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News Donkey Kong Country Returns HD announced for Nintendo Switch, coming January 16th, 2025

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Kaizo said:
I know we all wanted a brand new game, but this was an awesome announcement for me. It means we have every single DKC game available on the Switch now, and if you ask me, DKCR is one of the best of them. Sure, Tropical Freeze is better, but DKCR's got the edge in classic vibes if you dig that. I'll be all over this one - one of the best Wii and platforming games I ever played.
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I am always glad of more DK, but I also want a new DK. Anyways I'll take it, a port of one of the best 2d games ever.
 
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This is honestly the least interesting DK announcement they could've made. TF is already on Switch and just a better game overall, and Returns has gotten plenty of limelight being on 3DS. I wouldve taken even a remake of DK64 over this just to have something unexpected for the brand.

I do think it's nice at least a definitive edition of this game now exists by combining better visuals and performance with the exclusive 3DS content.

I can't help but feel Donkey Kong deserves better though than Nintendo's promotion around the theme park being a remaster of DKCR and a remake of Mario vs. Donkey Kong. We know they can do more when Mario RPG fans over there get 2 remakes and a brand new game. Losing hope that DK could be a Switch 2 launch year game with this in January though...
 
Nice to see higher detail Models for dk and diddy, and this is a good game so I'm glad its available…but yeah, ngl after this long without a new dk game, this feels like a slap to the face
 
Beanstar40 said:
Nice to see higher detail Models for dk and diddy, and this is a good game so I'm glad its available…but yeah, ngl after this long without a new dk game, this feels like a slap to the face
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I have to think it's just a holdover for something coming on Switch 2

I bet this is a "oh nintendo has been sitting on it for a while" type release, well except for it being 2025... that I can't explain.


MP1 entire remake? Shadow drop! DKC HD? Wait a year.
 
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I understand people who may be a little disappointed. Personally, I am thrilled. I will finally be able to play the game without horrible wiimote or motion control. I will finally be able to discover the 3DS levels that I do not know. And we officially have all the Donkey Kong Country games available on Nintendo switch which is a great news as well.

And to finish on an even more positive and enthusiastic note, we can have both Returns HD now and a new episode at the beginning of the switch 2 lifecycle.
 
It's good to finally have a definitive version of this game. Both previous versions had downsides (mandatory motion controls on Wii, low resolution on 3DS), so this will be great to have. I wish it had come out sooner!
 
What amazing timing. I was thinking about purchasing the 3DS version literally yesterday but didn't follow through yet. Never played any version of this, so I'll get the Switch version and will play that with my partner.
 
I mentioned this in the DK thread but I wish Funky were in. He's such a smart implementation of easy mode without feeling condescending.
 
Left with neutral feelings about this It's nice that Nintendo has enough common sense to realize that a theme park section based on game you can't actually play is a bit foolhardy and having a definitive edition of Returns without waggle or a compromised resolution is nice. However, at the end of the day it just another port of a 14-year-old game and confirms that the Switch will be the first home console since the NES to not have a DK game of its own.

On one hand it's cool to have that band-aid ripped off and at least contextualizes what the Switch era will be for DK. Its lifespan will essentially be that not to dissimilar to that of the Gamecube where the potential of the franchise ultimately went a bit wasted either due to canceled projects or lack of prioritization of the franchise. There's an additional bitter sting given how successful the former console has been and seemingly every Nintendo IP (barring F-Zero & Star Fox) has had their shot in the sun, but not really Donkey Kong. The lack of more expansive use of the brand (literally having to wait until the last moment to even get Diddy and Funky in Mario Kart 8, a K Rool appearance in Smash basically driven by essentially fan demand to name two examples) certainly didn't help much either.

But I'm not saying to give up hope either. From a practical standpoint, the indie scene has produced some really solid DKC tribute titles like Nikoderiko and realistically that's the best chance to experience a new Country style game than concretely expecting Nintendo to do it. The latter could be potentially working on a major new DK game for Switch 2, with Returns acting as an appetizer before the series gets its proverbial BoTW on the next console. Personally, the company hasn't really done much to earn my faith with the series in that regard, but Nintendo's always an unpredictable beast, and the (personally) disappointing Gamecube years did lead to the fantastic experience of Returns on Wii, so perhaps history is bound to repeat.
 
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Appetiser before the big DK Reveal for Holiday 25 as one of the big titles for Switch 2.
 
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Prob the biggest missed opportunity of the presentation was not giving Donkey Kong a new game.

Still, it's nice to have this for those that didn't originally play it.
 
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The more comparisons I am seeing with the Wii version, the more excited I'm getting.

Get rid of that 6 hearts bs though. Back in my day you had one life and hoped that your partner was with you.
 
I wonder whether this is the rumored Bandai Namco 3DS remaster that they've been working on. The fact that this has the 3DS levels in it makes me think that version is being used as the base.
 
LiveStudioCrowd said:
However, at the end of the day it just another port of a 14-year-old game and confirms that the Switch will be the first home console since the NES to not have a DK game of its own.
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If switch 1 continues to be powered for a year or two after the release of switch 2, I don’t see why there could not be a new Donkey Kong crosgen game, in a purely theoretical way.

However, I agree with you that a Donkey Kong Country Returns port this late in the switch 1 lifecycle suggests that the next Donkey Kong game will be very ambitious and will probably be reserved for the next hardware.
 
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ComradeKoopa said:
I thought Tropical Freeze was one of the best 2D platformers ever made. Would I like this too?
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Probably? It has shorter, more numerous, and less unique levels; more akin to a Mario game. And the music and art design are a lot weaker. Expect it to lack the flow of Tropical Freeze and be a lot more stop and start too.

As others have said, it also has a chip on its shoulder about being hardcore difficult, which was ironed out for TF. Most notably, rocket barrels and mine carts are much more numerous, worse designed, and kill you in one hit. You can kind of tell this was a developer who had never made a platformer before and got here through a long and difficult process of polish and constant iteration rather than coming in with an innate understanding of what made it work.

All nitty gritty changes to design philosphy aside though, they're pretty similar games in their base gameplay and structure. Just, if Tropical Freeze is a top 10 platformer, Returns is probably closer to the bottom half of a top 100.

I think Donkey Kong Country is the single highest pedigreed name in the genre (mostly through coincidence of all the bad ones getting different titles), and so even the weaker entries would be a feather in the cap of any other platformer series. This is one of the weaker entries though.
 
DKC Returns is a bit like the Samus Returns to Tropical Freeze's Dread; a remarkable game that served a tremendous reestablishment of the franchise, but not entirely there with its ideas and having its successor polish the shakier gameplay elements initially introduced.
 
LiveStudioCrowd said:
DKC Returns is a bit like the Samus Returns to Tropical Freeze's Dread; a remarkable game that served a tremendous reestablishment of the franchise, but not entirely there with its ideas and having its successor polish the shakier gameplay elements initially introduced.
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I love Returns and Dread equally so this is good news to me!
 
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I do think Nintendo is making Donkey Kong remakes to keep the series relevant until they figure out in what direction they should take the series in the future.
 
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Well, I wanted Nintendo to make me feel like watching the DKC Returns announcement video for the first time. And they did make me watch a DKCR announcement video for the first time again, so kudos.

But to me, the best direct news was that Metroid Prime 4 is finally coming.. which means Retro is free to work on DKCR3 for the next Switch.
 
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Dekuman said:
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Really loving how they made everything just a little brighter and less washed out, the colors really pop now. Returns always had a slightly dark, dingy feeling to its environments, and I wonder if this will alter that mood for the better a bit. Also, love the Wind Waker-style waves in Sunset Shore, that's a wonderful touch.

You can see some effects they haven't finished yet if you look closely here. The beams of light filtering through the canopy in Vine Valley are completely gone, and you can see some mist from the background waterfalls in Temple Topple, but the waterfalls are just outright not there. Peaceful Pier's new busier-looking water also looks weird not being animated, so I hope that's unfinished too.

Edit: By the way, if anyone's curious, the "80 levels" figure they're presenting as a selling point here is actually exactly correct. It's counting everything, including boss fights, K Temples, and whatever Lift-Off Launch is. As opposed to the first Donkey Kong Country, which claimed on the back of the box to have "over 100 levels" by counting every single bonus room as a level.
 
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Ooh I should probably go back and complete the 300% run I started earlier this year.

It's hella difficult though, I think I got stuck on the mole train boss on hard mode
 
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It was hard not to think about that famous kotaku article and the "another fucking Donkey Kong" since it was shown before Metroid Zero Mission NSO and Metroid Prime 4 ^^

I liked DKC Returns much more on the 3DS despite losing the 60 FPS, just because of the controls. I'll probably double dip but I just wished they put some fur shading on the Kongs... they look so flat after Tropical Freeze.

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Holy banana, they actually have fur ?
 
Professor Chops said:
I'm glad Nintendo has enough confidence in the DK brand to delegate porting duties to a shovelware studio. Then again, they gave Zelda to the makers of Funky Barn.
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They also bought the Studio who made the MK1 Switch ports.

But the DK HD games looks pretty good, the only issue I can see is pricing being steep, but their most likely supervise by Nintendo.
 
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totofogo said:
Thread title must be: Donkey Kong Country Returns Returns Returns
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Retro Studios :
Donkey Kong Country 4 ?
"Donkey Kong Country Returns"

Yoshio Sakamoto :
Metroid 2 : Return of Samus ?
"Metroid : Samus Returns"

Forever Entertainement :
"Err... help ?"
 
Interesting choice for studio, but I guess it's a pretty safe project for them. Panzer Dragoon was...lackluster but HOTD looked good.
 
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