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Donkey Kong Bananza Faces Frame-Rate Dips and Early Leaks Ahead of Switch 2 Release

A joint Nintendo-Universal copyright filing confirms a standalone Donkey Kong motion picture is in early development

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Overview

  • Donkey Kong Bananza launches on July 17 exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2 as the first fully 3D mainline title since 1999, developed by the Super Mario Odyssey team at Nintendo EPD.
  • The game’s voxel-based destructible environments run at 60 FPS but experience minor frame-rate drops during large-scale smash sequences, according to developers.
  • Retailers have broken street date, resulting in early copies circulating online and widespread sharing of story spoilers days before the official launch.
  • Bananza represents Nintendo’s strategy to establish separate 3D and 2D Donkey Kong branches, featuring a redesign inspired by Rare-era art and recent film interpretations.
  • In May 2025, Nintendo Studios LLC and Universal Pictures filed a joint US copyright for an “Untitled Donkey Kong Project; Motion picture,” marking the franchise’s expansion into cinema.