Character Sheet: Donkey Kong (Arcade)

DONKEY KONG

Now that we have all of the Arcade Donkey Kong/Mario titles under our belt, I think it's time we go through and evaluate every character we have picked so far as being playable.

This time we have six:

1. Mario

1e. Luigi

2. Donkey Kong

3. Donkey Kong Jr.

4. Stanley

5. Pauline

Today we will cover the big ape himself: Donkey Kong. Donkey Kong, like Mario before him, goes on to headline his own successful video game franchise, which will yield up far more iconic moves for the character than we have now, but for now, we will again build a character from what we have.

Donkey Kong will be a heavyweight power-hitter, just as he is presented in the games. He does come across as quite speedy in these games, so he will be quite fast as well. He has used punches, kicks, barrels and jacks, and vines throughout most of his moves, so most of his moveset will be based up that.

Here is the moveset I came up with:

Standard B: Giant Punch

This one's just too iconic to ignore. Donkey Kong will hit his opponent with a giant punch, just like he does at the end of Donkey Kong Jr. This attack will send the opponent flying and can be charged up.

Side B: Barrel

For his side B, Donkey Kong will chuck a giant barrel at his opponents which will role across the stage and deal heavy damage to anyone in its wake. There is a small chance of his throwing out a jack which will dole out an instant K.O.

Up B: Vines

Twin vines will appear from nowhere allowing Donkey Kong to climb up them for a short period before losing his grip and falling. These are based on his appearance in Donkey Kong 3, and have decent recovery range.

Down B: Stomp

Donkey Kong will bound up and down on the ground, shaking everything, much as he does in the opening cutscene of the original Donkey Kong game. Characters will be launched if touching the ground.

Final Smash: Beehive

Donkey Kong knocks loose a hive of bees from Donkey Kong 3 which will swarm the stage angrily, dealing damage to every character they meet. Most will just rack up damage, except the queens which have a chance of K.O.ing a character.

Entrance: Donkey Kong breaks out of a cage.

Taunts: He will pound his chest for one.

Next up: We will cover his long-lost son, Donkey Kong Jr.

Character Sheet: Luigi (Arcade Series)

LUIGI

Now that we have all of the Arcade Donkey Kong/Mario titles under our belt, I think it's time we go through and evaluate every character we have picked so far as being playable.

This time we have six:

1. Mario

1e. Luigi

2. Donkey Kong

3. Donkey Kong Jr.

4. Stanley

5. Pauline

Next we will cover Mario's brother Luigi. As with Mario, Luigi will go on to be a major character in his brother's ridiculously successful video game franchise, which will yield up far more iconic moves for the character that will make him certainly not an echo fighter, but for now, let us simply build a character from what we have.

As his only appearance thus far has been in the Mario Bros. arcade game as a color swap of Mario, Luigi exists purely as an echo fighter. He doesn't wield the hammer or whip that Mario uses in the other games, only the POW block and shells from Mario Bros. However, as an echo fighter, we can assume him capable of much of the same, but we might put a Mario Bros. spin on them. He will also be slightly lighter and faster than his brother, as that has always been Luigi's way.

Here is the moveset I came up with:

Standard B: Hammer

Luigi swings around a hammer just like Mario. It is a basic attack that does a little less damage than Mario's.

Side B: Whip and Shellcreepers

Luigi uses a whip as well, but instead of alligators, he sends Shellcreeper shells spinning after the opponent. Its a mid-to-long range attack that does more damage than Mario's.

Up B: Helicopter

Luigi clings to the rope ladder hanging from a helicopter with a big green L painted on the side. The helicopter has better than average recovery distance, but does little damage.

Down B: POW Block

Luigi throws down a POW Block  on the ground, causing an earthquake and knocking all in the vicinity off of their feet.

Final Smash: Massive POW Block

Luigi bumps his head against a giant POW Block which shakes the whole stage and sends anyone touching the ground flying offscreen.

Entrance: Enters through a Pipe from Mario Bros.

Taunts: Uncertain. Very little personality demonstrated in these early arcade games.

Next up: We will cover Mario's nemesis from these games, Donkey Kong!

Character Sheet: Mario (Arcade Series)

MARIO

Now that we have all of the Arcade Donkey Kong/Mario titles under our belt, I think it's time we go through and evaluate every character we have picked so far as being playable.

This time we have six:

1. Mario

1e. Luigi

2. Donkey Kong

3. Donkey Kong Jr.

4. Stanley

5. Pauline

First up, we have Mario. Now, Mario will go on to have a very successful video game franchise of his own, which will yield up far more iconic moves for the character, but for now, let us simply build a character from what we have.

Like his counterpart in Smash, Mario will likely still be a jack of all trades with middling stats and an above-average jump (he is the Jumpman after all). Throughout the arcade games, Mario makes use of a hammer as his main weapon, a whip that he doesn't seem to use himself, but instead uses it to send dangerous animals after his enemies, a POW block, and possibly a Shellcreeper shell. He was also shown to have a helicopter at his disposal, which he used to escape Donkey Kong Jr.

Here is the moveset I came up with:

Standard B: Hammer

Mario swings around his hammer from Donkey Kong. It is a basic attack that does heavy damage.

Side B: Whip and Animals

Mario uses his whip from Donkey Kong Jr. to send an alligator forward to snap at opponents. Its a mid-to-long range attack that does damage but little knockback. Opponents can also be hit by the whip.

Up B: Helicopter

Mario clings to the rope ladder hanging from his helicopter. The helicopter has solid recovery distance, but does little damage.

Down B: POW Block

Mario throws down a POW Block from Mario Bros. on the ground, causing an earthquake and knocking all in the vicinity off of their feet.

Final Smash: Giant Hammer OR Power Plant

The first would come from Donkey Kong and function similar to the Hammer item in Smash but with greater KO potential, while the second would hearken to Donkey Kong Jr.'s third level as Mario pulls a switch and sends live balls of electricity all over the stage.

Entrance: Flies in on his helicopter.

Taunts: Uncertain. Very little personality demonstrated in these early arcade games.

Next up, we'll tackle Luigi, who (for now) is merely an echo fighter.

Mario Bros.

MARIO BROS.

Before his big debut with Super Mario Bros. came an arcade followup to the Donkey Kong trilogy, starring Mario and his brother Luigi as they attempt to clear a sewer of turtles, crabs, and flies. It makes sense in context.

Starting off, we have Mario, returning from his appearances in the Donkey Kong games. However, he doesn't really have much more to offer this time, as his core ability is jumping, and that's it. He attacks by hitting the floor from beneath and flipping his enemies over. He can however, hit a pound block (which is definitely a solid new item) that shakes the entire stage, and can use the turtle shells against his opponents. Both could be reasonable attacks.

Next, we have the debut of Luigi, who . . . is literally just Mario with a different color. As of right now, I'd say he should be relegated to simple color swap or echo fighter. (Yes, I know he does more later, but for now, with nothing else to go on, this is where he will be until then).

As we said before, with the viability of Piranha Plant as a playable character, we cannot simply rule out the enemies. This game consists of three main enemies: Shellcreepers (turtles, the predecessor of Koopas), Sidesteppers (Crabs), and Fighterflies (Flies, I guess). For the most part, they simply move back and forth and nothing else, eventually right themselves once flipped over with a boost of speed, and, in the case of the Fighterflies, bounce along the ground. With nothing to go on then, I say they remain as stage hazards for now.

Finally, the game takes place on one single stage layout, sometimes with different textures but functionally the same. As it stands, I say we stick with the one, which, lo and behold, is already a stage. There we go!

Now let's look it all over.

Characters:
Mario: Jump, hammer, whip, animals, balls of electricity, pound block, Shellcreeper shell

Luigi: Echo fighter of Mario or color swap

Donkey Kong: Punch/kick, barrels, jacks, climb, ball, (maybe) bees

Donkey Kong Junior: Jump, climb, keys/fruit

<Low Tier> Stanley: Jump, spray up, stronger spray up, beehive, maybe bees (as a throwback character)

<Tentative> Pauline: with nothing (though possibly built on references to the game)


Items:
Barrels

Jacks

Hammer

Keys

Beehives

Flower Pots

Pound Block

Shell


Stages:
25M (Donkey Kong)

50M (Donkey Kong)

75M (Donkey Kong)

100M (Donkey Kong)

Level 1 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 2 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 3 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 4 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Stage 1 (Donkey Kong 3)

Stage 2 (Donkey Kong 3)

Stage 3 (Donkey Kong 3)

Mario Bros.


Next: We'll start going over everything from the Mario/Donkey Kong arcade saga

Donkey Kong 3

DONKEY KONG 3

Donkey Kong 3 is the lesser known third installment of the Donkey Kong arcade series, and stars Donkey Kong, once again playing the villain against an exterminator named Stanley, who fights to protect his flowers from the giant ape and a horde of bees and other insects shaken loose by DK.

First off, we have Donkey Kong, returning for a fourth game, probably firmly cementing himself forever as a candidate as a playable Smash character (Duh!). He doesn't bring too much to the table this time, mostly going up and down on vines (adding climbing to his repertoire, just like his son), shaking bees loose (which could make for a summon attack, not unlike Pac-Man's standard special), and occasionally throwing down what looks like an orange ball of some kind.

Next, we have Stanley, the one-time protagonist of a Donkey Kong game never to be seen again. His presence as a playable character leads to the assumption of Yes for playable viability, but his singular appearance doesn't lend much to offer. His primary moveset is jumping and firing a blast of insecticide upward, both viable moves. Occasionally, an extra pack for his spray gun will drop, granting him a powered up blast of insecticide. He also defeats Donkey Kong by sending him too far up his vines and causing a beehive to drop on his head, meaning a beehive smash onto another character is plenty feasible. It's also possible Stanley could be a throwback character like Duck Hunt, and therefore represent the entire game, meaning the bees and insects could be summoned by him as well.

Since the Piranha Plant has proved to be a viable fighter, we should not overlook the minion characters, in this case being the bees, worms, and other insects that fly around the stage. For now, I will say no on them, as mostly they just fly or crawl around, damaging Stanley if touched and carrying away any flowers they land on. Maybe if more is added in the future, but like Stanley, most are simply one-offs, so function best as stage hazards or moves for Stanley or Donkey Kong.

Since we are on the subject of stages, Donkey Kong 3 takes place over three different stage layouts: a three-tiered stage with green leaves on the side, a two-tiered stage with vines stretching across the map, and a split, three-tiered stage with red leaves on the side. All three would function marvelously as potential Smash stages. To be honest, I'm a little surprised we haven't seen any representation for this game yet, considering how well the stages would work. Oh, well.

So now, let's review:

Characters:
Mario: Jump, hammer, whip, animals, balls of electricity

Donkey Kong: Punch/kick, barrels, jacks, climb, ball, (maybe) bees

Donkey Kong Junior: Jump, climb, keys/fruit

<Low Tier> Stanley: Jump, spray up, stronger spray up, beehive, maybe bees (as a throwback character)

<Tentative> Pauline: with nothing (though possibly built on references to the game)


Items:
Barrels

Jacks

Hammer

Keys

Beehives

Flower Pots


Stages:
25M (Donkey Kong)

50M (Donkey Kong)

75M (Donkey Kong)

100M (Donkey Kong)

Level 1 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 2 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 3 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 4 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Stage 1 (Donkey Kong 3)

Stage 2 (Donkey Kong 3)

Stage 3 (Donkey Kong 3)


Next up: We cover Mario Bros.

Donkey Kong Jr. Math

DONKEY KONG JR. MATH

Not much to talk about on this one. Donkey Kong Jr. Math was an attempt at an educational game starring a recently popular game, not unlike many contemporaries of its time.

The game itself stars Donkey Kong, who presents a math problem, and then Donkey Kong Jr. and a pink-colored clone competing one-on-one to solve it. There isn't much to add as far as movesets go for either of the Kongs, though the pink color is an obvious color swap option. Any Smash game featuring Junior would be remiss not to include this option.

The game itself takes place on a single stage, which could serve perfectly well as a stage under the same rules as the stages of the game it is based on.

So our totals now are:

Characters:
Mario: Jump, hammer, whip, animals, and balls of electricity

Donkey Kong: Punch/kick, barrels, jacks

Donkey Kong Junior: Jump, climb, keys/fruit

<Tentative> Pauline, with nothing (though possibly built on references to the game)


Items:
Barrels

Jacks

Hammer

Keys


Stages:
25M (Donkey Kong)

50M (Donkey Kong)

75M (Donkey Kong)

100M (Donkey Kong)

Level 1 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 2 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 3 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 4 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Next blog: Donkey Kong 3

Donkey Kong Jr. (Arcade)

DONKEY KONG JR.

Our next game to look over is Donkey Kong's sequel game Donkey Kong Jr.

Set after Mario's defeat of Donkey Kong in the first game, Donkey Kong's son now works to rescue his father from Mario. Obviously, both Mario and Donkey Kong return from the previous game. Donkey Kong, like Pauline before, doesn't really do much except be the dude in distress. However, right at the very end of the game, as he and Junior are escaping, we see him deliver a punch or a kick to Mario, so I think we can add that to his skill set.

Mario, on the other hand, now takes on the role of villain, spending much of his time wielding a whip and sending creatures such as alligators and birds after Junior. He doesn't seem to use the whip much, but that can be changed in a Smash setting, and the alligators and birds would be an excellent addition to his moveset. In the third level, he also sends out balls of electricity, though this time through a mechanical switch. Whether simply as a deadlier alternative to the animals or a separate attack, this will work well. (He also apparently has a helicopter. Decent entrance for now.)

Donkey Kong Jr. takes Mario's place as our protagonist this time. Much like Mario before him, he mainly just jumps and clings to vines in order to navigate the game, occasionally collecting fruit or keys which are used to free Donkey Kong from his cage. Jumps and clings will always work as standard character staples, and the fruit and keys might be used as throwing items much like Pac-Man's standard special. The only bar to Donkey Kong Jr.'s inclusion is his lack of appearance in later games, all but disappearing from video games altogether. However, much like Duck Hunt and the Ice Climbers, he would be an excellent throwback character, meaning it's a definite yes from me.

As far as stages go, the game is made up of four levels for Junior to traverse: the first two being jungle levels, the latter two being more laboratory levels (because Mario has a science lab now). All four would work well as stages, Level 2 likely being the best. They could be recreations like 75M or re-imaginings like Wrecking Crew. Either one would work.

Now, let's look over what we've got:

Characters:
Mario: Jump, hammer, whip, animals, and balls of electricity

Donkey Kong: Punch/kick, barrels, jacks

Donkey Kong Junior: Jump, climb, keys/fruit

<Tentative> Pauline, with nothing (though possibly built on references to the game)


Items:
Barrels

Jacks

Hammer

Keys


Stages:
25M (Donkey Kong)

50M (Donkey Kong)

75M (Donkey Kong)

100M (Donkey Kong)

Level 1 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 2 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 3 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

Level 4 (Donkey Kong Jr.)

On the next blog: Donkey Kong Jr. Math

Donkey Kong (Arcade)

DONKEY KONG

First, we'll start off with Donkey Kong, the original arcade game from 1981, the game best known for the introduction of both Mario and Donkey Kong, two of video gaming's most prolific mascot. Fair enough to say, I think we'll be seeing both of them here.

The game features one more character, Pauline, the fair damsel in distress that Mario must rescue from the violent gorilla. Pauline does appear in later games though her appearances are sparse, and often as little more than a background supporting character (up until the release of Super Mario Odyssey). For now I will place her as a Tentative.

As far as movesets go, Mario does little more than jump and swing around a hammer for a short time, which we can set as his standard jump and his forward special until we know more. It is also worth noting that the hammer in question already exists as an item in the Super Smash Bros. games already, but for now it's all we've got.

For Donkey Kong, he spends most of the game up at the top of the level throwing either barrels or jacks at Mario to keep him from reaching him. Obviously these both can be attacks, probably a special or side special, but it is worth noting both exist as items as well.

Pauline, for the most part simply stands beside the great ape, doing nothing but waiting for Mario to rescue her. This is the main reason why I put her at tentative for now. While I know she will feature more in the future, there is simply nothing to build off of her at the moment. If anything, a moveset from her might simply be a series of references to this game itself (the barrels, jacks, and hammer listed above, alongside the moving fireballs that dot the stage) similar to Duck Hunt and Mr. Game & Watch before her.

As far as stages go, the game is made up of four levels, named 25M, 50M, 75M, and 100M respectively. 75M is already a stage, and likewise all four stages would all fit as stages, either recreations like 75M or updates like Wrecking Crew and Mushroomy Kingdom. The other three are much more basic than 75M and so would arguably work better than 75M does. Most could come with hazards such as the thrown barrels and jacks, and fireballs crawling around the stage, while 100M specifically would probably include the feature of the eight wedges that disappear when walked over, leading to the collapse of the center of the stage when all eight are removed, leading to a possibly interesting stage dynamic. All in all, I approve of all four.

So now, let's do a count:

Characters:
Mario, with jumps and a hammer

Donkey Kong, with barrels and jacks

<Tentative> Pauline, with nothing (though possibly built on references to the game)


Items:
Barrels

Jacks

Hammer


Stages:
25M

50M

75M

100M

Join me for my next post covering the games' sequel: Donkey Kong Jr.