Reviews Donkey Kong Retro N64 Nintendo Switch Online Donkey Kong 64 Review (N64) C'mon Cranky, take it to the fridge Version Reviewed: European review by Conor McMahon Thu 4th Jun 2026 Share: Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube 848k This review was originally published in April 2015 alongside the Wii U eShop's Virtual Console release. We're updating and republishing it to mark the arrival of the game in the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack N64 library . At the mere mention of Nintendo's 64-bit console, many of us find it difficult not to get swept up by a wave of nostalgia. We drift through countless memories of flickering TV screens and eye-popping graphics, washing up on the shores of 3D gaming's first bold steps onto a Nintendo platform. While it was Super Mario who first triple-jumped his way to the forefront of this revolution, it wasn't long until the competition got... hairy.
Donkey Kong 64 originally swung onto store shelves back in 1999, at a time when British developer Rare had already impressed with such acclaimed N64 titles as Goldeneye 007 and Banjo-Kazooie . Anyone who's played the latter will instantly pick up on the similarities that DK's outing shares with the bear and the bird, but Rare's key innovation this time around was the inclusion of a whopping five playable characters. Don't get too excited just yet, though - you'll need to rescue them first. King K.Rool has set up shop right on the outskirts of DK Island, ready to blow the whole place to smithereens just as soon as his crew of slacker Kremlings manage to power up their deadly weapon.
Source: https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/n64/donkey-kong-64
Donkey Kong 64 originally swung onto store shelves back in 1999, at a time when British developer Rare had already impressed with such acclaimed N64 titles as Goldeneye 007 and Banjo-Kazooie . Anyone who's played the latter will instantly pick up on the similarities that DK's outing shares with the bear and the bird, but Rare's key innovation this time around was the inclusion of a whopping five playable characters. Don't get too excited just yet, though - you'll need to rescue them first. King K.Rool has set up shop right on the outskirts of DK Island, ready to blow the whole place to smithereens just as soon as his crew of slacker Kremlings manage to power up their deadly weapon.
Source: https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/n64/donkey-kong-64