10. Donkey Kong 64 (1999)
Before Bowser, Donkey Kong had been known as Mario’s arch nemesis. In the classic arcade games, Donkey Kong would always have Princess Peach in his grasp and
Mario would have to save her. In the 1990’s, Nintendo and Rare turned Donkey Kong into a hero with the Donkey Kong Country series for Super Nintendo, but then in 1999, the two companies released Donkey Kong 64—a title that made DK’s jungle heroics into full 3D. Donkey Kong 64 had a lot of influence from Super Mario 64 and Banjo Kazooie, but was much more vivid, and had massive levels to explore. The levels were so textured and colorful that it was more fun to get lost in them rather than actually play. Donkey Kong had four buddies that we could play as: Diddy Kong, Lanky, Chunky, and Tiny. They all had different abilities which were needed to get through all of the levels. There are certain collectibles which can only be obtained by a certain Kong, but all shared the same goal of finding all of Donkey’s 201 Golden Bananas. This made the game even more interesting and unpredictable, leaving the player to figure out how to use these characters to achieve different medals, get weapons and special power ups.
Donkey Kong 64 will always be my favorite of the gorilla’s best adventures. He hasn’t had many games since, and has only been a supporting character in Super Smash Brothers and Mario Kart series’. Plus, what game has a better introduction than the Donkey Kong Rap?? – Yasmin Kleinbart
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