Donkey Kong (Game Boy) review "The original Donkey Kong from the Nintendo industry was a huge hit. That is one of the things that put them on the board, and why not give people the chance to play it around a decade later on the new handheld gameboy. But you can't just give them the old Donkey Kong game itself. You have to make it bigger, MUCH bigger. And that is what they did, and they created a very entertaining experience. "

The original Donkey Kong from the Nintendo industry was a huge hit. That is one of the things that put them on the board, and why not give people the chance to play it around a decade later on the new handheld gameboy. But you can't just give them the old Donkey Kong game itself. You have to make it bigger, MUCH bigger. And that is what they did, and they created a very entertaining experience.

STORY (3/5): There is no change in story from that original Donkey Kong. You are chasing after the princess and trying to save her from the overgrown ape kidnapping her. You will go through a series of 8 worlds, with multiple levels each.

GRAPHICS (7/10): The original gameboy had less power than an NES, so you could not expect that much from this system. It did what it could, and looks basically like the original Donkey Kong without the color. It does alright, and you can't fault the game because of the equipment.

SOUND (7/10): It's the original Donkey Kong music in world 1, and it works from there. Different music in different worlds. Sure it is all beepy, but that is the gameboys capability.

GAMEPLAY (52/60): The game starts off with original four levels from Donkey Kong. You work your way through those, and all of a sudden you are in a much larger world. You will begin to see maps filled with one screen levels, that you will need to puzzle your way through. There is a plane, iceworld, and a jungle level to traverse and so much more. Donkey Kong is always above you, and whenever you catch him he just runs away. At least until you get to the boss battle at the end (I won't ruin that experience). The whole game in itself is a more memorable expereince then you'd expect. You will jump, climb, and fool around with hundreds of switches and keys to completely work your way through this game. The whole time it is an enjoyable experience. Sure you will be stuck, but you will soon enough be able to get out of that trap. And then maybe you will make it to DK's lair, and take on the head honcho himself. This game is memorable, it really is, and it's as fun as a game based on brains is going to get.

REPLAYABILITY (7/10): This is a VERY long game, compared to most on the original gameboy. You do not have to do it in one sitting, because there is gamepac saving (believe it or not). Therefore you can work your way through the puzzles of the 8 worlds at your own pace, and enjoy it.

DIFFICULTY (5/5): The puzzles are difficult, at first. However you will soon enough figure out the tricks to each one, and you will be well on your way to victory of the game then.

OVERALL (81/100): Technically Donkey Kong is on a big disadvantage. The Gameboy is weak, very weak. It has not much power on it's side, and is easily the downside of this game. But the experience of this entire game puts it back afloat. It is a long enjoyable experience, and that is all I ask from any game.

Community review by ratking (November 25, 2002) A bio for this contributor is currently unavailable, but check back soon to see if that changes. If you are the author of this review, you can update your bio from the Settings page.