In a single night, Bill Gates programmed a rudimentary game designed to seal a contract with IBM. Despite its limitations, the game paid off handsomely and went down in video game history.
A stroke of commercial genius
In 1981, just four years after its creation, Microsoft signed a contract with IBM to equip future PCs with an operating system – but not only that. The contract also stipulated the inclusion of fun programmes to appeal to novice users. To meet this requirement and secure the crucial agreement, Bill Gates, assisted by engineer Neil Konzen, overnight designed a basic game called Donkey. The aim of the game? Swerve your car to avoid donkeys appearing on the road. A simplistic concept, but enough to meet the terms of the agreement.
A clumsy but strategic game
Visually and technically, Donkey turns out to be a homemade production, typical of the pioneering era of personal computing. The graphics are rudimentary, the world minimalist, and the lack of complexity obvious. But above all, this game was born out of a strategic need: Microsoft wanted to promote BASIC – the programming language included with the IBM PC – to novices. Donkey therefore served as a practical demonstration, enabling users to learn by programming. A functional use beyond simple entertainment.
An embarrassing notoriety
From a gameplay point of view, Donkey did not make history: it is often described as “the most embarrassing game of all time” by witnesses such as Andy Hertzfeld, formerly of Apple. The total simplicity of the gameplay, the sketchy graphics and the total lack of challenge made it more of a curiosity than a videogame success. However, its role in the partnership between Microsoft and IBM gave it a place in the history of technology, even if not for its intrinsic quality.
Millions at stake despite everything
Despite its status as a technical afterthought, Donkey has played a key role in Microsoft’s financial growth. The agreement with IBM – initiated in part thanks to this little game – generated revenue of around one million dollars for the fledgling start-up. A huge sum for the time, and one that helped establish Microsoft’s financial stability and credibility in the PC market.
Today, Donkey is an amusing anecdote in Bill Gates’ immense e-portfolio. The game was never intended to last: it has left no gameplay legacy and has never been re-released, but it has acquired a historic dimension. What seemed like a simple promotional tool became a symbol of Microsoft’s beginnings: resourcefulness, efficiency and the will to do everything possible to win a strategic contract.
