Classic Game of the Month: May 2012

For May, we're gunna go waaay back in time for this Classic Game of the Month. So far back into videogame history that Nintendo was practically unheard of, arcades were the place to be, and quarters were more important than $100 bills.

I dedicate this month to the original Donkey Kong arcade system released in August of 1981.

The Official Nintendo Poster/Flier of the game

Developed Out of Necessity?

Donkey Kong is a video game that practically happened by accident. The story goes that Nintendo had been making moderately successful arcade games in Japan and wanted to try their hand at taking a chance on the American market who was in the middle of the gaming craze. Nintendo of America, only a short time into its American foothold, ordered for the import of an Arcade game called Radar Scope, a 3^rd person shooting game that was very popular in Japan. However, by the time that the systems arrived on the west coast, the buzz about the game had subsided and vendors had little faith in selling these systems for profit. Essentially, NOA (Nintendo of America) was stuck with thousands of game cabinets, no market, and a huge loss of profits. With a big problem on the horizon, NOA turned back to the Japanese division for help. The answer: Shigeru Miyamoto.



As an artist and a dreamer, Miyamoto was hired to find a solution to update Radar Scope and make it a better and more appealing game. Instead, Miyamoto had his own ideas. He instead created an entirely different game that would run on the Radar Scope systems and the new software patches were shipped to America. Most unexpectedly, the game was an international phenomenon and made Nintendo a hit on the market, gave Miyamoto a permanent place on the Nintendo team, and set its course for success.

The Game Itself

The protagonist of the game, "Jumpman" -later renamed Mario in America- tries to save a damsel in distress who has been captured by a large ape and is trapped on a construction site.

Official Story Quoted From Nintendo of America

Screen Shot of game play

"HELP! HELP!" cries the beautiful damsel in distress as she is dragged up a labyrinth of structural beams by the ominous and diabolical Donkey Kong. "SNORT. SNORT." The maiden is not Princess Peach, but a woman named Pauline, who, in her pink dress screams for help from the beast that lay ahead of her." HELP! HELP!" is what somebody might hear. And yes, in fact, somebody DID hear her, none other than the brave carpenter Mario. Little Mario, as called by most. The frightening music warns him of the perils that lie ahead of him, as well as the evil Donkey Kong.

Despite the height of the structure and all of the dangers that lie ahead, little Mario tries desperately to climb the mighty fortress of steel, to save the lovely lady from the evil ape Donkey Kong. Little Mario must dodge all manner of obstacles - balls of flaming nova, beams of steel that plummet down and a barrage of exploding barrels fired at him by Donkey Kong himself. Amidst the beautiful girls' constant plea for help, your challenge is to maneuver little Mario up the steel structure, while helping him to avoid the rapid-fire succession of hazards that come his way.

As little Mario gallantly battles his way up the barriers, he is taunted and teased by Donkey Kong just as a bully, who brazenly struts back and forth, beating his chest in joyful exuberance at the prospect of having the beautiful maiden all to himself and also to the fact that he is mocking Little Mario. It is your job to get little Mario to the top. For it is there, and only there, that he can show his vengeance on the evil DK, sending him to his mortal doom. And as in all great tales, Donkey Kong is beaten, possibly seeking revenge another time, but leaving the bold and brave Little Mario and the beautiful maiden to live happily ever after. "SIGH. SIGH."

Game Play

Donkey Kong has been considered to be one of, if not the first, platforming games ever made. Rather than mimicking the racing, puzzle solving, or enemy shooting game play of other games, Nintendo's game has Mario running, jumping, and climbing to get from one end of the level to the other in order to advance the game. 1 hit from any enemy will cause Mario to loose a life so he must avoid or jump over barrels and other obstacles. When he reaches Pauline at the end of each level, he advances on to the next one. 

Graphics

The graphics of the game highly resemble the sketches and artwork that would have been used when planning the game. Because of the technology at the time and the fact that this game was a patch to replace an already existing game, the graphics themselves aren't the most detailed or animated, but they were still adequate for the times.
Interestingly enough, Mario's now famous design was created as more of a way to avoid complications rather than for appearance. Miyamoto has stated that the reason that Mario has a hat was because it was easier to animate his hat rather than flowing hair. Mario's mustache also removed the need to animate a mouth which would also have been difficult.

Legacy

Donkey Kong is one of the most important game ever developed by Nintendo. It was their first international hit and gave them the support to continue making more game. It also gave them a mascot, Mario, who would become an icon to rival Mickey Mouse in popularity. 

Donkey Kong has had countless remakes and ports as well as plenty of sequels. Ports can be found on the NES, the Gameboy Advance, Game & Watch systems and as a mini-game in other games. 

Further Reading

http://www.mariowiki.com/Donkey_Kong_(game)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donkey_Kong_(video_game)

http://themushroomkingdom.net/games/dk-arcade