On the N64 I didn't particularly enjoy Blast Corps, as much of a unique concept as it was. I found it a bit of a chore. Killer Instinct was another one I didn't like, but only because I don't enjoy beat-'em-ups.
As long as the circumstances are different, there shouldn't be a problem Four taps instead maybe? Go the extra mile? And instead of being trapped under a boulder, it could be...a very large rock?
I loved Grunty's Lair on Bk, but wasn't a fan of the overworld in DK64 (too open, huge and not much of interest to see). So, a nice in-between of Tooie and Kazooie would be perfect, I think.
So if the collectables are pagies, like pages of a book, you could get sequels to the worlds, maybe, or epilogues and prologues? A fire world trilogy or Tech-World quadrilogy. Just an idea