Demo Diving : Mario Vs. Donkey Kong (2024)

Most of my childhood game-playing was spent in the back of a car, usually after school. Whether it was a shop’s car park, an hour’s drive to relatives or a long trip to McDonald’s, I would fill the time blocking out the radio and playing on my DS Lite, later my 3DS (later still my 2DS after the 3DS met concrete too many times) and eventually my Switch.

Why do I say all of this? Because the new remake of Mario Vs. Donkey Kong is a dip-into-while-in-the-back-of-the-car-on-a-journey type of game.

Originally released on the Game Boy Advance as a successor to the original Game Boy’s Donkey Kong (1994), Mario Vs. Donkey Kong has always been good handheld fodder. Apart from Mario & Donkey Kong : Tipping Stars releasing on Wii U alongside the 3DS, the series has always been at home on the smaller screen. Something that’s perfect to play a level or two when you’re travelling over a few months. If you hit a wall, just close the game and look out the car window for a bit. Maybe switch the radio back on. By contrast playing the demo tethered to a TV under my own roof and giving it my full attention felt wrong. The music is pretty jazzy at least.

Apart from fully animating the original cutscenes, adding a Toad for co-op, and a Casual mode that removes time limits on stages, the demo doesn't show any differences from the original that aren't graphical enhancements. It's strange to play a game with such a NSMB house style Mario who controls like he's right out of the GBA. I had a similar adjustment period with the Link's Awakening remake, but that at least was classic Link. This is not classic Mario, but classic DK Mario : a very different beast that's slower and prone to handstands, now with sound bites from New Donk City.

Every level is timed and parcelled out in sets of six regular levels with two special levels on the side. The special level included in the demo tasks you with guiding the precious Mini Mario toys back to their toy box. The other special level seems to be a battle with Donkey Kong to get more Mini Marios back. I got through the four levels in the demo in about twenty minutes, taking care to not leave a trail of dead Marios in my wake.

According to the game’s website, there are new levels in the remake and later stages are sure to challenge more than the demo’s opening levels. Much like the original I feel Mario Vs. Donkey Kong will be a welcome companion on long journeys but doesn’t feel at home on the TV.

Mario Vs. Donkey Kong is available now on the Nintendo Switch for £39.99/$49.99. It is a puzzle-platformer developed by Nintendo Software Technology and published by Nintendo.

Thanks for reading Demo Diving - a series about the slices of games you can try before you buy. With high prices and long playtimes, starting a new game can be a big commitment. Thankfully many publishers choose to release a small part of their games for free. Let’s dive in the deep end and see what’s good!

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