Who’s Actually the Worst Amiibo in Smash Ultimate?

by Doc – Owner, Founder, Takes Unpopular Stands on Unimportant Things

Everyone agrees on who the best amiibo in Smash Ultimate is. It’s Incineroar, and when Incineroar is banned, then it’s Terry. For a fanbase as perpetually divided as Smash, it’s rare to see something so unanimously agreed-upon.

So let’s mess it up! The most recent vanilla amiibo tier lists have all placed Bayonetta as the worst vanilla amiibo in the game, so low that she’s in her own tier. This is due in large part to the mostly-unanimous belief that Bayonetta simply has nothing going for her, and that her superiors in D at least have something – Jigglypuff has Rest, Zero Suit Samus has juggling, Fox has Up Smash, and so on. All the characters in D+ tier have a minimum threshold of useful tools that Bayonetta can’t match.

But Bayonetta does have something going for her. In fact, she may even have one and a half things going for her.

The Giant Fist

In a handful of recent videos I’ve talked about the Moonwalk Method of amiibo training. This method is basically an innovation on the theory that walking is almost always a better movement option than running (which is why you see walking recommended in many of the amiibo training guides). It’s not earth-shattering, but it does seem to more easily produce amiibo that distance themselves from opponents properly. That’s a big deal for amiibo that operate at a longer distance, like swordfighters…

…and Bayonetta. Being able to properly keep a distance from the opponent is a big honkin’ deal when your only good KO option has a slow startup. The innovation of Moonwalk Method means that Bayonettas should be more competent across the board, and raise her from her lowly D-tier position.

That Other Half-Thing

Stop me if you’ve heard this before. Bayonetta has a very long combo that her character was designed around. It raises the opponent vertically if the opponent doesn’t DI out, and ends up taking them quite high. You could even call it a ladder of sorts.

The Ladder Combo is one of Bayonetta’s better damage-building options when it connects. Ladder Combo gets the opponent into the air and away from any stage control they may have had, and it functions particualrly well on heavies who are slow and easily comboable (who also tend to be high-tier). Best of all, if the amiibo finishes the combo, Bayonetta can simply knock the opponent away with her final attack and then get back to the ground safely, having just dealt damage without putting herself in danger.

Problem is, Ladder Combo has been heavily nerfed since Smash 4, making it a disappointment more often than a lifeline for Bayonetta amiibo. Heel Slide, the opening move for the Ladder Combo, can’t activate the combo if it hits a shield. That’s right – all it takes to end the Ladder Combo is a simple shield.

Here’s the rub: top-trained amiibo typically don’t shield. They parry. Noob-trained amiibo don’t shield, either. They roll. But mid-trained amiibo, amiibo that are just average and therefore most common, shield quite often. This means that Bayonetta is going to be unable to Ladder Combo most of her opponents – but when she can, it’ll be quite potent.

Now you see why I called a half a thing. It’s useful sometimes, but not others, and it all depends on the specific amiibo she’s up against.

Then Who Is The Worst?

Jigglypuff.

Come on, it’s not that big of a statement. The February 2022 tier list has him as second-to-worst, sitting tight and pretty at the bottom of D+ tier. Let’s compare Jigglypuff to Bayonetta:

What does The Virgin Jigglypuff even have? Rest? Not consistently, unless you have Instadrop. How about an anti-heavy saving grace? Nope. Can he at least combo opponents across the stage like Sheik can? Not really.

Jigglypuff has a lot less going for him than Bayonetta, and that’s saying something. Jigglypuff is actually the worst amiibo in Smash Ultimate.