Looking back on the games I played when I was younger, I think that what really makes them stand out first in my mind is the music. Before you actually play a game you are sucked in by the theme music. When I had first seen the trailer for Donkey Kong Country Returns, the theme presented itself and I was swept away on a wave of nostalgia. Skepticism would be the best word to describe how I felt when I actually picked up the game. Unfortunately, there have been a lot of game series that I was fond of that have been marred with disappointing recent releases; I was worried that this game would fall into that same trap.
Retro Studios, who are most known for their success with the Metroid series, really proved themselves as a developer with more behind their sleeves. Donkey Kong Country Returns immediately brought me back to the older games in the series. The games main score is a remixed version of the old classic but is still what fans of the series would deem acceptable and appropriate. The game gives you a roundabout into the story with a short cut-scene explaining the main idea of what Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are going to be doing in the game.
Evil Tikis known as the Tiki Tak Tribe have hypnotized all of the jungle’s animals into stealing Donkey Kong’s bananas. On DK island, Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong have to fight through different “worlds” to get their bananas back. For this game, Donkey and Diddy are the only key characters. Also, with the exception of Cranky Kong, they are the only members of the Kong family in this game. Cranky owns the various shops throughout the world and will say something different every time you leave the shop.
Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong have different abilities although you will not play as Diddy Kong unless you are playing as the second player. Donkey Kong can pound things if you shake your Wii remote, and can also crouch down low and blow flowers and things out of the ground in which items are hidden. Diddy Kong can pound in the same way Donkey Kong can, and also has a jet pack (brought back from Donkey Kong 64) which allows him to hover. This makes it extremely easy to avoid falling off of the level, but unfortunately will not save Donkey Kong. Diddy Kong can also jump onto Donkey Kong’s back and carry him while hovering which could prove useful.
The levels in the game play identically to the side scrolling levels in the rest of the Donkey Kong series. The main idea is to make it though the level alive, while trying to collect the various items of value. Bananas, banana-coins, puzzle pieces and the K-O-N-G letters are the main prizes of the levels, but can prove difficult to find in just one run-through of the level. Most puzzle pieces can be found in a barrel or out in the open, but some require you to collect all the bananas in a certain area or bonus level. This is the challenge of the game, as the fast run-through nature of the side-scrolling levels will have you missing at least one of the letters or pieces.
The level designs themselves are beautifully designed, and many of the levels in the beginning are redesigned originals from previous titles in the series. There are stranger looking levels such as the “artsy” level which has everything in the level in dark silhouette with the exception of little items such as clothes which are the same colors as they would normally be. This gives the level a lot of challenge as the enemies blend in easily with the background and your character. This is of course just one of many new levels in the game.
The game is not without it’s flaws however. Game play with two players can leave a lot of the fun stuff to do being fought over. Barrel blasting for one is ever present in this new game, but can only be done by one character at a time. The other character can push the button too, but this could lead to over jumping barrels which could have the player missing a key item. Cart racing levels, which are my favorite kind of levels in the game, are only fun for one person. Most of the level is jumping based, with both Donkey and Diddy Kong in one cart. While both players can jump, it only makes sense for one to jump. This doesn’t really give the second player a lot to do in these levels.
One of the good features in the game is the player beaming. If your character is left behind, you will get beamed to the active character ahead of you in approximately four seconds. While many people may find this feature annoying, I appreciate the fact that I can step away from my controller to eat a sandwich without having to worry about dying. Not that I’d want to, because there is so much to do in the levels.
The game is not particularly long with just a basic run through of the levels, but it was not really meant to be played like that. Like all Donkey Kong Country titles, you are supposed to collect every little thing in the game. It may not seem fun to do if you are just a casual player, but fans of the series will be delighted to know that the collecting remains in tact.
Overall the game is a Donkey Kong masterpiece, surpassing the originals at most moments of the game. There are very few flaws in the game that are more than bearable in exchange for the fun time the game provides. I think it is a definite buy for those fans of the series, and even for the few who have never heard of it.
