KONG Letters
The K-O-N-G Letters are items in the Donkey Kong Country series, Donkey Kong Land series, and in DK: Jungle Climber. As stated in the manual: "Find all four letters on a single level to receive an extra life." As their name states, the letters are the gold-lined, gold-lettered K, O, N and G letters found on each level of the games. Some are out in the open, and some are hidden throughout the stage or in Bonus Areas.
If a Kong manages to collect the entire word KONG on any stage, they will get an extra life for their troubles. A good rule of thumb for one to remember is that a Kong comes across the letters in order. In other words, if a Kong comes across the O, but doesn't have the K, it means he or she has passed it. A collector Kong should keep that in mind as they go to collect these items.
In Donkey Kong Land, K-O-N-G Letters play a completely different role. They must be collected to save game progress. If the heroes are to miss one letter, they will be unable to save their progress. Because of this, they are very important. The level "Kong Krazy" in the game has multiple sets of K-O-N-G Letters in it; in this level the K-O-N-G Letters can be used as platforms and bridges.
Their role was changed once again in Donkey Kong Country Returns. In that game, collecting all K-O-N-G Letters in one world unlocks a hidden temple stage, which contains one of the magical orbs that are required to enter the Golden Temple. Interestingly, while playing the game in Mirror Mode, the letters on the K-O-N-G Letters are flipped as they would appear in a mirror. In this game, K-O-N-G Letters were redesigned and changed from gold to orange and the text were changed yellow too.
