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GamesRadar
GamesRadar
Technology
Scott McCrae

Donkey Kong creator Shigeru Miyamoto explains the big ape's redesign was all in service of making him "more expressive"

Donkey Kong Bananza key art with DK in blue overalls.

One of the hot topics among Nintendo fans this year has been Donkey Kong's new redesign. When Nintendo Switch 2 was first unveiled back in January, the tiny snippet of Mario Kart World gameplay had a new design for the big ape that was more in-line with the version seen in The Super Mario Bros Movie. Then the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showed us what Nintendo was cooking with the new design, with the reveal of Donkey Kong Bananza.

Speaking to IGN, Donkey Kong (and Zelda, Mario, Pikmin, the list goes on) creator Shigeru Miyamoto was asked about the new design, and revealed just why it was time for Rare's DK to move over. "When we were talking about trying to create new versions, evolving Donkey Kong, we created the game called Jungle Beat," Miyamoto explained, adding, "With the technology that was available at the time, we were able to make Donkey Kong more expressive."

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