Nintendo Court Case Reveals Laughably Unfortunate Alternative Name For Donkey Kong

may be one of the most recognizable names in the video game industry but back when the barrell-tossing ape was more obscure, Nintendo pitched some deeply unfortunate alternative names. Originally appearing all the way back in 1981 in the self-titled arcade game, the character has become a staple of Nintendo's pantheon of characters and while his solo adventures may not rival the popularity of Mario and Link, he's managed to lead several fantastic titles. Of course, even though the name «Donkey Kong» is a little odd, it could have been so much worse.

Thanks to some resurfaced court documents shared by MarioBrothBlog on X (formerly Twitter), some of Nintendo's early proposed names for the towering ape include Kong Dong, Steel Kong, Funny Kong, Bill Kong, and even Kong Boy.

The legal files were originally used during a dispute between Universal Pictures and Nintendo, the former of which alleged that Donkey Kong's name infringed on its trademark. Universal ultimately lost its case and Nintendo retained the rights to continue using the character's name in future products, but it's still fun to see what could have been.

Donkey Kong may see a resurgence in popularity thanks to Super Nintendo World, so now could be the right time to make a new Donkey Kong Country game.

When it came to naming Donkey Kong and, subsequently, the game within which he starred as a villain, creator Shigeru Miyamoto wanted to convey the idea of an immovable ape. While «Kong» came about as a nod to the gigantic monster of the films, «Donkey» was selected to communicate the idea of a stubborn creature that refused to move out of someone's way. It seemed applicable, given that Donkey Kong's first purpose was to stand between Mario, or «Jumpman» as he was then known, and Pauline, the character whom players set out to rescue.

As Donkey Kong became more of an icon in his own right, Nintendo began expanding his family with similarly named relatives. The series went on to introduce characters like Did