Have you wondered why there are so many banana peels on your way to work or why whenever you go to the zoo there’s a crocodile in a crown and a cape lurking in the corner of the pool? It’s because DK fever is in the air, and with it the rumours of a new Donkey Kong game heading to the Nintendo Switch.
Donkey Kong has been one of my go-to characters for a long time now, and for those of you who have seen my Nintendo Switch profile icon on the posts I make here on Retro Dood, you’ll know this is 100% true. Back when I first got Mario Kart 64 I used Donkey Kong on every race without fail, and I can still remember when I opened Donkey Kong 64 and the Expansion Pack on Christmas Day. That marvelous monkey has been part of so many core memories in my life and indeed the lives of gamers everywhere, and with the Donkey Kong Expansion in Super Nintendo World on the top of everyone’s travel wish lists, it looks like he’s going to carry on being the centre of attention for a lot longer.
With DK making such a big impact in the Super Mario Bros. Movie and new audiences rediscovering his back catalogue via Nintendo Switch Online, thoughts have obviously been directed towards a new offering on the Nintendo Switch. And I’m not talking about a side-scrolling reboot or a GBA game remade for the Switch – I mean a full-on 3D adventure just like DK64.
I’ve scoured the internet for all the rumours and slices of truth and merged them with my expert speculations on what I would like to see and where I think the Donkey Kong series needs to go next to keep fans on board the mine cart for many more years to come.
My Initial Speculations About A New Donkey Kong Game
Update 28/01/25: Well, the Nintendo Switch 2 announcement certainly brought lots of exciting new features, and one of them featured our favorite tie-wearing Kong with a new look. If you go back and look at the announcement video for the Nintendo Switch, you’ll see a clip of Mario Kart 9 that looks as though it features 24 racers as opposed to 12. Still, DK is the only character that anyone is talking about, and that’s because his look has changed entirely, going from the hard-browed design he had in the Rare-era to a softer, fuzzier look that takes inspiration from the Super Mario Bros. Movie and his older persona from Nintendo’s early days.
So why is DK getting a new look? Well, he was a huge part of the Super Mario Bros. Movie and a firm fan favourite thanks to Seth Rogan’s voice work. He’s the man (or Kong) of the moment, which means it might finally be time for Nintendo to wake up and smell the Banana-flavoured coffee and realise that Donkey Kong is an underused asset in their games catalogue. A new look, a new console, and a new game – I very much doubt that Nintendo would just make a new design for DK for Mario Kart 9 if they weren’t planning on creating new content for him to star in, content that fans of the movie would lap up when buying the new Switch.
Ok, I’m just going to come out with it – we need a new DK game. We’ve had lots of side-scrollers over the years and so many remakes and variations of Donkey Kong Country that I’m desperate for another 3D Donkey Kong adventure. Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze dropped on the Wii U back in 2014, and since then we’ve had a remake for the Switch, Mario Vs Donkey Kong arriving on Switch, and then an HD remaster of Donkey Kong Returns HD dropping in January 2025. That’s 10 years without a brand new Donkey Kong title, a fact that blows my mind!
Sure, DK has been a big player in the Mario Kart games over the years and he’s featured in Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, but as I’ve already said, there has never been a better time to be a Donkey Kong fan right now, and Nintendo really need to capitalise on that. After Miyamoto hugging DK at Super Nintendo World and the simian superstar being such a fan-favourite in the Mario movie thanks to Seth Rogan’s awesome voicework and pushing for the DK Rap to be included, he surely needs a brand new game.
I’m calling it here and now – we’re going to see a new DK game on the Nintendo Switch 2 and very early on in its life cycle. My first thought behind this is that it’s been 25 years since Donkey Kong 64 dropped on the N64. Nintendo has already shadowdropped the Donkey Kong Land games on the platform, and I’m still thinking they’ll release Donkey Kong 64 on there to coincide with all of this Donkey Kong fever. My initial thought is that they’ll release a new title in the next 12 months to coincide with 25 years of the seminal Rare adventure, but time will tell.
The Main Rumours About A New Donkey Kong Game, Gameplay, & More
As I’ve alluded to pretty heavily above, the main rumour flying around the internet is that we’re going to be getting a new 3D Donkey Kong title soon. I still can’t believe that it’s been 25 years since the one and only 3D Donkey Kong game – think about how many people loved that title and how many of us have enjoyed all of Mario’s 3D antics over the years – it’s not like it’s an untested idea for Nintendo. Gamers are going bananas for a new 3D offering, and a quarter of a century is long enough to make everyone wait!
Donkey Kong is much more than a side-scrolling title character; he’s more than capable of holding his own in an open world, adventure, for example. Speaking of which, how many of you have heard about the rumoured Donkey Kong Freedom that work began on in 2016? It was a project that Nintendo worked on with Vicarious Visions and featured some open-world 3D antics with grinding on vines supposedly being a main feature of the game. That sounds a little like it would have had a Donkey Kong 64 meets Sonic Frontiers feel to it, something I would have absolutely loved to have played.
Another rumour I’ve stumbled across is that we’re going to be getting a remaster (or possibly full remake) of Donkey Kong 64 for the Nintendo Switch or more likely Nintendo Switch 2 now, which would go some way to explaining why it hasn’t appeared on NSO yet. We’ve had Banjo-Tooie and GoldenEye 007 returning to Switch, so another Rare game coming back to the fold doesn’t seem so unlikely now! I would enjoy this, but I’d equally enjoy it just appearing on Switch Online and a brand new game dropping instead. Would I buy a remaster of DK64? Of course I would, I’m a sucker for Nintendo games, but I’d feel a little cheated at the same time.
A few years back, notable Nintendo leaker Zippo was recorded as saying that there was a new DK project in the works for the Nintendo Switch 2. They said on their blog that they had ‘double-checked the information with every source possible and can safely say EPD Tokyo’s Donkey Kong game is still very much a thing’. They then apologised because they had talked about the game way too early and said that the game ‘had been moved to Nintendo’s next console.’ I’ve always taken Zippo’s information with a pinch of salt, but this time I wouldn’t be surprised if it was indeed true!
What Could The Gameplay Look Like?
I honestly think we’re going to find ourselves in a much more open-world environment when a new Donkey Game drops. I know I say it time and time again, but I think this is the way all games are heading when it comes to 3D releases for major characters, especially after the success of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. It’s why games like The Witcher and God of War are such big hitters. I imagine a new DK title looking a little like Kirby & The Forgotten Kingdom graphically with DK exploring Kong Island and possibly surrounding islands, thwarting King K. Rool’s goons. Again, this is purely speculative, but knowing the core elements of the gameplay and how Nintendo sticks to key elements of their formula, it’s what I’m hedging my bets on the new game looking like.
Will the coconut gun return as well as DK’s family? I think we might see Diddy and Kranky making an appearance, possibly with some new and exciting weapons rather than a direct copy of the items used in DK64. Fans love Funky Kong too, so I’d love to have him along for the ride, especially if they brought some of those grinding mechanics from Donkey Kong Freedom into the new 3D game – he’d be great at that!
Donkey Kong On Switch Or The Switch’s Successor?
If we’re getting some new ape-scapades, then I definitely think the rumors about the game dropping on the Switch 2 are right. I can also imagine us getting a Donkey Kong variant of the console like the Mario & Zelda variants of the Nintendo Switch. If all we’re getting is a remaster of Donkey Kong 64, then I think that it will arrive on the original Switch so that it’s playable on both the old and new consoles.
My Thoughts On A Potential Release Window For A New Donkey Kong Game
In all honesty, I think it’s going to be Autumn/Winter 2025 before we see a new Donkey Kong game if, and that’s a big if, we get a new 3D game. If we’re only getting a DK64 remaster, then I think we could see it arriving at the end of Spring 2025.
I previously thought that we might see a remaster dropping out of the blue for the 25th anniversary. Nintendo dropped Metroid Prime Remastered on us without any warning, so it’s completely plausible. Either way, I just want more people to experience Donkey Kong’s 3D antics – having Mario, Luigi, and Donkey Kong heading up the new Switch would be incredible. Three Nintendo stalwarts driving the franchise to greater heights… what’s more incredible than that?
