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103-606: A contest has begun with big prizes for the first person who discovers the Lost World. Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong have already left to find it, leaving a disgruntled Dixie Kong behind. Deciding to prove herself every bit as capable as them, Dixie partners up with her toddler cousin Kiddy Kong . Baron K. Roolenstein and the Kremling Krew are also searching high and low for the fabled land. The level archetypes are

206-417: A Donkey Kong spin-off film, with Rogen set to reprise his role. In response to backlash for voicing Donkey Kong in his normal speaking voice, Rogen explained: "I was very clear that I don't do voices. If you want me to be in this movie, then it's going to sound like me and that's it. That was the beginning and end of that conversation. I think in the film and in the game, all you seem to know about Donkey Kong

309-449: A love triangle between gorilla, carpenter, and girlfriend, that mirrored the rivalry between Bluto and Popeye for Olive Oyl . Bluto was replaced by a large enraged ape, which Miyamoto said was "nothing too evil or repulsive", and the pet of the main character. Miyamoto has also named the 1933 film King Kong as influences for the character. In addition to 1930s American media, Miyamoto also stated he drew inspiration from " Beauty and

412-707: A card mini-game. He bears a resemblance to Bazaar Bear from Donkey Kong Country 3 . The Animal Buddies Ellie the Elephant , Enguarde the Swordfish, Squawks the Parrot, and Squitter the Spider all return. Donkey Kong Land III also marks the only time in a Rare Donkey Kong game where Donkey Kong does not actually appear. Donkey Kong Land 3 was coded by Ian Manders. Manders started at Rare in 1994 with his first project being Ken Griffey Jr.'s Winning Run . The game used

515-473: A certain number of which are required to unlock each new in-game world. Most of the puzzles are simple and involve rearranging items, manipulating switches and tiles, or matching items as in the game Concentration . Minigames include races, minecart rides, and barrels that shoot the characters as projectiles . There are five such golden banana-rewarding objectives for each of five playable characters across seven themed worlds—200 goals in total, in addition to

618-522: A connecting overworld . The worlds' themes include underwater, forest, jungle, and industry. Unlike prior Donkey Kong games, the objectives can be completed in any order . The player can fast travel between sections of the level with designated warp pads and can swap between characters in designated swap barrels. The player collects banana coins, which can be spent to unlock new weapons and abilities, and other collectibles such as weapon ammunition and blueprint puzzle pieces. As in other Rare games,

721-538: A decade after release as an Internet meme . Sutherland believes this happened because those who played the game as children had realized the song was meant to be taken as a joke, not a serious songwriting attempt. Similarly, Kirkhope commented that "it's a bit like ABBA , the way they've kind of come back into fashion over the years". Renditions of the "DK Rap" appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001) and Donkey Konga (2003). In 2017, Kirkhope composed

824-661: A hidden boss in Punch-Out!! , uppercutting K. Rool out of his castle at the end of Donkey Kong Country 2 , and having punch-based attacks as his special and final smash moves in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate . In a match against boxing champion "Krusha" K. Rool in Donkey Kong 64 , DK's weight is given at 800 pounds. The new Donkey Kong introduced in Donkey Kong Country was initially characterized as

927-476: A major character. He was redesigned, appearing with a red necktie , which sometimes bears his initials, "DK". The 1994 Super Nintendo Entertainment System game Donkey Kong Country , developed by British game developer Rare , was the beginning of a series. The manual for Donkey Kong Country states that the main protagonist in this game is the grandson of the Donkey Kong from the original trilogy, who

1030-467: A once-over. So that's good enough for me – I must have done something right! The Donkey Kong Country series introduced the setting of Donkey Kong Island and a backstory for the character. The series also introduced Diddy Kong as DK's sidekick and best friend, and K. Rool , King of the Kremlings, as his nemesis who steals his and Diddy Kong's banana hoard. While retaining the red necktie featured in

1133-409: A red tie. Bayliss presented the modern look to Nintendo and was immediately approved for the high-resolution 3D medium. Although the character design has been tweaked over the years, Donkey Kong's appearance remains consistent since the last modification by Bayliss. Today it makes me smile to see so many products with DK on the front, and that he's pretty much still the same as he looked when I gave him

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1236-493: A spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie , blamed Donkey Kong 64 for the "collect-a-thon platform adventurer" genre's decline in popularity. The game holds a Guinness World Record for most collectible items in a platform game. Retro Gamer and Game Informer both remembered the reception as "mixed", in consideration of its similarities with Banjo-Kazooie and lack of genre-pushing changes. Though decently reviewed, this and Rare's subsequent Nintendo 64 releases did not meet

1339-545: A striking resemblance to Donkey Kong. One of the enemies, named "Guerrilla", says "Don't confuse me with someone else", referring to DK. Both Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong Jr. appear as minor antagonists in the Super Mario Bros. -based adventure book Doors to Doom . Donkey Kong was also featured on the Game & Watch Gallery handheld series and Tetris DS . In Yoshi's Island DS , Donkey Kong appears as "Baby DK",

1442-496: A trend in Rare's games, and Donkey Kong 64 followed the "predictable formula" of making players collect multiple sets of items and in full for a special ending. Next Generation noted Rare's propensity for backtracking. GameSpot more diplomatically assumed that players who liked collecting items would be titillated by its replay value , and those who did not would be frustrated by its chores. The Cincinnati Enquirer applauded

1545-535: A truck outfitted with Nintendo games across the United States, and a separate sweepstakes between the series and Dr Pepper was advertised in supermarkets . Nintendo projected sales of 2.5 million copies within one year, and later that year increased the number to 4 million copies (1.5 million more than for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time ), including 1 million of the translucent green Nintendo 64 bundles. Polled retailers expected Donkey Kong 64 to be

1648-487: A version of the "DK Rap" from Donkey Kong 64 serves as stage music for Kongo Jungle (the one difference in the lyrics being the word "heck" substituted from the word "hell"). He appeared once more in Super Smash Bros. Brawl , this time being joined by his sidekick Diddy Kong and three stages – "Jungle Japes" from Melee , "Rumble Falls" from Donkey Kong Jungle Beat , and "75m" from the original Donkey Kong game from 1981. Both Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong returned to

1751-609: A younger version of himself, similar to Baby Mario . First appearing in World 2–1, most of his gameplay reflects Donkey Kong Jr. , even featuring the Snapjaw enemies from the game. He has been seen in the audience of some games in the Punch-Out!! series and also serves as the hidden opponent in 2009's Punch-Out!! on the Wii. During Rare's time, references were seen throughout Rare's games. In Banjo-Tooie , Bottle's daughter, Goggles,

1854-412: Is a 3D platforming action-adventure game in which the player, as Donkey Kong and his friends , explores an island and collects items to progress through minigames and puzzles. The game follows a traditional storyline for the series : King K. Rool and his reptilian Kremlings invade the idyllic DK Isle and kidnap Donkey Kong's friends, planning to power up their Blast-O-Matic weapon and destroy

1957-548: Is a grown-up version of Donkey Kong Jr. Nintendo of Europe's website also states that the modern DK is DK Jr., but the Game Boy Advance versions of Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest , Super Smash Bros. Brawl , Super Smash Bros. Ultimate , Donkey Kong Country Returns , Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze , Gregg Mayles of Rare, and Playing With Super Power: Nintendo Super NES Classics eGuide all explicitly state that

2060-509: Is a king-of-the-hill minigame in which players use weapons and explosives to knock each other off the edge of a platform. Each mode has several sub-types in which players can compete based on time or score. The British studio Rare , which created the successful Donkey Kong Country games for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in the mid-1990s, developed Donkey Kong 64 , with Gregg Mayles leading

2163-593: Is a selectable character in Mario Tennis , Mario Power Tennis , Mario Tennis: Power Tour , Mario Tennis Open , Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash and Mario Tennis Aces . Donkey Kong is playable in Mario Golf , Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour , Mario Golf: World Tour and Mario Golf: Super Rush but not Mario Golf: Advance Tour . Donkey Kong is featured in Super Mario Strikers for

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2266-407: Is also playable in each Super Smash Bros. game. Donkey Kong appeared in Super Smash Bros. as the first character from the Donkey Kong series and had a stage called "Kongo Jungle", which was based on Donkey Kong Country . Both he and Kongo Jungle returned for the series second game, Super Smash Bros. Melee . In this game, he had two new stages called "Jungle Japes" and "Kongo Jungle", and

2369-488: Is an escaped circus gorilla on the run from Mario and Pauline , who seek to recapture him. A second series of segments based on Donkey Kong Jr. focuses on the title character, voiced by Frank Welker , who seeks to find his missing father after his escape from the circus. Donkey Kong later appeared as a recurring antagonist in the 1989 animated series Captain N: The Game Master , voiced by Garry Chalk . He

2472-442: Is depicted as the territorial and easily angered ruler of Kongoland, and must be fed to be appeased. Donkey Kong is also the main character of the 1996 Donkey Kong Country animated series, in which Donkey Kong fights to protect Kongo Bongo Island and the mystical Crystal Coconut from King K. Rool and his Kremling henchmen. Donkey Kong was voiced by Richard Yearwood , with his singing voice performed by Sterling Jarvis . Donkey Kong

2575-645: Is not wearing a tie. IGN criticized his tie, stating that "DK needs a fashion makeover". They said that while he "used to be a working icon", "his status is starting to show signs of rust". 1UP.com listed him as the most "Gracelessly Aging Character", citing the fact that the original Donkey Kong from the arcade game eventually became Cranky Kong . IGN ranked him 5th in their "Top 100 Videogames Villains" list for his earlier appearances. UGO.com listed Donkey Kong seventh on their list of "The 25 Awesomest Hidden Characters" for his cameo appearance in Punch-Out!! . Empire also included him on their list of

2678-483: Is now Cranky Kong . Cranky orchestrates the events of Donkey Kong Land to recreate those of DKC. Despite his name being in the titles, Donkey Kong is the figurative damsel-in-distress in the two sequels to DKC and those to DKL, where he is captured by K. Rool. In these sequels, the player controls Diddy, Dixie , and Kiddy as they set out to rescue Donkey Kong. The Donkey Kong Country series also led to an animated television series and Donkey Kong 64 , in which DK

2781-754: Is playable once again. Following Rare 's departure from the series, Nintendo co-produced a trilogy of rhythm games with Namco for the GameCube known as the Donkey Konga series, which were based on Namco's own Taiko: Drum Master , though only two of the series' games made it to America. Donkey Kong Jungle Beat was released in March 2005, in North America for the GameCube. It depicted DK as being more violent than his original image and also used

2884-501: Is seen holding a Donkey Kong plush doll. Also in the worker's quarters in Grunty's Industries, the DK logo is seen on the fridge. Outside of video games, Donkey Kong has made several appearances in animation. The 1983 animated anthology series Saturday Supercade features cartoon segments based on the original Donkey Kong arcade game. In the segments, Donkey Kong, voiced by Soupy Sales ,

2987-489: Is subtly alluded to in the 1993 film Super Mario Bros. when the character of Anthony Scapelli, portrayed by Gianni Russo , is inadvertently devolved into a chimpanzee by King Koopa. Donkey Kong was voiced by Seth Rogen in the 2023 film by Illumination Entertainment , in addition to having been given a subtle redesign composed of elements from his contemporary and original arcade appearances. In November 2021, reports surfaced that Illumination had begun development on

3090-542: Is that he throws barrels and does not like Mario very much. And that's what I ran with". Donkey Kong has been described as one of the most iconic mascots for Nintendo . In their 250th issue in January 2010, Nintendo Power ranked him as their eighth-favorite Nintendo hero, stating that while he is a somewhat goofy hero, he is decently good overall and an entertaining one. They also ranked him as their eighth-favorite Nintendo villain, joking that one should avoid him if he

3193-567: The Banjo team, and the final version was built atop the Banjo game engine. The character models were designed and animated from scratch. Rare was unable to reuse the models from the Donkey Kong Country series, where they had been pre-rendered and modeled with NURBs using PowerAnimator ; Donkey Kong 64 ' s real-time 3D graphics could only use polygons, so the team used a new tool, Gamegen. The pre-rendered models were used as reference for

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3296-494: The Donkey Kong series. The Donkey Kong Country series was launched in 1994 with a new Donkey Kong as the protagonist (although several installments focus on his friends Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong instead). This version of the character persists as the main one up to today. While the 1980s games' Donkey Kong and the modern Donkey Kong share the same name, the manual for Donkey Kong Country and subsequent games portray

3399-554: The Mario Party series, he was a playable character in all three titles released for the Nintendo 64 , and also Mario Party 4 for the GameCube , this one being his last playable appearance in the series for some time. He eventually became an "event character" in later games, making appearances as an incidental character on the game board. He made an appearance within Mario Party 8 , once again as an incidental character on

3502-610: The Banjo-Kazooie cartridge, while the former's memory was still in the console, would unlock bonus content. Nintendo requested Stop 'N' Swop's removal when Rare submitted Donkey Kong 64 for approval. Nintendo was concerned the Nintendo 64 would not retain RDRAM long enough for the feature to work and that it could potentially damage consoles. Specifically, Nintendo 64 models produced after Banjo-Kazooie 's release reduced

3605-507: The Game Boy game, Donkey Kong , he also donned a distinct physical appearance featuring heavy brows and a peaked lock of hair on top of his head. This would become the standard look for Donkey Kong still used over two decades later. The modern Donkey Kong is portrayed as a powerful yet laid-back ape, who is interested mainly in his banana hoard and his girlfriend, Candy Kong. He has pugilistic abilities that are often emphasized, featuring as

3708-543: The Nintendo 64 . It is the only Donkey Kong game to feature 3D gameplay. As the gorilla Donkey Kong , the player explores themed levels to collect items and rescue his kidnapped family members from King K. Rool . The player completes minigames and puzzles as five playable Kong characters—each with their own special abilities—to receive bananas and other collectibles. In multiplayer modes, up to four players can compete in deathmatch and last man standing games. Rare began working on Donkey Kong 64 in 1997, following

3811-465: The Virtual Console re-release 9 out of 10. Donkey Kong (character) Donkey Kong , also shortened to DK , is a fictional gorilla -like character in the Donkey Kong and Mario franchise, created by Shigeru Miyamoto . The original Donkey Kong first appeared as the title character and antagonist of the eponymous 1981 game , a platformer by Nintendo, which would lead to

3914-609: The animated series Donkey Kong Country (1997–2000), and by Seth Rogen in the Illumination Entertainment feature film The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). In 1981, Nintendo was pursuing a license to make a game based on the 1930s Popeye comic strip. When this relationship was cancelled, Nintendo decided to take the opportunity to create original characters that could then be marketed and used in later games. Shigeru Miyamoto came up with many characters and plot concepts, but he eventually settled on

4017-573: The 1999 E3 Game Critics award for Best Platform Game, and several annual awards from Nintendo Power , including best overall game of 1999. Donkey Kong 64 received nominations for " Game of the Year " and "Console Game of the Year" by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences during the 3rd Annual Interactive Achievement Awards (now known as the D.I.C.E. Awards ). GamePro named it an "Editor's Choice". IGN described Donkey Kong 64 as

4120-451: The 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut : "a big bloated project with not enough brilliant moments to justify the numbness   ... [of] sitting through the whole thing", it "fails to live up to the Rare name". Donkey Kong 64 ' s 3D platforming was commonplace by the time of its release and, according to GameSpot , would have fared better as a Nintendo 64 launch game . With its competition considered, Daily Radar wrote that Donkey Kong 64

4223-501: The 2014 Wii U game Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze , Donkey Kong sets out to get his home back from evil Vikings known as the Snowmads. Every Mario Kart game has featured a version of Donkey Kong as a playable character. Super Mario Kart features Donkey Kong Junior as a playable character. The modern Donkey Kong made his first appearance in the series with Mario Kart 64 , and has been in every game to date since. In

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4326-520: The 50 greatest video game characters, adding that he is "the worst named character in the history of gaming". The 2011 Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition lists Donkey Kong as the 33rd-most popular video game character. In 2012, GamesRadar ranked him as the 25th-best hero in video games. Jeremy Parish of Polygon ranked 73 fighters from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate "from garbage to glorious", listing Donkey Kong as 22nd, stating that "we'd love to play as Donkey Kong. This guy, though? He's just

4429-770: The Beast ". Miyamoto used " donkey " to convey "stubborn" in English; while "Kong" was simply to imply him being a "large ape", the name Donkey Kong was intended to convey "stubborn ape" to the American audience. When he suggested this name to Nintendo of America , people laughed, but the name stuck. The character's appearance was redesigned for the Super NES in 1994 by former Rare character artist Kevin Bayliss with supervision from Miyamoto, who suggested giving Donkey Kong

4532-524: The DD. Hardware sales dictated where best to sell the game." Time Extension argued that early reports of a 64DD release were "a mistake, a mistranslation, or simply talks between upper management." Grant Kirkhope stated that Project Dream was the 64DD title being developed by Rare at the time, not Donkey Kong 64 . A team of 16 people worked on the game across three years, and an additional eight members assisted in its later stages. George Andreas served as

4635-715: The GameCube and made his first appearance on the Wii within the title Mario Strikers Charged as a playable soccer captain. In Mario Super Sluggers , he appears as a captain again. Donkey Kong also appears in Mario Superstar Baseball . He made a playable appearance in almost every Mario & Sonic game , starting with Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games . He's also playable in Mario Hoops 3-on-3 and Mario Sports Mix . He

4738-630: The Kong's adversary King K. Rool . Along with Bowser , he is also a playable guest character in the Nintendo versions of Skylanders: SuperChargers and Skylanders: Imaginators . Super Mario Maker features Donkey Kong as a Mystery Mushroom costume. Donkey Kong appears as one of the playable characters in the downloadable campaign, Donkey Kong Adventure , for Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle . The character has also made more incidental appearances. Two minor enemies in Super Mario RPG bear

4841-606: The Mario Toy Company, upset over the lack of Mini-Mario toys available for purchase. The game was followed by a 2006 sequel titled Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis , where Donkey Kong, who is infatuated with Pauline, kidnaps her and takes her to the roof of the Super Mini-Mario World amusement park when she ignores a Mini-Donkey Kong toy in favor of a Mini-Mario. He also once again appeared as

4944-459: The Nintendo 64 Expansion Pak , an accessory that added memory resources. The US$ 22 million marketing campaign included advertisements, sweepstakes , and a national tour. Donkey Kong 64 received acclaim and was Nintendo's top seller during the 1999 holiday season ; it ultimately sold 5.27 million copies worldwide. It won the 1999 E3 Game Critics award for Best Platform Game and multiple awards and nominations from magazines. Reviewers praised

5047-549: The Nintendo 64 was approaching the end of its lifecycle, as gamers turned their sights to the Sega Dreamcast and Sony PlayStation 2 . IGN later named Donkey Kong 64 as worthy of a remake for the Nintendo 3DS handheld console. In 2009, Official Nintendo Magazine placed the game 89th in a list of the best Nintendo games, calling it "a forgotten classic". The "DK Rap" is still remembered for its negative reception, but an upswing in popularity happened more than

5150-432: The Nintendo 64's top seller during the 1999 holiday season and Nintendo's chief defense against competitor Sega 's introduction of its Dreamcast console. As a bestseller, Donkey Kong 64 joined Nintendo's " Player's Choice " game selection, where high sales continued through the next holiday season. Cumulative worldwide sales were 5.27 million, including more than 2.3 million copies in North America by 2004. It won

5253-534: The Rhino and Enguarde the Swordfish, who recur from earlier series games. Optional hardware support includes a widescreen mode and Rumble Pak compatibility. A separate multiplayer mode has six minigames for two to four players. Monkey Smash is an open arena, deathmatch -style minigame in which up to four players find ammo and use their respective projectile weapons from the single-player game to damage other players before losing all their own lives . Battle Arena

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5356-614: The Wii U controller an easy substitute for the Nintendo 64's controls. Rare's 3D platformers became notorious for their emphasis on collecting items, and Kotaku remembered Donkey Kong 64 as "the worst offender" with hundreds of color-coded bananas. Other retrospective reviewers agreed. Electronic Gaming Monthly wrote: "As   ... Super Mario 64 breathed life into the 3D platforming genre, Donkey Kong 64 sucked it all out" and solidified Rare's reputation for making "collect-a-thon" games. The indie developer behind A Hat in Time ,

5459-409: The amount of time the console retained flash memory, making Stop 'N' Swop nearly impossible to activate as intended. Donkey Kong 64 was the first of two games to require the Nintendo 64's Expansion Pak , a console RAM upgrade bundled with the game. The Expansion Pak was previously used to power optional higher-resolution graphics, but in the case of Donkey Kong 64 , it was marketed as improving

5562-746: The antagonist in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again! and Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! . Aside from those, Donkey Kong appeared in DK King of Swing on the GBA around the time of Jungle Beat , and in its sequel, Jungle Climber , for the Nintendo DS . In the 2010 Wii game Donkey Kong Country Returns , Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong battle against the Tiki Tak Tribe , who appears on Donkey Kong Island and hypnotizes various creatures. In

5665-423: The biggest and most ambitious Nintendo 64 game as of its release, but very similar to Banjo-Kazooie in its platforming and puzzle design. Similarities between the two games was a common refrain. Overall, reviewers were more impressed by its visuals than by its other elements, such as gameplay. Reviewers criticized the emphasis on collecting items and backtracking —"an interactive egg hunt ". This had become

5768-574: The bongo controllers. It was also the first game to receive the ESRB E10+ Rating. In October 2007, Donkey Kong Barrel Blast was released in North America for the Wii . On handheld consoles, Donkey Kong was reunited with his former rival Mario in the 2004 Game Boy Advance game Mario vs. Donkey Kong . A throwback to the Donkey Kong game for the Game Boy, Donkey Kong resumed his antagonist role from his earlier games by taking over

5871-494: The boss battles, particularly the final battle against K. Rool, was highlighted, although the story's ending disappointed EGM . Reviewers found little entertainment in the multiplayer mode but praised the gameplay variety between the five characters. The controls also frustrated reviewers, between slow movement speed and camera angle issues. For example, characters who become unresponsive during their attack animations are vulnerable to encroaching enemies. Edge wrote that

5974-413: The characters less baffling than those of other Rare games, and sometimes funny. GameFan found that the addition of the three new playable characters to the series offered little personality that would be missed. IGN said that the music was less clever than Banjo-Kazooie ' s, but Kirkhope's soundtrack still delivered a variety of moods and fit the setting. Aural clues in the surround sound and

6077-402: The coconut gun used in the final game. A removed feature, " Stop 'N' Swop ", allowed data to be transferred from Banjo-Kazooie to Donkey Kong 64 to unlock in-game bonuses. During development, Rare discovered the Nintendo 64 retained flash memory for several seconds after a cartridge's removal. They implemented a feature whereby removing the Donkey Kong 64 cartridge and quickly inserting

6180-399: The color-coded banana system. Rare attempted to differentiate Donkey Kong 64 from Banjo-Kazooie through its variety of playable characters, cinematic set-pieces, and bombastic boss battles . According to Andreas, Donkey Kong creator Shigeru Miyamoto was appalled when he saw Donkey Kong shoot a realistic shotgun used as a placeholder during a pre-release demonstration, and quickly sketched

6283-534: The completion of Donkey Kong Country 3 (1996). It was conceived as a 2.5D platformer similar to Country before becoming a more open-ended game using the engine from Rare's Banjo-Kazooie (1998). A 16-person team with many recruits from the Banjo group finished it in 1999. It was published by Nintendo in North America in November and worldwide in December. Donkey Kong 64 was the first game to require

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6386-451: The consideration of several simultaneous tasks to solve later puzzles. Already familiar with concepts borrowed from Super Mario 64 , Ocarina of Time , and Banjo-Kazooie , critics considered the player's tasks less innovative or interesting to decipher. In retrospective reviews, Nintendo Life described the chore of collecting objects "excessive" and repetitive. They suggested that backtracking, for instance, could be reduced by letting

6489-491: The console's prettiest games because the setting is barren and nondescript at first, and only later introduces lighting effects and richer textures. IGN hoped for more from Rare, praising the particle effects (such as in the desert wind), but considering its dynamic lighting overused. N64 Magazine said the enhanced effects were most often used for decoration, though they also played some role in puzzles based on illuminating paths. Graphical difficulties were reported even with

6592-459: The controller, so button combinations are needed to trigger some abilities. Combinations also trigger special modes, including alternative camera angles, a sniper mode, and a snapshot mode which unlocks more in-game secrets. Playable versions of the original Donkey Kong (1981) and Jetpac (1983) are hidden within the game, and playing through them is required to finish the story. The player-character can also transform into animals, such as Rambi

6695-480: The effort. Development began in 1997, shortly after the completion of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996). It was originally reported as an intended release on the Nintendo 64 's 64DD add-on, but transitioned to cartridge while the 64DD was delayed and eventually canceled. Rare artist Carl Tilley disputed the possibility of a 64DD release, recalling to Did You Know Gaming? that "Rare [management] wouldn't have wanted to release on

6798-463: The exceptional size and length, but criticized its camera controls and emphasis on item collection and backtracking. Some cited its gameplay and visual similarities to Banjo-Kazooie as a detriment. Critics said Donkey Kong 64 did not match the revolutionary impact of Donkey Kong Country but was still among the Nintendo 64's best 3D platform games. Donkey Kong 64 was Rare's final Donkey Kong game prior to its acquisition by Microsoft in 2002 and

6901-402: The extolment of the company's preceding games, and lackluster sales led to a staff exodus that culminated with the company's acquisition by Microsoft in 2002. Donkey Kong 64 was resultingly Rare's final Donkey Kong game; the series did not receive another major installment until Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) five years later. Electronic Gaming Monthly noted at the game's launch, that

7004-421: The extra memory, such as frame rate slowdowns and distant features not appearing in any detail, though overall they commended the graphical flourishes. GameSpot also saw a lack of variety in the environment. The characters were praised for their personalities, animations, and portrayal of Rare's signature humor. Several reviewers noted the personalities shown in character animations. IGN considered

7107-685: The following year in the sequel Donkey Kong Jr. , where Donkey Kong is taken captive and locked in a cage by Mario, while Donkey Kong Junior sets out to rescue him. Donkey Kong resumed his antagonistic role in Donkey Kong 3 , where the character Stanley the Bugman takes Mario's place as the protagonist. Stanley fights Donkey Kong's attempts to invade a greenhouse along with a horde of killer bees. After Donkey Kong , Mario went on to become Nintendo's primary mascot, while Donkey Kong and his son were relegated to supporting roles and cameos. The 1994 Game Boy version of Donkey Kong marked his re-emergence as

7210-405: The former as Cranky Kong , the latter's grandfather, with the exception of Donkey Kong 64 and The Super Mario Bros. Movie , in which Cranky is depicted as his father, alternatively portraying the modern Donkey Kong as the original Donkey Kong Jr. from the titular game . Donkey Kong is considered one of the most popular and iconic characters in video game history. Mario , the protagonist of

7313-470: The frame rate and rendering of objects at a distance. Chris Marlow, who was working on Conker's Bad Fur Day (2001) at the time, claimed that Rare could not resolve a bug that occurred without the Expansion Pak and thus they were forced, at great expense, to bundle the game with the memory upgrade. However, Stevenson called Marlow's story a "myth" and said that the decision to use the Expansion Pak

7416-492: The game and console, including a banana yellow-colored game cartridge, its required Expansion Pak, and a transparent green " Jolly Rancher -style" Nintendo 64 console. In April 2015, Donkey Kong 64 was digitally rereleased as one of the first Nintendo 64 games added to Nintendo's Wii U Virtual Console catalog. This was the game's first rerelease, as it had not appeared on the Wii Virtual Console . Why it

7519-846: The game board. Donkey Kong also appears in Mario Party DS and in Mario Party 9 as a non-player character , though he came back as playable in Mario Party 10 and Mario Party: Star Rush (along with Diddy Kong ). Donkey Kong appears as a contender in Mario Party: The Top 100 , and later as an unlockable, playable character in Super Mario Party , while also appearing as a playable character in Mario Party Superstars and Super Mario Party Jamboree . Donkey Kong has also made playable appearance in various Mario sports games . Donkey Kong

7622-489: The game, and you'd think it looked good side-on, but awful from every other angle!" The strong emphasis on collectibles was a design choice made at the request of Rare co-founder Tim Stamper to distinguish Donkey Kong 64 from Banjo-Kazooie . According to director George Andreas, "I'd always go back to him and say 'Here's some' and he'd go 'No, more things ' ". Retrospectively, Andreas commented that he should have reined himself in; particularly, he would have liked to unify

7725-465: The grandson of the original Donkey Kong who appears in the game as an elderly ape named Cranky Kong . This remained the most consistent storyline, with it also being directly stated in both Donkey Kong Land and Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest , but Donkey Kong 64 portrays the modern Donkey Kong as Cranky Kong's son. Leigh Loveday , the writer of Donkey Kong Country 2 , prefacing his statement with "As far as I know", said that he

7828-434: The island. After a tutorial, the player embarks as Donkey Kong to rescue the others from their kidnappers and stop K. Rool's plan. While exploring the in-game world and completing puzzle minigames, the player collects two types of bananas: colored bananas, which are color-coded differently for each Kong character, award the player with banana medals and can be traded for access to each world's boss fight ; and golden bananas,

7931-469: The lack of camera improvements over Banjo-Kazooie was inexcusable. Even with the RAM expansion for graphics, Donkey Kong 64 ' s visuals were only found marginally—if at all—better than that of its contemporary games, such as the previous year's Banjo-Kazooie . IGN avowed that Donkey Kong 64 was not as pretty as Banjo-Kazooie , especially in its water and backgrounds, though it still ranked among

8034-589: The last 30 years". According to Matt Reeves , the treacherous Koba -loyal apes in service of the Colonel in his 2017 film War for the Planet of the Apes are nicknamed "donkeys" in a reference both to Donkey Kong, and how they are used as "pack mules". Donkey Kong 64 This is an accepted version of this page Donkey Kong 64 is a 1999 platform game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for

8137-408: The last major Donkey Kong game until Jungle Beat (2004). It was rereleased on Nintendo's Wii U Virtual Console in 2015. Retrospective reviews of Donkey Kong 64 were mixed; critics considered it emblematic of the tedium in Rare's "collectathon" adventure platformers. The " DK Rap ", a song featured in the introduction, garnered infamy as one of the worst songs in a video game. Donkey Kong 64

8240-536: The latter-day imposter version from Donkey Kong Country — the original DK's son". Gavin Jasper of Den of Geek ranked Donkey Kong in 13th place of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate characters, stating that "DK is a blast to play as, especially when unleashing his ground-slap move in a match against seven opponents and everyone's bouncing around like ping-pong balls. His wind-up punch is perfect, too". HobbyConsolas also included Donkey Kong on their "The 30 best heroes of

8343-458: The minigames as a "welcome diversion [which] add to the fun of an already massive adventure", and which are so good they would have worked as their own released games on previous-generation consoles. EGM said the puzzles and minigames are fun the first time through, but they quickly become worn when replayed with increasingly tighter time restrictions. GameSpot , however, considered parts of Donkey Kong 64 ' s gameplay "cerebral", requiring

8446-488: The original 1981 game, went on to become the central character of the Mario franchise; the modern Donkey Kong is regularly featured as a character in the Mario games. He has also been playable in every entry of the Super Smash Bros. crossover fighting series, and serves as the main antagonist of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series from 2004 to 2015. The character is voiced by Richard Yearwood and Sterling Jarvis in

8549-871: The player often encounters an impasse such as an indestructible object or out-of-reach area, and must acquire a new ability with which to eventually backtrack and resolve it. Donkey Kong's kidnapped friends become playable characters after being rescued. Each of the five characters begin with basic abilities and can purchase additional, unique abilities from Cranky Kong as the game progresses, which are necessary to solve certain puzzles. For example, Donkey Kong can operate levers, Chunky Kong can lift rocks, Tiny Kong can crawl through holes, Diddy Kong can fly, and Lanky Kong can float. The characters each use unique projectiles and musical instruments. For example, some doors can be opened only with Donkey Kong's coconut projectiles and others can be opened only with Diddy Kong's guitar. There are more special abilities than face buttons on

8652-399: The player switch between characters at any time. The size and length were frequently noted. With an estimated 30 hours in basic gameplay, IGN called it Rare's War and Peace . GameFan wrote that "big" is an understatement, and "the adventure found within is mastodonic". Writers from AllGame and EGM became frequently lost or distracted in its world. The ingenuity of

8755-477: The polygon models and textures, such as for the interior of the Kongs' mouths. Though the real-time graphics prevented Rare from reproducing the level of detail seen in the Donkey Kong Country series, they allowed for more expressive characters. Rendering satisfactory models proved challenging; lead artist Mark Stevenson noted that "[b]eing able to see this character from any angle, you'd make an animation, put it in

8858-459: The present-day Donkey Kong is Cranky's grandson. Donkey Kong first appeared as the titular antagonist of the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong (alongside protagonist Mario and damsel in distress , Pauline ). As Mario, the player must reach Donkey Kong at the top of each stage, where he is holding Pauline captive. Donkey Kong attempts to hinder the player's progress by throwing barrels, springs, and other objects towards Mario. The ape reappeared

8961-432: The project's director. Rare conceived Donkey Kong 64 as a linear, 2.5D platform game similar to the Donkey Kong Country games. The Nintendo 64 was still new, and at the time Rare did not have a common game engine . The linear version was developed for around 18 months before it was eliminated in favor of a more open-ended approach similar to Rare's 1998 game Banjo-Kazooie (1998). Many developers transitioned from

9064-432: The quality of the underwater effects impressed GameSpot . Reviewers criticized the opening "DK Rap" as "embarrassing" and among the worst video game music. GamePro said it was humorous but lowbrow. Eight years later, Nintendo Life said the song was "loved by some, loathed by others", similar to the game itself. The consensus was that Donkey Kong 64 lacked the revolutionary potential of Donkey Kong Country but

9167-445: The rap to win prizes including a trip to its headquarters. Rare announced Donkey Kong 64 with a single screenshot on its website and coverage in the January 1999 issue of Nintendo Power . Electronic Gaming Monthly wrote that it was playable by the 1997 Electronic Entertainment Expo , though IGN said that it debuted at the 1999 event . It was also demonstrated at Nintendo's 1999 trade show Spaceworld . Donkey Kong 64

9270-453: The same as in Donkey Kong Country 3 , which takes place in the "Northern Kremisphere". While the levels have the same environments and the Donkey Kong Country 3 bosses return, the worlds and stage layouts are all unique. Wrinkly Kong is the only non-playable Kong family member to make an appearance. A character simply titled Bear or "Brother Bear" gives Dixie Kong and Kiddy Kong hints and can teleport them to another world as well as hosting

9373-483: The same engine that Robert Harrison wrote from the ground up for Donkey Kong Land 2 . Manders said that programming the game was a challenge as he was new to the tighter constraints for which the CPU of the Game Boy allowed. The game deviates more from its console counterpart Donkey Kong Country 3 , if not more than the first game which had new enemies in addition to new scenery and level design. Harrison stated that this

9476-603: The series in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U , with Donkey Kong being among the first wave of amiibo released for the games. Jungle Japes from Melee returns in the 3DS version, and both Kongo Jungle from the original Super Smash Bros. and 75m from Brawl return in the Wii U version, along with a new stage called Jungle Hijinxs from Donkey Kong Country Returns . All aforementioned stages (aside from Rumble Falls and Jungle Hijinxs) returned alongside Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate , while also being joined by

9579-450: The soundtrack, which Nintendo Life described as closer in spirit to Banjo-Kazooie than to David Wise 's Donkey Kong Country soundtracks. However, Kirkhope commented that he tried to retain the darker, atmospheric tone that Wise brought to Donkey Kong Country , and included a remix of Wise's "Jungle Japes". Donkey Kong Country 3 composer Eveline Fischer was originally assigned to Donkey Kong 64 ; Kirkhope became involved after he

9682-452: The spark needed" to evolve the genre in games released in later years, celebrating its gameplay as addictive and some of the best on the Nintendo 64. Though hyped fans would be disappointed, IGN said that Donkey Kong 64 remains an excellent and expansive platformer with an overwhelming amount of things to do. GameFan , on the other hand, was most disappointed by how it "truly offers nothing new" and compared its monotony and repetition with

9785-411: The top console game sold during the 1999 holiday season. It had little holiday season competition from Nintendo, as Nintendo had moved releases including Mario Party 2 , Perfect Dark , and Pokémon Stadium into the next year. Rare and Nintendo released Donkey Kong 64 in North America in November 1999, and a worldwide release followed the next month. Nintendo offered a special bundle of

9888-449: Was asked for assistance, and he provided Donkey Kong's voice. The " DK Rap ", which introduces the Kong character abilities, was conceived and written by Andreas, scored and recorded by Kirkhope, and performed by Andreas and Chris Sutherland . It was intended to be a lighthearted joke, although critics interpreted it as a serious songwriting attempt. Nintendo of America ran a "DK Rap" contest in which fans record their own version of

9991-464: Was because most of the attention was being made for games for the Nintendo 64 at Rare and that using an existing game engine allowed for more original elements to be made for the game. On 28 January 2000, over two years after the game's North American and European releases, Nintendo released an updated Game Boy Color version of the game in Japan. Titled Donkey Kong GB: Dinky Kong & Dixie Kong , it

10094-445: Was expected to be a bestseller, as the console's "crowning achievement" in graphics and sound. Donkey Kong 64 ' s sizable US$ 22 million marketing campaign doubled the typical budget for a major Nintendo release. The campaign included a 60-second commercial played at over 10,000 movie theaters during the holiday season, and additional advertisements via billboards, print, and radio. A promotional "The Beast Is Back" tour brought

10197-439: Was made early. Though such a bug did exist toward the end of development, according to Stevenson, the Expansion Pak was not the solution for the problem and it was not introduced for that reason. According to Stevenson, the Expansion Pak was used to power the dynamic lighting system . Nintendo stated that the choice to bundle, rather than selling the accessory separately, would avoid consumer confusion. Grant Kirkhope composed

10300-604: Was never released on the Wii Virtual Console is unknown, although Nintendo World Report speculated that it may have been related to the fact that it contains both the original arcade Donkey Kong (which was already available on the Virtual Console) and Jetpac (which Nintendo does not hold the rights to) as playable bonuses. Donkey Kong 64 received critical acclaim—"universal acclaim", according to video game review aggregator Metacritic . It became

10403-442: Was not released outside of Japan. This version is the same as the Game Boy version, but lacks some animations and dialogues. This version was also released on the 3DS Virtual Console in Japan in 2014. Donkey Kong Land III received a score of 81.25% at GameRankings based on four reviews. Nintendojo praised the game and awarded it 8.5 out of 10, citing the "brilliantly designed" levels and "impressive" visuals. Nintendo Life gave

10506-437: Was of a sufficient high quality to sell well during the holiday season. The Cincinnati Enquirer described its platform style as coupled with many others, such as Super Mario 64 , Banjo-Kazooie , and Jet Force Gemini (1999): "Replace the story line, the graphics and a couple of gameplay elements and you basically have the same game". Nonetheless, he said "its mastering of elements that have been done to death may be just

10609-428: Was simply the best 3D platform game on the console. Edge qualified this thought: Donkey Kong 64 was the closest any third-party developer had come to outdoing Nintendo's mastery of game structure and was "a fine effort   ... in its own right", but its gameplay was derivative and unimaginative compared to the freedom and flexibility of Nintendo's Super Mario 64 . In a retrospective review, Nintendo Life found

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