Donkey Kong (universe)

File:DKSymbol.png

The Donkey Kong universe refers to the Smash Bros. series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from the sub-franchise of the Mario series that deals with the character Donkey Kong. It is generally agreed on that Donkey Kong and related items count as Mario properties, but DK has appeared in enough of his own games alongside enough original characters, created by second-party developer Rareware instead of Nintendo itself, that many consider him as holding sway over a "sub-universe" of Mario. Donkey Kong is also considered part of his own universe because his universe symbol consists of the letters DK, rather than the iconic image of a Super Mushroom held by other Mario characters.

Franchise description

The character Donkey Kong was introduced to the fledgling video game industry at the same time as Mario, in the hugely successful 1981 coin-op arcade game named after him that defined Nintendo's future business as a video game company. The game was named after the de facto villain, a gorilla (which was named after the classic 1933 movie monster King Kong), instead of the player-character Mario (or "Jumpman", as he was named at the time), because designer Shigeru Miyamoto had felt Donkey Kong to be the strongest character in the love triangle displayed onscreen - the game used then-innovative techniques to tell the on-screen story of how the stubborn pet gorilla of "Jumpman" the carpenter steals away his girlfriend, Pauline, and it is up to the hero to save the damsel in distress. The success of the game prompted Nintendo to release two arcade follow-ups: Donkey Kong Jr. in 1982, where the gorilla's son Donkey Kong Jr. goes on a similar quest to free Donkey Kong from the cage Mario (in his only "villainous" appearance ever in a video game) keeps him trapped inside, and Donkey Kong 3 in 1983, where Donkey Kong invades a greenhouse to eat vegetables and stirs up flower-devouring insects in the process, and a one-time character and protagonist, Stanley the Bugman, must shoot bug spray both at the bugs and Donkey Kong to keep both the flowers and vegetables intact.

While Donkey Kong rivals Mario relatively closely as one of Nintendo's most popular characters today, what was essentially an eleven-year hiatus awaited the character following the release of Donkey Kong 3, as he never made a new "official" appearance in a release during that time period that was not some kind of port or compilation of the original games. Evidently, this was due to Nintendo's newfound focus on nurturing Mario's new NES-based franchise that exploded onto the public spotlight as a result of the world-famous, industry-defining Super Mario Bros. for the NES in 1985. Given that the seminal side-scrolling platformer had singlehandedly defined Nintendo's future styles and practices as a video game company more strongly and specifically than Donkey Kong had four years earlier, Donkey Kong was, for a time, treated as a relic of Nintendo's past; in fact, in Super Mario Kart for the SNES in 1992, Donkey Kong Jr. was one of the eight playable racers, chosen over his father. The hiatus was only partially alleviated in June 1994 when a Game Boy game titled Donkey Kong was released; while technically a remake of the original coin-op, it retooled the gameplay and provided an enormous increase in stage count (from 3 to 100), making it a project in its own right, and it is acclaimed as one of the best Game Boy games.

The hiatus for Donkey Kong was definitively ended later that year, however, thanks to the efforts of the British developer Rare. Rare sought out a partnership with Nintendo as a second-party developer and appealed to them with their work at Silicon Graphics, Inc. in the field of pre-rendered three-dimensional graphics in animated sprite form, and Nintendo consented to Rare developing a new game centered on Donkey Kong using this technology. Rare adopted the trademark name "Rareware" and released Donkey Kong Country for the SNES in November 1994. The side-scrolling platformer received widespread critical acclaim and became the second best-selling SNES game in the system's lifespan, and was revolutionary for being one of the first games for a mainstream home video game console to use pre-rendered 3D graphics. Rareware debuted the familiar modern-day design of Donkey Kong with the game, which included his trademark red necktie (though this was actually introduced in the aforementioned Game Boy Donkey Kong), and introduced a full supporting cast of side-characters and enemies that were owned by Rareware themselves during their affiliation with Nintendo. The most well-known of these new side characters is Diddy Kong, which was originally intended to be a redesign of Donkey Kong Jr., but Rareware decided he would be a separate character when Nintendo expressed disapproval of how much of a radical change it was from Donkey Kong Jr.'s established design. (Donkey Kong Jr., oddly enough, was forever relegated to extremely occasional cameo appearances in future Mario games following this.)

Some retrospectives cast doubt on whether the success of Donkey Kong Country necessarily reflected the actual quality of the gameplay itself, but Rareware released two sequels on the SNES: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, starring Diddy Kong and his newly-introduced girlfriend Dixie Kong, and Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble, starring Dixie Kong and a gorilla toddler named Kiddy Kong, both of which were reviewed as improvements. Rareware then created the highly-acclaimed and successful Diddy Kong Racing for the Nintendo 64 in 1997, and then created the 3D adventure-platformer Donkey Kong 64 in 1999, in a similar vein to their previous work on Banjo-Kazooie. Meanwhile, Donkey Kong's thoroughly-established resurgence in the Nintendo lineup guaranteed he would forever appear in either starring or side-roles not only in future Mario games, but in the Nintendo crossover series Super Smash Bros.. But then, in late 2002, Microsoft bought out 100% of Rareware's shares, turning Rare into a first-party developer for the Xbox line of consoles and leaving the Donkey Kong Country aesthetic and related characters under Nintendo's ownership (and incidentally letting their last planned console game, Dinosaur Planet for the Nintendo 64, get revised and released as Star Fox Adventures for the GameCube).

Donkey Kong remained a regular in Mario games as always, and his contributions have included the full Mario vs. Donkey Kong series of puzzle games that pay homage to the original Donkey Kong coin-op's scenario. And the characters and setting originally introduced by Rareware and associated with the Donkey Kong Country brand have made fairly regular appearances in games published by Nintendo but, for the most part, are developed by a variety second-party developers: the Paon Corporation developed the Game Boy Advance puzzle game DK: King of Swing and its Nintendo DS sequel DK: Jungle Climber, as well as the Wii racer Donkey Kong Barrel Blast; Namco, meanwhile, developed all three titles in the Donkey Konga series of GameCube rhythm games that use a unique bongo drum-themed peripheral for input (a peripheral also used as a controller for the Nintendo-developed GameCube platformer Donkey Kong Jungle Beat); and most recently, the "official" return of the side-scrolling gameplay style of Donkey Kong Country was the 2010 Wii title Donkey Kong Country Returns, which was developed by Retro Studios (previously famous for bringing forth the revival of the Metroid franchise with the full Metroid Prime subseries). A Wii U sequel, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, is slated for November 2013.

The modern-day Donkey Kong seen in all Mario and Donkey Kong games since Donkey Kong Country is stated by the games featuring Rareware's extended Donkey Kong cast and setting to be the son (or grandson) of the "Donkey Kong" that was featured in the classic coin-op arcade games, and this original "Donkey Kong" is depicted in the Rareware-originated series as an elderly curmudgeon named Cranky Kong. (Nintendo has sometimes ignored Rareware's decision on this matter in the past, but nowadays counts this as part of the Mario canon.) Donkey Kong's extended family and friends, all of them simians, are collectively referred to as the Kong Family, living on an island shaped like Donkey Kong's head named Donkey Kong Island, and in every Kong Family-centered game their enemies are an expansive army of humanoid crocodilians called the Kremling Krew. They and their ruler, the comically obese and cantankerous King K. Rool, constantly try to steal the Kong Family's enormous hoard of bananas for unspecified reasons, and to this end they have allies of different species such as vultures and giant spiked wasps; Donkey Kong, his nephew Diddy Kong, and certain other Kong Family members embark on quests to defeat the Kremling Krew and safeguard their bananas, and the Kongs sometimes call on animal allies of their own.

In Super Smash Bros.

If treated separately from the Mario universe, the DK universe is only about as big as most of the other franchises represented in Super Smash Bros., with one character, one stage, and one item.

Character

The following character is considered both part of his own universe and part of the "Marioverse."

• 
  Donkey Kong: An ape clad in a monogrammed red necktie, "DK" is a sometimes fearsome character, originally taking a maiden as a hostage for his enemy Mario to rescue. For his appearance alongside Mario in a seminal game named after him, DK comes close to Mario as one of the most famous videogame characters in the world. In his appearances in Mario games in the years afterward, he and Mario have become more like friendly rivals and are often seen competing in kart racing and sports games, though they occasionally flare up in conflict, such as in Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis. In many of the Mario games he is a selectable character who conforms to the "big, strong, and slow" archetype, and this tradition is carried over into his role as a Smash Bros. fighter. He has strong attacks which also have rather large reach, and this is meant to offset his general lack of swiftness and his easy-to-strike-as-a-target size. These aspects currently rank him at 7th on the SSB tier list.

Stage

If the Donkey Kong universe is counted as separate from the rest of the Mario universe, Super Smash Bros. features one DK-themed stage:

• Congo Jungle: This stage features visuals, audio, and layout designed in direct homage to the first level of Donkey Kong Country for the SNES. It has a pair of rotating platforms in the center and a Barrel Cannon hovering below the stage which can be used by fighters to save themselves from falling.

Item

Likewise, only one item can be said to represent the Donkey Kong universe.

• Hammer: The giant mallet from the original Donkey Kong could be picked up by Mario and he would swing it uncontrollably for the next period of time to the tune of a "super" melody, pulverizing any obstacles in his way. The Hammer is featured in Smash just as that sort of item; the character becomes a pulverizing swinging force for the next ten seconds as the classic melody plays, and any character unlucky enough to be bludgeoned by it will probably be KO'ed. The wielder is unable to throw away the hammer, use any other moves, or do any double jump during that time. The wielder can be easily punished by projectiles, or if a character spawns from the KO and uses the invincibility to grab the wielder.

Music

• 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: The victory fanfare of Donkey Kong is an orchestration of the "Boss Defeated" music heard in Donkey Kong Country for SNES.
• 26: Sped-up 8-bit music that occurs when you pick up the Hammer, in homage to the music that would occur when Mario would pick up a hammer in the original Donkey Kong (in the SSB series, the NES version is used as the basis).

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

While Super Smash Bros. Melee features an abundance of new content, the Donkey Kong franchise is still only represented by one character. Two new stages are introduced, however, with one returning from Super Smash Bros. Also included are one new item as well as a returning item, and a few trophies.

Character

• Donkey Kong: Donkey Kong is still the only character from the DK Universe that is actually featured as a playable character, reprising his role as a powerful but somewhat sluggish fighter with an immobilizing headbutt as his new side special move.

Stages

Super Smash Bros. Melee features three DK-themed stages, however, compared to the two-at-most stages for many other franchises (Mario and Kirby being the only exceptions):

• DK Island: Kongo Jungle: This multilayered stage is a general depiction of Donkey Kong's jungle environment at the edge of a waterfall. The music for this stage is the "DK Rap" made infamous by Donkey Kong 64 for the Nintendo 64.
• DK Island: Jungle Japes: This stage more closely resembles the Jungle tileset of Donkey Kong Country for the Super NES. It is named for the first stage of DK64 and features the music of the first stage of DKC. It is very similar thematically to the SSB Congo Jungle stage. It takes place around a jungle cabin at sunset, with the silhouette of Cranky Kong visibly passing by a window.
• Past Stages: Kongo Jungle 64: The original Congo Jungle stage also returns in Melee totally unaltered.

Items

Like several other represented franchise, the DK sub-universe features a couple items:

• Barrel Cannon: A new item. In the Donkey Kong series, there are many empty barrels that function more like cannons, and characters that enter them can be shot out to somewhere else, either automatically or by the player's command. As an item in Melee, a player can pick up a barrel cannon and throw it at another to trap him, and the victim must wait until the barrel rolls into a proper direction before shooting himself out of it. Use the Barrel Cannon as a disruption tactic against opponents.
• Hammer: Returns from SSB somewhat powered down, and there is a chance that the hammer's head will fall off its stick as soon as you pick it up, so you will be left swinging helplessly for the full duration as the discarded head remains on the battlefield for someone else to pick it up and hurl it at you as a projectile. This is meant to downgrade what would otherwise be considered an overpowered item.

Music

• 3: Kongo Jungle: 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. The same, unaltered track from Melee was also used in Donkey Konga. It is heard only in the Kongo Jungle stage.
• 4: Jungle Japes: A calm and atmospheric remix of the standard "Jungle music" in various stages of Donkey Kong Country for SNES. It is heard in Jungle Japes.
• 27: Kongo Jungle N64: SSB’s version of "Jungle Japes", which itself is a calm and atmospheric remix of the standard "Jungle music" heard in various stages of Donkey Kong Country for SNES. It appears in the Past stage attached to it, Past Stages: Kongo Jungle.
• 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.
• 76: Hammer: Sped-up 8-bit music that occurs when you pick up the Hammer, in homage to the music that would occur when Mario would pick up a hammer in the original Donkey Kong.

Full Trophy List

• Donkey Kong's three game trophies
• Hammer
• Barrel Cannon
• Dixie Kong
• Klaptrap
• King K. Rool

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Characters

• 
  Donkey Kong: Donkey Kong is confirmed to return to the fray yet again, sporting a look that seems furrier than his Melee appearance, and a differently shaped mouth, but is otherwise identical. All of his moves return from 64 and Melee. His Final Smash is the Konga Beat, in which the player must use button combinations - DK is invincible during this. He uses replicas of the Gamecube bongos used to play Donkey Konga, Donkey Konga 2 and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, respectively. He damages opponents by the sound waves bouncing the opponents around, gaining percentage.

• 
  Diddy Kong: Donkey Kong's nephew and best friend since Donkey Kong Country finally becomes a playable character. He apparently has a very unique style of movement. He also brings a couple of weapons from Donkey Kong 64 to the fray with him, in the form of the Rocketbarrel Boost and his Peanut Popgun, which he combines for his Final Smash, Rocketbarrel Barrage. He can also use a Monkey Flip and throw banana peels. Diddy Kong currently ranks 4th on the Brawl tier list, only behind Meta Knight, the Ice Climbers, and Olimar, thanks to his banana usage.

Players who hacked the game found a package for Dixie Kong, prompting speculation that she was intended to be in the game as a playable character.

On the final character select screen (after all characters are unlocked), DK and Diddy share a column with fellow Mario side series characters Wario and Yoshi.

Stage

• 
  Rumble Falls: Loosely based on the game Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Rumble Falls is a large level that continuously scrolls upwards, much like the Icicle Mountain stage from Melee. However, there are some differences, such as a smaller amount of hazards that would prevent ascension, the stage apparently only goes up, as opposed to going up and down randomly, and there is actually something at the top of the stage this time.

• 
  75 m: An almost perfect recreation of the infamous elevator stage in the original Donkey Kong arcade game rendered in an identical 8-bit style. Stage hazards include mobile fireballs, bouncing jacks, and Donkey Kong himself.

• 
  Melee Stages: Jungle Japes: A Melee stage brought back for an encore, a little detail has changed this stage in a big way--the water, which characters used to fall through, can now be swam in. However, it still sweeps characters swiftly to the left side of the screen.

Items

While the Barrel Cannon is removed (A stage element similar to the Barrel Cannon exists in the Subspace Emissary however), the Spring is added. Also note that the Banana Peel introduced in Brawl counts as part of the general Mario universe instead of here.

• Hammer: The Hammer returns from SSB and Melee virtually unaltered in function or purpose.
• Spring: Taken from Donkey Kong Jr. this acts as a weak throwing weapon as well as a basic spring to launch yourself high into the air. The sound that plays when jumped upon is taken directly from Donkey Kong Jr.
• Peanut: The Peanut, which originated in Donkey Kong 64, appears as an item used exclusively by Diddy Kong in his Peanut Popgun and Rocketbarrel Barrage attacks.

Music

See List of SSBB Music (Donkey Kong series).

• Jungle Level Ver. 2 - A fast paced, jazzy, rock-tinged arrangement of the "DK Island Swing" background music from the original Donkey Kong Country. It is the theme of the Rumble Falls stage.
• Jungle Level - Another remix of the "DK Island Swing". This remix is taken directly from the Donkey Kong Country soundtrack. It is used on the Rumble Falls stage.
• King K. Rool/Ship Deck 2 - A completely redone version of the song used during the battle against King K. Rool in the first Donkey Kong Country. It is used on the Rumble Falls stage. This song is also played during both Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong's Classic Mode credits.
• Bramble Blast - From Donkey Kong Country 2, where it was known as "Stickerbrush Symphony," this is a faster remix of said song, which played in all of the bramble filled levels. It is used on the Rumble Falls stage.
• Battle for Storm Hill - Background music for the first stage of the Durian Kingdom named "Battle for Storm Hill", taken directly from Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat. It is used on the Rumble Falls stage.
• DK Jungle 1 Theme (Barrel Blast) - Taken directly from the recently released racing title Donkey Kong Barrel Blast, it is used on the Rumble Falls stage.
• The Map Page/Bonus Level - A combination of two themes taken directly from the original Donkey Kong Country--the world map and bonus stages. It is used on the Rumble Falls stage.
• Donkey Kong - A techno arrangement of the themes from the original Donkey Kong arcade game, composed by the original game's sound effects producer, Hirokazu Tanaka. It is the theme of the 75 m stage.
• Opening (Donkey Kong) - A remix of several themes from the original Donkey Kong arcade game. It is used on the 75 m stage.
• 25m BGM - The background music of the first level of the original Donkey Kong arcade game, it is used on the 75 m stage.
• Jungle Japes (Melee) - Taken directly from Melee. A calm and atmospheric remix of the "DK Island Swing". It is the theme of the Jungle Japes stage.
• Kongo Jungle (Melee) - Taken directly from Melee. A cover band performance of the infamous "DK Rap". It is used on the Jungle Japes stage.
• Donkey Kong victory theme - A whimsical sounding remix of the victory fanfare played in Donkey Kong Country after defeating a boss or successfully completing a bonus level.

Trophies

• Donkey Kong
• Diddy Kong
• Konga Beat
• Rocketbarrel Barrage
• Hammer
• Spring
• Dixie Kong
• Funky Kong
• Candy Kong
• Lanky Kong
• Wrinkly Kong
• Rambi
• Enguarde
• Kritter
• Tiny Kong
• Cranky Kong
• Squitter
• Expresso
• King K. Rool
• Kass
• Kip
• Kalypso
• Kludge
• Helibird
• Turret Tusk
• Xananab
• Peanut Popgun
• Rocketbarrel Pack

Stickers

• Banana Bunch
• Banana Coin
• Chunky Kong
• Cranky Kong
• Diddy Kong
• Donkey Kong
• DK Barrel
• DK with Barrel
• Funky Kong
• Gale Hawg
• Kalypso
• Klaptrap
• Kritter
• Junior
• Lanky Kong
• Manky Kong
• Pauline & Donkey Kong
• Wrinkly Kong
• Xananab

In Super Smash Bros. 4

Donkey Kong is confirmed to be a playable character in the upcoming game, Super Smash Bros. 4.

Games with elements from or in the Super Smash Bros. series

Donkey Kong (game)

Mario and Donkey Kong, the characters who starred in this game became part of the Smash Bros. gang since the original Super Smash Bros. In addition, the Hammer from this game, as well as the tune that goes with it, is an item in all three Super Smash Bros. games. A section of Donkey Kong's Target Test in Super Smash Bros. Melee resembles the first level of the game. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, a stage known as 75 m is based directly on the third level in the game. Also, in Brawl, in Mario's Down Taunt, Mario spins around and falls to the ground. Mario did something like this whenever he dies in this game. In addition, DK's red costume may be a reference to his original sprite from this game. It also appears as a Masterpiece. It starts the player on the level 75 m takes place on.

Donkey Kong Jr.

Donkey Kong Jr. appears as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee. He appears as a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Mr. Game & Watch's down aerial is based on the Game & Watch version of Donkey Kong Junior. The main menu music for this game is part of the Famicom Medley played on the Mario Bros. stage in Brawl.

Donkey Kong Country

The first area in the game, the Kongo Jungle is a stage in both Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee. The music for the first level of the area was also used and remixed for both games. The K. Rool Ship Deck theme and Map /Bonus Theme music was featured in the Rumble Falls stage in Brawl. Various characters, animal buddies, and enemies cameo as trophies and stickers in Brawl. Diddy Kong, who made his first appearance in this game, is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. DKC was originally intended to be included as a Masterpiece, the reason for its removal is unknown. Many references are made to DKC in the form of movements, attacks and victory poses, as well as a remix of the "Boss defeated" and "bonus room win" fanfare for both the Kong's victory theme.

It's two sequels have additional characters that cameo as stickers or trophies. (i.e. Dixie Kong)

Donkey Kong 64

The DK Rap, the infamous song in Donkey Kong 64’s opening sequence, is the theme song for the Kongo Jungle stage. Also, the Jungle Japes is a stage in Melee, which takes its appearance from this game. All but one of Diddy Kong's special moves come from this game. His neutral special move, the Peanut Popguns, are one of his main weapons in the game, and this becomes his projectile weapon in Brawl. The peanut ammunition used in the move therefore also originated from Donkey Kong 64. Diddy Kong's up special move, the Rocketbarrel Boost also came from this game. Konga Beat is Donkey Kong's Final Smash, which is similar to if not the same as Donkey Kong's musical attack from Donkey Kong 64 (Bongo Blast). Lanky Kong, Chunky Kong, Tiny Kong, Donkey Kong, and Diddy Kong, playable Kongs in the game, appear as stickers.

Donkey Konga

The drums, or bongos, that first appeared in this game as the controllers are used in Donkey Kong's Final Smash, and the strength differs depending on whether the player hits the drums at the right time or not, similar to the scoring system in Donkey Konga. The opening theme for Super Smash Bros. Melee is a playable song in the PAL version of the game.

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat

The Rumble Falls stage in Brawl is based on the area with the same name from the Pineapple Kingdom. The technique to perform Donkey Kong's Final Smash, Konga Beat, is based on the gameplay from Jungle Beat.

External links

• Donkey Kong Wiki