Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Review (no fat)

Game Description

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Gameplay

You are Donkey Kong, a big furry ape and your task is to catch as many bananas as possible and battle boss characters as you travel through the game. The game consist of 16 levels, the higher levels are unlocked depending on your performance in the earlier levels.

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Gameplay

Each level has two parts one in which you collect as many bananas as possible, and the second part in which you battle the level’s boss. In the first part, the number of bananas you collect as you go along will determine your health. If you have more bananas, higher is your chance of beating the boss character. At the end of the level, your remaining bananas are totaled up and there are four medals one can aspire to - Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze. To get your hands on the Platinum medal, 1200 bananas have to be collected.

The game takes place in different environments, from the forest to a lake. There are quite a few friendly characters that will help you in your tasks including Mooshin the buffalo and Shachee the whale. Like your friends, you have only four bosses to deal with, Kong, Roc, Trunk, and Hog. Disappointingly, they keep repeating from level to level so the game gets rather dull and boring.

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Combo Moves

One great feature in this game is the use of combination moves. If you are able to do a few moves in combination without landing like climbing on to a ledge, collecting multiple bananas, swinging through with vines, collecting even more bananas, etc. the number of bananas you get will be multiplied by a factor. In order to obtain the Platinum medal, such well orchestrated combinations are necessary.

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Controls

The Bongo controllers are the primary feature of the game and they help keep the immersive gameplay alive. If you hit the left bongo, Donkey Kong moves to the left and hitting the right bongo makes it move to the right. When you hit both bongos, Donkey Kong will jump and clapping your hands will make Donkey Kong catch bananas and perform other actions like hanging onto vines and scaling ledges. There is a built-in microphone in the bongos to here the clapping.

While pummeling a boss character, you will be hitting the bongos really fast and in various combinations which gives you much more mental satisfaction on and an illusion of you actually participated in the fight. The Game Cube’s controller can be used instead of the bongos but even with them, you will have to tap rather than move the controls around. So the bongo is a better option as it meshes with the game.

Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat Audio

Due to the sound of the bongo, most of the other background noises fade out. In fact, they are not necessary for the gaming experience. The sound tracks are pretty good and a couple of snazzy jungle tunes sound perfect for the game. There is no voice acting and Dolby Pro Logic II is supported.

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat Video

The frame rate is an exceptional 60 frames per second and the locations are lush and beautifully etched. Minor details like the fur of Donkey Kong have been displayed very well. The boss characters are very well designed and the environments are vivid.

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat Summing Up

The bongo controllers make this a novel way to play video games. The main disappointment is that the game barely lasts an afternoon, so the first time you play it might be the last. Those interested in prolonging the game can string together combination moves and go for the Platinum medal to make the game longer and give it replay value. This game is definitely worth a rental.

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat Cost

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat currently retails for $49.99US at the time of writing.