Everything Bowser topic

[Bowser29]

I noticed that nobody posted a Bowser topic, mainly because so few other people use him, so it's understandable.

Bowser is my main fighter, I probably use him about 85% of the time I play Brawl. I'll list as much as I can about him.

Bowser has recieved a negative judgement by many gamers for his lacking skill in Melee. In brawl however he has undergone many changes that have made him a more competitive fighter in the game. For example, he is much faster than he was in Melee, (just FYI Bowser is faster than Snake, Ganondorf and Dedede, he is not the slowest character in the game. He is still however somewhat slow compared to Donkey Kong and a lot of other characters.)
One thing someone will notice about playing with Bowser is that he is very powerful. His A smashes prove to do a lot of damage and can be very destructive if performed correctly.
However many gamers who try Bowser make the mistake of only using his smash moves for damage and get pushed around a lot. It is important not to get obsessed with his smash moves. I find that his most reliable move is his fire breath (B standard). Bowser's fire breath can be a real pain because it catches everyone in it and unless you are a character like Kirby or Jigglypuff you will have a hard time escaping it. I have worked up to 75-80% damage on many people with the fire breath alone. If done correctly, a fire breath can also be an effective form of edge-guarding.
Bowser's next best move is his spinning shell move (B up). This move is suprisingly quick and a great move for escaping a jam as well as a way to keep opponents in the air.
His other great move is his new body slam move (B side). This move is a great move because it does a lot of damage and opponents cannot to much to fight back damage from this attack. The best time to use this attack is when a character is either guarding or trying to repel your fire. The time it takes for your opponent to finish the move is usually quick enough for you to grab them and perform the slam. Bowserciding is a technique where you take your opponent off the edge with a body slam. It can work very well for evening out lives in stock as well as wining you a match in some situations.
Bowser's smash attacks should be used at the right times, such as when a character rolls into you or when another character is being trapped in another character's attack. Be careful when using these attacks, they make him vulnerable because of slow recovery. Same goes for his sitting slam (B down)
On the whole. Bowser is a difficult character to learn how to use, but he is not nearly as bad as many people make him out to be.

 

[Shadow*91]

you didn't say anything about his AA combo, his →tilt(the punch) or his aerials. you know a lot about bowser but you only spoke about half his moves.

 

[Bowser29]

Sorry shadow, I kind of rushed it down last night.

His a combos are also fairly affective, but they can leave you vulnerable for some time, I'd suggest relying more on the standard a slashes for your basic melee moves.

Bowser's air attacks and his grabs are also somewhat quick compared to other heavy weights. All of Bowser's air moves, especially his air slash (a forward) are great suckerpunch moves for when someone is climbing up a platform or standing around focusing on another opponent.

Oh and one other thing I forgot to mention, never use Bowser against a character who has a vicious chain grab unless you know that either the rules at the event ban it, your opponent doesn't believe it's correct or you're very very confident your opponent cannot perform a chain grab. Chain grabs are annoying for any character but they are a serious threat to Bowser, especially a character like Falco who can perform it quickly. So when you're in a tournament allowing chain grabbing, I would not choose him against characters like Falco, Metaknight and Dedede because their chain grabs will trap you and it is very hard to get out of them.
If for some reason you decide to be rebellious to my advice and get caught in a chain grab, your best bet is to do your shell spin attack (b up) like a phsyco. Slam the buttons on your controller if you have to, it will take a while and it will do you a lot of damage, but that's your best bet. Against approaching chain grabbers, spam your fire breath, and your a slashes and your shell spin attack, they are the quickest moves you have. Other moves will make you vulnerable to an attack. Finally after the game is done, kick your opponent very hard for being a loser. Yes I said it, chain grabbing is lame! Learn some real skills.:nono:

I hope this guide helped I'll answer anyone's questions, and if any of you think Bowser is a bad character, I respect your opinion, but we can always brawl about it online if you want to see someone actually play him well.

 

[Splash_King]

A Bowser mainer, none the less someone who praises him.. Huh, that's a rarity. You know a good amount of stuff about Bowser - any heavy character's bane is chain grabs though, that's for sure. Bowser is probably the most vulnerable character to chain grabs due to his weight and size.

I hope this guide helped I'll answer anyone's questions, and if any of you think Bowser is a bad character, I respect your opinion, but we can always brawl about it online if you want to see someone actually play him well.

Noone should have any reson to look down on Bowser unless they're n00bs, he's a good middle tier character. ..Unless he's in the hands of a n00b. Then he's possibly one of the worst characters a newbie could play.

 

[Shadow*91]

meta doesn't have a chain. just on bowser and D3 cause of their size and weight.

Bowser is very difficult to use but you've outlined his best points very well. just for the sake of a counter arguement against him, i'll offer up his bad points

his reach is mostly quite short so he gets out-prioritized very easily. with Meta, Snake, Falco, and Marth ruling the competitive areas thats a big problem.

as you pointed out hes not the slowest, but that doesn't stop him from being slow. he is one of the slowest so a faster character will have a big advantage, especially if they can reach farther.

his recovery is, at best, average. its decent enough for horizontal distance but a semi-good spike is a guaranteed KO. he just doesn't go up very easy.

his best moves are quite predictable. the butt slam is easily seen and countered. his fire gets weaker with continued use so its only a problem for a few seconds at a time. his →B grab is easy to see coming, especially from a desperate opponent wanting a quick KO from suiciding.

most of his combos are easily countered


Bowser is good but only when used by people that truly know how to use him. he can be beaten easily but he'll put the hurt on before he loses

 

[Bowser29]

I'm actually pretty sure Metaknight does have a chaingrab. He can continually throw his apponent down. Youtube might have some example videos.

 

[Splash_King]

Meta does have a chain grab, but it's reliant on the tripping mechanism of his D-tilt, and any other "chain grabs" he has are easily DId or simply gotten out of the way from.

I.e. some people consider his U-throw to be a chain grab, but as long as you don't air dodge and jump up instead, you're out of grab range. ..Mind games anyone?

 

[Shadow*91]

well either way this thread is for bowser not meta

 

[Resurgence]

Bowser is definitely a lot better in Brawl. His moves come out hella faster and that EVIL Bowserside grab can catch most opponents off guard too. >_<

 

[Splash_King]

Not just definatly, a hell of a lot better. From bottom tier to middle is one heck of a tier shift. ..Then again, compared to Craptain Failcon's shift from top to bottom is no contest. >.>;;

I recently tried out Bowser, and I noticed his moves really do come out a lot faster. He's actually a good character, I saw it with my own eyes. If I didn't suicide all 3 times when I played as him, I would of won. My opponent was in KO range on the last stock, after all. :lol: