#47: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong's Quest

Its near the top of the 2D platformer charts.  If you ignore the Mario games, this franchise would be at the top.  Did you own a Super Nintendo?  Then there was a good chance that you owned this game.

Why was it great?  It seemed to have one of the best blends of noobie-friendly/hardcore-challenging gameplay in its generation.  The game was a difficult yet surmountable achievement for inexperienced gamers.  But, if you were a dedicated gamer, then you could shoot for the elusive +100% mark.  There was some controller throwing, but when you were done... you got to go bananas!  (I promise that will be the only monkey related pun on this list.)

The game seems to be remembered most for 2 things.

• Dixie's helicopter spinning which added an important variety to the jumping mechanics.
• The barrel to barrel shooting sections where split second timing was the only input.

Both quirks elevated the game from its predecessor and competitors.