Genre: Platformer
Year: 1994
Developed by: Rare
Published by: Nintendo
Platforms: SNES, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance
#76
Feeling Like: Banana slamma!
Donkey Kong Country existed everywhere for me. I got a glimpse of it for the first time at Kalman’s house, the grainy VHS promotional tape they sent out to select fans in October of 1994 was still riveting to behold in 1998. Chris S had his birthday party one year entirely within the confines of his basement, with ten of us huddled around the Super Nintendo as we dared to 101% the entire game from start to finish as a team. I rented this so many times that finally my grandmother gave up and just bought me a Super Nintendo with Donkey Kong Country packaged in. I’ll never forget how happy I was, sitting in the food court at Mayfair Mall with a giant bag containing my favorite console to date. I still have it, buried somewhere in the closet directly to my left.
This was the kind of game anybody could be interested in. The graphics were eye-catching, and it wasn’t just “Mario, but better”. The clay-like, 3d models were something we’d seen before, but it always looked muddy, or didn’t match the setting. When you boot up the game to see Cranky playing music, it looks right. It feels right. The lighting is perfect, particularly in the mine stages. The colors are vibrant. I don’t know why this game got any kind of flack at the time, it’s literally beyond me. It may not have the flashiest visuals, but they’re far more interesting than most games at the time. Or now.
There are so many Donkey Kong tropes established here, it’s amazing how many bullseyes Rare hit on the first try. The animal buddies, specifically Enguarde the swordfish and Rambi the rhino, would be a mainstay for many games to come. Anytime you see a box with their picture on it, you’ll do nearly anything to snap that puppy open and grab hold. I don’t care if it’s a rip off of Yoshi, having animal friends that help you out is cool and always will be.
Barrels! Barrels! I will never get sick of these. Akin to the Mega Man vanishing blocks, they are in every Donkey Kong game and rely on timing and anticipation to make the right move. Some of the barrels move so quickly, you don’t have time to blink. Failure usually means death and while rocketing across the screen can be thrilling, it’s just as dangerous to leap without looking. Sometimes Rare was nice enough to through snow and bees in the way. Just in case those extra live counters were getting too high.
Having a partner along for the ride with slightly different abilities started here too. Donkey is heavy, can somersault, can lift barrels directly above his head and can take out even the sturdiest opponents with a well placed jump. Diddy is more limber, lighter, faster. He can do that badass cartwheel, which can lead to some amazing jumps. He can’t take on the larger enemies, and will bounce off harmlessly if he tries. You can switch out at almost anytime with a high five. Big dude in the way? Press A, Donkey’s turn. Want to go fast through this section? Press A, Diddy’s turn. Simple.
That cartwheel jump though, hoo boy. That’s as fundamental to the Donkey Kong experience as anything – if you cartwheel off a ledge and begin the plunge to your death, you can still jump mid-air to vastly extend your traversal capabilities. This can also be used to access seemingly impossible ledges, or dodge in-the-way kremlins. I did it even when I didn’t need to. I don’t care if it defies physics, we’re talking about a game with anthropomorphic apes getting revenge on a lizard and his band of goons for stealing their bananas. I want to defy gravity, thank you very much.
I’m not even close to being done. Extra lives as balloons, so you have to nab them quick before they float away. Red for a 1up, Green for a 3up and Blue for a 5up. Grabbing all four K-O-N-G letters scattered in every level will result in a free life. Getting all the secrets will yield a “!” at the end of every level, signifying you’ve truly beaten it. Mine cart tracks, where you’re on a rollercoaster ride to the end and you better wait until the last possible moment before leaping to the next rail. No cartwheeling available in those stages.
My sisters loved these games and I felt like a true big brother when I helped them and my cousin beat an area they were stuck on. I wasn’t good at many things, or handy enough repair broken objects, but I sure as hell could get them past Platform Perils.
Time to address the Ellie in the room, the music. It’s exquisite. There are more than a few catchy tunes, but the song that everybody knows, even those born decades after the game launched, is “Aquatic Ambience“. Never mind that Donkey Kong Country underwater levels are actually fun thanks to not worrying about having to breathe and your buddy Enguarde providing support. It’s the music. It’s transcendent. David Wise will forever ben enshrined in any kind of video game zeitgeist because of this gorgeous piece (and many, many others). I cannot emphasize enough how good this track is. I was glued to the IGN interview, where Wise goes into the process of creating Aquatic Ambience. Considering the hardware limitations of the Super Nintendo, it truly is a miracle the soundtrack came out this good. Even Hard-Drive.net, a site that lambastes all the downsides of the gaming industry, bows to its excellence. The OCRemix “Riptide” will make you feel like you’re having an existential crisis while receiving a massage in a luxury spa. “Forest Frenzy” and “Fear Factory” are truly excellent (I have a soft spot for “Fear Factory”), but “Aquatic Ambience” tops them both, and the rest of the soundtrack by a mile.
Rare had been around since 1986, but Donkey Kong Country began their seven year run (ish) where they seemingly could do no wrong. Their partnership with Nintendo was magical, an absolute legendary pairing. It meant every Rare release was a must-play. I don’t know what the Stamper brothers put in the water at their HQ in Twycross, but I want some of it. Hey, they have a zoo in Twycross! That’s amazing, their employees must have visited to get an idea of the animation for the various animals, right? I’m sure Winky and Espresso don’t move exactly like frogs and ostriches do, but they sure are charming. That’s really neat, I never knew that.
I’m sure I’ve missed something. Now that we’re approaching Top 75 material, every game going forward is responsible for a thousand little smiles (except DOTA 2) and I can’t account for them all. But when it comes to platformers, the Donkey Kong Countries are right up there with anything. They’re simple enough, but brutally challenging in parts. The secret rooms are fun to hunt for, even if some are deviously hidden. The controls are as basic as they come, but the challenges and level variety Rare has constructed will test every bit of mental mettle you have, particularly near the end of the game.
And “Aquatic Ambience”, I mean come on. Unreal.
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