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All Purpose Donkey Kong Thread

LiveStudioAudience

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Hello everybody!

For the past couple of years the Dixie Kong character thread in Newcomer Speculation has become a big meeting ground for many fans of the Donkey Kong series, from the arcade originals, the Country series, and the many spin-offs. With Smash Ultimate essentially wrapped up, myself and various others felt it right to have a general thread within NintenZone to continue talk about her and the general discussion about the DK series which we've grown to love so much. I'd welcome any long time posters in the Dixie thread and those that are also fans that haven't ventured into her thread to join this one and keep the talk about the franchise going which (given the theme park additions and the roles in the upcoming Mario movie) might just be bigger than ever soon.
 

Doc Monocle

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Having grown up with the Country series, I do have great appreciation for and approval of a general thread such as this one. Dixie may have missed Ultimate, but I believe she has a strong chance to see herself in the base roster of the next game. I cannot wait to see if it is so (should a sixth installment be made)!
 

LiveStudioAudience

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Something that Hyle Russell and Josh (from Geek Critique) brought up in a recent episode of DK Vine is that given the elements from the Retro titles getting emphasis in the Nintendo theme park and Cranky Kong himself appearing in the Mario movie, that in terms of the dominant property of the brand... Donkey Kong Country has kind of won out.

That's not to say that the arcade roots aren't still being featured at times, that something like the Jungle Beat particulars can't come back, and that we won't see a return of Mario vs Donkey Kong any time soon. All those could easily get spotlighted, but it is telling that things largely unique to DKC specifically seem to be what's highlighted in the biggest projects. What this means for any future games I'm not sure (and I suspect Nintendo EAD will be keen to introduce their own new elements for the franchise), it just feels like we're in a time when the company might actually be embracing the Country subseries to a greater degree than before.
 
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Handy Man

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The Donkey Kong Country games are some of my favorite games of all time. 2D Platformers are my favorite genre, and the DKC games are great examples of the genre done right. The controls are precise, the levels are very memorable and atmosphereic, the graphics are timeless, and the music is simply incredible. I also find the Kongs, Kremlings, and Animal Buddies to be an incredibly likeable cast of characters. The Kongs are fun to play as and have fun, silly personalitys. The Kremlings make for interesting enemies that all have different gimmicks, with King K. Rool being my favorite video game villain of all time. The Animal Buddies also add a ton of gameplay variety, with Squitter and Rattly being my favorites.

Overall, the Donkey Kong series means a ton to me. DKC2 is objectively one of the best games I’ve ever played, and other games like DKC1, DK64, and Tropical Freeze are great to me as well. King K. Rool was my most wanted character in Smash for years, and I am fully behind wanting Dixie Kong in Smash as well. I can’t wait to see what the future of the Donkey Kong franchise has in store, and hopefully we get a brand new DK game soon as well. Cheers!
 

BKupa666

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This is going to be a thread to follow. After what feels like ages in the wilderness as a franchise, despite bright spots with individual studios or announcements, Donkey Kong is on the brink of big things once again, with an upcoming game from an apparent dedicated in-house team, theme park and (potential) Illumination movie. Outside of the occasional arcade cameos, "Country" -is- the brand now, so there's no longer any need to fret about DK's world being perpetually up for ground-up reinvention every console generation. We'll soon get to see how a supposed team of younger Super Donkey Kong fans at Nintendo EPD melds beloved franchise elements they grew up with with new character and gameplay additions. As K. Rool's Smash incarnation showed, it won't be 100% of what hardcore fans want, but the fresh creative interpretations can sometimes prove even better.
 
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Diddy Kong

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Alright this is gonna be my main thread from now on. Great to see so many familiar faces here already!

Having just finished Metroid Dread, I can't wait for the next installment of Donkey Kong on the Switch! I was always skeptical of the "secret DK project led by Nintendo", but it might just be a thing, cause all these other franchises as Metroid, Wario and Kirby are making a strong come back... I cannot picture Donkey Kong being left out, it's too big of a brand name, with a too important main legendary character.

I suspect that 2022 might be a bit too early to expect a new DK game, but anything can happen. I'll be looking out for the holidays and a Nintendo Direct around that time. Seems like a great time to reveal a game like this. The main attention right now will probably still go to Zelda, and the long awaited sequel to Breath of the Wild, but that shouldn't matter much.

I'm all in for this ride! :ultdk::ultdiddy:
 

LiveStudioAudience

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A two-dimensional Donkey Kong game releasing next year would have some interesting context, given what else is going on with Nintendo.

With non-3D Mario largely just fan created content on Mario Maker 2, Kirby itself going to the third dimension, no sign of another Yoshi game, and the Wario series still seemingly focused on Warioware related elements, that leaves a big 2D platformer gap that another DK (Country?) title could very much fill. The recent success of Metroid Dread in spite of all the small controversy over whether it was worth its asking price is demonstrative of how much 2D games can still be huge. And given Metroid has never sold as well as DK? We could be looking at DKC Returns numbers for another title if done right.

A DKC trailer at E3 2022 that showed off the visual aesthetic depth of the Ori titles and the level design akin to that of the Retro games would be huge.
 

Wario Wario Wario

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If DK ever goes 3D again, I don't want another collectathon, I want a corridor/linear platformer ala Crash.

The linear 3D platformer is such a depressingly small subgenre that has been haunted by an unjust bad reputation since Crash Bandicoot and Mario 64 came out in the US weeks apart, and thus has never really managed to reach it's full potential. DK would skyrocket interest in and respect for the subgenre.
 

LiveStudioAudience

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If DK ever goes 3D again, I don't want another collectathon, I want a corridor/linear platformer ala Crash.

The linear 3D platformer is such a depressingly small subgenre that has been haunted by an unjust bad reputation since Crash Bandicoot and Mario 64 came out in the US weeks apart, and thus has never really managed to reach it's full potential. DK would skyrocket interest in and respect for the subgenre.
Plus Crash 4 has illustrated the value in multiple characters in that format, which would be great to utilize for a title with DK, Diddy, Dixie, and whoever else.
 

Wario Wario Wario

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Plus Crash 4 has illustrated the value in multiple characters in that format, which would be great to utilize for a title with DK, Diddy, Dixie, and whoever else.
Absolutely. Tawna and Dingodile's stages were a blast, especially the latter. I'd much prefer the other Kongs to be seperate stages over being tied to DK's back.
 

Diddy Kong

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Absolutely. Tawna and Dingodile's stages were a blast, especially the latter. I'd much prefer the other Kongs to be seperate stages over being tied to DK's back.
This was my biggest gripe with Tropical Freeze honestly. With Returns, it was somewhat understandable to have this system, I also managed my way around it with the 2 player mode. But Tropical Freeze had me bugged with the buddy system, first of all, Dixie made things way too easy. And worse, she's required for most secrets. Cranky second. In general, Diddy was just the "bad pick" and that felt wrong (I still went with Diddy all the time however!). Also, Donkey Kong lacks a unique ability of his own, which makes playing as him a liability. Which sucks, cause this was also the case in basically all other DK games he's actually playable in, sans Jungle Beat.

What I'd like is a balanced game where each Kong has a specific play style that fits with certain players. DK for example, needs to be build around strength and endurance. If we use Returns / Tropical Freeze as a base, make his attacks able to kill the stronger and heavier enemies in one blow like in DKC1. And give him another heart. Diddy needs a little extra speed, like in the DKC & DKC2 days, and Dixie, well, she's fine the way she is. Maybe also have certain types of barrels only DK can lift ? Or, a thing I was always an advocate for; give DK the Giant Punch from Smash as a main attack. And make his hand slap stronger than the pounding attacks of other Kongs. That would give DK a rough play style to power through certain levels filled with stronger enemies.

3D DKC is also a thing I'd love to see one day. I always thought the BotW engine would work for Donkey Kong. Have a huge open world with natural environments, filled with animals you could ride instead of hunt for food, climb everything you see, and use the environment to your advantage. But seeing as Pokemon already got that treatment, that's unlikely.
 

Ridley_Prime

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Hi all. Not sure how active it’ll be, but I’ll keep an eye on this thread for the usual DK related talk like I had with the Dixie thread. Less than a week now till the Ultimate speculation sub-forum will be closed, and ready to move on from that and character speculation in general.

I guess this wasn't relevant enough to talk about in the other thread, but how does everyone feel about Switch N64 online, the price and all? Unironically, nothing short of being able to play Diddy Kong Racing online would get me to pay, even if it was only for a year and I went back to the regular $20 plan afterward. It'll likely be awhile till we get to that point with DKR or DK64 regardless if how long it took for the DKC trilogy to get put on Switch SNES is any indication, so no skin off my nose I guess. Wouldn't get N64 online just to generically experience Super Mario 64 and such again.

Far as new games, with how "ready" people are for a next DK to be 3D, whether to see the series redeemed after DK64 or just to see how such a game would compare to Mario Odyssey and the like, also be prepared for some weird backlash if the next game happens to be another 2D. Metroid Dread wasn't spared some of that unplesantry, even though Prime 4's gonna be a thing.
 

Glubbfubb

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Hi all. Not sure how active it’ll be, but I’ll keep an eye on this thread for the usual DK related talk like I had with the Dixie thread. Less than a week now till the Ultimate speculation sub-forum will be closed, and ready to move on from that and character speculation in general.

I guess this wasn't relevant enough to talk about in the other thread, but how does everyone feel about Switch N64 online, the price and all? Unironically, nothing short of being able to play Diddy Kong Racing online would get me to pay, even if it was only for a year and I went back to the regular $20 plan afterward. It'll likely be awhile till we get to that point with DKR or DK64 regardless if how long it took for the DKC trilogy to get put on Switch SNES is any indication, so no skin off my nose I guess. Wouldn't get N64 online just to generically experience Super Mario 64 and such again.

Far as new games, with how "ready" people are for a next DK to be 3D, whether to see the series redeemed after DK64 or just to see how such a game would compare to Mario Odyssey and the like, also be prepared for some weird backlash if the next game happens to be another 2D. Metroid Dread wasn't spared some of that unplesantry, even though Prime 4's gonna be a thing.
I think each level should be interconnected but there also linear like crash twinsanity so it can differentiate itself from other Nintendo platformers
 

Diddy Kong

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Hi all. Not sure how active it’ll be, but I’ll keep an eye on this thread for the usual DK related talk like I had with the Dixie thread. Less than a week now till the Ultimate speculation sub-forum will be closed, and ready to move on from that and character speculation in general.

I guess this wasn't relevant enough to talk about in the other thread, but how does everyone feel about Switch N64 online, the price and all? Unironically, nothing short of being able to play Diddy Kong Racing online would get me to pay, even if it was only for a year and I went back to the regular $20 plan afterward. It'll likely be awhile till we get to that point with DKR or DK64 regardless if how long it took for the DKC trilogy to get put on Switch SNES is any indication, so no skin off my nose I guess. Wouldn't get N64 online just to generically experience Super Mario 64 and such again.

Far as new games, with how "ready" people are for a next DK to be 3D, whether to see the series redeemed after DK64 or just to see how such a game would compare to Mario Odyssey and the like, also be prepared for some weird backlash if the next game happens to be another 2D. Metroid Dread wasn't spared some of that unplesantry, even though Prime 4's gonna be a thing.
I saw that price just a few hours ago, and it's absurd! I doubt I will be paying that. I didn't even get the second Fighter Pass for example. Even though am dying to play Banjo Kazooie again after so long (I don't have a tv and play my Switch solely on handheld mode), they will have to get me more interested by adding Diddy Kong Racing AND DK64 to the mix. Throw in Banjo Tooie and Conker too, seeing as I never played those. Only then I will buy this...

There could be backlash for having "another" DK game in 2D, sure. I didn't even know people said that stuff about Metroid Dread either! It's a great game, doesn't deserve that. And I do hope a new DKC game can deliver like Metroid Dread! They done it exactly right !! They kept a smooth control system that's fluid , responsive and easy to learn but hard to master, which is quite similar to DKC, and they added challenge! And a sense of horror even. They also didn't hesitate to try new things with the main character, if you know what I mean. Yet Samus was portraited perfectly , and true to her character!

Seeing as Reggie said in that one presentation that he wants a "new experience" for established series, and he did mention Zelda, DK and Metroid as example, am very curious what sort of new experience we can expect from Donkey Kong? I mean, nobody thought a open world Zelda game would happen, or a Metroid with horror elements, maybe we'll get some actual beat em up mechanics in a new DK game? Cause that's what they did in Jungle Beat.

Speaking of Jungle Beat, I ways thought they could give that sort of gameplay another try. But make it a VS / co-op kind of foot to foot race / competition sort of game between Kongs. You win the level by collecting the most bananas, finding the most secrets, beating the most enemies, and this could be a random challenge each level, or whatever, but each Kong would have their own speciality.

Seeing that it's rumoured that Nintendo themselves are making this alleged game, I think the possibility of having Jungle Beat mechanics are more likely than people think.
 

Diddy Kong

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Something I'd love from a new DK is more cutscenes - so long as it's all silent storytelling.
If it's cinematic like the K.Rool trailer, am all for it! That trailer gave me such a thrill, it was very animalistic, had quite raw aggression in it! You could tell DK wanted nothing but rip K.Rool into shreds, and vise versa.
 

Wario Wario Wario

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If it's cinematic like the K.Rool trailer, am all for it! That trailer gave me such a thrill, it was very animalistic, had quite raw aggression in it! You could tell DK wanted nothing but rip K.Rool into shreds, and vise versa.
I personally had the opposite in mind - I imagine something somewhat slow and atmospheric most of the time, but tense when stakes are raised and unafraid to be goofy when stakes are low. A bit Disney-esque to an extent. I'm just not much an action guy I guess.
 

Glubbfubb

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I personally had the opposite in mind - I imagine something somewhat slow and atmospheric most of the time, but tense when stakes are raised and unafraid to be goofy when stakes are low. A bit Disney-esque to an extent. I'm just not much an action guy I guess.
I personally want some more atmospheric cutscenes as well, but have very funny gag cutscenes as unlockables
 

BKupa666

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I honestly would be OK with Donkey Kong Switch being either a 2D or a 3D game. No matter which way it goes, I think you're going to see some level of pushback. The Nintendo fanbase at large seems poised to dismiss the game out of hand if it's not an open-world adventure in the style of Super Mario Odyssey. It's an unfortunate mindset partially driven by certain zoomer YouTubers who fanboy over Tropical Freeze because that's now the popular thing to do, while at the same time deriding 2D platformers as unambitious. That said, I've also observed a smaller, but still vocal group of people, including hardcore DKC fans, who actively don't want a 3D game because Country is a formula that works and DK64, to many, fell flat.

People are going to have their preferences, that's totally fine. I would be maybe more intrigued to see how Nintendo would interpret 3D DK, given we have no idea how that would look 22 years after the series' first and only attempt. Returns and Tropical Freeze provide at least somewhat of an idea of how a modern 2D DK would look. Even then, though, EPD would put a fresh spin on the genre, instead of just making "Donkey Kong Country Returns 3, But Not By Retro" (especially with the need to differentiate it from Tropical Freeze Switch, already out for the system). In the end, I hope whatever the project is turns out to be a labor of love by the team making it, with a mix of legacy elements and new direction. And hey, if it ends up not being to everyone's liking, the beauty of a dedicated DK team is the guarantee that they can try again next time.
 
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LiveStudioAudience

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I have only two major wishes for the next DK game. Ideally it's a platformer (another Jungle Beat style release would be great after this one) and that its visual identity is fairly distinct. The Retro titles were filled with charm, and they never fell into the generic aesthetic of the NSMB releases, but an even greater difference in terms of color and design might have made them stand out even more. The next one wouldn't have to be look the Rare trilogy necessarily; just that something that's as distinct now as the SNES games were to the Mario titles of the time would really give Donkey Kong as a whole a particularly unique style.
 
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Diddy Kong

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What I would love is for a next DK(C) to visually take the route Jungle Beat went with, in terms of the darker textures on the character models. The aesthetics of Jungle Beat suit the original Rare style of DKC better than the Retro DKCs, who felt where hugely inspired by the more cartoony PAON models. I love the natural environments of the Returns, and Tropical Freeze is visually the best looking DK game by far. But I do think both Diddy and Dixie are way too cutesy with the Retro models.

And I'm especially focussed on the Jungle Beat stuff cause it's allegedly the same team that's responsible for this next game. I can't picture them not drawing a little from it.
 

Glubbfubb

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What I would love is for a next DK(C) to visually take the route Jungle Beat went with, in terms of the darker textures on the character models. The aesthetics of Jungle Beat suit the original Rare style of DKC better than the Retro DKCs, who felt where hugely inspired by the more cartoony PAON models. I love the natural environments of the Returns, and Tropical Freeze is visually the best looking DK game by far. But I do think both Diddy and Dixie are way too cutesy with the Retro models.

And I'm especially focussed on the Jungle Beat stuff cause it's allegedly the same team that's responsible for this next game. I can't picture them not drawing a little from it.
Then probably the next game's plot should be about evil Kongs like Jungle Beat
 

LiveStudioAudience

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You know, if Retro had or were doing one more Country game, I think I would have been fine without Kremlings given their tendency to go with fresh antagonists. But with K Rool's return in Smash and it being handled by Nintendo EAD, it feels right to have them back as enemies. Not only because the next entry is probably going to be a significant one, and they're an entity that casual fans are now familiar with, but also it would more meaningful if we had a DK game made by the core Nintendo team acknowledging a Rare creation in such a big way. It would be final step in solidifying so much that era's contributions; from the callbacks in Tropical Freeze, to K Rool in Ultimate, to the major DK enemies themselves getting the spotlight by a NoJ team itself.
 

Diddy Kong

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I would excuse Retro for doing it yeah, even if I felt a lot of the Snowmads where actually meant to expy the Kremlings. Up to the point of Lord Frederick even having many similarities to K.Rool. Retrospectively, the enemies of the Returns games made sense, story wise. So I'll leave them for what they're worth and just have a final comment that the Snowmads where a huge step up from the Tiki Tribe.

I would want the Kremlings to return by Nintendo's hand mainly cause it was them who kept them out, starting with Jungle Beat. Even Diddy was left out making the fact that Diddy, Cranky and Rambi where included in DKCR almost noteworthy... Whereas it's the bare minimum, especially if it's meant to draw inspiration from the very first DKC game- which is something that's definitely noticable while playing the game.

If we are to trust the sources about K.Rool's Smash inclusion, we ought to see him and his disfunctional army of crocodiles back in this next game. It would be very weird if this isn't the case.
 

LiveStudioAudience

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The other intriguing factor is of course what Nintendo's take on K Rool and company might be. Some creations like the Broodals in Odyssey point to a broader creative trend within Nintendo EAD after years of generic Mario fare rehashes in NSMB and (to a lesser extent) SM3DW. That kind of quirky design, paired with the settings in SMO that thankfully weren't the stock jungle, desert, sky, mountain areas could work wonders with Donkey Kong.

Heck, I'd love to see DK and company go through an urban setting similar (though still different) to New Donk City, complete with street punk Kremlings. Given that last real metropolis like location in the franchise was way back in Donkey Kong Land, it would be an incredibly refreshing place to have levels in again.
 

Wario Wario Wario

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The other intriguing factor is of course what Nintendo's take on K Rool and company might be. Some creations like the Broodals in Odyssey point to a broader creative trend within Nintendo EAD after years of generic Mario fare rehashes in NSMB and (to a lesser extent) SM3DW. That kind of quirky design, paired with the settings in SMO that thankfully weren't the stock jungle, desert, sky, mountain areas could work wonders with Donkey Kong.

Heck, I'd love to see DK and company go through an urban setting similar (though still different) to New Donk City, complete with street punk Kremlings. Given that last real metropolis like location in the franchise was way back in Donkey Kong Land, it would be an incredibly refreshing place to have levels in again.
I'd prefer nature environments, but I'm certainly not opposed to an urban world or two - any game can be significantly enhanced with the addition of a rainy city, even if it does not in any way fit the aesthetic.
 
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LiveStudioAudience

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I'd prefer nature environments, but I'm certainly not opposed to an urban world or two - any game can be significantly enhanced with the addition of a rainy city, even if it does not in any way fit the aesthetic.
Well the nice thing is that the overall plot could easily justify it; K Rool turning natural jungle isles neighboring DK Island into ugly cityscapes as part of some out there scheme is easily within the Kremlings' wheelhouse.
 

Diddy Kong

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The other intriguing factor is of course what Nintendo's take on K Rool and company might be. Some creations like the Broodals in Odyssey point to a broader creative trend within Nintendo EAD after years of generic Mario fare rehashes in NSMB and (to a lesser extent) SM3DW. That kind of quirky design, paired with the settings in SMO that thankfully weren't the stock jungle, desert, sky, mountain areas could work wonders with Donkey Kong.

Heck, I'd love to see DK and company go through an urban setting similar (though still different) to New Donk City, complete with street punk Kremlings. Given that last real metropolis like location in the franchise was way back in Donkey Kong Land, it would be an incredibly refreshing place to have levels in again.
Yes to urban areas ! And new sort of places to explore in general. My very favorite newly introduced location of the Retro games was the savannah plains. How fitting that is for a Donkey Kong game !

Am not sure how Nintendo is gonna handle K.Rool, I think they'll be a bit conservative at first. Sticking with his King persona, acting mostly like he did in DKC1 and a bit of DK64. For some reason, Japan seemed to like DK64.

What are the opinions here about DK64? If the series would once again be set in 3D again, should it follow the footsteps of DK64, or be a total different animal? I do think this limited thinking is actually preventing progress for the DK brand honestly.
 

LiveStudioAudience

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I want another 3D DK to not be like DK64. That game is basically Banjo-Kazooie and I'd rather they have their own identity.
Really the thing is that Donkey Kong is fine going 3D, if it's doing something interesting and better than other titles like it.

One of the triumphs of the Country titles was that they took the elements of 2D platforming and made them better. The SNES trilogy was inspired by the Mario titles but weaved in world building via setting, exploration, & original level design masterfully. Tropical Freeze (and to an extent Returns) worked set pieces into platforming stage design that essentially became the gold standard on how do both almost perfectly.

The major issue with DK64 beyond subjective notions about how much of the spirit of the DKC title it kept (which is a whole other debate), is that a lot of the game just feels like it took Banjo-Kzooie/Super Mario 64 and made it bigger... but not much else. The level design didn't feel that tighter, and while many of the challenges had some charm, it didn't really feel like it was executing ideas in the collectathon with any greater creativity or finesse than those that came before it.

Especially with Odyssey being the best selling 3D Mario of all time and the acclaim that title's gotten, a three-dimensional DK game should be something different (and preferably) better to really establish it as worthwhile to newer fans that haven't played a lot of entries in the franchise.
 
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StrangeKitten

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-Sniffs- Ah, new thread smell!

I grew up with the first two DKC games, though I'm pretty sure we didn't have 3. And then Diddy Kong Racing and DK64 on the N64, holy heck did I love those games, and still do! A new thread means I get another opportunity to say that I feel DK64 is over-hated and not as bad as people say. I've seen a lot of people act like it's a completely awful game, and I simply can't agree 💔 I would really love to see a DK game try what 64 tried, as I think a fairly open 3D platformer with characters you can switch between is a cool concept and just needs the wrinkles ironed out. Maybe that could give a new game the something it needs to stand out among Mario and other platformers!

I also want Dixie and feel like the DK representation in Smash is incomplete without her. Though of course, I wouldn't object to other DK characters, like Cranky.
 
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