When comparing Donkey Kong vs Balloon Fight, the Slant community recommends Donkey Kong for most people. In the question“What are the best hi-score games?” Donkey Kong is ranked 1st while Balloon Fight is ranked 5th. The most important reason people chose Donkey Kong is:
Players still compete for high scores in tournaments and casual competition. The game is streamed daily on Twitch by people striving to beat their own PB or reach a high score goal.
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Pros
Pro Still competitive more than 30 years later
Players still compete for high scores in tournaments and casual competition. The game is streamed daily on Twitch by people striving to beat their own PB or reach a high score goal.
Pro More different layouts than most score games
Aside from bonus screens, which repeat after every third level, screen layouts only repeat after every 9th starting after the 12th. Each layout plays slightly differently, so you get a variety of different difficulties and strategies before any of them repeat.
Cons
Con Very optimized world record
There is very little room to improve the world record, and the MAME record is close to the theoretical maximum. Getting a new world record would require not just skill but also a great deal of luck.
Con Marathon game
The game does not have an ending or kill screen, so getting a higher score depends mostly on surviving longer and clearing more screens. Riskier strategies for squeezing out extra points exist, but are less effective than safe conservative play.