Timber's Balloon Pop
Diddy Kong Racing DS -- Timber's Balloon Pop was an online Flash-powered game released by Nintendo to promote Diddy Kong Racing DS. Although not available to play from any official source at present, it was listed along with other Nintendo-related web games in the Nintendo Arcade[1], a defunct section of nintendo.com now accessible via digital archives.
The player takes control of Timber, with Diddy Kong himself only making a cameo in the introductory screen. A mugshot of Wizpig is used as the game's icon in the Nintendo Arcade, though he is not present in the game.
Gameplay
The main character has to pilot a plane between an endless series of hazards, consisting of bubbles moving across the screen. The player can navigate the plane in any direction using the mouse. A score takes into account the distance flown, increasing regularly with 10 points as the player advances. Along the way, Timber can collect a variety of items, the most common being red balloons that add 200 points to the score upon being collected. Blue balloons, numbered from 1 to 4, also appear frequently; popping four in this order grants Timber a burst of invincibility, allowing him to pass bubbles without getting harmed. There is no penalty for collecting blue balloons in the wrong order, though they are not worth any points. Less common items are keys, which turn all bubbles on-screen into red balloons, and Silver Coins, which make bubbles disappear.
Bubbles differ slightly in size and gradually come in larger numbers, making the game increasingly difficult. Touching a bubble results in a loss and will redirect the player to a screen which shows both the score of the current game and the highest score achieved. On the same screen, the player can select to replay the game.
The music that plays throughout the game is the soundtrack of Hot Top Volcano.
Gallery
Introductory screen, featuring Diddy Kong
The first screen of instructions
The second screen of instructions
Preparing to begin the game
While invincible, Timber glows yellow and can safely pass bubbles
A screenshot encompassing all elements in the game
The end of the game
