Donkey Kong Bananza review: Smashing Switch 2 platformer is greater than the sum of its parts

There’s a lot to love, or even adore, about Donkey Kong Bananza, Switch 2’s first big platformer from the House of Mario.

For a start, it delivers more of the delectable Super Mario Odyssey formula, from many of the developers behind the Switch classic, which means a tour de force of compelling platforming challenges, captivating worlds to explore, and colourful collectibles to grab with your big gorilla palms.

Bananza reinvents Donkey Kong and gives him his most memorable adventure in more than two decades, with a heartfelt story, and pleasing nods to the classic games that made the ape such a beloved character to begin with.

DK’s return comes from some blemishes, however, notably some undercooked mechanics, and occasional performance and camera issues, which keep Bananza from quite matching the homerun of Mario’s last 3D outing. But while we can’t totally overlook its shortcomings, they don’t prevent this from being a thoroughly entertaining adventure and the best reason to pick up a Switch 2 so far.

Watch our exclusive Donkey Kong Bananza gameplay video…

Donkey Kong Bananza’s story begins on Ingot Isle, where the discovery of special golden bananas called ‘Banandium Gems’ deep underground has sparked a gold rush, and primates of all sizes – including DK – have joined in a mammoth mining effort. The game begins when a sudden storm sends Donkey Kong and friends spiraling into the deep underground, where he soon discovers a new companion, Odd Rock, who, it later turns out, isn’t a rock at all, but the singer Pauline.

In Bananza, Pauline is a timid young teen, and not yet the confident singer players know from Super Mario Odyssey. Together, DK and Pauline embark on a subterranean adventure towards the planet’s core, all while the nefarious Void Company attempts to stop them.

The overarching format here is, perhaps unsurprisingly, hugely derivative of Super Mario Odyssey, right down to familiar fonts, sounds, and outfit shopkeepers. There are hundreds of Banandium Gems hidden across Bananza’s ‘layers’, which are its version of ‘Kingdoms’ (aka worlds), which means you’re finding them frequently, sometimes locked behind puzzles, but other times simply placed within the game world.

Like Odyssey, Bananza’s appeal lies in its sheer variety of gameplay scenarios. Although the challenges here never quite reach the highs of the game it takes inspiration from, DK’s adventure nonetheless delivers a cavalcade of ideas and mechanics that form a consistently entertaining platforming campaign: more than once during the review phase, I found myself glancing up at the clockface reading 1am, which doesn’t happen that often these days.

In a typical game loop, players will go from exploring one of the many distinct 3D game worlds, to diving into a side-scrolling level, or a mini-game challenge, then a mini boss, before exploring a town of NPCs, and solving one of the many excellent puzzle levels which challenge you to utilise destruction in unexpected ways.

Though Bananza can occasionally feel quite workman-like in its design, with the same gameplay formats returning on each stage (find an NPC’s lost kids, or feed a gold-hungry tree, for example), its quickfire nature means it doesn’t really matter, as there’s always something new and entertaining around each corner.

“Though the challenges here are never quite as memorable or unique as in Mario, DK’s adventure delivers a cavalcade of ideas and mechanics that deliver a constant loop of entertainment that’s consistently engrossing”

Overall, the subterranean concept is a fun idea that makes for some genuinely striking environments which are enjoyable to discover, and, without verging too far into spoiler territory, powers perhaps the most memorable final third of a Nintendo game in modern memory.

The key differentiator of Donkey Kong Bananza is its focus on destruction. Virtually all of the game worlds can be smashed to bits by the player, with DK able to punch them away using the face buttons to swing in different directions. The reward for this is in mining gold, which can be used as an important currency, as well as discovering power-ups and treasure maps hidden underground.

In the preview phase, I criticised the game’s core destruction mechanics for not feeling particularly fun or interesting to use in isolation. My issue was thankfully alleviated somewhat in the full game, as Banaza’s developers seemingly realised the same thing, and made sure that knocking the scenery apart is rarely the sole focus of Bananza’s gameplay.

If you’re indiscriminately smashing through the world to reach your next goal or find a Banandium Gem, as I so often was during the preview stage, without the context of the full game systems, then you’re more than often playing the game wrong. Although nearly all of each world can be destroyed, they’re still designed to flow like traditional platforming worlds. A sonar move allows DK to see collectibles behind scenery, but most of the time, you would’ve uncovered these through exploration anyway.

Outside of smashing, DK’s movement is satisfyingly weighty, yet he can virtually glide around the environment, clambering up walls, hanging from ceilings, rolling in a ball, and even surfing atop pieces of scenery. There are a deceptive number of advanced moves to learn and, this time, some of them can be upgraded or unlocked via a skill points system, which gives an additional incentive to hunt out Banandium Gems.

Destruction has been done better in other games released long ago – there are barely any physics at play here at all. Instead, its appeal in Bananza comes from the connection to the rest of the design, such as the unique enemies and obstacles that need to be tactically smashed, or the many excellent challenge levels that feel like Monkey Ball meets Red Faction.

“If you’re indiscriminately smashing through the world to reach your next goal or find a Banandium Gem, as I so often was during the preview stage, then you’re more than often playing the game wrong.”

The destructibility of the game world is more interesting when it becomes about utilizing the different elements as creation tools, rather than as obstacles. As Bananza progresses, players will find themselves more frequently seeking out chunks of ice to extinguish lava, or throwing heavy rocks at cloud platforms to weight them down.

Later, the developer begins to have more fun with this idea, introducing rocks which DK can bounce off of, or elements that have gravity-defying effects when held, launching you into the sky. Players can also build makeshift bridges with chunks of sand, protect themselves from harmful weather by holding scenery aloft, ride chunks of the scenery like skateboards, and more – all great ideas that we wish were expanded upon more significantly than they actually are.

In truth, Donkey Kong Banaza is as much a game about destruction as it is a game about transformations. As you progress through the planet layers, you’ll encounter different Elder creatures, who, when brought a specific power up, will unlock a different animal transformation for DK utilizing Pauline’s singing ability.

It’s all a bit Banjo-Kazooie then, except in this game, players can activate an animal transformation at any time, and switch between them on the fly. Initially, you’ll gain access to the Kong Bananza, which can smash scenery more easily, and then the Zebra Bananza, which can run across water and collapsing bridges, and the Ostrich Bananza, which can glide in the air and drop egg bombs.

For example, if hard concrete is blocking your path, you can switch the DK Bananza to smash through it. If you spot a Banandium Gum on an island surrounded by thorns, you can switch to the Ostrich and glide across.

There are more transformations we won’t mention, and as additional trinkets in an already stuffed toy box, they undoubtedly elevate the experience. Individually, they’re not particularly unique, and most don’t meaningfully utilize the destruction mechanic. Their effectiveness is also very situational, to the point where we wondered if they’d have been better off utilized as standard Mario-style power-ups.

“Later, the developer begins to have more fun with this idea, introducing rocks which DK can bounce off of, or elements that have gravity-defying effects when held, launching you into the sky.”

This is emphasized by the fact that the standout sequences for each power-up come in challenge levels, where you can’t switch between them, and instead are forced to think utilizing their unique abilities. There are also few challenges that require combinations, which is a shame, which left me feeling that overall, other transformation games like Kameo or even Zelda: Majora’s Mask executed the idea better.

By the time the credits rolled, the transformations felt like one of numerous ideas introduced in Donkey Kong Bananza that it never truly capitalizes upon. At one point, progression seemingly expands with a branching path, only for it never to be used again. Similarly, other unique ideas are introduced and then never meaningfully fleshed out.

Like most of Donkey Kong Bananza, then, if you start digging beneath the surface, you find flaws in its construct. But combined, its foundations form an adventure that’s genuinely greater than the sum of its parts. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t thoroughly enjoy the moment-to-moment of its campaign, even when I kept noticing the parts of its design that could’ve been executed better.

And at the surface level, there are even parts of Banaza I absolutely adore. Narratively, it has a stronger heart than most Nintendo games, and DK’s redesign, with his wild expressions and exaggerated movement, is an undoubted hit.

The relationship between DK and Pauline, and the emotional drive it gives their journey to the planet’s core, as she grows in confidence and becomes a strong ally, is another highlight. Her addition elevates the game and, at times, feels like a new direction for Nintendo, a company that traditionally didn’t care for plots, let alone giving niche side characters a compelling backstory.

Bananza is also a game that shows great respect to the classic Donkey Kong games, from arcade to Country. Its countless references to past outings, including nostalgic sidescrolling levels, cameo appearances, and the wonderful renditions of David Wise’s classic soundtrack, will have the biggest fans welling up with joy.

If this marks the beginning of a new direction for Nintendo’s great ape, I look forward to Nintendo delving deeper into the concept.

Donkey Kong Bananza has a lot of heart – and that can take you a long way. While DK’s subterranean adventure doesn’t reach the heights of the masterpiece it takes great influence from, Bananza is still a thoroughly entertaining platformer that gives the ape his most memorable adventure in a while, and the best reason so far to buy a Switch 2.