Donkey Kong 64 – Nintendo 64

Every so often a game enters the scene propelled by so much hype and promising so many innovations that decorating it with more pretty words seems pointless. Donkey Kong 64 falls into this category.

Donkey Kong 64 is a 3-D action adventure game–à la Super Mario 64 and Banjo Kazooie–based on the game icon of the same name (you know, the ape who rolled barrels down on Mario’s head in the early ’80s arcades). In this massive and graphically beautiful game, Donkey Kong and his pals must right the wrongs of King K. Rool by exploring their home island in search of more than 200 gold bananas, as well as other items that help the primates’ progress.

Players alternate control of Donkey Kong and four other characters–each with unique abilities–to complete puzzles, conquer “baddies,” compete in mini-games, and navigate through physical challenges. In addition to the single-player adventure, unique multiplayer games offer opportunities for social interaction between marathon solo sessions.

Donkey Kong 64‘s incredible graphics and smooth gameplay are boosted by an included 4-MB expansion pack. The unit helps process the memory-demanding graphics, and enhances the colored lighting effects, shadows, and other eye candy, such as … well, there we go adding to the hype machine. Just remember: this game will be king of Nintendo’s jungle for quite a while and, with a few million rabid fans, could enter the ranks of classic Nintendo 64 games. –Eric Twelker