Editing Bumper (character)

|full_name=Bumper the Badger

|portrayed_by= Lee Schuneman<ref>"The 25 Greatest Nintendo Games", ''GamesTM'' Issue 134, page 58.</ref>

{{quote|Badgers don't stink, no matter what anyone else says.|Bumper|Nintendo Power}} <ref>[https://twitter.com/dkvine/status/1479422567513395202/photo/1 @DKVine], ''Twitter''.</ref>

'''Bumper''' is a badger playable character in ''[[Diddy Kong Racing]]'' and its [[Nintendo DS]] remake, ''[[Diddy Kong Racing DS]]''. He is described across multiple supplemental material to ''Diddy Kong Racing'' as a lover of speed, thrills and races. After {{wp|Microsoft}} purchased Rare Ltd., in 2002, the rights of Bumper were given wholly to Microsoft.

A promotional e-mail by [[Rare Ltd.]] in 2004 to promote the release of ''[[Wikipedia:Conker: Live & Reloaded|Conker: Live & Reloaded]]'' implied that one of the racers from ''Diddy Kong Racing'' had been jailed.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080804094926/http://www.the-nextlevel.com/feature/conkers-public-address/ The Next Level]. Accessed December 3, 2017.</ref> An instance on the Rare Ltd. website in 2012 further confirmed that the imprisoned individual in question had been "Bumper the badger".<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20140210121309/http://rare.co.uk/blog/2012/05/18/mini-scribes-may-18-2012/ Rare Mini-Scribes: May 18, 2012]. Accessed December 3, 2017.</ref> A tweet made by Rare Ltd. in 2021 in response to a joke made by the Super Mario Wiki Twitter account added that Bumper at some point in time was put on parole, and that he was superficially apologetic for his actions.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211006193931/https://twitter.com/RareLtd/status/1445797744640208896 "Oh, Bumper's been a free badger (well, on parole) for a while now and he's superficially sorry for all those bad things he did."]. RareLtd. October 6, 2021. ''Twitter''. Retrieved October 6, 2021.</ref>

==Character development==

An early design of Bumper was shared online by [[Kevin Bayliss]], former [[Rare Ltd.|Rare]] graphic and character designer that worked on ''Diddy Kong Racing''.<ref>[https://tcrf.net/Development:Diddy_Kong_Racing Development:Diddy Kong Racing]. ''The Cutting Room Floor''.</ref><ref>[https://twitter.com/render_archive/status/1445174824553394182 @render_archive]. ''Twitter''.</ref> This early incarnation of Bumper was seemingly colored blue.

Bumper was one of many characters contacted by [[Timber]] in ''[[Diddy Kong Racing]]'', in order to prevent [[Wizpig]] from taking over [[Timber's Island]]. Bumper's theme instrument on the character selection menu is a {{wp|steel guitar}}. Bumper has average speed, acceleration, and turning abilities. His top speed without bananas is 56.5 mph, like with [[Conker]] and Timber. His vehicle color is yellow.

 

Bumper returns for the remake, ''[[Diddy Kong Racing DS]]'', with very slight changes, including a more mature voice.

Bumper makes a small non-speaking cameo in the ''Diddy Kong Racing'' segment of, ''[[Mario no Bōken Land]]'', titled "Go Go Diddy!". He is shown competing in a race, in his car, in second place.

===''4-koma Gag Battle''===

Bumper appears throughout the ''[[4-koma Gag Battle]]'' manga adaptation of ''Diddy Kong Racing''.

*'''Instruction booklet bio''' (page 24): "''(Medium acceleration, medium weight, good handling, medium top speed) Unlike most of his kind, Bumper the badger prefers speed and thrills to a quiet nocturnal lifestyle. He gets even more worked up than his friends when he realizes how much racing and excitement will be involved in the crusade to get rid of Wizpig...''"

*'''[[Nintendo Power#Player's Guides|Player's Guide]]''' (page 6): "''Recruited by Timber to join the resistance against Wizpig, this burly badger is ready to take on all comers. It’s not just his sense of justice that’s spurring him on, though. He’s in it as much for the sheer thrill of racing as anything else.''"

*'''''[[Nintendo Power]]'' Volume 103''' (page 15): "''Bumper the badger breaks from the time-honored badger traditions of burrowing and sleeping twenty hours a day. This fellow lives for speed. Although all his starts put him in the middle range, he has good handling in every vehicle. With Bumper, you may never need to choose another driver.''"

*'''[https://web.archive.org/web/19981206065714/http://www.dkr.com/driversed.html Diddy's Drivers Ed]''': "''Bumper's a light-heavyweight who does well on courses where there isn't a lot of turning required. His handling is slightly better than Conker's, but his acceleration is not as good.''"

*'''''Nintendo 64 Game Secrets, 1999 Edition'' [[Prima Games|Prima]]'s Official Strategy Guide''' (page 36): "''Trending toward the heavy end of the weight spectrum, Bumper suffers from slightly sluggish handling and lower-than-average acceleration (but not by much). On the plus side, he’s got a higher top speed than any animal but Banjo or Krunch. His added weight and relatively midground attributes make him a good candidate for any Hover race, especially as long as there are no extremely tight corners.''"

*'''[https://web.archive.org/web/19990902211255/http://www.rareware.com/recent/games/racing/castlist/cast_bumper.html Rarewhere]''': "''Unlike most of his kind, Bumper the badger prefers speed and thrills to a quiet nocturnal lifestyle, and he gets even more worked up than his friends when he realises how much racing and excitement will be involved in the crusade to get rid of old snout-face Wizpig!''"

 

Bumper-CSS-DKR.png|''Diddy Kong Racing'' icon

</gallery>

 

BoukenLand5.jpg|''[[Mario no Bōken Land]]''

Bumper4k.png|''[[4-koma Gag Battle]]''

|Fre=Bumper<ref>[https://www.nintendo64ever.com/Scans-Magazine,52,Le-Magazine-Officiel-Nintendo-03.html Official Nintendo french magazine N3], page 25</ref>

|FreM=-

[[Category:Mammals]]