30 years of platforming: Platformer appreciation thread

elkatas

One of the oldest videogame genres, the platformer genre started back in 1981, when Nintendo released Donkey Kong in arcades. After this there has been many great adventures, and from drowning King Koopa to lava for very first time to running away cops in Mirror's Edge, platformers carry nostalgic memories for many of us. Today in this thread we join to celebrate and share our memories about this glorious genre that was once upon time the most popular genre around. From 2D to 3D, all platformers are welcome, except Bubsy the Bobcat and Awesome Possum.

Dunxco

Wow there's a lot in that list that I've played and enjoy immensely. Croc, Oddworld, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Rocket Knight Adventures, Castle of Illusion, Ape Escape, Aladdin...

Bravo platformers. 30 years of "that one jump".

elkatas

Dunxco wrote:

Wow there's a lot in that list that I've played and enjoy immensely. Croc, Oddworld, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Rocket Knight Adventures, Castle of Illusion, Ape Escape, Aladdin...

Yeah, those games are in chronological order by their release year, no matter what region was. This is why Super Mario Bros 2 and Super Mario Bros 3 are next each other, and original Adventure Island is fourth game on the list. When I compiled this list, I found it rather surprising that there wasn't that many interesting new platformers for handhelds, as most of them were just ports of their console counterparts. The list itself is actually real sized movie poster I made to my friend, and while I do have original copy around, it is more than 80 MBs in size.

Zoku Gojira

Hooray for the one and only genre in which platforming belongs.

Seriously, though. Very fond memories of Super Mario 1,2,3, and World in particular. NSB rekindled a bit of the magic, and it's the last DS game I really cared to play for any length of time.

And I will always remember playing Moon Patrol, which I think counts as a platformer on account of the basic mechanics, on the only local machine I could find, at the top of the Space Needle.

Still going strong as a genre, too, judging from the XBLA bestseller lists.

mntorankusu

Vib Ribbon is kind of not actually a platformer at all.

LBD_Nytetrayn

I have played 56 of however many are shown there, in some form or another, and many more as well.

Henroid

I can't help but notice the Aladdin Sega Genesis game is in that mural. And I approve, that was actually a damn decent game.

I'm also reminded that I still need to play Shantae. As well as the sequel that FINALLY came out.

PurpleMonkey

That mural is sorely lacking Outland from its pick of recent platformers

mntorankusu

I think Sonic Generations is the best platformer released in the past... eight years?

Page-

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island is still the best platforming game ever.

Pure fun from start to finish.

Gilder

Voodoo Vince is an awesome platformer, and it's a shame that it never got enough credit. Or maybe it did and I never noticed. At any rate it's one of the only games to make me go "Oh my god" at a final boss, which was basically the final level and was full of insane platforming.

Also I'm just going to get this super duper controversial statement out there now: The Meat Circus was not hard. It wasn't. It's just platforming you've been doing the whole game, but a little more quickly.

Megamaniaco

Henry Hatsworth is one of the best modern platformers so far, in my opinion.
Classic ones? DKC saga, specially 2. Mega Man 2 (of course), Super Mario 3 (best Mario yet, imo), Turrican saga...
And as somebody said before, Yoshi's Island.

eobet

Miner 2049:er and Montezuma's Revenge is missing from that image...

...also, I haven't spotted Bubble Bobble yet, but surely it must be in there somewhere?

anoffday

I love platformers. Favorite genre for sure. I especially enjoy discovering classic platformers for the first time. Super Mario World was the first game I ever beat and I was so excited.

elkatas

eobet wrote:

...also, I haven't spotted Bubble Bobble yet, but surely it must be in there somewhere?

When doing that mural, I tried to stick more "purer" platforming experiences, and for me Bubble Bobble has always been more of puzzle- than platforming game. Okay, it contains lot of jumping, but during later levels it takes more puzzle related nature. I didn't put Rainbow Island on the mural, because there hasn't been decent port of it released on consoles in the west. Only worthwhile port was "Rainbow Islands Extra" for Genesis.

Megamaniaco wrote:

Turrican saga...

Wouldn't Turrican be more like run and gun? Granted, my knowledge on Turrican is limited on small snippets I saw on my friends Amiga 500, but it looked more like run and gun to me.

Kobun

elkatas wrote:

eobet wrote:

...also, I haven't spotted Bubble Bobble yet, but surely it must be in there somewhere?

When doing that mural, I tried to stick more "purer" platforming experiences, and for me Bubble Bobble has always been more of puzzle- than platforming game.

Yet Vib Ribbon makes the cut... It, using the DS Yoshi's Island cover, and James Pond aside (though the latter's more of a quality issue), that's an awesome mural. I'm sure everyone can pick it apart for oversights or "why X but not Y" stuff. No Umihara Kawase Shun makes me cry, but it's not gonna kill me. It's clearly a US focused list anyway, and it'd be tough for anyone to narrow it down to a "100 best platformers ever" list which I don't believe this is attempting to be.

I've played every game up there except that de Blob 2 and that Arabian GameBoy Color game. What's that? Font's too small for me to read.

elkatas

elkatas wrote:

[Yet Vib Ribbon makes the cut... It, using the DS Yoshi's Island cover, and James Pond aside (though the latter's more of a quality issue), that's an awesome mural. I'm sure everyone can pick it apart for oversights or "why X but not Y" stuff. No Umihara Kawase Shun makes me cry, but it's not gonna kill me. It's clearly a US focused list anyway, and it'd be tough for anyone to narrow it down to a "100 best platformers ever" list which I don't believe this is attempting to be.

Umihara was going to be there, until I decided to stick games that are released in the west. That Gameboy Color game is Shantae.

Mulletude

anoffday wrote:

I love platformers. Favorite genre for sure. I especially enjoy discovering classic platformers for the first time. Super Mario World was the first game I ever beat and I was so excited.

Such a great game. And than beating all the star levels and than replaying the regular game with a whole new look.

eobet

Also, this thread should be renamed "30 years of console platforming", because Bitmap Brothers' two games GODS and Magic Pockets aren't present, and GODS definitely should be. Superfrog, Chuck Rock, and someone already mentioned Turrican...

But if you disqualify Bubble Bobble because of it being a "puzzle game" (aren't you thinking of Puzzle Bobble, btw?) I guess GODS will be disqualified for being an "RPG"... ;-)

I don't even dare to mention the Shadow of the Beast games...

emnmnme

MortifiedPenguin

Ohh man. Ape Escape. I spent so much time on that game. I need to go back and play a lot of these again.

Also, this reminded me that I still need to go back and finish Donkey Kong Country 2. I got to the second to last level as a kid, and though I've seen the ending I never got to it myself. I MUST RESOLVE THIS!

elkatas

eobet wrote:

Also, this thread should be renamed "30 years of console platforming", because Bitmap Brothers' two games GODS and Magic Pockets aren't present, and GODS definitely should be. Superfrog, Chuck Rock, and someone already mentioned Turrican...

Yeah, it is solely focused on console gaming. Perhaps we should do different thread for Spectrum, C64, Amiga, and early PC classics.

emnmnme wrote:

I left that out and opted with Castlevania 3. I personally prefer first Castlevania tho', and it was third console game I ever got.

anoffday

MortifiedPenguin wrote:

Ohh man. Ape Escape. I spent so much time on that game. I need to go back and play a lot of these again.

Also, this reminded me that I still need to go back and finish Donkey Kong Country 2. I got to the second to last level as a kid, and though I've seen the ending I never got to it myself. I MUST RESOLVE THIS!

I've been beefing up my snes collection and wife surprised me a couple weeks ago with DKC 1 2 and 3. I'm going through 2 right now. Such a good game.

Mr_Grinch

This is my thread. I belong here.

Platformers are definitely my favourite type of games, I've no idea why but they always have been. I'm on a platforming kick right now. Finished off TinTin (pretty good), Uncharted 3 (ok, more a shooty game, but I play it for the platforming), Sonic Generations, on with Trine 2 at the moment, then I've got Rayman coming up after xmas. Huzzah!

Also thanks for including Pacland. I now have the music stuck in my head

Nova_C

I played Zillion 2 like mad as a kid. And it enraged me so.

Caveman Paws

Obsession and rage in equal measure.

So many times I beat a game only to find that the victory was not worth the journey. Not even close. It was just a sign that I could stop playing a really shitty game!

That having been said, there was also some great games, Double Dragon 2, Super Spike Beach V Ball, Bionic Commando, etc.

Dversed

I loved the Prince of Persia Reboot a couple years back. Even though the combat was easy, the platforming was fun and fluid.
And I wish we got more of the linear platforming puzzles from AssCreed 2, although I haven't played Brotherhood or revelations yet.

Kobun

Prince of Persia is good, but the platform bits felt too guided for my taste. You can feel the Prince locking into certain routes as he chained leaps from hooks and ran across walls. I didn't mind because it made the gameplay smooth enough without any of the camera and collision issues which tend to crop up in these sorts of games so I can enjoy the dialogue and artwork. It's too bad it wasn't more well received, primarily because it's death animation didn't satisfy players' expectations for death animation and penalties.

Brainiac 8

Bookmarked this thread!

As someone who got his first Nintendo on Christmas the year it came out, Mario was influential in making me the gamer I am today. The Platformer is my favorite genre and it saddens me to see that it is one that is mostly relegated to digital distribution. Thank you Nintendo for continuing to keep this genre alive!

Super Mario 3D Land is Nintendo at the top of their game!

Now give me New Super Mario Bros 2: Wart's Revenge!

UncleSporky

Now that's a great idea. Give us a modern 3D platformer with playable floaty Peach and Toad.

Mangaroo

mntorankusu wrote:

I think Sonic Generations is the best platformer released in the past... eight years?

Seems about right to me. NSMB was pretty decent but I even enjoy super meat boy more. Sonic Generations is awesome. Mirrors edge 2 is the next platformer i've got my sights on. The new rayman seems pretty fun too. Recent honorable mentions: N+, braid, new megaman, couple other ds platformers like donkey kong swinger. Seems I prefer speedier platformers, makes sense considering racing games appeal to me even more.

Brainiac 8

My favorite Platformers over the last several years pretty much boil down to Super Mario Galaxy 2, Super Mario Galaxy, Mega Man 9, Wario Land: Shake It!, and Splosion Man.

There were many honerable mentions, but these were at the top of their class.

joshofalltrades

I think my love of platformers is well established around these parts, so I'll just say that I approve of the list.

CygnusZ

never mind, found it.
You did put Ghouls & Ghosts in.
Good job, you're an [your country here] hero!

chocobolicious

I have never heard o Shantae til now and I feel disappointed by this fact, it looks fantastic.

Mangaroo

I didn't really enjoy G&G (was really bad at it and it scared me a little) but it reminds me of that psp platformer, Prinny: Can I be the hero? Pretty fun and great to pick up and play dood.

CygnusZ

nevermind.

Gilder

I miss collecting things. Yeah there was a deluge of collectathons after Mario 64, which you can see quite clearly from the picture, but I liked collecting everything. It just made me feel awesome when I found every single gem or music note. Ultimate Ghosts N' Goblins can go to hell though, fuck that. Even with a guide I still had trouble making some of the red chests appear and I eventually gave up. I shouldn't have to jump back and forth in a hallway of instant death bubbles for 5 minutes before I finally get the exact right position for Arthur to trigger the chest.

CygnusZ

Gilder wrote:

Ultimate Ghosts N' Goblins can go to hell though, fuck that. Even with a guide I still had trouble making some of the red chests appear and I eventually gave up. I shouldn't have to jump back and forth in a hallway of instant death bubbles for 5 minutes before I finally get the exact right position for Arthur to trigger the chest.

In Japan they released a revised version of Ultimate G&G which took out the collection aspect and turned it into a straight action game with the traditional G&G 2-loop system. With the revisions, the game is just about as top notch quality as the other games in the series. If it weren't for it being a little too long (1 hour 30 minutes to clear once you know what you're doing) I'd probably say it's just as good as Ghouls & Ghosts.

DasUberEdward

Please tell me there is a higher resolution of the picture in the OP somewhere.

Gilder

CygnusZ wrote:

Gilder wrote:

Ultimate Ghosts N' Goblins can go to hell though, fuck that. Even with a guide I still had trouble making some of the red chests appear and I eventually gave up. I shouldn't have to jump back and forth in a hallway of instant death bubbles for 5 minutes before I finally get the exact right position for Arthur to trigger the chest.

In Japan they released a revised version of Ultimate G&G which took out the collection aspect and turned it into a straight action game with the traditional G&G 2-loop system. With the revisions, the game is just about as top notch quality as the other games in the series. If it weren't for it being a little too long (1 hour 30 minutes to clear once you know what you're doing) I'd probably say it's just as good as Ghouls & Ghosts.

Yeah it's too bad the US never got that revision, because it's really unnecessary to have the ring collection. It would be tolerable if they didn't have 5 or so for finding all the red chests. That's ludicrous, because you'll never find them all without a guide. It's impossible. If I walk down the dead-end tunnel that should trigger it. I shouldn't have to jump at the perfect spot.