🏠 » General » All Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament rules explained

All Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament rules explained

Super Smash Bros. pro MKLeo

Unlike most esports titles, however, the Super Smash Bros. series hasn’t historically had the support of its publisher, Nintendo. Competitions are put together by individual tournament organizers and they need to make up their own rules for games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

While the ruling may change from local to local, most prominent Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments have the same rules to keep the scene consistent. Here are the main tournament rules that are followed:

  • Stocks: 3
  • Time Limit: 6-8 minutes
  • Items: Off
  • Stage Hazards: Off
  • Final Smash Meter: Off
  • Spirits: Off

If time runs out during a match, the winner is determined by whoever has more stocks remaining. If both players have the same amount of stocks left, the winner is determined by whoever has the lower damage percentage.

On the rare occurrence that players have the same percentage, there is a tiebreaker. This is usually a stock match with one life and a three-minute time limit. The same characters and same stage must be used.

What are the tournament stage rules in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate?

Perhaps the most commonly discussed rules in competitive Ultimate are the lack of items and the specific stages that can be played on. There are over 100 stages in Ultimate but not all of them are legal in tournaments, although there is not a universally agreed-upon stage list at this time. While Nintendo’s sponsored events should have resulted in a defined rule set, that hasn’t been the case.

Some tournaments will ban certain stages that are allowed in others. Most tournament organizers agree that stages that change shape mid-battle should be banned. A floating platform is usually allowed and is often seen on popular competitive stages like Smashville.

Smashville in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

There is a varying list of stages depending on what part of the match you’re on. There are starter stages that can be selected before a match begins:

  • Battlefield
  • Final Destination
  • Pokemon Stadium 2
  • Small Battlefield
  • Smashville

After the first battle, the losing player can now pick a counterpick stage. These are stages that can’t be starter stages but can be selected as a counterpick in most tournaments on top of the starter stages above, which can also be used as counterpicks:

  • Yoshi’s Story
  • Lylat Cruise
  • Kalos Pokemon League
  • Town and City
  • Northern Cave
  • Hollow Bastion

You may also see other stages used in certain tournaments, including Fountain of Dreams and Dream Land. Some tournaments even allow Minecraft World. Every tournament, whether it’s a local or a major, will have its own list of legal stages so always check beforehand.

Every tournament will also have its own added rules for sportsmanship and conduct. This includes behavior like “stalling,” which is purposefully prolonging a match without engaging with the opponent. These rules are left up to individual tournament organizers.

Read Also
Ludwig sued by Nintendo, warns Smash community
A few months ago, Ludwig Ahgren was sued by Nintendo. The esports ...
New Nintendo Community Tournament Guidelines are troubling for Smash esports
It's a well known fact that Nintendo and the competitive Super Smash ...
Smash Melee pro banned from Twitch for drinking and driving
Super Smash Bros. Melee pro bobby big ballz has been banned from ...
Zain is crowned champion at Smash Con 2023
Smash Con 2023 is one of the biggest Smash community events of ...
All the best Smashies winners at Smash Con 2023
Smash Con 2023 has been a hype event so far thanks to ...
Latest News
Here’s what Kick Bounties are and how they work
Kick Bounties are a new feature that encourages ...
NezhenkaPirozhenka hits rare max multiplier win in online slot
Kick streamer NezhenkaPirozhenka has been having a quite ...
MOUZ vs Legacy: BLAST Austin Major CS2 betting guide
MOUZ has almost climbed its way out of ...
Nmplol explains why OTK is now streaming on Kick
Content creation organization One True King surprisingly started ...
NaVi vs G2 Esports: BLAST Austin Major CS2 betting guide
NaVi took a tough loss to longtime rival ...
StableRonaldo joins Kick, here’s what we know so far
FaZe Clan streamer Rani “StableRonaldo” Netz has created ...
Team Spirit vs NaVi: BLAST Austin Major CS2 betting guide
The BLAST Austin Major has not gone to ...
Bonus round leads to huge max win for Trainwreckstv
Tyler "Trainwreckstv" Niknam continued his recent winining streak ...
These are the best new slots to play released in June 2025
June is heating up with some spicy and ...
Editor's Picks
Who is Stevewilldoit? Net worth, girlfriend, and more
The news of Stephen "Stevewilldoit" Deleonardis, the master ...
All we know about Thea Booysen, MrBeast’s girlfriend
Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson is known purely for his ...
How to quickly make infinite water in Terraria
Whether you’re looking to spruce up your Hellevator ...
Best Pokemon Glazed cheat codes
Pokemon Glazed is one of the most popular ...
How to enable net graph in CS2 
Competitive players were disappointed when they discovered that ...

Players must be 21 years of age or older or reach the minimum age for gambling in their respective state and located in jurisdictions where online gambling is legal. Please play responsibly. Bet with your head, not over it. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org.

This site is using Cloudflare and adheres to the Google Safe Browsing Program. We adapted Google's Privacy Guidelines to keep your data safe at all times.
21+NCPGGamblers Anonymous
×
Your Promo Code:
The bonus offer of was already opened in an additional window. If not, you can open it also by clicking the following link:
Visit Site