Review: Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze

Hands down, the best aspect about Tropical Freeze is its presentation. From the last game we were introduced to the silhouetted levels and they make a fantastic return. Now with the use of more solid blocked-out color to add a new layer of beauty to these stages. When this style isn’t in play we get treated to fantastic use of the in-game camera. The way you are shot back and forth through different and deeper layers in each level, and how the camera moves to showcase this is fantastic. Apart from and extremely corny and eye-rolling ending, DK and his friends are constantly being flung all over the screen and Nintendo knew exactly how to frame it. There’s a lot of great movement to this game and it’s only enhanced by how it’s showcased.

This also shows off just how great the visuals in this game are. Much like Mario’s transition to 3D, Tropical Freeze displays that Nintendo art style really nicely. The level types add to this with their unique layout. Instead of your standard fire world, water world, ice world, etc. we’re treated to mountains, beaches, caverns and more. It’s really sweet to see the mountain levels playing off standard German stereotypes with plenty of beer steins and yodelling horns all over the place. As you move your way through the different island worlds you’ll see the stages replicating this change as well. For example, if you’re ascending an overworld mountain then the stages will begin to show you playing through high and higher elevated areas. There’s a freshness to the level designs that is really appreciated.

Partnered with this is the great soundtrack in the game. We’re presented with a huge array of genres that capitalize on every stage. There are so many crazy elements flying and exploding on the screen and the music only helps drive home this fun atmosphere. One fantastic example was a silhouetted stage set high in the snowy mountains that had a smooth piano track playing while I climbed my way up a flowing avalanche. Tropical Freeze’s music is another great showcase to it’s presentation quality.

There is a fantastic degree of diversity to the level types. The usual Donkey Kong elements are back including mine cart, rocket barrel, Rambi (the rhino you ride around on) and even boss stages. These cause the standard platforming mechanics to get mixed up by changing how you interact with the environment. Mine carts will keep you hurtling forward while you avoid obstacles in vertical or horizontal fashion (playing right into the great use of camera angles). Rambi will allow you to move faster and attack harder as you rampage forward. The Rocket Barrel works very similar to games like Jetpack Joyride in which you’re constantly falling and pressing the jump button repeatedly will propel yourself upwards. Every world will also have a boss fight for you to take on that will really test a number of different platforming skills. They’re unique and a great change of pace from the usual. All the different stage types keep the game immensely interesting and don’t allow for any degree of stagnation and boredom.

There’s almost an expectation that Nintendo platformers are going to be easy to play through (with only hints of difficulty) in order to appeal to the largest audience. Tropical Freeze ignores that and ended up being extremely challenging. With all the different stage types the developers had a ton of different ways to really push and test your platforming knowhow. What made this work so well is that it wasn’t cheap design either - the challenge felt fair. I wasn’t failing because everyone hates ice stages, I was failing because I started getting tired of sliding everywhere and started to rush. This game requires more concentration than the usual Nintendo platformer and the varying stage types allowed me to never feel stuck. You can also unlock many different side stages that will push your abilities even further. The best part though is the inclusion of an in-game shop that you allows you to purchase (with easily collected in-game currency) items to help you out with the more challenging levels. The high difficulty was refreshing without feeling tedious and the game even offers some assistance for anyone struggling to get by.

The one odd choice that sat funny with me was the lack of the two screens on the WiiU. Each time you start the game you need to choose either your TV or the gamepad to play on as the other will then go black for the duration. It’s strange to see Nintendo ignoring the one aspect that makes their console unique. With this, there’s no real reason this game couldn’t work fine on another system. It’s a little disappointing to see a first party title not giving me a reason to use their specific user interface.

Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze is a fantastic example of an amazing and challenging platformer. The game presents itself in a number of enjoyable ways through its use of camera angles, music and visuals. It’s levels are unique, fun and have a great degree of diversity between them. It’s hard to get bored during your progression. There’s a huge challenge in this game to work through and the game even offers assistance for those less prepared. Tropical Freeze is a wealth of fun.