Smash Ultimate gives the villains just as much time to shine as the heroes. Maybe old struggles had to be put aside when Galeem decided to take on the greater Nintendo multiverse? Anywho, King K. Rool is a longtime Donkey Kong Country villain entering the Super Smash Bros. series for the first time. He’s big, mean, and has the move set to go with it. And since he’s brand-new with the Smash Ultimate roster, you probably want to prioritize learning his skills above some of the many, many others.
Smash Ultimate sports 74 different playable characters at launch — including every single previous character from the super-franchise and a bunch of fresh faces. That’s not even including the glut of DLC fighters, assist trophies, and more. There’s so much that no one person could possibly keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a guide to every single character.
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Apparently, the absolutely enormous Ridley wasn’t enough for the developers of Smash Ultimate. They needed another huge character to round out their roster. Well, King K. Rool is certainly large. Although he’s not a completely one-note bruiser. His moves also include range and counterattacks that you wouldn’t normally associate with such a slow fighter.
According to the official King K. Rool character description from the Smash Bros. website…
With long-distance special moves like the Blunderbuss, and counter moves like Stomach Attack, he is a versatile fighter. His Final Smash, Blast-O-Matic, was apparently a weapon created to destroy DK Island…
King K. Rool Moves
Blunderbuss (B) – Fires an iron ball from his gun. The button can be held to suck the iron ball (or opponents) back in.
Crownerang (Side + B) – Throws his crown like it’s a boomerang. Can’t be thrown again until it is picked up.
Propellerpack (Up + B) – Rises up into the air wearing a propeller, damaging any opponents caught in the attack.
Gut Check (Down + B) – Counterattacks with his belly. Cannot be used continuously, and does not protect from behind.
Blast-o-Matic (Final Smash) – King K. Rool charges forward. He then fires the Blast-o-Matic from his fortress, striking any fighters he hit with his first attack. This blast completely destroys Donkey Kong Island, dealing serious damage and launching fighters.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
DK’s longtime nemesis makes an explosive entrance in Smash Ultimate. K. Rool has projectiles, super armor on his belly, and some devastating combo potential in his root attacks. If you like slamming enemies off-stage at incredibly low percentages, or just being an infuriating behemoth of destruction, the King is here.
Weaknesses
Rool’s biggest drawback is his mobility — both on and off the stage. He’s sluggish at times, and his recovery move is extremely telegraphed, with some nasty lag at the end. Faster fighters like Fox can give you the runaround if you allow them too much space. Keep the pressure on and make good choices in the neutral game to lock them down.
King K. Rool Outfits
King K. Rool is purely a palette swap character. That means all of his alternate outfits simply change his color scheme. His large size and simple design, however, mean that the different looks pop a lot more than your basic humanoid figures. His cape and jeweled clasp also change colors. Sadly, however, his crown seems completely unaffected.
We hope you enjoyed this guy to Smash Ultimate‘s lizard tyrant! Well, King K. Rool is one of the series’ reptilian rulers, anyway. And he’s certainly unique enough to warrant some attention. Hopefully this guide will at least put you on the path to understanding this all-new character. Thanks for reading!
All of our Smash Ultimate guides created with the help of Eric Van Allen.
