Donkey Kong

"My favorite original GameBoy game. In fact, one of my favorite games of all time!"

Well, here it is. This little gem of a game has proven to be one of my all time favorite video games. Any console! You want to know what is really strange? I was never a fan of the arcade game that this title is based on. So how come I'm going simply ape over this title? Well, read on...

Gameplay:

The things you'll do for love
The basis of the game goes like this: Donkey Kong kidnaps our favorite plumbers girlfriend. Mario of course isn't about to let that fly, and heads in pursuit of the awful beast. After all, nobody said love is easy. Okay, so that story is pretty cliche, then again back when Donkey Kong was originally made a story like that was considered a stoke of genius. Just goes to show how times have changed.

It's just a bunch of barrel jumping
Many of people who see the Donkey Kong arcade machine cite this, and to be honest I was guilty of doing that as well. However, most people don't know the simple fact that this GameBoy version is much more then just a simple port. While Donkey Kong opens with the four original arcade stages, a new quest begins after you defeat Kong. A ninety six level quest to be exact. (with battery back-up!) What is especially interesting is from here on out the game largely drops the barrel jumping formula, in favor of getting the key to the locked door. You see Donkey Kong isn't about to make it easy for you, so the little chicken hides behind locked doors. Sound easy? Don't count on it. The levels are laid out in such fashion that you can't simply travel from point A to point B. Rather, the levels are laid out much like an obstacle course, requiring you to carry, throw, and even down right manipulate the key so it can arrive at it's destination. A few pointers: 1:Mario isn't near as versatile while carrying the gigantic key.(In simple terms: He walks like he has lead in his shoes.) 2:If you need to set down the key, make sure to not leave in unattended for long. Or else the key will flash for a bit, then blink! it goes right back where it came from. Since the road ahead won't be easy, Mario will often have to call upon such maneuvers as handstand jumps, a bit of high wire swinging, and of course lots and lots of jumping. Mixing up things further, some particularly mind bending puzzles involve building ladders and platforms to get into doors high in the air. As they say variety is the spice of life. Also adding a bit of variety to the pot you can play one of two mini-games, if you find all three special items in the preceding stage that is. So the puzzle solving isn't to overwhelming, you get to face off against the big ape himself once ever four stages. I think this was very smart on Nintendo's part, personally my brain would get fried now and then from all the puzzle solving. Naturally, the mindless battles gave my mind a chance to recoup. Now that I've talked about what is new, I'll get into what is still here. Mario dies easily. Breaking standard plat-former rules, if Mario falls from anything higher then a short fall he dies. Also if Mario gets hit he bites it as well. Unlike the Mario Brothers games, mushrooms don't grant Mario an extra hit; in fact he shrinks. However, I won't get into it any further so I don't give away more then I really need to. Okay that about wraps up this section, but before we move on I need to spread this good bit of news. Donkey Kong Junior comes into play late in the game. To say he is a pain would be a major understatement, in fact he has been known to cause grown men to have nightmares. (Okay that statement is false, but I'm sure you get the point) I know I said I'm trying to keep things under wraps, but I just thought all the classic gamers would get a real kick out of knowing this.

Graphics:

Mama Mia!
The first couple of levels are very basic looking, but then again those are the original arcade stages, and Nintendo was aiming to to faithfully reproduce them. However, once the puzzle levels start things start to heat up. The puzzle portion of the game travels to different places such as a Desert, Plane, and Jungle, and as such the level backgrounds change to fit the theme. Best of all they are some of the nicest backgrounds in a original GameBoy game, and actually rival some GBC games. Great job Nintendo! Fitting with the trend, enemies change to fit a corresponding theme as well. Expect to see such enemies as bugs, mummies, and strangest of all walking balls of flame. However, this all pales next to Mario himself. He of course has the goofy looking walk of the arcade version, but comes with a few more amusing animations to boot. Watching him swing a hammer was a hoot, and I simply loved when it didn't fall enough to die, but lies there for a moment with one leg twitching in the air. Genius! Other touches such as deaths corresponding to how Mario was killed, and the flashing Help!, Help!, Help! balloon from Pauline as Donkey Kong carries her through a door are also of note. Point is, much care was taken in the graphics, and seeing as they still stand up some eight years later just proves my point. Super GameBoy Benefits: Plug your copy of Donkey Kong into a Super GameBoy, and you'll be greeted to a nice color scheme; not to mention a really cool border.

Sound: So terribly simple; yet I can't help but love the audio experience. The music is very upbeat and catchy, and never fails to catch the essence of the particular stage at hand. (I especially love the tune that plays upon selecting a boss stage) However, the sound effects is where this game truly shines. Whether it be the squeaky footsteps of our hero, sproingy sounding jumps, or the cries of Pauline, you'll find yourself smiling on more then one occasion. Okay, so the actual quality of the audio isn't exactly Oscar worthy; we are talking about GameBoy after all. However, Nintendo did wonders with what it had to work with.
Super GameBoy benefits: Plug your copy of Donkey Kong into a Super GameBoy, you'll then be rewarded with a verbal message. Instead of the usual flashing help! message Pauline will actually verbalize help. Pretty neat if you ask me.

Control: Wow! To say my hats off to Nintendo would be a understatement. How they managed to cram all of Mario's abilities onto a scant two action buttons I shall never know. Point is the control is smooth as butter, and will never present problems. Never! This a game that you definitely can't blame the difficulty on poor or illogical controls. Well I suppose you could try, but prepare for some serious ridicule.

This has to be the lengthiest review I've wrote, yet I feel I haven't included anything more then needed. If anything the sheer length of the review should show you the reader who I strongly I feel about this game. Donkey Kong combines superb gameplay, nice graphics and sound, and last but not least the inclusion of Mario and Donkey Kong. You can't really beat that kind of star power. However, what struck me the most was Nintendo's commitment to this project. They could have used the gimmick of Super GameBoy support to sell quite a few copies alone, but instead they turned what could have been a simple port into the most amazing conversions of a classic arcade game I've seen. Any way you dice it Donkey Kong is a awesome title; I've replayed it many times and have yet to tire of the experience. Not too many games can claim that.

Score:10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 09/10/02, Updated 09/10/02