Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is Worth Appreciating | PostMesmeric

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat was Nintendo taking the reins. With Rare no longer commanding the Donkey Kong series, it was time for a change. The Nintendo Tokyo EAD studio came out swinging with a radically different Donkey Kong game, one with a whole new world and a strange peripheral leading the way. Let's see how Donkey Kong Jungle Beat isn't just one of the most interesting Donkey Kong games, but also one of the best.
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[@Vailskibum]

The fact that this game genuinely works with bongos and feels good to play is REALLY impressive

[@DKmonky]

It sure does, even though I didn't play it

[@slothrops]

I’m so happy someone made an in-depth video about this masterpiece

[@MadSociety-uy6zg]

I freaking love this game I tried so hard as a kid whenever me and my mom somewhere that had videogames during the GameCube era I tried to find Donkey Kong jungle beat I found the bongos but no game I didn't read it til after my mom bought it I was sad then I saw for the Wii I begged my mom to get this game and I loved it wish I played the version for GameCube and know how that version feels but I never regretted getting the game I've searching for awhile.

[@DynoSkrimisher]

The fact we went from cartoon villains and "lol I got your bananas DK." Then came Jungle Beat, with DK deleting his foes in a viceral flurry of blows.

[@melissatheneko930]

That last sentence rhymed

[@pyrrhickong]

It's so hard for me to justify feelings on Jungle Beat. On one hand, you're absolutely right - Jungle Beat is such a demanding, flowing platforming game that gives you all the room in the world for error to beat its levels, but is intensely strict in how to master its levels, essentially turning "the floor" into the greatest enemy of flow possible. In that way, it's always been this super stylish expansion of its arcade roots, taking the basic concept of "string together multiple jumps for more points" and mixing that with Punch-Out's arcade momentum and cartoonish brutality to something that celebrates its flow and cinema equally. When in the groove, Jungle Beat is absolutely intoxicating. And yet, it's got the specter of not just Rare's previous work, but the game's defiance of it weighing over it. The game's quoted to only feature returning characters "Donkey Kong and the banana", and the decision to remove all of the elements of DKC's personality only furthered the resentment that Nintendo fans as a whole held for Rare in "leaving" and the universe they made, in spite of it still showing up on the GBA with King of Swing. I can't help but feel this game contributed so heavily to Donkey Kong's loss of identity through the 2000's, still felt in Returns when only the gameplay side of that identity and I guess Cranky Kong and Rambi were returned to him. It's an interesting crossroads where I love the conceit of the gameplay, Nintendo's natural strong suit, but hate the damage it caused to the environment and storytelling around the franchise, something Nintendo's second parties tend to trump it in. It's absolutely the Nintendofication of Donkey Kong, which is a weird sentence to type out, I'll admit. With all that said, thank you for spreading light on this game. There's a flow to it that isn't captured by other 2D platformers very often, recent Rayman games probably coming the closest, and you do an excellent job illustrating the strengths and weaknesses of its approach. It's just fun to see this game discussed and was a joy to revisit it! ... guess I'll just delete this "Smokin' Simian Style" script I had now. Because this was excellent.

[@gothicteddybear2864]

I had the very pessimistic view on Jungle Beat's negligence of Rare established lore. Until I learned it was done with the best of intentions (don't get me wrong, I still don't agree with it) but the decision was mostly done as a means of respecting Rare. There is a cultural feeling within Nintendo that if you did not create something, you should create your own thing, and not touching their characters as a way of being respectful of Rare's creations. But that's all meaningless as Rare is now owned by Microsoft and no longer making DK games. King of Swing Paon was able to skirt around this since they were outside of Nintendo working with the license. Whereas EAD was directly under the thumb of Nintendo corporate culture. But Rare's GBA DKC trilogy sold more than any other DK games of that era, which paved the direction of which the franchise needs to go. Now they're in a position where Nintendo lost Rare (at their own hand but still) and now they have to use their characters around the "Country" foundation which is the definitive direction for the franchise now

[@orange_turtle3412]

My headcanon has always been that this is dk’s origin story. Its him conquering DK island and freeing its inhabitants from the oppressive rule of its current overlords.

[@lamiamekni2802]

We really need Jungle Beat 2

[@Ghi102]

I remember playing this game with a friend of mine for an afternoon. It's odd to control at first, but really fun once you get the hang of it

[@yankeegmen90]

Never gave Jungle Beat as much of a chance as I should have. Think any time I tried, I just lost patience with how it controlled. Makes me wonder what I would think of it now. Good video.

[@eh5280]

I never realized that Jungle Beat wasn't like the other rhythm games that used the bongos. Great video.

[@MatthewAKemp]

It's been years! I felt as though this game deserved far much more recognition than it got. This video breaks it down so well.

[@PostMesmeric]

Happy you enjoyed the video! Yeah, I feel this game deserves a deeper dive that goes beyond the gimmick of the bongos themselves. It's a better and more complex game than many might assume.

[@robbiewalker2831]

@@PostMesmeric If this game were to be a prequel, it would be prior to the Donkey Kong Country series in-general. The game feels as if Donkey Kong is presented as the future ruler of Donkey Kong Island, and he is given these trials as a testament of his strength. Upon defeating his opponents and killing off the Cactus King, he is dubbed the King of the Kongs.

[@chuganoga1908]

Jungle beat was an amazing game I loved the unique bongo gameplay it really gives you that premium Arcady vibe at home. This game is criminally overlooked and really deserves much more attention. I almost shed a tear when I saw DK’s final smash in ultimate referencing jungle beat.

[@AsoftDolphinn]

This might be my favorite game ever created

[@Hirochicken]

This is literally the first time I have seen any footage of Jungle Beat, and I owned the drums and Donkey Konga. I love the use of Kong in Concert tracks in this video!

[@BBWahoo]

2:55 Did anyone from Nintendo ever say anything about how they miss Rare, or hoped that the president would've bought them? I know Nintendo of today has a different attitude towards second party studios knowing how they bought Next Level Games and such, and it makes me happy to see that.

[@PostMesmeric]

I'm sure there's some sentiment there. I think how Microsoft utilized Rare has added some new ideas on how the devs would operate under Nintendo. That being said, hindsight is 20-20. Nintendo has changed a lot since the 90's as well.

[@MagillanicaLouM]

My favorite donkey Kong game personally. The most Donkey Kong feeling, it's just hype and you really feel the power of the character. Only thing missing is the rest of the DK crew, would've been nice to see them here, playable or no. But I do love the rival Kong's.

[@4natem]

Nothing will ever match rares dk art style and soundtracks

[@awesomeocelot7475]

I played the Wii version years ago and I totally loved it!

[@shrederman9838]

I got to play this game once at some kids house, I don't think anything of that generation was better.

[@RedMage8BT]

Donkey Kong 64 is one of my favorite games of all time and I always felt like I should've hated this game because of that, but I almost literally couldn't help but love it

[@jarerarebear1765]

I didn't own a GameCube in my youth but I remember having a sour attitude to this game because of how divorced it felt from DKC. Having played the Wii version and some the GameCube version in my adult years, I recognize I was wrong to feel that way. It was still a little too experimental to take off as a huge sucess, but if anyone ever doubts DK's ferocious strength and agility, you could just show them this game. I hope a future Donkey Kong game can recapture some of the feel of the spectacular action of this game.

[@ryara3476]

Man I’ve been following you for a while now you always put out very quality stuff keep it up always enjoy your perspective

[@ryara3476]

Honestly you should be at 100k already lol

[@PostMesmeric]

That's the dream. Thank you for the kind words. :)

[@jamiedandy8311]

I still have this game but my bongo controller got destroyed by one of my asshole friends back in high school when they thought they should beat the living shit out of the drums trying to fight the bosses in this game. Broke the damn controller!

[@jamesbrincefield9879]

Your friend probably did you a favor honestly. If a girl came over and saw your Donkey Kong bongos you wouldn’t have had a chance.

[@luiscamiloalzateordonez4861]

15:20 Jesus Christ. I have never seen that in my life

[@andreworders7305]

9:47 literally, lol

[@BackroomsMerchant]

I first played this game back on the Wii, back when I was around 7 years old. Recently played it again, strangely enough, it may just be one of my favourite games of all time.

[@PostMesmeric]

It has a lot of unique moments, more than many might give it credit for. Great that you enjoyed it so much to crown it as an all-time favorite.

[@KennKuun]

Funnily enough, I think this game had a massive impact on the way I view the Sonic the Hedgehog series. This game feels extremely similar to Sonic Adventure 2 due to its emphasis on score, rank, and flow. When I see people claim that going fast is the most important aspect of a Sonic game, I never find myself agreeing. I personally believe that flow and spectacle are most important. This video made it way more clear to me why I feel that way. Gaining mastery over the character's abilities and knowing the levels through and through is way more engaging to me than trying to skip massive chunks of content to clear the level as quickly as possible. And I think that makes perfect sense for Sonic as a character. Yes, Sonic is fast. But he's also *cool*. He does things with style. Skipping that loop-de-loop and making a massive jump across the level to skip everything in between is faster, but it's lame.

[@obsidianchao]

Best (and most underrated) gaming channel on KZbin

[@supercamborg4218]

With the lack of story I saw an interesting theory about this being Cranky Kong before settling down on DK Island

[@SomeCrow-rq5dz]

That makes sense as thus Donkey Kong seems more animalistic less heroic than current DK

[@blueroman460]

Great vid mate! This is my fave Donkey Kong game.

[@tylerherr4288]

i think most people make the mistake of thinking that you HAVE to drum on the bongos to play the game you dont you just have to press on the pads i had this one "grip" (like a claw grip but for the bongos) where i would sit on the floor had the bongos sitting on my knees with both hands sitting on the drum pads and my head right between them at the speakers so i could scream at a moments notice lmao

[@raymanfan9265]

You are pretty cool man!!!

[@nygara8047]

Great vid

[@cumnmrmptaaa4234]

Currently playing the Wii release. Of course it's not the same, it's still absolutely fantastic

[@gothicteddybear2864]

Jungle Beat not bringing back any of the Rare cast seemed to be reflective of the old school Nintendo ethos. Where new teams are pressed to create their own thing. That's why Super Mario Land was filled with obscure new characters instead of Bowser and the Koopas. Or why Waluigi has never been in a Wario game. So you isolate the core characters that transcend as "the brand" and use them, and then create new casts around them. But now that Rare is owned by Microsoft and no longer making Donkey Kong games, that cultural philosophy is all meaningless. Namco and Paon were able to skirt this rule since they were outside of Nintendo working with the license, whereas EAD and Retro Studios were directly under the thumb of Nintendo corporate culture But with the Smash Ballot showcasing a love for classic traditional DKC characters, along with younger EPD staff having grown up with Donkey Kong Country (Super Donkey Kong in Japan) there is hope for the reluctance to use what Rare created be lifted. Nintendo staff moving up in the ranks have a whole childhood dedicated to Rare's games. And Rare's DKC GBA games selling the most in the mid 00's solidified "Country" as the definitive direction for the franchise. It was like their parting gift

[@jytvreal]

4:27 mario sunshine cloud

[@kefastvplaypedroariel2143]

6:10 The real truth is: if you haven't listened to Yokota's musical soundtracks in both games: Jungle Beat and Super Mario Galaxy, then it's *NOT* Nintendo. I played this game on my Wii back then and it seemed like the controls were handled much differently than what many people played when having a GameCube back in the mid-2000s... And yes, the nostalgia hits me hard on this one. I want my Wii back just to play it once again after years... 😢

[@jytvreal]

I feel like this game was the start of nintendo's motion control era

[@magicjohnson3121]

It was

[@EGRJ]

Wait, how am I supposed to know if I should Brace Myself?

[@tvirus9369]

Not my Donkey Kong?

[@andreworders7305]

The new play control version added more story? How?

[@PostMesmeric]

It really just provides a bit of extra context to DK's actions. DK's bananas are said to be stolen by the main baddies, driving DK to action, instead of just "DK wants to be the strongest in the jungle." It's not significant, but it's something.

[@rodrigomarcondes5857]

i really appreciate this game for being a fun departure but i really didn't want it to become the new norm

[@PostMesmeric]

It definitely would've been an interesting direction for the series. I can see how it might have been jarring to dismiss the Country templates moving forward, though. Curious to think about for sure!

[@iamdone9839]

Just out of curiosity what do you think of the Wii version of the game?

[@PostMesmeric]

In all honesty, the Wii version is the lesser version in my eyes. There's something very tactile about the bongos that the Wii Remote just can't replicate. The Wii version also has some design changes that make the game a bit easier and more approachable, which is admittedly nice, but the bongos just make the game a better and more unique experience. I can recommend either version, but if you have the choice, the Gamecube version with the bongos is the way to go.

[@iamdone9839]

@@PostMesmeric Interesting. Thank you for letting me know.

[@WhoIsSirChasm]

I feel the same way about Donkey Kong Jungle Beat as I do The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Both games are exceptional in terms of their core aspects, but I wish they weren't games in their respective series.

[@tylerherr4288]

interesting take honestly i 100% feel the same about botw zelda game it is not but i dont feel that way about dkjb but i dont have much of a baring ON the donkey kong series i have played tropical freeze, country and 64 and i honestly cant say i like any of em besides dkjb

[@Chilldude205]

I will like and comment on ANY donkey Kong content

[@Junomaster2006]

No game is perfect?! Excuse me, have you not played The Last of Us Part II?! The video game awards gave that game a win for every single category, including Best simulation games, best Sports game, & Best Nintendo game of 2020.

[@keatoncoffey6742]

Shut up

[@Junomaster2006]

@@keatoncoffey6742 😂 misses the joke^

[@TapuArt]

it's not april 1st anymore.. this is real isn't it

[@PostMesmeric]

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is no joke.

[@Kingoftheelectricity5485]

69 comments noice

[@TheJP100]

FIRST

[@gjergjaurelius9798]

This game SUCKS! Dk fans wait yrs for a new platform game and Nintendo released this with a terrible trash gimmick. Fuck jungle beat! However....the Wii version kicks ass.