PRODUCED/DEVELOPED BY: Rare / Nintendo
GENDER: Action/Adventure/Platformer
PLATFORMS: Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Gameboy Advance
YEAR OF RELEASING: 1996 (for SNES) and 2005 (for GBA)
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 1 to 2
Ah, yes... 1996 was a revolutionary year in the history of video gaming, the birth of the Nintendo 64, of Crash Bandicoot, and the third and final episode of the Donkey Kong Country trilogy. Although it's not as innovative as the two previous games, it still is very good. Like its two predecessors, it also had a version for the first Gameboy ever (called here "Donkey Kong Land 3: The Race Against Time") and a remake for GBA. In this last comparison, I'm going to tell you readers the good and bad points of this game, which is filled with pop culture references (even Link and Mario are parodied in here).
STORYLINE – 6.5
Well, the story got even more Mario
than in the previous game, however, in this game there's a thing that Bowser
was never capable to do: kidnap the others under a clever disguise. Donkey
and Diddy Kong went fishing, but they were suddenly kidnapped by a mysterious
entity named KAOS (who's actually a robot secretly controlled by K. Rool,
named Baron K. Roolenstein in here). Dixie Kong starts to get a little
worried about the two Kongs and decides to look for them on a hitherto
unseen part of the D.K. Islands, named Northern Kremisphere, a pacific
archipelago ruled by the Banana Birds (curious little birds with magical
abilities whose bodies resemble a banana when they're stopped) until the
Kremlings took it over. In the Kremisphere, Dixie finds that Funky Kong
opened a boat rental in there, and borrows a boat from him. Then, Funky
suggests that Dixie should take her baby cousin Kiddy, as he's super-strong.
Dixie accepts and the quest begins. On the GBA, unlike its two predecessors,
the game does not feature an animated intro.
GAMEPLAY
SNES VERSION – 8.5 Well, some features
were only recreations of some "DKC2" items. For Instance, the Bear Coins,
silver coins with the head of a bear drawn on them, are the same thing
as the Banana Coins. The Bonus Coins, won when you successfully complete
a bonus level, are reminiscent of the Kremkoins. They also have the same
function of the previous game: unlock one level of the secret world, Krematoa.
The Video Game Hero Coins are also back, but they got a new function (and
a new way to obtain them): to do so, you must find and kill an enemy named
Koin, a crocodile carrying a shield. You can, once more, find the members
of the Kong family, who can help you on your quest.
SWANKY KONG: He now has a bonus tent,
where you compete against Cranky Kong in a "hit the target" game to win
a lot of banana bunches and Bear Coins.
WRINKLY KONG: Once more, saves your
game, and keeps your Banana Birds. FUNKY KONG: The now owner of a boat
rental, he builds the boats for you to proceed on the adventure with the
items you win after beating a boss.
There are also the Brothers Bear, found in houses scattered through all the islands. They mostly give you Banana Birds or other items that you can use on your adventure. Those fellows are Bazaar, Barnacle, Brash, Blunder, Blue, Bazooka, Bramble, Barter, Blizzard, Benny, Björn, Baffle, and Boomer. There are also the good ol' animal buddies:
ELLIE: A cute elephant that can grab
barrels with its trunk and sometimes can spit water.
ENGUARDE: You know him for two games;
I have nothing more to say about him.
SQUITTER: The people know this spider
very well; too: she can spin webs and create web platforms.
SQUAWKS: This parrot has regained his
abilities: carry the Kongs and spit eggs.
PARRY: A parallel bird (what's this?)
who has the most lame ability ever: he only hovers the Kongs, collecting
items on top of them.
SQUEAKS: Do you remember that purple
parrot similar to Squawks that appeared in the level "Parrot-Chute Panic"
of the previous game? Now this little guy has a major appearance. Although
he can't spit eggs like Squawks and only appears at the level "Low-G Labyrinth",
he can now grab barrels.
Now you ask me: what are those Banana Birds so mentioned? Here's the explanation: as I've said in the story, the Northern Kremisphere was inhabited by those little guys until the Kremlings arrived, locked all of those birds in crystal caves, and dominated the whole place. Dixie and Kiddy can unlock those caves by pressing a sequence of buttons correctly.
GBA VERSION - 9
Okay, it's almost the same thing as
in the original one, with the following changes:
- There's a new world, named Pacifica.
- Funky has now 4 minigames, and you
win a Banana Bird for completing them all.
- Swanky's game is now a virtual reality
game where you must collect the biggest number of stars to win a Banana
Bird.
- Cranky now has a minigame of his
own, "Cranky's Dojo", to replace Wrinkly's Save Caves, as the player can
save the game by pressing START on any map and then choosing "Save game".
- The original boss of the world Razor
Ridge was a giant sea-urchin named Barbos; in here, Barbos is moved to
Pacifica and the Kraken Kroctopus is now boss of Razor Ridge.
- The bear Barnacle, originally living
in the world Lake Orangatanga, was moved to Pacifica too. The newcomer
Bachelor now lives in the lake.
MUSIC
SNES VERSION – 9.5
The music is once more made by David
Wise, with newcomer Eveline Fischer (or Novakovic). The music regained
that spooky effect that the first DKC had. My faves: "Nuts and Bolts",
"Jungle Jitter", and "Big Boss Blues".
GBA VERSION – 1.5
The music was all changed!!! This is
quite surprising to me. It would be very good if they made those clever
remixes like in DKC2! However, some music was much better in the original
version, like "Nuts and Bolts", "Stilt Village", and "Mill Fever".
GRAPHICS
SNES VERSION – 9.5
The graphics of this game are the most
bright and detailed of the whole series. Very good!
GBA VERSION - 10!
Well, considering the game was made
for a GBA, the graphics are brighter than in the original version... Nothing
more to say.
FUN FACTOR! - 10!
Well, the game is quite fun, and is
filled with references to popular culture... Link is mentioned, Wrinkly
plays Super Mario 64 sometimes... Very nice.
FINAL NOTE – 9.5
Except for the already worn-out story
and the lack of creativity for the items, DKC3 is one of the best games
of the trilogy. However, I recommend more the SNES version: the GBA one
is quite of dull. Its gameplay was more focused on the minigames than on
the game by itself. It doesn't even have the animated cast of characters!
Very, VERY dull.
BE PREPARED FOR MY NEXT REVIEW:
Ape Escape
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