9_10DOH64

Switch games NEED to have manuals back. It’s always so gratifying to buy games from LimitedRunGames as they always have manuals.
The fact switch cases have a space for a manual and don’t just looks cheap and low quality.
Nintendo need to wake up, understand the value people hold in physical media and start doing a proper job.
Vinyl made a come back, Blu-ray is making a come back cartridges should to, people want to own what they pay for and wick of paying for subscriptions or endlessly buying more an more SSD storage for digital games.
Give us full physical media and manuals, and quickly.

@Jack_Goetz been hugely disappointing. Can only hope the Switch 2 actually starts never year.

We are in a repeating pattern of how pointless the PS5 was in its first 2 years of release, it was all PS4 games for 24 months

I’d like them to port Black Ops 6 and Warzone. Not bothered for BO7 at all. I’d rather get a solid port of an established game. And it’s only 12 months old that I’ve got a years worth of progress and skins invested in.
BO shouldn’t get a new release until 2-4 years between each, BO7 is garbage

The opening year in Switch 2 has been disappointing.
A near full on drought of third parties even entertaining releasing actual physical games and all giving us cheap key cards that nobody wants.
Then is first party world it’s been underwhelming

Mario kart world…. Was not Mario kart. Gone was the GP competition format with podium ranking and a faux open world aimless racer with far too many weapons going on during multi player to even have a chance of leaving it feeling anything like remotely like a racer. 6/10 and one of the weaker Mario kart showings…… ever.

Donkey Kong Bananza, nice game, but majorly repetitive and NOT. A Donkey Kong game at all. 6/10

Metroid 4. The strongest showing from Nintendo first party efforts this year, but nothing stand out about it all, but a solid performance with quality throughout. 7/10.

This year has shown the top level talent in the Nintendo teams that we’ve been used to in the 80’s 90’s and 00’s have now really taken a step back, and not really involved today and letting the younger teams push forward. And the lack of experience is showing.

Video games in general are waning in true quality and originality. But seeing it happening from Nintendo, is a real displacement and painful to see.

Where are the AAA, system selling, instant greatest of all time contender flagship titles that Nintendo used to be known for?

Nope. I wanted to be interested too.
The demo just 100% put me off. Just felt aimless, joyless and utterly pointless as a game

That’s just bad. Really bad. Not bad in an entertaining way. Just. Bad.

Mine arrived today

@Cyrax77 you’ve missed the point. Clearly.
Nintendo fans are fan service games. And they are typically great games.
However, where Nintendo has fallen down since GameCube is that major third party titles just aren’t available on their platform and there are some MAJOR hitters that outsell Nintendo titles that just are present on Nintendo and need to be.
Not necessarily BF or BO7, they are just recent examples but you can list them all going forward.
Nintendo needs to bring third parties fully onboard for Switch 2, the user base is there, they’ve proven that with Switch, they just need to convince third parties to start delivering.
We are entering month 6 and we still don’t have a major Nintendo title.

None of those codes work on the GAME in the UK

NHL 2026 along with ALL EA Sports games clearly uses a LOT of AI intervention to create “moments” instead of actually letting players play each other.
The games are worse every single year and THIS is the worst and where they should have been fixing the failures of last year, they’ve produced painting by numbers programming with AI fluff and it is pure garbage

@Cyrax77 none of those are big games.
They are all Nintendo fan service games.
All the games you mentioned were easily knocked out of first place, second and third by actual big games such as Ghost of Yotai, Battlefield and inevitably Black Ops 7, 2 of which could have been on Switch 2, but aren’t.
Maybe BO7 will be, but nothing confirmed yet. Definitely not at launch and definitely not for Christmas, whereby it’s pointless as anyone who wants to play it, will already be doing so on PS5 /XB and wouldn’t double dip for an inferior version

Nintendo need to start releasing some big titles for the Nintendo Switch 2, and there are still NONE on the horizon.
Passed up EA Sports putting in a decent effort, same old inferior garbage again.
No Black Ops
No Battlefield.
The BIG third party titles are all nowhere to be seen, and no MAJOR first party titles are even in the Horizon.
Mario Kart was disappointing.
Donkey Kong was never going to be big but was well adopted by the Nintendo fans, but nowhere want a system seller or a title that would draw new gamers to adopt the new console.
What are Nintendo doing? Half way into year 1, and there are ZERO huge titles being hinted at.

EA disappoints.

RELEASE THE RESIDENT EVIL 7, 8 AND 9 AS FULL GAME CARTS. LET US COLLECT THEM!!!
Then all will be fine

I couldn’t disagree with Donkey Kong Bananza being No1 any more if I tried.
I think it’s an average game and certainly one of the poorer games to use the Donkey Kong IP.
It isn’t a patch on ANY Donkey Kong Country game or even the original arcade or GameBoy version.

It’s just weak, repetitive and over hyped and adopted because it’s the flagship launch window title to add to the gap with some Switch 1 ports in the lead up to Christmas.

There are way more solid and better quality games to play. Shinobi Art of Vengeance is an insanely high quality game, but I suppose it’s a Switch 1 game, not a Switch 2 game.
The port of Cyberpunk 2077 is more impressive and a better game. Street Fighter VI is better. Hollow knight is better.
Deltarune is better.
Mario Kart World better.
The more I play Bananza, I just feels underwhelming and really, should have used the Warioland IP and not DK.
Smashing around in caves hour after hour is just not what you expect or want from DK. Where’s the joy? the music? the colour? the art style? the technical level design? the challenge? the comedy? The mine carts? The barrel sections? The creative graphical flair?
All null and void as we mindlessly smash through terrain and a young girl shouts ELEPHANT as we turn into and elephant? For some reason?
Mental, absolutely mental and just is not a Donkey Kong game.

This is the best wrestling video game since WWF No Mercy on N64 and is the best wrestling game from 2K games, ever. Finally out everything right from the previous versions and looks amazing running on Switch 2, especially when docked

Couldn’t disagree with this list anymore.
The list generally I do, but Bananza should not even be in the top 10, never mind 1.
Donkey Kong Country Returns
Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze
Donkey Kong Country 2
Donkey Kong Country
Donkey Kong Country 3
Donkey Kong (GB)
Donkey Kong (NES)
Donkey Konga
Donkey Konga 2
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
Donkey Kong 64

Are ALL better Donkey Konga games.

Bananza NEVER felt like Donkey Kong belonged in it. The more I play it, the more I’m certain.

I got bored at level 900 and stopping playing in in late July and returned to it this week to try and stick with it to finish it at least. Then it hit me.
Bananza should have been Wario Land 5

The random nature and theme, the endless digging in dark and dreary levels. The insane disjointedness of the whole thing, THIS should have been a Wario game.

I don’t get anything of Donkey Kong from this game and shoe-horning him into it, is a huge swing and a miss and a chink on his reputation that can’t be unchanged

Octopath traveller being a game key card only is absolutely disgusting of that publisher.
Collectible franchise from a collective developer and they do that? Absolutely disgusting.
Won’t be buying it based on that alone

@SoIDecidedTo
succeeded. Full refund back on my eshop balance. The godawful game has gone.
Success and EA can suck it

@Dr_Awkward Switch 2 is awesome. Best console in a LONG time. I have no issue with the hardware. It’s the lazy greedy third party developers keeping more of your money by giving you a download code on a piece of plastic over an actual game.

I’m a collector, I stick plays games I bought in 1995 that still work today with no download required.

I don’t trust what will happen another 30 years from when the console is obsolete and you don’t actually own the physical game, you’re reliant on online access to it. Unless they sell you the actual physical game.

On Switch 2 they can sell you that but they refuse as they keep more profit by selling you a code over a cartridge

GAME KEY CARD!? For gods sake!? Can they not figure out we don’t want them and we are willing to pay for actual games on actual cards, that’s why WE BUY NINTENDO CONSOLES

@SoIDecidedTo I thought that. Dodgy gits. Turning the function off so you can’t show the world how bad it is.

@SoIDecidedTo good news is, you can get a refund. I’ve complained through Nintendo directly, as I preordered it on the eshop. Submitted my video evidence if why it’s appalling and not fit for purpose and they’ve agreed and in the process of fully refunding my money back to my eshop account.

This better include physical copies of each on the switch.

Woukd love to see one for each entry. The original PsOne version with the HD remake per cartridge for each release from Zero through to Village and finally have them all in Nintendo on physical cartridges.
I’d buy all of them.
Digital or key card? No sale

If THIS is the result of a team working solely on Switch 2, they all need firing. Total shambles of a game on the same levels as WWE 2k18 on Switch

This game is unplayable.
Can’t even attach me EA account to the game due to a bug, which means cannot play any of the online modes (which is most of the £70 game).

Offline. It’s full of bugs, full of slowdown and full of glitches.

Completely unfit for purpose and should not have been released. A majorly sloppy port by an incompetent developer.

Demand a refund immediately. The game is broken.
100% unplayable online.
Offline, it’s poor quality at best.
Do not buy, and if you have demand a refund asap.

Because. And I don’t mean to sound deflating. This game is repetitive and boring.
It is being sorely overrated because it is THE only flagship title on offer and as early adopters we need some actual meet.
Weirdly, receiving third party support in the guise of WWE 2K25 and Madden 26 is far bigger news for Nintendo than a mediocre first party titles.
When do you remember last having such third party stalwarts available on Nintendo hardware?

Nintendo should be flexing Metroid 4, New proper Mario, new Zelda and still to come, in production AAA first titles in the run up to Christmas.

After a mixed launch. This is feeling thin.

@Markiemania95 the first post was an exaggeration, call it being pedantic on your part, or exaggeration on my part, the point remains the same.
If you play ANY DKC game, the music all has a distinct and recognisable signature to it that is instantly DK as soon as you hear it.
All of that is missing. And it sounds nothing like a DK game. Except for a few things here and there. Close to 100% of the soundtrack is something totally different and is worse for it

Excellent list and justifiable reasons for each position! I read these types of articles and often disagree or internally hitch and moan that I don’t agree with certain games in certain positions, as everyone always does. But the piece written for each game is a well written justification for each subjective opinion and it was a pleasure to read.
Donkey Kong is my favourite Nintendo franchise and it was great to trip back through them.

@Johnny44 what is that even an answer to?

@darkswabber I get that. I’m saying, it’s just nowhere near as good and just hope this isn’t the end of DKC as a series, it’s literally one of Nintendo best franchises and it passed in entirety on Switch.
It’s been more than 10 years since the last one, just want it to go the way of the F-Zero series

There’s 5 DKC games and 1 3D prior to Bananza, which was awful.
What trade off are you referring to?

A WHOLE song?
Still a LONG way short of a whole game.
I obviously haven’t got to that 1 level yet. B it that still means 95% of the game, or even more, is the wrong sound.

I would have not bothered with any DKC Easter eggs, and let this be its own game. Just feels insulting to get a whiff of how great DKC 6 in Switch could/should be.
I only hope this game is a temporary deviation for DK, and we get a new DKC in the near future. If this turns out to be what DK games are from now on? That’ll be a sad state of affairs.

7/10 it is a solid 7 and a very good game.
It is by no stretch a 10/10. Only a handful of games every gen are worthy of the 10.
There’s more than enough shortcomings in Bananza to keep it from a 9 too.

I would honestly have scored this higher if this was the reboot of Wrecking Crew. It’d have been a genius way to reinvigorate that IP. Whereas what it does is rode the credibility of a legendary IP and switches roles of being on the monkeys back for a change.
DK is essentially smashing things to bits and endlessly mining now? Why?
Mine carts, barrels, swinging, complex genius and fluid level design, speed running, established strong cast of characters? Where are they? Just seems random to have DK, digging for 20 hours.

@Johnny44 I said except for little bits here and there.
Donkey Kong had a soundtrack all the way through that is distinctly DK and has a sound to it, that is completely part of the aesthetics to the whole game.
This soundtrack is just nothing, but has small uses of DKC sound that doesn’t do it any justice at all.

The first appearance of a mine cart, I thought YES finally!!
Then it literally rolled me for 3 seconds down to another island, and that was it 😂
😔

@Mesozoic_Masquerade I’ve picked a hill to die on? 😂
My avatar is Donkey Kong, as it’s my favourite Nintendo franchise and the icon is built from what’s available on the Online builder. I’ve also used it here, as it’s the game I’m playing right now.
I’ve said it’s a great game, I’ve said I like it.
What I’m saying is, is that it feels so far removed from Donkey Kong Country, the best play forming series ever, that it just feels short changed after I’ve waiting over a decade for a DKC sequel.

This game literally didn’t even need to use DK, it would have worked with anything IP. If anything it would have worked better as a reboot of Wrecking Crew.

DK turning into different beats like the WereHog Sonic is just wrong, as it totally bypasses the supporting cast from DKC that’s been around for 30 years.

Rambi appears in Bananza, but disappointing that he’s just stood there. Like Yoshi being in Mario, but you can’t ride him.

I’m not slagging the game off, I’m still playing it now. 😂
I’m saying it’s an underwhelming outing for DK, and would have been better utilised with a different IP.
For a DK game there’s just too much missing, and too much new.

@Jack_Goetz exactly, the small little puzzle rooms have nods to it. But the main soundtrack and sound to the game, just isn’t Donkey Kong

@Johnny44 there isn’t.
The majority of the soundtrack is just not Donkey Kong.

@Markiemania95 exactly. There’s references to, the majority of the soundtrack, just isn’t Donkey Kong

As great as the game is, it isn’t a system seller, it isn’t a Nintendo flagship title and it really isn’t a Donkey Kong game.
This game is to Switch 2 as what Luigi’s Mansion was to GameCube
An off-track venture with an established IP.
Given that fact, the sales it has achieved are impressive, racially given that DK hasn’t had a title out for over 10 years, except for recycles 3DS and Wii U games that didn’t sell too well either compared to Mario Odyssey.
I didn’t like Odyssey, just because is started so far from the established Mario formula, it just didn’t feel as magical. I far much preferred Wonder.
I’m sure as unit numbers grow, so will sales of Bananza, but I I don’t think you can freely pitch Bananza against Odyssey either.
No platformer was ever as huge as when Donkey Kong Country launched in SNES, until Mario64 launched on the 64. Nothing has been as big since either, so straying too far from those hit formulas just seems to be a possible miss step sometimes, sometimes worth the risk and some gems are born, like Luigi’s Mansion. Only time will tell with Bananza.

Either way.

Bring me Donkey Kong Country 6 with a David Wise composed soundtrack, as quickly as possible please.

I didn’t say anything that was nonsense. You took an opinion you read personally and felt the need to address me directly, I didn’t bring this to you.
Your experience, your opinion, is relevant to you and wholly irrelevant to me.

My experience is the Nintendo controllers have always been far better quality in terms of build and materials used, every generation, except 16-bit as Sega’s was as good.
Only niggle was the GameCube controller was perfect ergonomically, but the D-pad and right stick were dreadful.

ALL controllers wear out, and in my experience from N64 onward, Nintendo controllers are better quality and have a far greater life span.

The Dreamcast controller was shocking. The d lad was dreadful, the plastics were cheap, it had 2 too few buttons, it only had one analogue stick. The analogue triggers and stick were great though, loved the VMU too.

The original Saturn controller was one of my favourites too, still use it now.

@axelhander another ban? Mess? I Didn’t say anything offensive, so I apologise if you took offence. I just called your response for exactly how it sounded and the tact you took. Maybe calm down and proof read your responses before you post publicly. You decided to get personally offended and address me directly as you didn’t like my opinion.

But that’s off topic.

Back on topic.

Controller preference is 100% subjective and based on your personal experience with every one you’ve used. I have a multitude of reasons why I’ve preferred Nintendo controllers ever since NES. Typically comes down to build quality, ergonomics and lifespan.
I’ve never needed to fix a Nintendo controller ever.
Xbox on the other hand, I’ve never had a controller that didn’t have drift within 3 months, L3/R3 that disintegrates, low quality plastics and awful ergonomic.
PlayStation is somewhere in between, better quality, but awful drift issues, shocking battery life and the thumb sticks wear so fast that you need to be able the change the sticks or buy replacement covers for them, that never really fit.
But, that’s my experience generalised for those 3 platform.

@Dr_Lugae totally agree with you.
I’m not saying it’s a bad game. I’m just saying it isn’t anywhere near as good as the DKC franchise.
I’ve waited over 10 years for the next Donkey Kong game, and this just isn’t it. It’s more like an attempt at an alternate genre for the IP, this literally could have been any IP and didn’t need to use DK at all.
Just makes me want the next DKC even more.
Again, it’s not a bad game either, it’s just average. Controls are awesome, but it just feel middle of the road meandering with no real difficultly.
There’s nothing wrong with this using the DK IP, I just hope it isn’t instead of Donkey Kong Country, and we get DKC 6 soon.

It would have made FAR more sense for this game to have used the Wrecking Crew IP

It is a cool mechanic. But to base the WHOLE game on that mechanic, it gets boring and just isn’t a Donkey Kong game.
It’s like an Earthworm Jim sequel taking the Lorenzos Soil level from EWJ2 and making every level of the entire game like that. It would be appalling, repetitive and just not fun. The draw is finding out just how much is destructive, and it’s a lot and impressive, but it’s at the cost of any recognisable level design and is a total disservice to fans of DKC.
I can only hope this is a separate venture and a new Donkey Kong Country game is in the works.

@axelhander not in the slightest. I brought up years and numbers to answer your ignorant assumption that I’ve not used many controllers, not as a trump card on controller opinion authority.
My opinion is that the switch pro controller was the best quality controller ever made, the switch 2 controller is slightly better.
Your opinion is that my opinion is wrong. That’s just childish and borderline autistic in itself.
What’s your favourite controller?

@axelhander you’re right I’ve not used many. I’ve used ALL, since 1987.