Diddy Kong in a MASSIVE adventure (Donkey Kong Country 2 - Diddy's Kong Quest (N64))

Member Name: Midrange

Product:	Donkey Kong Country 2 - Diddy's Kong Quest (N64)
Date:	14/09/08 (20 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great level design, plenty of secrets to discover, unlockable levels

Disadvantages: Some of the secret coins were a nightmare to find!

I'm not sure why this game is listed as an N64 title (perhaps the SNES is too old school?)! Donkey Kong Country kicked off in 1995 with the tremendously acclaimed... Donkey Country (DK). Graphically, the game was dazzling for its time - with real 3D modelling and exquisitely made clay textures for every scharacter and scene. The gameplay was straightforward enough - a simple role playing scroller - jumping over gaps, jumping on enemies and jumping into barrels to blast your way across each level.

DK2 tells the story of how Diddy (Donkey's little sidekick) and Diddy's girlfriend, Dixie, race to save Donkey from the clutches of the evil King K. Rool. DK2 is, in my opinion, the finest of the series - graphically, it is stunning once more. But more importantly, the gameplay was developed significantly. "Bonus Barrels" were added and the side-games became more important. Secret coins were hidden about the levels and finding them meant you could access the fearsome "Lost World" levels! The environments were also made more exciting - not content with trekking through the jungle, Diddy and Dixie find themselves inside a volcano, along the rigging of pirate ships and even in a theme-park. My favourite world was always the Haunted Grove - with vanishing blocks, ghostly barrels and a creepy skeleton crow boss to beat at the end.

The game recorded your progress, it was easy to save (though you had to pay banana coins (which which were easy to come by) in order to save your game)) and kept counters of the various secret coins you'd discovered. Collecting the DK coins (different from the Lost World Kremcoins) unlocked a special ending sequence - I shan't spoil the surprise though!

All in all, a very, very high quality scrolling game. Never had a single problem with it in the 4-5 years I played it. I used to love replaying it during the holidays. Oh, one final point - the in game music was great. Wish I could buy it on CD!

Summary: Excellent series of games and the best of the three (in my opinion)