I’ve always loved secret levels in games.  Even if I’ve played through them countless times, knowing they aren’t a part of the main game just makes them feel special, and I like that.  When I cover secrets in games, however, I typically write about secrets that aren’t as well known, such as the 1000th Yellow Lum in Rayman 2 or the flying slot machine in Star Fox.  It exists.  I swear.  Today’s secret, well, I must admit, this one’s not really that secret.  In fact, it’s a bit obvious to be a secret, and that’s why I didn’t include this in my usual Overlooked series of posts.  You could only overlook this secret if you were doing so on purpose, and in order to purposely avoid something, you must know it exists, so, well…

Ahem, I found this to be a particularly fitting time to write a post about the “secret” Lost World of DKC2, since, as of writing this, I was planning on recording the game in the near future, and this level will most certainly be included.  The Lost World is better characterized as a bonus level rather than a secret, and it can be pretty tough to complete.  There are five stages, not including the true final boss, and each level can be reached by giving Klubba 15 Kremkoins.  These can be obtained from mini-games and defeating bosses (or you can always just do the 75 Kremkoin cheat, which is a true secret), and let me tell you, it is no easy feat obtaining all of them the hard way.

Not only is reaching these levels difficult, but the levels themselves are tough, as well, including the infamous Animal Antics, which might possibly be one of the toughest levels in the original DKC trilogy, mainly due to one section involving Squawks traversing brambles while the wind changes direction.  I do not look forward to recording this level.

Anyway, I guess I must admit that the Lost World is really not anything all that awe-inspiring.  Sure, it’s tough, but so are plenty of non-secret levels, and this is a 20-year old game, meaning if you had wanted to reach this place, you probably would have by now.  What I always found interesting about this world, however, was the fact that I felt it added something a bit deeper to the game.  Maybe I’m just weird, but the DKC series has always been really special to me, and I always imagined there was more to the series than just apes riding around on rhinos in a quest to get back…bananas.  (Just pick more bananas, DK, you live in a jungle!  Plus, hording your food in a cave just can’t be healthy.)

Okay, maybe there really isn’t much to this series besides goofy, silly fun.  Or is there?  You see, once you beat the main game and finish the five levels in the Lost World, you get to fight the true final boss fight against Kaptain K. Rool in Krocodile Kore, a mysterious room with a strange energy force.  Once you defeat the dastardly Kremling once and for all (in this game, anyhow), he falls into this strange beam of energy.  Afterwards, DK, Diddy, and Dixie watch Krocodile Isle destroyed by this very same energy force before it sinks into the ocean.  (How they managed to flee and reach their own island in time, I have no idea.)

Video by Youtube User: MysticGamer

I always found this mysterious energy force to be strangely fascinating.  A site I used to check out quite often was DK Jungle Vine, who created an entire timeline for the series that called this mysterious energy the Kremling Life Force from whence all Kremlings came.  Of course, this is all speculation, and I have no idea what Rareware themselves intended for the meaning behind Krocodile Kore to be.  All I know is that it was one thing in the games that was never truly explained.  What was this energy force?  Was it responsible for the creation of Krocodile Isle and perhaps even the creation of an entire race of sentient, bipedal crocs?  Why was Klubba willing to let the Kongs reach such an important place (after proper payment, but still) when it could mean the end of their island?  Why, dear readers?  Why?

Again, I know DKC is just a series of platformers starring a bunch of apes…and a monkey, in Diddy’s case.  I have just always been the type to enjoy theorizing and making a big deal out of even the silliest games, if they’re close enough to my heart.  The Lost World just felt…meaningful, and for someone who adores the old DKC games so much, I really enjoyed playing through a level that made the events in the game feel more important than they originally appeared on the surface.  Maybe I’m just a nut like that.  I probably am….

The Lost Duck…I’m Not Sure Where I Am…