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Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze |OT| There's always money in the banana stand
- Thread starter Frolow
- Start date
Snkfanatic
Banned
Got my copy. Gonna start now, can't wait to hear more of this OST.
Outtrigger888
Member
Amiss Abyss is a classic.
The music and visuals are just amazing.
The music and visuals are just amazing.
Baron von Loathsome
Member
World 2-K.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH.
Argh, sounds like Tiki Tong Terror all over again. Breathe, Robin64! You can do it.
It's annoying with the last three bosses, but it's more about the ludicrously elaborate yet easy to dodge first two phases than it actually being hell all the way through. The bear in particular could be easily compressed to six hits without missing much, or seven, if you want the full final phase.
Gentle Rodriguez
Member
World 3 boss was an asshole but really fun and intense. World 4 boss was the worst since the first boss but still surprisingly good for
.
I've missed 1 or 2 puzzle pieces in most levels, I'll get to them eventually.
an underwater boss
I've missed 1 or 2 puzzle pieces in most levels, I'll get to them eventually.
CrimsonCommie
Member
Watching some of the time trial replays made me realize that I have to improve my skills tremendously if I want to be any where near the top.
They just make me realize that I'll never be near the top.
Played through the first level, and it seems as if some of the sound effects are missing. I have this problem with a few other games too (COD Black Ops II especially). The WiiU is set to output surround sound, and it's connected with HDMI to a 4.0 setup with two front speakers and two back speakers. Sounds like the missing sounds are the ones that would come out of the center speaker if I had one. But isn't the receiver normally supposed to send this signal to the two front speakers if there isn't a center speaker? Please help, I have tried so many things to solve this... I have a Marantz SR5006 surround receiver, which should really be able to do this.
I spent an hour just watching them. These guys are so good.
Kamek Koopa
Member
Put the sounds option in stereo
If your receiver doesn't support LPCM 5.1 then surround sound isn't going to work correctly.
CrimsonCommie
Member
lol Yea that's pretty much what I meant too.
Yes they are! It's like watching those Mario super play videos or whatever they were called.
The Xtortionist
Member
Took me probably around 11 hours straight to complete all levels yesterday. Daily log says I played for 12 hours but I went back for some puzzle pieces at one point.
But I want to game in surround... there has to be a way.
I want to see the Mario Club challenge them. Come Nintendo start posting videos of your best against your customers.
Interesting.
As said above, unless your receiver supports LPCM 5.1 it isn't going to work right.
Interceptor
Banned
Put it to Stereo, then check your receiver.
Kacho
Member
Haha just beat. My heart rate is so high right now. Hands shaking. Glad that's behind me.
ViewtifulJC
Banned
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
In 2010, Retro Studios released one of the greatest 2D platformers of all-time in Donkey Kong Country Returns. Now I dont know the inner workings of the studio, but playing the sequel Tropical Freeze, I have to imagine the main design philosophy was, lets do that again, but better.
A quick glance of screenshots or even videos, you might be hard pressed to see the difference. Its a nice enough lookin game, busy with highly detailed animations and architectural elements working together, although its clearly made on the Returns Wii engine, with a nice HD sheen. The lighting has improved, and DKs fur is furrier than ever, but if you played the original you know what to expect on that front.
Donkey Kong still moves with the hefty mass a tie-wearing gorilla of his size should carry. While not quite as nimble on his feet of his former rival Mario, controlling DK is still highly enjoyable. He explodes onto each level with a screen-shaking slam and a howl of domination, and it really sets the course for the entire game. When he lands from barrel blast, a cartoony explosion under his feet comes out, and when he hops on enemies theres a deep bass plomp sound aided by a super addictive and rewarding higher-pitched bop that comes out of your controller that gives you a real sense of how powerful this anthropomorphic monkey is. The roll jump feels better than ever, now more dependable with the satisfying tactility of a button press, DKs natural slow acceleration giving way to sudden bursts of freewheeling momentum.
The feel of controlling a force of a nature is further reflected in the level design proper. Unlike the mostly static environments of Rares DKC trilogy, Retros interpretation of the franchise has some of the liveliest 2D platformer stages youll ever see. You regularly interact with the background elements, and your actions frequently and dynamically change up the landscape of the world. The stages are cleverly choreographed calamity, feeling much like the best kind of action movies; intricately painstakingly crafted to look as wildly chaotic as possible. The stages have various peaks and valleys, switching between ideas at the benefit of the pacing. They build logically and organically, the elements foreshadowed in the background coming into play in the future, the new elements youre introduced to gradually building into a grand climax or combination. Theyre real marvels of game design, as one level theyre full of areas and avenues to slow down and explore, yet all the enemy and platform placement has been distinctly designed for speed runs(as the Gold Medal Time Trial videos expertly display). This multi-purpose structure opens the doors to a variety of play styles you can choose or switch between on the fly, reacting and adapting to whatever new obstacle the game throws at you.
The ever-changing level design is aided by the dynamically-shifting tunes of David Wise, the original composer of the DKC trilogy brought in to sprinkle his musical magic on us mortals. Hes generally in a bit more happy mood ala his Diddy Kong Racing and DKC3GBA soundtracks, but it fits the more celebratory and lively Retro games. From the Switzerland Alps to the depths of the oceans, the burning Savannah and the dark caverns, the songs are a perfect match to the environments and the atmosphere Retro wants to convey. Irate Eight flips back and forth from a ponderous Yamamoto Metroid Prime style to the frantic escape remix of Wises Lockjaws Saga. The already popular Grassland Groove grows and shifts with the three tiers of the stage design, before combining its previous sounds into one climatic explosion as the level nears its conclusion and combines its own platforming elements. Amiss Abyss matches the classic Aquatic Ambience for its soothing melodies that capture the mysterious and wonderful sea of serendipity you often find yourself in this time around.
All these elements combine into an incredibly polished and cohesive experience. Theres not really a whole lot wrong with it, except in never escapes the feeling of familiarity. Many of the above elements are regularly apparent in Returns, and if the visuals are a bit shinier, the vehicle sections a bit more forgiving, Dixie floats a bit higher than Diddys jetpack well not exactly back of the box feature toting material. Its very expected in its excellence, how could it not after taking so much of what worked in the last game and doing it again? I dont mean to belittle the well-honed mechanics and creativity on display here, but even at its wildest moments, I couldnt help but simply nod my head and smirk of how it reminded of a similar section in the last game, instead of being overwhelmed by its inventiveness and execution. I feel like theyve taken this formula as far as they could go, and now theyre only repeating themselves in incrementally improved variations.
The above paragraph is really just me trying to figure out why Im giving this game a 9/10 instead of the Full Monty. Its only more top of the line 2D platforming awesomeness, some of the very finest ever made and well worth your time and money if youre any of kind of fan of the genre. If its qualities never shock or surprise the experienced gamer, this doesnt negate the qualities themselves too much, does it? Whether its more DKC, Metroid, or something else entirely, Ill take whatever Retro has on the menu, even if I have an pretty good idea how its gonna taste.
9/10
In 2010, Retro Studios released one of the greatest 2D platformers of all-time in Donkey Kong Country Returns. Now I dont know the inner workings of the studio, but playing the sequel Tropical Freeze, I have to imagine the main design philosophy was, lets do that again, but better.
A quick glance of screenshots or even videos, you might be hard pressed to see the difference. Its a nice enough lookin game, busy with highly detailed animations and architectural elements working together, although its clearly made on the Returns Wii engine, with a nice HD sheen. The lighting has improved, and DKs fur is furrier than ever, but if you played the original you know what to expect on that front.
Donkey Kong still moves with the hefty mass a tie-wearing gorilla of his size should carry. While not quite as nimble on his feet of his former rival Mario, controlling DK is still highly enjoyable. He explodes onto each level with a screen-shaking slam and a howl of domination, and it really sets the course for the entire game. When he lands from barrel blast, a cartoony explosion under his feet comes out, and when he hops on enemies theres a deep bass plomp sound aided by a super addictive and rewarding higher-pitched bop that comes out of your controller that gives you a real sense of how powerful this anthropomorphic monkey is. The roll jump feels better than ever, now more dependable with the satisfying tactility of a button press, DKs natural slow acceleration giving way to sudden bursts of freewheeling momentum.
The feel of controlling a force of a nature is further reflected in the level design proper. Unlike the mostly static environments of Rares DKC trilogy, Retros interpretation of the franchise has some of the liveliest 2D platformer stages youll ever see. You regularly interact with the background elements, and your actions frequently and dynamically change up the landscape of the world. The stages are cleverly choreographed calamity, feeling much like the best kind of action movies; intricately painstakingly crafted to look as wildly chaotic as possible. The stages have various peaks and valleys, switching between ideas at the benefit of the pacing. They build logically and organically, the elements foreshadowed in the background coming into play in the future, the new elements youre introduced to gradually building into a grand climax or combination. Theyre real marvels of game design, as one level theyre full of areas and avenues to slow down and explore, yet all the enemy and platform placement has been distinctly designed for speed runs(as the Gold Medal Time Trial videos expertly display). This multi-purpose structure opens the doors to a variety of play styles you can choose or switch between on the fly, reacting and adapting to whatever new obstacle the game throws at you.
The ever-changing level design is aided by the dynamically-shifting tunes of David Wise, the original composer of the DKC trilogy brought in to sprinkle his musical magic on us mortals. Hes generally in a bit more happy mood ala his Diddy Kong Racing and DKC3GBA soundtracks, but it fits the more celebratory and lively Retro games. From the Switzerland Alps to the depths of the oceans, the burning Savannah and the dark caverns, the songs are a perfect match to the environments and the atmosphere Retro wants to convey. Irate Eight flips back and forth from a ponderous Yamamoto Metroid Prime style to the frantic escape remix of Wises Lockjaws Saga. The already popular Grassland Groove grows and shifts with the three tiers of the stage design, before combining its previous sounds into one climatic explosion as the level nears its conclusion and combines its own platforming elements. Amiss Abyss matches the classic Aquatic Ambience for its soothing melodies that capture the mysterious and wonderful sea of serendipity you often find yourself in this time around.
All these elements combine into an incredibly polished and cohesive experience. Theres not really a whole lot wrong with it, except in never escapes the feeling of familiarity. Many of the above elements are regularly apparent in Returns, and if the visuals are a bit shinier, the vehicle sections a bit more forgiving, Dixie floats a bit higher than Diddys jetpack well not exactly back of the box feature toting material. Its very expected in its excellence, how could it not after taking so much of what worked in the last game and doing it again? I dont mean to belittle the well-honed mechanics and creativity on display here, but even at its wildest moments, I couldnt help but simply nod my head and smirk of how it reminded of a similar section in the last game, instead of being overwhelmed by its inventiveness and execution. I feel like theyve taken this formula as far as they could go, and now theyre only repeating themselves in incrementally improved variations.
The above paragraph is really just me trying to figure out why Im giving this game a 9/10 instead of the Full Monty. Its only more top of the line 2D platforming awesomeness, some of the very finest ever made and well worth your time and money if youre any of kind of fan of the genre. If its qualities never shock or surprise the experienced gamer, this doesnt negate the qualities themselves too much, does it? Whether its more DKC, Metroid, or something else entirely, Ill take whatever Retro has on the menu, even if I have an pretty good idea how its gonna taste.
9/10
What I love so much about this level is that at first it can seem really janky and have a messed up flow, but after the 50th attempt where you are getting everything down pat it just flows so well through the whole thing. Also despite it taking me the better part of 2 hours (one of which was at 3 am last night where I died 30 times without making it past the bounces after the cannon, which had really weird timing for me for some reason), I left with 98 lives thanks to the farming of extra lives.
Fantastic level which makes you feel like a badass when you pull it off.
Kai Dracon
Writing a dinosaur space opera symphony
Random thought: the thing that bugged me most about DKCR is the evil tikis were really uninteresting and generic antagonists - they reminded me too much of the whole tiki theme in Crash Bandicoot, of which I was never a big fan. DKC:TF is charming me a lot more with the Snomads, who I think are great designs. There is nice personality in all the enemies. I like them better than the Kremlings, honestly.
It does support LPCM 5.1, and also LPCM 7.1.
Well you mentioned not having a center channel speaker and that it should route the center channel to L and R. Are you 100% on that? If so, maybe there is an option on your receiver to actually make it do that instead of it automatically doing it?
Kacho
Member
Agreed. Fantastic level design. The end almost gave me a heart attack though.
Seth Enosh
Member
Make sure you configure your reciever not to output a center channel. Your description makes it sound like the reciever isn't properly sending the audio from the center to the L/R speakers. test it by plugging your left speaker's wires into the Center output on your reciever, if you hear sound come from it at all, then the reciever isn't set up correctly.
The windmill things with the penguins everywhere? I remember the first time I reached it (out of probably 500 times) and saying to myself "Are you fucking kidding me?"
Yeah I really like the Snomads. I like their visual "kit" (viking items and cold climate animals). Tikis really dragged DKCR down. Snomads push TF up.
TF has so many more unique graphical assets than 3D World. Sometimes its amazing to see how dense and full the levels in TF are.
Beat the last boss!
Now to find all the secret exits I missed
I found it to be a more interesting fight than Tiki Tong (I find the whole head+hands thing boring) and it's a pretty fun fight once you get down the timings of his run attack. The fight itself was fun and challenging, but it did seem to lack spectacle. Frederick didn't really feel that different to the standard bosses. Just a minor nitpick though. DKC2'S K. Rool still remains the best final boss in the series for me, and I'd say Skowl was my favourite boss in this game. That guy had the most interesting attack patterns.
Now to find all the secret exits I missed
This is almost identical to what I wanted to write. It's strange... It's absolutely phenomenal... like seriously some of the best platforming ever... and then I'm just staring at the screen going... "yup, that's about it."
I think this game is going to age ridiculously well. In the future, when anyone goes back to play ANY of these levels, they will be floored by just how amazing they are. I also think that going through one after the other after the other in order to beat the game is a disservice to the craft at hand. I think putting the game down and then returning to levels over and over will increase its value, at least in my mind. There are so many amazing sets to return to and ogle over.
Just like when
the bat frozen in a block of ice
Thank you for being the one who understands my point instead of jumping down my throat. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but I certainly prefer the older Capcom way and newer Platinum way of handling replay value.
And yes I'm totally a gamer who has beat many Hard modes, gotten many secrets, etc. I just think when a game is beaten but still gives you something to freshen a second play through it gives the game replay value. I was just commenting that an extra hard mode isn't really creating a new experience. I know for a fact everyone here would be way more hype if you unlocked Funky Kong instead.
Thanks! That did the trick
The receiver was sent to service a while ago for another problem. They must have used another speaker configuration when testing it, because it was set up very differently from my own. Changed it back to no center speaker, and now the game sounds a lot better.The Xtortionist
Member
I need to write a review up but this game is pretty much 10/10 for me. I can understand JC's thoughts about familiarity but there are a few reasons why it doesn't bother me:
1. Large scale big budget 2D platformers are very uncommon today, so I think it gives each similar release an automatic dose of freshness...if that makes sense
2. It's been almost 3.5 years since Returns was released. I was hungry for more of the same (but better), regardless. If this was an annualized or semi annualized franchise, the lack of huge innovations would probably annoy me.
3. I actually felt like enough new stuff was sprinkled throughout TF to spice up the formula. Swimming alone was a huge gamble but I think it really payed off. Zip lines and the occasional dynamic camera mechanic were rare, but I think it dramatically increased their impact when they did show up. Wing Ding, High Tide Ride and Reckless Ride are all fucking amazing and extremely unique. Secret exits were also fun to find. Maybe it's just me, but you throw in all new level themes, the amazing Snowmads, and arguably the best soundtrack to a game ever (will talk about this later -on my phone now :3) and I think TF feels not just better than Returns, but better in a profound way. It goes far beyond the basic mechanics and design. Gamers slammed Returns for its lackluster presentation do Retro responded by making a game that can arguably get by on its presentation alone, despite having absolute best in class design. WOW
Will post more later, but yeah. Thanks for the Review JC.
1. Large scale big budget 2D platformers are very uncommon today, so I think it gives each similar release an automatic dose of freshness...if that makes sense
2. It's been almost 3.5 years since Returns was released. I was hungry for more of the same (but better), regardless. If this was an annualized or semi annualized franchise, the lack of huge innovations would probably annoy me.
3. I actually felt like enough new stuff was sprinkled throughout TF to spice up the formula. Swimming alone was a huge gamble but I think it really payed off. Zip lines and the occasional dynamic camera mechanic were rare, but I think it dramatically increased their impact when they did show up. Wing Ding, High Tide Ride and Reckless Ride are all fucking amazing and extremely unique. Secret exits were also fun to find. Maybe it's just me, but you throw in all new level themes, the amazing Snowmads, and arguably the best soundtrack to a game ever (will talk about this later -on my phone now :3) and I think TF feels not just better than Returns, but better in a profound way. It goes far beyond the basic mechanics and design. Gamers slammed Returns for its lackluster presentation do Retro responded by making a game that can arguably get by on its presentation alone, despite having absolute best in class design. WOW
Will post more later, but yeah. Thanks for the Review JC.
I just wanted to share this feel with you guys.
Because we all know this feel.
I swear they engineered that block to come down in your blind spot or something
Also the new characters (Dixie, Cranky) allow for different playstyles and add more variety to the formula.
In my opinion, people seem to be overly hard on this game.