Rare Ltd.

Rare's logo.

Rare, Ltd (formerly known as Rareware) is a video game developer. Rare was a second-party developer for the Nintendo gaming platforms until it was acquired by Microsoft in 2002. Prior to this, they were known for games on Nintendo systems such as the Donkey Kong Country series and Star Fox Adventures.

Role in Super Smash Bros. series

Rare has been represented well in the Super Smash Bros series, although heavily Donkey Kong related. Stage designs, characters, music and even voice actors have been inspired by or brought from their games.

Characters

• Donkey Kong (Super Smash Bros./Super Smash Bros. Melee/Super Smash Bros. Brawl)
• Diddy Kong (Brawl)

Stages

• Congo Jungle (SSB/Melee)
• DK Island: Jungle Japes (Melee/Brawl)
• DK Island: Kongo Jungle (Melee)

Items

• Barrel Cannon (Melee)
• Motion-Sensor Bomb (SSB/Melee)
• Cloaking Device (Melee)

Trophies

Melee

• Donkey Kong (although the original version of DK debuted in Donkey Kong, the game uses the design which originated with Donkey Kong Country)
• Donkey Kong Smash 1
• Donkey Kong Smash 2
• Motion Sensor Bomb
• Cloaking Device
• Dixie Kong
• King K. Rool

Brawl

• Donkey Kong
• Konga Beat (although credited as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, this attack made its debut in DK64.)
• Diddy Kong
• Rocketbarrel Barrage (although credited as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, this attack made its debut in DK64.)
• Dixie Kong
• Cranky Kong
• King K. Rool
• Funky Kong
• Candy Kong
• Lanky Kong
• Wrinkly Kong
• Rambi
• Enguarde
• Tiny Kong
• Squitter
• Expresso
• Peanut Popgun
• Rocketbarrel Pack
• Krystal
• Tricky

Music

The Rare music in the Super Smash Bros is mostly based on the themes from the games, but are new re-mixed versions unless stated with an *

SSB

• 6: A remix of the first stage music heard in Donkey Kong Country. It is heard in Congo Jungle, and both the music and the stage were reused in Super Smash Bros. Melee.
• 16: [7] The victory fanfare of Donkey Kong is an orchestration of the "Boss Defeated" music heard in Donkey Kong Country for the SNES.

Melee

• 3: Kongo Jungle: A cover band performance of the "DK Rap" made infamous in the opening sequence to Donkey Kong 64, with a different assortment of instruments and rhythms from its original appearance. It is heard only in the DK Island: Kongo Jungle stage.
• 4: Jungle Japes: A calm and atmospheric remix of the "DK Island Swing" in various stages of Donkey Kong Country for SNES. It is heard in DK Island: Jungle Japes.
• 39: DK's Victory: The victory fanfare of Donkey Kong is an orchestration of the "Boss Defeated" music heard in Donkey Kong Country for SNES.

Brawl

• Kong Jungle (Melee):The song for the Kongo Jungle stage in Melee, it is a cover band performance of the "DK Rap" made infamous in the opening sequence to Donkey Kong 64, with a much different assortment of instruments and rhythms from its original appearance. It is unknown why it is called "Kong Jungle" in Brawl instead of its Melee title, "Kongo Jungle."
• Jungle Japes (Melee):The song that played on the Jungle Japes stage in Melee, it is a calm and atmospheric remix of the "DK Island Swing" in various stages of Donkey Kong Country for the SNES.
• Jungle Level Ver.2: A fast paced rock arrangement of the "Jungle Groove" song. A starter song on Rumble Falls. Arrangement Supervisor: Motoi Sakuraba
• Jungle Level: The song that played on jungle based levels in Donkey Kong Country which was called the "Jungle Groove" in DK Jamz. It is made to be more realistic and ambient, complete with jungle noises. Note that this is more loyal to the aforementioned song than SSB's and Melee's remixes. Arrangement Supervisor: Kentaro Ishizaka
• King K.Rool / Ship Deck 2: The final boss theme heard in Donkey Kong Country, on the "Gangplank Galleon" boss level where the Kongs fight King K. Rool. Starts as a sea shanty melody on accordion, then transitions into a hard rock tune. "Ship Deck 2" was the name of the music on the "Rattle Battle" stage of the third world of Donkey Kong Country 2. Ship Deck 2 began in the same theme as the DKC boss music, then looped into a variation of that theme. The song in Brawl is closer to the DKC boss music. Unlike in both DKC and DKC 2, Brawl loops this music to the beginning. Arrangement Supervisor: Shogo Sakai
• Bramble Blast: Strings remix of Stickerbrush Symphony from Donkey Kong Country 2. This played on each of the bramble stages in Donkey King Country 2, including the "Bramble Blast" stage. A DKC 2 player would remember this theme after slowly moving through the bramble maze, trying not to touch the thorns of the brambles (stickerbrushes). The Brawl version of this song uses different instruments and feels less stressful but more joyful.
• The Map Page / Bonus Level: The two said themes, "DK Island Swing" and "Bonus Room Blitz," taken directly from Donkey Kong Country and spliced together.

Voice Acting

Members of Rare's staff acted as voice actors in Melee, reprising their roles from Star Fox Adventures:

• Steve Malpass - Fox McCloud
• Chris Seavor - Peppy Hare/Slippy Toad
• Ben Cullum - Falco Lombardi

Stickers

Several Rare designed characters appeared as stickers in Super Smash Bros Brawl, mostly Donkey Kong related, there are a few Starfox stickers

• Banana Coin: Donkey Kong 64, [Leg] Attack + 4; All
• Chunky Kong: Donkey Kong 64. [Throwing] Attack +31; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Diddy Kong: Donkey Kong 64, Launch Power +20; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Diddy Kong: Donkey Kong Country, [Tail] Attack +28; Diddy Kong
• DK Barrel: Donkey Kong Country, Launch Power +53; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Donkey Kong: Donkey Kong Country, [Electric] Resistance +10; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Enguarde: Donkey Kong Country, [Body, Spin] Attack +15; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Falco: Star Fox Adventures, [Specials: Indirect] Attack +11; Fox, Falco, Wolf
• Fox: Star Fox Adventures, [Arm, Leg] Attack +15; Fox, Falco, Wolf
• Klaptrap: Donkey Kong Country, [Electric] Resistance + 7; All
• Krystal: Star Fox Adventures. [Electric] Attack +28; Fox, Falco, Wolf
• Lanky Kong: Donkey Kong 64, [Throwing] Attack + 6; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Manky Kong: Donkey Kong Country, [Arm] Attack +10; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong
• Rambi: Donkey Kong Country, [Arm] Attack +13; All
• ROB 64: Star Fox Adventures, [Electric] Resistance +15; Fox, Falco, Wolf
• Tiny Kong: Donkey Kong 64, [Arm] Attack + 4; Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong