From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Donkey Kong 64
North American cover art
Developer(s)	Rare
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Composer(s)	Eveline Fischer Grant Kirkhope
Series	Donkey Kong
Engine	Modified Banjo-Kazooie engine
Platform(s)	Nintendo 64
Release date(s)	JP December 10, 1999 NA October 31, 1999 EU December 6, 1999 AUS December 6, 1999
Genre(s)	Platform
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Rating(s)	CERO: A ESRB: E OFLC: G
Media	256-megabit (32-megabyte) cartridge
System requirements	Expansion Pak (included)

Donkey Kong 64 (abbreviated as DK 64) is a platformer video game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in North America on October 31, 1999 and in Europe on December 6, 1999. The game is a follow up to the Donkey Kong Country trilogy on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Donkey Kong 64 follows the adventures of the titular Donkey Kong and four of his simian relatives as they try to win back their hoard of Golden Bananas and banish the evil King K.Rool and his cronies from the vicinity of their island. Players can control all five Kongs in eight individual levels as well as a greater worldmap, a multiplayer mode, and several minigames.

Donkey Kong 64 was the first game to require the Expansion Pak, which provides more RAM for enhanced graphics and more expansive environments (in future games, the Expansion Pak was entirely optional, with the exception of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask). Donkey Kong 64 went on to become a Nintendo 64 Player's Choice title.

Gameplay

Donkey Kong, exploring the Jungle Japes level

The game is a 3D adventure with strong platforming links, similar to that of Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie. There are a total of five playable Kongs, each with completely unique (and upgradeable) abilities. The player starts out with access to Donkey Kong only, then goes on to unlock each of the other four Kongs as part of the gameplay (in the order of Diddy, Lanky or Tiny, and then Chunky). Unlocking all 5 Kongs is necessary to defeat character-specific bosses in each level. There are a total of 7 areas (subtracting the DK Isles, the overworld for the game and hideout helm): Jungle Japes, Angry Aztec, Frantic Factory, Gloomy Galleon, Fungi Forest, Crystal Caves, Creepy Castle. DK isles and Hideout helm are different, as there are no bananas in either of them, DK isles only has bluebrints,, and four banana faires and two battle crowns, and hideout helm has no golden bananas, and the banana medals are earned via a different way. Each new Kong that is freed can be accessed as playable through tag barrels that are scattered throughout each world. Additionally, each Kong is represented by a colour which works alongside the game's unique collecting system where objects such as bananas and coins can only be collected by the Kong who has that colour on the object. The colours are as follows: yellow for Donkey Kong, red for Diddy, purple for Tiny, blue for Lanky, and green for Chunky.

Each playable Kong has several types of things to collect. First and foremost are the Golden Bananas. There are five Golden Bananas per Kong in every level that only that specific character can get. (One Golden Banana per Kong per level can be collected by delivering the colour-appropriate blueprint to Snide after getting them from the Kasplats.) The Golden Bananas are used as payment to get past B.Lockers that guard the entrance to every new level.

Each character can also find 100 colour-appropriate bananas per level - single bananas, bunches of 5, or balloons to be popped that are worth 10. The regular bananas are necessary to unlock boss fights, to acquire Boss Keys. There are eight boss keys in all (though seven of the eight are actually obtained via defeating the area's boss). Boss Keys in turn are used to free K.Lumsy, who in his excitement often unlocks new levels to be completed.

A third important thing to collect is character-specific coloured coins. With these coins, each Kong is allowed to buy essential combat items: Cranky Kong's special ability potions, Funky Kong's guns, and Candy Kong's musical instruments (as well as upgrades of the same). All of these skills and supplies are necessary to complete the game, either just by killing enemies or because of specific pads and switches that needed to be activated.

Two single items of grave importance later in the game are the Nintendo and Rare(ware) Coins, that can be obtained in classic games in the game. 15 Banana Medals, which are obtained when a Kong gathers 75 of the 100 regular bananas each can get, will allow the player to play Jetpac to get the Rare(ware) Coin. The Nintendo Coin can only be found in the game's third area, Frantic Factory, with Donkey Kong, by playing the original Donkey Kong Arcade game and winning twice (first for the Golden Banana, and second for the Nintendo Coin).

Other items to be collected are ammunition for guns, orange grenades (usable by all 5 Kongs, and rather self-explanatory) Crystal Coconuts, used to fuel Cranky's special abilities, film for taking banana fairy pictures, and headphones scattered in each level to restore the instruments' powers that Candy gives each Kong.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer can be played by up to four players at one time. It features three arenas, one special arena and six gameplay modes. The five playable characters from the single player adventure are used in the multiplayer mode, along with a secret character, Krusha. If only two players play in the special arena, random baddies will appear to make the game more difficult.

Plot

King K. Rool is trying to destroy Donkey Kong Island with a large laser called the Blast-O-Matic, but it malfunctions after a crash that puts his floating, mechanical island face-to-face with Donkey Kong Island. To buy some time, he captures some of the Kongs and locks them up. He then steals Donkey Kong's precious hoard of Golden Bananas. As Donkey Kong frees his fellow apes, they set off to recover the bananas and defeat King K. Rool and his army of Kremlings and other evil creatures.

Characters

Promotional art for Donkey Kong 64, illustrating the protagonists

• Donkey Kong, the titular character and the first playable character in the game, is a large, muscular Mountain Gorilla who wears a red monogrammed necktie, and his weapon of choice is the "Coconut Cannon". His instrumental attack, fittingly, is the "Bongo Blast".
• Diddy Kong, who debuted in Donkey Kong Country, is a monkey in a red baseball cap and T-shirt, then later bearing a yellow star on the back, his weapons are the "Peanut Popguns" (pistols that fire peanuts). His instrument is a guitar (bearing the same star as on his shirt) with the deafening attack "Guitar Gazump".
• Tiny Kong is a Chimpanzee, and younger sister of Dixie Kong from the Donkey Kong Country games. Just like her sister, her pigtails allow her to temporarily float through the air, and unique to Tiny is the ability to shrink in size to fit into places the other Kongs cannot reach, her weapon is a "Feather Bow" (a crossbow that fires sharp feathers). Her instrumental attack is the "Saxophone Slam".
• Lanky Kong, a newcomer in the Donkey Kong series, is a Sumatran Orangutan whose long arms allow him to handstand. He can also inflate himself to float. His weapon of choice is the "Grape Shooter" (similar to a blowgun). His instrument is the trombone and his move is the "Trombone Tremor".
• Chunky Kong, the older brother of Kiddy Kong and cousin to Tiny Kong, is a strong yet cowardly Eastern Lowland Gorilla who can lift heavy objects, but (as explained in the theme song) is slow and unable to jump high, and his weapon is a "Pineapple Launcher" which is the most powerful gun on the game. Appropriate to Chunky's "gentle giant" demeanor, his instrumental attack is the "Triangle Trample".
• Allie-Whoops!, a human from the Donkey Kong series where Mario or Donkey Kong has to save her.

Other characters include Cranky Kong who sells the Kongs various new moves via his potions, Funky Kong, who sells them guns, Snide the weasel, who was formerly King K. Rool's henchman before he was fired and thus collects blueprints for the Kongs, and Candy Kong, who supplies the Kongs with musical instruments. Some other notable characters are K. Lumsy, who opens up levels, Squawks, who points things out, brings you Golden Bananas when his attention is attracted, and can carry Tiny to new heights. There is also a Banana Fairy Queen, who requests that the Kongs rescue her citizens and in exchange teaches the Kongs an invincible technique. Collecting Banana Fairies unlocks many new options outside of one-player mode, including cheats.

Rambi and Engaurde appear in the game. Donkey Kong can turn into Rambi the Rhino in Jungle Japes. He can batter into objects and immediately kill any enemy. Lanky Kong can turn into Engaurde the Swordfish in Gloomy Galleon. He can swim at high speeds, leap out of the water, and strike with his "sword".

The game has several antagonists as well. The main villain is the Kong's main antagonist, King K. Rool, who tries to destroy DK Isle. The level's bosses are Army Dillo (a heavily-armoured armadillo who is the boss of Jungle Japes and Crystal Caves), Dogadon (a giant dragonfly who's the boss of Angry Aztec and Fungi Forest), Mad Jack (a gigantic jack-in-the-box who is the boss of Frantic Factory), Pufftoss (a large Blowfish who is the boss of Gloomy Galleon), King Kut Out (a cardboard cut-out of K. Rool who is operated by two Kremlings and is the boss of Creepy Castle), and the final, extremely difficult boss, King K Rool (disguised as a boxer that each Kong must fight). The game's secondary antagonist is a Minecart Kremling [Krash], not actually a boss and has nothing to do with King K. Rool, and operates mines throughout Jungle Japes, Fungi Forest and Creepy Castle.

Music

The intro cut scene of the game features a full-length song with vocals, called the "DK Rap". The line "His coconut gun can fire in spurts. If he shoots ya, it's gonna hurt!" was named the fourth worst game line ever in the January 2002 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly.^{[citation needed]} Also the rap contains the word "hell" being spoken out loud during the rap and is the first Rare game to use mild language (Conker's Bad Fur Day had strong language since it was rated M for Mature where DK64 was rated E for Everyone). It was also used in Donkey Konga and as the background music for the Kongo Jungle stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee, but was remixed and "hell" was replaced with "heck". The song is performed by James W. Norwood Jr., who used several different voices and effects for the remix in Super Smash Bros. Melee, but used the same voice for the original Donkey Kong 64 version. An official soundtrack was also released.

Reception

Donkey Kong 64 was released to generally positive reviews. Review scores range from 80% to 100%, with an average of 88% on review aggregate site Game Rankings. The most commonly cited issue was the lacklustre multiplayer mode and unwarranted tediousness and difficulty of some parts. GameSpot claimed "it lacks enough 'wow factor' to exert the revolutionary influence that Donkey Kong Country had"^[3] and IGN reports that while it is "not the leap and bound that Donkey Kong Country was for Super NES, [it] is still an excellent platformer all the same".^[4]

References

External links

• Official Nintendo Japan Donkey Kong 64 site

Cetegory:3D platform games

From StrategyWiki, the free strategy guide and walkthrough wiki

Donkey Kong 64
Developer(s)	Rare
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Designer(s)	Gregg Mayles
Release date(s)	October 31, 1999  December 6, 1999  December 10, 1999
Genre(s)	Platform
System(s)	Nintendo 64
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone
Media	256-Mbit cartridge
System requirements (help)	Expansion Pak
Series	Donkey Kong Country

Wikipedia has an article about:

Donkey Kong 64

Donkey Kong 64, often abbreviated DK 64, is a 3D platformer video game developed by Rare for the Nintendo 64. It was published by Nintendo and first released on October 31, 1999. The game requires the use of the Expansion Pak in order to function, and was the first Nintendo 64 game to do so. The initial release of Donkey Kong 64 included the Expansion Pak with the game for free. Donkey Kong 64 would later become a Nintendo 64 Player's Choice. The game is a follow up to the Donkey Kong Country trilogy on the SNES.

The game's codename was Donkey Kong Country 64 in PAL territories.

Table of Contents

From Wikia Gaming, your source for walkthroughs, games, guides, and more!

Portal: Action/Adventure		Donkey Kong 64 at Nintendopedia

Donkey Kong 64
Developer(s)	Rare Ltd.
Publisher(s)	Rare Ltd.
Status	Released
Release date	October 31, 1999
Genre	Platformer
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Age rating(s)	ESRB: E
Platform(s)	Nintendo 64
System requirements	Nintendo 64 Expansion Pak
Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough

Donkey Kong 64 is a game created for the Nintendo 64. After showing it to great appeal at E3 the year before, Nintendo released this new game in the Donkey Kong series. Like in the previous Donkey Kong Countries and Donkey Kong Lands, the player would control more than 1 character related to Donkey Kong in some way. In this game, DK's nemesis, King K. Rool, brings a large mobile laser-firing fortress, named the Blast-o-Matic, to Donkey Kong island, so that he can use this awesome superweapon of mass destruction to...take out one monkey. Fortunately for DK, the laser is not even fully operational yet, thanks to K. Rool's idiot engineers. Unfortunately for DK, K. Rool has stopped him from gaining help from his relatives by capturing the 4 monkeys who could aid him. Also, for some reason, K. Rool took DK's banana hoard. Maybe it's a slap to the face for DK, before his island is blown up?

This game is considered to be a decent game by most game players, who don't like the fact that it is saturated with so many pickups and items, useless moves, and a boring multiplayer mode.

See Also

• Donkey Kong series

Similar Games

• Banjo-Kazooie
• Super Mario 64
• Star Fox Adventures

This article is a stub. You can help by adding to it. Stubs are articles that writers have begun work on, but are not yet complete enough to be considered finished articles.