Bombs Away (level)

Bombs Away is the twenty-fifth level in Donkey Kong Country Returns, as well as the third area in the Cave world.

The level takes place in a cave, where Donkey and Diddy Kong must ride in a minecart to progress. Unlike the previous minecart level, Grip & Trip, the Kongs jump with the minecart, instead of jumping out of it. Therefore, they must stay in the same cart for the whole level. This level features a great amount of crystals that stick out of the top of the cave. They are not too high from the track, so the primates must make sure that they do not jump too high, or else they will hit into them and lose an Extra Life Balloon. Sometimes, the sharp crystals are very low, so the Kongs have to duck into the cart to avoid hitting into them. In some parts of the stage, the crystals even move down towards the heroes as they ride. However, the main obstacle in this level is the mole that rides in the foreground in front of the Kongs. This foe throws bombs on their side of the track, causing it to break and make more gaps. The mole also throws bombs at the ceiling, which causes crystals to fall and break the track as well. It can also send a giant bomb toward the track that breaks a great part of it. Near the end, a ring will break apart from the track and the Kongs will have to ride inside it.

In the Time Attack mode of the game, a time of 1:45:00 is needed to get a gold medal, a time of 1:49:00 for silver, and a time of 1:52:00 for bronze.

Overview
The level begins on a flat pathway. Nine Banana Bunches are to the left of here, while a raised, wooden platform is to the right. The Kongs can jump from this platform to reach a minecart stationary on the track. When they enter it, the cart begins to move forward along the rails, leading them down a hill with a banana trail above it. There are two gaps in the track ahead, with the letter K of the K-O-N-G Letters above the second one, which is about twice the size as the first. As the primates begin to ride under a high ceiling covered in crystals, they come up to another gap. Shortly after they cross this gap, they come up to a low ceiling of crystals that they must crouch under as the minecart pulls them ahead. Another gap is located immediately at the end of the crystal-covered ceiling. While they ride on the track after this gap, they find a mole enemy in a minecart riding towards them that they must avoid. They can also bounce on this foe to reach a higher set of tracks with bananas on them. A platform with a Puzzle Piece is after a gap in the higher track. An additional pit is placed at the end of the low and high track here. There is a smaller gap ahead, and it is under a low ceiling of crystals. They must make a small jump to avoid jumping into the hazards. After they cross another gap nearby, they ride down a steel hill under more crystals and then approach an abyss again.

The area following this abyss features a straight track with a few small walls on it that can be jumped over. However, as the heroes travel through this area, the crystals located above slowly lower, forcing them to make smaller jumps. An area of crystals falls slightly above the track after the final wall here. A gap and the letter O are on the other side of the crystals. An additional pit is ahead, and under the track on the other side of it is a lower track with a Puzzle Piece on it. A small hill and two more gaps follow this, with some collectibles, including a Banana Coin, above the second one. Once the duo lands onto the section of the track after this gap, a track closer to the foreground appears with a mole enemy riding on it. It throws a few bombs at the Kongs' track, putting two gaps ahead of them. When they cross this gap and then pass another mole enemy riding towards them, the mole in the foreground throws even more bombs. The bombs cause crystals to fall, which then smash into the track, breaking it and creating gaps for Donkey and Diddy to cross. A low ceiling of crystals that the Kongs must crouch under follows. A smaller ceiling of crystals is also ahead, with a gap right after it. There is then another gap after a third low ceiling of crystals. When the heroes cross this gap, they make their way onto a straight track that leads past the Tutorial Pig and the checkpoint.