What Makes a Good 3D Platformer?

This channel is ad-free and funded entirely through fan support!
• / nickolaiboulton
3D Platformers are now better than ever! But what separates the good from the greats? Let's critique games like the Nintendo Switch's Super Mario Odyssey, A Hat In Time, Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, Banjo Kazooie, and even Spider-Man to analyze what makes a good 3D Platformer!
Twitch!
• / nickolaiboulton
Twitter! - @NickolaiBoulton
• / nickolaiboulton
Instagram!
• / nickolaiboulton
Special thanks to Chadunda for the assembly edits: / chadundashow
Correction: I mixed up the order of the motion graphics for "Boredom and Anxiety", That's my bad. The correct graph is detailed in my cited sources. Be sure to get enough sleep, kids.
🎵 Tunes🎵
Theme song by Ace Waters - / acewatersthe3rd
Super Mario Odyssey - New Donk City Daytime (Metro Kingdom)
Main track (for looping) [One of your tracks]
Karamel Kel - Heavenly Dream - 17 (Easier)
Super Mario Odyssey - Steam Gardens
Karamel Kel - Heavenly Dream - 19 (Sunny Day)
Jump Up, Super Star! - Super Mario Odyssey
★ Sources ★
Jason Chen: Flow in Games www.jenovachen...

[@NickolaiBoulton]

Minor correction: I mixed up the order of the motion graphics for "Boredom" and "Anxiety", That's my bad. The correct graph is detailed in my cited sources which can be found in the description. Be sure to get enough sleep, kids.

[@keypath4389]

I was about to comment bout that, haha another great review man, keep it coming!! Any plan on covering 3d platformer that focus on combat? Like jak 2, ratchet, and maybe KH1? (yes KH1 does feel like a 3d platformer with combat to me, before thwy shift their focus entirely on combat and make the level linear..)

[@Ashgrey0]

Dude you're super relatable. When you have as much control over your character its way more engaging and emjoyable

[@skyletwings5711]

Minor? :D

[@roxaskinghearts]

The best platformers are not great because there platformers what makes luigis mansion so great the experience of it all or sly mario kingdom hearts spyro crash sponge bob battle for bikini bottom Vs games like legend of korra samurai jack naruto storm the game isnt about adventure but gemics and you see this everywhere assasins creeds biggest problem is there isnt a big enough rate of progression which leaves all there games feeling samey glad they fixed it but now its to grindy and unappealing fluidity is key hiding a super boss would be more accepted for games like those then killing story and art call of dutys campaigns or modern warfare compared to far cry or fallout Dark Souls and final fantasy compared to bandai trash and even code vein and scarlet nexus or pokemon legend of heroes series or these strategy games that dont realize there are competitive games on mobile of that which are far better and even the players of these games agree who arnt blinded by bias nostagia

[@Walmart427]

walmart

[@DidYouKnowGamin]

This video cured my bubonic plague.

[@UltimatePerfection]

Hello there. Did you know Computer Virus Simulator is a 3d platformer where you play as a computer virus?

[@yoo667]

Bubonic plague? Try leeches and blood letting for a quick fix!

[@UltimatePerfection]

@@yoo667 But it was cured already.

[@juanrodriguez9971]

Seriously? Does it works for Covid-19 too?

[@wegner7036]

@@yoo667 One of the treatments of the bubonic plague was using toxic spider bites in order to induce a fever. Rarely, this did actually work, and is the earliest example of a medically induced fever.

[@Drakeout]

I like the part when you said "Next video won´t take a year to make"

[@bennszulottbalna]

:'(

[@lilyliao9521]

bruh

[@Drakeout]

@@lilyliao9521 Bread

[@wondercat6842]

@@Drakeout bred

[@floyddog2283]

Ha

[@michaela6425]

This is the reason I love A Hat in Time. Hat Kids move set is so small but the developers made Hat Kid fun to move around.

[@B0ssguy]

really, i hated the moveset and plus the not good missions and level design quit that game

[@Crekimables]

​@@B0ssguywhat

[@Walmart427]

walmart

[@maxwell_edison]

"You aren't playing a platformer to fight things" ...Clearly a n64 era fan, as the PS2/Gamecube era had a significant amount of "Action Platformers" which did just that.

[@Mike14264]

Yeah, but the focus was less on the "platforming" in these, right? I don't know, I don't think I played that many of these.

[@maxwell_edison]

@@Mike14264 Depends. A lot of them had a big focus on the platforming as well. Early Ratchet&Clank, for instance

[@dreampillet]

Psychonauts, Jak & Daxter, for example, being top notch 3D platformers that (although keeping it simplistic) emphasized combat. And I think it's important to note that these later games, - much like Sonic's homing attack - made an effort to make the combat mechanics flow along with the rest of the movement, contrasting with the more static punches in Mario 64 or Banjo.

[@maxwell_edison]

@@dreampillet And it's a damn good combination, too - Basic, but consistent/flowing combat goes a long way to adding depth to platformers that don't need an emphasis on Puzzles like older platformers do. It's a shame that Action Platformer is basically the most forgotten platformer type, demonstrated perfectly in this very video.

[@Chariot_Rider]

I think game feel is another essential element of a 3D platformer. Even the most common movement actions should feel weighty and satisfying. There isn’t a right way to have the player move around but the movement should feel satisfying to do. Celeste has a super satisfying sound effect and animation are satisfying to do even after a thousand dashes. Movement shouldn’t feel limp and lifeless. It should feel weighty and purposeful. This is great game feel and in my opinion it one of the most important parts for platformers in general. Good video.

[@niiinjaaaaa]

Dude, you would LOVE Rocket: Robot on Wheels. It's an N64 collectathon that IMO is well crafted enough to stand among games like Banjo Kazooie. It has some of the most satisfying movement I've experienced in a 3D platformer, due to how it connects to the game's realistic physics engine and the challenges it presents.

[@UltimatePerfection]

Agreed. Played it in an emulator and it's amazing. Wish whoever owns rights to it ported it to modern systems (even if graphics would stay the same).

[@KingTwelveSixteen]

You actually have to beat the sandbird in Super Mario Sunshine because they made the downright baffling decision to have the final level unlock once you clear all the 'chase shadow Mario' levels instead of basing it off shine amounts. Yeah, that's right, literally every delphino plaza shine, blue coin, secret shine, and 100 coin shine is actually pointless, as are all the final shines in each level (since shadow mario is never the last shine to get).

[@nathanielwash940]

KingTwelveSixteen Yeah was wondering if anybody noticed that .

[@MrHomelessHobos]

I did not expect my mod for a hat in time, in this awesome video.

[@KingTwelveSixteen]

The difference between collectathons and 3D platformers is collectathons are focused on exploration/discovery over 3D platformer's more challenge focus; Core Aesthetics.

[@LottieThottie]

I think collectathons are sub genre

[@FrMZTsarmiral]

I'm so pleasantly surprised with the quality of this video and understanding of the subject. Can't wait to see more content.

[@30303Steve]

It's been 3 years...

[@thelookingcat]

Next video? Damn it's been 5 whole years. We miss you!

[@MoonSpiritChannel]

So much to take in, and I love what you bring to the table. Wish I had your wit and could put it into words like in this video.

[@KRG30001]

When I think of flow I think of the feather cape in Super Mario World

[@sketchman7392]

There's so much to a 3D platformer that one can fall in love with! 🥰 I grew up with 3D platformers so seeing people dissect the genre gives me insight on how it works and makes me understand the genre a lot better. 👍🏻 Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject and games. 🎮❤️

[@gh0rochi363]

Another good KZbinr who gets recommended to me but doesn’t upload anymore.

[@TwisterTH]

Wow there! Hello, buddy. Really miss ya.

[@TheXBladeist]

Now this is a fine one to dig into. Your videos may be rare Nick, but they are a pure bliss to work.

[@seanb3226]

I want some hard ass 3d platform games. Mario titles, crash, sly, hat in time...fun but I'd like a game with some real challenge to it.

[@Jake-nl3er]

Super Sami Roll is hard af

[@naenoart]

Wuh! New video! Glad the quality is still as great as always. :'3

[@doomnationalist]

This video should have at least a million views

[@skyletwings5711]

In my game design world view, you'd be a perfect specimen of the 'fidget' category.

[@fishfaceff2927]

Papa has blessed us with a vid

[@martinl.2033]

thank you so much for this video. Currently I am stucking at making a video game when it comes to do some research and getting better in level/game design and this helped so much and I am feeling inspired. So much better then the dozens of udemy videos that I had looked into in such a short time. You can not imagine how good this was! Thanks

[@stunningcactus978]

Astounding video detailing the inner workings of some of the great 3D platformers of all time. Great content - you have a subscriber!

[@grofy925]

3:05 Mario Sunshine came out in 2002 not 2001

[@MerelyMarcos]

Movement and control are so important for me but I never noticed it until this video. Thank u ❤️

[@bazangulon6791]

This is a nice instance of a youtube suggestion. I watched the skullgirls video when I started playing that game a while back, forgot about this channel and got treated to this video.

[@thelookingcat]

I've been waiting for this video!

[@B0ssguy]

10:54 actually in super mario sunshine you do have to do them in order, you do have to do the sandbird at some point to progress, and blue coins do absolutely nothing to just beating the game

[@DevJeremi]

"3D platformer" - is moving through level made out of platforms. "collectothon" - is combo of words "collect" and "marathon" as your goal is to collect everything. And it's just such a coincidence that most colletotohons are 3D platformers, but the other way around is not. 5:08 - "Did you ever use punch move ..?" - then you never played in the best 3D platformers: Rayman 2 and 3

[@rgreenwood5974]

Nickolai Boulton: How about adding a list ranking the 3D platformers? Also: how about some recommendations about great games that incorporate some of the features of good 3D platformers? Thanks!

[@pixboi]

Thanks, this was a great video to watch while developing my game :)

[@loganoates6683]

Pumped to see the Sunset Overdrive representation! Just picked up the pc port and I’m adoring it. :D

[@larsspargur97]

Platformers and collectathons definitely go hand in hand but I don't think they should be confused as interchangeable terms. In my opinion, Banjo Kazooie succeeds as a collectathon because there are collectables everywhere, and they're all important to unlocking new areas and progressing the game. Super Mario Odyssey succeeds as a platformer because throwing cappy and moving around feels so amazing, but most of the collectables are entirely optional making only the moons important.

[@MasthaX]

The only reason I still play SMB1 at friends place is that we only try to speed run, which means basically never letting go of going to the right. If I play it normal casually we never die and there's no fun.

[@JMFSpike]

I agree with nearly all of what you said. Good control is very obvious though, and games of every genre need them to be great. A game can be fantastic in every other aspect, but if the controls are terrible, who's going to want to play through it? I'd also include fun puzzles, a fun and memorable hub area, and blocked off areas you have to come back to later after learning a certain new ability. You may not *have* to have all of that to make a great platformer, but it certainly helps! One of the reasons why I feel Banjo-Kazooie was a little bit better then Banjo-Tooie is because the hub was much more fun and interesting(the other reason is because I thought the worlds were a little better).

[@Jp_Capybara77]

Wellcome Back!

[@pressioneiniciar5787]

Awesome explanation for who wants to develop new adventure games.

[@pumpknmc2550]

Great video man! Crash Bandicoot's an all-time favourite for me.

[@rasin9391]

I love it!

[@Spaafy]

0:05 what game is this?

[@cartoonsexposed770]

Sunset overdrive

[@lanefaulhaber875]

That was a GREAT video. Thank you!

[@Johnnyb167]

AHIT my favourite game of all time right next to Odyssey.

[@wegner7036]

5:00 He never fought the bullies.

[@chrishamilton7107]

2:20 That is cursed right there.

[@Freelancer837]

9:04 Is it just me or does how this graph read seems like Boredom and Anxiety are backward?

[@DrazGames]

Nicely done, Nick!

[@ABlob]

But how does Mario Odyssey's capture ability help with the flow of your movement?

[@NickolaiBoulton]

You are given more options and can cancel out of the capture system whenever you want. Every new capture has a different form of movement, and even then, you essentially teleport to the creature as long as the hat can reach the target, be it anything from a frog, a traffic cone, or an electrical wire.

[@ABlob]

@@NickolaiBoulton Besides that though... I can't really think of much. Most of it works really well in the city world and the desert's electrical wire are basically fast warps to places. For example, the water world. That has cheep cheep enemies that you can use but that's not really helping Mario's movements anymore, you're playing as the cheep cheep at that point. And swimming fast with a cheep cheep doesn't require much skill, if it'd be more so "Oh, I can swim decently well with Mario but if I'll use the cheep cheep and play well, I can be faster for this section of the level." maybe with a time limit on the capture ability, I could see how that might help with the flow... but it's just boring the way it is in this game. To me anyways.

[@scmynamejeff3536]

Where have u been man

[@yigitpro]

logo game first

[@blanceatscake281]

who heard the voice crack that sounded like a 15 yr here 0:16

[@Clownbelt-u2s]

Where did he go?

[@jazzyjulz8743]

I'm sure you've already played it, but just in case have you heard of the 2D Platformer Dustforce? Movement in that game takes some getting used to, but once you really sink your teeth into it the level of control is pretty nuts. Between all of the different movement options like jumps, hops, dashes, fastfalls, wallruns, it's incredibly satisfying finding new routes through all the levels. My favorite part of Dustforce is the design philosophy behind it. Essentially, the game was created such that the most optimal level of play looks clean and stylish.

[@fat-hat]

It's a video about the movement in 3D platformers. - Let's shit on 3D Sonic games just because.

[@JordanGD]

Yeah sadly, you can't talk about Sonic games without saying something like: say what you want about the 3D Sonic games or something like that. A lot of the times when Sonic is referenced by a non-Sonic channel they ALWAYS bring up in SOME way that 3D Sonic isn't good. (Good video for the rest though!)

[@fat-hat]

@@JordanGD I agree with you. The video was good and all until that was mentioned. I'm just tired of hearing the same shit about Sonic games, whenever the franchise gets mentioned for any reason.

[@JordanGD]

@@fat-hat Yeah most videos aren't even about the quality of 3D Sonic (which is great quality btw) but they ALWAYS have to bring it up for no reason. I'm also tired of hearing it every time.

[@IzFanArt69]

Nice to know

[@nofatbird]

You got my sub at the grab ass button for SM64

[@kazaloolovesgames]

I use the punching move in Mario 64 all the time.

[@Uniquename12345a]

Dumb

[@Nic_2751]

Damn no Pac-Man World analysis, even though those games have some of the best controls movements and platforming

[@ciaPLrosario]

I Liked too much the video!Really,i'll go take these tips for my future games,in a certain way,are rules that if taken in balance makes a great game,Thank you for your video! Obrigado por fazer este vídeo,com certeza vou levar de aprendizado para desenvolver os meus futuros projetos e ampliar os atuais,entendo que tem que haver um balanço entre as questões,Gostei muito do vídeo.

[@Canwegettosubscribers-nk8nn]

12 and a half years and under 12,000 subscribers. You really deserve more man. It sucks that you put an amazing amount of effort into your videos and yet people would rather watch "FORTNITE EPIC VICTORY ROYALE LOL NOT CLICKBAIT UwU!!!!?!!!" Thanks for the videos FeralxPanda.

[@juanrodriguez9971]

Bruh... I just found this channel, I like it, and is dead... Fuck!

[@Canwegettosubscribers-nk8nn]

I should probably cancel that funeral I was throwing for you, huh?

[@garrettjudd1631]

Wish he made videos again

[@Paws.Purpose]

Idk who you are but I will find you and I will subscribe

[@sovietninja6865]

Thank you! For this video and the games you have shown. I love 3D platformers, I always did since I was a kid. The gameplay is just fun! Unlike most games now a days they are just boring.

[@FlameLFH]

11:51 You're welcome

[@waydewatanabe5023]

I see u in other 3d platformer related videos that discuss things about a hat in time

[@handicappuccino8491]

The main game I can think of Uses any means platforms is the donkey Kong country returns serious

[@handicappuccino8491]

@Sherri T[A]P Me!! To Have [S]EX With Me I don’t know why I posted that comment I can’t believe Kirby is finally getting a proper 3-D Platformer after all this time

[@handicappuccino8491]

Doesn’t have a button mashing in it because I have a physical disability that prevents me from doing that

[@coronelfalk]

I miss your videos.

[@TheZenytram]

9:06 i dont think a skillful play will be anxious playing a low dificult level hahahaha

[@ivoneluz7074]

A

[@autismbros.official7582]

"I've used the punch maneuver a lot in Super Mario 64 DS, and it's still hilarious to see Mario or Luigi literally punch Goombas in the face with this. First time Gunter saw this he's like, 'He (Luigi) just punched a Goomba.' Really, it's a way of defeating enemies you can't damage just by jumping on them." - Caleb

[@iamLI3]

great video , though it's been 2 decades and i saw a worryingly small amount of good 3d platformers being shown off , like 10?....

[@LottieThottie]

Ratchet and Clank and Mario are the only AAA 3d platformers being produced

[@ThatSneakman]

I used the punch button c:

[@prasannakumar5813]

Cuphead is one of the best platformer/Boss fight game.

[@dylandominick1854]

I like Sackboy a big adventure

[@NEMountainG]

Shouldn't the labels for anxiety and boredom be flipped in the flow diagram? because it shows that high difficulty and low skill is boredom, which seems more like anxiety to me.

[@requisreviewthek7347]

I agree. They seem to be flipped

[@NickolaiBoulton]

Yeah they are, I'm pretty annoyed at myself for not double checking such a small error.

[@NEMountainG]

The video was great, don't get too hard on yourself.

[@NickolaiBoulton]

thank you

[@anotherfool9278]

why is flow a buzz word?

[@justinlanglois2215]

10:23 i'm sorry but this is so copy-pasted

[@porcusdiu]

Many games but.. the titles?

[@redfoxbennaton]

Super Lucky Tale is better than A hat in time

[@seroujghazarian6343]

Action Adventure games are more like Zelda and Metroid (yes, even the prime games)

[@bubbastevegarcia2459]

Honestly, you're going to pretend like you haven't been gone for 9 months hahaha

[@ericpschoon3922]

One Minute in *Subscribes*

[@diffusewings4937]

Literally the same as 2d

[@Intrafacial86]

Kinda off-topic, but I wonder if this is what Egoraptor was getting at in his LoZ Sequelitis when he said that OoT had this weird split between exploration and combat. As you said, a key part of flow in 3D platformers is making enemies a part of the movement. In OoT, enemies either always made movement more frustrating or weren't a problem at all. This also may be part of his complaint about how there's "so much waiting" in that game. In a good 3D platformer, you're always moving around to do something. In OoT, you end up spending a good bit of time sitting still. Maybe the issue isn't exactly _waiting_ so much as having to _sit still_ while waiting. It makes for a boring moment in the game (low difficulty matched with high skill).

[@ilimeo1270]

I am once cursed with the fact that I found an amazing youtuber and their last video came out years ago

[@gggremlin]

"next video won't take a year to make" we miss u

[@Mike14264]

I hate to break it to you dude, but a bot stole your comment.

[@mantra1229]

He aint comin back :(

[@MariusUrucu]

You should really try out Cloudbuilt. It's a criminally underrated platformer that pushes parkouring to its limits and has a very high skill ceiling and great level design that gives the player options for multiple ways of traversal. It's also hard as nails especially the later levels.

[@Darkrai4294]

9:25 “Anxiety” and “Boredom” should be switched. Boredom comes from having high skill (which means moving further to the right) and low difficulty (not going very high). I checked “Flow in Gaming” to see if the mistake came from there but it’s fine, so the mistake is in the video only.

[@RF-Ataraxia]

*"What makes me a good 3D platformer?"* *"IF I WERE A BAD 3D PLATFORMER, I WOULDN'T BE SITTIN' HERE, DISCUSSING IT NOW WOULD I"*

[@shadowlordalpha]

Demoknighttf2

[@Max_Casetera]

YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSS DO ITTTTTTTT

[@spindash64]

I appreciate the distinction between 2D and 3D platformer game design, it helps contextualize WHY that extra dimension of movement matters so much I also appreciate the background footage showing SA2 as an example of good movement, because it feels like the Sonic stages have not gotten the respect they deserve lately for that flow and movement. The Homing Attack is, in my opinion, a brilliant way to take the 2D “jump on an enemy’s head as a quick platform” idea and translate it to 3D

[@callinater6133]

Level design is more important than movement. It’s the levels that allow that movement to be used in the most fun ways.

[@coluix]

I think for a decent platformer you need both, trash movement or level design is a big deal

[@MariusUrucu]

7:22 Have you tried the Death Wish/Ex versions of A Hat in Time's bosses? They're part of the Seal the Deal DLC. Now those... oh boy, those boss fights put your skills to the test. Especially if you try to get the Bonus objectives.

[@BlueEyedVibeChecker]

Everything Rayman 2 and 3 did? That.

[@John9Fold]

I needed this video now more than ever now that Balan Wonderworld is out. That game needs some serious dissecting to get to the root of its monumental problem with its gameplay. 🤔

[@Spudda30]

i need more games with this VIBE, 3d platformers, with cartoon and humuorous asthetic i litterally NEED them, if anyone has them for me please ... hit me ...

[@aderose]

-Good Level Design -Solid Gameplay and Controls -Fun Worlds and Characters -Memorable Character Designs. -Replayability Those are the main ingredients to make a awesome 3D Platformer in my book

[@truthseek3017]

Super Mario 64, Spyro 2, Donkey Kong 64, Banjo Kazooie, Crash Bandicoot, Kirby Crystal Shards 64, and Jak and Daxter are some of my favorites.

[@visualsynthetics9882]

​@@truthseek3017 kirby 64 isn't a 3d platformer

[@kukukachu]

Lovely. Well said. Well you were right about the next video not taking a year, it's taking much longer ":D

[@squidzytispog]

short answer: mario need i say less