Donkey Kong Barrel Blast: All Grand Prix Cups - Expert Difficulty

Playlist here:

Enjoy! To be honest, I was NOT planning at all to cover this game. I only did it due to circumstances in which this game's soundtrack crossed paths with a side hobby of mine I was catching up on around the summer of 2025 and I thought why not get a little weird and do some videos on the game.

While I have nostalgia from playing the game back when it came out, I am well aware of the infamous reputation it has. It was a racing game meant to use the DK Bongo controls on the Gamecube. Production then moved over into the Wii where motion controls were implemented instead. This results in the controls being rather unintuitive to learn, spotty in execution, and painful to use for long periods of time. Aside from the controls, you're also on rails with no off road areas to get into, making all of the maneuvering be put all into running into items and smashable objects while avoiding harmful obstacles.

It's a shame this game got its controls butchered hard as there could've been a half decent racer with lots of classic DK Country representation at a time when Rare was no longer with Nintendo to helm the series. The true replacement to the canceled Donkey Kong Racing if you will, but alas.

That said, here we are with this video. While I did a video on Candy's challenges, I wasn't fully satisfied with my overall coverage of this game. One, not every track in the game got represented in that mode. Two, the game's expert speed (basically like 150cc in Mario Kart) does give the races that sense of exhilaration the rest of the game severely lacks. Finally, I just wanted to use some other characters besides DK for these, one of those characters apparently had his finest hour earlier this year. I wonder what for? Of now some other "oh so important questions" should be answered with this game. Those being ever wanted to see a girl Kremling with an afro? More importantly, ever wondered why Funky Kong sounds the way he does in Mario Kart? Well here you go!

Timestamps for this video.

00:00 Opening timestamp

Topaz Cup
00:40 DK Jungle
02:35 Salty Sea
04:47 Mt. Dynamite

Sapphire Cup
08:08 Scorching Canyon
10:47 DK Jungle Falls
13:20 Shimmering Sea
15:46 Mammoth Glacier

Diamond Cup
18:46 Open Ocean
21:30 Mt. Dynamite Remix
25:11 Parched Palace
28:35 Cranky's Temple

Platinum Cup
31:51 Dynamite Run
35:33 DK Jungle Sunset
37:58 Alpine Peak
41:17 Temple Heights
44:30 Cosmic Highway

48:16 Staff Credits Minigame