platformer

noun

plat·​form·​er ˈplat-ˌfȯr-mər 

variants or less commonly platformer game

plural platformers also platformer games

: a video game where the play is primarily focused on moving past obstacles in real time with one's avatar by using various abilities (such as jumping and climbing) and items (such as weapons)

Mario games have traditionally been platformers, where the character has to run and jump, collect items and fight enemies.

—Raju Mudhar

… Stray is not a challenging platformer, but will instead let players safely jump from platform to beam to air conditioning window unit to makeshift gondolas without fear of falling to one's death.

—Michael McWhertor

It's a 2D platformer where you spray flames with water, use your axe to chop down obstacles, and even fly through the air with a jet of H₂O.

—Shaun Musgrave

She can walk and run and jump, like just about any other character from any other platformer game, but she is also capable of balletic dance moves.

—Colin Campbell

called also platform game

Examples of platformer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Penny’s Big Breakaway Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X/S Release Date: February 21, 2024 The minds behind Sonic Mania go 3D in this new platformer that revolves around a giant yo-yo. —PCMAG, 6 Apr. 2024

Although Mario and Donkey Kong have gone their separate ways and had success in side-scrolling platformers, the concept of leaping over obstacles, climbing ladders and grabbing hammer power-ups still had level design and gameplay potential. —Gieson Cacho, The Mercury News, 1 Mar. 2024

The second, 2005’s Super Princess Peach, was at least a legitimate platformer, but was relegated to a handheld title on Nintendo DS. —Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 23 Feb. 2024

The award-winning puzzle platformer Braid is back, reimagined and updated for modern hardware while still preserving the integrity of the original. —Jennifer Maas, Variety, 1 Feb. 2024

The puzzle platformer has positive reviews on Steam and won Best Game: Latin America at the Best International Games Festival — an indie game festival focused on games developed in Latin America. —Ash Parrish, The Verge, 20 Oct. 2023

On 20 September, Nvidia’s vice president of applied deep learning, Bryan Catanzaro, went to Twitter with a bold claim: In certain GPU-heavy games, like the classic first-person platformer Portal, seven out of eight pixels on the screen are generated by a new machine-learning algorithm. —IEEE Spectrum, 25 Nov. 2022

The Cosmic Shake looks like a bog-standard licensed platformer and is planned for sometime next year. —Kyle Orland, Ars Technica, 13 Sep. 2022

Mainline Mario games are often defined by a novel central mechanic, or gimmick, with the more effective ones unlocking a fresh angle on the franchise and the platformer as a genre. —Keep Mario Weird, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing platformer

• platformer game