Japanese convenience store gives Donkey Kong Country Returns HD buyers a real banana

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is coming to the Switch on January 16, 2025. As part of their campaign for the title, Japanese convenience store Lawsons is offering customers who purchase and apply for the download version a free banana. Yep, a real banana. 

As it says on the tin, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a remaster of the 2010 game originally released on the Wii. The colorful, side scrolling platformer has Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong working together to traverse varied environments like ruins, jungles and fireball-filled volcanoes. Those familiar with the original will know that the levels hide various secrets that can only be accessed by taking advantage of each Kong’s moves and special items. QoL improvements include the option to switch between two difficulties, Original Mode and the more forgiving Modern Mode that gives you more hearts and item slots. 

All branches of Lawson (including Natural Lawson and Lawson Store 100) in Japan are offering purchasers of Donkey Kong Country Returns HD a free snack. Those who purchase and apply for a download code for the game between December 16 and January 26 will receive a voucher for a single banana from Tanabe Farms (worth 127yen). Although this is an obvious ploy for Lawsons to get you back in their stores, it also makes sense from a lore perspective. 

Bananas are, after all, the Kong’s favorite food, and collecting 100 of the yellow fruits gives you an extra life. Like its predecessors, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD’s story is also super bananary as it centers on Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong’s quest to reclaim their huge stash of bananas from the Tiki Tribe. 

As a side note, those who preordered the original Wii version of the game could get a plastic banana holder as a preorder bonus. A real banana is probably not something you can resell on Ebay years later though. If you are running low on potassium, it might be worth chowing down on your Donkey Kong banana immediately. Alternatively, perhaps you can tape your banana to a wall and call it art? 

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is scheduled to be released for Nintendo Switch on January 16, 2025. It will be available in both physical and download formats.