Poll of the Day > Is there even a definitive classic platformer for PC?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I mean, if we go way back there were lots of platformers back in the day such as OG Duke Nukem and Jazz Jackrabbit...

but none of them were definitive enough to withstand the console zeitgeist.

...

I think Super Meat Boy came close though, and there's an argument for Geometry Dash given its large player base but it's not really a classic platformer persay

I don't think you are going to find one that matched the popularity of console platformers simply because PC wasn't as popular when they were in their heyday. But if you want to list classic ones, I would throw Commander Keen and Jill of the Jungle in there as well.

Duke Nukem 2 is, in my opinion, the best DOS platformer.

Prince of Persia was the first game to come to mind for me

Far-Queue posted...

Prince of Persia was the first game to come to mind for me

This

Dikitain posted...

I don't think you are going to find one that matched the popularity of console platformers simply because PC wasn't as popular when they were in their heyday. But if you want to list classic ones, I would throw Commander Keen and Jill of the Jungle in there as well.

Duke Nukem 2 is, in my opinion, the best DOS platformer.

ya, there were tons of great platformers for PC, but I can't think of anyone going 'ok, hook up a joystick i wanna play Clyde's Adventure!!!'

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jumpman_(video_game)

I'm quite partial to Commander Keen 4

That reminds me of Speedy Eggbert 2, it was kind of like the original Mario Maker

When you say classic, Jazz Jackrabbit comes to mind but I don't even remember if it's a proper platformer or even good lmao

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxwRQKmin-E

I was going to say Mario Bros Crossover but apparently it only came out in 2010? That seems crazy, I thought it was much older.
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/e/e21d0147.jpg

Great Giana Sisters or whatever?

not really. they didn't work all that great because most PCs of the time had keyboards not controllers. (there were joystick ports etc. but I don't think they were used much and you didn't have something like an SNES controller. and configuring them was terrible too IIRC.)

the ones I know of are mostly already mentioned: Commander Keen, Duke Nukem, Jazz Jackrabbit are the main ones if I'm not forgetting something.

there were probably lots of other crappier shareware ones but I can't think of any offhand. (I think of Paganitzu and Boppin but those are puzzle games.)

i wanna be the guy

https://youtu.be/rD7VWxHGU4o?si=KGSnAGKtb2cpoSdY

jazz jack rabbit
Godz
commander keen ( there like 6+ games on that)
Zool
Jill of the jungle
Duke nukem 1&2
James pond ( also mega drive and snes though)

BlazeAndBlade posted...

Zool

speaking of Zool, while not particularly popular over here I keep forgetting that Europe had an entirely different scene for PC gaming with their Amigas and US GOLD making crap.

Stuff like Switchblade and Downton Abbey (the video game)

Sahuagin posted...

not really. they didn't work all that great because most PCs of the time had keyboards not controllers. (there were joystick ports etc. but I don't think they were used much and you didn't have something like an SNES controller. and configuring them was terrible too IIRC.)

You did have SNES style controllers like the Gravis Gamepad. A lot of of the big platformers like Jazz Jackrabbit and some of the Commander Keen games had built in support for it.

And I don't think keyboards are intrinsically worse for platformers than controllers. I think it's just a preference thing. I prefer a controller but if I had grown up playing a lot more platformers on keyboard, maybe that would be different.

ToastyPOP posted...

You did have SNES style controllers like the Gravis Gamepad.

I did have one of those eventually. but I think not at the same time that I was playing Commander Keen, etc. I don't think I ended up using it successfully on any game it was more of a novelty for me.

ToastyPOP posted...

And I don't think keyboards are intrinsically worse for platformers than controllers. I think it's just a preference thing. I prefer a controller but if I had grown up playing a lot more platformers on keyboard, maybe that would be different.

I would say they are. The games mentioned were all in competition with SMB1-3 and at some point SMW so the overall experience was just not as great as what you had with Nintendo, both in game design and controls.

this is just my experience. for sure there are those people that had great joysticks and played the heck out of the PC platform games, but I think the quality of the experience is not going to be anywhere near the best NES/SNES games.

Sahuagin posted...

I would say they are. The games mentioned were all in competition with SMB1-3 and at some point SMW so the overall experience was just not as great as what you had with Nintendo, both in game design and controls.

this is just my experience. for sure there are those people that had great joysticks and played the heck out of the PC platform games, but I think the quality of the experience is not going to be anywhere near the best NES/SNES games.

I'm not saying there were any 90s era PC platformers on the same level as something like SMW, there probably wasn't. I'm just saying there's nothing intrinsic about the keyboard that makes it inferior to controllers for platformers. You can learn to play SMW with a keyboard and be just as good at it as with a controller. Lots of people grew up playing and beating Mario, Sonic, Mega Man, etc with a keyboard via emulation.

ToastyPOP posted...

I'm just saying there's nothing intrinsic about the keyboard that makes it inferior to controllers for platformers. You can learn to play SMW with a keyboard and be just as good at it as with a controller. Lots of people grew up playing and beating Mario, Sonic, Mega Man, etc with a keyboard via emulation.

a standard keyboard does have simultaneous key-press limitations. otherwise I would still disagree but it's largely subjective. if you say a keyboard is just as good for you as a controller I can't tell you it isn't. but for me, having grown up with both at the same time, I would say a controller is undoubtedly better.

I in fact specifically did not play much of the PC platformers at least partly because it's not fun playing them with a keyboard, and I say that as a more or less life-long PC gamer. Even having beaten for example Thexder 2: Firehawk with just keyboard, that whole experience would have been vastly improved with a working controller. (well, probably. it feels like it would have been better but who knows. it's tricky to compare because the games are different. the PC platformers are worse games with IMO worse controls. but it's hard to pull apart the game itself from the different controls. I also have not played many games on emulators for partly similar reasons: it's just not as fun as playing it on a TV and with a controller.)

ya, don't get me wrong... there were LOTS of platformers on computers

But nothing really screams definitive to me

Commander Keen is pretty dang close tho

Lokarin posted...

Commander Keen is pretty dang close tho

it's even still referenced today in Doom games but that's more because it's owned by the same company

Sahuagin posted...

it's even still referenced today in Doom games but that's more because it's owned by the same company

Well, that and Dopefish

(another game I played a lot that would have been funner with a controller (probably meant for a joystick but I only had keyboard) is Stellar 7)

(a reverse example might be Descent. I do play that entirely with keyboard, not even mouse. main limitations are the simultaneous key-press issue and in not being able to aim sensitively. not a platformer though.)

it's rather cool playing descent nowadays since modern control conventions such as WASD to move make the game a lot easier to play

Sahuagin posted...

a standard keyboard does have simultaneous key-press limitations. otherwise I would still disagree but it's largely subjective. if you say a keyboard is just as good for you as a controller I can't tell you it isn't. but for me, having grown up with both at the same time, I would say a controller is undoubtedly better.

Hmm I actually didn't think about that. I think 6 key rollover is pretty typical for modern keyboards but that probably wasn't the case in the 90s. I know there were keyboards back then that had no key rollover but those were definitely not the standard. But as long as you have a keyboard with at least 6 key rollover, that shouldn't be a problem for 2D platformers or most games really.

As for definitive classic PC platformers. I think Cave Story is definitely one of them. I don't know if it's maybe too modern though, it is almost 20 years old...

chelsea___wtf posted...

I'm quite partial to Commander Keen 4

Yep, or the series in general

Classic fighting game would be harder to pick for pc

One must fall ( loves this one and the customize options) that theme music is fantastic
Metal and lace ( old fight game the lewd element's)
Body blows

Captain Comic and Micro Man

Freedom Planet or Sonic Utopia