I have been a fan of Donkey Kong since I was a nipper; I was pretty excited when I heard that Nintendo were reviving it. After waiting so long for a decent Donkey Kong game (not too keen on the DS Mario vs. Donkey Kong or Jungle Climber) it had begun to seem like he wasn't coming back.

But here he is, back with another brilliant game.

Yet again, Donkey Kong's banana hoard has gone missing. But who has taken it this time!? Donkey Kong Island has been taken over by a gang of evil Tikis, who have used their hypnotic powers to brain wash the Islands animal residents into doing their dirty work for them....Dun dun Duuuuuun!!

Donkey is joined by Diddy on his journey across the island to defeat each of the areas evil Tikis, battling their way through mine shafts, tropical beaches and overgrown jungles, each with new abilities to master. With Diddy's peanut pop gun and barrel jet pack, and Donkey's powerful ground pound, those Tikis better watch out.

Once again you are to collect as many bananas and banana coins as you can throughout the levels, in order to exchange these at Cranky's shop for extra lives, or a key to a cut through. Each level has the usual K O N G tiles to collect, along with a new item, the puzzle piece. The amount of puzzle pieces differs from level to level, but adding another collectable has increased the games playability, giving you something to go back for once you have made it through all of the levels.

Diddy Kong has somewhat been shoved into the background though. Unless you are playing as player two in two player co-op mode (which in itself is great!) you are not able to play as Diddy. If Donkey Kong gets hit, it's Diddy that dies. You can use him to carry you using his jet pack or to shoot enemies with his peanut popper, but you can't actually take control of him, and I miss this. Although Donkey is a strong reliable ape, there are times when you want the speed and slightness of his smaller companion.

Rabbi the Rhino makes a comeback in this game, but that's all you get. Expresso the Ostrich and Enguarde the sword fish don't make an appearance, which is a little disappointing as they were great assets to the previous games. The fact that there aren't any under water levels may explain the loss of Enguarde, but I'm sure they could have squeezed in an appearance from Expresso somewhere.

The controls on the game are simple enough, yet it can become quite confusing when trying to perform the ground pound, blow or roll as the commands are all quite similar. It will take some practice to get used to but I would imagine by the 3rd or 4th level you should be quite familiar with them. You also have the choice of whether to use the remote and nunchuck, or just the remote the way you would use one of the classic controllers, which is a bonus.

The vibrancy and detail of the surroundings is great, very a-peeling(!). The graphics have improved somewhat in the last 15 years and this game certainly shows that off. The only thing it is missing is the High Definition that isn't supported by the Wii, but this is so close it really doesn't matter.

The thing I love about this game is that they have kept the original side-scrolling feature of the original platform games, but the advances in graphics have given it a more 3D feel. I will say though, for the Donkey Kong fans out there, things just got a whole lot harder. There are some seriously difficult levels in this game; you will have to stock up on your life balloons for these! Although it is a lot more difficult than it used to be, it's not impossible. And with some dedication (and sheer luck sometimes!) you will get there in the end.

I am ecstatic about the return of Donkey Kong, and I am hoping that this will lead to many more adventures from my favourite primate friends.