News Articles
Thursday22nd Feb 2024
Random Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze Could Have Been About Alien Invaders
Donkey Kong Country: Independence Day?
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is all about snow; that much should be obvious from the game's title, even for those who have yet to play Retro Studios' excellent platformer. According to a recent interview from KiwiTalkz in which he chats with former Retro artists Eric Kozlowsky and Ted Anderson,...
Tuesday13th Feb 2024
Anniversary Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Is Now A Decade Old
Time for a new one?
Just in case you weren't feeling old today, it's now been a decade since Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze was released for the Wii U in Japan (13 February, 2014). Yes, the latest platformer in the Donkey Kong Country sub-series is now basically old enough to sneak a tenner out of Dad's wallet and laugh incessantly at toilet...
Monday23rd Jan 2023
News Enguarde The Swordfish Almost Returned In Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Just keep swimming
Donkey Kong has had some fantastic animal companions over the years, and when Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze breezed onto the Wii U, and later Switch, it brought back with it a very small selection of animal companions. But in an interview published in the latest issue of Retro Gamer (via Nintendo Everything) creative...
Monday5th Sep 2022
Random Wii U Owner's Son Stuffs A Bunch Of Switch Carts Into The Disc Drive
We're not entirely sure that will work...
If you're even remotely present on the veritable hellscape that is Twitter, then you'll have no doubt seen a meme in which gamers take photos of their Switch console docked with a game disc from another platform resting on top; a metaphor of the user's desire to see a port of said game arrive on Switch...
Monday20th Jun 2022
Random You Can Complete The Mine Cart Mini-Game In Super Mario RPG Without Actually Playing It
Give yourself a rest!
It's always interesting to see just how some games would function if you just... do nothing. Indeed, one of the most famous examples is the Metal Man boss in Mega Man 2. If you simply leave the controller alone upon entering the boss room, your opponent will do nothing until you make the first move; step forward just an inch...
Monday30th May 2022
News Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Artist Talks About "Frustrating" Zelda Rumours
Not-so Funky mode
Back when Retro Studios was riding high on the success of the Metroid Prime trilogy, not many expected them to jump off of the space bounty hunter's ship and into the jungle in Donkey Kong Country Returns. This fantastic platformer rebooted the Donkey Kong Country series from the SNES with beautiful visuals, tight platforming, and...
Wednesday5th Aug 2020
And we would go bananas for a new entry
If there's one series we would love to see make a return, it's gotta be Donkey Kong Country. The last mainline outing was the release of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze on the Wii U in 2014, and it was then enhanced for the Switch in 2018. So, who is willing to help out on a new Donkey Kong Country game?...
Friday3rd Jan 2020
News Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze's Lead Designer Has Reportedly Returned To Retro Studios
Another talent for Metroid Prime 4?
Stephen Dupree, who was credited as the lead designer on the wonderful Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, has reportedly returned to Retro Studios after two years away. The news comes from VGC, who say that the ex-Retro employee will now return to work at the studio as a principal game designer. At present,...
Tuesday26th Nov 2019
Random If Cranky Kong Was Once Donkey Kong, What Does The Future Hold For Funky Kong?
DK devs weigh in
With Donkey Kong Country turning 25 last week and soaking up the lion's share of the anniversary headlines, we thought we'd give its younger sibling a chance to shine. Donkey Kong 64 celebrated its 20th birthday on 22nd November and we caught up with Mark Stevenson and
Thursday22nd Nov 2018
News Lots Of The Switch's Biggest Games Have Just Received Huge Black Friday Discounts In Europe
Zelda, Mario, Skyrim and More
Seemingly out of nowhere - although no doubt thanks to Black Friday sales - Nintendo of Europe has slashed the cost of lots of top games on Switch, with customers now able to snag some of the best and biggest titles from the eShop at bargain prices in a new Cyber Deals 2018 event. Seeing Nintendo first-party games drop...
Friday21st Sep 2018
Anniversary Retro Studios Celebrates 20 Years In Gaming
Now let's have some Switch games, please
We imagine Retro Studios is one company that needs absolutely no introduction on these pages, but we're about to provide one anyway as the developer is today celebrating 20 years in the world of gaming. Yes, back in 1998, Retro Studios was born as a game development studio with Nintendo acting as a parent...
Friday3rd Aug 2018
News A Metroid Easter Egg Has Been Found In Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze After Four Years
Hiding all this time
Nintendo games often have little nods to other franchises cheekily tucked away in hard-to-reach areas, giving fans a nice little burst of happiness and pride when they stumble across them, but this little easter egg inside Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze managed to remain hidden for more than four years. Until now, of...
Monday4th Jun 2018
News Switch Owned More Market Share Than Xbox One In UK Last Month
Over 23%
Just last week we reported that Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze was the best-selling game in May in Japan, and it seems that Nintendo has had a pretty strong month in the UK, too. Figures are in for UK sales between 29th April and 26th May, and things are looking bright for the 'Big N'. The Switch's market share has been increasing...
Friday1st Jun 2018
News The Mega Man Legacy Collections On Switch Debut At Number Nine In Japan
Bombing Blue Bomber
It's been another strong week for Nintendo Switch software titles in Japan, with half the top ten comprised of games on Ninty's hybrid hardware. However, Mega Man didn't perform quite as well as Capcom was probably hoping, with the combined Mega Man Legacy Collection debuting at number nine. In other words it failed to sell as...
News Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Was The Best-Selling Game For May In Japan
Switch the best-selling console, too
Sales figures have been released for software and hardware sales in Japan for the month of May, and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze has smashed and ground-pounded its way to the number one slot. Famitsu has shared the latest numbers and chart positions for the month, which actually cover the four week...
Tuesday29th May 2018
News DKC: Tropical Freeze And Hyrule Warriors On Switch Crash Out Of The UK Charts Top Ten
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe just makes the cut
The latest UK video game charts are in, with the multiformat listing showing Nintendo Switch titles struggling against a wave of first-party exclusives and triple-A hits on other platforms. There is one saving grace in the top ten, with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe just managing to secure a tenth place slot. However,...
Monday21st May 2018
News Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition Charges Into Third Place In The UK Charts
Wii U sales were higher, though
In a sequence of events that won't surprise many, Sony's God of War has remained at the top of the UK charts for a fifth consecutive week, but Nintendo's latest release has made a dent on proceedings. Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition has secured a third place spot in what has been a quiet week for new releases,...
Monday14th May 2018
News Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze Hangs Onto Second Place In UK Charts
Switch version has racked up 1/4 of all copies sold so far in the UK
Sony's PS4 epic God of War remains the UK's top-selling video game for a fourth week, but Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze on Switch proves it has some staying power, too - it's been able to cling onto second place for a second week. That's pretty impressive stuff when you...
Thursday10th May 2018
News Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Swings To The Top Of The Japanese Charts
Switch remains the top-selling console
The arrival of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze in Japan has knocked the baseball powerhouse that is Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball 2018 off the top spot, while God of War finally drops out of the top five. Nintendo Labo Variety Kit rose to number three, Kirby Star Allies jumped tw
Tuesday8th May 2018
News Retro Studios Handled The Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Port On Nintendo Switch
They kept that quiet
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze coming to Switch has given one of the Wii U's most enjoyable platformers the chance to find a new audience - which it most certainly has - but it also raised the question of who was actually handling the porting duties. In the past, other studios have been brought in to handle ports for...
News Consumers Go Bananas For Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze In This Week's UK Charts
Nintendo Labo goes in the recycling bin!
Last week we saw Nintendo Labo: Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit make a strong debut in the UK software charts at position three. Unfortunately for Nintendo, it's fallen out of favour this week in the UK, slipping all the way to 13th place. Poor old Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 02: Robot Kit, only charted at 20th...
Friday4th May 2018
Video Here Are 10 New Switch Games Coming To Nintendo Switch In May
It's gonna be May
As you've no doubt noticed by the changing weather (touch wood) and the influx of NSYNC memes, May is upon us, and the fifth month of the year is bringing with it a slew of new titles for Nintendo Switch. So we've boiled all these lovely games down to tasty 10 for your visual delectation. And there's a wide breadth of titles here...
Thursday3rd May 2018
Nintendo Download 3rd May (Europe)
Every game, demo, DLC and theme hitting the EU eShop today
The Nintendo Download update for Europe it finally here, bringing all manner of new games, demos, themes and discounts to an eShop near you. We've got every new addition listed right here, direct from Nintendo, to ensure you have all the info you need to start spending with wanton abandon...
Nintendo Download 3rd May (North America)
All the games and downloadable content hitting the NA eShops
Thursday has arrived once more, bringing with it another weekly update to all of Nintendo's current eShop fronts. We've got plenty of indie sleeper hits, classic retro throwbacks and big titles all waiting to tempt their way into your virtual collection. As always, feel free to add a vote...
Wednesday2nd May 2018
Random Spot The Difference Between These Two Covers For Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze hits the Switch soon, and as you'll know from our review, it's well worth picking up - even if you already own the Wii U original. However, if for some reason you don't fancy trying out the latest Kong adventure, you can still entertain yourselves with a wee game of "spot the difference". For...
Tuesday1st May 2018
News Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Disappears From The North American Wii U eShop
Update: Aaaaaaaand it's back
Update: And just like that, the game is back up on the Wii U eShop. We'll let you ponder why this might be in the comments section below. Original Story: The Nintendo Switch has had its fair share of Wii U ports, something which has divided the fanbase a little, but makes a whole lot of business sense. Considering the...
Wednesday25th Apr 2018
Video Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze's New Easter Egg is Only On Switch
Great for all the wrong reasons
Easter eggs are, in our view, a lovely way for developers to make little nods to other games, franchises, or any other subject that might otherwise pass a player by. We've discovered one such reference to the divisive Donkey Kong Country TV show in the Switch version of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. As you...
Video Digital Foundry Explores Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze's Resolution And Frame Rate
Looks like a winner
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze was one of the Wii U's gaming highlights; the platforming fun was great from start to finish, but it also looked great and played nicely, too. To explore the differences between the WIi U version and the upcoming Switch version, though, and to check for any improvements, the folk at Digital...
Tuesday24th Apr 2018
Feature The History And Evolution of Donkey Kong
37 years in the making
Few gaming characters have hung around as long as Donkey Kong, and over the years we at NL towers have garnered a healthy respect for the giant, tie-wearing ape. That's why we decided to throw together a short audio-visual retrospective to take a look at how DK managed to get where he is today. What's your favourite entry...
Thursday5th Apr 2018
Video There's A Chill In The Air With This New Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Trailer
A cold day in paradise
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is due to arrive on Nintendo Switch on 4th May, bringing with it the classic, tough-as-nails gameplay of the Wii U original (including loading times that are half as long as those featured in the original). With less than a month to go, Nintendo has released a new trailer to get you in the...
