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Donkey Kong Junior (arcade game)
Encyclopedia
is a 1982 arcade
-style platform
video game by Nintendo
. It first appeared in arcades, and, over the course of the 1980s, was later released for a variety of platforms, most notably the Nintendo Entertainment System
. The game's title is written out as Donkey Kong Junior in the North American arcade version and various ports to non-Nintendo systems. Its eponymous star, Donkey Kong Jr., also called simply Junior or abbreviated as DK Jr., is trying to rescue his father Donkey Kong
, who has been imprisoned. Donkey Kong's cage is guarded by Mario
, in his only appearance as a villain in a video game. This game is the sequel to the video game Donkey Kong
, which featured Mario as the hero and Junior's father as the villain.
, known beforehand as Jumpman, has incarcerated Donkey Kong after re-capturing him in Donkey Kong
. Donkey Kong Jr. must save his father from Mario by putting the key or keys in the stage into all of the locks. Mario attempts to stop DK Jr. by releasing the many animals he controls to knock DK Jr. off the vines and platforms. DK Jr. defeats Mario if the player completes the fourth stage by putting all six keys in their locks, making the floor disappear. DK Jr. catches Donkey Kong while Mario falls onto the ground.
Like in Donkey Kong, if the player completes the final stage, Donkey Kong Jr. restarts at the first stage with a higher level of difficulty. Mario makes an attempt to chase after DK, but DK kicks Mario into the air. Mario then retreats.
. There are a total of four levels, each with a somewhat different theme. DK Jr. can run left and right, jump, and grab vines/chains/ropes to climb higher on the screen. He can slide down faster by holding only one vine, or climb faster by holding two. Enemies include "Snapjaws," which resemble bear traps with eyes, bird-like creatures called "Nitpickers" that Mario releases to thwart DK Jr., and "Sparks" that roam across the wiring in one of Mario's hideouts. These enemies will cost DK Jr. one life if he touches them, but they can be defeated by dropping fruit onto them. At the top of every stage is Mario and Donkey Kong, and when DK Jr. reaches the top, he chases Mario to the next stage. If the player beats the fourth level, a cut scene is shown of the floor disappearing and the three fall to the ground. DK Jr. catches DK and Mario falls and hits the ground. Once the four levels are completed, the player restarts the game with increased difficulty and his or her points and lives retained. Up to two players can play the game alternately.
The game is split into four levels.
Note: In the Japanese version of the game, a complete cycle consists of one play through each of the four levels in the above order. However, the American version uses the following cycle: 1, 4, 1, 2, 4, 1, 3.
You lose a life if:
and one of his coworkers. Miyamoto also created the graphics for the title along with Yoshio Sakamoto
. As with its predecessor, the music for the game was composed by Yukio Kaneoka.
Donkey Kong Jr. is regarded as one of the Top 100 Video Games by the Killer List of Videogames
. It was selected to be among five arcade games chosen for history's first official video game world championship, which was filmed at Twin Galaxies
in Ottumwa, Iowa
by ABC-TV's That's Incredible!
over the weekend of January 8–9, 1983. The game later spawned a cereal which featured fruit-flavored cereal pieces shaped like bananas and cherries. Donkey Kong, Jr. is shown on the box wearing a red shirt with a big yellow J printed on the front.
, who had achieved 957,300 points in 1983. On August 10, 2008, Mitchell's benchmark score was eclipsed by Icarus Hall of Port Angeles, Washington, who scored 1,033,000 points.
On April 24, 2009, Steve Wiebe
eclipsed Hall's score, finishing with 1,139,800 points. On September 3, 2009, at 1984 Arcade in Springfield MO, Mark L. Kiehl of Enid, OK surpassed Wiebe's record with a score of 1,147,800. Steve Weibe has since regained the record with a score of 1,190,400 on his home machine set on Tuesday, February 16, 2010.[11] Billy Mitchell recaptured the world record for Donkey Kong Jr. on the weekend of July 24, 2010 with a score of 1,270,900. Mark Kiehl has since eclipsed the previous world record with a score of 1,307,500.
s NES
, Family Computer Disk System, Atari 2600
, Atari 7800
, Atari XE Game System, ColecoVision
, Coleco Adam
, Intellivision
and BBC Micro
. Two Game & Watch
versions of the game were also made. One black-and-white version for the New Wide Screen handheld series, and a color version for the Tabletop and Panorama series. The NES version was one of the three launch title
s for the system in Japan. This game, along with the original Donkey Kong
, was re–released in 1988 in an NES compilation titled Donkey Kong Classics. The NES version of the game was later released on the e-Reader and is now available on the Virtual Console
for the Wii. The NES version was also a playable game on Animal Crossing
, but required a special password from the official website which is now no longer available. It is now available to Nintendo 3DS
users through the Nintendo eShop
and has been given away free to Nintendo Ambassadors.
Interestingly enough, if one plays the Coleco Adam
(that is public domain) version, one will find that there was a fifth level exclusive to this port. If the player pressed and held both of the fire buttons, and punched in on the keypad "1-3-2-1-2-1-2", then a message will appear stating "Revision 13" (Possibly due to this level being added on the 13 revision of this game). Basically, it is a kitchen level. Mario will throw blobs and food at you, while a mixer moves back and forth when a button to the right is pressed.
, a cartoon series that aired on Saturday mornings from 1983-1985. The plot had Jr. looking for his dad Donkey Kong
who is on the run from Mario
and Pauline. In an episode of Captain N: The Game Master
, Simon Belmont got hit on the head and thought he was Donkey Kong Jr. In the Game Boy Advance version of Super Mario Bros. 3 the king of World 4 was transformed into a monkey with a 'J' on his shirt resembling Donkey Kong Jr.'s shirt.
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
-style platform
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
video game by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
. It first appeared in arcades, and, over the course of the 1980s, was later released for a variety of platforms, most notably the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
. The game's title is written out as Donkey Kong Junior in the North American arcade version and various ports to non-Nintendo systems. Its eponymous star, Donkey Kong Jr., also called simply Junior or abbreviated as DK Jr., is trying to rescue his father Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong
is a fictional gorilla in the Donkey Kong and Mario series. He is roughly twice the size of a normal gorilla, weighing approximately 800 pounds. Donkey Kong first appeared in Nintendo's popular 1981 video game of the same name. Since then he has appeared in over 20 games in his own series, as well...
, who has been imprisoned. Donkey Kong's cage is guarded by Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, in his only appearance as a villain in a video game. This game is the sequel to the video game Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong (video game)
is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Jumpman must rescue a damsel in distress, Lady, from a...
, which featured Mario as the hero and Junior's father as the villain.
Plot
MarioMario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
, known beforehand as Jumpman, has incarcerated Donkey Kong after re-capturing him in Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong (video game)
is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Jumpman must rescue a damsel in distress, Lady, from a...
. Donkey Kong Jr. must save his father from Mario by putting the key or keys in the stage into all of the locks. Mario attempts to stop DK Jr. by releasing the many animals he controls to knock DK Jr. off the vines and platforms. DK Jr. defeats Mario if the player completes the fourth stage by putting all six keys in their locks, making the floor disappear. DK Jr. catches Donkey Kong while Mario falls onto the ground.
Like in Donkey Kong, if the player completes the final stage, Donkey Kong Jr. restarts at the first stage with a higher level of difficulty. Mario makes an attempt to chase after DK, but DK kicks Mario into the air. Mario then retreats.
Gameplay
The player controls DK Jr. and has to rescue Donkey Kong from Mario, who had captured him. Like its predecessor, Donkey Kong, Jr. is an arcade-style platform gamePlatform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
. There are a total of four levels, each with a somewhat different theme. DK Jr. can run left and right, jump, and grab vines/chains/ropes to climb higher on the screen. He can slide down faster by holding only one vine, or climb faster by holding two. Enemies include "Snapjaws," which resemble bear traps with eyes, bird-like creatures called "Nitpickers" that Mario releases to thwart DK Jr., and "Sparks" that roam across the wiring in one of Mario's hideouts. These enemies will cost DK Jr. one life if he touches them, but they can be defeated by dropping fruit onto them. At the top of every stage is Mario and Donkey Kong, and when DK Jr. reaches the top, he chases Mario to the next stage. If the player beats the fourth level, a cut scene is shown of the floor disappearing and the three fall to the ground. DK Jr. catches DK and Mario falls and hits the ground. Once the four levels are completed, the player restarts the game with increased difficulty and his or her points and lives retained. Up to two players can play the game alternately.
The game is split into four levels.
- The first level is simple. DK Jr. must climb up vines to get to the top while avoiding Snapjaws.
- In the second level, DK Jr. must get to the top by jumping on platforms and climbing across chains, while avoiding Nitpickers and the eggs they drop.
- The third level is much harder. DK Jr. must avoid Sparks sent out by Mario as he climbs the platforms.
- In the last level, DK Jr. must push several keys up to the locks in the top platform to unlock DK's cage.
Note: In the Japanese version of the game, a complete cycle consists of one play through each of the four levels in the above order. However, the American version uses the following cycle: 1, 4, 1, 2, 4, 1, 3.
You lose a life if:
- DK Jr. touches Mario or any enemy;
- DK Jr. falls off the bottom of the screen or into water;
- DK Jr. drops off the end of a rope/vine/chain and falls too far;
- The bonus timer reaches zero.
History
The game was principally designed by Shigeru MiyamotoShigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
and one of his coworkers. Miyamoto also created the graphics for the title along with Yoshio Sakamoto
Yoshio Sakamoto
is a Japanese video game designer working for Nintendo. He is a key member in the development of the Metroid series, having worked as director, scenario designer, and script writer for many of the games. Sakamoto grew up with Nintendo toys, which he noted to be inventive and occasionally "strange"....
. As with its predecessor, the music for the game was composed by Yukio Kaneoka.
Donkey Kong Jr. is regarded as one of the Top 100 Video Games by the Killer List of Videogames
Killer List of Videogames
The Killer List of Videogames is a web site featuring an online encyclopedia devoted to cataloging arcade games past and present. It is the video game department of the International Arcade Museum, and has been referred to as "the IMDb for players."....
. It was selected to be among five arcade games chosen for history's first official video game world championship, which was filmed at Twin Galaxies
Twin Galaxies
Twin Galaxies is an American organization that tracks video game world records and conducts a program of electronic-gaming promotions. It operates the Twin Galaxies website and publishes the Twin Galaxies' Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records, with the Arcade Volume released on June...
in Ottumwa, Iowa
Ottumwa, Iowa
Ottumwa is a city in and the county seat of Wapello County, Iowa, United States. The population was 24,998 at the 2000 census. It is located in the southeastern part of Iowa, and the city is split into northern and southern halves by the Des Moines River....
by ABC-TV's That's Incredible!
That's Incredible!
That's Incredible! was an American reality television show that aired on the ABC television network from 1980 to 1984.-Synopsis:In the tradition of You Asked For It, Ripley's Believe It or Not! and Real People, the show featured people performing stunts and reenactments of allegedly paranormal events...
over the weekend of January 8–9, 1983. The game later spawned a cereal which featured fruit-flavored cereal pieces shaped like bananas and cherries. Donkey Kong, Jr. is shown on the box wearing a red shirt with a big yellow J printed on the front.
Competitive play
For more than twenty years, the Donkey Kong, Jr. world record had been held by noted gamer Billy MitchellBilly Mitchell (gamer)
Billy L. Mitchell, born July 16, 1965, in Holyoke, Massachusetts, is best known for recording high scores in classic video games from the Golden Age of Arcade Games. He has been claimed by some as the "greatest arcade-video-game player of all time". His achievements include the first perfect score...
, who had achieved 957,300 points in 1983. On August 10, 2008, Mitchell's benchmark score was eclipsed by Icarus Hall of Port Angeles, Washington, who scored 1,033,000 points.
On April 24, 2009, Steve Wiebe
Steve Wiebe
Steven J. "Steve" Wiebe is a two-time world champion of the video game Donkey Kong, most recently holding the title from the 20th of September, 2010 to the 10th of January, 2011 with a high score of 1,064,500 points. Wiebe was the first person to achieve over a million points in the game, with a...
eclipsed Hall's score, finishing with 1,139,800 points. On September 3, 2009, at 1984 Arcade in Springfield MO, Mark L. Kiehl of Enid, OK surpassed Wiebe's record with a score of 1,147,800. Steve Weibe has since regained the record with a score of 1,190,400 on his home machine set on Tuesday, February 16, 2010.[11] Billy Mitchell recaptured the world record for Donkey Kong Jr. on the weekend of July 24, 2010 with a score of 1,270,900. Mark Kiehl has since eclipsed the previous world record with a score of 1,307,500.
Ports
Like most arcade games of this era, this game was ported to many home systems, including the video game consoleVideo game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
s NES
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
, Family Computer Disk System, Atari 2600
Atari 2600
The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977 by Atari, Inc. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in...
, Atari 7800
Atari 7800
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a video game console re-released by Atari Corporation in January 1986. The original release had occurred two years earlier under Atari Inc. The 7800 had originally been designed to replace Atari Inc.'s Atari 5200 in 1984, but was temporarily...
, Atari XE Game System, ColecoVision
ColecoVision
The ColecoVision is Coleco Industries' second generation home video game console which was released in August 1982. The ColecoVision offered arcade-quality graphics and gaming style, and the means to expand the system's basic hardware...
, Coleco Adam
Coleco Adam
The Coleco Adam is a home computer, an attempt in the early 1980s by American toy manufacturer Coleco to follow on the success of its ColecoVision game console...
, Intellivision
Intellivision
The Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The word intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television"...
and BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
. Two Game & Watch
Game & Watch
is a line of handheld electronic games produced by Nintendo from to . Created by game designer Gunpei Yokoi, each Game & Watch features a single game to be played on an LCD screen in addition to a clock and an alarm ....
versions of the game were also made. One black-and-white version for the New Wide Screen handheld series, and a color version for the Tabletop and Panorama series. The NES version was one of the three launch title
Launch title
A launch game, or launch title, is a video game released to consumers synchronously with the release of its respective video game console, meaning they are the only available games at the time of the console's launch. Several of these games are also packaged with the console...
s for the system in Japan. This game, along with the original Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong
is a fictional gorilla in the Donkey Kong and Mario series. He is roughly twice the size of a normal gorilla, weighing approximately 800 pounds. Donkey Kong first appeared in Nintendo's popular 1981 video game of the same name. Since then he has appeared in over 20 games in his own series, as well...
, was re–released in 1988 in an NES compilation titled Donkey Kong Classics. The NES version of the game was later released on the e-Reader and is now available on the Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
for the Wii. The NES version was also a playable game on Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing
The Animal Crossing games have garnered positive response. The first three games are among the best-selling for their respective consoles. Animal Crossing has sold 2.321 million copies; Wild World 10.79 million; and City Folk 3.38 million...
, but required a special password from the official website which is now no longer available. It is now available to Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
users through the Nintendo eShop
Nintendo eShop
The Nintendo eShop is an online service for the Nintendo 3DS handheld gaming system. Launched on June 6, 2011 in North America and June 7, 2011 in Europe and Japan, the eShop was enabled by the release of a system update that added the functionality to the 3DS' Home Menu...
and has been given away free to Nintendo Ambassadors.
Interestingly enough, if one plays the Coleco Adam
Coleco Adam
The Coleco Adam is a home computer, an attempt in the early 1980s by American toy manufacturer Coleco to follow on the success of its ColecoVision game console...
(that is public domain) version, one will find that there was a fifth level exclusive to this port. If the player pressed and held both of the fire buttons, and punched in on the keypad "1-3-2-1-2-1-2", then a message will appear stating "Revision 13" (Possibly due to this level being added on the 13 revision of this game). Basically, it is a kitchen level. Mario will throw blobs and food at you, while a mixer moves back and forth when a button to the right is pressed.
In other media
Donkey Kong Jr. was also a cartoon on Saturday SupercadeSaturday Supercade
Saturday Supercade is an animated television series produced for Saturday mornings by Ruby-Spears Productions. It ran for two seasons on CBS beginning in 1983...
, a cartoon series that aired on Saturday mornings from 1983-1985. The plot had Jr. looking for his dad Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong
is a fictional gorilla in the Donkey Kong and Mario series. He is roughly twice the size of a normal gorilla, weighing approximately 800 pounds. Donkey Kong first appeared in Nintendo's popular 1981 video game of the same name. Since then he has appeared in over 20 games in his own series, as well...
who is on the run from Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
and Pauline. In an episode of Captain N: The Game Master
Captain N: The Game Master
Captain N: The Game Master was an American animated television series that aired on television from 1989 to 1991 as part of the Saturday morning cartoon lineup on NBC. The show incorporated elements from many of the most popular Nintendo games of the time...
, Simon Belmont got hit on the head and thought he was Donkey Kong Jr. In the Game Boy Advance version of Super Mario Bros. 3 the king of World 4 was transformed into a monkey with a 'J' on his shirt resembling Donkey Kong Jr.'s shirt.
External links
- Icarus Hall - Donkey Kong, Jr. World Record Certificate
- Donkey Kong, Jr. Scoreboard at Twin GalaxiesTwin GalaxiesTwin Galaxies is an American organization that tracks video game world records and conducts a program of electronic-gaming promotions. It operates the Twin Galaxies website and publishes the Twin Galaxies' Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records, with the Arcade Volume released on June...
- Donkey Kong Jr. at NinDB
