Donkey Kong Bananza Review - Digging to Success

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Ever since we saw this for the first time, it was regarded as the most spectacular return of Nintendo’s most popular gorilla. However, DK is not returning to just another game. But to a platformer that feels more like an open world. Yet, that doesn’t mean they removed all the action from the game. In Donkey Kong Bananza, DK has new tricks up his sleeve, new sidekicks, fantastic music, and even a new wardrobe. Although everything looked fabulous in the trailers, playing it for dozens of hours gave me the actual first groundbreaking Nintendo Switch 2 experience, showcasing how powerful this new platform can be.

Journey to the Center of the Earth

At first, DK demonstrates a great way to channel his huge muscles, working in a mine and digging for the precious bananas. At least until an artificial moon, much in the style of Final Fantasy 14, but instead of eradicating everyone, it buries the mines several sublayers down. Then, DK, with his incredible strength, must discover why they were buried alive and how to return to the surface. It doesn’t take long to find out that the big corporation, the Void Company, is to blame for all the bad things. A group of monkey villains who want to get to Planet Core, which supposedly has the power to grant any wish, almost like the Dragon Balls.

So the story becomes a race through time for DK to punch his way to Planet Core before the evil Void Kong gets to it. Along the way, you’ll have to fight Void’s minions, beings from the depths of the planet, and meet old and new friends. However, your best ally and companion will be a 13-year-old Pauline, with incredible and powerful musical abilities to navigate the sublayers.

The most interesting thing is that exploring the sublayers feels like the subway caves of Tears of the Kingdom and some of the classic Mario games. It’s like going to a new world with Mario, but instead of using green pipes, you’ll use craters that you’ll dig.

Monkeying Around

One of the aspects that stands out the most is the exploration, not precisely in the sense that you must “discover the map”. Donkey Kong Bananza retains its essence as a platformer, featuring structures to climb and bases to jump to. But it’s also like being in a children’s sandbox or playing treasure map since almost everything is destructible. You can have a cathartic session and spend hours destroying and terraforming the level just by punching. You can also search for bananas, maps, chests, fossils, and excavate as much as possible.

In the beginning, it is not very clear, but as soon as you get the Bananza, gold becomes vital. And the same goes for bananas, to improve your skills. As for the fossils, the best thing to do is to go digging to find as many as you can, since they are the currency in the stores. Believe me, Donkey Kong Bananza encourages players to continuously go shopping and change their look. There are several items for DK and Pauline with advantageous bonuses, such as finding more gold when digging or extending Bananza’s time.

You can also find in the world challenges, portals, or platforms that are like the Bonus Round of Crash Bandicoot. These challenges vary between defeating various enemies, finding items, and 2D-like linear levels that you must complete in time to get more bananas.

Overall, the exploration offers a lot and takes up a significant amount of your play time. So if you want to make sure you get all the treasures, there are several ways to go back to previous levels. But the only downside I could say about the exploration is that the camera can be confusing at times, making it easy to get lost, or some people can even feel dizzy.

Primate Showdown

The fights are the other strong point of this game, and DK has many skills to show off, but not without Pauline. Music is a fundamental part of the game, since this little singer has a powerful voice that can deactivate mechanisms of the unbreakable purple metal. Yet, the kicker is that through her singing and the rhythm of DK, the gorilla transforms into one of its Bananza forms.

First, to obtain the Bananza forms, you must visit one of the Elders and retrieve their discs to learn the melody to transform. Each form has a unique ability, like the Kong, that will make you even stronger to break concrete. The Zebra form allows you to go over any surface, such as ice, without slipping or running on water, but more importantly, you will cross thin ice bridges without them being destroyed under your feet.

Of course, there is a trick to using the Bananza, and that is that it has a duration bar. Although you can use the Bananza as long as you have gold in your pockets. That’s why it’s so important to collect as much gold as you can along the way. Also, in the stores, you can buy clothes or items that give some Bananza bonus. Furthermore, remember to collect bananas, because every five you get a skill point for the Skill Tree. It’s a simple Skill Tree where you won’t get lost with a lot of complicated stats.

Once you have the power, the fun part comes, and that’s fighting the bad guys. Sure, you can land a couple of good hits on the villains, but what’s much more fun are the special mechanics of each level. For example, I had to face a boss that was in a slippery arena, but when it attacked, lava appeared on the floor. In this situation, the Bananza Zebra will make your life easier. I also found it fun to pass a level by driving a mining cart, while I had to throw bombs at a crystal structure in the center of the level.

Talking About Making a Monkey Out of Someone

Donkey Kong Bananza allows Local Co-Op, using one or two Nintendo Switch consoles with a single copy of the game. There is also an Online Co-Op with two consoles, using GameChat and GameShare. It sounded interesting for this fantastic game, until I noticed that the second player takes the place of Pauline, who can’t move. The player who uses Pauline uses the Mouse mode of the Joy-Con, but only to destroy surrounding structures.

The Co-Op could have been something much better, but for the gameplay of Pauline alone, it is limited.

Go Bananas

Donkey Kong Bananza is a game that definitely takes full advantage of the Nintendo Switch 2 graphics. Besides, its gameplay is an excellent way to bring the classic platformers to the present day, giving them a new twist. The music adds another unique characteristic, but what’s best is that it is not just a soundtrack; it is an intrinsic element that advances the story.

I think Donkey Kong Bananza is a game that no one can miss. It is dynamic, fun, and the story is gripping, even if the plot is not the most complex. It’s an installment that anyone can enjoy, whether you are a fan of this gorilla or not. Also, this is another opportunity to meet Pauline from a different perspective. This game is worth every penny of the starting price, and an excellent showcase of the horse, or rather, monkey power behind the Nintendo Switch 2.

Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo Switch 2 Reviewed)

9.5 Superb!

Nintendo experiments with the recipes of its classic platformers to give us true freedom in Donkey Kong Bananza, giving us new ways to beat up enemies but also a catchy soundtrack, puzzles, and minigames to unearth.