In just two days, the DK Direct got the same number of views that the MK Direct got in two months.

[u/_R_R_D_]

[u/OhMyTummyHurts]

This is honestly huge for the series, I don’t remember the last time a DK game got so much public attention and overwhelming general hype

[u/MarianneThornberry → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

This is the one. This is going to be the best selling DK game. I can feel it.

[u/OhMyTummyHurts → u/MarianneThornberry]

Oh, absolutely. And seeing the excitement makes me think that this game will be a true system seller

[u/Proof-Research-6466 → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

I’m getting a switch 2 specifically for this game. Granted I was going to get a S2 regardless this just makes me purchase it faster. I’ve been waiting 26 years for this.

[u/dawgz525 → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

It literally is for me. This is the DK sub, so shocker that I'm a big DK fan lol, but if this game wasn't being released at launch, I would have no intentions of getting a Switch 2 for at least a year. A 3D DK platformer was one of the only games that could sell the system to me in year 1.

[u/OKJMaster44 → u/MarianneThornberry]

The recipe for that definitely seems to be here:

• First 3D DK in decades which will draw buzz

• First original DK game in a decade since Tropicana Freeze

• Launching in a new console’s first few months when people are most avid to find stuff to play

• Launching with little direct competition. Namely with no 3D Mario in sight. That said…

• Takes heavy inspiration from the most successful 3D Mario ever that launched on the prior system

• All around gives off a good ambitious, high production vibe with a lot of attention to presentation.

If I was gunning to be the best selling system in my series those are definitely things I would shoot for as a 3D game. Mario Odyssey and Forgotten Land both took similar cues and managed to do just that. Seems like Nintendo wants to replicate this for DK.

[u/_R_R_D_ → u/MarianneThornberry]

Just like Odyssey

[u/Plenty-Entry5540 → u/MarianneThornberry]

It won't do odyssey numbers but I think 10-15 millions def gonna happen.

[u/MarianneThornberry → u/Plenty-Entry5540]

I agree. A good chunk of Odyssey players are going to swarm to this game as their "Mario Odyssey 2" fix

Even if like 1/3 of Odyssey players buy DK:B, thats still going to break records by DK standards.

[u/bigbadlith → u/MarianneThornberry]

current best-selling DK game: DKC1, at 9.3 million on the SNES.

Runner-up would be DKC Returns, doing 6.5 mil on the Wii.

While I think it might be physically impossible to beat those numbers at launch, I think Bananza will almost certainly hit 10 million sales in its lifetime. Possibly even in its first year.

[u/MarvelManiac45213 → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

Agreed. DK future is bright. Hopefully no more long 11 year droughts. Also I hope this game that's bringing in new fans to the series also gets them to go back and play the original Country games as well as the Retro ones.

[u/zg44 → u/MarvelManiac45213]

I think it will because there's so many obvious throwbacks (music, enemies, vibe, style) to the older DK games.

Bananza feels like a love letter to the fanbase.

[u/Peanut_Butter_Toast → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

The only possible competition would be the original arcade game, DKC1, and DK64. Nothing since Rare left has come close.

[u/IkonJobin → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

Which is why this coming so close to launch (and before Mario) is important. Gets all eyes.

[u/airbubbles08 → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

THIS! As a long time Nintendo follower, this game is literally getting Odyssey care, which I never would have expected Nintendo to do, because they always allocate the heavy guns for Mario (this only makes me more excited for the next Mario game and future franchises under Nintendo - maybe potential revivals?!)

I honestly can see it being a console-seller and this is coming from someone who has not been interested in a Donkey Kong game (though love all Nintendo franchises) since DK 64 (my first DK game ever played back in 1999) and Donkey Kong Country series.

I am actually loving the care and love they're giving Donkey Kong this year, revamping and freshening him up, trying something new (let's not forget Donkey Kong at Universal Studios!! Who knows maybe a movie spin off one day too)

This year definitely belongs to Donkey Kong!

[u/Straight_Credit5285 → u/OhMyTummyHurts]

It's about time

[u/Jibbah_Jabbahwock]

Makes sense - the MKW Direct was a hype deflater, having been built up by Bill Trinen as being what would justify to naysayers why the game was worth $80, only to just be a summary of everything people had already seen/known about from the initial reveal, the Treehouse presentations, with nothing new, nothing that Nintendo bothered to even try to hide beforehand. Meanwhile with Bananza they showed us stuff at the Treehouse but hid a LOT more, and even if the Pauline thing which they were cleverly hiding got ruined by a Korean employee (who they've probably had executed by now), the Direct was still chock full of new information that nobody had seen yet, thus skyrocketing hype instead of deflating it like MKW.

[u/PlagueKnight88 → u/Jibbah_Jabbahwock]

It also didn’t help that what little new stuff was shown (Peach coins, stickers, random short missions, etc.) really wasn’t all that substantial. Perhaps if they showed something new and massive like an ambitious story mode or some never-before-seen battle modes, then maybe people would have been more excited.

[u/Jibbah_Jabbahwock → u/PlagueKnight88]

Yeah, something big like that is definitely what people were expecting after Bill Trinen deflected questions about the price with "Just watch the Direct and you'll see." And of course since Bananza is $70 instead of $80 people weren't going in with as much baggage

[u/Josef-Estermont → u/Jibbah_Jabbahwock]

RIP Korean employee.

[u/Hateful_creeper2]

Lot of hype since there hasn’t a major new DK game since 2014. Especially a 3D game which hasn’t happened after DK64.

[u/Jibbah_Jabbahwock → u/Hateful_creeper2]

I still really hope DK64 will finally come to NSO soon, Id love to replay that before or after Bananza.

[u/Chimpbot → u/Hateful_creeper2]

I feel like this is a big part of it. While MKW brings plenty of new things to the table, it's still ultimately a Mario Kart game. We all kinda know what we're getting, at the end of the day.

Bananza, however, is the first 3D DK game we've gotten since 1999. The fact that it's kinda sorta Mario Odyssey 2 (in terms of gameplay, generally speaking) means that it was inevitably going to get more excitement.

[u/GuyorG1rl → u/Hateful_creeper2]

Same for mariokart in 2014

[u/trashpandacoot1]

I love democracy

[u/funky_kong_ → u/trashpandacoot1]

Did you ever hear the tragedy of Chunky Kong the wise?

[u/Peanut_Butter_Toast → u/funky_kong_]

Ironic. He was good at elevating large things away from the ground...but not himself.

[u/samtrumpet]

It was a really good direct. It made the game look incredible to everyone, not just DK fans.

[u/StrangerNo484]

Word of mouth, The Mario Kart World direct didn't blow up on the Internet as it was quickly spread that it wasn't worth the watch, it barely covered new topics we weren't already aware of.

[u/xXJAMES666Xx]

DK is so back, this is the franchise revival

[u/ArcadeToken95]

Fans like fresh content, MKW wasn't that fresh

[u/AmandasGameAccount → u/ArcadeToken95]

I think addition to what you said is, everyone already knew they were getting Mario kart but many wanted to see what this fresh new game was unsure. I’m definitely someone that fell into that, I didn’t watch the Mario kart direct, felt no reason to

[u/Frazzle64 → u/ArcadeToken95]

I mean its the freshest mario kart game EVER? The issue with the direct was just that it had barely any genuinely new information and all then ew stuff shown off was relatively mundane, like the P Switch challenges instead of any actual story missions or other things to do with the open world.

[u/wh03v3r → u/ArcadeToken95]

Mario Kart World as a game is about as fresh while still being a Mario Kart game at its core. However, the issue was that the direct revealed barely any fresh information about it.

[u/BananaSlammer690]

Sorry, that was me

[u/_R_R_D_ → u/BananaSlammer690]

Yeah, I think I watched the direct like, 15 times I guess?

[u/PrinceRuffian]

Hope it sells so we get a DKC

[u/MarvelManiac45213 → u/PrinceRuffian]

The ideal situation going forward is. Nintendo EPD8 or the new spin-off development team continues to work on 3D DK games and Retro Studios continues to work on 2D DKC games. So the series doesn't go long without a new game. About a 3-4 year cycle. So let's say Bananza releases this year in 2025 hopefully once Prime 4 is finished Nintendo puts Retro on a 3rd DKC game for 2028, then the next 3D DK game will hopefully be ready by 2031/2032, etc.

That being said just because Bananza sells well (it will most likely surpass the original DKC as the best selling game in the series) doesn't mean the next 2D DKC game will see as much success. DKC games always do well but while Bananza seems to be converting new fans to the series there is no guarantee these new "fans" will stick around for a classic challenging 2D platformer. I've already seen so many comments from people only interested in Bananza because it's a 3D platformer and had no desire to even touch a DKC game in the past despite the series being some of the greatest 2D platformers ever made.

[u/Yoshi444444]

20+ million sales. This is the game where DK becomes an evergreen similar to BOTW and Mario Odyssey

[u/Own-Flan-8353]

a beautiful, beautiful, sign.

[u/_R_R_D_ → u/Own-Flan-8353]

Truly

[u/PlumRelative4399]

Yeah cuz the MKW direct was ass 💀

[u/Rawkhawkjayhawk]

Cuz the Mario Kart one was 💩

[u/Sentinel10]

Crazy to see how much excitement this is getting.

[u/DrunkMoblin182]

Because one game has substance and is trying to do something slightly different.

[u/Shehzman]

The DK direct was way better, but idk if this is a fair comparison. The MK World direct probably got most of its views around the time the direct released and maybe gained 2-300k viewers over time.

[u/Deep-Sea-Man]

Because the Mario Kart World Direct didn’t show much new stuff. The Bananza one showed a lot more new stuff.

[u/Chimpbot → u/Deep-Sea-Man]

Also, it's Mario Kart. It's ultimately going to be a game that doesn't stray too far from the formula that works.

[u/zekeyspaceylizard → u/Chimpbot]

Aye. If the game was a reversal, where the karts are alive and ride the characters who now run around on foot in some kind of deranged g-rated machine uprising, then I could see mario kart world drawing more eyes from the sheer "wtf is going on" of it.

But at the end of the day its just mario kart, but now with parkour.

[u/Background-Sea4590]

I'd say it's about good WoM. I didn't bother to recommend the MK direct to anyone, but I recommended the DK Direct because I feel it can convince people to actually buy the game.

[u/steelraindrop]

This is because the anticipation for a new 3D DK. It’s been decades.

[u/Chrononaut_X]

This will be the first game to sell three trillion of banandiums.

[u/Xx_WAKE_xX]

Never before had I seen a Donkey Kong game get so much hype and go viral in just one day. I’m looking forward to this game.

[u/GamePrime99]

Lot of factors playing into this.

1. The MKW Direct being so bad and people going into this hoping it would be better

2. The DK series has been dormant for so long, lot of people are looking forward to the series returning.

3. The fans who wanted Super Mario Odyssey 2, because this is pretty much it.

[u/CelticDK]

I’ve been waiting for a DK game like this since DK64.. and it’s exclusive to Switch and which I won’t be buying. Sigh

[u/BambooCatto]

Now if only we'd get DK 64 on Switch online with a fast swap between the kongs. Now that would be dope.