Ranking EVERY Donkey Kong Game!

After all the DK videos I've made, I've never just sat down and talked about which games I like best! Let's rank every last Donkey Kong game in a tierlist.
PATREON ► / snomangaming
MERCH STORE ► www.teespring.com/stores/snoma...
SNOMAN GAMING 2 ► / snomangaming2
DISCORD SERVER ► / discord
TWITTER ► / snomangaming

[@razbuten]

Wild how the second game of a series is always the best. DKC 2, Zelda 2...

[@Alex-wv7wf]

I know right? Knack 2, Super Mario Brothers 2. Etc. Etc.

[@Christopher-md7tf]

Chess 2

[@jclkaytwo]

@@Alex-wv7wf I've never heard anyone call super mario bros 2 the best lmao

[@HeroG9000]

Tetris 2

[@el_mr6439]

@@jclkaytwo neither Zelda 2, it has mixed opinion

[@NaveedMohebbi]

YOU'RE KILLING ME WITH THIS DONKEY KONGA DISRESPECT

[@SirMalorak]

As a rhythm game player, Donkey Konga is a fun time.

[@Christopher-md7tf]

That was sooooo much fun, especially in multiplayer

[@CheeseMonkey18]

He’s right on Donkey Konga...it’s lame trash that’s funny the first time you play it and then never again. Can’t believe it coexisted with Guitar Hero.

[@shingosawatarihgx8345]

Now the time has come to rank every episode of the donkey kong cartoon. every episode is a masterpiece!

[@TheJadeFist]

They'd all be Banana Slamma.

[@konkeydong4421]

@JulianRock banana sexual gang

[@Sesameseedbandit]

Me showing up to make sure Tropical Freeze gets Banana Slamma.

[@pizzahighfive2612]

The music sucks, the world maps are lazy garbage compared to beautiful world maps of the original trilogy, kremlins are replaced with lame unwanted enemies, no K Rool, the music is not a masterpiece as dkc trilogy, the games, bosses, and levels are quite forgettable. The artstyle is a less detailed blander look while the original trilogy was trying to look realistic with deep shadows and detail in everything. Tropical freeze sucks and is overrated. Literally the only good thing is the mechanics.

[@Dogmen58]

Well...who could have guessed such people exist...respecting your point of view though

[@peterschulkke6072]

@@pizzahighfive2612 Im guessing you are the kinda person who would be okay with a game literally stabbing them while they were playing if it reminds them of their childhood

[@rhettmitchell]

@@pizzahighfive2612 ok I don’t think you actually played the game did you? Or you at least played the game muted

[@rudeboyspodcast]

@@pizzahighfive2612 I've never disagreed with someone so hard in my life, but at least you're able to make your opinions concise, and I can respect that.

[@MusiMaThetra]

"I've covered literally everything there is to talk about concerning Donkey Kong." Narrator: He did not, in fact, cover everything there is concerning Donkey Kong.

[@Nefnoj]

Gotta get the 90's Donkey Kong cartoon in Banana Slamma tier.

[@nathanlanum7570]

Donkey Kong 2 and 3 got sidelined for no good reason

[@BF_Brix]

@@nathanlanum7570 *Konga Yeah, I guessed he decided not to include them cuz they're barely different. That song, I think Konga 2 has the better song list, and I know nothing about Konga 3.

[@nathanlanum7570]

@@BF_Brix no I didn't mean Konga I meant the Arcade game Donkey Kong 3

[@papermario2006]

"DKC2 and 3 were basically the same as the SNES games." Dude, DKC3 added a completely new soundtrack and entire additional world including a boss, DKC3 GBA has BY FAR the most additional content out of the 3. DKC2 is the best of the trilogy, but as far as judging them as remakes goes, DKC3 GBA is hands down the best.

[@The_Room_2_Doggys_Revenge]

at first, i was scared you didn't include Diddy Kong Racing... and then it popped out from behind you, it was a huge relief

[@trueblueryu5713]

Reminder that Donkey Konga also had Headstrong by Trapt in the soundtrack.

[@lunaitc]

So what you're saying is we need a tier two levels below F

[@gromczar1589]

Mr bombastic

[@seanylewl]

Agree mostly with all of this, although I prefer DCK3 over DKC1. DKC3 has so much more to do, but more importantly to me the platforming feels more fluid and responsive.

[@ninja_tony]

Thank you! DKC 3 gets way too much hate, and I love it. Honestly, I prefer it over DKC 1 just like you, even though that's the minority opinion.

[@XCM666]

Agreed, DKC 3 is clearly above 1 for me. I can see that DKC 3 can be tedious at times, so if he's thinking about just replaying a few levels, DKC1 would be more appealing. But overall, DKC3 has much more to offer and a higher replay value.

[@duffman18]

I dislike DKC 3 because I always get stuck, on the level select world thing. Every time I go back to play the game again, I'm getting through all the levels, but then get stuck on that overworld thing as I've forgotten again how to navigate it. It's really really dumb and pointless. It's just extra work for no added benefit, you don't get anything out of it, they should have just had a normal mario style overworld or whatever I've got a save state of the last time I could be bothered to play DKC 3 and every so often I go back into it to try and find out what's wrong and why I can't progress, and I just have no idea. It's not that I need to buy a new boat from the guy in the shack. It's not that I've not finished all the levels, every level I can access has already been completed the the flag is raised. So what the hell do I do? It is entirely unnecessary to have such a stupidly complicated level select screen. I can't imagine how many people got stuck on it like I did, stuck not because they're bad at playing the game, but stuck because the team at rare didn't believe in "if it ain't broke don't fix it" and thought they needed a new gimmick to set it apart from the other 2 games. It's so unbelievably stupid of a choice to do that And I've beaten the game a dozen times before. Eventually I always work out where to go next. But that's after many hours of trying. And I can never remember how I did it It's honestly a far worse game than either DKC 1 or 2 because of that problem alone. Which is a shame cos I think the levels and bosses and stuff are far better than in DKC 1. And I didn't grow up with these games so I have no nostalgia for Diddy kong and so I really don't understand why the big fat baby gorilla you play as is so hated, he's fine, he's just the same as donkey Kong was in DKC1. The actual game itself was great. It's just the completely inane level select overworld that brings it down to about a 7/10 or even maybe a 6/10. If there was a romhack that removed the overworld and just had levels in a big long list instead, I'd play that forever after and never touch the original rom again

[@seanylewl]

@@duffman18 Interesting that you had a hard time with the overworld, because I can't remember any part of it that was particularly cryptic. Do you remember where you got stuck?

[@duffman18]

@@seanylewl it's probably that I'm an idiot. Also I rarely read stuff the characters say, I just fast forward past it on the emulator. I should probably pay more attention to those I've just done all the levels on the bit on the right of the overworld, beat all those levels, there's no more to do over there. And I think I have to go up past the waterfall but I need a better boat to do it, but the fella in the boat shack isn't offering an upgrade etc. So I'm just going round everywhere trying to find any level I haven't done yet. To be honest even THAT confuses me. Cos sometimes the next level will be off screen or something, and I have to press a certain direction on the D-pad to get them to walk over to it, but it'll be something dumb like pressing Up on the D-pad to make them go to the right. I'll eventually work it out I'm sure. But it just frustrates me so much. Because the first 2 games had it perfect. All the levels are just there, you don't have to do a convoluted process or upgrading boats or anything. Sometimes in 2 you'll be able to take short cuts, which cost an amount of medals and you have to fight the crocodile bloke. It's all just clear and simple. But yeah I am a big idiot, and I just can't work out how the overworld works in 3. I'll try and find the thing I was playing it on. Oh wait actually I think I was playing it on my Switch

[@titoamadio6858]

The editing in this video, like the cuts to game footage, that little zoom in anticipation at 16:26, just elevate it above a simple tier list and make it much more fun.

[@xenos_n.]

Donkey Kong 94 is only B tier??? Bro wtaf. That's at the top.

[@duffman18]

Yeah I know right? It's the best game boy game ever. It's absolutely S tier. I think he's sort of punishing it for being on the console it's on, when really I think it's absolutely perfect for a handheld game on a 90s handheld console. It's built around that. It's perfect for on the go playing, for playing in short bursts. Unlike the Donkey Kong Land games which just suck because they're games built for SNES, squeezed onto a GB. But as perfect as the DKC games are for SNES, so is DK 94 for the GB. Built for the system. Taking advantage of the pros of the device they're on while avoiding the cons The simplicity of it is the point. It doesn't look as pretty as the DKC games but that doesn't matter. I feel like some people think of GB games as always inherently worse. But it's just not true. DK 94 is at the least in the top 10 of any kind of game boy game ever (so including GB Color and GB Advance). Maybe top 5 even.

[@LillLizzert]

Donkey Kong 94 was my first ever video game and it's great. Despite the fact that I usually have no tolerance for games that are this puzzle heavy. I could peform a large part of Mario's moveset at 5 years old thanks to the cutscenes. I did get stuck at the forest back then, not being able to figure out the level with all the beatles that can be locked/released from the chain gates. But now as an adult, the puzzles are usually manageable. It's such a shame the graphics are so old. Would love to see a version with the same gameplay but in color.

[@Killerstorm5280]

You’ve redeemed yourself on DK64 lol.

[@marcellocatalfamo5453]

I loved hearing this break down! As someone who natively grew up with DKC on GBA, it's a little hard to hear the seeming apathy towards it, but I can definitely understand if the lower fidelity is a deal-breaker -- I don't know that I'll ever care for the SNES original much, though. Aside from that, having gone back to play DKC2 and DKC3 only after the Retro games, it really is a struggle to toss up 2 and TF. I think TF takes it for me, but both games are absolutely charming and a blast to play. They both have excellent graphics and enchanting music. Personally, the longer boss fights in TF are more satisfying to me than those in 2 pound-for-pound but TF's definitely dip lower in their troughs. Similarly, I think I'd have to put Returns above the original. DKC1 has an extremely high 'pick up and play' factor, as you said, but I feel that the gap in gameplay and idea development between the two gives DKCR the edge in my view. Furthermore, I feel that the speedrun-ability you mentioned is just as present in Returns; it's just a more complicated task. Mind you, both are miles below the other two. Frankly, playing Returns after TF feels like you're hollowing out the experience. It's just such a rich game. Lastly, a fun detail that really shocked me when I was replaying TF: Throughout DKCR, as you progress from one world to the next, there is always a 'transitional' point in the first level of the next world where you see DK crossing over thematically. It's a brilliant touch, with my particular kudos going to 4-1, where the player has to blow the cave open to progress. It's like that for all worlds. Except for Cliff. There is no jumping off point from Forest. A minor disappointment, but nothing too bad... until you get to TF. When you get back to DK Island and are playing through Returns' worlds in its 8 stages, the game understandably treats each one as a separate entity... except for Cliffside Slide. At the outset of this silhouette level, DK is amidst Forest's pine trees in the background, and they recede as DK starts ascending the level, thus filling the only transitional hole in DKCR! Like I said, this is such an easily forgettable detail, but it knocked my socks off once I saw it.

[@duffman18]

Honestly, having never played any of the DKC games until my late 20s, I prefer the GBA ports in a lot of ways. I think they control a lot better for one thing. I have no nostalgia for either the SNES ones or the GBA ones so yeah this is just an unbiased opinion of them. Although having said that, I'm talking about playing them these days, on devices with FAR better screens than the GBA ever had, or even the GBA SP. Like comparing a Samsung galaxy tab screen to even a GBA SP back-lit screen, they're just not even in the same league, obviously. If I had bad them back in the day, on my bog standard old wide GBA with the impossible-to-see screen, I probably would dislike them a whole lot more. In that situation they're only really fun if you know the SNES games like the back or your hand and so can play through levels from memory, so you don't have to rely on what you can or can't see on the screen itself. But yeah I have a GPD XD+ that I use for emulating, it's basically like an android tablet that folds closed like a DS or 3DS, and has all the physical buttons including 4 shoulder buttons and clickable analogue sticks, and since it runs android it can run all the emulators on the Play store. So that's absolutely fantastic for emulating games, and I can do side by side comparisons of the SNES versions and the GBA versions, and in that situation? Then yeah, I prefer the GBA ones. Because the screen is not an issue at all, then. On the original GBA? Nah, I'd keep on rage quitting probably cos of getting hit by things I can't see

[@marcellocatalfamo5453]

@@duffman18 Interesting! I had/have a GBA SP as you mentioned, so visibility wasn't an issue for me -- the backlight was quite sufficient. Modern emulation conveniences certainly enhance the situation considering I'm not playing on a teeny tiny screen, but I had a blast playing on it back in the day. As for getting hit off screen or such, I can't attest to that being an issue. Mind, I was also six or so, so I wasn't great at the game in general anyways (lots and lots of game over screens before I ever beat King K. Rool). Even emulating it today, though, I've never had issues with offscreen baddies.

[@jerr0.]

If you're impressed with DK '94 you should give Metal Gear Ghost Babel a shot

[@doktorabraham]

another one you've missed is DKC for GameBoy Color

[@helixhero7891]

I think the biggest problem with tropical freeze is that you have no reason to use Diddy or Cranky over Dixie

[@dukemon6163]

Diddy is mostly outclassed by Dixie unless you're trying to speedrun an underwater level. But Cranky has a lot of uses for an expert player, to breeze through the levels with ease.

[@brandonbernard1570]

Cranky is by far the best character at high skill levels. You’re definitely right about Diddy, though. He feels insanely outclassed.

[@TheJadeFist]

Ya they really should have changed him from Returns, like make him be better for like horizontal hovering vs Dixie having vertical rising or something. Like extend the duration by a lot of his hovering, or make him dash him forward with the jet pack to set him apart. That could have really given him a niche to be more or less useful in different stages or if you're trying to speed run. His only pro over Dixie is underwater.

[@_KRITIQAL]

Can't believe this Donkey Konga hate. Nothing like the sound of eight sweaty hands slapping plastic bongos on the living room floor. Christ, they even got all the meme tracks. Unbelievable.

[@Nefnoj]

I've never seen you have such an existential crisis before, trying to rank a franchise you love so much made you reconsider everything.

[@ty_sylicus]

Holy crap! I am now even MORE excited to finally play Tropical Freeze than I ever was before!

[@MikemasterX10]

its one of the best platformers ive played. its amazing. beautiful artstyle and music. The base game is more fun than Funky mode though. Funky mode is just easy mode

[@c88rrado]

its so unbelievably hard. that's why i never could get THAT hyped for it

[@jclkaytwo]

@@c88rrado once you get used to the controls, tropical freeze isn't that hard. it's harder than your typical mario game, but probably the least difficult DKC game.

[@fabiovercelli4962]

@@jclkaytwo nah,the easiest DKC game Is the First one,tropical freeze Is way harder than DKC 1 and returns

[@jclkaytwo]

@@fabiovercelli4962 I've never played returns, but isn't the common consensus that returns is more difficult than TF? especially with the motion controls?

[@charmandergamer1287]

If Tropical Freeze was not in S I was gonna throw...Something

[@tomnookii]

i have never 100% agreed with a tier list but today that ended

[@guillaumelemieux7686]

For the longest time I had DKC2 as my favorite game of all time, having replayed the original trilogy I think I now prefer DKC3, like you said: I dig those gimmicks so hard! (except for Lightning Lookout. Ugh.)

[@tannereustace]

I think the biggest gripe I have with DKC: TF is its bonus rooms. They feel really repetitive and an unwelcome distraction from the main levels, kinda like a mosquito during a camping trip. That said, though, it's an overall great game and I would agree with its placement on the list :)

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

Yeah, in most cases, it would be better if there just wasn't a bonus room and the game just gave you the puzzle piece immediately. At least they're not technically required for 100%.

[@Ryan-PulsarProductions]

It's so cool to hear a fellow DK enthusiast put my sentiments to words even better than I can. I agreed with SO MANY of your points!!

[@Matt92685]

Great list but tropical freeze is better than DKC2. It’s also a crime that we didn’t get a 3rd DK platformer from retro studios.

[@evanjames9509]

I'd love to know where you would rank "Yooka Laylee & The Impossible Layer" and "Kaze & The Wild Masks" against all of the mainline DKC games.

[@jclkaytwo]

late reply, and I'm not snoman, but I'd like to give my take as someone who's played and beaten DKC1, 2, 3, TF, and the impossible lair. I'd place impossible lair below all of the DKC games, though I would still call it a good game. the world map is really drawn out and tedious, and at times the game felt unpolished. plus it just felt like all the levels had the same factory visuals, which caused everything to blend together. the level design, music, and the titular impossible lair are great, but it just didn't leave much of an impression mostly due to a lack of ambition.

[@general_pigface7203]

I think you're forgetting Donkey Kong Junior Math

[@TorchFilms_]

Man I love DK. Brings me back to being a kid playing the original trilogy.

[@Mintcar923]

The original trilogy or the Country trilogy? Funny I always thought of the original DK as a Mario game even though DK is technically the Star.. But I guess it’s debatable.. Always liked DK Jr a little better.. Never played the 3rd one the bug one whatever

[@dnddmdb642]

This was very informative as someone who has never played a Donkey Kong game, other than my brother and I renting Diddy Kong Racing every few weekends when we were kids.

[@DRjaffy]

I am fully aware that this is sacrilegious in the DK Fandom, but I love donkey konga! It's everything you said it is, and unapologetically too, but I still love it. All the cool new arrangements of songs made just for this. The fun 2 player battle mode which was highly competitive are both super cool features! Not to mention that came out near the craze of Rock band and guitar hero, but in those games you held these big plastic peripherals that made no noise. But play the Turkish March with 4 people banging on bongos and you feel like you're apart of something greater 😂

[@Melkje]

Tropical freeze is the best 2D platformer of all time IMO

[@ryancadek]

I wouldn't say it's the best of all time but I think it is an A or S tier platformer

[@nickk3077]

I disagree.

[@thesnatcher3616]

Agreed. It and Mario Galaxy are my favorite platformers EVER.

[@AlfonsoSRT]

"2 and 3 were more or less the same compared to the SNES counterparts" Dude, did you play GBA DKC3? Because you failed to mention in this and the last video that it has an entire new world with awesome levels.

[@Langas_LVDC]

Disrespecting the gba new soundtrack and the Pacifica World hurts me in a way

[@AlfonsoSRT]

@@Langas_LVDC everybody disrespects the gba soundtrack and it really hurts me, I like it better

[@snomangaming]

Wait where is the new world because I played everything up to the final area. Hmm I had no idea!

[@Langas_LVDC]

@@snomangaming there's a whole new world called Pacifica that unlocks after you get the last boat upgrade. It's optional and kinda hidden so probably you didn't found it. It has a set of 6 completely new levels. is on the left side of the World map going up throught some waterfalls.

[@chrystianzer0]

@@snomangaming northwest lake, you need the turbo ski

[@BladeBlur]

Hey Snow, Just wanted to say as a DK newb this list was helpful for me because I never played any of the games except a level or two. DK 94 is the only game in the list I fully played but that is kind of an outlier. I like the more laid back approach to tier videos so you did a great job!

[@lordroy88]

Returns and Tropical Freeze better be high

[@noodlez4835]

DK64 is my favourite game of all time… I respect the B rank but man I would’ve put it S tier just because of all the memories I’ve had with that game

[@elbitxo5945]

pretty accurate to what I think, but I'd ranked original DK arcade much higher, it really improves a lot playing it with an actual 4-way stick and it's super adictive. GameBoy 1994 DK would be A tier to me, and I'd ranked DK64 and Racer lower. It's always nice to see your DK videos, it makes me love even more the franchise.

[@auralunaprettycure]

Donkey Kong 94 is my favorite of all of Donkey Kong and I didn’t even grow up w/ it.

[@MilkmanCR]

I look forward to DK month with you EVERY year

[@thebreadknight1209]

For me Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Wii is my favorite. I played it all the time as a kid and just a bit ago actually tried it again and its still really good. I also like DKCTF.

[@JustJulyo]

Now you gotta rank all the Kongs

[@FriskyD.]

Including the bosses from bongo game?

[@woahsea]

Including the enemies from the Mario Vs. DK series that Nintendo Life missed?

[@JustJulyo]

Everything included

[@porky1118]

My ranking: S: DK64, Diddy Kong Racing A: DKC1, Donkey Konga 2 B: Donkey Konga, [DKC2], [DKC3] C: DK Jungle climber (DS), [DKC Returns] F: Donkey Kong (the original arcade game) I didn't play any other DK game, I didn't play much of the games square brackets.

[@BitsofJoshua]

Very similar to yours- I would basically just swap the positions of 64 and Classic Arcade. Enjoyable video, I couldn't find much to disagree with other than those two :)

[@call_me_cameron_24]

Donkey Kong released in '81, which was before the video game crash. Super Mario Bros. saved the industry

[@kabiribi6042]

not even, it was ROB as an advertisement campaign to sell the NES as toys

[@pseudonymef1718]

@@kabiribi6042 It was only an American thing, actually.

[@kabiribi6042]

@@pseudonymef1718 so was the video game crash, was it?

[@ninja_tony]

@@kabiribi6042 the release of Super Mario Bros on the Famicom is what saved the industry and put Nintendo on the map as a serious developer. Without it, the entire industry may not exist today. ROB alone didn't really save anything, but it was a smart move on Nintendo's part to use it as a bridge to get more people interested in games at a time when they weren't being taken seriously. Either way, Donkey Kong didn't have anything to do with saving the industry, and actually it barely made a splash when it released.

[@MrPotatoShed]

Donkey Kong Land 2 was my intro to the DK series. I'm pretty sure that game cost my parents hundreds of dollars in AA batteries. Now that I think about it, it might be one of the first games I 100% completed. Compared to the other games, I agree with you that it ranks lower, but that says more about the quality of the games in this series than it does the quality of Donkey Kong Land.

[@ninja_tony]

Yeah, he was too hard on the Land games, especially 2 and 3. I played them all before the SNES trilogy because my cousin had a Game Boy and I borrowed it all the time before finally getting my own SNES. I can understand the first Land game isn't the greatest, but it's ok. And Land 2 and 3 are really good for early Game Boy games.

[@roxannebb]

Wonder where Donkey Kong Jr, DK Jr Math and Donkey Kong 3 with Stanley the Bugman fit into all this

[@CheeseMonkey18]

He does miss the other two DK arcade games for some reason! And DK Jr the character may be the same character as the DKC Donkey Kong.

[@duffman18]

@@CheeseMonkey18 yeah it makes no sense. Cos I thought oh maybe he's just doing donkey Kong games that released for home systems, or whatever. But then I remembered DK Jr and DK 3 were both ported to the NES as well. So I just don't get it. He can't even make the excuse of having not played them, because it only takes about 5 minutes to see the entire game for all the arcade DK games, because they're just the same 3 or 4 screens and they repeat endlessly. Oh and the Donkey Kong in the DKC games is the grandson of the original Donkey Kong, and the son of Donkey Kong Jr. So he's Donkey Kong the Third. But yeah Cranky Kong is his grandad, and is the original donkey Kong. Even the donkey Kong wiki says the DKC donkey Kong's full name is Donkey Kong the Third. Makes me wonder if we'll ever get a new game series starring HIS son or something. Or probably not. These characters are pretty set in stone forever now really. Here's the donkey Kong wiki page on donkey Kong the third: donkeykong.fandom.com/wiki/Donkey_Kong

[@TheJadeFist]

DK Jr was good too, too bad it kinda goes forgotten a bit.

[@DRjaffy]

Hot take, donkey konga is banana slamma! It's so much fun, granted I wad a kid when it came out, but my family got it and 4 bongos, and we'd all play and compete! We loved it! And the jungle beat 💯💯💯

[@YashBeanz]

Tropical Freeze is probably one of the best speed games ever made. The level design was made for speedrunning. It's so well made for speedrunning, that the devs even created routes for extremely difficult tricks that give you insane amounts of speed like the tornado boost in frantic fields or the platform boosts in forest folly. You could play the time trials for hours on end.

[@YashBeanz]

I got 4th place of Frosty Fruits using some difficult tricks kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZS5loekn7Bnfq8

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

@@YashBeanz Ohh, nice! I was somewhere in the top 200 I think, I wasn't going for a specific ranking, I just wanted that shiny gold without damage. Also, what controller do you use? I enjoy the wii remote on it's own.

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

Last time I tried it, I was trying to figure out how the tornado boost works lol. I don't think it's even required for the shiny, however, so that's good.

[@YashBeanz]

@@legrandliseurtri7495 Yeah I tried the boost for about 20 minutes and got it once

[@YashBeanz]

@@legrandliseurtri7495 I use a pro controller

[@thesnatcher3616]

It's nice to finally see your thought process while ranking things. Sorry about how critical I was of your ranking video. Your a great guy Sno. Take care. But yeah, Tropical Freeze is probably one of the best games I've ever played and I'll argue it, along with Mario Galaxy, is THE best platformer ever made. I personally like it more than Dkc2 just because of how unique and exhilarating all the levels were. It's quantity and QUALITY.

[@lordroy88]

I guess you could say DKC2 is number 1, no Kong Quest

[@colin8802]

I haven't played most of the games that you put in the bottom 3 tiers, but I pretty much agree with everything in the top 3 tiers. My only difference is that I like DKC3 more than DKC1, and almost as much as DKC2. If it had a David Wise soundtrack and Diddy instead of Kiddy, it would easily be S tier for me.

[@ninja_tony]

I agree. I love DKC 3, and arguably - to me - I enjoy it as much as DKC 2, but the two things you just said are it's only true drawbacks.

[@danyt6630]

*looks if dkc2 is first* Good list. Haha, great list and great content like always!

[@callinater6133]

I think TF is better.

[@PatNatOfficial]

Well thought out list! The only thing my list would change is to add Donkey Konga 2 because it's more polished than the original. I also have a lot of fun with rhythm games, even if the formal elements are lackluster. Also, 4 player multiplayer enhances the experience (despite claps picking up on all controllers). I'd probably put it at low C if not D.

[@lemmykoopa1379]

I honestly think DKC Tropical Freeze is better than DKC 2 in my opinion, and that’s saying a lot because DKC 2 is my favorite SNES Game, and there are tons of amazing SNES Games out there. I just think DKC Tropical Freeze’s level ideas overall are on the level of DKC2’s levels of creativity, in fact even better! I think the fact that you can save after every level is one of the biggest things that puts it above 2 for me. But anyway, here is my tier list of games I have played. And unlike most people, I think the bosses in Tropical Freeze were phenomenal, well except for Fugu and maybe Lord Fredrick. Side note: I have not played Diddy Kong Racing yet; I plan to, it looks really good, and I’ve only played a little DK64. Anyway, here is my tier list! S Tier: DKC Tropical Freeze DKC 2:Diddy’s Kong Quest A Tier: DKC 1 DKC Returns DKC 3 B Tier: DK 64 C Tier: Donkey Kong (Arcade)

[@ohno5559]

where did he get the idea that people don't like DKCR, it's tied with Tropical Freeze on Metacritic and Freeze wouldn't have even happened if people didn't like Returns

[@Farklu]

Great tier list.

[@miamimagicians]

The music is so good in all of these games especially the first game

[@Vladislak]

Nice list! I'd personally put DK '94 as a high A tier, but as you said it's kind of personal preference. Plus I suppose it has sentimental value to me, my grandmother took up gaming in her old age and that was one of the games she passed down to me before she passed.

[@s4ylo912]

I was introduced with dkc returns on my 3ds and I loved it! Now I have a switch and ganna get tropical freeze can’t wait!

[@zestyzenith9572]

DKCR on the 3ds is definitely the way to play that game, using the y button for the motion stuff is a great convenience, also the golden temple turns into an entire 9 level world (eight exclusive levels). DKCR is my favorite, one of the first games that I remember playing as a child. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve replayed it (and after all those times I still haven’t done all the time trials and mirror mode lol).

[@MegaSuperjavier]

i feel your right decision was JungleBeat above DK64, because of how you talked of both but it's such an insane thing to say, it feels so weird to think of that

[@andreweilermusic]

Great list! I know many prefer DKC 2 over DKC 1, but 1 has always been my favorite. I’d put DKC 1 and Tropical Freeze in my top tier.

[@tedioustotoro4885]

Diddy Kong Racing answers the question “What if Crash Team Racing had terrible controls?”

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

Sorry, but both games have a bit of that 5th Gen jank in their control systems. Diddy Kong Racing actually feels good to play. Want a clunky controlling kart racer? Try out Mario Kart 64.

[@tedioustotoro4885]

@@ultrairrelevantnobody1862 Mariokart 64 at least does force you to drift up a mountain for a mandatory race

[@Ray_2112]

Lol, to me DKR and CTR have pretty much the same good/bad controls...if you know how to handle them, they both work good. MK64 controls best of those three though imo.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

@@Ray_2112 Mario Kart 64 feels like shit. The drifting responds like half the time and the use of prerendered sprites makes the handling deceptive.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

@@tedioustotoro4885 At least the drifting in Diddy Kong Racing responds immediately and doesn't make any of the karts do that annoying hopping.

[@OttoBittoSplatoon]

Cool tier list, I enjoyed watching the entire video 😁 but you missed at least DK Jr. and DK3, the other arcade games: if you're including Diddy Kong Racing, there's no reason for those to be left out. There would also be DK Jr. Math and the Mario vs. DK series (which you excluded on purpose). And finally, I loved the motion controls in DKC Returns

[@Alpha-oo8]

I was amazed at how awesome dkc 3’s soundtrack was on gba. I want more people to talk about it, Tis so good

[@JSSHERLIN]

Tropical Freeze is my favorite game of all time

[@19Szabolcs91]

DKCR is my absolute favorite 2D platformer of all time, I love it so much, such a great balance between simplicity and complexity, such great controls, so many memorable set pieces. S tier: DKCR A tier: 2, TF, 3 B tier: 1, 64, DK'94 C tier: Land 3, Land 2 D tier: Land 1, DK Jr., DK (original) F tier: DK3, DK Jr. Math

[@themojogamer75]

Interesting that you like DKCR more than TF, since I think I normally see folks prefer TF. Not bad, of course! Just different. Glad you love it as much as you do! ^^

[@19Szabolcs91]

@@themojogamer75 I felt like some of TF's stages are a little too long for their worth, especially some bosses, and I'm not too big a fan of there being 3 Kong partners, especially since one of them is way more powerful than the rest. I prefer the simplicity of DKCR in this regard. Still, TF is an amazing game as well, and many of the stage themes were extremely creative and memorable, but DKCR just flowed better for me.

[@mothius238]

DKC2 and Tropical Freeze are my favorites too, both are such amazing games, i put DKC2 a little above DKC:TF, but is just by a small difference. Both are on my list of favorites games of all time.

[@waywardlaser]

I was one of those people who had a Wii U but skipped Tropical Freeze because I was just SO SICK of Nintendo releasing one 2D platformer after another. I didn't think it would be a substantial, fun experience. Then years later I finally tried it on Switch and it quickly became one of my favourite games of all time. I've completed it three times at this point.

[@Gradient___]

GBA Donkey Kong Country 3 needs a closer look in my opinion. Unlike 1 and 2, DKC3's soundtrack is completely new in order to fit better with the sound limitations of the GBA. This ain't a downgrade either. Some of the GBA songs I genuinely prefer over the SNES songs. (GBA Water World is my most favourite DK water level song. period.) I'm also really surprised that you made no mention of Pacifica, the entirely new late-game world that was introduced in the GBA version. Some of the hardest and coolest levels in the game reside in that world and it's a great extra that the devs really never even had to add to the game. So yeah, I will take GBA DKC3 over the SNES version any day!

[@tvoltage]

i think the only thing holding tropical freeze back from #1 for me is the absence of things like animal buddies and K. Rool. BUT thats personal attachment to francise staples and nostalgia. If this was someone's first DKU game and they went to go play the classics afterwards, I imagine they would feel a bit underwhelming in comparison. But god, DKC2's atmosphere and character that Rare poured into it is just unparralelled. If im looking at it with pure gameplay though, then hell yeah tropical freeze is #1

[@thesnatcher3616]

Here's the thing though. It's not like Tropical freeze doesn't have atmosphere and charm. I'd argue that it has even MORE of that than Dkc2. Just look at the sixth world for reference. Dk's home had been frozen in ice and all the sites you visited in Returns are all frozen. Considering levels like Cliffside Slide, Dk feels so small, so insignificant compared to the booming power of the Snomads and it really gives off the impression that something HAS been lost. The bosses, the environment EVERYTHING in tropical freeze are all so expressive, charismatic, and alive. Each level tells a story. Like take Rodent Ruckus where you barge in a rat cavern and you find them mining for cheese and you can see them interacting with one another while they do it. Or take that Juicy Jungle Rocket level where the snomad penguin goes out of his way to kill you and destroys factory structures to do it, only to get eaten by a plant at the end because he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. And you literally run and fight those plants in the level right after that! I can talk about this all day, to be honest.

[@blibdo3216]

No animal buddies? That's a bizarre change, especially as the rhino ( I don't remember his name, sue me ) was in returns.

[@zeitok8]

good list, donkey kong country 3 is my favorite, after the 1 and 2 the and during n64 release, it wasn´t the big innovation no more, didn´t receive enought atention, but going the map in boats, the bears, Fischer amazing job in the music, i love variety of level design and the boreal atmosphere...love it.

[@ShynyMagikarp]

great vid :)

[@Waffletigercat]

I would've put Jungle Beat in Banana Slamma tier. It just feels so fluid and crunchy. It's always a blast to play using the bongos.

[@MattF012]

Very respectable tier list. Country, Returns, and DK Racing are all pretty much interchangeable for me, like it rly doesn't matter what order they're in. Country 2 and Tropical Freeze are without a doubt S tier tho. Your A tier is 4 phenomenal games that I'd recommend to anyone, but Country 2 and Tropical Freeze are in a league of their own alongside some of the best games ever made.

[@peterjack1.0]

I can rank the games I've played: 1. Tropical Freeze 2. Returns 3. DKC 2 4. DKC 1 5. DKC 3 6. Barrel Blast 7. DK 64 I've never really played any of the spin offs tbh, not even Diddy Kong Racing, which I really do wish to try someday.

[@ninja_tony]

I love your list. It may be the minority opinion, but I HATE DK64, and it's the only mainline game in the series I never could finish despite trying several times and getting bored. Tropical Freeze is easily the best in the series to me. I like DKC 3 more than 2, but I can understand why 2 gets the love. It's still a fantastic game. You should definitely play Diddy Kong Racing someday, it really is better than Mario Kart 64, and I played both to death back in the day.

[@peterjack1.0]

@@ninja_tony DK64 is hot garbage. Worse than doing chores. I want my DK games to be fun, frantic platformers.

[@chrystianzer0]

And where would Kaze and the Wild Masks be in that tier list?

[@stevenearhart2225]

We need to know!

[@Dwedit]

Donkey Kong Country for Game Boy Color did exist. It is built on top of Donkey Kong Land, has the exact same music, but the game physics were altered to match the SNES version better, and the level layouts were taken from the SNES game.

[@Ray_2112]

So it's DKC as a GBC port, and has nothing to do with Land. ;)

[@nfugitt89]

DK64 above DK94 is insanity. End of C at best. I'd also put DKC3 in B, maybe even C.

[@mario101395]

I haven't played every DK game so I ain't gonna bother with a whole tier list, but I'll do S->B tier: S: DKC1, Tropical Freeze, DKC2 A: DK64, Returns, DKC3 B: Jungle Beat, Donkey Kong (Arcade) Can't rank DKR, I haven't played it in forever. But yeah, for me I think DKC1 has the best atmosphere overall, and I do like how it consistently feels like a world DK would actually live in, and I think it gets that down the best of any game. I also have crazy nostalgia for 1 which definitely boosts it up for me a bit. Also DK64 has such an insane amount of charm that it honestly carries the game. If it was strictly the gameplay being reviewed, it would def be lower for me, but the world design, visuals, music, sound effects, characters, etc. make it easily one of the most, if not the most charming DK game, it is actually that powerful. Lastly, I think DK Arcade is getting a bit too much disrespect. Sure, it isn't the most interesting game, but I think it is still a fun game to play occasionally. Plus for me personally the influence of it matters a lot.

[@guedesbrawl]

Jungle Climber in the same tier as King of Swing is ridiculous

[@TheChuckster360]

I also like dkc3 more than most. Kinda had a love hate relationship with it since the cartridge would sometimes either not save correctly or delete all save data

[@ninja_tony]

I do too, it's my favorite of the trilogy. I can agree DKC 2 is the "better game", but I enjoy DKC 3 much more.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

You also forgot the Crash Bandicoot games. The first two in particular are basically Donkey Kong Country games with a flawed 3D gimmick attached to them.

[@jstuempges1985]

What's the song playing when he is talking about Donkey Kong 64.

[@snomangaming]

The DK Isle theme

[@Adamatronamus]

Wow. Matches how I would rank them.

[@davidabreum.rangel7017]

I played most of them. but, my heart goes for donkey kong country 3. It was the first I played and I love the graphics, and the levels. tropical, returns, and Dk country 2 are amazing.

[@8888jackman]

DK 64 will always be my favourite DK game and is my favourite game of all time. It was one of the first games I ever played. Every time I go back and play it I still love it as much as I did. It’s just so nostalgic for me! We need another 3D DK game preferably made by the Mario Odyssey team!

[@Ray_2112]

Pretty much agree with most of the list. I'd just put the Land 2+3 games over the Arcade original... they're still good Gameboy games, whereas the Arcade game has only 4 levels and doesn't offer a lot. It's important in gaming history, but the Land games 2+3 are far better imo. Also, DK94 is the way better option if you want to play the original.

[@kp6903]

20:24 personally I thought the bosses were really creative in tropical freeze, but that’s just me

[@christianstenger7280]

Yeah, true. The best DK bosses alongside DKC 2.

[@Rodanguirus]

Yeah, I've loved DKC2 since '95 and may prefer it to Tropical Freeze overall, but I can't imagine calling the bosses a point against TF.

[@kp6903]

@@Rodanguirus yeah they all have 3 unique phases, and are all somewhat hard to beat making them more fun

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

They're creative, but they also get tedious really quickly if you die against them or attempt them in time attack mode.They'd benefit from a little more RNG to give them more variety, althought it's obviously hard to do that if you also want to include time attack.

[@Rodanguirus]

@@legrandliseurtri7495 Fair enough, but I personally find Kudgel or Kreepy Krow more boring than any fight in TF. And the TF fights usually reward skill/timing by allowing you to cut attack patterns short.

[@dinsmeteorite5068]

DKC2 is one of my top 10 favorite games of all time too!

[@superdupertyson]

diddy kong racing was my fav n64 games. the multiplayer with cheats was so much fun. i still remember freeforall cheatcode

[@LeanFuture]

You almost had it until Donkey Konga. That game was way fun!

[@luliby2309]

The GBA versions of DK Countries 1, 2, and 3 definitely deserve to be a lot higher. I get why some don't enjoy certain aspects of them, but they are still the same incredible games at their core. They even come with many quality of life improvements, like being able to save and travel to other worlds anywhere, plus you get a level list that tells you what you do or don't have. They also come with additional content, like minigames and time trial modes. You even said yourself that DK Country 1 has vastly improved bosses in the GBA version, which makes it much better. Country 1 even adds extra collectables like the photos which are used to make all the animal bonus rooms much better and worth visiting. I also noticed that you seem to have missed some games. You have the original arcade Donkey Kong, but you don't have the sequels. I think there are two that were also arcade games. You also don't have Donkey Kong Jr here either. Where would you put these games on the tier list?

[@adnannajeeb5619]

I thought you were going to include the Mario vs. Donkey Kong games, as they resemble (to an extent) the GBA Donkey Kong game. Where would you place those two games?

[@thesmellofadventure5370]

20: Donkey Kong Jr. Math (1982)(Arcade)(Awful) 19: Barrel Blast (Wii)(2011)(Blasphemous!!!) 18: Donkey Kong Land 3 (1996)(Gameboy)(Crappy) 17: Donkey Kong Jr. (1982)(Arcade)(Infamous) 16: Donkey Kong 3 (1984)(Arcade)(Mid) 15: Donkey Kong Land (1994)(Gameboy)(Ruining) 14: Donkey Konga 1-3 (2004-2006)(GameCube/Wii)(Failure) 13: King of Swing (2007)(GBA)(Very Simplistic) 12: DKC3: Dixie’s Double Trouble (1996)(SNES)(Hated) 11: Donkey Kong (1980)(Arcade)(Outdated) 10: Donkey Kong Land 2 (1995)(Gameboy)(Oddity) 9: Mario vs. Donkey Kong (2004)(GBA)(Solid) 8: Donkey Kong ‘94 (1994)(Gameboy)(Ultimate) 7: Donkey Kong 64 (1996)(N64)(Strangely Good) 6: DKC Returns (2011)(Wii/3DS)(Modernized Banger) 5: Jungle Beat (2007)(GameCube)(Innovative) 4: Diddy Kong Racing (1997)(N64)(Iconic) 3: DKC: Tropical Freeze (2014)(Wii U)(Perfect) 2: DKC2: Diddy’s Kong Quest (1995)(SNES)(Quality) 1: Donkey Kong Country (1994)(SNES)(Nostalgic)

[@dubya13207]

I *just* got Tropical Freeze so...guess that’ll go in the WiiU after Wind Waker!

[@TheJadeFist]

I slept on Tropical Freeze for so long because I didn't really like Returns, but that was a mistake Tropical Freeze was just an amazing game, it really sets the bar of what I'd like to see in the future.

[@ty_sylicus]

Someone PLEASE. Explain to me why the Advance ports are so lackluster compared to the SNES originals? This is coming from a man who had only ever experienced the GBA versions. I thought they were supposed to be the same.

[@comiccat750]

Can someone give me a link to the song used when he rated DKC 1

[@dalgusmaximus4557]

I think tropical freeze has one fatal flaw. The game has a terrible habit of putting collectables right next to checkpoints that don't let you backtrack to pick up what you missed. In Returns you could pause the game and restart checkpoint at the cost of a life. It seemed like tropical freeze was just trying to inconvenience you and make you redo a entire long ass level for really stupid reasons.

[@nathanielhart-andersen6332]

Maybe it’s just because I played it first, but I actually prefer DKCR to DKCTR. I also love the motion controls? I played some of DKCTR with the Wii remote and nunchuck because I genuinely love using the motion controls to roll.

[@darkonautgaming23]

My S tiers would be DKC2,DKCR,DK64, and DKTF

[@dukemon6163]

Between DKC2 and Tropical Freeze. I prefer DKC2. There's one thing it has over TF. Good Bonus Rooms. Each one is an unique challenge in DKC2 while TF's bonuses are all the copy pasted and boring "Collect all the bananas". I skip them all the time in my TF playthroughs. When I play DKC2 I always go for 102%.