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Donkey Kong Country
Returns
is the latest blast
to the past from
Nintendo that pays
tribute to a classic
game, but adds some
new ideas and new
innovations to an
already successful
formula.
In
Donkey Kong Country
Returns
you can go it alone
in a one-player
adventure or you can
have a friend pick
up a controller in a
co-op adventure
that’s as
challenging as it is
fun. Unlike
Kirby’s Epic Yarn
and to an extent,
New
Super Mario Bros.
Wii,
Donkey Kong Country
Returns
is hard for a
Nintendo game…
bordering on
extremely hard. It’s
not like any
Donkey Kong Country
game has been overly
easy, but with
Nintendo’s recipe
for their past few
franchise titles, I
had the initial
perception that this
was going to be fun,
but something that
could be beaten in a
day and a half. That
couldn’t be further
from the truth. If
you play the game
normally without
collecting any bonus
items, this will
take you about a
week of game-time to
beat. If you add
collecting K-O-N-G
letters and puzzle
pieces- that’s at
least another week
to collect all of
those items.
So
this is hard… not
like the hardest
game you’ve ever
played, but
definitely something
challenging. It’s
not ideal for young
gamers, but for
gamers in general
it’s good to see a
Nintendo game with a
good challenge for
once.
This
particular
Donkey Kong
adventure, is like
the old Donkey
Kong Country
adventures. Kong’s
banana hoard has
been stolen and Kong
is furious and out
to get them back. K.
Rool isn’t behind
this theft though,
it’s a different
group of assailants,
it’s a bunch of Tiki-masked
alien-dudes that can
hypnotize animals to
do their bidding.
Why are they
stealing the
bananas? Well,
that’s set up
through the
cut-scenes; you’ll
have to play to find
out.
The
updated look of this
game has to be
discussed as well.
The original
Donkey Kong Country
was the best looking
game on the
Super-Nintendo. I
wouldn’t go as far
as to say this is
the best looking
game on the Wii
console, but the
production is
stellar. The
graphics are great
and the sound is
just as good.
What’s cool about
this game are it’s
nods to the past.
The extra-lives are
still red balloons,
you still collect
K-O-N-G letters and
bananas and you will
recognize most of
the characters in
the game. A lot of
the controls are
even the same,
barrel-blasting, the
DK roll, the ground
pound; they’re all
here and effective.
Without these nods
to the past, this
game wouldn’t be
nearly as good as it
is.
Between the
challenge, the
updated graphics and
controls on the Wii,
and just the fun of
this game it’s a
must-own for any Wii
owner.
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