The Switch 2 officially launched in June, but it felt like Nintendo’s new console really arrived when the fantastic Donkey Kong Bananza dropped earlier this month.
DK’s first 3D outing in decades delivered the platforming goods we’d ordinarily expect from a certain moustachioed plumber, with the added bonus of allowing you to completely destroy the game’s typically vibrant environments.
But what happens when the bananas dry up and DK is all punched out? Don’t worry about that, there are plenty of other games that bring the fun in both similar and totally different ways.
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Here are my three picks for what to play after you finish Donkey Kong Bananza.
A Bigger Badder Bowser – Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury – Nintendo Switch – YouTube
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Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
The obvious Mario game to play right after Donkey Kong Bananza is Super Mario Odyssey, given that the plumber’s incredible Switch outing was made by the same team. And to be clear, you really can’t go wrong with Super Mario Odyssey.
However, the Mario game I’m actually recommending is Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury, specifically the Bowser’s Fury add-on. Like Bananza, this was a wildly experimental effort from Nintendo, which it toyed with the idea of an open-world Mario game and frequently interrupted the cheerful platforming with heavy metal-scored face-offs with a Kaiju-sized Bowser.
Bowser’s Fury felt like a playable brainstorming session for the next full-sized 3D Mario game, which we’ve been waiting for ever since, and it’s the perfect game to play after you’re done smashing with DK.
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze – Overview Trailer – Nintendo Switch – YouTube
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Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze
Retro Studios’ second stab at a 2D Donkey Kong adventure started its life on the Wii U, which was unfortunate as it meant few people played what is, without question, one of the best side-scrolling platformers of all time.
Eventually, Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze was ported to the Switch, so it’s easily accessible when you’re done monkeying around in Bananza.
Tropical Freeze built on the foundations Retro laid down with (the also great) Donkey Kong Country Returns, adding more Kong team-ups and even more creative level design. It’s a pretty difficult game at points, but the Switch port’s Funky Mode reduces the challenge so everyone can make it through the delightful winter-tinged worlds without hurling their console out of the window in rage.
And don’t even get me started on that David Wise Score; just brilliant.
Splatoon 3 – Launch Trailer – Nintendo Switch – YouTube
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Splatoon 3
At first glance, the third Splatoon game might not seem like the natural post-Donkey Kong Bananza palette cleanser. After all, it’s a team-based competitive multiplayer shooter, not a traditional platformer. But they actually make a great pair.
Splatoon 3’s single-player campaign features a whole lot of platforming, with missions often honing in on a particular mechanic or idea, much like a Mario level. And in the same way that it feels incredibly satisfying to pulverise a level with your huge fists in Bananza, covering Splatoon 3’s equally colourful environments in gloopy paint and swimming through your handiwork at speed never gets old.
As a totally non-violent take on an ordinarily very violent genre, the Splatoon series is one of modern Nintendo’s big wins, and Splatoon 3 is the most complete entry of the three.
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