Donkey Kong Bananza Preview

GamesRadar

Donkey Kong Bananza lets you beat up everything; enemies, the walls, the ground, even an old Grumpy Kong as a supercharged silverback. We got our hands on the latest, post-direct build of Bananza, and it’s shaping up to be Nintendo's best platformer in quite a while.  Preview by Will Sawyer Video by Hal Dimond

Transcript

00:00In the Switch 2's unveiling Direct, the console's first major post-launch first-party game,

00:06Donkey Kong Bonanza, came out swinging to stand out from under Mario Kart World's shadow.

00:12And after playing the game at the Switch 2's hands-on events,

00:15the free-roam smash-a-thon piqued our interest with its destructive carnage gameplay

00:20and colourful Super Mario Odyssey-style level design.

00:23But as we inched closer to Bonanza's release day, a dedicated Direct shook things up even more,

00:29revealing a whole new build of the game with a ton of changes from what we'd played previously.

00:34New skill trees and upgradable abilities, new power-ups, and a new character reveal in Young Pauline.

00:40So while we were already excited to control our favourite ape in 3D once again,

00:45have these additions successfully bolstered our excitement even more?

00:49Well, after being invited to play this new, closer-to-release version of Bonanza by Nintendo,

00:54we were lucky enough to find out.

00:59Coming into Donkey Kong Bonanza, the eponymous ape had a lot of work to do to impress me.

01:04I'll admit I've personally never picked up any of DK's games,

01:08which means my main experience with him is being my arch-nemesis in every Mario Kart game from Super Circuit to World.

01:15Seriously, why is it always him?

01:17Not only that, Donkey Kong Bonanza needed to pack some seriously impressive stuff to convince me that,

01:22given the sparse offering of Switch 2 games so far, this would be a worthy exclusive and a grand return to 3D platforming for Nintendo.

01:31Thankfully, Donkey Kong Bonanza builds clearly on the foundations laid by Super Mario Odyssey,

01:36amping up the action with almighty Bonanza powers and superb destruction mechanics.

01:41It's certainly a step up from Odyssey in terms of complexity in a few ways too,

01:45and that can present some issues while playing,

01:47but the overall improvements only make me wonder why Nintendo didn't delay the Switch 2 just so this game could bolster its launch library.

01:55Made by the same team as Super Mario Odyssey,

01:58Donkey Kong Bonanza takes the formula of fun platforming action in vibrant, secret-filled worlds,

02:04bursting with personality, and kicks it up a notch.

02:07As a quick recap, you take control of a freshly redesigned Donkey Kong and his passenger Pauline,

02:13plummeting through level after level of the underground world to reach the planet's core,

02:17with the ultimate goal of thwarting the dastardly Void Company and wishing their way back to the surface.

02:23As you'd expect from any Nintendo-made platformer, these sub-level regions are incredibly varied.

02:28During my two and a half hour preview session, I got to explore four of these layers,

02:33Ingot Isle, followed by the Lagoon layer, the two levels from the hands-on events,

02:36but then in addition, the canyon layer and forest layer,

02:39though there were plenty more that I wasn't able to check out.

02:42As in the first time I played the game, Ingot Isle serves as the tutorial area,

02:46where I was first let loose with DK's powerful crushing fists,

02:50and I quickly tried to find the limits of the game's destruction mechanics.

02:53With little effort, you can smash through significant chunks of the level,

02:57sending dust, dirt, and gold nuggets flying, and making the level practically unrecognizable.

03:02While all sub-levels have a sort of unsmashable bedrock that can't be broken,

03:06I was incredibly surprised by just how much you can smash.

03:10Diving into the sand and rock of the canyon layer,

03:13I found that vast mounds and towering formations could be tunneled through or leveled entirely.

03:18It's an excellently implemented system that, for the most part, works smoothly,

03:23and gives you lots of freedom to explore how you please.

03:25Strangely, unlike the first time round,

03:28I did notice some frame drops during the spectacularly destructive moments,

03:32and found the freedom the system affords to be a bit of a double-edged sword.

03:36There were a couple of instances where I got myself turned around,

03:39having smashed through areas so thoroughly that I either muddled the critical path,

03:43or ended up somewhere completely unexpected, unsure how to get myself back on track.

03:47However, the Nintendo representatives did mention that what I played wasn't the polished,

03:52final build of Donkey Kong Bonanza,

03:54so I hope the launch build is better optimized for those busy moments.

03:57The game also has a decent 3D map and a button for pinging objective waypoints,

04:02giving you directions that I definitely didn't use enough.

04:05So getting lost shouldn't be an issue as long as you use these tools.

04:10Just like Super Mario Odyssey's Power Moons,

04:13Donkey Kong Bonanza has a lot of collectibles, mainly golden bananas.

04:17Although, the best part about Bonanza's take on this

04:19is that the collectible marathon is given a bit of a backseat,

04:23no longer essential for reaching new levels.

04:25Every 5 bananas you collect grants you a skill point,

04:29which you can spend to unlock a range of skills.

04:31These include general improvements to things like DK's health,

04:34to enhancements to the monstrous bonanzas you unlock,

04:37temporary transformations that grant DK new, beastly powers.

04:41I'm not going to pretend that the skill tree is the most exciting thing in the world,

04:45seemingly every game has them these days,

04:47but I think it's a progression system that Odyssey sorely lacked,

04:50and therefore made the Power Moon grind sometimes feel like a chore.

04:54Conversely, in Bonanza, I'm strongly incentivized to seek out these bananas,

04:59knowing that I can unlock new powers,

05:01instead of finding them because I have to.

05:03And that's a great way to reframe these collectibles.

05:06You don't need to collect golden bananas,

05:08but it sure as hell helps,

05:09and it'll lead you to all sorts of puzzles,

05:11secret areas, and even Donkey Kong Country style levels.

05:14However, so strong was my desire to unnerf golden bananas,

05:18that I spend a lot of time using DK's hand slap ability,

05:22which reveals nearby bananas and fossils,

05:24Donkey Kong Bonanza's answer to Super Mario Odyssey's Kingdom's specific purple coins.

05:28I wasn't totally enamored by this mechanic,

05:31because it encourages you to press R almost constantly,

05:34in the hopes of finding buried loot.

05:36I end up tearing up lots of areas,

05:38as I punch my way through one collectible to the next,

05:41which, while a fun distraction,

05:43contributes to the feeling of getting lost I mentioned earlier.

05:46No doubt this feeling was exacerbated due to playing against the clock,

05:49but let this be a lesson to prospective Bonandian prospectors.

05:53I felt this most keenly in the multi-leveled lagoon layer.

05:56But after getting back on track,

05:57I was able to unlock the first of the Bonanza powers,

06:00by surfing on a record,

06:01and giving it to an elder Kong DJ.

06:03The Kong Bonanza transforms DK into a hulking silverback gorilla,

06:08with a majestic mane of bananas,

06:09most importantly giving him absurd strength,

06:12to smash through extremely durable materials.

06:15And I later used these powers to beat the living daylights out of Grumpy Kong,

06:18in a satisfying boss fight.

06:20The only other Bonanza I got to try is the ostrich,

06:23which lets you fly briefly to reach far off spots,

06:25and can be upgraded with an egg bomb.

06:27I had little time to try this one fully,

06:29in the toxic swamp forest layer,

06:31but my short time with these Bonanzas,

06:32proved that they are arguably the most exciting part of Donkey Kong Bonanza,

06:37adding lots of extra tricks to use in all aspects of the game.

06:40And I'm really looking forward to seeing the rest.

06:49Ultimately, Donkey Kong Bonanza is more or less exactly what you'd expect.

06:53It's Super Mario Odyssey,

06:55but with Donkey Kong and some extra bells and whistles.

06:57While Bonanza doesn't seem to have the bonkers level creativity of Odyssey,

07:02the extras that Bonanza packs definitely makes it a worthy successor in my mind,

07:06even from the relatively short time I've spent playing.

07:09It's more of an evolution of the format,

07:11than a radical upending to fit Donkey Kong in.

07:14But it works very well.

07:15If anything,

07:16not only has Donkey Kong Bonanza perhaps made me appreciate DK a little more,

07:20but also made me excited for what else this Nintendo development team can do with the power of the Switch 2.

07:26But what do you think?

07:27Will you be picking up this Simi and smash em up?

07:29Let us know in the comments and stick with GamesRadar for the latest news, previews and more.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended