Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade (GameCube) Review

The story is practically the same as the last time round. DK and Diddy are struggling to master the strange bongos they had previously stumbled upon on the beach. Dixie does not help matters by shouting about how terrible they are at creating tunes, which invokes a response from Cranky Kong. He suggests that the simian family hit the road for some 'real life training'. So off go Donkey Kong, Diddy and Dixie (who seems to be Diddy's girlfriend in this, rather than sister as first believed...hmm) to begin a brand new musical journey...

Okay, now then, Donkey Konga was not exactly a beautiful game with its presentation being classed as shoddy by all and sundry. In my review of it, though, the whole point of this presentation level was explained as being somewhat positive due to the lack of distractions. Unfortunately, there are various other little graphical tricks thrown in to make the main rhythm screen more lively and really does get a little annoying. Sure, from an outside point of view, casting a glance over my shoulder looks great, but I know that when trying to concentrate on getting 'Great' after 'Great' the constant flashing and fluttering movement drives you a tiny bit crazy! Marks for the additions, but taken off again for the distraction...sorry Namco!

The original mix of songs and classic videogame tunes in Donkey Konga were such an eclectic selection that there was at least a few songs for everyone, and each one of them lent itself to such a rhythm-based title. However, whilst there are definitely some great inclusions in the 32 new ones this time, there are some that just do not work in this format at all.

There is also the Challenge mode where you must attempt to fight your way through a set number of songs in a row, whilst trying to keep the Phonograph Gauge at the top right as full as possible by hitting notes perfectly on a regular basis. If the other modes did not tire your hands, this will definitely leave you with more than a tingling feeling running down your arms! Finally, there are the Battle and Concert modes, the former being where you take on one or more extra players in a challenge, and the latter is basically bongoing for fun. New modes definitely help this stand out, but the first game is near enough the same overall.

The new range of mini games and extras that are now available in this full-blown sequel alone mean that you can have great fun collecting currency from playing through the 32 main songs so that you can pay to access games such as Rhythm Keeper or Barrel Race. Then the fact that there are many multiplayer variations help to extend the fun even further to the point where you will only tire of this game when you get bored of the actual songs included.