[10][11] New features include having up to eight players fighting at a time on the Wii U version, support for Nintendo's line of Amiibo (being one of the first games to do so), using custom Miis as playable fighters, post-release downloadable content including additional fighters and stages, and customizable special moves.

Like in previous games in the series, Super Smash Bros. is a multiplayer platform fighter where players use various attacks, techniques, and items to deal damage to their opponents and knock them out of the arena.

[16][17] Like its predecessors, Super Smash Bros. features collectible in-game trophies based on characters or items seen in various Nintendo or third-party games.

Additionally, solo play once again features Classic mode, which features an intensity setting directly influenced by Masahiro Sakurai's previous project Kid Icarus: Uprising, in which players can make the game more difficult by spending in-game currency to earn greater rewards.

Although the game does not feature a ranking system for online matches, matchmaking between players of similar skill levels was introduced.

[25] The Nintendo 3DS version features stereoscopic 3D graphics with optional cel-shaded outlines to make the characters more visible.

Smash Run, based on the City Trial mode from Kirby Air Ride, has players navigate an open environment, fighting computer-controlled enemies to earn stat-increasing power-ups, before facing each other in a randomly selected match,[27] such as vertical or horizontal races against each other or battles with various special rules.

StreetSmash is a StreetPass-based game in which players control a disc on a top-down board and attempt to knock their opponents out of the arena.

[28] The 3DS version supports the additional controls featured on the New Nintendo 3DS, such as using the C-Stick to trigger Smash Attacks, but is incompatible with the Circle Pad Pro peripheral because of hardware limitations.

[29] The Wii U version features high-definition 1080p graphics and a special mode called 8-Player Smash that allows up to eight players simultaneously.

[31][32] Returning features unique to this version include Special Smash, allowing for unique rules, Stage Builder and Photo mode, which allow players to create personalized stages and dioramas (with a compatible SD card), and demo versions of classic games in a "Masterpieces" gallery.

!, Greninja from Pokémon X and Y, Palutena and Dark Pit from Kid Icarus: Uprising, Lucina and Robin from Fire Emblem Awakening, Shulk from Xenoblade Chronicles, the dog and duck as a duo from Duck Hunt, Capcom's Mega Man, Bandai Namco's Pac-Man, and the Mii Fighter, which can be customized with one of three fighting styles: Brawler, Swordfighter, and Gunner.

Some returning fighters who could change forms during a match in previous titles are now playable solely as individual characters.

[47][48] Bayonetta was chosen as the overall winner worldwide among "negotiable and realizable" characters in a player-nominated ballot which ran between April 1, 2015, and October 3, 2015, ranking first in Europe and among the top five in North America.

[49][50][51][52] Sakurai and former Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata decided not to reveal the top-requested fighters of the poll, believing if they had, "people might demand them from the respective game companies" which would cause "some inconvenience" to any negotiations.

[53][54] Corrin was developed as a downloadable character in response to the critical and commercial success of Fire Emblem Fates in Japan and in anticipation for the game's worldwide localization.

[9] Along with screenshots being posted each weekday on the game's official website and Miiverse community,[64] various cinematic trailers were released, introducing each of the brand new fighters.

Sakurai chose to use these trailers, which benefit from Internet sharing, as opposed to including a story campaign similar to the Subspace Emissary mode featured in Brawl, as he believed the impact of seeing the mode's cinematic cutscenes for the first time was ruined by people uploading said scenes to video sharing websites.

[70] In late August 2014, a series of allegedly leaked photos and videos of the 3DS version were uploaded to the Internet, revealing at the time several unannounced fighters.

[71][72][73] These leaks were confirmed on September 11, 2014, when various gamers in Japan and Taiwan obtained the 3DS version two days prior to its release date and streamed footage of the game on Twitch.

[76] Various well known video game composers and musicians such as Masashi Hamauzu, Yuzo Koshiro, Yasunori Mitsuda, Motoi Sakuraba, Yoko Shimomura, Mahito Yokota, Akari Kaida, Michiru Yamane, Koji Kondo, Kazumi Totaka, and Masafumi Takada, among many others, contributed arrangements for the game, while the original score was written by Bandai Namco's internal sound team.

[85][86] On April 15, 2015, a software update was released, adding the ability to purchase additional content, such as playable characters, new stages, and Mii Fighter costumes, and addressing some balancing issues in the game.

[87] An update released on July 31, 2015, added an online tournament mode and the ability to upload replays to YouTube.

[91] Daniel Bischoff of GameRevolution called it "the biggest leap forward Smashers have seen yet", praising the game for its graphics and "incredibly fast action".

[101] Daniel Starkey at GameSpot criticized the inconsistent performance of online multiplayer, but still called the game "incredible", noting, "With the Wii U release, Smash Bros. has fully realized its goals".

[105] Jose Otero from IGN praised the game for "appeal[ing] to the nostalgia of long-time Nintendo fans" while also being "accessible to new players".

[109] Thomas Schulenberg of Joystiq criticized occasional "matches plagued with stuttering frame rates" during online play and discussed his "indifference toward the Amiibo experience" but praised the game for its "abundance of goals to chase".