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Proto:Donkey Kong 64

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This page details one or more prototype versions of Donkey Kong 64.

The kiosk demo of Donkey Kong 64 came to stores in September 1999, two months before the final game. Despite the late release date, it shares more in common with the build shown off at E3 that year than the retail version; timestamps found within the GZip headers of the game's files span from March 17 to June 28.

Hmmm...
To do:
  • There's lots of unused text.
  • Find a way to restore the playback demos.
  • More pre-release and unused content can be found here: https://www.mariowiki.com/List_of_Donkey_Kong_64_pre-release_and_unused_content
  • Check if there are any Stop 'n' Swop remnants, since the prototype is dated before the feature's removal in October 1999. (Updated note: See discussion page. Lots more to investigate, but some disappointing news regarding kiosk & SnS)
(Source: IGN, theballaam96)

Sub-Pages

Miscellaneous tidbits that are interesting enough to point out here.
Notes
TextIcon.png
Early Script
WELL DONE DIDDY HAVE A BANANA
DK64 proto map10 medal.png
Level Differences
Donkey Kong's world as it existed at a slightly earlier point in time.
Dk64 giraffehead.png
Early Objects
Level props that were memory-holed from the final game.
TextIcon.png
Unused Strings and Debugging Text
Can't Blend into Blend, you fool!

Demo Events

The demo contains three playable portions of the game: the second Dogadon fight, a harder version of the Jungle Japes mine cart minigame, and the second Army Dillo fight. After completing an event, the game cuts to an "Available Christmas 99" screen, and eventually loops back to the intro, where you'll then be able to play the next event.

Dk64 thanksforplaying.png

The choice of events is very odd, as they're nearly unwinnable for a novice. Rareware may have chosen these events to make the game more exciting and appealing to potential customers.

Dogadon #2

  • There is no light source near Chunky during the intro cutscene, making him harder to see against the background.
Proto Final
DK64 dogalighting proto.png DK64 dogalighting final.png
  • Dogadon's sound when he spits fireballs sounds pretty hideous. It was thankfully toned down in the final, though the original sound can still be heard when the llama splits at lava in Angry Aztec.
  • After Dogadon is killed and the key appears, the boss music continues to play rather than the victory music.
  • Chunky has an extra punch attack after doing his standard punch twice that was removed in the final. It can be seen in some early footage.
  • Chunky's animation for when he's carrying the TNT barrel is slightly different.

Mine Cart

  • This is the mine cart minigame in Jungle Japes, with the difference being that you have to collect 70 coins, as opposed to 50 in the final. With the rather strict coin requirement, this makes the minigame very, very difficult.
  • After successfully completing the minigame, the HUD is shown and it looks somewhat different: the Golden Banana count is shown as a vertical column of banana symbols, and the counter at the bottom uses a banana group symbol rather than a single banana as in the final.
  • Squawks' text is different and much more generic.

Army Dillo #2

  • The fight takes place in Jungle Japes, rather than Crystal Caves. This may have been due to the arena not being finished in time for the kiosk demo.
  • Army Dillo uses quite a bit of voice acting at this point, a stark contrast to the final where his only voice clip is "Uh-oh!". His voice is different as well, and rather unfitting.
Audio Subtitle
You dare challenge me?!
Ah ha ha ha!
Then I must crush you!
You can't beat me!
You'll never defeat K. Rool!
NO!
Noooooooo!
Aaaaaarrgghh!

It should be noted that this marks one of the first verbal pronunciations of K. Rool's name, but the first official appearance of such a pronunciation would have to wait until Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

General Differences

Dance, monkey, dance.

Demo

  • The intro is slightly different.
  • The playback demo on the title screen is absent. It does exist in the ROM, though.
  • The HUD for collecting a Golden Banana is very different: it only shows how many Bananas your current Kong has, and uses a removed "5 Golden Banana bundle" icon.
  • Only C-Up and C-Down exit first-person mode, while in the final game A and B also work.

Other

Many differences exist outside the demo's limited scope, and can only be seen by hacking:

  • Like the background geometry, all music tracks not used in the demo segments (including jingles) have been stripped out and replaced with ambient jungle noises. However, the maps' music ID configurations are unchanged. The list of IDs appears to be largely the same between versions, since the IDs of the used tracks (plus those of certain unused maps, like the main levels) are the same as in the final game. (See the video in Scrapped Areas, which has the dummy tracks replaced with their final equivalents.)
    • Maps with empty setups (A4 onward) play the Jungle Japes theme (track 01) as a placeholder instead.
  • Banana Medals are separate pickups instead of being tied to regular bananas. They make the Nintendo/Rareware Coin sound when picked up and don't stop your character to dance, but otherwise behave the way they do in Hideout Helm.
  • All Kasplats have red hair. Instead, the temples of their sunglasses (along with their shockwaves) are the color-coordinated bits. This makes it hard to tell from a distance which Blueprint one is carrying, so it's easy to guess why it was changed.
    • Also, their walk cycle is faster, and the "numph numph" sound is a slower version of the Klaptrap chomp.
  • The Kongs are not named in the Tag Barrel.
  • Most Banana Balloons bob up and down. In the final game all of them move from side to side, save for a purple balloon in Crystal Caves that retains the old behavior.
  • Z can't be used to drop from vines.
  • In the blast courses, only Z fires DK out of the barrels. The final game adds A and B as options.
  • Infinite counters read "IN" rather than ∞ as in the final.
  • R can't be used to center the camera while climbing.
  • The Animal Buddy transformations work on a timer, which can't be stopped at will (you must wait for it to run out). Rambi's timer is 65 seconds long, while Enguarde's is 45.
    • The detransformation sequence also has no graphical effects, which looks somewhat odd.
  • The "quickdraw" feature (Z + C-Left twice) is not implemented.
  • Since there are no level lobbies, B. Locker and Wrinkly are nonexistent.
  • The Rainbow Coin is not implemented. Neither are the Nintendo and Rareware Coins (as objects), but their sprites exist.
  • DKTV exists in the kiosk, but seems very rough compared to final, and all demos are heavily desynced, even on actual n64 hardware. The Japes demo from E3 also exists here.

The Lives System

DK64 proto HUD.png
Sprites
Pickup HUD
Dk64 1upballoon.gif DK64 lifeballoon HUD.gif
Sound Effect

One notable difference is the sight of a balloon counter under the healthbar. Extra Life Balloons, a staple of the Donkey Kong Country/Land games, were set to appear in this game (and can be spotted in several prerelease clips) but didn't make the cut, presumably because the jump to 3D made lives a bit superfluous. The final game did away with them entirely, but this version has the lives system intact.

As none of the demo segments have Life Balloons in them, the collectible itself goes completely unseen. It can be found in several of the early maps, where it plays a short harp jingle (also used by the sun ring in Angry Aztec) when picked up. Interestingly, it features the same star design as the barrel spawner pads.

DK64 proto balloonpop.gif

There are also what look to be graphics of it bursting. A pop can be heard if your Kong is killed while the counter is still onscreen (an easy way to do this is to go to map 56 and run headfirst into the maze), but no sprite is seen, as the HUD disappears during the death sequence. Use the GameShark code 816981A2 3320 to view it in place of the DK Coin icon during the minecart segment.

DK64 OldLifeIcon.png
Promo good.png

Tucked away in the ROM is this even older icon for the counter, seen in the earliest prerelease footage. This Diddy head was lifted from a pre-existing render, and was probably always meant to be a placeholder - the balloon was already in its spot by the time E3 rolled around.

(Source: Runehero123 (code), Giant Bomb (prerelease shot))

Graphical Differences

Graphics with very minor differences have been magnified to make the differences more visible.

Fonts

Proto Final
DK64 dialoguefont proto.png
DK64 dialoguefont final.png

The dialogue font is lacking the multiplication sign, percent sign, and brackets.

Proto Final
DK64 menufont proto.png DK64 menufont final.png

Next to the copyright symbol in the menu font are a crossed-out N and O that were replaced with the infinity symbol and some inverted punctuation (which themselves go unused in the North American version).

Proto
DK64 DKArcadeFont kiosk.png
Final
DK64 DKArcadeFont final.png

The font used for the Donkey Kong arcade game had some extra trademark symbols added.

Interface

Proto Final
DK64 Logo proto.png DK64 Logo final.png

The registered trademark symbol was moved down from the corner, so that it comes after "Kong" rather than "Donkey".

Proto Final
DK64 moon proto.png DK64 moon final.png

The moon texture is transparent in this version. A black background fill was added to make it pop out a little more.

Proto Final
DK64 Xmark kiosk.png
DK64 Xmark final.png

The X symbol had the pixels on the edges trimmed. This is very hard to see unless you're actively searching for it (look at the top-left, bottom-left, and top-right corners).

Proto Final
DK64 palmbg kiosk.png DK64 palmbg final.png
DK64 FSClock kiosk.png DK64 FSClock final.png
DK64 clockhand proto.png DK64 clockhand final.png
  • The file select background and clock face are slightly darker.
  • The hands on the file select clock have a slightly different design.
Proto
DK64 KongHeads kiosk.png
Final
DK64 KongHeads final.png

The Kong heads were brightened a bit in the final game.

Environment Textures

These cover textures found in multiple areas. For differences in textures belonging to specific levels, see the Level Differences subpages.


Proto Final
DK64 redplank kiosk.png DK64 redplank final.png
DK64 redplank kiosk offset.png DK64 redplank final offset.png

This wood texture was made seamless. An offset version (bottom) has been provided to show off the seam.

Proto Final
DK64 glass kiosk.png
DK64 glass final.png

This glass texture is less shiny and opaque.

Proto Final
DK64 factorywall kiosk.png DK64 factorywall final.png

For some reason, only this section of the Frantic Factory R&D/Hideout Helm wall texture was changed - it went from RGBA16 to CI4.

Proto Final
DK64 mazewood kiosk.png DK64 mazewood final.png

These two generic wood textures are darker in the final game.

Proto Final
DK64 CrankysLabWindow kiosk.png DK64 CrankysLabWindow final.png

Cranky's lab window was made ever so slightly darker.


Proto Final
DK64 BlastBarrelInterior kiosk.png DK64 BlastBarrelInterior final.png

The top half of the Blast Barrel interior texture is lighter than the bottom half, which was fixed in the final version. The metal rims were also made darker.

Proto Final
DK64 KRoolPortrait kiosk.png
DK64 KRoolPortrait final.png

The K. Rool portrait is not as cleanly cut out.

Pause Menu

The pause menu is present and accessible by setting the lower bit of the 1-byte address at 807B5B13, or by applying the following gameshark code:

807B5B13 0031

The font used is the same as that used for the Helm Timer and wrinkly text as opposed to the standard red/yellow font used in the final version. Additionally, there's only two options "Return" (which unpauses gameplay) and "Quit" (which takes you to the promotion screen).

(Source: Runehero123)
(theballaam96: source needed)

Unused Graphics

The kiosk demo has a few sprites and models that don't appear to be present in the final game.

Dk64 goldbananabunch.gif

A Golden Banana bunch, which is used in this build if you win the minecart game. A single frame survives in the final game, as the emblem on B. Locker's head.

Dk64 jblock.gif Dk64 ablock.gif DK64 startile.gif

Spinning tiles with designs matching those found on the unused jack-in-the-box enemies.

Dk64 flamingblock.gif

A spinning, flaming alphabet block intended for the Mad Jack boss fight. He can be seen throwing it in prerelease footage.

Dk64 discoball.gif

A disco ball. This can be spawned in by editing the map setup data (Actor ID 117, Spawn ID 102).

DK64 proto NinLogo.png DK64 proto RareLogo.png

Earlier renditions of the opening logos. Smaller versions were later used in the Rambi and Enguarde Arenas as billboards.

DK64 proto GameOver.png

High-res versions of the menu font exist for the letters G, A, M, E, O, V, and R, in that order. All of them are separate textures, with the "E" only stored once so it could be duplicated. This was obviously intended for the game over screen, but the final game uses the normal low-res font instead.

DK64 proto ShopIcons.png

Icons from a possible early shop interface. Yes, that's a realistic handgun.

DK64 UnkGroup2.png DK64 OldBanana.png

Leftover graphics of... something, along with some beakers, an arrow, and a single sprite of a banana. The banana is a bit smaller and darker compared to the one used in both versions:

Early Final
DK64 OldBanana.png DK64 NewBanana.png

DK™! Donkey Kong™!

A trademark graphic is present after the DK letters used for the DK Rap, which is missing from the final ROM.

DK64 proto LightningBolt.png

A lightning bolt, or a frame of animated electricity, or a leftover of some larger graphic that was removed. Hard to say. It's located in between the textures for the HUD and the lens flare/sun.

DK64 kiosk DKportrait.png

A non-transparent version of the DK head on Candy's rug. Found among the textures for the Gloomy Galleon shipwrecks, possibly implying it was meant to go on a portrait akin to the ones of Kaptain K. Rool. The unused portrait of DK intended for Snide's uses a different version that does not have his arms edited out (same for the portrait of DK on top of Candy's piano).

Dk64 Dk64logo3D.png

A 3D version of the game's logo. A similar model was used in early footage instead of the static 2D logo, and was animated.

Early Models

Several models went through changes from the demo to the final game.

Buildings

Proto Final
Whose lab was it? Oh, his lab.

Cranky's Lab received quite an update in the final game. The sign was overhauled to give context that the lab indeed belongs to Cranky, and an electrode was removed from the roof (though the kiosk version fits better). The wooden texture and the shading were given an overhaul, and there is no floor under the doorway.

Proto Final
What exactly does this building imply? The drum wasn't enough to tell that it's a music shop.

Candy's Music Shop is a lot simpler than in the final game. The sign was changed to help give a musical theme, and there aren't any decorations.

Proto Final
ARMOURY, ARMORY? What's the difference? "ARMORY" was not reverted back in the European version for... reasons.

Funky's Armory has no satellites or flooring. The "ARMORY" sign was changed from British English to American English. Some changes were also applied to the text's color, possibly to make the wording stand out less.

Proto Final
Incomplete security. Why is there a keypad when there isn't even a door?

Snide's HQ has a pipe connected to a barrel, and a different antenna. The final version removes the barrel and the receptors on the antenna, but adds a keypad and security camera. As usual, the final version adds flooring to the doorway.

Unused Enemies

Several enemies were cut and aren't in the final game's data.

Bug

Hmmm...
To do:
Add the prerelease screenshot that features this guy (or a very similar model?).
This game is full of BUGS.

A weird multicolored bug with no animations. It may have been an early version of the racing beetle, or the DK64 equivalent of Click-Clack/Knik-Knak from the previous two games.

Re-Koil

Re-Koil from Donkey Kong Country 3. Nowhere to be seen in either the demo or the final.

Duhhh...

Army

A very angry-looking Army, likely an early Army Dillo.

I wouldn't mess with him.


DK64 ArmySprites.png

A HUD sprite for this enemy (as well as a skeletal variant) also exists in the texture data. The unused snake boss has HUD icons like these, indicating that every boss would've had these. Maybe an early health bar?

Jack-In-The-Box

Two jack-in-the-boxes meant for Frantic Factory. The clown appears in the unused early boss map for that level, while the boxing glove can be seen in E3 footage.

Hey kids!


Jack in the PUNCH!

Snake

Dk64 snakehead.png

A giant snake head with a diamond necklace, possibly based on Slippa from Donkey Kong Country. He very briefly appears in footage dating to E3 1999, shooting lasers at Diddy in what appears to be the old version of map 11. Based on this, as well as several other factors (see below), it can be assumed that he was originally going to be the Aztec boss instead of Dogadon (who would have been confined to Fungi Forest). Statues of his likeness can still be found during the level's slide race in the final game.

DK64 SnakeSprites.png

Like with the Army above, HUD sprites of him can also be found buried in the ROM.

Scrapped Areas

Hmmm...
To do:
Flesh these out and add textures.

A few maps exist that ended up being repurposed into other locations in the final game. They can be accessed using the Map Modifier GameShark code, where "??" is one of the IDs below:

Map 03

In the final version, this is Lanky's maze minigame in Hideout Helm. Here, it's a room consisting of two Tiny pads and a stationary copy of Tiny, who has collision and animation data. The map is configured to play music track 06 (Funky's theme). The pads appear to be non-functional, even when (player character) Tiny is hacked in with the Monkeyport. Soft resetting with the code active results in a bizarre camera sequence focusing on the clone as she stands motionless, while the DK Rap plays.

DK64 proto TestSurface.png

There are textures in the ROM for a grassy test surface, with slope and size markers, that likely would have corresponded to this map.

Map 0B

An early, unfinished copy of Angry Aztec.

  • You start near a set of doors corresponding to the Maze Temple.
    • The doors are arranged from bottom to top by Kong size: Chunky, DK, Lanky, Diddy, and Tiny. Tiny's door requires Mini-Monkey to enter, and has a Tiny Barrel next to it.
    • The statue is static except for its mouth, which opens and closes. Feeding it opens the Kong's designated Maze Temple door directly, rather than via Diddy/gun switches. Only one shot is needed, but the timer is very short.
    • On top of the temple is a post with a target on it (reminiscent of Gobi's Valley in Banjo-Kazooie). Shooting it does nothing.
  • The overall scale of the level (judging by object sizes) is far larger than anything in the final game, which could have been one reason it was redesigned.
  • Slow-moving stepping stones (object 00C8) form the paths toward the various temples. They were probably axed when the level was shrunk, as the final game's sand pits can easily be navigated by other means.
  • There is a Golden Banana under a floor cage (object 00C5) close to the spawn point.
  • Near the statue is a set of pillar platforms (object 00CC) that bob up and down. They have collision on the sides but not the top.
  • Another door close by leads to the Llama Temple.
  • Just beyond that is the llama himself, who has a generic floor switch above him, and is positioned so close to the cage door his head clips through it. He does not say anything when you approach.
  • Below him is a strange pedestal with no collision (object 00C4).
  • The slide tower is also nearby, with the gongs positioned much closer than in the final game.
  • Some distance to the right is Snide's. Going to him reveals you (somehow) already have this area's Blueprint, and he gives you a Golden Banana.
Early textures Textures in this group also in the final game Final equivalents of early textures
DK64 map0B early.png DK64 map0B final.png DK64 map0B FinalAltered.png
  • Most of the textures for this map are shared with the final version of the level, but there are also several early textures associated with it that don't exist in the final ROM.

While this became a Stealthy Snoop (that itself went unused) in the final game, the Aztec objects were never actually taken out, and as such can still be seen by going out of bounds.

(Final game discovery: Isotarge)

Map 11

What would become Hideout Helm was originally an odd room containing several torches, Zingers, and the mermaid from Gloomy Galleon standing in a T-pose. The map's music configuration, its appearance in prerelease footage, and its presence in the game's internal list of boss rooms all hint that this was the original boss room for Angry Aztec.

Prerelease Map 10/11 Map 11 early
Dk64 Snake Boss.png DK64 map10 poolwall.png DK64 map11 wall.png

The room as seen in prerelease footage shares almost all of its textures with map 10 (the dome temple in Angry Aztec), but there are two removed textures at the end of that map's section that likely correspond to this one. They are essentially a dark, unlit variant of the dome temple pool wall texture (which was also used for the walls in this map); given that the snake boss appeared to come out of a pit in the center, they were probably used for the walls of the pit.

Map 1C

Use the code 815C8F00 2005 815C8F02 0000 to keep this room from crashing on load. This is the old boss arena for Frantic Factory, back when the fight was structured more like Army Dillo and Dogadon. The normally unused jack-in-the-box clowns are used here, where four of them spawn from the doors at the sides. This also became Hideout Helm (specifically, the version used for non-Intro Story cutscenes).

Map 22

The final DK Isles map is instead... Puftoss swimming endlessly, inside what looks to be an earlier version of the entrance area in Jungle Japes. This map is also present in the internal boss room list and is configured to play the Gloomy Galleon boss theme, which indicates that it was once an early boss arena for Puftoss (which would explain his presence).

  • There are 18 yellow bananas on Hover Ropes (not Hover Vines as in the final game), in groups of 3.
  • The fruit-bearing trees, normally unclimbable by anyone but Hunky Chunky, are climbable here.
Hmmm...
To do:
Is this the case in other maps? Is it a map quirk or an actual object difference?


Early textures Textures in this group also in the final game Final equivalents of early textures
DK64 UnkGroup6 early.png DK64 UnkGroup6 final.png DK64 UnkGroup6 FinalAltered.png

These textures are found just after those for map 21, and may hint at what kind of geometry was in this map - early Jungle Japes rock wall variants, (a duplicate of) the bricks from Cranky's Lab, an early minecart track(?), and some wood. Despite their appearance, the wood textures are not used by the early log tunnel object, or by the logs in Jungle Japes.

DK64 TreeRingComplete.png
However, the early tree ring texture is actually the bottom half of the final one, as can be seen here when they are combined. A complete version is used in Fungi Forest, but it is smaller than this one.

Map 32

The level select room from E3 1999, which was used to show off various areas of the game, is still present. The doors still work, although some hacking is needed in order for them to take you to their proper destinations. Two Life Balloons can be collected here, and there seems to be a Banana Fairy just out of bounds. The area is configured to play music track 4F (the large treasure chest in Gloomy Galleon), which can faintly be heard in RareNet's E3 footage.

While this map was removed from the final game (with one of Tiny's Hideout Helm minigames in its place), the Angry Aztec Lobby (map AD) would be based on it, and so they share a number of textures.

Prototype Final
DK64 map32 tex kiosk.png DK64 map32 tex final.png

The column and stairs received some tweaks between versions.

DK64 map32 PaleStone.png
This pale stone, however, doesn't seem to be anywhere in the final game.

Interestingly, the barrel and metal frame are shrunk versions of the same texture from the Main Menu in the retail rom.

The rest of the area's unique textures are E3-related:

Level Door
BOSS II Chunky
LIGHT
HOUSE
Lanky
TOY
FACTORY
Tiny
MINE
CART II
Chunky
TEMPER
TEMPLE
Diddy
JUNGLE Donkey
MINE
CART I
Diddy
BOSS I Donkey
CRYSTAL
CAVES
Lanky
RACE Tiny

The original cutscene shown in the E3 trailer for DK64 is actually still intact in the data, and rats that were found unused in the final are actually used in this rooms setup (rats previously undocumented).

Donkey Kong 64K

There is an unused overlay in the Kiosk Demo for a retro minigame called "Donkey Kong 64K". Unfortunately, this minigame seems to have either been junked from the Kiosk demo, or scrapped early on in development as only the title sequence exists.

To activate in-game, you need to set the following 2-byte addresses in ROM to certain values:

00002172 => 000B
001A6EBE => 0003

Once you have done so, enter Arcade through any desired means and you will enter the title sequence for Donkey Kong 64K. Lead Artist Mark Stevenson recalls it being an attempt for a re-imagining of DK Arcade prior to approval from Nintendo to make a direct port of DK Arcade. The game also has data to back up this story as the associated cutscene states for this minigame is state 2, whereas Arcade and Jetpac are states 3 and 4 respectively, indicating that Donkey Kong 64K pre-dates the development of DK Arcade and Jetpac.

(Source: Mark Stevenson Quote)

Textures

Many early textures exist in the ROM that can't be loaded or tied to a particular map (since the geometry associated with them is gone), but the map IDs they might have belonged to can be guessed at based on their general position in the texture bank.

Early textures Textures in this group also in the final game Final equivalents of early textures
DK64 proto UnkGroup3.png
DK64 UnkGroup3 final.png DK64 UnkGroup3 FinalAltered.png

These lie in between the textures for maps 01 (Funky's) and 04 (the mining hill in Jungle Japes). The textures in the middle column also appear in the final game, but occur much later in the ROM, in different maps. The fact that all of these are grouped together indicates they were added around the same time, and possibly once belonged to a single area.

Early textures Textures in this group also in the final game Final equivalents of early textures
DK64 proto UnkGroup4.png DK64 UnkGroup4 final.png DK64 UnkGroup4 FinalAltered.png

Rings of wood, the brick floor from Cranky's Lab, and some torchlit stone. Sandwiched in between this group and the one above are the test surface textures, so all three may have been for the same area.

DK64 proto UnkGroup5.png

Various rock textures, along with what appear to be a turtle's foot, shell, head, and belly. These occur right after the main Jungle Japes textures (maps 07 and 08), and could have belonged to a cavern-type submap.

Animation Differences

There are a lot of animations which were changed by the final release. A lot of the differences go unseen in the demo sections.

General

  • The backflip works the way it does in Super Mario 64 - it automatically pushes the Kongs backwards instead of straight up and cannot be steered, which makes it much harder to use. In the final game, backflipping works like in Banjo-Kazooie.
  • The Kongs are launched out of Tag Barrels and Bonus Barrels from the top rather than dropped out the bottom, using unique animations that aren't in the final version.
  • All standing attacks are 3-hit combos, meaning you had to press B thrice to execute the entire set. In the final game the first two hits were combined into one (requiring only two B presses) for all Kongs except Lanky, who is unchanged.
  • All Simian Slams lack the colored shockwave effect. The Super Simian Slam also lacks the cartoony stars.
  • The Shockwave move doesn't require Coconuts (or even unlocking, apparently). The charging effect uses multicolored stars instead of orange embers.
  • The Kongs do the vine-hanging animation when grabbing onto a climbable object (however, this fixes itself as soon as you start moving). They also jump off it at a straight 180° angle, unlike in the final game where the jump angle can be controlled a bit.
  • An early version of a move purchasing animation exists where the kong's body parts grow and shrink in size. This was calmed down for the final release's version of this, and then left unused for what is seen in normal gameplay.

Donkey Kong

  • Donkey comes to a standstill at the end of the rolling animation. In the final release, movement speed became more fluid.
  • Donkey's kick is significantly slower, and doesn't go as far.
  • During an aerial attack, DK's arms are angled further down.
  • Jumping within a certain window of time without inputting any direction on the stick will preserve the roll speed and allow you to cover large distances in a short amount of time. This mechanic was removed before the final release.
  • While shooting in third-person, Donkey has his Coconut Gun further up so that his eye meets the barrel of the gun.
  • The slapping animation is sped up.
  • His shockwave shakes the camera more in the kiosk demo.
  • His "Super Simian Slam" and "Super Duper Simian Slam" animations are different, with his hands and head being slammed to the ground.
  • His Tag/Bonus Barrel exit animation is also used when jumping out of a DK Barrel.
  • His animation for idling in a shop is much longer than in the final version.
  • His talking animation while talking to a shop NPC slightly resembles the Tag Barrel animation in the final.

Diddy Kong

  • Diddy's "Chimpy Charge" move has a more cartoon-like sound effect attached to it.
  • Diddy has a different animation for his stationary tail attack.
  • Diddy's Aerial attack has a different animation and is much shorter in length.
  • Diddy's shockwave shakes the camera more in the prototype compared to the final releases.
  • Diddy's "Super Duper Simian Slam" animation is slightly different, since he jumps automatically after slamming.
  • Diddy's skid animations are different.
  • Rocketbarrel Diddy works a bit differently: Instead of holding his arms out in front of him, they move freely at his sides, swaying with movement direction. By default the guns do not appear with the jetpack; jumping into a Diddy Barrel with them out will make them appear, but this does not affect the arm position. Pressing B while flying will make peanuts shoot from his hands regardless of whether he has the guns out.

Lanky Kong

  • Lanky has an unusual sound effect attached to his moving ground attack.
  • Lanky also has an additional animation upon landing from a long jump which has some similarities to a backflip.
  • Grabbing up from a ledge will produce a small "wiggle" animation before Lanky lands. The sound effect for this animation is also slightly earlier than what it should be.
  • Lanky's aerial attack is slightly faster.
  • Lanky's shockwave shakes the camera more.
  • Lanky's "Super Simian Slam" and "Super Duper Simian Slam" animations are different. His "Super Duper Simian Slam" animation is significantly longer.

Tiny Kong

  • Like Donkey's rolling animation, Tiny's speed comes to a standstill at the end of her kickslide animation.
  • Her "Super Duper Simian Slam" animation is significantly longer.
  • She has an extra pose for idling in a shop that isn't in the final game.
  • Her "minigame failure" animation contains significantly more T-Posing ponytails.
  • Her spinning during the Pony Tail Twirl abruptly comes to a stop after a certain number of rotations. In the final game, Tiny will keep rotating at a minimum speed until she reaches the ground.

Chunky Kong

  • Chunky's regular punch animation is different.
  • Chunky's body proportions change signicantly during a Primate Punch.
  • Lacks his butterfly idle animation.

Rambi

  • Rambi's charging animation is faster and longer than in the final. Due to the increase in speed, he can easily clip through walls.

Audio Differences

Hmmm...
To do:
A bunch more. Refer to the Notes page for the rest.

Several sound effects were rearranged, and others were outright replaced. For differences pertaining to specific areas, see the Level Differences subpages.

Proto
Final
  • The piccolo in the last section of Troff 'n' Scoff's theme is an octave lower than in the final version.
  • The music in general is louder and has more of an echo to it. Evidently the audio engine had been tweaked a bit between versions.
Proto
Final

The voice saying "Oh, banana!" is higher-pitched.

Proto
Final

The sound Tiny makes when emerging from a Tiny Barrel is lower-pitched than in the final version, making it clearer that she's saying her own name.

Proto
Final

Rambi's roar is less energetic.

Proto
Final

Like Tiny, he originally said his own name when emerging from a Rambi Crate. The final game replaced this with a generic animal roar and made it part of the BGM.

Proto Final

The crowd noises are all stock audio. They were replaced with custom voice clips for the final version.

Early Proto/Final

In early footage, Donkey and Diddy's weapons resembled actual firearms, complete with realistic gunshot sounds. While the design change had already been made by the time this demo came out, the old sound effects are still present, albeit unused.

Proto
Final

While the Donkey Kong arcade game itself isn't present in this version, its sound effects are, and they're higher-quality than the final's (11025 Hz as opposed to 3897 Hz). Only this one has been uploaded, as an example.

Proto Final

Scoff's burp is less of a belch.

Proto Final

Lanky doesn't make any noise while Orangstanding in this build, but unused sound clips indicate he used to sound quite a bit more obnoxious. Strangely, this differs from what's heard in prerelease footage as well.

Proto
Final

The crying sound used for Tiny and other female characters is longer and more echo-y.

Proto Final

Most of Donkey's voice clips were pitched down in the final game. Only two have been uploaded, as an example.

Unused Audio

Hmmm...
To do:
Again, check the Notes page.

Bonus Game Announcer

Audio Subtitle
Hit as many targets as you can!
Oh, bad luck!

Text versions of these lines also exist in the game's early script.

Other

Audio Description
An unknown voice saying "Yeah."