This marks the end of the Melee character pages! We will be updating the older ones with picture captions soon, so please check them out! If you enjoyed reading all of these Melee character intros, please consider donating to our Patreon.
All comments were originally written by Sakurai himself. You can see Sakurai’s individual picture comments by hovering your mouse over the image. Originally pictures were given their own page, but for the sake of brevity I combined them. The original page can be accessed here. [TN] marks a translation not
Today, we’re introducing the boss characters that aren’t playable. This will be the last character introduction!
Master Hand
Master Hand is the final boss of Classic Mode. He’s the right hand.
He appeared in the last game as well, but in this appearance he’s a bit more realistic.
The best way to beat him is to memorize his attack patterns.
Find an effective aerial attack, and use it a lot.
Don’t chase him too far offstage.
Use your shield well.
…that’s about it?
1.This is Master Hand. He appeared in the previous game too.
2.Finger beam! Ah, it’s hot.
3.This time, Master Hand can grab you.
Move the control stick quickly to escape.
Crazy Hand
When Master Hand gets weakened, and when the strength of that trophy has been recognized, the left hand appears, driven by destructive desires.
To defeat them, either focus on Master Hand or Crazy Hand and quickly defeat one.
Then they can’t do any combination attacks, and focusing on individuals is a basic tenet of fighting against a group.
Appearance criteria:
When playing Classic Mode on Normal difficulty or higher, get Master Hand’s HP to 150 or less within 5 minutes and 50 seconds of overall play time.
(If you use a continue, he won’t show up).
Time spent on the bonus screen isn’t counted.
1….Both hands?! Well then.
2.Compared to Master Hand, Crazy Hand’s attacks aren’t normal or proper.
3.Sometimes, the hands will coordinate attacks.
Giga Bowser
Appearance criteria:
When playing Adventure Mode on Normal difficulty or higher, defeat Bowser on the final stage within 18 minutes.
(Even if you use a Continue, as long as you do it within 18 minutes, it’s OK)
If you stand a certain set distance away from Giga Bowser, he’ll keep using his Flame Breath, and capitalizing on the lag from that move with powerful aerial attacks or projectiles is effective.
Don’t let your guard down.
1. Tearing away from Bowser’s trophy, Giga Bowser makes an appearance!
This is actually a scene in the opening.
2.He’s…so big. He’s heavy and powerful.
3. In Event 51 (The Showdown)’s nightmarish scenario, Giga Bowser is joined by Mewtwo and Ganondorf.
None of these characters are playable. I should say that in advance.
- Sakurai’s Internal Smash for Wii U/3DS Development Notes - June 23, 2017
- Kirby’s Development Secrets - April 19, 2017
- Sakurai Discusses His Game Design Philosophy In a Podcast [2002] - March 28, 2017
