A great video. Allow me to provide A few notes from the DIDDY KONG perspective.
- 1:13 - I personally disagree with this and think Diddy Kong's Dash attack is really, really bad. It has immense lag and doesn't really go 'through' shields like ZSS or Yoshi Dash attacks. IF all 3 hits link, it does lead to juggles. But the move links really, really poorly and is, in my experience, really bad.
- 1:50 If Diddy goes STRAIGHT UP here he won't explode. You can ride along ledges as long as you intercept them at a 45 degree angle. There was no reason for the Diddy player to try to 'angle' the up B at all. Recovering low with Diddy IS difficult for the reasons Zero stated, though. If hit out of his up B (Especially while charging) he loses a lot of distance mostly due to how janky the momentum while he charges is. Sometimes I just won't 'slow' my momentum (especially if I eat a hit.)
- Multiple points - Max range side B is a huge no-no. Biggest thing I see with newer Diddy's is a reliance on this move, ESPECIALLY because it's so hard for lower level players to deal with, and it's even more powerful online.
- It's not easy to do on 3DS, but BECAUSE Banana forces shields so well, Jump - cancelled throws let you keep momentum, throw in, and then get a grab on the shield.
- As for mixing up the DI. This does work, but only at the mid % ranges. At low % uair is pretty much guaranteed from any vectoring. At High %, Vectoring up ESCAPES everything. AS Diddy you want to know what % your followups are guaranteed, and be prepared to bait out airdodges, or avoid characters that have powerful air - air options that will beat your up air.
- No clue why but this Diddy did NOT use down tilt. It is an amazing move, combos into itself at low %, and frame traps OR forces a jump at mid to high %. It outranges MOST grab ranges when spaced well, and is fast enough that you can avoid things like dash grab or shield drop punishes. It can "combo" into fair at certain % (not sure if true combo, but Fair beats them if they jump OR do nothing, and the other option is airdodge.)
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Everything Zero said is great advice AGAINST him. Gimping his up B is crucial and can net easy early kills, ESPECIALLY if you can force him to charge it in an unfavourable position.
AS Diddy, if you have to recover low, your best bet IF IT'S A SLANTED EDGE (Battlefield, FD), go UNDER the stage and Up B STRAIGHT VERTICAL. You will ride the ledge, it is very hard and unsafe for most characters to go down here to punish you, and you're protected from items / downward projectiles. However be careful, and I always recommend mixing it up and keeping things unpredictable.
On stages with flat walls, you can generally avoid up B altogether, and recover 90% of the time with side B (you get side B back when hit in this game), wall cling -> wall jump -> double jump. This also lets you use Uair as an air to air as it beats A LOT of moves that they may try to be gimping you with. If you have to Up B, either ride the wall at a 45 degree angle inward and be ready to tech, or mix it up and don't let them hit you. You have a lot of freedom with your up B in this one, so abuse it.
While using Diddy's Bananas against him is crucial, try to remember that many people may have weak / predictable item play. AT high levels, most players will be good with it, but it isn't something regularly practiced and you can definitely see patterns that can be abused. With a banana in hand, remember that your opponent can NOT use their normals until they throw the banana, and many characters are actually LIMITED by holding an item. Diddy has an amazing special moveset with neutral B (for ranged pressure and camping) and side B (for mixups and punishes) while still holding a banana in hand, whereas characters like Fox, while they can laser, are locked into the banana until they throw it.
You rarely want to be doing super raw side B's from neutral, but if you are, and If your opponent is good at sidestepping the side B, see if changing it to the kick works. Some sidesteps are quick and will still get hit by the kick as they finish, even if they dodged the grab. You can change it to the kick at any point during the arc. Be cautious with side B though, as it is very easily punishable. Also, after you land a grab -> attack, make sure you do an auto-canceled Dair at the end to eliminate the landing lag of the side B attack.
Empty hop -> dash Grab or Empty hop, dash behind pivot grab (for people who are prone to spotdodging) are great options that play into Diddy's amazing grab game. Remember that a grab generally means 20-30% for free early on, and AMAZING positional advantage at all points in the match.