After more than a decade since Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Nintendo brought DK back with Donkey Kong Bananza for the Switch 2. The game is selling for $69.99, so the question is, is it worth it?

In Bananza, we find out that Donkey Kong has been working in the mines, Minecraft Steve-style, in order to find delicious golden bananas. He finds out that at the Planet’s Core is an object that can grant wishes. Donkey Kong’s wish is to have– you guessed it– more bananas. Like Mario Odyssey, Bananza is a 3D sandbox platformer– but this time, players can dig through entire levels. Unlike the other games in the series, Donkey Kong Bananza allows the player to dig around to find over a thousand collectibles, including bananas. DK can also now transform into other creatures through Bananzas. The game also serves as a prequel, with Pauline being 13 and not yet the mayor of New Donk City. Logan Plant, writer and editor at IGN, a website dedicated to sharing information surrounding videogames, commends the level design.

“…Bananza rarely relies on mindless destruction for the sake of it,” Plant said. “Instead, it excels at rewarding discoveries by way of smart destruction, and it’s remarkable how intentional and well-designed its dense, vertical layers are.”

Some players were curious about how the game would run. When asked about performance issues by La Vanguardia, a Spanish news site, director Kazuya Takahashi said Nintendo was aware.

“We’re aware that performance may drop slightly at these times.” Takahashi said. “However, as you say, overall, the game is smooth, and at points where large-scale changes occur, we prioritized fun and playability.”

Speaking of fun and playability, what do the players think? AntDude, also known as Ant, is a Youtuber who regularly makes videos discussing new video game releases. He has been making videos on games for thirteen years and has collected a large fanbase.

“I’m not gonna mince words about it, Donkey Kong Bananza is one of the most fun platformers, I think ever…” Ant said. “The whole idea of being able to smash through every bit of the environment and literally carve your own path to the main collectables of the game never once got old.”

Donkey Kong Bananza may not be perfect, but it is fun. Keep calm, Donkey Kong, or however the saying goes.