Nike's "Donkey Kong"-Themed Air Maxes Are Pure Swoosh Genius
Happy Air Max Day to all who celebrate! This year's holiday kicks off with the launch of Nike's absolutely bananas Air Max 1 "Big Head Origins" sneakers.
The Nike Air Max 1 shoe arrives as an ode to old-school low-poly video games, whose iconic characters often had, well, massive heads (hence, the "Big Head Origins" name).
Nintendo's Donkey Kong is part of the big head, low-poly community, and appears to be another inspiration point for the latest Air Maxes.
The Nike shoes, even nicknamed "Donkey Kong" by Air Max devotees, come with wonderfully hairy brown suede details and banana graphics, nodding to the gorilla's appearance and signatures.
The Nike Air Max 1 sneaker offers plenty more clever details and nods to the beloved video games and Mr. Kong.
For instance, the backside features classic Nike branding in the form of a golden coin, like those seen in '90s Donkey Kong games. At the same time, a polygonal Swoosh strikes the sidewall, while deliberately low-res logos land elsewhere.
"DS" coins land on the insole as a credit to the .SWOOSH team, Nike's gaming-focused imprint, an homage to the minds behind this crazy-good pair of sneakers.
Finally, Nike's Air Max gets an "E" rating on the back of the tongue. Why? Nike's Air Maxes are for everyone, but that's only if you can cop this impressive pair.
The newest Air Max 1 sneaker is poised to be the hot ticket on Air Max Day, in addition to those snakeskin Air Max DN8s and Patta's revived "Chlorophyll" Air Max 1s.
The shoes officially land on Nike's SNKRS app on March 26 at 10 AM EST sharp.
Set those alarms, sneakerheads...if you haven't already.
