10 Things to Know About Donkey Kong Bananza
Story
Bananzas premise is a little unlike any of the previous Donkey Kong games. Remember all those mine cart levels? Well, Nintendo is going hard on the mining theme with this one. DK and the denizens of Ingot Isle have been digging and digging and digging for a tasty new mineral known as Banandium. Unfortunately, this tasty treasure has attracted the attention of VoidCo, a small band of malicious apes that have begun a crusade in sealing off and hoarding digging sites containing Banandium ores as much as possible. Donkey Kongs going to have to punch, toss, clap, and slam his way through layers of the planet if he is to stop VoidCo.
Donkey Kongs New Design
Of course, the immediate question everyone had upon seeing Donkey Kong Bananza was why does he look different? Indeed, there has been a lot of disdain towards this new redesign, but in all honesty, the discourse doesnt make sense. Nintendo has already stated why theyve gone with this new look, the reason being to make DK more expressive. We would like to throw one other factor into this: are we really the only people who saw this design and immediately recognized DK from the original games in the 80s? Were just going to forget the classic Donkey Kong arcade cabinet art?
Total Destruction
The biggest appeal in Donkey Kong Bananza is the destructible environment. From all of the footage Nintendo has shown, the world of Bananza looks to be entirely destructible. Simply get your hands on a piece of the ground, and you can tear out chunks to throw around or smack enemies with. Obviously, your destruction is going to be somewhat limited as destroying literally the entire level is going to break the game in some ways. Thankfully, you will be given a 3D map that will update as you change parts of the world. So, if you get a little too crazy with the destruction and wind up getting lost in your own mazes of tunnels, youll have something to refer to. Worst case, you just keep digging.
Total Traversal
At first, the massive worlds might seem intimidating to explore, which is a fair assessment to make after the slightly more compact worlds of Super Mario Odyssey. Well, just as they did with Marios 3D outing on Switch, Nintendo is giving Donkey Kong a solid assortment of traversal skills to make navigating easy and fun. You can barrel roll through terrain and climb just about any structure you see, all without the fear of an ever-decreasing stamina meter. You may even be able to strengthen some of your traversal abilities once you start acquiring skill points.
TotalClapping?
Now, with the amount of Banandium ores to collect and the seemingly endless nooks and crannies to uncover, its easy to see how one might feel overwhelmed and fatigued by how long this game is looking to take. Luckily, this is yet another hurdle that is smaller than it seems. Donkey Kong Bananza contains a clapping and slamming ability that gives DK a sort of echolocation ability. By clapping or slamming the ground, youll be able to detect hidden items such as Banandium ores beneath surfaces. This mechanic alone is definitely going to make completing the game a lot easier.
Terrain of Toys
As you explore the many different layers of the world, youll come across a wide variety of different rock types thatll change the way you interact with things. We have already seen one variant of rock be used as explosives, and gold can be used in the same fashion. But the Direct we saw in June 2025 showed off a few more different types of rocks. You can use a chunk of ice to surf across or wash away lava. You can use soft sand rocks to build new structures such as bridges or towers. And then, there are rainbow rocks that can help DK fly into the air. Theres a good chance that those are the only kinds of rocks youll see for the rest of the game, but we wouldnt be surprised if Bananza is hiding a few more special minerals elsewhere.
Oldies But Goodies
Even though some die-hard DK fans might not like the new look of the gorilla, Bananza does pay tribute to Donkey Kongs decades-long history. For starters, the June 2025 Direct specifically acknowledged Cranky and Rambis inclusion in Bananza. However, there were a few shots where we saw Diddy and Dixie Kong hanging around. The love for DK digs deeper than just that. A handful of songs are remixes of classic Donkey Kong themes, a few of which use the legendary tunes from SNES Donkey Kong Country games. And did anyone else here the new version of the DK Rap?
The Wrath of VoidCo
We want to rewind back to the VoidCo crew just for a brief bit of clarification and speculation. In the Direct, Nintendo briefly talked about what each members role in VoidCo is, but most of the gameplay shown was DK going against bigger baddies made of rock. That said, one might dismiss them as another rendition of the Broodals from Super Mario Odyssey. In that game, the Broodals were kind of quick and easy breaks from Bowser and some of the bigger bosses. The VoidCo crooks may only fight DK directly as a last resort, say, after a couple of other bosses created or influenced by them. Well see, though.
Return of the Damsel
Getting back on track with what we do know, Nintendo has already revealed the true identity of the mysterious Oddrock. What was once a quirky purple pebble turns out to actually be the former damsel in distress, Pauline. And shes not a captive nor is she a supporting character like she was in Super Mario Odyssey. Donkey Kong Bananza is going to be the very first game where Pauline is actually a major character. With her powerful vocals, Pauline will be able to transform Donkey Kong into other animals. But a second player can take her role and use her voice to help destroy terrain and enemies. Honestly, its really cool seeing her go from this forgotten character from an old arcade game into a major character for both Super Mario and Donkey Kong.
Launch
As we do with these kinds of videos, wed like to end this with a brief prep on what to expect at launch. Donkey Kong Bananza will launch for the Nintendo Switch 2 on July 17, 2025. The game will cost $69.99 USD at launch, ten dollars cheaper than Mario Kart World. The reason we mention this is because amid the kerfuffle surrounding Mario Kart Worlds pricing, Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser explained how the company was factoring all kinds of things into their approach to dynamic pricing. One of those key factors he mentioned was replayability. So, if youre someone who loves meaty, open world games, loves 3D platformers, only plays games once and never again, or simply loves Donkey Kong, then seventy bucks might be worth it. Pre-orders are available right now, and a special amiibo of DK and Pauline will be available at launch.
Do you plan on getting Donkey Kong Bananza at launch? Let us know down in the comments, and dont forget to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great videos everyday!
