Nintendo famously keeps its various game developers under wraps, with the team responsible for a release often only coming to light once the credits roll. However, in a change from the norm, Nintendo revealed the Donkey Kong Bananza development team during a recent preview event attended by Eurogamer.
At the event, Nintendo confirmed what we all suspected: Donkey Kong Bananza – the upcoming platformer heading to Switch 2 – is being helmed by the team that brought us Super Mario Odyssey.
In the words of Nintendo itself: “The development team of Donkey Kong Bananza is the same as for Super Mario Odyssey.” So, that means that it’s coming from the production team of Nintendo’s famed Entertainment Planning & Development (EPD) group known for crafting the Switch’s premier 3D Mario Adventure.
This already bodes well for Donkey Kong Bananza, with Super Mario Odyssey being a rather beloved entry in the Mario series. “One of the most daring and influential game designs of all time makes a long overdue comeback in Mario’s most madcap adventure yet,” reads Eurogamer’s glowing Super Mario Odyssey review from 2017.
As for Bananza, our Alex has been hands-on with the upcoming Donkey Kong game, saying his time with the Switch 2 title simply “flew by”.
“Even if I spent much of it doing a lot of the same wrecking ball actions repeatedly,” Alex wrote in Eurogamer’s Donkey Kong Bananza preview, “time flying is always a sure-fire sign of something that’s good – so this formula might just be a winner.”
Thankfully for the rest of us, there isn’t much longer before we too can get our hands on DK’s next banana filled romp. The game is set to release on Switch 2 later this month, on 17th July.
Back in June, Nintendo revealed Bananza’s musical twist and introduced us all to antagonists the Void Company. This company of ne’er do wells is made up of Grumpy Kong, Poppy Kong, and their aptly named leader Void Kong.