Throughout Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s lifespan, characters have gone up and down tier lists as the meta continues to evolve for Nintendo’s beloved fighting game series. With the introduction to new characters and Nintendo consistently updating the game through patches, it is expected for characters to be constantly shifting through tier lists as the meta progresses.

Being that there are so many characters, determining who is good under the current meta is often subjective to the player. Players might rely on tournament results or who they see people use during online matchmaking, while others might base their views in comparison to the characters they play or main.

With over 80 characters and counting, it is understandable that not every character is going to be competitively viable. However, there are quite a few characters in the current roster that are overlooked in terms of their viability. This list is going to break down the reasons why a character is underrated, whether it be to lack of character knowledge, match-up spread, or how they are viewed in the current meta.

It is worth noting that this list is completely subjective, but hopefully you see aspects of a character that perhaps you might have overlooked before reading this. Without further ado, let’s get into the most underrated characters in Smash Ultimate.

Greninja

The Gen 6 starter Pokemon might be one of the most popular pokemon in its franchise, but not so much in Smash Ultimate.

Greninja has great ground speed, good recovery, good combo potential, decent kill options, and is overall considered a high-tier character. If this is the case, then why would a character like Greninja be considered underrated?

Up until online formats became the norm, there were not many competitive Greninja mains in Smash, at least not many that were very successful. Part of what makes a character good is based on tournament results, and with Greninja seeing very little representation in general, it’s hard to make the case for the character to be above high-tier.

Another reality for the nimble fighter is that although he has a lot of tools that make the character good, Greninja’s neutral game can be rather predictable. Not having many meaningful mix-ups and having to rely on a set game plan can cost players, which ultimately might be the reason not many high level players pick up the character.

With that being said, Greninja thrives with great execution. Being able to consistently land moves like Dash Attack and Down Tilt to set up kill combos/moves is the mark of a great Greninja player, so even though your opponent might know what you’re looking for, a great player will always find ways to execute.

Chrom

Chrom is another character that sees very little representation in the Smash Ultimate community, and although people might not have a problem with this due to there being so much Fire Emblem representation in Smash, players are really missing out on the potential of this character.

Similar to Roy, Chrom is a rush down character with great mobility, good combo game, and great raw damage output that can lead to very early stocks. Moves like Forward Tilt and Back Air are great moves to kill opponents near the ledge, and moves like Up Smash and Forward Smash are almost guaranteed to take stocks to most of the cast if they are above 100%.

What hurts this character the most? His recovery. Although Chrom’s Up Special can be used similarly to that of Ike or Cloud as an out-of-shield option, there are not many instances where Chrom players will actually want to be in that position. Chrom’s recovery is fairly linear and does not have good range, often leading to being easily punished by a character with a counter or if a player who consistently brings Chrom off-stage.

Chrom’s abysmal recovery leads to many people not giving the character a chance, when in reality, the character is definitely high tier and is pretty good across many match-ups. If more people are willing to deal with his recovery, you can see a world where Chrom players slowly start to fill up tournament brackets, which will definitely be a nightmare for players.

Diddy Kong

During Smash 4, Diddy Kong was no doubt considered a top tier character who outright made certain match-ups unplayable, making him easily one of the more despised characters in Smash.

Smash Ultimate’s version of the whimsical son of Donkey Kong is far from his predecessor, being considered a mid tier character at best through Smash Ultimate’s lifespan. Due to this, many people have written the character off as a has been who thankfully not many players have to face. However, buffs that have been accrued over time have made Diddy Kong have somewhat of a resurgence in recent history, with even a few pro players picking up the character.

Diddy Kong is a small character with good grounded pressure from moves like Down Tilt, has an excellent grab game with normal grab along with a command grab in Monkey Flip (Side Special), as well as having good combo potential. While moves like Neutral Air are good combo starters, many players are most likely looking to start combos with his banana (Down Special), a good projectile that also pressures opponents.

Diddy Kong does have weaknesses that can be exploited, such as his predictable recovery, although his Up Special does have a hitbox that can lead to some cheese kills at higher percent. Diddy Kong also has an issue with characters that have a lot of projectiles, for other than his Side Special, he does not have many ways to consistently close gaps.

Overall, Diddy Kong can be a difficult matchup against characters who have trouble hitting smaller targets, and with Diddy Kong having good ground speed and aerial mobility, having this character in your pocket makes a lot of sense if you’re looking to spice up your rotation.

Yoshi

Mario’s favorite green dinosaur is underrated to a fault. Yoshi’s gameplan is fairly simple: get up close and press the A button. With moves like Neutral Air, Down Air, and even Forward Air having great frame data and raw damage, players can find themselves overwhelmed by the constant pressure Yoshi brings.

Along with that, moves like Down Special and Neutral Special are nice ways to mix up your opponent and perhaps take a stock that can leave a player feeling hopeless. Combine this with moves like Up Special that can gimp players off-stage, Yoshi can be one of the more irritating matchups to play against.

Let’s not forget moves like Up Air and Back Air are consistent kill options at high percent, also being moves that can prevent players from landing back on stage. So in terms of kill potential, Yoshi has it in spades.

Yoshi’s weaknesses are straightforward, for the dinosaur’s recovery can be exploited along with having a big hurtbox for being a larger in size, an aspect that is punishable by many top tier characters.

Yoshi’s underrated tag comes from not being a huge factor aside from smaller tournaments, mainly due to pro players’ unwillingness to pick up the character. This may be due to the character’s gameplay being predictable which ultimately hurts a player in a competitive standpoint, but it also comes from the sheer simplicity of the character, leading players feeling bored after playing Yoshi for long periods of time.

Even if the character is simple in design, don’t let others fool you into thinking Yoshi isn’t good, because he is near top tier for a lot of people. My recommendation is to give Yoshi a try, even if the character is seemingly for babies.

Rosalina & Luma

A fan favorite from the Mario franchise, Rosalina & Luma draw varying opinions in terms of how good the character is in the competitive scene. The character clearly has great hitboxes with Luma, good kill power as well as consistent kill setups. Rosalina also has good overall ground and aerial mobility that makes up for having a rather tall hurtbox. Rosalina & Luma are also really good at edge guarding and ledge trapping, as well as having good aerials to juggle the opponent.

So why is Rosalina & Luma not considered a top tier character? Well, many experienced players will focus on getting rid of Luma as early as possible, for the real threat of the character comes from large disjointed attacks that end up leading to stocks. With this being said, players feel that Rosalina on her own isn’t an overpowered character by any means, so people don’t place the character too high on tier lists.

The reality is that Rosalina’s disadvantage state, which really stems from not having Luma, isn’t as bad as people think. Since Rosalina is generally fast and nimble, it is not too difficult to keep opponents away for eight seconds before Luma reappears, to which her disadvantage state suddenly isn’t as bad.

Dedicated Rosalina & Luma mains are showing the potential of this character, and with the star pair having a great matchup spread, it’s honestly quite shocking that there aren’t more people playing the character.

Wii Fit Trainer

Wii Fit Trainer has one of the more unique situations in Smash Ultimate.

When able to use her Down Special, Deep Breathing, her damage and kill potential are just as good as most top tier characters. She has good projectiles and can be really strong when ledge trapping, but ultimately her biggest weakness causes her to be regarded as a mid tier character at best.

Wii Fit Trainer’s hitboxes are arguably some of the worst in the game. Moves like Up Tilt and Forward Air are rather small and inconsistent, and being that she is a taller character, players are able to punish her weak hitboxes with very little risk.

Although she is considered a zoner, her style of play is more based on punishing the opponent and creating pressure with her projectiles, rather than having a slower pace or fishing for combos and setups. While her hitboxes can be a problem, Wii Fit Trainer is still a good character with amazing potential, and honestly covers enough matchups that she can even win games against high tiers if players properly execute.

While having bad hitboxes seems like an obvious reason to disregard the character, this can lead to surprising your opponent, especially if the opponent isn’t familiar with her hitboxes. This is something that Nintendo could easily patch in the future, which is the reason why as to why you can make an argument that this character should see more representation, for if Nintendo fixes some of her hitboxes, Wii Fit Trainer will easily move up spots on everyone’s tier list.

Conclusion

Determining whether certain factors make a character underrated is very subjective, for although there are points to be made as to why a character is good, there are always going to be reasons why people disagree. Rating a character in general can be a tricky task, especially since Smash Ultimate’s roster is bigger than most fighting game rosters and continues to grow.

Maybe not every character is worth picking up if they don’t fit your playstyle, but don’t be surprised if one of the characters on this list takes a set on you, for there is a reason as to why a character is viewed as underrated, even if you disagree.