Stage Selection as Diddy
By AlphaZealot | Published: July 9, 2008 7:39pm EST
 Choosing stages with any character is usually match up specific, but there are some general rules of thumb that can be followed for deciding which stages are good or bad for any character. Diddy Kong’s strongest attributes are his quick air attacks and bananas. Bananas are generally how Diddy should approach and begin strings of attacks against the opponent. With this in mind, stages that remove this ability are poor for Diddy, a chief example being Rainbow Cruise. Another important aspect though is that Diddy simply can’t KO at early percentages. Eldin Bridge is a great example here, though the entire stage is flat and it is likely you can damage the enemy easily; it is also unlikely you will be able to KO them until they are in the 170-200% range. Though the following stage list is a good rule of thumb, things will vary depending on your own personal style of playing the character and the opponent’s use of their own character. A good example here is Norfair. In most match ups Diddy can make good use of the stage, but in a match up with Pit, this stage would likely be more in Pits favor than neutral or in Diddy’s favor. Stages generally positive for Diddy
Analysis: On most of these stages Diddy can make good use of his bananas and can get KO’s in the lower to mid 100% range. In every match up, you should be actively looking for opportunities to spike the opponent. Spiking is aided on some of these stages, like Pirate Ship and Delfino Plaza, when the opponent is struggling to recover while they are swimming. Frigate Orpheon is a somewhat tricky stage. Remember that one side of the stage does not have a ledge to grab onto and keep in mind that the stage will rotate. Assuming these two properties can be dealt with, than the stage becomes similar to most of the other flat stages. Stages generally neutral for Diddy
Analysis: These stages are somewhat tricky. Stages with walls can work in Diddy’s favor or against him. Characters like King DeDeDe or Falco can chain grab Diddy, and if there is a wall then Diddy could be infinite grabbed (though, with Falco, the grab only lasts until roughly 50%). To avoid chain grabbing, just keep a banana behind you at all times. Diddy can also banana lock opponents against walls and perform an infinite of his own, but this is substantially difficult and requires quite a bit of practice and timing. Even if the banana lock fails, there should be more than enough opportunity to put in 30-50% every time the opponent gets backed into a wall. Walk off stages, like Mario Circuit, are similar to walled stages, make sure to keep a banana behind your character if you are playing against an opponent who can chain grab and use platforms when available to reduce the risk of grabs leading to easy kills. As for stages without these properties, such as Battlefield and Lylat Cruise, the platforms give the opponent more options for avoiding bananas. Get used to keeping bananas in near the center of the stage and learning to short hop for Z-catching bananas that are on platforms. Most of these stages allow Diddy to KO at reasonable percentages. For Skyworld, make sure to destroy the upper platforms because they will substantially limit your ability to KO opponents if they remain intact. Stages generally negative for Diddy
Analysis: Every one of these stages except Eldin Bridge limits the use of bananas. The best adjustments to make on these stages are to get in the habit of only using one banana and of becoming more sufficient with Diddy’s aerial game. Just know that it will be an upwards battle in most match ups. As for Edlin Bridge, the stage could be interesting if the opponent makes the mistake of playing to close to either side, if this isn’t the case, don’t expect to get KO’s until the opponent is close to 200%. The Following Stages Are Generally Banned At Tournaments (to be continually updated)
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