Donkey Kong Country Returns HD

Box art.
Developer(s)	Forever Entertainment
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Release Date(s)
Nintendo Switch	WW: January 16, 2025
Nintendo Switch	WW: January 16, 2025
Platform(s)
Genre(s)	Platformer
Download Size	8.3GB
Rating(s)
ESRB	03
PEGI	01
CERO	01
ACB	01
USK	01
SMECCV	01
GRAC	01
CID	01
GSRR	00
RARS	01

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a Nintendo Switch remaster of Donkey Kong Country Returns.

It was released on January 16, 2025.

Features

The game combines content of both the original 2010 game on the Wii and its 2013 Nintendo 3DS version with a high-definition upgrade.

New Mode from Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D has been renamed to Modern Mode, which gives Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong three hearts instead of two like in the original game and adds new items to Cranky Kong's shop, though unlike New Mode, the player can hold up to nine items in one level instead of three.

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot.

The gameplay is about the same but with revamped controls for the Nintendo Switch. It runs at 60fps like the Wii version.

Changes from the original/3DS

• Updated lighting
• Reworked character models
• Enhanced coloring
• HD resolution
• Logo adjustments
• The box art no longer shows the Tiki Tong Tower due to the smaller width of the Nintendo Switch keep case.
• Professor Chops is referred to by his current name in the image gallery instead of "tutorial pig".

Plot

The plot remains the same as the original and the 3D version of the game.

Development

The remaster has been reported to be developed by Forever Entertainment, a third-party publisher for Nintendo Switch games.

A demo of the game was released on the Nintendo eShop on February 5, 2025.

Performance/resolution

The game runs mostly at 60fps in full 1080p resolution, with slight frame drops in certain areas.

Promotion

A KONG Letters pin set and themed microfiber cloth are available as a pre-order bonus on the My Nintendo Store in Europe. The store also features an "Adventure Bundle" that costs an additional £6/€7 and contains the game, a waist bag themed after the game's silhouette levels, and a DK Barrel pencil holder. In North America, the pencil holder is a pre-order bonus at GameStop.

Reception

The game received mostly favorable reviews; praise went towards the resolution and graphical enhancements, while criticism was focused on its lack of new content, its missing visual effects, and the original's missing credits. On Metacritic, this version of the game has a score of 77/100 based on 89 reviews.

Pre-release

After its reveal in June 2024, the remaster was noted to have many missing and poorly-implemented effects, such as the color changes, poor shading, and lack of glows, among other flaws.

Credits controversy

Upon release, the game received backlash from fans over the game's end credits, which lacks the original's credits that was replaced with Forever's crew; this was also the case for Luigi's Mansion 2 HD and Metroid Prime Remastered. In response, Nintendo claimed that the company "believe[s] in giving proper credit for anyone involved in making or contributing to a game's creation, and value the contributions that all staff make during the development process."

Gallery

Main article: Donkey Kong Country Returns HD/gallery

Trivia

• The game released on the same day that the Nintendo Switch 2 was officially revealed.
• The HD version has a file size of 8.3 GB, which is much larger than the original (3.32 GB) and 3DS (2.16 GB) versions' sizes combined.
• Forever Entertainment's first direct work in a Nintendo IP game.
• With the release of the HD version on Nintendo Switch, both Tropical Freeze and Returns are officially on one platform.
• Last game to feature Donkey Kong's Rare design before his redesign in Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza. It is also the final game to feature Takashi Nagasako as Donkey Kong's voice actor before Koji Takeda took over the character in Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza. However, Nagasako continued to voice Cranky Kong in Bananza.