Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

 Wii U
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Image
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 77 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 872 Ratings

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  • Summary: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze has players help Donkey Kong and his friends get back their home from Vikings. Swing, swim, leap, and barrel-blast your way through tons of eye-popping levels to save DK Island from a permanent freeze.
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Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Cranky Kong Trailer

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 65 out of 77
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 77
  3. Negative: 0 out of 77
  1. Switch Brasil
    Mar 13, 2014
    100
    Everything in Tropical Freeze was made with extreme care and attention. From the landscapes and enemies to the music and level design. Each island has its own ecosystem so filled with details and different things to do that, as soon as one level is over, the question of what will Retro do next always looms around, and the developer always surprises.
  2. Game Informer
    Feb 13, 2014
    93
    Just like the previous game, I yelled alternating cries of agony and relief working through particularly challenging areas. Almost everything is fair and doable with enough focus and patience; the bonus stages are a little ridiculous, but that's to be expected. [March 2014, p.89]
  3. GameOver.gr
    Feb 19, 2014
    90
    Another "job well done" by the masters at Retro Studios.
  4. Critical Hit
    Feb 17, 2014
    85
    Tropical Freeze is a marvel. Though it doesn’t deviate from expectations in the slightest, it’s an exceptional, and exceptionally tough platformer that just about every masochistic Wii U owner should play.
  5. Eurogamer Spain
    Feb 27, 2014
    80
    Tropical Freeze is exactly what we expected from the sequel of one of the best platform games of the last generation. There might not be many surprises, but this is still an extremely polished (and great) game.
  6. Gamereactor Sweden
    Feb 17, 2014
    80
    You know what you are going to get when you buy a Donkey Kong Country game. Fortunately, that's a good thing and this is no exception.
  7. GameSpot
    Feb 17, 2014
    60
    If the regular levels were as inventive as the boss battles, then Tropical Freeze would be a surefire hit, or at least a game that demands more of your attention. No matter how much I was looking forward to seeing DK in HD, it's difficult to maintain that enthusiasm when the end product plays it so safe: even the visuals fail to make an impact. They're nice enough, but like the level design, the environments are mostly bland.

See all 77 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 146 out of 159
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 159
  3. Negative: 3 out of 159
  1. TIGER-COOL
    Feb 21, 2014
    10
    Haven't finished the game, but from what I've played some of these low reviews are baffling. The level design and attention to detail are topHaven't finished the game, but from what I've played some of these low reviews are baffling. The level design and attention to detail are top class. The gameplay is fluid and intuitive. Lots of great, subtle ideas presented on a moment by moment basis, so I'm not sure what all the "lack of ambitious gameplay" is all about. Maybe these reviewers rushed through things a bit?

    Absolutely beautiful game, by the way. Maybe the best looking game on the Wii U (Close between this and Mario 3D World). David Wise on the soundtrack puts it over the top. Get it.    … Expand
  2. DerWahreQwert
    Jan 29, 2018
    10
    Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is simply the best 2D-Platformer I have played since Super Mario World. Every single stage is designedDonkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is simply the best 2D-Platformer I have played since Super Mario World. Every single stage is designed with passion and detail, every one has at least 1 level-exclusive focus, for example the sandstorm level from world 3. The Boss fights are all unique and more entertaining than the ones from DKCR. This game also has a really great Soundtrack: from beautiful underwater tracks in world 4 to catchy remixes of the rocket barrel theme from DKCR.
    Sadly this gem suffered from the poor performance of the Wii U, but hopefully the upcoming Switch version will compensate and finally give the game the honor, which it thoroughly deserves    … Expand
  4. Lakshry
    Feb 28, 2015
    10
    First of all, i didn't play any Donkey Kong game that has been released before Return. So basically, it was my first Donkey Kong Country and iFirst of all, i didn't play any Donkey Kong game that has been released before Return. So basically, it was my first Donkey Kong Country and i loved it a lot already !
    And Tropical Freeze expands this love to a next level : everything Returns did is even better here.
    Some levels are not only beautiful but amazing, everything feels and there are only a rarely number of "not so great" levels and even these remain nice ones.
    I had done nearly everything you could do in Returns (except the Time attack mode) yet Tropical Freeze still brings new challenges and an enjoyable level of difficulty.
    This games just feels under-rated because it's "difficult" and that's clearly not fair when it's actually a master piece in terms of level design and gameplay !

    To sum up, if you like 2D plateformers, if you loved Donkey Kong Country or if you just want a great game (and are capable to accept dying not so casually), i urge you to get Tropical Freeze !    … Expand
  5. yoyohoney
    Feb 26, 2014
    10
    EXCELLENT GAME!!! recommended to all WII U OWNERS!!!! Great level design, awesome music, & cool challenges. The best DK game in a while. Must buy!!!!!
  6. EpicLadySponge
    Mar 8, 2016
    9
    Tropical Freeze is a perfect everyday example of taking something great from before and making it better with another installment. In thisTropical Freeze is a perfect everyday example of taking something great from before and making it better with another installment. In this case, this Donkey Kong Country franchise just keeps getting better.… Expand
  7. Nitro123
    Jan 3, 2015
    9
    A great game with many new features. The background is very detailed and lush. Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze is also very innovative with howA great game with many new features. The background is very detailed and lush. Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze is also very innovative with how the background takes some part in the actual game. It is a perfect game for the Wii U.… Expand
  8. TheAdjuster
    Jun 5, 2016
    0
    I was a huge fan of DKCR and I really wanted to like this game, but I just couldn't. The load times, as others have said, is bad, but theyI was a huge fan of DKCR and I really wanted to like this game, but I just couldn't. The load times, as others have said, is bad, but they would be tolerable if the rest of the game ran smoothly--it doesn't. Controls feel heavy and unresponsive. Action-intensive areas are laggy. The visuals themselves are stunning, but unfortunately I think the Wii U is just not up to the task of rendering them smoothly.

    I tried to get into this game 3 times but couldn't get over how muddy it feels. Perhaps if they port it to the NX, I'll give it another shot. But my other concern is the poor level design. Levels were much too long with too much emphasis on exploration that leads nowhere (e.g. water areas where you just collect bananas). But maybe with the bump in gameplay speed/lack of lag will make it feel better. Just can't recommend this game and regret purchasing at full retail.    … Expand

See all 159 User Reviews

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Awards & Rankings

11
#11 Best Wii U Game of 2014
6
#6 Most Discussed Wii U Game of 2014
2
#2 Most Shared Wii U Game of 2014