🕹️
Super Mario 64
1996
.png)
NINTENDO-64
9.9
Donkey Kong
Reviewed by Marcus Webb & Elena Castillo ·
Nintendo R&D1's 1994 Game Boy platformer that begins as an arcade port before expanding into 101 puzzle-platformer levels — Donkey Kong GB is one of the finest Game Boy games and the origin of Mario's acrobatic platforming vocabulary later used in Super Mario Odyssey.
.png)
💡 Donkey Kong — Key Facts
- → Donkey Kong was developed by Nintendo R&D1 and published by Nintendo
- → Released in 1994 on GAME-BOY
- → Genre: Platformer, Puzzle
- → We rate it 9.1/10 — an absolute classic
- → Nintendo R&D1's 1994 Game Boy platformer that begins as an arcade port before expanding into 101 puzzle-platformer levels — Donkey Kong GB is one of the finest Game Boy games and the origin of Mario's acrobatic platforming vocabulary later used in Super Mario Odyssey.
Overview
The first four levels of Donkey Kong for Game Boy are a faithful recreation of the 1981 arcade classic. Girders, barrels, fireballs, Pauline in distress. The hammers. The rivets. The Donkey Kong theme.
Then Mario rescues Pauline, and Donkey Kong grabs her and runs.
What follows — 97 more stages across nine worlds — is one of the Game Boy’s finest games, and it starts where most ports end.
The Expansion
Nintendo R&D1 took the arcade faithful recreation and used it as an on-ramp. Players who picked up the Game Boy game expecting the arcade got it for four stages. Then they got something better: a puzzle-platformer that took the core relationship (Mario chasing Donkey Kong to rescue Pauline) and built a full game’s worth of level design around it.
The expanded Mario — somersaulting, cartwheeling, handstanding — is more versatile than any Mario version before him. Stages that seem impossible become approachable when the player discovers that Mario can handstand on an enemy’s head to reach a ledge two height-units too high, or that the cartwheel attack clears several enemies that would otherwise block the key path.
Where Mario’s Moves Came From
The somersault and cartwheel in Donkey Kong GB weren’t arbitrary additions. They were designed for specific puzzle-solving situations — the handstand in particular exists because stages needed a way to reach elevated ledges without traditional jump height. Each ability was built to enable specific level design that couldn’t be solved without it.
This movement vocabulary fed forward into 3D Mario games. When Super Mario Odyssey’s Mario cartwheels and backflips, the game is returning to movements first developed for a 1994 Game Boy puzzle-platformer. The lineage is traceable.
The Gunpei Yokoi Standard
Nintendo R&D1, the team behind Game Boy hardware and the best Game Boy software, applied their characteristic care to Donkey Kong GB. 101 levels with consistently excellent puzzle design — not the quantity-over-quality approach that produces forgettable stage padding, but a game where nearly every stage presents something worth solving.
That consistency across 101 stages is the achievement. Game Boy hardware, 1994, a puzzle-platformer that never phones it in.
Our Review
9.1
Outstanding / 10
🎮
Gameplay
★★★★★
🎨
Graphics
★★★★★
🎵
Audio
★★★★★
🔄
Replay
★★★★★
Gameplay
Donkey Kong for Game Boy begins with four stages faithfully reproducing the original arcade game. After rescuing Pauline, the game expands dramatically: Donkey Kong escapes with Pauline through nine worlds — Jungle, Ship, Iceberg, Airplane, Rockfactory, Iceberg 2, Airplane 2, Ship 2, and a final city — with puzzle-platformer stages using Mario's expanded movement abilities. Mario can jump, somersault, cartwheel, handstand, and perform headstands. Each stage requires finding a key and carrying it to the locked door while navigating enemies and obstacles. 97 puzzle stages plus the four arcade stages total 101 levels. DK himself becomes a playable helper in some stages.
Graphics
Donkey Kong GB pushed the original Game Boy hardware with large character sprites, detailed environments, and smooth animation for the handheld. The arcade stages faithfully reproduce the original's structure; the expanded stages demonstrate what the hardware could achieve.
Audio
The Game Boy recreation of the arcade Donkey Kong theme alongside original compositions for the expanded worlds create a soundtrack that feels both nostalgic and fresh. Stage clear jingles and movement sounds are satisfying.
Replayability
101 stages with puzzle solutions requiring spatial reasoning create significant play depth. Returning to stages for speed and perfect completion rewards skilled players. The puzzle stage design quality is consistently high across the entire game.
Historical Significance
Donkey Kong GB (1994) is historically significant for two reasons: it established Mario's extended acrobatic movement vocabulary — the somersault, cartwheel, and handstand that would appear in later Mario games including Super Mario Odyssey's Donkey Kong Country-influenced movements — and it represents Nintendo R&D1 (Gunpei Yokoi's team) at their puzzle-platformer design peak. The game is frequently cited as one of the Game Boy's finest titles and an underrated gem in the Mario platformer tradition.
✅ Pros
- + 101 levels combining arcade nostalgia with deep puzzle-platformer design
- + Mario's extended acrobatic movement vocabulary is joyful to use
- + Arcade faithfulness followed by genuine expansion of the concept
- + Puzzle design quality is consistently excellent throughout
- + One of the Game Boy's finest technical showcases
❌ Cons
- - Some later stages require significant puzzle-solving ability
- - Short individual stages suit handheld play but don't feel epic
- - Key-carrying mechanic can be frustrating in enemy-dense stages
- - No continues system limits accessibility in later worlds
Also Known As
Donkey Kong GBドンキーコング
Donkey Kong FAQ
How is Donkey Kong GB different from the original arcade game?
Donkey Kong for Game Boy begins with four stages that faithfully reproduce the arcade original's 25m, 50m, 75m, and 100m (Rivet) stages. After Mario rescues Pauline, the game diverges entirely: Donkey Kong escapes with Pauline, and the game becomes a 97-stage puzzle-platformer across nine themed worlds. Mario gains an expanded moveset — somersault, cartwheel, handstand, throwing ability — used to navigate puzzle stages where the objective is finding a key and carrying it to a locked door. The expanded game is completely original content; only the first four stages are the arcade game.
What is Mario's expanded moveset in Donkey Kong GB?
Donkey Kong GB gave Mario abilities he didn't have in the arcade original or standard Mario platformers: backflip/somersault (jumping from a standing position for extra height), cartwheel (horizontal spinning attack and movement), handstand (balancing on objects and enemies to access high ledges), and throwing (grabbing enemies and throwing them as projectiles). These movements were specifically designed for Donkey Kong GB's puzzle-platformer level design. They later influenced Mario's acrobatic vocabulary in 3D Mario games — Super Mario 64, Super Mario Odyssey — where similar maneuvers appear. Donkey Kong GB is the origin of Mario's cartwheel and handstand as recurring game mechanics.
Is Donkey Kong GB available on modern platforms?
Donkey Kong for Game Boy is available through Nintendo Switch Online's Game Boy expansion tier. It was previously available on Game Boy Color/Advance via original hardware (it was compatible) and on 3DS Virtual Console. The game is one of the most consistently recommended Game Boy titles for players exploring the platform's library through NSO.
What are the nine worlds in the expanded Donkey Kong GB?
After the four arcade stages, Donkey Kong GB expands into nine worlds: Big City (urban environments), Rocky Valley (cave and rock stages), Ocean (underwater and beach), Iceberg (ice and snow), Airplane (aerial stages on and around aircraft), Rockfactory (industrial construction), Iceberg City (ice again with city elements), Airplane 2 (returning to aerial stages with more complexity), and a final confrontation area. Each world contains 8-12 stages. The world environments provide visual variety while the stage design uses consistent key-to-door mechanics with world-specific hazards and obstacles.
.png)
.png)
%20(Rev%20A).png)