Melee is a game acclaimed for and defined by its complexity. More than sixteen years after its release, the community is still discovering new techniques and each player finds there is always something new and interesting to learn about how to play the game well. One of Melee’s most deceptively complex actions is that of crouching. Crouching, though seemingly simple on the surface, has a plethora of diverse functions, many of which can be effectively employed during competitive play. In this article, I will primarily focus on each of the unique functions of crouching, noting what exactly each function is and what purpose each function serves. I will also touch on some of the ways these functions can be utilized to the user’s benefit in a competitive setting.

Shrinking Hurtboxes:

Besides offering the option of using an immediate down tilt or Down-B, the most obvious function of crouching is shrinking the size of a character’s hurtbox or at least bringing it closer to the ground. Crouching simply to dodge attacks has very situational uses, and is largely limited to a select few characters. Characters with particularly low to the ground crouches, such as Jigglypuff, Kirby, and Sheik, may be able to avoid certain projectiles, such as Fox’s standing lasers, by crouching. Conversely, larger characters, and those who don’t have very low to the ground crouches, like Bowser, are unlikely to dodge anything simply by crouching.

Jigglypuff in particular makes good use of this function because her initial crouch animation allows her to duck under standing grabs from other high tier characters like Marth, Captain Falcon, and Sheik. By reacting to their grab attempts and crouching, she puts herself in a good position to punish these whiffed grabs with a Rest; as a result, crouching proves to be a solid tool for Puff to use in order to set up punish opportunities. For most of the cast, however, crouching is not a great option for outright avoiding attacks. If a player wishes to avoid the damage from an attack, it is best to shield, roll, or even jump out of the way. Nevertheless, crouching does still have substantial utility as a defensive option because of its next function.

Crouch Cancelling:

By far the most well-known and prolific function of crouching is its use in crouch cancelling. In short, being hit by an attack while crouching will result in decreased knockback and hitlag. At low percents, crouch cancelling an opponent’s attack will typically leave the player in a perfect position to punish their opponent, as the decreased knockback leaves them close to their opponent after the attack, and the decreased hitlag allows them to act more quickly after taking the hit, often giving them time to punish the opponent before they can get out of the lag of their own move. Because of crouch cancelling, crouching becomes a solid neutral tool at low percents for just about every character in the game. Characters with strong grounded punishes find this tactic particularly beneficial; notable examples include Samus and Peach, who will gladly eat some percent by crouch cancelling in order to retaliate with a free down smash, rather than simply blocking the hit by shielding.

Despite its benefits, crouch cancelling can be a risky move at times. Though Peach would not land every hit of her down smash under ordinary circumstances, if the player is crouch cancelling, the decreased knockback will cause more of the hitboxes to connect, causing the player to take exuberant amounts of damage unnecessarily. This is the most extreme example, but the same applies for other multi-hit moves as well. In addition, though it is a remarkable defensive tool at low percents, crouch cancelling can actually be a bad idea at mid to high percents, as the decreased knockback may allow the opponent to follow up with a kill move after the initial hit. Of course, crouch cancelling may still help the user survive at extremely high percents, especially since holding down to crouch cancel guarantees downward angled DI on top of the decreased knockback from the crouch cancel itself.

While not directly a result of crouching, automatic smash DI down is a tactic which, though different in function, can fulfill a similar purpose as crouch cancelling. As a result, it is important to be able to distinguish between the two and to know which is better in what scenario. In terms of execution, crouch cancelling requires the user to be crouching, whereas ASDI down simply requires the control stick or C-stick to be held down. So while ASDI down does occur whenever the player crouch cancels, ASDI down also occurs during any other action which requires the control stick to be pointed downwards, such as wavedashing or using a down-air, down tilt, down smash, or Down-B; ASDI can even be option selected during the hitlag of another move.

In terms of results, ASDI down does not affect knockback as crouch cancelling does, but instead shifts the character downwards during the hitlag before knockback is taken. This may give the player the option to tech, or to otherwise land on the ground normally and experience the typical 2-6 frames of landing lag (depending on the character). While both crouch cancelling and ASDI down can leave the user in a good position to punish their opponent, the differences in their effects make them useful in different scenarios. For example, crouch cancelling is ineffective against moves with downward angled knockback, whereas ASDI down can still be used against these moves for a chance to tech against the ground. ASDI down is also a good option for dealing moves which are affected by the Sakurai angle.

Sakurai angled moves launch at different trajectories depending on the amount of knockback they deal. One example is Fox’s neutral-air which, under normal circumstances, deals enough knockback to launch at the higher trajectory even when the target is at 0%. However, if the player crouch cancels an opposing Fox’s neutral-air at 0%, the decreased knockback will cause the neutral-air to launch at the lower trajectory of zero degrees. As a result, the effect of crouch cancelling Fox’s neutral-air is negated, and both characters will be able to act out of the hitlag at about the same time. However, ASDI down can be used in this scenario so that the user takes slight knockback from the neutral-air, lands normally, and is able to punish Fox before the lag from his aerial ends. So ASDI down, though not limited to crouching, is an effective defensive tool to be understood and utilized alongside crouch cancelling.

Run Cancelling:

Crouching can also be used to immediately cancel the momentum from dashing. This only works after the character has finished the initial dash animation and has entered the latter portion of the dash, called the “run.” After executing the crouch, the player can immediately perform any non-movement action‒such as an attack, shield, or grab‒without having to wait for the full crouch animation to pass. Movement options can still be performed after a run cancel, but the player must wait for the crouch animation to end before this is possible.

When practically applied, run cancelling can provide quite a few helpful benefits to those who employ it. This tactic grants users with additional defensive options, as a running character can use it to put up shield on reaction to the opponent’s approach, allowing for safer movement in the neutral (assuming the player moves in the neutral by running, rather than by wavedashing or dash dancing). It is also worth noting that the character slides a short distance upon executing a run cancel. This, coupled with the option of putting out an immediate grab or hitbox, can aid in a player’s approach. Marth, for example, can more safely approach his opponent by dashing towards them, crouching to cancel his run outside of his opponent’s range, and instantly putting out a down tilt or grab.

Instant Smash Turning:

Though the regular turn animation lasts 11 frames, smash turning is a technique which allows the player to act out of a turn after only one frame. Performing a smash turn requires the player to move the control stick to the far edge of the direction opposite of where the character is facing. This technique can be consistently performed by first crouching, and then moving the control stick along the arc from downwards to backwards. Instant smash turning is particularly useful when used in conjunction with run cancelling, as an approaching player can use these two techniques to jump away from an opponent’s attack, or to punish an opponent for moving behind them (though the player must be aware that the full crouch animation must pass after the run cancel before the turn can be executed).

Instant Powershielding:

Due to the nature of their shields, this technique is primarily applicable to Marth, Samus, and Roy. To instantly powershield, these characters can crouch, wait for a hitbox to be directly above their heads, and then activate shield. This works because, upon standing up for the shield animation, the opponent’s hitbox will already be inside of the player’s shield. While this can work against direct contact moves, it is primarily beneficial for dealing with projectiles like Samus’ Missiles, Peach’s turnips, and Falco's lasers. As a result, crouching proves to be a solid neutral tool for characters who can crouch to instantly powershield when fighting against characters who rely heavily on projectile use in the neutral.

Yoshi can utilize a similar technique in order to instantly parry his opponent’s attack. If he crouches and waits for the opponent’s attack to be above his head, the attack will similarly be placed where Yoshi’s shield would be, allowing him to activate shield, parry the attack, and punish with an attack of his own. In Yoshi’s case, this tactic is more beneficial when used against direct contact moves, as the opponent will be in a better position for Yoshi to punish them, whereas Yoshi himself could be punished for parrying a projectile.

Bringing It All Together:

By understanding each of these functions of crouching and knowing how to use them properly, players can give themselves a serious edge in a competitive setting. Notably, crouching gives the player the ability to bait their opponent while having numerous options for acting out of crouch. For example, characters with strong out of shield options can run towards an opponent in order to bait an attempted punish, run cancel, shield the incoming attack, and then punish the opponent out of shield. Similarly, a running player can read or react to where their opponent will throw out a hitbox, run cancel, smash turn, and jump just outside of the range of the opponent’s attack, giving the player the opportunity to easily punish with a back-air.

In today’s top level play, crouching is commonly seen as a tool to assist in crouch cancelling, especially by Wizzrobe and other 20GX Falcon mains. After putting an opponent into knockdown, the player excellently covers the opponent’s tech options by crouching within the opponent’s getup attack range. If the opponent uses getup attack, the player can crouch cancel the hit and punish with a grab or other tech chase move (assuming the player is not at a high enough percent to take significant knockback from a crouch cancelled getup attack). If the opponent rolls forward, the player can simply react and dash forward to continue the tech chase. And if the opponent rolls behind the player, the player can smash turn and catch the opponent with an appropriate attack.

As previously mentioned, many characters can benefit by crouching in the neutral. Crouching in the neutral is particularly good in regards to option coverage. For example, if Marth crouches prior to an opposing Fox’s approach, he puts himself in a good position to punish any approach attempt Fox may make. If Fox approaches with an aerial attack like neutral-air (and Marth is not at 0%), Marth can crouch cancel the hit and punish with a grab. And if Fox goes for a grounded approach like a dash attack or dash grab, Marth is in a position to instantly down tilt, walling Fox out before he can even reach Marth. Similarly, crouching players can mix-up defensive options, choosing to either crouch cancel or instantly powershield opposing hitboxes. If the aforementioned Fox attempts to down-air Marth instead, Marth can react with an instant powershield, as the crouch cancel could cause him to eat more damage by taking every hit of the down-air. Of course, this Fox may get his revenge when Marth is trying to recover, as he can crouch cancel Marth’s Up-B at the ledge and send him back offstage with a down smash.

Thanks to all of its unique functions, crouching can improve the quality of a player’s movement, defensive options, and offensive setups. While crouch cancelling is the most widespread and generally the most helpful of these functions, players can still make note of and incorporate the other functions in order to significantly improve the way they play the game. Individually, each of these functions has the potential to trip up an opponent and give the user an advantage in certain scenarios. When combined, these options create a playstyle which is trickier, giving the player the upperhand in a variety of punish, approach, edgeguard, and neutral scenarios. Players looking to improve may find themselves getting better simply by learning when to hold down.

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