Jungle Japes

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The big brother of The Lost Woods. Jungle stages are natually more tropical in nature, and often feature vines to swing from Tarzan-style. Ruins of cities and Mesoamerican-style pyramids are common, and any water is likely to contain crocodiles, piranha or both.

Enemies in Jungle Japes often include snakes (often very big ones), monkeys and apes, colorful birds, insects and spiders, the aforementioned crocodiles and piranha, restless and savage natives, and the occasional lion, tiger or other big cat. Most of them are, you guessed it, trying to kill you.

Named after a stage in Donkey Kong 64, which was in turn modeled after a stage from Donkey Kong Country.

Rants about the accuracy of such depictions fall under The Amazon. The Hungry Jungle is an entirely less fun version.

Examples of Jungle Japes include:

• The Angel Island (Sonic 3), Green Forest and White Jungle zones (Sonic Adventure 2) in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. For a change, the second half of the Angel Island zone is on fire.
  • Similarly, Beetle Adventure Racing had Inferno Isle, a tropical Island that, while mostly being Jungle, had a small town, a volcano, a Jurassic Park section that featured a T. Rex lunging out at your car and, of course, a town of huts on fire in the final stretch.
  • Adabat in Sonic Unleashed is part beach, part this trope and part Asian temples.
  • Sonic Heroes has Frog Forest and Lost Jungle, which have mushrooms the size of skyscrapers.
  • Tropical Jungle from |Sonic the Hedgehog (2006).
  • And of course the very first of these, Jungle Zone from Sonic 1 (8-bit).
• Ixa'taka and Horteka village in Skies of Arcadia.
• The first world in Donkey Kong Country (what the DK64 stage was modeled after) is called Kongo Jungle. The Lost World in Donkey Kong Country 2 and 3 also use this environment, as does Kaos Kore in Donkey Kong Country 3 and the first world of Donkey Kong 64.
  • Interestingly, while Donkey Kong Country Returns has its first world specifically devoted to this trope, later worlds still contain elements of it, up to and including the factory.
• Web Spider's stage in Mega Man X 4 is this in spades.
• Taito's Jungle King, later renamed Jungle Hunt, consists entirely of such environments.
• Yoshi's Island is depicted this way in most incarnations (Super Mario World, Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario, etc.) The only exception is Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, where the island is the entire game world, and therefore has a wider range of environs.
  • Of course, it had its own Jungle Japes.
• The default setting in the Adventure Island series; most of the levels take place here, unless they're the obligatory water, desert, or ice worlds.
• The half of the Pitfall games that's not Temple of Doom.
• The first two games of the Paper Mario series each have one, and they're both in Chapter 5 (out of 8) of their respective games.
  • Sadly, Super Mario Sunshine didn't have one, unless Pianta Village counts.
  • "Wild Glide Galaxy" from Super Mario Galaxy 2.
• The Monkey Island series is almost nothing but Jungle Japes and Gang Plank Galleon stages.
• Diablo II has the Kurast Jungle.
• The aptly-named (and Tarzan-themed) Deep Jungle in Kingdom Hearts. Birth by Sleep would have had a level based on The Jungle Book, but it was dropped mid-development.
• Over half of the levels in the original Crash Bandicoot were like this, and levels of this sort kept showing up quite often.
• A big part of Metal Gear Solid 3 is played in the jungle.
• Substantial portions of Far Cry take place on jungle islands.
• Lots in the later Wario Land games. Wario Land 4 had Monsoon Jungle, and arguable Mystic Lake, and Wario Land Shake It had an entire world based around a jungle (complete with the aptly named Ropey Jungle, Soggybog River and Riverbloat Rapids taking the general jungle theme).
• Real-life example: Adventureland at the Disney Theme Parks, especially the Jungle Cruise, Tarzan's Treehouse (aka the Swiss Family Treehouse), and the Enchanted Tiki Room. Also includes Pirates of the Caribbean, which evokes Gang Plank Galleon.
  • In Disney Epic Mickey, "Ventureland" likewise has an area aptly named the Jungle.
• Metroid Fusion has Sector 2 (TRO), an artificially created and maintained jungle environment... that's getting a little out of control.
  • Brinstar can be a bit of a jungle at times, in both Super and Zero Mission. Metroid Prime features the Tallon Overworld, with elements of this, acting as the landing area. Prime 3 features Bryyo, which has a thorn jungle sub-area within it. And Other M has Sector 1, the Biosphere, which is mostly an artificial jungle. Plants try to eat you and stuff like that. The backgrounds are pretty, but they are artificial, and once you find the generators, soon replaced by the space station architecture. It tends to rain (Tallon Overworld and the Biosphere certainly).
• Several areas in Azeroth are jungles, most notably Stranglethorn Vale, home to wild cats, a Great White Hunter, and various angry natives. Other examples include Feralas, Un'Goro Crater, and Sholazar Basin.
• The world of Gaia Online features the Otami Ruins, where the player must go to gain the ability to breathe water, allowing them to access the whirlpool leading to the final dungeon. In a twist, the main danger of this area doesn't come from the wildlife (which is merely decoration), nor even the natives, but the artifacts that are coming to life and attacking everyone. Even the enemies that look human turn out to be just animated fetishes.
• The Maguuma Jungle of Guild Wars, though it occurs later in the game than usual for this trope. The main hazards here are killer plants, giant bugs, the occasional centaur tribe, and the army of the local Church Militant that's out for your blood.
  • Also the Tarnished Coast, which has dinosaurs, frogmen, and snakemen along with most of the above
• The first level in Awesome Possum Kicks Dr.Machino's Butt.
• Organica in Altered Beast: Guardian of the Realms walks a fine line between Jungle Japes and Womb Level.
• Sleeper hit Space Station Silicon Valley has a level called Jungle Japes, in homage to Donkey Kong.
• The second area of Spelunky is a jungle, with vines, monkeys, piranhas, and lots and lots of frogs. For some reason, there are also bats and cavemen. Also, the entire thing is underground.
• Neo Star's 1st level in Kirby64 The Crystal Shards.
• Sector 2 of Jumper Two takes place in a jungle, with some patches of ice.
• Impossamole's Amazon Jungle, of course.
• The Lion King does this loosely in the "Hakuna Matata" level. Simba jumps on frogs, spiders, the boss being a gorilla that throws boulders at you, and jumping on logs in the waterfalls.
• The Trope Namer is also used as a stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Brawl, featuring two small side platforms, a main stage with a platform hanging low above it, rushing water below (in Melee, it just pushes you very quickly; in Brawl, you can swim in it, but staying in it for any length of time is suicidal), and crocodile-like Klaptraps which periodically attacks the spaces between the platforms. The original Nintendo 64 game also featured C/Kongo Jungle (not to be confused with the Melee version), which had its own complex platform layout and a barrel underneath that can save lucky (or savvy) players.
• The Bamboo Forest in Demon Sword is this with Wutai elements.
• Zamblamia in Heavy Weapon, a jungle that somehow has dinosaurs. The boss of the level is a giant mechanical gorilla that throws missiles and sports the ridiculous name "Kommie Kong".
• Kimba the White Lion usually takes place in a jungle in central Africa.