I don't know, the 3D graphics everywhere is giving me bad feelings. It's like what's being done to Sonic the Hedgehog 4, it just doesn't -look- right. If they can make Mega Man 9 look like an NES game, it shouldn't be that difficult to make DKC4 look like a SNES game. Bump up the resolution if necessary, but... come on, make it look a LITTLE more photorealistic than what we're getting!
The game better be hard... um, Donkey Kong Country 2 hard, at the most. And it better be long, at least... 6 or 8 areas. And good music. And I'd really prefer seeing our familiar riding buddies like Enguarde (bonus points for a playable Squawks like in DKC2). Only then will I consider it a worthy successor.
More bonus points if the first enemy is a beaver or furry rat. Nostalgia, y'know. I have a soft spot for the opening enemies of games. Mario has goombas, Yoshi has Shy Guys, DKC has beavers, Mana series has Rabites, Zelda has... uh... Tektites?