King Dedede

For fighter info, see King Dedede (SSBB) and King Dedede (SSB4).

King Dedede
File:KMA Dedede.png File:KirbySymbol.png Official artwork of King Dedede from Kirby Mass Attack.
Universe	Kirby
Debut	Kirby's Dream Land (1992)
Smash Bros. appearances	SSB Melee Brawl SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Kirby Fighters Deluxe and Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe (2014)
Console/platform of origin	Game Boy
Species	Speculated to be Penguin
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Dream Land
Created by	Masahiro Sakurai
Designed by	Masahiro Sakurai
Voice actor	Masahiro Sakurai
Article on Wikirby	King Dedede

King Dedede (name pronounced dee-dee-dee), known in Japan as Dedede Daiō (デデデ大王, Dedede Daiō, lit. "Great King Dedede") is the primary antagonist (and anti-hero) from the Kirby series.

Character Description

File:Dedede.png

Official artwork of King Dedede from Kirby Squeak Squad.

King Dedede is the selfish, self-proclaimed king of Dream Land. He has appeared as Kirby’s rival and nemesis in many Kirby games since Kirby's Dream Land. He is a hammer-wielding penguin with fine robes and a greedy disposition. His powers are vaguely similar to Kirby's; he is able to puff himself up and float (although he only got this ability through rigorous training after his first defeat at Kirby's hands), and suck up enemies and spit them out as high-speed projectiles (unlike Kirby, he cannot copy a foe's ability). While his more heinous actions are influenced by being possessed by Dark Matter, he is usually considered to be the main villain of the Kirby series.

However, a common misconception about King Dedede is that he is an "evil" character. He seems to be more selfish than evil, and appears to otherwise have a good heart. King Dedede's actions range from stealing food from the Dream Land residents in Kirby's Dream Land to breaking the Star Rod, source of power in the Fountain of Dreams, into seven pieces in Kirby's Adventure (although this latter was to protect Dream Land from an evil it did not know about). However, he is not above teaming up with Kirby as a friendly rival on occasion, such as in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, or Kirby: Canvas Curse. King Dedede's relationship with Kirby is more along the lines of friendly competition, begrudging admiration, and annoyance on both sides than flat-out hatred or villainy. King Dedede also appears helping Kirby as a playable character in Kirby's Return to Dream Land.

In Brawl, he is voiced by Super Smash Bros. and Kirby series creator, Masahiro Sakurai, who also voiced Dedede in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.

Dedede's designs in Brawl and Super Smash Bros. 4 are inspired by his renditions in Kirby games in which his head is smaller and his body is larger. In his most recent titles, Kirby's Return to Dream Land and Kirby Triple Deluxe, Dedede's head is larger and his body is smaller, akin to his pre-Squeak Squad designs.

In Super Smash Bros.

King Dedede as he appeared in the background of the Dream Land stage in Super Smash Bros.

In the original Super Smash Bros., King Dedede only made a mere brief cameo in the background of the Dream Land stage. However, according to a page on the Japanese Super Smash Bros. site, King Dedede was planned to be included as a playable character, but was cut; Bowser and Mewtwo are also mentioned as having been planned but cut, though no other information is available. According to another source relaying information from Famitsu articles in early 2002, Sakurai planned to have these characters, in addition to Wolf, as hidden villain characters, but time and budget constraints forced Sakurai to scrap them.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

King Dedede's trophy in Melee

King Dedede only reappeared in the Dream Land stage once again, and also making another appearance as a trophy. However, Dedede was planned and ready as a backup character for Marth, in case Sakurai was unable to get Intelligent Systems' approval to use Marth. With the rights to Marth secured however, Dedede was left out. Sakurai would later remark that in the time it took to finish the six clones, he could have finished Dedede, but was happier to have a larger roster.

As a trophy

King Dedede makes an appearance as one of the collectible trophies in the game that can be found through the Trophy Lottery.

Trophy Description

Dedede is the self-proclaimed king of Dream Land. While he says he's king, Dedede prefers no administrative functions and the citizens of Dream Land continue to live as they always have. He's able to suck in air and fly like Kirby does, but only as a result of vigorous training he undertook after being bested by Kirby.

• Kirby's Dream Land 9/92

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Main article: King Dedede (SSBB)

King Dedede in Brawl

King Dedede is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, making him the third playable character from the Kirby series. He wields his trademark hammer, swinging it in most of his standard attacks, like the Ice Climbers, and has very powerful hammer-based attacks. His special moves are Inhale (neutral special), Waddle Dee Toss (side special), Super Dedede Jump (up special), and Jet Hammer (down special). Inhale is very similar to Kirby's trademark move, but King Dedede lacks the ability to copy abilities. Waddle Dee Toss lets the king throw his minions at foes, sometimes producing not only Waddle Dees but also more deadly Waddle Doos and Gordos. It is also possible for Dedede to throw out capsules containing items. Super Dedede Jump is an effective recovery move, sending King Dedede high into the air, then crashing into the ground to damage foes. He can also cancel out of doing this. Finally, King Dedede mechanizes his hammer with Jet Hammer. The hammer's power is charged up by holding the special attack button, and then released for a mighty swing. King Dedede incurs damage after charging for too long, however. His "trip" attack and Super Dedede Jump come from Kirby's Adventure.

Like other playable characters, King Dedede appears visually similar to his canon incarnations, but greatly enhanced graphically - for example, his usually uncovered girth (other than his patterned waistband, that is) is now covered by fine robes of a similar color, making his overall wear resemble a kimono. He also has several interesting costume colors, which not only change the color, but the design on his waistband too.

King Dedede currently ranks 12th on the tier list in C+ tier.

Trophy Info

The self-styled king of the amazingly peaceful Dream Land. He continually does things unbecoming a king, like stealing the kingdom's food supplies or all the stars from the sky. He's not all bad, though, and sometimes performs good deeds. While he and Kirby often battle,they've been known to compete good-natured at speed-eating contests and minigames.

: Kirby's Dream Land

: Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards

In Super Smash Bros. 4

Main article: King Dedede (SSB4)

King Dedede as he appears in SSB4.

King Dedede has been confirmed to return as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. He seems to take on a more cartoonish look than his appearance in Brawl.

Trivia

• Between his cameo in Smash 64 and his appearance as a playable character in Smash Bros. 4, King Dedede was redesigned. In his cameo in Smash 64, he was a penguin because his head was very large compared to the rest of his body, and his beak was a lot bigger. In his playable appearance as a playable character in Brawl, King Dedede has been anthropomorphised to be less like a penguin, his head is now more proportional to his body, and his beak is less prominent. In Smash Bros. 4, his appearance is more cartoony, leaning towards his appearance in the Kirby: Right Back at Ya! anime. However, in the Smash series he has always looks more similar to the old design than to the new one, with a large head and beak.
• King Dedede has the unique trait that his name has changed through the games in one language: in Melee, his German name is König Nickerchen, while his Brawl name is König Dedede, a direct translation.
• King Dedede is one of two playable characters to appear in every game that is not playable in every game. The other is Charizard.
  • This also means King Dedede is the only antagonist to appear in every Smash Bros game.
• In Kirby's Return to Dreamland, the Hammer ability received a new move called Hammer Twirl, where Kirby/Dedede twirls their hammer in place below them. This move is based off of King Dedede's down aerial.