In the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal trailer, what appears to be a new Mario Kart game shows off a new design for Donkey Kong that makes him look more like his design from The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
People immediately noticed Donkey Kong looks different, which is impressive considering he's only in the background of the gameplay we've seen of what appears to be the first official Nintendo Switch 2 game, a new Mario Kart game that's presumably Mario Kart 9.
One ResetEra user writes what we're all thinking, "DK ain't look right." Journalist Jordan Oloman writes on Twitter, "What the hell happened to Donkey Kong between Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 9?" alongside a zoomed in screenshot of the gorilla looking deeply haunted. It's the dark outlines around his eyes that do it.
According to Centro Leaks, which usually posts about Pokemon, "Nintendo has redesigned DK to be in line with the movie design." This is corroborated by another ResetEra user, who notes "he appears officially with the movie redesign having been implemented into the games."
I didn't much care for The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and our review remarks "Seth Rogen’s Donkey Kong doesn’t get much of a look-in," so it's nice to see the design going to good use outside of the film.
Also revealed in the Switch 2 trailer was the mysterious new button on the right Joy-Con. No one knows what it does yet, so your guess is as good as ours. There's a Switch 2 Direct coming April 2, 2025, though, so we'll likely learn more then, hopefully including when pre-orders for the Switch 2 will go live.
To keep up to date with all the latest information, be sure to check out our Nintendo Switch 2 live blog. Or check out our list of upcoming Switch 2 games.
