Donkey Kong Bananza director says he’s aware of occasional performance issues, ‘prioritising fun’
Press noticed occasional frame drops in recent hands-on
Donkey Kong Bananza’s director has said he’s aware of occasional performance issues spotted by the press, and said the development team has “prioritized fun and playability”.
Speaking to Spanish outlet La Vanguardia, Nintendo’s Kazuya Takahashi was asked about frame drops the interviewer noticed when playing the game.
“There are several factors to consider,” Takahashi responded. “First, we intentionally used effects like hit-stop and slow motion to emphasize impacts. Second, because we use voxel technology, there are times when there are major changes and destruction in the environment.
“We’re aware that performance may drop slightly at these times. However, as you say, overall the game is smooth, and at points where large-scale changes occur, we prioritized fun and playability.”
Takahashi joined Nintendo in 2020, having previously worked on other open world titles at his former companies, most likely Square Enix, according to a Moby Games page.
“Personally, while I had no prior experience working on Donkey Kong games, I do have very fond memories of playing Donkey Kong Jr. and later Donkey Kong Country,” he said.
“After I learned I’d been assigned to the Donkey Kong Bananza team, I replayed all the games in the franchise. In particular, Donkey Kong Country introduced unique mechanics like barrel cannons and minecarts.
“I wanted to revisit those elements and add a sense of destruction. That motivated me to incorporate past memories along with new ideas.”
Donkey Kong Bananza will be released on Nintendo Switch 2 on July 17. Recently, Nintendo showcased new details and info on the Nintendo Switch 2 game, including the reveal of long-time series character Pauline, who will join DK on his adventure.
VGC published a hands-on preview with Donkey Kong Bananza last week. We wrote: “Like Mario’s recent 3D outings, Donkey Kong Bananza will likely be greater than the sum of its parts – a cavalcade of ideas and mechanics that might not seem like much on their own, but together form a consistently entertaining adventure.”
