In the first article of this series, we discussed the fundamentals of movement in Melee, showing how intricate the game’s movement system is even within some of its more basic techniques. In this article, we will expand on these to include some of the more complex movement options Melee players have at their disposal. Specifically, this article will go over advanced options for moving along the ground in Melee.

Foxtrotting:

Foxtrotting is a variant of dashing which involves dashing forward, returning the stick to neutral in order to prevent the character from running, and then dashing again. The repetition of this action allows a character to move across the stage quickly without entering their run animation. This is particularly useful for characters whose dash speeds are quicker than their run speeds ‒ namely Falco, Young Link, Samus, and Jigglypuff (although the latter two will typically move via wavedashing or through the air, respectively, instead). However, any character can benefit from foxtrotting in order to move along the ground without running, thereby avoiding the risk of entering the laggy turnaround animation if they want to turn the other direction.

Another technique which functions similarly to foxtrotting requires the character to dash forward, jump cancel their dash into a wavedash, and then dash out of the wavedash. Similarly, if the character does begin running, they can crouch to run cancel and then Cactuar dash out of the crouch. All of these options allow for fluid movement that can be mixed up in a plethora of minute ways.

Moonwalking:

Though it lies on the flashier end of the flashy-practical spectrum, moonwalking is nevertheless a useful technique for Melee players to employ. In order to perform a moonwalk, the player must dash one way and then roll the control stick to the lower corner of the opposite direction without passing through the neutral position. If the control stick enters the neutral position, the character will merely dash the other way. In addition, if the character enters their run animation before the control stick reaches the bottom corner, they will crouch rather than moonwalking. After the first moonwalk, the player can move their control stick to the lower corner of the original direction, then straight to the side of that direction, and then repeat the process in order to moonwalk continuously.

Moonwalking creates staggered movement, as the player will stall for a bit as they dash one way before quickly sliding backwards. This can be used to turn around before sliding off the stage to grab the ledge or hit an opponent while edgeguarding. In addition, some characters gain extended grab hitboxes while moonwalking, even being able to grab behind themselves.

Characters can moonwalk further if they walk rather than dash before setting up the moonwalk; in fact, some characters must walk first in order to successfully moonwalk. This can be impractical to do in a fast-paced tournament match, however. The following characters do not need to walk before moonwalking: Bowser, Captain Falcon, Ganondorf, Kirby, Link, Mewtwo, Peach, Samus, Yoshi, Young Link, and Zelda. Of these, Captain Falcon benefits the most from moonwalking.

A variant of moonwalking, called sticky walking, requires the player to move the control stick under the neutral position back to the direction in which the character initially dashed/walked (it can be the bottom corner of that direction rather than straight to the side). Doing so initiates the run animation, which causes the character to move backwards before they slow to a stop and then begin to run forwards. This is even less practical than regular moonwalking, although it could potentially be used to bait an option from the opponent while in slow motion and then run in for a punish afterwards.

If the player moves their control stick to the second direction a second time, they can perform another variant of moonwalking, known as Charlie walking or boost running. Performing a Charlie walk requires the player to move their control stick on the first frame that the turnaround animation ends, or to return the control stick to neutral before then and then dash out of the standing animation. Doing so will cause them to dash in that direction, after which they can begin another moonwalk sequence, and thus string multiple Charlie walks together. Charlie walking causes a burst of speed to occur during the turnaround animation. Therefore, a string of Charlie walks provides more horizontal momentum than a string of moonwalks.

Boost Grabbing:

Boost grabbing is a form of dash attack canceling which requires the player to execute a dash attack and then press the grab button with three frames. If done correctly, the character will not dash attack, but will instead perform a dash grab with the horizontal momentum of their dash attack. This forward boost can allow a character to grab more quickly and to increase their grab range. Boost grabbing is better than jump cancel grabbing out of a run for Sheik, Marth, Jigglypuff, Samus, and Ganondorf. It is better than dash grabbing for the same characters, plus Falco.

Peach, Mewtwo, and Mr. Game & Watch all have a unique application of boost grabbing: since they all stop during the first frames of their dash attacks, performing a boost grab will cause them to halt their momentum completely. For Bowser, Dr. Mario, Luigi, Mario, Mewtwo, and Mr. Game & Watch, the dash attack sound effect plays within the first three frames of the dash attack, and therefore will play when boost grabbing. As a result, these characters could bait their opponents into shield if the opponent reacts to the audio, only to grab the opponents out of shield. Similarly, the flame effect of Kirby’s dash attack will appear on the first frame of his boost grab.

Shield Stopping:

If characters put up their shield while running, they will slide a short distance while in shield. However, if they shield stop ‒ that is, put up their shield while dashing ‒ they will halt their momentum and shield in place. This is generally more useful than the sliding shield, as it allows for very precise spacing. Effectively, it is a form of run cancelling that does not cause the character to slide at all. It can help characters to throw out a perfectly spaced punish option, particularly an aerial attack since characters can jump immediately out of shield.

Teeter Canceling:

Teeter canceling is a movement option specifically useful at edges, and it also has applications in edgeguarding. If a character stands at the very edge of a platform or stage without performing an action, they will enter their teeter animation. Any action can then be performed out of their teeter. A player can cancel their character’s run animation with a teeter by letting go of the control stick right as their character reaches the edge, after which they can cancel the teeter with an attack or a run in the other direction.

Teeter Canceling has many uses, such as maintaining speedy movement at edges, applying pressure to an opponent who is shielding near a ledge, continuing combos, or throwing out an attack to edgeguard an opponent. In addition, players can dash away from the ledge after a teeter cancel and then wavedash back onto the ledge in order to ledgehog opponents, a tactic known as lean dropping.

Haxdashing:

Haxdashing is another movement option players have at their disposal at the ledge, which is particularly useful for stalling at the ledge or for getting off the ledge. It is performed by letting go of the ledge, jumping towards the edge of the stage, and then wavedashing away from the stage, causing the character to jump off of the ledge and then immediately wavedash back to the ledge. Players can use this to stall safely at the ledge, since the character will typically return to the ledge right as their invincibility wears off. It is technically difficult to perform but can be very useful if the player is caught at the ledge.

Momentum Canceling:

Momentum canceling is an application of various grounded movement options, rather than a movement option itself. Momentum canceling refers to the use of one of a variety of techniques to halt momentum during a wavedash. Some techniques which can be used to cancel momentum during a wavedash include dashing, pivoting, shield stopping, and teeter canceling. Luigi benefits the most from these techniques since he is the “slipperiest” character with the longest wavedash. Characters can attack after their momentum canceled wavedash in order to have their attacks precisely spaced.

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