Cover Art Comparisons: Donkey Kong Edition
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"Scale up the wall, just how high can you go? You'll surely break her heart if you get up there too slow. Pound upon your chest and take an elevator ride; you can get off at the top and then you look from side to side." Buckner & Garcia, Do the Donkey Kong, Pac-Man Fever
Welcome back to our first Cover Art Comparisons of 2025! As Nintendo has been obsessively pulling out all the stops as of late to advertise their "new" Switch port of the 12-year-old 3DS port of the 15-year-old Wii game, Donkey Kong Country Returns (I much prefer the Rare originals to the Retro Studios reboots), I thought it would be fun to dedicate an entire Cover Art Comparisons to three classic Donkey Kong trilogies. Ready? It's on like Donkey Kong!
Donkey Kong (Arcade), 1981, vs. Donkey Kong '94 (Game Boy), 1994
Let's kick things off with the arcade game that started it all; 1981's Donkey Kong! The cabinet art depicts Donkey Kong fleeing up a New York City construction site with Pauline in his clutches and Mario on his heels. Hoping to hinder his mustachioed pursuer, the big ape tosses barrels at the carpenter-turned-plumber. The girders and ladders that comprise the game's levels are represented, as are the annoying sentient flames. It's a super cool illustration that tells players what to expect when they insert a quarter into the machine. I also dig the characters' original designs, which are both charming and goofy.
The 1994 Game Boy remake, Donkey Kong '94, recreates the same imagery but with the characters' modern designs. As such, Mario changed his shirt and overalls, Pauline dyed her hair, and Donkey Kong put on a necktie. Additions to the cover include Mario's trusty hammer, Donkey Kong Jr.'s anachronistic presence, and a partial view of the New York City skyline in the lower-right corner, a cool reference to Mario's Brooklyn roots. These artistic updates improve upon an already awesome illustration, telling players to expect the same great experience with a modern twist. As such, Donkey Kong '94 is my top banana for round 1!
Fun fact: Donkey Kong starred in a couple animated series; 1983's Donkey Kong, by Ruby-Spears, and 1997's Donkey Kong Country, by Nelvana. He also made cameo appearances in 1989's Captain N: The Game Master, by DIC.
Donkey Kong Junior (Arcade), 1982, vs. Donkey Kong Junior (Atari 2600), 1983
Unfortunately, there isn't a Donkey Kong Junior '95 remake on the Game Boy, so we'll be comparing the artwork of the original 1982 Donkey Kong Junior arcade game against the cover of the 1983 Atari 2600 port. Again, very similar designs that do a great job of telling players what to expect from the game. This time around, it's a scene of a lush jungle at sunset, with Donkey Kong Jr. shimmying up a vine towards his caged Papa, who's being guarded by his jailer, Mario. The mustachioed menace literally holds the key to Donkey Kong's freedom, and he's not giving it up without a fight, siccing four of his lackeys on the jumper-wearing furbaby.
The Atari 2600 port is slightly lacking in its cover, with less background foliage and a reduction of Mario's lackeys from four to just one. Among the minor changes are a fuzzier Donkey Kong and updated character design for Donkey Kong Jr. While I actually prefer Donkey Kong Jr.'s makeover in the Atari 2600 cover, I feel the original arcade illustration is the better design overall. Therefore, the Donkey Kong Junior arcade game is my top banana for round 2!
Donkey Kong 3 (Arcade), 1983, vs. Donkey Kong 3 (NES), 1986
Don't be fooled by the furry foe featured on the facade of our next entry. In reality, 1983's Donkey Kong 3 is just a Galaga-style shoot 'em up masquerading as a Donkey Kong title. Still, the game has Donkey Kong in it, so what the hell? Let's cover the covers of the arcade original and 1986 NES port! The illustration on the arcade cabinet features Donkey Kong perched atop a palm tree within a green house, releasing swarms of bees from Winnie-the-Pooh's stolen honey pot (oh, bother). Below, Mario's exterminator stand-in, Stanley the Bugman, desperately sprays the divebombing pests with insecticide from his handy Flit gun. Once again, this cover nicely illustrates the premise and gameplay for anyone thinking of plunking down a quarter to play it.
In stark contrast, the NES cover is a true work of minimalist art, depicting a pixelated 8-bit Donkey Kong climbing a pair of vines, flanked on either side by palm trees. There are no signs of Stanley nor the bees. Sure, it certainly lets players know what to expect, graphics-wise, but is super vague in telling potential buyers about the gameplay experience. Sorry, but this one's not even close...the original Donkey Kong 3 arcade game is my top banana for round 3, hands-down!
Donkey Kong Country (Super NES), 1994, vs. Donkey Kong Land (Game Boy), 1995
And now, Rare's 1994 revival of the then-long-dormant Donkey Kong series; Donkey Kong Country, for the Super NES! This time around, the challenger is the 1995 Game Boy follow-up, Donkey Kong Land. From here on out, the remaining entries share the exact same CGI character designs and art style, so we'll be focusing on other details instead. The Super NES cover depicts Donkey Kong running through the jungle, clutching a banana bunch, while his nephew, Diddy Kong, follows closely behind on their rhino friend, Rambi. All around them, various Kremlings appear poised to attack the simian duo. This CGI cover cleverly conveys the new direction of the vintage franchise.
The Game Boy cover depicts a similar chase through the jungle, though with fewer Kremlings present and no signs of Rambi or that banana bunch Donkey Kong so desperately craved. In lieu of these elements are a couple new Game Boy-exclusive Kremlings and some nice background details of snowcapped mountains beyond the palm trees and a zeppelin cruising the skies above. The imagery of the Game Boy spin-off hints at this being an entirely different adventure from the Super NES title. Both designs are neat, but I prefer the more frenetic energy of the Super NES cover, making Donkey Kong Country my top banana for round 4!
Donkey Kong Country 2 (Super NES), 1995, vs. Donkey Kong Land 2 (Game Boy), 1996
Moving on, we have arguably the most popular and critically acclaimed Donkey Kong game of all time, 1995's Donkey Kong Country 2, for the Super NES! Its opponent? 1996's diminutive, sepia-toned follow-up, Donkey Kong Land 2 for the Game Boy. This time around, our dueling covers are truly unique from one another. The Super NES cover depicts Diddy and his girlfriend, Dixie Kong, on the deck of a pirate ship, attempting to reach the once-again caged Donkey Kong (poor guy just can't stay out of prison), who's being carted away to parts unknown by a peg-legged, Kremling pirate. The amorous apes are hopelessly outnumbered by the rest of the Kremling pirate crew, with only their parrot pal, Squawks, and swordfish buddy, Enguarde, in their corner. This chaotic cover clearly hints at the challenging gameplay awaiting players.
The Game Boy cover features Diddy and Dixie swimming through the murky depths of a solemn shipwreck, with their angler fish amigo, Glimmer, lighting their way, as a pair of ravenous piranhas pursue the young lovebirds and their fishy friend through the sunken ship. This foreboding cover invokes a sense of dread with its claustrophobic aquatic setting. Can the cool couple outswim the piranhas? Just how long can Diddy and Dixie hold their breath while navigating their way through the submerged ship's hull? Honestly, this one's a toss-up for me, as both covers do an awesome job of highlighting their respective games' darker tones and tougher gameplay. Hmm...I think I'll declare round 5 a banana split and let Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Land 2 share the victory!
Donkey Kong Country 3 (Super NES), 1996, vs. Donkey Kong Land III (Game Boy), 1997
Let's wrap things up with the third and final installments of Rare's dual Donkey Kong trilogies; 1996's Donkey Kong Country 3, for the Super NES, and 1997's Donkey Kong Land 3, for the Game Boy. We once again have a pair of unique covers, with Donkey Kong Country 3 focusing on a scene of Dixie and her toddler cousin, Kiddy Kong, enjoying a relaxing hovercraft cruise through the calm waters and idyllic wilderness of Western Canada (somewhere in British Columbia or Alberta, I reckon). While Dixie pilots the hovercraft, Kiddy attempts to snag a banana floating on the water's surface. A banana bird flies overhead, Funky Kong looks on from his boathouse, and a few Kremlings glare angrily at the cute cousins. There's a fun, summery vibe to this illustration.
The summertime theme is also present on the cover of Donkey Kong Land III, with Dixie enjoying a nice swim in a tranquil lake with Kiddy ready to join her in the water, unaware of the menacing Kremling tailing him along the pier. A literal pair of clownfish appear poised to ambush Dixie, a la Chrissie Watkins in Jaws. While the Game Boy cover is certainly charming, I feel Donkey Kong Country 3 does a better job of conveying the majestic scale of the Canadian wilderness, complete with lakes, valleys, evergreens, and even the Rocky Mountains! By comparison, Donkey Kong Land III features only the lake and Rocky Mountains. As the Super NES cover packs more of a visual punch, I'm declaring Donkey Kong Country 3 my top banana of round 6!
Fun fact: While I'm likely in the minority, Donkey Kong Country 3 is my personal favourite Donkey Kong game. I feel it innovates in ways the other entries don't, such as its unique one-and-done level gimmicks, unlockable water/aircraft, shooting gallery and Simon minigames, adventure/RPG elements, etc. Plus, Dixie is the coolest Kong, in my book, as well as my favourite character in the series!
Don't miss your chance to have Donkey Kong autograph your $80.00+ Wii game...on the Switch! This Friday, only!
Man, it feels great to be back. I've really missed this series during its long hiatus. I promise the next entry won't take nearly as long to produce and publish. Thanks for reading! Do you have any thoughts on this post? If so, feel free to reach out by leaving a comment, dropping me a line, or signing my guestbook to share your opinions on this or any other topic. Also, feel free to press the "like" button if you enjoyed this post, as "likes" help me gauge audience interest in the content I post. After all, I don't want to bore anyone, ha-ha. Until next time, love, peace, and chicken grease!
Posted in "Random Encounters" on Thursday, January 30, 2025.