And after basically 14 years without a DKC game, Nintendo suddenly blessed us with this game.
Donkey Kong Country Returns is a fantastic game, the levels are great, the game looks fucking beautiful, the soundtrack is another absolute masterpiece, the game is just so good.
The amount of shit that can happen in just one level is insane, you can start off at a nice normal pace, then you’ll be blasting yourself out of barrels and completely destroying ancient ruins in the blink of an eye, shit is wild, and this energy is kept all throughout the game.
Speaking of, the game looks beautiful, so many little details in the animation of things, the way levels are structured so there are no random floating platforms, it makes the world feel so much more natural, and it makes you feel like you’re a god damn ape.
And of course, the soundtrack, a complete fucking bop, every level every boss every thing has an absolute jam of a soundtrack behind it, keeping this game every bit as funky as the og trilogy.
This game does have one problem, now the controls, they are great, Donkey Kong’s weight is really felt in gameplay, the way they use Diddy more as a companion who makes your life easier is much better than the original games where the secondary character is just there, the roll has been improved in terms of motion, the blowing mechanic is neat, and the beating on the ground is pretty funny and fun to do………….now here’s where the problem is, those last three thing I mentioned are locked behind the forced Wii remote waggle system, and it’s like legitimately insane, WHO THE DECIDED THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA.
Now admittedly the beating on the ground and just punching the shit out of bosses after you beat them is pretty cathartic with the waggle, I don’t mind the motion controls being used there, but who in the fuck decided to lock the roll behind it, it’s almost a necessary move to get through some levels and bosses, and you need to waggle the controller every time, like why not just use the B button?
Now the thing with the motion controls is that they can easily be fixed, the 3Ds version allows you to play like a normal human being by actually making it so that you play with buttons, so I could definitely see a switch port of this game doing the same, with that said, if it’s technically a minor gripe, then why don’t I give this game a five star?
Well the answer is pretty simple, it’s actually a pretty similar reason with why I gave portal 1 only a 4.5, and it comes down to this: the game’s sequel did literally almost everything exponentially better, and speak of the devil.
The next (and final) game I’m gonna play for this DK marathon is Donkey Kong Country: Tropica Freeze.
Donkey Kong Country Returns is a fantastic game, the levels are great, the game looks fucking beautiful, the soundtrack is another absolute masterpiece, the game is just so good.
The amount of shit that can happen in just one level is insane, you can start off at a nice normal pace, then you’ll be blasting yourself out of barrels and completely destroying ancient ruins in the blink of an eye, shit is wild, and this energy is kept all throughout the game.
Speaking of, the game looks beautiful, so many little details in the animation of things, the way levels are structured so there are no random floating platforms, it makes the world feel so much more natural, and it makes you feel like you’re a god damn ape.
And of course, the soundtrack, a complete fucking bop, every level every boss every thing has an absolute jam of a soundtrack behind it, keeping this game every bit as funky as the og trilogy.
This game does have one problem, now the controls, they are great, Donkey Kong’s weight is really felt in gameplay, the way they use Diddy more as a companion who makes your life easier is much better than the original games where the secondary character is just there, the roll has been improved in terms of motion, the blowing mechanic is neat, and the beating on the ground is pretty funny and fun to do………….now here’s where the problem is, those last three thing I mentioned are locked behind the forced Wii remote waggle system, and it’s like legitimately insane, WHO THE DECIDED THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA.
Now admittedly the beating on the ground and just punching the shit out of bosses after you beat them is pretty cathartic with the waggle, I don’t mind the motion controls being used there, but who in the fuck decided to lock the roll behind it, it’s almost a necessary move to get through some levels and bosses, and you need to waggle the controller every time, like why not just use the B button?
Now the thing with the motion controls is that they can easily be fixed, the 3Ds version allows you to play like a normal human being by actually making it so that you play with buttons, so I could definitely see a switch port of this game doing the same, with that said, if it’s technically a minor gripe, then why don’t I give this game a five star?
Well the answer is pretty simple, it’s actually a pretty similar reason with why I gave portal 1 only a 4.5, and it comes down to this: the game’s sequel did literally almost everything exponentially better, and speak of the devil.
The next (and final) game I’m gonna play for this DK marathon is Donkey Kong Country: Tropica Freeze.