Donkey Kong and his extended family are taking a vacation on Sun Sun Island. All of a sudden, they spot a gigantic banana at the top of the island's mountain. DK, begins to head up to the top of the mountain to find out just what's happening up there...

DK: Jungle Climber is an indirect sequel to the GBA game, DK: King of Swing. As in that game, players control DK by climbing with his left and right hands. The L-button makes DK grab with his left hand, and the R-button makes him grab with his right. Holding onto an object with one hand will make DK swing around it either clockwise or anti-clockwise, while pressing down L and R simultaneously will make him stop in place. DK can also attack enemies by pressing the A-button spin at them, and can even fly around if he has collected enough gems scattered around the levels.

New to the game is the ability to have Diddy tag along with DK, as he does in Donkey Kong Country. By pressing A twice when you have Diddy with you, you can launch him high into the air to collect objects you can't get and even access areas that DK simply can't reach. Diddy can also use special power-ups such as a giant hammer which smashes anything it touches.