Dr. Mario’s amiibo figure was first released on September 11, 2015 as a Target exclusive, and is compatible with both Super Smash Bros. 4 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Dr. Mario is considered high-tier in both Super Smash Bros. 4 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Super Smash Bros. 4
Alongside Mario, Dr. Mario is currently ranked as an A-tier fighter in Super Smash Bros. 4. Compared to his red-clad counterpart, Dr. Mario is stronger but slower. His forward tilt can be angled and serves as a solid neutral option, but his up and down tilts are generally less useful due to their limited range. Dr. Mario’s smash attacks are noticeably stronger than Mario’s; forward smash, while lacking in range, can KO opponents as early as 90% when sweetspotted. Up smash is a great aerial punish that renders the doctor’s head intangible throughout its duration. Dr. Mario can also gimp opponents by shooting Megavitamins off-stage or using Super Sheet to intercept enemies who recover high.
However, Dr. Mario suffers from several flaws, the most notable of which is his lack of range. Even in close combat, many of Dr. Mario’s moves occasionally whiff their target and leave him horribly vulnerable after missing. His recovery is also quite poor and is even less effective than Mario’s. Dr. Mario’s AI also struggles with the same spamming issues as Mario in that it overuses its down smash and side special.
Dr. Mario is capable of utilizing a corruptive playstyle; however, this was a rarity in Super Smash Bros. 4 tournaments, as most players just entered corruptive Mario instead. Most tournament-ready Dr. Mario amiibo were trained “legitimately” and did not rely on corruption. Regardless, the character received above average results and representation and is considered about on par with Mario. If you would like to learn how to train a Dr. Mario amiibo in Smash 4, please refer to our training guide.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Despite Mario and Dr. Mario being extremely similar in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Dr. Mario is considered to be drastically better than Mario, to the point where Mario is borderline non-viable simply because he is so outclassed. Now that learning can be disabled corruptive playstyles are no longer possible, and Dr. Mario being much stronger than Mario on average means he is the best choice for trainers looking to train one of the two. His forward smash is incredibly powerful, and his forward tilt is a quick option to help him avoid getting punished at close range. His AI is also capable of performing many hard-coded follow-ups out of a down throw such as down air, forward air, up air, Super Jump Punch, and Dr. Tornado. Dr. Mario’s back throw is also incredibly strong, which gives him an edge over opponents who shield a lot. Although Dr. Mario should absolutely stay on-stage, his down air is a powerful meteor smash that, while risky, can net early KOs for Dr. Mario. The AI is even capable of comboing off of its Megavitamins, which helps it deal with opponents at a distance. Many of the common high-tier characters such as Ganondorf, Zelda, Snake, and Piranha Plant can have trouble against a well-trained Dr. Mario, earning him his spot as a high-tier.
Dr. Mario, much like Ganondorf, is a very polarizing high-tier in the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate metagame. He is incredibly powerful on-stage, but once tossed off-stage he can very well find himself KO’d at nearly any percentage. His up special, Super Jump Punch, lacks in both vertical and horizontal travel distance, and his air speed and jump height are lacking as well. Even in his best matchups, Dr. Mario can be thrown offstage once and be rendered helpless. On top of this, Dr. Mario’s FP can overuse Dr. Tornado and drift off of the stage and self-destruct with it. High-tier characters such as Link, King K. Rool, and especially Mii Gunner are very difficult for Dr. Mario to defeat. Characters that are capable of outranging and gimping Dr. Mario are known to give him trouble in tournament matches.
Overall, Dr. Mario has accrued impressive tournament results and high representation, despite his high-risk high-reward factor. As mentioned previously, Dr. Mario is considered wholly stronger than Mario, and as such has received much higher representation. This is partially because Dr. Mario lacks the down air-spamming AI flaw that constantly plagues Mario. fammydamammmy is considered the best Dr. Mario trainer, and has won many tournament championships with the character. PrinZ and Riparo have also found success with Dr. Mario. If you would like to learn how to train your own Dr. Mario amiibo, please refer to our training guide.
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