Bowser Super Smash Bros Ultimate Guide - Unlock, Moves, Changes, Bowser Alternate Costumes, Final Smash
Super Smash Bros Ultimate Full Character Roster, plus guides on every fighter in the game, covering changes, moves and alternate outfits.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate brings back every single fighter in series history. With such a huge roster of fighters to choose from, we figured we’d breakdown all the details we know about each one, from the changes since the last game, to what alternate costumes there will be this time around. This guide is concerned with Bowser. We’ll give you all the info we know so far about Bowser in Super Smash Bros Ultimate, including Bowser's moves set and alternative costumes.
We’re building guides on every single fighter in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. Be sure to check our Super Smash Bros Ultimate Characters Hub regularly to see if we’ve covered your favorite character, and to see how much has changed since the last game.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Bowser Guide
Given that Mario is once again in Smash Bros, it’s unsurprising that they’ve brought back Bowser to keep him in check. Bowser has always been an incredibly useful fighter, and thanks to some subtle changes, he’s better than ever in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. In this guide we’ve got all the changes, moves and outfits for Bowser. Let’s get started.
Bowser Smash Bros. Ultimate Moves Set and Final Smash
We've detailed all of Bowser's Special Moves in the table below. You'll find info on how to perform all of Bowser's special moves and Final Smash.
| Special Move Controls | Special Type | Special Move Name |
|---|---|---|
| B | Neutral Special | Fire Breath |
| Left Stick Left/Right + B | Green Missile | Flying Slam |
| Left Stick Up + B | Up Special | Whirling Fortress |
| Left Stick Down + B | Down Special | Bowser Bomb |
| B when FS Meter is Full | Final Smash | Giga Bowser Punch |
For a look at the first Super Smash Bros DLC Fighter, be sure to head to our Super Smash Bros Joker Guide. It's where you'll find details on the Joker release date, amiibo, and more.
How to Unlock Bowser in Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Unlike previous Smash games, fighters are unlocked in the same way for all, rather than character-specific challenges. This means that while it can be a bit of a grind, all you need to do is play the game naturally and you’ll eventually unlock all of the characters in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. We’ve listed the three ways you can unlock characters in Super Smash Bros Ultimate below:
- Playing the World of Light single-player mode.
- Completing Classic Mode with a character.
- Playing the ‘Challenger Approaches’ fights that appear regularly, you will need to win them.
The fastest method involves triggering the Challenger Fights by reloading the game regularly. We’ve listed the method below:
- Quit to the home screen and Restart the game.
- Create a match with a custom rule set.
- Make sure the match is 1 minute long, or 1 stock if you'd prefer.
- After finishing the match (you can win or lose) you will offered a new Challenger Fight.
- You'll need to win the Challenger fight
- Repeat.
For more info on unlocking characters using the modes listed above, head over to our Super Smash Bros Ultimate Character Unlock Guide .
Bowser Changes in Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Bowser has gone through a fair few changes since his appearance in Super Smash Bros Wii U. Mostly, the changes are subtle tweaks to some of his moves, including differences in animations and damage output. We’ve gathered all of the changes to Bowser in the list below.
- New victory poses
- More detailed facial expressions
- Neutral attack does less damage
- New down smash - claw swipe
- Lower landing lag on all aerials
- Down throw does more damage
- Fire breath has changed color slightly
- Giga Bowser has changed, and now appears as a giant and lands a punch on the screen. Screen KO possible
Bowser Alternate Costumes in Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Just like in the previous game, Bowser has a range of variant outfits. They are mostly just small variations and palette swaps, with orange, purple, yellow, green, red and blue versions available. It’s possible that there may be more, perhaps his wedding costume from Super Mario Odyssey, but we will have to wait and see to know for sure.
Bowser Final Smash in Super Smash Bros Ultimate - Giga Bowser Changes
Bowser’s Final Smash has been drastically altered for Super Smash Bros Ultimate. It’s still the Giga Bowser move you know and love, but is more akin to its use in SSB Brawl. Giga Bowser moves to the back of the screen and grows to giant size. He then aims and triggers a punch which has the potential to KO everyone on the screen. At the very least, the move causes huge knockback damage, and is a seriously formidable move.
That’s all the info we have so far on Bowser in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. Be sure to stay tuned for more guides on the rest of the roster. If you’re looking for more on the game itself, head over to our Super Smash Bros Ultimate Guides Hub.