Will Donkey Kong 64 ever be re-released?

[Hope(N Forever)]

Hey all you hairless apes out there!

Okay, enough monkey business, and let's start talking about a situation which I have been thinking about that had been driving me bananas lately!

Donkey Kong 64, which I personally consider one of the best Nintendo 64 platformers released in the system's later years. People who bought the original package would have gotten an Expansion Pak for free, which is convenient since the game actually required the Expansion Pak, much like The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, which was released a bit later. The U.S. version of the Game Pak was all banana-yellow in colour too. The game even introduced Diddy Kong's upgrades with the Barrel Jet Pack, and the Peanut Popguns. The game also made debut to three more Kongs: Tiny, Chunky, and Lanky. (Only Tiny was later redesigned and featured in further games though, along with Lanky. Whatever happened to Chunky, I wonder.)

Anyway, I really loved the game on the Nintendo 64, and I hoped Nintendo would later port it for the Virtual Console. Of course, then I started thinking about why wouldn't they release it there yet.

Well, for one, Nintendo 64 is getting the least treatment by Nintendo for Virtual Console apparently. I mean, there were so many great Nintendo 64 games, and by far only one third-party Nintendo 64 game (Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber) had been released on the Virtual Console, and it wasn't even that notable during its life-time. Not the mention in 2010, the Virtual Console on the Wii is now dying for some reason, and no official explanations were given for that either.

Nintendo should have released Diddy Kong Racing for the Virtual Console as well, and the availablity of the remake on the Nintendo DS is not an excuse against it, considering there is also a remake for Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo DS, and yet the original game is available on the Virtual Console. Of course, we're actually talking about Donkey Kong 64 right now, and it doesn't have a remake whatsoever, unlike its predecessors (SNES Donkey Kong Country trilogy), which incidentally are all available on the Virtual Console as well!

However, then I thought about an even more dead-end reason why the game Donkey Kong 64 wouldn't be released for the Virtual Console at all! It is quite unfortunate as well, really, and I'm not really sure it could be fixed in any way possible without altering the game so much. What is this reason, you may ask? Well, first of all, I just want to state that Rare had made it painfully clear that they won't be able to release any of their own IP game series for the Virtual Console, such as the original Banjo-Kazooie games, which are currently only available via the Xbox Live Arcade. Now, granted, Donkey Kong 64 should technically belong to Nintendo, but I fear it is doesn't belong to Nintendo by 100%. I'll explain.

If you played Donkey Kong 64 before, this should make sense. The game is just filled with a lot of great stuff, including a couple of bonus, classic games which can be played at any time once unlocked, which are the original Donkey Kong and Jetpac! As you may know, Jetpac is Rare's very first game, released waaaay back in 1983, when they were still called Ultimate Play the Game. Since that game belongs to Rare, it should automatically belong to Microsoft as well. You might think they could easily remove the game, but then again the game was integrated into Donkey Kong 64 in a way that it becomes part of the mandatory game-play! If you had finished the game, you may recall the only way to get the Rare Coin - one of the two notable coins which unlocks the room to the final boss - is by playing Cranky Kong's mini-game feature, which had us attempting to gain a certain high-score in Jetpac! Like, omigosh!

So yeah... there seems to be a great difficulty in actually getting Donkey Kong 64 into the world again. Do you suppose there could be any way the game will ever see the day of light again?

Post your own thoughts.

[tacopill]

I think it's big enough to be re-released on disc, or maybe digitally remastered for the Nintendo 3DS.

[Tucayo]

I would get it. I had it for N64, but was never able to play it because I didn't have the damned Rumble Pack, or Data Pack, or whatever Pack it was so I sold it.

[tacopill]

the expansion pack?

[Tucayo]

yup, that thing

[TurtwigA]

I want it to be remade. It's a really great game.

[R7308xx]

It's chances of being released are the same as Donkey Kong Country's were.

[tacopill]

It's chances of being released are the same as Donkey Kong Country's were.

Which was what, i wonder? 1 in 1,000? 1 in 10,000? 1 in 100,000?

[HavocReaper48]

Um, what?

Donkey Kong Country had TWO re-releases: On one Gameboy Color, other on Gameboy Advance.

http://www.donkeykongwiki.com/DKC#Ports

...not to mention VC

[TurtwigA]

And both of its sequels were remade too.

[tacopill]

so, 1 in 10?

[TurtwigA]

If you count a sequel, it's 1 in 5 by the DKC odds.

[R7308xx]

I meant to say it has a decent chance of being re-released. 

[tacopill]

I meant to say it has a decent chance of being re-released. 

ah, ok. That makes more sense.

[TurtwigA]

I meant to say it has a decent chance of being re-released. 

This has raised my hopes even more. DK64 IS A GREAT GAME.

[tacopill]

I meant to say it has a decent chance of being re-released. 

This has raised my hopes even more. DK64 IS A GREAT GAME.

agreed.

[R7308xx]

The *sneeze* (that was a real sneeze) Donkey Kong Rap will probably be edited to remove "hell".

[tacopill]

The *sneeze* (that was a real sneeze) Donkey Kong Rap will probably be edited to remove "hell".

you typed the fact that you sneezed in real life?

[Hope(N Forever)]

The *sneeze* (that was a real sneeze) Donkey Kong Rap will probably be edited to remove "hell".

Wasn't that done already when the song was remixed for Super Smash Bros. Melee?

By the way, I believe we were only talking about Nintendo 64 games right now. Although, I do find it a little odd the first Donkey Kong Country was remade for the Game Boy Color, and then the Game Boy Advance (along with its two sequels for the latter), before being finally ported on the Virtual Console. People must still love the very first game so much even today, although compared to its sequels it has grown quite out-dated and "simplified." Who wouldn't agree the very first game is the easiest one of all compared to its sequels?

Now, I know a lot of you loved the new Donkey Kong Country Returns game, but I wish there was a Donkey Kong 64-like game anyway, where DK and crew would return to the 3D platformer formula, just like how Mario is being now treated to a mix variety of 3D and 2.5D adventures!

[BooDestroyer]

I'd like to see how a Mario platformer can be handled with the 2.5D technique that DKCR used. This could be a good one.