Ahead of its official launch on July 17, physical copies of Donkey Kong Bananza for the Nintendo Switch 2 have begun surfacing early, with several images appearing on social media over the weekend. While fans are excited about the surprise reveal, the leak has also raised concerns about potential spoilers and legal implications.
Spotted on Reddit by user pzstm, the post includes three photos of a sealed Donkey Kong Bananza game case—showing the front cover, spine, and back. The front artwork features Donkey Kong punching downward, with a young Pauline clinging to his iconic red tie. The spine continues the wrap-around jungle theme, and the back confirms support for two-player co-op via split Joy-Con, a new “artist mode”, and multilingual support, including Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Canadian French.
Despite the leak, most in-game details remain under wraps, as the game case shown in the photos remains sealed. Still, the buzz online is growing fast, especially with Donkey Kong Bananza marking DK’s return to 3D platforming—his first since 1999’s Donkey Kong 64.
In this upcoming title, Donkey Kong teams up with a young Pauline in a sprawling open-world underground adventure, battling the nefarious VoidCo and hunting for golden Banandium Gems. The game is directed and produced by Kazuya Takahashi and Kenta Motokura, the latter known for his work on Super Mario Odyssey, another standout Nintendo platformer.
As one of the first flagship titles built for the Nintendo Switch 2, Donkey Kong Bananza carries major expectations. Nintendo has already revealed the file size and several core features, but it’s clear the company did not intend for physical copies to circulate ahead of the release date.
The leak also arrives during a heightened legal environment, with Nintendo recently working alongside the FBI and Dutch FIOD agency to shut down piracy-related sites like NSw2u. Gamers who get early copies are advised to wait until the official launch day to avoid potential violations or bans.
For fans looking to go into the game spoiler-free, it’s best to stay alert on social media over the coming days.