Arcade Archives Don Doko Don

Genre: Action-Platformer / Arcade

Players: 1-2 Co-Op (Local), Online Leaderboards

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Review:

Don Doko Don is an Arcade-style Action-Platformer released in 1989 in Japanese arcades with a port to the Famicom and PC Engine in 1990, with the first Western release of the game being in the Taito Legends 2 Compilation released in 2007 on PC, PlayStation 2, and the original Xbox. This modern release sees the game coming to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in 2023.

Don Doko Don plays very similarly to the classic game Bubble Bobble, with players clearing out screens of enemies to progress, here as a hammer-wielding lumberjack. While this game is visually well beyond what we saw in Bubble Bobble, it’s more difficult due to both your limited range and the way enemies can easily swarm you. In addition, the platforming here isn’t great. It’s still enjoyable, but it doesn’t feel like a step up from Bubble Bobble. Oh, also, the music is terrible.

This release of the game includes a new “Hi-Score Mode” that challenges players to score as much as they can in one run before seeing a game over screen. There is also a new “Caravan Mode” that does much the same, but with the limit being five minutes. In addition, this release of the game includes various display options, sound options, challenge modifiers, button mapping, and online leaderboards.

Overall, I think Don Doko Don might amuse fans of Bubble Bobble, but I think most players will grow bored with it before long – not only is it less original than Bubble Bobble, it doesn’t play as well as that game. The result is something that’s probably only worthwhile as a curiosity, a footnote in Taito’s arcade history.

tl;dr – Don Doko Don is an Arcade-style Action-Platformer that strongly resembles Bubble Bobble, though it’s more challenging and not on par with that beloved classic. It’s not a terrible game, but I don’t think it will hold the interest of modern players for very long before they give up and move on to something else.

Grade: C

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