In this review
The big picture
Reasons to look closer
Destruction changes how you inspect a platforming space. DK can dig through walls, smash downwards and tear out terrain to use as a projectile. His Hand Slap helps locate buried objects, giving curiosity a practical starting point. Something worth collecting can send you into an excavation that reveals another possible detour. The scenery is no longer merely an arrangement of surfaces to cross; some of it is potentially hiding things, and DK has adopted a very thorough interview technique.
Different materials add useful complications. Nintendo's developer interview describes sand that sticks to walls when thrown and is slippery to climb. A chunk removed from one place may therefore have a purpose somewhere else. That encourages experimentation with what the world is made of, rather than treating every broken surface as the same decorative confetti. “Can I use this?” becomes a reasonable question about objects considerably larger than your usual platforming power-up.
This freedom is particularly appealing if you like investigating spaces and inventing untidy routes through them. Players who mainly want a prescribed sequence of precise jumps should recognise the difference in emphasis. Carving around an obstacle can be satisfying for its own reasons, but those reasons involve less respect for the original obstacle. Somewhere in the level design, a carefully placed barrier has just discovered that it was only a suggestion.
Intro
A collectible behind a wall usually means finding a switch, following a passage or returning later with an appropriate ability. Donkey Kong Bananza invites a fourth response: reduce the wall's involvement in the situation. Nintendo's Switch 2 adventure gives DK a destructible underground world and the tools to dig, smash and throw pieces of it around. Archaeology would be much quicker with this staffing arrangement, although the museum might have concerns about the surviving artefacts.
Released on 17 July 2025, Bananza builds its exploration around reshaping the scenery. Young Pauline accompanies DK, using her singing to enable transformations while pursuing her own goal of reaching the surface. Their journey moves through contrasting underground layers, including canyons and frozen environments. It is a broad setting for a hero whose preferred response to a geographical problem is to make the geography smaller.
Music gives the fists some options
Pauline's singing enables temporary Bananza transformations powered by Bananergy, which is fed by gold. Kong increases destructive power, Zebra emphasises speed, and Ostrich supplies flight and aerial attacks. Those forms vary how you move and interact with the world, giving the duo more tools than simply punching the same thing with renewed conviction. Pauline is mechanically important to the partnership, not merely a passenger who has agreed to tolerate the noise.
The transformations also create reasons to reconsider a space. A route that invites speed asks for a different approach from one that makes aerial movement useful. This is where the demolition premise gains variety: the question is not always how much scenery you can remove, but which ability helps you reach or uncover what interests you. Even an extremely strong gorilla benefits from knowing when the correct qualification is “bird”.
Collecting supports that experimentation, though it can also expand the to-do list. Banandium Gems supply Skill Points, fossils buy outfits, and other resources have separate uses. A little curiosity can become another reward, which is pleasant until you decide that every remaining corner represents personal failure. Completion-minded players should watch that instinct. There is a difference between enjoying an excavation and assigning yourself unpaid responsibility for all the dirt.
Two players, deliberately different jobs
Two-player mode gives one person control of DK and the other Pauline, who attacks from his shoulder. Joy-Con 2 mouse controls can aim her vocal blasts. That setup can suit people with different confidence levels: one handles the main movement while the other contributes to the action. It also means the second player is supporting the first, rather than wandering independently through a separate adventure. Agree on that arrangement before somebody spends the evening asking to be put down.
Assist Mode offers guidance towards the next goal and reduces incoming damage. You can switch between it and Normal Mode, making help an available option rather than a permanent declaration about your platforming credentials. This is especially useful alongside the asymmetric co-op: different players can need different amounts of support without the entire session becoming a negotiation with a difficulty menu.
GameShare lets a Switch 2 owner host a nearby guest on either Switch generation. Original Switch access is local and guest-only; it does not create a standalone original-Switch edition. Online sharing uses Switch 2 and GameChat, with Nintendo Switch Online now required following the end of the introductory free period. Nintendo Accounts and internet requirements also apply. The friend borrowing the adventure still needs to arrive through the correct door, even when DK has removed several others.
Extra digging, separate purchase
The DK Island & Emerald Rush expansion has been sold separately since 12 September 2025. Emerald Rush adds timed collecting challenges and Perks, with access following completion of the main story. It is an option for players who want more pressure applied to the collecting and destruction, rather than something you must buy before discovering whether the base game suits you.
Bananza's clearest attraction is a world you can actively reshape while exploring. Its appetite for collectibles and unequal co-op roles are worth considering, but the central interaction is easy to understand. If you enjoy asking what might be under something, DK is prepared to help. He has a follow-up question too: what if the something were in several pieces?
Sources
Information checked on 16 October 2026. Features, platform compatibility and editions can change.