DKC Atlas Forum

[Blaziken257]

After playing quite a bit of Donkey Kong Land lately, I feel the need to nitpick at the physics in Donkey Kong Land, because it's much different from the DKC games, and even the other two DKL games. Ever since I first started playing DKL (many years ago), I noticed the physics are odd in this game.

- When jumping on an enemy, your horizontal speed increases greatly, which is useful for speed runs and for making long jumps. Jumping off of enemies is one of the most effective moves in a speed run. This is exactly the opposite of other DKL games, where bouncing off of enemies is slower. However, in this game, jumping on an enemy also makes it really difficult to turn left to right in midair.
- Cartwheeling or rolling over an enemy does not increase your speed, unlike other DK games.
- If you do a cartwheel or roll while walking (even while holding B the entire time you roll/cartwheel), you will remain at walking speed through the entire roll/cartwheel. This is different from other games where this helps you start out at running speed.
- If you tap B to start a a roll/cartwheel and immediately let go, you will pause for a moment after the roll/cartwheel.
- Like other games, you can jump up ropes faster than simply climbing up them. However, this is even easier to do than in other games. All you have to do is hold Up and keep pressing A; you don't have to press Left or Right to do this.

Diddy jumping up a rope.

DKL Rope Climb.gif (244.25 KiB) Viewed 12859 times

- Expresso is exactly the opposite as he is in DKC: Instead of being vulnerable to everything, he is as strong as Rambi! Yes, he can just simply run over everything, even Zingers! The only thing that Rambi can do that Expresso can't is break open walls.
- While you're riding Rambi, as long as you just tap B, he'll run until you stop moving, even if you let go of B.
- If Rambi or Expresso get hit by an enemy, Diddy/Donkey will just dismount, as if you just pressed Select, instead of watching the animal run away. This makes it difficult to lose an animal friend in this game...
- If you hold A while bouncing off an animal crate, you will jump super high.

DK bouncing off a crate.

DKL crate bounce.gif (167.27 KiB) Viewed 12865 times

- Like Rattly, Diddy and Donkey can run off an edge and then jump in midair; however, you have to jump right when you start falling off the edge or it won't work.

- In snow levels, if you just barely touch the edge of a platform and run, Diddy/Donkey's feet will "catch" the platform and keep running at nothing until you let go of either B or the Control Pad. However, you can also jump from here onto the platform.

Diddy's feet getting caught in a ledge.

DKL Ledge Jump.gif (251.28 KiB) Viewed 12827 times

- If you pick up a barrel, you can't drop it. In other games (even DKC), you can drop a barrel by holding Down and letting go of B.
- Sometimes, if you get hit by an enemy and you get knocked off the bottom of the screen, you lose a life, even if you have both Kongs.

I hope my animated GIFs aren't too distracting. I'm new to making them, so if they're too much, let me know!

[Qyzbud]

I think those animations are good for illustrating your points - if somebody wants to, they can just press 'Esc' to stop them.

Lots of good observations here. DKL is full of rather strange physics laws, as you've pointed out. Most of those things would have to be a result of processor speed limitations, I'd say; but others (such as Expresso's relative invincibility) are a bit WTF-ish, I must say. I always thought it was a shame that you can't set barrels down once they've been picked up, but to be fair, that's never really been a vital ability.

Sometimes, if you get hit by an enemy and you get knocked off the bottom of the screen, you lose a life, even if you have both Kongs.

Didn't this 'screen death' issue occur often, even if you weren't hit by an enemy? I remember several occasions where I'd be climbing/jumping up through a level, and would fall just off screen (where I just came from, and was safe...) to my demise. This was a nuisance, but I didn't really mind the extra challenge. I tend to like challenges like this, for some reason.

[Blaziken257]

Yeah, you're right actually. Even though there's a glitch like that in every DKC and DKL game, DKL and DKL2 have this glitch worse than the other games. It's really annoying, as I have had lots of unfair deaths because of that.

By the way, I forgot a few things:

- In caves, you can keep jumping your way through narrow gaps instead of ducking through them. I think this also works in DKC as well.

- If you're just about to touch an enemy and you jump at the right timing, you can defeat an enemy while moving upward. There is a similar trick in Super Mario Bros. as well.
- Slippas won't slide down ropes (such as in Riggin' Rumble) if the top of a rope is visible on screen.

[Qyzbud]

More good points.

I've had many 'lucky bounces' when jumping just as I hit an enemy - that was a strange thing to be able to get away with! Perhaps it help counter the unfair deaths associated with falling below the screen. Not intentionally, of course, but it helps balance the 'fairness'.