{"id":1098005,"date":"2026-01-26T11:02:43","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T11:02:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.polygon.com\/?p=509861"},"modified":"2026-01-26T11:02:43","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T11:02:43","slug":"donkey-kongs-switch-2-version-looks-like-his-mario-movie-self","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/donkey-kongs-switch-2-version-looks-like-his-mario-movie-self\/","title":{"rendered":"Donkey Kong’s Switch 2 version looks like his Mario movie self"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"An
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As Nintendo fans pored over the company\u2019s reveal trailer for Nintendo Switch 2<\/a> and its new Mario Kart game<\/a> game, one small detail stood out: Donkey Kong looks different.<\/p>\n

Fans noticed that in first footage for the new Mario Kart game, a \u201cnew\u201d Donkey Kong is racing alongside Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, and friends. He looks a little different from the Donkey Kong who appears in recent Donkey Kong Country games. This \u201cnew\u201d Donkey Kong actually looks more like the version of the ape<\/a> seen in The<\/em> Super Mario Bros. Movie<\/em><\/a>, which Donkey Kong creator Shigeru Miyamoto revealed to audiences in 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s been over 40 years since the release of the original Donkey Kong<\/em> game, which was also my debut title,\u201d Miyamoto said at the time. \u201cWe’ve also changed his design for the first time since he became a 3D model in the original Donkey Kong Country<\/em> game. Some of you may have noticed, but for this movie, we\u2019ve seized the opportunity to give him a comical personality and design reminiscent of the original character.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

So, yeah, the \u201cnew\u201d Donkey Kong looks less like the version that Nintendo\u2019s been using in the Donkey Kong Country games made by Rare and Retro Studios, and more like the movie version, which is based on older Donkey Kong arcade artwork. The modern Kong has a softer, less angular brow, more oval-shaped eyes that sit closer together, and an overall slightly more realistic look. The differences are subtle, but the Donkey Kong that will appear in the next Mario Kart definitely looks a little different from the same guy who appeared in Mario Kart 8<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Nintendo pulled a similar move with last year\u2019s Princess Peach: Showtime!<\/a><\/em> Eagle-eyed fans noticed<\/a> that Nintendo subtly updated Peach\u2019s look on the game\u2019s box art at one point, tweaking her appearance to more closely match the princess\u2019 look from The<\/em> Super Mario Bros. Movie<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Donkey Kong\u2019s new look arrives the same day that Nintendo is launching Donkey Kong Country Returns HD<\/a><\/em>, a Switch re-release of the original Wii game. That release, notably overshadowed by the Switch 2 unveiling, makes the contrast a little more stark. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s unclear how widespread this new, Super Mario Bros. Movie<\/em>-inspired redesign will spread, though; Nintendo and Universal Studios\u2019 new Donkey Kong Country attraction<\/a>, which opened at Universal Studios Japan last month, uses the older, Rare-inspired version of DK. We\u2019ll see who else might have been updated when the Switch 2 \u2014 and hopefully Mario Kart 9<\/em> \u2014\u00a0is released later this year.<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Nintendo fans pored over the company\u2019s reveal trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 and its new Mario Kart game game, one small detail stood out: Donkey Kong looks different. Fans noticed that in first footage for the new Mario Kart game, a \u201cnew\u201d Donkey Kong is racing alongside Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, and friends. He looks a little different from the Donkey Kong who appears in recent Donkey Kong Country games. This \u201cnew\u201d Donkey Kong actually looks more like the version of the ape seen in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which Donkey Kong creator Shigeru Miyamoto revealed to audiences in 2022. \u201cIt’s been over 40 years since the release of the original Donkey Kong game, which was also my debut title,\u201d Miyamoto said at…<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1098006,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1098005","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-polygon"],"yoast_head":"\nDonkey Kong’s Switch 2 version looks like his Mario movie self | Arcader News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"As Nintendo fans pored over the company\u2019s reveal trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 and its new Mario Kart game game, one small detail stood out: Donkey Kong\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/donkey-kongs-switch-2-version-looks-like-his-mario-movie-self\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" 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