The Nintendo Switch will soon take its final bow, leaving behind an incredible legacy that reinvigorated handheld gaming and gave fans some great games. If Switch 2 had a legacy that was half as good as its predecessor, it would still be one of the company’s best systems.
Looking back at the Switch’s extensive library, it mostly did justice to the company’s major franchises. Mario had two generational entries with Odyssey and Wonder, Zelda changed open-world titles forever with Breath of the Wild, Metroid was revived and had some of its best sales ever, and Fire Emblem continued to sell like pancakes.
Unfortunately, Donkey Kong wasn’t as lucky. While the franchises above received new entries, Donkey Kong only got two re-releases in Country Returns HD and Tropical Freeze. It’s a fate better than Star Fox, which only got a crossover with Ubisoft’s Starlink, but not by much. Some fans would even argue that Star Fox at least appeared in a new game.
With many expecting the Switch 2 to be stronger than the previous Switch, we think it's time Nintendo considered making another 3D entry for good old Donkey Kong.
For context, there hasn’t been a 3D Donkey Kong game since Donkey Kong 64 for the Nintendo 64, which is the only 3D entry for this character. Sure, he’s appeared in 3D games like Mario Kart and Mario + Rabbids, but this was the character’s only 3D game. Considering how popular this gorilla is, we’re surprised he still hasn’t received a 3D game.
That’s not to say his 2D games have been bad, as they’re quite excellent. Both Country Returns and Tropical Freeze have some pretty challenging platforming that might surprise players who are used to Mario and Sonic’s floatier controls. Luckily, they control beautifully and are worth playing, especially on Switch.
However, while both games are great, they are re-releases, which aren’t particularly exciting for major Nintendo franchises. Relying on re-releases to keep a franchise going makes them feel old and lacking, which Donkey Kong has done for a long time. Now that Nintendo has released more 3D games in the past few years, it will put that experience to good use with DK.
Kirby saw some resurgence when Forgotten Land was released on Switch, bringing the character to a 3D realm for the first time. While Kirby has never lacked in popularity, the new perspective made the character’s gameplay feel fresh again. The best part is that this wasn’t a vast open-world game or anything like that; it was just a solid 3D platformer a la Crash Bandicoot.
If Nintendo brings Donkey Kong to 3D, it should do the same thing that worked with Kirby and start with a more linear 3D platforming adventure. What killed Donkey Kong 64 was how big it was, coupled with players having to switch between numerous Kongs and collect different bananas each time. Needless to say, a 3D DK game should keep that Country gameplay intact.
Making a 3D game where DK smashes barrels and rides enemies would be pretty satisfying. The Country formula is a winning success, and translating that to 3D would do wonders for this franchise. If Nintendo gets it right, they could have another success similar to Kirby and the Forgotten Land, maybe even Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
Donkey Kong needs a 3D game for the Switch 2. Luckily, this console will be backward-compatible with its predecessor, so fans can also play those 2.5D DK games on Switch 2.