Diddy Kong Officially Returns to Smash Bros.

With his twin peanut popguns and barrel jet pack, Diddy Kong brings his jungle-themed Boba Fett-esque weaponry to the latest incarnation of the extremely popular Smash Bros. game coming later this year to Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, and 2DS systems. Diddy Kong made his Smash Bros. debut in 2008’s Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Nintendo Wii. Although being one of the smaller characters in the game, Diddy Kong was among one of the most unique fighters in Brawl–mainly for his quickness, ability to produce and toss banana peels at will, and being armed with an excellent recovery move which doubles as an attack. Also, that Nintendo cap looks pretty darn sweet.

Tonight’s announcement is aptly timed with the release of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, which has received stellar reviews from numerous gaming sites, including a glowing review from Geekscape’s own Derek Kraneveldt.

With Diddy Kong’s addition, the new Smash Bros. roster reaches 25 fighters. The game’s producer, Masahiro Sakurai, mentioned back in 2012 that he felt Brawl’s roster of 35 characters was possibly the most they could go in order to keep the game balanced. Some of the franchise’s regulars, such as Yoshi, Captain Falcon, and Jigglypuff, have yet to be formally added to the new Smash Bros.; the same goes for Snake, Ike, Ice Climbers, Falco, R.O.B., Ganondorf, Wolf, Lucas, Wario, and the Pokemon Trainer. With the number of available roster slots dwindling, it will be interesting to see who makes it and who will be cut, if any.