Donkey Kong could have been so good had it been born on NES. As it stands it comes off as an awkwardly ambitious arcade game that really wants to be something more. Compared to Namco’s early 80s classics Pac-Man and Galaga, which are as fun now as they were when they came out, Donkey Kong is a neat novelty that wears off quickly. It’s all Shigeru Miyamoto’s fault, visionary and genius that he is.
Miyamoto’s name these days is associated with a strict dedication to formula and emphasizing gameplay over story, and I find that ironic: Miyamoto is essentially the man behind contextualizing and integrating story into gameplay in the first place! Miyamoto developed Donkey Kong from the perspective of an artist, not a programmer.
And it’s pretty obvious that game mechanics were based on the story concept, not the other way around. For a 1981 arcade game, the characters and the construction site setting are coherent and identifiable. To this day I don’t know who Pac-Man is or what he’s supposed to be doing, but DK himself sure is a big scary gorilla who wants to kill you. Jumpman is virtually identical to the Mario we know and love today.
It’s not as though the concept is wholly original: King Kong is obviously a massive influence, and originally the game was going to star Popeye, Bluto, and Olive Oyl. That said, Donkey Kong at least as far as I know is the first game with a fully realized story. The context of Donkey Kong dragging Lady to the top of the construction site is animated and even the level design layout is contextualized when he stomps his feet and sets the girders to a slant. The gameplay mechanics are intuitive too: climb the ladders, jump over the barrels that are rolling down on the now slanted girders, save cute girlfriend. The fourth stage involves removing the (nails? stakes?) that support the platform, and bring Donkey Kong crashing down.
Miyamoto wanted his players to focus their goal on completing the story instead of chasing a high score, a philosophy that he used to guide development on Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda a few years later, on the NES.
Maybe you can see the problem. Donkey Kong’s levels do loop, but the same four stages made more challenging just does not make for the addicting formula other arcade games have mastered by this point. Donkey Kong was of course obviously a massive hit, it pulled Nintendo out financial troubles after all, but I suspect this was for the ambition and gravitas of the project: judging by the four-man team of programmers who gave a lot of blowback for Miyamoto’s design ideas, it was a technical marvel.
To give credit where credit is due, Donkey Kong is more than playable, and as I said earlier, intuitive and easy to pick up. As someone who’s introducing to platformers was New Super Mario Bros for the DS, however, I have completely different expectations for how Mario should move and control. To me Jumpman feels too slow, the response to my input a little laggy, and much too prone to dying when I fall any vertical distance. From a modern perspective, these aren’t exactly nuanced criticisms to make, however. And it’s not as though it isn’t easy to adapt: play Donkey Kong for longer than five minutes and you’ll get used to it.
My one major criticism is the hammer, which in my opinion badly disrupts the flow of the game. The ability to destroy obstacles is nice in concept, but when it robs you of the ability to climb ladders and locks you in the same animation for the duration you’re holding on to it. Also, at least for me, it created a Mandela effect where I made a leap in logic and assumed the way you defeat Donkey Kong is beating him up with a hammer. I think this was one of those “cool cinematic” concepts that just didn’t synergize well to the gameplay mechanics.
Donkey Kong falls awkwardly between the couch cushions of too cinematic and ambitious to be an arcade game and too short and simple for an NES game, while games like Pac-Man, Galaga, Frogger and Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda sit comfortably on either side. It’s loved as a novelty and a stepping stone, at best a distraction for a few minutes before playing a more enduring game.
Some are content to leave it there but I’m really disappointed that Donkey Kong has been pigeonholed like this. I think of future entries of other NES games that modernize their original concepts and fully realize them: Super Mario Bros 3, A Link to The Past, Super Metroid, Castlevania IV, Mega Man X… the list goes on. These games are to this day called some of the best ever made and even later entries tend to have trouble escaping their shadow.
Donkey Kong had two arcade sequels, but Donkey Kong Jr changes quite a bit about the core gameplay, and 3 is barely recognizable. I’ve heard Super Mario Bros called a spiritual sequel to this game, and it is to an extent, but I’ve always seen them as two sides of the same coin: vertical vs horizontal. I love Donkey Kong Country, but let’s be real: Rare used Donkey Kong’s name and virtually nothing else from the game they’re using to market their new series. Donkey Kong himself is redesigned and declared their original character, before being shoved aside in favor of Diddy, the real main protagonist.
Donkey Kong never got to grow up with all those other crusty old Nintendo games, and I’m pretty disappointed with all the ports and rereleases it got, no effort was made to improve or modernize it. All I can do is recommend Donkey Kong ‘94 for the gift of god it is, and lament what could have been.
Miyamoto’s name these days is associated with a strict dedication to formula and emphasizing gameplay over story, and I find that ironic: Miyamoto is essentially the man behind contextualizing and integrating story into gameplay in the first place! Miyamoto developed Donkey Kong from the perspective of an artist, not a programmer.
And it’s pretty obvious that game mechanics were based on the story concept, not the other way around. For a 1981 arcade game, the characters and the construction site setting are coherent and identifiable. To this day I don’t know who Pac-Man is or what he’s supposed to be doing, but DK himself sure is a big scary gorilla who wants to kill you. Jumpman is virtually identical to the Mario we know and love today.
It’s not as though the concept is wholly original: King Kong is obviously a massive influence, and originally the game was going to star Popeye, Bluto, and Olive Oyl. That said, Donkey Kong at least as far as I know is the first game with a fully realized story. The context of Donkey Kong dragging Lady to the top of the construction site is animated and even the level design layout is contextualized when he stomps his feet and sets the girders to a slant. The gameplay mechanics are intuitive too: climb the ladders, jump over the barrels that are rolling down on the now slanted girders, save cute girlfriend. The fourth stage involves removing the (nails? stakes?) that support the platform, and bring Donkey Kong crashing down.
Miyamoto wanted his players to focus their goal on completing the story instead of chasing a high score, a philosophy that he used to guide development on Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda a few years later, on the NES.
Maybe you can see the problem. Donkey Kong’s levels do loop, but the same four stages made more challenging just does not make for the addicting formula other arcade games have mastered by this point. Donkey Kong was of course obviously a massive hit, it pulled Nintendo out financial troubles after all, but I suspect this was for the ambition and gravitas of the project: judging by the four-man team of programmers who gave a lot of blowback for Miyamoto’s design ideas, it was a technical marvel.
To give credit where credit is due, Donkey Kong is more than playable, and as I said earlier, intuitive and easy to pick up. As someone who’s introducing to platformers was New Super Mario Bros for the DS, however, I have completely different expectations for how Mario should move and control. To me Jumpman feels too slow, the response to my input a little laggy, and much too prone to dying when I fall any vertical distance. From a modern perspective, these aren’t exactly nuanced criticisms to make, however. And it’s not as though it isn’t easy to adapt: play Donkey Kong for longer than five minutes and you’ll get used to it.
My one major criticism is the hammer, which in my opinion badly disrupts the flow of the game. The ability to destroy obstacles is nice in concept, but when it robs you of the ability to climb ladders and locks you in the same animation for the duration you’re holding on to it. Also, at least for me, it created a Mandela effect where I made a leap in logic and assumed the way you defeat Donkey Kong is beating him up with a hammer. I think this was one of those “cool cinematic” concepts that just didn’t synergize well to the gameplay mechanics.
Donkey Kong falls awkwardly between the couch cushions of too cinematic and ambitious to be an arcade game and too short and simple for an NES game, while games like Pac-Man, Galaga, Frogger and Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda sit comfortably on either side. It’s loved as a novelty and a stepping stone, at best a distraction for a few minutes before playing a more enduring game.
Some are content to leave it there but I’m really disappointed that Donkey Kong has been pigeonholed like this. I think of future entries of other NES games that modernize their original concepts and fully realize them: Super Mario Bros 3, A Link to The Past, Super Metroid, Castlevania IV, Mega Man X… the list goes on. These games are to this day called some of the best ever made and even later entries tend to have trouble escaping their shadow.
Donkey Kong had two arcade sequels, but Donkey Kong Jr changes quite a bit about the core gameplay, and 3 is barely recognizable. I’ve heard Super Mario Bros called a spiritual sequel to this game, and it is to an extent, but I’ve always seen them as two sides of the same coin: vertical vs horizontal. I love Donkey Kong Country, but let’s be real: Rare used Donkey Kong’s name and virtually nothing else from the game they’re using to market their new series. Donkey Kong himself is redesigned and declared their original character, before being shoved aside in favor of Diddy, the real main protagonist.
Donkey Kong never got to grow up with all those other crusty old Nintendo games, and I’m pretty disappointed with all the ports and rereleases it got, no effort was made to improve or modernize it. All I can do is recommend Donkey Kong ‘94 for the gift of god it is, and lament what could have been.
History
Occasionally frustrating but super addicting
sucks
I knew the NES port cut down a level but I wasn't aware of all the difficulty changes on that version, the arcade game is definitely a lot more fun.
That pie factory level sucks ass though I'd have cut it down too
That pie factory level sucks ass though I'd have cut it down too
Jogada a versão japonesa, tudo que tenho a dizer é que o formato da americana é horroroso ao quebrar uma jogatina em 3 pedaços diferentes repetindo fases em dificuldades mais altas. Bom jogo.
silly ape man
It's good
Could you imagine going back in time and telling people that this game would forever change history?
It's a great example of Nintendo's ability to put together a cohesive whole out of basic elements. The music is fun, the sound effects are almost musical themselves, the gameplay is intuitive and the graphics are put to good use to differentiate each level just enough. It's also rather easy and gets repetitive quickly.
You play as Jump Man (Mario) on a quest to save your girlfriend, Lady (Pauline) who has been kidnapped by the original Donkey Kong (Cranky Kong). This game is obviously known as the first appearance of Donkey Kong (although not the current day Donkey Kong. The version in this game would later become Cranky Kong), Mario, and Pauline. It’s pretty simple. You just climb up construction girders to get to DK and you must avoid obstacles he throws at you. You do a couple short stages and then the cycle repeats and you try to get a highscore. It’s okay but the impact it has had on gaming is truly remarkable.
Yeah, it's a classic.
Fun, wish there were more than 3 levels though. Still, even today you can see why this got as big as it did.
Played on switch.
Played on switch.
Very fun for what it is!
Fuck this game for inspiring easily the worst Smash Bros. stage. Also, the hammer sucks and ruins the pacing.
Had to try it....
do-do-dododo-do-do-dododo-do-do-dododo-do-do-dododo
never beat it...
ape escape prequel
I hope they make a spinoff with the red cap guy
This was the one for Nintendo they made many arcade games before this but this was the one that took off. It only has 4 stages in the whole game but you can feel charm with Donkey Kong telling how far you have gone up. I also think that the challenges are decently fair for being an arcade game from the early 80’s. I also really like the cabinet art for this game. Banger arcade game and glad this was the start of the best Nintendo franchise imo. Stage rankings 25M>50m>100m>75m
Beeg monke
I beat this game in a bar, because I didn't want to talk to the guy I went with.
It was a great way to get that creep away from me, really fun to boot.
It was a great way to get that creep away from me, really fun to boot.
Classic replayable game
I had more fun than I expected with this game, which besides having very characteristic and beautiful graphics, has different stages and each one with its own design. The sound is also very well done, with different layers and pleasant to listen to. The gameplay now adds the jump option, which adds more variety than just “walking from one side to the other”, and of course, in each stage you go through different paths and even different ways to pass. Certainly, a very important game for the time.
Very fun for an arcade game of its time. simple but very fun. also it has the pie level, which is missing in most modern ports.
Importantíssimo.
Can't be too mad at this game for the history and all but also FUCK this game
Retro Yearly List #7 [1981: Donkey Kong]
Classic DK. The debut of 2 icons, a jumping ability showing up for the first time in gaming, and one of the first to have different stages, truly game-changing.
In this version you have all 4 original stages which once completed, the game will loop with increased difficulty, it's ok, sort of easy to beat the first 4, but if you wanna play for score-based gameplay, will have to train a bit from there.
And that was for the Japanese set, because if you try the American one, good luck, it's way harder, and the stage order is messed up at the beginning and is back to normal after 5 screens are beaten. To see all 4 stages at least once in this version you have to beat 7 levels, the 8th is the first time level 2 appears to you, and it's already a hardest version of it, unlike JP set that starts with the easiest versions, so, because this version is hard af, people back in the day had to suffer to see level 2. Thank you, emulators.
Rating this based on the JP set.
Classic DK. The debut of 2 icons, a jumping ability showing up for the first time in gaming, and one of the first to have different stages, truly game-changing.
In this version you have all 4 original stages which once completed, the game will loop with increased difficulty, it's ok, sort of easy to beat the first 4, but if you wanna play for score-based gameplay, will have to train a bit from there.
And that was for the Japanese set, because if you try the American one, good luck, it's way harder, and the stage order is messed up at the beginning and is back to normal after 5 screens are beaten. To see all 4 stages at least once in this version you have to beat 7 levels, the 8th is the first time level 2 appears to you, and it's already a hardest version of it, unlike JP set that starts with the easiest versions, so, because this version is hard af, people back in the day had to suffer to see level 2. Thank you, emulators.
Rating this based on the JP set.
i mean, its donkey kong, it works