Throughout the history of fighting games, there have always been a select few characters known for being incredibly overpowered. Sometimes, these characters are unlockable bosses that are included as bonus characters to the main roster. Other times, these overpowered characters are just part of the game's base roster. Some of the most overpowered characters in fighting game history end up gathering an infamous reputation due to being overpowered across multiple games.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has had its fair share of fighting games, starting with the classic Capcom arcade game Heritage for the Future. The manga series has been adapted into four different fighting games over the years. With rosters full of iconic protagonists and antagonists from throughout the series, some of these JoJo games happen to share a particular character that's been notorious throughout their fighting game history. Pet Shop, the avian stand user who serves Stardust Crusaders villain Dio Brando, is one of the most infamous fighting game characters of all time.
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Pet Shop first appeared in the 1999 update release of Heritage for the Future and quickly gained a reputation for being one of the most powerful characters on the roster. One of the character's more blatant strengths is their hitbox. Given that Pet Shop is quite literally a bird, they lacked a normal-shaped hitbox and couldn't get actually be hit by low attacks. This alone would already cause some serious issues, but that wasn't the only factor that made the character infamously strong.
While Pet Shop's flight allowed them to avoid low attacks, they also had an eight-way dash that gave them some pretty wild movement. Pet Shop was also capable of dishing out some solid combos utilizing their Stand of the same name. Couple that with strong super attacks and a ton of mix-up options, and it's easy to see why Heritage for the Future Pet Shop is considered one of the most overpowered fighting game characters of all time.
That may be part of the reason why they didn't make it into the original All-Star Battle, though Pet Shop would make their feared return in the arena fighter, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven. Despite Eyes of Heaven being a completely different kind of fighting game compared to Heritage of the Future, Pet Shop somehow managed to retain their reputation. Once again, Pet Shop's ability to fly granted them a ton more mobility than other characters, especially given the game's arena.
However, Eyes of Heaven's version of Pet Shop benefited the most from having a homing ice projectile that could hit from some wild ranges. Given that a lot of JoJo characters fight up close, it's easy to see why a high-mobility zoner like Pet Shop could easily dominate the roster. Granted, this version wasn't nearly as bad as their Heritage for the Future version, but it certainly didn't help Pet Shop's reputation.
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With the release of All-Star Battle R, Pet Shop's return to a more traditional fighting game was met with shock and concern by long-time fighting game fans, as many wondered if the character would retain any of their overpowered attributes. Shockingly enough, it seems as though All-Star Battle R's version of Pet Shop may actually be the most balanced rendition yet. A ton of the problems that made the character so strong in previous games have been addressed, seemingly ending the reign of Pet Shop in JoJo fighting games.
Pet Shop still retains their ability to fly, though the character actually has a hitbox that allows them to be hit by low attacks. Given All-Star Battle R's Style system for Stands, Pet Shop isn't able to spam out ice projectiles like they could in Eyes of Heaven. On paper, these all seem like solid adjustments to the character, and it seems as though they work in practice as well. Initial tier lists for the game have placed Pet Shop somewhere in B-Tier, which is about average for most of the roster, though, until a solid online scene for the game builds up, their viability isn't certain.
Shockingly, after nearly 23 years since their first fighting game appearance, Pet Shop has managed to actually be a balanced character. Even after being a little ridiculous across two different JoJo's Bizarre Adventure fighting games, it seems as though Pet Shop's finally been given a faithful moveset that doesn't dominate the rest of the roster. While this version of the character is far less powerful than in previous titles, Pet Shop's reputation will likely live on with long-time fighting game fans.