Believe it or not, Donkey Kong Bananza DLC is out now

If you have been a fan of one of the year’s most highly reviewed games, Donkey Kong Bananza, then you’ll be happy to hear that DLC was released today, during the Nintendo Direct. DK Island and Emerald Rush introduce a new nostalgic area to explore and a post-game challenge mode to try out. There was a lot announced during today’s Nintendo Direct, like the release date for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, and an unusual new Pokémon game. But only a few things got the shadow drop treatment, including the surprise DK Bananza DLC.

Donkey Kong Bananza DLC adds a roguelike mode, and it’s available now

Donkey Kong Bananza was released less than two months ago, and today, we not only have news of DLC, but that DLC is already available. Frankly, I’m not quite sure how the team was able to pull this off. Either they had another team working on this, or it was meant to be part of the full game, and they didn’t have time to implement it. However, I hope it’s not the latter because this DLC does cost an extra $20 on top of the base $70 price for Donkey Kong Bananza.

The price is the major downside to this exciting news, but on the bright side, they have somehow added a roguelike mode to Donkey Kong Bananza. If you’ve completed the game’s main story, a new challenge mode is now available for you. Talk to the Void King on DK Island, and he’ll recruit you to gather up as much Emerald Ore as you can in a time limit. Finding fossils will give you the choice between three random upgrades, and finding a banandium gem will unlock a random skill, which is all wiped clean between each run.

Aside from Emerald Rush, this DLC pack also includes the new location, DK Island, a location very reminiscent of past Donkey Kong games. For long-time fans of the character, this will be a trip down memory lane. The Emerald Rush mode will be available on this island, as well as a handful of other stages. The DLC is available now on the Nintendo eShop.

Donkey Kong: Bananza

July 17, 2025

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