Like many who grew up in the 2D-dominant age of gaming, I have a die-hard fondness for platformers baked into my very soul. Of course, I love the big-name stuff likeSuper Mario World,Sonic the Hedgehog, andDonkey Kong Country, but both then and now, a genre isn’t exclusively represented by a single franchise.
In the heyday of the SNES, Sega Genesis, and other consoles, platformers were everywhere you looked, and the tragedy of that saturation is that so few of them have managed to build up lasting legacies.
One of the nice things about the current trend of remakes and remasters is that it gives a chance to these games, once abandoned by time and culture, to get one more shot at entering the cultural zeitgeist.
Does it actually work? Honestly, it’s a toss-up, but considering how hot of a debate there is around preservation these days, ensuring games live on in one form or another is of the utmost importance.
With that in mind, these are the retro platformers, outside the major releases, that I believe are most entitled to one more shot with a modern coat of paint.
10Decap Attack
Let’s Get Spooky With It
Sega Genesis
Release Date
September 1991
I’ve always been fond of spooky aesthetics. Let me stress “spooky” there rather than scary, something steeped in creepy, ghoulish energy without actually being frightening, like The Nightmare Before Christmas.
One of my favorite examples of this was 1991’s Decap Attack on the Sega Genesis, a westernized version of a video game adaptation of the manga Magical Hat.
Decap Attack has you bounding through a series of spooky islands as a headless mummy, bashing punks out of your way by either shooting your weird torso face at them or launching a skull at them like a boomerang. It was a simple game, but the aesthetics of it helped carry the experience with distinctly weird and wacky monsters and environments.
I kind of get why Decap Attack hasn’t gotten any modern-day traction, given its weird adaptation situation, but considering Magical Hat ended decades ago, I don’t see why it couldn’t be remade. I’d love to see those spooky characters with some more definition, plus maybe some voice acting to really sell the vibe.
Fun On Four Limbs
I’m probably reading too much into this, but it feels like characters without limbs like Rayman or Knack make consistently good platformer protagonists for some reason. If that doesn’t seem like enough examples to establish a pattern, I’ve got a third one for you: Plok, originally released for the SNES in 1993.
Unlike Rayman, who can only shoot his fists, Plok is capable of launching his fists and feet as flying projectiles, and all in rapid succession instead of needing to wind up. This means that, in his game, you can quickly pummel your way through enemies in a flying flurry of loose extremities.
Plok can also pick up various transformation powers, turning into a cowboy, boxer, and more. I’m a huge sucker for transformation mechanics, and added to the aforementioned flying fists, you’ve got the potential for high-impact platform combat.
I have no earthly idea who, if anyone, owns the rights to Plok right now, but if anyone could figure it out, I think there’d definitely be a market for a remake. Mascot platformers aren’t nearly as saturated these days, which was a big reason the original didn’t do that great, so it could have a proper shot this time.
8Bonk’s Adventure
Give The TurboGrafx Some Love
Red Company/Atlus
TurboGrafx-16
August 16, 2025
Pretty much every gaming console ever made has had at least one character that could be considered its mascot. Nintendo consoles have Mario, Sega consoles had Sonic, and so on.
So, with that in mind, who was the mascot of the oft-forgotten TurboGrafx-16, also known as the PC Engine? Well, that would be PC Kid, but if that name doesn’t ring bells, you might know him better as Bonk the Caveman, of 1990’s Bonk’s Adventure.
Bonk’s Adventure was the definitive platformer of the TurboGrafx-16, a weird and wacky adventure starring the titular caveman as he headbutts his way through the prehistoric age and beyond. The top of Bonk’s head is invincible, so jumping up under enemies or pounding down onto them with a flip would defeat them just as well as a standing headbutt.
Bonk had a brief bit of success throughout the 16-bit era, but once we got into the 2000s, he was mostly relegated to retro ports and mobile games before petering out.
I think it’s important that representatives of these older consoles persevere into the modern day, just so people don’t think it was nothing but Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft forever, and a remake can help facilitate that.
7Demon’s Crest
Remember Firebrand, Capcom?
Demon’s Crest
A mildly annoying thing that a lot of major game publishers do is trot their cult-classic characters out for crossovers and cameos, even when the characters themselves haven’t had a game in decades.
For example, the last time we saw Firebrand the Red Arremer outside a Ghosts n’ Goblins game was Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite, but the demon hasn’t had his own game since Demon’s Crest in 1994. The third game in the Gargoyle’s Quest series and a spin-off from Ghosts n’ Goblins, Demon’s Crest is a level-based platformer withsome light Metroidvania elements.
Our hero, Firebrand, can hover, breathe fire, and cast various spells, but with the help of various collectible Crests, he can transform into different forms and use different elemental abilities, like breaking rocks and breathing underwater. As you gain more abilities, you may return to previous levels and uncover secrets you previously couldn’t reach.
Besides my general enthusiasm for Firebrand as a protagonist, I think Demon’s Crest would do better in the modern day than it did way back when. Metroidvanias are much more prevalent these days; perhaps a remake could just scrap the level select and opt for a seamless world to explore.
Everyone Loves Electric Heroes
Game Freak
August 12, 2025
When I was a kid, I wasobsessedwith Mega Man, which, for some reason, blossomed outward into an obsession with all superhero characters ending in “man.” Superman and Spider-Man, sure, but just having any character with “man” in their name was enough to catch my attention. One such instance that sticks out in my mind is 1995’s Pulseman, originally released for the Sega Genesis in 1994.
Pulseman’s gameplay features a little grab bag of concepts from a variety of platformers at the time, coalescing into a core loop that is equal parts speedy and exploratory.
Pulseman’s core shtick is the ability to channel and transform into electricity, performing both quick zap attacks and building up speed as he runs to turn into a ball of lightning. He can even hop into computer screens and traverse cyberspace if the real world is blocked.
Perhaps because of my obsession with Mega Man and his various incarnations, MegaMan.exe in particular, I love the idea of a cyberspace-traversing hero like Pulseman. Dual-world gameplay is always a hoot, and who doesn’t love turning into a ball of pure energy? Imagine the cool cyberspace visuals we could manage with modern hardware.
5Jazz Jackrabbit
Did “Woodland Critters With Guns” Before Sonic
Epic Games
June 08, 2025
I remember back when Sega made the interesting decision to give Shadow the Hedgehog an assault rifle, the obvious joke everyone made was about the massive tonal disconnect between firearms and speedy mascot platformers. However, it’s not impossible to make those concepts mesh, you just have to keep them thematically consistent, like in 1994’s Jazz Jackrabbit.
Jazz Jackrabbit is a hybrid platformer and shoot ‘em up, with the titular character both moving faster and jumping higher the longer he runs, while also wielding a cartoony laser blaster for dispatching foes.
The game is absolutely lousy with items and power-ups, from various types of guns and ammo to helpful gadgets like a hoverboard or barriers. It’s got a similar energy to something like Doom, just in the form of a 2D platformer.
Jazz Jackrabbit is, at least in my opinion, one of the quintessential MS-DOS games, and it’s downright criminal he isn’t shown more respect. There were a couple of sequels on MS-DOS and Game Boy Advance, but nothing since. I say, if Doom gets to thrive in the modern era, so should Jazz Jackrabbit.
Pick Up Some Momentum
As I mentioned before, big publishers will often usetheir extended character librariesas fillers for their bigger game projects. In the particular case of Ristar, from the same-titled Genesis game from 1995, the last time we saw him was as the designated checkered flag holder in Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed. Cute, but a severe underutilization of the character’s abilities.
In Ristar, the little shooting star dude plys his trade around momentum and verticality. Unlike Sonic, who just runs fast to the right, Ristar can grab handholds and ledges with his stretchy arms and slingshot himself up into the air, picking up speed on the downward arc.
Carrying yourself through a level in this manner is kind of like juggling rocks between multiple rubberbands, and is just as mechanically involved and stimulating as such a task sounds.
As we’ve seen in more recent games like Penny’s Big Breakaway, it’s more than possible to make momentum and speed-based platforming work in the modern day, and even if Ristar stayed 2D, I think a remake would be a lot of fun, much like a really good run in a Sonic level.
3Kid Chameleon
I’m A Sucker For Transformation
June 12, 2025
Speaking of things I won’t shut up about, we return one more time to the realm of transformation gimmicks. I love me some transforming superheroes, especially the ones with cool masks, and the one game that has both of those concepts front and center is 1992’s Kid Chameleon for the Genesis.
This deceptively gigantic platformer follows the titular leather-jacket-clad Kid as he explores a malevolent virtual reality arcade. By picking up masks from item boxes, you can transform into one of nine different masked warriors, each with their own unique exploration and combat abilities.
Depending on the mask you’re using and how you explore, you can find a myriad of different paths through the game’s over 100 levels, sometimes getting teleported to a completely different level from relatively early on.
While I love the vibe of Kid Chameleon, I admit it wasn’t the most user-friendly game. You couldn’t save, for one thing, and it wasn’t easy, so I’ve never even beaten it. Though, perhaps a remake could lean into that more and go for the roguelike approach, maybe offering ways to bank mask powers for later.
2Dynamite Headdy
Time For A Fancier Production
Dynamite Headdy
I love the idea of a dramatic meta-narrative, a story that deliberately leans into the fact that it’s occurring on a stage and takes advantage of all the trappings that accompany that. This is why I like games about puppets and marionettes, and why I especially love 1994’s Dynamite Headdy for the Genesis.
This action platformer takes place entirely on the stage of an elaborate puppet show, with both the titular hero and his mechanical foes being various forms of puppets and stage props.
At several points, you’ll get to go backstage and fiddle with machinery and sandbags, in addition to the moment-to-moment high-speed action gameplaythat still holds up excellently to this day.
For its time, the Genesis wasn’t hurting for graphical fidelity, but I would absolutely love to see such a creative concept like Dynamite Headdy realized with modern graphical muscle. Imagine the flashy props, the scene transitions, the expressive puppets and characters. Imagine Headdy making a scrunchy Kermit the Frog face. That alone would sell it, in my opinion.
1Earthworm Jim
I Miss That Groovy Worm
Earthworm Jim
I think one of my favorite gaming icons of the 90s, aside from the heavy hitters like Mario and Sonic, wasEarthworm Jim. Part of this I attribute to the regular availability of Earthworm Jim games at my local Blockbuster, and part I attribute tothe still-hilarious animated series. Whatever the precise cause, I’ve always loved Jim, as far back as his first romp on the Genesis and SNES in 1994.
This run-and-gun platformer had the wormy hero traveling the cosmos to stomp out evil and generally getting into dumb shenanigans, often involving getting squished by cows for some reason.
Jim could use his head as a whip and as a grappling hook, as well as fry foes with his trusty blaster. Levels would be interspersed with mini-games, such as a race through space against Jim’s nemesis, Psy-Crow.
Admittedly, some aspects of this game’s gameplay haven’t aged great, with at least a few bits being notoriously difficult or unfair, but a remake could definitely help to assuage those. Mostly, I just wantsomekind of Jim content after the supposed new game fell off the face of the Earth in 2020.
