Here we have the 1994
Super Game Boy version of the classic
Nintendo game
Donkey Kong (known as
Donkey Kong '94 in Japan). Released in 1994, this was the first
Super Game Boy title to feature expanded color pallate and borders. On a regular
Game Boy the game played in the usual 4-"color" palette. The game begins as a port of the original arcade game and soon expands to dozens of new levels. In the beginning
Mario maneuvers through four single-screen levels, dodging barrels and fireballs to reach the maniacal ape. However, at the end of level 4 instead of
Donkey Kong falling to his death, the monkey gets up, snatches
Pauline, and runs off with her. Here's where the game gets interesting.
Mario resumes the chase, following Donkey Kong through the city, the forest, the pyramids, the ship, the iceberg, the airplane, and more until he reaches Donkey Kong's tower. In each level Mario has to find the key to open the door. Opening the door finishes the level. Every fourth level is a showdown with DK in the classic arcade-style level. Some of these levels require Mario to get to the lever to open the door that leads to Pauline, while others must be completed by picking up the barrels that Donkey Kong tosses in order to throw them back at the big ape.
Mario isn't the weakling he was in the original arcade version. He can still jump, but now he can backflip, lift objects, swim, throw the hammer, catch it, spin around a highwire, and survive short falls. He'll need these new abilities to finish the game. There are also ladders and blocks that you can move, however after a few seconds they reset and disappear. Switches open doors and activate conveyor belts. There are also hazards, such as spikes, fire, bugs, falling blocks, and poison mushrooms. In later levels it's imperitive to use the levers to maneuver where rideably enemies, such as the ladybugs, travel so that Mario can catch a ride on them to new areas. There are also special items scattered around each key/door level. If Mario collects them all - parasol, purse, and hat - a bonus round will be available after the current level. There are two bonus rounds (a slot machine and a spinning wheel-type game) that can award 1-ups and other bonuses.
The play control is tight and the sound brings back memories of the original Donkey Kong game. The graphics, both on and off the Super Game Boy, are sharp and easy to see. The DK Tower levels are the hardest of all, and finally give Mario a chance to strike back at Donkey Kong Jr. In fact, the DK tower levels are a series of confrontations with the ape and his son. This is an addictive action/puzzle game that will induce large amounts of nostalgia, and best of all its still easy to find in used game stores seeing as how it was released in 1996. It took ten years for a sequel to the game to come, this one for the Game Boy Advance and entitled Mario vs. Donkey Kong. The original Donkey Kong will keep you as busy as a monkey.