summary
-
Nintendo removed individual developers from Retro Studios' Donkey Kong Country Returns HD credits.
-
Nintendo's history of condensing credits on remastered games has been criticized by developers in the past.
The imminent release of Donkey Kong Country Returns HD The original developer of the game at Retro Studios has confirmed that the full credits of the remastered version have been removed. Set for release on January 16, 2025, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Nintendo presents a remastered version of the 2010 Wii platformer for Switch owners.
Thanks to its portability and Nintendo's large library of classic titles, the Nintendo Switch is a strong contender as one of the best contemporary retro game platforms. Nintendo itself has also embraced the trend of remastering and remaking beloved classics by adding new content and graphical flourishes to fans and newcomers alike. Recent years have seen things like improved remakes Super Mario RPG And like remasters of classic series Advance Wars. Narrative games such as Famicom Spy Club The titles have seen a renaissance on the Switch.

related to
Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a missed opportunity to revive the fun Tropical Freeze mod
Although Donkey Kong Country Returns HD will be its definitive version, it misses the chance to bring back the beloved Tropical Freeze feature.
That includes slate Donkey Kong Country series. with Donkey Kong Country Returns HD As the release date nears, news outlets with pre-release access have confirmed that Nintendo has removed Retro Studios staff from full credits to the developers of the 2010 Wii original. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. As reported by Nintendo Life , the credits screen only offers credits for the employees of developer Forever Entertainment, who ported and enhanced the original game for the Switch, including the 3DS version content. Instead of surfacing the full credits for Retro Studios, the credit screen shows a line saying that the remastered game is “based on the work of the original development staff.”
Nintendo Removes Retro Studios From Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Credits
The decision to shrink credit Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Similar to Nintendo's treatment of other Switch-based re-releases. In 2023, developer Zoid Kirsch, a programmer and senior gameplay engineer at Retro Studios, released the first two Metroid Prime Nintendo was criticized for excluding full original credits from the games Metroid Prime Remastered On the switch. At the time, he said he felt “disappointed” that Nintendo chose to delete the names of members who did not work at Retro Studios during the development of the remaster. Fellow developers said it was “bad practice” to exclude the original teams from the credits of remasters and remakes.
Credit is a hot topic in the game industry due to the importance of credit in building the careers of game developers. Even in the realm of remastered titles, crediting the original developers also serves as a gesture of appreciation, recognizing the efforts of the teams who put their years of time into beloved titles. Nintendo has also been accused of not crediting translators, or of saddling translators and translation partners with restrictive non-disclosure agreements that prevent them from saying they worked on the main series. The Legend of Zelda. With a growing number of developers and fans publicly calling out unfair credit practices in the industry, the time may come when publishers, Nintendo included, will have to change their ways.