Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
File:DKCTropicalFreeze.jpg Official game logo
Developer(s)	Retro Studios
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Director(s)	Risa Tabata
Producer(s)	Kensuke Tanabe
Composer(s)	David Wise
Series	Donkey Kong
Platform(s)	Wii U
Release	November 2013
Genre(s)	Platforming

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is an upcoming side-scrolling platform game developed by Retro Studios and to be released by Nintendo for the Wii U. The seventh installment in the series, and the first in high-definition, it follows 2010's Donkey Kong Country Returns, also by Retro Studios and was announced during Nintendo's pre-E3 2013 conference on June 11, 2013.

The game's story focuses on a group of Viking creatures, such as walruses, owls and penguins, that invade on Donkey Kong Island, forcing Donkey Kong to go against them with the help of his friends Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong, the latter made her first appearance in the main series in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, released in 1995.

Like previous games in the series, it will be possible for two people to play cooperatively, and Tropical Freeze also marks the return of swimming to the franchise, a feature absent from Returns. The original series composer David Wise will be returning to score the soundtrack.

Plot

See also: List of Donkey Kong characters

A group of anthropomorphic Viking animals invades Donkey Kong Island, chasing its inhabitants to another far-off island. Along with his sidekicks Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong, Donkey Kong travels across five islands, fighting a variety of enemies to return to and reclaim his home.

Gameplay

See also: Gameplay of Donkey Kong Country Returns

The game continues on from the side-scrolling platform gameplay of Donkey Kong Country Returns, in which Donkey Kong and his companions must travel across a variety of levels to reclaim their home from vikings.

Along with Diddy Kong, who is equipped with his barrel jetpack for crossing large gaps, the game now features Dixie Kong, who can use her ponytail to gain extra height in the middle of her jump, and a yet unannounced character. Like the previous games, these characters can be played individually in multiplayer or serve as power-ups for Donkey Kong in the single player campaign. Dixie and Diddy appear to have individual DK Barrels, with Dixie's colored pink for identification.

The swimming mechanic, present in previous Donkey Kong Country games, makes a return, but in a refined fashion; players can now attack while underwater with a spin attack, and have a breathing bar right next to their health bar that appears as soon they get in the water. Players must touch bubbles in order to regain breath, or reach the surface (in a similar fashion to the Sega Genesis' Sonic the Hedgehog games).

A new game mechanic, lifted from Super Mario Bros. 2, Donkey Kong can now pluck things from the ground to reveal hidden secrets, as well as pick up and throw stunned enemies. There are also some sections that utilise a 3D perspective, such as when Donkey Kong is riding in cannon barrels.

Development

The game was first announced during Nintendo's E3 2013 Nintendo Direct presentation on June 11, 2013. The game is being produced by Kensuke Tanabe who, having previously worked on Super Mario Bros. 2, has incorporated some elements from that game. It has been announced that David Wise, the composer of the first three Donkey Kong Country titles, as well as spin-off titles such as Diddy Kong Racing, will be returning to score the music for Tropical Freeze.