Platform games (
platformers) are a subgenre of action game. These games involve traveling between platforms by jumping (very occasionally other means are substituted for jumping, like swinging or bouncing, but these are considered variations on the same mechanic). Other traditional elements include running and climbing ladders and ledges. Platformers frequently borrow elements from other genres like fighting and shooting (such as the
Castlevania series, which incorporates role-playing). They are most often associated with iconic cartoon mascots like
Donkey Kong,
Sonic the Hedgehog,
Mario, and
Rayman, though platform games may have any theme. The term itself first came into use to describe any game in which the player traveled between platforms, and
Space Panic, a 1980 arcade release, has been cited as the first platform game under this definition,
[9] but the lack of the ability to jump, swing, or bounce, or fall made the distinction
contentious under modern definitions of the genre. While
Frogs was the first game that allowed the player to jump,
Donkey Kong, an
arcade game created by
Nintendo, released in July, 1981, was the first game that featured obstacles and gaps to jump
over, making it a platformer by the modern definition of the word.
[10] Pitfall can also be classified as an early platformer. Traditionally, platform games were
2D, with players viewing the environment from a profile, "cutaway" perspective. This could be done easily with
sprites and was simple for early computers to handle.
3D computer graphics have opened these games up for movement in all directions. However, 3D perspectives make it more difficult to judge distance, which is an important part of platformers. Because of this, many 3D platformers have a feature to make this easier,[
citation needed] such as a player shadow that will always be cast straight down, tracking their location on the ground while the character is jumping. At their peak, platformers were the most popular games on the market.
[11] The genre experienced a sharp decline, from 15% of total
market share in
1998 to 2% in
2002.
[11] Although there are many 3D platform games, few have proven to have the universal appeal of their older games.
[11] However, this could merely be a result of a changing market and an increase in game variety.
[11]
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