A great first pick among the best platformer games depends on whether you want a relaxed run, a big 3D adventure, or a demanding test of timing. Your free time, preferred device, and appetite for challenge all shape that choice. This list covers 2D side-scrollers, 3D adventures, classic collections, and games built around exact jumps.
You can find a game for a quick solo session or one to share with a friend. Some picks focus on exploration, while others ask you to learn each hazard through repeated tries. A hard game is not automatically a better game, and a relaxed pace can be just as rewarding.
Key Takeaways
- Choose a game that fits your preferred pace and challenge.
- Look for co-op or competitive modes when playing with friends.
- Collections offer different ways to revisit classic games.
- Some adventures make movement and exploration their main draw.
- For a quick decision, check your device and try an opening stage.
Choose by the kind of play you enjoy, not by a reputation for being the hardest.
Which 3D platformers make worlds feel bigger?
On PS5, Astro Bot is the clearest pick for playful, ability-led movement, while Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart makes dimension-hopping central to its adventure. Both turn movement into part of the fun, but one favors playful discovery and the other adds action and fast world changes.
These strong 3D platformers do not all belong to one console family. Kirby and the Forgotten Land gives Super Mario fans a familiar kind of 3D platform adventure, while Psychonauts 2 adds psychic combat powers to its platforming.
| Game | Defining 3D hook | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Astro Bot | Shrinking and sponge-like water abilities | PlayStation 5 |
| Kirby and the Forgotten Land | Kirby’s first fully 3D game | Nintendo Switch |
| Psychonauts 2 | Platforming with psychic combat | Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, macOS, Windows 10 |
| Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart | SSD-enabled instant dimension travel | PlayStation 5 |
Choose the 3D hook that sounds fun to use, not just the world that looks largest.
Astro Bot is a PlayStation 5 game where Astro can shrink to mouse size and suck up water like a sponge. PCMag rated Astro Bot 4.5 Outstanding, a strong result for a game centered on playful abilities.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart uses the PS5 SSD for instant travel between dimensions. PCMag rated it 5.0 Exemplary. That makes it a strong fit if fast dimension changes appeal more than a steady series of movement puzzles.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land is Kirby’s first fully 3D game, and it is available on Nintendo Switch. Psychonauts 2 pairs 3D platforming with psychic combat on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, macOS, and Windows 10. The best platform for you may be the one already beside your TV or computer.
For broader console ideas, see these PS5 game picks by play style. If you want the highest PCMag rating among these two PS5 choices, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart holds the 5.0 Exemplary score.
Which platformers are fun to share with friends?
Kirby Star Allies is the simplest choice when friends want to team up with Kirby rather than compete against one another. Cooperation comes first in its main appeal, though other picks let your group choose between working together and facing off.
Check whether your group wants to cooperate or compete before choosing a mode. Super Mario Bros. is a familiar touchstone for classic group-friendly platforming, but these three picks offer distinct ways to play together.
- Kirby Star Allies lets up to three friends team up with Kirby. Each player joins the same side, helping the group tackle the adventure together.
- Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove contains five games and four solo campaigns. Its cooperative Shovel of Hope campaign gives friends a shared quest, while Showdown lets up to three rivals compete. It is rated E and has a 91 Metascore, with a 91 Metascore rating.
- Aeon Drive offers four-player co-op across 100 levels. Its level count gives a group many stages to tackle, and its shared play makes it a direct choice for friends who prefer cooperation.
These modes suit different moods. Kirby Star Allies keeps players on one team, while Showdown turns Shovel Knight into a contest. That difference matters when your group wants a relaxed shared session rather than a winner and losers.
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove is more than a single campaign. Its five-game package includes four solo campaigns, plus a co-op campaign for Shovel of Hope and the separate Showdown mode. You can move between solo play and group sessions without treating every mode as the same kind of play.
A classic series can bring back the feel of Mario Bros., but a familiar style does not tell you how a game handles a group. Check the mode itself: some players share progress, while others compete in the same game. For more family-friendly options, browse these multiplayer Switch games. Check whether your group wants to cooperate or compete before choosing a mode.
What do classic collections add beyond nostalgia?
Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition stands out for pairing five versions of Rayman with bonus levels and a long-lost SNES prototype. That extra material makes it more than a way to play one old release again.
Collections can offer several games at once, while retro-inspired games can change how one game plays. That difference helps you pick between a bundle and a fresh take on an older style.
- Sonic Origins Plus bundles remastered versions of Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic 2, Sonic 3 & Knuckles, and Sonic CD. It also includes 12 classic Sonic Game Gear titles, giving the collection a wider reach across the series.
- Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition includes five versions of Rayman, bonus levels, and a long-lost SNES prototype. Multiple save slots, rewind, and an infinite-lives option add ways to shape a play session.
- The Mega Man 30th Anniversary Bundle contains 19 games: 11 Mega Man releases and eight Mega Man X titles. Its appeal is breadth across two related series, not one new adventure.
- The Messenger switches between 8-bit and 16-bit worlds within one game. Branching paths, boss battles, and hidden levels add changes to its quest without bundling separate titles.
- Mega Man 11 is a standalone platformer with new difficulty options. It is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows 10.
A bundle gives you several games in one package, but that does not mean every collection has modern settings such as rewind or adjustable lives. Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition names those options directly; the other collections have their own scope and draw.
For a PS4 player, Mega Man 11 is a direct choice if you want one game with difficulty choices. The platforming sits within a familiar series, while the settings let you shape the challenge instead of switching between many releases.
Super Mario Bros. helped make side-scrolling platform games familiar to many players, yet older series can still feel new when their structure changes. The Messenger shifts between two visual eras in play, while the collections let you compare entries in order. For a PS4 player who wants adjustable difficulty rather than a bundle, Mega Man 11 is the direct fit.
Which games make movement and exploration the main event?
Penny’s Big Breakaway is the clearest choice when you want a movement tool to shape how you travel through a 3D world. Its yo-yo is the point, giving the platforming a distinct identity rather than serving as a simple prop.
Look for abilities that change where you can go, not only how much damage you deal. A Metroidvania is a platform-adventure style built around exploring an interconnected world and opening routes as you gain new abilities.
Movement that changes how you travel
Penny’s Big Breakaway centers its movement on a yo-yo, so the tool shapes how you move through its 3D levels. It is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. PCMag rated Penny’s Big Breakaway 4.0 Excellent.
That setup gives the game a different feel from a standard jump-and-run adventure. The yo-yo is tied to traversal, making it a useful fit when you want a platformer’s main tool to affect how you cross each space.
Combat skills that open routes
Blasphemous 2 has three new weapons, and each has qualities used to navigate its nonlinear world. A weapon can serve two jobs: it can help in combat and help you reach or move through parts of the map.
Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist offers 30 different skills for combat. That range puts skill choice at the center of its action, while Shinobi: Art of Vengeance spreads platforming puzzles and hidden secrets across more than a dozen stages.
These games tie exploration to different tools. One asks you to think about how a weapon works in a route, while another gives you many combat skills to learn. Shinobi adds puzzles and secrets to stages, making close attention useful as you move through its adventure.
Super Mario games often make jumps the focus, but these picks give travel, weapons, or skills a larger role. A hidden path can reward curiosity, and a new ability can change how you read a familiar room. Look for abilities that change where you can go, not only how much damage you deal.
Which Best Platformer Games Reward Precision and Persistence?
Celeste is a strong starting point for a demanding precision test because its controls are designed for exact movement and its difficulty options let players adjust the challenge. Precise control matters more than sheer speed here, making each climb a test of timing and steady play.
The best match depends on whether you prefer mastering movement or memorizing hazards. A missed jump can cost a few seconds in one game, but a fall or trap can undo far more progress in another.
Tight jumps and exact timing
Celeste adds new mechanics as you climb, and its controls are built for precise movement. Its adjustable difficulty options give you a way to tailor the challenge while keeping the climb focused on careful execution.
Super Meat Boy moves fast and asks you to read patterns. Rockets and spinning blades threaten each run, so success depends on tight jumps and learning when each hazard will strike.
The End Is Nigh uses tight jumps and timed sections across worlds with different gameplay twists. Its timing tests ask you to act at the right moment, while Super Meat Boy puts more weight on recognizing hazards and Celeste rewards control.
Punishing falls and instant-death traps
Jump King leaves no room for error in its jumps. A missed move can send you falling back to solid ground, turning one slip into lost progress and making each landing feel important.
I Wanna Be The Guy uses instant-death traps and pixel-perfect jumps. You have to learn where danger waits, since a small mistake can end the attempt instead of costing only a little time.
Ghosts ’n Goblins, released in 1985, combines one-hit kills, unpredictable enemies, and a steep learning curve. Its one-hit rule raises the cost of each mistake, while the other games focus on exact jumps, timed sections, or hazards you must memorize.
These challenges suit different kinds of patience. Celeste and Jump King test control, while Super Meat Boy and I Wanna Be The Guy push you to read patterns or remember traps. Choose a game whose penalty for a missed jump feels motivating rather than exhausting.
Which platformers turn retries into the challenge?
Spelunky 2 is the pick for players who treat each death as another attempt to learn a dungeon-style platform crawl. Each new run can teach you something, though a speed-focused level or a full-clear goal creates a different kind of pressure.
A high completion percentage does not mean a single clean run is enough. These games ask you to replay for different reasons, from beating a clock to finishing a demanding set of goals.
- Splasher builds tightly timed speed-running levels around different liquids used for traversal and environmental mechanics. You need to move quickly while learning how each liquid affects the space.
- Spelunky 2 is a dungeon-style platform crawler built around repeated deaths and attempts. Each run gives you another chance to learn the crawl and see how far you can get.
- Crash Bandicoot 4 has a 106% completion challenge that requires four play-throughs. That target asks for repeated full runs, not one clean trip through the game.
A fast level creates pressure to keep moving, while a repeated-run loop makes each attempt part of the appeal. A completion target adds another demand: you must return to the game and meet a broader goal beyond reaching the end once.
Crash Bandicoot 4’s 106% target is a clear example of completion work that takes several play-throughs. Spelunky 2 instead builds its structure around repeated deaths and fresh attempts, while Splasher centers the speed of each level.
Those forms of replay can feel very different after an hour. One rewards learning from a failed run, another asks you to beat the clock, and a high completion goal stretches the task across several passes. Check the completion target before committing to a full-clear run.
Where can casual players start?
Alto’s Odyssey is a straightforward starting point for Android players who want an endless-runner platformer. Its run-based format is easy to grasp, while other picks give you more traditional levels to explore at your own pace.
An easy first session is not the same as a game with no demands. A stage can still ask you to watch timing, learn how its parts work, and adjust when the pace changes.
An easygoing run
Alto’s Odyssey is an endless-runner platformer available on Android and iOS. Its structure suits a quick session, especially if you want to start moving without first learning a long quest or a large set of rules.
New Super Lucky’s Tale offers a broader platforming option across Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows 10. Its familiar adventure format makes it a useful starting point when you want levels rather than an endless run.
A relaxed pace can help you settle into a game, but it does not remove the need to pay attention. Even a simple run asks you to react as the screen changes, and a more traditional platform game can build new demands from stage to stage.
More involved level design
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is a Nintendo Switch pick for players who want more to read in each stage. Its levels combine interwoven mechanics and set pieces, so you need to notice how a stage’s parts work together.
That richer design can make a familiar platform adventure feel more involved. A sequence may ask you to learn a mechanic, then use it as the level changes around you. You can take your time, though each new set piece still asks you to respond.
If you want a calmer start, an endless runner offers a clear rhythm. If you want an adventure with more layered stages, the level design can keep your attention moving from one idea to the next. For a Switch player who wants more layered stages, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is the stronger match.
Which game fits your platform?
For PC players who want precision with adjustable challenge, Celeste is the clearest recommendation in this group. Its control-focused play also works on Mac, while Ori and the Will of the Wisps is a PC choice for nonlinear exploration.
A game available on several systems can still offer a different reason to choose it. One may suit precise play, another a broad film story, and another a nonlinear world with platforming controls.
| Game | Available systems | Defining reason to choose it |
|---|---|---|
| Celeste | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, macOS, Windows 10 | Adjustable difficulty |
| Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Windows 10 | Puzzle-platforming across all nine Star Wars films |
| Ori and the Will of the Wisps | Xbox One, Windows 10 | Nonlinear world and platforming controls |
| New Super Lucky’s Tale | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows 10 | Multi-system platformer |
Match the system you already use to the play style you most want, rather than choosing by platform count alone.
Celeste is a strong PC and Steam recommendation if you want precise play and adjustable difficulty. Its controls reward careful movement, while its options let you shape the challenge. That makes it a clear fit for players who want to focus on execution.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps offers a different reason to play on PC. Its nonlinear world lets you explore routes, and its platforming controls shape how you travel through them. PCMag rated Ori and the Will of the Wisps 4.5 Outstanding.
Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga recreates all nine Star Wars films through puzzle-platforming gameplay. New Super Lucky’s Tale is a multi-system platformer, while Celeste and Ori each offer a more specific play style. A family console guide can help you compare devices by game access and play style.
The table shows where each game runs, but system support is only part of the choice. Think about whether you want a film-spanning adventure, careful jumps, or open routes through a nonlinear world. Match the system you already use to the play style you most want, rather than choosing by platform count alone.
Conclusion
Start with the kind of play you most want from your next session, not a universal ranking. You might want exploration, shared play, a relaxed run, or the satisfaction of a precise jump. Each goal points toward a different kind of game.
Your device and the challenge you enjoy can narrow the choice quickly. A game that fits both is more likely to earn another session than one picked for its reputation alone.
Pick one game that matches your device and challenge level, then try its opening stage before committing to a longer run.
FAQ
What are the 10 best platformer games of all time?
Ten strong recommendations are Astro Bot, Celeste, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Psychonauts 2, Super Meat Boy, Sonic Origins Plus, and Penny’s Big Breakaway. This is a suggested starter set, not an objective ranking. Your ideal ten depends on the systems you own and the kind of challenge you enjoy.
What game never gets boring?
Spelunky 2 is a replay-friendly choice if you enjoy learning through retries. Its dungeon-style platform crawl centers on repeated deaths and new attempts, so a failed run can still teach you how to handle the next one. That loop suits players who like discovering more through play. It may feel tiring if you prefer steady progress without repeated setbacks.
What is the hardest platformer ever?
I Wanna Be The Guy is a strong example of a punishing platformer, with instant-death traps and pixel-perfect jumps. Those features make small errors costly and reward players who learn hazards through repeated attempts. There is no single agreed measure for the hardest game, though. A player who struggles with precise jumps may find another title harder than one built around trap memory.
What is the greatest platformer game of all time?
Astro Bot is this guide’s standout modern 3D platformer, thanks to playful abilities that shape how you move. That is an editorial pick, not a universal all-time verdict. Some players may prefer classic side-scrolling games, hard precision tests, or adventures built around exploration. The strongest choice for you depends on the kind of movement and world you enjoy.
Which game is hardest to 100%?
Crash Bandicoot 4 is a demanding completion pick because its 106% challenge requires four play-throughs. That goal asks for much more than reaching the end once, so the full clear takes repeated time with the game. The challenge is the scale of the completion target, not simply one difficult jump. It suits players who enjoy chasing every part of a game.
What game requires most skill?
Jump King tests precise jumps with no room for error, while Super Meat Boy rewards tight jumps and pattern recognition. The stronger skill test depends on what you find difficult. Jump King makes execution central because one missed jump can send you back down. Super Meat Boy asks you to read hazards quickly and react with careful timing.
What game is technically the hardest?
Jump King is a strong test of execution because one missed jump can send you falling back to solid ground. Its difficulty centers on precise jumps, so you need to judge each move and control your landing. That makes it a clear pick for players who want a technical challenge. Other games may feel harder if you prefer hazard memory or speed tests.
