"c-nux", what's your favorite dkc?

alright, 'nuxter, no silly nicknames.

your points are all pretty correct, but i'd probably have to rank them 3>1>2. 3 is the best mood game, it's very relaxing and silly, and has my favorite music in the series (i think eveline fischer was pretty smart to compose half the levels like they were water levels, plus the water level music itself is fucking amazing). the last world of 2 probably has the most enjoyable platforming and it doesn't have the fun of negotiating diddy through a bunch of levels where he's clearly faster and higher-jumping that he was intended to be like in 1, but i just feel like it has the highest amount of whimsical nonsense, boss fights that don't even make sense (the water-face, the cackling snowman), and is actually the most fun to play once you start to get used to all the little things you can make dixie do even if it makes the game feel a bit slow sometimes. but yeah, i have to emphasize that i really love eveline fischer and i really love the visual presentation. also squitter is the best animal and i rarely play as engarde because i'm in no rush to stop hanging around in the water levels.

i don't find playing as ellie all that enjoyable although i certainly appreciate the aesthetic of kiddy riding her around and some of the tasks she is able to perform (i think this goes back to what i said about 3 really lacking that sense of incredibly hectic platforming based on really minimal and half-baked physics but making up for it with some pretty neat and sophisticated little novelties that were clearly given a lot of time for proper execution). the water-face fight (i'm not going to call it by its actual in-game name because it's stupid...) is just legitimately a fun change of pace because of the addition of ellie and it's just one of the things that lends to the impression that the whole game was a labour of love even if it was kind of overwrought in a lot of respect.

also, wrt the music, i love how a lot of the tracks truly sound better in the game than standalone. jungle jitters is somewhat boring on its own, but it somehow complements the kaos kore levels its in perfectly and just makes them way more nerve-wracking.

also i have gotten like five hours of fitful sleep every night for the past two weeks because of playing and watching runs of this series and now i have a cold sore because of the stress it's put on my body :(

actually, jungle jitter is pretty good, it just sounds more like a crash bandicoot track or something than anything david wise composed.

also i have to reiterate how much all the more subdued tracks from that soundtrack rule. probably the best non-kirby game music

idk how to feel about the little victory songs tbh. the ghostly grove music has always felt like it's somewhere between the wise and fischer aesthetics, so i love it. in general i think there is kind of an interchange between the styles of the music in those two games, whereas 1 has all the really recognizable dkc tracks and "vibe". definitely more of a commitment to ambiance and holism rather than just being cute tracks on their own (not to say the latter in some derogatory way, mind you).

yes, the best non-kirby game music, i'm glad we got this wporked out :)

yeah no... i can see why the last world of 3 would ruin it for some people (except for poison pipeline, whose aesthetics definitely supersede the annoying and hard gimmick) but otherwise it's just the greatest installment to me. kiddy is far better than dk, the team throw is great, the (non-autoscroller) vertical components are fun, and anything to do with water levels or waterfalls is just super gorgeous. (that's probably all i have to say about it lol)

oh, oh, the ropes