On the newest Nintendo Direct Showcase, we discovered that Nintendo will probably be releasing Donkey Kong Nation Returns HD, a Change remaster of the 2010 Wii sport that beforehand noticed a re-release on the Nintendo 3DS in 2013. Among the finest titles within the implausible Donkey Kong Nation collection, this new launch will convey this difficult however riveting journey to a complete new viewers on Nintendo’s ever-popular hybrid machine. It’s undoubtedly a sport to stay up for within the early a part of 2025 whereas we look forward to Nintendo’s subsequent console.
Now that is all nicely and good, however I can’t fake I’m not chomping on the bit to get an entirely new Donkey Kong sport in some unspecified time in the future. It’s been a decade for the reason that final entry within the collection, Donkey Kong Nation: Tropical Freeze, and 6 years since we final heard from the franchise when this sport obtained a re-release on the Change. Moreover, it’s been the subject of a number of rumors over the previous couple of years, so it looks like Nintendo may very nicely be making a brand new entry into the franchise. Hopefully, it will likely be prepared quickly, as a result of it’s excessive time for Donkey Kong to get a brand new sport.
Perhaps Donkey Kong Ought to Soar Again to 3D?
Personally, I’d like to see Nintendo strive one thing new in 3D with Donkey Kong. Positive, Donkey Kong 64 has aged in lots of areas, and I feel among the collect-a-thon components will should be toned down, however Donkey Kong has not gone 3D since then. Between 2005’s Donkey Kong Jungle Beat and Retro Studios’ Donkey Kong Nation duology on the Wii and Wii U, mainline Donkey Kong titles have largely caught to a 2.5D type. Perhaps it’s excessive time for Nintendo to attempt to experiment with one other totally 3D title within the franchise.
In spite of everything, Nintendo has had no bother bringing largely 2D franchises into the world of 3D as of late. It was simply two years in the past that Kirby lastly had his first totally 3D title in Kirby and the Forgotten Land, coming after nicely over a decade of Kirby being a chief 2.5D collection for Nintendo. Even throughout the identical Nintendo Direct the place Donkey Kong Nation Returns HD was introduced, we noticed the announcement of Mario & Luigi: Brothership, which is about to be the primary entry within the Mario & Luigi franchise to have totally 3D gameplay. Given how lengthy it’s been, Donkey Kong deserves his time to shine, and it appears like he’d shine even brighter if given the possibility to topline a totally 3D title.
Rumors have beforehand acknowledged that the subsequent Donkey Kong sport will probably be developed by the crew at Nintendo that beforehand made Tremendous Mario Odyssey. This crew clearly confirmed their love and look after Donkey Kong in Odyssey with New Donk Metropolis, a city that includes a number of references and odes to the unique Donkey Kong sport the place Mario made his debut. You even get to fulfill the unique Donkey Kong sport’s damsel in misery, Pauline, who’s the mayor of town, and the ultimate part of the extent sees you going through off in opposition to Donkey Kong, designed after his sprite from the unique arcade title. If any crew may convey Donkey Kong again in a compelling 3D title, it’s undoubtedly the crew that made one of many Change’s best titles.
How About Mario and Donkey Kong? No, Not That Mario and Donkey Kong.
Maybe a good higher thought for a brand new Donkey Kong sport can be one that mixes Mario and Donkey Kong…no, not like that different collection. Mario vs. Donkey Kong is loads of enjoyable, and it’s actually a terrific little puzzle sport with platformer components, however it will be cool to see these two come collectively in a full-blown 3D platformer. In spite of everything, Mario made his debut in Donkey Kong, so the 2 franchises are virtually intrinsically tied to 1 one other. Given their deep historical past, it will be fairly superior to see the 2 of them come along with a correct 3D platformer that lets them play off of each other in their very own particular methods.
We already acquired to see one thing of a sneak preview of this in The Tremendous Mario Bros. Film, the place Mario has to journey to the Jungle Kingdom to recruit Donkey Kong in his quest to cease Bowser. The duo spends a good bit of the film collectively – at one level even going to blows with each other in an epic battle scene – however there’s one standout scene the place the each of them do a little bit of “platforming” collectively, culminating in Donkey Kong himself even selecting up a Hearth Flower. This one small scene appears like a terrific preview of what a joint Mario and Donkey Kong platformer may seem like, and the way a brand new sport may have Mario and Donkey Kong taking part in to their very own distinctive strengths, whereas additionally implementing a factor or two from the alternative franchise.
In spite of everything, the Tremendous Mario and Donkey Kong Nation franchises each have their very own distinctive components. The Mario platformers rely much more on contextually acceptable power-ups that assist Mario advance via particular sections of ranges, whereas the 3D titles are constructed on a larger sense of exploration than the standard Donkey Kong sport. Donkey Kong, alternatively, is constructed extra on set items equivalent to mine carts, and on animal buddies that assist Donkey Kong via ranges. But on the finish of the day, their platforming gameplay nonetheless has a good bit of similarity to it, and mixing all of it collectively, I’d like to see how nicely Mario and Donkey Kong may play off one another in a brand new sport, one which appears them coming collectively as a substitute of duking it out.
No matter whether or not Mario is there or not, although, it’s about time for Donkey Kong to go on a complete new journey in a brand-new sport. The collection has sat quietly for over a decade at this level, solely popping again in to say howdy when it’s time for a brand new re-release. Hell, it was simply three years in the past that Donkey Kong celebrated his fortieth anniversary, and Nintendo did completely nothing about it. Given the historic significance of the Donkey Kong collection – and the way it helped Nintendo’s different flagship franchise get on its toes – it’s notably stunning that Nintendo barely acknowledged this anniversary again in 2021. These re-releases are good and all, however let’s give Donkey Kong a correct probability to shine with a brand-new mainline sport.
