You can now play Bill Gates' first PC game and run over donkeys on your iPhone, Apple Watch

Fancy running over donkeys?
By
Manish Singh
 on 
Original image replaced with Mashable logo
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Bill Gates may be best known for co-founding the world’s largest software firm Microsoft and his philanthropy work, but not a lot of people know he also programmed the first PC game.

In 1981, Gates co-wrote DONKEY.BAS, a game written in BASIC programming language which saw the protagonist run over donkeys who appeared before the car.

Since the operating systems our computers run today look nothing like anything that people in 1981 rocked, a good samaritan has released the iconic game to Apple’s iPhone and Apple Watch devices.

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Developed by Johnny Ixe, DONKEY.app is a homage to the 1981 retro arcade title in its true 8-bit glory. Much like all good things in life, this too isn’t free. But Ixe is only asking for 99 cents.

"For the first time on watchOS and iOS, relive the classic game that started it all! Beat the DONKEYS and become the top driver you're born to be!" the energetic app description reads.

Now all we can hope for is an iPhone app for this iconic game, too.

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Manish Singh

Manish Singh was a Mashable's senior correspondent in India. He has previously freelanced with CNET, NDTV Gadgets, BGR India, and MediaNama.


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