Matchup Summary (Win Condition and Game Plan)
Mario uses fireball to slow your feet, then turns his close-range speed from nair, uair, Up B, and grab into fast damage once he gets in. The more Ike sits in front of Mario’s shield at close range, the more the short-range scramble favors Mario instead of the sword.
Low aerial nair and bair, landing up smash, and Up B reversals are especially dangerous here, so showing heavy landings or deep pressure too often lets Mario roll the matchup straight into juggles and edgeguards.
At the same time, Mario’s reach is still short. He has to earn his way past the sword first, usually through fireball timing or a committed jump. If Ike controls that outside layer with walking, short-hop nair, bair, and down tilt, Mario’s entry routes become much more readable. As the table shows, Jab 1-3, forward tilt, up tilt, down tilt, dash attack, every smash attack, Neutral B, and Side B are all stable punish points for grab (10f), OOS Bair (10f), and OOS Nair (13f).
However, nair, bair, and uair are safe here, and even fair or dair often leave only grab or OOS Bair depending on spacing. Do not overforce the first shield punish. Pull back slightly, cover the next jump, landing, or dash-in, and win on the second beat instead.
The win condition is to refuse a direct fireball brawl, make Mario run into the sword in center stage, and then stretch the damage lead with uair juggles, fair pushout, and ledge bair. Deep edgeguards are less reliable than ledge trapping with down tilt, fair, and Eruption, and Mario’s weight means a few clean juggling cycles are usually enough.
Full Move Frame Quick Reference
| Opponent Move | Startup | On Shield | Ike OOS Candidate Moves | Barely Missed Moves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jab 1 | 2 | -14 |
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| Jab 2 | 2 | -16 |
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| Jab 3 | 3 | -25 |
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| Forward Tilt | 5 | -13 |
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| Up Tilt | 5 | -18 |
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| Down Tilt | 5 | -15/-16 |
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| Dash Attack | 6 | -17 |
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| Forward Smash | 15 | -22/-20 |
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| Up Smash | 9 | -20 |
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| Down Smash | 5/14 | -30/-20 |
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| Neutral Air | 3 | -2/-3/-3/-3 |
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| Forward Air | 16 | -12/-12/-13 |
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| Back Air | 6 | -2/-3/-2/-3 |
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| Up Air | 4 | -3 |
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| Down Air | 5/7/9/11/13/23 | -11 |
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| Neutral B | 17 | -23 |
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| Side B | 12 | -16 |
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| Up B | 3… | — | ||
| Down B (1) | 2 (+19) | — | ||
| Down B (2) | 21 | — | ||
| Grab | 6 | — | ||
| Dash Grab | 9 | — | ||
| Pivot Grab | 10 | — |
Win Condition Checklist
- Do not dash into fireball. Use walking, short-hop nair, bair, and down tilt to force Mario into predictable entry angles first.
- Punish Jab 1-3, forward tilt, up tilt, down tilt, dash attack, every smash attack, Neutral B, and Side B with grab (10f), OOS Bair (10f), and OOS Nair (13f) whenever they are blocked.
- Treat nair, bair, and uair as second-beat situations. Back up a step and cover the next jump, landing, or burst-in instead of forcing a bad immediate punish.
- Once Mario is airborne, do not overchase horizontally. Keep center stage, track the landing with uair and walking, and push him toward bair or up-smash kill ranges.
- Prefer ledge trapping with down tilt, fair, and Eruption over deep offstage chases so Mario cannot steal stage position with Cape or F.L.U.D.D.
Actions to Avoid
- Holding shield at close range and letting Mario run repeated Up B reversal or grab mixups.
- Jumping too hard over fireball and feeding Mario’s anti-air nair, uair, and landing trap game.
- Swinging after every blocked nair, bair, or uair and giving Mario the next burst-in for free.
- Leaving deep fair or nair on Mario’s shield and handing him a clean up-smash or Up B punish.
- Overcommitting offstage for one hit and letting Cape or F.L.U.D.D. ruin your own recovery path.