Prior to last year’s Donkey Kong Bananza, Rare’s 1999 platformer was the sole 3D Donkey Kong game.
Nintendo has announced that cult favorite N64 platformer Donkey Kong 64 is finally joining its Nintendo Classics library on June 4. The N64 emulator was first introduced to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership tier nearly five years ago, and Nintendo fans have been asking for Rare’s 1999 collectathon platformer ever since.
Prior to last year’s superb Donkey Kong Bananza, Donkey Kong 64 was the tie-wearing gorilla’s one and only 3D outing, and remains an important part of Nintendo’s history, even if the game itself has always been pretty divisive. Unlike the British developer’s far more universally beloved side-scrolling Donkey Kong Country games, Rare’s Donkey Kong 64 sees DK exploring large 3D levels that are absolutely stuffed to the brim with collectible items.
DK 🎵
DONKEY KONG! 🎵
Help Donkey Kong rescue his friends, reclaim the Golden Banana, and save his homeland in Donkey Kong 64, coming to the Nintendo 64 – Nintendo Classics app on Jun 4 for #NintendoSwitchOnline + Expansion Pack members! pic.twitter.com/WfAZ73Cwvo— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) May 28, 2026
Some people loved the more open-ended approach and multiple playable characters, but those hoping for a Donkey Kong-flavored Super Mario 64 bemoaned the back-tracking and confusing structure of the game. Rare’s previous platformer, Banjo Kazooie, which came out a year earlier in 1998, is also in the Nintendo Classics library, and the two are very much in the same mold.
Like many games of the early 3D era, a wonky camera and awkward controls can also make Donkey Kong 64 a bit of a tough hang in 2026, but if you love Donkey Kong (and who doesn’t?) and have ever wondered where Grant Kirkhope’s infamous ‘DK Rap’ came from, you owe it to yourself to at least give it a try next week.
Donkey Kong 64 is the first N64 game to be added to Nintendo Switch Online in 2026, following Rayman 2: The Great Escape and Tonic Trouble arriving in December. Its addition means that a lot of the N64’s biggest games are now playable on NSO via the Expansion Pack add-on, which costs $50 per year for an individual membership. The likes of Diddy Kong Racing and Super Smash Bros. are still absent from the library.
