Donkey Kong 64 is a great game. It's also a really long pull your hair out frustrating adventure. It's big. It's long. It's got a pretty poor framerate. But what have we come to expect from Rare now? The best video game maker in the states, Rare has given us such classics as Diddy Kong Racing, Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, and the Banjo-Kazooie series. Late 1999 also brought us the return of DK. And lots of other ape friends. The game itself is fantastic to look at. Rare takes ordinary level settings (factory, jungle, water) and makes them into worlds. Really, really big worlds. All the characters are animated down to a T, using the best graphics possible. The controls are pretty standard, most everything uses a Z+C arrangement (although i would like the trigger to be Z instead of B, which after playing Perfect Dark for hours confuses the heck out of me). Past that the game itself is, uh, big. There are countless items to collect and places to visit. Many of the mini-games are confusing and repetative. It takes a long time to get from place to place in the worlds. Some of the bosses are worthy of a screaming fit. It's hard. And it gets harder. Veteran gamers can finish it in 30 hours. That's a full day of Donkey Kong. I've already rounded that base and am going towards a second day. Things don't move quickly, but when you defeat a boss or solve a challenge, you really do feel good. The game probably earns a star for the winning and just so gosh darn cute characters, who are more fun to look at than that boring Link. If you're up to the challenge, go for it. It is rewarding and fun to play, but I reccomend taking a break from it when times get tough. They will get better. NOTE: Donkey Kong is a good game, but it can't match the standards of Banjo-Tooie, a fantastic Rare piece that takes the best elements of Banjo-Kazooie and DK64 and meshes them into an exuberant gaming experience. It's worth it at the price.