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Bayonetta tops Panda Global Smash 4 character tier list

Bayonetta tops Panda Global’s Smash 4 character tier list (Nintendo)
Bayonetta tops Panda Global’s Smash 4 character tier list (Nintendo)

By Ozzie Mejia

Panda Global has released a new character tier list for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (a.k.a. Smash 4). Surveying members of the Smash 4 community, including tournament organizers, casters, and top players, the final results have been divided into groups of eight, with Bayonetta leading the top tier of characters with a 9.64 score. This coincidentally comes on the one-year anniversary of Bayonetta’s release as Smash 4’s final DLC character.

Upon release, she was considered by many to be a broken character, with powerful up and forward smashes and a Witch Time special that constantly slows down opponents. A patch dealt with a lot of Bayonetta’s overpowered moves, including Witch Time, but she remains a potent enough character to top this list. Notable Smash 4 players that utilize Bayonetta include Saleem “Salem” Young, Marcus “Pink Fresh” Wilson, and Zack “CaptainZack” Lauth.

Other top tier characters include Diddy Kong (9.56), Sheik (9.48), and Mario (9.16). Fox, Sonic, and Cloud are all tied underneath the portly plumber with 8.92.


The bottom of the list includes large, lumbering characters Ganondorf and King Dedede, as well as limited light character Zelda. Sitting at the very bottom is Jigglypuff, a staggering contrast from its spot on the most recent Super Smash Bros. Melee tier list from 2015. Top Melee character Falco also dwells in the basement tier.

The opinion-based tier list was conducted separately from Panda Global Rankings player list, with 25 of the original 30 panelists opting to rank Smash 4’s characters. The results were based on the question “Which character is solely most likely to win a major tournament according to your interpretation of our current meta?” Based on criteria of match-up speed, solo viability, technical skill needed, skill ceiling, and skill floor, the panelists scored each individual character from 1 to 10.

Because the survey was conducted alongside the PGR for players, Genesis 4 results were not factored into the voting. The most recent tournament prior to the polling was December’s ZeRo Saga, with Panda Global’s Luis “suar” Suarez telling Yahoo Esports, “MKLeo [Leonardo Lopez Perez] just won ZeRo Saga with Marth, Nairo [Nairoby Quezada] was rounding out his usage with Bowser, and Bayonetta was starting to shake things up again.”

The full character tier list, with an introduction from suar and anonymous voters, can be found on the Smash Bros. subreddit. Panda Global also released a regional power rankings on Twitter.


Ozzie Mejia is fine with Luigi ranked in the middle. Follow him on Twitter @Ozz_Mejia.