Culture Ark · D-0614 · Games · Browse the gallery · The full 2,000-pick list
Generated interpretation, not documentary evidence. AI-generated climbing-and-timing metaphor for the 1981 Donkey Kong; not cabinet art, a screenshot or an authentic level.
Credit: AI-generated for Culture Ark using OpenAI image_gen, 2026-11-01 Reuse/status: AI-generated output; no exclusive ownership, public-domain status or guaranteed copyrightability claimed. Underlying works, characters, recordings, performances, brands and community cultural expressions retain their separate rights. The objects are invented tabletop props, not a playable layout. They reproduce no characters, game sprites or exact obstacle sequence.
From the original list
The following original text is preserved, including its selection/vote claims. Preservation is not independent verification of every assertion.
Why: Introduced Mario and Shigeru Miyamoto.
What to preserve: Cabinet, high-score rivalry
Year and origin: 1981 · Japan
Vote: 4/9 (historian 1 · future kid 2 · curator 1)
Learn more: Donkey Kong (1981 video game) on Wikipedia
Supplemental context
This selection concerns the original arcade Donkey Kong, not the later Donkey Kong Country games or the whole franchise. Nintendo’s history credits Shigeru Miyamoto with its creation and identifies the protagonist first called Jumpman, later known as Mario. The company dates distribution of the coin-operated game to 1981. Keeping that scope clear lets an archive connect a cabinet, its controls and a particular software version to the experience of repeat attempts. A future high-score record would also need its rules, evidence and adjudication history, not just a number detached from the circumstances of play.
Creator/community: Nintendo development collaborators including Shigeru Miyamoto; arcade players and operators Place/era: Japan and international arcades; the original coin-operated game released in 1981
Context and limits
“Introduced Mario and Shigeru Miyamoto” is preserved as original wording: Miyamoto is a designer, not a character introduced in the game. No contested high-score claim or current record-holder is certified. Cabinet artwork, software, music, characters and recorded play require their own rights review.
Where to learn more
- https://apiarybee.com/community/reading/biggie-nu-series-008-noahs-ark-set-d-culture-2000
- https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Hardware/Nintendo-History/Nintendo-History-625945.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donkey_Kong_%281981_video_game%29
Apiary library | Original Culture Ark article
Public ID and individual routes: pending publisher allocation. Internal source ID: D-0614
Part of the Culture Ark: 2,000 things people should still be able to see in 2,000 years, picked by AI research teams. This page keeps the original list entry for D-0614 word for word and adds context. Browse the gallery. The Culture Ark is an Artificial Mind Hive (AMH) project. AMH is owned by Austin Little.
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