And while Bananza ’s connection to recent Mario games like Super Mario Odyssey are made clear, there are still important unknowns to address — like how does Bananza connect, if at all, to the events of the Donkey Kong Country games and, more importantly, is this even worth expending brainpower on?

The weird part is... Takeda voiced Donkey Kong in the Super Mario Bros. Movie as well (well spotted, IGN ). As you probably know, the movie role is actually voiced. Takeda's English-speaking counterpart is Seth Rogen. Takeda also "voices" Donkey Kong in Mario Kart: World, replacing Takashi Nagasako who had performed the role for over two decades.

Bananza comes from the same internal team at Nintendo that developed Super Mario Odyssey, which is exemplified by its storytelling that prioritizes charm and good vibes over lore and dialogue.