Donkey Kong 64

• Release Date: November 23, 1999
• Genre: Action
• Style: 3D Platform
• Similar Games: Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64), Banjo-Kazooie (Nintendo 64), Rayman 2: The Great Escape (IBM PC Compatible), Rayman 2: The Great Escape (Nintendo 64), Rayman 2: The Great Escape (Dreamcast), Rayman 2: The Great Escape (PlayStation), Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64), Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64), Rayman 2: The Great Escape (Dreamcast)

Game Description

Those bumbling Kremlings, the crocodile servants of King K. Rool, have managed to smash the motorized island stronghold of their enormous army near Kong Isle. Okay, so the plan hit a snag. It wasn't as if the whole mission had to be scrapped.

That's the beauty of world domination, you can just start anywhere you want until the whole thing is yours. In this case, the starting point was Kong Isle, home of those bloody aggravating apes that single-handedly destroyed years of thoughtful planning on the part of His Majesty.

That was all about to end. With a single shot from the Blast-o-Matic, Kong Isle would be reduced to a rather large pile of squished bananas. Yet the gun wasn't quite operational, a characteristic of so many enormous weapons of mass destruction before it, and the King was beside himself with grief.

How could he be so close and yet so far? The Kremling army saw their beloved K. Rool moping about the fortress and hatched a plan: while the technicians worked on bringing the weapon up to speed, they would swim out to capture as many Kongs and Golden Bananas as they could.

In what is to be Nintendo's last high-profile release before the millennium, Donkey Kong 64 continues Rare's adventure series that began on the Super NES in 1994. The leap in technology from 16- to 64-bit means this rendered ape has been given the full 3D treatment, complete with eight polygonal worlds and special effects that require the use of an Expansion Pak in order to play. Since this is the first game on the system that will not run without the peripheral, Nintendo has bundled the 4MB memory upgrade along with the game for an MSRP of $59.99.

As Donkey Kong, your first task is to rescue your nephew Diddy from imprisonment in a world called Jungle Japes. Along the way, you'll be able to swing from vines, slap beavers silly, bounce on Kremlings, blast through barrels and visit dear ol' dad Cranky for some secret potions that will give you added moves (which apply to all characters you'll play as).

These moves won't be free, however, as you'll need to cough up coins to satisfy your irate primate father. Also on hand is Funky Kong, who has dabbled in the weapons business long enough to offer each character a special gun (for a reasonable fee, of course). Once acquired, the selected weapon will be able to fire coconuts, peanuts, feathers, grapes or explosive pineapples, depending on the character. In addition to Donkey Kong and Diddy, players will be able to find and rescue Tiny Kong, Lanky Kong and Chunky Kong.

Subsequent worlds will have players exploring the Angry Aztec, Frantic Factory, Gloomy Galleon, Fungi Forest, Crystal Caves, Creepy Castle and Hideout Helm on their way to battle K. Rool. Besides Kremlings, each world is filled with 100 bananas to collect, various Banana Bunch Coins, special Golden Bananas that open up new worlds, explosive oranges that can be thrown like grenades, and five pieces of a blueprint that will help a sneaky weasel named Snide determine how to destroy K. Rool's doomsday device.

Donkey Kong 64 also requires cooperation with the friends you rescue, since certain coins and bananas are color-coded to match a particular ape. Each world also offers several puzzles that can only be solved by using a specific character, whether it's opening up a gate by firing Donkey Kong's Coconut Cannon or using Chunky Kong's massive strength to move boulders.

Every banana-yellow cartridge offers three built-in save files that let players resume their progress after turning off the system. The game also supports the Rumble Pak accessory to provide vibration feedback during play, and even includes a separate Battle mode for four-player simultaneous action. As you progress through the main game (Adventure mode), you will be able to unlock two types of multi-player contests: Monkey Smash and Battle Arena.

Monkey Smash involves competing against up to three other players in your choice of environment and game type: Survival (smash your opponent(s) until you are the only one left), Coin Hoard (the player with the most coins wins), Time (whoever has the most smashes at the end of the time limit is the winner), Capture (the player holding the DK Coin after time has expired is the winner) and Capture Pad (same as Capture only you have to run over numerical pads while holding the coin).

Battle Arena takes place on a single screen as your compete in five modes: Wins, Coin Hoard, Survival, Capture and Time. While the modes are similar to those found in the Monkey Smash game, Battle Arena involves fighting inside a ring. The player who manages to score the most ring outs is therefore considered the winner in both the Wins and Time modes, while Survival simply involves staying alive as you knock your competition out of contention.

To commemorate the event, Nintendo has released a separate "Limited Edition Donkey Kong 64 Bundle" that includes the following: a special transparent green Nintendo 64, one green controller, an Expansion Pak accessory and a yellow Donkey Kong 64 cartridge. This bundle found its way onto store shelves on November 22 for a suggested retail price of $129.95.

Roots & Influences

Donkey Kong began his career in the Arcades with the release of 1985's Donkey Kong. Since then, he has appeared in two coin-op sequels (Donkey Kong Jr. and Donkey Kong 3) as well as in games on nearly every console platform, from the Atari 2600 to the Nintendo 64.

Donkey Kong 64 is a continuation of the 16-bit Donkey Kong Country trilogy that was exclusively released on the Super NES. Rare used a process called ACM (Advanced Computer Modeling) to deliver rendered visuals that were groundbreaking at the time of the game's release. The cartridge was also the largest available for the system in 1994, weighing in at an impressive 32-Megabits.

Review: Overall

Everyone needs a good monkey to count on when times are tough. Tarzan had Cheetah, B.J. had the Bear, Clint had Clyde and Nintendo has Donkey Kong. By all accounts, this monkey should have been locked away in a cage a long time ago like so many classic game icons of the past. Yet the talented team at Rare all but single-handedly resurrected the character in 1994, creating some of the most eye-popping visuals yet seen on the 16-bit Super NES.

While the gameplay wasn't as innovative as the presentation, the high production values and variety of things to do (a whopping 100 levels) made it one of the best-selling cartridges of all time. Five years later, we find the series moving in the same footsteps as Super Mario, Castlevania and The Legend of Zelda: the switch from a traditional side-scroller to a free-roaming 3D adventure.

Like Nintendo's other 3D staples, Donkey Kong 64 doesn't forget its jungle roots, which should please fans who went ape over the 16-bit trilogy: players will swing from vine to vine to reach high areas; ride animal friends En Guarde the swordfish and Rambi the rhino; even blast from barrel to barrel in bonus rounds that require impeccable timing and nerves of steel (this segment was frustrating in the original game, now imagine it in 3D).

Of course, the mine cart stages have made the transition and all of the characters you know and love (yes, even the original coin-op star Cranky Kong himself) are included. While the game "only" features eight worlds, don't think for a second it's a short adventure. In fact, it may be the biggest 3D platform game available on any console system at the time of its release. The key to its length is a seemingly endless series of hidden areas unlocked by each of the five characters in the game.

You have these large worlds that require you to switch between characters in order to grab all the wondrous goodies locked therein. See that large boulder on top of that switch? You need the strength of the hulking Chunky to move it. See that tiny little opening in the bottom of the building? Yep, that's a job for Tiny, the pony-tailed monkey with the ability to shrink!

Factor in all the transparent bananas, coins, blueprints, balloons, medals, crowns and crates, and there will be plenty of monkey business going on from start to finish. The drawback is that you're constantly switching between characters -- not just because they're cool or have new moves (though Lanky is cool and has great moves), but because the different monkeys are essential to advancing through the levels.

The other problem some players will have is that the amount of things to collect almost borders on the absurd. Donkey Kong 64 is a nightmare for those with short-term memories, as every area has something that could be accomplished with each character, so you have to continuously make mental notes to remember to return to a certain area with a specific simian. Since you have to find and then jump inside a barrel in order to switch characters, the levels can be quite time consuming.

And if you don't have a specific plan for the level at hand, you'll quickly get distracted with each new collectible or hidden area. Even your items (which you need to purchase with, ahem, collectible coins) can be upgraded a series of times, from the projectile weapons that launch deadly fruit to the musical instruments that can activate all sorts of goodies when played in certain areas. There are also mini-games like car racing, dart throwing and slots (to name just a few) that will keep you busy whenever you need to take a breather from the platform action. Even the original 1981 coin-op game in all its 2D, ladder-climbing goodness is packed inside this yellow cart!

While having so much to do is a definite plus for those sick of beating games in a weekend, there's little originality in the play mechanics. If you're sick of rounding up X amount of objects to open gate number one or swapping coins to see what's behind curtain number two, you'll go crazy after the first twenty minutes of play. Another gripe is that enemies regenerate out of thin air mere moments after you take care of them, so you don't get that satisfaction of hunting down critters and clearing up the worlds.

The last issue that could be a serious problem for some players is the camera. Donkey Kong 64 features a perspective that's very close to your character, meaning it's hard to see all around you at times. Even more puzzling is the amount of tinkering you have to do with the camera just to get a clean view of a jump or platform -- you literally have to keep one finger on the button just to swing the camera around every few minutes. Even when the camera is lined up correctly, trying to grab that first swinging vine or reaching that particular platform seems unusually difficult. So Donkey Kong 64 isn't without its share of quirks.

Does it really matter, though? After all, Donkey Kong 64 is a high-profile game that has been under development for over two years and awarded a marketing budget that could rival the GNP of some developing nations. It's big, the series has a proven track record and Nintendo knows it. With an Expansion Pak required for the game, multi-player deathmatch modes uncharacteristic for a 3D platform title and a family of appealing characters, there is no question it will be a hit. Of course, Nintendo has cunningly cleared the schedule for any direct competition, as Pokémon Stadium, Mario Party 2 and Perfect Dark have all been conveniently moved into 2000. You can call Nintendo a lot of things, but they know how to squeeze a ripe banana for all it's worth.

What Donkey Kong 64 does best, as Rare's Jet Force Gemini did before it, is simply throw more at the player than Cranky Kong can shake a cane at. Five characters with five different weapons to be purchased, interesting moves that range from Diddy's Chimp Charge (complete with the Flintstones running sound before he takes off) to the big guy's Hunky Chunky, and an almost unbelievable number of trinkets to gather. There's even an opportunity to snap pictures of hidden yellow fairies to reveal more secrets!

Perhaps the biggest knock on Donkey Kong 64 is the lack of sheer amazement you get from playing a game like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which was 1998's big November release. After Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie and Rayman 2: The Great Escape, you instinctively know what to do, where to look and how to solve certain puzzles. The 3D platform genre doesn't evolve with Donkey Kong 64, and many of the elements are borrowed from several other successful games.

Is that a good thing? No, not really. But when you consider that the game never stops being fun to play with Rare's trademark sense of humor and lush visuals, you can take the complaints with a grain of salt. This monkey will keep players swinging, jumping and shooting well through the winter months and by the time they're finished, the next wave of big games will be ready to play.

After patiently biding their time after 1998's Banjo-Kazooie, Rare finally releases the chains on tortured Nintendo 64 owners by offering not one but two huge titles for 1999. While such long delays between product may hurt other companies, gamers have almost come to expect this from the British company that prides itself on taking every waking hour to polish their games. The result? Another cartridge packed to the brim with play value and reason enough to get a Nintendo 64.

Review: Enjoyment

The game won't convert those who hate the 3D platform genre, and the camera can get annoying at times, but the variety of things to do helps make up for any problems.

Review: Graphics

Though the graphics require the use of the Expansion Pak, they are not a significant leap from Banjo-Kazooie, which is rather surprising. What the game does have is gorgeous lighting effects that no other game has been able to deliver up until now. The price for this appears to be some noticeable slowdown at times, but it's not so severe as to ruin your enjoyment.

Review: Sound

When a game opens up with a complete rap song devoted to the DK Crew, you know you're in for a treat. Each world has a distinctive theme song that fits the atmosphere, and the sound effects are crisp and clear. The game supports Dolby Surround Sound, so you can hear Donkey Kong's "Bah-nah-nah" echo all throughout the room.

Review: Replay Value

With a multi-player feature that is surprisingly fun, the game offers more replay value than any previous 3D platform title. Solo players will have to commit some time to play this game, however: there are 200 Golden Bananas, 8 keys, 10 crowns, 40 blueprints and 40 medals. Who knows how many secrets there are lurking inside these worlds!

Review: Documentation

As always, {@Nintendo} has included a colorful manual that is as pretty to look at as it is informative. {%Cranky Kong} offers some hilarious "observations" throughout!

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

donkey kong 64