The Donkey Kong series turns 40

Usually, developers tend to make us aware of the big anniversaries of their most popular characters well in advance. Unfortunately, that has not really been the case with Nintendo's original success, Donkey Kong, which exactly forty years ago, on July 9, 1981, saw the light of day in Japanese arcade halls.

The game quickly came to North America, where it became Nintendo's first breakthrough in the region. Thus, the game also stands as one of the most defining moments in game history, as it helped to give toy manufacturer Nintendo further faith that digital entertainment was the way forward.

At the same time, the game introduced the little plumber who later became known as Mario. As you know, he later completely stole the limelight from the amiable gorilla. However, Nintendo has still released a number of games with Donkey Kong, which was probably in its best form in the 90s thanks to the series Donkey Kong Country from British developer Rare as well as Donkey Kong 64 for Nintendo 64.

The latest game with the now forty-year-old character is Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze from 2018. But rumour has it that Nintendo has not forgotten how it all started, and a celebration of Donkey Kong should reportedly be underway with an animated series and a ride at the Super Nintendo World in Osaka, Japan.

What we most hope for, though, is that Donkey Kong gets a whole new game to celebrate the anniversary. Rumour has it that such a game is under development by the team behind the successful Super Mario Odyssey.

Do you have any nostalgic memories of Donkey Kong?