The hairy, banana-loving duo of Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong are set to swing onto the Nintendo Wii this Christmas, in the form of Donkey Kong Country Returns, a new side-scrolling platformer, based on the old Donkey Kong Country games. And just like New Super Mario Bros gave Mario platforming a lick of paint, and added a few new features, Donkey Kong Country Returns hopes to similarly reinvigorate the much loved, simian-starring platformers. But for Donkey Kong Country Returns, the new features go way beyond just a graphical overhaul, as for the first time in the history of the series, two players can play the game co-operatively - one as each of the Kongs - making their way across jungles, beaches and ruins in their quest to rescue Donkey Kong's banana hoard from the enemies.
Everyone knows crabs love bananas...
And, in a new twist that's ideal for parents playing with children (or someone good playing with someone rubbi... sorry, gamingly challenged), when playing in co-op, the player who's playing as Diddy Kong is able to jump on the back of Donkey Kong, letting you breeze past the trickiest of jumps, meaning you'll never be stuck waiting for the other player to make a jump they can't quite manage. And, even better, when one of you dies, it doesn't necessarily mean the game's over - as they can fly back into the game, via a Donkey Kong barrel floating on a balloon.
Now Ian doesn't have to wait half an hour for Sarah to get past the 'hard' platforming bit...
Along with the duo's standard moves - Donkey Kong's devastating ground pound (which can be achieved by shaking the Wii Remote) and Diddy Kong's cartwheels, they each get a few new moves for the new instalment, with Diddy Kong having a 'Barrel Jet', which lets him hover for a short time - another great feature to make him the character of choice for children.
The game is also stuffed full of collectable puzzle pieces and hidden items, with the letters K, O, N and G hidden in each level, which will net you 'something special' if you manage to find them all...
So take a walk on the wild side this winter, and get ready to go bananas for Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Nintendo Wii, which is due out on the 3rd of December this year - just in time for Christmas. Till then, we'll keep you posted.
