Donkey Kong Bananza is finally here, and it’s proving to be a must-have game for the Nintendo Switch 2. Unlike Mario Kart World, the only legitimate launch title for the console, Bananza is giving players a real reason to buy a Switch 2. It’s becoming unavoidable, and this title is the biggest reason why.
Part of its brilliance is that it does so many things well. The gameplay, level concept, and technical features are all really good. It translates to a fun experience, which shouldn’t be surprising. You can smash pretty much everything, destroying the environment in search of bananas, fossils, or items. But while that is incredible, it’s not the best part of the game.
The central premise of Donkey Kong Bananza is that DK’s smashing abilities, which have been on display since the very first arcade game he appeared in, are useful for finding things. Whether it’s Banandium Gems, fossils, or gold, Donkey Kong can and does smash his way to it.
It is undeniably fun to be able to destroy the environment and often stumble upon things. You can get truly sidetracked by digging out holes in search of fossils instead of progressing the main quest.
But that’s not the best part of the game. Instead, the best part once again borrows from Super Mario Odyssey, which was made by the same team that developed Bananza, a game that has undeniable similarities here. It’s the ability to dress Donkey Kong up.
So many incredible outfits for Mario helped make Odyssey a huge success. It was one thing to be able to explore such awesome worlds, but another to do it as a baseball player, a beach-goer, or a pilot.
The same thing applies here with Donkey Kong Bananza, although there are not as many themed outfits this time. Instead, you can paint DK’s fur. You can also change his pants and tie, but the coolest part is changing his colors.
It’s like using the giant monkey in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, where you can change the way he looks. The normal DK style is fine, but being able to change things up is amazing. Even though paint adds nothing and outfits do have an impact on gameplay, I’m always more inclined to spend fossils on the paint colors rather than a new pair of pants.
To make matters even better, you can also give Pauline different outfits. This paves the way for some epic combos, but you can also just have your duo looking as silly as ever. The possibilities are endless, and it’s maybe the biggest reason to keep grinding a level even after you’ve beaten it. Those fossils are so valuable because they can turn Donkey Kong blue.
Of course, this is not to say that the gameplay is subpar. It only illustrates how much fun it is to change up the appearance of an iconic, familiar video game character. It’s like finding armor sets and then changing the color scheme for Link in Tears of the Kingdom. It’s more creative and unique, and it’s a small change that other games should consider.
The gameplay is fantastic, though. Smashing everything up is a brilliant mechanic that makes everyone’s experience a little different. The art style, the level design, and more are all really well done. There’s a good reason the game is being heralded as a masterpiece and getting Game of the Year chatter in July.
But the outfits help separate Bananza, making it a creative outing instead of just a fun one. There are 10 ties, 37 fur colors, and 18 pairs of pants for Donkey Kong to wear, meaning there are quite a few different combinations to come up with. For Pauline, there are 11 different outfits that she can wear while riding on Donkey Kong’s back and performing songs.
If nothing else, it’s a good reason to keep playing after completing what is admittedly not the lengthiest game out right now. You’re only a few more punches away from a really awesome fur color or pair of pants for Donkey Kong, which might be all the postgame content a platformer like this truly needs.
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