Unlockable Content 10.04.06: The History of Platformers

Posted by Will Scott on 10.04.2006

From Donkey Kong to NiGHTs, find out where the platformer came from and where it's going.

Here we are again, another week of Unlockable Content. No feedback, no fun stuff this week...just the beginning of new series. Instead of looking at entire systems or subsections of the gaming population, we're going down a different road and examining various genres of games. The genres that exist have been around for quite some time, and rarely do we see a truly new variation on the theme. This week, we start out with a personal favorite of mine: the platformer.

The Early Years
The platformer is one of the oldest genre of gaming, for a likely reason - the games (in general) have had a very slight reliance on graphics and originally consisted of very simple gameplay (literally jumping from platform to platform to reach a goal). According to Wikipedia, the first of these games was Space Panic, but the early platformer most gamers are familiar with is Donkey Kong, which featured an early version of Mario jumping across various platforms, climbing ladders, and avoiding obstacles.

The 80's: Console Domination
From this point, platformers would come to dominate the landscape of the early home systems, thanks mostly in part to the success of the original Super Mario Brothers. The 1980s would spawn many of the notable platform franchises, including Castlevania, Metroid, Megaman, Contra, and Prince of Persia. Many of these famous series would dip in to what would become the "Action" genre, mixing the platform jumping with various ranged weapons and skills.

The sheer number of famous series that started as 1980s platformers isn't surprising - with the exception of Prince of Persia, these games tended to take advantage of the controller design of the Nintendo Entertainment System, which feels (in my opinion) much more natural for platforming than an arcade joystick. The 1980s would be the most dominant period of the platform game, though this dominance would at least extend in to the early part of the 1990s.

The 90s: Platforms Go 3D
The early years of the 1990s can be looked at as a logical continuation of the 80s, with the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis continuing or creating the franchises that ended up being synonymous with the genre. The last major platformer on the NES would end up being Super Mario Bros. 3, considered by many to be the pinnacle of the genre. Super Mario World would come next on the SNES, introducing new characters and new abilities to the Mario world. Sega would unleash the rival Sonic series, introducing an element of speed previously unseen in the genre.

However, the latter half of the 90s would see a platformer renaissance as the next generation of systems allowed for 3d platformers. Starting with the NiGHTs Into Dreams, platform fans began to see the possibilities (and problems) of the 3D platformer. Super Mario 64 would become the defining game of the 3D era, combining a familiar franchise with innovative game play.

The 90s would also see several more franchises pop up - Crash Bandicoot, Tomb Raider, Banjo-Kazooie, and Spyro the Dragon. Oddworld and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night would help keep 2D games alive, but by this point platformers were firmly entrenched in the 3D world.

The 21st Century: Twilight of Platforms
The last decade hasn't seen much in the way of platformers. Truth be told, the only major innovative game in the last ten years was Psychonauts, which took the 3D concept even farther, allowing the platforms to be built around spheres and other 3D shapes. Also notable is the re-vamped Prince of Persia series, which added a degree of acrobatics to the genre. By and large, though, the platform genre has largely been overwhelmed by the "Action" genre, which also features some elements of platform jumping. Games such as Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, and the later entries in the Prince of Persia series are more accurately considered Action-Platformers, as they tend to focus more on items and combat than puzzles and platforms.

The Problems
Platforming's hey-day was in the early years of gaming, and for good reason - the expectations for games were not nearly as high. The 2D landscape was also perfect for these games, as it allowed the player to see the entirety of each portion of the playing field.

All of this became incredibly problematic as 3D became the norm. Camera control is an often cited flaw in the gameplay, and for good reason - almost perfect camera views are needed to actually view the jumps in the game, and a bad angle can lead to a quick death. The simplistic combat also became a negative, as the complex and rewarding systems of action games offered a greater thrill and challenge. As time went by, many of the icons of platforming moved to different genres - Metroid to FPS, Tomb Raider, Prince of Persia, and many other to the Action genre.

Most unfortunately, major innovations in the genre are overlooked. Psychonauts and NiGHTs are critically lauded, but simply never reached the mass appeal of their more generic counterparts. Simplicity being a virtue in these games has been occasionally harmful to their development.

The Future
The future doesn't look bright for the platformer - unless camera controls are perfected or some new innovation is embraced, platformers will become a relatively discarded genre. However, a few bright spots still exist, as there's been a new Super Mario Brothers platformer announced, and the DS's resurrection of several old platform favorites (notably in New Super Mario Bros.) may lead to a boost in sales for similar games.

Next week: the evolution of the First Person Shooter.