Simply the Best

I felt a bit guilty for not writing about Sonic, so

Quick thoughts:

EDIT: Right - Sorry, Starfoxes. I'm trying not to just copy Cappa here... but actually in starting to write "I agree" I've realised my opinions are a bit weird. I also think that, my non-enjoyment of Starfox Zero might've been that... maybe I just don't like Starfox so much.   *Incredible Hulk TV Show End Theme*

BAD-ISH BUT NOT TERRIBLE:
Starfox Assault - Kind of unmemorable. Plus poor old Namco Bandai Namco were stuck with the canon of Krystal. "You're not ready yet!"
Starfox Zero - I don't think the control scheme itself is too bad - once you learn that the buttons are in different places, you're good. But there's nothing worse than trying to play a videogame feeling uncomfortable (see also any Wii game with a 2+ hour lifespan that involves pointing the remote). I just ignored the cockpit view and looked at the TV, unless there was an extended period where the TV camera had Fox at a funny angle. I don't actually think the different gameplay sections were that bad either; yes, slowing down to hack a machine is a juddering change of pace, but it feels like something that would happen, and the little robot is adorable. However, it's the sudden change in control scheme and viewport that makes it a slog. I gave up when Andross ran in to the back of me at the end of the last level. (Sorry, this is now my Last Game You Didn't Finish post). The characters / plot themselves are/is pretty ace though, even if it feels a bit like a 3rd movie in a series that, after a disappointing sequel, just apes the first one.

STANGELY OK:
Starfox Adventures - I know it's clearly got Starfox stickers slapped over the top, but I quite like the Zelda-lite-ness of it. I'm with Jay on this; interacting with a badly-programmed dinosaur aside, this is pretty good. It's better than Donkey Kong 64
Starfox Command - I bet you FTL was influenced by this. Pretty cool, even though the arcing characters/plots got out of hand, and I was less keen on carving a line in my DS' screen.

ACES:
Starfox/wing - I was really crap at this - which makes me think I'm on to a loser with this series. But I love the art-style; if someone made a game with your 1080p 60fps, but also the bare-minimum untextured polygon count, I think it'd be recognised as "stylised" now.
Starfox 64/Lylat Wars - The one I can actually do! Obvs. this is the best. Do a Barry roll! I can let you have that Star Fox!

gjones wrote:

I had a Mega Drive at the time and have never owned a SNES, but I'll admit that nothing on the system matches up to the timelessness of Super Metroid, Super Mario World and A Link to the Past. Is there a Mega Drive RPG as good as Chrono Trigger?

Well seeing we didn't get Chrono Trigger in PAL regions, so who knows

You shoukd give some of the 3D Sonic goes a go Jim as there not all bad.

But on to Star Fox which is getting more chat then Sonic with less history and less games, which most of you only played 2 of

Nah on all serious, on the 5 games I've played the order goes a little like this

Star Fox Zero, Not the worst game of 2016 but likely the worst and most disappointing I've played of the year & will play (Please be good FFXV & TLG)
Star Fox: Assault, Not played since it came out and I sort of liked it back then as my knowledge of Fox coming from a SEGA background was limited.
Starwing, Played years after it came out as I got a SNES years after they came out but I really enjoyed it & if I had played back in the 90's day one it would have been mind blowing especially as we lacked games like it on the SEGA family for ages.
Lylat Wars, Improved on what was there with Starwing and hasn't been topped or improved since on the Starfox formula.

Me and Andy might have the same number 1 which is....


Reasons why it's my number one, as it was the first times I played a Starfox game properly was with Adventures as it came out the first year of the GameCube, my first Nintendo console and to me that was what Starfox games were like and I didn't know any different in-till I got a SNES & N64 and yes I enjoyed the games on them but Adventures will always be the best to me and like I've said before, if it was called Dinosaur Planet we would all look back on it more fondly but if you have played the others and likely before Adventures I can get why your not a fan of it.

I've played Lylat Wars, Star Fox Adventures, Star Fox Command and felt the same about all of them. "Meh". They don't do anything for me, but then I'm not a fan of space shooters. They feel like graphical updates on the Space Harrier template which again, I never really enjoyed.

Jimbob wrote:

Starfox Adventures - I know it's clearly got Starfox stickers slapped over the top, but I quite like the Zelda-lite-ness of it. I'm with Jay on this; interacting with a badly-programmed dinosaur aside, this is pretty good. It's better than Donkey Kong 64

Can we do DK games next? (Or perhaps a break for something like Fire Emblem that Cappa would hate, then DK games.) I have Some Stuff to say about DK64.

Looking forward to Yoshi games as well...

Second gjones on the Star Fox franchise, it just never did anything for me.  Star Fox 64 (the game most consider the best in the series) came late in my life after I'd grown up playing the far superior Rogue Squadron and Battle For Naboo as well as a recent play of Sin & Punishment, and it just failed to hold a candle to any of them.  Adventures was alright, but again I had played Wind Waker relatively recently and was left unimpressed.  

Nothing I've heard of Zero sounds like it would fix any of my complaints.  If anything it sounds like it only enhanced them, and added in a truly hilariously awful control scheme for good measure (little hint Nintendo, if you're going to give a game the worst control scheme known to man in a shoot em up then you'd better have made a Sin & Punishment).


Fox is at least fun to play in Smash, responsive and glorious and made All Star hard mode a piece of cake.

Jeez, guys, give me a chance to write an opening post...

Let us begin.



I'm a big ol' fan of Starfox, having played all of them in some capacity: apart from, ironically, the original game.

The definitive list of Starfox Games:

5: Starfox Adventure

I haven't played enough of this, otherwise it might rank higher. I really like what I have played; a nice little Zelda-em-up that would probably beloved by another name. One of the best looking games on the console, as well.

4: Starfox Command

Another underrated gem that might have done a lot better had it not been called Starfox. I've always liked the idea of turn-based strategy with real-time battles, and this does it in a fun, original way.

3: Starfox Zero

I can totally understand the controls being offputting, and helicopter stealth can do one, but this was a really good, fun return to the formula. I hope we don't have to wait too long for Nintendo to have another shot at it.

2: Starfox Assault

This one's great and I don't understand why people are so down on it. Fast, action-packed, full of character. The on-foot sections aren't as good as the flying, no, but they weren't awful and they offer a nice change of pace and provide context.

1: Lylat Wars

One of those annoying examples of Nintendo absolutely perfecting a game on the N64 then never bothering to revisit it. Endlessly replayable, iconic, exciting... perfect, in short.

I haven't played enough of the Guard to really have an opinion of it, but it seems nice enough.

That was fun! I look forward to hearing everyone else's thoughts now that I've kicked this off.

I think we might be waiting along time for a new Star Fox unless Project Giant Robot is still in the same Universe of SFZ, as rumours were that they were using SF:Z as a bit of a test bed to see if people want Star Fox games and it's flopped.

Which hopefully Nintendo goes and focus on things like F-Zero.

Star Fox has always been at its best when demonstrating new tech (StarWing's Super FX chip, Lylat Wars's rumble add-on - I'm not counting SFZ's GamePad usage because the GamePad was well-known by that point). Bearing in mind that I've not played either GC StarFox game, have only put something like ten minutes into the copy of Command that I borrowed from my brother, and haven't touched Guard, there's only the Big Three to talk about. The order will be so unsurprising that I won't be using spoiler tags. Without further space ado:

3. Star Fox Zero
Things to be applauded include a valiant attempt to make the GamePad relevant/useful, experimenting with new vehicles, and the production of what I'm sure I've said in the past is the definitive Star Fox experience.* But pacing issues, those ever-divisive controls and visuals that don't wow often enough put the brakes on it being higher up the list.

2. StarWing
One of the finest shmups on the SNES (in an era where there was lots of competition ), StarWing laid the foundations for the game that tops the list. Easy to control but hard to master, StarWing needs to be released on the NX VC in some way, emulation be damned!

1. Lylat Wars
No elaborate fake-out here: Lylat Wars is the Star Fox sweet spot. The mechanics are expanded enough to differentiate it from its predecessor and the addition of speech and an expanded story round it off really well. It's so good that Nintendo didn't dare follow it up properly for a very long time.

*By which I mean "the most complete telling of the story".

*boots the thread up the arse*

I'm going to get cracking with some Donkey Kong chat soon, unless anyone's got another idea.

Donkey Kong works for me! May I 'do' Wario platformers after that?

Either/or, I'll let youse decide.

You go first with The Donkey.

I'm going to have to fight the urge to jusrt include every game ever, as almost anything can be tied to the Donkey Kong Extended Universe

Drunkalilly wrote:

I'm going to have to fight the urge to jusrt include every game ever, as almost anything can be tied to the Donkey Kong Extended Universe

...typed Buska, as he asked himself "Which is the better Donkey Kong game: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 or Star Wars: Republic Commando?"

Sorry, I couldn't be arsed with this last week. Anyway, here's my look-back on The Donkey.

Donkey Kong Jet Race on Wii can’t be described using any positive terminolgy whatsoever. The developer made a horse’s arse of it in every conceivable way, though a special mention has to be made of the fact that they fully replaced the bongo control scheme – which the game was originally being developed for – with waggly, imprecise and the most absolutely tedious sort of Wii controls. Shallow, slow, frustrating and a wee bit broken; it's not only Donkey Kong's very worst, but one of Nintendo’s very worst too.

I wonder if Zero Jones has Donkey Kong Jr. Math as part of his school curriculum? I’d say that he definitely does. The nicest thing I can say about it is that it’s a basic demonstration of computer game coding and programming. As entertainment though, since when was homework something that you could be charged £3.49 for on the Nintendo eShop? The others – Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. and Donkey Kong 3 – are all simple fun, but at the same time they’re very dated and much too light on 'game' to be taken seriously today. Remember when Donkey Kong was 30p on the eShop back when the Wii U first came out? That was one of the very few things that NoE got right on the Wii U Virtual Console. Off-topic, but what a midden that they've made of that.

I’ve never played DK: King of Swing on the GBA, so instead I’ll just say a little bit about it’s DS sequel, DK: Jungle Climber. I’m not sure what I think about it, truth be told. It’s definitely unique, and an interesting change. That said, it requires a lot of focus, patience and carefulness, and I can’t really be arsed with that in a computer game. It’s unconventional in good and bad ways, but ultimately I doubt that this is anybody (from anywhere)’s favourite Donkey Kong game.

The oft-forgotten Donkey Kong Land on the Game Boy is a decent effort. A lot of the backgrounds, models and noises are lifted straight from Donkey Kong Country, but it’s definitely a different game. It’s tight, and not too limited by the hardware. I haven’t played the two sequels, so I’m unsure if they improve on the Donkey Kong Land formula. Still, the first one isn’t bad at all.

People exaggerate a lot when they’re discussing Donkey Kong ’94 on the old black and white Game Boy. I don’t think that it’s a classic like a lot of other folk seem to. Nonetheless, there’s a lot of it, and it does a few interesting things. Mario Vs. Donkey Kong on the GBA – which I’m sure was inspired by DK ’94, at least in part – played  well enough but looked jobby. Honestly, I’m not somebody who makes a point of discussing a game’s graphics, but the first Mario Vs. Donkey Kong game looked dreadful on the day it came out. Aesthetically, it doesn’t stand up too well at all. Gameplay wise? It was okay when I played it again a few years ago. It would never be the first thing that I’d look to pick up, though. They made about nine million Mario Vs. Donkey Kong sequels afterward – I couldn’t give a toss about any of these, truth be told.

“DONKEEEEEY KONG-AAAAHH!”. There’s an overlooked franchise if there ever was one. It’s definitely not the most complete rhythm/action party game ever made - nor does it have the fame of Rock Band, Parappa the Rapper and all of that - but I’ve got a real soft spot for the first Donkey Konga on the GameCube. Some of my fondest multiplayer memories are from playing that game – it was a common fixture at house parties and empties back in my fourth and fifth years of academy. There’s another anthem of my teenagehood – the botched version of Earth Wind & Fire’s September that’s in this game. Donkey Konga 2 cost me £30 a year later, and was nowhere near worth that. It would be DLC these days, and not even particualrly good DLC at that. Still, I had my fun with it. I’ve been meaning to import Donkey Konga 3 from Japan for about ten year. Maybe someday.

I made an arsey comment on Nintendo Life’s review of Donkey Kong Country on the SNES, where I said that “9/10 = unrealistic nostalgia”. It’s still there today, right at the top of the comments section for the 2006 Wii Virtual Console review, if you fancy a swatch. That’s quite a popular website, so I can imagine that thousands of people have read that comment, and thought to themselves ‘what a fud!’. Fair enough, it’s not like they’re wrong about that. The truth, however, is that that’s how I feel about the first DKC. Simply put, it’s not as good as everybody says it is. Still, that's different from me saying that it's a bad game - it definitely isn't. I still wonder if people read these long posts, so I'll try this again: you're all cunts. The pre-rendered 3D graphics look a bit rough today, but it remains creative, playful and very well crafted. It’s all right, as far as SNES platformers go. So is the third one, Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (even if it isn’t exactly full of surprises the third time around). I don’t particularly like Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest though. I downloaded it on my New 3DS at the start of the year and found it to be really annoying, dull, unambitious and not at all memorable. Even the tunes are a bit rubbish! It falls well short of the standard of it's prequel, in my opinion.

Donkey Kong Country Returns doesn’t reinvent the concept of 2D platforming – in fact, I think that the biggest criticism I could give it is that it’s a bit too stuck in the past. There’s basically no inventiveness here. It’s a great comeback though. Although it’s considerably tougher than most of the games that I enjoy, it’s always doable, and almost always fair. Otherise, everything else is in place. Fans of the SNES Donkey Kong games must have loved the Wii update. I quite like it as well. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is a proper sequel though. It just does everything bigger and better.

Dirty bastard that I am, I've decided to copy and paste what I typed about Donkey Kong Jungle Beat earlier this year. 'It did a rare thing in gaming – it did something totally new. Actually, I’ll go as far as to say that Jungle Beat helped reinvigorate a genre that had been completely knackered from a decade before. I didn’t expect much from it, but it turned out to be an absolute stoater.  The flexibility of Jungle Beat’s combo system more or less justified the existence of those GameCube bongos, and it deserves a lot of credit for that (as the bongos were amazing, natch). It’s a very satisfying and smart game that nobody talks about enough'. As I'm not counting Diddy Kong Racing (which is brilliant on N64, but mince on DS), I've got to conclude that Jungle Beat is my favourite DK game.

Still read it all, still saw that bit.  Ya dobber.

So, DK!  My DK listing is, again, much more spartan than yours, and excludes the blinding DKJB that I'd have loved to play.  That said, I think I have one game on my list that you don't.


And that one is Donkey Kong 64.  And yes, it's down (up?) here.  A lot of people cite its collectathon nature, ridiculous even compared to the Banjo games, as the main reason it's bobbins.  My reason is different: I can't remember a single part of the game with charm.  It felt like the darker grittier less lovable sibling to the Banjo series, especially in introducing guns (I can't aim).  I remember it being dark and ugly (more so now natch), and I was shocked to find that Kirkhope was behind the soundtrack as I remember about five tunes and none particularly fondly.  Plus: too many minigames.  Far too many minigames.

If we include Diddy Kong Racing, it's unfairly down here because it was too hard for me when I played it.  Were this a vote I wouldn't even be mentioning it.  Moving along.

Mario vs. DK, Mario vs. DK: Attack of the Clones, Mario vs. DK the Downloadable-Only One.  You know, I got quite far in the first of them, all the way (I believe) to the final boss, before being irritated by Mario's floaty-arse jump and DKBot's tendency to instakill you.  It was, as Cappa says, ugly even at the time.  The gameplay was passable, mind.

Donkey Kong Land 2 was my third-ever game not on the Amstrad.  It was a'right, again too hard for a small child and the backgrounds were cluttered and made seeing what was going on untidy, but the animal transformations were great.  (Elastic Snake > Spring Mario.)  There was also a level where you hopped on seals to turn lava temporarily into water, which would have been a great idea but it put me under time pressure and I don't thank it for that.

I didn't get perhaps as far in Jungle Climber as I should have done.  It seemed fun enough, and there was a level with giant corn cobs.  But I lost the game a while back, and while I eventually found it again, that was basically that.  The controls were... interesting, shall we say.  I fail to see how people can criticise certain Wii games for their motion controls when we've had this sort of tripe thing in the past (the next game on my list aside).

And finally, we're into the DK games that I actually liked.  I'm ending up in a relatively similar place to Cappa - two games where, finally, I was old enough to not only cope with but enjoy the high difficulty.  The original Donkey Kong Country Returns was a very good platformer, slightly bigger than its sequel in terms of words, rock hard in mine-craft and barrel-related places (dat bat ), and with a brilliant final boss.  

The other bosses were all faintly bobbins though, which is where Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze comes in (despite managing to stuff up the final one).  As Cappa says, neither reinvented the wheel, and when people were hoping that Retro had their thumbs in another Metroid this was certainly an initial disappointment.  As it was, it was just a hard, solid, fun platformer, with one of the best soundtracks in gaming.  Oh yes, it's up there with Mario Galaxy's.  I am serious.

YouTube:

I've not played nearly enough Donkey Kong games to put together a valid list - I've played a fair whack of Donkey Konga which was a cracking, and indeed underrated, rhythm game and about 15 minutes of Donkey Kong Country. That's hardly enough time to get a handle on the game. It's not a series that's particularly tempted me, all told. If I'm going for a Nintendo platformer, I'm more likely to go for Mario or Kirby.

There's never been a Donkey Kong game that's been my first choice for something to play. It's only really the 'Returns' games and Jungle Beat that I rate highly. Balladeer's made a good point that I'd forgotten about though; even I was disappointed that Retro Studios' top-secret project was Tropical Freeze. Nintendo circa 2010s have green-lit loads of games that their audience didn't really want (Codename S.T.E.A.M. and Metroid Prime: Federation Force being two recent examples), but at least Tropical Freeze was the dog's knees.

I forgot to include Donkey Kong 64 on my list! I got it for Christmas in the year it came out. It was really remarkable at the time - well worth the 90-odd% that N64 Magazine awarded it back in their review. Time hasn't been kind to it though. My biggest complaints are that the scale is overwhelming, and the backtracking takes the complete piss. These are really big complaints, mind. Off the top of my head, there were bananas, coins, weapons, ammunition, blueprints, battle arenas, unique switches, musical instruments, special power-ups and bonus levels for each of the five playable characters. That's obscene. I wonder how long it took folk to 100% DK64 back in 1999/2000? I spent loads of time on it, but I honestly don't remember if I got to the final boss or not. I probably spent about 40 hours playing this back in the day, and I'd be surprised if I got 75% of the way through it. Banjo-Kazooie was good in that you could get through it in about 6/8 hours if you knew what you were doing, but there's just so much unnecessary fat in Donkey Kong 64 - would it even matter if you knew what you were doing or where you were going if you played through it again? I got it for free on the Wii U Virtual Console through a promo, and I've not even downloaded it. I can't stomach it. I just can't.

The worst thing of all was seeing Rare taking it the same extremes again with Banjo-Tooie. It fucked that series up.

I reckon going of Wikipedia, I've played 15 Donkey Kong Universe games more if you count the 4 different version I've played of the original Donkey Kong (Listed below in no order).

Some like the Land gamed blur into one, same with the Konga's, I did like both series though.

To keep simple the worst I've played has to be DK64 and the best has to be Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

The 15 games I've played in no order.
Donkey Kong which I've played in the Arcade and on a 2600, Speccy and NES
Donkey Kong Country
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
Diddy Kong Racing
Donkey Kong 64
Donkey Konga
Donkey Konga 2
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
Donkey Kong Country Returns
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Donkey Kong 94
Donkey Kong Land
Donkey Kong Land 2
Donkey Kong Land 3

I'll have a serious look at this thread tomorrow I expect.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

...typed Buska, as he asked himself "Which is the better Donkey Kong game: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 or Star Wars: Republic Commando?"

Metal Gear Solid characters have cameod in PES, Monster Hunter monsters were in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Donkey Kong appears in Monster Hunter DLC. Therefore, PES 2008 is in the Donkey Kong extended universe.

Darth Vader appeared in Soul Calibur, as did Link, Link and Donkey Kong have appeared in numerous games together, in cameos or Smash Bros. Therefore, Star Wars: Republic Commando is in the Donkey Kong extended universe.

Those are some good ol' lists there - I think my Kongpinion sits somewhere between the Cappas and the Ballas:

DONKEY WRONG:
Donkey Kong Jr. Math: Cappa, you were worried about boring homework being £3.49? Imagine how much - in mid-80s money - that cartridge would've cost when it came out?
Donkey Kong Country Returns: A twitch platformer where one of the actions is assigned to an imprecisely-measured input (rolling by shaking the remote). Get in the Sea. Which I made Kong do regularly. I did finish it though. Because I'm a fucking twat.

D'OK KONG:
Donkey Kong Jr.: A bit cleverer than its predecessor, but not quite as iconic or memorable.
Donkey Kong: Very small by today's standards, but you've got to love it for a quick go, and of course it was important. Should come free with the NX.
Killer Gorilla: A very legally dubious copy of Donkey Kong for the BBC Micro. You play as a ginger bloke called Morris. Copyright infringing, but at least they remembered to put the second bloody level in.
Donkey Kong Country 2: Not playing as the main Kong it a bit disappointing. It's actually the graphics I have a (seemingly unique) concern with. I know it's just as pre-rendered as the first DKC, but I'd say they've spent less time organising the sprites to fit common palettes - everything looks a bit flat, like it's been badly photoshopped in.
EDIT: Donkey Kong 64: Huh! I forgot it as well! I loves me some Rare platformers, but never finished this on the N64, so I've playing through it now on the WiiU VC. Yeah, they're pushing their luck with this one. Having to remember where you've been with each Kong - especially as you open up bits of a level. And the cameraman sucks balls. It's clear Rare were looking at the Banjo Tooie screen while programming this.
Donkey Kong '94: I agree that it's not quite as amazing as seems to be the common opinion, and the last boss can do one, but it's mega clever for a Gameboy game.
Mario vs Donkey Kong - Mini-land Mayhem: Uh, I had to look up which other one it was I played. Yeah, it's alright this. I don't really remember it though - I think it felt like overkill.
Mario vs Donkey Kong: Yeah, it looks a bit clunky, but it's almost the more charming for it. Plus, I can "quote" the intro movie. Great little puzzler.

DONKEY RIGHT:
Donkey Kong Country: I sort-of agree that time hasn't been kind to the game; however, I actually felt a little bit disappointed by it at the time, and appreciate the gameplay it does have now. It's also very atmospheric. David Wise's music coming in when you're under the sea, or in a blizzard, does wonders for storytelling.
Donkey Kong Country Returns Tropical Freeze: The game series needs a titular reboot, but this game fixes its predecessor's problems, and despite the potentially samey environment, plays it a great game.

While I enjoyed Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Wii, I've never found the Country series that fun to play. Donkey Kong is a heavy, gangly character who feels like you're dragging him through the levels. Donkey Kong 64 felt too vast and empty, especially with all the collecting. I did enjoy Donkey Konga but it's nothing compared to the almighty Donkey Kong 94 - one of my favourite games of all time. Mario is probably his most agile on a 2D plain, later using much of the handstand/backflip techniques in Super Mario 64. The way you could throw him around levels on washing lines or how he climbed vines quicker than ANY monkey possibly could. The slot machines between levels. The perfect music. The clever use of puzzles that transformed a relatively simple platforming game in to a fiendish yet fair test of reflexes. Truthfully, it's a Mario game, which is why it's great. Didn't think the GBA series matched up to the original.

Right, to avoid argument, I'm only going to include games with Donkey or Kong in the title.

Games I've not played enough to comment on:

Donkey Kong Country, Donkey Kong Country 2, Donkey Kong Country 3: I've dabbled with these a little, but I never had a SNES back in the day and going back to that era, the Mario games are much better fun to play, so I've not Konged much.

Mario vs Donkey Kong series I think I played through the first couple, but I don't have much recollection so I guess they were just alright?

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat I haven't played this, but I am dead keen to pick it up next time I see it.

Games I played and they were alright

Donkey Kong The importance of this game can't really be ignored: it basically invented "games with levels". I can draw a straight line from this to Super Mario Galaxy, and I've enjoyed playing every game along that journey. I also like the idea of the whole Donkey Kong score thing, and I liked King of Kong, but it isn't really that fun to play any more.

Donkey Konga I really enjoy this, particularly in multiplayer, but it's dead simple. Hardly a masterpiece.

Donkey Kong Country Returns The controls never bothered me the way they seemed to for a lot of people. By this point in the Wii's lifespan, giving the controller a little shake felt as natural to me as pressing a button. I guess y'all need to git gud.

Games I played and really liked

Donkey Kong '94 I'm with GJones on this one. An absolute blinder, just a long series of great platforming moments. What more could you want? I loved the control of Mario, all on the Game Boy's limited buttons. A phenomenal showcase of how well Nintendo know their shit. It was also hilarious how they hid the game behind what was seemingly just the original.

Donkey Kong Country Returns: Tropical Freeze Beautiful visuals, exceptional music, tight platforming and brilliant level designs. This was a masterclass in original, inventive platforming that a lot of samey 2D jumpers could learn a lot from.

Peter Jackson's King Kong Before release, this was heralded as the future of film tie ins, with a strong link to production and an excellent representation of the film's world and atmosphere. On release, it was lambasted for its short length but played now, when it can be picked up for a few quid, the quick experience is thoroughly enjoyable.

I think those are all the ones I've played.

Drunkalilly wrote:

Right, to avoid argument, I'm only going to include games with Donkey or Kong in the title.

Bollocks! I was hoping to see what you thought about Shrek: Ogres & Dronkeys on the DS.



So close!

~

It sounds like I should give Donkey Kong '94 another chance. I like it all right, but I really don't think that it's the 'forgotten lost classic' that people used to say it was before it came out on the 3DS Virtual Console again.