Donkey Kong 64 - Worlds Tier List

amongst many Nintendo's 64 titles Donkey Kong 64 contains a ton of colorful characteristic thematic worlds there's only a handful of Worlds to play through but they all keep you very busy in their own unique way so let's go through each world and rank them on this tier list quick note I will not be ranking DK aisle as I consider it to be an Overworld and not a level of its own yes it's great and has its own unique hidden gems but I don't really know how to rank it you know what nope there it sits in the DK Altair and last I'm going to be ranking these worlds overall by aesthetic theme design nothing to do with the golden bananas or any other Collectibles all right enough stalling let's get this show on the road gloomy gallion oh boy uh where to begin with this one I'm sure it's no surprise to most of you that Gloomy Galleon is at the very bottom of this list water levels it's so hard to nail it just right and while this level has slowly grown on me over the years it's still just a horrendous time swimming mechanics across the board aren't the easiest thing to control and obviously there's a ton of that going on raising and lowering the water level and rushing to the other side of the map has never been fun one of the few redeeming qualities of this world is being able to play as endguard it makes this Gloomy Galleon well less gloomy and more fun to explore the deep sea thankfully this section of the game still manages to nail the theme the lighthouse and pirate ship are all great highlights we're able to burst open these treasure chests as chunky love the mermaid and all of tinies tiny areas to shrink through love the design of the mechanical fish except we're not talking about that gold banana while I can understand and appreciate the deep sea sections the time limit makes this world that much more unbearable I can agree that there should be deep water for us to explore but scrambling to perfect the swimming mechanics with the time limit is forever frustrating old ultimately I think this world could have benefited from having more above the water sections than under there's so many empty sections above the water I get the idea is to swim below and explore there but there's just too much of that and the above water areas feel hollow but the land sections work pretty well on their own I love to see if things shift more 50 50 than the current 70 30. look it's always been that world that I want to avoid and finish as fast as possible no turning back Crystal Caves I had a hard time figuring out where to place this world on the list on the one hand I really like the ice cave design of this place but also the kosher stationed above to smash the ceiling rocks to crumble down is super annoying and frustrating one moment it's soft and peaceful then exits chaotic and you're scrambling to avoid taking damage right in the middle of a task it's Unique I'll give them that but I think it comes off more annoying than anything else I've always found the layout of this world difficult to remember and it's kind of easy to get lost and on top of the chaos from the ceiling collapsing it's easy to fall off cliffs into the small body of water and get stuck climbing right back to where you were I wish there were more ice themes in this world overall the igloos and ice blocks are a great start the ice castle is a fun welcoming design but we're not going to talk about what's at the very top this wood Hut area was always a neat hidden feature to me not hidden but certainly tucked away and not as simple to find I really want to say more nice things about Crystal Caves but I'm unfortunately it's also that world and hard to win me over it comes fairly late in the game too so it feels more like running an errand than getting closer to the end Jungle Japes the very first world you get to explore in this game is Jungle Japes and while it's pretty low on the list by no means do I consider it a bad world this is the medium world right there in the middle when it comes to the other ones it's the first one after all so difficulty and exploration isn't all that expected from the players yet it's sort of a tutorial level without playing as a tutorial for starters the theme is spot on for a first level it's exactly where one would expect the Kongs to be a jungle trees ropes to climb water to introduce swimming mechanics but it's not overwhelming like gloomy gallion caves to take you from point A to B teaching the players that exploration will be required in this game this hidden storm area while doesn't make a whole lot of sense offers more diversity to this world it makes things a little easier to remember the layout and it's more than just the same jungle and what's neat is you get to play as rambi so early in the game too it's rather on the small end and some Chunky's tasks feel tacked on kind of last minute but also the game is kind of telling the player that other characters will help you progress in this section huh Donkey Kong can't get over here will eventually turn into oh lanky now that I have lanky I can get over here yes it's a lot of backtracking but we've established before that Mac tracking is the core issue in this game moving on like I said it serves its purpose it's the first world Hideout Helm this is the moment all players have been waiting for officially stomping around the enemy's headquarters and putting an end to K rules plans it feels so rewarding getting to this point of the game the Kong's abilities are maxed out we've collected everything you need to get here and dump hours into the game it's go time it's cool using each con to advance further into The Hideout it's one of the few linear worlds and you can really feel yourself moving together as a team each member needs to take out parts of this big bad machine in the center which then unlocks the next door to k-roll it's kind of similar to the ending of Ocarina of Time as you get further and further into The Hideout you'll recognize some areas that have been used during the cutscenes including K rules Throne that's an awesome feature to the game and it's pretty rare to be lurking around an enemy's territory like this I just love everything about it one small nitpick that I have and I'm sure most people have is the countdown clock it certainly adds a level of anxiety and has the player feeling rushed at times I feel I have less opportunities to explore and take in the world around me but I think there's more than enough time given as long as you hustle I don't recall ever running out the clock and I actually don't know what happens if you do the world is pretty tiny in comparison to the others but hey it's not really meant to be another humongous world after all that would be exhausting I think Heidel Helm serves its purpose it's right there in the middle and I love being able to creep around Kate roll's room for the second world to be introduced in this game it really steps up after Jungle Japes it's a big world and at times maybe too overwhelming but there's tons to explore and it's quite rewarding the theme is absolutely perfect they really nailed it from the music to the tombs the Llama friend that we help the feed me Tower this Aztec is definitely angry it's the only world where you save not one but two Kongs and in no particular order either I always found that exciting I like that it isn't so direct to save linking tiny you need to spend some time exploring heck even the lava's switching to swimmable water was mind-blowing to me when first playing as a kid this world really cranks up the difficulty too you need to watch where you step with this quicksand sometimes the path gets really narrow and you need to be extremely precise with the joystick lava Fireballs there are other tricky time platforms this world is really preparing you for harder challenges down the road the tombs with the countdown are so intimidating that creepy voice screaming get out scare the bananas out of me followed by that Target hunting you down this world offers so much to the players and it's deserving of being high in the list but it's not a perfect world either like I said it can get a tad overwhelming though it's a big spread out world so it's easy to get a little lost and well for a backtracking game this world requires quite a bit of backtracking it gets tiring going back and forth as each Kong one at a time just to enter the tombs and who could forget Diddy Khan's jetpack while we're not ranking these worlds based off of golden bananas this is the world that introduces the jet pack to us and I think I've said enough if you know you know fungi Forest at first glance there is a ton to love about funky Forest while it has some flaws let's take a look at all the great aspects of this world it really feels like a huge step up to Jungle Japes it's a lot bigger but has so much character to it there's a clock greeting you at the beginning allowing you to switch back and forth from day and night instead of trees there are tall mushrooms to climb and trampoline like mushrooms why even some of the enemies are disguised as mushrooms you gotta watch where you walk shunky has a fun Mini-Game upon entering as well love this creepy conveyor belt room with the water wheel outside and spider mini boss for tiny saving the worm and the Apple from these giant evil Tomatoes poison ivy there's just so much character in this world they really did a lot to the theme this section of the world can be hit or miss there's lots of explore in this large mushroom building with several floors to climb up but it's one of those things that isn't the easiest to navigate from point A to B and if you fall down it's a pain to get back up for some reason the latter mechanic is just too complex for my tiny brain the day and night switching mechanics seems to be a hit or miss some people personally I'm a fan of it it makes this world that much more unique I like being able to explore more areas of the world based on what time of day it is different enemies come out at night so it's more than just switching the layout but I can absolutely see the frustration in the system as it adds even more backtracking maybe it would work better if one section of the world was permanently daytime and the other was night I don't know the whole point is that the layout changes when you switch over but to each their own you and I already know it but this rabbit here will be the death of me but again we are not considering golden bananas for this list but at the end of the day it's a creative world and I'm a big fan of it I truly enjoy Frantic Factory it's an awesome world and it gives you a similar feeling to Hideout Helm you know that feeling of exploring enemy territory the theme is really unique it plays to the factory or toy aspect metal latch door automatic doors opening and closing the toy box room and dice enemy Chinese race car challenge chunky battling this toy giant there's so many unique rooms and characters that pop out even this main tall factory room is a hit to me while it's awfully challenging to climb to the very top from moving platforms to Rolling conveyor belts it's a mighty feeling getting to the top just don't fall down it requires a lot of patience I can't find much to nitpick about this world there are awfully small nitpicks here and there like how confusing the layout can be at times but I have a lot of fun in Frantic Factory one thing as frustrating as the old school Donkey Kong game is it's pretty awesome that they found the perfect place in the game to store it it just makes sense here but hey we are not ranking this world based off a golden bananas but still this one is deserving to be at the top of the list all right last one on the list I'm sure you've been waiting for it creepy Castle I hear it over and over again people love this world and I can't blame them for it it's really well done I can't think of a world that better Nails it when it comes to the theme rare went to his Spirit Halloween store and decided to let the cons go exploring on their own you and I already know it but let's take a moment to appreciate the spooky Vibes a plus music skeletons and ghosts everywhere drawbridges chains and Graves wooden Castle doors with foggy hallways inside uh whatever this green goop lava is often's filled with baddies waiting to take you out Donkey Kong has this creepy cart mini game this spooky tree that you can explore the entire aspect of the castle both inside and out is Top Notch each level on the inside of the castle has plenty to do without being overbearing while the outside has easy navigation it's one of those two levels where you can't get lost it's big but well constructed climbing to the top of the castle is one of the best aspects of this one may see it as an annoying task and the risk of falling off but it plays really well to this world with all the war pads located at the bottom making it easy to get back to a certain checkpoint and because this world has more linearity to it there should be far less backtracking to the players isn't that at least worth a golden banana I generally can't come up with something I dislike about Creepy Castle my only wish is that it wouldn't be at the very end of the game it would be amazing to explore this world a little bit earlier but I guess the best was save for last well that's my list for you this was not as easy of a task as I thought it was going to be and who knows maybe next year I'll end up changing my mind but I'm feeling pretty good about where things stand right now I know for a fact we don't all see things in these worlds so let's see your list Below in the comments yes I want to hear which world is considered your favorite but I'm also curious to hear what you consider to be the worst I bet there is some Gloomy Galleon Defenders out there who will surprise me anyways until next time thank you

Channel: Super Joe Bros

Views: 19,942

Keywords: donkey kong, donkey kong 64, tier list, nintendo, nintendo 64, rareware, rare, rare ware

Id: zB4qilAWOHU

Length: 12min 36sec (756 seconds)

Published: Sat Oct 15 2022