After 44 years as second banana, Donkey Kong Bananza makes Nintendo's first star a mascot to rival Mario and Link in the Switch 2 era

But Mario didn't even have a name in that 1981 debut – it was the then-villainous Donkey Kong who was the star of the show.
Rolling Stone

How the Creators of ‘Donkey Kong Bananza’ Mastered the Art of Punching

The first thing players will notice upon booting up Donkey Kong Bananza is that its titular ape looks pretty different. Although DK has sported multiple styles before (and the name’s been used for ...
IGN

The 10 Best Donkey Kong Games

Despite being Nintendo’s original mascot and being one of legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto’s most iconic character creations, Donkey Kong has had a bit of a weird history of getting his own ...