Nintendo Switch owners can add Donkey Kong Country Returns to their collection for the third time this week. The wonderful side-scrolling platform originally released on Nintendo Wii in 2010 and was ported to Nintendo 3DS in 2013. Now, over a decade later, DK and Diddy are swinging back into action with remastered graphics and everything offered in both previous versions of the side-scrolling platformer.
Preorders for Donkey Kong Country Returns HD finally went live at Walmart this week. You can also preorder a physical copy at Best Buy, Target, and GameStop. Depending on your location, you can still get release-day delivery from select retailers.
Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Preorder Bonuses
GameStop has an exclusive bonus for Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. If you order online or in stores, you can get a DK Barrel Pen Holder at launch. Unfortunately, you’ll need to pick up the barrel at your local GameStop. You’ll want to call your local GameStop before purchasing the game online to see if the bonus is in stock. Online orders will ship to your home–you can’t preorder online for in-store pickup–so the bonus won’t automatically be included with your order. To get the bonus–if it’s in stock–you need to bring your shipping confirmation to your local store. It’s a rather obtuse process.
Third-party listings will likely start popping up at Amazon shortly after launch. We also wouldn’t be surprised to see DKC Returns HD at Amazon-owned retailer Woot in the coming weeks. Woot had most of 2024’s Nintendo exclusives for $10 off shortly after launch. Woot has a ton of Nintendo Switch game deals in general these days, including Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for $42.
Essentially presented as the “definitive” edition of the platformer, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD offers the original challenge of the Wii version while also giving players the option to play with the friendlier “Modern Mode” settings from the 3DS edition. It also contains all of the extra levels from the 3DS version. Even with Modern Mode enabled, DKC Returns is one of the more challenging contemporary Nintendo platformers. If you liked Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, you will almost certainly have a great time running through the 80-level, nine-world gauntlet solo or cooperatively with a partner.
