Video Games

Switch Online members can play Donkey Kong Land now, secretly the boldest Game Boy game ever

NSO subscribers can play Donkey Kong Land, quietly the boldest, most ambitious Game Boy game, for free now

Josh Broadwell

Nintendo

NSO subscribers can play Donkey Kong Land, quietly the boldest Game Boy game, for free now. Nintendo made the announcement in a brief trailer, and, since it’s a regular Game Boy game, you don’t need to pay for the Expansion Pack to access it.

Donkey Kong Land was unique among Game Boy games in that it wasn’t just a regular port. Nintendo made it a half-sequel of sorts to Donkey Kong Country on the SNES, with dozens of new levels and challenges alongside some of the original DKC’s stages.

Sure, Game Boy ports and adaptations taking a slightly different approach from their console counterparts wasn’t exactly new. Capcom did it with Mega Man, and Konami put out a few Castlevania games. The Mega Man games were functionally fine, but not that exciting, while the Castlevania ones were atrocious. Donkey Kong Land not only adapting the SNES game but building on it made it one of the most ambitious.

The downside is that it looks like you’re stuck using that greenish filter Nintendo uses for its Game Boy emulation, which is an odd choice in this case. The lack of contrast made it difficult to distinguish enemies and other dangers, and even the version available on the 3DS eShop used a simple black-and-white filter that resolved that issue. Still, at least there’s a way to play it without owning retro hardware and cartridges.

In other Donkey Kong news, Nintendo recently unveiled the Donkey Kong Country portion of Super Nintendo World, set to open in December 2024 in Japan and sometime in 2025 in Orlando, Florida.

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Josh Broadwell
JOSH BROADWELL

Josh is a freelance writer and reporter who specializes in guides, reviews, and whatever else he can convince someone to commission. You may have seen him on NPR, IGN, Polygon, or Rolling Stone shouting about RPGs. When he isn’t working, you’ll likely find him outside with his Belgian Malinois and Australian Shepherd or leveling yet another job in FFXIV.

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