The Donkey Kong world record high score has changed hands multiple times over the years. But perhaps the to-ing and fro-ing is about to end.

Copeland's final score. Note the 1 for 1m is missing because the high score is too big to fit in the allotted space.

On 5th May Donkey Kong player Wes Copeland posted a new world record high score of 1.218m in the classic arcade game - and reckons it's as close to perfect as possible.

And now, it looks like Copeland will retire, safe in the knowledge he's done all he can with the game.

"New world record!" Copeland wrote in a post on Facebook. "This will be my last record score... I don't believe I can put up a game any higher than this."

The world record run is considered "perfect" because Copeland did not lose a single Mario on his way to the 22nd level, which is known as the kill screen due to an error in the game's programming that kills Mario after a few seconds, effectively ending the game. You can check it out in the video, below. It took Copeland three hours and 17 minutes to achieve.

The Donkey Kong world record high score hunt was thrust into the mainstream with the 2007 documentary The King of Kong, which revolved around the rivalry of players Steve Wiebe and Billy Mitchell.

But these days it's all about Copeland and his long-running rivalry with Robbie Lakeman. The coveted Donkey Kong crown has changed hands multiple times over the years. Copeland held the Donkey Kong world record high score in January, but lost it to Lakeman in April.

Is this, finally, the end for Donkey Kong? Responding to Copeland's high score, Lakeman said: "I'm not lucky enough. Good enough, but not lucky enough."