Conker

Conker the Squirrel is the protagonist of the Conker series of games made by Rare Ltd. He is a long-time friend of Diddy Kong, and he made his debut appearance in Diddy Kong Racing alongside Banjo. Just like Banjo, he would later appear in a series of his own games. While currently portrayed by Rare as a vulgar, adult-oriented figure (as seen in mature-rated games such as Conker's Bad Fur Day and ), Conker debuted as a cheery and playful character, as seen in his debut appearance, and his debut solo game, .

In 2002, Rare was sold to, causing Nintendo to lose the rights to the Conker franchise. As a result, when Diddy Kong Racing DS was released, Conker was replaced by Dixie Kong. While Conker is not in the game, his theme music is still incorporated into the selection screen theme song.

Diddy Kong Racing
In the storyline of Diddy Kong Racing, Diddy Kong, with help from Squawks the Parrot, manages to contact Conker, asking for help in defeating the evil Wizpig. Conker answers Diddy's plea and ventures to Timber's Island to help in the quest to drive Wizpig off the island.

Conker is a middleweight racer, but his vehicles have heavyweight attributes, featuring above average speed, and below average acceleration and turning. His top speed without bananas, shared with Bumper and Timber, is 56.5 mph.

Freeze Frame
Conker briefly made a cameo in the N-Gang comic "Freeze Frame".

Mario no Bōken Land
Conker makes a brief, unspeaking cameo in the Diddy Kong Racing segment of Mario no Bōken Land, titled "Go Go Diddy!". He is shown competing in a race, in fifth place.

4-koma Gag Battle
Conker appears throughout the 4-koma Gag Battle manga adaptation of Diddy Kong Racing.

Minecraft
Originally exclusive to the and  versions of the game, Conker and a few other Microsoft-exclusive characters (including Banjo) appear as playable skins in the Wii U and Nintendo Switch versions of Minecraft through an update on January 30, 2018. Technically, this marks Conker's first game appearance alongside Diddy Kong since Diddy Kong Racing.

Diddy Kong Racing

 * Diddy Kong Racing instruction manual: "(Medium acceleration, medium weight, good handling, medium top speed) Another friend made by Diddy Kong on one of his endless adventures with Donkey Kong, Conker is an exploration nut who'll jump at any chance to break free of a squirrel's less than exciting daily routine. He's eager to join up with Banjo as the bear passes through."
 * Diddy Kong Racing Official Nintendo Player's Guide: "Before heading back, Squawks made one more stop at the home of a certain devil-may-care squirrel named Conker. He may not end up with many nuts in his winter store, but Conker couldn't pass up the chance for some excitement. Besides, he figures he might pick up a few pointers from the others before starting his own quest for adventure."
 * Character stats
 * Weight group: Middle
 * Acceleration: 2.5/5
 * Turning: 2.5/5
 * Top Speed: 3/5
 * Vehicle Color: White

Trivia

 * Conker's theme instrument is a flute or piccolo.
 * The name Conker comes from the horse-chestnut which is known in Britain as a conker and is the typical food of squirrels.
 * A rejected 2004 video game pitch idea would have included Conker (in his Conker's Bad Fur Day appearance) racing in Diddy Kong Racing Adventure. He would have had explosive nuts as his special move, but the idea never came into fruition.