Okay, I won’t lie to you. This week wasn’t quite as exciting as the last. But that’s okay! Know why? Cause we still have a bunch of great screenshots for you, as well as a Character of the Week you’ll go bananas for! Though this week did play it somewhat safe, there were some interesting shots, as well as the return of a sinister Assist Trophy. But that’s enough talking, let’s get Smashing!
After the Diddy Kong reveal, Monday went on to further discuss his moveset and how it has evolved. Apparently his recovery, which primarily went straight up before, now has the potential to “launch along more horizontal trajectories“, as Sakurai put it. Not sure how that would work control-wise, but sounds like a good idea, since I always had trouble keeping Diddy alive with that particular move. Plus, it looks like you really don’t want to hit his twin rocketbarrels this time around… That’s gotta hurt…
While Tuesday does show off how epic Bowser looks in HD, it wasn’t that exciting. The most interesting part of it was Sakurai’s especially cryptic quote about there being more than one Boxing Ring stage, and how this one was the Smash Bros. version… Not sure if that’s a nod to a future Punch-Out!!! game or what. Moving on.
Oh Fox, you furry bastard! You don’t kick people there! Wednesday was cool ’cause it discussed a new gameplay mechanic. I would paraphrase, but it’s far clearer in this instance to have Sakurai do it for me – “Now consecutive standard attacks will always transition into a finishing move. This is Fox’s finishing kick after his standard combo attack.” Guess this means Fox’s Chun Li kick will be part of a combo instead of a separate move? Not sure. But this does illustrate the Namco influence in the game, since it reminds me a LOT of mechanics from the Tekken series.
Thursday was sneaky. Know why? Because it apparently wasn’t on the Smash site itself (I checked) but WAS on Sakurai’s Miiverse posts. Go figure. For a split second I thought this image meant Wailuigi was playable, but alas, he is once again a lowly Assist Trophy. So sad how the Smash series constantly rejects the evil plumber. Heck, we don’t even know if his brother will make a reappearance. Oh well. Friday will cheer us up!
I won’t lie. The first thing that went through my head when I saw this was “Now Pikachu evolves into Raichu for his Final Smash?” Then I looked closer at the ears, and realized Dedenne is our first revealed Fairy type Pokemon. Know why I didn’t recognize him? Cause I barely used the adorable little rat in my copy of Y. His moveset just didn’t speak to me. However, he looks FAR more formidable in Smash. Eat electricity, Marth!
But that’s not all! We also have a new Character of the Week to compliment last week’s awesome reveal. Keep on reading.
Character of the Week
One of the Brawlers I have a lot of affection for is none other than the King of Swing himself, Donkey Kong! I thought it fitting to discuss him this week for two reasons. Firstly, Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze just released last week! Second of all, I feel the tie-wearing simian gets a lot of flak from fans. While I wouldn’t say he’s the best or most competitive character, there’s a lot to love about DK.
First off, much like in the Mario Kart games, Donkey Kong is a strong yet reasonably fast character. He’s a middle-weight brawler, making him hard to Smash off the stage, and he hits pretty hard himself. His moveset is also pretty varied, despite lacking a projectile. I am especially a fan of DK’s Head Butt and Spinning Kong. Knocking foes into the dirt is just mean, as it gives him ample time to beat them silly and rack up the damage with his Giant Punch. Granted, it makes them hard to Smash in that state, but the damage is generally worth it. If lucky, I would occasionally be able to use it to spike a friend who wasn’t paying attention. His Spinning Kong, on the other hand, is one of my favorite recoveries in the game. It is effective at dishing out pain, it lasts a LONG time, and it works well to help DK get back to the stage. The downside? It has very little vertical lift, so a mean Brawler can knock him down to keep him from successfully reaching the edge.
As for the Hand Slap, I see it a lot like Ness’s PK Fire. It’s easy to see coming and block, but it also has great range and is effective for playing keep away. I didn’t use it a lot, because usually it would result in my friends hiding and hurling items at my head, but it was great when playing Multi Man Melee. The one thing I hated about DK? He had a horrible, utterly useless Final Smash…
I thought the idea of Donkey Kong wielding drums for his Smash was fine. The execution was something else altogether. I could almost never get the timing right to hurt my foes, and it just wasn’t worth the time to hit the Smash Ball. Regardless, I am still really looking forward to playing Donkey Kong again in the new Smash Bros. games. Hopefully his Final Smash will be improved, and his existing moveset tweaked to be a little more effective, and even incorporate some new moves from the Donkey Kong Country Returns series. Even if that doesn’t happen, I’ll still be representing as the tie wearing, hard-hitting ape.
