- Game Versions
- Smash Wii U
***Update: I didn't want to bother with an official one since it wouldn't be useful. This guide is old, basically version 1 of Smash 4. The tactics should be largely the same, but percents and combos won't be completely accurate.
He's Bigger, and Faster, And Stronger too. He's the first member of the D.K. crew. Seriously, why am I the first to make a guide for him? Oh well. Donkey Kong is a decent character, but seems to fly under the radar. This guide is all about trying to get him into a more well known position.
Overview:
Donkey Kong is fairly similar to Bowser in his weight and power. The main difference between the two is Donkey Kong is better in the air than Bowser, but Bowser has more KOing potential on the ground. Donkey Kong is slow, easy to combo, and doesn't have good vertical recovery. While these may seem like issues, they are not actually big problems if you play the right way. Donkey Kong's weight makes these not as noticeable, since it take a lot to launch him. Your best plan with DK is to be defensive, and try to lure people into your attacks (or in other words, fool them to getting hit by your long arms.) Now for his Pros and Cons:
+Good range
+Surprisingly quick attacks (some of them)
+Lots of meteors (4 of them, each useful) More in Meteor Combos.
+/-Quirks with attacks (depends if you can understand them, more in Move Set)
+Great Horizontal recovery
+Heavy, but decent jumping (height-wise)
+Back throw (Ness back-throw league)
+Hilarious dash (both funny, and effective)
-Has issues with juggling (both unable to himself, and easy to be)
-Vertical recovery is bad (also easy to meteor)
-Lacks strong ability to get opponents away from him (more in Spacing)
-Slow, with air and ground movement
Move set:
Neutral:
Punch (4%), then uppercut (6%). It is a decent move since at low percents it doesn't push people away so you can combo easy. At low percents you can do this move a couple of times in a row, but not after 40%-ish
Dash Attack:
Donkey Kong rolls at his foe Donkey Kong Country style (10%). Maybe this is just me, but I love this move. It's best qualities are it's quick to get off, knocks opponents away, and has little end lag. It also looks funny but whatever. If you use the move right next to the person, it can launch them backwards, which is neat, but not amazing. Can be used after lots of moves, like his forward and down tilt to rack up damage.
Forward Tilt:
Basically DK back-hands the opponent (10%). It's not a good launching move, but it knocks people away and is decently quick to get off. Use this as a means to get opponents away from you who are pursuing you aggressively. It has fairly good range, so you can often hit opponents before they even input a command if they are rushing you.
Down Tilt:
Donkey Kong slaps at the opponent's feet with a quick strike (7% at DK, 6% at tip of hand). This is another good spacing move, as it pushes opponents away. It has a trip mechanic, so you can sometimes follow this up with a dash attack. Not incredibly useful for much else, basically move people away from you.
Up Tilt:
Swings his arm all the way around his body, doing a 180 (9% on ground, 11% at head level). A decent move, and has KO potential above 100 if you hit them above his head. It's main use is it's a quick move that knocks people into the air, which is useful for following up with air combos. Has complete coverage, so you can get opponents on the ground as well.
Forward Smash:
Put your hands together, if you wanna clap, as we take you through this DK Smash! If you have no idea what I'm talking about youtube DK rap. Anyways, DK does a thunder clap in front of his body (19% uncharged, 26% full at body and 20% uncharged, 28% full at hands). The nice part about this smash is there is hardly a difference between where the foe is when you do this move, since the launch power is practically the same. You are rarely going to get a full smash off, but uncharged is more than enough to KO. You can KO reliably above 90% with an uncharged, 50% fully charged. Go for somewhere in between uncharged and full since it will have very good launch power but not a super long build up. His forward smash isn't a super punishable move, since the start-up and end lag is not extreme.
Down Smash:
Donkey Kong brings his fists down on both sides of his body (14% uncharged, 19% full at arms and 17% uncharged, 23% full at fists). Hitting someone with DK's fists will launch better, which have weird positioning to keep in mind. His left fist (the one behind him) will strike the ground right behind him, but his right fist will strike the ground ahead of his body a bit, so the hit box is not symmetric for his down smash. While the placement of his hands doesn't really matter for the forward smash, it is actually pretty noticeable with the down smash, being a 25%-ish difference in percent required to KO (ex. Mario gets KO'ed at around 60% with a full charged down smash at DK's fist, but gets KO'ed at 85% at DK's arms). His down smash is particularly good against rollers, since they roll into the easier to land part of the smash.
Up Smash:
Basically does his forward smash above his head (18% uncharged, 25% full). With this one, the specific part that hits the foe doesn't matter, the attack has the same power at any part. The hit box is very strange with his up smash, because it's from about the center of his chest up to the tip of his hands at the top. Depending on the height on your opponent, it might not be possible to hit them with your up smash on the ground (like pikachu is too short). The up smash is best used after a meteor smash since the opponent will be at a good height to strike them. More in Meteor Combos.
Neutral Aerial:
Spins around in the air like a helicopter (11% at beginning of attack, 8% until it ends). Looks similar to DK's recovery. The hit box is basically from arm to arm across his body, not covering his feet or head. It makes DK very susceptible to getting hit from above/below, so caution with this move. It actually has decent launch power, but it's not easy to land. His only so-so aerial. If you get good at predicting movements you can very effectively stop opponents in their paths, but the awkward hit box usually makes this hard to do so. Works very well as a surprise against rushing foes if you short-hop and use this move.
Forward Aerial:
Brings his fist from behind his back to in front, covering 150-ish degrees (13% from back of head to top at arms, 16% at hands, and 15% for meteor). If you've played as DK in Melee or Brawl, it's the same still. I have the approximate zones for the attack attached.
The attack reaches a lot around Donkey Kong, and is very useful against opponent trying to jump over you. The meteor portion does 15%, and works like Yoshi's forward aerial. It's a fairly easy meteor to land, and should be a part of your strategy. It does have a lot of end lag if you land of the ground while the move is still going, so be careful and practice.
Back Aerial:
DK kicks his left leg out behind him (13% at start-up, 8% while leg is still out). An extremely useful move, as it is quick, strong, and has ledge guarding potential. If you activate this move early (so you move into an opponent with your leg already extended), it has little knock back so it's possible to follow up by using the back aerial again to kick them away. If you get good at this, you can carry opponents Jigglypuff style by using this repeatedly. Experiment with this move, because it is pretty sweet.
Up Aerial:
DK head butts above him (13%). Works a lot like Fox's/Yoshi's up aerial, and similar strength. It's a pretty handy move, just don't get meteor by people. Against Heavy characters you can juggle them a bit, usually 2 or 3 times. It has great KOing potential, usually around 90% if they are off the ground a bit. A good follow up to an up throw or up smash.
Down Aerial:
Donkey Kong kicks below him (16%). A fairly decent meteor smash, it cover below his body (duh). Not as much launch as his forward aerial meteor, so you can combo people at higher percents with this one. Also useful to prevent some opponents from juggling you from below (sword users usually defeat it though). More in Meteor Combos.
Forward Throw:
DK picks up his foe, and can cargo them around. The higher their percent the harder it is for them to escape. After you pick them up you can do 4 throws out of it, forward you throw them like a shot-put ball (8%), back throw is the reverse (8%), down throw you spike them off the ground except if it's in the air (6%), and up throw you just toss them up (7%). The main purpose of this throw isn't the throw part, it is the moving opponents to where you want. You can jump and throw opponents off the ledge in an attempt to ledge guard them. It might work depending on the foe (Ike or Little Mac could have issues) but generally all you are doing is moving them where it suits you.
Back Throw:
Donkey Kong grabs the opponent and hurls him backward (11%). As mentioned earlier, a pretty awesome throw. This is going to be your main counter to a lot of annoying strategies (constant dekers, grabbers, projectile users) DK has pretty good grab range, and the throw is killer at ledges (where projectile users like to chill). You can use the forward throw to cargo people to a ledge so that when they get back up you can back throw them. KO's around 110%, which is slightly high, but if you used the back throw 10 times you would get them to 110% so it's not bad. Also DK can rack up damage pretty well so you'll be in KO range quickly.
Down Throw:
Spikes opponents onto the ground, launching then forward of DK (7%). A decent throw at low percents to follow up with another attack. Not a KO move or even particularly useful after about 50%.
Up Throw:
DK chucks opponents upward (9%). Not useful by itself, but you can follow up with aerials to rack up damage. It's a decent combo starter, and is especially good at setting up an Up Aerial for a KO.
Now is where DK gets especially quirky just so you know, his specials.
Neutral Special (Giant Punch):
DK winds his fist up 11 times (or as many as you decide), then unleashes a very quick and powerful punch. You can interrupt the charge by rolling, grabbing, or clicking the shield button. Your decision with the number of wind-ups will basically be none, 9, or full. The way the charge mechanic works is the damage builds up from 10 % to 28% based on the number of wind-ups, but the launch potential builds-up to a max at 9, where it drops from there. For example, on Ness the fist KO's at max charge around 65%, but at 9 wind-ups it KO's around 40%. The advantage of the max charge is you get super armour when DK punches, so it's useful to spring on foes. A couple of other quirks are that it puts you into a helpless state if used in the air, and the attack launches a lot less in the air. Don't ignore the full charge, since it's easy to lure people into trying to smash you then activating super armour and launching them instead.
Side Special (Headbutt):
A nifty move, DK head butts opponents, burying opponents if they are on the ground, and meteor smashing opponents if they are in the air and his head hits them (10%). The hit box for this attack is again weird, but this time in a good way. On the ground the hit box for burying opponents is DK's whole body, not just his head. In the air, his head is a meteor smash if he hits them from above but his whole body is a light knockback move otherwise. The meteor smash from his head is really light, so it can be used for combos at really high percents (+150%). Opponents stay buried the higher their percent, but they take reduced launch out of the attack (best to throw them). If an opponent shields, this attack will take a huge chunk out of it, but the shield isn't instantly broken like Marth's/Lucina's shield breaker.
Down Special (Hand Slap):
DK beats on the ground, creating an mini tremor around him (14%). This move is best not used for a long time, since opponents can jump and attack you if you keep the attack going for too long. In my experience just tapping b once is useful enough for getting opponents away from you, especially if they are being aggressive or trying to roll behind you.. There is a trick to the move though, if you use it in the air. In the air, DK will slap below him twice (5% for first, 6% for second). If you can hit an opponent twice, then it will be a meteor smash. This is a tricky move to use, but it has the potential to KO really well. The meteor smash at around 70% will knock opponents just off the ground and stun them long enough so you can use your down smash to wreck them. Practice combo, because it can be crazy useful.
Up Special (Spinning Kong):
Donkey Kong spins around in the air, able to move a lot of horizontal distance with a bit of lift (10% for start-up, 4% until spinning ends). When used on the ground the initial strike does 7% damage and the rest of the spin does about 1-2% per strike. At start-up it gives you super armour, but doesn't afterwards. The Initial and Final strikes of the spin have decent launch power, but don't expect to use it a lot. The top and bottom of Donkey Kong is exposed during the attack so be careful about getting meteored off the ledge when you try and recover. The best angle to approach the stage is about horizontal with it. DK auto-ledges with the recovery (grabs it out of the attack) so you aren't super exposed when approaching from underneath the stage.
Final Smash (Konga Beat):
Done in spirit of the Gamecube game with the same name, you basically hit a to a beat shown. Waves of tunes (I guess?) emanate from DK if you match the rhythm which hurt foes. A interesting final smash because some skill is required to use it well. A good idea is to knock opponents of the stage then use the final smash to push opponents to death.
Spacing:
Donkey Kong's main issue in Smash is he has a hard time getting opponents away from him, especially in the air. Kind of like a hyena jumping on an elephant's back, it's not always easy to escape combos. My advice would be stick to the ground if your percent is too low or too high. In between the opponent can't combo you as easy nor launch you. When your around 50% that's your opportunity to start using aerials to try and take your opponent down. Using DK's tilts and throws will help you avoid getting comboed as much on the ground. The characters that are especially bad are the fast and heavy characters, like Ike, Captain Falcon (or Fabulous if they use the Pink colour palette), Fox. While being heavy makes DK easier to combo, it also means he is harder to KO so take advantage of this. Only smashes and extremely good aerials/tilts will launch DK so avoid getting yourself in a bad situation if you are at a high percent. Most combos do not have the finisher that will launch DK, save a few like Falcon (not Falco).
Meteor Combos:
So I'm not super good at these myself, but they do exist so you should try working these into your strategy with the King of Swing.
Meteor>Up Smash
Meteor>Up Aerial
Meteor>Meteor
Meteor>Down Smash
The advantage to having staggered launching power with the meteors (the Forward and Down Aerial strike the ground harder than the Down and Side Special) is these combos can be tailored to each opponent you face and percentage they are at. Experiment yourself, but in my experience the Forward and Down aerials are best used from 20%-50% and the Down and Side Specials are best at 50% onward.
Down Special>Down Smash
This is a fairly tough one to incorporate, but it is extremely useful. Against most characters, at 80% the meteor will knock the opponent into the prime position where your Down Smash will hit and probably KO them. DK has a lot of meteor smashes for a reason, because they set up his other moves well, like his smashes. Always look to slam someone on the ground, it is oddly satisfying if you get good at it.
Match-ups:
Projectile-Users:
Your Samus and Duck hunt players. They give DK a bit of trouble, but remember throws are pretty decent at dealing with this. Try to avoid rushing players who camp with projectiles. Your best bet is to slowly move up, so you can deal with them trying to surprise you with a dash attack or grab. Be conserved and wait for your opponent to get impatient. Against weak projectiles you can use your forward tilt to destroy them, like Link's arrows so bear that in mind when trying to approach them.
Heavy-Hitters:
Your Ike, Bowser, and other DK players. These are actually trouble for DK, since they have the power to launch DK below 100%. If another DK player reads this guide and is facing you it's just going to be a skill test, but otherwise you are going to want to wait for your opponent to make a mistake like missing a smash. Most of these heavy hitters are going to have slow smashes so you can punish them for messing up. Otherwise stick to low risk moves, such as aerials (excluding forward) and throws to avoid being stunned by end-lag.
Rollers:
Your players who act like the roll is the only move in the game. Basically use throws when they try and get behind you, or down-smash/down special if you can get your timing down. They can't roll in the air, so go after them there. Even if they air dodge you, you can usually hit them with another since DK has good coverage in the air. Just don't dash attack. They are waiting for you too, so they can punish you.
Final Thoughts:
Don't fool yourselves when you are playing as DK, he is not the best character in the game. You can't pressure people like Falcon, out-prioritize them like Lucina, or juggle like Rosalina. But don't think Donkey Kong is bad. He is very strong, with some quick and powerful attacks, and is tough to launch. You want to play laid back with DK, let your opponent strike first unless that's not an option. Any suggestions/experience would be appreciated. Will continually update guide if I can think of more to add. Happy Smashing to all.
He's Bigger, and Faster, And Stronger too. He's the first member of the D.K. crew. Seriously, why am I the first to make a guide for him? Oh well. Donkey Kong is a decent character, but seems to fly under the radar. This guide is all about trying to get him into a more well known position.
Overview:
Donkey Kong is fairly similar to Bowser in his weight and power. The main difference between the two is Donkey Kong is better in the air than Bowser, but Bowser has more KOing potential on the ground. Donkey Kong is slow, easy to combo, and doesn't have good vertical recovery. While these may seem like issues, they are not actually big problems if you play the right way. Donkey Kong's weight makes these not as noticeable, since it take a lot to launch him. Your best plan with DK is to be defensive, and try to lure people into your attacks (or in other words, fool them to getting hit by your long arms.) Now for his Pros and Cons:
+Good range
+Surprisingly quick attacks (some of them)
+Lots of meteors (4 of them, each useful) More in Meteor Combos.
+/-Quirks with attacks (depends if you can understand them, more in Move Set)
+Great Horizontal recovery
+Heavy, but decent jumping (height-wise)
+Back throw (Ness back-throw league)
+Hilarious dash (both funny, and effective)
-Has issues with juggling (both unable to himself, and easy to be)
-Vertical recovery is bad (also easy to meteor)
-Lacks strong ability to get opponents away from him (more in Spacing)
-Slow, with air and ground movement
Move set:
Neutral:
Punch (4%), then uppercut (6%). It is a decent move since at low percents it doesn't push people away so you can combo easy. At low percents you can do this move a couple of times in a row, but not after 40%-ish
Dash Attack:
Donkey Kong rolls at his foe Donkey Kong Country style (10%). Maybe this is just me, but I love this move. It's best qualities are it's quick to get off, knocks opponents away, and has little end lag. It also looks funny but whatever. If you use the move right next to the person, it can launch them backwards, which is neat, but not amazing. Can be used after lots of moves, like his forward and down tilt to rack up damage.
Forward Tilt:
Basically DK back-hands the opponent (10%). It's not a good launching move, but it knocks people away and is decently quick to get off. Use this as a means to get opponents away from you who are pursuing you aggressively. It has fairly good range, so you can often hit opponents before they even input a command if they are rushing you.
Down Tilt:
Donkey Kong slaps at the opponent's feet with a quick strike (7% at DK, 6% at tip of hand). This is another good spacing move, as it pushes opponents away. It has a trip mechanic, so you can sometimes follow this up with a dash attack. Not incredibly useful for much else, basically move people away from you.
Up Tilt:
Swings his arm all the way around his body, doing a 180 (9% on ground, 11% at head level). A decent move, and has KO potential above 100 if you hit them above his head. It's main use is it's a quick move that knocks people into the air, which is useful for following up with air combos. Has complete coverage, so you can get opponents on the ground as well.
Forward Smash:
Put your hands together, if you wanna clap, as we take you through this DK Smash! If you have no idea what I'm talking about youtube DK rap. Anyways, DK does a thunder clap in front of his body (19% uncharged, 26% full at body and 20% uncharged, 28% full at hands). The nice part about this smash is there is hardly a difference between where the foe is when you do this move, since the launch power is practically the same. You are rarely going to get a full smash off, but uncharged is more than enough to KO. You can KO reliably above 90% with an uncharged, 50% fully charged. Go for somewhere in between uncharged and full since it will have very good launch power but not a super long build up. His forward smash isn't a super punishable move, since the start-up and end lag is not extreme.
Down Smash:
Donkey Kong brings his fists down on both sides of his body (14% uncharged, 19% full at arms and 17% uncharged, 23% full at fists). Hitting someone with DK's fists will launch better, which have weird positioning to keep in mind. His left fist (the one behind him) will strike the ground right behind him, but his right fist will strike the ground ahead of his body a bit, so the hit box is not symmetric for his down smash. While the placement of his hands doesn't really matter for the forward smash, it is actually pretty noticeable with the down smash, being a 25%-ish difference in percent required to KO (ex. Mario gets KO'ed at around 60% with a full charged down smash at DK's fist, but gets KO'ed at 85% at DK's arms). His down smash is particularly good against rollers, since they roll into the easier to land part of the smash.
Up Smash:
Basically does his forward smash above his head (18% uncharged, 25% full). With this one, the specific part that hits the foe doesn't matter, the attack has the same power at any part. The hit box is very strange with his up smash, because it's from about the center of his chest up to the tip of his hands at the top. Depending on the height on your opponent, it might not be possible to hit them with your up smash on the ground (like pikachu is too short). The up smash is best used after a meteor smash since the opponent will be at a good height to strike them. More in Meteor Combos.
Neutral Aerial:
Spins around in the air like a helicopter (11% at beginning of attack, 8% until it ends). Looks similar to DK's recovery. The hit box is basically from arm to arm across his body, not covering his feet or head. It makes DK very susceptible to getting hit from above/below, so caution with this move. It actually has decent launch power, but it's not easy to land. His only so-so aerial. If you get good at predicting movements you can very effectively stop opponents in their paths, but the awkward hit box usually makes this hard to do so. Works very well as a surprise against rushing foes if you short-hop and use this move.
Forward Aerial:
Brings his fist from behind his back to in front, covering 150-ish degrees (13% from back of head to top at arms, 16% at hands, and 15% for meteor). If you've played as DK in Melee or Brawl, it's the same still. I have the approximate zones for the attack attached.
The attack reaches a lot around Donkey Kong, and is very useful against opponent trying to jump over you. The meteor portion does 15%, and works like Yoshi's forward aerial. It's a fairly easy meteor to land, and should be a part of your strategy. It does have a lot of end lag if you land of the ground while the move is still going, so be careful and practice.
Back Aerial:
DK kicks his left leg out behind him (13% at start-up, 8% while leg is still out). An extremely useful move, as it is quick, strong, and has ledge guarding potential. If you activate this move early (so you move into an opponent with your leg already extended), it has little knock back so it's possible to follow up by using the back aerial again to kick them away. If you get good at this, you can carry opponents Jigglypuff style by using this repeatedly. Experiment with this move, because it is pretty sweet.
Up Aerial:
DK head butts above him (13%). Works a lot like Fox's/Yoshi's up aerial, and similar strength. It's a pretty handy move, just don't get meteor by people. Against Heavy characters you can juggle them a bit, usually 2 or 3 times. It has great KOing potential, usually around 90% if they are off the ground a bit. A good follow up to an up throw or up smash.
Down Aerial:
Donkey Kong kicks below him (16%). A fairly decent meteor smash, it cover below his body (duh). Not as much launch as his forward aerial meteor, so you can combo people at higher percents with this one. Also useful to prevent some opponents from juggling you from below (sword users usually defeat it though). More in Meteor Combos.
Forward Throw:
DK picks up his foe, and can cargo them around. The higher their percent the harder it is for them to escape. After you pick them up you can do 4 throws out of it, forward you throw them like a shot-put ball (8%), back throw is the reverse (8%), down throw you spike them off the ground except if it's in the air (6%), and up throw you just toss them up (7%). The main purpose of this throw isn't the throw part, it is the moving opponents to where you want. You can jump and throw opponents off the ledge in an attempt to ledge guard them. It might work depending on the foe (Ike or Little Mac could have issues) but generally all you are doing is moving them where it suits you.
Back Throw:
Donkey Kong grabs the opponent and hurls him backward (11%). As mentioned earlier, a pretty awesome throw. This is going to be your main counter to a lot of annoying strategies (constant dekers, grabbers, projectile users) DK has pretty good grab range, and the throw is killer at ledges (where projectile users like to chill). You can use the forward throw to cargo people to a ledge so that when they get back up you can back throw them. KO's around 110%, which is slightly high, but if you used the back throw 10 times you would get them to 110% so it's not bad. Also DK can rack up damage pretty well so you'll be in KO range quickly.
Down Throw:
Spikes opponents onto the ground, launching then forward of DK (7%). A decent throw at low percents to follow up with another attack. Not a KO move or even particularly useful after about 50%.
Up Throw:
DK chucks opponents upward (9%). Not useful by itself, but you can follow up with aerials to rack up damage. It's a decent combo starter, and is especially good at setting up an Up Aerial for a KO.
Now is where DK gets especially quirky just so you know, his specials.
Neutral Special (Giant Punch):
DK winds his fist up 11 times (or as many as you decide), then unleashes a very quick and powerful punch. You can interrupt the charge by rolling, grabbing, or clicking the shield button. Your decision with the number of wind-ups will basically be none, 9, or full. The way the charge mechanic works is the damage builds up from 10 % to 28% based on the number of wind-ups, but the launch potential builds-up to a max at 9, where it drops from there. For example, on Ness the fist KO's at max charge around 65%, but at 9 wind-ups it KO's around 40%. The advantage of the max charge is you get super armour when DK punches, so it's useful to spring on foes. A couple of other quirks are that it puts you into a helpless state if used in the air, and the attack launches a lot less in the air. Don't ignore the full charge, since it's easy to lure people into trying to smash you then activating super armour and launching them instead.
Side Special (Headbutt):
A nifty move, DK head butts opponents, burying opponents if they are on the ground, and meteor smashing opponents if they are in the air and his head hits them (10%). The hit box for this attack is again weird, but this time in a good way. On the ground the hit box for burying opponents is DK's whole body, not just his head. In the air, his head is a meteor smash if he hits them from above but his whole body is a light knockback move otherwise. The meteor smash from his head is really light, so it can be used for combos at really high percents (+150%). Opponents stay buried the higher their percent, but they take reduced launch out of the attack (best to throw them). If an opponent shields, this attack will take a huge chunk out of it, but the shield isn't instantly broken like Marth's/Lucina's shield breaker.
Down Special (Hand Slap):
DK beats on the ground, creating an mini tremor around him (14%). This move is best not used for a long time, since opponents can jump and attack you if you keep the attack going for too long. In my experience just tapping b once is useful enough for getting opponents away from you, especially if they are being aggressive or trying to roll behind you.. There is a trick to the move though, if you use it in the air. In the air, DK will slap below him twice (5% for first, 6% for second). If you can hit an opponent twice, then it will be a meteor smash. This is a tricky move to use, but it has the potential to KO really well. The meteor smash at around 70% will knock opponents just off the ground and stun them long enough so you can use your down smash to wreck them. Practice combo, because it can be crazy useful.
Up Special (Spinning Kong):
Donkey Kong spins around in the air, able to move a lot of horizontal distance with a bit of lift (10% for start-up, 4% until spinning ends). When used on the ground the initial strike does 7% damage and the rest of the spin does about 1-2% per strike. At start-up it gives you super armour, but doesn't afterwards. The Initial and Final strikes of the spin have decent launch power, but don't expect to use it a lot. The top and bottom of Donkey Kong is exposed during the attack so be careful about getting meteored off the ledge when you try and recover. The best angle to approach the stage is about horizontal with it. DK auto-ledges with the recovery (grabs it out of the attack) so you aren't super exposed when approaching from underneath the stage.
Final Smash (Konga Beat):
Done in spirit of the Gamecube game with the same name, you basically hit a to a beat shown. Waves of tunes (I guess?) emanate from DK if you match the rhythm which hurt foes. A interesting final smash because some skill is required to use it well. A good idea is to knock opponents of the stage then use the final smash to push opponents to death.
Spacing:
Donkey Kong's main issue in Smash is he has a hard time getting opponents away from him, especially in the air. Kind of like a hyena jumping on an elephant's back, it's not always easy to escape combos. My advice would be stick to the ground if your percent is too low or too high. In between the opponent can't combo you as easy nor launch you. When your around 50% that's your opportunity to start using aerials to try and take your opponent down. Using DK's tilts and throws will help you avoid getting comboed as much on the ground. The characters that are especially bad are the fast and heavy characters, like Ike, Captain Falcon (or Fabulous if they use the Pink colour palette), Fox. While being heavy makes DK easier to combo, it also means he is harder to KO so take advantage of this. Only smashes and extremely good aerials/tilts will launch DK so avoid getting yourself in a bad situation if you are at a high percent. Most combos do not have the finisher that will launch DK, save a few like Falcon (not Falco).
Meteor Combos:
So I'm not super good at these myself, but they do exist so you should try working these into your strategy with the King of Swing.
Meteor>Up Smash
Meteor>Up Aerial
Meteor>Meteor
Meteor>Down Smash
The advantage to having staggered launching power with the meteors (the Forward and Down Aerial strike the ground harder than the Down and Side Special) is these combos can be tailored to each opponent you face and percentage they are at. Experiment yourself, but in my experience the Forward and Down aerials are best used from 20%-50% and the Down and Side Specials are best at 50% onward.
Down Special>Down Smash
This is a fairly tough one to incorporate, but it is extremely useful. Against most characters, at 80% the meteor will knock the opponent into the prime position where your Down Smash will hit and probably KO them. DK has a lot of meteor smashes for a reason, because they set up his other moves well, like his smashes. Always look to slam someone on the ground, it is oddly satisfying if you get good at it.
Match-ups:
Projectile-Users:
Your Samus and Duck hunt players. They give DK a bit of trouble, but remember throws are pretty decent at dealing with this. Try to avoid rushing players who camp with projectiles. Your best bet is to slowly move up, so you can deal with them trying to surprise you with a dash attack or grab. Be conserved and wait for your opponent to get impatient. Against weak projectiles you can use your forward tilt to destroy them, like Link's arrows so bear that in mind when trying to approach them.
Heavy-Hitters:
Your Ike, Bowser, and other DK players. These are actually trouble for DK, since they have the power to launch DK below 100%. If another DK player reads this guide and is facing you it's just going to be a skill test, but otherwise you are going to want to wait for your opponent to make a mistake like missing a smash. Most of these heavy hitters are going to have slow smashes so you can punish them for messing up. Otherwise stick to low risk moves, such as aerials (excluding forward) and throws to avoid being stunned by end-lag.
Rollers:
Your players who act like the roll is the only move in the game. Basically use throws when they try and get behind you, or down-smash/down special if you can get your timing down. They can't roll in the air, so go after them there. Even if they air dodge you, you can usually hit them with another since DK has good coverage in the air. Just don't dash attack. They are waiting for you too, so they can punish you.
Final Thoughts:
Don't fool yourselves when you are playing as DK, he is not the best character in the game. You can't pressure people like Falcon, out-prioritize them like Lucina, or juggle like Rosalina. But don't think Donkey Kong is bad. He is very strong, with some quick and powerful attacks, and is tough to launch. You want to play laid back with DK, let your opponent strike first unless that's not an option. Any suggestions/experience would be appreciated. Will continually update guide if I can think of more to add. Happy Smashing to all.
