Of all of the studios to doubtlessly work on a Donkey Kong undertaking, Vicarious Visions (now identified merely as Blizzard Albany) admittedly wasn’t significantly excessive up on our checklist.
Nonetheless, particulars have emerged of a now-cancelled DK undertaking on the studio by way of a brand new video from Did You Know Gaming (with prior reporting from DK Vine). In keeping with the analysis, management at Vicarious Visions had needed to collaborate extra carefully with Nintendo after the studio’s work on Skylanders: Superchargers (which, for those who keep in mind, included the likes of Bowser and Donkey Kong on Wii U, Wii, and 3DS). It had obtained developer kits for the Nintendo Swap and needed to create one thing really distinctive for the upcoming system.
Partitions had been reportedly erected inside the studio with a purpose to permit for a really choose few builders to debate the undertaking. The demo was mentioned to showcase a brand new Donkey Kong set on an open-world island, with a selected give attention to character motion and fluidity. DK might, after all, climb partitions and swing on vines, however the studio had additionally utilised its expertise with Tony Hawk video games to introduce a grinding mechanic.
Accoridng to the unique DK Vine article, which DYKG was not capable of confirm, Miyamoto himself was additionally reportedly in shut talks with Vicarious Visions and appeared apprehensive in regards to the grinding mechanic, seemingly frightened about DK getting rope burn on his toes. As such, Vicarious devised that DK put on makeshift banana peels every time he would grind to alleviate the problem.
Different rumours surrounding the undertaking embrace the concept that Pauline would characteristic as a playable character, together with a storyline through which DK’s house was polluted by some ‘ecological catastrophe’. Though some would christen the sport as ‘Donkey Kong Freedom’ within the years since its short-lived growth, DYKG clarifies that ‘Freedom’ was merely a codename for the undertaking, and no precise title was determined upon.
So why did not this recreation come to fruition? Effectively, it was apparently Activision that in the end pulled the plug, not Nintendo. Improvement had solely lasted round six months, throughout which the setting had advanced right into a jungle-infested cityscape through which you might construct momentum to achieve greater ranges. Sadly, after gross sales of Skylanders declined drastically, Activision started to pivot away from single-player titles and determined to ditch the Donkey Kong undertaking fully.
In fact, Vicarious Visions itself would then go on to help Bungie with the Future franchise earlier than engaged on the wonderful Tony Hawk’s Professional Skater 1 + 2. It has since helped out on franchises like Name of Obligation and Diablo and has modified its identify to Blizzard Albany.
