Zero Suit Samus

Smash Attacks

SIDE SMASH

Zero Suit Samus uses her jet boots as she performs this double-kick attack that advances her forward.

DOWN SMASH

Fires Zero Suit Samus’s Paralyzer at the ground in front of her. This can temporarily stun your opponent.

UP SMASH

Zero Suit Samus spins her whip above her head, hitting multiple times. While this move is great for hitting opponents above Zero Suit Samus, it can also be used against grounded opponents.

Basic Attacks

Standing Attack

An extremely quick jab attack leading into two additional hits that combo and ending with an elbow.

Forward Tilt

A spinning horizontal kick attack that can be angled up or down.

Up Tilt

Zero Suit Samus claps her heels together from a handstand position and spins, hitting opponents around her multiple times. Launches opponents vertically.

Down Tilt

A good ranged sweep attack. This attack launches your opponent diagonally upward.

Dash Attack

Zero Suit Samus charges with a running knee attack at your opponent. Though it doesn’t have the best range, this isn’t an issue, given Zero Suit Samus’s speed.

Edge Attack

Zero Suit Samus swiftly returns to the stage with a long-range sweep kick that sends opponents horizontally away.

Air Attacks

Neutral Air Attack

Zero Suit Samus spins in the air as she uses her whip. This hits diagonally below in front of her and then diagonally above behind her.

Up Air Attack

Using her jet boots, Zero Suit Samus does a quick flipkick attack.

Down Air Attack

This attack sends Zero Suit Samus diagonally downward with a fast kick that can meteor smash. Anyone around her as she hits the ground will also take damage.

Forward Air Attack

Similar to her Side Smash, this attack has Zero Suit Samus use her jet boots to kick twice in front of her.

Back Air Attack

This reverse kick has good KO potential.

Special Attacks

Paralyzer (Neutral Special)

Fires out a paralyzing energy blast that stuns your opponent. You can charge this up to extend its range, but the projectile travels slower then.

Plasma Whip (Side Special)

Zero Suit Samus attacks with her energy whip. Hitting with the tip launches an opponent farther. This can also be used to grab onto edges!

Boost Kick (Up Special)

This attack sends Zero Suit Samus into the air quickly with a swift multi-hitting kick attack followed up by a spinning kick.

Flip Jump (Down Special)

This flip attack buries an opponent who is grounded or meteor smashes airborne opponents. Hitting the button again during this attack will kick in the direction you started the attack from.

Final Smash

Gunship

Zero Suit Samus jumps into her gunship as it flies by and an aiming reticle appears on the screen. You control the aiming reticle with your control stick and use any attack button to fire the double laser beams from the ship. While the lasers are firing, you have a tiny bit of control to move them around still. Each hit scores about 15% damage and knocks the opponent away. You have up to 5 shots or about 15 seconds in the gunship, whichever comes first. Once done in the gunship, Zero Suit Samus returns from the top of the stage. This Final Smash is best suited when going up against multiple opponents.

Strategy

Without her Power Suit, you might expect Samus to be less powerful, but this isn’t the case. Zero Suit Samus makes up for her Power Suit’s absence with her Jet Boots, Paralyzer, and increased mobility. Without that heavy suit, Zero Suit Samus becomes one of the lighter characters in the game—she now has some of the best jumps in the game and increased ground speed as well. Her recovery is good, aided by the height of her jumps and her ability to grab the edge with her Plasma Whip. Compared to Samus with her Power Suit, she doesn’t have as strong of a long-range game, but she has a better up-close game. Being a lightweight character fighting up close, though, means you have to rely on your speed and defense a lot more.

Zero Suit Samus has two ways to stun opponents with her Paralyzer weapon. The first is her Down Smash, which is an essential part of her set of moves. Second is her Paralyzer Special. Charging up the Paralyzer Special extends its range but shoots a slower projectile. Opponents hit by the slower projectile will be stunned for a longer period of time. To effectively use her Plasma Whip, hit with just the end of it for the most knockback. This is also a good keepout tool to slow opponents’ approaches and control the pace of a match. Don’t forget you can also use this for recovery! Her Flip Jump attack takes some getting used to, but once you learn the spacing for it, the kick attack is useful and launches quite far. Flip Jump also has some invincibility, making it a little more usable. Boost Kick is mainly for attacking opponents who are high up or for racking up damage. If you’re only looking to hit someone on a platform above you, use Up Smash instead.

In general, you want to set up traps with your stun options while keeping opponents away with Plasma Whip and your grapple. Zero Suit Samus’s grapple should not be underestimated with its impressive range matched with her incredible speed. It is extremely effective for following up on long-range Paralyzer shots or Plasma Whip pokes, which tend to force opponents into shielding. Once you land a grapple on an opponent, Down Throw into Forward or Up Air is great for racking up damage at low percentages and even getting a KO at higher percentages. Use Zero Suit Samus’s fast attack speed to punish opponents’ mistakes and build up as much damage as possible. Note that her Up Tilt has some invincibility at the tips of her feet, which should help against airborne opponents. Since her Down Tilt pops opponents into the air diagonally, follow this up with something like her Dash Attack. In the air, Neutral Air deals good damage but is awkward to land. Forward Air hits twice for decent damage, but it doesn’t knockback very far. For KOs while airborne, your best bet is Back Air attack, though her Up Air is also effective. Down Air on airborne opponents can meteor smash as well, but only if you’re willing to KO yourself with it. From the ground, your best bets for KOs are Side Smash, Up Smash, and Flip Jump into kick. When guarding the edge, use Paralyzer, Plasma Whip, and Flip Jump.

Recovery

The main recovery moves for Zero Suit Samus are her Boost Kick and Flip Jump. Boost Kick is her vertical recovery tool, attacking on the way up. You can angle it a little to the left or right during input, and Zero Suit Samus will be in a fall state when it completes. For horizontal recovery, Flip Jump is her best option. If you do Flip Jump by itself, Zero Suit Samus will not be in a fall state. If you extend Boost Kick by hitting the Special button again to do the second kick, however, Zero Suit Samus will be in a fall state. And Zero Suit Samus has a grapple and Plasma Whip to recover to the edge horizontally as well.