Super Smash Bros Ultimate 5 Reasons To Play Hero & 5 Not To

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Super Smash Bros Ultimate 5 Reasons To Play Hero & 5 Not To

Dragon Quest's Hero added a unique dimension to Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. What are the complex fighter's strengths and weaknesses? Ultimate's lineup of DLC characters is quite astounding to look at, with representatives from a variety of different genres and time periods. The Hero from the series is an extremely important addition to Smash, as Dragon Quest is one of the cornerstones of the RPG genre, and gaming itself. Upon their reveal, fans were understandably worried about their very unique game mechanics, and they were even banned in doubles tournaments for a short time. As time passed, Hero has fallen less and less out of the spotlight and now stands as a respectfully, albeit surprisingly, balanced character. What makes the Dragon Quest Heroes worth playing? THEGAMER VIDEO OF THE DAY

ASSET Balanced Neutral

Disregarding any RNG shenanigans that give Hero his ridiculous antics, his neutral game is quite balanced and rewarding. His attack speed, movement speed, and grab are all about average, meaning that Hero heavily benefits from a player with a solid understanding of the neutral game. Once Hero is able to close in on an opponent, he gets quite a bit of mileage out of a grab or tilt, and his jab is actually a great anti-air and boxing tool. If Hero is played safely while utilizing his longer-range, he becomes quite scary to fight, for reasons that will be listed below.

ASSET & FLAW RNG

The down-special "Command Selection" is Hero's most infamous attack that defines them as a character. Ripped straight out of Dragon Quest's , Hero is able to pull up a list of four randomized attacks from a list of 21 different special moves. The word "random" is key here, as players never know what they're going to get when pulling up the menu. There's always a chance of not pulling the desired attack or getting one that would be beneficial in the current situation, making Hero a bit inconsistent. Besides down-special, there's also a 1/8 chance of a smash attack getting a "critical hit," immensely boosting their damage output and knockback to the point of potentially taking stocks below 30%.

ASSET Throw Combos

Most fighters in Ultimate have some type of combo after a certain throw, whether it be guaranteed or not. Hero's down-throw, like many other down-throws, sends the opponent at the desired angle to follow up with an aerial. Luckily for Hero, he has two different combo throws that remain solid options at most percentages. Down-throw reliably combos into a forward-air or up-air for solid damage and positioning, and up-throw combos into neutral-air on most characters. Getting a grab with Hero ends up being an extremely important part of their gameplan as their most consistent way of racking up damage.

FLAW Exploitable Recovery

It isn't really apparent at first to call Hero's recovery exploitable, as he has so many options, but most of them leave him wide open for edgeguards. The three variations of his up-special usually do a decent job of mixing up recovery timing, but experienced players will be able to knock him out of it. Zoom is a bit of a different story, as luckily getting it before falling out of the blast zone usually entails a safe trip back to the stage. However, if the opponent happens to guess the location of the landing, that's a free up-smash right there.

ASSET Special Attacks

Leaving the enormous spell list out of the picture for just a second, let's take a look at their overshadowed special moves. Neutral-special acts as a basic, chargeable projectile similar to Robin's. Each variation of the charge is useful in some way, and the fully charged Kafrizz is immensely powerful. Their side-specials are some of the best ranged options around, doing an excellent job at getting opponents off of Hero and catching rolls, techs, and unsafe approaches. While they're limited your amount of MP, top-level players give these moves the spotlight they deserve.

FLAW Attack Speed

These sword fighters' running and airspeed are about as average as it gets in Ultimate, but some of their attacks fall a bit on the slower side. Their aerials are the most stick-out attacks, as back-air, forward-air, and down-air are all relatively sluggish. Most of Hero's attacks are quick enough to get the job done, but they would heavily benefit from a slight increase to their attack speed. Moves like back-air are also pretty laggy upon landing, giving Hero a hard time getting back to the ground.

ASSET Amazing Spells

Out of the 21 to choose from with down-special, some of them are really, really good. For example, Kaboom does 28%, travels a great distance pretty fast, and KOs around 80% on most characters. Whack and Thwack both have a chance at instant-killing relative to the opponent's percent, which is a first for the series. The spells that buff Hero's stats end up being some of the best moves in the game, and they essentially act as better versions of some of Shulk's Monado Arts. Other notable spells include Flame and Kacrackle Slash, Bounce, Sizzle, and Magic Burst.

FLAW Useless Spells

To balance out the long list of genuinely useful spells, there are a few which should almost never be used. Kaclang is the biggest outlier within the 21 spells, as there's almost no situation where it would be beneficial to choose it over something else. It makes Hero instantly fall to the ground, leaving him in an invulnerable state for a period of time. The problem with this spell is that after it ends, the opponent essentially gets a free attack on Hero. Even if Kaclang happens to hit the opponent, it isn't a reliable kill option and is mostly used as a meme. Metal Slash really only has usage in Smash or in a ditto, and Hocus Pocus is simultaneously the best and worst move in the game.

ASSET KO Power

Anyone that has fought a Hero has likely died before 40%, and this isn't an uncommon occurrence. While a lot of Hero's kill power relies on favorable RNG, their regular smash attacks and aerials are powerful enough on their own. There are only a few moves in Hero's kit that don't have the potential to KO opponents, and there are reliable ways to land them. When good RNG is taken into account, Hero becomes the strongest character in the entire game, making Ganondorf look like a joke.

FLAW Difficulty Landing

One of Hero's biggest weaknesses is their difficulty to land against opponents situated under them. When getting juggled in the air, they don't have the greatest options to counter-attack, as most of their aerials are slower and only hit at specific angles. Pulling up the Command Menu isn't the greatest option either, as the only spells that hit below Hero are Kaclang, Kamikazee, and Magic Burst, which are all very situational. Hero will usually have to find ways back to the ground without attacking the opponent and rely on good DI and mix-ups.