fighters are based on some of the Robot Masters, with the penultimate boss being Galleom. The final battle is a reference to Dr. Wily and his Alien hologram from Mega Man 2.	Dr. Mario Mewtwo
Wii Fit Trainer	Aerobic Smash	All fighters are overweight or physically unfit. Dr. Mario appears as their teammate.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Rosalina & Luma	One Star after Another	All fighters are from space or other planets. The penultimate battle is against Bowser, with Mario as her ally, as reference to the final battle in Super Mario Galaxy. Mario rejoins her in the final stage.	Marx
Little Mac	Friendly Sparring	All fighters specialize in close-range combat. The penultimate battle is against Donkey Kong, referencing his secret boss battle in the Wii version of Punch-Out!!.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Greninja	Your Turn, Greninja!	All fighters are characters that represent a certain type (i.e. Bowser and Charizard for Fire-Types, Ness and Lucas for Psychic-Types, etc.). All battles take place on Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2 (except for the penultimate battle, which takes place on Kalos Pokémon League) as a reference to Gym Battles and the eventual encounter with the Elite Four.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Palutena	A Little Divine Intervention	All fighters come from games that are themed around religion and mythology, such as Simon & Richter and Bayonetta.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Pac-Man	Ageless Classic	All fighters are classic and iconic characters in accordance to their original release date, similar to All-Star Smash. The boss of the route, Dracula, made his debut in 1986 with the first Castlevania, making him the oldest boss in the game.	Dracula
Robin	Thunder and Flames	All rounds are against a pair of fighters who use fire and lightning attacks. The penultimate battle is against the opposite-gendered Robin, referencing the final battle against Grima in Fire Emblem Awakening.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Shulk	Witness the Monando's Power	All fighters represent one of Shulk's Monado Arts and are fought in their cycling order. The penultimate battle is against Mega Man who is representing the Monado Enchant Art, an art that allows Shulk's party to damage Mechon armor with normal weapons.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Bowser Jr./Koopalings	Mama Peach, Where Are You?	All fighters are princesses, some of which are teamed up with their love interest (or in Lucina's case, her father). The title refers to Bowser Jr.'s debut in Super Mario Sunshine, where he kidnaps Peach believing she is his mother.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Duck Hunt	Dog, Duck, and Zapper	All fighters are animals or Mii Fighters with animal costumes.	Rathalos
Ryu	Seeking a Challenge	All fighters are references to Street Fighter characters with their corresponding music playing the background. All battles are one-on-one stamina fights on the Omega form of the stages. Ken joins Ryu in the final stage, which the Hands are meant to represent M. Bison. The bonus stage is also placed earlier as a reference to the car-destroying minigame in Street Fighter II's single-player mode.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Ken	Red-Hot Rivalry	All fighters are rivals to the main character of their respective games. The penultimate battle is against Ryu, as Ken is his rival.	Crazy Hand Master Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Cloud	A Ride? Not Interested.	All fights take place on a traveling vehicular stage with their corresponding fighter, a reference to Cloud's motion sickness. The title also references his catchphrase, "Not interested".	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Corrin	Between White and Black	All fighters alternate between black and white palette swaps. The black represents the Kingdom of Nohr, and the white represents the Kingdom of Hoshido.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Bayonetta	The Requiem of Fallen Wings	All fighters are winged. The final battle against a Giant Palutena references her final battle against Jubileus in the first Bayonetta. The title is a reference to the epilogue of Bayonetta, "Requiem"	Giant Palutena
Inkling	An Inkredible Journey	All fighters and stages represent a color (i.e. a pink Greninja on Magicant). Marx is used for the final stage as he is multi-colored.	Marx
Ridley	It Can't Be! Space Pirates!	All fighters are spaceship pilots. The title refers to Ridley's title as the leader of the Space Pirates.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Simon	Smash-vania	All fighters represent the bosses from the Castlevania series, with the penultimate battle being against Richter.	Dracula
Richter	Smash Echoes	All fighters are Echo Fighters.	Dracula
King K. Rool	Super Heavyweight Class	All fighters are heavyweights.	Galleom
Isabelle	Best in Show	All fighters are female, with the exception of Popo allied with Nana and the final bosses.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Incineroar	Burning Pro Wrestling Spirit!	All battles takes place in the Boxing Ring stage and are against characters with wrestling moves such as Bowser's Flying Slam. The penultimate battle is against another Incineroar. Greninja will join as an ally in the final stage.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Piranha Plant	New Bloom	All fighters are the base game newcomers in order of reveal. The stages also reference the locations in their reveal trailers.	Rathalos
Joker	Shadows	All fighters are in their dark costumes, representing the Shadow enemies in the Persona series. After the first fight, these opponents will become his allies and their costumes will change to a lighter variant, a reference to the protagonists' ability in the Persona series to acquire Personas after defeating them in battle. The final stage takes place on the Omega form of Mementos as a reference to the final battle against Yaldaboath.	Master Hand Crazy Hand (Intensity 7.0 or higher)
Hero	A History of Heroism	All battles are Stamina matches and all opponents (except for the final stage) are tiny, as a reference to the typical progression in a Dragon Quest game with the fourth round being against Rathalos who is meant to represent a mid-boss. Four of the rounds are against each of the playable Heroes. The final stage references Dragonlord, the main antagonist of the original Dragon Quest.	Robin Giant Charizard
Banjo & Kazooie	Perfect Partners	All fighters are iconic duos similar to the Ice Climbers' route, with the stages and music combinations meant to represent the worlds from Banjo-Kazooie. The penultimate battle is against Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong, who also starred in games by Rare.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Terry	The King of Smash	All battles are one-on-three stamina fights based on the 3-on-3 matches of The King of Fighters series. The teams are made up of fighters from the same series or who share a similar theme. The final battle likely references the SNK vs. Capcom series.	Ryu Ken Terry
Byleth	A Heroic Legacy	All fighters are from the Fire Emblem series, fought in chronological order, and every battle is a Stamina match. The penultimate battle is against three Byleths in their palette swaps that represent the house leaders in Three Houses. Marth, Roy, Ike, Robin, and Corrin all join Byleth in the final stage.	Master Hand Crazy Hand
Min Min	ARMS at the Ready	All fighters represent the characters from ARMS.	Galleom

Trivia

• This iteration of Classic Mode is the only one in which:
  • Each character has a predetermined route
  • Each stage and song are predetermined
  • Master Hand and Crazy Hand are not the only final bosses
  • Master Hand and Crazy Hand have their own themes as well as a separate theme for when they are together
  • The player can have CPU allies
  • Not every fighter can be selected, as the Mii Fighters don't receive their own routes
  • The highest difficulty cannot be selected from the start
• Ryu, Hero, Terry, and Byleth are the only characters with Stamina battles in their routes.
• Hero, Terry, Byleth, and Min Min are currently the only fighters who have DLC characters as opponents in their routes, being themselves.
• Terry faces the highest amount of opponents in his route, being a total of 21.
• Link is the most commonly fought opponent, appearing in 20 different routes.
• Jigglypuff, Bayonetta, and Terry are the only characters to not encounter a boss.
• Bowser, Mega Man, and Hero are the only characters to encounter a boss outside of the final round.
• Incineroar is the only character to travel to one stage, being Boxing Ring.
• Donkey Kong and Joker are the only characters to battle Master Hand and Crazy Hand outside of Final Destination, being the Omega forms of New Donk City Hall and Mementos.
• The following stages do not appear in any route whatsoever: Big Battlefield, Yoshi's Story, WarioWare, Inc., Hanenbow, Paper Mario, Mute City SNES, Balloon Fight, Tomodachi Life, and PictoChat 2.
• Norfair is the most commonly fought-on stage, appearing in 13 different routes.