Smash Corner-Jigglypuff- The Elvis of the PokéWorld

This pink puff ball originated in 1996 as one of the first original 151 Pokémon. However, it was her popularity in the anime that got her into the first Smash game, and every game since. While not being as amazing as she was in Melee, Jigglypuff has definitely improved over her last couple of iterations.

The main game plan with Jigglypuff is to wall out the opponent with an onslaught of aerials while also setting up tech-chase situations that can result in a rest K.O. (more on this later).

Jigglypuff’s forward air and back air have a sustained hitbox which stay out for quite a few frames, meaning they are excellent at punishing the opponent for approaching at the wrong time. You should aim to string forward airs together when you want to get the opponent off stage at low percent. Her back air has insane knock-back and should be prioritised at high percent; careful though, as using this mid-air causes Jigglypuff to turn around.

Jigglypuff’s up-air is an amazing juggling tool at mid percent and can even combo into itself. It is not a great kill option though, so just use this to rack up damage.

If you find your opponent is attacking you while you’re in shield a lot, a great option is to jump out of your shield and immediately down air. If done right this is a free 14% and probably more if you get off a quick forward or neutral- air. Speaking of her neutral air, it’s a great ‘get off me’ tool, coming out almost instantly and lasting nearly half a second.

All of Jigglypuff’s aerials are made extremely good by the fact she has the fastest air speed in the game, coupled with her 6 jumps!

Jigglypuff’s special moves are very hit or miss. Her neutral-special, Rollout, charges up a rolling attack that shoots you forward in a line. While sometimes useful as a recovery option, this should be avoided as it is very predictable, and a hit does not do much. Similarly, Sing (her up-special) does not have much use. It makes the opponent fall asleep, allowing you to hit them, but if you have the chance to hit the opponent with this, chances are you could have just forward smashed them for the kill.

Her side special Pound should be used if the opponent shields a lot as it does massive shield damage, but is otherwise not a great option.

Rest however, being Jigglypuff’s down special, is what makes her terrifying in the hands of a skilled player. If you are overlapping a character, it will cause massive damage and knockback, while also coming out nearly instantly. But if it misses, Jigglypuff falls asleep, and so you should only use rest if you know it will hit. Therefore, if you hit the opponent to the ground and they tech in a direction you predicted, you can chase them and rest for the kill. There are some specific rest set ups that “OneShadyPuff” goes into detail on in YouTube.

Overall, I would put The Balloon Pokémon in mid-tier. While she does have insane kill power and great off-stage game, her limited pool of useful moves combined with her being one of the lightest characters in the game makes it difficult to win the abundance of unfavourable matchups she has. Nevertheless, if you put the time into getting good with her you can definitely wipe the smirk off your enemies’ faces. Happy smashing!