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Donkey Kong 64
SummaryK. Rool has kidnapped the Kongs! Can Donkey Kong rescue his friends, reclaim the Golden Bananas and save his homeland from certain doom? Take out some Kremlings with Chunky's Pineapple Launcher or Lanky's Trombone. Float through the air using Tiny's Ponytail Twirl. Even rocket to the sky with Diddy's Jetbarrel!
Rated E
Rated Efor Everyone

Developer:Rare Ltd.

Donkey Kong 64

Released On: 
Nov 24, 1999
Metascore
90
User score
Generally Favorable
8.5
My Score
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Metascore
90
100% Positive
14 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
100
Games Domain
The range of gameplay features is truly expansive beyond belief and one minute you may be charging around as a rhino, the next you may be riding in a slot car or mine cart or even a jet ski as part of the bonus games.
98
Gaming Maxx
Though some view this as just Banjo-Kazooie with some minor improvements, take it from me, it is far from that. Definitely a candidate that is well deserving of being this years "Game of the Year".
User score
Generally Favorable
8.5
80% Positive
378 Ratings
17% Mixed
82 Ratings
3% Negative
15 Ratings
  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
Jun 21, 2026
10
fireshooter
This game gets critique for it's enormous size, back tracking, and janky repetitive minigames, but really, in my opinion, that's what makes it enjoyable. Slowly getting to that 101% seems so rewarding, then finally beating that one annoying minigame, it's super fun. The boss fights are good enough, and the diffrent characters have unique good abilities. It's a hidden gem, and I will defend it's greatness.
Jun 5, 2026
10
MateoRulez
[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
92
Nintendojo
Very intriguing, but nothing new. The game is fun, but unless you have time to collect every single object in the game, it can get old fast.
90
GameShark
While it's still not as good or creative as the original Super Mario 64, if there's one true claim to fame it can make, it's that you'll get your moneys worth if you really do try and complete the game 100%.
90
IGN
It's DK64's length that really sets it apart from any other competition in the genre. This is Rare's War and Peace, it's that simple.
83
Game Revolution
The real problem is that right to the end, it's just more of the same. There isn't the sharp contrast that DKCountry brought to the SNES as most hoped and expected. While no major ground is broken from Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong is still all there as a 3D platform game.
80
Electric Playground
As cranky as DK64 made me, I can ill refute the fact that the game is still remarkable. Had this title come from any other game developer in the world I'd be doing back flips raving about how great it is.
See All 14 Critic Reviews
Apr 23, 2026
10
yasinkoramaz
It's a bit difficult to learn, but with its story and entertainment value, it's a 10 out of 10, both for today and for its time.
Jul 26, 2026
7
Player93
Most of the rewiews talk about how many collectibles are in the game, but the jetpack diddy controls are obnoxious, and it makes by the worst way k.rool’s fight painful (if it’s length wasn’t enough), pkus you had to finish twice and harder the second time arcade donkey kong and a 1983 zx spectrum game for earned two stupid coins for unlocking the final boss (which is so dumb). The game is beautiful, and i love the characters : diddy and lanky are so cute, funky, donkey and tiny are so funny and chunky is just so interesting. The game would be 9/10 at least with those two issues fixed.
Mar 2, 2024
7
Jesuscristo
Uno de mis juegos de la infancia, lo amo muchísimo, pero lamentablemente no es perfecto, el hecho de restringirte demasiado en la recolección de objetos, qué solo se pueden conseguir con cierto personaje, el cambio constante de Kong, la mayoría de minijuegos frustrantes, hace qué la experiencia no sea tan pulida, pero aún y con todos sus defectos, me encanta Donkey Kong 64, tiene una gran banda sonora, mundos preciosos, un nivel de carisma característico de Rare, en general sigue siendo un buen juego, pero no a la altura de sus otros hermanos como Super Mario 64 o Banjo Kazooie, mi calificación es un 7.0/10, pero si juegas su Hackrom (Tag Anywhere), aunque siga teniendo defectos, es mucho más agradable ya qué puedes cambiar de personaje en cualquier momento, entonces la nota sube a un 8.5/10.
Jun 17, 2025
4
ND-Bringer
While this game has gotten a lot of praise over the years, it's received just as much backlash. And after playing the game for almost thirty hours it's not hard to see why. Thematically, the game has a ton of charm, with well animated cutscenes, great sound design, sprite work, and plenty of ambitious game design. Even with its flaws, DK 64 had so much personality that many of its iconic elements would be carried on to future Donkey Kong games. Like Diddy Kong's Jet Pack and Donkey Kong's Bongos. Is it enough to excuse the poor level design? No, but it was interesting to learn about the positive impact this game had on people, despite at times being very frustrating. As a collectathon, the game can be pretty enjoyable with plenty of secret areas to explore and puzzles to solve. Most of the time, feeling like a slower paced Super Mario 64. It's very satisfying to collect Golden Bananas and explore every nook and cranny of the world. Unfortunately, most of these Golden Bananas are hidden behind bland mini games that really hurt the pacing of the main adventure. Slot machines, tricky vehicle sections, stealth, the list goes on. I don't mind variety, but platforming should be the main focus. This Donkey Kong not Raving Rabbids, why can't I just run around and explore the world? I gave the game a chance and I kept playing up until Level 8, Hideout Helm. Easily the worst level in the game. I figured that if the majority of the game was mini games, maybe finally, I'd get to play a level that was nothing but raw platforming. But no, their's more mini games to complete. With a stressful time limit to boot. If you can't beat all of the mini games in time, it's an automatic game over. And even if you manage to win, you have to complete both the original Donkey Kong arcade game and the Jetpac Arcade game in order to press on. It's not fun, the Jetpac game isn't too tricky but the classic Donkey Kong game requires to beat all of the levels on a single life. I wouldn't mind if these mini games were quick distractions, but requirements to beat the game? This is unacceptable. It's a shame, because the final boss fight is really well designed. I won't go into spoilers, but out of all the King Kong. Rool fights, it's easily the best one. If you can find the game for a cheap on virtual console, you might have a good time playing through Jungle Japes, since it has a large focus on platforming. But as for the rest of the game, it's got way more negatives than positives. I'm still a huge Donkey Kong Country fan, but when it comes to designing 3-D platformers, I think Rareware did a far better job designing Banjo-Kazooie. If you're a big Rareware fan, I suggest seeking out that game instead.
Mar 5, 2017
4
zkonedog
For the Nintendo '64 gaming system, the two pre-eminent adventure games were Mario and Zelda. Those games enthralled players with their tight gameplay and interesting stories. Unfortunately, DK '64 doesn't have that same tight gameplay, and the story was never the strong suit of the series. The problem with this game is obvious after about 30 minutes: It's all about collecting items, and very little else. Whether it is coins, tokens, or bananas, this game quickly devolves into little more than a scavenger hunt for miscellaneous items. Making matters worse is the fact that EACH CHARACTER needs to collect each item to unlock certain features. The game is tedious enough playing just as a single character, but add in the four others and it becomes ridiculous. The music in this game is engaging (the DK Rap might just be the highlight of the whole experience!), but other than that nothing really stands out. If you don't mind collecting item after item, you'll like this game more than I. If you prefer a developed plot, however, than stay away at all costs.
See All 475 User Reviews
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  • Nintendo 64
Nov 24, 1999
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