Nintendo's dealmaking with Microsoft is paying off again. Donkey Kong 64, the Rare-developed N64 classic long considered a lost cause for re-release, joins Nintendo Switch Online on June 4. The game arrives on the Nintendo 64 -- Nintendo Classics library for Expansion Pack subscribers, bringing Rare's 1999 3D platformer to Switch and Switch 2 for the first time. Its last meaningful re-release was the Wii U Virtual Console in 2015.
Donkey Kong 64 was always a complicated case. Rare developed it before Microsoft acquired the studio in 2002, putting the game's rights in a legal gray area.
Nintendo fans had largely given up hope, especially after other Rare titles like Banjo-Kazooie and GoldenEye 007 also faced years of speculation before eventually landing on NSO. But Nintendo has steadily chipped away at that catalog. GoldenEye 007, Banjo-Kazooie, and Banjo-Tooie all made the jump after similar Microsoft negotiations.
Donkey Kong 64's arrival confirms the partnership is still active, and the Rare backlog remains open for business. The game itself was a landmark release. It was the first Donkey Kong title to feature full 3D gameplay and one of only two N64 games that required the Expansion Pak hardware accessory, which doubled the console's RAM from 4MB to 8MB.
It also introduced the DK Rap, an iconic opening number that has outlived any reasonable expectation of being taken seriously.
Players control five Kong characters -- DK, Diddy, Tiny, Lanky, and Chunky -- each with unique abilities, as they traverse themed stages, collect Golden Bananas, and face King K. Rool. The Switch Online version supports four-player split-screen multiplayer in competitive battle arenas, with added online play.
Nintendo's official description sets the stakes plainly: "K. Rool kidnaps the Kong family to distract Donkey Kong.
It's up to our furry hero to rescue his friends, reclaim his Golden Bananas, and save his homeland from certain doom." The timing slots neatly into a broader Donkey Kong resurgence. Switch 2 launched with Donkey Kong Bananza, a major new entry featuring a redesigned DK, and Nintendo re-released Donkey Kong Country Returns HD for the original Switch earlier. A LEGO Donkey Kong set has also been teased.
Donkey Kong 64 scored a 90 on Metacritic at launch, and composer Grant Kirkhope acknowledged the announcement on social media with characteristic enthusiasm. "O-KAYYYYYYY!!!!!
It's so weird hearing my voice at the end .... Haha ....
DON-KEY-KONG!" he posted. The game joins a Switch Online N64 library that includes The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, GoldenEye 007, and Yoshi's Story. Expansion Pack subscribers pay $50 annually for access, compared to the standard $20 tier.
June 4 can't come soon enough for fans who have waited over a decade for a proper re-release. As one commenter put it on Nintendo's trailer: "You have no idea how long I've waited for this."
