A sport doesn’t have to be immediately impressed by one other to be in dialog with it. That’s one thing we realized a number of occasions in 2025, whether or not it was by way of RPGs that mirrored on a pandemic, a sudden wave of kart racers, or a number of ninja video games that begged comparisons to 1 one other. We’re already getting one other nice instance of that in 2026, because of Huge Hops, an unexpectedly excellent chaser to Donkey Kong Bananza, seven months later.
Developed by Luckshot Video games, Huge Hops is a colourful 3D platformer that definitely appears like a Nintendo sport. It has clear shades of Tremendous Mario Odyssey in its deceptively deep motion and proud collect-a-thon construction. However its open-ended method to puzzle-platforming is nearer to Bananza, a sport that solely lately pounded that very same thought to smashing success. Huge Hops could not have been impressed by Bananza contemplating the little time between their releases, however the former performs like a response to the latter’s weakest factors.
In Huge Hops, you tackle the function of an lovable frog named Hop who’s whisked away from house by a mischievous spirit with mysterious motives. To return house, Hop should traverse a couple of biomes and observe down three airship components. Alongside the way in which, he can acquire tons of Darkish Drips, earn gameplay modifying badges, catch (and eat) bugs, and nab different hidden gadgets. It’s an hermetic style sport delivered with cheery visuals and an earnest tone that calls A Quick Hike to thoughts.
What units it aside from its friends is its froggy hero. Hop primarily interacts with the world along with his tongue, which can be utilized to open chests, decide locks, and swing off of grapple factors. That final half is the place Huge Hops actually makes its mark, as the sport has a momentum-driven motion system that has gamers launching themselves round every map. Tongue grappling combines with air diving to create an expressive traversal system the place gamers can cross lengthy gaps with the suitable planning. Roll off an edge, leap, and dive to increase motion in the identical means Mario can with Cappy in Odyssey. All of it feels remarkably easy, particularly when mixed with some Breath of the Wild-esque wall clinging that permits gamers to chop by way of phases any means they like with cautious stamina administration.
Bananza didn’t cross my thoughts at first as I used to be tumbling by way of a desert and fixing puzzles with my tongue, however it got here flooding again to me the primary time I picked up an acorn. Huge Hops’ additional twist is that Hop can discover an assortment of seeds and fruits on the earth that every one have completely different features: a scorching pepper can burn dry weeds, mushrooms create leap pads, and so forth. When thrown in opposition to a wall, acorns produce climbable vines. Bananza has its personal model of that concept in its Forest Layer stage, the place Donkey Kong can toss seeds at picket surfaces to create pathways.
I used to be thrilled the primary time I skilled that in a hands-on preview of Bananza. I knew that terrain smashing can be the primary occasion, however it appeared like that will be paired with environmental puzzling that gave a bit extra depth to traversal. That depth by no means actually got here within the full sport. Forest Layer’s glorious thought was little greater than a standalone biome gimmick. Different areas introduce a unfastened thought right here or there, like Resort Layer’s glorious rainbow platforms, however they’re typically contained to that space.
It felt like a missed alternative, and it performed into what grew to become my greatest critique of Bananza: It’s a puzzle-platformer with only a few options. On its floor, Bananza presents itself as an extremely open-ended sport. You’ll be able to observe down Banandium Gems in any variety of methods, smashing by way of partitions and ceilings to fully bypass telegrapher routes. But the extra I performed, the narrower my choices felt. Most “puzzles” can solely be solved in two methods. You both full the meant platforming setup or smash round it. The restricted participant expression makes its glut of samey layers lose a few of their luster ultimately, even when the allure of punching every little thing to smithereens by no means completely wears off.
Huge Hops inadvertently works as a constructive counterpoint. Throwables, like acorns, aren’t simply one-time gimmicks which might be strategically positioned to telegraph particular options. Each merchandise may be saved in Hop’s backpack and used out at any time. That small twist breaks Huge Hops’ puzzle potential broad open, as any atmosphere may be was Hop’s personal customized jungle gymnasium with intelligent considering.
If I’ve a bag stuffed with cacti, which create rope bridges, I may pair that with some well-placed acorn vines to cross an extended chasm, then climb up a wall on the opposite facet that I don’t have sufficient stamina to scale. I discovered my means up one tower that I didn’t have the stamina to climb by putting a couple of rope bridges and tossing some bouncing fruits between them, so I may grapple from rope to rope. I obtained by way of a wallrunning part solely by throwing water bubbles that I may swim in, bypassing the meant answer solely. Mix that with Hop’s technique-chaining motion, and also you’ve obtained no scarcity of the way to get round.
The dialog with Bananza goes the opposite means too. As a lot as Huge Hops nails its platformer problem-solving, it lacks a sure stage of polish and course that makes Bananza a standout of its style. A few of Hop’s strategies, like his spotty wall run, reduce into the fluid motion, and the world design lacks a number of the persona that makes Bananza’s layers such a pleasure to destroy. Each builders have takeaways they will be taught from each other on their subsequent tasks. That’s a part of the enjoyment of gaming: It’s an ongoing design dialog that unfolds in entrance of gamers.
Huge Hops is a bit delight for many who love enthusiastic about craft. It approaches a well-explored style with a bright-eyed and playful angle, discovering new methods to show a structured 3D platformer right into a parkour playground constructed for its pint-sized, amphibious hero. Might it spark one thing in one other creator’s creativeness, carrying a torch that’s been burning vibrant for the reason that ’80s ahead.
