Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

[Shrikeswind]

Ooh, Funky Kong running the shop now? Must have missed that. I wonder what else I missed...

[Nester the Lark]

I'm not sure what it is, but I think the character models in this game are awesome! If you look back at Rare's models, there's something a little creepy about them. But these are really... cute, I guess? More cartoonish?

[TV Eye]

Dec 19, 2013 12:48:57 GMT -5 Nester the Lark said:

I'm not sure what it is, but I think the character models in this game are awesome! If you look back at Rare's models, there's something a little creepy about them. But these are really... cute, I guess? More cartoonish?

I agree, they look very Pixar-esque.

[Shrikeswind]

In fairness to Rare's old models, when they were developing DKC games it was the 90's. We remember the models from the cartoon, don't we? Graphics have to evolve, and graphics like that really needed a good old fashioned Banana Slamma.

[Nester the Lark]

Very true. All early 3D renderings back then were pretty bad, not just Rare's. (Still, Rare's designs, themselves, were hit or miss.)

[Leon]

Rare did have some very horrible character designs...

[Manspeed]

What? It's just a head from a normal Necky.

[Nester the Lark]

Eleven minutes and forty seconds of David Wise music goodness. There's even a remix of Aquatic Ambiance in there. These all come from the official Japanese website that opened recently.

[Nester the Lark]

Here's a fascinating in-depth interview with Dave Wise on his work on the original DKC games, Tropical Freeze, the similarities between Rare and Retro, and other interesting things. The embedded version below is about 43 minutes long, but there's a longer downloadable version here.

[Johans Nidorino]

I'm enjoying this game. Funnily, I'm playing it with my 4-year old nephew, him being Diddy, and I always carry him around if in trouble. World archetypes are being fresh and creative, difficulty is good enough, and I love the music, both new tracks and remixes.

[Nester the Lark]

Not to get too geeky about it, but the music... is everything I hoped it would be! Vintage David Wise. The best DKC soundtrack since DKC2.

Busted Bayou:


Windmill Hills:


Alpine Incline:


And the rest of the game is right up there with it. Is it taboo to say that Retro's level design and attention to detail has surpassed Nintendo's?

[Johans Nidorino]

Glad you resumed the topic of Wise. Kotaku just posted an interview.

I loved the African theme for this level, Grassland Groove, but I find myself unable to isolate the music because the whole experience was so fun.

[Nester the Lark]

Mar 3, 2014 16:49:19 GMT -5 Johans Nidorino said:

I loved the African theme for this level, Grassland Groove, but I find myself unable to isolate the music because the whole experience was so fun.

Definitely. I feel like I'm praising the music so much that I'm kinda ignoring the game, but it's a fantastic experience overall. It does not strike me as a paint-by-numbers sequel, as the New Super Mario Bros games tend to feel like. It's a big-budget, AAA 2D platform game, which you just don't see as often these days. I'll have to let it sit with me a while to decide if it replaces DKC2 as my favorite in the series, but it's in the running.

Still, I can't help but go into fanboy overload with the music! I play this game with the volume cranked up!

I hope the music isn't considered spoilers, but here's a few more selections from my playthrough:

Grassland Groove - Here's a clean version of the music from the level posted above. The track actually is about six-and-a-half minutes long, but the levels in the game can get kinda lengthy. The level really is over-the-top lively! Dancing trees, moving platforms, animal puppets. It's like playing through the "I Just Can't Wait To Be King" sequence from The Lion King, even more so than the one from the actual Lion King video game.

Scroch 'N' Torch - This one is a bit moodier and more dramatic. It really sounds like a lost track from Diddy's Kong Quest. I think it's another one of my favorites so far.

Twilight Terror ~ Stickerbrush Symphony - I knew this song was remade for the game, but the production of it was really unexpected for me. It's very low-key, and the flute hits a lot of strange notes, but I like the organic feel of it. Notice that a chorus starts humming under the melody at about the one-minute mark. David Wise is truly a master of layers.

[8bitretroshit]

This soundtrack, man. Don't think I've enjoyed 'new' game music this much since the original Mario Galaxy. Scorch 'n Torch is Brambles levels of amazing and I actually got goosebumps once I heard that Aqua Ambience/Lockjaw Saga remix. Knew I had to stop spoiling myself and get a friggen' WiiU right there and then.

(after 2 weeks of searching local stores I figured I should just order it online already. Should be arriving here tomorrow/saturday. Gonna crank that volume to the sky, rock out with my Kong out)

[Nester the Lark]

I'm not gonna post any spoilers, but I will say that Irate Eight is probably one of my favorite levels in the DKC series. It's built around a great setpiece, it has a good buildup, it's intense, and is complemented, of course, by just the right music.