Donkey Kong Bananza is the 3D Donkey Kong game I’ve always wanted — and one of the best reasons to get a Switch 2

Donkey Kong Bananza shines on the Nintendo Switch 2 with impressive visuals, incredibly fun gameplay and a story filled with both new and familiar characters. The game sets you free to punch and smash to your heart’s content as only Donkey Kong can as you work your way through increasingly challenging levels in your search for the elusive Banandium Core.

Unlike Donkey Kong’s past adventures, this one is entirely in 3D and much like in Super Mario Odyssey, the developers at Nintendo EPD give you all the tools you need to explore (and destroy) the world around you. Along the way, you’re joined by Pauline and a cast of interesting characters as you try to make your way through the game’s various subterranean environments.

Donkey Kong can smash his way through all sorts of different terrain both vertically and horizontally, transforming levels along the way. However, thanks to the power of various animal-themed Bananza transformations, he also gains new powers to aid him and Pauline in their quest.

All of these parts work together almost seamlessly and the sheer level of discovery and exploration feels a lot like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on the original Switch-but with a Donkey Kong-themed twist.

Unfortunately, with a game of this size and scope, there are some hiccups along the way, mainly with the game’s camera and especially when you’re digging deep underground trying to find the surface. Still, this is the 3D Donkey Kong game that fans of the character (myself included) have always wanted.

My Donkey Kong Bananza review will explain why this is truly the first must-have Switch 2 title and why it should have been a launch game for Nintendo’s latest hybrid console.

Donkey Kong Bananza: The Basics

• What is it? A 3D action-adventure platformer where you take control of Donkey Kong as he journeys to the planet’s core in search of the Banandium Core.
• Who is it for? Anyone with a Switch 2 that loves a 3D platformer like Super Mario Odyssey or is just a big Donkey Kong fan.
• What is the price? Donkey Kong Bananza costs $69 which is cheaper than Mario Kart World at $79 but still higher than what original Switch games were priced at.
• What other games has the developer made? Donkey Kong Bananza was created internally by Nintendo EPD which is known for its work on The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom along with Super Mario Odyssey, though it also was the driving force behind Mario Kart World on Switch 2.
• What games is this similar to? Donkey Kong Bananza is most comparable to Super Mario Odyssey which is also a 3D action-adventure platformer where you collect Power Moons instead of Banandium Gems.

Diving (and smashing) to the core

Instead of at home on Kong Island, Donkey Kong Bananza starts out with our titular hero working in a mine where his smashing abilities make him quite adept at collecting gold, fossils and other hidden treasure. However, the mine’s operations quickly come to a halt when the game’s villains, a group known as VoidCo, bury it underground. This starts off Donkey Kong’s subterranean journey.

While not open-world, Donkey Kong Bananza does give you quite a lot of freedom in how you approach its objectives. Each of the game’s areas are divided up into sublayers and once you reach a checkpoint in a particular area, you’re free to teleport between them or return back to a layer to look for things you might have missed.

One of my favorite things about Donkey Kong Bananza is how each layer is quite different, both when it comes to gameplay and its design. There are layers filled with water, snow forests and more and each has its own distinct feel to it. You also learn new abilities and Bananza powers (more on that later) as you make your way through each one.

There’s quite a lot to see and do but like with Super Mario Odyssey, a lot of this is optional. In fact, you can skip through whole sections if you want to. As the story progresses, you learn more about the world itself and about Pauline and her musical abilities. You also fight off the various members of VoidCo and learn why the group’s leader Void Kong is so keen on reaching the planet’s core.

Donkey Kong Bananza strikes a fine balance between being too story-heavy or too gameplay-driven, though the latter is definitely what sets this game apart from other Donkey Kong games.

Bananas abound

As you make your way to the planet’s core, it’s up to you to undo the havoc caused by VoidCo during the group’s descent. Whether it’s areas of a level blocked off by the company’s iconic purple metal or the entrance to the next sublayer, Donkey Kong relies on Pauline’s special musical power to clear these obstructions. It’s a fun mechanic and the power of music resonates throughout the entire game.

Along the way, you also encounter Banandium Gems which, when you collect five, grant Donkey Kong a skill point to upgrade his abilities. Sometimes you’ll encounter a lone banana, or after a particularly challenging section (like when you reach a new layer) these bananas will come in a hand of 3-5.

Though you certainly don’t have to collect every banana you come across, during my playthrough, I found myself going out of the way to find more. Sometimes this was to collect enough to earn a new skill point but at other times, I just wanted to find them, much like a real monkey after bananas.

While I don’t know how many there are in total yet, I collected around 350 bananas before beating the game. They aren’t the only thing to collect either as fossils can be spent at shops to upgrade Donkey Kong and Pauline’s wardrobes and gold is used to buy useful items like balloons.

One thing that I really like about the fossils in Donkey Kong Bananza is that they’re specific to each layer and can only be used there. This had me hunting for them as soon as I reached the next layer as I wanted to upgrade my outfit to protect me from whatever peril I would encounter in this new area.

Brawling through Bananza

During your journey, you encounter all kinds of different foes and some require a specific mechanic or material to defeat them. There are some you can give a quick smackdown with Donkey Kong’s fists or others that you need to break off a chunk of the environment and hurl it into the air at them to take down.

As you progress from one layer to the next, Donkey Kong Bananza’s enemies get increasingly difficult but the game is always there to give you a useful tip if you struggle with a particular enemy or boss. Speaking of the bosses, there are quite a few to deal with and each boss encounter feels unique, even if you end up fighting a slightly different version of a previous one.

Alongside the gem-shaped Fractones you meet along the way, there are also elders in certain layers that bestow unique powers called Bananzas onto Donkey Kong. From transforming into a zebra, an ostrich or other jungle animals, these Bananza transformations add new mechanics and abilities that help shake things up. While powerful, your time in this transformed state is limited, so you need to be focused on the task at hand or you’ll return to Donkey Kong’s normal state before you finish an objective.

Just like with Donkey Kong himself, these different Bananzas have their own skill trees and abilities you can level up with skill points. Doing so allows you to remain in your transformed state for longer, but you can also increase the effectiveness of each Bananzas’ bespoke skills.

Once you’ve unlocked several, you can freely switch between them while transformed and I found doing so to be both really fun and very effective at defeating enemies or reaching hidden Banandium gems.

Voxelized visuals

There’s no limit to what Donkey Kong can smash, dig through or outright destroy in this game and that’s due to its voxel-based terrain. While many Mario games use pixel art, Donkey Kong Bananza uses voxels which, put simply, are the three-dimensional equivalent of a pixel. Imagine a tiny cube or box in a 3D space—that’s what all of the layers of the game are made of.

Not only does this give Donkey Kong Bananza a unique and timeless look, it’s also what makes all of the game’s destructive environments possible. The best part though is even though everything is made from voxels, Nintendo EDP made it so you wouldn’t notice them while playing.

From concrete to sand to stone, each of the materials in the game has its own unique look, feel and properties to it. Some are softer while others are harder and require you to use another hard material to break through them. This adds to the gameplay loop and makes it so that you need to be more conscious about the terrain around you.

The environments in Donkey Kong Bananza really stand out too and show the impressive visuals the Switch 2 is capable of. There were times when I just had to stop and take it all in and the game’s photo mode really helped me capture those moments. In fact, I often found myself stopping to take pictures, not just for this review but to show off to friends. The best part? Photo mode is just a tap of the D-pad away and like in Mario Kart World, there are filters and other tweaks you can make to ensure your captures stand out.

Donkey Kong Bananza: Verdict

Donkey Kong Bananza is a fresh take on previous Donkey Kong games that successfully brings Nintendo’s iconic character into a 3D world in a way that doesn’t feel forced or out of place. The core gameplay remains true to the franchise, but Donkey Kong feels a whole lot more powerful thanks to the game’s (almost) fully destructible environments. This would be good enough on its own, but the new Bananza powers take things to the next level (or layer) and help mix up its gameplay.

While this move to 3D does come with some camera issues at times, they aren’t gamebreaking nor do they detract from the overall experience. Likewise, while there are a lot of Banandium Gems to collect throughout the journey, Donkey Kong Bananza isn’t a collect-a-thon and certainly doesn’t feel like one either.

Mario Kart World might have been the Nintendo Switch 2’s main launch title but Donkey Kong Bananza really feels like the first must-have game for the new console, both when it comes to visuals, its wonderfully catchy soundtrack, and the experience overall. If you already have a Switch 2, this is the game to play next and a must for any collection.