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Donkey Kong concept art leaked from canceled Switch game

Donkey Kong concept art leaked from canceled Switch game

Earlier this year it was revealed that developer Vicarious Visions was already in the planning stages of a Donkey Kong video game. The Activision-owned studio may have seemed like an odd choice to direct a new Donkey Kong game, but given the time frame, it made sense; Vicarious Visions had recently made Donkey Kong a playable character in the Nintendo versions of Skylanders SuperChargers. Unfortunately, the game was canceled by Activision before it was well into production. It’s taken years for us to start learning details about the project, but now a new piece of concept art has apparently surfaced, showing DK in front of some ruins.

The concept art originally appeared in a thread on Reddit and was shared by user Geemu on Bluesky. It can be found in the post embedded below.

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So far, very few details have come to light regarding this canceled Donkey Kong game. One aspect that Did You Know Gaming previously revealed is that DK would have had the ability to grind on vines. DK creator Shigeru Miyamoto expressed concerns that the big ape would burn his feet, so the developers had DK use banana peels like shoes in these sections. The character Pauline was intended to appear in the game, where she would have received a makeover and redesign inspired by real-life primatologist Jane Goodall.

It’s interesting to take a look at what could have been! One of the biggest complaints of the Switch era is that Donkey Kong hasn’t received as much attention as Nintendo’s other icons. It seems that Nintendo had plans for the Big Ape on the Switch, but when the Vicarious Visions game was canceled it left a vacuum. This vacuum has been filled with remakes and remasters Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze And Mario vs Donkey Kongas well as those to come Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. However, none of these were anywhere near as exciting as an original game, and fans were clearly hungry for something more substantial.

Hopefully Nintendo will have a lot more to celebrate for Donkey Kong fans in the company’s next console era. While Nintendo hasn’t officially announced its Switch successor yet, we know that the new system will be announced sometime before the end of the company’s fiscal year in March 2025. Fans have been waiting with bated breath for the console’s announcement, but it remains to be seen. Whether it will take place before the end of 2024 remains to be seen. We don’t know what games will be announced for the new system, but a new Donkey Kong seems like a sure thing. Since it is one of Nintendo’s oldest icons, it is possible that we were able to see it in the first years of the system. Hopefully Nintendo doesn’t keep fans waiting too long!

What do you think of this Donkey Kong concept art? Do you think a new DK game will be announced for Switch 2 soon? Let me know your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachampon Bluesky at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!