Perhaps it was fitting that Nintendo decided to swing by the Nintendo World Store to show off Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, given that it’s located in the heart of New York City, which is currently in the midst of a recording breaking string of cold snaps.
A near complete build was on hand for members of the press and other invited guests. As most are well aware, the upcoming Wii U release follows closely in the footsteps of 2010’s Donkey Kong Country Returns, for the Wii. A game that I never personally played, though I'm more than a little familiar with the original DKC trilogy for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, so hopefully my two cents are worth a little.
The elevator pitch, for those who need it: Donkey Kong’s tropical paradise is frozen over when various arctic dwelling animal folk in Viking attire show up So DK, with the aid of his pals, has to send them to whatever sub zero corner from which they hail from.
Tropical Freeze has four different control configurations to choose from: just the Wii U GamePad, the Pro Controller, the Wii Remote with nunchuck attached, and finally just the Wii Remote by itself. No Pro Controllers were handy (which was given that we were at Nintendo’s flagship retail location, and I could have swore that I saw a few, in boxes, and on shelves), though I believe it’s basically like the GamePad, sans the touch screen.
Four different levels were also on-hand; the first was the very start of the game, to get players accustomed to the mechanics, and which I believe everyone is somewhat familiar with; most of it is recognizable from the time I saw the game in person at E3, but never got a chance to play, and which has since been featured in numerous trailers. It looked like a level from the first DKC, but updated naturally, and I could dig.
The second was centered on mine carts, and felt the most DKC-like of the bunch. The third was a boss battle, the very first one actually, and the fourth level was much later in the game, near the end actually. Every Nintendo rep kept saying beforehand, “it’s really, REALLY hard.”
Let’s start with the positives: Tropical Freeze looks great. PS4 and Xbone devotees will probably chuckle or roll their eyes, but for the rest of us, the novelty of seeing classic Nintendo characters in high definition has not worn thin the least bit. Despite being clearly cartoony, there are numerous tiny touches that make the game come alive, like the quality of DK’s fur.
The overall presentation is top notch; the rock solid 2D gameplay is effectively and tastefully enhanced with a cinematic camera that knows when to do its thing and when to just stay out of the way. As for level designs, which is one of the things that platforming fanatics care about the most, it clearly taps into the sources of inspiration. The number of enemies, along with their placement and behavior, along with the desired pacing and action, definitely felt like DKC of old.
Which is to say that game is no cakewalk. Granted, the first level was, but that’s how all level ones work. The mine cart racing was nice and challenging, with plenty of pick ups that can only be attainable if one times their jumps perfectly. The boss battle was fun, with a good deal of variety, especially for a first showdown, though it was also a bit overly long, especially for a first showdown. The last level is what interested me in the most, to see if it demanded the same level of focus and determination as the SNES games. And it did. But…
My biggest beef with the game is the controls. It perhaps would have helped if I had been familiar with the Wii release, which I am told is what it’s based upon. So fans of that game might want to take the following part with a grain of salt. But all my Donkey Kong skills were honed during the 16-bit days, in which all actions were divided into two primary buttons. One was for jump, and that remains the same here, but instead of being able to roll and grab onto stuff with a second input, in the new game(s) they’re separated.
So when trying to deal with one enemy after another, and one treacherous leap after another, along with combinations of both, I was never able to build up the necessary momentum, due to all the extra brain power necessary. Which isn’t much, but the key to platforming bless is have controls be as drop dead simple and fluid as possible. Though the biggest issue is how, again on the SNES, the rolling attack was fairly easy to pull off. If you’re standing next to an enemy, hit a button and you plow through him. Done. But now, a certain degree of momentum is necessary (or at least, I perceived there to be), which further disrupted the flow.
I’m guessing that those familiar with Donkey Kong Country Returns will have zero problems. Whereas after a good solid hour and half of playing, I never felt truly comfortable or got into a groove. The choice of controllers probably didn’t help either. Playing with the GamePad was fine, since there’s more than enough buttons. The Wii Remote and nunchuck combo was simply “okay”. There’s no dedicated button for attack enemies or pounding the ground, so one must instead swing the remote. As a person who defends motion controls, even I found it awkward. With just the Wii Remote, you’re holding it like an NES controller, except for the part in which you have to shake like before. I have a feeling that the Pro Controller will be the desired input option.
All that being said, I ended up dying a lot in the as advertised hard level. It should be noted that many contemporary Nintendo games have a feature that holds a player’s hand if they detect difficulty and such an option is not present. Though I was told that this feature was turned off for the demo and that some form of assistance will be present in the final product.
In the end, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze seems great, though it just wasn’t the Donkey Kong Country I expected. It might not be for you, so be sure to get yourself aquatinted with Returns beforehand. With the recent 3DS re-release, that shouldn’t be too difficult.
