Donut Dodo review

It’s on like Donkey Kong- and several other ‘80s-era coin-ops

Gaming during the 1980s was a thoroughly enchanting experience. Not only did dedicated arcades dot the landscape, but coin-ops machines filled the alcoves of supermarkets, bowling alleys, and even some casual restaurants. Crowds habitually surrounded these electronic wonders, each person captivated by the union of vibrant visuals and synthesized sounds. And when it came time, a quarter transported players to worlds teaming with eccentric peril.

We helped Mario scale a hazardous high-rise and confront a rebellious gorilla in Donkey Kong, occasionally swinging a hammer to extinguish flames. Burger Time has us running from an unrelenting fried egg and homicidal hot dogs as we assembled gargantuan foods. Underneath the cartoonish sprite-work, many games of the era delivered surprisingly surreal action.

Forty years on, Luxembourg-based Pixel Games (Sir Lovelot, Sigi – A Fart for Melusina) has crafted a game that draws on the platforming action from arcade gaming’s golden age. Donut Dodo tasks Baker Billy Burns with amassing every fried pastry scattered across a succession of five, single-screen stages. All the while, a ditzy dodo bird is determined with hoarding the ring-shaped snacks.

Sure, pixel games has fudged a bit. The arcade hardware used to power Donkey Kong (repurposed from Nintendo’s failed Radar Scope) would have struggled to match the frantic pace of Donut Dodo. Certainly, the ability to fine-tune your jump in mid-air, leap onto ladders, and not perish by falling short distances are all modern conveniences. But if you can look past these minor anachronisms, Donut is rather delectable.

Much of the fun comes from treading the path toward gradual mastery. You’ll quickly learn the behaviors of each on-screen threat. While Baker Billy can leap over the green rats that scamper back and forth, you’ll have to learn how to elude a sentient toilet. Nicknamed, “Stinky”, he’ll pursue you with the same logic that guided Lode Runner’s enemies. Like Donkey Kong, the second stage brings a procession of flames smart enough to use ladders. At least some of the enjoyment stems from identifying Donut Dodo’s inspirations. From being able to scamper up vines like Donkey Kong Jr. to a bonus stage that recalls Exidy’s Circus, it’s evident that Pixel Games has scrutinized the classics.

Then there’s the eponymous Dodo, who stubbornly blocks the oversized donut you need to touch to complete the level. The non-flying bird also barfs up fireballs that streak across the screen or tumble downward like a boulder. Unlike many of the games on old, you’ll really need to exercise your peripheral vision to prepare for imminent threats. Fortunately, Donut Dodo signals peril with an eye-grabbing flash of sprite color.

Save for the inability to turn the table on your adversaries, Dodo’s donut collection is engaging. But given the game’s quick tempo, there’s not much time to study the layout of each level. As such, deaths will inevitably occur as a rat unexpectedly warps from one side of the screen to the other. Cunningly, Donut Dodo encourages recklessness. Although you can collect the pastries in any order, nabbing a blinking one will earn you a bonus based on how long it took to get there.

Stick with the game and you’ll eventually memorize the layout of each level, allowing you to tackle the game’s “medium-hard” difficulty and its “Sugar Rush” speedrun mode. Each mode has its own leaderboard, where you can add a trio of characters. The one downside is that you’ll have to unlock each mode, which is Baker Billy’s rare misstep.

Donut Dodo was played on Switch with review code provided by the publisher.