Smash 4 is a weird beast. It’s the middle child. The one that gets skipped over now that Ultimate exists. But honestly? The Smash Wii U tier list is one of the most fascinating case studies in competitive gaming history. It’s a snapshot of a meta that evolved from "Diddy Kong is unbeatable" to "Wait, Bayonetta just killed me at zero percent."
If you’re looking for a simple list, you’ve probably seen the standard "Top, High, Mid, Low" charts. But the real story is in the nuances. It’s in the way characters like Mewtwo went from bottom-tier trash to top-tier threats because of a few frame data tweaks.
The S-Tier Gatekeepers
Basically, if you weren't playing one of these four or five characters at the end of the game's life, you were playing a different game.
Bayonetta is the obvious villain here. She’s the character that effectively ended the game's competitive growth for a lot of people. With Witch Time and those ridiculous ladder combos, she didn't just win; she made the opponent feel like they weren't allowed to play.
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Then you have Cloud. He was the "easy" top tier. You didn't need the frame-perfect execution of a Sheik main to see results. You just needed to charge Limit and swing a sword the size of a skyscraper.
- Bayonetta: The undisputed queen. Her recovery was basically infinite, and her combo game was oppressive.
- Diddy Kong: Even after the nerfs to his "hoo-hah" (down throw to up-air), he remained a powerhouse. Why? Banana. Having an item that forces a trip is fundamentally broken in a game about movement.
- Cloud: High range, high kill power, and Limit Cross Slash. His only real weakness was his recovery, but in Smash 4, he could often just ignore that.
- Sheik: The technician’s choice. She has the best neutral game in history, but you had to work twice as hard to actually get the kill compared to Cloud.
Why the High Tiers Still Matter
It’s easy to focus on the "Broken Four," but the Smash Wii U tier list is surprisingly deep just below the surface. Characters like Sonic and Rosalina & Luma were legitimate threats that could win majors.
Sonic was the "lame" pick—and I say that with love. He forced you to play his game. If you didn't have the patience to deal with Spin Dash for eight minutes, you lost. Simple as that. Rosalina, on the other hand, was a puppet master. Dealing with Luma felt like fighting a boss raid in an MMO. If you didn't kill the star first, you weren't hitting the princess.
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Then there’s Mario. Honestly, Mario in Smash 4 was peak "honest" Smash. He had great combos, a solid projectile, and one of the best up-smashes in the game. He didn't have any gimmicks; he just had good buttons.
The Mid-Tier Heroes and "The Mewtwo Effect"
You’ve got to appreciate the mid-tiers. These are the characters that could ruin a top player's day if they weren't careful.
Mewtwo is the most legendary example of a tier list glow-up. At launch, Mewtwo was slow, light as a feather, and had a tail hitbox that was essentially a "hit me here" sign. Then the patches hit. Suddenly, Mewtwo was faster than half the cast and had a back-air that could kill you across the stage.
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- Ryu: If you had the "street fighter" inputs down, Ryu was terrifying. One Focus Attack into a Shoryuken and the game was over.
- Marth: Before Lucina became the preferred choice in Ultimate, Marth's "tipper" was the gold standard. Spacing mattered more than anything else.
- Zero Suit Samus: She was the ultimate "glass cannon." She could kill you at 30% with an up-air string, but if she missed her grab, she was a sitting duck.
The Bottom Tier: Why They Struggled
Let’s be real—some characters were just bad. Jigglypuff in Smash 4 was a tragedy. After being a god in Melee and decent in Brawl, the Puff just... withered. Her air speed was fine, but she had no way to reliably set up Rest, and she died if a stiff breeze hit her.
King Dedede and Ganondorf suffered from "Big Body Syndrome." In a game dominated by fast characters with oppressive combo games, being a giant target with slow moves is a recipe for disaster. You spend the whole match being a combo video for a Bayonetta main.
Actionable Takeaways for Smash 4 Fans
If you're still playing the Wii U version or just want to understand the history, here is how to look at the meta today:
- Prioritize Mobility: The top of the list is dominated by characters who can control their movement. If your character is slow, you’re already at a disadvantage.
- Learn the DLC Matchups: Cloud and Bayonetta changed the game's DNA. You cannot win without knowing how to DI out of Bayo’s combos or how to edge-guard Cloud.
- Respect the "Niche" Picks: Characters like Duck Hunt or Game & Watch have enough "jank" to steal wins in a best-of-three set.
The era of Smash 4 may be over for the masses, but its legacy is written in the way we view character balance today. It taught us that a single patch can turn a bottom-tier character into a champion, and that sometimes, a character is so good they define an entire generation of competitive play.
Check the frame data on Kurogane Hammer for specific move interactions or watch VODs of ZeRo and Nairo to see how these rankings actually played out on the big stage.