Because I’m in the land of make-believe right now… or at least for the moment… I feel myself drawn to actually writing a review.

I used to write reviews for games, books, and movies all the time. Back with the Eclipse was a thing. So, I’ll give this a shot.

The boyfriend’s current game is DK Bananza.

Off the cuff, strong Wreck it Ralph vibes.
They both wear overalls, have upper arms like tree trunks, and hit things. They even have similar hair color, a young female sidekick with amnesia, and a ‘derp’ look.

Void Kong, the main baddie, seems to be a cross between MoJo and an evil gremlin.

The whole thing pushes the idea of plagiarism or, at the very least, an homage to Disney.

I would assume that Nintendo wouldn’t allow its flanks to be exposed to obvious lawsuits. If anything, they’ll state that DK has a history that Ralph does not. I’m not sure, but has DK always worn overalls… ? I don’t know.

But the history of the character is different from the character design, as is the usage.

Since this is a game and not a movie, lawsuits may go to the side of Nintendo’s nose instead of up it.

The gameplay reminds me of old Rampage. Just hit and destroy. It’s simple and easy to overthink, as the boyfriend has discovered. When presented with lasers, just break through the wall on the side instead of trying to find a way to turn them off. This isn’t Persona. =)

DK himself seems to be a straightforward character with two objectives – Bananas and protecting Pauline – both of which involve hitting things. That works.

Pauline is annoying. Particularly her “I can’t sing… ” but she has no problems bathing in the spotlight when called on. The songs are a bit repetitive and difficult to make out. Her little ‘nighty night’ chats are relatively revealing of how little critical thinking she imbues, even for a tween.

Somehow, her voice is connected to DK’s ugly-as-sin limit breaks. The chanting of “Zebra” somehow encourages DK to take on a buff Zebra. He also has a self-contained zoo consisting of an ape (of course), elephant, ostrich, and snake. The boyfriend tends to prefer the elephant for it sucks items and is fairly strong. The snake’s bounces and the ostrich’s flight are situational and a bit limited.

I’m really not sure what the point of the skill tree is.
Unlocking the skills for each form is linked to how many bananas are consumed. The ability to use the forms is connected to Pauline being within spitting distance of DK.

Couldn’t the bananas be linked to puzzles or opening up next levels? Increased skills in the various forms could be the result of Pauline’s returning memory or building confidence in her ability to ‘sing.’

Since Mario Wonder, I think that Nintendo has been experimenting, as the old guard is just becoming too old to carry on. Slowly and carefully, new methods are being introduced, like skill trees, Wonder, and whatever Princess Peach Showtime was supposed to be. There was also the Echoes of Wisdom game with Zelda. I think that mechanic was new to the franchise.

So, maybe that’s it.

The levels of Bananza are fairly standard, but there seems to be A LOT of lava and ice. I guess since the game drills down to the planet’s core, there wouldn’t be a lot of call for plants. I get that.

But the Feast Level with the seed oil, melted cheese, and Heart Attack Grill burger is fairly disgusting to me — for obvious reasons. Why is this even part of a family game? Did a McDonald’s promotion fall through?

The game strives to keep itself interesting between various puzzles and searching for bananas in a colorful environment. It’s rather straightforward and promotes Occam’s Razor. If you see something, the best way is generally straightforward instead of off to the side.

So, not bad.

Side note — I think this is a different timeline or galaxy than the movie. This DK definitely doesn’t have the Prince Humperdink vibe as the movie does.

Okay… that’s my review.