Editing Donkey Kong Country (section)

===Context===
{{see also|1994 in video games}}
[[File:Wikipedia SNES PAL.jpg|alt=A Super Nintendo Entertainment System PAL-region console (a grey video game console with two grey buttons for "Power" and "Reset" and a grey one for "Eject") and its controller (a gamepad with a D-pad on the left, "Start" and "Select" buttons in the middle, four buttons on the right, and two shoulder buttons on top).|thumb|''Donkey Kong Country'' was released for the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] (pictured) when it was beginning to face competition from [[fifth generation of video game consoles|next-generation hardware]].]]
By October 1994, Nintendo was still in fierce competition with Sega and its popular ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' franchise. ''Donkey Kong Country'' was released a month after ''[[Sonic & Knuckles]]'' for the Mega Drive. The ''Los Angeles Times'' characterised the coinciding releases as a battle; both featured company mascots, boasted "[[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]]-sized" marketing budgets, and advertised revolutionary technological advances ([[lock-on technology]] for ''Sonic & Knuckles'' and 3D-rendered graphics for ''Donkey Kong Country'').<ref name="LAT: Battle">{{Cite web|last=Kronke|first=David|date=15 October 1994|title=It's gonna be a video jungle out there: Video-game stars Donkey Kong and Sonic the Hedgehog will battle it out with new games backed by tech advances and mega-marketing.|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-10-15-ca-50485-story.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150918185341/http://articles.latimes.com/1994-10-15/entertainment/ca-50485_1_video-game-technology|archive-date=18 September 2015|access-date=26 May 2020|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>

''Donkey Kong Country'' was highly anticipated. ''Hardcore Gaming 101'' wrote: "It was everywhere. You couldn't escape it. It was on the cover of every magazine. It was on gigantic, imposing displays and marquees at [[Wal-Mart]] and [[GameStop|Babbages]]... For kids of the era, November 20th seemed like the eve of a revolution".<ref name="HG101: DKC"/> The ''Exposed'' VHS tape contributed significantly to the hype.{{sfn|''GamePro'' staff|1996|p=12}} ''Donkey Kong Country'' was expected to gross at least {{US$}}140 million in the US if it matched sales projections.<ref name="LAT: Battle" /> Nintendo anticipated that it would sell two million copies in a month, an expectation that Main acknowledged was unprecedented but was "based on the off-the-chart reactions we've received from game players and retailers".<ref name="LAT: Battle" />

''[[USGamer]]'' noted that Nintendo, at the time of ''Donkey Kong Country''{{'s}} release, faced difficulty to keep the SNES profitable. The [[fifth generation of video game consoles]] was on the horizon, the [[32-bit]] prowess of [[Sony Interactive Entertainment|Sony]]'s [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] and the [[Sega Saturn]] far exceeding the SNES's capabilities. The Nintendo 64 was not due for release until 1996, so ''Donkey Kong Country'', wrote ''USGamer'', served as Nintendo's "bluff" to make it seem that the SNES could hold its ground against next-generation hardware.<ref name="USG: Bluff" />