Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl has been out for almost two weeks, and has already amassed a playerbase big enough to organize tournaments. The game always had potential for a strong competitive scene, and people have gotten enough of a feel of the characters to start ranking their viability.
As the game was getting ready for release, its developers released videos showcasing each character’s moves in detail. This set a lot of expectations for certain characters. Some of them were met, while others were not. Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl appears to follow in the footsteps of Super Smash Bros. Brawl with how ridiculous some characters can get.
Banned
- Michelangelo
The nunchaku-wielding Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle takes a page from Meta Knight’s book and has been banned from the game’s first official tournament at Super Smash Con. Mikey has an attack that can be used infinitely, executed by using a chain grab, followed by his air neutral. This attack works on every character in the game, including Mikey himself.
S-Tier
- Leonardo
- Aang
- Lucy Loud
- Oblina
Another Ninja Turtle rep, the titular Last Airbender, the fifth youngest Loud child, and a candy cane-like monster are all powerful in their own right. Leonardo’s maneuvering and spiking specialty is greatly beneficial, meanwhile Aang is predictably agile in the air and can rack up combos like a champ. Lucy’s technical attributes compliment her quick tricks and she has some of the best moves in the game, such as “Jump Scare.” Oblina boasts amazing speed, an annoying hitbox, and effective projectiles, as well as air attacks, such as her down strong air, that are quick and hard to punish.
A-Tier
- CatDog
- April O'Neil
- Spongebob
The conjoined canine-feline brothers’ ridiculous hitboxes, fast combos, and aerial moves show the versatility of a duo character befitting A-Tier. April’s special moves are great at building up damage to make up for her lack of reliable KO moves. Meanwhile, Spongebob is the “beginner’s choice” and a solid character all-around, but mastering his strong moves and aerial abilities shows how much potential the sponge actually has.
B-Tier
- Zim
- Nigel Thornberry
- Sandy Cheeks
- Danny Phantom
- Ren & Stimpy
Zim is a zoner with obnoxious set-up potential and complimentary strong attacks, Nigel’s unorthodox moveset is useful because he can survive for very long, and Sandy had an infinite attack like Mikey, but lost it in a patch. However, she still has annoying combos to deal with and an effective recovery. Danny Phantom has a lot of solid punishers and the floaty physics befitting of a half-ghost, while Ren & Stimpy round out B-Tier thanks to their predictably clownish moves with decent KO potential and punishable specials.
C-Tier
- Lincoln Loud
- Reptar
- Helga
- Powdered Toast Man
Lincoln might be fast, but most of his attacks are generally weak for doing combos or KO’ing opponents, meaning nothing too crazy has been done with him as of this writing. Reptar is a classic heavy, one with strong projectiles and physical moves that may eventually be sidelined due to his limited potential. Helga has a plethora of interesting moves that have trouble connecting, and Powdered Toast Man might look comical and fancy, but his size cripples him considering he can’t counter easy attacks that his opponents dish out.
D-Tier
- Korra
Korra’s recovery is odd and she might have untapped potential, but she is currently so underused that no general consensus has really been made. She doesn’t have notable flaws like other characters, but no true strengths like the ones above her.
F-Tier
- Toph
- Patrick
Toph may have creative earthbending techniques, but her combo game is lacking and her moves are too slow to keep up with the game’s pace. Patrick’s poor range, lack of speed, and punishable moves - especially his recovery - might be faithful to his trademark stupidity, but is incompatible with a serious fighting game.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.