Ice Climbers

For fighter info, see Ice Climbers (Super Smash Bros. Melee), Ice Climbers (Super Smash Bros. Brawl), and Ice Climbers (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate). For the universe, see Ice Climber (universe) or for the game itself, see Ice Climber (game).

Ice Climbers
Artwork of the Ice Climbers from Ice Climber.
Alternate names	Ice Climber
Universe	Ice Climber
Debut	VS. Ice Climber (1984)
Most recent non-Smash appearance	WarioWare: Get It Together! (2021, cameo)
Appears in
Console of origin	Arcade
Species	Humans
Gender	Male (Popo) Female (Nana)
Hair color	Blond (in official artwork) Black (in-game) Brunette
Eye color	Black
Designed by	Tadashi Sugiyama
Voice actor	Sanae Kobayashi

The Ice Climbers (アイスクライマー, Aisu Kuraimā^?), are the pair of titular playable protagonists from the eponymous video game series, Ice Climber, released in the pre-Super Mario Bros. era of NES games and the arcade expansion on the Nintendo VS. System. The Ice Climbers are one of the most recognizable video game characters in the world. When playing single-player, the first player plays as Popo (ポポ) by default. When playing cooperative two-player in Ice Climber, the first player plays as Popo, while the second player plays as Nana (ナナ).

In both Melee and Brawl, both Ice Climbers appear, but only Popo is controlled, while Nana mimics Popo's performances. However, coloration changes allow players to control Nana instead of Popo. Despite not being displayed, the CPU-controlled Ice Climber in the Super Smash Bros. series, does indeed have their own separate percentage or stamina counter. This factor alone results in the Ice Climbers' high learning curve for their appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series, as players must simultaneously ensure the safety and micromanagement of not just a single, but a pair of characters at once.

Character description

Official artwork of Popo and Nana's appearances in Ice Climber.

Both of the Ice Climbers are small in size. The duo both wield wooden mallets, useful to whack antagonists and break/dissolve glacial cubes. Both of them wear inuit parka outfits; Popo's parka is blue, while Nana's is pink. The duo can also be identified by the patch of hair exposed from their hoods.

Relationship-wise, several fans believed them to be siblings, or even spouses, despite their young appearance, but according to Nintendo, the nature of their relationship is up to the player's imagination. However, during the development of Super Smash Bros. Melee, it was confirmed that Sakurai wanted them to be lovers.

In Super Smash Bros.

Although the Ice Climbers do not make their sorts of appearance in Super Smash Bros. 64, the game's Japanese website included them in a poll to gauge interest for potential playable characters in a sequel.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

As a playable character

The Ice Climbers made their debut appearance in the Super Smash Bros. series in Super Smash Bros. Melee, after a total of sixteen years of the release of their original game (seventeen years if counting their arcade expansion, VS. Ice Climber). The duo, as a singular entity, are a dual-controlled pair of fighters, making them unique in comparison to the other fighters. The duo, as a singular entity, are one of the 14 default characters available from the start.

The duo were selected over Balloon Fighter and Pit, among others, to be representatives of the Famicom/NES period of Nintendo's history. According to Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of the Super Smash Bros. series, he and the development team wished to include a character that originated on the Nintendo Entertainment System. However, Sakurai also stressed the importance of character selection additionally involving "things only that character can do".

Ultimately, the Ice Climbers were selected; Sakurai explained that the other candidates failed in certain aspects in regard to feasibly becoming playable characters, whereas the Ice Climbers were selected because he and the development team were interested in using Ice Climber's simultaneous 2-player gameplay as the basis for the mountaineer duo's tag-team playstyle.

Like in Ice Climber, Popo is the leading climber by default; however, the Ice Climbers' third and fourth alternate costumes will instead make Nana the leading climber. While the Ice Climbers boast the seventh-highest jumping height and above-average air acceleration, the duo are burdened with slow air and falling speeds as a reference to Ice Climber, where their slow drifting in the air was transitioned into Melee. Although the duo possess the second-lowest traction, this also grants them the second longest-ranged wavedash that, when coupled with the disjointed ranges of their mallets, grants the Ice Climbers a formidable approach.

Unlike the rest of the cast, the Ice Climbers feature the player controlling the leading climber, while the partner climber is controlled via artificial intelligence. Although the following climber does not share the leader's damage meter, their CPU level scales with the amount of damage the leader has received. These mechanics result in the Ice Climbers possessing an extremely high learning curve, as players must simultaneously ensure the safety and proper utilization of not just a single, but a pair characters at once.

Although the Ice Climbers are technically demanding and require astute micromanaging, their tag-team mechanics also grant them an exclusive advanced technique known as desyncing. Thanks to the vast utility provided by desyncing, as well as the considerable offensive potential provided by wobbling (another exclusive advanced technique that is derived from desyncing), the Ice Climbers are collectively ranked 8th out of 26 on the current tier list. This places them at the top of the B+ tier and posits them as high-tier characters.

Trophies

Ice Climbers

That's Popo in the blue and Nana in the pink. These two stars of the game Ice Climber, have scaled many an icy summit in their mountaineering careers. Back in their glory days, they chased eggplants, cucumbers, and other vegetables that inexplicably fell from frosty summits when a condor reigned supreme. They're rarely seen apart.

• Ice Climber [10/85]

Ice Climbers [Smash]

This unique twosome fights together as a team. Your score will not be affected if the CPU-controlled character is KO'd, but a lone Ice Climber won't be able to use teamwork moves, which will make for a tough and frantic solo fight. The Ice Shot fires mini-glaciers out of their hammers, while Squall Hammer is at its strongest when Nana and Popo combine their strength.

• B: Ice Shot
• Smash B: Squall Hammer

Ice Climbers [Smash]

The colors of the Ice Climbers' parkas denote who's in the lead: Nana's in pink or orange, while Popo's in green or blue. Their hairstyles are also slightly different. Belay allows them to cover great distances, but doesn't give foes the chance to target their landing. Blizzard is best used in close quarters; in the fray, Nana and Popo sometimes freeze opponents.

• Up & B: Belay
• Down & B: Blizzard

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

As a playable character

Marking their official reappearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Ice Climbers once again consist of the duo, Popo (the leader) and Nana (the partner). The duo still fight as a pair, with Nana following along. Including Nana in addition with Popo, special moves are better than just being Popo. Both Ice Climbers can now hang on a ledge simultaneously instead of one climber typically being edgehogged over the other one in Melee. Additionally, their down special, Blizzard, is no longer an auto-freeze when performed in the air. The Ice Climbers' Final Smash consists of a large iceberg taking up a large portion of the screen. The iceberg can damage, and eventually freezes enemies who come near it. Like in Melee, the player can switch between Popo or Nana as the leader of the duo based on which color of costume is chosen.

Although Brawl's game engine removed wavedashing and wobbling, the Ice Climbers were nevertheless buffed in the transition to Brawl. Their mobility, while still slow relative to the cast, has been drastically improved to compensate for the loss of wavedashing. Compared to their appearance in Melee, the following climber's AI is smarter while separated from the leader. More especially, the player will control the partner when the leader grabs an opponent.

This, coupled with the modifications to their back and down throws, results in the Ice Climbers being among the handful of characters capable of zero-to-death chain grabs. Comparatively, the Ice Climbers' recovery has improved: Belay now functions as a tether recovery, and both climbers can now hang on an edge simultaneously, removing the former glaring weakness of one climber potentially edgehogging the other one.

Due to the combination of their buffs and virtually retained strengths, the Ice Climbers are currently ranked 2nd out of 38 on the tier list. In addition to positioning them as top-tier characters, this makes the Ice Climbers and Meta Knight the only characters who are the sole occupants of their own respective tiers (S for the Ice Climbers and SS for Meta Knight).

Trophy Info

The Ice Climbers' trophy in Brawl.

Ice Climbers

The one in blue is Popo, and the one in pink is Nana. They use their incredible jumping powers and hammers to break blocks and climb to the summit. They grab veggies, and if they can catch the condor at the end, they conquer the mountain. Other than breaking blocks, their hammers are good for sending foes flying, climbing down from blocks, and destroying icicles.

• (NES) Ice Climber

In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U

The Ice Climbers do not return as playable characters for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, although they appear in both editions as a collectible trophy. According to Masahiro Sakurai, the Ice Climbers were successfully functional in the Wii U, but because the Nintendo 3DS lacked hardware power, he was forced to cut the Ice Climbers from both editions so that the two variations share the same roster because Sakurai did not desire version-exclusive characters. Additionally, the duo were deemed as low-priority characters since the chances of getting a new game in their series were very ambiguous. When KOing Multiple opponents as Villager in Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 3DS, the audience will call Popo and Nana's names.

Trophy Info

Ice Climbers

This pair of adventurers starred in an action game released in 1985. Popo wears blue, and Nana wears red. The goal of their adventure was to reach the top of the mountain, collecting vegetables and defeating animals along the way. Grabbing the condor earned them a nice bonus too!

• (NES) Ice Climber (10/1985)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

As a playable character

Main article: Ice Climbers (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)

The Ice Climbers return for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. The duo were announced alongside the rest of the cast within Ultimate's E3 2018 trailer on June 12th, 2018. Contrary to their predecessors, the duo are now unlockable characters instead of being available from the start.

Although the Ice Climbers are still capable of desyncing, the technique itself is more difficult to perform because of changes to the following climber's artificial intelligence brought about at launch and via the game's updates. This is further compounded by the loss of chain grabbing as of SSB4 and the following climber no longer being capable of attacking when the leader has or is grabbed. As a result, more creative techniques are required in order to virtually utilize their competitive gameplay. Nonetheless, the Ice Climbers are still respectable fighters in Ultimate, even if the duo are a shadow of their Melee and Brawl selves, with the community reassessing them from being low to bottom-tier at first glances to being upper mid-tier to high-tier at least up to this day, thanks to the efforts of Big D.

Trivia

• The Ice Climbers' Target Test in Melee is heavily based on the gameplay of Ice Climber.
• In the Super Smash Bros. series, the Ice Climbers are unaffected by icy terrain. In Ice Climber, however, the duo are ironically affected by ice. This is likely due to them gaining ice cleats from their redesigns in the Super Smash Bros. series.
• In the Super Smash Bros. series, the Ice Climbers appear to be left-handed, since the duo hoist their hammers with their left hand and hold items in their right hand, like Link in the Legend of Zelda series before Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
• Although the duo appear to be left-handed in their Ultimate artwork, the duo are revealed to be ambidextrous during regular gameplay in Ultimate.
  • This is an oddity among one-handed weapon fighters in the Super Smash Bros. series, who will retain their weapon in the same hand and have their back face the screen in a certain direction to maintain attacks similar in both directions. This also resembles the sprites common in NES era games where left and right sprites were the same images flipped, thus making the characters switch hands.

• The CPU-controlled Ice Climber can attack an opponent that is being held by the player-controlled Ice Climber. Although this only applies for
• It is possible for Nana to eat food items, such as Food, Maxim Tomato, and Heart Container. Because Nana's health does not affect the character's percentage, this results in the item having no effect.
• Their jumping animation, side smash, forward aerial and up aerial seem to be the duo's only canon moves in the Super Smash Bros. series.
• In the early development stages of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, shortly after its official announcement, there was a rumor that the Ice Climbers, along with Mr. Game & Watch and Young Link, would not return. However, this turned out to be a falsification, as the Ice Climbers and Mr. Game & Watch were, in fact, playable characters. Young Link, on the other hand, was the only one out of the three to be excluded, and was seemingly replaced more or less by Toon Link, as the rumor had stated.
• The Ice Climbers are one of two fighters in Super Smash Bros. series who have yet to receive a sequel to their game series, the other being Duck Hunt.
• In the German release of the game, Popo's name was changed to "Pépé." This was due to the fact that "Popo" is a slang term for "butt" in the German language.
• The Ice Climbers are the only characters in the Smash Bros. series to ever be veterans in the previous game (Brawl), to be cut from the next (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U), before returning to the next game (Ultimate).
• The Ice Climbers are the first characters in chronological order to not be in a future Super Smash Bros. game (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U).
• The Ice Climbers are the only characters to appear in multiple Super Smash Bros. installments before being cut.
  • The Ice Climbers, Lucas, and Pokémon Trainer are the only starter characters to be cut in an installment, although Lucas would return in Smash 4 through DLC. The three of them are also the only cut veterans who have trophies in SSB4 that depict their models from Brawl.
  • The Ice Climbers and Solid Snake are the only characters from single-character universes to be absent for a game before returning to the Super Smash Bros. series.

External links

• Ice Climbers in Smash History (Trailer Drake)