Why, after all these years, Donkey Kong is still the gorilla of my dreams…
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Verdict: Prime among primates. Rating:. When it comes to the pantheon of Nintendo heroes, I never really understood the allure — or even the purpose — of that gurning gorilla Donkey Kong. Why bother, I thought, with a bunch of jungle-themed platforming games when you could be playing Mario instead?But that was before I experienced Donkey Kong Country Returns in 2010. That’s when Donkey Kong clicked for me — and, I’d like to think, when he clicked in general.
![[Thankfully, Returns is so good - and has enough extra little side-challenges - that you’ll want to keep on trying]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/16/23/94192297-0-image-a-2_1737070695976.jpg)
This was a masterpiece of a platformer. Full of colour, character and some of the most enjoyably demanding levels that this jumptastic genre has to offer. And now Donkey Kong Country Returns has, well, returned — in a new, re-prettified HD version for the Nintendo Switch.
![[Aside from the HD graphics and those new concessions, there isn’t much to this new version that wasn’t in the original]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/16/23/94192259-0-image-a-3_1737070698058.jpg)
Time hasn’t just been kind to this one; it’s tickled its fur and fed it a thousand bananas. Returns is still special. And difficult. Very difficult once you’re past, say, the first quarter of its 80 or so levels. This is a game that requires calm nerves and precise button presses. And there are some especially frustrating passages, such as those involving runaway minecarts, when even those qualities might not be enough. Prepare to lose life after life after life.
Donkey Kong Country Returns has returned in a new, re-prettified HD version for the Nintendo Switch, writes Peter Hoskin. Thankfully, Returns is so good - and has enough extra little side-challenges - that you’ll want to keep on trying. Aside from the HD graphics and those new concessions, there isn’t much to this new version that wasn’t in the original.
