A new Smash Bros. game is finally coming out, and the internet has come alive with fresh discussions about how exactly the series has been ruined forever. Having trouble following the conversation? Never fear! We here at Badnix have compiled an exhaustive glossary for competitive Smash Bros. terminology.
Dash Attack Cancel – considering doing a dash attack, then changing your mind.
Directional Influence – the influence exerted on your character’s movement by tilting the analog stick.
Donkey Kongress – advanced strategy in which one or more players use Donkey Kong’s down B ground pound move for the entire match’s duration.
Edge-hogging – overusing Sonic the ‘Edgehog.
Gravity Cancel – glitch that allows your character to set their Y velocity in the opposite direction of the game’s default gravitational acceleration. Referred to in official Nintendo literature as ‘jumping’.
Hurtbox – item crates that explode when you hit them.
Jump Cancel – opposite of a Gravity Cancel.
L-canceling – playing as Mario, then insisting the match be restarted with you playing as Luigi because you remembered that the Fludd move is terrible.
Metagame – the wider set of advanced techniques used by players who main Meta Knight.
Nair – neutral air. All air not occupied by either a) an opponent or b) an opponent’s projectile attack is considered neutral and should not be tried as an enemy combatant, as ratified per the terms of the ’09 Smashboards Accords.
PS (Pixel Spam) – triggering your fighter’s animations at a rate that overloads the game’s frame buffer, crashing the game and sparing you a defeat.
RAR (Reverse Aerial Rush) – backing off from an attack by jumping on the little spring sticking out of Mega Man’s loyal companion, Rush.
Sakurai – Nintendo employee whose involvement with the Smash Bros. series consists of ruining game mechanics and preventing beloved characters from being added as fighters. The exact reasons for his employment are unknown.
Shield Grab – grabbing an opponent while their shield is active. Quickly mastered by all but the most amateur players.
Shine – item collected by Mario in the ’02 sleeper hit Super Mario Sunshine.
Templetropy – refers to the increased likelihood of Stock matches played on the Hyrule Temple stage not ending before the heat death of the universe.
Tournament Play – changing the item settings to “Low”.
Tripping – jokingly taking Smash Bros. games too seriously. For example, people who argue that Melee is the only decent Smash Bros. game are clearly tripping.
Wavedash – not an actual term; “wavedash” is a long-running in-joke used within the competitive scene to prank novice players. If one or more player begins discussing “wavedashing” mechanics in your presence, the correct response is to laugh and inform them that they are tripping.
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