Top 10 Levels from Donkey Kong Country 3

I’ll be honest, the third Donkey Kong Country isn’t exactly my favorite.  It’s a bit too cutesy, a bit too gimmicky, and…Kiddy exists.  With that said, this is still a pretty fun game if you don’t compare it to its predecessors.  As I recently replayed it for the purposes of research, I accumulated a nice,…

Listmas 2025: My Favorite Levels for Donkey Kong December

It’s not officially Donkey Kong December here at Virtual Bastion, but it’s something I wind up observing on my own every year regardless. Well, it’s more like “retro” Donkey Kong December now, as those are the games that pull me back year after year. It’s not necessarily that I play all the old games all…

Ranking the Bosses from Donkey Kong Country 3

Donkey Kong Country 2 already had some perfectly memorable boss fights.  But the third game’s penchant for gimmicks meant the bosses tended to vary even more in their mechanics, from a snowball fight with a nightmarish snowman to feeding bugs to a giant sentient barrel until he burps himself off the stage.  Frankly, I found…

Ranking the Bosses from Donkey Kong Country 2

When you really think about it, the original Donkey Kong Country was fairly basic, especially when the bosses were concerned.  I mean, there are two battles against a giant beaver that basically just jumps back and forth across the stage and two more skirmishes against an oversized vulture that somehow spits nuts at you.  (Considering…

Top 10 Most Awful Levels from Donkey Kong Country 2

As much as I love Donkey Kong Country 2, that doesn’t mean this beloved entry in the franchise is without its fair share of flaws.  I can appreciate that this game is challenging.  In fact, several difficult levels feature in my post listing my very favorite levels.  But the levels listed below are just not…

Top 10 Levels from Donkey Kong Country 2

It is widely accepted that the second entry in the original Donkey Kong Country trilogy, Diddy’s Kong Quest, is easily the best.  With a great atmosphere, and without the need to rely on gimmicks to keep the gameplay interesting, this game just focuses on fun and solid level design and new concepts that don’t feel…

Top 5 Worst Levels from Donkey Kong Country

I’ve already posted a little list ranking my top 5 favorite stages from the original Donkey Kong Country from 1994.  And now it’s time for the worst.  One surprising fact I had to face was that, after roughly three decades of playing this game, some levels are still surprisingly difficult!  I can appreciate a challenge…

Top 5 Best Levels from Donkey Kong Country

Seeing as the original Donkey Kong Country games for the SNES have a special place in my heart, it’s odd that I’ve never actually ranked any of the levels before.  And so I spent two afternoons replaying the very first game from 1994 for the purposes of some nostalgic research.  Keep in mind that when…

Listmas 2023: With Great Cover Art, the Package Makes Perfect

There’s no doubt that one of the best things about gift giving, at Christmas or any time, is the element of surprise. You take a perfect gift and conceal its awesomeness behind pretty paper. Then the big moment comes where the receiver tears open that paper to reveal the big surprise and, you hope, be…

Silly Scoundrels: King K. Rool

The Duck’s first silly scoundrel debuted in 1994 with Rareware’s Donkey Kong Country.  This was the first game where we were introduced to Donkey Kong’s newest enemies, the crocodilian Kremlings, led by none other than King K. Rool, a large croc with a golden belly and a swollen eyeball.  Now that’s a name you should…