Timber's Island
| Timber's Island | |
|---|---|
 Full map in Diddy Kong Racing DS | |
| First appearance | Diddy Kong Racing (1997) |
| Latest appearance | Diddy Kong Racing DS (2007) |
| Ruler | The Tigers |
| Inhabitants | Taj |
Timber's Island[1][2] is a location in Diddy Kong Racing and Diddy Kong Racing DS. It is both the hub area and the main setting. The island is governed and owned by Timber's parents,[3] and it has a magical protector named Taj. Timber's Island hosts many environments, including a prehistoric valley, a beach, an arctic area, and a medieval village. Each area has a path connecting to the central area of the island. The central area has a head of Wizpig sculpted out of rock. When the player collects all pieces of the Wizpig amulet, the player can go into the opened mouth of the head, where the first race against Wizpig takes place. There are four zones on Timber's Island, each hosting four racetracks and a boss whom the player can race after clearing every racetrack in a zone. The zones are as follows:
- Dino Domain – a prehistoric area with dinosaurs and a wild volcano course
- Snowflake Mountain – a snow-covered area with mountains and snowy villages
- Sherbet Island – an aquatic-themed area based on a smaller island near Timber's Island
- Dragon Forest – a medieval-themed town and adjacent forest
- Future Fun Land – an area that is not a part of the island; the player can access the area after a rocketship disguised as a lighthouse blasts off
In both games' backstory, Timber's parents leave for a vacation to Kong Country and leave him temporarily in charge. During Timber's brief rule over the island, Wizpig attempts to conquer it. During gameplay, the racers try to stop Wizpig from taking complete control over the island.
In the Nintendo DS remake, Timber's Island includes more trees and bushes, Taj's tent, and a small beach near where the northern waterfall flows down. Nearby is a carved picture of a balloon on the stone wall. A set of sliding fenced slopes is added in the entrance to Snowflake Mountain where a frozen Golden Balloon sits on the top. The starting line has been changed from solid red to checkered red and yellow. The entrance to Dragon Forest has a secret path that leads to the beach where the Trophy Race billboard stands. There is also a cave that leads to the secret door with a carved face of Wizpig on it.
Gallery
Screenshot from Diddy Kong Racing
Screenshot from Diddy Kong Racing DS
Trivia
- Timber's Island would have been as the location to Diddy Kong Racing Adventure, which was a rejected video game pitch idea.
References
- ^ Swan, Leslie (1997). Diddy Kong Racing Nintendo Player's Guide. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 22.
- ^ Timber's Island Tour. Nintendo of America (American English). Archived December 14, 2001, 04:16:30 UTC from the original via Wayback Machine. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
- ^ "TIMBER Timber’s family used to rule the island before the Wizpig began hogging all the race tracks. He’s determined to bring the big pig to justice. He’s well equipped to do it, too, with very solid handling. His acceleration, top speed and weight are all in the middle range." – December 1997. Nintendo Power Volume 103. Nintendo of America (American English). Page 14.
