REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To celebrate the launch of Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D for Nintendo 3DS on May 24, Nintendo is partnering with the Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens on Memorial Day weekend (May 24-27) to host an event on the L.A. Zoo grounds. The four-day event will feature fun activities for all members of the family, including an interactive experience at the Campo Gorilla Reserve, various demo stations where attendees can play the Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D game and coupon giveaways for $5 off the game at participating GameStop retail stores. For the weekend, the gorilla area will be temporarily renamed the “Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D at Campo Gorilla Reserve.”

“Fans will get a chance to spend time with Donkey Kong and some of his friends from the animal kingdom at the L.A. Zoo this Memorial Day weekend,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “They’ll be able to experience a fun day with Nintendo at the zoo and play Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D.”

One of the weekend’s main events, a “Donkey Kong Interactive Experience,” allows visitors to watch L.A. Zoo staff feed the real-life gorillas from giant cardboard barrels that are inspired by the barrels featured in the video game. This friendly, educational activity is a one-of-a-kind experience for families and a treat for the gorillas. In addition to the feeding, there will be opportunities for fans to take pictures with the costumed Donkey Kong character around the zoo.

“Our gorillas have never had a visit from a celebrity of Donkey Kong’s stature,” said John R. Lewis, director of the Los Angeles Zoo. “All the planned activities for the weekend fit perfectly in line with the family-friendly environment of the zoo, as well as bring awareness to the animals in the gorilla reserve.”

The original Donkey Kong Country Returns game has been rebuilt from the ground up for ease-of-play on Nintendo 3DS. Players control iconic character Donkey Kong as he runs, jumps, blasts, rides and pounds his way through a series of beautiful, challenging, side-scrolling levels. The upcoming game is optimized for portable play and features a new mode, eight additional levels and stunning 3D graphics.

The Los Angeles Zoo is located at 5333 Zoo Drive, Los Angeles, CA, 90027. The event will run May 24-27.

For more information about Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, visit http://donkeykong.nintendo.com/.

Remember that Nintendo 3DS features parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/3ds.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii U™ and Wii™ home consoles, and Nintendo 3DS™ and Nintendo DS™ families of portable systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold more than 4.1 billion video games and more than 654 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo 3DS XL, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DSi XL™, Super NES™, Nintendo 64™, Nintendo GameCube™ and Wii systems. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, please visit the company’s website at http://www.nintendo.com.

About the Los Angeles Zoo: The Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens is located in Griffith Park at the junction of the Ventura (134) and Golden State (5) freeways, where it hosts over 1.6 million visitors each year. The Zoo is home to a diverse collection of 1100 animals, many of which are rare or endangered. New exhibits include The LAIR-Living Amphibians, Invertebrates and Reptiles, Elephants of Asia and Campo Gorilla Reserve. Admission is $17 for adults and $12 for children ages 2 to 12. The Zoo is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. For information, call 323-644-4200 or visit the L. A. Zoo website at http://www.lazoo.org/.

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