Donkey Kong Junior

released on Jun 30, 1982

Donkey Kong Junior is the direct sequel to Donkey Kong. In this game, Mario plays the antagonist, finally having captured Donkey Kong, and has put the ape in a locked cage. As Donkey Kong Jr., players will have to make their way through four different levels (Vines, Springboard, Chains and Mario's Hideout) in an attempt to find keys to free the little monkey's father.


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Played at the VS Arcade Bar in Lincoln, Nebraska. The cabinet was old, meaning the controls were janky and that I was unable to clear the second stage. Oh, well.

The anti Donkey Kong the game where it’s about climbing instead of jumping. It’s really interesting to see that the hero in last game is the villain in this one. Anyways this game is not as good as the original in my opinion since the climbing can be slighty janky also don’t like how you have to keep track of going up and down by holding on one or two vines. I do like that the levels have more color then the original with some nice greens. Anyways ranking levels vines>chains>hideout>jumpboard

It was on my backlog as the oldest game I haven’t played yet, and I continue to be filtered by games too primitive to account for concepts like “actually fall damage sucks ass.” Or too hungry for your theoretical quarters.

It’s a shame because I do like the concept on display here. The hero of the original game is now the villain… and you’re playing as Donkey Kong’s son and trying to save him! You get to be on both sides of the endless conflict between man and ape…! I know the Mario vs. Donkey Kong games play around with this more but I do kind of wish Mario’s weird gadgeteer side got to be more of a thing. I think the man should sic wind-up crocodiles on some Goombas.

I don't trust people who like this more than the original

I think it's as good as the original and enjoyed the variation on the gameplay here. Junior definitely feels lethargic, but it adds to the sense of danger because most of the enemies are more nimble than you are. It's over quickly, but just like the first game, every level has a unique theme to it and all of them are enjoyable.