A platformer is a subgenre of action game in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are characterized by levels with uneven terrain and suspended platforms that require jumping and climbing to traverse. Other acrobatic maneuvers may factor into the gameplay, such as swinging from vines or grappling hooks, jumping off walls, gliding through the air, or bouncing from springboards or trampolines.
Donkey Kong, also shortened to DK, is a fictional gorilla-like character in the Donkey Kong and Mario franchise, created by Shigeru Miyamoto. The original Donkey Kong first appeared as the title character and antagonist of the eponymous 1981 game, a platformer by Nintendo, which would lead to the Donkey Kong series. The Donkey Kong Country series was launched in 1994 with a new Donkey Kong as the protagonist. This version of the character persists as the main one up to today. While the 1980s games' Donkey Kong and the modern Donkey Kong share the same name, the manual for Donkey Kong Country and subsequent games portray the former as Cranky Kong, the latter's grandfather, with the exception of Donkey Kong 64 and The Super Mario Bros. Movie, in which Cranky is depicted as his father, alternatively portraying the modern Donkey Kong as the original Donkey Kong Jr. from the titular game. Donkey Kong is considered one of the most popular and iconic characters in video game history.
Frogger is a 1981 arcade action game developed by Konami and published by Sega. In North America, it was distributed by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct five frogs to their homes by dodging traffic on a busy road, then crossing a river by jumping on floating logs and alligators.
Q*bert is an arcade video game developed and published for the North American market by Gottlieb in 1982. It is a 2D action game with puzzle elements that uses isometric graphics to create a pseudo-3D effect. The objective of each level in the game is to change every cube in a pyramid to a target color by making Q*bert, the on-screen character, hop on top of the cube while avoiding obstacles and enemies. Players use a joystick to control the character.
Pitfall! is a video game developed by David Crane for the Atari 2600 and released in 1982 by Activision. The player controls Pitfall Harry, who has a time limit of 20 minutes to seek treasure in a jungle. The game world is populated by enemies and hazards that variously cause the player to lose lives or points.
Popeye is a 1982 platform game developed and released by Nintendo as an arcade video game. It is based on the comic strip of the same name created by E. C. Segar and licensed from King Features Syndicate. Some sources claim that Ikegami Tsushinki did programming work on the game. As Popeye, the player must collect hearts thrown by Olive Oyl from the top of the screen while being chased by Bluto. Popeye can punch bottles thrown at him, but can only hurt Bluto after eating the one can of spinach present in each level. Unlike Nintendo's earlier Donkey Kong games, there is no jump button. There are three screens.
Donkey Kong Jr. is a 1982 arcade platform game that was released by Nintendo. It is the sequel to Donkey Kong, but with the roles reversed compared to its predecessor: Mario is now the villain and Donkey Kong Jr. is trying to save his kidnapped father. It first released in arcades and, over the course of the decade, was released for a variety of home platforms. The game's title is written out as Donkey Kong Junior in the North American arcade version and various conversions to non-Nintendo systems.
Space Ace is a LaserDisc video game produced by Bluth Group, Cinematronics and Advanced Microcomputer Systems. It was unveiled in October 1983, just four months after the Dragon's Lair game, followed by a limited release in December 1983 and then a wide release in Spring 1984. Like its predecessor, it featured film-quality animation played back from a LaserDisc.
The golden age of arcade video games was the period of rapid growth, technological development, and cultural influence of arcade video games from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. The release of Space Invaders in 1978 led to a wave of shoot-'em-up games such as Galaxian and the vector graphics-based Asteroids in 1979, made possible by new computing technology that had greater power and lower costs. Arcade video games switched from black-and-white to color, with titles such as Frogger and Centipede taking advantage of the visual opportunities of bright palettes.
Donkey Kong is a 1981 arcade video game developed and published by Nintendo. As Mario,(known at the time as "Jumpman") the player runs and jumps on platforms and climbs ladders to ascend a construction site and rescue Pauline from a giant gorilla, Donkey Kong. It is the first game in the Donkey Kong series and Mario's first appearance in a video game.
1982 was the peak year for the golden age of arcade video games as well as the second generation of video game consoles. Many games were released that would spawn franchises, or at least sequels, including Dig Dug, Pole Position, Mr. Do!, Zaxxon, Q*bert, Time Pilot and Pitfall! The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pac-Man, for the third year in a row, while the year's best-selling home system was the Atari 2600. Additional video game consoles added to a crowded market, notably the ColecoVision and Atari 5200. Troubles at Atari late in the year triggered the video game crash of 1983.
Kangaroo is a 1982 four-screen platform game released as an arcade video game by Sun Electronics and distributed in North America by Atari, Inc. Kangaroo is one of the first arcade games similar in style to Donkey Kong without being a direct clone. The player takes the role of a boxing glove-wearing mother kangaroo who is trying to rescue her joey from fruit-throwing monkeys. Jumping is integral to the game, but there is no jump button. Instead, the player pushes up on the joystick—or up and diagonally—to leap. The arcade version of Kangaroo has visible glitches in the graphics, such as sprites briefly flickering.
Donkey Kong, also referred to as Donkey Kong '94, is a 1994 puzzle-platform game developed by Nintendo and Pax Softnica and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy. Donkey Kong is loosely based on the 1981 arcade game of the same name and its sequel Donkey Kong Jr.
Pac-Man is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and based on the Namco video game franchise of the same title. It premiered on ABC and ran for 44 episodes over two seasons from September 25, 1982, to November 5, 1983. It was the first cartoon based on a video game.
Electronic Games was the first dedicated video game magazine published in the United States and ran from October 15, 1981, to 1997 under different titles. It was co-founded by Bill Kunkel, Joyce Worley, and Arnie Katz.
Sparky Marcus is an American former actor.
Donkey Kong is a video game series and media franchise created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto for Nintendo. It follows the adventures of Donkey Kong, a large, powerful gorilla, and other members of the Kong family of apes. Donkey Kong games include the original arcade game trilogy by Nintendo R&D1; the Donkey Kong Country series by Rare and Retro Studios; and the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series by Nintendo Software Technology. Various studios have developed spin-offs in genres such as edutainment, puzzle, racing, and rhythm. The franchise also incorporates animation, printed media, theme parks, and merchandise.
Mario is a multimedia franchise created by game designer Shigeru Miyamoto for the Japanese video game company Nintendo, which produces and publishes its installments. Starring the titular Italian plumber Mario, it is primarily a video game franchise but has extended to other forms of media, including television series, comic books, a 1993 feature film, a 2023 animated film, and theme park attractions. The series' first installment was 1983's Mario Bros. even though Mario made his first appearance in 1981's arcade game Donkey Kong and had already been featured in several games of the Donkey Kong and Game & Watch series. The Mario games have been developed by a wide variety of developers. Mario games have been released almost exclusively for Nintendo's various video game consoles and handhelds, from the third generation onward.
Pauline is a character from the Mario and Donkey Kong video game franchises by Nintendo. She was created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto and debuted in Donkey Kong (1981) as the girlfriend of Mario who must rescue her after she is kidnapped and held captive by Donkey Kong at the top of a large construction site.
