In 1981, Donkey Kong was released, an arcade game that quickly became a huge success. Now, forty years later and with several more installments released, this character remains somewhat unknown to some. So let's talk about Super Mario's first enemy and what we consider to be the five best Donkey Kong games.
Donkey Kong, the first enemy of Super Mario
In 1981, an arcade machine was released that quickly became a massive success: Donkey Kong . Its creator was none other than the now legendary Shigeru Miyamoto. The reason, or reasons, that led it to become such a mass phenomenon? For many, it was simply that it offered a game that broke all the rules of the time.
Four years before its release, Shigeru Miyamoto joined Nintendo. At that time, the company focused on selling toys, but had already begun exploring the video game market. Miyamoto had studied engineering, so the company's president at the time commissioned him to design both the console and the promotional artwork for the new video games they had been developing.
These titles (Sheriff, Space Firebird, and Radar Scope) were very successful in Japan, but not in the other countries where they were released as well. So once again the CEO of Nintendo, Hiroshi Yamauchi, relied on Miyamoto to lead the new video game development department that he had created in order to launch solid proposals for the American market, where other companies such as Namco or Taito were having much more successful than them.
This was how it could be said that Miyamoto took his first steps in the development of video games despite having no technical knowledge on the subject. Although for some that was precisely the reason for his success. Lacking experience that he could limit knowing what could or could not be done, I imagine different things, like Donkey Kong.
Like something out of a comic strip, Miyamoto's idea was that of a little man who would have to jump as he climbed to the top of a stage where a gorilla had captured his girlfriend. Yes, that was Donkey Kong, and that Jumpman would eventually become Super Mario, the current flagship character of Nintendo.
donkey kong empire
Photograph by Kelly Sikkema – Unsplash
Since 1981 Donkey Kong has been one of the most recognizable characters in the world of video games, although some did not know that it was the work of Nintendo or that it was also, as we said before, the first enemy that Super Mario had before Bowser.
Now, after forty years of existence, the games based on the character have been many and practically all the company's consoles have had a delivery. Some of them have been more mythical and valued than others, but in general they have all retained that attractive point. Of course, in some he went from being the enemy to the protagonist.
The best Donkey Kong games
The list of Donkey Kong titles is very long, from 1981 when the arcade version was released until now forty years have passed, so there are a large number of titles that you may not have played. These are all:
- Donkey Kong
- Donkey Kong Jr.
- Donkey Kong 3
- Donkey Kong Jr. Math
- Donkey Kong Jungle Forever
- Donkey Kong Country
- Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
- Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!
- Diddy Kong Racing
- Donkey Kong 64
- donkey konga
- Donkey Konga 2
- Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
- Donkey Konga 3: Table-Houdal! Haru Magitate 50 Kyoku
- Donkey Kong Barrel Blast
- Donkey Kong Country Returns
- Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
- Donkey Kong (Game & Watch)
- Donkey Kong Jr. (Game & Watch)
- Donkey Kong II
- Donkey Kong 3 (Game & Watch)
- Donkey Kong Circus
- Donkey Kong Hockey
- Donkey Kong (Game Boy)
- Donkey Kong country
- Donkey Kong country 2
- Donkey Kong country 3
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong
- Donkey Kong: King of Swing
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis
- Donkey Kong: Jungle Climber
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!
- Mario vs. Donkey Kond: Minis on the Move
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
How many of these games did you know? Surely not as many as you think, although it is normal. They are forty years of Donkey Kong, so it is logical for platforms that you have not been unaware of the existence of launched proposals. Even so, if we had to choose the best, possibly our TOP 5 would be this.
Donkey Kong (1981)
The original title is essential, it is the game that not only every fan of the saga should play, but also every user who likes video games and the reasons are many. Even so, the main one is that it is very fun and even addictive. And no, it's not as simple as it might seem at first. You have to have enough mettle to know when to move forward, jump, etc. in order to achieve your goal, which is none other than reaching the top.
With the ability to play it via emulators available for a wide variety of platforms, there is no justification for not doing so.
Donkey Kong Country (Super Nintendo, 1994)
The second game that you can't miss and that you should also play, also because like the previous one is easy to enjoy through emulators, is Donkey Kong Country for Super Nintendo. At the time it was quite a revolution, especially due to the use of pre-rendered graphics that provided a unique image quality at that time. Of course, the gameplay and the variety of levels cannot be ignored either. It's just a game.
Donkey Kong Jr. (1982)
Another of the classics of the saga is Donkey Kong Jr. This changed completely with respect to what was seen in the original game and became an action title where this time if you controlled the little gorilla who had to overcome different dangers with in order to get to where Mario is to steal the keys that open Donkey Kong's cages.
Donkey Kong 64 (1999)
Honoring the change that the Nintendo 64 brought about, this Donkey Kong title showed a 3D environment like the one that could be seen in other games for that platform. A somewhat different game and for this reason it may attract attention and be one of those that should be at least tried.
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Nintendo Switch, 2018)
Available for Nintendo Switch, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is one of the most recent titles in quotes since it was launched in 2018. With the advantages provided by the Nintendo laptop, this game retains that platform essence that is so popular.
The next Donkey Kong game
If you're a Donkey Kong fan , you probably have your own favorite games in the series , and you might not even be able to pick just a few—you might like them all. So feel free to share your own top picks.
Likewise, given the success of the series, it's logical to think it won't end here. Recent rumors suggest a new game is in development, being created by the same team behind Super Mario Odyssey. So we'll have to keep an eye out. And having just turned forty, what better time to announce it at a Nintendo Direct?