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"[GAME] Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D"

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Tue 22/10/13 at 09:57
Regular
"And in last place.."
Posts: 2,054
Donkey Kong returns again. And this time in 3D... or not if you are playing on the 2DS.

Retro Studios brought Donkey Kong out of retirement in 2010 with a remake of the SNES classic, Donkey Kong Country Returns. The game brought classic 90’s platforming action into the modern era, although I never was a fan of those waggle actions. The 3DS game is a port of the original handled by Monster Games, of Pilotwings Resort fame.

For the benefit of those who never played the Wii version, the plot is relatively straight tale of Donkey Kong going bananas over his bananas. A volcanic eruption has woken some Tiki spirits who spend their time using their hypnotic powers to send some of the local residents of the jungle off to pinch DK’s rather ample supply of bananas. What follows is some left to right platforming action across a variety of themed locations. The levels are 2.5D in design with the extra half dimension courtesy of being able to jump to sections in the background.

DK is joined on the adventure by Diddy Kong and Rambi the rhino with both acting as a power up of sorts. Diddy Kong doubles the health, allowing for 2 extra hits before death, but also providing a jet pack ability which can be used over short distances. Rambi simply ploughs through anything or anyone who happens to be in the way, giving a sense of invincibility.

The level design is excellent as is the art style. The backgrounds are lush, the themed locations are varied and the levels are rather busy. It’s a treat for the eyes and loses none of the appeal on the 3DS. The look and feel from the SNES game has been maintained with DK launching between floating barrels.

Within each level there are jigsaw pieces and letters spelling out Kong to collect. The letters are in plain view but not always quite so straight forward to obtain. The jigsaw pieces require some exploration of the surrounding area in order to locate. Bonus stages are also

The obvious difference with porting a home console game to a portable device is the screen size and whilst some reviews have complained, I personally have no complaints and I am playing on a standard 3DS, not the XL. The moments where DK jumps into the background naturally result in size reduction but it has never caused me any issues.

The 3D is highly impressive and with the number of design features that look so good in 3D, you can’t help but wonder if Retro knew this game was destined for the 3D at some point. It is still no more than a visual nicety but it is among the most impressive 3D visuals I’ve seen on the 3DS. I do find that with some of the boss battles, I have to switch the 3D off as I lose the sweet spot in my frantic attempts to win. Those with more composure than me should be fine.

Veterans of the Wii game will notice a New Mode option but this isn’t as exciting as it sounds and is in actual fact misleading. New Mode is really Easier Mode. Rather than 2 hearts representing DK’s health bar, there is now 3. Old school gamers like me will scoff at this and then later on realise it isn’t such a bad idea. Donkey Kong Country Returns always had a reputation for being a challenge and that challenge is still very much present. The challenge naturally rises as the game progresses and later on you may find yourself cursing how far back the checkpoint was.

The 3D iteration comes with 8 new levels and I can’t tell you much about them as I’ve not actually managed to get that far yet. Did I mention it is a challenging game? By all accounts, the levels are very fitting but whether I’ll ever see them for myself is another matter.

Local co-op 2 is also provided but relies on 2 copies of the game. Again, something I've not managed to sample.

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is an excellent port of what I considered to be an excellent game. It comes with a challenge which can frustrate at times but it is still a highly enjoyable game.

9
There have been no replies to this thread yet.
Tue 22/10/13 at 09:57
Regular
"And in last place.."
Posts: 2,054
Donkey Kong returns again. And this time in 3D... or not if you are playing on the 2DS.

Retro Studios brought Donkey Kong out of retirement in 2010 with a remake of the SNES classic, Donkey Kong Country Returns. The game brought classic 90’s platforming action into the modern era, although I never was a fan of those waggle actions. The 3DS game is a port of the original handled by Monster Games, of Pilotwings Resort fame.

For the benefit of those who never played the Wii version, the plot is relatively straight tale of Donkey Kong going bananas over his bananas. A volcanic eruption has woken some Tiki spirits who spend their time using their hypnotic powers to send some of the local residents of the jungle off to pinch DK’s rather ample supply of bananas. What follows is some left to right platforming action across a variety of themed locations. The levels are 2.5D in design with the extra half dimension courtesy of being able to jump to sections in the background.

DK is joined on the adventure by Diddy Kong and Rambi the rhino with both acting as a power up of sorts. Diddy Kong doubles the health, allowing for 2 extra hits before death, but also providing a jet pack ability which can be used over short distances. Rambi simply ploughs through anything or anyone who happens to be in the way, giving a sense of invincibility.

The level design is excellent as is the art style. The backgrounds are lush, the themed locations are varied and the levels are rather busy. It’s a treat for the eyes and loses none of the appeal on the 3DS. The look and feel from the SNES game has been maintained with DK launching between floating barrels.

Within each level there are jigsaw pieces and letters spelling out Kong to collect. The letters are in plain view but not always quite so straight forward to obtain. The jigsaw pieces require some exploration of the surrounding area in order to locate. Bonus stages are also

The obvious difference with porting a home console game to a portable device is the screen size and whilst some reviews have complained, I personally have no complaints and I am playing on a standard 3DS, not the XL. The moments where DK jumps into the background naturally result in size reduction but it has never caused me any issues.

The 3D is highly impressive and with the number of design features that look so good in 3D, you can’t help but wonder if Retro knew this game was destined for the 3D at some point. It is still no more than a visual nicety but it is among the most impressive 3D visuals I’ve seen on the 3DS. I do find that with some of the boss battles, I have to switch the 3D off as I lose the sweet spot in my frantic attempts to win. Those with more composure than me should be fine.

Veterans of the Wii game will notice a New Mode option but this isn’t as exciting as it sounds and is in actual fact misleading. New Mode is really Easier Mode. Rather than 2 hearts representing DK’s health bar, there is now 3. Old school gamers like me will scoff at this and then later on realise it isn’t such a bad idea. Donkey Kong Country Returns always had a reputation for being a challenge and that challenge is still very much present. The challenge naturally rises as the game progresses and later on you may find yourself cursing how far back the checkpoint was.

The 3D iteration comes with 8 new levels and I can’t tell you much about them as I’ve not actually managed to get that far yet. Did I mention it is a challenging game? By all accounts, the levels are very fitting but whether I’ll ever see them for myself is another matter.

Local co-op 2 is also provided but relies on 2 copies of the game. Again, something I've not managed to sample.

Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is an excellent port of what I considered to be an excellent game. It comes with a challenge which can frustrate at times but it is still a highly enjoyable game.

9

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