Now that we're in the top 25, the real fun begins. 
25. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES)
Topping the second half of my top 50 games is Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. Oddly enough, this was my first Donkey Kong Country experience, and it's one game that's I've enjoyed in both my youth and even now. See, I never owned a Super Nintendo, so I never gave the system and its games the dedication and playtime that it deserved. Still, I managed to get my hands on this game from time to time, and it would be a blast playing it. Of course, these great memories playing this game tranlated to me downloading it on the Virtual Console years later... and my roommate and I would play this game day after day, finally getting to and defeating Captain K. Rool (I chose to be Dixie, while my roommate played as Diddy. Helicopter hair for the win!) This game is really the total package though: gorgeous graphics (I was totally jealous during my Genesis days haha), an incredible soundtrack, awesome platforming gameplay (tough as nails too... yet so satisfying!), and a fun atmosphere were all that I needed.
I haven't tried out Returns yet, but as it stands, Diddy's Kong Quest is my favorite Donkey Kong game ever!
