Awards—selected by journalists from publications such as Time, Entertainment Weekly, and CNN—for "Best Original Game" and "Best Puzzle/Trivia/Parlor Game". It was also showcased at Nintendo World, which took place in five locations across Japan in November. Jungle Beat was released in Japan on December 16, 2004, in Europe on February 4, 2005, and in North America on March 14. It was released as both a standalone game and a bundle with the DK Bongos. The European version was released on the same day as the Game Boy Advance Donkey Kong game DK: King of Swing. To promote the North American release, Nintendo sent 20 individuals dressed up as apes to participate in the 20th Los Angeles Marathon, which took place on March 6. The individuals wore Jungle Beat-branded clothing, carried DK Bongos, and chanted the game's title as they ran. Jungle Beat was released when Donkey Kong had mostly been relegated to spin-offs and supporting roles in other Nintendo franchises, following Microsoft's acquisition of Rare. Jungle Beat did not perform well commercially. In a 2007 interview with MTV, Nintendo of America writer Nate Bihldorff said that he was "still pissed that not enough people bought Jungle Beat". MTV opined Jungle Beat "required a Mario-size leap of faith. It's one thing to ask people to control a tennis game with a controller shaped like a remote control, but to run away from a giant lizard and beat up an evil ape using bongos? It's a hard sell and wasn't a very successful one". MTV noted that the DK Bongos were introduced before instrument-controlled games like Guitar Hero became popular, suggesting audiences were apprehensive towards the concept. Furthermore, Donkey Kong fans saw Jungle Beat as "merely an aside to the Donkey Kong platforming saga" rather than the return to the style of Rare's Donkey Kong Country trilogy (1994–1996) that they wanted. New Play Control! version Nintendo rereleased Donkey Kong Jungle Beat as one of the New Play Control! games, a product line comprising seven updated ports of GameCube games for the Wii. The rerelease, New Play Control! Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, was released in Japan on December 11, 2008, as the line's first release. This was followed by a North American release on May 4, 2009, and a European one on June 5. It was also released as a downloadable game on the Wii U's eShop on November 3, 2016. In lieu