Topic: Donkey Kong Country (Series)

I absolutely love these games, both the original trilogy and the 2 modern ones. DKC is definitely one of my all time favourite series.

I don't count DK64 as a Country game, it's so different from the rest and I don't enjoy it as much.

It always amazes me how many people loved DKC2 but never played 3. I know it's release timing late in the life of the SNES is part of the reason. I can't argue with the quality of 2 but 3 is such a great game and my personal favourite, it's a shame to see how it got overlooked.

@Green_Shyguy
I have always loved DKC 2 more than the 3rd as most probably do but part 3 definitely had it's strengths! I think i just prefer 2 because it's darker in tone, has better music and also the whole pirate theme is just cooler! I'm not totally sure but i think the music in DKC 3 wasn't David wise or at least less of it was. Can anyone clarify?

Interestingly the GBA version brought Wise back to record a few new tracks and it's almost better for it. Kinda makes that version feel like the best way to play DKC 3. You should check that out if you haven't.

Here's some samples.

@Zeldafan79 I have the GBA version too! It's great and I like the soundtrack but I will always prefer the original for nostalgia reasons. The original soundtrack was mostly composed by Eveline Fischer as far as I know.

I like DKC2s pirate theme but something about DKC3s "edge of the world" atmosphere always drew me in. I will say 3 feels shorter and easier than 2 so I can understand why people might prefer it from a gameplay point of view

@Zeldafan79 David Wise was responsible for roughly 6 tracks in the SNES DKC3, Eveline Fischer created the rest. It's definitely different, but there are still some tracks that i really like.

It occurs to me that 'Nuts & Bolts' (the middle video) reminds me of early 90s KMFDM or something.

@Losermagnet
Yeah i always liked the nuts and bolts track! Probably my favorite in the game. One of the factory levels had pink colored goo in the big vats and i always called that the Bubble gum factory. I actually still have the DKC Snes trilogy soundtrack set that i ordered from Nintendo power magazine!

@Bolt_Strike
Oh, there are definitely "better" characters and franchises for the job, I don't disagree with you on that for a second. But some of the charm and cult-classic status of DK64 comes from how zany and unique it was lol

I was frustrated by quite a few things in that game, but one thing's for sure: It was pretty different from the other 3D collectathons, even during a time when that was a dominant game genre.

@Zeldafan79 Noice. I remember those ads, and I wish my childhood self would've ordered them. That is quite the collectible you have. I still have my player's guides for 2 & 3 and those are sentimental treasures to me.

I never liked DKC2 as much as the original and played DKC3 for the first time on Switch and was amazed it felt like a proper follow up to the first game! I loved that it brought back the natural jungle feel of DKC1, heavy/light characters again and more linear level designs. I think I actually enjoyed it more than Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze.

Anybody else here remember the VHS about the making of DKC? I got it for being a Nintendo Power subscriber, I believe. I watched that thing until it was worn through lol

@rallydefault was it a yellow vhs tape? I may be thinking of the 64 cartridge, haha. Either way I'm pretty sure I had it.

@Losermagnet
Hrm... you know, now that you mention it I'm not sure what color it was. It very well could have been lol

@rallydefault Different =/= good. I struggled to find any redeeming factors from DK64, if you remove the mini games and the character switching from the equation, the worlds become very dull and empty. There's far too little actual platforming in the game, and that's something they need to get right for DK to work in 3D (since you know, it's a platformer). I think it's best to stay linear and master the platforming side of 3D before anything else, a 3D World-esque platformer would appeal much more to DK's fanbase than a sandbox/open world platformer. If they get that right after a few games, then maybe we can talk about branching out into more sandbox/open world gameplay.

@Bolt_Strike
Yea, different doesn't mean good, but sometimes it helps. I liked DK64 all things told.

@rallydefault I still have my VHS As a kid in the pre-internet days, getting this kind of preview before the games release was amazing.
It was called DKC Exposed :

They released one for Mario All-stars in the UK hosted by Craig Charles from Red Dwarf. 😃

We got a random music CD with DKC called Go Ape with a load of chart songs that had nothing to do with Donkey Kong Country.

@Shadowthrone
Oh man, memories! Yea I remember getting that VHS in the mail. It was soooo cool.

DKC and DKC2 are such big parts of my childhood lol My one friend had an older brother who just couldn't beat one of the vertical pirate ship levels in DKC2 (he was in high school at the time and we were just lowly middle schoolers), so I was specially called in to beat the level for him. I'd practiced it so many times that I just blew through it. One of the proudest moments of my nerdy kid video gamer life haha

DKC is one of my favorite series ever.

From a critical standpoint, I would probably rank them:
Tropical Freeze
DKC 2
DKC Returns (specifically the 3DS version)
DKC
DKC 3

Now, from my personal opinion and enjoyment of them:
Tropical Freeze
DKC
DKC 3
DKC 2
DKC Returns

I also had the VHS from Nintendo Power and watched the crap out of it. DKC 3 was a Christmas present and I do think it's a very good game that gets pushed aside. I personally didn't like the Tiki in DKC Returns and that made it less fun and memorable for me. Tropical Freeze is one of my favorite games full stop.

I love the original 3 and just played through them again recently, actually... but far and away I gotta say Tropical Freeze is the best. I truly think it's the best 2D Platformer I've ever played.

On a somewhat related note, I also just completed Yooka Laylee and the Impossible Lair, which feels like an interesting mix between the old DKC games and the new Retro Studios ones. It never reaches the heights of either of those games, but the overworld is fantastic and makes 3D World's overworld feel archaic by comparison. Was a real innovation!

@PhatDoody
Yea, Impossible Lair is such a sweet game. The platforming levels are really tight, but they also didn't slack with the overworld gameplay. Lots of fun stuff to find and even miniature bits of platforming.

Wow, I had that cd that came with DKC1, I'd totally forgotten about until now

@Clyde_Radcliffe I never thought about that before, DKC3 as a spiritual successor to the first one because the more natural elements, I like that