Animal Friends
Animal Friends, also known as The Good Guys,[1] Animal Buddies,[2] or First Class Friends,[3] is a term relating to friendly creatures that aid Donkey Kong and his friends and family on their various adventures. Animal Friends help the Kongs by defeating enemies, finding items, and reaching Bonus Levels. Animal Friends first appeared in the game Donkey Kong Country and have appeared in most subsequent Donkey Kong franchise games. There is also a separate yet similar group of allies known as Jungle Buddies.[4]
When an Animal Friend is injured by an enemy or obstacle, it runs away, just like Yoshis in the Super Mario series. The Animal Friend continues in a single direction usually until hitting into a wall, where they change direction. The Kongs can continue riding the Animal Buddy when they jump back on it. None of the Animal Friends have the ability to use ropes.
In Donkey Kong Country, the Kongs can jump onto an animal crate to free the pictured Animal Friend and ride it. Animal crates also appear in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, which also introduces Animal Barrels, which Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong can enter to transform into the depicted Animal Friend. The game also introduces the No Animal Sign, a signpost that the Animal Friend cannot pass. Whenever an Animal Friend travels across one, they disappear, and an item, such as an Extra Life Balloon, appears in their place. When the Kongs cross a No Animal Sign as an Animal Friend, they transform back into themselves.
List of Animal Friends
| Image | Name | Description | Game appearance(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Rambi | Rambi is a rhinoceros who has the most appearances out of all the Animal Friends. It uses its horn to attack enemies and break open walls. | Donkey Kong Country (1994) Donkey Kong Land (1995) Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) Donkey Kong 64 (1999) Donkey Kong Barrel Blast (2007) Donkey Kong Country Returns (2010) Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014) |
|
Expresso | An ostrich who can glide across wide gaps. It has tall legs that short enemies, such as Klaptraps, walk right through. | Donkey Kong Country (1994) Donkey Kong Land (1995) Donkey Kong Country 2 (Game Boy Advance) (2004) |
|
Enguarde | Enguarde is a blue swordfish who often appears in aquatic levels to assist the Kongs. | Donkey Kong Country (1994) Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) Donkey Kong Land III Donkey Kong 64 (1999) Donkey Kong Barrel Blast (2007) |
|
Winky | Winky is a frog who is capable of bouncing high, allowing Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong to reach higher areas. | Donkey Kong Country (1994) |
|
Squawks | Squawks is a green parrot whose role has varied throughout the Donkey Kong Country series. In Donkey Kong Country, it carries a flashlight to light the path forward in the level Torchlight Trouble. In Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (as well as their respective counterparts, Donkey Kong Land 2 and Donkey Kong Land III), Squawks can fly the Kongs through the level, usually only segments. In Donkey Kong Country Returns and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Squawks helps the Kongs find Puzzle Pieces. | Donkey Kong Country (1994) Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) Donkey Kong Land III (1997) Donkey Kong 64 (1999) Donkey Kong Barrel Blast (2007) Donkey Kong Country Returns (2010) Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014) |
|
Rattly | Rattly is a green rattlesnake who, like Winky, has a high jumping ability, so Rattly is essentially a replacement for Winky in its appearances. | Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) |
|
Squitter | A large, orange spider who has the ability to create webs, either as platforms or to attack enemies. | Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) Donkey Kong Land III (1997) |
|
Glimmer | An angler fish who only appears in one level, Glimmer's Galleon, to light the path ahead for Diddy and Dixie. Its role is much like that of Squawks's in Donkey Kong Country albeit underwater. | Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) |
|
Clapper | These seals are always found next to a body of water. Whenever Diddy or Dixie jumps on a Clapper, it exhales cold air which cools (or freezes) the water. | Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) |
|
Quawks | A purple relative of Squawks with a similar behavior and appearance, but has one characteristic in which it is disadvantaged; in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Donkey Kong Land 2, it cannot fly upward, and in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! it cannot pick up barrels. | Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (1995) Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996) Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) |
|
Ellie | An elephant who can store a supply of water in her trunk and shoot bursts of them to attack enemies. Ellie can also use her trunk to carry barrels. | Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) Donkey Kong Land III (1997) |
|
Parry | A small bird who flies to the side of Dixie and Kiddy, similar to Squawks in Donkey Kong Country. If the Kongs take Parry past a No Animal Sign, it often yields a valuable reward, sometimes even a Bonus Barrel. | Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996) |
|
Lightfish | A tadpole-like fish who illuminates the darker areas of Gloomy Galleon for the Kongs. It is very similar to Glimmer from Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. | Donkey Kong 64 (1999) |
|
Helper Monkey | They are small, gray monkeys who hide in bushes and assist Donkey Kong by carrying him from one bush to the next. At the end of each level, they help by counting how many bananas Donkey Kong has obtained. | Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) |
|
Hoofer | A wildebeest whom Donkey Kong can use to quickly ride through areas while defeating enemies and destroying obstacles along the way, much like Rambi in the Donkey Kong Country and Donkey Kong Land series. | Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) |
|
Flurl | A red squirrel whom Donkey Kong can use as a parachute to slowly descend from high areas. | Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) |
|
Orco | A whale whom Donkey Kong can ride in aquatic areas. Orco has the ability to jump out of the water. | Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) |
|
Helibird | They are blue birds who carry Donkey Kong to higher areas. There are two levels that involve Helibirds participating in a race, Chopperbird Race and Helibird Dash. | Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) |
|
Tawks | A red parrot who substitutes for Funky Kong at Funky's Fly 'n' Buy whenever he is journeying with the other Kongs. | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Nintendo Switch) (2018) |
Gallery
Donkey Kong Country Returns animals
Concept of several Animal Friends for Donkey Kong Country
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | アニマルフレンド Animaru Furendo ジャングルブラザーズ Janguru Burazāzu |
Animal Friends Jungle Brothers |
| German | Tierisch Hilfreich |
Helpful Animals |
Trivia
- In Donkey Kong Country Returns, the elephant, zebra, giraffe, and squirrel seen throughout the game are dubbed "Animal Friends" in one of the unlockable concept artworks;[5] however, these animals only have a background role in the game due to being hypnotized into stealing the banana hoard by the Tiki Tak Tribe.
- Donkey Kong Land was originally going to introduce another Animal Friend, a ram named Ram Bunkshus.
References
- ^ Donkey Kong Country cast roll
- ^ Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest cast roll
- ^ Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble cast roll
- ^ Donkey Kong Jungle Beat instruction booklet, page 16.
- ^ "Animal Friends" concept artwork, "Critters 1 Gallery" in the "Extras" section of Donkey Kong Country Returns.
