Donkey Kong (SSBM)/Down special

This article is about the hitbox visualization in Super Smash Bros. Melee. For the move itself, see Hand Slap.

Hitbox visualization showing Donkey Kong's Hand Slap.

Overview

DK, as the name implies, slaps his hands on the ground, shaking the screen and launching any opponent who's within range into the air.

Among DK's plethora of strong neutral tools and powerful kill moves, the Hand Slap sees minimal use in competitive play. The primary reason for this lack of use is the move's laggy startup and recovery. The first hit doesn't come out until 1/3 of a second after the move is input (which is within humans' reaction time), and the entire move (assuming the loop isn't restarted) takes an entire second before DK can input any other move. This leaves DK open to a punish. In addition, the move is completely worthless against opponents aerialing into DK, since it can only hit grounded opponents.

Despite this, the move does see niche use. The move deals bonus damage to shields and lots of shield stun and pushback, potentially leading to a shield break. In addition, the move's high fixed knockback beats crouch cancelling, since it causes even crouching opponents (Peach or lighter) to tumble. When tech-chasing, DK can use this move instead of attempting to guess where the opponent will go, since the move's range is so large it'll cover nearly all their tech options. If it hits, it can combo into grab, which can kickstart DK's massive combo game.

Hitboxes

ID	Part	Damage	SD	BK	KS	FKV	Radius	Bone	Offset			Sound
Hit 1
0	0	11%	1	20	100	110	8.999424	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
1	0	11%	1	20	100	110	8.999424	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
2	0	11%	1	20	100	110	8.999424	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
3	0	11%	1	20	100	110	8.999424	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
Hit 2
0	0	11%	1	30	100	110	9.99936	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
1	0	11%	1	30	100	110	9.99936	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
2	0	11%	1	30	100	110	9.99936	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick
3	0	11%	1	30	100	110	9.99936	0	0.0	0.0	0.0	Kick