- Diddy can still hover with his jetpack
- Dixie's hair spin allows you to gain a little bit of altitude
- Diddy can use his jetpack underwater for a burst of speed
- Dixie uses her hair underwater as a propeller
- Cranky swings his cane underwater to take out enemies
- Rambi is the only animal buddy to appear in the game
- navigate platforms spinning on windmills in Windmill Hill
- Grassland Grove has dancing trees you have to jump around/on
- Twilight Terror has you dodging fishing nets and giant sharks while riding a rocket barrel
- on average, levels take about 4 minutes each
- Irate Eight has you being chased by a giant octopus that destroys the scenery as you progress
- he'll grab at you with his arms and even attack with ink squirts
- Sawmill Thrill takes you through a sawmill where live saws carve out a path for your minecart
- this level transitions to a log-flume level before changing back to a minecart portion where a giant saw blade chases you
- Frantic Field has you dealing with tornadoes that toss you all over the place
- eventually you'll enter a big tornado and have to travel via lad masses ripped from the ground, now floating in the air
- Funky Kong mans the Fly and Buy item shop for items, one-ups and more
- you can also use the Capsule Toy Machine to get collectible in-game figurines of enemies and characters you've come across
- you can then view these figurines as 3D models
- some levels feature alternate exists that take you to secret levels
- time attack records your best time and the character you played as for the online leaderboard
- you can also upload videos of your best runs for others to see
- hard mode included, but it will differ from hard mode in the last game
- levels and set-pieces encountered in the first 4 worlds include mangrove forests, alpine highlands, african savannahs, and deep seas
- secrets include puzzle pieces, collectible letters, bonus rooms, concealed coins, alternate exits, and scores of bananas
- hidden in the game is a rendering of Samus Aran’s Gunship
- one silhouette stage will temporarily hide your view of Donkey Kong due to foliage in the foreground
- at one point in this stage, you can line up the foliage to form a star shape, which rewards you with a bonus
- music includes Lion King-inspired choral songs over the savannah to Teutonic horns integrated into the Germanic Autumn Heights area
- zipline stages are similar in mechanics to minecart stages
- one boss battle includes a giant anthropomorphic viking seal sliding on his belly
- another boss battle has you taking on a sorcerous owl
- the owl has seven unique attacks, which he'll dish out over three arenas