Donkey Kong

Nintendo created and released the arcade platform video game Donkey Kong in 1981. In order to scale a building site and save Pauline from the enormous monster Donkey Kong, Mario must navigate over platforms while dodging or jumping over hazards. It is both Mario's first video game appearance and the debut title in the Donkey Kong series. Nintendo's increasingly frantic attempts to create a smash game to compete with Pac-Man (1980) and enter the North American market resulted in Donkey Kong. Shigeru Miyamoto, a rookie video game designer, was given the task by Nintendo's president at the time, Hiroshi Yamauchi.

Donkey Kong was a financial and critical success in Japan and North America, where it became the most successful arcade game of 1981 and 1982, respectively, despite the initial reservations of Nintendo's American team. The game's multiple ports sold more than 15 million units worldwide. It was transferred to the Game & Watch, where it sold 8 million units, and Nintendo licensed the game to Coleco, a maker of arcade conversions for home consoles, who sold 6 million cartridges. The company was well-positioned for market dominance from 1981 through the late 1990s thanks to Donkey Kong's phenomenal success. Mario, who later became one of the most well-known characters in the world and Nintendo's mascot, makes his video game debut. One of the most significant titles from the heyday of arcade video games and one of the all-time most played arcade games is Donkey Kong, a pioneer of the platform game genre.