Donkey Kong, the iconic 1980s video game, has been inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame.
According to the Strong Museum of Play in Rochester, New York, the arcade game quickly sold over 100,000 units in the United States alone, in addition to unknown quantities of home versions.
Donkey Kong was the creation of Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto, who was a relatively unknown employee when he came up with the idea in 1981.
The game centered around a hero who must jump barrels, climb ladders, smash fireballs and battle a monster ape in order to save his love.
The hero, originally called Jumpman, was a particularly popular aspect of the game and later morphed into Mario, a character featured in dozens of games today.
“His telltale outfit, bristling mustache, and joyous jumps made Mario an icon of popular culture,” the museum said in a news release.
Donkey Kong was joined by Halo: Combat Evolved and Street Fighter II, which were also given places in the museum’s permanent exhibit. Other games honored in the past include Sonic the Hedgehog, The Sims, Doom, Pong and World of Warcraft. Microsoft’s iconic solitaire was nominated, but did not win a spot.
Anyone can nominate games for consideration, but the final choice is made by journalists, academics and gaming experts.
