# Donkey Kong 38th Anniversary - Arcade Reproduction Cabinet! **Source:** RetroRalph **Type:** video **Published:** 2019-07-10 **Duration:** 6m 42s **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L26zvAj44k4 --- ## Analysis RetroRalph celebrates his 38th birthday (coinciding with Donkey Kong's 38th anniversary in Japan) by showcasing a modern reproduction Donkey Kong arcade cabinet. He discusses the cabinet's features, including an LCD screen, lit marquee, and real glass, while noting its inaccuracies compared to original units. The video includes gameplay footage and brief commentary on the cabinet's design choices. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Radar Scope was successful in Japan but lackluster in the United States, leading Nintendo to convert unsold Radar Scope cabinets into Donkey Kong machines — _Radar Scope was actually successful in Japan, but kind of lackluster in the United States. So they converted it into a successful Nintendo game._ - [HIGH] Red Donkey Kong cabinets were Radar Scope conversions, while blue cabinets were more popular and commonly seen — _there were some of these Donkey Kong cabinets released in the wild, and they were actually Radar Scope conversions into Donkey Kong... they weren't as popular as the blue cabinets, as far as seeing them out_ - [HIGH] The reproduction cabinet features an IPS LCD screen, lit marquee, real glass, and modernized control panel that differ from the original — _It's got an LCD. It's got an IPS LCD vertically oriented... It has real glass right here, which would have been technically accurate to the game, and then it's got a control panel that is definitely not accurate_ - [HIGH] Donkey Kong was officially released in Japan on this date (38 years prior), not in North America — _today was the official release of Donkey Kong in Japan. Yeah, Japan, not North America_ ### Notable Quotes > "It's red because there were some of these Donkey Kong cabinets released in the wild, and they were actually Radar Scope conversions into Donkey Kong." > — **RetroRalph**, early > _Explains the historical context of why this reproduction is red-colored_ > "It's a fairly accurate reproduction. It's not an accurate reproduction. There are definitely things on here that are not accurate but it's still really cool." > — **RetroRalph**, early-middle > _Sets expectations for the cabinet's authenticity level_ > "because today was the official release of Donkey Kong in Japan. Yeah, Japan, not North America, but hey, it's my birthday, baby. I gotta celebrate and I'm gonna celebrate it twice." > — **RetroRalph**, early > _Core premise of the video celebrating both his birthday and the game's anniversary_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | RetroRalph | person | Video creator and host celebrating his 38th birthday and showcasing a Donkey Kong arcade reproduction cabinet | | Donkey Kong | game | Classic arcade game by Nintendo, 38 years old on the day of this video's release (Japan release date) | | Radar Scope | game | Nintendo arcade game that was successful in Japan but unsuccessful in the US; unsold cabinets were converted into Donkey Kong machines | | Nintendo | company | Publisher/developer of Donkey Kong and Radar Scope | ### Topics - **Primary:** Arcade cabinet restoration and reproduction, Donkey Kong arcade history and variants, Retro gaming hardware and authenticity - **Secondary:** Radar Scope to Donkey Kong conversion history ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.85) — RetroRalph is enthusiastic and celebratory throughout, clearly enjoying the cabinet despite acknowledging its inaccuracies. Tone is upbeat and personable. --- ## Transcript 🎵 🎵 It's my 38th birthday today. My name is Donkey Kong. Thank you for watching. So, what are we standing in front of right now? We are standing in front of a red Donkey Kong cabinet. And you're probably wondering, why is it red? It's red because there were some of these Donkey Kong cabinets released in the wild, and they were actually Radar Scope... Oh my god. Okay, I gotta lose that. It's so hot. They were Radar Scope conversions into Donkey Kong. So Radar Scope was not a very successful Nintendo game. Correction, Radar Scope was actually successful in Japan, but kind of lackluster in the United States. Alright, let's continue. So they converted it into a successful Nintendo game. So you may see some of these red cabinets out in the wild, but they weren't as popular as the blue cabinets, as far as seeing them out. But why am I celebrating today? Because today was the official release of Donkey Kong in Japan. Yeah, Japan, not North America, but hey, it's my birthday, baby. I gotta celebrate and I'm gonna celebrate it twice. I'm gonna celebrate it today, my Japanese birthday, and then my American birthday at the end of the month. So sorry, I just, I had to. But anyways so what are we looking at here We got a fairly accurate reproduction It not an accurate reproduction There definitely things on here that are not accurate but it still really cool and I couldn help myself and I saw this thing and I had to have it. I mean, it's modernized. It's got an LCD. It's got an IPS LCD vertically oriented, which I'll show you closer up. It's got a lit marquee. It has real glass right here, which would have been technically accurate to the game, and then it's got a control panel that is definitely not accurate, but it leads to some expansion capabilities. I'm not the biggest fan of this joystick, but that's okay. We can change these little minor details. But I love it. You know, the speakers, you would have had one speaker on the original unit, and then I think you would have had like a serial number badge right here. So, but it is really cool. The side art is not accurate either, but still looks cool. I'm probably going to get the actual accurate side art for it, which would be, you wouldn't have this square, you'd actually have just the graphic on the side. Unfortunately, I don't have the key right now, so I can't even open it up, so I'm waiting for that, but bitchin' little system, it plays Donkey Kong pretty well. I'm going to show you a little bit of gameplay, and then we'll just wrap it up, but I just figured, hey, it's my birthday, we gotta celebrate, right? We gotta celebrate. We gotta party like it's our birthday, we gotta Sip a banana, doesn't make sense. We're gonna eat bananas like it's your birthday. All right, let's show you gameplay. It really good I can play with these gorilla gloves Yeah Don let me down Ooh that was not a chance hit Ooh Ooh. Ooh. Oh, that was a good hit. Ooh. Where's my window? Here it is. Ooh! Yes! No! Don't take her away! Alright, we got this guys. Sometimes I biff it hard on this level for some reason. The fire guys, the AI on these fire guys, it's kind of interesting sometimes. Like this one, he's like, I'm going to go up, I'm going to go down. No, I'm not. Oh, crap. All right, see? Uh oh. No! Eat my hammer! Really? Alright. I don't know where my opening's gonna be. The fire guys are all over my ass right now. Ooh I totally Ah Oh gosh No Oh gosh Oh gosh No! Oh, yes! No! So close. All right, I got this. oh gosh got my face man Yeah! Alright, I'm wrapping it up before I have any moments. There it is, guys. Donkey Kong. If you like this video, please like it. Please consider subscribing to the channel. Hit the notification bell for you can be in love with future videos and put your comments below. Thanks for watching, guys. See you on the next one. Outro Music _(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 08ead34e-be5e-4bc0-98df-e54f57c6eea0*