9.0 out of 10
IGN.COM

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DK64 Journal: Day 2

"Oh, banana!" growls Donkey Kong as we pick up our 50th banana reward in the game. We're in a cave filled with rich colors, shimmering water and hypnotic lighting effects. We've been playing for 20 hours and it seems like we've hardly made a dent in the title. We look at our inventory screens and can see that the quest is hardly over. According to Rare's calculations, we're only 29% complete with the overall adventure.

This is Donkey Kong 64, the biggest (both literally and figuratively speaking) and most ambitious title to hit Nintendo 64 -- ever. Developed over a 2 1/2-year period by respected UK software house Rare (GoldenEye 007, Banjo-Kazooie), the giant game marks the next logical step for the popular DK franchise -- 3D.

The developer has, of course, spared no expense when recreating Kong and pals for the third dimension. A huge quest, intuitive controls, deep mechanics, mini-games, relentless exploration, five different characters to play with and knockout graphics. There is no doubt that Rare has delivered the goods in full. And yet, despite all of the aforementioned features, DK64 still fails to topple many of the benchmarks previously set by Banjo-Kazooie.

The Facts



•4MB Expansion Pak mandatory (game will not run without it)
•32MB cartridge
•Eight huge worlds to explore plus an over-world
•Tons of mini-games
•4MB Expansion Pak enhanced dynamic lighting effects, depth of visibility and number of polygon characters on-screen
•Play as five different characters
•Five goals per character in each world
•Several four-player modes
•Lots of hidden secrets
•Rumble Pak compatible

[INFO PROVIDED BY IGN64.COM]

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Internet Reviews:

Well, Donkey Kong 64 has finally hit home and I think the wait has definitely been worth it. The game, while not the leap and bound that Donkey Kong Country was for Super NES, is still an excellent platformer all the same. It's an epic, gargantuan, huge, giant-sized platformer. It's a game that is packed full of things to do. There is so much that it's often overwhelming. The game is every great platformer combined into one package. And that, more than anything else, is what separates it from the competition.
I've said DK64's graphics aren't as impressive as those in Banjo-Kazooie, but don't be mislead by that -- the game is still a visual stunner. It's one of Nintendo 64's prettiest games to date. Awesome lighting and particle effects, detailed textures with loads of color, lots of variation and the environments are downright huge. Admittedly, the lighting effects may be a bit overused at times, but these are features that some developers aren't even capable of pulling off without ruining the gaming experience. The framerate, mind you, does suffer at times, but it's never too bad and it certainly doesn't have a bearing on gameplay.

In the end, Donkey Kong 64 feels more like a super-sized version of Banjo-Kazooie than it does anything else. And while that should be a great, great thing, it's bound to disappoint a lot of Nintendo 64 owners who had built the title up as the Second Coming.

Buy it.
~IGN.COM

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