The recent release of the latest game in the Donkey Kong series has made me excited especially because it has been a long time since we have had a new game using the IP. Having a new 3D game immediately makes it feel vast and of a higher scale. When watching the trailer, I grew nostalgic after seeing glimpses of Cranky Kong and Rambi the Rhino as well as Diddy and Dixie Kong. What I didn’t know is how nostalgic the game would become and how it has made me excited for the future.
When I loaded up Donkey Kong Bonanza I was immediately drawn to the radiant colors, fluid movements, and easy and addictive gameplay. I had high hope for this game since I enjoyed all the previous entries in the Donkey Kong lineage. What had struck a note early on was the use of characters and locations that they had included and the fact that familiar tunes filled the air. This nod kept my history with Donkey Kong well rooted and propelled my continuing enjoyment of the new experience refreshing.
As time went by and I continued my descent layer by layer within the game I wasn’t sure where my journey would end up. Some levels were much more fun, open, and mesmerizing, while a few of them blurred with previous locations, which didn’t hinder my experience but make me question what’s next? Well, the game provided.
As I reached the planet core, I felt that this was going to be a standard meet the bad guy cut scene followed by an easy fight, then a more difficult one and I thought I was right, but that was far from what I had experienced. I do not want to ruin the surprise for those who have yet to play, but when I say I really enjoyed the surprise that was waiting for me there and the aftermath was more than I could have come up with myself. Nostalgia and connections became apparent and even my daughter who was playing along with me couldn’t believe some of the call backs. This is one of my favorite editions to a game and I hope Nintendo continues to do these types of surprises.
I Hope you as a player will get to experience what I got to experience. Have you played past games within Donkey Kong and Mario universe? Will you be picking up a Nintendo Switch 2? What is one of your favorite game surprises that you have experienced? Let us know your thoughts on the matter.
Image Source: Taken by Author
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