Donkey Kong (ドンキーコング, Donkī Kongu), sometimes abbreviated DK, is a Nintendovideo game character who first appeared in the popular 1981 video game of the same name. Initially, Donkey Kong was a large brown gorilla with no distinct features. Since Donkey Kong '94, he has been depicted wearing a red necktie, usually with a DK emblem.
History
Naming
Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the character, believed "donkey" meant "stupid" in English, and assumed the name would convey the sense "stupid ape" to an American audience.[1] When he suggested this name to Nintendo of America, he was ridiculed, but the name stuck.
The 1994Super NES game Donkey Kong Country made by British game developer Rare marked a turning point for Donkey Kong by creating a new setting (Donkey Kong Island) and backstory for the character. This incarnation was designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and then rendered in 3D by Rare.[citation needed]
Dialogue in the Donkey Kong Country series implied that the current Donkey Kong is the grandson (later, the son) of the antagonist in the 1981 arcade game, who was now the bitter(hence the name), elderly ape Cranky Kong. Donkey Kong was portrayed as a powerful, yet lazy and laid-back ape who was more interested in lounging than heroics, and as such was constantly vilified by Cranky and his peers. The series introduced a sidekick for Donkey: his hyperactive friend, Diddy, and DK's crocodilianarchenemy, King K. Rool.
Following Rare's departure from the series, Donkey Kong was reunited with his former rival Mario in the 2004Game Boy Advance game titled Mario vs. Donkey Kong. A throwback to the Donkey Kong title for the Game Boy, Donkey Kong resumed his antagonist role from his earlier games by taking over the Mario Toy Company, upset over the lack of Mini-Mario toys available for purchase. The game was followed by a 2006 sequel titled Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, where Donkey Kong, who is infatuated with Pauline, kidnaps her and takes her to the roof of the Super Mini-Mario World amusement park when she ignores a Mini-Donkey Kong toy in favor of a Mini-Mario.
Nintendo also co-produced a trilogy of rhythm games with Namco for the Nintendo GameCube known as the Donkey Konga series, which were based on Namco's own Taiko: Drum Master, though only two of the series' games made it to America. There was also DK Jungle Beat, which used the drums, and DK Barrel Blast, which would have before it was ported to Wii. Aside from those, DK King of Swing on the GBA was released by Paon around the time of DKJB, and its sequel, Donkey Kong Jungle Climber, is due for early September. It was confirmed that Donkey Kong will return to the Super Smash Bros. series in the upcoming game Super Smash Bros. Brawl with a new stage based on the look of Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat and Donkey Kongs Final Smash will be Konga Beat which is based on the DK Bongos.[2] In the Subspace Emissary, the single-player adventure mode, Donkey Kong, along with Diddy, are chasing after the Koopas and Goombas that stole their bananas in an attempt to retrieve them. A surprisingly violent side of Donkey Kong is shown in the opening cutscene in a brief scene where DK pounds a Koopa Troopa into the ground.
