The main reason why 3D platformers suck is the lack of depth perception. I'm aware that stereoscopy exists, but so far not even one 3D platformer was designed with this technology in mind. Even 3D Mario Land was made to be perfectly playable without the 3D effect.
This limitation pushed 3D "platformers" away from platforming towards exploration and collecting, turning them into sucky, simple action-adventure games for kids.
Compare the action of hitting the floating block in Super Mario Bros and in Super Mario 64. Doing this is much more difficult and clumsy in 3D space. At first glance a trivial change, like introducing dynamic shadows to the game, could make it even worse, because it would remove the visual aid in the form of the shadow directly below the block.
Now imagine a section in an SM64 level that forces players to jump between several Mario sized blocks hanging over a bottomless pit, like in 2D games...
Texas wrote:In contrast, jumping on platforms in three dimensions doesn't really offer any new possibilities than jumping in 2D platformers.
Texas wrote:jumping onto a three-dimensional platform requires less precision.
Jumping in 3D actually requires more precision because you have to take one more axis into account. The problem is, as I wrote above, 3D platformers are far from precise, so developers don't make precision demanding platforming sections in 3D.
Cassowary wrote:aspies and morons can discuss level design all they want, but most people are more excited by the means of traversing levels than by the levels themselves. The early Kirby games are a great example -- the level design is nothing special at all, but Kirby's charming float and powers make the games enjoyable nonetheless.
And the early Turrican games are a great example of the opposite situation. Cool abilities are not worth much if the level design is abysmal.
icycalm wrote:Super Mario Sunshine. Cute, but boring. Even IGN agreed at the time. Even the press. By the time Galaxy game around everyone HAD to praise it, since they had been hyping up the Wii through the roof, and the thing was selling. But you could tell who the weeaboos were right away.
Compared to 64, Sunshine, and most other 3D "platformers", 3D Mario games for Wii and WiiU are at least deserving of their genre classification. Also, Nintendo learned to circumvent the depth perception issue through clever camera placement better then any other developer managed to do so far... but yeah, its very true that not many of them are trying.
That's the impression i got from just seeing the games. The only recent one i actually finished is 3D Land. I still don't own a Wii or WiiU because they are at the bottom of my gaming priorities.
icycalm wrote:Just jumping would be retarded (remember the Mario movie?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZrAlA31RUsHow about something like this, expanded into a feature film, with roughly 50% of it dedicated entirely to graceful jumping in slow motion?
icycalm wrote:But once you have 2 dozen buttons, a game about only jumping doesn't make sense
icycalm wrote:What is the best 3D platformer?
(EA) Skate 3