Waypoint Weekend Episode 31: Going Bananas for ‘Bananza’

It feels like this week just zoomed by, but there’s one thing I can guarantee. This weekend is going to blaze by even faster. But that means it’s time for my favorite segment once again: Waypoint Weekend. A chance to take a breather and find out what my pals are playing. Here’s a hint: most of them are playing something involving a Donkey? Something like that, I don’t know, never heard of it. Either way, let’s prepare to dive in and see what the crew is getting up to over this weekend break, shall we?

Another Waypoint Weekend? Believe it!

Brent Koepp – Contributor

This weekend, I’m going to only be playing one thing: Donkey Kong Bananza. I seriously can’t stop playing this game since it launched yesterday. I fear the new DK game will have a serious chokehold on me for the next few weeks. I’m one of those kinds of players who can’t progress to the next level unless I’ve completed everything. And since this game literally lets you destroy the entire map, I’ve already wasted hours just in the opening section alone. So yeah, I’m not sure whether I should be overjoyed or terrified by how much time I’m going to waste in Donkey Kong Bananza.

And yes, I’m still deep into Death Stranding 2. Until Bananza, I was ready to declare the Hideo Kojima pizza delivery simulator my game of the year. And in all fairness, I still can’t stop thinking about DS. I genuinely feel it’s a masterpiece, and might even be Kojima’s best game yet. But man, Donkey Kong Bananza kind of just came in like a hurricane and took me by surprise. I think my plan of attack here is to take a week’s vacation from Death Stranding 2. Once I fully complete DK’s new adventure, I can go back to it. I’m already 50 hours into DS, so at this point, I’m committed to completing it and not giving up. But yeah, this weekend is going to be all about smashing and bashing bananas, baby!

DK. DONKEY KONG. DK. DONKEY KONG IS GOOD ON SWITCH 2.

I also wanted to take this moment to sell you on Bananza if you aren’t yet sold on it. As a child of the ’90s who grew up with the DK Country SNES games, I kind of fell out of love with the franchise. I know everyone loves Tropical Freeze, but they weren’t really for me. I can full-heartedly say Bananza is special. It’s like a mix of Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I say BOTW because the game truly encourages you to tackle and solve puzzles however you want to.

The fully destructible map and mix of Bananza powers really give you the freedom to explore the game how you want. It’s more than just a typical Donkey Kong game or Nintendo platformer. It’s just damn good. Also, Young Pauline and DK are totally better than Joel and Ellie. I’ll die on this hill!

Anthony Franklin II – contributor 

I’m spending my weekend playing and reviewing an indie game I highlighted a while back. Beyond that, it’s gonna be a pretty light gaming weekend for me. I might take a shot at knocking down some of this backlog, though.

SHaun Cichacki – COntributor

Look, just because I live in Wisconsin doesn’t mean that I’m a massive football fanatic. But I would be lying if Anthony’s College Football 26 review didn’t get me hyped up. With my first-ever foray into the world of CFB, I think it was the right choice jumping into the newest entry. This game is straight-up heat. After getting drafted onto the Badgers as a Quarterback, I’ve almost run through my first season as a Freshman. Sure, some games have been a little more dicey than I’d like them to be. But man, this is some good sports gameplay.

Otherwise, I’m going to keep up on my adventure with Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2. I’m hoping that once I can finally get my hands on Donkey Kong Bananza, I’ll be caught up on some of the other games in my insurmountable backlog so I can enjoy it for what it is. Super Mario Odyssey was one of the greatest 3D platformers I’ve ever played, and everything I’ve heard about Bananza makes it sound even better. I’m undeniably stoked to get a chance to jump in, and I hope it can happen sooner rather than later.

Matt Vatankhah – Contributor

This weekend, I’m goin’ bananas over Donkey Kong Bananza. I, like everyone else in the world, have eagerly been awaiting a proper dive into what the Switch 2 really has to offer. I mean, sure, we have Mario Kart World. But let’s be honest – it’s just better Mario Kart. It’s not the extravagant 3D platforming adventure we’re used to seeing with each of Nintendo’s console launch windows.

I’m even more excited for Donkey Kong Bonanza after learning that it’s developed by the same team that gave us Mario Odyssey. You just know this one’s gonna be good. And with the reception it’s received so far, it’s already looking like an easy game of the year contender. I haven’t played a Donkey Kong game since that weird rhythm game with the bongos. But if we’re just counting the mainline games, well, I haven’t seen the king in action since Donkey Kong Country 3. Suffice to say, it’s good to be back, and I’m ready to start punching stuff.

Time for Waypoint Weekend to Come to a Close for the Day

Well, I think I’ll need to put the pedal to the metal and get my hands on Bananza sooner rather than later. Seems like that’s what mostly everybody will be getting up to this Waypoint Weekend, and I’m totally not jealous in the slightest that they have the game already. Nuh uh. Well, I’ve got a Dynasty to start building anyway in CFB26, so I’ll be keeping myself busy while visions of bananas dance in my head.