Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

"Not Better Than 1"

For comparison's sake, I gave DKC1 a 9/10.

This game is very good, but it's honestly rather unremarkable compared with the first one. DKC2 smoothed out the quirks, looking more like a normal performer than its predecessor, and while many features of the gameplay were improved, the overall quality is just not as good. I will rate this game based on comparisons with DKC1, since, if one has played DKC1, one will make similar comparisons while playing the game. Another note: I'm an art snob in my critique, and I treat a videogame as an experience worthy of study.

Graphics: 8/10

Yes, 8. That's because they're worse than in DKC1, for the most part. The beautiful curves and shiny trees of the original gave way to... wooden crates. There's nothing like the soft snow and blue sky of the end of Ice Age Alley, for instance; the locations look rather fake and bland, and the enemies have been needlessly modified from the original to look just less beautiful. The worlds (in the overworld) aren't as nice, either. Just about the only scenery that looks good is the bramble set (especially Screech's Sprint). This isn't to say that the graphics are not beautiful. They're just not THAT beautiful. And while usually I don't care too much about graphics, in this case the expectations set up by DKC1, where the graphics were critical to the experience, are unfulfilled.

Music: 8/10

I guess someone must have complained that the music of DKC1 was too lacking substance, because Dave Wise made almost every track feature a strong melody. And yes, I'M COMPLAINING ABOUT THAT. The genius of the music of DKC1 was the subtlety of the melodic elements (though the problem with it was the lack of unity of those melodic elements across the tracks, since there were three composers), and because DKC2 features singable lines everywhere, the atmosphere suffers. I wish I could write like Wise in DKC1, but 2 is less deserving of study. Essentially, the music became less complex and less interesting, consisting more of simple melody and accompaniment rather than interesting atmospheric writing that uses melody creatively. That said, this is good music, and the castle theme (from a few levels in K. Rool's Keep) was I think the first videogame tune I tried to play on the keyboard.

Atmosphere: 7/10

It's colorful. There are lots of bright colors, partly because Diddy and Dixie are red, brown, pink, and yellow. There's bright lava, bright lights in the amusement park (some of the worst "art" in the game, by the way), and just very colorful settings. Maybe I'm being contrary here, but I like more monochromatic things. It just feels less... Mysterious? That's not the word I'm looking for. I have nothing against colorful; I love Super Mario World, for instance. But for the sequel of a game that employed I suppose "enhanced natural" color schemes, the bright colors of DKC2 make for a less convincing experience. It's good, but it's different from the original, and I think the original did it better. Also, the pirate thing... I guess it's OK?

Gameplay: 8/10

Another way in which this game is more mediocre. Not much more mediocre, mind you -- the gameplay is excellent -- but not as original as the first one, going so far as to get rid of the idiosyncrasies of the former. The main thing you did in DKC1 was roll; you had to roll jump to get anywhere, for instance. Here in DKC2, there's all of one time when roll jumping is useful, and that's in a bonus stage on the very last world. They added things -- the helicopter spin, whereby Dixie hovers as she falls, and the team throw -- and in doing so, they got rid of the roll jump, the bouncy tires, and, well, barrels. There are a very few bonus stages openable by barrels (in the original, most were), and barrels are now solely a means of getting places. Diddy is significantly faster than Dixie, jumps higher, and has a much better roll, which doesn't really balance Dixie's ability to essentially fly. The balance of the original was also off -- the power of Donkey was almost never worth sacrificing Diddy's agility for -- but the two characters are more similar here and each has his/her uses. The best improvement over DKC1 in terms of gameplay was the addition of the DK Coins. The banana coins are annoying and serve almost no purpose (you have to pay to save, fly, and get hints... wow), but finding the 40 DK coins is a good challenge, especially since they're hidden in interesting places. I lied when I said that this was the best improvement: getting rid of the animal tokens was the best they could have done. Those tokens were just annoying in DKC1. Finally, the more varied animals are interesting, but I think that being able to shoot projectiles is in some ways against the spirit of the game. The original Expresso was completely defenseless, which made using him an interesting challenge, but he's been replaced by a parrot that can actually fly (except on one level, but we'll get there in the next section) and a spider that can build webs and essentially fly. AND BOTH OF THEM CAN SHOOT. Eh.

Levels: 10/10

The levels are good, unique, hard, and interesting, within the limits I mentioned above. As in DKC1, each level has a "gimmick", but these "gimmicks" are rarely very extreme and are mostly just themes. The bonus levels and DK Coins are very well-hidden, in the sense that finding them is fun. The game can get very difficult, especially in the Lost World, and it depends not on foreknowledge but on reflexes. It helps to know where things are when you search for them, but if you don't, you will (generally) find a clue. If you see a banana bunch or a banana coin, you know there's nothing there, but if you see a banana by itself, there's something shady going on. The design here is just fantastic.

Overall: 8/10

It's a good game, definitely, and worth playing, but it's nowhere near as classic as DKC1 -- or at least, it doesn't deserve that status. It's less artistic, and that's a pretty big deal for me, but it's a very good way to spend 5 or 6 hours.

Do not stay tuned for my review of DKC3. You cannot force me to play through that trash again.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/19/07