Precise control of your movement is one of the most important skills to hone in Melee. And one of the more unique, difficult, and useful movement techniques to master is pivoting. Here we'll talk about the multiple ways you can pivot with a Smash Box, separated into three styles: Release, Plink, and Tilt.
Release is essentially the same way most players pivot on GameCube controllers: press forward, then back, and release back as fast as possible. Though this style is the most self-explanatory, it can be difficult to be consistent with and tends to be less useful than the other two styles.
Plink style uses other direction buttons to ensure pivots. It's called plink style because it requires plinks: pressing two buttons in a single motion, but one right after the other. (We tend to call these WASD pivots as well, since the WASD layout allows all the directions to be pressed in a similar manner with the same hand)
Tilt style uses tilt modifiers to guarantee pivots. By pressing a tilt modifier right after getting a back input you can prevent a dash from activating.
Plink Pivots
Crouch Pivot
SOCD Pivot
After getting the SOCD Pivot, press Down + Y1. (You can use Y2, Tilt 1, or Tilt 2 in place of Y1.)
For more on SOCD Neutral, check out: SOCD Neutral in Melee.
Tap Jump Pivot
This method is great because it's the same timing as the Crouch Pivot, and, since you're using Tap Jump instead of button jump, your jump is less likely to be eaten up by your dash frames after the pivot.
Press forward, press back, then immediately press down to get a down-back input. Release the inputs to get a jump in place, or use the directions to give yourself some momentum.
Tilt Pivot
