Playing Donkey Kong Country online: Gorilla Glacier (World 4) 08/10/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, gorilla glacier, walkthrough
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Welcome to Hell Gorilla Glacier
The overview map pictures I am borrowing from Super Mario Wiki to illustrate the different worlds are getting smaller and smaller, apologies. Here is what you need to know about Gorilla Glacier:
- It is world number 4 in Donkey Kong Country and is set in the snowy peaks of Donkey Kong Island
- We are at the halfway point of our journey, giving Rare the perfect excuse to crank up the difficulty level through the roof. We die a lot in here
- In order to get to Candy Kong’s stall and save our progress in the world, we need to beat FIVE stages in a row (!)
- Three of those five stages feature icy surfaces and you know what that means in the world of platforming: slippery surfaces and unresponsive controls ahoy. Fun fun fun!
Playing Donkey Kong Country online: Vine Valley (World 3) 19/09/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, nintendo, vine valley, walkthrough
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Welcome to Vine Valley
No pretty official artwork for this world I’m afraid, so a map of Vine Valley will have to do. Check out that 16-bit sunset. Two new courses are introduced in Vine Valley, the pine forest and the tree top village. In the latter part of the world we see the return of some of my favourites (temple and jungle) and some of my ambivalents (water stage). I have fond memories of Vine Valley overall and our replay does not disappoint: plenty of different challenges to keep up the interest and no particular rage-quit moments.
Playing Donkey Kong Country online: Monkey Mines (World 2) 13/09/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, monkey mines, walkthrough
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Welcome to Monkey Mines
Get off my face!
World 2 of Donkey Kong Country is set on a rocky cliff brimming with gloomy caves and mines that appear to be much, much bigger on the inside (who exactly is doing the drilling and what natural resources are being exploited in Donkey Kong Island is unclear; you would think Donkey Kong should be a little more aware of what goes on in his home turf).
Four of Monkey Mines’ levels (Winky’s Walkway, Mine Cart Carnage, Bouncy Bonanza and Stop & Go Station) are set underground, giving Rare the chance to employ all sorts of dazzling smoke and lightning tricks to great effect. I mean, they are still 16-bit special effects but they look the part and give great atmosphere to the stages. The last level, Millstone Mayhem, is set in a temple heavily inspired by Mayan architecture but devoted to some unidentified Kremling deity. There is only one other temple level in the whole game (World 4, Temple Tempest), but both offer a solid challenge and are fondly remembered by DKC fans.
Playing Donkey Kong Country online: A brief character guide 27/08/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: cranky kong, diddy kong, donkey kong, donkey kong characters, donkey kong country, kremlings
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For the purpose of any readers coming to the Donkey Kong franchise with fresh eyes, here is a small reference guide for some of the most memorable characters in the Kong universe. I have only included those who appear in the original Donkey Kong Country, as the Kong family tree has continued to grow bigger with each installment, reaching a ridiculous point with that bloated fart that is Donkey Kong 64. But that is another story!
How to Play Donkey Kong Country online: A Prologue 24/08/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, how to play snes online, nintendo, online play, Super Nintendo, ZSNES
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After deciding to revisit Donkey Kong Country on a co-operative multiplayer mission with my friend Aldara, we set out to find out the best way of doing so. The English Channel between us means the original (and preferred) option, my slightly oxidated Super Nintendo with my trusty 20 year old DKC cartridge slotted in, is sadly out of the question. The DKC trilogy, although available on the Wii Virtual Console for a long time, is now conspicuously absent from the Wii U’s and in any case VC games do not offer online play, just local multiplayer. So yes, Nintendo’s inability to offer a truly competitive online experience for their back catalogue is forcing us to resort to SNES emulation via our PCs.
Playing Donkey Kong Country online: Gorillas in the web 23/08/2014
Posted by jspanero in Features.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, online play, Super Nintendo, walkthrough, ZSNES
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Lately I have been on a vintage gaming binge, prompted by two very retro ‘current’ games I am going through, ‘Dragon Quest VI: Dreams of Reverie’ for the Nintendo DS and ‘Strider’ for the PS3. Admittedly, these games have been published in 2011 and 2014 respectively, but all the marketing in the world cannot hide their old school DNA.
That Japanese ‘Strider’ cover…
There is something comforting about retro games, whether you have played them before or not. If you have, there is an uncanny sense of reawakening, like any self-respecting 90s gay listening to Alanis Morissette’s ‘Jagged Little Pill’ nowadays. And if you come to the game with new eyes, ears and hands, you can admire the craft of a gaming era gone by, where games were simpler but by no means easier and achievements were something that existed only in your head before Microsoft spoiled it for everyone (NEVER FORGET).
Donkey Kong Country Returns – Nintendo’s banana skin moment 04/05/2011
Posted by jspanero in Game Reviews.Tags: donkey kong, donkey kong country, donkey kong country returns, rare, retro
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14 years after his last outing, Nintendo has surprised everyone by bringing Donkey Kong back to one of his most famous territories, the Donkey Kong Country famed by British developers Rareware. Magnificently quirky experiments aside (DK Jungle Beat), Donkey Kong and friends had been filling their spare time since their 90’s heyday cameoing in the usual Nintendo-rostered games (Mario Kart and Smash Bros) or headlining portable fare with some solid successes (the Mario VS DK series for the GBA and DS) and some fillers (King of Swing). Donkey Kong Country Returns picks up where we left the simian gang around the time of Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble, the third game in the original Country trilogy, hoping to recreate the magic and accompanying sales of the Super Nintendo classics. Shame that what these monkeys need in 2010 is something Nintendo just cannot give them: a trip in space and time to Rare’s offices in Twycross, Leicestershire circa 1995.
- Monkey cryogenics
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