Donkey Kong Country Returns Review

It's been forever since we've had a true Donkey Kong game. Hell Donkey Kong hasn't even been the main focus of a legit game since Donkey Kong Country 1. Well, now retro studios has finally given us a reason to care about the big ape again, but is it any good? Read on brave adventures, and discover the truth!

First off, the base of the game brings things back to their roots. It's just Donkey and Diddy in a sidescrolling adventure trying to get their bananas back. That's where things start to veer off, however, and not in a bad way. The first big difference is how Diddy is utilized. Instead of him trailing behind you, waiting for you to switch between characters, he rides on Donkey's back. This way you can use his jet-pack to hover for a short time. He also adds some extra hits to the life bar. In two player mode Diddy moves independently, but once he is on DK's back the second player relinquishes all control to the first one. All they can do at this point is shoot a peanut gun which stuns enemies. Basically, this doesn't help multiplayer's points, but who cares. This is Donkey Kong. The only real issue I had with this system is it sometimes made me overly dependent on Diddy. Get hitting twice, being able to take multiple hits this time is a plus by the way, saw my little monkey buddy off. This left me with a lesser ability to jump which I lamented. Other than that, the whole system is quite useful.


So... pretty...

Beyond this, I've never seen such a wonderful, living 2d environment. Animals sat in the backgorund, DK's ground pounds saw the plant-life shake, and launching into the background made things feel more dynamic. The silhouette levels are also a beautiful addition. There are also little touches like ants moving in the foreground and rocks in the background forming shapes that reward you with bananas when you stop to look at them. In fact, part of what makes the game so great is the little additions that Retro Studios lovingly and creatively added. "But Chris, you magnificent star in the night sky, are there in problems with the game," you ask. Unfortunately, yes, there are. The main one being the controls.

And for a brief moment in Chris' life, everything was as it should be.

Instead of just letting us use a classic controller, it was decided that motion controls would be the way to go. You know what that means. Shake the wiimote to pound the ground. Shake the wiimote in a different way to roll and make a long jump. Throw the wiimote across the room to express frustration. OK, it never gets that bad, but Donkey Kong is all about precision and motion controls aren't precise. That leads me to my other issue. The game can be too effing hard! I know DK games are hard. I would be pissed if it wasn't. Sometimes things just seem unfair at points. It's all doable, it can just be too frustrating. One time I found myself fighting a boss on a mine-cart. The main part of the fight involves jumping from yours to the train of carts the bosses sit on. However, this means all you have to do it fall and that's it. Fight over. Try again. Boss fights should not work that way!

But then again, WHO CARES!? MINE-CARTS ARE BACK!

Beyond all this, there's not much else to say. Besides not letting us use a classic control, it's an extremely well done and beautiful throwback that will remind you why the old ones were great. At the same time, it adds enough to make it feel new. For the most part, it's just what a sequel should be. Most likely, your Wii has been collected dust, so why don't you show it some lovin' and pick up one of DK's finest outings!

8 out of 10... wait for it... MONKEY LICE! Haha you thought I was going to say bananas!