PixlBit

Donkey Kong's finally back, and so is the Tour de 64

Hot off the heels of Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64 was Rareware's second platform adventure on the Nintendo 64. Requiring use of the Expansion Pak accessory, the game promised to not only ape Super Mario 64, but provide a bigger, prettier adventure. With five characters, huge worlds, and hundreds of collectables, there's a lot packed into this little cartridge, but that also unfortunately becomes its downfall. This would typically be the point where some crack would be inserted about driving the player bananas, but this article is 100% guaranteed to be free of all monkey-related puns. Honest.

Donkey Kong 64 is a game that I didn't play during its day. Shallow though it may be, I didn't really care for the character, and with so few games received back then I tended to gravitate towards the ones that were appealing from all angles. Sometime in the mid 2000s, I came across it in a game store, and promptly started it up. I played pretty far into the game, unlocking every world, but its abundance of collectibles soon wore thin and I moved on to something more fresh. In preparation for this article, I booted up the game once more, and found that it was no easy task to continue where I left off.

The most famous (or infamous) aspect of Donkey Kong 64 probably happens within the first few seconds of flipping the power switch. After the logo screens, Cranky Kong is seen scratching some vinyl, and then vocals for a rap about the Donkey Kong crew soon begins. The song goes through each character individually, showing their antics and moves as it does. Some might know it from the version that appeared in Super Smash Brothers Melee, which is what I heard first; I actually find myself preferring that performance, but it was still nice to see it within the context of the actual game. Some may loathe the rap for its general stupidity and silliness, but I for one find it delightfully cheesy.

Donkey Kong apparently lives on an island, and King K. Rool approaches in some sort of battleship and steals DK's golden bananas, with plans to ultimately destroy his island. A golden banana probably tastes terrible, but maybe it's just the principle of the matter that makes DK and crew want them back. The other Kongs are imprisoned however, and so DK must rescue them and enlist their help to retrieve the golden bananas and the myriad of collectibles that mysteriously appear all around the island. The different characters have more than just different movesets, as each have their own batch of the various items that only they can collect in each world.

There is plenty more to find besides just golden bananas. Collecting seventy-five of the normal bananas earns a banana medal. There is a blueprint in each world, which must be found and returned to a character named Snide for a golden banana. Some fairies are hidden about, and are “collected” by snapping a photo of them once the camera is obtained. Coins are used to learn new abilities, which are required for progression. Fortunately, there are a lot more coins than the amount needed to acquire everything, so it isn't a pain to learn them. Refills for the shooters, abilities, and camera are also scattered about.

The worlds follow in the footsteps of Super Mario 64. They are large, interconnected levels with many goals scattered throughout, focusing on exploration and discovery rather than the tight, challenging design of a linear platformer. Roaming enemies, treacherous traps, and the occasional pitfall are the main hazards to be found, none of which are particularly dangerous in most cases. A variety of activities can be found throughout to earn the various collectibles, such as hitting switches and rushing before a gate closes, solving simplistic puzzles, and of course, blasting to the end of a course of barrel cannons. The collectibles can be spotted with any character, but they are colour-coded and can only be obtained by the Kong who matches the colour.

Helping make travel in the large worlds a little easier are what are called Bananaporters. These are numbered pads in a level which allow warping between two of the same number, cutting down a bit of backtracking when playing through with the various Kongs. They can still be a little confusing however, as it can sometimes be tough to remember which pad goes to which part of the level. As such, they aren't as convenient as the warp pads later found in Banjo-Tooie, which can all warp to each other and display the locations of each when warping. It's a bit of a shame that they hadn't thought of that idea yet.

Exploring the worlds is enjoyable, but doing it five times over can be a bit much at times. The different abilities of the Kongs helps mix things up, and there are activities that only certain ones can access, making for some variety. Still, having two or three characters would likely have been better, as things grow stale by the fifth time. The later worlds can perhaps be too complex, as there are moments where a certain character is needed just to press a switch, for example, but then another character is needed to continue the progression or collect the reward. It can lead to an excessive amount of character switching, or a lot to remember if all the possible actions for a character are carried out before switching to another.

Similar to the Donkey Kong Country games, there are some bonus games to find and play. Most of these don't use the mechanics of the normal game, and instead have their own, such as shooting watermelons at targets. There are a couple of slides akin to Super Mario 64, though they can be a bit of a pain here as the steering isn't as tight. A couple of the later minigames can be a chore, as they require a high score that is just barely possible within the time limit if a perfect run is achieved.

Though it might first seem like the golden bananas are the main collectable for progression, one of the many MacGuffins is actually more of a goal than they are. In each world, a certain number of normal bananas must be collected before the boss is able to be challenged, with there being a hundred bananas for each character to find. Especially in later worlds, a good portion of the bananas are needed to open the boss door, requiring scouring the world with all available characters. Making matters worse, only the bananas collected within that specific world count towards the boss total; the extras from previous worlds are mostly useless. Only half of the two-hundred golden bananas are actually required to complete the game, but it's likely that far more will be collected during the pursuit of the regular bananas.

The hundred golden bananas aren't all that's required to finally face K.Rool, however. When that final banana barrier is passed, the importance of the blueprints is then discovered: the amount of time given to deactivate the evil king's destruction machine is dependent on the number of blueprints returned to Snide. Since returning each blueprint earns one golden banana, it isn't exactly made clear that they serve a second purpose. After tackling that, four of the battle crowns are needed to open a door, an item that appeared to be of no importance outside of 100% for the sake of 100%. Finally, the last items required to face the king of cruel are the two coins earned from playing the bonus arcade games. Though it isn't difficult to earn these coins – especially for anyone who's played the arcade Donkey Kong before – it's strange that seemingly-bonus content is a necessity just for normal game completion. All this is worth it however, as that final fight is unique and memorable.

Picking the game back up after so long, it was somewhat difficult to figure out what I had already gotten and what still needed to be done. There isn't really a way to determine which golden bananas and other items I had already collected for each character, unless I had already gotten everything for a character/world. Ultimately, it boiled down to scouring every inch of the world, trying everything again to see whether or not I had done it. There are some hints for the golden bananas in the form of the ghost of Wrinkly Kong, but these can be a bit vague so they don't offer the best sense of direction. It makes me better appreciate the design of Super Mario 64, as titling each star with a hint goes a long way towards managing that game's progress. I'm not entirely sure what would work best with a game like this, but it could certainly be better than what it is.

Though it was a mid-life release, Donkey Kong 64 still boasts some of the best graphics on the system thanks to use of the Expansion Pak. Even although things like its lighting and particle effects are achievable without use of the accessory as evident in some later releases, the game takes advantage of that extra RAM by displaying many effects at once. Its use of lighting and shadow adds to the atmosphere of each world, helping to bring them alive. The widescreen option is most-appreciated, as it makes for one of the few Nintendo 64 titles where I don't need to have black bars on either side. There is a weird hiccup with this option however, where the display visibly stretches back to widescreen after every scene transition, including switching characters. It's kind of funny how, despite the great advances in technology, I still find myself most impressed by games circa 1999.

Donkey Kong 64 is the kind of game dependent on the person playing it. Completionists who enjoy collecting every little doodad before moving on will be ecstatic, but those who just like linear progression to experience every level may find themselves frustrated by the constant character switching and backtracking. Fortunately, I fall closer to the former and mostly enjoyed my time with the game, but if I had played it near release then it is likely that I would have been more into it, obsessing over its many collectibles. I can't bring myself to call it a masterpiece though, as its greatness is weighed down by its structure and management issues. The legacy of Donkey Kong 64 is either the satisfaction of tough 100% completion, or that one cool game we all gave up on.