Plot

Arcade video game and the first in the "Donkey Kong" series in which Jumpman (later retconned to be Mario) runs and jumps on platforms and climbs ladders to ascend a construction site and rescue Pauline from a giant gorilla, Donkey Kong.

The classic tale of a man saving a beautiful damsel from the clutches of an evil beast has been played out many times, most notably in the classic "King Kong." This basic premise served as the plotline for one of the all-time classic video arcade games, Donkey Kong. Released in the fall of 1981, Donkey Kong introduced us to two characters that would soon become mascots for then-fledgling Nintendo: Mario, a carpenter (he was first known as "Jumpman") and Donkey Kong, a fearsome gorilla who aimed to do harm to Mario. The story went thusly: Donkey Kong was an evil gorilla who had kidnapped Mario's girlfriend, Pauline (to do who-knows-what to her), and Mario came to save the day. The player controlled Mario through four different playing fields, dodging whatever Donkey Kong hurled at him. Completing each level awarded a bonus and the player moved on to another round. The rounds included the Ramps (six ramps, where Mario dodged wooden barrels and flaming oil barrels); Factory (!—Brian Rathjen <briguy_52732@yahoo.com>