Donkey Kong facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Donkey Kong |
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Logo since 2010
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| Creator | Shigeru Miyamoto |
| Original work | Donkey Kong (1981) |
| Owner | Nintendo |
| Films and television | |
| Films | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) |
| Audio | |
| Original music | "Aquatic Ambience" "DK Rap" |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Theme park attractions | Super Nintendo World |
| Related franchise(s) | Mario |
Donkey Kong is a super popular video game series and media franchise. It was created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto for Nintendo. The games are all about the adventures of Donkey Kong, who is a big, strong gorilla!
The Donkey Kong series includes the first three arcade games made by Nintendo R&D1. Later, the Donkey Kong Country games were made by Rare and Retro Studios. There's also the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series by Nintendo Software Technology. Many different game studios have made other fun games like racing and music games. The Donkey Kong world also includes cartoons, books, a theme park, and lots of cool toys.
Shigeru Miyamoto first made the 1981 Donkey Kong game to help Nintendo sell some old arcade machines. It was a huge hit! After that came Donkey Kong Jr. (1982) and Donkey Kong 3 (1983). The series took a break while Nintendo focused on the Mario games. But then, in 1994, Rare brought Donkey Kong back with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) game Donkey Kong Country. This game made Donkey Kong a big Nintendo series again. Rare made Donkey Kong games for the SNES, Game Boy, and Nintendo 64 until 2002. Since then, Nintendo, Retro Studios, Namco, and Paon have made the games. The last big Donkey Kong game was Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze in 2014.
Most main Donkey Kong games are platformers. This means the player has to guide a character to the end of a level. Donkey Kong was first the antagonist (bad guy), but he became the protagonist (hero) starting with Country. The first games had a few characters: Donkey Kong, Mario, Pauline, and Donkey Kong Jr.. Rare's games added more friendly Kongs, like Diddy, Cranky, Funky, and Dixie. They also added the Kremlings, a group of bad crocodiles led by Donkey Kong's enemy, King K. Rool. Mario, who was the hero in the 1981 game, became Nintendo's main character. Donkey Kong characters often appear in Mario games like Mario Kart, Mario Party, and Mario Tennis. Donkey Kong characters have also appeared in other games like Mario & Sonic and Super Smash Bros.
Donkey Kong is one of Nintendo's best-selling series. Over 65 million games were sold by 2021! The first game was Nintendo's first big success around the world. It helped Nintendo become a major company in the video game industry. The series has also helped create or make popular new ideas in games, like telling stories within the game and using pre-rendered graphics. It has inspired many other games and even influenced popular culture.
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How Donkey Kong Started
1981–1982: The First Game
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In the late 1970s, the Japanese company Nintendo started making arcade games instead of toys. In 1980, Nintendo released a game called Radar Scope, but it didn't sell well. This caused money problems for Nintendo of America. The boss, Minoru Arakawa, asked Nintendo's CEO, Hiroshi Yamauchi, for a new game to help sell the unsold Radar Scope machines. Most of Nintendo's best game makers were busy, so the job went to Shigeru Miyamoto, who was designing a game for the first time.
Miyamoto worked with Gunpei Yokoi. He first thought of a story with characters from the Popeye cartoons. But Nintendo couldn't get the rights to use Popeye. So, the bad guy, Bluto, became a gorilla. Miyamoto said a gorilla was "nothing too evil or repulsive." He named the gorilla Donkey Kong. Donkey meant stubborn, and Kong meant gorilla. Popeye became Mario, the new hero, and Olive Oyl became Pauline, who needed rescuing. Miyamoto said the story of "Beauty and the Beast" and the 1933 movie King Kong gave him ideas. Since he wasn't a programmer, he asked experts if his ideas could be made into a game. Four programmers worked for three months to turn Miyamoto's ideas into the game.
Donkey Kong was one of the first platform games. Mario climbs a construction site to save Pauline from Donkey Kong. It came out in July 1981 and was Nintendo's first big hit around the world. The game made a lot of money, which saved Nintendo of America and made Nintendo famous in America. Donkey Kong was even more successful in 1982 when Nintendo made a Game & Watch version and let other companies make versions for home consoles. It made billions of dollars, making it one of the highest-earning games ever. In 1982, Universal Studios sued Nintendo, saying Donkey Kong was too much like King Kong. But Nintendo won the lawsuit. This win made Nintendo a very strong company in the video game world.
1982–1994: More Games and a Break
Miyamoto and his team had more ideas for Donkey Kong that they couldn't fit into the first game. So, they used these ideas for a sequel. Miyamoto wanted Donkey Kong to be the hero, but his character was too big to move easily. So, Miyamoto created a new character, Donkey Kong Jr.. In Donkey Kong Jr., Mario has put Donkey Kong in a cage, and Donkey Kong Jr. has to save him. This was the first game Nintendo made completely by themselves.
Donkey Kong 3, released in 1983, was different. It was a shooter game. Instead of Mario, you play as Stanley, an exterminator. He has to stop Donkey Kong and a swarm of bees from ruining his greenhouse. Donkey Kong 3 wasn't very successful. The series then took a long break. During this time, the Mario games became very popular on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and Mario became Nintendo's main character. In 1994, after more than 10 years, a new Donkey Kong game came out for the Game Boy. This game, often called Donkey Kong '94, starts like a remake of the 1981 game. But then it adds over 100 new puzzle-platform levels with ideas from Donkey Kong Jr. and Super Mario Bros. 2.
1994–1996: Rare and Donkey Kong Country
Around 1992, a British game studio called Rare bought special computers to make 3D models. At this time, Nintendo was competing with Sega. Nintendo wanted a game to compete with Sega's Aladdin (1993), which had amazing graphics. Nintendo learned about Rare's 3D work. Rare impressed Nintendo with a demo. Then, Tim Stamper from Rare suggested making a platform game using pre-rendered 3D graphics.
Nintendo let Rare use the Donkey Kong characters. Nintendo thought it was a low risk because the Donkey Kong series hadn't had a new game in a long time. Rare's new game, Donkey Kong Country, was a side-scrolling platformer, like the Super Mario games. It was the first Donkey Kong game not made by Miyamoto, but he still helped with ideas.
Donkey Kong Country was one of the first games for a home console to use pre-rendered graphics. Rare used a special trick to make 3D models look great as SNES characters. Since Donkey Kong didn't have a big story world yet, Rare was free to add new characters. They introduced Donkey Kong's helper, Diddy Kong, and the bad guy crocodiles called Kremlings. After 18 months of work, Donkey Kong Country came out in November 1994. People loved it, especially its amazing graphics. It was a huge success, selling 9.3 million copies. It became the third-best-selling SNES game. This game made Donkey Kong a major Nintendo series again and changed Donkey Kong from a villain to a hero. After this success, Nintendo bought a part of Rare.
Rare started working on a sequel to Donkey Kong Country right away. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest came out in 1995. In this game, Diddy has to rescue Donkey Kong. It also introduced Diddy's girlfriend, Dixie Kong. This game was designed to be harder and less straightforward. Like the first game, Diddy's Kong Quest was a big hit. After that, the Donkey Kong Country team split into two. One team worked on Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble! (1996). This game featured Dixie and a new character, Kiddy Kong, as the heroes. Even though it came out late in the SNES's life, it still sold well.
1995–2002: More Games and Changes
Separate Rare teams made Game Boy games like Donkey Kong Land (1995), Donkey Kong Land 2 (1996), and Donkey Kong Land III (1997). These games brought the Country style to the handheld game console. A version of Country for the Game Boy Color was released in 2000.
The first Donkey Kong game for the Nintendo 64 was Diddy Kong Racing, released in 1997. Rare first made it as a sequel to an older game, but added Diddy Kong to make it more popular. Diddy Kong Racing got good reviews and sold 4.5 million copies. Two characters from this game, Banjo the Bear and Conker the Squirrel, later got their own game series.
Rare started working on Donkey Kong 64 in 1997. This was the first Donkey Kong game with full 3D gameplay. It came out in November 1999 with a big marketing campaign. It was Nintendo's best-selling game during the 1999 Christmas season. Critics liked it, but felt it wasn't as groundbreaking as Donkey Kong Country.
In 2001, Nintendo and Rare announced new Donkey Kong games. But making games was getting more expensive. In September 2002, Microsoft bought Rare. Nintendo kept the rights to Donkey Kong. Some planned Donkey Kong games were changed or canceled.
2002–2010: After Rare
After Microsoft bought Rare, Nintendo used Donkey Kong mostly in spin-off games and as a guest in other series, like Mario Kart, Mario Party, and Super Smash Bros. In 2003, Nintendo and Namco released Donkey Konga, a rhythm game. It was made to be played with the DK Bongos, a GameCube accessory that looks like drums. Donkey Konga sold well and got good reviews. It was followed by Donkey Konga 2 (2004) and Donkey Konga 3 (2005), which was only released in Japan.
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, the first main Donkey Kong game since Donkey Kong 64, came out for the GameCube in 2004. It went back to the Donkey Kong Country style of platforming, but you controlled it using the DK Bongos. It got good reviews but didn't sell as well. A Wii version with new controls came out in 2008. A racing game called Donkey Kong Barrel Blast was also made for the Wii in 2007, but it got bad reviews.
Rare still made games for Nintendo's handheld consoles because Microsoft didn't have a competing handheld. They made versions of the Country games for the GBA and Diddy Kong Racing for the Nintendo DS. Meanwhile, Paon made DK: King of Swing (2005) for the GBA and DK: Jungle Climber (2007) for the DS. The Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, which brought back Donkey Kong's villain role, started with a 2004 GBA game and had several sequels.
2010–Present: Retro Studios and a New Break
In 2008, Miyamoto wanted to bring back the Donkey Kong Country games. Producer Kensuke Tanabe thought Retro Studios, who made the Metroid Prime games, would be a good fit. With Donkey Kong Country Returns, Retro wanted to keep the classic Country feel but add new ideas. Returns was the first new Country game since Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!. It came out for the Wii in 2010. It sold over 4 million copies quickly and got great reviews. Many people felt it was a return to form for the series. A Nintendo 3DS version was released in 2013.
Retro then made a sequel, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, for the Wii U. The Wii U's power allowed for better visuals. Tropical Freeze came out in 2014 and got good reviews, but it didn't sell as well as Returns. However, it became much more successful when it was released for the Nintendo Switch in 2018. After Tropical Freeze, the Donkey Kong series took another break, except for the Mario vs. Donkey Kong games Tipping Stars (2015) and Mini Mario & Friends: Amiibo Challenge (2016).
In 2021, it was reported that Nintendo was working on a new Donkey Kong game for the Switch. In February 2024, Nintendo released a remake of the first Mario vs. Donkey Kong for the Switch.
Characters and Story
The first Donkey Kong game has three characters: Donkey Kong, a big, bad gorilla; Mario, the hero in overalls; and Pauline, Mario's girlfriend. In the game, Mario climbs a construction site to save Pauline from Donkey Kong. In the sequel, Donkey Kong Jr., Mario puts Donkey Kong in a cage. The game introduces Donkey Kong's son, Donkey Kong Jr. Mario, Pauline, Donkey Kong, and Jr. all return in the 1994 Game Boy Donkey Kong. This game was the first to show Donkey Kong wearing his famous red necktie with "DK" on it.
With Donkey Kong Country, Donkey Kong changed from being the bad guy to the hero. Rare's Kevin Bayliss redesigned him. He kept the red tie and gave him a strong, muscular look. Rare's games say that this Donkey Kong is the grandson of the original arcade Donkey Kong. The older Donkey Kong appears as the grumpy old Cranky Kong. Cranky Kong often makes funny comments about how new games aren't as good as old ones. Donkey Kong Jr. was no longer used, and Nintendo has had different ideas about whether the new Donkey Kong is a grown-up Donkey Kong Jr. or a different character.
Rare's games moved the main setting from a city to Donkey Kong Island, a beautiful island. Since the Donkey Kong world was still new, Rare could add many new characters. Donkey Kong Country introduced Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong's sidekick and nephew. Other friendly Kongs Rare added include Funky Kong, a surfer; Candy Kong, Donkey Kong's girlfriend; Dixie Kong, Diddy's girlfriend; Kiddy, a big baby; Tiny Kong, Dixie's sister; and Lanky Kong.
The main bad guy in the series is King K. Rool, a crocodile-like creature introduced in Donkey Kong Country. K. Rool leads the Kremlings, an army of crocodiles who try to steal Donkey Kong's bananas. K. Rool often wears disguises and invents strange machines for his evil plans. Other villains include the Tiki Tak Tribe, who are floating masks that hypnotize animals to steal bananas, and the Snowmads, Viking invaders who take over Donkey Kong Island.
Mario, the hero of the 1981 game, went on to star in the Mario series. Even though the series are mostly separate, they happen in the same fictional universe. Donkey Kong and other Donkey Kong characters often appear as playable characters in Mario spin-off games like Mario Kart, Mario Party, and Mario Tennis.
How to Play
Original Games
Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong Jr. are early platform games. In both games, you guide the character (Mario in the first game, Donkey Kong Jr. in the second) up four levels. You have to avoid obstacles. You jump to dodge things like barrels or to cross gaps. You climb ladders or vines to reach the top. In the first game, Mario can smash obstacles with a hammer power-up. In the second, Donkey Kong Jr. can knock fruit down from vines. You get points for dodging obstacles, collecting items, and finishing levels fast. You start with three lives. You lose a life if you touch an obstacle or fall too far.
Donkey Kong 3 is different. It's a shooter game. You control Stanley, an exterminator. He has to stop Donkey Kong from making insects attack his greenhouse. You spray bug spray at Donkey Kong and the insects. You finish levels by spraying Donkey Kong enough to make him go to the top of the screen, or by killing all the insects.
The 1994 Game Boy game starts with the four levels from the original Donkey Kong. But after that, there are over 100 more puzzle-platform levels. Mario has to explore each level to find a key within a time limit. Mario can pick up and throw objects and enemies. He can also do acrobatics to reach hard-to-get areas. This type of gameplay was used for Mario vs. Donkey Kong. In that game, Mario has to guide six Mini-Mario toys to a toy box while keeping them safe. Later Mario vs. Donkey Kong games focus on guiding these Mini-Mario toys using touchscreen controls. This gameplay is often compared to the strategy video game Lemmings.
Donkey Kong Country Games
The Donkey Kong Country series has platforming gameplay. You complete side-scrolling levels to move forward, like in the Super Mario games. You start on a world map that shows your progress. From there, you can enter different themed worlds and their levels. You move through the environment, jump between platforms, and avoid enemies and other obstacles. Each world ends with a boss fight. The Country games are known for being quite challenging. You need to react quickly to obstacles to keep moving smoothly.
You control different Kongs depending on the game: Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong, Kiddy Kong, Cranky Kong, and Funky Kong. The Rare games usually have two main characters. In the Retro Studios games, other characters ride on Donkey Kong's back to give him special powers. For example, Diddy's jetpack lets Donkey Kong hover for a short time.
Country games have unique ways to play. You can blast out of cannons that look like barrels. There are levels where you ride minecarts or barrel-shaped rockets. Some levels show characters and the background as silhouettes. You also swing on ropes. Barrels from the original games are back. You can use them as weapons or break them to find power-ups. DK Barrels release a partner Kong when you throw them. Each level has things to collect like bananas, letters that spell K–O–N–G, balloons, and puzzle pieces. You can find these in the main level or in hidden bonus stages.
In some levels, you can free an animal friend. These animals give the Kongs special abilities, like Yoshi in Super Mario. Some animal friends you'll see often are Rambi, a rhino who can charge into enemies; Enguarde, a swordfish who helps underwater; and Squawks, a parrot who can carry the Kongs or help find things. Outside of the main levels, the Rare games have areas on the world map where you can talk to non-player characters like Cranky. They give advice, collectibles, and save points. The Retro Studios games have shops run by Cranky or Funky where you can buy items like power-ups and extra lives.
Other Games
Some Donkey Kong games that aren't called Country still have similar gameplay. The Donkey Kong Land games for Game Boy are like the SNES Country games, but with levels designed for the Game Boy's screen. Donkey Kong 64 mixes Country ideas with collecting lots of items, like in Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie. Jungle Beat focuses on getting a high score by finishing levels with as many points as possible. DK: King of Swing and DK: Jungle Climber look like Country games, but you use the shoulder buttons to grab and climb pegboards.
Diddy Kong Racing and Donkey Kong Barrel Blast are kart racing games, like Mario Kart. Diddy Kong Racing has an adventure mode with boss fights. In Barrel Blast, you shake the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to go faster. The Donkey Konga games are rhythm games. You hit notes on the screen to the beat of the music using the DK Bongos. You build combos by hitting many notes in a row.
Other Fun Stuff
Crossovers
Donkey Kong is in every game in Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series. These are crossover fighting games. Donkey Kong first appeared in Super Smash Bros. (1999). He was the only heavyweight fighter, meaning he was slow but hit hard. Diddy Kong became a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008), and King K. Rool was added in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018). Smash games also have Donkey Kong stages and music.
Donkey Kong also appears in Mario & Sonic, which is an Olympic Games-themed crossover with Mario and Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog. He's a playable character there. He's also the final boss in the Wii version of Punch-Out!! (2009). And he's a hero in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle (2017), a crossover with Ubisoft's Raving Rabbids games. The toys-to-life game Skylanders: SuperChargers (2015) also includes Donkey Kong as a playable character on Nintendo systems.
Cartoons
A Donkey Kong cartoon was part of Saturday Supercade in 1983. The cartoon followed Mario and Pauline trying to catch Donkey Kong after he escaped from a circus. Donkey Kong was also a character in Captain N: The Game Master, a cartoon that ran from 1989 to 1991.
Donkey Kong Country, a TV series, ran for 40 episodes between 1997 and 1999. It looked like the games with its computer animation. The show was a sitcom about Donkey Kong trying to protect a magical item called the Crystal Coconut from King K. Rool. The series was popular in France and Japan.
Books and Comics
The first issue of Blip, a comic book from 1983, had a story about a reporter trying to interview Mario during the events of the original Donkey Kong. This comic said Donkey Kong was from a failed experiment to breed construction-worker gorillas. This was Mario's first time in a comic book. There were also Donkey Kong Country comics and children's book adaptations of the games.
Movies
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Parts of the Donkey Kong world are a big part of The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). This animated film was made by Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal Pictures. Mario (Chris Pratt) and Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) ask the Kongs for help to stop Bowser (Jack Black) from taking over the Mushroom Kingdom. Seth Rogen voices Donkey Kong, and Fred Armisen voices Cranky Kong. Other Kongs also appear, and the "DK Rap" plays when Donkey Kong is introduced. Donkey Kong got a new look for the movie, mixing his old arcade design with Rare's design. The movie made over $1 billion, making it the highest-grossing film based on a video game.
Before the movie came out, there were reports that Illumination was planning a Donkey Kong movie with Seth Rogen. In April 2023, Rogen said he saw "a lot of opportunity" for such a movie.
Theme Park
In September 2021, Nintendo and Universal Destinations & Experiences announced a Donkey Kong-themed area for Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan. This area, called Donkey Kong Country, is set to open in 2024. It will make Super Nintendo World 70% bigger! Shigeru Miyamoto helped design it. It will have a roller coaster called Donkey Kong's Crazy Cart. The area will also have a K–O–N–G letter collection game and sell Donkey Kong toys and food.
Merchandise
You can find lots of Donkey Kong merchandise, like clothes, plush toys, and Amiibo figures. There was even a Donkey Kong breakfast cereal! The Lego Group started making Donkey Kong Lego toys in 2023 as part of their Lego Super Mario line. The first four sets, based on the Donkey Kong Country games, came out in August 2023.
See also
In Spanish: Donkey Kong (serie) para niños
