Donkey Kong: Original Edition (NES) Playthrough - NintendoComplete

A playthrough of Nintendo's 2010 arcade-action game for the NES, Donkey Kong: Original Edition.
This obscure bit of Donkey Kong history was originally released as a Virtual Console title that came as a pre-installed bonus on PAL models of the bright red 25th anniversary edition Wii console. A couple of years later it resurfaced on the 3DS, and then in 2018 it was rolled out again for the debut of Nintendo Switch Online.
Original Edition is an updated version of the original NES Donkey Kong game ( • Donkey Kong (NES) Play... ), so while it was never released in cartridge form, it is still a "real," official NES title. It utilizes a larger ROM than the 1985 version did in order to restore some of the content that had to be originally cut due to memory restrictions.
The biggest change is that the arcade game's cement factory (50M) stage is included as the second stage in the now-four stage rotation. It's nice to have a more complete representation of the game on the NES, but its implementation here makes it clear why this was the stage was previously left on the cutting room floor: this was the stage that the NES's hardware was least capable of accurately reproducing. Donkey Kong now stands stationary and impotent at the top of the screen, and there's a ton of sprite flicker that shows up on the row with the oil barrel. For whatever reason, one of point items is also missing. It's neat to have it included, but it's more compromised than the other stages.
The other notable change is the new animation for when Donkey Kong grabs Pauline and climbs the ladder to the next stage. Now you can catch a fleeting glimpse of Donkey Kong's firm glutes and Pauline's bloomers! Wee!
Beyond those two additions, I believe the only other difference is the change made to the copyright text on the title screen. The stage intro animations and the "How high can you get?" screens are still missing.
Original Edition doesn't do anything to reinvent the wheel, but it is an interesting (however half-hearted) effort to polish up an old game. It's still much better than the (surprisingly good) Atari 7800 port ( • Donkey Kong (Atari 780... ), and it still falls far short of the amazing Game Boy game, though ( • Donkey Kong (Game Boy)... ).
I have to wonder why they didn't just release an emulated version of the actual arcade game instead.
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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[@LPetal86]

The memories I have of trying to get the DK medal in _Donkey Kong 64_ through the four levels. Stressful but fun times!

[@nestermrcool]

once for the bannana level 2 for the 64 medal

[@NintendoComplete]

Here's a relatively unknown but totally official update to the original NES Donkey Kong. DK has quite a pert butt in this version, dontcha think?

[@royalkumar795]

it's really nice to revisit those game

[@WispyBlueBricksGPX]

Hmmm...

[@LITTLE1994]

Well, that's what Donkey Kong was before DKC 1 reformed him. He was like Bruno from Popeye.

[@damianrangel4764]

@@LITTLE1994 *Bluto

[@usmanchughtai1751]

It’s a shame it was only ever released on the virtual console. I would love to have it

[@vgaoct91]

Interesting that they updated the NES ver. to feature 50m! The closest one can get to the OG arcade port is classic Donkey Kong in DK64.

[@MissJukeBox8]

well the original game is on the switch now too

[@johneygd]

@@MissJukeBox8yep but the original arcade version does make the nes original edition just become obsolete on the switch online service,so if i was nintendo,just make a special famicom edition of it as 40 year anniversary of the famicom, This updated nes version should be officially put on the famicom ,it’s otherwise not complete,why did they feel the need to update the nes version after 27 years once the nes was alreasy dead??? Why didn’t they put such version on the famicom dusksystem to more justifie the purchase of such disksystem??? What a misoppertunity from nintendo, now my fantansy theory is that nintendo just decided to update the nes version of it because of ‘being jealous on both atari & ocean’ for making supirior versions of nintendo’s donkeykong for those computer systems from that era,so hahaha🤣

[@AbsnormalCoolest]

@@johneygdwhat the fuck does this comment even mean

[@johneygd]

@@AbsnormalCoolestit simply means that the the original edition of donkeykong became obsolete once nintendo put the arcade version of it on the switch online service,it means that nintendo should,ve put the original edition of donkeykong on the famicom as a 40 anniversary on the famicom,well if you still don’t understand the meaning of this comment then i don’t know what will.

[@black2785]

Thank you for giving the classics the love they deserve, you have ungodly patience to complete nostalgic games people only play for 15 minutes till their nostalgia dies

[@terranjones5749]

I know that the Pie Factor stage was cut due to the NES's memory, but I'm 100% sure it could've handled all 4 levels. I mean look at DK Jr, that game had all 4 of its original levels!

[@Julesacu]

But the video shows four different levels.

[@R_wir3]

​@@Julesacubecause this is the 2010 version

[@popoff21]

Dude that’s hot coal 😅

[@SANS_THE_SKELETON666]

I bet it could've worked on the Disk System

[@matthewmalabug93]

"Donkey Kong: Original Edition" on Nintendo Entertainment System - Nintendo Switch Online

[@larrylaffer3246]

It's DK on the NES. There's really nothing much more to it. At least you can play the "Cement" Factory Stage again. I put cement in quotations because to me it's always looked like a pie factory instead.

[@Nikkes02]

I like pie, but it hurts me

[@LPetal86]

It was CEMENT?! Yeah no I like the pie better myself.

[@NintendoComplete]

@@LPetal86 Hahaha yeah it was. All the stages were supposed to be parts of a tower block under construction. That's why the last stage looks like the top of a skyscraper. They went King Kong with him taking Pauline up there.

[@LPetal86]

@@NintendoComplete This is one of those points where you realize you've been playing video games for so long, and so many of them, that you've become more than comfortable accepting a nonsensical thing as just "how it is".

[@NintendoComplete]

@@LPetal86 I hear you loud and clear.

[@johneygd]

What i found was an incredible discovery on the technical side,for instance nintendo not only added the missing pie factory level back,but what’s also interesting is that they added extra animations into it, Now what i found really interesting is that donkeykong him self also becomes part of the background but once donkeykong grabs pauline,he became a sprite,so technically this game is still an hardware pusher since it has to update BG tiles on the fly for donkeykong to be animated but for donkeykong as a sprite,as other sprites has to be disappear to allow such huge donkey kong sprite to appear on screen😁

[@SANS_THE_SKELETON666]

Despite the correct term being "Cement Factory," I still call it Pie Factory since I called it that way back then.

[@KTJohnsonkidThunder]

They should've implemented that in the original NES game.

[@MegaMan87]

The Original version to its NES glorified form from the Arcade! Nice Update of the NES Edition with all Four Levels!

[@GeorgeJacks2012]

Aw heck yeah, pie factory!

[@seanshackleton3070]

Am I the only one who thinks that Mario moves slightly faster in the NES port than he does in the arcade game?

[@SANS_THE_SKELETON666]

I tend to agree that I do notice the speed difference a little bit.

[@ElephantMariotheRHDNhater3293]

Wow, they released it in 2010?! NES was dead by the time!

[@R_wir3]

and they released Earthbound Begginings in 2015

[@LiteVLOGS]

It was pre installed on specific European wiis

[@MarkCabaniss]

“I have to wonder why they didn’t just release an emulated version of the actual arcade game instead.” Because Ikegami, that’s why.

[@isaacarmendariz2538]

For context nintendo hired a 3rd party company to help program the original arcade game under the condition that they owe rights to the circuits. Nintendo broke this deal by reverse engineering the boards and got into a lawsuit which lasted from 1983 all the way up around the mid 90s. This was believed to be the reason that nintendo rarely rerelease nor reference the arcade games until 2018. Im not confident that i got everything right so if im wrong please correct me :)

[@ClassicTVMan1981X]

@@isaacarmendariz2538 There was also no formal contract ever signed between the two, another reason for this lawsuit. The seeds of the suit were planted when Nintendo found itself all out of Ikegami's PCBs the more popular Donkey Kong had become during late 1981 and early 1982, and as a result made their own PCBs; it then turned to Iwasaki Engineering to program the code for Donkey Kong Junior through reverse-engineering, the ultimate heart of the suit Ikegami had launched.

[@TommyDeonauthsArchives]

Funny story about me an this game. I actually wanted it, during a promotion where if you downloaded participating games, you got it for free... I apparently wanted it so badly, that I used my Mom's credit card to buy Art Academy 3DS, even after she said no... Yeah, that was a d**k move on my part. All that for what is essentially an official rom hack of the game.

[@thecunninlynguist]

haha, that's the promo I got it free with. I bought that artforms game..(whatever was the cheapest)

[@alexgeorge501]

happy 40th DK!

[@Dorian_Scott]

So there *_does_* exist an NES version of the Arcade "Donkey Kong" with the pie factory level, after all!?

[@SoulStreak64]

I'm as shocked as you are. Even though I didn't know the stage existed...heh...

[@LITTLE1994]

It would've been nice if the original NES release was done that way.

[@Davidjon1946]

And boom !!! A $56.00 game finished

[@Elias991000]

Is there a way to get this version because I would love to play this

[@GmNdWtchr96]

Officially, you had to get a European Red Wii or register certain 3DS games through the long-dead Club Nintendo (RIP). No way to legally play this version on Switch, but the original arcade version is on there via Arcade Archives, so there's no real reason to release it on the NES Online service.

[@shyguy85]

you can find the rom pretty easy online.. myrient is your friend

[@jclkaytwo]

just a correction for the description, this version of the game is not on switch online. the original NES version is, unfortunately

[@legoboy7107]

Wait, this version's also on Nintendo Switch Online? Where?

[@ChrisRoth1972]

That’s what I want to know!

[@SoulStreak64]

As cool as it is to have 50M back, I do agree that it was just better to release the arcade version entirely. Or they could've just made a 3DS classics version that had 50M as well as other changes.

[@TommyDeonauthsArchives]

Thank God for Hamster Corporation's Arcade Archives version of Donkey Kong!

[@SoulStreak64]

@@TommyDeonauthsArchives Yep. They even brought Sunset Riders to the Switch! Sure, some parts are censored, but I could care less.

[@retro3188]

Cool!

[@evanhanley6437]

Loved playing this on my GBA multicart.

[@jamesborlan2850]

A classic that put nintendo on the map in the arcade scene

[@PaloJaurez]

This should’ve been a 3 in 1 game including Donkey Kong 3.

[@franciscobatalla7876]

Muy bien ese juego este es nueva versión nes que era arcade originalmente lanzado el año 1981 después salió en Japón en 1983 más tarde en EEUU y Europa .

[@cliftonsargent1572]

I am 100% confused, why did it end like that? Is it like super C and you just play forever?

[@NintendoComplete]

There's no ending. It just loops over and over getting harder each time until you get a game over. I figured that that was a good stopping point so I just did something goofy there to end it. (I was getting kinda bored 😆)

[@cliftonsargent1572]

@@NintendoComplete for sure I was wondering cause super C is like that, can’t wait for your next video

[@princessmarlena1359]

“Hey! You moved my stump!” 😡 “I’m gonna wreck it!!” (Oops, wrong character and game. NVM!)

[@h2oguy740]

Could I get a Rom Hack for this Game ? If yes where ?

[@StefAsp08]

a remake from the arcade to nes

[@raspbellraspberry4802]

The arcade version of Donkey Kong does not speed up the belt conveyor for 50m after the second lap. It's a Crazy Kong, dead copy. Did the person in charge of this modification have experience playing only Crazy Kong? Because of this strange setting, the success or failure of the 50m stage was left to chance.

[@SANS_THE_SKELETON666]

It could've been a coding issue since the map was cut from the original, and they probably just didn't update the code for the conveyor to behave like it did.

[@douglaslay5735]

Emulated games

[@royalkumar795]

0:14 horror game

[@WispyBlueBricksGPX]

Epic

[@knuclear200x]

The cement factory seemed like an unnecessary edition. It doesnt really add some challenging gimmick

[@shyguy85]

i mean it was in the arcade version

[@john-sp8jk]

So that makes it part of the original game! 🕹️🎮🕹️

[@ssg-eggunner]

Cement Hater

[@Switch-pu3un]

I had been wondering what was the different between A and B and I found an answer which is that Game A you start on an easy difficulty level and it was take you to B after winning easy mode. As for B it's going right ahead and playing on a higher difficulty level like Hard eh you all know

[@LilTuttle]

0:20 to 16:21

[@popoff21]

How do you get this version

[@nono2022-o8i]

0:13

[@RongqianYang]

Brother

[@sashakvasha1529]

Do Trog dos version plz

[@sashakvasha1529]

After level 49 you can check me the end screen

[@TreyParkersBitch]

I tried to play this. Mario dies to easy. He falls a foot and dies. I got pissed off and gave up

[@pit6269]

fell off + yb better

[@blueyosh43]

Garbage port.

[@SANS_THE_SKELETON666]

It's better than the original NES port.