Donkey Kong Bananza is a destructive delight that's basically Super Mario Odyssey+, and I can't believe it wasn't a Switch 2 launch title

Coming into Donkey Kong Bananza, the eponymous ape had a lot of work to do to impress me. I'll admit I've never picked up any of DK's games, which means my main experience is him being my arch-nemesis in every Mario Kart game from DS to Mario Kart World (seriously, why is it always him?!). Not only that, Donkey Kong Banaza needed to pack some seriously impressive stuff to convince me that, given the sparse offering of Switch 2 games so far, this would be a worthy exclusive and a grand return to 3D platforming for Nintendo.

Thankfully, after my two-and-a-half-hour preview session, I think I've been persuaded. Donkey Kong Bananza cleverly builds on the foundations laid by Super Mario Odyssey, amping up the action with almighty Bananza powers and superb destruction mechanics. It's certainly a step up from Super Mario Odyssey in terms of complexity, and that can present some issues while playing, but the overall improvements only make me wonder why Nintendo didn't delay the Switch 2 just so that this game could bolster its launch library.

Ape out

Made by the same team as Super Mario Odyssey, Donkey Kong Bananza takes the formula of fun platforming action in vibrant, secret-filled worlds bursting with personality and kicks it up a notch. You take control of a freshly redesigned Donkey Kong and his fur-gripping passenger Pauline, plummeting through level after level of the underground world to reach the planet's core, with the ultimate goal of thwarting the dastardly Void Company and getting back to the surface.

As you'd expect from any Nintendo-made platformer, these sub-level regions are incredibly varied. During my preview, I get to explore four of these layers – Ingot Isle, followed by the Lagoon Layer, Canyon Layer, and Forest Layer – though there are plenty more I'm yet to see.

Ingot Isle serves as the tutorial area where I'm first let loose with DK's powerful, crushing fists and I quickly try to test the limits of the game's destruction mechanics. I'm pleased to find that, with little effort, you can smash through significant chunks of the level, sending dust, dirt, and gold nuggets flying, making the layer almost unrecognizable. Since Donkey Kong can climb and direct his punches in all directions, few places are out of reach of his clobbering power early on.

While all sub-levels have a sort of unsmashable bedrock, I'm incredibly surprised by just how much you can break. Diving into the sand and rock of the Canyon Layer, I find that vast mounds and towering formations can be tunneled through or leveled entirely. It's an excellently implemented system that, for the most part, works smoothly and gives you lots of freedom to explore how you please.

I do notice some frame drops during some particularly violent particle explosions and found the freedom the system affords to be a bit of a double-edged sword. There were a couple of instances where I got myself turned around having smashed through areas so thoroughly that I either muddied the critical path or ended up somewhere completely unexpected, unsure how to get myself back on track.

However, the Nintendo representatives did mention that what I played wasn't the polished final build of Donkey Kong Bananza, so I hope the launch build is better optimized for those busy moments. The game also has a decent 3D map and a button for pinging objective waypoints and giving you directions that I definitely didn't use enough, so getting lost shouldn't be an issue, so long as you use these tools.

Most apeeling

Just like Super Mario Odyssey's Power Moons, Donkey Kong Bananza has lots of collectibles, mainly Golden Bananas. Although, the best part about DK Bananza's take on this is that the collectible marathon is given a bit of a backseat, no longer essential for reaching new levels.

Every five bananas you collect grants you a skill point, which you can spend to unlock a range of skills. These include general improvements to things like DK's health to enhancements for the monstrous Bananzas you unlock – temporary transformations that grant DK new, beastly powers.

I'm not going to pretend that the skill tree is the most exciting thing in the world. Seemingly every game has them these days, but I think it's a progression system that Super Mario Odyssey sorely lacked and therefore made the Power Moon grind feel like a chore.

Conversely, in Donkey Kong Bananza, I'm strongly incentivized to seek out these bananas knowing that I can unlock new powers instead of finding them because I have to, and that's a great way to reframe these collectibles. You don't need to collect Golden Bananas, but it sure as hell helps, and it'll lead you to all sorts of puzzles, secret areas, and even Donkey Kong Country-style levels!

However, so strong was my desire to unearth Golden Bananas, that I spend a lot of time using DK's Hand Slap ability, which reveals nearby bananas and fossils (Donkey Kong Bananza's answer to Super Mario Odyssey's kingdom-specific purple coins). I'm not a fan of this mechanic because it encourages you to press R almost constantly in the hopes of finding buried loot. I end up tearing up lots of areas as I punch my way from one collectible to the next, which, while a fun distraction, contributes to the feeling of getting lost I mentioned earlier. No doubt this feeling was exacerbated due to playing against the clock but let this be a lesson to prospective banandium prospectors!

I feel this most keenly in the multi-leveled Lagoon Layer, but after getting back on track, I was able to unlock the first of the Bananza powers by surfing on a record and giving it to an elder Kong DJ. The Kong Bananza transforms DK into a hulking silverback gorilla with a majestic mane of bananas, most importantly giving him absurd strength to smash through extremely durable materials, and I later use these powers to beat the living daylights out of Grumpy Kong in a satisfying boss fight.

The only other Bananza I get to try is the Ostrich, which lets you fly briefly to reach far-off spots and can be upgraded with an egg bomb. I had little time to try this one fully in the toxic swamp Forest Layer, but my short time with these Bananzas proved that they are arguably the most exciting part of Donkey Kong Bananza, adding lots of extra tricks to use in all aspects of the game, and I'm really looking forward to seeing the rest.

Donkey Kong Bananza is, more or less, exactly what you expect – it's Super Mario Odyssey but with Donkey Kong and some extra bells and whistles. While I enjoyed Odyssey, I wasn't thrilled by it, but the extras that DK Bananza packs definitely make it a superior experience in my mind, even from just my preview session. It's not quite a radical upending of the format to fit Donkey Kong in, but it works very well. If anything, not only has Donkey Kong Bananza made me appreciate DK a little more, it's also made me excited for what else this Nintendo development team can do with the power of the Switch 2.

If Nintendo pull it off, there's a good chance Donkey Kong Bananza could be one of the best Switch 2 games, and you can see what else is on the horizon with all the upcoming Switch 2 games.