The Switch 2’s next big exclusive is just weeks away, and the final previews for Donkey Kong Bananza, made by the Mario Odyssey team, have begun to roll in. Nintendo Life’s Jim Norman spent three hours with the game and declared that “Donkey Kong Bananza is showing all the signs of becoming DK’s greatest outing to date. Heck, it might even end up as a Nintendo all timer, assuming those technical mishaps can stay as inconsequential as they seem to be”.
IGN went even further, dubbing Bananza the “Switch 2’s real killer app,” and raving that “swapping out a mustachioed plumber for a tumbling hairy gorilla is appropriately transformative. Even in just those two hours, I was absolutely enamored with Donkey Kong’s personality, his sheer sense of strength and power, juxtaposed with his surprisingly speedy movement, and the satisfying destructibility of everything around him. As far as first impressions go, this is everything a 3D Donkey Kong game should be”.
CNET echoed that praise by calling Bananza the Switch 2’s “killer ape,” observing that “The Switch 2 was already excellent but it feels even more vibrant now. With a few more big, exclusive games like this, the Switch 2 is going to become a must get for a lot more people. Actually, that moment might already be here”.
Not every preview was unreservedly positive. The Verge noted that “during some hectic transitions, the frame rate took a noticeable dip, but gameplay was smooth for the most part, which is an achievement for a game bursting with physics and particle effects,” while also lamenting that “when I was covering a lot of distance while flying in Bananza mode, there was a lot of texture pop in,” calling such issues “a little disappointing to see on the new, more powerful hardware.” VGC likewise cautioned that “by itself, I don’t think the destruction mechanic is particularly interesting, and the game appears to fall flat in the segments where you’re left to use it as a means of exploration,” though it admitted those impressions came from “only the very early game”.
Still, several outlets found Bananza’s blend of chaos and precision hugely appealing. GoNintendo praised how the game “balances those moments of destruction with more measured actions,” reminding players that “this isn’t designed to be a pure, wild punch-a-thon, and you will come across environments that require more finesse.” Eurogamer likewise reported that “the three hours I had with the game absolutely flew by, even if I spent much of it doing a lot of the same wrecking-ball actions repeatedly. Time flying is always a sure-fire sign of something that’s good, so this formula might just be a winner”.
