Last year Mario Strikers. It seems fans will have to sate themselves with memes.
Donkey Kong has long been an icon of meme culture. He has a big goofy personality and had a bizarre early CGI cartoon in the 90s. Such things were made for meme superstardom. Fans have taken the iconic monkey and his hilarious memes and used them to show why his games are so good.
100% Amazing
While this meme is technically asking a question, it's clear what game this prefers. For many fans, Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest is an amazing game from start to finish. In fact, some feel it's even better than the original.
Donkey Kong Country 2 has even more atmosphere than the first one. Levels like the Stickerbrush Symphonies introduce challenges without being unfair like a lot of the minecart levels from the previous game. It also even adds more animal friends and power-ups. It also introduced the beloved new character Dixie Kong, cementing its amazingness.
Bad Luck DK
Donkey Kong came out over forty years ago, and he was so popular at the time that it even caused a lawsuit with Universal's King Kong, according to Flickering Myth. Despite all the press for the ape, though, he didn't end up being the star. Jumpman, now called Mario, would spin off into his own series.
After starring in several obscure early games, Mario would become a platformer. This kind of left Donkey Kong in the dust, as the meme points out. In fact, this Donkey Kong would never see major success again. The Donkey Kong Country series actually stars his family and he's relegated to being a side character.
Where Banana?
A lot of platformers have the same basic setup. Super Mario games usually begin with the princess being captured. Legend of Zelda games often begin similarly, maybe with a magic artifact instead of a princess. DK games also begin with a massive theft, but it's pretty different.
Donkey Kong has a large supply of bananas that he loves to eat. For whatever reason, his banana horde is constantly threatened by others. King K. Rool, a crocodile who cannot eat bananas, frequently steals them. For whatever reason he wants them, this meme shows how funny it is for DK to be so attached to them.
Riding Rambi
Donkey Kong Country was an unforgettable game series. It had cutting-edge gameplay and just plain felt more exciting than Mario for a lot of kids. Part of that was in its steeds. While Yoshi is great, Rambi the Rhino was a pretty exciting animal friend.
Rambi was technically less of an upgrade than Yoshi, as he couldn't eat enemies. However, Rambi increased DK's speed greatly while being ridden. He also defeated most enemies immediately with his charging run attack. For many gamers, it was the feeling of being basically invincible while riding the rhino.
Donkey Kong 64 Be Like
When it was first released, the Nintendo 64 Donkey Kong game was one of the best in the series. Nowadays, however, Banjo-Kazooie.
Collectibles had always been a big part of the DK series, but 64 took it to a new level. The levels were completely littered with multicolored bananas. It was so easy to get overwhelmed by them because they were only collectible by certain characters. The idea of needing "help" in DK64 is certainly an apt one.
The Best Rap
Speaking of DK64, it does have an aspect that everyone loves. Its most iconic moment is the DK Rap found in the game's intro. The intro is one of the most iconic in gaming series for being perfectly corny yet catchy. Despite never reappearing in a DKC game, it never left the minds of fans and players.
It's a pretty apt song, describing the abilities DK and his friends are known for. This goes for DK64 and for other games where these characters appear. It does a shockingly good job of summing up their abilities. It even got a spiritual sequel in the game Yooka-Laylee.
Oh, Banana!
As previously mentioned, Donkey Kong games have tons of collectibles. This is true even outside the 3D game on the Nintendo 64. Of course, the main collectible of these games is the banana. The Kong's favorite food is everywhere, even when they aren't only collectible by a single playable character.
DK can find bananas everywhere. In some games, they're the currency and in others, they're available to purchase in stores. Bananas are really all the Kongs ever really want and try to acquire. Of course, this is true for the player as well, as the bananas are super fun to grab during bonus stages.
Waiting For New 3D Game
Of course, nothing about the Donkey Kong games is successfully "summed up" without talking about them today. That is to say, talking about their lack of presence. The most recent DK releases are ports of older games. This has led fans like the creator of this meme to be frustrated.
As mentioned, Donkey Kong's anniversary went pretty unremarked upon by Nintendo. Considering that fans have been waiting for a sequel, it's pretty frustrating. DK also hasn't had a 3D installment since 64, which is pretty noticeable since even Kirby has finally gotten a 3D installment recently. Hopefully, these depressed memes will subside as a new Donkey Kong game could hopefully be announced in the future.