Donkey Kong Country so-so???

[jkam]

I just recently played through the GBA version of the game. I owned a Genesis rather than a SNES back in the day. I know at the time DKC was really sweet because of the wonderful graphics but playing it now it just seemed kind of empty.

[Morrigan Lover]

It was just an average platformer. Not as good as the Capcom-Disney SNES platformers or Mario World 1 & 2.

[jkam]

It was just an average platformer. Not as good as the Capcom-Disney SNES platformers or Mario World 1 & 2.

Yeah the whole game just felt too run and jump. Do 2 and 3 fair any better?

[bluesyncopate]

Donkey Kong Country is a good, simple platformer that achieved its reputation largely on the strength of its good graphics (which are now dated). Again: it's not a BAD game, just a good-to-average platformer with a snazzy graphical varnish. The series is fun and I still play it from time to time. DKC 2 has a longer and more "involved" quest than the first game, and it is also way more difficult. It was around the time of part 2's release that Rare become obsessed with inserting pointless (and countless) item collection schemas into its games.

Rare had the good sense to parody these item-collection quests in "Conker's BFD"; it's one of the many reasons that it (CBFD) is the best game they've ever released.

DKC 3 is the best of the three; its graphics are better than the first two, it has plenty of bonus rounds and cool animal characters, and the difficulty is not quite so merciless as the second. I would recommend it. But it's not going to excite you with the strength of its platforming innovation. This is still pretty simple stuff.

You didn't ask, but --

Donkey Kong Country (3D) for the N64 starts off really well, but as you open up characters, you must go back to each world and collect items as each character, thus artificially lengthening the quest. Towards the end of the game you might find yourself running the vast world as the various characters, trying to score those last 3 or 4 items you need. As the gamespot review noted, "for those of you averse to the 'collect everything' gameplay mentality, this game might come off as a chore to complete."

I think the same could be said of the DKC series in general.

[GuilewasNK]

DKC is a solid game, just not a AAA platformer like Yoshi's Island or Super Mario World. The gameplay is a lot simpler in DKC than the other titles I mentioned. It was the kind of game best experienced when it first came out because 2D platformers evolved a lot since DKC.

[Rig]

I liked them back during their time. I recently played through all three of them with a few other guys. They were still fun. (Although, I'd take a Mario platformer over Kong any day!)

[GuilewasNK]

I liked them back during their time. I recently played through all three of them with a few other guys. They were still fun. (Although, I'd take a Mario platformer over Kong any day!)

I agree with that. I think I still need to beat DKC 3 though.

[alonzomourning23]

I thought it was a great game when I first played it and I still do. I've never been impressed by graphics either, so it wasn't like my opinion was based on that.

[beerguy961]

DKC is one of my favorite franchises on the SNES. It's solid platforming and provides a little variety in attack. It does get repetitive, but it's a fun challenge (or was back in the day). My personal favorite is DKC2, felt it had the best combo of characters and animals.