WiiNintendo

Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (Wii)
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
To be released: May 4, 2009

Here’s the deal: there’s not much that gets more unique and special than a platformer that uses bongos to control. So with the New Play Control! version of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat missing bongos, Nintendo has decided give DK more traditional controls. Instead of tapping the drums left and right to go left and right, you use the nunchuk’s control stick to make DK move around. Jumping is now a tap of the A button, and attacks now come from a shake of either nunchuck or Wiimote. This clap attack is a little different now, too. Instead of just doing a circular attack, you can now direct the motion of the shockwave. Jumping, then tapping B will grant a ground pound.

Honestly, I feel surprisingly weird about this control scheme. I really loved playing with the bongos, and switching to a standard platformer control style is… different. Coming from Nintendo, it’s a little surprising that they would choose to do this. Sure, it didn’t take me long to adjust and, thankfully, this play style gives DK even more finesse to move around, so I don’t think it is really awful. Like I said, it’s different.

Anyone who played the original might be a little unsettled by this news, but I can bet that this style might actually attract more players. Traditional gamers might like the more traditional platforming controls; new gamers might find the melding of Wii motion controls to platforming controls a segueing factor to more traditional games. And the fact that game will only sell for $29.99, lacks expensive peripherals, and comes to the large Wii market, Nintendo will probably sell more of this game than the original.

[Read on at Destructoid]

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