In this one, Donkey Kong is celebrating his birthday when a bunch of penguin vikings called Snowmads led by their fearless leader Lord Fredrik (who is basically like a viking walrus) takes over Kong Island and freezes it over hence Tropical Freeze. Donkey Kong and crew must now go through various stages to reclaim their property.
There's been a lot of uproar that King K Rool isn't back but I say this is a good thing. I'm so sick of Nintendo always bringing back the same villain in every sequel just to be appease the fanbase. "Oh no, Bowser isn't in this!" "Why isn't King Boo in this again?" It's getting tiring and its great to see that they are experimenting with new villains. I guess the problem lies in the fact that Lord Fredrik isn't as memorable or have the same personality as King K Rool. It's hard to compete with the originals, I guess.
Donkey Kong starts by pounding his way out of a plane and beating up wildlife on a beach as the viking ships are in the background. I really like this whole viking premise in this one. It gives the series a fresh feel and has something different for the Kongs to contend with. The colors in this game is more vibrant and cartoony, much like the Wii version. I really miss the style of the SNES versions though and really was hoping for a little more darker and realistic feel in the tone but it's not too bad. I got used to it.
The levels this time is a little more creative and makes use of the system's capabilities. There's one with a giant octopus while you are swimming, sharks, oh yeah the mine cart levels are back and they are just as hard as the others in the series. The bosses aren't very memorable but there are some really cool and detailed looking bosses like that big owl boss or that polar bear with a hammer, or even the seal boss as penguins cheer on the fight. All fights end with Donkey Kong punching them out of existence.
Joining Donkey Kong this time is Diddy (with a jet pack), Dixie, and Cranky Kong who now pogo jumps like Uncle Scrooge. Funky Kong can also join to make the game a whole lot easier. Nintendo has a habit of putting in something to make the player get through the game easier like the gold leaf in 3D World, Nabbit in New Super Mario Bros and here it's Funky Kong.
I can't end this review without mentioning the music from David Wise. It's fantastic! Honestly this this is the best score for the series to date. My favorite is from the Windmill level. I frequently listen to that from time to time.
Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze is honestly the best Donkey Kong Country since the second one from the Super Nintendo. One might argue that it's just a beefed up version of Donkey Kong Returns for the Wii. I see this game with wonderful potential to expand these characters and their world in other installments. I just hope that if there is a sequel to this, and I'm sure there will be, that the developers don't stray on taking chances and even continue to put different villains in their games. So many times these games fall into the trap by bringing back the same bad guy, and I feel it's welcome when a series at least tries to bring it in a new direction. With the game released on the Switch and I'm assuming that it did well in sales, there's time to put a new Donkey Kong Country game on the Switch. Make it happen, Nintendo!