What about platforming?

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Unesh52

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I just read some reviews on Naughty Bear, decided it wasn't worth my time, and removed it from my game Q on GameFly. That was the only thing I had on the Q that I was in any way looking forward to, so I decided to search for a new title, much to my dismay. It just seems that the only thing you're allowed to do in video games anymore is shoot dudes or punch them in the face (or, alternately, stab them in the face). I didn't feel like that, so I was trying to think of something else I might enjoy -- platforming! A game where the primary mechanics revolve around you navigating a series of obstacles by running, jumping, climbing, and sometimes falling (possibly shimmying at some points, or maybe crawling, but hopefully not too much of that). I'm thinking Prince of Persia or a team Ico game.

Unfortunately, GameFly doesn't have a section for platformers, which leads me to believe that either they don't exist, or they've all been disparately grouped under associated labels. My question is, how can these games be so grievously mislabeled? Did being a platformer become unfashionable at some point in the mid 90's, forcing them to tack on silly, under developed combat mechanics for fear of not seeming "hardcore" enough? I mean, I can understand the puzzly bits, even if they are just the "climb vestigial architecture to reach ridiculously inconvenient door switch" type, but just because I want to climb an ancient tower doesn't mean I want to murder whatever I find at the top.

I'm sleepy and probably rambling, so I'll get to the point -- are there any good platforming games around?

(PS: I have an older model PS3, with the PS2 compatibility, and a Gamecube, and I'm not concerned with anything older than that. I already own LBP, all 3 PoP games, Ico (not a acronym), SotC, and I've already beaten the promising concept gone bad that was Mirror's Edge, if you were thinking about any of those.)

(Oh! And both Assassin's Creed games. Guess there were more than I thought; I've just played them all.)
 

King of the Sandbox

& His Royal +4 Bucket of Doom
Jan 22, 2010
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Well, platformers have always had some form of combat in them, even if it was simply stomping on goombas.

I honestly think that by cutting off the age of games you're willing to play, you're entirely missing the golden era of platformers.

But hey, your loss.

/shrugs
 

Fenring

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Platformers tend to be downloadable games now, but in GameFly, I'd expect them to be under Action/Adventure.

I really can't think of an actual platformer you didn't mention that was released at retail.
 

reyttm4

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You could always go for the Freeware game Cave Story, as long if you don't mind a 2D game that is.
 

bloodshed113094

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No one wants to play a plane platform game anymore, so games like Little pig Planet are called adventure.
But Prince of Persia, the new one, is a fighting/Adventure game, not platform
 

Meggiepants

Not a pigeon roost
Jan 19, 2010
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You should play the Ratchet & Clank games if you haven't already. Or the newer Tomb Raider games. Not the older ones where Lara handles like a lawn mower, the newer ones are a little better for that. And maybe the Uncharted games, also really a platformer/adventure type game.

Trine is like LBP kind of, so you might try that as well.
 

TPiddy

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It's too bad you don't have a 360... Limbo is a pretty good spooky platformer / puzzler.... and Crackdown 2, while it does have elements of combat, shooting and driving, the meat of the game is platforming after those damn orbs.
 

Layz92

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Possibly the Spyro and Crash Bandicoot games. Though havn't really played any of them that were on PS2.
 

Heart of Darkness

The final days of His Trolliness
Jul 1, 2009
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If you want a platformer, look under the Action/Adventure section. Kongregate has the same issue, but I've found platformers under that tab.

If you don't mind playing some free games, you can try both Cave Story [http://miraigamer.net/cavestory] and Spelunky [http://spelunkyworld.com]. Granted, you can only play these on the computer (or you can buy Cave Story for ten bucks from WiiWare if you have a Wii), but both of them are very entertaining platformers in their own right.
 

Unesh52

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reyttm4 said:
You could always go for the Freeware game Cave Story, as long if you don't mind a 2D game that is.
meganmeave said:
You should play the Ratchet & Clank games if you haven't already. Or the newer Tomb Raider games. Not the older ones where Lara handles like a lawn mower, the newer ones are a little better for that. And maybe the Uncharted games, also really a platformer/adventure type game.

Trine is like LBP kind of, so you might try that as well.
Heart of Darkness said:
If you want a platformer, look under the Action/Adventure section. Kongregate has the same issue, but I've found platformers under that tab.

If you don't mind playing some free games, you can try both Cave Story [http://miraigamer.net/cavestory] and Spelunky [http://spelunkyworld.com]. Granted, you can only play these on the computer (or you can buy Cave Story for ten bucks from WiiWare if you have a Wii), but both of them are very entertaining platformers in their own right.
I completely forgot I started this thread. Thank you guys for the references.

Though I did actually play one of the newer Tomb Raiders and despised it. The camera wasn't a team player, the combat wasn't any fun, and I got stuck for like 3 hours on the very first level, which soured my opinion of the game right there. Not to mention that I can't even remember what it was about. Uncharted maybe, but I may be a little prejudiced due to over-exposure to ZP. Ratchet sounds pretty fun, but I always thought that game was all about the crazy guns and gadgets. Is it big on platforming too?

As for the 2D games, I'll give them a look since they aren't Super Nintendo or whatever. That's what I was trying to avoid with this quest, really. One of my biggest turn offs about old school platformers was the lack of immersion and atmosphere. Mario is fun in it's own right, but I can find it too silly sometimes. Many games from that era are aimed at kids, meaning that even if they're "good," I'm not going to be into them. Also, the music and sounds from that era are just uniformly... bad.

TPiddy said:
It's too bad you don't have a 360... Limbo is a pretty good spooky platformer / puzzler.... and Crackdown 2, while it does have elements of combat, shooting and driving, the meat of the game is platforming after those damn orbs.
I know! Limbo about had me trading my PS3. (And incidentally, the first Crackdown was a big influence when I was considering consoles. Obviously it didn't win me over all the way, but I really wish I could play the sequal!).
 

Meggiepants

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summerof2010 said:
I completely forgot I started this thread. Thank you guys for the references.

Though I did actually play one of the newer Tomb Raiders and despised it. The camera wasn't a team player, the combat wasn't any fun, and I got stuck for like 3 hours on the very first level, which soured my opinion of the game right there. Not to mention that I can't even remember what it was about. Uncharted maybe, but I may be a little prejudiced due to over-exposure to ZP. Ratchet sounds pretty fun, but I always thought that game was all about the crazy guns and gadgets. Is it big on platforming too?
There is lots of jumping in Ratchet. And quite a bit of unique puzzle solving - I love the Clank parts. You don't have to use the guns, you can trick out your wrench.

But really, when you can use a gun that shoots Disco balls and makes all your enemies compulsively dance like John Travolta... I mean, why wouldn't you?
 

Vek

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Op, you can always look up some old DOS platformers and emulate using DOSBox.

Arctic Adventure, Pharoah's Tomb, Paganitsu. Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure. Heck, find emulators for Commodore and Amiga and stuff, too.
 

FinalHeart95

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Ratchet and Clank, Jak, etc. In my opinion nothing beats Crash 2/3 as far as 3D platformers go, but that may be because of my lovely rose-tinted glasses. The old Spyro games are really good too, I remember really liking Ripto's Rage (which I believe is the second one).

Unfortunately, platformers are hard to find nowadays. There's the new Banjo Kazooie, but other than that all of the platformers are on XBLA/PSN/WiiWare.
 

Unesh52

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Vek said:
Op, you can always look up some old DOS platformers and emulate using DOSBox.

Arctic Adventure, Pharoah's Tomb, Paganitsu. Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure. Heck, find emulators for Commodore and Amiga and stuff, too.
I just can't see those being very fun. See, they may be good for their time, but I don't have the benefit of FinalHeart's rose-tinted glasses. I didn't grow up with those games, so the obvious, even if hardware limitation induced, flaws really get on my nerves. Stuff's hard to see, the sound is abysmal, and you can never sell me on the plot because it's either too simple, cliche, or ridiculous to bother thinking about it or the technical flaws make it feel cheesy. Like watching a puppet show version of Macbeth; the performances can be solid and the story well told, but fact that it's being told in felt form gives you this odd dissonant sensation.

Also,

meganmeave said:
There is lots of jumping in Ratchet. And quite a bit of unique puzzle solving - I love the Clank parts. You don't have to use the guns, you can trick out your wrench.
Indeed, the silly weapons are a plus :) (that's why Time Splitters has always been a favorite of mine). But, and I get the impression others confuse this as well, the fact that there's platforming elements included doesn't really sell it to me. Take the Jak and Daxter games; sure, you have to run, roll, and jump on lots of stuff -- you even hang, swing, and hover board on some bits -- but it all takes a back seat to the fighting. It mixes action and platforming/puzzling in a ratio that's always equal to 1 or more (er, in not math: there's at least as much shooting stuff as there is climbing stuff). That's what I'm tired of. Yes, it may work, and when I'm in the mood I even find it fun, but sometimes I just want to shoot stuff -- so I'll play Time Splitters or Black or Killzone 2. And sometimes I just want to climb around on stuff and explore -- so I play... well, my list's up there somewhere ^^ The problem being that there are scores of modern titles for the hyper-masculine, sadistic, and glory-grubbing crowd embodied in shooters and fighters but not the adventurous, innocent, rambunctious spirit (that I at least find is present) in platformers.

Actually, I might get plenty of the spirit from other genres, but I asked for platformers, so that's what I'm sticking with.

And you know what else? I want to play Spider-Man again. Web swinging is exactly the sort of thing this mood warrants.
 

RaphaelsRedemption

Eats With Her Mouth Full
May 3, 2010
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Have you tried Psychonauts? Your machine should be able to run it. It is a platformer/adventure game, and WORTH it.

I'm playing on PC, and I love it, even tough it is made for console and it shows. I can only imagine how well it would flow on the platform it was designed for.

Also, it has really black humour.
 

TPiddy

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summerof2010 said:
I know! Limbo about had me trading my PS3. (And incidentally, the first Crackdown was a big influence when I was considering consoles. Obviously it didn't win me over all the way, but I really wish I could play the sequal!).
There seems to be a great divide when it comes to genres on each system. Though I think most would agree that 360 has the decided edge on RPG's, every other genre is pretty much split down the middle between the two consoles.

Gears / Killzone
Forza / Gran Turismo
Halo / Resistance
Alan Wake / Heavy Rain
Fable / Demon's Souls
 

Unesh52

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RaphaelsRedemption said:
Have you tried Psychonauts? Your machine should be able to run it. It is a platformer/adventure game, and WORTH it.

I'm playing on PC, and I love it, even tough it is made for console and it shows. I can only imagine how well it would flow on the platform it was designed for.

Also, it has really black humour.
Ah! That's a classic right there. One of my favorite on PS2.
 

spartan231490

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the only platformers i'll ever play are the rachet and clank games. Portal two is really highly anticipated.