It's crazy this video is making me realize for the first time just how weirdly dark/imposing so much of the level theming of DK64 is. Outside of Jungle Japes and Daytime Fungi Forest, it's moody vibes across the board.
I've always felt that the countdown timer for Hideout Helm is what really made the level, and set it up closer to the top for me. It feels like a "final exam" you're given with all of the skills you've built up along the way.
I finished DK64 101% just yesterday ( i love this game, i like to play it once or twice a year) i really have to say that i like Fungi Forest, Angry Aztec and Crystal Caves a lot! Yes Gloomy Galleon is a very hard to play level, but the Music and Atmosphere is really awesome! Creepy Castle is a good last level, but nothing compares to Frantic Factory! This level and its music will always give me goosebumps! As a kid i found it so hard to navigate, so me, my sister and my 2 cousins were just lost! Just like the Kongs entering enemy territory! And now, as i can play this level with my eyes closed i still love it, even more than any Banjo-Kazooie Level.. Every time i enter it now, and i hear the winding sound from the beginning of the Song i get that feeling in my tommy, and it will always remind me of how lost we were in this awesome level! The Research and Development section is very special to me! Even the enemies, the Krobots and Mecha-Zinger are so awesome We spend hours just watching them in safe range.. i always wondered what they were typing on their arms.. we always assumed they communicate with each other, trying to find the Kongs.. to find us.. And Mad Jack is the best Boss in the entire Game! Yes i just love it! I like to pick Diddy and get myself up that numbered dice hill, just to look up and see the moon and the stars.. its just awesome
I love everything about this comment! Before we had the internet to turn to for answers, we were left to explore and admire the world around us and look for solutions on our own, or word of mouth. Great memories!
I've only completed DK64 once when I played it for the first time as a kid. I've tried to replay it multiple times for the sake of nostalgia and it's genuinely enjoyable at first but then I get to Gloomy Galleon and I'm left wondering how in the world did I manage to muster the patience to go through that mess when I was 12.
Oh man that's rough! Weirdly enough, I'm sort of the opposite with GG. As a kid I was terrified of the deep sea sections. So I would avoid them as much as possible. Upon revisiting it as a teenager/ young adult I thought "oh this isn't scary at all"
It would be way less painful if so many of the GBs weren’t exact copies of each other. No, I don’t want to swim around in the same stupid flooded cabins five times in a row. No, I don’t want to climb to the top of a pile of gold when I literally just did the same exact thing five seconds ago. No, I don’t want to have to switch to another Kong and go all the way back to those stupid instrument platforms, just so I can go back into the same stupid ship I was already in. The whole thing is just a massive, monotonous chore. It’s a shame too, because like he said, the theme is honestly done really well.
@@superjoebros64 Personally, I was afraid of going out of bounds while underwater and God knows this game is so poorly programmed it just happens by merely swimming near a wall. I hated GG for that reason alone
Yeah, this is exactly it. The game is basically good for one playthrough and then never again, or you're almost better off trying to 101% a file than playing it again.
I will never understand why people dislike crystal caves. I'm aboslutely obssessed with the little log cabins, icy river down the middle, the tiniest hidden secrets in it, and just the general feeling that walking through it evokes is one of the most intense things, i swear. I love crystal caves so much
crystal had a really good flow for me. It was lacking a lot of the backtracking people complain about so much and just overall lates out in a way so you could easily 100% everything as each kong without switching much
@@countbleck35 the problem with the Spyro games is that you are counting the value of the gems and not the amount of gems themselves, it isn't an accurate assessment. If a game had a 10,000 gem would we really count that as being the same as collecting 10,000 red gems? It would make statistics like this meaningless because all it would take to break the record would be to have 1 collectible be worth a big number.
I haven't played DK64 in about 15 years, but as soon as Creepy Castle was mentioned, my only memory of it was hating it because of the two beaver bothers!
Gloomy Galleon lover here. I really like the music mixed with the level’s design, especially with the sound effects mixed into the music that fit the environment so well. I’m unbothered by the swimming controls (especially after playing Banjo) and I’ll always love swimming around as the swordfish. I love the idea of the pirate ship always moving around the level, I love the coin room, and the exploding enemies would always make me laugh as a kid. Actually, this level creeped me out a lot as a kid, but for whatever reason I loved that about it. The inside of the lighthouse gave me shivers, summoning the mechanical fish would scare me enough to turn off the N64 and hope it’s gone when I turned it back on, and the shipwrecks were pretty dark too (especially with the skeletons). I’d say it scared me more than creepy castle, and my fear of the ocean probably doesn’t help. I love everything about this level, but I can see why so many people hate it 😂 That being said, I still think Frantic Factory and Creepy Castle are the best so it was nice to see them at the top. I find their boss fights the most creative and enjoyable too. I absolutely love all the level designs honestly, but my least favourite of them would have to be crystal caves. Idk if I was just stupid as a kid or something but I could never figure out how to kill the kosha so I found the falling rocks really annoying and even a little scary. Loved the cabin area and igloo though.
You nailed it. Once those stalactites stop falling, it's pure ambience. Only complaint is as Joe said, it's really easy to have no clue where you're going.
See, what made Gloomy Galleon all that worse, is the fact that it came right after the best level. For me. Leave such a high in Frantic factory, only to sink to the bottom immediately in Gloomy Galleon. By the time you're done, going to Fungi Forrest is a breath of fresh air.
Maybe that’s why frantic factory and gloomy galleon are unlocked at the same time from angry aztec. Designers could’ve realized galleon was a bit of a slog and wanted you to have a bit of back and forth between level 3 and 4 if you got sick of one
1. Fungi Forest (Love the ability to change the time of the day when doing certain tasks that require a certain time of the day to do. I wish more worlds in this game was more like Fungi Forest. Plus it includes the more improved boss battle with Dogadon.) 2. Frantic Factory (This one has some good rooms and you're able to go up or down each of the 4 floor levels. I wish this world had an elevator. That would be my only complaint, but the best part because I have gotten used to the controls now is playing the DK Arcade game in this world. Now I never had an actual Arcade so I never played the DK Arcade game for real, but when rare decided to put this game in Donkey Kong 64's Frantic Factory, I enjoyed it while playing it on my phone. And Mad Jack was a fun boss to go against. It's a fun world and I would love to revisit it sometime.) 3. Creepy Castle (I get that most DK 64 fans would choose this as their favorite level. This is one of the best for me. I say "One of," because it's nowhere near the worst, but falls just two spots down from the best for me because right at the beginning, I'm always scared I'm gonna fall off the 2×4 wedged between the two platforms. Nevertheless, this spooky world always makes me nervous about what's gonna happen next. Halloween is my favorite time of the year aside from Christmas and this world in the game also made me realize that it's more spooky inside the castle than outside. The mine cart ride using DK remind me of the Haunted Mansion ride I was on down at Disney. Or Diddy lighting the candles in the ballroom with his jet pack. The boss battle with King Kut Out was great. My only issue with the boss was it was very easy to miss and lose a Kong.) 4. Angry Aztec (Difficult level in a way if you ask me. Unfreezing the water to save Tiny was a pain to me. Because as Diddy as soon as I had him pound the switch, he had to flip on 3 tongues and walk very cautiously on one long tongue to play his instrument. And every time Diddy fell, I blamed the controls and the camera for not staying behind Diddy's tail. If the camera stayed behind and the controls weren't so difficult, maybe I wouldn't have had trouble. The one where you turned lava into water to save Lanky wasn't too difficult for me. It was easier compared to saving Tiny. The fight against Dogadon wasn't too challenging, but fun to play.) 5. Crystal Caves (This world looked as close as it could to a snow world. I imagine it felt very cold in there for the Kongs unless the fur coats kept them warm. I hate the fact that shandeliers or however you spell that word kept falling down on me and the only way to stop it is for Tiny to learn the teleport move to get to areas that are otherwise unreachable. To do this task, you must use Chunky to go to the side of the cave castle and pick up a boulder and put it on a boulder switch, then go inside one of the cave rooms to put a boulder on a moving switch. This allows the dome covering up the Tiny teleporter to break. And Tiny can use that teleporter to go up to the Kosher who is knocking all those shandeliers down and use Tiny's instrument to kill the giant Kosher. The 2nd battle with Army Dillo is slightly more entertaining than the 1st one with a few new moves, but that's not saying much as like the first time you fight him, DK has to battle him again.) 6. Jungle Japes (This one being the first world of the game is okay. It's the world for beginners. Nothing too challenging here for a first world, but there are a few complaints. I hated the fact that Rambi could only be transformed by Donkey. Two cool things you could do with Rambi is bash the huts and bash the Rambi door blocking a certain area, but the backtracking to complete this world was a pain in the ass. And the first Army Dillo fight wasn't bad compared to the other one, but timing on throwing the tnt barrels at his face can be a little tough. If you throw just barely to the side of his face, it won't count as a hit.) 7. Gloomy Galleon (What do I have to say about this abomination of a world. The only thing I liked about this world was Chunky strong punching the chests. Other than that this world is 👎. The swimming mechanics in this water world is I can't see where I'm swimming half the time and the collectibles were way too scattered all over the sea. The fight against Pufftoss didn't even look like a fight. Instead, Lanky is forced to drive a motor boat through DK stars to try and defeat Pufftoss. The whole world hands down is the worst in my opinion. I'm not gonna include DK Isles or Hideout Helm. DK Isles had golden bananas, but it didn't have color coded bananas, and Hideout Helm was K. Rool's control palace and he has a control room in there. Even though the Kongs had mini games in Hideout Helm, there was no golden banana for completing a task. Instead when a Kong completes both of their mini games, they deactivate the machine. And if you have both a Rareware coin for completing Cranky's Jet Pac game and a Nintendo coin for completing the Arcade game a 2nd time, you can get the 8th and final key. That's all.
I love Creepy Castle. It always brings back this specific memory of my family visiting friends and my brother and sister and I spending the night at our friends house… during the fall season. That level just made the atmosphere perfect and I was so hyped when I found out it had a multiplayer mode pure bliss, I wish I could go back to those simpler times 😢
From someone who has 101%'d this game 8 times in the past few years... S: Aztec, Jungle A: Castle, Factory B: Caves, Island C: Forest, Helm D: Galeon Normally, I'm all about the creepy vibes, but with this game, I cant get over my love of the pleasant stroll of the first 2 lands. Nostalgia hits so much harder for the only 2 levels I could make any progress in at age 8... lol
awesome list, I like it. Curious to know why Fungi Forest is lower for you. Lol I totally hear ya on nostalgia and only getting so far in the game as a kid. For me I couldn't get past Galleon.
I've completed Dk64 101% several times and am currently having a lot of fun with the Randomnizer. Your list was very interesting. I have a completely different opinion but it's nice to see other opinions. I'm not the biggest Frantic Factory fan but I can understand why you like this world so much.
My favorite is definitely Angry Aztec and my least favorite is Crystal Caves. I love the music of Crystal Caves but I somehow never warmed up to the world. I like Gloomy Galleon much more if I had to compare the two.
One of the first video games I ever played (Probably between the 5th and 10th) and it has consistently been in my top 10 video games of all time ever since, even if I couldn't get past the Mad Jack when I were like 5. Lmao *(PREPARE FOR WALL OF TEXT IF YOU EXPAND COMMENT)* I will also admit that it's probably due to rose tinted glasses a little bit but every time I come back to the game I always have a good time (With the exception of Beaver Bother, that second race with Mr. Rabbit and the classic Donkey Kong arcade). I mostly agree with your list and would only do a few slight changes. For those interested, here's my version with a few sentences (Or less) reasoning behind why: 1. Frantic Factory (High S rank), I've just always loved the aesthetic of this world to the point where it's always the world I'm most excited for whenever I do a replay. We even unlock Chunky here who is my personal favorite playable Kong in this game (He's just such a goofy coward) *and* it completes the "Kong Collection," allowing this world to be the first world to be 100%'ed. That's also always satisfying. I will say that the moving factory section is probably one of the more annoying parts of the game if you're playing randomizer. 2. Creepy Castle (Low S rank), this stage never beat Frantic Factory for me but it's still absolutely solid gold. I've always loved "spooky" aspects in video game areas (All three Luigi's Mansions are also on my top 10 list for a reason. Lol). The rain tends to lag a bit on OG hardware, so that's always a sad con for the world. 3. Fungi Forest (High A rank), I'm in the loving the day/night cycle gang. Also love the Banjo & Kazooie vibe, which makes sense since it was originally planned for that series. Probably the most common area to find in randomizer as it has way too many stage warps. Lmao 4. Crystal Caves (After the giant Kosha has been defeated (Mid A rank)), This stage is probably the most beautiful in the game when the visuals are combined with the music. It's just such a shame they felt the need to add that giant Kosha. 5. Hideout Helm (Low A rank), The music in this stage has always been one of my favorite tracks of all time for any game. It's just so mean, vicious, threatening and ominous. I especially love that it even plays instead of the tag barrel themes. It really makes you realize that this is it. It's all or nothing. The timer actually adds to that as well for me, as it's not too tight as to be stressful or annoying (At least if you get all the blueprints). A huge con is the fact that they decided the way to turn off the Blast-o-Matic was to play a bunch of minigames. 6. Angry Astec (B rank), Well, what can I say? A step up from the first world for sure and you unlock half of the Kongs here (40% if you count Donkey himself). Fun exploration and nothing too difficult. You also meet Candy Kong for the first time, and uhh... Yeah, that's a character alright. Fun fact, as a child I always believed the "GET OUT!" was them saying "GRAUT!" which is custard in my language. That really confused me but was also funny. 7. Jungle Japes (C rank), Well, it's the introductory world. It's pleasant and welcoming, as well as introducing several mechanics nicely. Nothing too overbearing but also nothing too crazy creative. 8. Gloomy Galleon (D rank), Water. 9. Crystal Caves (Before the giant Kosha has been defeated (Low E rank)), Hell. Unranked: Dk Isles (Dk Isles rank), Dk Isles. All in all a fantastic game. Nothing is in F rank here because there's always *something* fun to do in each stage! Also, apologies for the wall of text. Whoops!
This is a really solid list! You make a great point about Chunky and finally having the whole gang together. It can be annoying needing to revisit JJ and AA just to 101% complete the game. Like you said, it feels great to have all the Kongs, making FF the first world you can actually complete in 1 go.
Really good list and points. Completely nailed Hideout Helm. I love that level because of the music and the pure feeling of sheer dire determination because of everything at stake - time’s running out and you gotta keep it moving.
I'm sad that we have to wait another bunch of months just to POTENTIALLY get dk64 on the Nso expansion pack. I thought that game was obvious to get on there. When they revealed the next bunch of games that are coming in the upcoming few months i was heartbroken to see dk64 not be there. So our chances of seeing it on the Nso are getting lower. Oh well time to PAINFULLY wait a bunch of months so we can potentially see dk64. And if they reveal another bunch of games and DK64 isn't in it I'm gonna cry. The country games are on here and dk64 was on Wii u virtual console. What's wrong here?
I wanna say that Frantic Factory feels like the clear standout as far as levels go in this game. But your list is great. I gotta replay this game, Creepy Castle ruled
While I'm not a huge fan of water levels, the most fun I had in DK64 was playing as the swordfish. It had such a feeling of exploration, freedom, and calming relaxation. I wasn't even concerned with playing the level. I was just having fun swimming quickly around the water and seeing how much air I could get jumping out of the water, seeing what objects I could jump over or onto.
Couldn't agree more! I was spooked by the deep sea as a kid, but playing as Enguarde really helped take the fear away and allowed me to explore the world.
While Gloomy Galleon isn't my favorite level, I liked the atmosphere, especially the music. Not a big fan of water levels either, though there are some that I enjoy. The overall sense of peril effectively had me on edge (the stormy side, as a whole. the clams in the treasure chest, when you turn around as Tiny. Puftoss. The robot fish, which came out of Uncanny Valley), but I kept wanting to play.
Gloomy Galleon is one of the best water levels I have seen in gaming. The swimming controls suck still like you mentioned but on the bright side, there’s no air limit.
I think Rare putting the "green hill zone" style level (Fungi Forest) in the middle of the game instead of the first world was a cool twist. And instead of the whole world being friendly and gentle, there's the night section which feels more like the "spooky forest". So it's like the "green hill zone" style level but with an edge
@@hectoramador6397 Kind of, but not quite. Jungle Japes is more of a rainforest level which is kind of similar to the sort of grassland/forest level I'm thinking of, but also distinct.
Even tho Jungle Japes is sort of a tutorial level, I think that it's one of my favorite levels juste cuz when you enter it you know it means that a great adventure is starting! Also, its one of the levels I played the most as a kid (cuz I sucked)
Loved this list; I agree for the most part, though I’m not sure if I’d rank fungi forest that high. Maybe it’s because I really struggled with that world as a child, and I’m not that big a fan of day/night cycles. I absolutely agree with your top and bottom picks though. Gloomy Galleon had a cool atmosphere for me, but the underwater segments aren’t very fun and it’s kind of a slog. As for creepy castle, my only complaint is that it seems very linear. On one hand this does prevent you from getting lost, but I also like being able to go whatever direction you want from a starting area.
Great points! I can agree, Fungi Forest is overwhelming as a kid. Have you revisited the world today? Would love to know if you think it's easier to navigate after all these years.
Really agree with this tier list, these levels can be pretty fun and frustrating (in a speedrun perspective since i run the game) Level designs, music, it has it all!
This is my second fave N64 Game (first being Majora's Mask) but one of the few games I've come back to beat multiple times over. Just beat it today for the nostalgia since I finally bought my own copy back in March ^.^ Grew up watching my brother play this game. It came bundled with the jungle green edition N64 he got for his birthday/ Christmas back in the day so I often associate it with winter. Man does it bring me back each time T_T
The only thing I wish that you gave a brief mention to the levels that had bosses like I think it's the last level you mentioned that's my favorite if I remember correctly it had a creepy boss where you have to I believe play as Lanky Kong with a cut out cardboard image of King K Rool the noicez it made and fighting that boss at night always creeped me out and I lived it. But otherwise great video.
@@superjoebros64 Oh ok I'm so sorry I didn't know thanks for letting me know I'll go watch sorry just that castle level is my favorite I looked up the boss that day turns you can play as all the kongs during the boss fight I forgot about that lol 😅
@@MadSociety-uy6zg don't sweat it! It's an older video! Had I not made that, I would have included the bosses in this video 😃 I love that all the Kongs get to participate in that last boss fight! A great twist.
The Hideout Helm timer combined with the music really made me feel urgency. While playing I would feel "I'm in Their territory now" and "If we don't get this right now, DK Isles really will be destroyed." Throughout the game, I dont feel urgency. I progress because tbe game let me. But Hideout Helm made the threat feel real to me for the first time. That is really special. A level rarely impacts me deeply, let alone like this! S-tier for me!❤
My take: 1. Creepy Castle The aesthetic of a tall tower, the medieval idea, varied music, and platforming challenges were definitely a fave for me. The boss was definitely interesting, the minecart minigame was cool, and it was where you get your final upgrades; it's just great. While it's true the place is huge, it makes up for it in the earlier points. 2. Frantic Factory The level is nicely designed, music is perfection, it feels like espionage into the enemy base, the platforming is great, and you get the whole gang there once you rescue Chunky. I'll take a hard stance that the boss was interesting and fun to deal with; Tiny's racing game is also a plus. The only knock honestly is the DK game because it feels unnecessarily difficult lol 3. Fungi Forest The idea of day and night is definitely interesting and different music for each theme was great. It felt like discovering a lost forest almost, finding out where to go and having the Kongs work together was a njce touch. Minecart game was also neat. The day/night strength is also its weakness, mostly because it opened a good bit of backtracking as well. And the only other knock is that the boss can be hard if you don't react immediately to what you need to do. 3.5 DK Isles Feels a little unfair to rate the island itself since it's iconic in every regard but it had to be somewhere lol But as an overworld setting, it's pretty nice. 4. Jungle Japes It's the tutorial standard, iconic, and introduces what you need to know about the game. Everything is easy to do of course so nothing to worry about. Music is great, boss is a nice intro, nothing to dislike necessarily about the level. Maybe the hardest critique about it is the extreme backtracking needed for the 3 remaining Kongs. 4.5 Hideout Helm It's the final exam, the last level you need to come query with a race against time and it's quite the unsettling scenery; minigames are new and interesting, you have to use every ability youve gained and it's overall a nice “final level”. But after you complete what you had to do, the level is pretty much just there. Music is a saving grace. 5. Angry Aztec I don't inherently dislike this level but it feels dragging almost. The aesthetic is nice with appropriate music, you get a screen wipe attack with extra health, the slide is both fun and frustratingly hard, you save Tiny and Lanky here, and this place does introduce the “GET OUT” guy lol But it feels slow, the level is huge, there's a ton of buildings to enter, the quicksand does get annoying, and the boss is pretty much a retread of the first. 6. Gloomy Galleon You already know what's next rofl Much like Fungi Forest, the water level was interesting but not done well imo. The level is huge, most of it takes place underwater, and you do feel “lost at sea” piratey vibes. Music is entertaining, the boss and DK's minigame is the only time you use the speedboat, and Enguarde was always fun to use. But you only see those here and a lot of bananas feel difficult for no reason. Maybe it's because you ride off the fun Frantic Factory (if you went and finished first) that this place feels so clunky. 7. Crystal Caves The cave exploration, icy aesthetics, and some of the music (and some other specific locations and details) are definitely highlights; the level does look great. But that's pretty much it's only positives. It's dark, the difficulty spike is definitely ramped up, it's hard to navigate properly and backtracking is hard to do when you get lost half the time. The stalactite drops are interesting at first but get annoying after a few times, especially when it forces you off a ledge (until you get rid of the Kosha). The things that are mid is the music, slide, and boss; there's both good and bad about a lot of things. The funniest thing to come out of this tho: the “GET OUT” guy upgraded and went from slap on the wrist with 30+ seconds, to a 1 second KO for that local area rofl
First of all I’d like to say bravo 👏 If I was making a video ranking the worlds on a completely unbiased basis I don’t think I would have done anything differently, except switch Fungi Forest to S. And I also don’t rank them based on golden bananas. If that was the case then Creepy Castle would be the worst. 2 BEVER BOTHERS! And Diddys Minecart mayhem is just AHHHHHH! And without further ado here’s my personal favorite list 1 Fungi Forest (Again I didn’t rank it the best world based on biases.) I just generally think it’s overall the best world lol) You nailed everything I love about it! 2 Crystal Caves. I love the music, the aesthetics, I love the igloos and cabins. And you are completely right about how it’s easy to get lost. I have played through this game like 20 times in my life. I know everything by heart. But yet this level is the only one I do actually get lost in! And I like it! It makes the level feel big and exciting for me personally! The big Kosha is the one thing I dislike. Whenever I get to the level my first priority is get rid of it ASAP. I do that first then go back to the beginning of the level and start from there and pretend that was never there. I understand why the level is disliked but not for me personally! I think it also because I always wanted to explore an ice cave irl but yeah that’ll never happen 😂 so I can live that fantasy here. 3 Creepy Castle. It was my favorite when I was a kid but I still love it! You covered it all! Nothing to dislike here nit counting the golden bananas. It was legit scary! The catacombs scared me as a kid and that’s good! That means they succeeded at what the level was going for! There’s nothing to hate about this world! 4 Frantic Factory. Again you nailed it! Great theme, amazing music, lots of cool interesting rooms, and great exploration! 5 Gloomey Galleon. Backtracking and underwater mechanics never bothered me as much as then majority does. I can handle it! I love the Sunken ships and pirate theme. I understand exactly why it’s by far the least popular, that’s why I said going on un biased ranking I’d pit it at the bottom as well. But I personally like it! 6 Jungle Japes. Everything you said here I couldn’t have said it better myself. It’s just a small tutorial world without being a tutorial. 7 Angry Aztec. It’s my least favorite of the normal world personally. And that’s mostly because I was never fond of desert themes. Deserts aren’t my kind of thing, and I didn’t really care for the Aztec theme either. I know it’s a good level it’s just not *my* kind of level. Completely personal preference here on this one. And I really don’t count the Dk Isles and Hideout Healm as real levels. But I’ll say it anyway. I like Dk isles it’s a great overworld! Lots of areas and nice places to explore and the bananas are placed well in every area! And I love the lobbies for each world and hearing the overworld music remastered in each one! Hideout healm I hate. Easily my least favorite part of the game. Everytime I play the game after I beat Creepy Castle I’m done. I don’t enjoy the pressure of being timed. And imo the area is pretty bland looking. Small and cramped. The only redeeming quality for me is because it’s an area you see in cutscenes before actually coming there yourself into enemy territory. I have a 101% completely gotten every collectible file. (Every regular banana, coins, crowns etc.) so I don’t need to do hideout healm again. If I wanna do the final boss I’ll go to my perfect file. I’ve only redone HH once before. And it wasn’t fun the second time around either lol… So just another personal preference. But again I can see why people like it! And I would rank it just as you did! And that’s all for me! Sorry that was so long 😅 But yeah again bravo 👏 you are spot on!
Hey thank you! I'm late to reading this, but you have a great list! It's hard to rank these worlds haha. It's great to see more love out there for Fungi Forest! Crystal Caves however... is going down on my list 😬 Thanks for sharing!
The only thing I would change is putting Gloomy Galleon above Crystal Caves. I tolerate GG more than other people. Other than that, my list is your list! Also, this is one of my favorite games of all time. I never get tired of it!
I fully agree with you, 2 years after making this video I've warmed up to Galleon and Caves is worse to me haha. Well if you love this game you're going to want to stick around for my upcoming Donkey Kong December series 😁
When the countdown hits zero in Hideout Helm, it’s Game Over like when you quit the game. Also, each blueprint only increases the time stalled on the weapon by a minute a piece. Also, if you don’t give Snide any blueprints, he’ll still stall the firing mechanism for 10 minutes.
I’m glad I’m not the only one that always gets lost in crystal caves. I spend up to 30 minutes trying to find where I need to get to no matter how many times I play this game.
My list goes like this: (really long post FYI) Top tier in order 1. Fungi Forest. Love this level. I'm a big time defender of the day night mechanic. I just 101%'ed this game today for probably the 5th time and I only had to change to night about 2 or 3 times. And I guess that's the kicker. When you've completed the game before you just know what tasks require day and night so it's much easier. Anyway, I love the feel good vibe of this level in the daytime tied into the music which I think is great. And night time is fun when you get used to it. 2. Crystal Caves. I'm a lover of Crystal Caves personally. The falling rocks are annoying no doubt, but if you beat him first thing there's no issue. I like flying around with Diddy, and it's just another level I like the look and feel of. The igloos and the log cabins with the tasks are fun to me if a bit challenging. Come to think of it that's probably my biggest complaint. Some of the golden bananas in this level are super hard to get and you don't have unlimited oranges or crystals for any of the tasks. Diddy's log cabin, dk's ice maze and the beetle race are all wicked hard, but it's so rewarding when you complete it, and I guess that's why I love the game itself so much. Second tier in order 3. Frantic Factory. I hate the mechanical enemies that try to spit on you in this level and I'm not a big fan of how dark it gets in the hallways going between the areas, but I do love the factory idea and climbing it is fun even if again a bit challenging. I also liked the mini games in this level and Tiny's race so not a lot of complaints, but it doesn't give the same feeling as Fungi Forest or Crystal Caves. 4. Creepy Castle. I love the layout of the warp pads in this level. Makes navigating it easy, but I didn't much like not having the sniper for a few bananas and having to find Funky and backtrack like that. Also don't like that off the start you must walk on that skinny piece of wood just to play the level, but it's a pretty minor complaint once you're used to it. Other than that I like this level, but it's not top tier simply out of personal preference because I like bright and shiny levels as opposed to gloomy and creepy ones which I guess gives away the bottom tier of my list lol. 5. Jungle Japes. I really like this level for it's look and feel and it seems right to start the game in the jungle. The only reason it's relatively low on the list is because it's too simple for me especially with my experience playing the game. Nowadays I can't wait to get it over with to get on with the more difficult parts of the game. Bottom tier in order 6. Angry Aztec. Never been a huge fan of this level. Can't really put my finger on it, but it never struck a chord with me. Having to navigate the quicksand, and the vulture race with Diddy. Trying to save Tiny. Having to walk around a temple to shoot a switch and then back again (and obv the beetle race, but we won't go there). Never really liked the GET OUT! temples with the guards either. Level is kind of meh to me. Not on the very bottom of the list but can't put it near the top either. 7. Gloomy Galleon. 100% agree on this level. It's awful, but I'm probably biased because I've never liked any swimming heavy levels in my life in any game. Every swimming level I've ever played is just too slow of a mechanic for me personally, and this one might be the worst of all. The only bonus I guess is that you can't die from drowning unlike say a couple Super Mario 64 levels or even worse Banjo Kazooie, but it's a bad level regardless IMO. Having to explore the dark bottoms and pick up small bananas with a swimming mechanic is just terrible. A lot of the level is timed too so that's a pain even as someone who doesn't have much trouble with it. There are a few highlights like you said, but not many. The robot fish is a pain in the ass, and having to go from one side to the other for a timed challenge really sucks if you run out of time. I don't personally mind the water level issues, but I've never ever been a fan of swimming levels. Just takes too long when I could go faster on land. Sidenote: I didn't rank Hideout Helm as it's not a full level, but I like the layout and concept of the mini games against the timer. A fitting ending to an epic adventure game. And I do really like the DK Isles overworld, but again not really a level. All in all this is one of my favourite N64 games of all time despite the hate it gets which I will never understand. Some complaints I can understand, but others are just complaining for the sake of complaining, or complaining about relatively minor thing. But I'm weird like that lol. I love collect a thons and there's no such thing as too many IMO. And I don't really mind backtracking at all. To me it's all just an epic adventure. The only thing that slightly annoys me is when there are small bananas branching off in different directions for different Kongs, but it's minor. Also the game itself is really difficult to complete 101% but when you do it it's so rewarding IMO. Anyway that's my list. Sorry for how long this is, but this game deserves a long comment, and I think I like it more as time goes on due to nostalgia, but I never disliked it anyway. And if you've never 101%'ed the game and you hate it you shouldn't talk. Also if you never played this as a kid and tried to find the secrets on your own you won't understand why people like this game.
Your list is really interesting and I respect it! I'm happy to see Fungi Forest getting some love. And you make a solid point. You gotta 101% complete it! Thanks for sharing!
creepy castle was also my favorite and gloomy galleon was also my least favorite, the water is too dark i had to change the brightness on my tv to navigate that level
On 2021, this game, along with Super Mario Sunshine and Harry Potter 1 & 2 for the GC/PS2 were my return to videogames after many years without having played, and I completed it in 2 months, with a bit of help on certain parts cause I wasnt gonna spend half a year playing it and re-exploring. I think I discovered save states at the end of the game, otherwise it would have taked me a bit less time.
I think people would like Gloomy Galleon more if somehow the level entrance was in the main Lagoon area. It would have been overwhelming but then again, the “main” parts of the level are dark, uninteresting, and dull. Like imagine how weird Fungi Forest would feel if the level entrance was in a log in between the Mills and Mushroom area, and the current main area was off to the side. Or if Creepy Castle started you off in a random cavern.
The reason I never 100% the game when I was a kid was because of that dang "GET OUT" voice scared the daylights out of me so I never got those bananas as a kid. This is low key one of my favorite games of all time. It has it's flaws but as a kid with only a handful of N64 games. Having one game that I could spend hours dedicating to find everything in it was a dream.
I don’t mind backtracking and exploring the world five times with a different Kong but Fungi is just ridiculous because now you have to explore the world with each Kong twice unless you know exactly where to go and where each banana is At least it’s still better than Galleon
oof yeah, that's a valid point. I can understand why that's a problem to some players. But you also make a great point, GG does something similar with raising and lowering the water. It's hit and miss all around!
I actaully dislike creepy castle soley for how bad it's frame rate is and the awful boss. Not to mention 2 of the 25 bananas involve playing Beaver Bother. I'd personally place it near the bottom.
The boss fight I can understand! It's not the best of them all. I don't agree with Beaver Bother though. Bonus stages could easily be swapped out for a different one, it really doesn't have an effect on the world itself imo. That being said, I agree it's a pain and a shame that there's two of them here! That's just crazy.
In jungle japes, the entrance to Cranky's stormy area should have been up on the mountain. At least that way, it could explain that the mountaintop is in the clouds.
I agree Gloomy Galleon was the worst level in the game Crystal Caves scared the crap out of me when the ceiling started collapsing and music changed but I loved the level And yes Creepy Castle I had so much fun on that level except collecting colored bananas for The Boss fight which took me many attempts to beat K rool Kut out
This game took me a good hunk of my life to complete 101% with every single collectible. I started playing it when I was about 6 years old and beat it 101% when I was 25
Fungi forest was always the most magical area to me, and still is probably the most special one. When I was young, my brother and I could never beat Mad Jack or Pufftoss, and so when we finally managed it, Fungi Forest was our reward.
As a kid I was stuck for something like 3 months because I also could not beat Pufftoss. I didn't knew about that star that spawns on the same place on last rounds.
@rogerly91 some of those stars get reeeaaally tiny and far away, with the clock giving less time per round. I was so proud to beat Puftoss as a kid haha
1.- Frantic Factory: A place full of mystery and an awesome boss, one of the two with actual dificulty spikes. 2.-Hideout Helm: Short but thrilling, especially because of the game over timer. 3.- Fungui Forest: The biggest level of the game, the rocket barrel is available almost everywhere so is a good place to practice besides Crystals Caves. Also Dogadon has an actually challenging dificulty spikes with the sinking platform. My only complain is the bunny on steroids so strong that Lanky has to bring his own as well. 4.- Creepy Castle: The best place to test yourself with all the kongs abilities. 5.-Angry Aztec: It has some of the most creative challenges, except the beetle. 6.-Jungle Japes: Nice introductory level. 7.-Gloomy Galeon: Screw bad water controls. Puffos is chalenging because of the horrible cocconut boat controls.
The only thing i can say about creepy castle that is a bit lackluster is the bossfight, i think there would've probably some much better alternatives than that moving painting acting as a pseudo boss but otherwise it's such a good world!
I love dk64 it's been my childhood game, and till this day I have my N64 with all my favorite childhood games, n I love every level in it's own way, but if I where to do a tier list or top I would choose between the music. 1. Frantic Factory 2. Creepy Castle 3. Angry Aztec, Jungle Japes, and Crystal Cave 4. Fungi Forest Day/Night, and Gloomy Galleon Honorable mention Hideout Helm, and Dk Isle
Played this game just a tiny bit at my cousin’s house when I was a kid but never finished it. I always wanted to play it again to see if it could live up to my childhood expectations. Well, last year I bought a N64 for myself along with DK64 and few other games, and I just finished it the other day with 101% at a time of 32:18. Definitely had some low lows, but there was plenty of good fun I had in the game. I didn’t expect it to have nearly as many puzzles as it did, but there was enough variety in the game for it to be interesting all the way through. In terms of ranking the levels, honestly this tier list is pretty spot on to my own (Gloomy Galleon can suck some eggs!); only difference I’d make is bring Jungle Japes up to the same tier as Fungi Forest. JJ may be very small, but honestly it’s really compact and fun to run around in. Such a perfect little level. I’m glad I played DK64 despite the negativity it often gets. It’s true that there’s a lot of negatives to the game, and it definitely isn’t for everyone, but for people like me who find joy in the act of collecting, it was a real blast to play and experience fully. I will still never like GG though lol
@@superjoebros64 It’s mixed in all honesty. Like I said, I had a blast while playing it, and there were times while I was at work where I couldn’t help but wish I was playing it instead of working- but now that it’s over, it’s almost kinda empty feeling? I’m not sure how to describe it. Maybe it’s the knowledge that the DK crew as it was presented up until this game’s release wouldn’t return outside of spin-offs and cameos, or maybe it’s because DK hasn’t attempted 3D since DK64. It almost feels like a hollow victory despite enjoying my time all the way up to the credits. Well, I say that, and as it remains true- When I hear the DK64 soundfont and the opening lines of music- as well as that iconic jungle beat that plays when you turn the game on before you’re greeted to the DK Rap- I still get a big dumb smile on my face. DK64 is fully completed in my life now, and I guess I’m only just now coming to terms with that. I fell for the dog piling during high school that it was just a bad game with Bad Game Design (you know the video), so maybe me having fun with the game despite its flaws just didn’t feel “correct” in my brain. But I get it now. I had fun because I thought it was fun. It’s that simple. I mean, why else would I *choose* to collect everything in the game? Surely it’s because I wanted to. And there lies the simple truth- I did. I played DK64 and enjoyed it because I liked playing DK64. Something I just couldn’t wrap my head around. I guess it’s not really a hollow victory afterall.
I loved Jungle Japes, Frantic Factory, Fungi Forest, and Crystal Caves. I think for me it was more atmosphere than anything else, but I genuinely liked the exploration and different areas. Angry Aztec, Gloomy Galleon, and Hideout Helm were middle-tier for me. Not the best but not bad either. Creepy Castle was my most hated; tediously walking around the castle and trying to find everything in the mazes below. Just didn't enjoy that one as much. I completely understand your points on all the worlds though, including your thoughts on Frantic Factory, Gloomy Galleon, and Crystal Caves.
I'm impressed! Some of these challenges take a second to understand what needs to be done to beat it, especially since it's the only time we play them!
@@superjoebros64 exactly. Some convincing: It's a hidden gem, with the few reviews I seen on it giving it praise like Nitro Rads video on it. Some other cool facts about it being that it's Suckerpunches first game. (Yeah, their first game was on Nintendo). It's also the first N64 game to use a physics engine, and you notice it when you play. The game itself is like a shorter Banjo Kazooie. Basic story to get the protagonist going. It's a collectathon platformer, and that's about it.
Fun fact: This game, along with the Gameboy port of Donkey Kong, is one of the few ways you can play the original Donkey Kong arcade game with the original Pie Factory screen!
I feel like the GBs should have been a deciding factor on the list considering some of the world have cool designs involving how the GBs are given like the water racing in galleon is really interesting kinda like playing diddy kong racing.
I go back and forth on this! I do agree with your example. It's unique to the world. Whereas any bonus stages could easily be swapped out for another. I like Creepy Castle and Frantic Factory, but it sucks that those worlds have Beaver Bother lol. It's a tough call! I suppose that would just be a tier list of its own lol.
What happens if you run out of time in Hideout Helm? That's simple, K. Rool activates his Baslt-o-matic, but Snide managed to stop it for thw time you have, so time out means instant game over.
imo, Gloomy Galleon's problem isn't even that it's a water level. It might be the worst level in the game for being so segmented and taking ages to navigate. Even with the Tag Anywhere mod, you still have to navigate raising and lowering the water's level, and the draw distance underwater makes collecting a trial and error run.
hideout helms clock is only enough if you collected enough blueprints. if you didn't collect all of them or a majority then the timer is much less. the more blueprints the more time. so for many players that clock was a lot more stressful
I like Gloomy Galleon. Pirateship, lighthouse, seal race, climbing coins, exploring wrecks,engarde, oyster pearls. Swimming feels fine to me and time limits are generous. Level rules imo.
I feel harsh the way I talk about GG because I also enjoy these aspects of the world! And way better swimming mechanics than other games. It's no longer at the bottom for me 😁
Love the list! DK64 is one of my favorite childhood games. My list would be similar, with the exception of Frantic Factory: 1. Fungi Forest 2. Creepy Castle 3. Angry Aztec 4. Jungle Japes 5. Frantic Factory 6. Crystal Caves 7. Hideout Helm 8. Gloomy Galleon
@@superjoebros64 It's a good level, don't get me wrong, but I think why I have it at #5 for me is how the level navigates in comparison to some of the others, but others may prefer how it navigates, so that's definitely just my personal preference, but that's what great about DK64 - there's several levels that make a great case for the best level, which is a mark of a great game imo
hot take. i don't just like gloomy galleon, it's genuinely my favorite level in the whole game. as a kid, i never saw anything past factory/galleon because no one could ever handle mad jack (i still can't do it). so, i would just explore the levels. mostly japes, which is iconic, but i would always find myself in galleon, just swimming around and vibing. the music, the atmosphere, even the underwater controls, they all came together to create an experience that nothing else seems to be able to come close to.
GG absolutely has great vibes going for it! The music and atmosphere alone make it a wonderful world! It's won me over after all these years. This Friday I am releasing a video reviewing Gloomy Galleon! I'm not as harsh on it anymore!
I only got to Angey Aztec before my Xbo- I mean my totally real N64 just stopped reading my games on RetroArch for some reason, but Jungle Japes was a solid world and Angry Aztec was phenomenal
i love dk64, despite its flaws. also running out the clock in hideout helm actually just plays the normal game over scene. which, makes complete sense as the countdown is literally what leads to the game over sequence playing.
Fungi forest amazed me so much as a kid that it's still my favorite world in the game. Gloomy Galleon might be my least favorite but I'm also not a huge fan of Frantic factory but that's mostly due to the boss.
@@superjoebros64 Probably feelings left over from childhood, but it was easily the hardest boss for me and I was terrified of both clowns and Jack in the boxes.
I would only get a couple games for Christmas every year, so I had to make them last. For that reason, I love the backtracking. This and OoT are the only games I've 100%-ed more than once.
dude yes! I think people today forget how few games we had to play back in the day. A game this loaded with material had us playing for months. It was the best of times!
OH WOW LOL I just pulled up a recent video. I actually thought that was me talking. That's hysterical! Maybe we grew up in a similar area. Thank you for watching and leaving an awesome comment! That made my day 😁
I guess it makes sense, but I still find it a little annoying how Hideout Helm is impossible (bug abuse aside) if you haven't turned in any Blueprints. Makes me wonder what the bare minimum you need to hand over is.
@@superjoebros64 I welcome you to do it, but I think there's a risk that you'll get shut down in the Banana Medal Room. If you do, maybe consider not collecting any Blueprints in the first place so you can nudge the timer in small increments and see how few you need to get it done.
It's crazy this video is making me realize for the first time just how weirdly dark/imposing so much of the level theming of DK64 is. Outside of Jungle Japes and Daytime Fungi Forest, it's moody vibes across the board.
Great observation! Very moody indeed
As a kid it would really mess with me subconsciously
yeah dk64 has alot of dark areas even the desert area with aztec its still alot of dark caverns and temples.
The designers were purposely going for a darker than Banjo-Kazooie designs so they could avoid too many comparisons to the earlier game
Okay? And?
I've always felt that the countdown timer for Hideout Helm is what really made the level, and set it up closer to the top for me. It feels like a "final exam" you're given with all of the skills you've built up along the way.
@brandonhartgraves5095 oh I like this perspective! It certainly has that "final exam" pressure to it.
Especially when you get into the tag barrel and the music keeps playing
I finished DK64 101% just yesterday ( i love this game, i like to play it once or twice a year) i really have to say that i like Fungi Forest, Angry Aztec and Crystal Caves a lot! Yes Gloomy Galleon is a very hard to play level, but the Music and Atmosphere is really awesome!
Creepy Castle is a good last level, but nothing compares to Frantic Factory!
This level and its music will always give me goosebumps! As a kid i found it so hard to navigate, so me, my sister and my 2 cousins were just lost! Just like the Kongs entering enemy territory! And now, as i can play this level with my eyes closed i still love it, even more than any Banjo-Kazooie Level..
Every time i enter it now, and i hear the winding sound from the beginning of the Song i get that feeling in my tommy, and it will always remind me of how lost we were in this awesome level!
The Research and Development section is very special to me!
Even the enemies, the Krobots and Mecha-Zinger are so awesome
We spend hours just watching them in safe range.. i always wondered what they were typing on their arms.. we always assumed they communicate with each other, trying to find the Kongs.. to find us..
And Mad Jack is the best Boss in the entire Game!
Yes i just love it!
I like to pick Diddy and get myself up that numbered dice hill, just to look up and see the moon and the stars.. its just awesome
I love everything about this comment! Before we had the internet to turn to for answers, we were left to explore and admire the world around us and look for solutions on our own, or word of mouth. Great memories!
How long were you stuck on the dragon? As a kid, I died so many times to it because the platform would always sink into the lava
I've only completed DK64 once when I played it for the first time as a kid. I've tried to replay it multiple times for the sake of nostalgia and it's genuinely enjoyable at first but then I get to Gloomy Galleon and I'm left wondering how in the world did I manage to muster the patience to go through that mess when I was 12.
Oh man that's rough!
Weirdly enough, I'm sort of the opposite with GG. As a kid I was terrified of the deep sea sections. So I would avoid them as much as possible.
Upon revisiting it as a teenager/ young adult I thought "oh this isn't scary at all"
I always hated Gloomy Galleon. I was felt like it was just filler.
It would be way less painful if so many of the GBs weren’t exact copies of each other. No, I don’t want to swim around in the same stupid flooded cabins five times in a row. No, I don’t want to climb to the top of a pile of gold when I literally just did the same exact thing five seconds ago. No, I don’t want to have to switch to another Kong and go all the way back to those stupid instrument platforms, just so I can go back into the same stupid ship I was already in. The whole thing is just a massive, monotonous chore.
It’s a shame too, because like he said, the theme is honestly done really well.
@@superjoebros64 Personally, I was afraid of going out of bounds while underwater and God knows this game is so poorly programmed it just happens by merely swimming near a wall. I hated GG for that reason alone
Yeah, this is exactly it. The game is basically good for one playthrough and then never again, or you're almost better off trying to 101% a file than playing it again.
I will never understand why people dislike crystal caves. I'm aboslutely obssessed with the little log cabins, icy river down the middle, the tiniest hidden secrets in it, and just the general feeling that walking through it evokes is one of the most intense things, i swear. I love crystal caves so much
I really do love the general feeling of it!
crystal had a really good flow for me. It was lacking a lot of the backtracking people complain about so much and just overall lates out in a way so you could easily 100% everything as each kong without switching much
For me it has the most frustrating golden bananas and is just a pain to navigate
Asthetically it is great but gameplay wise it just sucks the life out of me.
The giant Kosha, that's why.
It still holds the Guinness book of world records for the most collectables in a video game.
Does it really?! That's wild haha. Would have thought some other game would have passed it by now.
@@superjoebros64 Nope, even if we compare it to Mario Odyssey, it still has loads more than even that game.
@@ProfessorHanger That's honestly incredible. Odyssey would have been a recent game I assumed could pass it
@@superjoebros64 spyro year of the dragon has 20150 collectibles and rayman legends has something you unlock after collecting 1 million things.
@@countbleck35 the problem with the Spyro games is that you are counting the value of the gems and not the amount of gems themselves, it isn't an accurate assessment. If a game had a 10,000 gem would we really count that as being the same as collecting 10,000 red gems? It would make statistics like this meaningless because all it would take to break the record would be to have 1 collectible be worth a big number.
You can't think of one thing that you don't like about Creepy Castle? How about TWO beaver bothers? Both at maximum difficulty (15 Gnawties).
Ssshhh we don't talk about that 🤫
I haven't played DK64 in about 15 years, but as soon as Creepy Castle was mentioned, my only memory of it was hating it because of the two beaver bothers!
I’m actually really good at that game now so it doesn’t bother me.
The trick is to make them fall in sideways by circling them into it
We dont count golden bananas so these shitty minigames are out of here for the rating lol.
@@firenze6478i know the trick too 😄
Gloomy Galleon lover here. I really like the music mixed with the level’s design, especially with the sound effects mixed into the music that fit the environment so well. I’m unbothered by the swimming controls (especially after playing Banjo) and I’ll always love swimming around as the swordfish. I love the idea of the pirate ship always moving around the level, I love the coin room, and the exploding enemies would always make me laugh as a kid. Actually, this level creeped me out a lot as a kid, but for whatever reason I loved that about it. The inside of the lighthouse gave me shivers, summoning the mechanical fish would scare me enough to turn off the N64 and hope it’s gone when I turned it back on, and the shipwrecks were pretty dark too (especially with the skeletons). I’d say it scared me more than creepy castle, and my fear of the ocean probably doesn’t help. I love everything about this level, but I can see why so many people hate it 😂
That being said, I still think Frantic Factory and Creepy Castle are the best so it was nice to see them at the top. I find their boss fights the most creative and enjoyable too.
I absolutely love all the level designs honestly, but my least favourite of them would have to be crystal caves. Idk if I was just stupid as a kid or something but I could never figure out how to kill the kosha so I found the falling rocks really annoying and even a little scary. Loved the cabin area and igloo though.
I'm happy to see more and more people sharing why they like GG. It's winning me over now. I like it over Caves now!
@@superjoebros64 Muahahaha >:] Mission accomplished
I love dk64 so much man. My favorite world is crystal caves, at least when, at the end, the ceiling stops collapsing.
Heck yeah. There's so much love for this game.
I fully agree, Crystal Caves really turns around once the ceiling stops collapsing
I always take care of the stalactites first. No mucking around.
Ye no shit I do that too: immediately go to cranky with tiny & also use chunky immediately at the start to smash the igloos ice with 🪨
You nailed it. Once those stalactites stop falling, it's pure ambience. Only complaint is as Joe said, it's really easy to have no clue where you're going.
As a kid, I loved this game way more than Mario 64. Made me love respect Donkey Kong. Loved playing tiny Kong, her hair was fun to fly with.
Couldn't agree anymore! Being able to fly around with Tiny is a ton of fun.
See, what made Gloomy Galleon all that worse, is the fact that it came right after the best level. For me.
Leave such a high in Frantic factory, only to sink to the bottom immediately in Gloomy Galleon.
By the time you're done, going to Fungi Forrest is a breath of fresh air.
THIS IS SO TRUE! I couldn't say it any better.
Maybe that’s why frantic factory and gloomy galleon are unlocked at the same time from angry aztec. Designers could’ve realized galleon was a bit of a slog and wanted you to have a bit of back and forth between level 3 and 4 if you got sick of one
1. Fungi Forest (Love the ability to change the time of the day when doing certain tasks that require a certain time of the day to do. I wish more worlds in this game was more like Fungi Forest. Plus it includes the more improved boss battle with Dogadon.)
2. Frantic Factory (This one has some good rooms and you're able to go up or down each of the 4 floor levels. I wish this world had an elevator. That would be my only complaint, but the best part because I have gotten used to the controls now is playing the DK Arcade game in this world. Now I never had an actual Arcade so I never played the DK Arcade game for real, but when rare decided to put this game in Donkey Kong 64's Frantic Factory, I enjoyed it while playing it on my phone. And Mad Jack was a fun boss to go against. It's a fun world and I would love to revisit it sometime.)
3. Creepy Castle (I get that most DK 64 fans would choose this as their favorite level. This is one of the best for me. I say "One of," because it's nowhere near the worst, but falls just two spots down from the best for me because right at the beginning, I'm always scared I'm gonna fall off the 2×4 wedged between the two platforms. Nevertheless, this spooky world always makes me nervous about what's gonna happen next. Halloween is my favorite time of the year aside from Christmas and this world in the game also made me realize that it's more spooky inside the castle than outside. The mine cart ride using DK remind me of the Haunted Mansion ride I was on down at Disney. Or Diddy lighting the candles in the ballroom with his jet pack. The boss battle with King Kut Out was great. My only issue with the boss was it was very easy to miss and lose a Kong.)
4. Angry Aztec (Difficult level in a way if you ask me. Unfreezing the water to save Tiny was a pain to me. Because as Diddy as soon as I had him pound the switch, he had to flip on 3 tongues and walk very cautiously on one long tongue to play his instrument. And every time Diddy fell, I blamed the controls and the camera for not staying behind Diddy's tail. If the camera stayed behind and the controls weren't so difficult, maybe I wouldn't have had trouble. The one where you turned lava into water to save Lanky wasn't too difficult for me. It was easier compared to saving Tiny. The fight against Dogadon wasn't too challenging, but fun to play.)
5. Crystal Caves (This world looked as close as it could to a snow world. I imagine it felt very cold in there for the Kongs unless the fur coats kept them warm. I hate the fact that shandeliers or however you spell that word kept falling down on me and the only way to stop it is for Tiny to learn the teleport move to get to areas that are otherwise unreachable. To do this task, you must use Chunky to go to the side of the cave castle and pick up a boulder and put it on a boulder switch, then go inside one of the cave rooms to put a boulder on a moving switch. This allows the dome covering up the Tiny teleporter to break. And Tiny can use that teleporter to go up to the Kosher who is knocking all those shandeliers down and use Tiny's instrument to kill the giant Kosher. The 2nd battle with Army Dillo is slightly more entertaining than the 1st one with a few new moves, but that's not saying much as like the first time you fight him, DK has to battle him again.)
6. Jungle Japes (This one being the first world of the game is okay. It's the world for beginners. Nothing too challenging here for a first world, but there are a few complaints. I hated the fact that Rambi could only be transformed by Donkey. Two cool things you could do with Rambi is bash the huts and bash the Rambi door blocking a certain area, but the backtracking to complete this world was a pain in the ass. And the first Army Dillo fight wasn't bad compared to the other one, but timing on throwing the tnt barrels at his face can be a little tough. If you throw just barely to the side of his face, it won't count as a hit.)
7. Gloomy Galleon (What do I have to say about this abomination of a world. The only thing I liked about this world was Chunky strong punching the chests. Other than that this world is 👎. The swimming mechanics in this water world is I can't see where I'm swimming half the time and the collectibles were way too scattered all over the sea. The fight against Pufftoss didn't even look like a fight. Instead, Lanky is forced to drive a motor boat through DK stars to try and defeat Pufftoss. The whole world hands down is the worst in my opinion.
I'm not gonna include DK Isles or Hideout Helm. DK Isles had golden bananas, but it didn't have color coded bananas, and Hideout Helm was K. Rool's control palace and he has a control room in there. Even though the Kongs had mini games in Hideout Helm, there was no golden banana for completing a task. Instead when a Kong completes both of their mini games, they deactivate the machine. And if you have both a Rareware coin for completing Cranky's Jet Pac game and a Nintendo coin for completing the Arcade game a 2nd time, you can get the 8th and final key. That's all.
This is a great list, thank you for sharing! I WISH Factory had an elevator! Ugh that would be pretty cool and helpful, also appropriate to the world.
It's a really good list seriously.
I love Creepy Castle. It always brings back this specific memory of my family visiting friends and my brother and sister and I spending the night at our friends house… during the fall season. That level just made the atmosphere perfect and I was so hyped when I found out it had a multiplayer mode pure bliss, I wish I could go back to those simpler times 😢
I love this! Video games holding core memories can never be replaced!
Frantic Factory is so frickin' cool man. I agree 100%
Such a fun world!
From someone who has 101%'d this game 8 times in the past few years...
S: Aztec, Jungle
A: Castle, Factory
B: Caves, Island
C: Forest, Helm
D: Galeon
Normally, I'm all about the creepy vibes, but with this game, I cant get over my love of the pleasant stroll of the first 2 lands.
Nostalgia hits so much harder for the only 2 levels I could make any progress in at age 8... lol
awesome list, I like it. Curious to know why Fungi Forest is lower for you.
Lol I totally hear ya on nostalgia and only getting so far in the game as a kid. For me I couldn't get past Galleon.
I've completed Dk64 101% several times and am currently having a lot of fun with the Randomnizer. Your list was very interesting. I have a completely different opinion but it's nice to see other opinions. I'm not the biggest Frantic Factory fan but I can understand why you like this world so much.
Can't wait to try out the Randomizer! Which world do you consider your favorite and least favorite?
My favorite is definitely Angry Aztec and my least favorite is Crystal Caves. I love the music of Crystal Caves but I somehow never warmed up to the world. I like Gloomy Galleon much more if I had to compare the two.
I love the 9 worlds in Donkey Kong 64.
One of the first video games I ever played (Probably between the 5th and 10th) and it has consistently been in my top 10 video games of all time ever since, even if I couldn't get past the Mad Jack when I were like 5. Lmao *(PREPARE FOR WALL OF TEXT IF YOU EXPAND COMMENT)*
I will also admit that it's probably due to rose tinted glasses a little bit but every time I come back to the game I always have a good time (With the exception of Beaver Bother, that second race with Mr. Rabbit and the classic Donkey Kong arcade).
I mostly agree with your list and would only do a few slight changes. For those interested, here's my version with a few sentences (Or less) reasoning behind why:
1. Frantic Factory (High S rank), I've just always loved the aesthetic of this world to the point where it's always the world I'm most excited for whenever I do a replay. We even unlock Chunky here who is my personal favorite playable Kong in this game (He's just such a goofy coward) *and* it completes the "Kong Collection," allowing this world to be the first world to be 100%'ed. That's also always satisfying. I will say that the moving factory section is probably one of the more annoying parts of the game if you're playing randomizer.
2. Creepy Castle (Low S rank), this stage never beat Frantic Factory for me but it's still absolutely solid gold. I've always loved "spooky" aspects in video game areas (All three Luigi's Mansions are also on my top 10 list for a reason. Lol). The rain tends to lag a bit on OG hardware, so that's always a sad con for the world.
3. Fungi Forest (High A rank), I'm in the loving the day/night cycle gang. Also love the Banjo & Kazooie vibe, which makes sense since it was originally planned for that series. Probably the most common area to find in randomizer as it has way too many stage warps. Lmao
4. Crystal Caves (After the giant Kosha has been defeated (Mid A rank)), This stage is probably the most beautiful in the game when the visuals are combined with the music. It's just such a shame they felt the need to add that giant Kosha.
5. Hideout Helm (Low A rank), The music in this stage has always been one of my favorite tracks of all time for any game. It's just so mean, vicious, threatening and ominous. I especially love that it even plays instead of the tag barrel themes. It really makes you realize that this is it. It's all or nothing. The timer actually adds to that as well for me, as it's not too tight as to be stressful or annoying (At least if you get all the blueprints). A huge con is the fact that they decided the way to turn off the Blast-o-Matic was to play a bunch of minigames.
6. Angry Astec (B rank), Well, what can I say? A step up from the first world for sure and you unlock half of the Kongs here (40% if you count Donkey himself). Fun exploration and nothing too difficult. You also meet Candy Kong for the first time, and uhh... Yeah, that's a character alright. Fun fact, as a child I always believed the "GET OUT!" was them saying "GRAUT!" which is custard in my language. That really confused me but was also funny.
7. Jungle Japes (C rank), Well, it's the introductory world. It's pleasant and welcoming, as well as introducing several mechanics nicely. Nothing too overbearing but also nothing too crazy creative.
8. Gloomy Galleon (D rank), Water.
9. Crystal Caves (Before the giant Kosha has been defeated (Low E rank)), Hell.
Unranked: Dk Isles (Dk Isles rank), Dk Isles.
All in all a fantastic game. Nothing is in F rank here because there's always *something* fun to do in each stage!
Also, apologies for the wall of text. Whoops!
This is a really solid list! You make a great point about Chunky and finally having the whole gang together. It can be annoying needing to revisit JJ and AA just to 101% complete the game. Like you said, it feels great to have all the Kongs, making FF the first world you can actually complete in 1 go.
Really good list and points. Completely nailed Hideout Helm. I love that level because of the music and the pure feeling of sheer dire determination because of everything at stake - time’s running out and you gotta keep it moving.
I'm sad that we have to wait another bunch of months just to POTENTIALLY get dk64 on the Nso expansion pack. I thought that game was obvious to get on there. When they revealed the next bunch of games that are coming in the upcoming few months i was heartbroken to see dk64 not be there. So our chances of seeing it on the Nso are getting lower. Oh well time to PAINFULLY wait a bunch of months so we can potentially see dk64. And if they reveal another bunch of games and DK64 isn't in it I'm gonna cry. The country games are on here and dk64 was on Wii u virtual console. What's wrong here?
Honestly, same. I'm just waiting and waiting for our time to come
Same bro! Seems like such a no brainer I don't know how that wasn't on launch for 64 online.
I wanna say that Frantic Factory feels like the clear standout as far as levels go in this game. But your list is great. I gotta replay this game, Creepy Castle ruled
FF is absolutely a special one! I just wish the layout was a little more concise. Otherwise, a banger world!
“We are not considering golden bananas for this list”
Proceeds to use golden bananas for all of their rankings
I mean if he was then creepy castle would be lower ranked.... 2 copies of top difficulty Beaver Bother....
While I'm not a huge fan of water levels, the most fun I had in DK64 was playing as the swordfish. It had such a feeling of exploration, freedom, and calming relaxation. I wasn't even concerned with playing the level. I was just having fun swimming quickly around the water and seeing how much air I could get jumping out of the water, seeing what objects I could jump over or onto.
Couldn't agree more! I was spooked by the deep sea as a kid, but playing as Enguarde really helped take the fear away and allowed me to explore the world.
While Gloomy Galleon isn't my favorite level, I liked the atmosphere, especially the music. Not a big fan of water levels either, though there are some that I enjoy. The overall sense of peril effectively had me on edge (the stormy side, as a whole. the clams in the treasure chest, when you turn around as Tiny. Puftoss. The robot fish, which came out of Uncanny Valley), but I kept wanting to play.
There's no doubt GG has great tunes! It kept me going too
Gloomy Galleon is one of the best water levels I have seen in gaming. The swimming controls suck still like you mentioned but on the bright side, there’s no air limit.
I totally agree with ya! Definitely one of the better water levels out there, and better swim mechanics.
dope video man. dk 64 will always have a special place in my heart
Much appreciated! This game has a special place in my heart too! Lots more DK64 videos to come
You don’t usually do a tier list in order, and for further Reference you should announce there placement so we can listen without watching.
that beaver bother banana in creepy castle gives me ptsd
Can't believe they put TWO of those in Creepy Castle. It's just wrong!
It was in the Toy Factory too.
I think Rare putting the "green hill zone" style level (Fungi Forest) in the middle of the game instead of the first world was a cool twist. And instead of the whole world being friendly and gentle, there's the night section which feels more like the "spooky forest". So it's like the "green hill zone" style level but with an edge
Wouldn’t jungle japes be what you are talking about?
@@hectoramador6397 Kind of, but not quite. Jungle Japes is more of a rainforest level which is kind of similar to the sort of grassland/forest level I'm thinking of, but also distinct.
I love this! It's a breath of fresh air after GG, but also it's not at all safe after switching to night time
Even tho Jungle Japes is sort of a tutorial level, I think that it's one of my favorite levels juste cuz when you enter it you know it means that a great adventure is starting! Also, its one of the levels I played the most as a kid (cuz I sucked)
It's such a chill start too! It doesn't have the same stress factor as the other levels haha
Love your content, keep it up!
Thanks homie, appreciate it!
WELCOME TO BONUS STAGE!
WELCOME TO BONUS STAGE 🗣🗣🗣🔉🔉🔉
Loved this list; I agree for the most part, though I’m not sure if I’d rank fungi forest that high. Maybe it’s because I really struggled with that world as a child, and I’m not that big a fan of day/night cycles. I absolutely agree with your top and bottom picks though. Gloomy Galleon had a cool atmosphere for me, but the underwater segments aren’t very fun and it’s kind of a slog. As for creepy castle, my only complaint is that it seems very linear. On one hand this does prevent you from getting lost, but I also like being able to go whatever direction you want from a starting area.
Great points! I can agree, Fungi Forest is overwhelming as a kid. Have you revisited the world today? Would love to know if you think it's easier to navigate after all these years.
5:54: It cuts to the Game Over screen.
Ah BUMMER
Really agree with this tier list, these levels can be pretty fun and frustrating (in a speedrun perspective since i run the game)
Level designs, music, it has it all!
Oof, speedrunning this game sounds like a rough time in certain areas haha
@@superjoebros64 it is, especially Crystal Caves
@@christianvega646 oh 1000% Crystal Caves. I'd be in and out of there as soon as possible
This is my second fave N64 Game (first being Majora's Mask) but one of the few games I've come back to beat multiple times over. Just beat it today for the nostalgia since I finally bought my own copy back in March ^.^ Grew up watching my brother play this game. It came bundled with the jungle green edition N64 he got for his birthday/ Christmas back in the day so I often associate it with winter. Man does it bring me back each time T_T
Oh man, the jungle green N64 😍 absolutely beautiful
The only thing I wish that you gave a brief mention to the levels that had bosses like I think it's the last level you mentioned that's my favorite if I remember correctly it had a creepy boss where you have to I believe play as Lanky Kong with a cut out cardboard image of King K Rool the noicez it made and fighting that boss at night always creeped me out and I lived it. But otherwise great video.
For what it's worth, I have a video analyzing all the boss fights! 😄 I just didn't want to unnecessarily repeat myself in this video!
@@superjoebros64 Oh ok I'm so sorry I didn't know thanks for letting me know I'll go watch sorry just that castle level is my favorite I looked up the boss that day turns you can play as all the kongs during the boss fight I forgot about that lol 😅
@@MadSociety-uy6zg don't sweat it! It's an older video! Had I not made that, I would have included the bosses in this video 😃 I love that all the Kongs get to participate in that last boss fight! A great twist.
The Hideout Helm timer combined with the music really made me feel urgency. While playing I would feel "I'm in Their territory now" and "If we don't get this right now, DK Isles really will be destroyed." Throughout the game, I dont feel urgency. I progress because tbe game let me. But Hideout Helm made the threat feel real to me for the first time. That is really special. A level rarely impacts me deeply, let alone like this! S-tier for me!❤
I love this! It really feels like every little moment matters. Can't waste a second. I like Hideout Helm!
My take:
1. Creepy Castle
The aesthetic of a tall tower, the medieval idea, varied music, and platforming challenges were definitely a fave for me. The boss was definitely interesting, the minecart minigame was cool, and it was where you get your final upgrades; it's just great. While it's true the place is huge, it makes up for it in the earlier points.
2. Frantic Factory
The level is nicely designed, music is perfection, it feels like espionage into the enemy base, the platforming is great, and you get the whole gang there once you rescue Chunky. I'll take a hard stance that the boss was interesting and fun to deal with; Tiny's racing game is also a plus. The only knock honestly is the DK game because it feels unnecessarily difficult lol
3. Fungi Forest
The idea of day and night is definitely interesting and different music for each theme was great. It felt like discovering a lost forest almost, finding out where to go and having the Kongs work together was a njce touch. Minecart game was also neat. The day/night strength is also its weakness, mostly because it opened a good bit of backtracking as well. And the only other knock is that the boss can be hard if you don't react immediately to what you need to do.
3.5 DK Isles
Feels a little unfair to rate the island itself since it's iconic in every regard but it had to be somewhere lol
But as an overworld setting, it's pretty nice.
4. Jungle Japes
It's the tutorial standard, iconic, and introduces what you need to know about the game. Everything is easy to do of course so nothing to worry about. Music is great, boss is a nice intro, nothing to dislike necessarily about the level. Maybe the hardest critique about it is the extreme backtracking needed for the 3 remaining Kongs.
4.5 Hideout Helm
It's the final exam, the last level you need to come query with a race against time and it's quite the unsettling scenery; minigames are new and interesting, you have to use every ability youve gained and it's overall a nice “final level”. But after you complete what you had to do, the level is pretty much just there. Music is a saving grace.
5. Angry Aztec
I don't inherently dislike this level but it feels dragging almost. The aesthetic is nice with appropriate music, you get a screen wipe attack with extra health, the slide is both fun and frustratingly hard, you save Tiny and Lanky here, and this place does introduce the “GET OUT” guy lol
But it feels slow, the level is huge, there's a ton of buildings to enter, the quicksand does get annoying, and the boss is pretty much a retread of the first.
6. Gloomy Galleon
You already know what's next rofl
Much like Fungi Forest, the water level was interesting but not done well imo. The level is huge, most of it takes place underwater, and you do feel “lost at sea” piratey vibes. Music is entertaining, the boss and DK's minigame is the only time you use the speedboat, and Enguarde was always fun to use. But you only see those here and a lot of bananas feel difficult for no reason. Maybe it's because you ride off the fun Frantic Factory (if you went and finished first) that this place feels so clunky.
7. Crystal Caves
The cave exploration, icy aesthetics, and some of the music (and some other specific locations and details) are definitely highlights; the level does look great.
But that's pretty much it's only positives.
It's dark, the difficulty spike is definitely ramped up, it's hard to navigate properly and backtracking is hard to do when you get lost half the time. The stalactite drops are interesting at first but get annoying after a few times, especially when it forces you off a ledge (until you get rid of the Kosha).
The things that are mid is the music, slide, and boss; there's both good and bad about a lot of things.
The funniest thing to come out of this tho: the “GET OUT” guy upgraded and went from slap on the wrist with 30+ seconds, to a 1 second KO for that local area rofl
Incredible description for each world! I think you've said it perfectly, and the rankings are well done. I don't think I'd change anything here.
Gloomy Galleon has the Mermaids Palace and that is the best song in the entire game in my opinion. It is absolutely beautiful.
Completely nailed it! Very peaceful and pretty
Nice list! Mine goes like:
Frantic Factory
Angry Aztec/Creepy Castle
Fungi Forest
Crystal Caves
Hideout Helm
Gloomy Galleon
Jungle Japes
Heck yeah, that's a solid list too
First of all I’d like to say bravo 👏 If I was making a video ranking the worlds on a completely unbiased basis I don’t think I would have done anything differently, except switch Fungi Forest to S. And I also don’t rank them based on golden bananas. If that was the case then Creepy Castle would be the worst. 2 BEVER BOTHERS! And Diddys Minecart mayhem is just AHHHHHH! And without further ado here’s my personal favorite list
1 Fungi Forest (Again I didn’t rank it the best world based on biases.) I just generally think it’s overall the best world lol) You nailed everything I love about it!
2 Crystal Caves. I love the music, the aesthetics, I love the igloos and cabins. And you are completely right about how it’s easy to get lost. I have played through this game like 20 times in my life. I know everything by heart. But yet this level is the only one I do actually get lost in! And I like it! It makes the level feel big and exciting for me personally! The big Kosha is the one thing I dislike. Whenever I get to the level my first priority is get rid of it ASAP. I do that first then go back to the beginning of the level and start from there and pretend that was never there. I understand why the level is disliked but not for me personally! I think it also because I always wanted to explore an ice cave irl but yeah that’ll never happen 😂 so I can live that fantasy here.
3 Creepy Castle. It was my favorite when I was a kid but I still love it! You covered it all! Nothing to dislike here nit counting the golden bananas. It was legit scary! The catacombs scared me as a kid and that’s good! That means they succeeded at what the level was going for! There’s nothing to hate about this world!
4 Frantic Factory. Again you nailed it! Great theme, amazing music, lots of cool interesting rooms, and great exploration!
5 Gloomey Galleon. Backtracking and underwater mechanics never bothered me as much as then majority does. I can handle it! I love the Sunken ships and pirate theme. I understand exactly why it’s by far the least popular, that’s why I said going on un biased ranking I’d pit it at the bottom as well. But I personally like it!
6 Jungle Japes. Everything you said here I couldn’t have said it better myself. It’s just a small tutorial world without being a tutorial.
7 Angry Aztec. It’s my least favorite of the normal world personally. And that’s mostly because I was never fond of desert themes. Deserts aren’t my kind of thing, and I didn’t really care for the Aztec theme either. I know it’s a good level it’s just not *my* kind of level. Completely personal preference here on this one.
And I really don’t count the Dk Isles and Hideout Healm as real levels. But I’ll say it anyway.
I like Dk isles it’s a great overworld! Lots of areas and nice places to explore and the bananas are placed well in every area! And I love the lobbies for each world and hearing the overworld music remastered in each one!
Hideout healm I hate. Easily my least favorite part of the game. Everytime I play the game after I beat Creepy Castle I’m done. I don’t enjoy the pressure of being timed. And imo the area is pretty bland looking. Small and cramped. The only redeeming quality for me is because it’s an area you see in cutscenes before actually coming there yourself into enemy territory. I have a 101% completely gotten every collectible file. (Every regular banana, coins, crowns etc.) so I don’t need to do hideout healm again. If I wanna do the final boss I’ll go to my perfect file. I’ve only redone HH once before. And it wasn’t fun the second time around either lol… So just another personal preference. But again I can see why people like it! And I would rank it just as you did!
And that’s all for me! Sorry that was so long 😅 But yeah again bravo 👏 you are spot on!
Hey thank you! I'm late to reading this, but you have a great list! It's hard to rank these worlds haha. It's great to see more love out there for Fungi Forest! Crystal Caves however... is going down on my list 😬
Thanks for sharing!
@@superjoebros64 Ty!
The only thing I would change is putting Gloomy Galleon above Crystal Caves. I tolerate GG more than other people. Other than that, my list is your list!
Also, this is one of my favorite games of all time. I never get tired of it!
I fully agree with you, 2 years after making this video I've warmed up to Galleon and Caves is worse to me haha.
Well if you love this game you're going to want to stick around for my upcoming Donkey Kong December series 😁
Gloomy Galleon is my favorite.
No kidding!? Do tell, why is it your fav? Very curious
@@superjoebros64 I've always liked the water worlds in games. Also I guess I just don't experience the frustration you mentioned navigating it.
@@charlesrump5771 I'm so jealous lol.
I want to like the water worlds. At the very least, I like the ambience!
When the countdown hits zero in Hideout Helm, it’s Game Over like when you quit the game. Also, each blueprint only increases the time stalled on the weapon by a minute a piece. Also, if you don’t give Snide any blueprints, he’ll still stall the firing mechanism for 10 minutes.
10 minutes is not nearly enough time, dang! 😭
I’m glad I’m not the only one that always gets lost in crystal caves. I spend up to 30 minutes trying to find where I need to get to no matter how many times I play this game.
THANK YOU. It drives me nuts, I'm over it.
My list goes like this: (really long post FYI)
Top tier in order
1. Fungi Forest. Love this level. I'm a big time defender of the day night mechanic. I just 101%'ed this game today for probably the 5th time and I only had to change to night about 2 or 3 times. And I guess that's the kicker. When you've completed the game before you just know what tasks require day and night so it's much easier. Anyway, I love the feel good vibe of this level in the daytime tied into the music which I think is great. And night time is fun when you get used to it.
2. Crystal Caves. I'm a lover of Crystal Caves personally. The falling rocks are annoying no doubt, but if you beat him first thing there's no issue. I like flying around with Diddy, and it's just another level I like the look and feel of. The igloos and the log cabins with the tasks are fun to me if a bit challenging. Come to think of it that's probably my biggest complaint. Some of the golden bananas in this level are super hard to get and you don't have unlimited oranges or crystals for any of the tasks. Diddy's log cabin, dk's ice maze and the beetle race are all wicked hard, but it's so rewarding when you complete it, and I guess that's why I love the game itself so much.
Second tier in order
3. Frantic Factory. I hate the mechanical enemies that try to spit on you in this level and I'm not a big fan of how dark it gets in the hallways going between the areas, but I do love the factory idea and climbing it is fun even if again a bit challenging. I also liked the mini games in this level and Tiny's race so not a lot of complaints, but it doesn't give the same feeling as Fungi Forest or Crystal Caves.
4. Creepy Castle. I love the layout of the warp pads in this level. Makes navigating it easy, but I didn't much like not having the sniper for a few bananas and having to find Funky and backtrack like that. Also don't like that off the start you must walk on that skinny piece of wood just to play the level, but it's a pretty minor complaint once you're used to it. Other than that I like this level, but it's not top tier simply out of personal preference because I like bright and shiny levels as opposed to gloomy and creepy ones which I guess gives away the bottom tier of my list lol.
5. Jungle Japes. I really like this level for it's look and feel and it seems right to start the game in the jungle. The only reason it's relatively low on the list is because it's too simple for me especially with my experience playing the game. Nowadays I can't wait to get it over with to get on with the more difficult parts of the game.
Bottom tier in order
6. Angry Aztec. Never been a huge fan of this level. Can't really put my finger on it, but it never struck a chord with me. Having to navigate the quicksand, and the vulture race with Diddy. Trying to save Tiny. Having to walk around a temple to shoot a switch and then back again (and obv the beetle race, but we won't go there). Never really liked the GET OUT! temples with the guards either. Level is kind of meh to me. Not on the very bottom of the list but can't put it near the top either.
7. Gloomy Galleon. 100% agree on this level. It's awful, but I'm probably biased because I've never liked any swimming heavy levels in my life in any game. Every swimming level I've ever played is just too slow of a mechanic for me personally, and this one might be the worst of all. The only bonus I guess is that you can't die from drowning unlike say a couple Super Mario 64 levels or even worse Banjo Kazooie, but it's a bad level regardless IMO. Having to explore the dark bottoms and pick up small bananas with a swimming mechanic is just terrible. A lot of the level is timed too so that's a pain even as someone who doesn't have much trouble with it. There are a few highlights like you said, but not many. The robot fish is a pain in the ass, and having to go from one side to the other for a timed challenge really sucks if you run out of time. I don't personally mind the water level issues, but I've never ever been a fan of swimming levels. Just takes too long when I could go faster on land.
Sidenote: I didn't rank Hideout Helm as it's not a full level, but I like the layout and concept of the mini games against the timer. A fitting ending to an epic adventure game. And I do really like the DK Isles overworld, but again not really a level.
All in all this is one of my favourite N64 games of all time despite the hate it gets which I will never understand. Some complaints I can understand, but others are just complaining for the sake of complaining, or complaining about relatively minor thing. But I'm weird like that lol. I love collect a thons and there's no such thing as too many IMO. And I don't really mind backtracking at all. To me it's all just an epic adventure. The only thing that slightly annoys me is when there are small bananas branching off in different directions for different Kongs, but it's minor. Also the game itself is really difficult to complete 101% but when you do it it's so rewarding IMO. Anyway that's my list. Sorry for how long this is, but this game deserves a long comment, and I think I like it more as time goes on due to nostalgia, but I never disliked it anyway. And if you've never 101%'ed the game and you hate it you shouldn't talk. Also if you never played this as a kid and tried to find the secrets on your own you won't understand why people like this game.
Your list is really interesting and I respect it! I'm happy to see Fungi Forest getting some love.
And you make a solid point. You gotta 101% complete it! Thanks for sharing!
I'd personally move Frantic Factory up to the top tier, right alongside Creepy Castle. Dang, now I really want to replay this game.
I can respect that!
creepy castle was also my favorite and gloomy galleon was also my least favorite, the water is too dark i had to change the brightness on my tv to navigate that level
You get it! Such an odd experience
On 2021, this game, along with Super Mario Sunshine and Harry Potter 1 & 2 for the GC/PS2 were my return to videogames after many years without having played, and I completed it in 2 months, with a bit of help on certain parts cause I wasnt gonna spend half a year playing it and re-exploring. I think I discovered save states at the end of the game, otherwise it would have taked me a bit less time.
Looooove Mario Sunshine! These are great games to revisit after all these years!
I think people would like Gloomy Galleon more if somehow the level entrance was in the main Lagoon area. It would have been overwhelming but then again, the “main” parts of the level are dark, uninteresting, and dull.
Like imagine how weird Fungi Forest would feel if the level entrance was in a log in between the Mills and Mushroom area, and the current main area was off to the side.
Or if Creepy Castle started you off in a random cavern.
Oh wow great point! I'm really curious how that would work!
The reason I never 100% the game when I was a kid was because of that dang "GET OUT" voice scared the daylights out of me so I never got those bananas as a kid.
This is low key one of my favorite games of all time. It has it's flaws but as a kid with only a handful of N64 games. Having one game that I could spend hours dedicating to find everything in it was a dream.
That is totally justified, it's completely unexpected!
Me too!
He said "get out" so you stayed out lol
@@sarahwhitmore6951 I'll leave when I'm ready 😂
Gloomy Galleon wasn't so bad i thought. And the music is excellent.
GG has won me over a little since making this video! Crystal Caves is now my least favorite haha
I don’t mind backtracking and exploring the world five times with a different Kong but Fungi is just ridiculous because now you have to explore the world with each Kong twice unless you know exactly where to go and where each banana is
At least it’s still better than Galleon
oof yeah, that's a valid point. I can understand why that's a problem to some players. But you also make a great point, GG does something similar with raising and lowering the water. It's hit and miss all around!
I actaully dislike creepy castle soley for how bad it's frame rate is and the awful boss. Not to mention 2 of the 25 bananas involve playing Beaver Bother. I'd personally place it near the bottom.
The boss fight I can understand! It's not the best of them all.
I don't agree with Beaver Bother though. Bonus stages could easily be swapped out for a different one, it really doesn't have an effect on the world itself imo. That being said, I agree it's a pain and a shame that there's two of them here! That's just crazy.
I started watching this video at 64% battery... must be fate
It was meant to be
Agree with your list other than swapping Frantic Factory and Creepy Castle. Thinking alike I guess
I can get behind that! Both are fantastic
In jungle japes, the entrance to Cranky's stormy area should have been up on the mountain. At least that way, it could explain that the mountaintop is in the clouds.
that would be cool
I agree Gloomy Galleon was the worst level in the game
Crystal Caves scared the crap out of me when the ceiling started collapsing and music changed but I loved the level
And yes Creepy Castle I had so much fun on that level except collecting colored bananas for The Boss fight which took me many attempts to beat K rool Kut out
Imagine if there was 1 more world that required all 500 bananas, holy crap haha
@@superjoebros64 Lol I will just Play Mission Impossible instead which is a favorite of mine
You freaking surprised me with the Beetle jumpscare 😂😨
Hahaha glad to know it's still spooking people 2 years later 😂
I enjoyed it a lot. I also liked frantic factory a lot too
Such a neat world!
This game took me a good hunk of my life to complete 101% with every single collectible. I started playing it when I was about 6 years old and beat it 101% when I was 25
I respect the dedication to finally complete it! Glad you made it happen!
Fungi forest was always the most magical area to me, and still is probably the most special one.
When I was young, my brother and I could never beat Mad Jack or Pufftoss, and so when we finally managed it, Fungi Forest was our reward.
YES! I am the exact same way. Really struggled to get pass GG as a kid. Then to enter Forest after that was such a magical feeling. I love it
As a kid I was stuck for something like 3 months because I also could not beat Pufftoss. I didn't knew about that star that spawns on the same place on last rounds.
@rogerly91 some of those stars get reeeaaally tiny and far away, with the clock giving less time per round. I was so proud to beat Puftoss as a kid haha
@@superjoebros64 I must say this made the forest a bit more special like egg said after months of trying
@@rogerly91 I completely agree! I say the exact same thing in an upcoming video reviewing Fungi Forest 😁
1.- Frantic Factory: A place full of mystery and an awesome boss, one of the two with actual dificulty spikes.
2.-Hideout Helm: Short but thrilling, especially because of the game over timer.
3.- Fungui Forest: The biggest level of the game, the rocket barrel is available almost everywhere so is a good place to practice besides Crystals Caves. Also Dogadon has an actually challenging dificulty spikes with the sinking platform. My only complain is the bunny on steroids so strong that Lanky has to bring his own as well.
4.- Creepy Castle: The best place to test yourself with all the kongs abilities.
5.-Angry Aztec: It has some of the most creative challenges, except the beetle.
6.-Jungle Japes: Nice introductory level.
7.-Gloomy Galeon: Screw bad water controls. Puffos is chalenging because of the horrible cocconut boat controls.
Great list here! makes a lot of sense to me
The only thing i can say about creepy castle that is a bit lackluster is the bossfight, i think there would've probably some much better alternatives than that moving painting acting as a pseudo boss but otherwise it's such a good world!
As a kid I remember finding it challenging and kind of interest. But yeah, I can agree it's slightly a let down. Still a great world!
I love dk64 it's been my childhood game, and till this day I have my N64 with all my favorite childhood games, n I love every level in it's own way, but if I where to do a tier list or top I would choose between the music.
1. Frantic Factory
2. Creepy Castle
3. Angry Aztec, Jungle Japes, and Crystal Cave
4. Fungi Forest Day/Night, and Gloomy Galleon
Honorable mention Hideout Helm, and Dk Isle
Very solid list!
Played this game just a tiny bit at my cousin’s house when I was a kid but never finished it. I always wanted to play it again to see if it could live up to my childhood expectations.
Well, last year I bought a N64 for myself along with DK64 and few other games, and I just finished it the other day with 101% at a time of 32:18. Definitely had some low lows, but there was plenty of good fun I had in the game. I didn’t expect it to have nearly as many puzzles as it did, but there was enough variety in the game for it to be interesting all the way through.
In terms of ranking the levels, honestly this tier list is pretty spot on to my own (Gloomy Galleon can suck some eggs!); only difference I’d make is bring Jungle Japes up to the same tier as Fungi Forest. JJ may be very small, but honestly it’s really compact and fun to run around in. Such a perfect little level.
I’m glad I played DK64 despite the negativity it often gets. It’s true that there’s a lot of negatives to the game, and it definitely isn’t for everyone, but for people like me who find joy in the act of collecting, it was a real blast to play and experience fully. I will still never like GG though lol
that's awesome! happy to hear you finally completed the game after all those years. it must feel good
@@superjoebros64 It’s mixed in all honesty. Like I said, I had a blast while playing it, and there were times while I was at work where I couldn’t help but wish I was playing it instead of working- but now that it’s over, it’s almost kinda empty feeling? I’m not sure how to describe it.
Maybe it’s the knowledge that the DK crew as it was presented up until this game’s release wouldn’t return outside of spin-offs and cameos, or maybe it’s because DK hasn’t attempted 3D since DK64. It almost feels like a hollow victory despite enjoying my time all the way up to the credits.
Well, I say that, and as it remains true-
When I hear the DK64 soundfont and the opening lines of music- as well as that iconic jungle beat that plays when you turn the game on before you’re greeted to the DK Rap- I still get a big dumb smile on my face. DK64 is fully completed in my life now, and I guess I’m only just now coming to terms with that. I fell for the dog piling during high school that it was just a bad game with Bad Game Design (you know the video), so maybe me having fun with the game despite its flaws just didn’t feel “correct” in my brain.
But I get it now. I had fun because I thought it was fun. It’s that simple. I mean, why else would I *choose* to collect everything in the game? Surely it’s because I wanted to. And there lies the simple truth- I did. I played DK64 and enjoyed it because I liked playing DK64. Something I just couldn’t wrap my head around.
I guess it’s not really a hollow victory afterall.
I don't know. On the one hand, I love how dark some worlds are but on the other hand some of them really don't fit into a tropical theme.
I mean they don't all need to be tropical themed, but I agree this game has a weird amount of dark lighting!
I loved Jungle Japes, Frantic Factory, Fungi Forest, and Crystal Caves. I think for me it was more atmosphere than anything else, but I genuinely liked the exploration and different areas. Angry Aztec, Gloomy Galleon, and Hideout Helm were middle-tier for me. Not the best but not bad either. Creepy Castle was my most hated; tediously walking around the castle and trying to find everything in the mazes below. Just didn't enjoy that one as much.
I completely understand your points on all the worlds though, including your thoughts on Frantic Factory, Gloomy Galleon, and Crystal Caves.
No doubt, this game does a solid job with the atmosphere! Even if we don't like particular worlds, the design is fantastic!
Him: “I can’t think of one thing that I dislike about Creepy Castle”
Me: “two words: Beaver Bother”
We do not speak of such beavers 🤐
I once completed Hideout Helm in 17 minutes (every task was first-try), it just felt great. This level is so rewarding!
I'm impressed! Some of these challenges take a second to understand what needs to be done to beat it, especially since it's the only time we play them!
Idk if you ever take suggestions from comments, but I would die for a review of Rocket Robot on Wheels for the N64.
I'm not familiar of it! It would make for an interesting first time review then!
@@superjoebros64 exactly. Some convincing:
It's a hidden gem, with the few reviews I seen on it giving it praise like Nitro Rads video on it. Some other cool facts about it being that it's Suckerpunches first game. (Yeah, their first game was on Nintendo). It's also the first N64 game to use a physics engine, and you notice it when you play.
The game itself is like a shorter Banjo Kazooie. Basic story to get the protagonist going. It's a collectathon platformer, and that's about it.
@@superjoebros64 damn, it's been a year. Play the game yet?
@@someperson4712 holy crap 😭 I have not! Only just now playing Banjo lol
@superjoebros64 waaah
Fungui Forest was a level first designed for Banjo-Kazooie, but it was discarded and reused for DK64.
I'm genuinely so happy that the held onto it, because it's one of my favorites!
Fun fact: This game, along with the Gameboy port of Donkey Kong, is one of the few ways you can play the original Donkey Kong arcade game with the original Pie Factory screen!
Oh snap, that is a fun fact!
Frantic factory and creepy castle are my favorite. The boss fights as well, most challenging I'd say 😂
Heck yeah! Love it! Solid boss fights for solid worlds
I feel like the GBs should have been a deciding factor on the list considering some of the world have cool designs involving how the GBs are given like the water racing in galleon is really interesting kinda like playing diddy kong racing.
I go back and forth on this! I do agree with your example. It's unique to the world. Whereas any bonus stages could easily be swapped out for another. I like Creepy Castle and Frantic Factory, but it sucks that those worlds have Beaver Bother lol.
It's a tough call! I suppose that would just be a tier list of its own lol.
What happens if you run out of time in Hideout Helm? That's simple, K. Rool activates his Baslt-o-matic, but Snide managed to stop it for thw time you have, so time out means instant game over.
honestly sounds about right!
imo, Gloomy Galleon's problem isn't even that it's a water level. It might be the worst level in the game for being so segmented and taking ages to navigate. Even with the Tag Anywhere mod, you still have to navigate raising and lowering the water's level, and the draw distance underwater makes collecting a trial and error run.
ugh the draw distance is real tough for this level!
Frantic Factory and Creepy Castle are my all time favs. I still love this game.
Ah, a man of culture 😌
@@superjoebros64 Thank you. I’m a WEMEN
apologies! A woman of culture! @@triggeredcat120
@@superjoebros64 Haha no problem! I get it all the time! Keep up the good work!
much appreciated! Thanks for watching :) @@triggeredcat120
hideout helms clock is only enough if you collected enough blueprints. if you didn't collect all of them or a majority then the timer is much less. the more blueprints the more time. so for many players that clock was a lot more stressful
I've always collected them all! Couldn't imagine only having like half
Creepy Castle was a great level, but my personal favorite was Frantic Factory; that boss Mad Jack was nightmare fuel
That laugh still gets to me. Amazing setup to a boss!
I like Gloomy Galleon. Pirateship, lighthouse, seal race, climbing coins, exploring wrecks,engarde, oyster pearls. Swimming feels fine to me and time limits are generous. Level rules imo.
I feel harsh the way I talk about GG because I also enjoy these aspects of the world! And way better swimming mechanics than other games. It's no longer at the bottom for me 😁
Love the list! DK64 is one of my favorite childhood games. My list would be similar, with the exception of Frantic Factory:
1. Fungi Forest
2. Creepy Castle
3. Angry Aztec
4. Jungle Japes
5. Frantic Factory
6. Crystal Caves
7. Hideout Helm
8. Gloomy Galleon
Thank you! Very interesting list. So why is Frantic Factory lower on the list for you?
@@superjoebros64 It's a good level, don't get me wrong, but I think why I have it at #5 for me is how the level navigates in comparison to some of the others, but others may prefer how it navigates, so that's definitely just my personal preference, but that's what great about DK64 - there's several levels that make a great case for the best level, which is a mark of a great game imo
@@andrewcarlin3785 honestly that makes perfect sense to me! I feel the same way towards Crystal Caves.
@@superjoebros64 100% I've got Crystal Caves at #6 for the same reason as Frantic Factory, but I enjoy Frantic Factory's theme more
hot take. i don't just like gloomy galleon, it's genuinely my favorite level in the whole game. as a kid, i never saw anything past factory/galleon because no one could ever handle mad jack (i still can't do it). so, i would just explore the levels. mostly japes, which is iconic, but i would always find myself in galleon, just swimming around and vibing. the music, the atmosphere, even the underwater controls, they all came together to create an experience that nothing else seems to be able to come close to.
GG absolutely has great vibes going for it! The music and atmosphere alone make it a wonderful world! It's won me over after all these years.
This Friday I am releasing a video reviewing Gloomy Galleon! I'm not as harsh on it anymore!
I only got to Angey Aztec before my Xbo- I mean my totally real N64 just stopped reading my games on RetroArch for some reason, but Jungle Japes was a solid world and Angry Aztec was phenomenal
😂 dang, you should get your n64 looked at
i love dk64, despite its flaws.
also running out the clock in hideout helm actually just plays the normal game over scene. which, makes complete sense as the countdown is literally what leads to the game over sequence playing.
Ditto! And that makes perfect sense, KRool destroying DK Isle is the endgame for him.
I still listen to the fungi forest theme when I’m stressed. Best track of the game
brilliant! this world has such a wide soundtrack.
i always liked the implication that Frantic Factory is located in Creepy Castle
I've always loved that too! But could Gloomy Galleon also be connected? It's all within Krock Isle
Fungi Forest has always been my personal favorite.
24 years later. Here I am attempting my first 100% could beat it when I was 8. Let’s go!
NICE! You got this, I hope you enjoy the full experience!
Fungi forest amazed me so much as a kid that it's still my favorite world in the game. Gloomy Galleon might be my least favorite but I'm also not a huge fan of Frantic factory but that's mostly due to the boss.
Oh man whaaa? Not a fan of Mad Jack? Curious to hear why
@@superjoebros64 Probably feelings left over from childhood, but it was easily the hardest boss for me and I was terrified of both clowns and Jack in the boxes.
@@thespacebat honestly that's super fair! Gloomy Galleon freaked me out as a kid because the deep water was too dark and scary.
Frantic Factory lives rent-free in my mind
YESSSSS. It'd be cool to just casually explore the world. There's so many details
This game and Banjo was my childhood!
@@xxChacaronXX classics!
I really feel like you have to factor n the Gold Bananas for each level too.
I'm planning on doing so in future videos! They certainly change my opinion of certain worlds.
It has been too long since I played, but I don't remember hating any level more or less than the others.
I respect that! At the end of the day I think the game is loaded with great worlds as a whole!
I would only get a couple games for Christmas every year, so I had to make them last. For that reason, I love the backtracking. This and OoT are the only games I've 100%-ed more than once.
dude yes! I think people today forget how few games we had to play back in the day. A game this loaded with material had us playing for months. It was the best of times!
5:50 Grab a Smash Ball as K Rool in Smash to find out.
LOL hey you're not wrong!
frantic factory is A+ crystal caves was the biggest chore for me so ill give it a D but I don't have any F's
It really is such a chore. A shame
You sound hella like Simply, l love the vid as well 🤙🏼
OH WOW LOL I just pulled up a recent video. I actually thought that was me talking. That's hysterical! Maybe we grew up in a similar area.
Thank you for watching and leaving an awesome comment! That made my day 😁
Fun fact, Fungi Forest was originally a scrapped Banjo-Kazooie level
I love this fun fact! Love that the held onto it
I guess it makes sense, but I still find it a little annoying how Hideout Helm is impossible (bug abuse aside) if you haven't turned in any Blueprints. Makes me wonder what the bare minimum you need to hand over is.
I think it's TECHNICALLY possible, just really really hard haha. Kind of want to try it sometime
@@superjoebros64 I welcome you to do it, but I think there's a risk that you'll get shut down in the Banana Medal Room. If you do, maybe consider not collecting any Blueprints in the first place so you can nudge the timer in small increments and see how few you need to get it done.