Though it may have been a while since he received a fully new entry in his franchise,Donkey Kongis still one of the biggest characters in theSuper Mariouniverse. An IP star in his own right,Donkey Kongcontinues to act as a Nintendo icon, but his appearance in the nextMario Karthas led to a new examination of his design legacy.
After the smorgasbord of leaks that hit the Switch 2, many were unsurprised by the console’s new features upon its reveal. Many fans, in fact, have been more captivated by the reveal of newMario Kartgameplay. In addition to the teaser revealing 24-player multiplayer, fans were also able to spy anew Donkey Kong design, seemingly based off his appearance in theSuper Mario Bros. Movie. With Donkey Kong’s post-DKCdesign becoming the character’s norm for over 30 years, this is a big shift for the future of DK—even bigger than many may assume at first.
The History Of Donkey Kong’s Design Through Arcades, Mario Games, Donkey Kong Country, And Beyond
A Tale Of Two Donkey Kongs
When talking about Donkey Kong’s design, it’s important to mention that there are two Donkey Kongs in theMariofranchise. The original Donkey Kong, present throughout the original arcade trilogy, is a different character to the one introduced in 1994’sDonkey Kong Country. That first Donkey Kong, active from 1981 to 1983, is depicted in his games simply as a large brown ape (without any articles of clothing). Interestingly, the character’s sprite has a perfectly round head, but art present on arcade machines at the time depicted him with his head hair coalesced into a point.
The apein theseDonkey Konggameswould go on to become Cranky Kong in 1994’sDonkey Kong Country. It’s a common misconception that the Donkey Kong introduced inDKCis the same as the great ape that first terrorized arcade players in 1981, whereas the 1994 Kong gained the title from Cranky, his grandfather. Cranky is far thinner than his arcade appearance—he is now depicted as an elderly ape with a hunch, a cane, a sleeveless overshirt, and a white beard.
Donkey Kong Country’s Donkey Konghas held the character’s title for the last 30 years, and his design has remained unchanged. He’s still a brown-haired gorilla, like Cranky, but slightly less broad and hulking than his grandfather was in the 80s. The hair on his head forms a point that hangs over his face (whereas the point on the original’s head pointed back). Most notably, he also wears a red tie with the letters ‘DK’ emblazoned upon it in yellow. He also typically walks on all-fours, whereas his predecessor was usually depicted walking on two legs.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Switch 2’s Mario Kart, And The Future
The Super Mario Bros. Moviecharacter designsdeviated a tad from their video game counterparts, and Donkey Kong was no exception. DK is much larger in the movie, with greater muscle mass and size. There’s also more space around his eyes beneath his forehead, and his eyes are slightly more oval-shaped. It’s a noticeable shift, but not a major deviation—just a tweak that makes DK more reminiscent of Cranky in his prime.
When Donkey Kong’s design was revealedfor the Switch 2’sMario Kartgame, fans immediately noticed that he’d changed from priorMario Kartgames. Specifically, in this teaser, DK is a dead ringer for his movie counterpart. Considering that the current DK is a different character compared to his arcade ancestor, this is more-or-less the first major design shift for this Donkey Kong in his 30-year history of games. While the new design is controversial, there’s no denying how big this spotlight is for the character.
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong is both the name of a video game character and franchise originally created by Shigeru Miyamoto and owned by Nintendo. The franchise is primarily made up of platforming style games, but there have been a number of offshoots and the character has appeared in other video games ranging from Mario Party, Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros, and much more.
