Undoubtedly, one of the greatest strengths of the Nintendo Switch has been its ability to bring a constant string of 1st and 3rd party titles to the system that were high quality. When you look at the beginning of the console’s run and all the titles that flowed out, especially in those first few years where it HAD to prove itself, they were pretty much aces. Some were ports that got a second chance at life, and others were “lesser franchises” that got another chance to shine on consoles. Yet, despite having a port that did well, Donkey Kong never got a fully original title for Switch.
Most people expected Retro Studios to make one after the success they had with Returns and Tropical Freeze, but that didn’t happen. Now, “Did You Know Gaming” over on YouTube has revealed that there WAS a 3D, presumably open-world-style, Donkey Kong game in development back in 2015. The developer? Vicarious Visions, who at the time was working under Activsion.
According to the YouTube Channel, they worked about six months on the title and came up with several ideas to make the game special, including vast areas, wall-climbing, swinging on vines, and more. It was just a prototype, but Nintendo was apparently interested. So why didn’t it happen? According to the video, you can blame Activision for that. They decided to stop the project as they wanted to step away from single-player titles. And DK still hasn’t had a new title since the Wii U.
…thanks a lot, Activision.
