We’ve been talking a LOT about the Nintendo Switch 2 in the past week, and that’s not likely to stop anytime soon with the continued rollout of news for it. However, one thing that certain fans are looking at in particular is the first major 1st party titles to grace the Switch 2 when it launches on June 5th. Mario Kart World will be there on launch day, while Donkey Kong Bananza will arrive on July 17th. Both games were featured prominently in the Nintendo Treehouse segments last week, and Nintendo’s own Bill Trinen has made it clear that the publisher feels these games are top-notch.
While talking with GameSpot, he said:
“Hopefully people are also seeing that with games like Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bonanza, these are sort of genre-defining or franchise-defining moments for each of these games that really take advantage of the uniqueness of the Nintendo Switch 2 hardware. And for me, they really feel like, whether you are a Nintendo fan or a video game fan or even a video game developer who makes your own games, each of those games to me feels like something that you really can’t miss. These are must-play games for you to experience what Nintendo is doing next.”
To be fair, both games do have new elements that push things far beyond what past titles had, including open-world elements, destructible environments, and more. Whether they “define their franchises” going forward remains to be seen, but the signs are looking good!
