A Kremling Koniption

When Rare released Donkey Kong Country it felt like a new revolution in gaming. Yes, that's hyperbole, but their marketing was loaded with hyperbole and we, as gamers, ate it up. The SNES was bringing the next generation of graphics to us, right now, and they had to proof. 3D models designed using Silicon Graphics workstations, ported into real, working SNES hardware. "You can't see the Sega Genesis do that!" We thought even if it totally could because the graphics, pretty as they were, were still 16-bit. They still had to work on the SNES architecture, which had been operating since 1990. But we were all fooled because, damn, the graphics were nice for 16-bot sprites.

That hype train continued when, the next year, Rare and Nintendo quickly scooted out a sequel. For as much as fans loved Donkey Kong Country, the sequel, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest promised more of everything. More stages, more worlds, more animal buddies, more to collect, more to do. It was a bigger sequel in every way, built on the same engine as the first game so you could dive right in and get to playing. And, you know what? They were right. Whether you think the graphics look outdated now with brighter, more polished 3D graphics on systems built to actually do 3D, there is no denying that DKC2 is a pretty game that did deliver on its promises.

The sequel picked up with Diddy Kong, side-kick (and, arguably, more useful companion) to Donkey Kong. Having saved the banana horde from the Kremlings in the first game, one would have thought that the adventure was over. But then Donkey goes missing, and a new horde of Kremlings appear. It's up to Diddy, ever the faithful friend, and his new pal Dixie Kong, to fight their way through the many hideouts of the Kremling and save their friend (and series namesake) before whatever the Kremlings have planned is, well, put into motion.

The basics of DKC2 are similar to the first title. It's a side-scrolling platform action game broken down into various stages spread across a set of thematic worlds. You know, the same kind of setup that just about every platform game has been using since Super Mario Bros. 3 really refined the whole platforming concept. Here that means stages set on pirate ships, in an active volcano, at a haunted amusement park, and more. This variety creates leads to a ton of fun stages across the many worlds (and secret world) of the game.

The actual theming of the stages is much stronger in this game than in the previous. DKC1 had different stage types -- jungle, snowy mountain, temple, factory, etc. -- but these were mixed up across the various worlds without much concern with keeping zones to the same theme. That was fine in this game, but actually sticking the theming in this game makes each world feel more distinct, and more refined. Now, sure, there are some stage types that go across the various worlds -- underwater boat stages, brambles stages -- but for the most part the worlds each have their theme and explore the theme fully before the game moves on to a new idea.

Exploring the stages is a lot of fun, and much of that is down to the tight skills, and interesting balance, of the two characters. Diddy operates much like he did before: small, fast, fleet, with an excellent roll attack that can also be used for some slick double-jump mechanics. Dixie, meanwhile, has a Princess Peach from Super Mario Bros. 2. She comes with a long ponytail that she can whip around to put herself into a helicopter spin. Her gliding is sometimes required to get to certain secrets in ways that Diddy can't. Plus, she can pick up a barrel with her hair and keep it above her, which is a great way to take out aerial attackers.

Speaking of secrets, the hidden areas of this game are easier to find than in the previous title. To get to 101 percent (not a typo) in the first game you had to find every hidden secret, and some of them were devilishly snuck away. One secret area was famously buried in another secret area, and good luck even figuring that one out. DKC2 keeps its secret more obvious, generally with some clue of a banana or something else to make it easy to find. Getting all the secrets here is actually required to beating the game as the special coins you gain from the secrets are needed to unlock access to the final stages of the game, and you have to get all the stages (and all the special DK coins) collected to be able to fight the true final fight and truly save Donkey Kong from he clutches of the Kremlings.

For me, DKC2 was the first game I truly hundred percented for all its secrets. I'd played through other games before, doing what I could, but this sequel kept track of it all and rewarded you for finding everything (more than just a simple 102% on the finish screen). It found the right balance between tucking stuff away and still making them findable such that someone, sitting on their couch, without a secrets guide, still had a chance to complete the game and all its challenges. It was fair, in a way that still felt like Rare was trying to make you work for it at least a little.

With that said, this game was still challenging. The early stages are easy enough to get through, but some of the last stages in the Kremlings' fortress, let alone the secrets stages in the Lost World, were absolutely punishing in a way that only Rare could devise (see also: Battletoads). And if you were trying to get all the secrets, some of these later stages really made you suffer for completion. Again, it still felt fair (unlikes the ungodly challenge of Battletoads), but I remember cussing a lot in the last areas of the game... even as I had fun.

I don't think anyone went into Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest expecting anything other than a sequel to the first title. In that regard this sequel delivered, absolutely. It took the core of the first game and expanded and (arguably) improved on all of it. It was absolutely a game for the fans of the first title, but considering how that game flew off the shelves like hotcakes, there was absolutely no reason to reinvent the wheel this time around. Enough new stuff was added to keep the game feeling fresh without deviating too far from the mold. It was exactly the game Rare needed to release to keep the new series going, and they did it perfectly.

But it is fair to say that there was only so much gas left in this vehicle past this game. We'd already technically had three games in the DKC franchise (counting Donkey Kong Land as well) and Rare was going to have to do something special for their next major effort to really keep the fans hooked after this. Three games of the same formula is a lot. It was good, but if we got the same stuff much more it was going to feel tired. And it did, with the one-two punch of Donkey Kong Land 2, a rehash of this game on the Game Boy, and then Donkey Kong Country 3 doing more of the same right after.

The banana party was coming to an end soon, but at least we got this sublime sequel before it all fell apart...