| Donkey Kong Country | |
| File:DonkeyKongCountry.jpg | |
| Developer(s) | Rare Ltd. |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Release date | November 25, 1994 (NA) |
| Genre | 2D platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Age rating(s) | ESRB: K-A |
| Platform(s) | SNES
Template:Infobox/media Template:Infobox/input |
| Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough | |
Donkey Kong Country is a 2D platformer utilizing pre-rendered sprites, giving an unprecedented next-generation look to an SNES game. It is also historically significant for being the first blockbuster Rare and Nintendo collaboration that would later lead to many Nintendo 64 hits.
The DKC related games that followed were Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble and Donkey Kong 64.
Gameplay
The gameplay in Donkey Kong Country is very similar to other Super Nintendo video games. Unlike most of them, however, this game features two protagonists simultaneously moving on the screen. Their names are Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong. Both Kongs can only take one hit before a life is lost. Each character has their own weaknesses and strengths. For instance, Diddy Kong is shorter than Donkey Kong, but can jump higher and farther than him. Donkey Kong is stronger than Diddy and has a special slap attack, which can reveal hidden secrets and can destroy tough enemies. Players can switch between Donkey and Diddy by a 'tag' touch (unless one of the Kongs has been hit and isn't available). Donkey Kong is best for taking down tough enemies while Diddy is best for jumping high and far, as well as going faster than Donkey Kong.
A total of six worlds are located in the game:Kong Jungle, Monkey Mines, Vine Valley, Gorilla Glacier, Kremkroc Industries Inc., and Chimp Caverns. The last world (Gangplank Galleon) is only one level, not a complete world. Several of the levels look nothing alike because of the graphics, with one being a heavy rainstorm in the jungle, another being an undersea adventure, and another being at a temple. The goal of the game is to reach the end of the level, gaining bananas (100 gives you another life), balloons (which also give you one, two, or three lives) and collecting animal-buddy tokens (which lead to a bonus level for animal buddies). The Kongs can defeat many of the enemies by a single jump on the head. They can also throw barrels and somersault or cartwheel into enemies. The types of barrels are, 'DK' barrels (which release a captured partner), regular barrels, steel kegs, (which can be ridden and don't break after hitting one enemy), blast barrels, which act like cannons, and TNT barrels, which break open secret walls and kill certain enemies. Several of the levels are frequent in launching the Kongs out barrel cannons (which usually cost a life if they launch out at the wrong time).
Enemies
Bad Guys
- Gnawty- A green beaver. All they do is walk.
- Brown Gnawty- Encountered in Vine Valley temples, these cannot be defeated and are protected by a lethal rolling wheel.
- Necky- A very large brown bird. Some throw pellets at the Kongs.
- Army- A tough armadillo. Donkey Kong can defeat them with one jump.
- Zinger- An annoying yellow bee with a big stinger.
- Orange Zinger- Encountered in caves.
- Green Zinger- Encountered in caves and Gorilla Glacier.
- Red Zinger- Encountered in caves
- Slippa- A red banded snake. All they do is slither.
- Manky Kong- Similar to Donkey Kong, Manky Kong throws barrels over and over at the Kongs.
- Mini-Necky- A tiny, gray version of Necky. They spit out pellets.
Aquatic Bad Guys
- Bitesize- A small green and red fish. They simply swim.
- Croctopus- A dangerous purple octopus. They are invincible and can only be dodged by swimming around them.
- Blue Croctopus- This type of Croctopus chases the Kongs until they reach a certain waypoint. They are only seen in Gorilla Glacier waters.
- Chomps Jr.- A blue, smaller version of chomps.
- Chomps- A large, green shark.
- Clambo- An oversized clam that spits out pearls. Like the croctopus, they are invincible.
- Squidge- A jellyfish only seen in Kremkroc Industries Inc. waters.
Kremlings
- Kritter- A green reptilian creature displaying humanoid characteristics, Kritters simply walk and are the main faction of K. Rool's army.
- Brown Kritter- These Kritters jump from side to side and are tough to jump on. Encountered in caves.
- Blue Kritter- Blue Kritters walk AND jump at the same time, making them the toughest Kritters.
- Gray Kritter- Gray Kritters also jump high, but only stay in one spot. Some only walk. Encountered in Vine Valley.
- Klump- K. Rool's main general. Diddy can't jump on his head because of his helmet. Their weak spot is the torso.
- Krash- A Kritter in a mine cart. Only encountered in mine cart related levels.
- Klaptrap- A tiny reptilian creature with a giant mouth and sharp teeth. They're blue and more deadly than Kritters.
- Purple Klaptrap- Purple Klaptraps are only encountered once in a cave level. They jump very high in the air as soon as the Kongs jump, making them very hard to defeat.
- Rockkroc- Reptilian creatures made of rock. They sleep when the light is off and can't be defeated. They also run very fast and are hard to jump over. Besides Croctopuses, Rockkrocs are the toughest enemies in the game.
- Krusha- A bulky, yet idiotic blue Kremling. Diddy Kong can't defeat them.
- Red Krusha- A red and gray Krusha that can only be defeated by barrels. Only encountered in a mine level.
Bosses
- Very Gnawty
- Master Necky
- Queen B.
- Really Gnawty
- Dumb Drum
- Master Necky Snr.
- King K. Rool
Boss Walkthrough
Very Gnawty- Very Gnawty is an oversized green Gnawty. To defeat Very Gnawty, jump on his head. Gnawty will jump a little farther than usual, but if you're not too close, he shouldn't be hard. Jump on his head four more times and he'll go down. Master Necky- Master Necky is a giant pink Necky that shoots out huge pellets. After Master Necky spits out a pellet, jump on the rubber tire and bounce off it onto Necky's head. Avoid the pellets and repeat this procedure four more times to defeat Master Necky. Queen B.- Her name says it all. Grab the barrel and wait for Queen B. to get close to you, then throw the barrel in Queen B.'s face. She'll get mad and start flying diagonally up and down across the screen. Simply walk under her before she swoops down and wait until she turns yellow again. When she does, grab the barrel and repeat the procedure. Everytime she'd hit, she gets madder and madder, flying furiously fast at you. Hit her a total of five times and the giant bee will fall. Really Gnawty- Really Gnawty is similar to Very Gnawty, only brown and five times harder. First, jump on Gnawty's head and he'll jump once very high in the air. Walk under him when he jumps and be prepared, as he'll start jumping a lot farther than before. Jump on Gnawty's head again and he'll jump in the air twice. Again, roll under him when he jumps in the air. Do this again and, he'll jump in the air three times. Once again and he'll jump up four times. Defeating Really Gnawty is very tricky because when he jumps, he'll jump halfway across the stage, hardly giving you a chance to jump. Jump on his head, again, and he'll go down...and stay down. Dumb Drum- Need we say more? Dumb Drum will slam himself at the ground to try to crush you. Simply walk out his way and wait. Dumb Drum will dump out two Kritters. Kill them both and avoid Dumb Drum again. He'll pour out two slippas. Kill them and aviod Dumb Drum...again. He'll dump out two blue klaptraps. Jump on them and Dumb Drum will slam himself down four times. He'll once again pour out two bad guys, Klumps. Defeat them and Dumb Drum will slam himself down five times. In his last attack, Dumb Drum will dump out two Armies. Using Donkey Kong (recommended), stomp on them both. Dumb Drum will become so furious he'll slam himself on the ground and accidentally blow himself to pieces. ...No wonder they call him Dumb Drum. Master Necky Snr.- Master Necky Snr. is a giant purple Necky that also shoots out huge pellets. He is presumed the father of the deceased Master Necky. Like Master Necky, avoid the first pellet and jump on the tire and then his head. Then he'll spit out two pellets. Jump on the tire again and bounce off his head. Repeat this procedure (the pellets spat out increase by each time you bounce off his head) three times and Master Necky Snr. will join his son in the grave. King K. Rool- The final (and hardest) boss of the game. K. Rool will start off by throwing his crown at you. Jump over it and then jump on his head. He'll run very fast toward so jump over him before you get hit. He'll throw the crown again and you have to jump on his head again. Repeat this process two more times and King K. Rool will jump to the other side of the ship, causing several cannonballs to fall down in a row. It's wise to use Diddy Kong to roll through the barrage abd wait for K. Rool to throw his crown again. Jump on his head. Again, do this procedure two more times and King K. Rool will go down...but he doesn't stay. In a surprise attack, King K. Rool will start jumping across the ship until he gets to the end and throws his crown. Jump on his head, repeat the steps, and King K. Rool will go down for good. Now sit back and enjoy the credits.