- This article is about Link's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. For other uses, see Link.
“ | Link has been redesigned to match his appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. He can now pick up arrows he's fired, and his bombs have been upgraded to remote bombs, so you can set them off when the timing is just right! | ” |
—Description from the Super Smash Blog. |
Link (リンク) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, representing The Legend of Zelda franchise. He was hinted at in the game's first teaser trailer in March 8th, 2018 and officially confirmed on June 12th at E3 2018. He is classified as Fighter #03.
Moveset[]
Attributes[]
- The Link that has joined Ultimate is the Champion of the Wild incarnation from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. As such, many changes have been made to his moveset to reflect elements from the game such as giving him new versions of his weaponry like his Boomerang and Remote Bomb. It has also given him a new Final Smash with the Ancient Bow and Arrow.
- This has also resulted in the loss of his own Clawshot, as there is none in Breath of the Wild, thus having him use a normal hand grab as a replacement.
- Through these changes, Link has gained two new unique mechanics:
- Link can fire a Sword Beam from his Forward Smash, but only if he is at 0%.
- If an Arrow from his Bow and Arrows misses an opponent and lands on the ground or pierces a wall, he can pick it back up and either throw it as an item or perform his Neutral Special again to fire two Arrows at once.
- Link's Hylian Shield can block any and all projectiles if he is standing still, walking, or crouching. If blocked, he will simply be pushed back a bit.
- Of the three Links of Ultimate, the Champion of the Wild is the heaviest with the lowest mobility stats, mainly due to having a lower jump and slower speed.
General Moveset[]
- Note: The gifs used are not accurate representations of their standard knockback settings from 0%
Attack | Damage | Description |
---|---|---|
Jab - Morning Slash / Counter Slash / Slash Up | Morning Slash: 3%
Counter Slash: 3% Slash Up: 4% |
A series of three slashes of the Master Sword - a downward slash, an outward slash, and an upward slash. The attack is based on the finishing blows by the Hero of Time in his battle against Ganon in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. |
Grab & Pummel - Grab Hit Strike | Pummel: 1.3% | Grab: Reaches out to the opponent with one hand. Pummel: Repeatedly strikes the opponent with the pommel of the Master Sword. |
Edge Attack | 9% | The Crouch Stab from Ocarina of Time. |
Floor AttacksFront AttackBack Attack | 7% | Spins with his sword before getting up. |
Trip Attack | 5% | Slashes in front of and behind him as he gets up. |
Dash Attack - Jump Slash | Body hitbox: 12%
Full blade: 13% Sword tip: 14% |
Link's Jump Slash attack since Ocarina of Time. |
Aerials | ||
Neutral Aerial - Link Kick | Foot hitbox: 11%
Leg hitbox: 9% Lingering hit: 6% |
A Sex Kick. |
Up Aerial - Jump Thrust | Full hit: 15%
Late hit: 13% |
The Jump Thrust attack from Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. |
Forward Aerial - Spiral Slash | First slash: 8%
Second slash: 10% |
Two alternating spinning slashes that are meant to combo into each other. |
Back Aerial - Double Kick | First kick: 5%
Second kick: 7% |
Two aerial roundhouse kicks. |
Down Aerial - Downward Thrust | Full hit: 18%
Late hit: 15% Bounce hit: 11% |
The Down Thrust attack from Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Link can bounce off of an opponent after the initial hit if no Fast fall was inputted. A clean hit can Meteor Smash. |
Tilts | ||
Up Tilt - Vertical Slash | 11% | A slash arching upwards that can combo into itself. |
Forward Tilt - Bamboo Splitter | 13% | A lunging downward slash. Resembles his attacks when Z-Targetting in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, and Skyward Sword. |
Down Tilt - Grass Cutter | 9% | Slashes inward while kneeling. It can combo into aerial attacks. |
Throws | ||
Up Throw - Throw Away Slash | Throw: 2%
Slash - |
Hoists the opponent above his head and slashes them upwards. |
Forward Throw - Kick Off | Throw: 2.5%
Kick: 3% |
Kicks the opponent away. |
Back Throw - Back Kick Off | Throw: 2.5%
Kick: 3% |
His forward throw, now in the reverse direction but with a slightly higher angle. |
Down Throw - Elbow Drop | Throw: 3%
Hit: 3% |
Slams the opponent to the ground and performs an elbow drop. Serves as a combo starter or a follow-up into another attack. |
Smash Attacks | ||
Up Smash - Triple Sword Slice | First hit: 4%
Second hit: 3% Third hit - |
A combo consisting of a trinity of overhead slashes, with the final hit launching the opponent upwards. More damage is concentrated at the Master Sword's tip. |
Side Smash - Sword Slice / Double Sword SliceSword Beam | Slash 1: Blade: 7% Tip: 14% Slash 2: Sword Beam: 5%-13% |
A double-handed downward slash. If the Attack button is inputted immediately afterwards, Link will follow up with an outward slash. If the opponent was hit with middle of the Master Sword in the first slash, it will naturally combo the opponent into the second hit. If Link is at 0%, the first slash will fire a Sword Beam, an attack he has had since the original The Legend of Zelda. |
Down Smash - Front and Back Sword Slice | Slash 1: Sword base: 14% / Middle Blade: 16% / Tip: 17% Slash 2: |
While kneeling, Link will slash inwards in front of himself, and then slash outwards behind himself. The first slash launches opponents vertically, while the second is a Semi-spike. Its damage is distributed evenly throughout the different parts of the blade. |
Special Moves[]
On-screen appearance[]
Link enters on his Paraglider from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
Idle Poses[]
Taunts[]
- In his Up Taunt, Link performs a shortened version of the Hero of Twilight's victory animation after successfully learning a Hidden Skill or defeating a boss in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
- In Link's Side Taunt, the Master Sword will glow, indicating its Power to Repel Evil.
- The pose Link assumes in his Down Taunt resembles the Fujan White Crane style, a type of Chinese martial art.
Victory Screens[]
- Link's first victory screen recreates an animation from the original Super Smash Bros. that he performs when he's selected in the Character Select Screen.
- Link's second victory screen is based on his pose after pulling out the Master Sword from its pedestal in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
- In the third screen, Link will perform an even more abridged version of his Up Taunt, which is the Hero of Twilight's victory animation in Twilight Princess.
Aesthetic[]
- As the Link that's made playable is now the Champion of the Wild, several aesthetic changes have also been implemented:
- The traditional green tunic is now an alternate color, with the blue Champion's Tunic being the default.
- Link has a new title in Boxing Ring and has a new updated Palutena's Guidance conversation.
- Several animations have been tweaked, such as his idle stance, in which his legs are further apart and the Master Sword and Hylian Shield are raised at all times.
- Link now wields the Master Sword on his right hand and the Hylian Shield on his left, a break from the traditional depiction of him being left-handed. As a result, all of his animations have been horizontally flipped.
- Link has a new voice actor, being Kengo Takanashi, reprises his role from Breath of the Wild.
Classic Mode: A Quest to Seal the Darkness[]

Link's congratulatory picture
As Link's quest in the The Legend of Zelda games usually involves vanquishing the darkness, all opponents in his Classic Mode route have an "evil", "demon" or "dark" theme. The song "Title Theme - The Legend of Zelda" will play during the end credits.
Clearing Mario's route allows him to unlock any of the following in order: King K. Rool, Ice Climbers, Simon, Meta Knight, Snake, Young Link, Richter, Toon Link.
Round | Opponent | Stage | Music | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
Reset Bomb Forest | "Dark Pit's Theme" | |
2 | ![]() |
Norfair | "Vs. Ridley" | |
3 | ![]() |
Umbra Clock Tower | "One Of A Kind" | |
4 | ![]() |
Frigate Orpheon | "Boss Battle 4 - Metroid: Samus Returns" | |
5 | ![]() |
Gerudo Valley | "Gerudo Valley" (Remix) | Zelda will be a CPU ally. No items will spawn. |
6 | ![]() |
Temple | "Great Temple / Temple" | References Link and Dark Link's first duel in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Link's default costume will be the opponent if the player is using the Dark Link costume. |
7 | Bonus Stage | |||
Final | Ganon | The Sacred Land | "Calamity Ganon Battle - Second Form" |
Role in World of Light[]

Link with the other fighters facing Galeem.
Link was among the fighters summoned to the cliffside to fight the army of Master Hands.
During the opening cutscene, Link was present on the cliffside when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. While he was successful in deflecting three beams with his unbreakable Hylian Shield, he was still vaporized and imprisoned along with the rest of the cast (excluding Kirby).
He can be rescued in The Light Realm on a spot that resembles a Sheikah Tower if the player takes Villager's route.
Fighter Battle[]
No. | Spirit | Type | Power | Stage | Song |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
03 | ![]() |
![]() |
3,600 | Great Plateau Tower (Omega form) | "Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" |
Palette Swaps[]
![]() Blue |
Wears the Champion's Tunic from Breath of the Wild. |
---|---|
![]() Green |
Wears the Hero of the Wild set from Breath of the Wild, giving Link his more traditional appearance. |
![]() Red |
Wears the Hylian Tunic from Breath of the Wild. |
![]() Grey |
Based on Fierce Deity Link from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. |
![]() Indigo |
Based on the Royal Guard Uniform from Breath of the Wild. The colors of the Hylian Shield resembles the Royal Guard's Shield. |
![]() Teal |
Based on the Hero of Twilight's clothes from Twilight Princess. |
![]() White |
Partially based on the Hero of Sky's pre-adventure outfit from Skyward Sword. |
![]() Black |
Based on Dark Link, specifically using the design of the Dark Armor set from Breath of the Wild. |
Gallery[]
Video[]
03 Link – Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Trivia[]
- Ultimate marks the first time that Link does not:
- Fight left-handed, as this incarnation is right-handed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
- Wield the Triforce, as it is not present in Breath of the Wild.
- The Champion of the Wild incarnation is also the only playable Zelda character in the entire Smash series to not wield the Triforce.
- Wear the green tunic by default.
- Use recycled voice clips from previous Zelda titles, as his new ones were recorded specifically for Ultimate.
- Link's render from the E3 Demo of Ultimate used his in-game model rather than the official artwork. He shares this oddity with Mario, Pikachu, and Villager.
- World of Light marks Link's first and only time being an Unlockable character.
- A gap can be seen on Link's right arm on his Hero of the Wild costume.
- Though they use the Hero of the Wild costume for its base, Link's fifth and sixth palette swaps color in his exposed legs to make them look like tights as to match with the original costumes they are based on.
- Link is one of five veterans to have their titles on Boxing Ring be altered; the other four are Kirby, King Dedede, Mega Man, and Ryu.
- Link appears as an opponent in the most Classic Mode routes, at 23.
- Link's side Taunt replaces his old one with the Fairy from previous Smash games. Yet despite this, a model of the Fairy remains within the game's files.
- One of Link's Tips talks about how his name is only on five titles of games, and one is "trickier to remember"; these five are Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, A Link to the Past, Link's Awakening, A Link Between Worlds, and Link's Crossbow Training (which is the "tricky" one).
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Veterans | Bayonetta · Bowser · Bowser Jr. · Captain Falcon · Cloud · Corrin · Dark Pit · Diddy Kong · Donkey Kong · Dr. Mario · Duck Hunt · Falco · Fox · Ganondorf · Greninja · Ice Climbers · Ike · Jigglypuff · King Dedede · Kirby · Link · Little Mac · Lucas · Lucario · Lucina · Luigi · Mario · Marth · Mega Man · Meta Knight · Mewtwo · Mii Fighters (Mii Brawler · Mii Gunner · Mii Swordfighter) · Mr. Game & Watch · Ness · Olimar · Pac-Man · Palutena · Peach · Pichu · Pikachu · Pit · Pokémon Trainer (Charizard · Ivysaur · Squirtle) · R.O.B. · Robin · Rosalina & Luma · Roy · Ryu · Samus · Sheik · Shulk · Snake · Sonic · Toon Link · Villager · Wario · Wii Fit Trainer · Wolf · Yoshi · Young Link · Zelda · Zero Suit Samus |
Newcomers | Banjo & Kazooie · Byleth · Chrom · Daisy · Dark Samus · Hero · Incineroar · Inkling · Isabelle · Joker · Kazuya · Ken · King K. Rool · Min Min · Piranha Plant · Pyra/Mythra · Richter · Ridley · Sephiroth · Simon · Sora · Steve · Terry |