
Bootleg copies of Donkey Kong also appeared in both North America and France under the Crazy Kong or Donkey King names.
Nintendo was quick to take legal action against those distributing the game in the U.S.
Nevertheless, Crazy Kong machines found their way into some American arcades during the early 1980s, often installed in cabinets marked as Congorilla.
Crazy Kong is another example, a clone manufactured by Falcon and licensed for some non-American markets. Under this title, Tiger created a handheld game with a scenario and gameplay based directly on Donkey Kong. Rissman, president of Tiger Electronics, obtained a license to use the name King Kong from Universal City Studios. The game was designed as a Popeye game, however license agreements fell through and as a result Nintendo was forced to create their own characters. The Arcade version of Donkey Kong appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott. Video games turned into board / card games. Classic NES / Famicom Mini / NES Classics releases. It should also be noted that in many conversions of the original coin-op game for early 1980's consoles and computer systems, Donkey Kong only used two or three of the original levels, with the cement factory most often omitted. Additionally, Mario can also find Pauline's hat, purse, and umbrella for additional bonus points.ĭonkey Kong is also notable for being one of the first complete narratives in video game form, told through simplistic cut scenes that advance the story. Although not as powerful as in other future games, Mario can find a hammer which allows him to destroy the barrels and fireballs for a limited amount of time. From there, the levels start over at a higher difficulty.Īlong the way, Mario must dodge a constant stream of barrels, "living" fireballs, and spring-weights. Once the rivets are removed from the final level, Donkey Kong falls, and the two lovers are reunited. Released in the arcades in 1981, Donkey Kong was not only Nintendo's first real smash hit for the company but marked the introduction of two of their most popular mascots: Mario (originally "Jumpman") and Donkey Kong.ĭonkey Kong is a platform-action game that has Mario scale four different industrial-themed levels (construction zone, cement factory, an elevator-themed level, and removing rivets from girders) in an attempt to save the damsel in distress, Pauline, from the big ape before the timer runs out.