I wanna state for the record that I absolutely hate monkeys. I fucking hate those pieces of shit!

-No, I don't find them funny.
-No, I don't find them cute.
-Yes, I would eradicate one with a mere thought.

However, there is one...JUST ONE monkey I do indeed respect...I am talking about Diddy Kong!

Now, I bet you're thinking: "But Beau, you sexy beast, why would you hate all monkeys and yet love and respect a video game monkey?"

Easy. In fact, I can sum it up in seven words: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong's Quest!

Yes! That's correct Retro-fans! I am talking about one of the greatest games the SNES was fortunate enough to get on December 5th, 1995.

Made by Rare Ltd. and published by the awesomeness that is Nintendo, DKC2 was a mad-sick upgrade from it's predecessor, Donkey Kong Country. In this sequel, Donkey Kong(Whom I will refer to as D.K. from now on because I am not worthy enough to say his name) gets captured by King K. Rool(Now given the illustrious title of Kaptain K. Rool) shortly, if not directly, after the events of the first game. Now, I am not sure where the fuck Diddy was(Probably boning his ape girlfriend, Dixie), but he wasn't around to assist D.K. in kicking the piss out of Rool. Oddly enough, in order for Rool and his horde to return D.K., they want all of his bananas. Um...I'm no zoologist, but I don't think crocodiles eat bananas. Now, it would be kinda cool to see a bloody, gory meat-feast with King K. Rool and his minions chowing down on D.K. and especially Cranky, but that's just because I am twisted.

Anyway, the game is identical to DKC, except they removed the steel barrels, the hidden items in the ground(Which I enjoy, cause that was a pain in the rectum in the first DKC), 2 Animal Companions(Expresso the Ostrich and Winky the Frog...good riddance), and increased difficulty. However, they added a few new features such as: a currency system(Banana Coins), hidden DK Coins, a few new Animal Companions, bonus chance games(That require Banana Coins), a hidden world that requires Krem Koins to access and are hard as fuck, but worth it if you want to fight the true final boss and get the True Ending, and a plethora of new enemies.

The music of the game was done by the same guy who did the music from the 1st one, David Wise. He stated in an interview that the music for DKC2 was done during his "experimental Paris phase". I have no idea what the fuck he was yammering about, but it doesn't matter...the music was amazing. Simply amazing.(Yes, I own the soundtrack for it.)

Aside from the added features, the game play was also upgraded. Players could now "Team-Up" and perform...well...nothing useful really. I mean, it's not as awesome and cool as a Dual Tech from Chrono Trigger, but it does allow you to reach areas normally out of reach. It's nifty, because if you hurl one of them on a high ledge, the character that did the throwing automatically "float-flips" to join his/her comrade, thus allowing you procure a hidden item. Sometimes, having both characters present and performing a "Team-Up" is crucial to obtaining Bonus Barrels or those hard-to-reach DK Coins. So, when you think about it, teaming up has more uses than you think.

Overall, this game is correctly placed among the Gaming Gods. It was rated as the best of the DKC Trilogy, and the 6th Best-Selling Game on the SNES. And it should be! This is game is better than the following:
-Your dog
-Your cat
-Your kids
-Your family
-Your extended family
-You job
-You religion
-Pirates
-Ninjas
-Republicans

I would highly suggest you purchase it(provided you don't have it already), it is indeed worth it. Now, even though I own this game and continue to play it to this day...I still fucking hate monkeys.
Until next episode...

-Fin-