Donkey Kong Bananza: Nintendo Addresses Frame Rate Issues on Switch 2

Nintendo is ramping up excitement for its next major exclusive, Donkey Kong Bananza, coming to the Switch 2 on July 17.

But with hype comes concern: some early hands-on previews have raised eyebrows over apparent frame rate dips during intense gameplay moments.

Game Director Kazuya Takahashi, speaking to Spanish outlet Lavanguardia, shed light on why Donkey Kong Bananza is a next-gen exclusive rather than a cross-gen release. According to Takahashi, the game’s extensive environmental destruction-made possible by the Switch 2’s more robust hardware-was simply not feasible on the original Switch. “We wanted to create continuity through the chain of destruction,” he explained. This meant packing in massive numbers of destructible objects, complex materials, and dramatic physics effects, all of which would push the older hardware beyond its limits.

As for the performance hiccups seen in the preview build, Takahashi remained calm. “We intentionally used effects like hit-stop and slow motion to emphasize impacts,” he said, clarifying that the use of voxel tech can sometimes lead to momentary slowdowns when entire environments react to the player’s actions. However, he reassured fans that the game runs smoothly overall and that playability was always the top priority-even during large-scale destruction sequences.

In other words, Nintendo knows the frame rate isn’t locked at all times, but they’re betting players will forgive a few drops in favor of pure chaotic fun. With the full launch just around the corner, all eyes are on how Donkey Kong Bananza performs in the wild. Our full review will drop once the embargo lifts, but for now, it’s clear that Nintendo’s latest simian spectacle is shaping up to be one of the most visually explosive titles in the Switch 2’s early library.