DONKEY KONG 64 BOSS STRATEGY GUIDE
We now just how hard it is to get through the bosses in Donkey Kong 64 so we have decided to get them here for you! This page tells you how to defeat every boss.
To get to the bosses, look for the starry-looking doors with Scoff and Troff pictured on them. Feed Troff (the pig) enough bananas to open the door to the boss - the number increases as the levels progress, making it more vital to collect bananas as they are found in each level, rather than leave them for later. Here's a quick checklist of the number of bananas that must be found in each level to unlock the door:
1. Jungle Japes boss: 60 bananas
2. Angry Aztec boss: 120 bananas
3. Frantic Factory boss: 200 bananas
4. Gloomy Galleon boss: 250 bananas
5. Fungi Forest boss: 300 bananas
6. Crystal Caves boss: 350 bananas
7. Creepy Castle boss: 400 bananas
Boss Strategies
Despite their fearsome appearances, the bosses have more bark than bite, with rather predictable patterns that are easy to defeat. Here are tips to put the smack down on each boss.
Jungle Japes Boss (Donkey Kong)
This Army Dillo is easy to beat. Zigzag to avoid his fireballs, then grab the TNT barrel and throw it at his head when he pauses. Run in circles away from the Army Dillo as it rolls around, then repeat the process. Three hits make the Army Dillo run away.
Angry Aztec Boss (Diddy Kong)
This Dogadon is easy to beat. Just like the Army Dillo fight, zigzag to avoid his fireballs, then grab the TNT barrel and roll it at the dragonfly's feet when he lands for a breather. Three hits is all it takes.
Frantic Factory Boss (Tiny Kong)
The camera angles and the thin platforms make this boss perhaps the toughest in the game (yes, even tougher than K. Rool!). To beat the Mad Jack, first make sure to have Tiny's pony tail twirl ability. Avoid the boss by staying one square ahead of it. Even better, backtrack as the boss leaps over to Tiny's square by jumping to the square the boss was on previously. When Mad Jack stops to shoot fireballs, jump to the square platform that's the same color as the boss is on that also has the stomp switch to simian slam (stomp on a switch with the wrong-colored floor, and Tiny will get zapped instead).
After three hits, the boss will shoot out lasers that destroy an entire square. Lure the laser to a dummy square, then move quickly toward the stomp switch. Don't land on the square with the correct stomp switch until immediately after he fires! Then, the boss turns invisible. Follow its star trail, as it leaves no shadow. Remember, falling doesn't hurt - but getting hit does. Also try jumping diagonally between squares to get to a stomp switch faster and playing with the camera view set to far, which lets Tiny see more of the screen and the boss as well. After five or six hits total, the boss should be history.
Gloomy Galleon Boss (Lanky Kong)
This is the first stage where a vehicle's involved, but it's easier than it looks. Speed is life in this level against the gigantic Puftoss fish: Keep moving at all costs and use the R button to help Lanky make sharp turns. Don't worry about the timer. As long as Lanky keeps moving in a circle, he'll see the next DK star to run through. When the Puftoss does its circle shockwave, stay to the outside edge - even if Lanky's trying to run through a DK star. Be patient and wait for the shockwave to clear before moving toward the DK star. The fishy boss requires roughly five or six shocks to dispatch it.
Fungi Forest Boss (Chunky Kong)
The return of the dragonfly Dogadon is still rather easy. For the first forms, avoid the fireballs, then wait for Dogadon to land. Once it does, immediately throw a TNT barrel at it. After doing this four times, the dragon will stomp the ground, causing it to sink, then it will assume its final form. From this point on, time is Chunky's enemy as well. For the final boss form, Chunky has to land at least 40 punches before the ground sinks into the lava. Every time Chunky throws a TNT barrel at Dogadon (after it has landed, of course), a Hunky Chunky barrel appears. Get big and throw punches rapidly (up to 12 punches are possible per attack). Dogadon will be defeated just before the ground sinks!
Crystal Caves Boss (Donkey Kong)
A rebuilt Army Dillo faces Donkey Kong, but he's just as easy as the first. Once again, for all the hits, Donkey must throw a TNT barrel at its head when it's on the ground. For the first three hits, zigzag to avoid its fireballs, then throw a TNT barrel at it while it's laughing. Run in a circle to avoid its rolling attack and flip jump to avoid its ground shockwave attack (jump over the expanding green blast). After three hits, Army Dillo will shoot a barrage of fireballs in the air. Run away from the shadows to avoid them, then zigzag to avoid the homing missile. Roll just one more TNT barrel directly at its head (Donkey might have to move the TNT a little to get the right throwing angle), and Army Dillo will disappear again.
Creepy Castle Boss (All Kongs)
The Kremlings have set up a fake K. Rool for all the Kongs to fight, and just like the cardboard K. Rool, this boss is nothing more than a paper tiger, er, crocodile. To score hits on K. Rool, use the cannons to shoot the Kong at K. Rool. The first three hits are easy: Whenever K. Rool's not shooting lasers, find the barrel closest to him and shoot him. Don't try to shoot at him while he's firing lasers, as the Kong will be hit in midair.
Since every successful hit lands the Kong in the water, jump rather than swim back to the cannons. After three hits, K. Rool will introduce a translucent fake cutout - the Kongs will go through it, so look before shooting. The translucent K. Rool is usually darker. After six hits, K. Rool gets tough. When not shooting lasers, K. Rool will pop up quickly from wall to wall, while an enemy ghost Kremling will appear as a distraction. Constantly move to avoid getting hit by a laser (it aims to where the Kong stands at the moment of firing) and kill the ghost Kremling to replenish health. Here's the tough part: On almost reflex-type action, the Kong must be in the cannon the moment K. Rool appears in front of it.
Here's the technique. Stand as close as possible to a cannon and watch the wall. If K. Rool pops up first, great - K. Rool will appear on the three other walls first before returning. Listen to the sound cues and anticipate the return of K. Rool to the wall the Kong's cannon faces (as the fourth growl is heard). If Kong is watching the wall, and K. Rool doesn't appear on the first two growls, by process of elimination, K. Rool will show up third or fourth. Anticipate this (either by guessing or having lightning-fast reflexes) and jump in the barrel the moment K. Rool pops up. After nine hits, the cardboard K. Rool will be history. You have five lives - one for each Kong - so don't be afraid to guess the correct wall at the end for that final hit
Final Boss Strategy: K. Rool
Completing the Hideout Helm level is necessary to get to the final K. Rool boss battle - a 12-round slugfest in true boxing fashion (right down to the hilarious cheating on the Kremlings' part). To fight K. Rool, get the final eighth boss key in Hideout Helm (see that level's strategy for details) and take it to K. Lumsy. Without giving too much of the story away, this unlocks the entrance to K. Rool's boss battle, near the waterfall area on the main island in Isles. Once inside, the Kongs have 12 rounds to knock out K. Rool - although five rounds are all that's truly necessary. Read on to find out how to beat K. Rool:
Each of the following steps requires four hits on K. Rool before time expires in a given round to continue. Despite the pressure of a time limit for each round, there's plenty of time to complete the tasks. So, there's no need to rush. However, note that while the Kongs' health damage carries over from round to round (while the same Kong remains in the ring), K. Rool's damage does not - making it vital to record all four hits in a single round.
Donkey Kong vs. K. Rool:
At the start, climb up the nearest turnbuckle and wait there until the blast barrels appear atop the turnbuckles. Jump in and shoot Donkey at K. Rool when he lets his guard down and waves to the crowd. After the first hit, K. Rool will begin to fake his crowd wave once - so don't shoot right away. Jump over the ground shockwaves and run to each of the other three barrels. For the last shot on K. Rool, the window of opportunity is narrow. Count the shakes K. Rool makes. On every seventh shake, K. Rool will let down his guard. Time Donkey's shot so he hits K. Rool immediately after that seventh shake.
Diddy Kong vs. K. Rool:
Avoid the flying gloves until a jet pack barrel appears. Flip jump into the barrel to fly up to the lights above K. Rool. Shoot the two red targets on each light while flying to make it fall on K. Rool's head. Repeat the process three more times, moving constantly to avoid the flying gloves. At all costs, don't land on anything that will turn off Diddy's jet pack. (Try holding the controller with your right hand, so the thumb controls throttle and the index finger shoots - this unorthodox grip might make Diddy's task easier).
Lanky Kong vs. K. Rool:
This stage gets tough more from the camera angles rather than the difficulty. At the start, wait for four switches to appear outside the ring. While avoiding the lumbering K. Rool, use the B button to stretch the arms out to hit a switch. This should make a barrel appear. Grab the barrel with the B button and throw it anywhere in the ring (preferably in the middle) to break it. This reveals the banana peel inside. Now, run to a trombone music pad and play the trombone tenor - but only when the banana peel's between K. Rool and Lanky. When K. Rool hears the noise, it'll run straight to Lanky. If the peel's placed properly, K. Rool will slip on the peel (if there's no peel, Lanky will get hit). Repeat with the remaining switches and trombone music pads to continue.
Tiny Kong vs. K. Rool:
Use the pony tail twirl to float above K. Rool's shockwave attack. When the mini monkey barrel appears, quickly flip jump into it to turn small. Quickly run into K. Rool's shoe. Avoid the wiggling toes, then shoot the toe that sticks up. Repeat four times until all of K. Rool's toes are red.
Chunky Kong vs. K. Rool:
At the start of the fight, look for a blue stomp switch in the middle of the ring to simian slam. While avoiding K. Rool's rope-bouncing pattern, run to a corner where a circular pad with Chunky's face on it lies. Press Z on the pad to turn invisible and make K. Rool visible. Run to the center again and flip jump into the Hunky Chunky barrel. As K. Rool dashes at Chunky, use the primate punch to knock down K. Rool just before he attacks (don't punch too early or wait too long, or Chunky will get hit.)
Generally, try to execute the primate punch as rapidly as possible on each attack. Repeat three more times. On the third attack, K. Rool will turn invisible and attack quickly - so primate punch quickly once that screen pops up. On the final attack, Chunky must predict K. Rool's arrival while invisible and zigzagging toward Chunky. Just primate punch repeatedly if there's not enough player skill to predict K. Rool's arrival. After the fourth and final hit, the game is effectively over. Congratulations, sit back and enjoy the show! However, for those 101 percenters out there, the Kongs' quest may not be fully complete yet... See the 100 Percent Strategy section for more details.
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