{{Short description|Ranked list originating in video game culture}} {{use dmy dates |date=December 2023}} [[File:Tier list fruits.jpg|thumb|An example of a tier list, subjectively ranking fruits. Higher tiers represent a more favorable ranking. The letters are inspired by grading in education,<ref name="Tiermaker">{{cite web |title=S Tier Meaning {{!}} What does S tier stand for? |url=https://tiermaker.com/blog/news/15/s-tier-meaning-what-does-s-tier-stand-for |website=tiermaker |access-date=2023-12-17 |archive-date=18 January 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260118093507/https://tiermaker.com/blog/news/15/s-tier-meaning-what-does-s-tier-stand-for |url-status=live }}</ref> especially in Japanese culture, which may include an 'S' grade.|alt=Rating movie that I see in hall]] A '''tier list''' is a ranking system where items are subjectively arranged in tiers from the best to worst.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tier List Maker for Everything |url=https://tiermaker.com/ |access-date=2025-12-25 |website=TierMaker |archive-date=22 January 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260122055226/https://tiermaker.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The concept originated in video game culture where playable characters or other in-game elements are ranked by their tournament viability. In addition to video game elements, tier lists have been used to rank items from other subjects, such as films, sports teams, logos, animals, and tabletop games.<ref>{{cite web |last=D'Anastasio |first=Cecilia |date=2018-04-14 |title=YouTuber's Animal Tier Lists Are Brilliant |url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/04/youtubers-animal-tier-lists-are-brilliant/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420125506/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/04/youtubers-animal-tier-lists-are-brilliant/ |archive-date=20 April 2019 |access-date=2023-12-17 |work=Kotaku}}</ref>{{not in source|date=March 2024}} The purpose of a tier list is usually to give room for discussion in the subject, to create an easily understandable overview, or simply to entertain.
Tier lists are a popular method of classifying the cast of playable characters in fighting games such as the ''Tekken'' and ''Super Smash Bros.'' series; multiplayer online battle arena titles such as ''League of Legends'' and ''Dota'' series; hero shooter titles such as ''Overwatch'' and ''Apex Legends''; and action role-playing games with playable party members like ''Genshin Impact.''
==Methodology== Items listed high on a tier list are considered better compared to the items arranged on the lower tiers. For example, video game characters at the top of a tier list of a specific game are considered to be powerful compared to lower-scoring characters, and are therefore more likely to be used in high-level competitive settings like tournaments.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What Is a Tier List? |url=https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/t/tier-list.htm |access-date=2025-12-25 |website=Computer Hope |language=en |archive-date=19 November 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251119064423/https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/t/tier-list.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>
When a competitive game gets an update, a question that arises is how the changes in the game will affect the tier list. Even when no balancing changes actually took place, the inclusion of new characters or new systems can affect tier lists. In fighting games, the strength of a character is always held relative to that of other characters, meaning that something that is strong in one fighting game does not necessarily have to be strong in another. The metagame may shift over time as dominant strategies get overturned using less popular characters.<ref name="GuiltyGear">{{cite web|url=http://www.redbull.com/us/en/esports/stories/1331797292555/peeking-into-guilty-gear-xrd’s-character-strengths |work=Red Bull |title=Peeking into Guilty Gear Xrd's Character Strengths |last=Ellis |first=Anne |date=2016-05-27 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603181432/http://www.redbull.com/us/en/esports/stories/1331797292555/peeking-into-guilty-gear-xrd%E2%80%99s-character-strengths |archivedate=2016-06-03 }}</ref>
Tier rankings may use letter grades. The competitive community surrounding ''Guilty Gear Xrd'', for instance, ranks characters as 'S', 'S-', 'A+', and 'A', where 'S tiers' are particularly powerful and 'A tiers' less so.<ref name=GuiltyGear /> Major video game news websites such as ''The Daily Dot'', ''Kotaku'' and ''PC Gamer'' have published their own tier lists for popular games.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailydot.com/esports/best-overwatch-heroes-tiered-rankings/ |work=The Daily Dot |title=The definitive Overwatch hero tier list |last=Lingle |first=Samuel |date=2016-06-02 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605033146/http://www.dailydot.com/esports/best-overwatch-heroes-tiered-rankings/ |archivedate=2016-06-05 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/overwatch-heroes-ranked-1778633667 |work=Kotaku |title=Overwatch Heroes, Ranked |last=Hernandez |first=Patricia |date=2016-05-25 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161001023121/http://kotaku.com/overwatch-heroes-ranked-1778633667 |archivedate=2016-10-01 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/all-new-genshin-impact-characters-tier-list/ |work=PC Gamer |title=The best Genshin Impact characters |last1=Martin |first1=Sean |first2=Josh |last2=Broadwell |date=2021-08-13 |access-date=2021-08-25 |archive-date=7 December 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251207191018/https://www.pcgamer.com/all-new-genshin-impact-characters-tier-list/ |url-status=live }}</ref> 'S' tier may stand for "special", "super", or the Japanese word for {{Nihongo|"exemplary"|秀|shū}}, and originates from the widespread use in Japanese culture of an 'S' grade for advertising and academic grading.<ref name="Tiermaker" /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Greszes |first1=Sam |title=Why Does S Come Before A in Video Game Rankings? |url=https://www.fanbyte.com/features/s-rank-gaming/ |website=Fanbyte |access-date=2022-05-19 |date=2020-02-04}}</ref>
For a game like ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'', which was released in 2001 and has not been updated since, but is still popular in tournament settings, characters originally overpowered tend to remain that way, due to their inability to receive character-balancing updates. However, characters initially believed to be poor can climb in later tier lists if new techniques are discovered that improve their viability. Different versions of the game may have different tier lists as well. The website ''Smashboards'' bases its yearly tier lists for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series on polling results.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dailydot.com/esports/smash-bros-melee-tier-list-2015/ |work=The Daily Dot |title=The Smash Bros. Melee 2015 tier list has some interesting changes |last=Khan |first=Imad |date=2015-12-13 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011111222/http://www.dailydot.com/esports/smash-bros-melee-tier-list-2015/ |archivedate=2016-10-11 }}</ref>
==Impact== Writing for ''Kotaku'', Maddy Myers noted that characters that are considered low-tier have an advantage over higher-tiered characters, as players have less experience dealing with low-tier characters and often underestimate them. Myers stated that "the element of surprise can only get you so far, but it's still an undeniable asset. And one that the bottom third of every tier list enjoys." Already popular characters may also rise in tier lists because high-level players establish and iterate on their combos and techniques. Myers also noted that tier lists are less useful in team-based games, because character roles and team composition introduce a complex set of variables.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/12/tier-lists-are-garbage/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229150505/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/12/tier-lists-are-garbage/|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 December 2017|work=Kotaku |title=Tier Lists Are Garbage |last=Myers |first=Maddy |access-date=2023-12-17|date=2017-12-21}}</ref>
<!-- Tier lists have been a popular phenomenon on the livestreaming platform Twitch since 2015–2016, and became popular on the YouTube platform videos in 2018–2019.{{citation needed|date=July 2024}} --> A popular variant of the tier list is the "iceberg chart", which ranks items not from best to worst, but from the most commonly known to the most obscure. These charts place items on an illustration of an iceberg, with well-known items at the iceberg's tip and lesser-known ones deep below the water's surface.<ref>Varona, Matthew, et al. [https://arxiv.org/pdf/2510.01382 "Theory is Shapes"], arXiv, 1 October 2025.</ref> Iceberg charts were popularized around 2020.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.trillmag.com/life/social-media/the-iceberg-trend-on-youtube-is-both-terrifying-and-fascinating/ |title=The Iceberg Trend on YouTube is Both Terrifying and Fascinating |date=27 November 2021 |archive-date=11 September 2025 |access-date=25 November 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250911033252/https://www.trillmag.com/life/social-media/the-iceberg-trend-on-youtube-is-both-terrifying-and-fascinating/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
== Formating == Tier lists are most commonly formatted with ranks, most often represented by letters, and are typically ordered S, A, B, C, D, E, F, but can be ordered differently if desired. The top rank, S, is typically reserved for the best of the best. The following rank, A, is just slightly worse than the best, great but not the best. This pattern goes for the rest of the ranks, with each rank getting slightly worse than the one above it.
==References== {{reflist}} {{esports}}
Category:Rankings Category:Esports terminology Category:Video game culture