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| Donkey Konga Fierce Deity and Pirate Yoshi |
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| Fierce Deity |
| This game has probably been one of the biggest surprises in my lifetime. When it was announced, I completely ignored it and figured it would be one giant waste of money. Well, I can honestly admit now that I was wrong. Not only is it worth every cent, but it's possibly one of the greatest party games ever made. Graphics: For those who aren't smart enough to realize it, not all games need great graphics. In this case, that statement has never been truer. Since the game is based most importantly around the sound and music, not much effort was put into making Donkey Kong and all the other characters look great. There are mini-games that feature characters, but you can clearly see that Nintendo wasn't looking to give the game graphics that would rival something like Soul Calibur II. I'd have to say the main thing that saves this category from getting an even worse score would be the game's setup. The menu screens are easy to access, and the note layout during the songs works flawlessly. Sound and Music: Since this is a rhythm game, this is definitely the most important category to review. While Pirate Yoshi and I were pretty skeptical of the song list that Nintendo chose, the fact is that all of the songs on the list have a great beat to drum along with and work extremely well with the game. As for the musical selection itself, there are many different styles of music. Ranging from rock, pop, classical music, children's songs, and of course a few Nintendo songs, there are plenty of songs to please just about everyone. Most of the songs are old however, with the newest song on the list being All the Small Things by Blink 182. This brings me to the fact that none of the songs are performed by their original artists. However, they are really good renditions and are probably the closest you can get to the originals. The only thing that could make this song list better would be the addition of more Nintendo songs, seeing as how only a few are there. Storyline: Well, there isn't much I can honestly say about this category. If you wait awhile after the Donkey Konga screen appears, a storyline will be given to you in text and picture format. The storyline is very very lame and revolves around Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong finding magical instruments that Cranky reveals to be called "bongos." However, since a storyline DOES exist, I'm forced to give the game at least a one out of ten. Gameplay: This is another category where the game shines. Even if you don't have a friend to bongo with, the game offers loads of single player stuff to do. If you choose Street Performance, you'll get the option to pick any song of the list and play it. If you can clear the song, you'll get gold that you can use to buy things such as bongo sets, songs for hard mode, and mini-games. That's right; in order to play the songs on hard mode you'll have to buy them. Along with the normal difficulty settings, there is a mode in none of the notes are displayed on screen and you have to remember them. To add even more to single player, there is a small selection of mini-games to play. While they won't take you long to complete, they do add a little extra fun here and there. However, none of the single player modes can compare to how much fun you'll have playing it with your friends. When playing Donkey Konga with your friends, you can either battle against them or work with them. In Battle mode, you'll compete each other to see who does the best on whatever song you choose. If you don't feel like competing with each other, you can go to another mode and work together to clear a song. It doesn't matter whether your playing it by yourself or with your friends, because you'll undoubtedly enjoy the Donkey Konga experience. Controls: Donkey Konga is a unique game, because in order to play it you'll need the DK Bongos. Actually, that statement isn't entirely true, because you CAN use the GameCube controller. The only thing wrong with it is that you'll suck terrible at the game even if you try. So more or less, the fact that you can use the controller is pretty pointless. Anyway, this won't be a problem if you purchase the game, because the DK Bongos are included with it. As for the bongos, they are pretty responsive and don't need to be hit very hard to pick it up. However, the microphone in the bongo is pretty sensitive. At one point when Pirate Yoshi and I were playing, he quit clapping because his bongo was picking up my claps. Sometimes the microphone even counts a slight touch on the side of the bongos as a clap. There is an option to set the sensitivity of the bongos, but finding the right setting is near impossible. Replayability: The replayability in Donkey Konga reminds me a lot of Super Smash Brothers Melee. There are loads and loads of things to do and complete, but the game WILL eventually get old. However, just like Melee, you'll find yourself picking the game up every once in awhile to play a quick song. Most of all, you'll probably find yourself bringing it to every party you go to, whether or not the game is considered old at that point in time. With a whole crap load of different multiplayer games out there, Donkey Konga has to be one of the best. The game is a blast with just one person, so you can imagine how hectic and fun it is with three of four. Donkey Konga is definitely what I consider an "Ultimate Party Game." I used this same term when I reviewed Super Smash Brothers Melee, and it's about dang time I got to use it again. Graphics: 5.3/10 Sound and Music: 9.9/10 Storyline: 1.0/10 Gameplay: 9.7/10 Controls: 9.5/10 Replayability: 9.0/10 Final Score: 9.0/10 FAVORITE SONGS: The Legend of Zelda Theme: This one's pretty obvious. Seeing as how I'm a giant Zelda fan, the fact that the theme song was included for me to bongo along with makes me very very happy. Pokemon Theme: This seems odd doesn't it? I largely despise the Pokemon games, but for some reason the cartoon theme song is one of the songs I like the most. Just goes to show that, even if I don't like the games, I can still enjoy drumming along to the cartoon's theme song. I Think I Love You: Wow, bet none of you expected me to pick a song like this did you? Well, the fact is that I love this song. While I'm not a giant fan of this particular rendition, I do enjoy the beat and I definitely took a liking to the song itself. Hungarian Dance No. 5 In G Minor: Bragged to be the wildest song in the game (or close to it) before Donkey Konga's release, it didn't take long for me to confirm that it was not the wildest, but it was definately the most entertaining. Just listen to it yourself! Rather groovy, if I do say so myself... Sing, Sing, Sing: Not only a renowned piece of swing music that now, in part, represents the jazz world, but also the piece of music responsible for giving Rare the original inspiration for the Kongo Jungle music used in the original Donkey Kong Country! Fast, slick, and very smart, not to mention very jazzy. You Can't Hurry Love: I bit my nails and sweated as I debated whether I liked this song better than the Loco-Motion or the Kirby: Right Back At Ya! themesong. However, this song is so old-school and tremendously up-beat (quite a contrast from modern music), I couldn't help but give it the nod. It's very addicting, give it a listen to get hooked! |
| Pirate Yoshi |
| Over-view: Music has always been a novelty. Nintendo has always loved novelty. The match seemed inevitable, and it was. The world was surprised by the announcement of a new Donkey Kong game making use of bongo drums in place of a controller...but should it have been? Regardless of surprise value, however, this new title quickly accumulated critical acclaim. Seems the big ape just can't keep his hands off success, eh? Graphics: 5/10 To put it plainly, the characters and backgrounds in this game are not very polished at all, nor are they very dazzling. The movement of the characters is--seriously--LESS fluid than when we moved the same characters around on the Super Nintendo. That said, however, the backgrounds are satisfactorily luscious and vivid, and the actual appearance of the characters is at its norm. These graphics work, though, and I heard that Japan's Donkey Konga 2 has been improved in this area. Sound: 8/10 I had a certain dilemma to overcome when judging this category. That dilemma was, what can I score for, and what can I score against? In the end, I decided that the songs used--the ones that required licensing--were, for the most part, very good. In some cases, in fact, I liked the "Donkey Konga" version better than the existing song. However, I'm not sure if I can score those FOR this category, since--to be fair--they were simply existing songs reproduced for this game. What I would have to score AGAINST, actually, would be the awful songs made for Donkey Konga by Nintendo--that being the Donkey Konga theme, the everybody-hates-it DK Rap, and the semi-aggravating Menu theme. These were some of the worst songs I've ever heard Nintendo put out there in a game, and I sincerely hope that they aren't serious about keeping such music for future Donkey Kong games (with the exception of the DK Rap--we've endured it for enough years, I assume we'll have to live with it for the rest of our lives now). What I don't understand is why these terribly awful songs were created, rather than making use of well-known, well-liked songs already existing in (and defining!) Donkey Kong games. I truly expected some old-school Donkey Kong Country music thrown in, and I found NOTHING. To finish this category on a positive note, however, the sound sets for your bongo beats are reasonable and, in some cases, very cool. Controls: 9.9/10 Almost a gimmee for most games, the only flaw I found with the controls was a tough time finding a good "clap" setting; although you can adjust your clap sensor in the audio options, I was never able to find the perfect pitch at which touching/moving the bongos wouldn't pick up a clap, yet it would always catch every clap I produced. This can't be helped really, however, so the best solution (seriously) is to practice clapping so that you can hit every note consistently without having to lower your clap sensor to the point where it picks up any dialogue or movement you make. Gameplay: 9.8/10 Superb gameplay makes Donkey Konga a joy to experience. It's clever patterns, itchy rhythms, and fantastic songs make it a great choice for a time-consumer, and it's the type of game you can play around others and really be given the chance to prove what a prowess you are at it. The addition of harder difficulties, mini-games, and sound sets gives you some added depth and reason to keep playing it, and the JAM modes will keep you busy trying to memorize every song, as well. Nothing feels like a burden, except for doing Challenge Modes (where you play every song in the game straight through-it's very long and tedious). I believe most casual gamers will fall in love with its simplicity and fun factor immediately, while hardcore gamers will enjoy it for its novelty and replay. Replay: 9.5/10 Donkey Konga is one of the elect few games that just seem fresh and new every time you turn it on, regardless as to how long you last played for, and how long you've gone without playing. Although perhaps the concept of simply playing drums grows slightly stale over prolonged periods of time, the extra mini-games add some fun (as weak as they are), and the varying difficulties can stir up some change with each song, as well. Finally, with four players going, the songs change further still, so make sure you try a party with this title! **Story: .2/1 This story very nearly put the Mario Party stories to shame with its horrendously crappy tale. I gave it .1 of a point for two reasons (thereby adding up to a .2): one, it has Cranky in it, and two, it interweaves Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, the name "King K. Rool", and bongo drums together into one story, something that's not necessarily easy. Rather, I suppose, it's because it could've been made so much more worse still than it was, and somehow Nintendo restrained from throwing in words like "magic", "rainbow", and "happiness". On a side-note, I was very disappointed that Cranky didn't make spontaneous appearances in the instruction booklet. **Multiplayer: 1/1 Very fun for solo playing, but how about a group of four? Teams of six? Random, fast-paced side-switching, or whole "who's best" tournaments? There's a lot open here for some creativity, and you can easily make your own rules and own game out of Donkey Konga's multiplayer mode. One such game I already held while reviewing this with Fierce Deity was "body bongo", in which we tried various playing styles-I used my feet, he used his head, I armpit-farted for claps...-to liven up an other-wise dry run of the same song for the second or third time. This game can be a lot of fun for multiple players, especially if you chuck the existing rules out the window and come up with your own ways to twist the game up a little. Graphics: 5/10 Sound: 8/10 Controls: 9.9/10 Gameplay: 9.8/10 Replay: 9.5/10 **Story: .2/1 **Multiplayer: 1/1 Total Calculated Score: 8.68 Total Assigned Score: 9 Final Score: 8.84 Last Words: A fun game with a strong emphasis on simply playing for thrill, not for progress. Simple, yet surprisingly amusing, partially because of the smart assortment of different tracks. Don't buy the bongos separately without the game!!! Rent, Buy, or Pass: RENT, for sure! BUY is confident. Pros: Great selection of music, fun gameplay. Cons: Lame unlocks, more music needed, better options? Needed: More depth, especially for Challenge mode! |