We’re about two weeks away fromDonkey Kong Bananza, and everybody’s thumping their chest in anticipation. From what we’ve seen in the trailers andNintendoDirects, it’s going to offer more freedom than any game in the long-running series. With the ability to literally smash through entire levels thanks to thesame team behind Super Mario Odyssey, the upcoming title couldn’t look more different from its classic arcade roots.
While the game is poles apart from 1981’s Donkey Kong, it seems there’s a subtle nod to the classic arcade game as well as Mario Odyssey, and it’s related to DK’s old pal, Pauline. We still don’t know why Pauline is a kid in Donkey Kong Bananza, but she already has some of the mannerisms of her older self, like one particular dance move.
Young Pauline Has Been Doing The Same Dance Step For 44 Years
As spotted byIcyMeeting1051andRampoon Reddit, Young Pauline can be seen doing the same dance step in Donkey Kong Bananza as she did in Super Mario Odyssey as well as the classic Donkey Kong. Of course, the original version wasn’t a dance, but just some random sprite movement to make kidnapped Pauline look lifelike.
It seems the devs turned it into a dance step that Pauline performs in the New Donk City section of Odyssey , and once again used it in Bananza. It looks like it’s her go-to dance step now. Pauline unfortunately hasn’t got as much content as the likes of Peach, Daisy, and Rosalina, but it looks like Nintendo may just be building her character in Bananza. It’s not much, but it’s a start.
“She also does this in Mario Party Jamboree when she wins a minigame!,” pointed out one fan in the comments. “God, I’m so glad we’re getting more Pauline content,” said another. We still don’t know why this version of Pauline is 13 years old. There have been theories that it’s a prequel, but Nintendo hasn’t confirmed anything just yet.
