Smashpedia
Register
Advertisement

Marioending
Congratulations! This has been chosen to be a Featured Article, making it an article of interest.
For fighter info, see Ridley (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate).

Ridley is the main antagonist of the Metroid series, and a major enemy in most of the games, generally acting as one of the later bosses. He is a space pirate that resembles a dragon, having vicious claws on his hands, large wings on his back, and a long whip-like tail that allows him to skewer his opponents. His attacks usually include a charge attack, fireballs (a lot of small ones or a few big ones), a diving attack where he grabs Samus Aran and damages her, and various moves with his tail, from slamming it on the ground to flailing it like a whip.

Ridley was named after Ridley Scott, a famous Hollywood film director who helmed the Alien movie franchise. The Alien series served as the largest inspiration for many elements seen throughout the Metroid series including a female protagonist for both franchises.

In the original Metroid series, he is a major antagonist in Metroid, the main antagonist of Metroid: Zero Mission, Super Metroid, the first Metroid Prime game, and Metroid: Samus Returns, the central antagonist of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, and a posthumous antagonist in Metroid: Other M and Metroid Fusion.

Character description[]

Ridley

Ridley as he appears in Super Metroid

Ridley serves as the main villain of the Metroid series. His "official" name being Geoform 187, he is a high-ranking Space Pirate General. In spite of his bestial appearance and fearsome mannerisms, however, Ridley is by no means a mindless animal; he is very intelligent and, in the manga series, capable of speech.

Ridley is directly connected to Samus Aran's past and present. In the Metroid E-Manga, he has gained enough favor with the Space Pirates that he is now one of their figures of highest authority. He attacked and devastated 3-year-old Samus' homeworld of K-2L in a raid for fuel and resources, and personally killed Samus' mother when she jumped in to protect her daughter. Unwittingly, he created his own worst enemy in Samus for this.

In Metroid, he appears as one of the major antagonists in the game and the military leader of the Space Pirates and as a boss in the area with his name, and in Zero Mission, he serves as the main antagonist and the final boss is a robot in his likeness. He, his counterpart Kraid and all the Space Pirates want to capture the Metroids for, of course, evil purposes.

A cyborg version of Ridley, called Meta Ridley, was the main antagonist in Metroid Prime and reappeared in addition to a new version called Omega Ridley in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Meta Ridley also appears in Brawl as another boss).

Although Ridley does not appear in Metroid II: Return of Samus, he was added into the remake, Metroid: Samus Returns, as the game's primary antagonist and final boss. In this game, he takes the form of "Proteus Ridley", and appears to be in a transitional state between his organic and meta forms. He attempts to steal the Metroid hatchling as Samus prepares to leave SR388. Samus manages to fend him off for the time being.

Ridley also appears as the main antagonist of Super Metroid. He kidnaps the last Metroid, a hatchling found by Samus. It ends up as the main mission of the game, and having to find the Metroid hatchling, the player again battles Ridley, Kraid, Mother Brain, and others.

In Metroid: Other M, Ridley is cloned from pieces of his DNA left on Samus' Power Suit. Ridley's growth cycle is also detailed throughout the game, in which he starts as an infantile bird-like creature that covertly relies on and manipulates the strength of others to secure food for it, then growing into a larger lizard-like form resembling his famous winged dragon form. One particular scene in the game became the subject of controversy, where Samus is confronted by a seemingly resurrected Ridley. She suffers a horrified PTSD attack and is too paralyzed with fear to fire back, despite having been able to fight Ridley in the past after seeing him alive again. Federation soldier Anthony Higgs manages to fend off Ridley, seemingly dying in the process, which finally spurs Samus into action. Samus seems to kill Ridley in the following fight, but when she goes to check on Adam, he escapes through a wall. He is then killed by the Queen Metroid off-screen.

In Metroid Fusion, Ridley's cryogenically frozen remains appear, and Samus fights an X Parasite mimicking him.

Ridley in Planet Zebes (Super Smash Bros

Ridley in the Planet Zebes stage.

In Super Smash Bros.[]

Ridley occasionally appears as a cameo in the Planet Zebes stage, flying in the background, his sprites are the ones used in Super Metroid.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee[]

RidleyMeleeCameo

Ridley's cameo appearance fighting Samus.

He has a cameo in the introduction sequence of Super Smash Bros. Melee, fighting Samus, when Samus jumps on top of him and shoots several missiles. He appears to have the baby Metroid capsule in Super Metroid.

RidleyMeleeTrophy

Trophy description[]

The head of the Space Pirates on Zebes, Ridley soars through space on wicked wings. Ridley may look like a mindless monster, but he's actually quite intelligent. After the SR-388 incident, where Samus captured the infant Metroid, Ridley took the Space Academy by storm, annihilating the complex and taking the Metroid back.

  • Metroid (1989)

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl[]

A remix of Ridley's theme from Super Metroid and Meta Ridley's theme from Metroid Prime both appear in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In addition, Ridley's lair in the Metroid series, Norfair, is also featured as a stage. Hacking shows that Assist Trophy data of Ridley was found, but, Ridley doesn't appear as an assist trophy despite his other numerous references. Presumably, Ridley was initially planned as an assist trophy, but was instead included as a boss.

Role in the Subspace Emissary[]

Ridley

Ridley in the Subspace Emissary.

Ridley appears as the fifth boss during the Subspace Emissary, in which Samus and Pikachu must fight him. He is found at the end of the Research Facility II. In the cutscene prior to his battle, Ridley ambushes and grabs Samus, flying upward and scraping her along the walls. Pikachu breaks Samus free from Ridley's grasp using Thunder, causing him to fall onto the platform, though Ridley manages to regain his composure and initiates the fights. In the first battle, Ridley has higher health and uses moves ranging from claw swipes to a move similar to Rayquaza's Extremespeed to a tail swipe across the entire stage. The tail swipe can do major damage (The move can do around 70% damage on a 0% damage target) on harder difficulties and the extreme speed move is a main killing move.

Ridley and his Meta Ridley form are resurrected by Tabuu, their true leader, in The Great Maze to face down the heroes. Oddly enough, they are resurrected as separate beings.

Ridley's attacks[]

Ridley is not particularly difficult, but spends most of his time in the air over the abyss. Characters with strong aerials have an easier time, but in a pinch up-smashes can be used. Most of his attacks are either relatively slow or well telegraphed, thus staying alert can help you avoid a lot of damage. The hardest attacks to dodge are his claw sweep (not his tail sweep) and shuttle loop, but by paying attention to his attack order they can be predicted.

On higher difficulties of Subspace Emissary, defeating Ridley usually earns something valuable.

First OR Second Move[]

- Ridley scrapes the stage with his tail. At low percentages, it covers half the stage. At higher percentages, it covers the whole stage, sometimes turning around at the end to double back. Sometimes he will use this attack twice in a row. It can be easily dodged by jumping over his tail.

First Move[]

- Ridley flies off the screen, then rushes at you horizontally. Oddly, he seems to charge at a random speed each time, regardless of difficulty. It can be dodged by any dodge or jumping over/under with good timing, though the variable speed may lead to issues on higher difficulties. Leaving the stage and grabbing the ledge is often safest, as the attack is obviously telegraphed.

- Ridley does a shuttle loop and damages anyone who makes contact. This can be dodged by jumping into the middle of the loop, where he will just circle players, or outside of the loop.

Second Move[]

- Ridley roars and flaps his wings violently, which kicks up wind that pushes players back slightly. Damage can be taken by making contact with his head as this starts.

- Ridley flies low and sweeps the stage with his claws. He screeches before this.

Third Move[]

- Ridley lands on the floor, jumps up, and then drops down trying to stomp on players. Because Ridley always drops down on the same spot he landed before jumping, it can be dodged by running to the opposite end of the stage.

- Ridley jumps up and then flies toward you from the background, similar to Master Hand's punch, but with an erratic flight pattern. It will only hit you if you are on or very close to the ground, so it can be dodged easily by jumping over it or by sidestep dodging.

Trophy Ridley

Trophy description[]

The leader of the Space Pirates. He looks like a pterosaur but has high intelligence and a brutal nature. He plans to steal the baby Metroid from Samus for his own use. Ridley utilizes wings for a full range of flight and attacks with fireballs from his mouth and whips of his tail. As the culprit behind the murder of Samus's parents, the connections with Samus run deep.

In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U[]

Ridley-SSB4

Ridley appears as a stage boss on the Pyrosphere stage. He will attack all players on the field with his claws and tail, but if someone attacks him enough, the matching mark will appear above him and he will join them and fight for their side. If he is KO'd, it will count as a KO in Time mode, and a unique stock of him will appear in the end screen. If Ridley stands in the board of the stage, he will drain energy, and absorbing enough causes him to become more vicious as Meta Ridley. At this point, Ridley uses his tail against the fighters. He will also spit regular-sized fireballs (either individually or in bursts of three).

RidleyTrophyWiiU

Trophy Description[]

Samus's long-standing rival in battle. In this game, he's a common foe to all the fighters in the Pyrosphere stage. However, if you manage to launch him or knock him over, he'll become an ally to whoever dealt the last blow. Defeating him in a timed battle nets you +1 KO.

  • Metroid (1989)
  • Super Metroid (1994)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate[]

As a playable character[]

Ridley SSBU

Ridley returned in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a playable character. This was confirmed by game director Masahiro Sakurai at the E3 2018 Nintendo Direct. His attacks include a fist smash, tail swipes, and fire breathing.

In this game, Ridley can resize himself to fit into almost a humanoid size during a battle. During his Final Smash cutscene, he temporarily regrows to his original size to attack opponents.

See also[]

Trivia[]

  • Ridley has a move during the first battle similar to Dyna Blade in Kirby Super Star. He stomps on the ground, then takes to the background and jets straight ahead into camera view and flies up. He had done this before during a fight with Samus in Super Metroid, but not as an attack. A similar type of attack was employed by Meta Ridley in Metroid Prime. It is similar to Master Hand and Crazy Hand's Jet attack.
  • Jigglypuff is the only character that Ridley can One hit-KO (at any percentage) using the move where he flies offscreen then rushes across the stage at top speed.
  • On the official Japanese polls Ridley was voted for four times to be playable. The highest vote was for King Dedede with five.
  • In Metroid: Other M, Ridley has an attack that scrapes Samus against a wall, almost exactly like in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. However, he momentarily stops at some point.
  • In Brawl, he is unable to shoot fireballs as he did as an attack in past Metroid games. The fireball attacks were used by Meta Ridley. However, in Super Smash Bros for Wii U, Ridley regains his ability of shooting fireballs.
  • Ridley's Brawl design is based on his appearance in Super Metroid.
  • Masahiro Sakurai stated why Ridley wasn't playable in Super Smash Bros for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U [1]
  • While Pyrosphere was a randomized stage in the All-Star Mode for Super Smash Bros for Wii U, Ridley is one of two/four stage bosses that did not make an appearance due to it utilizing the 8-Player format which disables Ridley for appearing. The other stage boss not part of All-Star is Metal Face from Xenoblade Chronicles on account of his stage, Gaur Plain, not part of the mode.
  • Ridley is the largest Smash fighter in terms of character height, but not character weight (Bowser is the heaviest).

External links[]

References[]

Playable Fighters
Introduced in
Smash 64
Captain Falcon  ยท Donkey Kong  ยท Fox McCloud  ยท Jigglypuff  ยท Kirby  ยท Link  ยท Luigi  ยท Mario  ยท Ness  ยท Pikachu  ยท Samus Aran  ยท Yoshi
Introduced in
Meleelogo
Bowser  ยท Dr. Mario  ยท Falco Lombardi  ยท Ganondorf  ยท Ice Climbers  ยท Marth  ยท Mewtwo  ยท Mr. Game & Watch  ยท Princess Peach  ยท Pichu  ยท Roy  ยท Sheik  ยท Young Link  ยท Princess Zelda
Introduced in
Brawllogo
Diddy Kong  ยท Ike  ยท King Dedede  ยท Lucario  ยท Lucas  ยท Meta Knight  ยท Captain Olimar  ยท Pit  ยท Pokรฉmon Trainer (Charizard  ยท Ivysaur  ยท Squirtle)  ยท R.O.B.  ยท Solid Snake  ยท Sonic the Hedgehog  ยท Toon Link  ยท Wario  ยท Wolf O'Donnell  ยท Zero Suit Samus
Introduced in
Super Smash Bros. for 3DS & Wii U
Alph  ยท Bayonetta  ยท Bowser Jr. / Koopalings  ยท Cloud Strife  ยท Corrin  ยท Dark Pit  ยท Duck Hunt  ยท Greninja  ยท Little Mac  ยท Lucina  ยท Mega Man  ยท Mii Fighters  ยท Pac-Man  ยท Palutena  ยท Robin  ยท Rosalina & Luma  ยท Ryu  ยท Shulk  ยท Villager  ยท Wii Fit Trainer
Introduced in
Smash Ultimate logo glow
Banjo & Kazooie  ยท Byleth  ยท Chrom  ยท Dark Samus  ยท Daisy  ยท Heroes  ยท Incineroar  ยท Inklings  ยท Isabelle  ยท Joker  ยท Kazuya Mishima  ยท Ken Masters  ยท King K. Rool  ยท Min Min  ยท Piranha Plant  ยท Pyra and Mythra  ยท Richter Belmont  ยท Ridley  ยท Sephiroth  ยท Simon Belmont  ยท Sora  ยท Steve and Alex / Zombie and Enderman  ยท Terry Bogard
Background characters
Introduced in
Smash 64
Bronto Burt  ยท Buzzy Beetle  ยท Fly Guy  ยท Goonie  ยท Koopa Troopa  ยท King Dedede  ยท Moltres  ยท Pidgey  ยท Ridley  ยท Whispy Woods
Introduced in
Meleelogo
Banzai Bill  ยท Chozo Statue  ยท Cranky Kong  ยท Four Giants  ยท Goomba  ยท Kraid  ยท Lakitu  ยท Moon  ยท Pak E. Derm  ยท Tingle  ยท Toad
Introduced in
Brawllogo
Azelf  ยท Boo  ยท Red Bulborb  ยท Chain Chomp  ยท Cresselia  ยท Cubone  ยท Drifloon  ยท Dugtrio  ยท Electivire  ยท The Fish  ยท GEKKO  ยท Hoppip  ยท K.K. Slider  ยท Knuckles the Echidna  ยท Magnezone  ยท Mei Ling  ยท Mesprit  ยท Metal Gear RAY  ยท Metal Gear REX  ยท Otacon  ยท Parasite Queen  ยท Peppy Hare  ยท Porky Statue  ยท Roy Campbell  ยท Polar Bear  ยท Silver the Hedgehog  ยท Skarmory  ยท Slippy Toad  ยท Snorunt  ยท Snover  ยท Star Wolf  ยท Tails  ยท Timmy & Tommy  ยท Tom Nook  ยท Uxie  ยท Villager
Introduced in
Super Smash Bros. for 3DS & Wii U
Affinity  ยท Alfonso  ยท Axew  ยท Blastoise  ยท Clawitzer  ยท Dragonite  ยท Emolga  ยท Fortitudo  ยท Honedge  ยท Hydreigon  ยท Inspired  ยท Kapp'n  ยท Lloid  ยท Lumas  ยท Mii  ยท Milotic  ยท Mr. Resetti  ยท Nintendog  ยท Pikmin  ยท Piplup  ยท Pyroar  ยท Scizor  ยท Shaymin  ยท Steelix  ยท Toad Brigade  ยท Toon Link  ยท Viridi  ยท Wailord  ยท Whimsicott  ยท Wii Balance Board  ยท Yveltal  ยท Zapdos  ยท Zekrom
Introduced in
Smash Ultimate logo glow
Andy Bogard  ยท Aqua  ยท Athena Asamiya  ยท Billy Kane  ยท Blue Mary  ยท Bottles  ยท Buzzbomb  ยท Carmilla  ยท Cetacea  ยท Chang Koehan & Choi Bounge  ยท Claude von Riegan  ยท Death  ยท Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd  ยท Dracula  ยท Edelgard von Hresvelg  ยท Geese Howard  ยท Goro Daimon  ยท Gruntilda  ยท Heihachi Mishima  ยท Iori Yagami  ยท Jinjo  ยท Joe Higashi  ยท Judd and Li'l Judd  ยท Kim Kaphwan  ยท King  ยท Kyo Kusanagi  ยท Master Mummy  ยท Mechanica  ยท Medusa  ยท Mobs  ยท Mรฒrag and Brighid  ยท Mumbo Jumbo  ยท Mummy  ยท Nia and Dromarch  ยท Ninjara  ยท Pauline  ยท Phantom Thieves of Hearts  ยท Ralf Jones & Clark Still  ยท Rhea  ยท Ribbon Girl  ยท Riku  ยท Rock Howard  ยท Roxas  ยท Ryo Sakazaki  ยท Ryuji Yamazaki  ยท Slime  ยท Sora  ยท Spring Man  ยท Terra  ยท The Creature & Flea Man  ยท Tockles  ยท Tooty  ยท Tora and Poppi ฮฑ  ยท Tung Fu Rue  ยท Twintelle  ยท Ventus  ยท Werewolf  ยท Xion  ยท Yuri Sakazaki  ยท Zeke and Pandoria
MetroidSymbol Metroid universe
Characters Samus Aran (64  ยท Melee ยท Brawl  ยท 3DS/Wii U  ยท Ultimate)
Zero Suit Samus (Brawl  ยท 3DS/Wii U  ยท Ultimate)
Ridley (Ultimate)
Dark Samus (Ultimate)
Side Characters Bosses Ridley  ยท Meta Ridley
Assist Trophies Metroid  ยท Dark Samus  ยท Mother Brain
Mii Fighter Costume Samus Aran
Background characters Ridley  ยท Kraid  ยท Parasite Queen
Stage Hazards FG II-Graham  ยท Joulion  ยท Zero  ยท Ridley
Enemies Geemer  ยท Kihunter  ยท Metroid  ยท Reo
Stages Planet Zebes  ยท Brinstar  ยท Brinstar Depths  ยท Norfair  ยท Frigate Orpheon  ยท Pyrosphere
Brinstar Escape Shaft
Item Screw Attack
Music List of Music (Metroid series)
Collectibles Trophies Melee Trophies  ยท Brawl Trophies  ยท 3DS Trophies  ยท Wii U Trophies
Stickers List of Stickers (Metroid series)
Spirits List of spirits (Metroid series)
Masterpieces Metroid  ยท Super Metroid
SubspaceSymbol Bosses WorldOfLightSymbol
Introduced in
Smash 64
Master Hand  ยท Metal Mario  ยท Giant Donkey Kong
Introduced in
Meleelogo
Crazy Hand  ยท Giga Bowser  ยท Metal Bros.
Introduced in
Brawllogo
Petey Piranha  ยท Rayquaza  ยท Porky Statue / Porky Minch  ยท Galleom  ยท Ridley  ยท Duon  ยท Meta Ridley  ยท Tabuu
Introduced in
Super Smash Bros. for 3DS & Wii U
Master Core
Introduced in
Smash Ultimate logo glow
Rathalos  ยท Ganon  ยท Dracula  ยท Marx  ยท Galeem  ยท Dharkon
Advertisement