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9) Diddy Kong Racing
Platform: Nintendo 64 (1997)
Many people scratched their heads when Rare described Diddy Kong Racing as being part racing, part adventure game. Those weened on Mario Kart had trouble understanding that the firm delineation between the two genres could not only be erased, but merged into a beautiful, cohesive package. Players spent hours exploring the game world by kart, hover craft, and plane, discovering secrets that led to new characters and race tracks. The racing itself was equally engaging, offering a fine sense of speed and a suite of weapons that could either be deployed immediately or powered up for more devastating attacks. Composer David Wise lent his talents to the title, creating a number of catchy, upbeat songs that were reminiscent of the Donkey Kong Country titles, but also provided the game with its own identity. Diddy Kong Racing further demonstrated Rare’s ability to innovate within seemingly restrictive genres. This title was re-released on Nintendo DS a few years ago, so feel free to hunt down a copy if you never got to play it the first time!
I honestly didn’t enjoy Banjo-Tooie all that much. Banjo-Kazooie was epic and is one of my favorite games ever, but Banjo-Tooie just felt too big to me. It took too long to get around levels, too long to get from one objective to the next, and too long to get between worlds in the overworld.
Then there’s the whole Stop n Swop thing, but regardless. BK, brilliant. BT, ehhh.
Maybe it’s because I have played it more, but I couldn’t get enough of Banjo-Tooie! It felt like everything a sequel should be: bigger, better and with just the right amount of new things to do.
And the less said about Banjo & Kazooie’s adventures post-Nintendo the better :)