Donkey Kong

Basic Moves

On the ground basics

Controls	Description	Damage	Launch meter
A	Punch	4%	X
Forward or back + A	Strong smack	16%	7
Forward or back , A	Lunging punch	12%	X
Forward , forward , A	Sliding kick	10%	X
Up + A	Overhead clap	19%	2
Up , A	Overhead smack	10%	6
Down + A	Strong sweep	15%	3
Down , A	Low smack	6%	X
B	Wind-up punch*	11-25%	9
Up + B	Spinning attack	6%	X
Down + B	Smacks the ground	8%	X
R, R	Carry on back	6%	X
R, R, R	Throw	6%	11
R, Back	Turning throw	14%	1

In the air basics

Controls	Description	Damage	Launch meter
A	Spinning punch	13%	X
Forward + A	Rolling attack	14%	4
Back + A	Backwards kick	12%	X
Up + A	Overhead smack	9%	5
Down + A	Foot stomp	10%	10
B	Wind-up punch*	11-25%	8
Up + B	Spinning attack	6%	X
Down + B	None**	0%	X

*Depends upon how long you wind up before the punch.
**DK does not do a move when he's in the air and you press down and B.

Launchers

Turning throw
This is such a deadly maneuver. Usually throws don't have tremendous strength or range but this move has both. Throw in the fact that it's just as quick as most throws and you have a move that you should definitely be using as your primary launcher. The only flaw is that you almost always need to be facing away from an edge when executing it in order to ensure yourself a launch.
Overheard clap
Each character seems to have that one move that launches at a much lower damage level than every other one. This is Donkey Kong's. Though it has a setup and recovery time all its own, you can combo into it with more than one move and it's especially deadly for those vulnerable opponents after their Up + B moves.
Strong sweep
This move is very powerful and very quick to pull off. It also hits characters on either side of DK and has a good deal of verticality to boot.
Rolling attack
This is a move you definitely want to learn to master. Depending on where DK is in his roll, he will hit your opponents in different directions. You can hit them upwards, to the side, but more importantly, downwards. If you get an opponent coming back from a launch or just jumping near an edge, jump and hit them downwards and you'll end up launching them downwards so that they can't come back. A better move the more you practice.
In-air overhead smack
A pretty powerful move that has plenty of range, especially in the air. Also, when you use this move in the air, the opponent will more likely be closer to the KO ceiling.
Overhead smack
Almost as good as the in-air version except that it doesn't have as much range and it's further away from the KO ceiling. The other problem is that you'd probably be using the overhead clap for ground launches here.
Strong smack
A very powerful move that has great horizontal range. The only problem is that it takes a while to set up but, believe us, it's a terrible problem with this move.
In-air wind-up punch
The horizontal moves with good horizontal range but large setup times are pretty pathetic in this game. However, you can pull and set up this move in the air and that is what makes it better than the grounded version.
Wind-up punch
Large setup time in addition to the fact that you may want to charge for a stronger attack and bad recovery time really take the punch away from this launcher.
Foot stomp
The only way this move will launch is downwards and, though it's basically a guaranteed kill if you connect, you're probably going to die doing it unless you really become a master of it.
Throw
Walk over a KO wall that is close to the level's edge, throw, and hope for the best. With high damage the person is going out but otherwise, there's just not enough power in this attack to do much damage.

Combos

2-move combos

Damage level of opponent	Damage inflicted	Description
Any level	22%	Smack the ground to knock your opponent in the air. Then, jump towards your opponent and do the rolling attack. If you are near a ledge, do this to your opponent when he has greater than 50% damage and, if you time it so you hit your opponent down (you should try to position yourself to the side of your opponent as opposed to underneath), he'll go flying down over the ledge for an almost certain kill.
100-170%	32%	Do DK's foot stomp and then time it correctly so that you connect with the overhead clap. Excellent for launches/kills.
Any level*	21%	Do DK's sliding kick and then time it correctly so that you connect with the overhead clap. Excellent for launches/kills as well.
40-190%	21%	Do DK's foot stomp at the apex of his jump so that he moves downwards as slowly as he jumps up. Then, after you land on the ground, time it so that you hit your opponent with the overhead smack. You can throw in a jump to extend the damage level range of this combo but that will lessen the strength of the launch at the same time.

*Only works with characters such as Pikachu.

Strengths

Donkey Kong is the most powerful character in the game by far. Thus, his power must be used as his greatest asset to win. The overhead clap is DK's most vital attack as it is his best launcher. Whenever opponents are above you, either jumping in the air or standing on platforms, get directly underneath them and use the overhead clap. You'll be surprised as launches may occur even if a character has less than 90% damage. Also, whenever you see a crate or a barrel, don't hesitate to grab it and run around with it. Crates and barrels are launch tremendously well and so DK's ability to carry and run around with them should be used for easy kills. Finally, DK's throw and spinning attack should both be used sparingly. Though you can get good position on a throw with DK by running, both attacks are rather weak in their ability to successfully launch a character.

Donkey Kong's biggest strength is that he has a lot of launchers. Which means lots of kills, which means you'll probably stay in the positives, which means you can then blame your partner if you're playing on a team.
Donkey Kong's own strength then is also a tremendous strength. He is the only character who can carry an opponent before he throws said opponent. You could even fall off of the edge with your opponent in hand if you're desparate for a kill. But, most likely, it would be better if you just ran them over to the nearest ledge quickly enough so that they don't escape and then just throw them from there.
Donkey Kong is also the only character who can pick up barrels and boxes and then proceed to run and jump around with them. Obviously this is good because barrels and boxes, if they connect with an opponent, make for some of the best launches in the game.
Not only is DK's overhead clap one of the strongest launchers in the game but it is very valuable on stages where there are a lot of platforms. This is because DK can literally just stand below opponents who are standing on platforms above him and use the overhead clap in attempts to gain launches. It also has great priority and range and very easily be comboed into.
DK's Up + B move has great horizontal range which is good for coming back from launches. However, since it has good priority and is an attack, it is even better for coming back from launches when someone is trying to prevent you from doing so. DK's Up + B also attacks to both sides and he can move horizontally when using it even if he does it while simply standing on the ground. This contrasts with Link's Up + B move for example.
DK also can take a hammering and still come back into the game. He has tremendous durability and may last well into the high 100-low 200 damage range.

Weaknesses

Hit and run is the name of the game. You really want a character with a projectile when going against DK. Then, all you'll really need to do is keep DK at bay with it and up his damage. Also, when you've gotten DK high enough in damage, try your best to launch him with a low launcher, like Fox's split kick. Since DK's spin attack has almost no vertical range, it will make it even more difficult for him to come back from such a launch.

DK's Up + B move does have a serious flaw though which should be true of any powerful move. This flaw is that the move has very little vertical range. This makes a comeback difficult if you're below the stage's platforms or if you're on Peach's Castle where you cannot grab the edges of the board.
DK is also the biggest character by far and this opens him up to a target practice type of mentality when fighting him. Use a character with projectiles and you can usually keep DK away from you which increases his damage and keeps you away from his deadly launchers. This weakness is further overshadowed by DK's lack of true speed in his movements or in any of his attacks. Also, multiple hit moves are much more likely to hit DK more multiple times than any other character.
DK's launchers, while plentiful and powerful, usually take a while to connect. DK will do any variety of animations, such as winding up, that will leave DK vulnerable to attack before he connects.