
Donkey Kong Bananza release date and when you can get stuck into its destruction
The much-anticipated new adventure of Donkey Kong is nearly upon us, and it's time to gear up for some terrain-tearing action in Bananza.
Nintendo is poised to redefine the concept of groundbreaking with its latest 3D escapade, a surprise that gamers didn't quite anticipate when it was initially unveiled. Donkey Kong Bananza emerged as the 'one last thing' at the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, replacing what many expected to be a new 3D Mario title. However, any initial disappointment swiftly made way for enthusiasm for this fresh, expressive DK adventure featuring terrain destruction and rock hurling.
Even at first glance, the game promises to be an absolute riot. Although not exactly a launch title for the Nintendo Switch 2, the Donkey Kong Bananza Direct demonstrated that it's set to be one of the most memorable games of the console's inaugural year, hitting the shelves shortly after the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater remake release.
The game is breaking new ground in several ways, sending Donkey Kong and a young Pauline on a journey to the core of a planet teeming with diverse locales and cultures at every level. The game places a significant emphasis on destruction as you collect Bananium Gems and thwart the Void Company from exploiting their power for nefarious purposes.
No matter how you reach your goal, you're bound to cause quite a bit of chaos along the way. If early previews are anything to go by, it's shaping up to be an exhilarating underground adventure. And luckily, we won't have to wait much longer to get our hands on this latest addition to the Nintendo Switch 2 games lineup. But when exactly can we expect the Donkey Kong Bananza release date? Here's everything you need to know about when you can embark on your subterranean quest.
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Donkey Kong Bananza release date
The Donkey Kong Bananza release date is scheduled for Thursday, July 17 at midnight local time. This date has been confirmed by its listing on the Nintendo eshop, aligning with its initial announcement during the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct.
Nintendo has yet to announce a specific release time, but as Nintendo likes to launch its first-party games as the clock strikes 12, it's likely we'll see a release at midnight local time. The exception is America, where East Coast gamers can expect a midnight launch, translating to a release time of 9pm PDT / 11pm CDT on Wednesday, July 16. This aligns with the first-party titles appearing on the Nintendo Switch like the Mario & Luigi: Brothership launch time and the Donkey Kong Country Returns HD debut, suggesting a pattern in the company's launch plans.
The game's launch is poised to be a significant event, anticipated to both showcase the capabilities of the Switch 2 and demonstrate Nintendo's creative vision for the console's lifespan. This premiere is set to be thrilling for numerous reasons, not least of which is the return of the DK Rap on our consoles. Frankly, that alone is more than we could have hoped for.
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The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet
There are two types of people in the world. Those who play games on the toilet, and those who pretend they don't. I am a proud member of the former category. I realise this may not be the most 'Guardian' of Guardian article openings, but we all use the toilet and we all play games; I am merely providing a Venn diagram. We used to read books in there. I even had a small bookcase in mine, and am old enough to remember when a workplace was not considered civilised unless there was a copy of that day's newspaper in every cubicle so that hard working staff could catch up with global goings on during their five minutes of down-the-pan time. Once we felt confident to admit we were all reading in there, the toilet book became a publishing phenomenon. Whether this was implicit in the case of, say, QI: The Book of General Ignorance or explicit in the case of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader. Both provided snack-sized nuggets of erudite entertainment that made bathroom visits doubly productive. Phones changed all that. Soon grown men were whipping out their Nokia and playing with a different kind of Snake. Floppy newspapers made way for Flappy Birds. My own toilet gaming predated phones, beginning with Nintendo Game & Watch. A couple of my school chums were lucky enough to own them, and I've yet to see a greater example of true friendship than someone allowing you to take their Oil Panic handheld into the privy. Before that I used to make up a game where I would see how fast I could start and then stop the stopwatch on my Casio digital watch. My record was 0.07 seconds. But I was a younger man then. Ironically, dedicated handheld gaming machines never worked in there for me. The Game Boy was too large and fancy and there was no point entering with a Game Gear or Atari Lynx because the batteries wouldn't cover a single visit. The Game Boy Advance SP was a quantum leap in toilet gaming because it was small and discreet with 10 hours of battery life. But that's where I learned the pitfalls of toilet gaming. It needed to be an undemanding game you could play in bite-sized chunks. Advance Wars nearly killed me. The later missions had me sitting there so long that when I tried to get off the seat my legs would be asleep and I'd topple over like a rotten tree in a forest. Thankfully, no one else was in there to hear, so I didn't make a sound. In the modern world, the toilet is conducive to gaming because there are no distractions. No one is bothering you in there. And, equally importantly, it is guilt free. Parenting begets gamer's guilt. You always feel you should be doing something more 'worthwhile'. Helping the kids with school stuff or working harder to ringfence their future from the slings and arrows of an outrageously fragile world. The toilet becomes a mini oasis of isolated tranquility and undisturbed gaming where you answer the call of nature rather than the yell of parenthood. My toilet gaming has increased the older my children get. I refuse to fix our noisy bathroom fan because it's the only thing that drowns their voices out. In recent times Alto's Adventure, Pocket Run Pool, Prune, NFL RB25, Pocket Card Jockey and Marvel Snap have proved perfect bathroom companions that you can skim the fun from without sitting there so long that your family reports you missing. The absolute zenith of my toilet gaming is Lego Hill Climb Adventures, which I use when I pop into the powder room to cope with workplace stress. (As much as I love Balatro you don't have time to win a game without getting pins and needles, but you do have just enough time to lose one.) Gaming is so immersive it helps you forget the outside and what you are in there to do. That's why we started reading in the first place: as a bowel-loosening distraction from the business at hand. I started gaming as a child, with our ZX Spectrum set up in a cupboard. I could shut the door and escape from parents who constantly and loudly fought into an alternate world where problems could be solved. That's why games appealed to me in the first place. I am glad they can still do the same nearly half a century later in the smallest, safest room of all.


The Guardian
12 hours ago
- The Guardian
Go-to entertainment: why gaming was made for the toilet
There are two types of people in the world. Those who play games on the toilet, and those who pretend they don't. I am a proud member of the former category. I realise this may not be the most 'Guardian' of Guardian article openings, but we all use the toilet and we all play games; I am merely providing a Venn diagram. We used to read books in there. I even had a small bookcase in mine, and am old enough to remember when a workplace was not considered civilised unless there was a copy of that day's newspaper in every cubicle so that hard working staff could catch up with global goings on during their five minutes of down-the-pan time. Once we felt confident to admit we were all reading in there, the toilet book became a publishing phenomenon. Whether this was implicit in the case of, say, QI: The Book of General Ignorance or explicit in the case of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader. Both provided snack-sized nuggets of erudite entertainment that made bathroom visits doubly productive. Phones changed all that. Soon grown men were whipping out their Nokia and playing with a different kind of Snake. Floppy newspapers made way for Flappy Birds. My own toilet gaming predated phones, beginning with Nintendo Game & Watch. A couple of my school chums were lucky enough to own them, and I've yet to see a greater example of true friendship than someone allowing you to take their Oil Panic handheld into the privy. Before that I used to make up a game where I would see how fast I could start and then stop the stopwatch on my Casio digital watch. My record was 0.07 seconds. But I was a younger man then. Ironically, dedicated handheld gaming machines never worked in there for me. The Game Boy was too large and fancy and there was no point entering with a Game Gear or Atari Lynx because the batteries wouldn't cover a single visit. The Game Boy Advance SP was a quantum leap in toilet gaming because it was small and discreet with 10 hours of battery life. But that's where I learned the pitfalls of toilet gaming. It needed to be an undemanding game you could play in bite-sized chunks. Advance Wars nearly killed me. The later missions had me sitting there so long that when I tried to get off the seat my legs would be asleep and I'd topple over like a rotten tree in a forest. Thankfully, no one else was in there to hear, so I didn't make a sound. In the modern world, the toilet is conducive to gaming because there are no distractions. No one is bothering you in there. And, equally importantly, it is guilt free. Parenting begets gamer's guilt. You always feel you should be doing something more 'worthwhile'. Helping the kids with school stuff or working harder to ringfence their future from the slings and arrows of an outrageously fragile world. The toilet becomes a mini oasis of isolated tranquility and undisturbed gaming where you answer the call of nature rather than the yell of parenthood. My toilet gaming has increased the older my children get. I refuse to fix our noisy bathroom fan because it's the only thing that drowns their voices out. In recent times Alto's Adventure, Pocket Run Pool, Prune, NFL RB25, Pocket Card Jockey and Marvel Snap have proved perfect bathroom companions that you can skim the fun from without sitting there so long that your family reports you missing. The absolute zenith of my toilet gaming is Lego Hill Climb Adventures, which I use when I pop into the powder room to cope with workplace stress. (As much as I love Balatro you don't have time to win a game without getting pins and needles, but you do have just enough time to lose one.) Gaming is so immersive it helps you forget the outside and what you are in there to do. That's why we started reading in the first place: as a bowel-loosening distraction from the business at hand. I started gaming as a child, with our ZX Spectrum set up in a cupboard. I could shut the door and escape from parents who constantly and loudly fought into an alternate world where problems could be solved. That's why games appealed to me in the first place. I am glad they can still do the same nearly half a century later in the smallest, safest room of all.


Time Out
14 hours ago
- Time Out
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