Pizza Tower....what an absolute rush of a game if ive ever played one. The controls take a hot minute to used to, but once you understand the flow of game play it is such an insane ride.

The level gimmicks are fun and imaginative, the secrets and treasure collection is on point. The ranking system adds alot of depth and show of skill if you can get the hang of doing everything non-stop in one epic go.

This is the kind of game I will probably revisit from time to time to improve my skills and toy around with from time to time to try and get 100% someday, but for now, its time to let sleeping Peppinos lie.

I got an 83% as my final judgement and I gotta say....not bad....not bad at all.

"is it over yet?" Is the phrase that kept going through my head. Things feel dragged out. There are interesting ideas here, but overall this was tedious past the first level. I had missed the crucible not because of the ability to instantly remove a threat but just for the sake of being able to speed up the encounters. Every archvile and spirit didn't didn't make think "oh what an interesting challenge" it made me think "boy this is gonna take some time". Maybe I will enjoy it more on the replay now that I'm familiar with it, but this was kind of a miserable slog, while the base game to me feels masterful.

The main talking point about Donkey Kong Country has always been its groundbreaking presentation, and for good reason: even today it's easy to get lost in its sights and sounds. To dwell on its aesthetics would be selling it short however, because there really is genius design at work here. The platforming has a trademark flow, every level is tightly paced, each having unique themes and challenges, and there's a great difficulty curve throughout. Beyond that, lots of little details elevate this game to something much more than a showcase of cutting edge graphics, from the subtle differences between the Kongs, to the secrets around every corner.

Still, when looking at the whole experience, it's structured more like an NES game than its SNES contemporaries. You just go from level to level with nothing in between. Bonus areas at most granting extra lives might seem like missed potential, but not only does this provide a more focused experience, it serves to keep the game's excellent pacing uninterrupted. There's never a question as to what you're doing in this game, you're constantly moving forward, whether or not you decide to go for the secrets.

I think the reason I find myself revisiting this game over many others is that, beginning to end, there really are no low points, something that can't even be said for Super Mario World. While other platformers at the time may have had greater ambitions, Donkey Kong Country proves there's strength in simplicity.