- This article is about Meta Knight's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U. For other uses, see Meta Knight.
Meta Knight (メタナイト, Meta Knight) is a starter veteran in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U from the Kirby universe. He was confirmed on August 13, 2014 in an official Miiverse post, though he was hinted at two days earlier in another Miiverse post.
He currently ranks 16th on the tier list, placing him in the B tier. While still a high ranking, it falls well short of his placement in Brawl, where he received his own tier. His strong attacks have been buffed to give him greater KO potential, and he retains many of his rapid attacks, but his recoveries have been nerfed and most of his attacks now have higher ending lag.
Attributes
Strengths
- Has a total of six jumps.
- High mobility, especially on the ground.
- High range attacks considering his small size.
- Has one of the most efficient neutral games of all characters.
- Very fast attacks overall, having one of the best frame datas in the game, next to Sheik.
- This speed also gives him powerful out of shield options.
- Has a good variety of multi-hit attacks.
- Formidable combo game and edge-guarding.
- Can quickly transit between ground and air games.
- All his attacks except for Dash Attack have disjointed hitboxes due him using a sword.
- Fast dodge roll that covers a long distance.
- Great and versatile recovery, with multiple jumps and being able to use all his Special Moves to return back to the stage.
Weaknesses
- Sixth lightest character in the game, tied with Zero Suit Samus.
- Lacks a projectile.
- Lacks a Meteor Smash.
- Most of his strongest attacks have high lag, leaving him vulnerable.
- Poor KO potential outside of edge-guarding.
- No longer has transcending priority in any of his attacks, meaning they can now clash and be out-prioritized by the opponent's.
- Can no longer glide, which reduces his recovery potential.
Summary
Meta Knight's stats by Kurogane Hammer.
Meta Knight is a very mobile, combo oriented character that benefits mostly from Bait & Punish tactics. His balanced attributes allows him to quickly adapt to different fighting styles, allowing him to play offensively or defensively as the situation demands.
Meta Knight's greatest assets, much like Sheik, are his great frame data and very high combo potential. Most of his attacks have low ending and landing lag, meaning he can quickly chain combos from ground to air and vice versa. He is also the only small character that wields a sword, giving him a powerful neutral game, specially given the low lag of his attacks, something quite unusual for swordsmen in general.
His ground game is solid and very fast, with Neutral Attack being an efficient damage racking due being one of the fastest in the game, while Forward Tilt allows him to quickly send his opponents into the air. Down Tilt, on the other hand, can trip opponents, is an efficient poking tool and also excellent for spacing, while his Up Tilt can be useful to initiate juggle setups, comboing with itself at low percentages. His Dash Attack is also useful to start juggles, and covers a decent range.
Meta Knight's Smash Attacks are notable for their safety and speed, and unusual combination that often gives him the upper hand. Forward Smash is fast and has surprisingly low ending lag, being useful for spacing, and is his strongest KO move. Up Smash, while not so powerful, is great for damage racking and can combo out of an Up Tilt at low percentages. Finally, Down Smash Attack is his fastest Smash Attack, being a quick sweep move that is very useful to punish rolls and to edge-guard.
In the air, Meta Knight is as effective as on the ground, boasting from high speed and combo potential. Neutral Aerial is a decent Sex Kick, although it has the lowest range of all his aerials. His Forward and Back Aerials can trap opponents easily between hits, while the latter can even pull down enemies into the hits, being useful for stage spikes and jab lock resets. Up Aerial is his main juggling tool, being his fastest aerial, capable of various setups that can often score ceiling KOs. Down Air Attack, while not being a Meteor Smash, is one of the fastest Down Aerials in the game, as it is a safe move as it covers a wide are below Meta Knight.
Meta Knight's Throws are very versatile, with Forward and Down Throws being his main tools for juggle setups. Back Throw is useful for getting opponents offstage, while Up Throw can KO at very high percentages, and even earlier if it hits a high platform, like the top one in Battlefield.
Finally, Meta Knight has one of the best recoveries in the game, boasting from five midair jumps and Special Moves that can further aid it. In addition, they are all very useful both for offense and defense. Mach Tornado is very fast, capable of easily trapping opponents between hits, allowing Meta Knight to rack up damage fast; if all hits connect, he will deal roughly 22% damage total. Drill Rush covers good range and his high priority, and Meta Knight can change his trajectory while spinning. Dimensional Cape allows him to teleport a short distance, which and be controlled by the control stick; if the button is pressed again, Meta Knight will unleash a powerful vertical slash that can KO opponents at 100% near the ledge. Finally Shutter Loop is a quick upwards rising slash that is Meta Knight's main finisher for his juggle setups; if not stalled, this move can KO opponents as earlier as 60% near the upper blast zone.
However, Meta Knight has significant flaws that can be exploited. He lacks a projectile and often cannot deal well against opponents that excel at using them, holding him back from using the fullest of his neutral game. He is also very dependent on edge-guarding to KO properly, with his strongest attacks being either slower than normal or being highly punishable. In addition, none of his throws pack KO power, with even his Up Throw only KO'ing reliably when hitting higher platforms. Also his juggle setups are difficult to pull off consistently due DI. Finally despite his small size, he still has an unusual large hurtbox, which combined with his high falling speed and weight makes him very susceptible to combos.
Meta Knight players must often play more defensively to make full use of his quick arsenal that can punish mistakes easily, leading into a flurry of combos that leave opponents with little time to react. His gameplay style requires precision and patient, specially when dealing with other defensive character, specially camping ones.
Differences from Brawl
Due being the highest tier character in Brawl, to the point of being considered "broken" and even banned in some tournaments, Meta Knight received a couple of both nerfs and buffs to balance him with the other characters.
Appearance-wise, Meta Knight's gloves now are covered by metal gauntlets, and his right shoulderpad now has marks showing battle damage.
Attributes
Slightly heavier and larger than in Brawl.- Meta Knight's sword is slightly shorter, resulting in less range for all attacks.
- No longer has transcending priority in any of his attacks.
- Increased lag for many moves.
- Lower consecutive jumps.
- Can no longer glide as the mechanic has been removed.
- New dodge roll animation, slightly slower.
Ground Attacks
- Standard Attack can transition between rapid jabs and a finisher.
- It also no longer hits enemies behind Meta Knight, as the animation now has him facing forward rather the screen.
- Forward Tilt deals less damage and is slightly slower.
- Down Tilt and Dash Attack have slight more ending lag.
- Up Smash Attack , Side Smash Attack, and Dash Attack are stronger in terms of knockback.
- Down Smash Attack is slower and causes less knockback.
Air Attacks
- Neutral Air Attack has slightly more range.
- But Neutral Air Attack has slightly more ending lag.
- Forward and Back Air Attacks deal less damage.
- But they are slightly faster, have more range and have slightly less ending lag.
- Up Air Attack is slower.
- Back Air Attack is faster and causes more knockback.
Grabs and Throws
- Down Throw causes has less knockback scaling to allow follow-ups
- But Down Throw does less damage.
Special Attacks
- Mach Tornado is harder to escape from through DI
- However it causes less damage and lasts for shorter amount of time. It also has much lower range, specially vertically, no longer having cone-shaped hitboxes.
- Drill Rush's hits lock opponents more easily.
- However it has higher start-up lag. Also, it no longer causes Meta Knight to gain altitude by the end of the move unless it hits a solid object (either a character or a floor/wall).
- Shuttle Loop's has reduced recovery potential due to gliding being removed from the game.
- However, it now has a new animation where Meta Knight slashes upwards twice, gaining more vertical recovery. It causes more damage, but it deals less knockback.
- Dimensional Cape causes more damage and knockback.
- Galaxia Darkness has higher reach, with Meta Knight's cape covering slightly more horizontal range.
Moveset
Ground Attacks
Normal
- Standard Combo: Unleashes a flurry of sword slashes. Hold the button to keep him slashing. Differently from Brawl, the slashes only hit in front of Meta Knight. Finishes with an upward slash. 1% each slash, 2% last one. Usually 7% max.
- Side Tilt: Can slash up to 3 times like an average standard combo. 2%, 2%, 3%.
- Up Tilt: Spins around pointing his sword upwards. 7%.
- Down Tilt: Stabs quickly, low to the ground. 5%.
- Dash attack: Kicks forward. 6% at the beginning of the move, 5% at the end.
Smash Attacks
- Side Smash Attack: Slashes forward forcefully. Has more start-up than the Brawl version.
Uncharged: 16% damage. Fully charged; 22%.
- Up Smash Attack: Three quick slashes above him.
Uncharged: 3% damage each, max 9%. Fully charged: 4%, 2%, 5%. Hit all three for 12%.
- Down Smash Attack: Slashes in front of him, then at his back..
First Slash (front): Uncharged: 7%. Fully charged: 9%.
Second Slash (front): Uncharged: 10%. Fully charged: 14%.
Other attacks
- Ledge Attack: Quickly climbs the edge and slashes in front of him. 7%.
- Get-up Attack: Gets up slashing on both sides of him. 7%.
Air Attacks
- Neutral Air Attack: Spins with his sword outwards. 7% at the beginning of the move, 5% at the end.
- Forward Air Attack: Slashes three times in front of him. The slashes are very fast. 2%, 2%, 3%. Total 7%.
- Up Air Attack: Slashes above him in an arc. 5%.
- Down Air Attack: Slashes below him in an arc 6%.
- Back Air Attack: Slashes thrice at his back. Slower than its forward counterpart. 1%, 1%, 4%. Hit all three for 7%.
Grabs and Throws
- Pummel: Attacks opponent with his wings' spikes. 3%.
- Up Throw: Flies upwards with the opponent, disappearing from the stage for a moment, then comes back and slams the opponent on the ground. 10%.
- Forward Throw: Kicks opponent forward. A very weak throw that is not worth using. 3%.
- Back Throw: Disappears with his cape the reappears at the opponent's back, slashing with his sword. 10%.
- Down Throw: Lays the opponent on the ground then kicks them multiple times. 7%.
Special Moves
Taunts
- Up Taunt: His cape engulfs him as he spins. The same effect used in his Standard Special has been added.
- Side Taunt: Swings his sword around, then points it forward saying "Fight me.".
- Down Taunt: Facing the camera (or away from it if he is facing left), opens his wings broadly while saying "Come.".
In Competitive Play
To be added
Trophy Description
Meta Knight
Kirby's mysterious rival, this masked swordsman appears in several Kirby games. His cape transforms into wings to grant him flight. In Smash Bros., his quick sword skills and aerial agility set him apart. He can jump up to six times in a row, and he has a special move to soar higher.
- NES - Kirby's Adventure (05/1993)
- SNES - Kirby Super Star (08/1996)
Meta Knight (Alt.)
Meta Knight's Dimensional Cape lets you teleport, changing where you'll reappear with directional inputs and attacking by holding the button! His Mach Tornado special can draw in and attack multiple opponents. Rise by pressing the button repeatedly, and press left or right to move.
Other features
To be added
Costume Gallery
Gallery
Gallery
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External links
- Meta Knight's page on the Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U website
- Meta Knight's frame data at Kurogane Hammer
- Meta Knight's amiibo training Guide
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 Kirby universe
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|---|---|---|
| Characters | Kirby (64 · Melee · Brawl · 3DS/Wii U · Ultimate) Meta Knight (Brawl · 3DS/Wii U · Ultimate) King Dedede (Brawl · 3DS/Wii U · Ultimate) | |
| Side Characters | Boss | Marx |
| Assist Trophies | Knuckle Joe · Nightmare · Chef Kawasaki | |
| Mii Fighter Costumes | Meta Knight · Marx | |
| Background characters | King Dedede | |
| Stage Hazards | Whispy Woods | |
| Enemies | Bonkers · Bronto Burt · Gordo · Parasol Waddle Dee · Plasma Wisp · Shotzo · Tac · Waddle Dee · Waddle Doo | |
| Stages | Dream Land · Fountain of Dreams · Green Greens · Halberd · Dream Land GB · The Great Cave Offensive | |
| Items | Bomber · Dragoon · Maxim Tomato · Parasol · Star Rod · Superspicy Curry · Warp Star | |
| Music | List | List of Music (Kirby series) |
| Song | "Gourmet Race" | |
| Collectibles | Trophies | Melee Trophies · Brawl Trophies · 3DS Trophies · Wii U Trophies |
| Stickers | List of Stickers (Kirby series) | |
| Spirits | List of spirits (Kirby series) | |
| Masterpieces | Kirby's Dream Land · Kirby's Adventure · Kirby Super Star | |
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