Oh my, Rayman Origins!

[GrouchoGlasses]

Rayman Origins is one hell of a game. I had always played bits of old Marios and Donkey Kongs but never to completion. 2D platformers were always a passing interest--play a few levels with the wife, then go on to something different. This was until I played Rayman Origins.

This is the first platformer where I was able to feel the steady incline of difficulty. And with it, my need to keep hitting continue in order to finally reach the next checkpoint. As I opened each world, I noticed my game play sessions were also steadily increasing.

I am very much a newbie to 2D platforming. Where is a good game to go next? I have a decent collection, so getting a hold of a game shouldn't be an issue. What classic has the same expertise in its sense of accomplishment (albeit not Super Meat Boy difficulty!) as I progress from level to level?

[Auron_Amarth]

Donkey Kong Country Returns is the best 2D platformer this gen. It does start out easy and gets much harder near the end, not to mention some of the bonus levels were a pain. But man I love this game, I never get tired of it.

Play the original Rayman, too. That was a hard game.

[prfsnl_gmr]

I am very much a newbie to 2D platforming. Where is a good game to go next? I have a decent collection, so getting a hold of a game shouldn't be an issue. What classic has the same expertise in its sense of accomplishment (albeit not Super Meat Boy difficulty!) as I progress from level to level?

Did you get through The Land of the Livid Dead? If so, congratulations! If not, you should keep playing Rayman Origins until you do. It is an insanely difficult and awesome level.

I think that Rayman Origins may be the best 2D platformer of all time (and I have played a lot of 2D platformers); so, it is going to be hard to find something as good or better. That said, I would recommend:

Donkey Kong Country
Donkey Kong Country Returns
N+
New Super Mario Bros.
New Super Mario Bros. 2
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Ninja Gaiden (NES)
Ninja Gaiden 2 (NES)
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Super Mario Bros. (SNES version)
Super Mario Bros. 2 (SNES version)
Super Mario Bros. 3 (GBA, NES, SNES version
Super Mario World (SNES version)

[eggman]

Rayman Origins is definitely on my want list for my Wii.

Seeing a certain avatar above reminded me of Klonoa (Wii) and Klonoa 2 (PS2) that i need to get playing. I don't these have much of a reputation for a significant learning curve though.

However if you get done with the 2D fetish, try these in 2.5D and they may be different enough for you to enjoy. Definitetly some solid mechanics and great art work going on in both these games, heck even in the original PS1 Klonoa from what i have seen of it.

I think there is even a few GBA Klonoa games that are strictly 2D that may be worth a look too.

Feel free to correct me if I am wrong here guys....

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Another here that thinks Rayman Origins is probably the best platformer ever made.

There are so many awesome platformers from the last generation of games though. The Klonoa games are easy but quite a lot of fun.

The New Super Mario Bros. series is excellently crafted but they're all a bit easy. The newest one on WiiU is probably the best 2D Mario game ever in terms of level design, so that one gets a big recommendation from me, and the difficulty does ramp up more towards the end, but never to the point that say Rayman Origins does.

I hear a lot of good things about the new Giana Sisters game as well.

I will always recommend Sonic 3 & Knuckles, being my second favorite platformer of all time. It scales up quite nicely to the pretty epic and actually somewhat challenging final boss.

Actually, a lot of stuff on the Genesis might interest you.

Dynamite Headdy, for instance, is fantastic. It's made by Treasure, the same guys that made Ikaruga and Radiant Silvergun. It's very difficulty and very unique. Also has some of the coolest graphical effects in any Genesis game.

Ristar is also pretty difficult and is made by Sonic Team. It has some amazing music and some really neat boss battles.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Rayman Origins is definitely on my want list for my Wii.

Seeing a certain avatar above reminded me of Klonoa (Wii) and Klonoa 2 (PS2) that i need to get playing. I don't these have much of a reputation for a significant learning curve though.

However if you get done with the 2D fetish, try these in 2.5D and they may be different enough for you to enjoy. Definitetly some solid mechanics and great art work going on in both these games, heck even in the original PS1 Klonoa from what i have seen of it.

I think there is even a few GBA Klonoa games that are strictly 2D that may be worth a look too.

Feel free to correct me if I am wrong here guys....

I will second the Klonoa games. Neither of them are particularly challenging, but they are both a lot of fun.

[pierrot]

Going to absolutely recommend Ristar, also. Sonic 3 should really be played attached to Sonic & Knuckles, but that's a definite must play. Rocket Knight Adventures and Dynamite Headdy on the Genesis are both very challenging masterpieces.

I'd also recommend a couple other oddity platformers on the Mega Drive by Game Freaks (of Pokemon fame): Pulseman and Magical Taruru-to kun. Pulseman is probably the better of the two, and I know for sure that it's on VC. Taruru-to kun is much more niche.

Mcdonald's Treasure Land Adventure is an often forgotten Treasure platformer on the Genesis. It's relatively short and easy, but I think it's still worth a look. Tempo on the 32X is not exceptionally polished, but still pretty fun.

Castle of Illusion and Quakshot (maybe World of Illusion also) are great Disney platformers on the Genesis, and the Magical Adventure trilogy on the SNES/SFC is pretty good also. (Magical Adventure 2 is on the Genesis as The Great Circus Mystery. )

Point is, if you don't have one already, you should have a Genesis. There are some decent 32-bit 2d games in Astal, Silhouette Mirage (another Treasure game) also. They're a bit more action than platformer, though.

[GrouchoGlasses]

Did you get through The Land of the Livid Dead? If so, congratulations! If not, you should keep playing Rayman Origins until you do. It is an insanely difficult and awesome level.

I didn't even know this level existed! Looks like I need all the skull teeth and many more electoons. I have my work cut out for me.

I'm liking our list of the best Platformers

NES
Ninja Gaiden (NES)
Ninja Gaiden 2 (NES)

Megadrive
Pulseman
Magical Taruru-to kun

SNES
Super Mario Bros. (SNES version)
Super Mario Bros. 2 (SNES version)
Super Mario Bros. 3 (GBA, NES, SNES version
Super Mario World (SNES version)
Donkey Kong Country

Genesis
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Castle of Illusion and Quakshot
Mcdonald's Treasure Land Adventure

PS2
Klonoa 2

Wii
Donkey Kong Country Returns
N+
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Rayman Origins
Klonoa

DS
New Super Mario Bros.
New Super Mario Bros. 2

This is quite a few games. I think i'll need to tackle the first one before I move on. Classic Super Mario Bros! After that, Donkey Kong Country Returns looks to be in incredible game. Are there any other essentials?

[Violent By Design]

I think you'll get your fair share from those already listed.

[GSZX1337]

I haven't played Rayman Origins yet, though I do have it installed on my hard drive. Steam had a kick ass sale on the game ($6.50 if I remember right). The demo I played left a real good impression on me. Real good level design and animation that's above broadcast-quality.