Donkey

Game review

Donkey, also known as DONKEY.BAS, holds a special place in the history of video games as one of the earliest examples of a PC game designed for the IBM Personal Computer. This simple yet pioneering game was co-written by Bill Gates and Neil Konzen of Microsoft, showcasing the potential of personal computing entertainment. Despite its basic premise and straightforward gameplay, Donkey represents a significant milestone in the evolution of computer gaming.

In Donkey, players take control of a car driving down a straight road. The game's objective is simple: avoid hitting the donkeys that randomly appear on the roadway. The graphics are rudimentary, with the road represented by a straight line and the car and donkeys by simple pixelated shapes. The game is played from a third-person perspective, with the player's car constantly moving towards the top of the screen, and the donkeys appearing from the top, moving downwards.

The controls of Donkey are minimal, typically requiring only a single key press to shift the car left or right to avoid the oncoming donkeys. Each successful pass increases the player's score, with the game continuing until the player collides with a donkey. Upon collision, the game ends, displaying the player's final score based on the number of donkeys avoided.

Despite its simplicity, Donkey was groundbreaking for its time. It was one of the first games to be distributed with a PC, specifically the IBM PC, and served as an early demonstration of the machine's capabilities for running entertainment software. The game was written in BASIC, a programming language that was accessible to many users, encouraging experimentation and modification.

The legacy of Donkey extends beyond its gameplay. It stands as an artifact of computing history, reflecting the early days of Microsoft and the personal computing revolution. The game's creation by Bill Gates, who would go on to lead Microsoft to become one of the world's most influential technology companies, adds to its historical significance.