The name “Donkey Kong Freedom” make not ring a bell to Nintendo fans, but that is because this was the code name for a 3D platformer Donkey Kong game that, unfortunately, got scrapped years ago. In fact, the only reason we even know about the game is due to a report by DK Vine, as well as further findings uncovered by a new Did You Know Gaming? video.
The game was being developed by Vicarious Visions, which has since been renamed Blizzard Albany, for the Nintendo Switch. It was going to take place on a large open island, and its gameplay would emphasize the “kinetic energy” of the Donkey Kong Country games, but in 3D. Donkey Kong would slide down vines and ropes on his feet via a new feature called “vine grinding”. When doing this, Donkey Kong would have banana peels as makeshift shoes. This was in response to feedback to Miyamoto being concerned about Donkey Kong getting rope burn on his feet. Meanwhile, Donkey Kong himself would have had his own original look, with bigger arms and smaller legs.
The game’s story would have involved a factory opening on Donkey Kong Island, damming the river. The Without the river’s water flowing anymore, the banana trees would dry up and create an “ecological crisis” for those living there. Unfortunately, the game was scrapped before it was decided who the villians would be, because most of the game’s development time had been spent on the mechanics and the story wasn’t a priority at that time.
As for characters, Diddy Kong and Rambi the Rhino were going to return. Diddy Kong would be on Donkey Kong’s back, similar to the Donkey Kong Country Returns games, and Rambi would be a ridable mount once again. What may be surprising to hear is that, although the game got scrapped before it was decided who else among Donkey Kong’s circle of friends and family were going to be in the game, there were plans for Pauline to be a playable character. It is unknown exactly how far her playability would go, but there were plans for her to be “the Jane Goodall or Dian Fossey of Donkey Kong Island, a human living amongst the apes and protecting them from human encroachment”.
So, why was the game ultimately scrapped? Nintendo was interested in working with Vicarious Visions, but Activision, who owned Vicarious Visions, wasn’t interested in working with Nintendo. The founders of Vicarious Visions, Karthik and Guha Bala, were the ones that were pushing the most for a partnership with Nintendo, left the company in April of 2016. At the time, a prototype of the game had been in the works for half a year and it had a temporary “Freedom” code name until an official one was decided on. However, without the Bala brothers being involved anymore, it left Vicarious Visions more vulnerable to Activision’s desire to focus on Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and their own IPs and projects, which were shifting further away from single-player titles. So, Donkey Kong Freedom was scrapped by the end of 2016.
