Super Smash Bros. 4

Donkey Kong (SSB4)

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This article is about Donkey Kong's appearance in Super Smash Bros. 4. For the character in other contexts, see Donkey Kong.
Donkey Kong
in Super Smash Bros. 4
Donkey Kong
DKSymbol.svg
Universe Donkey Kong
Other playable appearances in SSB
in Melee
in Brawl
Availability Starter
Final Smash Konga Beat
Donkey Kong (SSB4)

Donkey Kong (ドンキーコング, Donkey Kong) was confirmed as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4 on June 11th, 2013 during the E3 Nintendo Direct. He is among the first wave of compatible amiibo figures for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Donkey Kong also retains his realistic gorilla grunts, albeit with a new set of voice clips.

Attributes

Donkey Kong, as most of SSB4's heavyweights have become, defies what power heavyweights usually are. Donkey Kong is one of the faster characters in the game (in both mobility and attack speed), which is aided by his extreme power and very long reach. He also has among the best horizontal recoveries in SSB4, with his recovery move Spinning Kong being very fast and going very far horizontally and does massive damage to edge-guarders to the side of Donkey Kong. He also is one of the best edge-guarders in the game, with four meteor smashes (forward aerial, down aerial, Headbutt, and Hand Slap) and a powerful walling attack in his back aerial. His back aerial is also notable for its similarity to King Dedede's back aerial from Brawl, as it has very little start-up, ending, or landing lag, decent power, a lingering hitbox, and massive reach. As a result, these five attacks make Donkey Kong deadly to characters with poor recoveries. He is also among the most durable characters in the game due to being the second heaviest character behind Bowser and having one of the fastest falling speeds in the game. He also has one of the best grab games in SSB4, with his cargo up throw being a powerful combo throw which can lead to an early KO with his up air on lightweights, especially when he is under the effect of the rage mechanic.

Despite these advantages, Donkey Kong has his flaws. One of his biggest weaknesses is also one of his greatest strengths: while his size gives him among the longest reach in SSB4, it also makes him one of the easiest characters to hit, compounded by a shield far too small for his size, leaving him vulnerable to shield stabbing. Another one of his greatest strengths comes with a price: while his heavy weight and fast falling speed make him arguably the character with the best overall endurance in the game, it also makes him one of the easiest characters to combo. His Achilles' heel, however, is his recovery; while Spinning Kong excels at horizontal recovery, it does not travel very high, nor does it have any options to extend it or vertical protection, leaving him vulnerable to meteor smashes and giving him one of the worst vertical recoveries in the game. Despite this, Donkey Kong's strengths generally overpower his flaws, and he has seen moderate tournament representation.

Donkey Kong is arguably the character who benefits the most from customs: Storm Punch adds to his already deadly edge-guarding selection and Focused Slap and Hot Slap sacrifice some ground control for very powerful KO moves. The crux of his custom metagame, however, is Kong Cyclone. Kong Cyclone pulls opponents in for powerful knockback, and has super armor that protects him from meteor smashes, with very long range for its suction (the suction can potentially be used to pull opponents with poor recoveries straight into the bottom blast line), giving Donkey Kong one of the best neutrals and recoveries in SSB4. However, some custom moves, such as Jumping Headbutt and Chopper Kong, are somewhat inferior to their standard specials, though still have their benefits.

Changes from Brawl

Donkey Kong has been considerably buffed in the transition from Brawl to SSB4. The most noticeable improvement has been to his overall speed; his attacks, such as his signature Giant Punch, are now performed faster, and his already excellent movement speed has also been greatly increased, allowing him to better keep up with, and in quite a few cases, even out-speed lightweights. Donkey Kong's is also much heavier, which allows him to withstand potential KOs easier and enables him to become an effective user of the new rage mechanic, which results in his already fantastic power becoming even more effective. In addition, Donkey Kong is a lot harder to combo than before due to the removal of chain grabbing. Finally, DK benefits considerably from the removal of edge-hogging and the introduction of edge-stealing, which prevents his poor vertical recovery from being edge-hogged and thus, significantly improves his recovery.

Although he was buffed, Donkey Kong did receive a few noticeable nerfs. His grab game was slightly weakened and many of his attacks now deal less damage. Even with the removal of chain grabbing, his increased falling speed and large hurtbox enable him be comboed easily regardless, although he is still less susceptible to being juggled. However, these nerfs are considered to be largely negligible due to the impact of his initial buffs and especially because of the subsequent buffs he has received in game updates. As a result, he is considered to be more viable than he was in Brawl.

Aesthetics

  • Change Donkey Kong appears to have more stylized fur, even more so than he did in Brawl. His proportions seemed to have been tweaked slightly to be more reminiscent of his recent appearances in Donkey Kong Country Returns and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. Most of his motions now have more fluid animations. His general expressiveness has been greatly exaggerated as well, with many of his moves and animations now accompanied with smirks, toothy grins, or a look of utter confusion. When Donkey Kong is launched, his eyes will even bulge out of his head, much like in the original Donkey Kong Country series. His teeth are now white, as opposed to being yellow in Brawl.

Attributes

  • Buff Donkey Kong walks faster (1.2 → 1.3).
  • Buff Donkey Kong dashes faster (1.622 → 1.7031).
  • Buff Donkey Kong's air speed has been increased (1.081 → 1.15), making it now tied for the eighth fastest in the game.
  • Buff Donkey Kong is heavier (116 → 122).
  • Change Donkey Kong's falls faster (1.58 → 1.63). This makes him more susceptible to combos, but less vulnerable to being juggled.

Ground attacks

  • Change First hit of jab no longer has the Sakurai angle.
  • Nerf Down tilt deals 1% less damage (8% → 7%).
  • Buff Donkey Kong's has a new dash attack: a forward rolling tackle from the Donkey Kong Country series. The new attack has slightly less startup (frame 10 → 9), a longer lasting hitbox (frames 10-21 → 9-24), and much less cooldown compared to the old one (interruptibility frame 55 → 41).
  • Nerf Dash attack deals slightly less damage (11%/9% → 10%/8%).
  • Nerf Forward tilt has increased cooldown (interruptibility frame 34 → 38).
  • Buff Forward smash (5.0u → 5.7u) and up smash (7.5u/6.0u → 8.8u/7.0u) have much bigger hitboxes.
  • Buff Forward smash now has intangibility on the head and arms on frames 20-26.

Aerial attacks

  • Nerf Neutral aerial (15 frames → 17), back aerial (15 frames → 18), and up aerial (22 frames → 25) have more landing lag.
  • Buff Forward aerial (30 frames → 29) and down aerial (31 frames → 24) have less landing lag.
  • Buff Down aerial is significantly faster (frame 18 → 14) and now has a powerful sourspot at his chest that deals horizontal knockback.
  • Buff Forward aerial has significantly less start-up (27 frames → 18).
  • Nerf Forward aerial deals less damage (16% → 15%/13%) with its knockback compensated.
  • Nerf Up aerial deals 1% less damage (14% → 13%) with its knockback compensated.

Throws/other attacks

  • Buff Pummel is slightly faster.
  • Nerf Pummel deals 0.9% less damage (3% → 2.1%).
  • Nerf Donkey Kong's dash grabs have been slowed down slightly (9/10 frames → 10/11).
  • Buff Dash grab has significantly reduced cooldown.
  • Buff All Cargo tosses deal more damage (forward: 8% → 10%, back: 8% → 12%, up: 7% → 10%, down: 6% → 7%).
  • Buff Cargo back toss has significantly higher knockback scaling (38 → 80).
  • Change Cargo back toss' angle was modified.
  • Buff Cargo up throw has significantly less knockback (90 base/30 growth → 58 base/52 growth), allowing for easier follow-ups and mix-ups.
  • Change Donkey Kong now hops while performing cargo down toss.
  • Nerf Donkey Kong has a new ledge attack that involves him performing a forearm club to the ground. It is slower and has less range.
  • Buff Front and back floor attacks deal 1% more damage (6% → 7%).

Special moves

  • Buff Giant Punch comes out faster and Donkey Kong now quickly retracts his fist after throwing the punch.
  • Nerf The reduced start-up of Giant Punch makes it slightly harder to utilize the super armor that comes before throwing the punch.
  • Buff Headbutt significantly benefits from the removal of damage reduction on shields, allowing it to bring shields to a sliver of health. It also has longer range.
  • Nerf Headbutt deals 4% less damage in the air (14% → 10%), no longer stalls, and has slightly increased cooldown.
  • Buff Spinning Kong now instead spins at an angle instead of completely horizontally when used on the ground, increasing the attack's vertical range. The aerial version is now a multi-hit attack that deals much more damage.
  • Nerf Grounded Spinning Kong deals 19% less damage (36% → 17%), severely limiting Donkey Kongs's ability to rack up damage. The removal of hitstun canceling also removes Spinning Kong's powerful momentum canceling, severely limiting his endurance.
  • Buff Hand Slap can now be used in midair, which meteor smashes foes. It also has a larger hitbox on the ground.
  • Nerf Hand Slap has significantly increased cooldown.
  • Buff Konga Beat is now accompanied by an indicating bar that shows when to press the attack button.
  • Change While using Konga Beat, if Donkey Kong performs all button presses with the correct timing, he will perform a thumbs up at the end of the Final Smash.

Update history

Donkey Kong has been buffed overall via game updates so far. 1.0.6 saw Giant Punch's charging time decreased even further, making it even more viable as a KOing option, 1.0.8 buffed the damage outputs of all variations of his cargo throw, and 1.1.0 gave him a faster and longer lasting dash attack and noticeably improved DK's combo game due to cargo up throw's base knockback being decreased considerably, which gives him new followup options which are nicknamed "Ding Dong". The changes to shielding mechanics in 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 also benefit Donkey Kong as this lets him break shields even easier, courtesy of his Headbutt and Hand Slap (though the former's shield damage was nerfed in 1.1.1).

Super Smash Bros. 4 1.0.6

  • Buff Giant Punch comes out faster after being fully charged: 172 frames → 144 frames.
  • Nerf Headbutt no longer stalls.
  • Change First hit of jab no longer has the Sakurai angle.

Super Smash Bros. 4 1.0.8

  • Buff Cargo forward toss deals 2% more damage: 8% → 10%.
  • Buff Cargo back toss deals 4% damage: 8% → 12%.
  • Change Cargo back toss' angle has been modified.
  • Buff Cargo back throw's knockback scaling increased: 38 → 80.
  • Buff Cargo up toss deals 3% more damage: 7% → 10%.
  • Buff Cargo down toss deals 1% more damage: 6% → 7%.
  • Change Donkey Kong now hops while performing cargo down toss.

Super Smash Bros. 4 1.1.0

  • Buff Up smash's hitbox size has increased: 7.5u/6.0u → 8.8u/7.0u.
  • Buff Forward smash's hitbox size has increased: 5.0u → 5.7u.
  • Buff Forward smash's bone intangibility on his head and arms have added frames (20-26).
  • Buff Dash attack's hitbox duration and start-up have been altered: 10-21 → 9-24.
  • Buff Dash attack's ending lag has been reduced: 48 → 41.
  • Buff Cargo up throw's base knockback lowered: 90 → 58. This allows easier follow-ups and mix-ups.
  • Change Cargo up throw's knockback growth increased: 50 → 52.

Super Smash Bros. 4 1.1.1

  • Nerf Giant Punch's shield damage decreased: 2 → 0. This also applies to custom variations.
  • Nerf Headbutt and Stubborn Headbutt's shield damage decreased: 30 → 25.

Moveset

  Name Damage Description
Neutral attack   4% Donkey Kong performs a cross followed by an uppercut. The tip of the first punch's hitbox will knock targets towards Donkey Kong instead of away.
6%
Forward tilt   11% Donkey Kong quickly performs a backhanded swat.
10%
9%
Up tilt   11% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot) Donkey Kong very quickly swipes his arm in an arcing motion. It has very reliable arch range and deals more damage and knockback if the target is extremely close to Donkey Kong's behind.
Down tilt   7% (sweetspot), 6% (sourspot) Donkey Kong does a quick swat across the ground. Slightly less powerful around his fingers. In addition to great speed and range, it has a chance to trip opponents, allowing for guaranteed follow-ups such as Giant Punch, Headbutt, or a grab.
Dash attack   10% (sweetspot), 8% (sourspot) Donkey Kong performs his trademark forward rolling tackle from Donkey Kong Country. Deals less damage towards the end.
Forward smash   20%-21% Donkey Kong performs a very forceful clap, KOing as low as 50% when fully charged. DK now smirks as he performs the move.
Up smash   18% Donkey Kong performs a very powerful clap above his head, swinging both of his arms 90˚ in the process. Unlike other up smash attacks, it does not scoop opponents into the main hitbox, making it somewhat problematic to land if the opponent is not airborne or incredibly close to DK.
Down smash   14% (arms), 17%-18% (fists) Donkey Kong swings both of his clenched fists down 90 degrees to perform forearm clubs. It has decent range, extremely fast start-up for a smash attack and has great vertical knockback. It KOs starting at 80% and is especially good for punishing rolls, laggy attacks and lots of attacks in general as an out of shield option. It could arguably be considered one of the best down smashes in the game, despite it having a fair amount of endlag.
Neutral aerial   8-11% Donkey Kong quickly spins around with arms extended similarly to Spinning Kong. Quite possibly his most useful aerial, since it is very quick in both start-up and ending lag. Incredibly powerful when landing the clean hit (can KO under 100%) and the late hit is an excellent combo tool when SHFF'd.
Forward aerial   16% (early), 15% (sweetspot), 13% (late) Donkey Kong quickly performs a double axe handle. If sweetspotted, the opponent is meteor smashed. This move inspired Donkey Kong's jumping attack in Donkey Kong 64. Unlike many other moves, the early sourspot hitbox is actually stronger than the meteor smash hitbox, sending opponents away with extreme horizontal knockback, making it more effective at higher percentages.
Back aerial   8-13% Donkey Kong performs a back kick that lingers briefly. A potent move with little start up, ending, or lading lag, that has decent power and a large hitbox. Its low ending lag allows it to initiate a Wall of Pain.
Up aerial   13% Donkey Kong performs an upward headbutt. It is ideal for combos and is a useful KOing option.
Down aerial   16% (sweetspot), 13% (sourspot) Donkey Kong performs a stomp while flexing his arms in comedic "macho" pose. Its sweetspot will meteor smash foes with great power. Its sourspot is present close to Donkey Kong's chest.
Grab
Pummel   2% A fairly quick slap.
Forward throw   10% (forward), 12% (backward), 10% (upward), 7% (downward) Donkey Kong cradles the opponent on his back, allowing him to move and jump around while still holding the victim. This gives him access to forward, up, and down throws (as well as a back throw that can only be performed in the air) that are distinct from his normal grab.

Forward throw: Throws the opponent upwards diagonally.

Back throw: Same as the forward throw, but sends the opponent at a slightly higher trajectory and can only be done in the air.

Up throw: Hurls the opponent over his head. Has very low base knockback, allowing for follow-ups such as his up aerial twice in a row or his neutral aerial followed immediately by his back aerial. At middle to high percents, Donkey Kong can set up an early KO with his up aerial, making it reminiscent of Diddy Kong's "Hoo-Hah" combo.

Down throw: Performs a backbreaker, knocking the opponent sideways. At low percentages, it can be used off-stage as a surprise option against opponents with poor recoveries to potentially send them too far away to recover.

When the opponent is too damaged to escape in time, all of these throws allow for easy stage spikes. Donkey Kong can simply walk off the ledge, pull back and throw them against the underside. However, this carries significant risk, as the opponent can tech it and result in Donkey Kong ending up too low to recover if the timing is off.

Back throw   11% Donkey Kong flings the opponent with stunning force. DK's strongest throw in terms of damage and knockback, being not much weaker than Ness'.
Up throw   9% The opponent is tossed upwards.
Down throw   7% Donkey Kong slams the opponent into the ground. It has rather weak knockback with a horizontal knockback angle in front of DK.
Forward roll
Back roll
Spot dodge
Air dodge
Techs
Floor attack (front)
Floor getups (front)
  7% Donkey Kong swats at the opponent.
Floor attack (back)
Floor getups (back)
  7% Donkey Kong tries to clasp the opponent.
Floor attack (trip)
Floor getups (trip)
  5% Donkey Kong does a wind-up spin to the opponent.
Edge attack
Edge getups
  8% Donkey Kong climbs onto the ledge and performs a forearm club.
Neutral special Default Giant Punch 10% (uncharged), +2% (per wind-up), 28% (tenth wind-up/fully charged) Donkey Kong winds up and forcefully thrusts out his fist as a potentially powerful attack. The attack is at fully charged after eleven windups and gains super armor. The punch deals more knockback but lacks launch resistance at ten windups. The punch can be saved and chosen when to be released after being fully charged.
Custom 1 Lightning Punch 10% (uncharged), +1% (per wind-up), 16% (five wind-ups), 15% (fully charged) An electrical version of the Giant Punch. Takes less time to fully charge (six wind-ups at increased speed), but deals less damage and lacks super armor at full wind-ups.
Custom 2 Storm Punch 8% (uncharged), +2% (per wind-up), 18% (fully charged) Does less damage, but produces a powerful windbox that will push back opponents and takes less time to charge. Higher ending lag and lacks super armor.
Side special Default Headbutt 10% (ground/sweetspot aerial), 8% (sourspot aerial) Donkey Kong slams his head downward. When performed in the air, the struck opponent is meteor smashed if hit by the sweetspot. When performed on the ground the opponent is buried and will remain submerged longer if the opponent has already dealt a fair amount of damage. Unlike in Brawl, DK will not stall in the air. Full power shields will barely manage to avoid breaking against this move.
Custom 1 Jumping Headbutt 5% (aerial), 10% (ground) Donkey Kong jumps before slamming his head downward. Buried opponents can break out faster. Will SD Donkey Kong if used off-stage out of ledge-grabbing distance.
Custom 2 Stubborn Headbutt 13% A modified Headbutt that has longer start-up time, but deals more damage (and subsequently even more shield damage) and gives him high knockback resistance. Grants super armor.
Up special Default Spinning Kong 7% (grounded first hit), 1% (grounded hits 2-6), 4% (grounded seventh hit), 10% (aerial first hit), 2% (aerial subsequent hits) Donkey Kong spins with his arms outstretched. DK has launch resistance when using this move. Strong horizontal recovery, weak vertical recovery. If used on the ground, Donkey Kong spins at an angle, increasing the move's vertical range.
Custom 1 Chopper Kong 0% Has increased vertical recovery, but does not deal any damage.
Custom 2 Kong Cyclone 4% (grounded first hit), 3% (aerial first hit), 15% (grounded second hit), 12% (aerial second hit) Donkey Kong pulls in opponents in with a windbox while spinning, then launches them with the final hit. On the ground, has no hitboxes except for the first and last hits. In the air, it deals no damage except for the first and last hits, but does deal hitstun. Does not go as high as Spinning Kong.
Down special Default Hand Slap 14% Donkey Kong repeatedly slaps his hands against the ground, causing earth-shaking vibrations in the process. The attack gives him some protection from opponents while grounded and has good range. The attack originates from Donkey Kong Country. Donkey Kong can now use the move while in midair, although only twice in a row. The second hit meteor smashes foes.
Custom 1 Focused Slap 7% (first hit), 14% (second hit) A modified Hand Slap that sacrifices range for increased hitstun and knockback.
Custom 2 Hot Slap 4% (first hit), 12% (second hit) Donkey Kong slaps his hands against the ground, causing flaming pillars to erupt on impact. It does not reach behind him at all, and not very far in front. It has much less start-up lag and much higher knockback growth than Hand Slap, meaning that it can potentially KO. However, it does not meteor smash if used in the air.
Final Smash Konga Beat Varies Donkey Kong will take out a pair of bongos and begin to play them to the beat of "DK Island Swing", sending out shock-waves in the process. The attacks range and power is determined by the player's input. The player must push the attack button in succession with the song's beat in order have the greatest range and power. While this was difficult in Brawl, the Final Smash now is accompanied by an indicative bar that will appear above DK. It will let the player know when to press the attack button.

Taunts

  • Up Taunt: Beats his clenched hands against his chest. DK now smirks as he does so.
  • Side Taunt: Shakes himself as if his fur was wet. DK now has a large toothy grin as he does so.
  • Down Taunt: Faces the camera, shrugs his shoulders, and makes a confused grunt. It originates from Super Smash Bros..

On-Screen Appearance

Donkey Kong bursts from a DK Barrel and briefly strikes a pose.

Idle Poses

  • Bares his teeth and crosses his eyes.
  • Bumps his fist together, the perform an underhand strike.

Victory Fanfare

A flourished remix directly from Brawl based on the jingle that would play whenever Donkey Kong completely cleared a bonus room or defeated a boss in Donkey Kong Country. He shares this with Diddy Kong.

Victory Poses

  • Holds his hands above his head and shakes them.
  • Does a back flip and holds up his arms. It is identical to his "character chosen" animation in Super Smash Bros..
  • Beats his chest and faces the screen with a large toothy grin.

In Competitive Play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character Custom sets available
Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong 3233 3231 3232 1233 1231
1232 2233 2231 2232 1333

Notable players

Trophies

Donkey Kong
Ntsc This king of the jungle really, really loves bananas. His adventures usually start with people stealing his hoard of them. In Smash Bros., he's known for his incredible strength and long reach. Despite his size, he's still pretty quick. He can even jump carrying heavy items! Use this knowledge well.
Pal With help from Diddy Kong and his Animal Friends, this banana-loving king of the jungle will take on anyone causing trouble on his turf. The best things about him in this game are his colossal strength, his speed, his long reach and the fact that he can jump while holding heavy items. Make sure you use all that to your advantage!
SNES: Donkey Kong Country (11/1994)
Wii: Donkey Kong Country Returns (11/2010)
Donkey Kong (Alt.)
Ntsc Donkey Kong pulls no punches when it comes to fighting. Or headbutts, as it turns out. His Headbutt special move will bury anyone on the ground who gets hit, leaving them open to some serious damage. If Donkey Kong strikes an airborne foe with this move, they'll go crashing downward.
Pal Donkey Kong's always been one to use his head. Anyone who's been on the receiving end of his Headbutt special will tell you that. If they're on the ground when it hits them, they'll get buried, leaving them open to a serious walloping. If they're in the air, though, they might find themselves being knocked down. Either way, it;s going to hurt.
SNES: Donkey Kong Country (11/1994)
Wii: Donkey Kong Country Returns (11/2010)
Konga Beat
NtscIn this Final Smash, DK drums on a set of bongos, just like in the Donkey Konga games. Press the attack button in rhythm with the circles to boost the attack's range and power. Enemy attacks won't affect you, but you can't move, either. Auto-scrolling stages will slow down but won't stop-don't get too carried away in the beat!
Pal In this Final Smash, DK drums on a set of bongos, just like in the Donkey Konga games. Press the attack button in rhythm with the circles to boost the attack's range and power. Enemy attacks won't affect you, but you can't move, either. Auto-scrolling stages will slow down, but be careful or you might still self-destruct!

In Event Matches

Solo Events

Co-op Events

Alternate costumes

Donkey Kong Palette (SSB4).png
Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4) Donkey Kong (SSB4)

Gallery

Trivia

  • Donkey Kong's crowd chant in this game references the DK Rap from Donkey Kong 64.
  • Donkey Kong's default moveset has the most meteor smashing attacks of the roster, at four.