The Donkey Kong Country series has always had a unique reputation when it comes to the platforming genre.

On the one hand, it’s a classic, Nintendo platformer, through and through. Approachable, has the charm, humour, fun, replayable levels, intriguing mechanics and supports local co-op.

And on the other, it’s a series that thrives on being hard as nails, that sees you die again and again due to a tough landing or overshooting a jump and constantly throws unexpected (even unwelcome) surprises when you least expect it.

Never was I more reminded of this than when replaying Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. Going back to Tropical Freeze a few years back was an eye-opener, but I guess my brain needed yet another refresher on just how rough going these games can be.

On the very first level, I spent an embarrasing amount of time trying to collect the O in KONG because it was positioned at the center of a small chasm I just could not cross. I’m not going to reveal exactly how many lives I lost but I can’t remember the last time I celebrated so hard after finishing the first level of a game. Maybe Ninja Gaiden..

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD isn’t bad enough to throw your Switch against a wall hard! But when you put it alongside other Nintendo platformers, especially more recent offerings like Super Mario Wonder, Kirby Star Allies or Yoshi’s Crafted World, you’ll really notice the notch up in difficulty.

I kind of like that about these games. And let’s be fair, it should be no secret at this point, considering Rare were going hard with these way back in the SNES days. It’s a staple and what I loved about Returns before and still love now, is this game really is a homage, love letter and elegant reminder of how good those games were. Just with a fresher lick of paint.

And the HD remaster ups those visuals once more, really showing off the beautiful character models, the unique pastel effects of certain levels and the dense variety that is on offer in the world of Kong. The game has never looked better and it’s just in time as the Ape family are entering another peak in popularity through the Mario Movie. Donkey’s even got his own ride in Universal Studios and line of merch, so it’s only fitting we see more games with him

I just worry that for some youngsters this one might take some getting used to. Retro and Forever do not hold back or sugar coat anything and that may come as a surprise for some players. Though there is at least a Modern Mode in the game now, which is the most logical starting point for new players.

Here you can gain more hearts and items, but you can also purchase a lot more in Cranky’s shop between areas, grabbing more balloons and elixirs and even a parrot to help you find the hidden puzzle pieces and letters. It’s still a tough game and some sections really do require more concentration and dexterity than most, but it’ll at least make the ride a little easier.

In Returns, Donkey and Diddy must face off with the Tiki Tak Tribe who have been hypnotising the residents of Kong Island and stealing the banana hoard. That’s just a step too far for the Kongs as they set out to put things right.

And in true Donkey Kong Country fashion, you’ll face off with all sorts of over sized insects, raging hogs, and crabs that will randomly pop up when you least expect it and each require a slightly different strategy from the other. You won’t just be able to roll through a batch or jump on someone’s head. Sometimes you’ll have to thumb the ground and get them to roll over or throw something at them.

The smart thing about the Donkey Kong Country games is they rarely let you get into your rhythm. There’s some levels, sure, that require you to know the routes a bit and allow you to go a bit on autopilot, but even then, you can never be totally asleep at the wheel, no matter how many hearts you’ve got between you and Diddy.

Speaking of, with Diddy you can hover for a little bit, getting a bit of extra height and hang time with your jumps. And right from the offset, you need to get pretty proficient at combining your skills. Which is where co-oping together can be really fruitful – or potentially a hindrance, depending on how in sync you are with each other.

I guess I’ve always seen the DK games like a mix of Sonic and Mario. Diddy definitely gives off those Tails vibes when Sonic couldn’t quite the leap he needs and hopping into one of those Mine Carts is definitely a wild, wacky trip you’ll need to keep up with.

Where this remaster is a little more interesting than previous iterations is that it offers you a mix between motion and button controls, paying homage to the Wii original where you can waggle the JoyCons around as you see fit or dive straight into the action with buttons, depending on where you feel most comfortable. The motion controls, essentially letting Donkey thump the ground around him.

But it also brings in those extra levels from the 3DS version of the game, so you’re really getting the best of both worlds here – minus the 3D support, of course. These 8 extra levels were added in Cloud Gateway and really show a nice blend of the creativity that already existed in the game but adds in a few nice surprises on top.

One of the things I loved most about Returns the first time I played and up to now is the way it plays with 2.5D. It’s something we saw a lot more recently with Mario Wonder actually but in DKCR you’ll find yourself pushing towards the back and foreground using barrels and spontaneously created platforms. The game plays beautifully with perspective and it really makes full use of space and environment as you push towards the end of each stage.

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a great game, but it does, sadly, now live in a post Tropical Freeze world. Unequivocably, this is now the series pinnacle and so playing Returns HD, at times, feels a little lacking in comparison. It’s still a great game and it absolutely inspired much of the great content DK’s latest offers, but it does often feel what’s done in TF is done better.

Some may also argue that this isn’t offering a ton different from the Wii or even 3DS version of the game beyond the upscaled visuals. To be fair, these do look incredibly crisp now, thought I was surprised by some frame rate drops and dips. Does make one wonder how Switch 2 will handle this later in the year.

Regardless, Donkey Kong Country Returns is a welcome addition to the Switch library and feels like the beginning of a wonderful swansong for a console that has given us so many great games and memories. If you’ve never played the game before, I cannot recomend this one heartily enough.

Verdict

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is, unsurprisingly, the definitive way to play this platforming gem. Its difficulty is going to be off-putting for some and there are questions around how much this adds from previous iterations of the game. But despite some slight frame rate dips and it not quite being to the same quality standards of Tropical Freeze, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a fantastic platformer that you should absolutely add to your Switch library, especially if you’ve never played it before.

Pros

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Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is out now on Nintendo Switch.

Code Kindly Provided by Nintendo for review purposes