Donkey Kong - Jungle Beat (Staff Review Included)

[JFo]

I know many of us here have a fondness for Donkey Konga, so I figured it was high time that this game had a thread going.

 

For those of you who don't know about this, it's basically a side-scrolling platformer in the tradition of Donkey Kong Country. The difference is that you use the bongos that came with Donkey Konga as your controller instead of the standard GCN pad. To move left or right, you tap the appropriate drum. To jump, you hit both drums at the same time. Clapping sends a shock wave that can disable enemies as well as cause a number of other context-sensative functions. GameSpot and IGN both have highly-favorable hands-on impressions of the Japanese version, which came out in Japan last month. GameSpot had this to say:

 

While not as complex as those in many other conventional platformers, the levels in Donkey Kong Jungle Beat are surprisingly varied and are, in many respects, reminiscent of those found in the excellent Donkey Kong Country series of SNES games. In the few hours that we've spent with the game thus far, we've swung between vines, had groups of small monkeys toss us through the air, boxed against another ape, chased a giant snowball while riding a wild animal, knocked a bad guy from a tree by redirecting his projectile attacks back at him, and, of course, collected (literally) thousands of bananas.

 

And from the IGN article...

 

Jungle Beat impressed us enough via the E3 demo from earlier this year, but it's when you spend some quality time with the game that you fully realize that Nintendo's creative juices -- you know, the same juices that fed masterpieces like Made in Wario -- are in full force. The conga controller is used for surprisingly precise control of Donkey Kong. You'll make him run, jump, beat the crap out of enemies, bop enemies on the head, swim, swing between vines, repel off walls and just about everything you can do in a normal platform game. You'll also control Donkey Kong as he rides on beasts and floats through the air in bubbles and on parachutes. And this is through just the first four levels.

 

Sounds good to me. I'm happy to see other games make use of the bongos in interesting ways, and do it with a genre you wouldn't expect. The release date on this is March 14. Is anyone else interested in this?

[JoeyN]

I will have it on release day, as well as anything else that uses the Bongos

 

capt

[Mark E]

Yeah, looking forward to this one down the line

[heavy liquid]

Oh, yeah... I've been looking forward to this, as well. Sounds like a lot of fun!

[matt]

I'm sure I'll wind up with this title in my collection. I just can't justify having two giant controllers sitting around for only one game.

[Tom]

Originally posted by CaptDS9E@Jan 6 2005, 07:15 AM

I will have it on release day, as well as anything else that uses the Bongos

Same. I have to justify the fact I bought the spare bongos somehow.

 

Now if they just had different musical instrument controllers to play with.

[The Daisy]

I'm in the same group as you guys. I'll be picking it up right away.

 

Glen

[Mark E]

I just can't justify having two giant controllers sitting around for only one game.

 

Donkey Konga 2, Q1! :green:

[Rob B]

Hells yea thanks for the heads up Jeff.... right in time for my B-Day;)

[Angry the Clown]

I read a highly favourable review of the PAL version which hit stores here yesterday. The review only knocked it for being so absurdly short (easy enough to finish in a single session), but it did note there was a repeat value to better your score and that they knew of few other games that were so much fun to play.

 

In the UK you can only buy it with the bongos curiously enough, however I?ve noticed indications that the US and Canada will get a standalone game version which is nice if true as since I don't own Donkey Konga yet I can save myself woes of importing Konga and the bongos, import Jungle beat from Canada and just buy a set of UK bongos cheaply without concerns over shipping (allowing me to buy standalone game versions of Konga from various territories to play on my modified cube). Are the US/Canadian prices for Jungle Beat not set yet?

 

Daniel

[iainl]

I saw the package in HMV today; it's only the price of a normal game for the Jungle Beat + Bongos set, so I've no complaints about having a second pair for Konga multiplayer at all.

[Sherbz]

Are the US/Canadian prices for Jungle Beat not set yet?

 

Daniel

The game only will retail for $40US I believe.

[JFo]

Just a heads up. You can also get the game with a pair of bongos for $59.99 at GameStop in case you don't have Donkey Konga and need them.

[Carlucci]

Just got back from Gamestop where the manager had just loaded the in-store demo with this game on it.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have played Pac-Man, Halo, and Super Mario, and I can say without fear of hyperbole that this game is 100 times better than all those other games put together! <apologies to Kent Brockman>

 

Oh, what a blast! The graphics are gorgeous, and there's just so much to do. I wasn't sure about the controls, but I managed to get through it. There are a lot of things that happen when you clap, and good timing is of course rewarded with more bananas.

 

The demo consists of a short level and a boss fight. It was so much fun I didn't want to leave, but there was a crowd forming behind me because of my uncontrolled laughter and savage bongo-bashing, so I had to step aside after just one play through.

 

Clapping to dodge his punch, and then having your bongo drum-rolls translate into a savage fury of punches on the boss is just too indescribably fun to put in words. If the rest of the game lives up to the promise of this demo, Nintendo's on to something special!

 

Instant pre-order!

 

 

Carlos.

[Romier S]

Wow, Carlos. That's some serious excitement for the game you have there. I was going to hold off on this for a little bit but your enthusiasm is addicting. I'm heading over to EB to pick up Shadow of Rome right now and I may have to see if they have a demo of Jungle Beat up and running. Thanks for the impressions.

[JFo]

Carlos;

 

That one post of yours has done more to get me excited for this game than any online preview, screenshot, or movie ever could. Next time I'm at GameStop (in other words, later this week), I'll be sure to check out the demo. I'm glad to see my bongo drums won't be going to waste. :tu

[Angry the Clown]

I saw a young lad playing it in HMV in Piccadilly Circus on Saturday and it does look like tremendous fun. It was hard not to grab a PAL set there and then in store, but I shall wait and import the US/Canadian release as I'm too lazy to bother with a freeloader. It is perhaps the most ingenious peripheral based game I have seen since Samba De Amigo, it?s just a pity Jungle Beat is meant to be so insultingly short.

 

Daniel

[Carlucci]

I got the recorded call from the Gamestop Babe yesterday afternoon. I will be picking this up today during lunch.

 

Most reviews I have read say the shorcomings in length are made up for in the challenge of trying to get platinum medals on all the levels. IGN makes mention of a "deep combo system" that novices will ignore but hardcore gamers will have to exploit to unlock additional levels.

 

My disappointment in reading the IGN Review is that there is not much of a story. I always enjoyed the campy plotlines in DK games. Maybe at least the instruction book will have a backstory.

 

If the rain quits today, my kids will have Baseball games to go to. But if it keeps raining, I will be playing DK:JB tonight!

 

Carlos.

[Carlucci]

I've played through 5 or 6 levels now and I'm still enjoying it immensely. It might actually be a good thing that the game is short, because I need to take frequent breaks to soothe my aching hands. I have got to learn to stop clapping and start hitting the sides instead. My hands are so numb after playing for a few minutes, that I am able to create an effect i call "the Stranger". Oh wait, TMI, nevermind.

 

Ok, back to the game. This is side scrolling 2-D platform action at its finest.

There are plenty of intricacies to master as you try to get your combo multiplier up in order to score the most bananas. Getting a Silver Crest has been no problem on most levels, but gold is really difficult. I cannot even fathom how you would get up to 1200 bananas (which they call Beats) for a platinum, but I'm going to figure it out sooner or later.

 

Hopefully I'll get the quick runthrough completed this weekend, then I'll attempt to earn the higher crests.

 

If you're on the fence for this game, go play the demo at your local game shop. I guess it is expensive if you don't already have the bongos, but man it sure is fun!

 

 

Carlos.

[Camp]

This game is spectacular.

I thought the bongos were a gimmick but they work very well at challenging you to re-learn everything you know about controlling a platform game. There are moments where you catch your brain being trained -you think, "press the jump button" and your hands just sit there waiting for you to convert that signal to the bongo drum's equivalent (hitting the tops of each drum simultaneously).

 

The boss battles are simple yet very creative. Classic Nintendo creativity.

[JFo]

I'm glad to hear you're enjoying the game, gents. I'll probably be picking up my copy this weekend. I'm a sucker for a good 2D platformer, and if it uses the bongos... that's just an added bonus. I'll be sure to post my thoughts once I get some play time in this weekend.

[The Daisy]

I can't even fathom getting 1200 beats on a level. I just got 817 on the first level and I can see how you could get a few more, but I'm guessing you just neeed to execute a ton more combos to get a good deal more. One of the things that I really like about it at this point is that after you play a level a few times it shows you techniques that you can use in order to get more beats.

 

I'm seriously in love with this game. I really thought that the bongos would be a gimmicky controller, but I can't wait to see Nintendo put out another game or two using them.

 

The game is a good deal more intuitive than I thought it would be as well. When I started the first level, I thought it was pretty awkward, but within about 5 minutes I was pulling off combos like they were second nature.

 

Poppy likey.

 

Glen

[GrumpyElf]

I have to say, I picked this up, with the bongos today. My daughter, 5 years of age, is in love with it. Not only is it a huge workout for your arms, the coordination building is excellent.

 

The game looks amazing in 480p, and there is just something about 1st party Nintendo games that are always magical. I know adults can get through it in 4 hours or so, but it's damn fun. I was pleasantly surprised.

 

T.

 

PS - I mentioned this was probably a "kiddy game" to most... that's what Romier is referring too... I edited it out.

[Romier S]

I know "kiddy Nintendo" games aren't all that discussed here

 

All games are discussed here Tom. I certainly wouldn't consider Jungle Beat to be a "kiddy" game either. I can't imagine any kid getting a 1200+ platinum medal without some serious practice. As you can see though there is an existing thread for Jungle Beat which I have gone ahead and merged with your newly created thread. Feel free to continue discussion here my friend. :tu

[GrumpyElf]

Oh wow, I'm sorry, I didn't even see this, I was looking for one earlier. And I agree, it's no kid game, but it seems whenever I bring up a Nintendo game, that dumb argument comes up! Thanks Romier... I'll read the thread!