Donkey Kong (USA)

Donkey Kong overview and version notes

Donkey Kong is the 1981 Nintendo arcade standout release that practically invented the platformer. I spent countless quarters as a kid guiding a carpenter named Jumpman, who'd later become Mario, up four torturous construction site stages to rescue Pauline from a massive ape who just wouldn't stop throwing barrels. Donkey Kong includes region marker: USA, which helps separate this page from nearby ports, regional releases, and similarly named entries.

• Donkey Kong platform notes
  Donkey Kong includes region marker: USA, which helps separate this page from nearby ports, regional releases, and similarly named entries. The strongest visible context is the Atari 7800 platform and its platforming play style. Emulator core: atari7800.
• Genesis of Platforming
  Before running stages in Super Mario Bros., you learned to climb ladders, leap over rolling barrels, and time jumps on girders here in one of gaming's first true real-time platform challenges.
• A Deceptively Smart Story
  That simple story—ape kidnaps girl, man climbs to save her—changed everything. It gave a tangible reason for moving upward that wasn't just a high score, and Pauline's dropped items made each screen feel like a personal mission, not just another gauntlet.
• Brutal Four-Act Play
  The genius isn't in complexity, but variety and crescendo. You move from dodging barrels, to navigating conveyor belts in the cement factory, tricky elevators, and finally the rivet-popping finale where Donkey Kong attacks directly.