Donkey Kong Move Set: Changes and New Techniques

[pupNapoleon]

I am craving the satisfaction of playing, I must know what the Donkey Kong experience is in this game, it finally looks good! Even if we still have no barrel throw...


I dont think we will see that kind of move set change (though I'm sure we will see balance patches), but what is the technique for DK in this Game? How do you start to get good at the game?

When footage comes, we can post here and help. Or just discuss strategy. For anyone who has gotten to play (or who is saavvy enough to evaluate online footage), we can begin now; or just speculate until the game!

 

[Blade of Evil's Bane]

I guess it could be a good start:

Spoiler: ssbwiki.com/Donkey_Kong_(SSBU)

Ground Moves

• Down tilt has an altered animation.
• Forward smash has an altered animation.
• Up smash can now hit grounded opponents.

Aerial Attacks

• Forward aerial has an altered animation, with Donkey Kong performing a downwards punch without flipping, now looking identical to his aerial attack in Donkey Kong 64.
• Forward aerial is significantly faster.
• Back aerial deals more knockback and hits at a lower angle, improving its offensive potential. However, this also makes it less effective at performing combos.
• Back aerial has less landing lag.

Throws/other attacks

• Pummel animation has slightly changed. Donkey Kong now chops the opponent's body rather than their head.
• Cargo throw now involves Donkey Kong hauling the opponent over his shoulder, similar to his appearance in the arcade game Donkey Kong.
• Up throw's animation has changed. Donkey Kong throws his opponent into the ground, and then into the air with both hands.
• Up throw deals more damage and knockback, and its animation is also much quicker.
• Cargo back throw's animation has changed. Donkey Kong holds the opponent with both hands by the legs and hurls them behind himself.
• Cargo up throw deals more damage and knockback, which makes it better for KO'ing, but less effective for combos.

Special Moves

• Donkey Kong now charges Giant Punch with either arm due to his mirrored stance. Previously, Giant Punch was charged with his right arm in Smash 64, and with his left arm in the remaining games.
• Donkey Kong now charges up Giant Punch with more circular arm motions. Additionally, his expression slowly gets angrier as he charges (including maintaining the expression throughout other animations after its charge), and he has an altered pose upon using the punch.
• Giant Punch has more ending lag.
• Aerial Giant Punch no longer causes Donkey Kong to become helpless.
• Headbutt now has super armor.
• Donkey Kong now glints and strikes a pose upon ending a grounded Spinning Kong.
• Aerial Spinning Kong travels a shorter distance.
• Aerial Spinning Kong's multiple hits now connect better into a new final hit, giving it more utility.
• Aerial Hand Slap has significantly less landing lag, making it a safe on shield and a potential combo starter.
• Donkey Kong now has a new Final Smash (name unknown) that comprises of a single punch that, if successfully landed, leads to a series of rapid punches that traps and launches the opponent. The move alongside the comical hammer noises it produces are based off of Donkey Kong's attacks in Donkey Kong Jungle Beat.

His up throw and Giant Punch seems to have changed the most. The foward smash hitting grounded opponents is a nice addition making it even more dangerous than it was already.

I'm a little worried about his recovery though. I'm not sure if ''Aerial Spinning Kong travels a shorter distance'' means in every direction... i hope it doesn't include vertical distance.

I'm totally with you on the barrel throw, it's definetly one of his signature moves (since the original Donkey Kong in fact). With Dedede having his spikeballs, Bowser's flamethrower and now K. Rool's cannonball and crown throw he's the only superheavy without some kind of projectile. Totally unfair

 

[Paint_B]

I love the way DK is looking in Ultimate, but it's a shame he never got his Coconut Gun.

 

[Enderwoman]

If DK can't get anything off of his grabs anymore what is he supposed to do? What is the point of having a grappler?

 

[Blade of Evil's Bane]

If DK can't get anything off of his grabs anymore what is he supposed to do? What is the point of having a grappler?

These changes to his grabs are pretty cool?

''Up throw deals more damage and knockback, and its animation is also much quicker.''
''Cargo up throw deals more damage and knockback, which makes it better for KO'ing, but less effective for combos.''

Correct me if i'm wrong but i'm pretty sure overall knockback has been increased in Ultimate. My interpretation is that the game will focus less on combos and more on KO potential.

 

[itsaxelol]

Correct me if i'm wrong

Pretty sure you're wrong about everything you said

 

[Blade of Evil's Bane]

Pretty sure you're wrong about everything you said

Fair enough but you didn't corrected me on anything That sounded like you just wanted to bash on someone but again... i could be wrong!

I've just verified about knockback and it's knockback speed that has been increased. Making it easier for character to escape combos so i guess i wasn't totally wrong.

 

[itsaxelol]

Yea I was being lazy. Too busy taking in the fact that i finally ****ing got k rool (and Ridley) lol

His grab game being gimped is a real big deal. He falls significantly on tier lists without cargo u throw to Kings cranium. Uthrow getting better is irrelevant--- it's one of his most useless moves since you were able to kill someone off a grab at 70% last game, and obviously they aren't going to make uthrow do anything like that

Knockback speed is increased but you're fooling yourself if you don't think Mario, Diddy, the Bayoneta, fox, ZSS, etc aren't gonna be the super mobile combo heavy characters that they were

His recovery is nerfed, jab is nerfed, fur is nerfed, his dtilt seems slower (dtilt out of run will be big in this game)... I think he's gonna need a couple of post release patches to get him back where he was in smash 4

 

[Blade of Evil's Bane]

Thx for the clear up. I'm far from being an expert in mechanics so that's pretty helpful.

I wonder why they did all those nerfs. DK was far from op in sm4sh...

 

[itsaxelol]

Probably too many complaints about heavies having uthrow uair kill confirms. People who main small little jabroni characters get upset and complain when heavies have a good move or two. They took away Bowsers setup too. Not exactly top tier characters.

 

[Zapp Branniglenn]

The armor on headbutt looks pretty good. Activating on either frame 5 or frame 6. I've seen a hit armored on frame 6 of the animation, but also a hit going through on frame 4, so it can't be that early. Super armor headbutt should be great against a landing opponent. Not a foolproof move, but definitely one I imagine players using seriously in a match outside of doubles. Another quality of life update appears to be when charging Giant Punch. It took 8 frames to cancel charge and pull up shield in Smash 4, and that appears to have been reduced to 4 or possibly 0 like other charging moves. Charging fully is also marginally quicker compared to the previous game.

Donkey Kong also seems to have robbed Samus' dash attack in terms of frame data. That should help it compete with his other ground options for utility. He also poached the lagless feature of Bowser's Side B for his Down B. That's still going to be the laggiest move in the world to approach with, but if you mixup with it here or there then you're looking at a sixth aerial that's safe on shield and should lead into combos/grab on hit since it's such a weak meteor that won't force a techable ground bounce at most percents. Forward air now hits on Frame 23 directly under DK. Dunno if that's a meteor hit because it was countered. Wiki says it's slower, but the frame data is identical from what I've seen, save for that extra hit frame.

Seems like that's it for straight buffs that I'm not seeing people notice or talk about. Cargo kill confirms seem rare, probably matchup dependent if they exist at all, but damaging combos still exist for softening them up. Giant Punch definitely has the same frame data as in Smash 4, so the wiki's wrong about it having more endlag.

 

[RomanceDawn]

Courtesy of Bakasama ! Thank you!

Donkey Kong
Nair: 11 frames
Fair: 17 frames
Bair: 11 frames
Uair: 15 frames
Dair: 14 frames
Fullhop height: 3.2 stage units
Shorthop height: 1.6 stage units
Interesting Notes: DK's arms and nose are invincible during the active parts of aerial Spinning Kong and Upsmash. DK's arm is invincible during the active part of all his tilts. DK's head is fully invincible for upair. DK's windup punch has his arm invincible if its NOT fully charged, if it is it's apparently not invincible? DK can still ding-dong, but you'll only ever get a kill off of it on a platform, otherwise the opponent is out of reach at kill %

 

[itsaxelol]

Gotta check out the super armor and damage on the fully charged mega punch. Weird that a 9 has invince and the full doesn't, super armor or not