Donkey Kong Country Returns

25M

Near the start of the stage, you can see a construction site in the background laid out exactly like the 25M stage from the arcade Donkey Kong.

Mr. Game & Watch

Around halfway through the stage, you see Mr. Game & Watch, the representative of the Game & Watch systems. He is hammering on a pipe in a simple 2-frame animation.

Crocomire Skull

You can see a crane in the background, lifting a large object filled with holes. The shape of this object is exactly the same shape as the skull of Crocomire, one of the bosses from Super Metroid.

Donkey Kong Arcade Temple

Near the beginning of the Wonky Waterway stage, the entrance to the temple is blocked by huge stone blocks sporting the face of Donkey Kong from the Donkey Kong arcade game.

Donkey Kong Jr. Math Statue

Towards the end of the level, in the background you can see a giant 8-bit style statue of Donkey Kong holding up a Wii remote. While the sprite has been modified with a hair curl and a red tie, this sprite is originally from Donkey Kong Jr. Math.

If Donkey Kong is standing on flat ground and you don't touch the controls for a while, he sits down and pulls out a white Nintendo DS Lite and plays with it for a few seconds.

Stage 1-2 is named King of Cling, which is a reference to the title of DK: King of Swing (GBA).

The final stage in the game, the Golden Temple, is only unlocked after you collect all the KONG Letters and the Orbs from the temple stages in each world.

The music in the stage is a remix of all of the music from the Donkey Kong Jr. arcade game.

At the very beginning of Stage 3-2: Button Mash, head to the right and jump into the first Barrel Cannon. The giant stone monkey on the right is wearing a tie featuring the stars and stripes of the American flag.

This is the iconic tie worn by Billy Mitchell, the world record holder for the Donkey Kong arcade game.

When you collect the Diorama for the Factory world, it is laid out similarly to the 25M stage in the arcade Donkey Kong. Donkey Kong stands at the top, preparing to throw a barrel, while other barrels are rolling down the girders.

Virtual Boy Minecart Stage

Concept art shows a Minecart stage set in a red and black level inspired by the Virtual Boy.

Virtual Boy Super Mario Bros. 2 Stage

Another black and red Virtual Boy stage appears to have been inspired by Super Mario Bros. 2.

Factory Hardware Stage

One piece of concept art shows a huge structure made out of pipes and bits of machinery. Look closely, and you can make out buttons and controller ports from a variety of Nintendo hardware, including the NES and SNES.

Kraid

One piece of concept art shows a rocky structure that appears to be in the shape of Kraid, the giant reptilian boss from Super Metroid.