Hot-Head Hop

Hot-Head Hop (alternately named Hothead Hop in Donkey Kong Land 2) is the sixth level of Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Donkey Kong Land 2. It is the first area of Crocodile Cauldron in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and the first level of Krem Cauldron in Donkey Kong Land 2.

This level takes place inside of a volcano, and the Kongs must use Krocheads as stepping stones in order to cross rivers of lava inside of it. This level also marks Squitter the Spider's first appearance, who proves himself useful by helping Diddy and Dixie Kong reach and complete Bonus Levels and grab the level's DK Coin. The spider also assists them by defeating enemies in their way and creating web platforms to cross pits. Klampons make their debut here as well. Other enemies include Neeks, Klobbers, Zingers and Krunchas.

''Donkey Kong Country 2
From the start of the level, the heroes need to go east, watching out for a Klobber on the way. They must then hop onto the Krocheads in the fire and make their way back to land. After the monkeys beat a few enemies, such as a Klobber, they can hop onto more Krocheads in the fire. The third Krochead bounces the Kongs up to higher land, where there is another Klobber to avoid. Afterwords, they need to jump back onto more Krocheads sticking out of the fire. One-by-one, the monkeys can be flung to each Krochead until a large section of land is reached. Once they Kongs pass the few enemies there, they should hop onto more Krocheads, who bounces the heroes to smaller parts of ground, and then to a large part of land, where a cannon can be seen. Then the group must get onto even more Krocheads, who bounce them to the Star Barrel.

When the monkeys safely reach land from here, they can find Squitter, whom they can ride on. Then they must continue forward, defeating a few Neeks on the way. The group eventually finds a small abyss with the letter N above it. Once this is crossed using the Krochead in the fire, they need to climb up the path, watching out for enemies. There is a short trail of bananas to follow downward. The animals must jump down and collect them, then land on the Krochead and bounce to solid ground. There is a Zinger in the way, so the heroes must be careful. They should then move on, jumping on some red Krocheads on the way to bounce them to the next section of land, while watching out for a Zinger again. Later on, the group should find a large gap. They can choose to enter the barrels nearby and get shot to the other side, or use Squitter's webs to walk across. Either direction, the heroes should end up on solid ground and cross a "No Squitter" sign, which makes Squitter disappear. Finally, the monkeys can bounce off the last Krochead and finish the level.

''Donkey Kong Land 2
The Kongs must begin this level by going forward and jumping across the two Krocheads in the fire. After that, they need to continue up and avoid a few different kinds of enemies, such as a Neek, a Klampon, and a Klobber. The monkeys should eventually reach a part of the level where there is a raised piece of land and two Klampons in their way. They must simply defeat these hazards and move on. There is a Kruncha on the way that the Kongs must also watch out for. Then, the apes must hop onto the Krocheads sticking in the fire. The last Krochead bounces both of the Kongs over a Zinger and back to flat land. The group must move on and fight some enemies, where they should see a box with Squitter in it. Once they ride on top of the spider, they need to break open the Star Barrel.

Halfway through the level, the animals must jump across several Krocheads, who eventually bounce them back to land. Then, the group should keep moving east and watch out for Klampons and other enemies on the way. Once this is done, they have to hop on another Krochead and walk up some steep sections of land. Here, they must avoid some enemies and cross the "No Squitter" sign, making Squitter disappear. Without the spider, the Kongs need to continue on, where they jump on more Krocheads and also avoid a Zinger. Land is reached shortly after, but the monkeys then have to jump back on more Krocheads. When the monkeys are back on solid ground, they must keep going east and jump up all the steep hills, then jump down and get on more Krocheads. Afterwords, the small group must move forward and hop off a spring, leading out of the level.

K-O-N-G Letters

 * K: If the primates break open a treasure chest located at the beginning of the level, they can find the letter K.
 * O: Immediately after the heroes pass the second DK Barrel, they can find a raised piece of land with a Klampon on it. The letter O is above this piece of land.
 * N: The letter N is located above the first pit form Squitter's Animal Crate.
 * G: Near the end of the level, the Kongs can find the letter G high above a Kruncha, who marches near a large pit that can be crossed with some Auto Fire Barrels.

Bonus Levels

 * Immediately after the second DK Barrel in the level, Diddy and Dixie can find a place with two Klampons and a raised piece of land. There are a few treasure chests in this area. If they break open the chest in front of the raised piece of land, a kannonball is revealed that they must carry ahead with them. After they take the kannonball across a few pits with Krocheads and along a few small platforms, one of which that holds a Klampon, they come up to a solid platform with a kannon on it. If they load up the kannon with the kannonball and then walk inside of it, they are blasted into a Bonus Level, where they must jump off of several Krocheads in a pit to collect 60 stars placed high in the air. If all of the stars are obtained within 20 seconds, a Kremkoin appears to grab within the remaining time.
 * Shortly after the letter N, the Kongs should find two bananas placed right next to each other immediately after a pit containing Krocheads. Using the Squitter's web abilities, they must climb up to these bananas with some web platforms to find more bananas in the air. If they make their way towards these bananas, a Bonus Barrel is put into view. It leads to a Bonus Level, where the animals can find bananas in the formation of an arrow pointing straight up. They must follow this arrow by using Squitter's special webs to climb up in that direction. The Kremkoin is at the top of the area for them to grab within 20 seconds.
 * Immediately before Squitter's No Animal Sign, a couple of Klampons can be found with a Bonus Barrel above them. The barrel can be reached either with the primates' Team-up move, or with Squitter's web abilities. The special barrel leads to a Bonus Level, where they must use Squtter's special web-creating ability to cross a pit within the time limit of 20 seconds. If Squitter is not with the Kongs when they first enter the bonus, they can find him at the beginning of the Bonus Level. Once the primates cross the pit, they can find a Kremkoin that they must grab with the remaining time to win the Bonus Level.

DK Coin

 * The level's DK Coin is located directly above Squitter's crate. When the Kongs get the spider, they must use his webs to climb upwards to the coin, which is surrounded by many bananas.

Golden Feather (Game Boy Advance version only)

 * After passing the second set of Knocheads, the Kongs can find a treasure chest on the ground. If they throw it at an enemy, such as the nearby Klobber, it breaks open, revealing a Golden Feather. After they collect it once, the feather is replaced by a Banana Bunch in later playthroughs of the course.

Photograph (Game Boy Advance version only)

 * In the area found shortly after the letter N, the heroes can find a Klobber with a camera icon above its head. If they defeat this foe, they are given a photograph of a Klobber for the first page of their scrapbook.

Bonus Levels

 * Near the beginning of the level, the Kongs can find two Klampons that march under a formation of bananas that form an arrow pointing to the west. They can discover a Bonus Barrel up in that direction, but it is too high to jump up to. They should briefly leave this area and travel ahead to find Squitter, and then come back. The spider's webs can be used to reach the barrel, which leads to a Bonus Level. In the Bonus Level, the group must use Squitter's webs to reach the other side of a wide abyss within 20 seconds. The Kremkoin is on the other side of the stage, and they must grab it within the time limit in order to complete the bonus successfully.
 * Shortly after passing the letter N, the group can discover a kannonball next to a Klampon. They must carry the ball across some Krocheads and up some steep hills to reach a kannon. If they insert the kannonball into the kannon and then walk into the object, it blasts them into a Bonus Level, where they must defeat four Klampons along a curvy path within 20 seconds. If they are all beat within the time limit, a Kremkoin appears at the end of the area to grab with the remaining time.

DK Coin

 * Once the Kongs obtain Squitter, they must use his webs to climb to the right near the top of the area, as directed by a group of bananas that form an arrow. After they pass a Zinger in the air, they come up to the DK Coin.