List em: List 'em Vol. 14: Platformers

It's hard to believe that I've been doing this feature for well over a year now. July 18th 2007 was the date I published the first entry in this feature (Vol.1 Racing Games). Even harder to believe that I've managed to stretch out the most popular or expected genres this long without using them all up. So I thought this time around I'd spoil myself and write a List 'em for my top 5 favorite platforming games of all time.

Now I admit that I had some difficulty in choosing my top 5. Not only because there are so many good platformers out there, but also because sometimes the line blurs on what does and doesn't make a platforming type of game. Rastan is a sword swinging platformer/action adventure of a sort, Contra could be argued as a platformer along with being a side scrolling shooter. So I narrowed it down to games of dexterity with minimal graphic violence and a small amount of puzzle solving or exploration. Of course interpretation is in the eye of the beholder, so feel free to list whatever you feel you think a platformer is and as always, as many or as few as you wish.

In no particular order:

Bonk's Revenge (TG16) - Now you may remember how last month, I regaled you with a small glimpse into my personal gaming past from nearly 20 years ago with my recollection of the TurboGrafx-16's short and turbulent tenure in retail. How RadioShack had thrown their support behind the system and actively advertised it with custom kiosks in their retail locations. Well among the games that were demoed, Bonk's Revenge was a prominent one.

As with most TG16 games, it was colourful, had great sound and looked like a helluva lot of fun. Unfortunately it got shoved aside in the midst of Super Mario World, those still playing SMB3 from the year before, and those anticipating Sonic 2 that they knew was coming soon. Great time for platformers no?

It's hard to describe what the TG16 was like in it's heyday. Like that cousin you didn't know very well but always had fun with when they visited? A secret stash of games that you couldn't talk about in school because hardly anyone even knew what a Turbografx was? In any case, it was under-appreciated in it's own time and Bonk's Revenge is an example of classic gaming that didn't need fat plumbers or blast processing to kick ass.

Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES/FC) - Ok here's the scoop. SMB1 although it pioneered the dynasty of 2D platforming as we know it, was a damn ugly, boring game. SMB2 was good in it's own way but still to this day suffers from "red headed stepchild syndrome" (apologies to red headed stepchildren, I own SMB2). So there it is, feel free to throw rotting cyber-veggies at me and digital eggs, but that's my opinion. I'd rather be honest and hated for it than cater to the masses and tell you want you want to hear like so many publications out there looking for a pat on the back.

SMB3 on the other hand, was one of the games that made me a dual console lover decades before the idea of it (Wii60, PSWii etc) was made popular. The NES didn't offer the home arcade experience like the Sega Master did, nor did it offer complexity like home computers such as the Atari ST, C64 etc etc did. But it did have Mario 3. It didn't need crazy fans wearing coloured shirts organized to show Mario's face in orbit, it didn't need Fred Savage pimping out dubious peripherals in hammy 80's movies. It also didn't need Captain Lou Albano and may have even benefitted more without it. Mario 3 is a kick-ass game that brought colour, music, gameplay and imagination all into one package. But you don't need me to tell you that do you? So I'll move onto the next in my list....

Super Mario World (SNES/SFC) - I'm of the opinion that this is the greatest Mario game made, even better than SMB3 I praised above in the last paragraph. More variety in gameplay, more imagination, more variation in sounds and music...well just more of everything in greater quantity and quality! Oh and the save feature was a real joy as well, no more leaving the NES paused while you ate your vegetables, or pretending to sleep until you could sneak back to the TV for another shot at it. Well you could still do those things, but it wasn't necessary.

This game alone made me forgive Nintendo for making me own such a fugly purple and grey device. If the Genesis was a sleek black 2-door coupe, the SNES was a rental van with a bad company paint job. Even if you dislike the game from a matter of personal taste, you still have to respect it's significance and what a polished high quality product it was. A product that continues, like it's predecessor, to influence game developers and industry professionals to this day.

Vexx (GCN/PS2/Xbox) - This one probably isn't on too many lists and that's a shame. One of the original Acclaim company's last really good games before they went under.

Part beat-em up, part puzzle platformer, part pure platformer, Vexx takes a little of everything and actually mixes it together rather well. One minute your guiding a huge soccer ball into a net for one puzzle, the next your hopping platforms in mid-air trying to reach a goal, the next, timing your progress up a mountain towards another goal while traps and enemies are attacking you. There are so many gameplay elements that I could do an article on this game alone. Cheap to find and available for all three last gen systems, it also holds the distinction of being backwards compatible for all three current ones as well including the X360. Rumor has it a sequel is in the works as a new publisher bought the license when Acclaim went under, that could be a good thing or bad, only time will tell.

Crash Bandicoot Warped (PS1) - Last but certainly not least, is my favorite PS1 platformer and favorite Crash Bandicoot game. Third time's the charm as they say. Warped has everything you'd want in a platformer with humor and light hearted enjoyment to spare. A colourful game that really shows off the system's abilities and it's possible appeal to those thinking Nintendo had the monopoly on platformers in the late 90's.

I have a lot of fond memories playing this game with friends and family and we still have a session from time to time where as always we discover it hasn't lost it's charm. As far as PS1 games are concerned, many haven't aged well but this one is a glaring exception. You can buy a PS3 as your first ever system and still be able to enjoy this game as we did 10 years ago.

So that's my top 5, now it's your turn. But before I do, let me mention a couple runners up that should be noted as being very close to top 5 material. Sonic 2, Wario World, Super Mario Bros. 2.

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