Given some of those returning themes - and who couldn't be moved by the ethereal whisp of Aquatic Ambiance - Tropical Freeze is evidently a game that's literate in the series' history, something played upon to great effect in bonus levels that ape Donkey Kong Jr's rope swinging or extended nods to Rare's 1994 SNES Donkey Kong Country. And let's not forget David Wise's soundtrack, which weaves together old classics with new compositions, all of which provide a strangely soft-edged and chilled-out counterpoint to the action's more forceful challenge.
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The art of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze might fall a little short of what Nintendo's internal studios can conjure up - this series has always looked a little Dreamworks in contrast to the Pixar of EAD and EPD - but it has a coherence which is entirely its own. It'd be exhausting if it wasn't delivered with such verve. Levels take single ideas - the underwater chase of Irate Eight, the minecart run of High Tide Ride or the storm-whipped savannah of Frantic Fields - and work them to just before the point of exhaustion, and then gleefully toss them aside for something new. Its levels are a succession of set-pieces, their complexity masked by a dynamic camera.
Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze might just be another 2D platformer, but good god does it make an effort in putting on a spectacle. Bar Tokyo EAD's bongo-infused Jungle Beat, no other game has nailed the heavy-palmed, gamboling momentum of Donkey Kong so effectively. There's a refined physicality to Donkey Kong's movement - another thing you lose when playing as Funky Kong, sadly - with levels there to be bashed and bounded throuch. It's the least you can do, really, given how Retro Studios has nailed the not inconsiderable task of taking some fairly dusty old platformers and crafting something that feels vibrant and alive - and it's all done in the detail.
Take your time, plot your course then work on nailing the execution - repeatedly, as the case may often be. They can be harsh, yes, but Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze is a game to be savoured. It's a neat way to sidestep the brutality that Tropical Freeze presents, and worth having on tap for when frustration mounts, though by large I'd recommend against it, given how it compromises the exquisite design of Retro Studios' levels. The big addition here is a playable Funky Kong, complete with a moveset that makes a mockery of the challenge the later levels pose there's a double jump, invulnerability to spikes and the ability to float slowly to safety once mid-air.
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It certainly sparkles a little brighter than the Wii U version - DigitalFoundry has the full breakdown, and essentially you're looking at a bump up from 720p to 1080p when docked - and, for a game that's renowned for its difficulty, is a little more accessible too. Maybe this Switch port is the time for it to really shine. It's a more elegant solution to Tropical Freeze's difficulty than the newly playable Funky Kong himself. A trip to Funky Kong's shop will allow you to purchase several booster items such as extra hearts or the ability to swim for an unlimited time underwater. A small shame, really - for my money, Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze is a rival for the original Metroid Prime as an example of Retro Studios' very best work.
Rare's original SNES trio were fine games - and fine looking, of course, thanks to the ACM technique responsible for their unique look - but they never really displayed the same level of craft and ingenuity as the very best of Nintendo's output of the time.Ĭouple that with the sense of disappointment that developer Retro Studios was taken away from the beloved Metroid Prime series for this most unlikely of reboots back in 2010 - and the subsequent dismay that Retro Studios would also make what looked like a copy and paste sequel in 2014 - and it's no wonder that it all went a little unloved.
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The Wii U's paltry install base meant it was never going to get a rousing reception, regardless of its quality, and there's always been a slight stigma around the Donkey Kong Country series. Some of that apathy is understandable, admittedly.
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