Wise is known for his atmospheric style of music, mixing natural environmental sounds with prominent melodic and percussive accompaniment.

In addition to the percussive and ambient 'jungle' influences that serve as a thematic undercurrent for much of the series, the games feature a wide variety of different musical styles that are reflective of the various areas and environments they appear in.

In the book Playing With Super Power, some influences for the music of Donkey Kong Country were mentioned.

Specifically, Koji Kondo's work on the Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda series; the Super Nintendo Entertainment System game Plok, composed by Tim Follin and Geoff Follin; and synthesized film scores and rock and dance music from the early 1980s.

[6] In June 2013, it was announced that he would be composing for Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, after receiving a call from Retro Studios president Michael Kelbaugh, who previously worked at Rare.