This is why your favorite 3D Platformers are so fun

This might be me just being a horror game nerd, but id like you to make a vid on what makes a horror game scary

Speaking of 3D platformers, you should review or do coverage on Clive 'N' Wrench next. It released yesterday. Despite it wears its inspirations on its sleeve, it might as well pass off as a spiritual successor to Bugs Bunny: Lost In Time due to the similarities between the two. You're pretty much going around in different time periods collecting clocks as a rabbit. Ring any bells? Clive 'N' Wrench draws its inspirations from the likes of Ratchet & Clank, Jak and Daxter, Banjo-Kazooie, Spyro The Dragon, Crash Bandicoot and countless platformers of yesteryear that came before it.

Did not expect this 8-minute video to be so comprehensive. You did a pretty good crash course on the design practices, including not only the obvious things like physics, movesets and collectibles, but also touched on animation, level design, rewards and game feel. Great job, I'd love to see more game design vids from you!

It's great how you gave examples about every technique. Love the analysis.

Landmarks is a good one. Part of the reason why I dun care for Bubblegloop Swamp or MoodyMazeMarsh.
Even BlightTown makes is obvious where are at least 😅
I want to make a 3D platformer kinda akin to Super Kiwi 64. I'm still trying to figure out what exactly I'll do differently tho.

Hm. Now what?

Great video. Fun fact: Jak & Daxter the Precursor Legacy has no loading screens

Very concise and compelling analysis! Definitely agree a good 3D Platformer should be fun to control even in an empty space with nothing to do, and that's good part of why it's my favourite genre. Focusing on physicality and free movement makes them fun at an almost instictive level!

I have 2 days to make a 3d platformer for a school exhibition. I'm just a beginner, but now your video has given me a clear list of what to do. Thank you

There are no pure AAA 3d platformers anymore (except Mario) but 3d action platformers (Jak 2, Ratchet and Prince of Persia) have returned. Games like Jedi Survivor are Prime examples. When you were stating reasons why 3d platformers were fun i realized that was the reason why I enjoyed Jedi Survicor so much.

I hadn’t even consciously noticed that when you jump in a 3D platformer, you’re rising from the first frame. In every one I’ve played, the animation and sound design sell it so well that it feels natural.

Your counterexample of Little Big Planet is instructive—you can really see the difference. It feels to me like an intentional design choice, to make the little ragdoll feel light and floaty.

Those games are generally very imaginative and fun and don't need to obsess over realism, which is why some modern games start feeling dull and more-of-the-same once the initial wow-factor wears off.

Good video, I'm start working on Platfomer 3D inspired by 3D Raymans - that you didn't used to illustrate this video

You say there's so few, and yet I'm finding out only after AHIT came out there so freakin many platformers I didn't even know about that came out in the past 3 or 4 years now. I'm just shocked I didn't hear about them sooner.

There is a new awesome 2D collectathon named Promenade that came out !

I love the animation of Jak and Daxter so much!

Platformers are boring af

Goated thumbnail, literally played all of those games

One thing I find about these platformers is that the cartoon style characters make them so unique from each other. And with their unique looks can build a lore more identifiable and memorable giving incentive to explore and collect in their worlds

I think the movement is the most important part of videogames in general, but especially for (3D-)platformers. It is unbelievable fun to controlle a character, and if it has a great movement with many possibilities, it is just awesome.

Then, the collectibles.
Running around in a world is really fun, but having a gole, something to collect and with this platforming-challenges, the fun is unstoppable.

And of course great environments with memorable locations.

This is what makes a good 3D-platformer, in my opinion.


Great video! 👍

Finally a video game essay that does the job in under 10 mins as opposed to multiple hours

I'd love to see a Part 2 for this

Mario Odyssey sucks in the sense of collectables because they cheapened the experience of collecting those moons. When you first hear how many moons are in the game, you are impressed, it sound like a lot, but after you find out how they implemented them into the game, you're pretty disappointed...The 150 stars in Mario 64 is IMPRESSIVE, because each one is earned after completing a mission, but with the 836 moons, they're just sitting around, in the most obvious of places, not even connected to any challenge...they're just there...it's pretty lame. I think that Odyssey should have made the moons their own special thing and then added another collectable category for those environmental collectables. It really did cheapen the experience of getting a moon.

I'm planning to make a 3D platformer in the near future when I move to Dubai, and I already mostly knew of these tactics and essentials , but the way you described some of them and gave me more info about them opened my eyes to them even more , so thanks for that, I'll be sure to use these elements in my game , and if I ever get famous, I'll remember you and will give you a shout out :>

Good video

very good video