Exclusive: Donkey Kong Bananza Devs Speak Out

Donkey Kong Bananza launches next week, and we've finally discovered the talented team behind Donkey Kong's ambitious new 3D adventure. Surprisingly, it's the same developers behind Super Mario Odyssey – something eagle-eyed fans suspected from UI elements and other subtle hints in promotional footage.

Now that we know the creative minds responsible, we seized the opportunity to pepper them with a jungle's worth of burning questions.

Meet the Developers

We sat down with Kenta Motokura, producer of Donkey Kong Bananza, and Kazuya Takahashi, the game's director. Motokura should be a familiar name – he previously directed Super Mario Odyssey and has contributed to numerous Nintendo classics since joining as a 3D character artist during the GameCube era. His impressive resume includes work on Super Mario Sunshine, Pikmin, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, and acclaimed titles like Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario 3D World. Meanwhile, Takahashi is a newer addition to Nintendo, arriving in 2020, but brings open-world design expertise that he says lends unique perspective to Bananza.

We've already shared key insights from our conversation, including:  - How the game concept originated  - Where it fits in Donkey Kong's legacy  - Why it debuts on Nintendo Switch 2 But the full interview contains even more valuable details (ripe for the picking, like a DK-worthy banana stash). Check out the complete discussion below.

Note: Responses have been lightly edited for flow and clarity.