DKC Atlas Forum

[Jomingo]

OK, first off I wasn't quite sure where to put this as the Mario Games discussion is now completely seperated from DK discussion, thus having no effective place to discuss the two in relation to one another, a problem with no simple fix other than to just stick the topic into whichever of the two I click upon first.

Anyway, I have been thinking later about how elements of DKC that very closely resemble elements of various Mario games. Some of them appeared in Mario games first and were than improved upon in DKC, some were the opposite. Nonetheless, this is the place in which we can discuss them.

The one that always appears in my mind is the various similarities between DKC and SMW. I mean, the KONG letters are essentially the same as the 5 Yoshi coins per level; the check points are quite similar to the checkpoint barrels of DKC; Yoshi himself is quite possibly a prelude to the animal buddy; etc.

Can anybody else name other similarities?

[gamer_boy997]

For the connection of SMW and DKC, there are LOTS of relationships.

Here are some you haven't mentioned:

1. Coins=bannanas
2. Green Mushrooms=Red balloons
3. Crescent Moons=Blue ballons
4. Shells=Barrels
5. Vines=Vertical ropes

However, there a lots of things that DON'T get a relationship:

1. We have capes and flowers in SMW, what do we get for DKC?
2. We get different paths you can take in SMW, DKC is single-path ONLY.
3. In DKC, there's what I like to call, "The 0th life", which means you still have one life left when you get to zero lives, but in SMW, you get gameover ON "The 0th life".
4. In DKC the levels with water are fully aquatic, while only SOME levels in SMW that have water that are fully aquatic.
5. Time limits in SMW, where are the time limits in DKC?
6. You get a huge score in SMW that resets after game over, nothing for DKC.

So, there seems to be some stuff simply moved over to DKC, while some stuff seemed to be taken out.

[Sean]

The thing that I always found amusing as I was playing New Super Mario Bros. was that it really, really seemed evocative of the DKCs in a couple of respects. Most obviously there's the Star Coin system, comparable to having multiple DK Coins in a level (also similar to things like the Crystal Shards in Kirby 64), but there were other moments that gave me a sense of deja vu. I can't recall most of them at the moment, but the one thing that jumps at me is that the Monty Mole tank boss of world 6 reminded me a lot of fighting KAOS in DKC3. (Basically, both fights revolve around jumping on rotating parts of the boss's base - blades for KAOS, turrets for the mole - in order to jump on the boss's head.) My mind is telling me there was a stage reminiscient of Toxic Tower as well, but I can't say for sure and it's not like "go up before the thing below you gets you" is the most unique concept in the world to begin with.

[Gnawzooka]

The "100 of this for a life" concept is in a lot of games. The Original Rayman games had Tings, and Crash Bandicoot has Wumpa Fruit. Of course, Super Mario World was before them.

[NES Boy]

5. Time limits in SMW, where are the time limits in DKC?

In most of the bonus rooms. You do not get time limits in the main levels, though.

[Mattrizzle]

Since DKC, it seems like more mine carts are appearing in Mario games, or in series related to Mario. Let's see here:
Super Mario RPG (1996) --This is perhaps the closest resemblance to the DKC mine cart levels, especially in the side-scrolling parts.
Yoshi's Island DS (2006)
Super Paper Mario (2007)
This could just be a coincidence, however.

Oh, and don't forget about this element in DKC that first appeared in SMB. If you stomp on 8 consecutive baddies, you get an extra life. I'm not certain if this appears in DKC2 or 3, considering how infrequent it could happen.

[Dixie Diddy]

I remember a stage in Super Mario World in the Ice world when you slide down hit like 5 goombas and get an extra life