Thanks to Wolfman for helping with edits.
When I was in high school, I decided to replay one of my favorite childhood games, Yoshi’s Story, on my Wii. That was one of the most important gaming-related decisions I ever made, because it taught me a valuable lesson: not everything you enjoyed when you’re little holds up. Upon realizing how lackluster Story really is, I became picky over which games I decide to revisit. If I’m reasonably confident I’ll still enjoy an old favorite, I’ll happily boot it up. If I’m unsure it’d meet my current, harsher standards, then I’d rather not risk marring my precious memories (the first video game I ever owned, Monster Bash, falls under this category; haven’t touched it in nearly three decades).
DK Jungle Climber spans six worlds, each of which contains two to five normal stages (the last of which closes with a boss fight) and a bonus one. The first two worlds are kinda dull, but things ramp up afterwards—for better and worse. (Image: Nintendo)
Thankfully, my recent replay of DK: King of Swing was enjoyable. That game is exactly as I remember it: a perfectly charming, if offbeat and inessential, Donkey Kong spin-off. I was in high school when its sequel, DK Jungle Climber (or Donkey Kong: Jungle Climber to those of you in Europe), hit, and I loved it! It’s actually a game I’ve been eager to replay, and after revisiting several Donkey Kong titles (plus trying a few knockoffs), I’ve finally worked my way back up to Jungle Climber! Which… well, it wasn’t a Story-level letdown, at least.
King of Swing and Jungle Climber are “peg-swingers,” unorthodox games where you alternate between using the L and R buttons to climb pegs (Nintendo’s Clu Clu Land is a clear inspiration; King of Swing even includes its protagonist, Bubbles, as a T.T.-esque unlockable). Those buttons correspond to Donkey Kong’s left and right hands, respectively. Holding down either button causes him to hold onto a peg, and he’ll then spin counterclockwise if he’s using his left hand or clockwise if it’s the right. You’ll grab and throw items—rocks and bombs, namely—with one hand while rotating along a peg with the other. Pressing both buttons while Donkey Kong is on solid ground causes him to leap up.
While falling down, you can hold the L or R button to veer Donkey Kong in the respective direction. Hitting a wall causes him to ricochet off it. (Image: Nintendo)
However, Jungle Climber streamlines the experience. Holding a shoulder button while falling will cause Donkey Kong to automatically grab a peg once one enters his proximity. Previously, you had to charge an attack; now, you just press the A button. Donkey Kong’s movement speed has been souped up, too. Altogether, these tweaks make Jungle Climber a faster, more frantic affair.
Stages follow King of Swing’s formula: you’ll climb upwards and horizontally across numerous levels, which span four or so sections, while finding collectibles. However, levels are longer and sport a greater emphasis on upwards movement. A DK Coin, five Banana Coins, and an oil barrel are tucked away in standard stages (sans those in the oil barrel-less final world). Nabbing them all unlocks cheats (which mainly just give Donkey Kong a few small perks) and bonus levels.
The Nintendo DS’s two screens heavily inform DK Jungle Climber‘s stage design and gimmicks. Nothing here is as superfluous or unintuitive as Diddy Kong Racing DS’s microphone and touch screen implementation, thankfully. (Image: Nintendo)
Like King of Swing, bananas are Jungle Climber’s go-to goodie, but they now reward Donkey Kong with extra lives à la Donkey Kong Country (same for the returning KONG Letters). The roles bananas held in King of Swing, restoring health and triggering the “Going Bananas” technique, have respectively been taken over by Diddy Kong and collectable gems. The latter are occasionally found in the wild, but are generally obtained by beating enemies. With this reduction in availability comes a boost to the technique—literally; Donkey Kong now flies when using it. Still, while this suits Jungle Climber’s longer levels, the move feels unreliable; it doesn’t last long and is hard to control, especially in tight spaces. And using it costs one hundred gems, of which you can only store three hundred (a cheat extends it to six hundred).
Anyway, Donkey Kong Country’s iconic DK Barrels hover across most stages. Touching one frees Diddy (if you already have him, you get gems instead). Basically, he’s a power-up who hangs out on his mentor’s back, augmenting his abilities (it’s almost a harbinger for how Retro Studios would handle Diddy in Donkey Kong Country Returns). If you press A again immediately after Donkey Kong attacks, Diddy springs forward with his own. A few levels actually require you to launch Diddy onto higher platforms, where he’ll copy Donkey Kong’s movements, to solve puzzles. The chimp also gets to use a flamethrower and hammer during certain levels; these automatically clear snow and boulders, respectively, as well as any baddies who waltz in your way. A pair of seldom seen wings Diddy can flop also lets the duo fly briefly.
King of Swing’s a lean game whose innovations, like frozen pegs (a gimmick Climber inherits), play with its core mechanics. Letting Diddy extend your attacks does this; giving him gizmos does not. (Image: Nintendo)
Unfortunately, Diddy Kong’s inclusion here is not a boon but a liability. Let’s be clear about something: Paon’s peg-centric platforming is unique and fun, but reliably swinging from pegs can be tough. King of Swing understands this and compensates with a generous health system: when you get hit, you can swiftly recover as long as you have ten bananas (and you’ll have way more than that; they’re everywhere). It may not be an elegant solution—it kinda trivializes most obstacles—but it’s a functional one.
Jungle Climber dropping that for a Country-style system makes for an uncomfortable change. Diddy only tanks one hit, so if you suffer a second, you die. This makes each hazard, of which there are many, more dangerous, and stages aren’t even guaranteed to have DK Barrels (though many have multiple, in fairness). Again, Jungle Climber is faster, making Donkey Kong’s movements less precise even with its quality of life improvements. And its stages are also longer, which also means it’s less appealing to play on the go.
On the plus side, most bosses only take a few hits to go down. You’ll still die a lot against the later ones (the fully powered Mega Amp, seen here, took me dozens of tries in high school), but at least there is that accommodation. (Image: Nintendo)
While King of Swing is consistent, Jungle Climber’s quality fluctuates wildly. Some levels are exciting, to be sure! But Climber’s duds hit subterranean depths. A few levels contain these tedious mirror segments, where you control two Donkey Kongs simultaneously, one on the top screen and the other on the bottom in a bit of Nintendo DS gimmickry. If either touches a peg, wall, or baddie that doesn’t exist on the opposite screen, you’re sent back to the beginning of that section. There are other questionable segments, too: one stage prevents you from seeing any pegs normally, requiring you to frequently glance at a map on the bottom screen; another forces Donkey Kong to swim around and through underwater currents, an awkward fit for peg-swinging gameplay.
Jungle Climber is certainly ambitious, featuring a greater focus on narrative than King of Swing’s threadbare plot. King K. Rool and his Kremling cronies are back, the benign alien Xananab needs help, and our heroes come to the freak’s aid after a misunderstanding. Thing is, its positive qualities are overshadowed by the game’s off characterizations. Cranky Kong is friendly and openly supportive (admittedly, this is also true of King of Swing, but he rarely speaks therein, so it’s easy to ignore)! King K. Rool’s closer to his unstable Rare-era self, but still not quite right; he’s kinda generic. Some of the other Kongs appear too, though their inclusion is mostly for show; this is Donkey’s, Diddy’s, and (to a lesser extent) Cranky’s and Xananab’s story.
One small, nice detail, though, is K. Rool’s loathing of the Kongs. Bowser and Dr. Eggman, his contemporaries, begrudgingly respect their enemies and enjoy the theatrics that come with fighting them. K. Rool just drops his foes in a ditch. (Image: Nintendo)
Paon’s attempts to emulate Country falter elsewhere. King of Swing’s charming, cartoony visuals have been replaced with Country-esque pre-rendered sprites. But while Country’s oftentimes dark, moody aesthetics accentuate its naturalistic themes, Jungle Climber retains its predecessor’s saturated palettes. In a few stages, ones set in alien dimensions, this works. Some pegs are also now visually stylized around each location, a welcome touch that makes the world a bit livelier. Overall, though? Jungle Climber looks like a Donkey Kong Country knockoff, not Country proper. The soundtrack, however, isn’t bad. None of Jungle Climber’s short melodies touch Country’s iconic scores—especially since they loop incessantly, echoing one of Sonic 4‘s issues—but they’re serviceable.
Both games offer extra content, though Jungle Climber’s stronger on this front. King of Swing’s unlockable “Diddy Mode” is fun and “Time Trial” is… fine, though if you’re looking to fully complete it, you’ll be replaying stages at least four times each, which gets tiring. Jungle Climber’s biggest prizes, however, are five hidden stages (giving each island’s oil barrels to Funky Kong unlocks its corresponding hidden level) and Dixie Kong’s post-game extra stages, which are more exciting. They’re also tough, especially Dixie’s gauntlets: she demands pinpoint precision without giving you the safety net of Diddy or gems. Like King of Swing, Jungle Climber has a few unlockable minigames, though they aren’t particularly fun, maybe barring the peg-climbing marathon.
Upon fully completing Jungle Climber, which I’ve now done twice, its cast compliments you for persevering through such a tough game. Still, not all of its difficulty is unfair; completing Dixie’s taxing trials is genuinely thrilling. (Image: Nintendo)
When I was in high school, I found DK Jungle Climber a more confident, refined game than King of Swing, one with a better grasp of their mechanics and series’ iconography. Revisiting both as an adult, I now see the opposite is true: Jungle Climber‘s attempts to ape Country are to its detriment. I don’t fault Paon and Nintendo for swinging in this direction; complaints were leveled at King and other Donkey Kong games of the era over how they distanced themselves from the Rare games, so I understand the rationale for incorporating traditional Donkey Kong elements. And, to be clear, Jungle Climber isn’t bad—I had plenty of fun revisiting its high points, actually! But it ultimately lets its predecessor down, failing to embrace their strengths.
Regardless of how uneven Jungle Climber is, I’d still welcome Paon back with open arms should they ever return to Donkey Kong. For now, though, I’m hard at work grinding through another Donkey Kong game… (Image: Nintendo)
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