Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii)

[weekender]

http://donkeykong.nintendo.com/

Is anyone else really looking forward to this?

I have fond memories of playing the original Donkey Kong series on the SNES - they seemed to strike a nice balance between fun gameplay, and fairly serious challenges from what I remember.  I only remember completing Donkey Kong Country, I don't remember being up to the challenge of the two sequels.  I don't know if that's because they were hard or because I was drunk, playing them at university as I did.

I can't seem to get into the Super Mario Galaxy series, despite being a massive Mario fan, so this is probably what I'll be playing over Christmas, and I can't wait.

[Geraint]

they were good games but never really in the same league as the main Mario platformers. I'd be a little wary about this one until reviews are out tbh; the recent DS sequel to the excellent Yoshi's Island, for example, was disappointingly average.

[buntyman]

It looks pretty good from the clips i've seen, I'm optimistic.
I think my Xbox is going to have to take a back seat this Christmas as there are lots of fun sounding games coming out for the Wii shortly. I'm not convinced Goldeneye is going to be as good as the favourable reviews have indicated but there are lots of fun looking platformers on the way. DK and Epic Mickey look the picks of the bunch but I'm also going to be keeping an eye on some reduced internet prices for Kirby's Epic Yarn and Sonic Colours.
Does anyone have one of those Classic Controllers for the Wii? I'm considering getting one for use on the above but not sure if it's worth it.

[Marty McFly]

Does anyone have one of those Classic Controllers for the Wii? I'm considering getting one for use on the above but not sure if it's worth it.

It's pretty much the SNES controller, with analogue sticks, smaller, and sexier.

So quite possibly the best control pad ever.

On the subject of Donkey Kong Country... the new issue of Retro Gamer has a big DKC feature (and cover), looking forward to this new one even though Rare aren't behind it. Funnily enough I never played the SNES sequels until emulation a few years ago. Both good games, but not as good as the classic original.

Ooh, crikey, that CD that came with DKC back in the day (Go Ape!), that was how I got into 'indie'!

[madhair60]

Donkey Kong Country 2 was the equal of Super Mario World, and in some (very few) ways superior.

[Still Not George]

It's pretty much the SNES controller, with analogue sticks, smaller, and sexier.

So quite possibly the best control pad ever.

The Classic Controller is a work of rare and majestic beauty, and I strongly recommend it to anyone.

And that's coming from me, Nintendo hater par excellence. It really is that good.

In other news: I still want to bang out a quick game called "BASTARD FUCKING PLUMBERS" where you take on the role of a giant ape atop a series of platforms who has to hold off an endless succession of Italian plumbers that are trying to steal your princess collection.

[buntyman]

Just to confirm, is the black one better with the little grippy bits or should I go for the white snes type one?

[Still Not George]

Haven't tried the black one yet. I will, mind you - I need to buy one for a possible project so I might as well give it a try.

[Ignatius_S]

...I'm not convinced Goldeneye is going to be as good as the favourable reviews have indicated but there are lots of fun looking platformers on the way....

So far, just about all the user feedback I've seen has been extremely positive about it.

Reviewers (e.g. such as the one who did the Gamespy article) who have said although they know the original's reputation, have never played it and can't say that I felt they've got carried away with the former when they've given it a good write-up.

[Marty McFly]

Reviewers (e.g. such as the one who did the Gamespy article) who have said although they know the original's reputation, have never played it

God, I feel old now.

[Ignatius_S]

God, I feel old now.

Just do what I do and pretend that these reviewers have never played a game before or are bright children on work experience.

[Marty McFly]

Just to confirm, is the black one better with the little grippy bits or should I go for the white snes type one?

Sorry, I was talking about the original style white one. Wikipedia reckons that they've now stopped manufacture of them and they've been replaced with the new-style ones with grippy bits. Grab 'em if you see 'em, I reckon.

[falafel]

Just do what I do and pretend that these reviewers have never played a game before or are bright children on work experience.

For the record, I'm a compulsive gamer of the 'right age', and I only played the original once. Multiplayer. I didn't like it. Playing an FPS with a gamepad felt incredibly, astonishingly wrong at the time. I kept dying and I just remember constantly muttering "this is a pile of fucking shit" under my breath as everyone else seemed to be having a great time; a bit like when you go to a shit club all your friends like and feel obliged to stay for a couple of hours before slinking out so you don't look like the loser you are.

Whoops, so, er, DONKEY KONG.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

Don't you also hate Silent Hill 2? You just don't care whose toes you tread on.

[The Boston Crab]

I liked Goldeneye a lot, mostly for the one-player mode. I only liked multiplayer in 'Licence To Kill' mode as it seemed the greatest leveller. It was best played with relative beginners, though. There were too many glitchy hiding places/unbreachable mine traps once you got good at it.

Spoiler alert

Translation: I was shit at it.

[close]

DKC was great fun at the time but when I replayed it recently, I found it quite dull and clunky. I'm much more looking forward to Kirby. Still never got round to Metroid: Other M, either. Not played many games for a while. No fucking time.

[buntyman]

In my hunt for a classic controller to play some of these forthcoming platformers, I stumbled across this beauty: http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/24025

Paid a stupid amount on ebay for it but what's done is done. I found Tetris Party a bit awkward with the wii remote so that should be a big improvement.

[weekender]

I can only put down the fact that I can't seem to complete Platform Panic (on World 1 for fuck's sake) to the Wii remote.

Enjoying the game so far, apart from this one fucking level.

[eluc55]

No wonder. Just looked it up on youtube. World 1? bloody hell!

[weekender]

To be fair, the rest of the World 1 levels aren't as bad as that.  Although it took me a few goes (about 70, by my reckoning) on Platform Panic, I am now safely ensconced in World 2.

So far I'm loving it - it's much more difficult than, say New Super Mario Bros Wii, but I'm getting much more sense of achievement from completing each level.

I can't really be bothered doing the time trials to fully complete the game, but the collection of the KONG letters combined with the puzzle pieces is working for me so far.  It's incredibly frustrating trying to get all the puzzle pieces though - "Fly through the entire second row of bananas to reveal the puzzle piece?  Well, why didn't you say!!!" - so I have cheated a couple of times and I'm not ashamed of that fact.

[buntyman]

So does anyone know where to get this for under £30? That's a lot of money for a game in this day and age.

I've got started on Epic Mickey and really like it so far, the controls and camera occasionally are a bit frustrating but it's so aesthetically pleasing that it can just about be forgiven. The 2-d animated cut scenes are the best I think I've ever seen in a game.

[The Boston Crab]

Same reason I didn't buy Other M, I can't afford games that short.

[falafel]

Don't you also hate Silent Hill 2? You just don't care whose toes you tread on.

Yeah, I get kinky thrills from being iconoclastic.

I'd probably like Goldeneye now I'm used to the controllers.

[weekender]

No wonder. Just looked it up on youtube. World 1? bloody hell!

I have just done this World 2 one, including all the puzzle pieces:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1DICTcylCQ

Most of World 2 was alright, but these special levels are fucking hard.  The pay-off had better be worth it, although if I remember the original DKC games rightly, I'll just be led to even more fucking difficult levels.

The World 2 boss took me 3 goes, the special level took me about 80 goes.  I don't know what to think, but the fucking sense of satisfaction I'm getting from finally beating the K levels is worth it so far.

[Still Not George]

I think my balls just imploded.

[madhair60]

That looks awesome.  I love rock'ard 2D platformers.  I've been playing Super Meat Boy on Steam daily since it came out, and just today I managed to get all of the Light World A+ ranks.  I've got about 20 Dark World levels to go, then I'll have finished every level besides the retro warp zones.  Which I'll obviously then move on to.  And A+ing the Dark World.  Game is deliciously cruel.

[The Boston Crab]

Mad 'ead, did you finish N+ on DS? I'm almost there but some of the levels are just fucking nuts.

You seem like the best platform player I've (not) met.

[madhair60]

Yeah, beat it a while back.  I beat all the levels, but if there was anything beyond that (time trials) I didn't do it.

Meat Boy update: I've now A+ ranked the entire light world, A+ ranked the dark world on "The End" and have 8 or 9 dark world levels left on

Spoiler alert

"Cotton Alley"

[close]

, then I will have polished off the lot.  Haven't done all the warp zones and glitch levels yet, though. 

Spoiler alert

But I did unlock The Kid

[close]

.

[The Boston Crab]

Just got this and Kirby. Both are fantastic so far. I've actually played more Kirby but gonna have a good session on this tonight, after Tron Legacy. God, I love being off.

The only thing I don't like about it so far is the shake/roll shit. If you use classic controller...wait, can you use Classic Controller? Wait, I don't have a Classic Controller.

The only thing I don't like about Kirby is you can't die - ever - which kind of takes away the spirit of competition and challenge. That said, it's not that 'type of game', in a sense. It's more about the simple pleasure of uncovering all the treats that have been crammed into it. It's something you can luxuriate in. It looks wild, plays super smoothly and it's one exasperated laugh after another at the ideas they pull off.

Think DKCR will be a lovely companion piece as it seems pretty tough, like the originals.

I just wheeled out SMG2 again the other day to polish off the last few gold stars, which I've almost almost done. Finished all the S levels now, just a few comets around before the Green Star stuff begins. Not sure if I'll do that but it was so good to go back through 20 or so levels getting the extra stars, what a game.

Good year for the Wii, possibly its last before they go all out on the 3DS.

[weekender]

December 5 was my first post on this game, so I can only assume I bought it on December 4.  It's now 28 December and I have made it all the way to World 8 - Volcano.  Yay me!

The absolute bizarre thing is that whilst the main levels seem to be getting a bit harder, the special K levels seem to be getting easier.  Here's the World 7 one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F29fnwAuroA

This took me about half an hour to master, including puzzle pieces, whereas that level 2 special level took me probably half a day.  Odd game in that respect, but I'm still loving it - apart from the 'helicopter' levels, I don't like those very much because I'm not very good at 'helicopter' type levels.  Which is why I have just given up on this bastard:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dnljv8TdpXA&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

I'll do it tomorrow.  Which I have done with every other level I have failed at - I will go back and get it right, because that's part of the fun.  At no point have I felt "This is too hard" or "I'm not playing this again".  I'm continually feeling "This is hard, but with a bit of practice I can do it" and therefore still enjoying playing the game.  This is a very good game.

[The Boston Crab]

Totally agree. In my Top Five 'had good use out of this' Wii games (Excite Truck, SMG/SMG2, RE4, Zelda:TP).

It is difficult compared to most games these days but always manageable with concentration, skill and persistence. I've razzed through to about World 5 but got so much I've got to go back and do, I don't think I've had a single K level.

In other news, Wii Goldeneye is really really good fun.

Metroid: Other M is pretty shit so far.