Welcome to the celebration of three of the most delightful platformers ever made. Super Mario Odyssey, Astro Bot, and Donkey Kong Bananza represent a golden era for the genre, each bringing its own unique flavor of joy to the table. Rather than pitting them against each other, this comparison focuses on what makes each one a masterpiece in its own right.
Super Mario Odyssey: The Shapeshifting Joyride
Released in 2017 for the Nintendo Switch, Super Mario Odyssey is a globe-trotting adventure that distills 30 years of Mario history into one joyful, innovative experience. It’s a game that constantly celebrates the past while fearlessly marching forward.
This is the trailer of Super Mario Odyssey
The Big Idea: Cappy and Possession
Mario’s new companion, a sentient hat named Cappy, grants him the ability to “capture” and control a huge variety of enemies and objects. This single mechanic is the engine that drives Odyssey’s incredible variety.
- Endless Variety: Throughout the campaign, you’re regularly using new creatures in game-changing ways. You can thrash around as a realistic T-rex, stack Goombas ten high to reach new heights, or zip through the air as a missile. Each new capture ability feels like unwrapping a new toy.
- 2D Easter Eggs: Odyssey’s levels also hide secret entrances that transport you to side-scrolling 2D challenges, complete with 8-bit graphics that lovingly pay homage to Mario’s roots. These aren’t simple nostalgia trips; they twist the old rules with new mechanics like gravity flips, creating something wonderfully fresh.
The Sandbox Worlds
Odyssey is a direct successor to the Mario 64 and Sunshine style of open-ended sandbox platformers. Its kingdoms are densely packed with activities and secrets.
- New Donk City: The urban-themed Metro Kingdom is a fan favorite. Its semi-realistic look and city obstacles—like bouncing off car hoods—create kinetic, unforgettable platforming.
- A Literal Celebration: The end of the New Donk City section is a peak moment of joy, a literal festival that seems to revel in its own pure-hearted fun.
Endless Replayability
With over 800 Power Moons to collect, the game’s challenge isn’t in difficult combat, but in exploration. Many moons are tucked away in the most creative places, making each one a fun mini-puzzle to solve. Even after the credits roll, there are entire new worlds and challenges to discover, ensuring the fun never has to end.
Astro Bot: The Sensory Celebration
Originally a tech demo for the PS5, Team Asobi’s Astro Bot has evolved into a full-fledged, smile-inducing masterpiece that rivals the best in the genre. It’s a game of pure, unfiltered joy.
This is the trailer of Astro Bot
The Big Idea: Tactile Toy Box
Every level in Astro Bot feels like a giant, interactive toy box. The gameplay is tuned to the highest degree, with controls so responsive you execute every action with complete confidence.
- Creative Power-Ups: The game introduces a constant stream of fun and inventive power-ups. You’ll wield spring-loaded punching gloves, transform into an expanding liquid-absorbing sponge, or use a rocket boost to fly. Each new level adds a twist, asking you to constantly rethink your approach.
- The DualSense Showcase: Playing Astro Bot feels incredible in a literal sense. The DualSense controller’s haptic feedback lets you feel the subtle pitter-patter of Astro’s tiny feet on fragile glass or the satisfying weight of swatting piles of objects. Every interaction, no matter how small, is packed with more personality than entire games.
A PlayStation Museum
The game is an endearing and ambitious celebration of PlayStation’s 30-year history. Its worlds are filled with charming cameo bots representing iconic characters from both first-party and third-party franchises.
- Surprise and Delight: Seeing beloved characters from long-dormant franchises pop up is a genuine thrill. The game feels less like a corporate ad and more like the developers excitedly sharing their love for these classics, winking at the player with an “if you know, you know” affection.
- Thematic Worlds: The most ambitious levels are entire worlds themed after specific PlayStation franchises. They serve as the platforming equivalent of a great cover band, incorporating imagery and mechanics from those games in clever and heartfelt ways.
Accessible Fun and Challenge
Astro Bot offers a lovely balance. You can breeze through levels and still be satisfied, but deeper exploration to find every hidden bot and puzzle piece provides a more complex, satisfying challenge for completionists. Its creative diversity ensures you’ll never walk away from a stage thinking you could have done without it.
Donkey Kong Bananza: The Destructive Powerhouse
Released in 2025 for the Nintendo Switch 2, Donkey Kong Bananza is a groundbreaking return for the great ape, built by the same team behind Super Mario Odyssey. It’s a brilliant successor that proves the platforming throne is in excellent hands.
This is the trailer of Donkey Kong Bananza
The Big Idea: A Fully Destructible World
Bananza is built around one monumental idea: Donkey Kong’s incredible strength. Using a complex voxel system exclusive to the Switch 2, practically the entire world is designed for DK to smash, tear, and tunnel through. This isn’t just a gimmick; it’s the core of the adventure.
- Expressive Power: Tearing a chunk of ground and hurling it at an enemy, swinging it to break through walls, or surfing on it for high-speed traversal feels immensely satisfying. The crunchy sound effects that change based on the material you’re destroying make every punch feel real.
- World Progression: The game’s structure is unique and compelling. You and Pauline (DK’s charming sidekick) journey deeper and deeper toward the planet’s core. Each “layer” is a colorful, self-contained playground with unique enemies, mechanics, and visual themes.
A Constant Crescendo of Ideas
As you descend, the game’s creativity only intensifies. Bananza is praised for its relentless stream of fresh ideas, introducing new material types and clever interactions that build on each other.
- Smart Destruction: The world is designed to reward intelligent exploration. Visual cues guide you to breakable walls and secrets, and DK’s upgradable sonar ability helps locate buried treasure. You can sometimes brute-force a solution by digging a tunnel, but the game masterfully guides you toward more intentional fun.
- Rewarding Collectibles: The main collectibles are Banandium Gems. Unlike Odyssey’s Power Moons, which mainly fuel completionism, every five Gems in Bananza earns you a skill point to spend in a skill tree, making your constant hunting feel directly rewarding for progression.
A Journey of Emotion
The game’s finale is widely praised as one of the best Nintendo has ever crafted, an unforgettable experience that the developers fiercely guarded from spoilers. Combined with a fantastic soundtrack that builds on the series’ strong musical identity and a surprising amount of emotional depth, Bananza is a game that unleashes a whole range of feelings.
At a Glance: A Quick Comparison
| Feature | Super Mario Odyssey | Astro Bot | Donkey Kong Bananza |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Idea | Possession & Versatility | Sensory Play & Celebration | Destructibility & Power |
| Movement & Feel | Fluid, responsive, classic Mario with new tricks | Impeccable, perfectly tuned, tactile | Powerful, weighty, expressive, with a great roll combo |
| World Design | Diverse, sandbox “Kingdoms” across the globe | Thematic, creative levels acting as a PlayStation museum | Unique, interconnected underground “Layers” descending toward a core |
| Progression Rewards | Hundreds of Power Moons for exploration’s sake & new areas | Collectible bots & puzzle pieces for the joy of discovery | Banandium Gems grant skill points for a permanent skill tree |
| Signature Moment | The festival in New Donk City | The emotional, secret PlayStation-franchise level | The unforgettable, heavily embargoed finale |
In Conclusion:
- Choose Super Mario Odyssey for a joyful, globe-trotting adventure that celebrates the past while constantly surprising you with new ways to play. It’s a masterclass in pure, distilled platforming fun.
- Choose Astro Bot for a sensory-rich, smile-inducing experience that feels like playing in the world’s best toy box while taking a heartwarming tour through PlayStation history.
- Choose Donkey Kong Bananza for a groundbreaking, power-fueled adventure where you can smash almost everything in sight. Its deep, rewarding progression and unforgettable journey to the planet’s core make it a truly special return for DK.
All three are essential, joyful experiences that prove the 3D platformer is not just alive, but thriving. You can’t go wrong with any of them
