<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>Donkey Kong Bananza</span></em><span> is an imperfect masterpiece.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Its ambition pushes Nintendo's new console — the Nintendo Switch 2 — up to and beyond its limit; serving as both a technical showcase and a reality check. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Thankfully, the slowdown and frame stutter doesn't detract from one of the best final boss fights I have ever experienced, nor the fun of what will be a game of the year contender.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Donkey Kong's first 3D outing in 25 years plays like a power fantasy. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>And once you get the hang of controlling an ape that's bigger, faster and stronger than Mario, you won't want to stop. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/hideo-kojima-visits-australia-for-death-stranding-2-world-tour-alongside-george-miller/bc629a26-d98d-48ad-9d69-0ad39d7be8c9"><strong><span>Australia to feature in major new gaming release</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>A Donkey Kong Odyssey</span></h3></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/technology/donkey-kong-bananza-review-nintendo-switch-2/6adc5a7c-bfd6-4084-988d-9ddb9848af04" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In case you missed it, </span><em><span>Donkey Kong Bananza</span></em><span> was crafted by the team that made 2017's incredible </span><em><span>Super Mario Odyssey</span></em><span>. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There are a lot of similarities but they are very different games. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>Bananza</span></em><span>'s worlds are comparatively massive and they are destructible. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Without spoiling anything, these worlds are some of Nintendo's best. There are way more than you might expect, most feature a wonderful gimmick and DK can punch his way through almost all of them. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He can rip chunks off a wall, the floor and from enemies and then use that chunk as a weapon. You can throw it like a projectile, use it as a platform to double jump with or ride it to "surf" across water and spikes. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>You'll need to master all of the above if - like me - you plan on collecting every secret.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>At its heart, </span><em><span>Donkey Kong Bananza</span></em><span> is an old-school collectathon. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There are more than 700 "Banandium Gems" to collect and hundreds more fossils to find, which can be traded for costumes that give DK buffs like faster swimming or reduced damage from poison or icy water.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>You'll stumble across plenty of both as you naturally progress the story, but you'll have to stray off (and under) the beaten path to find everything. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/elder-scrolls-online-launches-big-new-update-interview-with-game-director-rich-lambert/889c408e-9589-45e8-bea6-48a5e60a3721"><strong><span>'It's Elder Scrolls first, MMO second'</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Like Mario Odyssey, most of these rewards are tied to besting bosses, challenges or environmental puzzles. Almost all of these tasks are unique but some - like finding Cranky Kong or buying a Banandium Gem from the shop - are basically repeated across multiple levels, which I'm not a huge fan of.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Again, like </span><em><span>Mario Odyssey</span></em><span>, the names of each Banandium Gem are a cute nod to where it is or how to unlock it. However, unlike </span><em><span>Mario Odyssey</span></em><span>, there's no way to get those helpful hints from a friendly NPC. You're never told what that name of a gem is until after you find it. Instead, you can bash your way through an environment to find buried treasure maps that pinpoint the location of a gem or fossil on your map but that takes away some of the fun.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>Journey to the centre of the Earth </span></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><span>Bananza</span></em><span>'s story is both wonderfully simple and straight up (sorry for the pun) bananas.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>DK just loves and wants bananas.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But when a villain comes to steal those bananas, DK's mining colony gets squashed underground and he gets partnered with a singing rock that quickly transforms into a shy, 13-year-old called Pauline, who recruits DK on a mission to the earth's core where they can make a wish to return to the surface. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Like with magic, the trick is to not think too hard and just enjoy the show. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Nintendo is the master of keeping things ambiguous. Fans will pour over references to Pauline's grandmother and when she calls New Donk City "my city" but the game never gives any definitive explanation as to why Pauline is 13, where the story fits on a "timeline" or if the story is somehow connected to </span><em><span>Super Mario Odyssey</span></em><span>. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/nintendo-switch-2-becomes-the-fastestselling-game-console-ever-review/2baf2388-eea0-4e32-a031-2c5e3b862277"><strong><span>Nintendo Switch 2 becomes the fastest-selling game console ever</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>What matters is the charming relationship between a silent ape and his shy companion. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Pauline narrates most of what happens on screen and - if you jump into bed for a rest - she'll regale DK with a little story about her hopes as he falls asleep. It's incredibly endearing and that charm extends to cute idle animations like Pauline playing with DK's hair. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>They really feel like a perfect pair. And as DK helps Pauline find her voice, she grants him powers that we'd never imagined. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>Now you're playing with power    </span></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Donkey Kong is a beefy boy, and Nintendo leans right into that power fantasy. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>On top of DK's standard bone-shattering punches, he can unlock the ability to transform into five super-powered animals. These are called Bananzas. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Nintendo has already revealed three of these: the Kong (super strength), Zebra (super speed) and Ostrich (flying) Bananzas. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>To call them overpowered is an understatement. These powers would break most games. Here you're encouraged to break everything. You can trigger each Bananza at any time, anywhere and (because there's so much gold just lying about) the metre required to activate a Bananza is pretty much always full.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/technology/playstation-unveils-new-hardware-and-games-at-state-of-play-event/85eadc52-6169-4399-94bb-1c02856bde68"><strong><span>New games and hardware unveiled by PlayStation</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There are specific challenges for each transformation and, like DK himself, each can be levelled up to be even stronger. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>No one is really talking about how amazing the music is when you activate these - but it's incredible. The Zebra one in particular is such a vibe. There's a lot of </span><em><span>Splatoon</span></em><span>'s DNA in each of these tracks, adding to what is already a stellar, nostalgia-filled soundtrack. Nintendo has been nailing its soundtracks of late and I can't wait for </span><em><span>Bananza</span></em><span>'s to be added to the Nintendo Music app.     </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>Should I buy it?</span></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>If you've purchased a Nintendo Switch 2, chances are you're going to buy this game. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It's big, it's beautiful, it's charming and it's fun. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Yes, it's disappointing that the game's performance isn't flawless. Typically, I'd expect more from Nintendo - especially when it's the 3D Mario team. Its framerate issues appear to be more pronounced in larger levels - and while I haven't done a frame-by-frame analysis - I think things looked smoother in handheld mode when VRR was enabled. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>AI upscaling does a lot of the heavy lifting to make the game look as nice as possible, but its flaws are obvious too. If you spin the camera around fast enough, the hearts in DK's health bar start to blur together, which I've never seen in a Nintendo game before! </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Regardless, if you've been waiting for a classic collectathon on the Nintendo Switch 2, look no further.    </span></div></div><div class="styles__Wrapper-sc-2o34ro-0 cmwkBV"><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><a href="/content/2025/02/04/11/41/most-anticipated-video-games-releasing-in-2025"><img alt="Grand Theft Auto VI" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 636px, (min-width: 768px) 396px, 100vw" src="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/jHw05v24XBtkRdWpKopP-N1AdgA=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F04fe5421-e2f2-43e7-a8be-36aa3e025fc3" srcset="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/jHw05v24XBtkRdWpKopP-N1AdgA=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F04fe5421-e2f2-43e7-a8be-36aa3e025fc3 396w, https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/mPYGWrPvpmDRr1A3VYgL_yFm7oI=/636x358/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F04fe5421-e2f2-43e7-a8be-36aa3e025fc3 636w"/></a></div><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><div class="styles__Headline-sc-2o34ro-4 hpbOlz">The most anticipated video games of 2025</div><div class="styles__Button-sc-2o34ro-1 eBjlmW"><a class="styles__ButtonLink-sc-2o34ro-2 hqpklJ" href="/content/2025/02/04/11/41/most-anticipated-video-games-releasing-in-2025">View Gallery</a></div></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>Early access to Donkey Kong Bananza was supplied to Mark Santomartino for the purpose of this article.</span></em></strong></div></div>