Super Nintendo World Video Reveals Look at Nearly Completed Donkey Kong Country Expansion

06.04.2024 - 03:53 / gamerant.com / Mario / Donkey Kong / Trumann Tu / Nintendo

A new video gives a brief new look at Super Nintendo World's upcoming Donkey Kong Country-themed expansion. The theme park first opened as a part of Universal Studios Japan, first in 2020 as a soft opening and later a grand opening in 2021. The Super Nintendo World theme park has a number of Super Mario Bros. related items and attractions, including a restaurant, rides, and even photo opportunities with characters like Princess Peach. Shortly after the park's grand opening in Japan, Nintendo announced an expansion would be coming to the park that will open later in 2024.

This new expansion to Super Nintendo World was based on the Donkey Kong Country series, and would be the second IP to be represented at the theme park. This expansion will feature familiar characters and attractions based on the IP, which include new power-up bands, a series of exclusive merchandise like banana coins and even a Minecart Madness-themed rollercoaster. This expansion will soon be open this year, with fans getting the first look at the nearly completed expansion in a new video.

This video was posted by YouTube Channel L.C.A. Studios, a channel that specializes in providing information about Universal Studios Japan and its various vacation spots. This ten-minute video gives an overhead look at Super Nintendo World's Donkey Kong Country expansion, replicating the atmosphere and levels of modern Donkey Kong Country games like Returns and Tropical Freeze, or the Super Mario Bros. Movie. These include lush jungle trees and ancient stone temples, and even the barrels that players usually blast out of as a set piece.

While most of the attraction is obscured by the surrounding scaffolding and trees, it gives a little insight into what to expect for the Donkey Kong Country expansion. The video even features a few glimpses of the rollercoaster in action, showing off the mechanisms that makes it look like the riders are jumping over gaps like in the Minecart levels from Donkey Kong Country. The video shows it going through a few test rides before its public opening from a few different angles.

The expansion will be available for fans to partake in Spring 2024, which is rather close now. Currently, there's no word of when this attraction will be brought over to other Super Nintendo World locations, like Hollywood. As the Hollywood location only opened up last year, it might be another two years before the Donkey Kong expansion will be built. Universal currently has two other Super Nintendo World locations being built and set to open next year, in both Universal Studios Singapore and Universal Epic Universe in Orlando, Florida.

Released over just a two-year period between 1994 and 1996, many consider the original Donkey Kong Country