You can learn a lot about yourself, while playing video games. You can be sent on grand journeys to distant planets or jungles, discover a history you’ve never known, and leave these worlds with a reflection on the nature of living, laughing, loving. You may also find out more about yourself than you’ve ever wished to know. For example, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD revealed to me a truth I’ve been avoiding: at my core, I am a quitter. I love to quit. “If it sucks, hit da bricks,” is a personal favourite saying.
It was in Donkey Kong Country Returns HD‘s third world that I heard this catchphrase revolving around my brain – somewhere between blasting myself through fast-moving barrels and into the earth, and consistently missing the letters of “KONG” so that my final score read “KOG” “KOG” “KOG”. To a more resilient platformer-lover, I’d imagine the hunt for secrets brings great joy – but only when paired with great talent.
Donkey Kong Country Returns really is a spectacular, well-designed platformer, and I can see that beyond my frustration-induced tears. In remastering the game for
Read: Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered – Review
There is a heart-pounding rhythm and flow to each stage, with new gimmicks keeping you on your toes at every turn. As much as it felt like I was trying to sing a song without knowing the words, there were still moments I outright loved in Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. Its mine cart levels are particularly satisfying to complete, with these pushing you along a track that requires precise jumps, but doesn’t punish failure.
I was also particularly enamoured with one seaside level where rising water levels mean you have to duck quickly behind columns, to avoid being swept away. In this creative approach to platforming, and its sense of genuine innovation, the game remains endearing, even despite its difficulty. And in fairness, it’s not quite so punishing that you feel like you’re knocking your head against a wall. Checkpoints are relatively frequent, and a smorgasbord of new ideas in each world mean you’re not performing the same repetitive tasks over and over.
I greatly enjoyed the unique boss fights in this game, with their sense of timing and the need to analyse attack patterns. Every beach-themed level is my friend, and I loved the pirate ship escapes of the early worlds. Swinging from vine to vine in jungle stages was equally cool, as was charting a mushroom course of danger.
But the barrels! And the surprise enemies! And the well-timed jumps required! Oh dear.
In the end, it was with a stubborn sense of obligation that I wrestled my way through the many worlds of this game, determined to see its end, and to do it justice. Even when my every attempt to conquer a level failed, I pressed on. Facing down a smorgasbord of fast-moving, deathly barrels, determined to make me meet my end, I persisted.
See this image? Donkey Kong is trapped in one of these barrels. They’re constantly switching, at a rapid pace – and even one wrong move will send the monkey hurtling towards spikes, or spiky enemies, or falling into the abyss below. I’m willing to consider there’s no real rhythm in me, because any time these challenges popped up, that monkey was dying. Again, and again. I couldn’t lock in. My brain was a shambles. It would’ve been embarrassing to watch by any third party, so I’m glad I played this game alone – with only Donkey and Diddy Kong to lament my many demises.
This experience, paired with the elation of eventual success, and the nailing down of the many jumps required to survive in Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, made my journey a rollercoaster – much faster and more unruly than the game’s own mine cart rides.
The game showed me beautiful sights. It made me duck and cover as those same sights filled with bombs. It tested my brain matter, and grated against my quitting default. But in the end, it proved to me that anything is possible – even defying your own nature – as long as you’re motivated enough to try.
Fans of the original game will likely devour this remaster, with an appreciation for the care in its visual revamp. Those looking to play it for the first time may be surprised by its high bar of difficulty. But there is a rich (and slightly smug) satisfaction to be found in conquering its many layered worlds – whether you give in to the monkey madness, or maintain a more level head. What matters is that you press on, and greet the game’s many challenges with your ape arms swinging.
Four stars: ★★★★
Donkey Kong Country Returns HD
Platform(s): Nintendo Switch
Developer: Retro Studios / Forever Entertainment
Publisher:
Release Date: 16 January 2025
A code for Donkey Kong Country Returns HD was provided by the publisher for the purposes of this review. GamesHub reviews are rated on a ten-point scale.
