Ruc-ky Cha Cha Cha… It makes me happy!
The original Japanese version of Donkey Konga was one of PGC’s favorite pastimes at E3, and now before the US version is even out, Namco and Nintendo have teamed up to release a second bongo-beating rhythm game in Japan.
Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade is a pretty direct sequel, focusing more on J-Pop songs and anime themes. To break it down, there are 32 songs in the main list, including ten J-Pop songs, one Latin song, three classical tunes, three Nintendo tunes, ten anime themes, four TV themes (counting the Pikmin 2 commercial track), and Yankee Doodle sung in Japanese. All of the songs are fun to play, but there are a few favorites that stand out like The Legend of Zelda: Latin Fusion, a TV show theme titled something like Lucky Cha Cha Cha, a completely Engrish song called Monkey Magic, a Naruto song, and a surprisingly entertaining song from the Pokemon Advanced Generation anime. Of course all of the classical songs rule just like their counterparts did in the first game, and the Donkey Kong Country jungle theme is pretty cool to play along with as well.
In terms of difficulty, the main “Story" mode – I couldn’t spot much of a story – is basically on the same level as the first game, but is slightly tougher. The easy-level songs are definitely more active than before, and expert level songs will take most players several tries to nail down. Of course, if you play tons of music games like Beatmania, you may still see the regular songs as easy pickings, but COOL mode is back, requiring you to memorize every beat and play without the normal left/right markers. Finish that before you come to me whining about how easy the game supposedly is.
The songs are organized a little more clearly with each category bearing a different color -- yellow for anime, blue for game, purple for classical, etc. Plus all of the songs are arranged in a full circle, so it’s a little easier to visualize where the song you’re trying to get to might be. There’s also a random button in the circle, which can be helpful if you’re having a tough time making decisions.
In addition to the main Story mode, there are a number of other ways to play in either single or multi-player. You can actually play the Story mode with two players, which was not an option in the first game. As is the case in all of the multiplayer modes, the two players don’t play the exact same parts, so it can get a little hectic, and the wacky replacement sound effects you can choose can help distinguish one player’s instrument from the other.
Battle returns and puts you in direct competition against one another with some beats bearing extra significance in the forms of slot machines or POW blocks that zero out your opponents score.
Challenge is back as well, but rather than simply pitting you in an endurance round to complete the full song list, there is now a choice between six-song courses, twelve-song courses, or an unlockable option that throws everything at you. Instead of letting you mess up, keep going, and being judged at the end, Challenge mode has a meter that lowers every time you make a mistake. If you empty that meter, the game is done right then and there. Challenge mode can be deceiving too because the first songs are very easy and the difficulty gradually ramps up from there, leaving you unprepared for the later songs, and finally finishing (at least in the six-song course) with a brand new song that’s not even included in Story mode! You can also work through the Challenge courses in two-player, but both of you will need to be on the top of your game to survive.
Concert seems to replace the original game’s Free Session mode. There are two ways to play. With one set of drums, player one is responsible for the drum beats, while player two claps. With more drums or (cringe) controllers, up to four players can play together, each with different parts. At the end you’ll be ranked individually, but will also be given a score for the group’s total completion.
Donkey Konga 2 also features two great mini-games. Unlike the first game’s clunky assortment of whack-a-mole, juggling, and rope climbing, Hit Song Parade’s mini-games are actually worth coming back to again and again. Apparently Namco realized this because it now costs fifty coins (which are earned in story mode) for single player and one hundred coins for multiplayer each time you play.
The first game is simply a race. A string of beats will drop into your slot, and you’ll need to hit them as quickly as possible. String after string will drop down and you’ll need to get through all of them faster than the computer or your friends. If you mess up, you’ll be halted for a moment before you can go on.
The other mini-game, Rhythm Keeper, is probably my favorite new addition because it’s tough and probably does the most to really train you to keep a beat. It starts out by teaching you a simple rhythm. Then, it takes away the beat marks, and you have to keep repeating the beat until the stage is clear. Then you move on to a more difficult beat and keep going. If you make three mistakes during any stage, it’s game over, and you’ll have to start from the beginning. In multiplayer, Rhythm Keeper becomes a game of elimination. The first player to make three mistakes is out, and the other three continue on, until one person is left standing.
There is one more mode called Ad Lib, but it seems to have been designed to simply give small children an opportunity to bash on the drums without concern for beat or rhythm. A song plays, the camera moves through a 3D environment, and every time you hit the drums, a character render from the Donkey Kong Country series pops on the screen. If you keep banging, you’ll see literally dozens of the same characters just popping about gleefully, and when you’ve crossed a certain threshold of beats, a new set of characters will appear. You can change the background and the song playing, but as I said, it doesn't seem intended for grown-ups.
The game does include a fair number of unlockables to keep you playing. As in the original, you earn coins in story mode which can be used to purchase either expert-level songs or sound effects that replace the standard drum sounds. I never bothered unlocking all the sound effects in the original, but I’d be willing to bet that some of these are new. Although it isn’t clear what they’re for or what the criteria for getting them are, you can also unlock “Dixie Notes" which have plenty of Japanese text to decipher if you so desire.
In a weird twist, Donkey Konga 2 saves your scores, but doesn’t allow you to insert your initials. Instead, you’ll pick a character’s face to place by your score, and you can unlock a number of new faces like Donkey Kong, Link, Wario, Luigi, and Tingle by completing one of the mini-games and playing a little game of memory afterwards.
There are a number of minor improvements throughout the game. Aside from an arguably better song list and slightly tougher difficulty, the expert beats seem to flow a little better with the songs this time around. Also, the ugly, compressed SNES backgrounds and sprites from the first game have been replaced with simple, but respectable 3D art elements. In every aspect Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade is improved a notch or so over the original.
If you enjoyed the first game, the second is certainly worth an import. If you still haven’t gotten into the Konga craze and can’t wait for the US version, there are double-packs available that include both games and a set of drums. It should be noted that a number of consumers that rely on the Freeloader or Action Replay have reported that they cannot save their game properly or that the game asks to reformat the memory card. So if you haven’t gotten a real mod yet, it’s time to get her done. Aside from that, if you’re interested in this game and aren’t entirely opposed to Japanese music, there’s really no reason to wait. The US version will have an entirely different set of songs and the more use you can get out of the bongos, the better.
If you've imported and need help navigating the menus, we've put together a brief outline for your convenience.
