>>716104557I 101%'d DK64 somewhere around 8 times, and no, it fucking sucks and feels like a chore to do much of anything. The game would be, and is better, without the all-too-common Bonus Barrels. They don't even qualify as bonuses if you already did everything that would otherwise result in you getting a Golden Banana, and all they give you is a bad minigame that nets you a Golden Banana. And all hints of challenge with enemies in general is out the window the instant you unlock instruments. The arenas are also abysmal wastes of time where you just stall the clock out at worst and just do a running B into the enemies over and over at best. And the unlockable moves don't feel rewarding to do by and large and essentially add nothing but another way to push a button to receive a Golden Banana. Wow, DK gets to pull a lever (push a button). Wow, Diddy gets to give himself a concussion (push a button). Wow, Chunky gets to turn invisible, and all it really does is let him push a button outside of that one cabin in Crystal Caves where he had to think a little. Wow, DK gets to turn into Rambi, but only in this tiny area where he breaks a wall and some huts that literally just reveal buttons to push, and some bananas.
Meanwhile with Bananza, I felt my repertoire to engage with the environment expand greatly with each Bananza that's unlocked. And each bonus challenge felt like it either made a good introduction to or a different spin on enemy or terrain types. Each layer brought something new to the table, and the post-game Bananza Rehearsals got good mileage out of all sorts of things. Many Golden Bananas felt redundant, but each Skill Point felt like it mattered more than each Golden Banana after the 100th in DK64. And I actually had to think a little to solve some puzzles in Bananza, which feels crazy to say, but I don't see anything stretching my brain in DK64 ever. The Elephant Bananza Rehearsal alone mogs DK64's memory games and "count to 20" puzzles.