Platform game
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Platform game, or platformer, is a video game genre characterized by jumping to and from suspended platforms. It must also be possible to control this mechanic, and indeed to be able to fall from or miss platforms as well. These are really the only defining characteristics as there are exceptions to any other suggested criteria. It has been suggested that platformers must have a jump button, and indeed nearly all of them do, but there are some games that use other jump mechanics, like swinging from extendable arms, as in Ristar or Bionic Commando.
During the 8 and 16-bit console wars, nearly every company felt the need to produce a flagship platform game. During this time the genre had games from all styles of gameplay and theme. Cartoony "mascot" platformers were the most popular, but others featured lifelike human characters, futuristic sci-fi settings, or medieval fantasy backdrops.
Platform games originated in the early 1980s and 3D successors were popularized in the mid-1990s. Sometime after the genre's inception, the term came to describe games where jumping on platforms is an integral part of the gameplay. However, it is not a purist genre, and is very frequently coupled with elements of other genres. As long as the platform mechanic remains a dominant part of the gameplay throughout a game, it is still thought to be a platformer. Because of this, there are many diverse sub-genres of platformers, with some blending the genre with shoot 'em up or adventure elements.
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[edit] History
[edit] The single screen era
It was followed by Donkey Kong, an arcade game created by Nintendo, released in July of 1981. It was the first game that allowed players to jump over obstacles (including pifalls), which would make it the first true platformer<ref>Donkey Kong. Arcade History (2006-11-21). Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. Even so, Donkey Kong had a limited amount of real platforming in the first two screens, but the other two have a more pronounced platform jumping component. This game also introduced Mario, an icon of the genre. Donkey Kong was ported to many consoles and computers at the time, and the title helped to cement Nintendo's position as an important name internationally in the video game industry.
Donkey Kong had a sequel in Donkey Kong Jr. There was a third game in the series, but it wasn't a platformer. It was succeeded by the 2-player cooperative Mario Bros. This title, along with Chack'n Pop, laid the ground work for Bubble Bobble, which, in turn, influenced many of the single-screen platformers that would follow.
There were a number of transitional games in the genre that didn't feature scrolling graphics, but had levels that spanned several screens and could be traveled between. Pitfall!, released for the Atari 2600 in '82, featured large, horizontally extended levels. It went on to become the best selling game on the system, and was a breakthrough for the genre. Manic Miner (1983) and its sequel Jet Set Willy (1984) continued this style of multi-screen levels on home computers.
[edit] The scrolling era
A more relevant early scrolling platformer would be Namco's 1984 smash Pac-Land. It was not only a very successful title (and later ported to many consoles)<ref>Pac-Land. Arcade History. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>, but it more closely resembled later scrolling platformers like Wonder Boy and Super Mario Bros, and was probably a direct influence on them. It even had multi-layered parallax scrolling, an effect that wouldn't become common until the second generation of scrollers. This same year saw the release of another popular scrolling arcade platformer, Taito's Legend of Kage.
Nintendo's platform game Super Mario Bros., released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985, was the first console platform game to feature smooth scrolling levels. Super Mario Bros. also established the Hop and Bop sub-genre, and became the archetype for many platformers to follow. Its success as a pack-in led many companies to see platform games as vital to their success, and is probably directly responsible for popularizing the genre during the 8-bit console generation. Sega attempted to ape this success with their Alex Kidd series, as well as with the (arguably better, but less popular) Wonder Boy series. The later Wonderboy games were also notable for combining adventure and role-playing elements with traditional platforming<ref>Hardcore Gaming 101: Wonderboy. Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. Super Mario Bros 3, Metroid, and Wonder Boy III are regarded by some as the best examples of the genre from this console generation.
Platformers went portable in the late 80s with Super Mario Land and continued, with many titles being released for the handheld Game Boy and Game Gear. Some felt that the blur associated with LCD screens made them diffucult to play, and so many handheld platformers leaned toward slower paced play styles and a greater emphasis on puzzles. After the transition of home consoles to 3D, handhelds became a bastion for 2D platform games, and they still remain popular to this day with New Super Mario Bros being a recent example of a very successful traditional platform game.
On the NES, as well as on most 8-bit arcade hardware, platform games generally only scrolled in one direction at a time (usually horizontally). This meant very narrow level progression, or breaking levels up into areas that scrolled in one direction at a time (as was the case in Metroid and Megaman). The first platform game to scroll in all four directions freely and follow the on-screen character's movement was in a vector game called Major Havoc. Major Havoc was comprised of a number of mini-games, including a simple platformer (the largest of the mini-games), along with a shooter sequence, a landing sequence, and even a Breakout clone<ref>Major Havoc. Killer List of Videogames. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. The first raster-based platform game to scroll fluidly in all directions in this manner is probably the 1984 classic, Legend of Kage, mentioned earlier. Though the multi-directional scrolling didn't seem like a big deal at the time, it would become a distinguishing feature of the next generation of platformers.
[edit] Second Generation Side-Scrollers
1991 marked the release of of the Super NES, along with the much awaited Super Mario World. In order to fend off the new competition Sega released Sonic the Hedgehog. Moreso than Nintendo's offering (which featured a very conservative design, true to the Mario tradition), Sonic showcased a new kind of design made possible by the processing muscle of its platform. The game featured large fields that scrolled effortlessly in all directions, as well as all manner of uneven terrain, curved hills, and a complex physics system that allowed players to whiz through the levels with well placed jumps and rolls. The game proved to be a massive hit (as did SMW) and was a successful pack-in with new systems, and cemented the view that platform games will make or break a console.
The Sonic character was also deemed by marketing types to possess large quantities of the much sought-after natural resource "attitude." These types would later attempt to harvest "attitude" for all manner of poor short-lived video game characters, usually involving some sort of brightly colored anthropomorphic animal that spewed movie quotes in a nasal voice for reasons unknown<ref>Boutros, Daniel (Aug 4, 2006). A Detailed Cross-Examination of Yesterday and Today's Best-Selling Platform Games. Gamasutra. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. These platform mascots include the likes of Gex, Bug!, and Bubsy, and are rumored to be appearing on the next season of The Surreal Life, along with Rubik the Amazing Cube and the little robot girl from Small Wonder.
Although there had long been important platform games on home computers, it was around this time that computers began a second generation of platform games as well. The Amiga was known as the stronger gaming platform thanks to its more powerful stock video hardware and sound hardware, and the Atari ST was getting solid support as well. Games like Shadow of the Beast showed console gamers what a computer could really do with the genre, and Prince of Persia featured an unprecedented level of animation.
In 1990, PC gaming made a breakthrough in the genre. Commander Keen, released by id Software, became the first IBM-compatible PC platformer to feature smooth scrolling graphics thanks to a technique programmer John Carmack had pioneered for EGA graphics displays<ref>A Look Back at Commander Keen. 3DRealms.com. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. The success of this game via the shareware distribution model prompted many others to attempt more console-styled scrolling platformers on the PC, including Duke Nukem, Jill of the Jungle, and Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure (none of which quite scrolled smoothly like Commander Keen, but were well received all the same). These games all helped fuel the shareware model which would drive PC gaming to greater relevance in the early-mid 90s.
Other notable platform games from this time period include Earthworm Jim, Zool, Bubsy, and Rocket Knight Adventures. Frequently, games based upon licensed films, TV show, and comic book franchises would be platformers, such as those based on Aladdin, Jurassic Park, Batman, James Bond, and Mickey Mouse.
[edit] The Decline of 2D
The end of the 16-bit era marked the release of some very successful games in the genre, notably Yoshi's Island and the Donkey Kong Country titles, but the genre declined in relevance as players succumbed to the allure of 3D graphics and gameplay. Still, the Saturn, PlayStation, and Nintendo 64 had a number of successful 2D platform games. Megaman 8 and Megaman X4 were quite popular and helped revitalize interest in Capcom's blue bomber. Likewise Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is considered the pinnacle of its series and remains one of the best selling, as well. Oddworld and Heart of Darkness kept the sub-genre born from Prince of Persia alive. The N64 had the fewest 2D platformers, but Yoshi's Story and Mischief Makers were well received.
The difficulties of adapting platform gameplay to 3D led some developers to compromise by pairing the visual flash of 3D with traditional 2D gameplay. These games are often referred to as "2.5D". The first such game was a Sega Saturn launch title, Clockwork Knight released in December, 1994 in Japan (and subsequently as a launch game in the U.S.) The game featured levels and boss characters rendered in 3D, but retained 2D gameplay and the used pre-rendered 2D sprites for regular characters, similar to Donkey Kong Country (the sequel improved upon this with some 3D effects such as hopping between the foreground and background, or the camera panning and curving around a corner).
The formula has been repeated many times. Pandemonium and Klonoa brought this style to the PlayStation. More recently Klonoa 2 and Viewtiful Joe have continued this tradition.
[edit] The Third Dimension
The term "3D platformer" is usually used to refer to games that feature gameplay in three dimensions, and polygonal 3D graphics. Games which have 3D gameplay, but 2D graphics are usually lumped in with isometric platformers, and those that have 3D graphics, but gameplay on a 2D plane are called 2.5D.
The first 3D platform game was probably a French computer game called Alpha Waves, created by Infogrames in 1990 for the Amiga, PC, and Atari ST computers. It was a very abstract game, and a was a platformer in the truest sense, with simple gameplay revolving around hopping from trampoline-like platforms. The game was released in North America by Data East, under the name Continuum. Much like Jump Bug before it, while it was probably the first of its kind, it's not widely recognized as especially influential (though it's sometimes regarded as a precursor to Jumping Flash!). This is because it isn't seen as attempt to bring 2D platformers into three dimensions, because its theme and play style had so little in common with 2D platform games of the day. It was, however, billed as a platformer<ref>Continuum - DOS Cover Art. Mobygames. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>, and platforming was its predominant gameplay mechanic, so it is a historic first.
In 1994, a small developer called Exact released a game for the X68000 computer called Geograph Seal. The game was a fully 3D polygonal first person shooter hybrid with a pronounced platform jumping component. Players piloted a frog-like mech that could jump, and then double jump or triple jump high into the air, as the camera panned down to help players line up their landing. In addition to shooting, jumping on enemies was a primary means of attack. It was the first Japanese 3D platformer, but it was never ported to another platform, nor released outside of Japan, so it remains obscure in the West.
The following year, Exact released their follow-up to Geograph Seal as an early title for Sony's new PlayStation console. Jumping Flash!, released in April 1995, is generally regarded as a direct continuation of the gameplay concepts in Geograph Seal<ref>Forgotten Gem: Jumping Flash. 1up.com. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>, and was likewise a mix of first-person shooting and platforming, with similar controls and camera-work. The frog-like mech was traded in for a more cartoony rabbit mech, called the "Robbit." Beyond this, the level design had an even greater focus on platform hopping, and it was released in Europe and North America as a launch title, helping it gain a much higher profile. Jumping Flash! may have been the first 3D platformer on a console. It received two sequels.
Bug!, a Sega Saturn game that was released in 1995, used 3D level designs but didn't allow players to move along more than one axis at once (meaning he could walk left to right, or forward and backward, but not diagonally left and backward at the same time). Its characters were sprite-based (while the developer claimed that all characters were "rendered in glorious 3D"<ref>Project: Bug!. Realtime Associates. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>, a less misleading term would be "pre-rendered"). The game played very similarly to 2D platformers, but it was considered a true 3D title, and even let players walk up walls and on ceilings. It was a moderate success, and had a sequel, Bug Too!.In 1995 Delphine Software released a 3D sequel to their popular 2D platformer Flashback. Entitled Fade to Black, it was the first attempt to bring a popular 2D platform game series into 3D. While it may have retained the puzzle-oriented level design style and step-based control and bore a strong resemblence to its predecessor, most would argue that it wasn't quite a platformer. Although it used true 3D characters and set pieces, it used a rigid raycasting engine not dissimilar from the one used by Wolfenstein 3D to render its levels, which made them essentially square corridors and negated any hopping from suspended platforms.
There was a great deal of pressure on Sony, Sega, and Nintendo to release mascot platformers before the 1996 holiday season. Sony chose to adopt an existing project by developers Naughty Dog, (a risky move at the time, as Naughty Dog was a B-grade developer at the time, hot off the heels of the abyssmal bomb Way of the Warrior). The move paid off, as their game, Crash Bandicoot would beat Nintendo's new console to market in North America, and still make it out in time for the holiday in Japan. Crash would remain Sony's unofficial mascot for the next several years before going multiplatform the following generation.
Sega did not fare as well. They had tasked their American studio, STI, with bringing Sonic the Hedgehog into 3D. Their project, titled Sonic Xtreme, it was to feature a radically different approach to the genre, with an exaggerated fisheye camera and multi-directional gameplay not entirely dissimilar from Bug!. The development was rocky, due in part to conflicts with Sega of Japan and a rushed development schedule, and the game never made it to market.
[edit] Reshaping the Genre
Some would argue that many modern 3D platformers, especially those influenced heavily by Mario 64 are not platformers at all, or at least are not really an extension of 2D platformer<ref>Platform video games evolve. BBC (2003-10-25). Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. Super Mario 64 brought a change in the goals of some platformers. In most 2D platformers, the player only had to reach a single goal to complete a level, but in many 3D platformers, each level had to be combed for collectible items such as puzzle pieces (Banjo-Kazooie) or stars (Super Mario 64). This allowed for more efficient use of large 3D areas and rewarded the player for thorough exploration, but they also often involved more elements of action-adventure games, and less real jumping on platforms. However, not all 3D platformers were like this. Crash Bandicoot and Sonic Adventure featured more linear action-oriented obstacle courses like the traditional platform model.
The complaints over lack of innovation carried over with the transition from 2D to 3D, but new criticisms sprang up as well. The most major largely focused on the difficulty of creating a consistently unobtrusive in-game camera system. 2D platformers were not susceptible to the problems of judging jumps through 3D environments on a 2D screen with little more than a tiny shadow on the ground to guide the player to the correct landing spot (problems which were even more obvious when the player was jumping "towards the screen"). Worse still was cameras getting "stuck" behind objects in the game world, obscuring the action at critical moments. Developers have attempted to alleviate these problems in various ways: making objects between the camera and the player's avatar semi-transparent; introducing "free cameras" which increased flexibility but required input from the player to control the camera as well as their character; Tomb Raider used grid-like layouts for platforms so that the experienced player could tell whether they could "make" a jump as long as they used the correct button press; the more recent Galleon attempted to unify character and camera control. To this date, arguably no platform game has been completely free from this type of criticism: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time was praised for flexible and spectacular camera angles during exploration sequences, but suffered during combat sections.
[edit] Platformers Into the Present
3D platformers never managed to achieve the kind of popularity or relevance that 2D platformers held. While there are a number of successful games in the genre, games like Metal Gear Solid, and Final Fantasy VII were seen as more powerful system sellers than Crash Bandicoot or even Mario. Still, many have insisted that it was Sega's inability to produce a true 3D Sonic game that cost them a great deal of market share.By the advent of the sixth generation era, platformers were no longer seen as hot system sellers. Sega did finally produce the 3D Sonic game everyone had hoped for with Sonic Adventure on their new Dreamcast console. It used a hub-like structure like Mario 64, but featured more linear, action oriented levels, with an emphasis on speed. The game was a massive seller, but it wasn't enough to save the Dreamcast, cementing the view that the industry does not turn on the success of platform games.
Nintendo launched their GameCube console without a platform game, but in 2002, they released Super Mario Sunshine, the second 3D Mario game. Although it was well received at its time of release, the title has been the topic of a great deal of backlash, with criticisms including the lack of levels, the lack of variety in locations, and level design which was very sparse and had an abundance of open space making for a much slower pace<ref>Maiorana, Stephen (2003-4-25). Super Mario Sunshine. The Jaded Gamer. Retrieved on 2006-11-22.</ref><ref>Larkin, Jonathan (2003-4-28). Super Mario Sunshine. GameShark. Retrieved on 2006-11-22.</ref>. Others found the relaxed pace soothing, but nonetheless it remains one of the less popular games in the series. It featured difficult platform areas that were similar to the Bowser levels from Super Mario 64 with a focus on traditional platform jumping.
Other notable 3D platformers trickled out during this generation. Maximo was a spiritual heir to the Ghosts 'n' Goblins series. Billy Hatcher borrowed heavily from Mario 64, but put an emphasis on classic platform jumping, which earned it a cult following. Jak and Daxter moved further away from real platform action with every sequel, but remained popular nonetheless. Rayman continued to be popular, though his third game was not received as well as the previous two. Psychonauts is regarded by some as the best the genre had to offer this generation with its wildly imaginative psychedelic mindscapes.
Today platformers remain a vital niche genre, but have never recaptured the kind of popularity that they held in past years. In 1998, Platform games had a 15% share of the market (and even higher during their heyday), but only four years later ththat figure had dropped to 2% <ref>A Detailed Cross-Examination of Yesterday and Today's Best-Selling Platform Games. Gamasutra (2006-8-04). Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>. Even the much acclaimed Psychonauts experienced modest sales of a little more than 85,000 units across all platforms<ref>Sinclair, Brendan (2005-12-20). Bitter medicine: What does the game industry have against innovation?. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.</ref>, and franchises like the once mighty Tomb Raider began to sag. Other forms of third person action games have cut into the sales of platformers as RPGs and First Person Shooters have grown in selling power. One might also say that this decline is an inevitable result of a larger and more diverse market than in years past, as no one genre has managed to achieve the same kind of dominance that platform games did in the 8 and 16 bit console wars.
[edit] Sub-genres
There are many games that are recognizably platformers that do not adhere to any of the subgenres below, but the following are some of the more recognizable archetypes for different platform styles. There are many more vaguely defined sub-genres like "Action Platformer" and "Platform Adventure" that are not mentioned here because they are not as easily defined.
[edit] Hop and Bop
This is is probably the best known style of platformer. Mario is recognized as the originator of this style, and it became even more popular in the 16-bit era with games like Sonic the Hedgehog, Bubsy, and Donkey Kong Country. The defining trait of a hop and bop is the ability to defeat enemies by jumping on their heads. It's also generally the case that these games feature very colorful, cartoony imagery and characters. While a few 3D platformers like Mario 64 allowed players to defeat enemies by jumping on their heads, this was not the main means of dealing with enemies. The problems of manipulating a character in 3D with enough precision to jump on enemies makes this a predominantly 2D genre. Sonic Adventure introduced a homing-jump to allow this mechanic to work in 3D, making it a rare example of a 3D Hop and Bop.
[edit] Puzzle Platformers
The Lost Vikings was one of the more popular titles in this genre, as well. It featured three characters with different abilities that could be switched between. Players had to use all three characters to aid each other to reach the level goals.
This sub-genre has a strong history on handheld platforms. Wario Land 2 moved its series into the puzzle-platformer genre, as well, by eliminating the element of death and endowing status ailments (like being squashed or lit on fire) with different powers to solve puzzles. Wario Land 3 continued this tradition, while Wario Land 4 was more of a mix of puzzle an traditional platform elements. The Gameboy update of Donkey Kong was also a successful portable puzzle-platformer and it later has a sequel on Gameboy Advance called Mario vs Donkey Kong. Toki Dori was another well liked handheld game in the genre. Klonoa: Empire of Dreams, the first handheld title in its series, was also a fine puzzle-platformer.
[edit] Run and Gun Platformers
The run and gun platformer genre was popularized by Konami's classic Contra. Gunstar Heroes and Metal Slug are also popular examples and are often regarded as the pinnacle of this style. Side-scrolling Run and Gun games are characterized by a minimal focus on precise platform jumping and a major emphasis on multi-directional shooting making up the meat of the gameplay. These games are sometimes called Platform Shooters. This genre has strong arcade roots, and as such, these games are generally known for being very difficult, and having very linear progression, without backtracking.
There are games which feature a heavy degree of shooting but do not fall into this sub-genre. Megaman, Vectorman and Earthworm Jim are all platformers with a heavy focus on action and shooting, but unlike Contra or Metal Slug the platform jumping elements, as well as exploration and back-tracking, still figure more prominently. Run and Guns are generally very pure and, while they sometimes have vehicular sequences or other changes in style, they stay focused on shooting throughout.
[edit] Cinematic Platformers (Prince of Persia Style)
[edit] Comical Action Game
This genre lacks a commonly agreed upon name in the West, but are most commonly called Comical Action games in Japan[1][2]. The original arcade Mario Bros is generally recognized as the originator of this genre, though Bubble Bobble is also highly influential. These games are characterized by levels that are only one screen (and thus do not scroll), and cooperative 2-player action. A level is cleared when all enemies on the screen have been defeated, and vanquished foes usually drop score bonuses in the form of fruit or other items. CAGs are almost exclusively developed in Japan and are either arcade games, or sequels to arcade games (though they are also a common genre among amateur doujinshi games). Some more popular examples include the likes of Don Doko Don and Snow Bros. In more recent years Nightmare in the Dark and Zupapa on the Neo-Geo have carried the torch.
[edit] Isometric Platformers
Arguably a sub-genre of both 3d and 2d platformers, isometric platformers present a three dimensional environment using 2D bitmaps for graphics. Although games like the 2D Zelda and Final Fantasy games are technically isometric, in gaming the term is generally used to refer specifically to games that use the 3/4 perspective. Although not the first isometric games, the earliest examples of isometric platform games are 1983's Congo Bongo in the arcade and 3D Ant Attack for the ZX Spectrum, ported to the Commodore 64 the following year.
Due to the way these games operate, they proved generally quite hard to implement properly on second generation console-style tile/sprite hardware such as the NES and Commodore 64. Although producing an isometric backdrop could be achieved easily, interaction between sprites and the backdrop was hard to get right. Several popular isometric games, such as Snake Rattle 'n' Roll, just limit the opportunities for the player to travel behind scenery. Although later games such as Head Over Heels were able to get this aspect technically right, the raised bar meant that isometric games were much more prolific on framebuffer based hardware such as the ZX Spectrum where the technique was perfected early on by Ultimate Play The Game's Knight Lore and then repeated endlessly without any significant gameplay advances.
Before consoles were able to display true polygonal 3D graphics, the 3/4 isometric perspective was used to move some popular 2D platformers into three dimensional gameplay. Spot Goes to Hollywood was a sequel to the popular Cool Spot, and Sonic 3D Blast was an attempt to do the same for the Sonic series.
[edit] Chronology of significant platform games
Game title (developer, year of release):
[edit] 1980s
- Space Panic (Universal, 1980) - First direct precursor to the platform game
- Donkey Kong (Nintendo, 1981) - First game featuring Mario (known as Jumpman at the time).
- Jump Bug (Rock-Ola, 1981) - First platform game with a scrolling playfield.
- Pitfall! (Activision, 1982) - Platform precursor with large multi-screen levels that spanned horizontally
- Miner 2049er (Big Five Software, 1982)
- Congo Bongo (Sega, 1983) - first arcade isometric platformer
- 3D Ant Attack (Sandy White, 1983) - first home isometric platformer
- Manic Miner (Bug-Byte, 1983) and its sequel Jet Set Willy (1984).
- Pac Land (Namco, 1984) Influencial early scrolling platformer, paved the way for Super Mario Bros.
- Knight Lore (Ultimate Play The Game, 1984) - highly influential "perfection" of the isometric platformer
- Doki Doki Penguin Land (Sega, 1985) - first puzzle platformer.
- Monty on the Run (Gremlin Graphics, 1985) - ZX Spectrum & CBM 64 classic.
- Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo, 1985) - Perhaps the best-known platformer; best-selling game of all time.
- Bubble Bobble (Taito, 1986) further refined a formula, and inspired a popular sub-genre
- Metroid (Nintendo, 1986) - Non-linear action-adventure title that spawned many imitators.
- Contra (Konami, 1987, also known as Probotector and Gryzor) - Early example of run and gun platform-shooting gameplay.
- Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Sega, 1987)- Combined platform gameplay with RPG-like elements like shops, towns, money, and equipment.
- Akumajou Dracula (Konami, 1987) - First in the popular Castlevania series of horror-themed platformers
- Mega Man (Rockman) (Capcom, 1987) - Popular series of shooter-platformers.
- Bionic Commando (Capcom, 1988) - Rare example of a platformer where player cannot jump, but uses a bionic arm to swing.
- Prince of Persia (Brøderbund, 1989) - Renowned for high-quality animation, inspired a popular sub-genre.
- Super Mario Land (Nintendo, 1989) - One of the first portable platformers.
[edit] 1990s
- Super Mario Bros. 3 (Nintendo, 1990) - Highest grossing console game before Pokémon.
- Commander Keen (id Software, 1990) - First major PC platformer with smooth-scrolling levels.
- Alpha Waves (Infogrames, 1990) - First 3D platformer.
- Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic Team, 1991) - Platform game with emphasis on speed and complex, multi-path levels; considered a rival to the Mario series.
- Aladdin (Playmates Interactive, 1993) - first platform game to use cel animation for its sprites.
- Gunstar Heroes (Treasure, 1993) - Seminal Run and Gun platformer, one of the most acclaimed titles on Genesis.
- Geograph Seal (Exact, 1994) - Direct precursor to Jumping Flash!, mixed First Person Shooting and platforming
- Donkey Kong Country (Rareware, 1994) - The game's 2D sprites were created from pre-rendered 3D graphics.
- Clockwork Knight (SEGA Entertainment, 1994) - Early 2.5D platformer; levels and bosses rendered in 3D, with 2D gameplay and pre-rendered sprites.
- Rayman (Ubi Soft, 1995) - First Rayman game.
- Jumping Flash! (Exact, 1995) - 3D platformer based on Geograph Seal; first PS1 platformer; 3D models and gameplay.
- Bug! (Realtime Associates, 1995) - Early 3D platformer; limited-3D movement, pre-rendered 2D sprites.
- Super Mario 64 (Nintendo EAD, 1996) - Highly influencial (and widely acclaimed) free-roaming 3D platform game.
- Crash Bandicoot (Naughty Dog, 1996) - More conservative approach to 3D platforming, pitted against Mario.
- Tomb Raider (Core Design, 1996) - Brought the adventure, puzzle and exploration aspects of games such as Prince of Persia into 3D.
- Pandemonium (Crystal Dynamics, 1996) - 2.5D platformer with camera that twisted and turned around 3D paths, with 2D controls.
- Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee (Oddworld Inhabitants, 1997) - 2D game with pre-rendered graphics that continued the Prince of Persia style.
- Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Konami, 1997) - Platform adventure similar to Super Metroid; demonstrated continuing popularity of 2D gaming on newer consoles.
- Banjo-Kazooie (Rare, 1998) - Highly influential platform adventure title that pioneered the use of characters being paired together.
- Spyro the Dragon (Insomniac, 1998) - One of the most famous PlayStation platformers.
- Donkey Kong 64 (Rare, 1999) - With over 75 hours worth of gameplay, this is one of the largest 3D platformers ever created.
- Rayman 2 (Ubi Soft, 1999) - Second Rayman games. First 3D Rayman game. Considered one of the best of its kind
- Sonic Adventure (Sonic Team, 1999) - Successfully revitalized the Sonic the Hedgehog series in 3D.
- Shadow Man (Acclaim, 1999) - One of the first major "dark" M-rated platformers.
[edit] 2000s
- Conker's Bad Fur Day (Rare, 2001) - One of the first adult-aimed games from Nintendo.
- Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (Naughty Dog, 2001) - Along with Ratchet & Clank and Sly Cooper, Jak and Daxter is one of three platform series released for the PS2 that was critically acclaimed and sold well.
- Super Mario Sunshine (Nintendo, 2002) - sequel to Super Mario 64, sold over 5 million copies.
- Ratchet & Clank (Insomniac Games, 2002) - a platformer/third person shooter hybrid, and one of the most popular game series for the PS2.
- Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (Sucker Punch, 2002). The first platform game to use cel-shaded graphics.
- Doukutsu Monogatari (Cave Story) (Pixel, 2004) - the largest freeware platformer to date, also notable for its unique 2D art style and storyline.
- Psychonauts (Majesco, 2005) - one of the most notable cross-system platformers of the sixth generation era.
- Loco Roco (Sony Computer Entertainment, 2006) - unique and vibrant platformer where the player moved the level, PSP exclusive.
- New Super Mario Bros., (Nintendo, 2006) - a successful 2D platformer, Nintendo DS exclusive.
- Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo, 2007) - First platformer to use motion detection.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes and references
<references />
[edit] External links
- Platform games at MobyGames
- Platform games at Home of the Underdogs
- Open Directory - Games: Video Games: Platform
- The evolution of gaming: computers, consoles, and arcade from Ars Technica
Adventure • Active game • City building • Beat 'em up • Economic simulators • Educational • Fighting • First-person shooter • Flight simulator • God game • Life simulators • Massively multiplayer • Music • Platform • Puzzle • Rail shooter • Racing • Real-time strategy • Real-time tactics • Role-playing • Run and gun • Shoot 'em up • Simulation • Sports • Stealth • Strategy • Survival horror • Third-person shooter • Turn-based strategy • Vehicular combat
es:Juego de plataforma fr:Jeu de plate-forme it:Videogioco a piattaforme nl:Platformspel pt:Jogo de plataforma ru:Платформер fi:Tasohyppely sv:Plattformsspel tr:Platform oyunları
