SSB4 Character Analysis: Pac-man

Image from the Smash Wiki

For my next Smash Bros. character analysis, I've chosen to highlight one of my favorite newcomers, Pac-Man. I'll admit I was a bit surprised when I first learned of his appearance in the latest game, and at the time I was unimpressed. After playing the game though I've come to find that he is fact a lot of fun to play as, and he happens to be one of few characters I keep finding myself coming back to. Pac-Man has a lot of unique moves, but I feel he is easy to get a feel for and with just a short amount of practice you can be on your way to becoming a solid Pac-Man player.

A moves:

• Neutral A- Your basic jab-jab-kick combo. Nothing too crazy here, but has some decent range and can be good for just racking up damage.
• Running A- This move has Pac-Man transform into his "waka-waka" form (think of the old arcade game) and charge forward a short distance. Has multiple hits and is a solid approach as I've found the last hit will still sometimes catch opponents that are trying to roll-dodge away.
• Side Smash- Pac throws out a ghost in whichever direction (left/right) you are facing. Has great range and can kill at higher percents. Otherwise just good for some horizontal knockback. 
• Up Smash- Pac throws a ghost up above his head. The hitbox for this may seem kind of small, but it can guard against approaches directly overhead. If you use it close enough (literally touching) to the opponent while they are on the ground it will hit twice while knocking them up.
• Down Smash- Pac throws out ghosts on either side of him, covering both sides. This move has great range and is a great way to punish roll dodges or just general approaches from your opponent, especially if you are not sure which side of you they are gunning for.

B moves:

• Neutral B- This move has Pac-Man cycle throw various items that each have a slightly different effect when thrown. Great for playing mind-games with people, and also serves as a handy projectile. Note there is a short cool-down on this, so you can't just sit there and spam projectiles.
• Side B- This is probably one of the most versatile moves in the game. Pac-Man throws out a line of dots and will transform into his "waka-waka" form and rush after them. The line of dots can be altered or "aimed" by your control stick as he is throwing them out, so you can guide where you want this move to end up. Great for off-stage recovery, approaching the opponent, and is a solid killing move at higher percents.
• Up B- A solid recovery move. This move has Pac-Man spawn a trampoline beneath him that he can then bounce off of 3 times, each time having him go higher. It covers a surprising amount of distance, and combined with his side B Pac-Man has pretty solid recovery all around.
• Down B- In this move Pac-Man throws down a fire hydrant beneath him. The hydrant will then shoot out bursts of water on either side of it, which does no damage but will push back any players caught in its trajectory. Can be useful for edge-guarding and more mind-games with opponents, but really my favorite part about this move is throwing it down onto the opponent's head while in the air above them. It doesn't do a whole lot of damage but I just think it's hilarious because it always seems to catch people off-guard.

Image from the Smash Wiki

Thanks for reading! If you've got the game make sure to give Pac-Man a try. I was surprised at how much I ended up liking him.