Kaze and the Wild Masks

A nice classic 2D platformer without any overly complicated gimmicks. This game aims to emulate Donkey Kong Country and does a good job at it. Earning 100% was enjoyable through and through.

I first learned about Kaze and the Wild Masks through one of my favorite YouTubers, ExoParadigmGamer, specifically in a podcast called Unversed Cast. When I heard that this game was an indie 2D platformer basically copying the original Donkey Kong Country SNES trilogy’s mechanics wholesale while making its own levels with them, it immediately got me interested. I’d say that, for the most part, Kaze definitely feels like a Donkey Kong Country 4 in a sense. The main character basically has Dixie Kong’s moveset, but it feels smoother, and since she’s the only playable character with a maximum of two health points, the level design is built around her glide, roll, and even stomp moves being unique to Kaze. I also like their attempt at recreating animal buddies through the mask system. The masks are very clearly inspired by different animal helpers from DKC, including Squawks and even the auto-run Ellie the elephant segments from Donkey Kong Country 3. Unlike the DKC games, where the level design sometimes couldn’t decide whether animal buddies should be optional or required, Kaze goes all in and outright forces the mask system into some levels so they can be designed entirely around it. For the most part, I like Kaze’s level design. Even the earlier, easier levels feel fluid and fun to mess around in, and a lot of the later levels can be legitimately challenging. It’s definitely the first time in a while that a platformer has really challenged me (in a fair way, without any "Soulslike" BS). I definitely banged my fist in frustration when I was playing badly, though occasionally the level design felt a little too annoyingly cheap. The art direction is fitting for an indie game. I thought the character/enemy designs were kind of forgettable, if I’m being honest though. Similarly, while the background music was perfectly serviceable, it was nowhere near as memorable as the original Donkey Kong Country games. I guess I shouldn’t set my expectations too high, since David Wise and Eveline Fischer are some of the best composers in the genre. Still, not being able to hum or remember a single tune from this game is not a great sign to me. Overall, Kaze and the Wild Masks was definitely a very fun game. It felt nice to have a real Donkey Kong Country-style platformer again, since Donkey Kong Country Returns and Tropical Freeze kind of did their own thing mechanically. I do think the lack of memorable art and music keeps it from being a truly great game overall, but it’s definitely one of my favorite indie games now. It’s a shame the developer hasn’t made anything since.

Comparable to DKC, but different enough to feel original

its like a remastered edition of a 90s game and thats great

Великолепный платформер! Любители спидранов и ностальгии по Tiny Toon с NES будут в восторге. Ребёнок вообще без ума от этой игры и Шайка - Бака любимый босс:) В общем зачистил на 100% без урона и заспидранил за два часа для ачивки. Блестящая игра, рекомендую!)

Excellent game. Beautiful 2D graphics and animations, really nice soundtrack and an very old-school platforming gameplay that reminds a lot of Donkey Kong from the SNES. The level of challenge is great, same as the good old times. The game is absolutely worth it for the price; there is a lot of quality and care in the level designs. It is a simple game where you basically just jump and sometimes perform some other skill, but requires precise timing and controls while also learning the level design and enemy patterns through trial and error. It takes a different approach than a traditional platformer in a sense where in this game memorizing the enemy placement patterns and timings are more necessary than doing actual controlling and platforming yourself; it is made in a way that almost every single jump and enemy placement is made to kill you if you just keep moving forward and there is not much room to adjust after you commit to a jump. I'd say think more similarly to an auto-scroller philosophy where you must platform in a defined way at the game's pace and not your way and pace, which by the way there are lots of auto-scrolling styled levels. Being made by a Brazilian studio is also very interesting and worth supporting the local community. It took me about 3.5 hours to beat the game with the normal ending on the challenge difficulty. It is necessary to do side objectives in order to unlock 2 more maps for the true ending, which should add more to the game time if you're up for the challenge. I particularly did not find the side objectives interesting or worth doing as they do not give you any kind of actual rewards other than the "completionism" aspect. Game is great; I recommend it, and it gets really cheap on sale. A must-have if you enjoy 2D platformers.

Wanted to like this as it's a dkc clone but its way too difficult. It's about memorizing dozens of things that can kill you instead of good platforming. Too many auto scrolling levels that give you an incredibly small window before instant death. And I'm playing this game on casual- yeah right it's anything but. Play Marsuplami instead it's WAY better.

Kaze and the Wild Masks é um jogo de plataforma 2D de aventura, inspirado em clássicos dos anos 90 como Sonic, Donkey Kong Country e Mega Man X. Os movimentos da personagem são muito precisos. O jogo é frenético, tem uma boa dose de desafio e fator replay. O design das fases é muito criativo; as artes dos personagens e da historinha do game é muito bonita. Recomendo!