During the week I had the opportunity to play Donkey Kong found on the following site:
My observations are as follows...
Interactivity:
The core game mechanic for Donkey Kong is avoidance of
obstacles by jumping and scaling up and down ladders.
Genre:
Donkey Kong is described as a Platform style of game; this
is an apt description given the core mechanic of this game involves traversing each level from platform to
platform (steel girders in this case)
and jumping to avoid obstacles whilst doing so.
Concept:
The theme of Donkey Kong revolves around the protagonist
"Jumpman" which later became known as Mario and the antagonist, a
giant ape called "Donkey Kong". The game takes place in an industrial
setting (a building site) with the protagonist (Jumpman) jumping and dodging various
obstacles in order to save the damsel in distress from the clutches of Donkey
Kong.
Spatial Arena:
The "spatial arena" in this game is constrained to
the steel girders and ladders from the bottom to the top of the screen which
comprise the entirety of each level.
Goal:
The goal of this game is to attempt to rescue the
"damsel in distress" in each level whilst avoiding any obstacles
within the characters path.
Challenge:
The challenge in this game lies not just in reaching the
goal which it itself can be difficult (especially in later stages where there
are less ladders and more barrels) but also in how you avoid the obstacles. The
player may earn bonus points for jumping over barrels rather than avoiding them
by use of ladders. The barrels themselves are also capable of dropping down
ladders rather than just rolling down the steel girders which adds an
additional timing element to the game.
Narrative:
Whilst the narrative is limited and is not told in a verbal
or written manner it is clear from the moment the game is started what has
happened and what the aim of the game is. Given the simple core mechanic of
this game any further narrative would only detract from the game play itself.
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