Congo Bongo

n/a

Congo Bongo

System(s): Sega Zaxxon hardware, SG-1000, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, ColecoVision, Commodore 64, IBM PC, Intellivision, MSX, TI-99/4A, VIC-20

Publisher:

Sega Enterprises, Ltd.

John Sands Electronics (AU)

Grandstand Leisure (NZ)

Sega Enterprises, Inc. (US)

Coleco

U.S. Gold (UK)

Philips

Texas Instruments

Developer:

Sega Enterprises, Ltd.

Ikegami Tsushinki

Sega Personal Computer Div.^[1]

Beck-Tech

Beck-Tech (disk)

Sega Electronics

Genre: Action^[2]

Number of players: 1

Release	Date	RRP	Code
JP	1983-03^[3]	¥?	?
US	1983-03^[4]	$?	?

US	1983-12^[5]		006-01
EU	1983		006-10
BR	1983		C3072
US	1983-12^[5]		006-02
US	1983-12^[6]		006-06
US	1984-10^[7]
EU	198x
JP	1983-07^[8]	¥3,8003,800^[2]	G-1007
EU	1983
FR	1983	255F255^[10]
IT	198x	54,500£54,500^[11]	G-1007
AU	1983	$39.9539.95^[9]	G-1007
NZ	1983-11	$59.9559.95^[12]
TW	198x
US	1983-12^[6]		006-05
EU	1983
UK (Cassette)	1984	£9.959.95
IT	198x	69,000£69,000^[14]
US	1984
EU	1983
US	1983
US	1983		006-03
IT	198x	59,000£59,000^[13]
US	1983		006-04
IT	198x	69,000£69,000^[15]
US	1983

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Congo Bongo (コンゴボンゴ), originally known as Tip Top (ティップタップ), is a 1983 arcade platformer game developed by Sega. It is often considered an isometric equivalent to Nintendo's Donkey Kong, as it stars a protagonist chasing after a large ape (in this game, called "Bongo"). However, unlike Donkey Kong, the game is set in a jungle, the graphics are more detailed and there are more enemies and traps.

Congo Bongo runs on similar hardware to Zaxxon, known as the Sega Zaxxon hardware.

Synopsis

“	The hunter climbs up the treacherous cliffs chasing after the gorilla. He encounters many dangers on his way. Watch out for falling coconuts and pesky monkeys. And finally capture the gorilla to preserve the hunter's honor.	„
— AU SG-1000 box backcover ^[16]

Gameplay

Levels

As Sega likely never gave Congo Bongo's levels official names, home conversions

	Primate Peak/Jungle Mountain/Waterfall Pass

	Snake Lake
	The Atari, Intellivision and 1983 Commodore 64 versions omit this level.
	Rhino Ridge
	This level is also missing in the Atari, Intellivision and 1983 Commodore 64 versions.
	Lazy Lagoon/The Great River

History

Legacy

Like many early Arcade games such as Space Invaders or Pac Man, Congo Bongo was widely ported to numerous home consoles and computers in the 1980s, including the Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, ColecoVision, IBM PC, IntelliVision, MSX, TI-99/4A and VIC-20. Two versions exist for the Commodore 64, from 1983 and 1985, respectively - the latter is more faithful to the arcade original.

The only Sega console the game has appeared on is the SG-1000, however it was featured as part of the PlayStation 2 Sega Ages 2500 series in Japan and was an unlockable in both Sega Mega Drive Collection and Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection.

Many of the weaker computers and consoles were unable to render isometric graphics, and therefore had to find other methods of rendering the game. The Atari versions for example uses an oblique perspective, whereas the SG-1000 game goes for a top-down approach. The Atari, Intellivision, 1983 Commodore 64, MSX, TI-99/4a and VIC-20 versions all omit levels 2 and 3, presumably due to storage restrictions, while the ColecoVision port only excludes level 2.

An Amstrad CPC version was advertised by Amsoft in 1985, and a ZX Spectrum version was also planned, but both were scrapped.