Diddy Kong
First Appearance:
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES, 1994)
Latest Appearance:
Super Mario Sluggers (Wii, 2008)
Donkey Kong's perennial sidekick (and sometimes billed as his nephew), Diddy Kong is a cartwheeling, popgun-wielding, jetpack-riding simian sporting a red tanktop and baseball cap. He appears to be the only member of the Kong clan who is a monkey, rather than an ape (he's the only one with a tail).
Diddy debuted as Donkey Kong's wingman in
Donkey Kong Country, and became instantly popular. He went on to reprise his sidekick role in
Donkey Kong Land for Game Boy, then took the lead in
DKC 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. In the N64 era, he headlined his own wacky racing title in
Diddy Kong Racing, and served as one of the five playable heroes in
Donkey Kong 64. He has appeared as a playable character in many DK games released since, including
Donkey Konga,
DK: King of Swing,
DK: Jungle Climber, and
Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast.
Diddy Kong has also become a staple of Mario's sports games. His first athletic outing with Mario and friends was 2003's
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour. From there, he would go on to appear in
Mario Power Tennis,
Mario Hoops 3-on-3,
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!,
Mario Kart Wii,
Mario Strikers Charged,
Mario Superstar Baseball, and
Mario Super Sluggers. He also makes a non-playable appearance in
Mario Party DS.
In 2008, Diddy was included as part of the all-star line-up in
Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He could cartwheel into opponents, slap them with his tail, and throw slippery banana peels at their feet. He could also deploy his jetpack and Peanut Popguns from
Donkey Kong 64.