All the previews I've read state that DKCR contains elements of the original game. I hope this means the original series as a whole, because as a hardcore DKC fan, even I will admit that the first game was generic: cut-and-dry platforming that offered no innovation for the genre at the time, arbitrary secrets that required players to hop in pits in the hope that a secret was hidden at the bottom or throw barrels against every wall on the off chance a cave would open.

DKC2, however, is one of the best platformers ever made (aside from Diddy being useless due to Dixie's uber-useful hover technique). Each world had a theme that carried over into unique gameplay; the platforming was tighter and the animals more useful; and the secrets did not feel as randomly placed. If DKCR is to emulate any of the classic entries in the series, it should be 2. DKC3 was also excellent, but it went on a little too long. DKC2 was the apex of the series.