Nintendo Switch Will Soon Be the Ultimate Donkey Kong Country Machine

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Key Takeaways

  • Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is coming to the Switch on January 16, 2025.
  • At that point, all the Donkey Kong Country games will be playable on Switch.
  • This is thanks to Switch Online and the previous port of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze.

As a long-time fan who has journeyed through countless hours of platforming adventures with Donkey Kong and his pals, I can’t help but feel a sense of nostalgic excitement at the prospect of having every single Donkey Kong Country game accessible on my Nintendo Switch! Growing up in the 90s, I remember the thrill of playing the original trilogy on my Super Nintendo. The return of these games to the modern console landscape is not just a trip down memory lane, but an opportunity to share these beloved experiences with a new generation of gamers.

Nintendo has announced that the Nintendo Switch will soon offer play access to all games in the Donkey Kong Country series, which initially debuted in 1994 with the launch of the original game on the Super Nintendo console. The Donkey Kong Country spin-off proved popular and critically acclaimed, resulting in the release of two direct sequels for the Super Nintendo as well.

The Donkey Kong Country spin-off series took a break following the launch of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble. It resurfaced 14 years later as Retro Studios’ Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Wii, which was highly successful. After that, Retro continued with Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze on the Wii U, and eventually brought the game to Nintendo Switch.

With the launch of “Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze” on the Nintendo Switch and the inclusion of the original “Donkey Kong Country” trilogy in the Switch Online service, almost the entire Donkey Kong Country series is now playable on Nintendo’s versatile home-handheld console. The sole exception is “Donkey Kong Country Returns”, but that will soon change as “Donkey Kong Country Returns HD” is scheduled for release on the Switch on January 16, 2025. Once this happens, owners of the Switch will be able to play every Donkey Kong Country game ever made.

List of Donkey Kong Country Games on the Switch

  • Donkey Kong Country (Switch Online)
  • Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (Switch Online)
  • Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie’s Double Trouble (Switch Online)
  • Donkey Kong Country Returns HD (January 16, 2025)
  • Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

By the end of January, Nintendo Switch users can enjoy every Donkey Kong Country game as well as most of the connected Donkey Kong Land games. The latter two, Donkey Kong Land and Donkey Kong Land 2, have recently been added to the Nintendo Switch Online service. Although they are not exactly Donkey Kong Country games, they share a close connection. The Donkey Kong Land games aim to mimic the gameplay style of DKC and their stories are closely intertwined, if not almost identical. The third installment, Donkey Kong Land 3, hasn’t made its way to Switch Online yet, but it seems likely that it will be added sooner rather than later.

Nintendo has skillfully maintained a strong presence of its flagship series on the Nintendo Switch. While there are some titles yet to appear, the Switch already proves to be an outstanding platform for gaming experiences such as Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Metroid. With the announcement that the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 will be compatible with the original Switch, it appears that Nintendo’s next console will cater even more effectively to fans of its most prominent franchises – provided the games currently absent from the Switch find their way onto the platform for its successor.

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2024-11-29 22:33