Donkey Kong Land 2
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Critic Reviews 90% add missing review
GamePro (US) (5 out of 5)
One of the best handheld games of 1995 gets a great sequel in 1996. As in the 16-bit version, DKC2 introduces Diddy's gal pal Dixie, who uses her helicopter whirl to bash familiar Donkey Kong enemies. The 42 stages of side-scrolling action, hidden areas, bouncy music and exceptional Game Boy graphics make this the best handheld game of the year.
Jan 1997 · Game BoyBravo Screenfun (1 out of 6)
Ein groĂer AffenspaĂ mit guter Grafik und vielen Gags.
Mar 1997 · Game BoyJoypad (95 out of 100)
Dans cette suite, c'est le nirvana visuel : on distingue les détails sans avoir besoin d'utiliser un Super Game Boy. Du coup, tous les points positifs ressortent au grand jour et font de Donkey 2 un must impossible à louper sur Game Boy.
Dec 1996 · Game Boy · read review.jpg){kind=link}
Total! (Germany) (1.25 out of 6)
Rare hat es sich offensichtlich den ersten Teil ganz genau angesehen und dabei den einen oder anderen vermeidbaren Schwachpunkt erkannt. Darauf lieferten sie mit Donkey Kong Land 2 ein sehr solides Jump&Run ab, das aufgrund seines durchdachten Leveldesigns und der vortrefflichen Spielbarkeit auch lÀngerfristig motiviert.
Nov 1996 · Game BoyElectric Playground (9.5 out of 10)
There are tons of great Nintendo produced titles available for the little portable. Donkey Kong Land 2 easily melds with the lot. Even though the game is filled to the brim with all kinds of familiarity, I still have no reservations about highly recommending this great little platformer. Nintendo does this kind of game better than anyone else in the world (take another bow, Mr. Miyamoto) and that's about as persuasive as I should have to get. This ape fest is a gas. Grab it.
Feb 27th, 1997 · Game Boy · read reviewSuper Power (93 out of 100)
Donkey Kong Land 2 ne surprend pas. C'est du Donkey Kong Country tout crachĂ©, mais du bon. La rĂ©alisation et honorable et les graphismes riches. Dommage tout de mĂȘme qu'il y ait tous ces clignotements, mais pour ma part, je considĂšre que cela n'altĂšre pas trop la jouabilitĂ©. En revanche, le soft est hyper-maniable et on progresse avec un plaisir non dissimulĂ© dans ses niveaux, Ă la recherche de la sortie et de tous les Ă©lĂ©ments cachĂ©s.
Dec 1996 · Game Boy · read reviewPortable Review (36 out of 40)
What are you waiting for? If youâve played the original Donkey Kong Countries and not the âLandâ games, then youâre completely missing out. Theyâre not the same game exactly, and theyâre fun and portable. This game is must for anyoneâs collection. Trying to explain how good the game is just doesnât do it justice. Play it and see for yourself.
Oct 25th, 2005 · Game Boy · read reviewMega Fun (86 out of 100)
Nintendo bzw. Rare liefern wie gewohnt QualitĂ€tsarbeit ab, die keinen gravierenden Schwachpunkt aufweist. Das Leveldesign spielt sich so prĂ€zise wie ein Uhrwerk und lĂ€Ăt in puncto Abwechslung ohnehin die meisten Konkurrenten alt aussehen. Auch die technischen Hardwarevoraussetzungen wurden optimal genutzt. Die Render-Grafiken verblĂŒffen durch den hohen Grad an Detailreichtum und die Musikuntermalung bietet schöne, bisweilen sogar raffinierte Melodien, statt nervigem Gepiepse. Man sollte allerdings einen Super Game Boy oder den Game Boy Pocket sein Eigen nennen, denn auf dem Handheld-Oldie verwischen die Grafiken leicht, wodurch die Ăbersichtlichkeit (und die Augen) etwas leidet. Alle Gelegenheitsspieler sollten sich zudem im klaren sein, daĂ DKL 2 einen harten Jump ân Run-Brocken darstellt. Vor allem der Umstand, daĂ normales Abspeichern Geld kostet dĂŒrfte nicht jedermann schmecken.
Jan 1997 · Game BoyNintendojo (8.5 out of 10)
Donkey Kong Land 2 is a classic platformer. Although you can purchase the more complex Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Country 2 for your GBA these days, this game still merits a purchase of its bargain price tag eBay. It is hindered by the GB hardware, but nevertheless provides an extremely amusing adventure marred only by the annoying save system. Had the save system been more accessible, this game would have been much closer to perfect.
Apr 15th, 2006 · Game Boy · read reviewComputer and Video Games (CVG) ( )
Donkey Kong Land 2 is arguably the best platform game on Nintendo's handheld. The only problem is you're being shortchanged if you already own DKC 2 on the Super NES.
Dec 1996 · Game Boy · read reviewPlayer Reviews
A perfect downport for the perfect platformer
by pelida77 (32)
The Good
This is Rare's second attempt to adapt their successful Donkey Kong franchise for the Game Boy. The first game was its own thing, this one is a bit more port-ish in the sense that it tries to follow closer to the Super Nintendo sequel stages and its map screens. But of course, as always, out of the Game Boy's limitations the layouts of levels have been redesigned, to the point that they feel kind of new.
One of the many problems the first Land game had was how enemies appeared out of nowhere, the scrolling and the movement was so fast and the Game Boy screen so tiny, that it really didn't give you time to react. That is not an issue here: some of the enemies' animations might look a bit clumsier and they definitely move a lot slower, but at least we don't get cheap hits and deaths. It's a great improvement.
Now the kinetic platforming, the fast moving gameplay that the series is known for, is back on the menu.
The difficulty has been nerfed down but you still get a moment or two of unfair challenge: the sword Kleaver boss fight is a nightmare to deal with.
Gone is the terrible Save System experiment of the first game - where you had to collect all the four Kong letters in order to save - here it follows the SNES. You have a free save per map from Wrinkly, and then you have to pay 2 banana coins if you want to save again. Is for the best.
The coins are back! The silly mini game bonuses that bring a disruptive variety in gameplay still reward you with Secret World Kremkoins and each stage still has a hidden Cranky's challenge DK coins, almost always a blast to look for these. So the re-playability is guaranteed.
All the Animal Friends are here - they are a great part of DKC2 and they play a fair role here, bringing variety to the gameplay, and though you cannot mount them anymore -just transform into them- Rambi, Enguarde and Rattly they all have their characteristic special charging moves, and you can even make web platforms from Squitter.
The Bad
There's still a minor problem with the hit boxes, but they tweaked it a little bit and it's nowhere near close to the first Land game. Most of the times the hit boxes are generous and work in your favor.
But back are the cheap deaths just by dropping on thin air when you know there's a platform below out of the system's short memory: I guess there is no way around this, the hardware is just weak, but as a consolation I can say that for the most part these are not that frequent.
The stages are huge, some of them oddly enough feel bigger than their Super Nintendo counterparts, which creates some orientation problems... usually kind of fixed in a somehow cheap way with banana arrows that guide you in the direction you need to go. But still, the stages sometimes feel just too long.
The music in this game could be a huge plus, there's enough variety of well arranged tunes and most of the original score is here; but inexplicably they choose to use one tune per map screen, over and over. I never thought I could get annoyed by listening to David Wise's amazing rendition but when I hear Lockjaw's Saga for what it feels like the 10th time in a row I had to turn down the volume.
And it's a bit disappointing to see from renowned Grant Kirkhope - the man in charge of the music here - there wasn't a single new composition... though it was his first job at Rare so I'll give the guy a break.
The Bottom Line
Donkey Kong Land was a technical marvel but a very hard game, and the glitches and scrolling issues at times made it unplayable.
Donkey Kong Land 2 is just as impressive -if not more- in every single department, it feels and plays better, and the issues, for the most part, were fixed, making this the absolute very best way of experiencing
a DKC game on the Game Boy.
Jan 2nd, 2023 · Game Boy
Contributors to this Entry
Critic reviews added by Big John WV, Patrick Bregger, Alsy, Scaryfun, Flu, Tim Janssen.