By Make way for Bananza
Nintendo has confirmed that Donkey Kong Country Returns HD has surpassed 1 million in sales, reaching a total of 1.27 million.
Released on 16th January 2025, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD’s performance is about what we were expecting, but it’s nevertheless an impressive achievement within just a month and a half. That said, it was also outsold by the likes of Super Mario Odyssey (1.33 million), Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD (1.88 million), and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2.02 million).
DKCR HD was also subject to a couple of controversies in the run up to its release, perhaps most notably the general resentment towards its apparent lack of meaningful updates to justify the $60 price tag. Additionally, the original developers at Retro Studios were missing from the game’s credits, which caused quite a stir amongst fans, us included.
Our eyes now turn to the upcoming release of Donkey Kong Bananza on the Switch 2. DKCR HD was a nice little distraction, but let’s be honest, this is the real deal. Launching on 17th July 2025 and supposedly (though not confirmed) developed by the team behind the 3D Mario series, it sees DK return to the 3D realm in a game that will have you smashing up the environment to find hidden bananas and gold.
In other news, Nintendo has forecast a total of 15 million Switch 2 sales for the next fiscal year, with 45 million software units to boot. As for the original Switch, Nintendo expects to sell 4.5 million, which would put it comfortably ahead of the Nintendo DS in lifetime sales.
Did you pick up Donkey Kong Country Returns HD on the Switch? Are you surprised by the sales, or is it about what you were expecting? Leave a comment down below and share your thoughts.
[source nintendo.co.jp]
Nintendo Life’s resident horror fanatic, when he’s not knee-deep in Resident Evil and Silent Hill lore, Ollie likes to dive into a good horror book while nursing a lovely cup of tea. He also enjoys long walks and listens to everything from TOOL to Chuck Berry.