The Forgotten Heroism Of Diddy Kong
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ก.ย. 2022
- Designing For is a series which looks at one specific theme in gaming, and analyzes a what makes it stand out. In this episode, we look at the career of Diddy Kong - his humble origins, how he grew to be as big a star as gaming had seen during his heyday, his fall from grace, and how everything ties into his characterization of learning how to be a true video game hero.
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Patreon: / designingfor
Twitter: / designing4games
Discord: / discord
Director/Writer/Voice Over/Footage: Tommy Eyler/Pyrrhickong ( / pyrrhickong )
Video Editing/Additional Direction/Script Editing/Live Action: AuthorMan ( / authorman )
Thumbnail & Custom Diddy Art: Altermentality
/ altermentality
Script Editing & Fact Checking: DKVine
dkvine.com/
"Rare Respite" by Patrick Burns via OCRemix - • Serious Monkey Busines...
Intro Animation By: / @tarvouldsquest
Intro Theme By: / tracks
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Also check out our episode on King K. Rool, and how his portrayal in Super Smash Bros. furthers his characterization through his parallels to and rivalry with Donkey Kong - • Super Smash Bros. Ulti...
Or our episode on another little buddy, Pikachu, and how he acts as a perfect support unit for his trainer to make himself the perfect mascot for the Pokemon series - • Pikachu: The Perfect M...
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Footage/Images Used:
• SSC Fall Fest Wii U Wi... ~ SSC Fall Fest Wii U Winners Quarters - MVD (Diddy Kong) Vs. Spargo (Cloud) Smash 4 Tournament
• CEO 2016 Smash 4 - Kse... ~ CEO 2016 Smash 4 - Ksev (Fox) Vs. DNG | Nietono (Diddy Kong) SSB4 Tournament - Smash Wii U
• Super Smash Bros. Ulti... ~ Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - King K. Rool Reveal Trailer
• Whose Toes Are Those? ~ Whose Toes Are Those?
• DK: Jungle Climber Wal... ~ DK: Jungle Climber Walkthrough - Wormhole, Final Boss & Ending (100%)
• Mario + Rabbids Kingdo... ~ Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle - Donkey Kong Adventure - E3 2018 Trailer
• Donkey Kong Country Re... ~ Donkey Kong Country Returns | Part 2 - "Hug me, Mugly!"
• Mario Party 9 - Boss B... ~ Mario Party 9 - Boss Battle - Diddy's Banana Blast
• Super Smash Bros. Braw... ~ Super Smash Bros. Brawl - Intro Opening HD
• Rare Announcement of j... ~ Rare Announcement of joining Microsoft
• Smash Con 2017 Brawl -... ~ Smash Con 2017 Brawl - ADHD (Diddy Kong) Vs. NRG | Nairo (Metaknight) SSBB GF
• Donkey Kong Jungle Bea... ~ Donkey Kong Jungle Beat Commercial
• Monkey! ~ Monkey!
• sometimes foreshadowin... ~ sometimes foreshadowing is relatively obvious
• Rikku:Monkey! ~ Rikku:Monkey!
• Donkey Kong Country Tr... ~ Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze - Meet the Kongs: Diddy Kong - Nintendo Switch
• Super Smash Bros. Ulti... ~ Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - Everyone is here!
• Mario Golf: World Tour... ~ Mario Golf: World Tour (3DS) - All Character Post-Hole Animations
• DKC Exposed: The Makin... ~ DKC Exposed: The Making of Donkey Kong Country - Promotional VHS
• Mario Golf: Toadstool ... ~ Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour 100% Walkthrough Part 20: Character Match Vs. Diddy Kong
• Donkey Kong Country 2 ... ~ Donkey Kong Country 2 Diddy's Kong Quest JPN Commercial 2
• Donkey Kong Country 2 ... ~ Donkey Kong Country 2 commercial 1995
• Donkey Kong Country 2 ... ~ Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance Version) USA Commercial
• Donkey Kong Racing - T... ~ Donkey Kong Racing - Trailer - GC
• Diddy Kong Racing "A W... ~ Diddy Kong Racing "A Wild Racing Adventure" (Nintendo 64\N64\ Short & Full Commercial) Full HD
• DKC Returns - World 6 ~ DKC Returns - World 6
• DKC Returns - World 7 ... ~ DKC Returns - World 7 Part 1
• Mario Strikers Charged... ~ Mario Strikers Charged Football - All Character Mega Strikes
• Donkey Kong Country Re... ~ Donkey Kong Country Returns Diddy's Jetpack - เกม
![เกิดใหม่ทั้งทีก็เป็นสไลม์ไปซะแล้ว ซีซั่น 3 - ตอนที่ 57 [ซับไทย]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/pNhft3YZFRE/mqdefault.jpg)
Diddy Kong is the hero of a forgotten era whose super stardom would be cut short by a rare occurrence. He took over the role of poster child for what would become the best singleplayer kart racer of all time. While I may have forgotten his heroism, all it takes is a single small reminder to make me fall in love with this little guy all over again.
P.S: I'm so sorry for the loss of _your_ little buddy. I share your grief with the sad passing of my father a couple weeks ago
Thank you very much for saying so, I'm very sorry to hear about your father. You are a kind soul
Who was his little buddy? A younger relative?
@@Darkfawfulx very end of the video
Like, a LITERAL Rare occurrence. Or kind of a lack of one.
...half...
Oh Diddy Kong, how I’ve waited so long for your real return for so Diddy Long.
Art
For some reason I can't help feel uncomfortable reading this comment
Nice pun.
Ok you won the internet you happy now?
Surely you are jestin
I’d love a Mario/DK crossover game where Luigi and Diddy have to team up to save their player 1s.
I also thought of a Luigi and Diddy crossover idea but my idea was a new Mario VS Donkey Kong game called “Luigi VS Diddy Kong”
I would to love too see it, they are cute and awesome, i like them both, in Mario Power tennis they seems like a funny duo xD .
@@kirbylover2.038 fun idea xD .
I know we got something like this in Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 with Luigi and Tails when they had to get Sonic and Mario out of the handheld game. I would love to see a story in the future where either Luigi and Diddy Kong or they and Tails all have an adventure together. I know Sega has lost the rights to the Olympic games, but hopefully we could see some kind of crossover in the future with the Mario and Sonic characters that isn't the Olympic games or Smash.
That actually would work.
Diddy Kong is RARE in Kong form.
After Microsoft brought RARE, that is when Diddy Kong became almost like any Kong instead of his own character.
Not just Diddy, all the Kongs lost personality, aside from maybe Funky Kong? But then again he got exaggerated
Diddy is like the internal manifestation of Rares soul.
Finally someone giving this spectacular simian the praise he deserves. He is one of THE best video game protagonists with a resume that makes most others look inferior. We're talking the main character of one of the greatest 2D Platformers ever, main character of the best N64 kart racer, High or Top tier in EVERY Smash game he's been in, and an overall likable and fun-loving personality.
You can't go wrong with this Kong, he's the full package. I am PRAYING that the rumored DK game is announced soon, cause with Mario Sports and Mario Kart leaving Diddy at the door, we need to see the monkey back in action!
Thanks for giving my favorite video game character a comprehensive breakdown, it's what the little guy deserves.
If I had a nickel for every momentum-based platformer sidekick that could fly and had an amazing arc about standing on his own but then got screwed over in modern games, I'd have 2 nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.
Oh boi I get ya
Who's the other one?
@@hoagie-xs9rr tails
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest is truly a masterpiece. Even by today's standards. Quite possibly the most ingeniously-designed platformer ever made.
Well done but dude, your editing style is like a fever dream.
The highest of compliments, thank you very much
You're welcome!
17:51 wouldn’t the guy in second place be the better Luigi? Considering it’s, y’know, Luigi and he’s, uh, _almost_ number one…
Despite Diddy's recent "coin-flip" of appearances in Mario spin-offs, I really do think he's gonna come back strong someday.
On the Mario Portal website, Diddy Kong is one of the characters listed in the characters section. And that section is limited to mostly just the main characters of the Mario series. Yet he's right there alongside Donkey Kong.
And he also got his own Mario Series Amiibo. Something Bowser Jr never even got!
Nintendo recognizes his importance, and he's gonna return to the spotlight someday.
Wait they changed his design? What way?
@@mudshrooze They didn't change his design. I didn't say that?
If you're referring to Diddy's "'coin-flip' of appearances," I meant that it's a coin-flip as to whether he appears in a Mario spin-off or not.
@@DaNintendude He's hanging at the very bottom of that list. But he's hanging there all the same.
@@OnlineVideoSurfer Even if he's at the bottom of the list, the fact that he's on the list at all speaks volumes.
@@DaNintendude his last appearance is in MS:BL even if haters hates it, is still a good game and Diddy is one of the playable characters of that game, im glad he is not forgotten .
I love how your K Rool voice sounds like a darker version of his cartoon version. Reminds me of Robotniks voice from Sonic SATAM compared to the adventures of sonic the hedgehog.
I also hope that the original 3 DKC games (or at least the first game) gets a remake someday.
Tried my best to get it as close to his DK64 tone as possible while still keeping in that bougie delivery from the cartoon. Thank you very much!
Ironic how they nailed so hard Diddy Kong's character in DKC2, that the game is to this day the best DKC in the entire franchise.
Like, in the first game, it's literally the mentor-student relationship, when the more you start losing DK, the more you start appreciating Diddy's shenanigans. In the third game, Dixie and the one no one speaks about is more of a caretaker situation, when even if Kiddy throws things like Diddy, he's literally a baby Dixie needs to get everything up, like "throw me there!", or "let me use you as a platform", or "here, you're heavy enough to break this thing down". And in the Return games, it's literally the Sonic situation where, for some reason, the main character must stand out just because marketing, and the rest of the bunch is nothing more than, as you just said, mere situational power-ups.
But DKC2? Hoo boi. Unlike in 3, both characters stand out both alone and together. Sure, Dixie has the notorious helicopter hair, but at the moments of risk where she really needs to evade something right in front of her really fast, she has a hard time with it. However, Diddy's agile enough to overcome those situations. Moreso, the actual fight against K. Rool feels like it was really meant to show off both characters without overshadowing anyone. A good amount of projectiles actually require some trick to evade them, which is perfect to Dixie's cautious descent, and they have one of the best nodbacks to his character role back in DKC1, because you see, "Diddy not being able to lift a barrel over his head" actually makes him better to deal every single blow.
Why is that ironic?
@@BohemianRaichu Ironic because the game ""without Donkey Kong"" is the best one from the Donkey Kong franchise
Well said!
Definitely have a new level of respect for Diddy, that's for sure.
Also, rest in peace, Buddy. :(
"Study the mind behind the monkey" I love this channel so much
I had an arguement with my brother about how important Diddy Kong was to the Mario Franchise. I think Diddy should be respected more by Nintendo, even if he's just a fictional character.
i dont see how anyone can say diddy is not important, hes always next to donkey kong (minus donkey kong 64 because you can only play 1 character out of 6 at a time). and the game has mostly stated the KONGS not just donkey kong. i think the series was suppose to shine a light on all characters that it could in donkey kong 64 and afterwards but sadly the donkey kong series never took off that well after 64 i think there was tropical freeze but thats it. i beat DK64 a month ago or 2 ago and i will say the ending indicated that all the kongs took part of defeating king k rool. im not sure if your bother has played DK64 before but if he has beaten it he should know that donkey kong could not get all his bananas back and defeat king k rool by himself which is why he partially needed to rescue the other kongs because of their abilities, he would not be able to shrink to get into places where tiny could, he would not be able to fly areas diddy could nor walk up cliffs lanky could. so its not just diddy who is important its the entire kong family from cranky kong to funky kong even though he just brags about being better in his youth.
We need a new DKC game where Diddy is the main hero :) .
Love it, Diddy needs a new major role
BTW that endears almost made me tear up, I love dogs and he looked so polite :(
lost my bud this over the summer had him since i was a kid cant stop crying once again
@@AshironDerigarStudios I‘m sorry man :(
Commenting before watching: Donkey Kong cleared his island of the invaders. Diddy DESTROYED their homeland!
This
Sonic: Wait I was supposed to pick up coins?
Mario: Wait if you put the coins in the levels why didn't you just save Donkey Kong yourself?
Cranky: I don't need to take sass from a guy with no college education.
Mario: I'm literally a medical doctor.
Cranky: Welcome to the club, what do you want? A medal?
Sonic: Kind of yeah.
We will await for your triumphant return, Diddy Kong.
Hey, D4. I wanted to thank you for making this video, and I’m glad I found it when I did.
I was having an existential crisis over a show I’m really attached to. I refuse to say the name, as simply uttering it could open up a massive can of worms. I’m aware that’s it’s severely flawed, but I ended up angering myself as I made the unhealthy choice to find an hour-long video critiquing why it’s awful, and I didn’t even watch it. I just scrolled through the comments and got mad that everyone was agreeing with the video. It was a really immature move on my part, and I let it ruin my night.
That was, until I found that you had posted this video. I’ve always enjoyed your content, and you really hit it out of the park with this one. My connections with Diddy and DKC as a whole aren’t even that strong, but your segments of hope, praise, despair, and a loop back to hope, along with the phenomenal editing and the new perspective you shed on Diddy for me, made me feel a lot better.
It’s ironic, considering the fact that I was too afraid to watch that other video I mentioned. I’m too afraid because I don’t want to develop a new, negative perspective for that show. I’m even scared to watch it again because I don’t want to accept a change in perspective. But…I guess that’s life, isn’t it? Change is painful, but it’s also part of how we grow. It can be the hardest thing.
Seeing Diddy Kong fall from grace,
Worrying that Steven Universe isn’t as good as I remember,
Or, in reality’s case, losing a beloved pet. Something I know the pain of all too well. I wish for your Buddy and my Cody to rest in peace.
P2s for life.
For me growing up the Donkey Kong series and Crash Bandicoot games and worlds were my main focuses from memories start till like freshman year of highschool. Where I started playing other franchises as well but Crash and DK worlds and characters are still my top game icons
DKC and Crash Bandicoot rocks ❤ .
Same here those are my favorite platforming series.
Diddy Kong was so popular in the 90s that Nintendo of America was using him in their promotional materials more than Mario. There was talk that Diddy would replace Mario as Nintendo’s mascot.
What surprises me about DKC3 is that it only had Diddy at the very end as a small cameo. Given Diddy's rise in popularity, he should've been at least an unlockable character. And i say that as someone who actually likes Kiddy Kong
This session is pure poetry. My whole spirit cried. Subbed! 12:30
I made Diddy my channel icon for a reason!
My experience with dkc is literally the first three levels and the world of light area and this video has me in tears; you sir are amazing at interpreting 90s video game stories for those of us spoiled with exposition
i didnt expect to cry watching a video game review but it hit me like a truck at the end. Same adorable white fluff a bit larger, had him for 18 years, i got him when i was almost 8, Lifes been so lonely without him by my side
I have watched this video at least 10 times that’s how good it is
Rest in peace to Buddy, I am sorry for your loss of Buddy. Also, Diddy Kong is one of my favourite Donkey Kong/Mario characters.
Diddy is my 18th favorite video game character, which is surprisingly high among my rankings. I like him so much that he appears as a protagonist in one of my fan-comics, and was my favorite character to draw when I turned 21.
His portrayal RARE gave him was AMAZING, and truly showed he was more than just an acrobatic monkey- he had flair, he had sass, and he was willing to improve.
You are the first person I've seen to mention Diddy is devoid of these qualities in the Smash Bros. series.
I'm happy he's relevant but... COME ON. This is the same character who stars in the same game where Stickerbrush Symphony plays- a level song that is so impactful that it makes millions of people reminisce! He is a HERO.
Poor little buddy.
Before I start my long message I want to say that I think this video is beautiful and well written and honestly I love every point you made. Thankyou man.
Now for me I want to say that when it comes to Donkey Kong lore I kind of obsessed over it for more than a decade. I've got theories I've got facts but something that always comes up is that Diddy has saved the day honestly more than Any other Kong besides Donkey Kong himself.
His greatest heroic moment in all games ever for me is his place in the Subspace Emmisary.
Finally, Diddy Day has come
This is a remarkable analysis of Diddy Kong. It confused me why people were upset about his exclusion from DKC3, but you raise a good point about how much prominence he had and how his "arc" could've resonated with a lot of people.
Diddy is one my favorite DK characters as well as a favorite Mario character. Still mad he is not in the new Mario Golf or Strikers. And we need a new Diddy Kong Racing
Stop complain dude, Diddy is in MS:BL, he is pretty cool to play as but sadly we dont have him in MG:Super Rush we have a generic Chargin Chuck and Ninji characters instead .
@@KamyAnai03 To be fair it was right before the DLC was announced for him but yeah I feel a bit better now lol
When DKC came out in '94, Diddy Kong was one of just a few perks when being the younger brother and thus player 2 by default. He'll always have a special place in my heart for that. DKC2 is also one of the best games ever made.
Diddy will always be my favorite character of all times
the end of the video resonated with me. I’ve dealt with the death of some Pets and Im so sorry for your loss. I hope everything gets better for you. you deserve it.
I've been hoping and praying that Nintendo makes another 3d dk game bringing back Chunky, Lanky, Kiddy, and all other lost Kongs and of course the King of the Kremlins K. ROOL
Why did a video about funni monke make me tear up more than my favorite character dying in a show I watch?
I wasn't expecting I'd watch the whole video, but it was so engaging and informative that the minutes passed like seconds.
Diddy Kong deserves way better. He took the challenge and rose beyond even Mario.
I didn't expect to feel proud of my 102% DKC2 run tonight, but here we are.
The moment I saw that rolling through enemies in DKCR didn't give momentum, I knew Diddy wouldn't have his comeback.
I feel like Diddy deserves more love from Nintendo
About time, too.
Man these videos are always so incredibly engaging and enthralling!!! Mastferful writing imo! great video!!!
The editing in this is top notch.
Your videos are great man, had to binge after the Dx3 one
Great job, Diddy Kong! We're all proud of you!
When it comes to smash version of DK and Diddy both are treated more like animals and less like the characters and personality we know of from their games and even games like Mario party. I feel if they had been designed like during smash 4 era they may have had more personality. But it's not horrible.
Between them and Bowser there's so much missed opportunity
This is one of those things that rub me the wrong way the most
Like, ONLY in Smash do they have those animal voices. Even Bowser! Everywhere else they have their own unique voice and personality, why couldn't they use that for Smash instead?
@@RF-Ataraxia because DK and Bowser designed during the 64 and gamecube era. I feel if they had all been reimagined in Brawl that would have been best. :/
@@RF-Ataraxia atleast they made bowser's movement more like Bowser in smash 4.
So what you're saying is... Diddy is smaller, faster... and stronger, too?
Real talk, when I first got my hands on DKC (before DKC2 ever came out) I preferred playing as Diddy Kong so much, that if I ever lost him in a level and was too far from another DK Barrel, I would just get myself killed so I can play as him again. I had no player 2, player 2 was a pin cushion. Or you know...one of the animal buddies.
Diddy's Canadian TV show voice actor's body of work is used as a torture device. I did no research and completely made this up, but it's true.
Speaking of the Subspace Emissary, let's not forget that Diddy and Fox together were strong enough to COMBAT RAYQUAZA!
12:32
The Diddy Rap
Verse 1:
Let me tell you a story 'bout a rapper so bold
He took a life and left a man's body cold
But little did he know, the man's spirit didn't rest
His ghost came back for revenge, he was so pissed
Chorus:
Killing a man ain't something to boast
But when his ghost comes back, you're in for the most
The rapper thought he got away, but he was wrong
The man's ghost was coming, and he was strong
Verse 2:
The rapper was living it up, thinking he was untouchable
But the man's ghost was lurking, he was unstoppable
He haunted the rapper's dreams, he haunted his soul
The rapper was losing it, he was no longer in control
Chorus:
Killing a man ain't something to boast
But when his ghost comes back, you're in for the most
The rapper thought he got away, but he was wrong
The man's ghost was coming, and he was strong
Verse 3:
The rapper tried to run, but he couldn't hide
The man's ghost was relentless, he was on the rapper's side
The rapper begged for mercy, but it was too late
The man's ghost had him, and sealed his fate
Chorus:
Killing a man ain't something to boast
But when his ghost comes back, you're in for the most
The rapper thought he got away, but he was wrong
The man's ghost was coming, and he was strong
Outro:
So let this be a lesson to all who hear this rap
Killing a man is never worth it, take a step back
The man's ghost might come back, seeking revenge
And you'll be left alone, with no one to defend.
He'll likely be back in the next Mario Kart 8 DLC Wave
It’s gorgeous. Thank you for doing this! I love him still, and though he might not ‘belong’ to me, Diddy will always be - my baby! 😍 Kev.
Chill dude, your supposed "baby" is nothing more than a rejected DK Junior redesign. Not exactly something to be proud of.
Diddy Kong is still cool though
You never realize how much it hurts to know Cranky is right until it happens.
Did you know that we have waited 8 years for a full brand new Dk game... 9 pretty soon.
Diddy with the jet pack and dualy has got to be 1 the hardest characters of all time
6:31 oh! oh! also, when roll-jumping, diddy goes much farther horizontally before gravity kicks in
Diddy was the S.H.I.T (Simian Hero in Training)
Being born in 1999, I never got a chance to experience Diddy in his hayday. My first console generation was the GameCube and, whenever Diddy did appear in a Mario spin-off, I never really connected with him. He just felt extraneous and I never really realized why until this video: he’s literally just monkee. That’s it. He appears alongside DK because he’s supposed to and that’s it. As I got into my teens, I actually grew to despise him in large part because I played competitive Smash 4 and Diddy was an absolute nightmare at that game’s launch. Yet, then I got into my college years and my twenties. I played DK64 for the first time (I absolutely love it), played Country and loved it, and am now playing Country 2. And, not only is Diddy one of my favorite game characters, I finally get him. He’s not just monkey. There’s a little bit of Diddy in all of us. We all aspire for greatness like him, but we’re all so small in the grand scheme of things. It’s easy to feel like you aren’t here for anything more than an arbitrary reason - just like Diddy was created solely for an arbitrary reason. But, real greatness isn’t just magically achieved because “that’s what the story says”. Real greatness is earned. If you want greatness, you have to buckle down and go get it. And yeah, people are going to underestimate you and not understand you, but all you can do is keep your head up and keep trying until you prove them wrong.
In other words, he’s certainly a hell of a lot more than some cartoon monkey.
I feel a video on Subspace Emissary is long overdue!
I grew up with the Donkey Kong Country / 64 games so I always l Ioved Diddy Kong. I miss him.
"Diddy was a better Luigi than Luigi" sadly funny, but true
I always thought Diddy Kong was one of the more accessible Smash characters.
Diddy is one of my 3 favorite characters of the DK franchise
So glad you made this. Also can I ask where you got the DK isle song used in the beginning of the video? It sounds AMAZING and i gotta hear it.
That is Lagoon Promenade from Mario + Rabbids: Donkey Kong Adventure. Strongly recommend listening to that full OST, Grant Kirkhope is clearly having a blast being able to touch his and David Wise's old compositions again!
@@DesigningFor thank you!!!
He’s back again!
And, he’s back again again!
And, this time, he’s… gone?
Jimmy Davis reference. Nice!👍
Can we make a Morbius style meme out of Diddy Kong to make the world aware of his greatness and heroism?
Except we don't need to lie about Diddy being a great hero, like we lie about Morbius being a great movie.
I don't really know what more you could ask for from Diddy's Smash appearance, DKC has been one of my favorite series since I was a kid and he's definitely among the characters I find myself picking the most. I do agree that he feels strangely difficult to play, but you could probably say the same for Ken who is consistently one of the easiest characters to play in his home series.
Okay I'm glad people feel how I do about Diddy Kong
He starred in *three* games! Don't forget Donkey Kong Land 2, which - despite being a retelling of DKC2's plot - was an all-new game with totally different levels!
I agree with the video overall though. Diddy needs a comeback to main-stardom.
I love Diddy I even main him in smash
Diddy is my 2nd favorite Mario character, he’s one of the best sidekicks and I definitely think he deserves more love
17:50 - 18:34 this part was brilliant.
You are the rare game commentator/critic who sees that gameplay = narrative.
I love your "go hard or go home" attitude.
You know, learning about this character has really put into perspective how much I love Diddy Kong even in his Smash Bros incarnations, and also that I really need to play the DK games some more. This little monkey had a story that a lot of us could relate to, not really seeming like much at first but having enormous potential and with experience, becoming something special in our right. Regardless of his appearances in games now, he will always be a hero in my eyes. While we're on the subject of Smash Bros, knowing Diddy's character and play style from the Rareware games, what do you think should be tweaked and fixed for Diddy to have better overall representation in Smash without making him less competitively viable?
Man diddy inspired me whit his cool moves, his nintendo cap and his jetpack rocket that i really want him back to be a minor important sidekick role no matter what happens to him i'l support the little guy
Fun Fact: Diddy Kong is actually my favorite Kong
I have to disagree on a lot of the points about Diddy's design in Smash. His entire character through all of the games where he was playable alongside DK is that he's far physically weaker than DK but makes up for it in speed and control. That's exactly what he does in Smash. No killpower, dies early, but has one of the most versatile freestyle toolkits in the game, which is why he's always viable at the top level. Even though he's theoretically about setting up "safe" traps, he's actually got a lot of risk reward. Self damage from barrels, no disjoints so he has to get up close, can get gimped really easily if you're not careful with recovery mixups, and like I said before, he dies early as one of the lightest characters in the game.
Even his more standard animations are great, because a lot of them seem to be his take on DK's established moves. His dair is DK fair except facing the camera instead of swinging to the side. His bair looks identical. His dtilt clap is a quick, low damage/knockback, spammable version of DK fsmash, which is a slow, powerful clap. His utilt is the same arm sweep. His fthrow, while admittedly sort of generic, is still the same overhand throw that DK does for his cargo fthrow. Might be a stretch, but even the fact that he bashes his head against people in a grab as his pummel could be seen as his version of DK's side B head butt. Again, a short, spammable, low damage version of DK's slow, armored bury move.
Monkey Flip and Banana are definitely game mechanic > character references, but when the only major thing missing from Diddy's kit would arguably be his guitar, I think he's extremely well represented, ESPECIALLY compared to DK who draws almost nothing from his games besides the hand slap, and taking his up B from Dixie Kong. I do like his punch, and spinning Kong has sort of become iconic for him, but the fact that he uses barrels in absolutely nothing he does, nothing from DK64, and sounds the furthest from his actual voice of any of the "beast noise" characters makes it hard to argue that he's not the worst representative of his series of the lot. He does have the excuse of being largely unchanged since 64, and suffers from limited moveset updates or diversity in the same way as characters like Mario and Luigi. But to say Diddy is represented worse seems kind of strange to me (though K. Rool and Banjo sort of blow both DK and Diddy out of the water in that sense).
Overall I loved the video though, that was just a nitpick of mine as someone who's been maining Diddy basically from the moment he was announced on the Dojo. I still hold out for Diddy in every Mario spinoff, though I'm continually astonished by games like MK8 that has had 2 waves of DLC, a rerelease, and now another 6 waves of DLC (tracks only) and still doesn't have anything more than DK himself and a 3DS retro stage to represent the entire Donkey Kong franchise. I thought they were turning over a new leaf with him appearing in Mario Tennis Aces, Super Mario Party, Mario Kart Tour, etc., but Mario Golf Super Rush shafted him for some reason. But he's back in Strikers, DK as a franchise is getting its own section at the theme park, and with the rumors of a standalone DK movie after the Mario movie, I could see a lot of DK-related announcements coming in the future around the same time as a new game announcement finally.
That's an entirely fair perspective, thank you for the really well thought-out comment! However, I do worry, a bit, about the general conveyance of Diddy Kong in Smash in spite of that. There's a lot of admirable traits about Diddy's animation suite especially, even if it gets a bit truncated and hidden in a fighting game environment, lots of great squash and stretch, but he's a very... screechy character, putting it simply. A lot of really shrill noises that combine with a lot of weak hits that make sense for a lithe fighting game character, especially one who is portrayed as a physical weakling like Diddy, but it takes away from the pure acrobatic character that he is. Someone like Bayonetta also fulfills a "lot of weak hits" portrayal, but the tonality is entirely different due to sound design and the general rhythm of how far she takes you from the stage, as opposed to Diddy's very centralized combos and shrill sound design. The fact that most of the elements highlighted about him upon reveal was "wow look how monkey he is! Such good monkey!" has also always been less than encouraging.
Ideally, I would love for Diddy to be a character that properly takes you to the edge of the screen, with really early KO potential with a great read, but his hitstun is weak to start out so in order to get his proper set-ups, you need to build up damage to get to that finale. And if you commit too early, oh no, your opponent has you in a bad spot because you got a bit too full of yourself! I'm not calling Diddy's playstyle mindless, or even necessarily bad as a design! I just don't think it presently works for Diddy, and the specific combination of his lack of ease to play compared to a contemporary like, say, Pikachu (especially compared to his ease to play in his home series), to how start-and-stop his momentum is compared to how it carries through in said series, to how his sound design just does not fit the character well at all, to boiling most of his kit down to a single banana in the public eye has really hurt his general perception as a character, especially with how dormant he's been in the DK series in general since Brawl's release. As poor at actual references and lacking in personality as DK is... he's still pretty funny! You get the appeal of Donkey Kong's ridiculous strength and cheekiness through Smash, and while he has a LOT of flaws and is missing a ton of his character, his feel isn't too divorced from his home series and his character is on-point in his playstyle, at the very least, if not actual animations and references. And I do weigh Diddy coming later in the series against him a bit - like he came in at the same time as Dedede, and just look at how personality-packed that penguin is!
Again, I'm more upset at how Diddy's smash appearance has warped his public perception due to his portrayal and how it's erased a lot of the character he had in the 90's, and what elements of the character are ALWAYS highlighted, in spite of his general advantages (you make a bunch of great points comparing him to DK). I'm personally rubbish at playing him, but don't begrudge you at all for liking the design; I love playing DK a lot despite being pretty mixed on his Smash design overall! Thank you again for the comment!
@@DesigningFor I'm glad to have a discussion about it! It's honestly rare to talk to someone who cares as much as I do about the Kongs (Diddy specifically) so keep it coming if you like.
I see what you mean about them leaning way more into the "lol monke" side of him as opposed to his more grounded "cool 90s animal mascot that happens to be a monkey but still has a distinct personality." I guess I've just been desensitized to how much his voice changes between games from the og Rare stuff to the weird squirrel noises he makes in Returns/TF (one of my only true criticisms of those games lol). I think part of his public Smash perception does come from him specifically in Smash 4 where he was ridiculously broken and frustrating to fight against early on, and he sort of kept that label even after he got nerfed in Smash 4 and was trash at the beginning of Ult before he got buffed. I think with people like Tweek at the top level making Diddy look godly again, but not easy, public perception is actually shifting more toward him being a cool freestyle character that takes a ton of effort rather than being an annoying troll character. So in a way he is getting some respect again, even if he doesn't have the ease of access that you would expect from a smooth platformer character like him.
I should say that this is all coming from someone who plays Smash fairly competitively, and also used to speedrun DKC2 a lot. So my perspective on what a DKC character should feel like may be different from yours, since a lot of my experience with DKC2 is grinding out extremely technical platforming sequences and tricks (even though I grew up with the games, it's hard to come back to it more casually after breaking it open like that). Both Diddy and DK's fast, high jumps, but lack of air acceleration in Smash actually matches the way that they feel to move in the DKC games remarkably well I feel. The speed DKC games are all about building up and maintaining horizontal momentum (aside from the vertically designed levels), and honestly having Diddy's main horizontal air mobility tied to special moves (barrels and monkey flip) represent that well. One thing that Project M did that I really wish was a thing in the actual Smash games was the ability to roll (or dash attack in Smash) off ledges, just like how one of DKC's characteristic platforming techniques (even to casual players) is the roll off ledge into jump. The real Smash games have your dash attack end at a ledge like an invisible wall, but playing Project M and getting combos that led off stage with a cartwheel before the finishing move felt awesome and a lot like the movement in DKC.
I actually found your channel from the Dedede video which might be one of my favorite character analyses on TH-cam, so I was pretty excited to see this video existed. Donkey Kong and Kirby just happen to be my two favorite franchises by a long shot. So again, it's cool to see someone who cares about delving pretty deep into a lot of the things I love about these franchises.
@@Toadiferous Oh it's my pleasure, Kirby and DK have remained two of my favorite things in existence for as far back as I can remember!
While I feel like the base movement of Smash is there, like you said, the lack of the roll jump really kills a lot of my enthusiasm for especially Diddy. What I love about the Donkey Kong Country games, and what I feel sets them apart from other platformers, is how absolute your control in the air is, but how strongly you can manipulate your momentum. Diddy and DK are VERY generous when it comes to slightly drifting back and forth, but you get them rolling through enemies and off of ledges and they speed through stages like no one else. While I'm certainly not good enough to speedrun the games, I am good enough at DKC to make friends and family concerned at how well I know a game I'm not actively making money off of, and I do feel that translating that horizontal momentum, that aerial confidence, is paramount to making Diddy feel accurate in Smash. Monkey Flip is a step in the right direction, but it's carrying the burden all by itself when pursuing someone offstage - there's no follow up or continuation, no real finale like he had in Project M (to my knowledge, I'm not an expert at playing the character, but certainly not at a level where it's immediately accessible to most people who play him). While I agree that Diddy is getting MUCH cooler to watch, I do, unfortunately, feel that the present competitive scene is a far smaller part of the Smash fanbase compared to the thousands or millions who just pick the game up as a fun party game, and I think Diddy suffers the most there. The character that he is in Subspace - brash, in over his head, but still putting in the effort with some real cheek - doesn't match up with how to play him even at a casual level, even in Brawl (where two banana peels REALLY made him excessively focused on the camping shenanigans). Based on his development history, I do assume that after being decoupled from Dixie, the team went to think of what would give Diddy a unique niche, and the banana peel was the solution. I can't confirm that, but it FEELS so central to his identity in Smash and mixes in with his portrayal and monke-fication that I do believe it.
I dunno, I feel like Smash was still this amazing opportunity for Diddy to reassert himself in a way that characters like Pit, Meta Knight, Ike, Shulk, even King K. Rool later on would do. And in spite of any intention, resulted in him being more intensely saddled with the "monke" label as Smash's reach exceeded Donkey Kong's own. Took a long while for DK to break out of that perception of himself, and I still don't feel Diddy ever truly has. I just want him to pull out a boombox and sunglasses for a win animation or make his popgun exploding more than a useless gag. And a Final Smash with actual character would be neat. He deserves more, I want more for him!
@@DesigningFor Hopefully the next Smash game (or whatever they do with the series) will be enough of a reboot that they rework a lot of characters. It would give them a chance to take another direction with the character, especially if it's not as much of a platform fighter, of if they do away with characters having items built in to their movesets, and less focused on every character having a gimmick in general. But we'd also have to hold out hope that the next big appearance of Diddy ALSO brings back some of that attitude to draw from. Hell, maybe adding Dixie Kong finally would give them enough reason to have to differentiate Diddy when there's two monkeys in the cast.
I 100% agree about the boombox victory screen though. For some reason they haven't bothered to change any of his victory screens since brawl (aside from re-animating them). With how many references characters are getting these days, you could do so much more with Diddy's. Boombox, guitar solo, etc. Though I do kinda like his popgun victory animation.
i love diddy kong but you are presenting this monkey so important!
12:33 now thats what i call a *FLEX*
Diddy is just too 90’s, and we hopefully all know what happened to Rare between now and then. At least he didn’t get massacred like poor Banjo and Kazooie.
I think a big part of the problem is that Donkey Kong himself has trouble standing out sometimes, often just an ancillary Mario character.
Anyway, great video, love Diddy Kong, and loved this analysis of him.
So essentially Diddy’s popularity died when Rare died. Hope he somehow makes a comeback and isn’t completely tossed aside like Toadsworth and other main characters…
there are few pleasures so great as freestyling over your rival's corpse
I love the part where it shows Toad’s Turnpike where he actually drives the bus.
Wario and Diddy really both got dogged on by brawl. Olimar, Sonic, and even Ganon also got dogged on too, but not this bad.
Smash does some good at times just not as good
Yeah smash kinda is not good at representing at some characters like bowser, Sakurai really wanted bowser to be this dumb, brute monster just because that's how he visioned it as a kid and persistent on wanting it that way instead of this cocky, funny, dumb but not too dumb, reptile and having his voice be that of a monster instead of his classic voice
I wanna see u give us a vid were u rework diddy to show how u want em in smash.
DIDDY KONG DID WHAT?
r.i.p. buddy. hope he's chasin' squirrels and kickin' the cheats in the hereafter.
14:11 I always wondered why Earthworm Jims gun was there. Did Rare have something against Earthworm Jim?
Knowing Diddy Kong has canonically killed a man is hilarious to me
I like how the term Rare Archipelago was used
because i played dk country and dk64 and dk racing i'll always have some sort of respect for diddy, its why i like to see him when i play mario kart tour. only problem is his power up is a death trap, it shoots banana peels in front of him to wipe out enemies but all the banana peels that shoot in front of him can also wipe him out so its one of those 'oh god i got that item' moment.
Diddy was my favorite kong
He’s one of my favorite characters in all of Nintendo
The reason why Diddys popularity went away was because Nintendo never created him. He was created by Rare LTD. Nintendo & Retro Studios just hit copy and paste on Diddy Kong. I wish Rare would have fought harder to keep his license.
Maybe they'll do something with Diddy in the new 3D DK game; when that ever happens