Donkey Kong, also known simply as DK, D.K., or D. Kong, is a major character in the Mario franchise and the main protagonist of the Donkey Kong franchise. A powerful, yet carefree Kong from Donkey Kong Island, Donkey Kong spends his days collecting bananas and spending time with his friends, particularly his best friend Diddy Kong. When trouble arises, Donkey Kong jumps headfirst into the action to help his friends and protect his island.
Years after the events of Donkey Kong 3, Donkey Kong relocated to Donkey Kong Island, where he grew old and bitter and was renamed to Cranky Kong. His grandson, also named Donkey Kong, forges lasting friendships with many of the other Kongs, including Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong, Funky Kong, and his girlfriend, Candy Kong. This Donkey Kong would first appear in Donkey Kong Country.
In the backstory for Donkey Kong Country, Donkey Kong assigned his nephew, Diddy Kong, to guard his banana hoard at night. Later, the Kremling Krew overpowered Diddy and stole Donkey Kong's entire hoard. The next morning, Cranky Kong wakes up Donkey Kong and shows him that his entire banana hoard is missing. Donkey Kong is upset, also noticing that Diddy is missing, and goes on an adventure to find retrieve the banana hoard and rescue Diddy, who he rescues from a DK Barrel in the first level, Jungle Hijinxs.
Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong adventure through six worlds, such as Kongo Jungle, Monkey Mines, Vine Valley, Gorilla Glacier, Kremkroc Industries, Inc., and Chimp Cavern, and are assisted by three other Kongs along their way: Cranky, Candy, and Funky. In some of the levels, Donkey Kong and Diddy are assisted by an Animal Friend, such as Rambi.
In gameplay, Donkey Kong can defeat Krushas and Klumps by jumping on them whereas Diddy cannot. Donkey Kong is less agile than Diddy, and one of his attacks is to roll into enemies. Donkey Kong can perform a Hand Slap on the ground to sometimes unearth a hidden item. Donkey Kong carries a barrel above him instead of holding it out in front like Diddy.
Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong eventually reach the final destination, Gang-Plank Galleon, where they engage in a final boss battle against King K. Rool. The Kongs manage to defeat K. Rool and reclaim the whole banana hoard, thus ending their adventure.
In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Donkey Kong does not appear as a playable character. The main plot involves Diddy and his girlfriend, Dixie Kong, having to rescue Donkey Kong from the Kremlings and Kaptain K. Rool on Crocodile Isle.
In the intro of the game, Donkey Kong is relaxing on the beach. Cranky Kong shows up, arguing that Donkey Kong should not take a rest, because he is a video game hero. After some discussion, Donkey Kong asks Cranky to leave. During the day, the Kremlings ambush Donkey Kong, tie him up, and carry him up into The Flying Krock. K. Rool writes a note demanding the banana hoard as a ransom for Donkey Kong's return. On the beach, the Kong family discuss the incident. Diddy refuses to give up the banana hoard to the Kremlings, so he and Dixie go on an adventure to rescue him.
At the end of K. Rool's Keep, in Stronghold Showdown, Diddy and Dixie find Donkey Kong tied up in the chamber. As they celebrate over finding Donkey Kong, he gets carried up into The Flying Krock, and Diddy and Dixie rush after him (the entire event was replaced with a boss fight against Kerozene in the Game Boy Advance version).
During the boss level, K. Rool Duel, Diddy and Dixie manage to enter inside the airship. They witness in shock as Kaptain K. Rool beats Donkey Kong, still tied up, with his blunderbuss. In parts of the battle, when K. Rool is knocked down, Donkey Kong falls into view, still attempting to break free from his ropes. At the end of the battle, Donkey Kong manages to break free, and he punches K. Rool out of the airship. In the Game Boy Advance version, a cutscene is shown of the Kongs escaping the Flying Krock just before it falls into the water.
Donkey Kong also appears in the 102% ending, after Diddy and Dixie defeat Kaptain K. Rool in the Lost World. He, Diddy, and Dixie witness as Crocodile Isle sinks underwater.
The plot for Donkey Kong Land 2 is the same as Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest's, although a simplified version.
In the backstory for Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, Donkey Kong and Diddy go on a fishing trip in the Northern Kremisphere. After a few days, neither of the Kongs returned, causing Dixie to become worried, so she goes on an adventure to search for them with her toddler cousin, Kiddy Kong.
After a long adventure, Dixie and Kiddy discover that Baron K. Roolenstein was behind the plot. She and Kiddy manage to defeat K. Rool and his robot invention, KAOS, which Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are held captive inside. The two Kongs are freed, and Donkey Kong is impressed at Dixie and Kiddy for rescuing them.
In Donkey Kong 64, King K. Rool develops a doomsday machine, the Blast-o-Matic, inside Crocodile Isle and plans to destroy DK Isles with it. Due to the incompetence of his Kremling underlings, Crocodile Isle crashes into a rock, severely damaging the Blast-o-Matic. Squawks alerts Donkey Kong that all of his Golden Bananas were stolen and his four friends are kidnapped: Diddy Kong, Lanky Kong, Tiny Kong, and Chunky Kong, all of whom are locked behind cages throughout the island.
Donkey Kong discovers an isle attached to Crocodile Isle. Inside he meets K. Lumsy, an enormous Kremling, who was locked up for not destroying the island. When DK promises to free him, K. Lumsy jumps for joy, opening up a pathway to the first level, Jungle Japes. In there, Donkey Kong finds Diddy Kong and frees him. Donkey Kong receives help from various characters during his adventure, including Funky Kong, Cranky Kong, Snide, Troff, and Scoff. Starting with Angry Aztec, Candy Kong also joins in helping Donkey Kong and his friends.
Donkey Kong is a heavyweight, which makes him slow and strong. He is the second strongest Kong, with Chunky Kong being the first. During his adventure, Donkey Kong learns a few unique abilities at Cranky's Lab: Strong Kong, Baboon Blast, and Gorilla Grab. Strong Kong allows him to be invincible, which is necessary for safely crossing stage hazards like lava or quicksand. Baboon Blast allows Donkey Kong to partake in a challenge involving him firing from a series of Barrel Cannons. Lastly, Gorilla Grab allows him to pull levers. The Coconut Shooter is Donkey Kong's personal weapon, given to him by Funky Kong, and it allows him to shoot out coconuts. His personal instrument is the bongos, given to him by Candy Kong. Donkey Kong's corresponding in-game color is yellow, making him the only character who can collect yellow bananas, Banana Bunch Coins, and blueprints.
As the other Kongs are rescued, they help Donkey Kong find his Golden Bananas and the Boss Keys to unlocking K. Lumsy's cage. At the end of their adventure, the five Kongs get in a final boss battle against K. Rool, set within a boxing arena.
In Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Donkey Kong travels to the Banana Kingdom to take down the possessed Dread Kong who ruled it, and then does the same for the other sixteen kingdoms nearby. Eventually, he fight and defeats the evil Cactus King, freeing the other Kongs of his curse and presumably allowing them to resume their duties.
In the Wii title, Punch-Out!!, an updated sequel of the classic NES game, Donkey Kong appears as a hidden bonus opponent, found initially in the game mode, Mac's Last Stand. If Little Mac fights Donkey Kong in that game mode, they can fight him at any time in Exhibition mode.
Both Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong return as playable characters in Donkey Kong Country Returns, the 3DS remake, Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D.
Like Donkey Kong Country, the story also centers around Donkey Kong's banana hoard being stolen, this time by a different group of villains, the Tiki Tak Tribe. After being released from the Volcano, the tikis hypnotize the animals of Donkey Kong Island to steal the bananas. Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong witness from their treehouse as the banana hoard gets taken away, and Kalimba suddenly appears and knocks Donkey Kong back into his treehouse. Kalimba unsuccessfully attempts to hypnotize Donkey Kong, who is somehow immune to its hypnosis.
The first level, Jungle Hijinxs, is followed right after the cutscene. In the start of the level, Donkey Kong repeatedly beats Kalimba, kicks it out of his tree house, and starts his adventure.
Donkey Kong controls much like how he did in the earlier Donkey Kong Country games, being able to roll and Ground Pound. When paired with Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong can roll indefinitely and briefly hover when Diddy uses his Barrel Jet.
Together, Donkey Kong and Diddy travel throughout the island. They are assisted by Cranky Kong and Professor Chops during their adventure. The Kongs eventually enter inside the Volcano and battle the main villain, Tiki Tong. After defeating him, Donkey Kong and Diddy reclaim their banana hoard.
Donkey Kong also returns as the main protagonist of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. In the introduction cutscene, the Kongs are in the treehouse celebrating Donkey Kong's birthday. Meanwhile, an arctic group of vikings, the Snowmads, make their way to conquer Donkey Kong Island. Just as Donkey Kong is about to blow out his candle, a cold wind comes in and lows it out. The Kongs go outside the treehouse to investigate and get blown away by the ice dragon to the Lost Mangroves. The ice dragon covers Donkey Kong Island in a freeze, and the Snowmads conquer it for their own. The four Kongs go on an adventure to return to Donkey Kong Island and reclaim it from the Snowmads.
Donkey Kong was given an updated appearance in the game. Donkey Kong's fur is a lighter brown, with more details and added texture, and the shape of his nose is different. In the game, Donkey Kong can be paired with Dixie Kong and Cranky Kong, aside from Diddy Kong. He also retains his rolling ability from Donkey Kong Country Returns.
After traveling through a chain of islands, the Kongs eventually return to Donkey Kong Island. They engage in a final boss battle against Lord Fredrik, set inside a volcano. The Kongs manage to defeat Lord Fredrik, and afterwards Donkey Kong blows a horn to melt away all the snow on the island.
In the Legacy of Chris Thorndyke,
He is voiced by Isaac C. Singleton Jr. in the English dub and reprised by Takashi Nagasako in the Japanese dub.
THEMES[]
- DK Rap (Donkey Kong 64)
- Won't Stop, Just Go! for Green Forest - OST Ver. (Sonic Adventure 2: Battle) - Mario vs. Donkey Kong