5 2D Platformers You Forgot Were Awesome

One of the early video game genres is the 2D platformer. Universal’s Space Panic is widely credited as the first, but it’s hard to overlook Nintendo’s Donkey Kong as the one that really got fans excited. Not only was the 1981 quarter-eater a huge hit in arcades, but it also introduced players to Mario, who would become Nintendo’s mascot and a fan-favorite character. While the genre has gone through its ups and downs, fans are still getting phenomenal 2D platformers, especially if you dive into the indie scene. However, quite a few great 2D platformers have gone under the radar, missing out on the love they deserve through no fault of their own.

Here are five 2D platformers everyone forgot.

5) Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero?

Developer Nippon Ichi’s platformer is a comedic take on the genre, but don’t let that fool you. It’s devilishly difficult. There’s a reason you get 1,000 lives when you first boot it up. Outside of the standout humor, Prinny‘s levels change as the in-game timer ticks down, which even impacts the boss you’ll face at the end of a mission.

It’s a nifty gimmick that makes mastering the gameplay important if you want to see everything. The controls are a little floaty, but everything else is an inventive mix of platforming fun. Unfortunately, a lot of players missed it and its sequel because they were PSP games, a system that was most popular in Japan. Fortunately, both games came to the Switch a decade later, so you can still play them today.

4) Hue

Hue‘s biggest selling point is its striking visuals. Playing as the titular character, you’ll explore a grey world. Thankfully, you can change its background color through your special ability. By collecting eight color shards, you’ll have a large toolbox of colors that help you shape paths through each level.

See, anytime you switch color from the wheel, parts of the level appear or disappear. Using this mechanic, you’ll open up new sections. It’s a beautiful game that really comes to life in its later stages. At that point, developer Fiddlesticks starts to open up the puzzle playbook, giving players several challenging areas to work through.

3) Mischief Makers

Okay, let’s get the bad out of the way first: Mischief Makers isn’t the best-looking game, even on the Nintendo 64, which wasn’t exactly filled with lookers. It’s also relatively easy and doesn’t offer much replay value, which was a much larger problem back in the ’90s when I didn’t have disposable income.

Fortunately, what Mischief Makers does bring to the table makes it an underrated gem. Developer Treasure infused Mishief Makers with a ton of personality. On top of that, the boss fights are genuinely fun, and you can tell that Treasure is really trying to push the envelope. It doesn’t always work, but you have to reward the creativity.

2) Drill Dozer

Game Freak is almost exclusively known for Pokémon, but it did make a great platformer on the Game Boy Advance called Drill Dozer. Players control Jill and her Drill Dozer through 17 gigantic stages, filled with enemies to fight and puzzles to solve.

Of course, Game Freak rarely strays from the Pokémon mines these days, so it’s unlikely we’ll ever see a sequel. Still, Jill has popped up in a few places, and it was released on Virtual Console, so it might come to Nintendo Switch Online at some point, allowing it to find a new life.

1) Klonoa

In the ’90s, Sony was still looking for its version of Mario and Sonic. The platform needed a mascot, and plenty of developers tried their hand at giving it one. I’m not saying Namco pulled that off with Klonoa: Door to the Phantomile, but it’s as good as any of the other attempts.

Technically, Klonoa is a 2.5D platformer, so you could argue it doesn’t belong on this list. However, all of the action takes place in 2D, so I think it qualifies. Either way, it’s an exceptionally well-designed platformer that pleased fans of the classics, while bringing the genre forward into the quasi-3D world.

Unlike some of the other games on this list, Klonoa enjoyed support in the form of a few sequels and several pieces of supplemental material, including a manga. Plus, there have been a few remake/remaster attempts, including the 2022 collection Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series, which brought the first two games to modern consoles.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

Modern Platformers Ditched This Classic Feature and Are So Much Better Without It