Donkey Kong Bananza.

The Gavler Review.

Donkey Kong Bananza Review: Destruction as a Game Mechanic, Done Right

Donkey Kong Bananza ranks fourth on our Best Games of 2025 list with a 9.0, and it earns that spot by turning a simple idea — DK can smash almost anything — into one of Nintendo's most inventive 3D platformers in years. GameSpot's 9/10 review put it plainly: "The result is an excellent platforming adventure that moves with its own propulsive force, constantly beckoning you to dig a little deeper." The honest trade-off is technical rather than creative: the same physics-driven destruction that makes the game special also causes real camera hiccups and frame-rate drops as levels get more chaotic, most noticeably late in the campaign.

What it is

Bananza is Donkey Kong's first full 3D platforming outing in decades, built by a Nintendo EPD team with clear DNA from Super Mario Odyssey, reworked around total terrain destruction. DK can punch, tunnel, and smash through nearly all of the environment rather than navigating around fixed obstacles, and the game's stages — layers of an underground world — are built to reward creative demolition over following a single intended path. GameSpot's review described the pedigree directly: it "bears the strongest resemblance to Super Mario Odyssey, from which it gets most of its fundamental mechanics, structure, and game-feel," then "augments that with physics-based terrain deformation and experimental flexibility reminiscent of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom."

Collecting Golden Bananas and Banandium Gems unlocks a skill tree and Bananza transformations — animal forms like a silverback gorilla or a zebra, each granting new traversal and combat abilities that function, per GameSpot, like "Zelda-like tools" gating access to new areas. A second player can drop in as Pauline, DK's companion, for cooperative ranged support. It launched July 18, 2025 as a Switch 2 exclusive at $69.99, priced as a first-party flagship title.

In use

The core loop is the game's clearest success, and both major reviews that Gavler pulled for this piece independently landed on the same word: fun. Nintendo Life's full review captured the moment the mechanic clicks: "Rather than following the suggested approach, I ripped up a chunk of earth, solved a puzzle in a way that I never expected to work, and laughed as DK goofily ooh'ed and ahh'ed at the reward... Simply put, it's the most fun I've had with a platformer in years." GameSpot's testing reached a similar conclusion about how the destruction mechanic reshapes traversal itself, rather than being a novelty layered on top of standard platforming.

But GameSpot's hands-on time also surfaced the game's clearest technical weakness, and it's worth quoting in full because it's specific rather than a vague complaint: "Punching your way through solid rock and making your own pathways can easily throw the game's camera for a loop, which leads to odd clipping and momentary camera wonkiness." More seriously: "the level of chaos from terrain being manipulated led to some noticeable performance issues, with framerate drops resulting in noticeable slowdown. This was most pronounced near the end as the deformation got more complex and tumultuous." That's a real, documented technical cost of the game's signature mechanic, not a minor nitpick — and it lands on one of the flagship launch-window titles for Nintendo's newest hardware, which raises the stakes on it.

A smaller but genuine friction point: GameSpot found the costume-unlocking fossil currency confusing in practice, noting "the sheer variety of fossils is confusing, and I never felt like I had a firm grasp on which fossil unlocked what."

Strengths

• Destruction that changes how you approach every puzzle, not just how levels look. GameSpot's testing found the terrain-deformation mechanic reshapes traversal itself rather than sitting on top of conventional platforming.
• Bananza transformations function as real traversal tools. GameSpot compared the animal forms to "Zelda-like tools" that gate new areas — mechanically meaningful, not just costume changes.
• A DK and Pauline pairing with genuine emotional weight. GameSpot called the bond "genuine and sweet," a stronger narrative hook than Donkey Kong games have typically carried.
• Two-player co-op that doesn't feel bolted on. A second player controlling Pauline for ranged support adds a cooperative layer without diluting the core solo experience.

The trade-offs — who should skip it

The clearest documented weakness is technical. GameSpot's "The Bad" summary lists camera behavior and performance drops explicitly, both tied directly to the destruction mechanic that makes the game special — the more chaotic the terrain manipulation gets, the more the camera and frame rate strain to keep up, worst late in the campaign. Eurogamer's 4/5 review echoed a softer version of the same concern, finding that Bananza sometimes "gets a bit lost" rather than fully building on its own best ideas throughout.

The fossil-and-costume currency system is a minor but real annoyance — not a dealbreaker, but a system GameSpot found genuinely hard to track across dozens of hours. Players sensitive to camera stability or frame-rate consistency, particularly in fast-paced destruction sequences, should know those issues are documented and real, not isolated complaints.

None of this changes the recommendation for the core audience: Switch 2 owners who want a substantial single-player platformer. It's worth knowing going in that the polish isn't flawless, even if the design is.

How it compares

On the same list, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 sits at rank one with a 9.4, Gavler's highest score for a 2025 release — a story-driven turn-based RPG that's a completely different genre and experience, aimed at players who want narrative depth over physics-driven platforming. Hades II at rank five is a closer genre neighbor in spirit — another Nintendo-adjacent, mechanically inventive sequel that "meaningfully improves on" a beloved original, per Gavler's verified scoring notes — though its roguelike structure plays nothing like Bananza's open destructible stages.

For players deciding between Switch 2's launch-window lineup specifically, Bananza is the platformer; Clair Obscur and Hades II are the picks if turn-based RPG combat or roguelike replayability matter more than smashing through a level.

The Gavler verdict

A 9.0, reflecting a critic aggregate around 90 and genuine Game of the Year consideration, tempered by real, specific technical criticism from GameSpot's own testing — camera wonkiness and frame-rate drops during heavy destruction, most pronounced late in the game. None of that undercuts the core achievement: GameSpot's closing assessment holds up, that Bananza "deserves to be mentioned alongside games like Mario Odyssey as among Nintendo's best recent work." For Switch 2 owners, it's an easy recommendation — just go in knowing the polish isn't quite as complete as the design.

Common Questions

Is Donkey Kong Bananza worth it in 2026?

Yes, for anyone who owns a Switch 2 and wants a substantial single-player showcase title. It ranks fourth on Gavler's Best Games of 2025 list with a 9.0, and GameSpot's 9/10 review said it 'deserves to be mentioned alongside games like Mario Odyssey as among Nintendo's best recent work.' The honest catch is technical, not creative: camera behavior and frame-rate stability both waver when terrain destruction gets chaotic.

Does Donkey Kong Bananza have any real flaws?

Yes. GameSpot flagged that 'punching your way through solid rock and making your own pathways can easily throw the game's camera for a loop, which leads to odd clipping and momentary camera wonkiness,' and separately noted 'noticeable performance issues, with framerate drops resulting in noticeable slowdown' as destruction gets more complex, most pronounced late in the game. Eurogamer's 4/5 review similarly felt the game 'occasionally... gets a bit lost' rather than fully expanding on its own best ideas.

Donkey Kong Bananza vs Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — which is the better 2025 game?

They're not really competing for the same player. Clair Obscur ranks first on Gavler's Best Games of 2025 list at a 9.4 as a story-driven turn-based RPG; Bananza ranks fourth at 9.0 as a physics-driven 3D platformer built around destructible terrain. If you want Nintendo's best pure-platforming showcase for Switch 2, Bananza is the pick; if you want 2025's most acclaimed narrative RPG, it's Clair Obscur.