Top 50 Best 2D Platformers of All Time

#20. – Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island

I really like the story behind this game. Shigeru Miyamoto was pressured to make a game with graphics akin to Donkey Kong Country, and instead he made something significantly better that looked an entire generation ahead of it. Yoshi’s Island made use of an enhanced version of the SuperFX chip and it shows at every turn. The graphics are absolutely amazing with rotational effects that bested everything on the PlayStation and Saturn at the time. All the while it stayed true to the art style of Mario. The gameplay however is quite the departure. You play as various Yoshi’s with baby Mario on their back. If you’re hit he is encased in a bubble and you only have a specific amount of time to get him back before you lose. The game has some amazing level design and changes on the fly. Yoshi’s Island is incredible.

#19. – Castlevania: Rondo of Blood

Here we have it. This is the best Castlevania game of all time. In my opinion, of course. While I do love the new conventions put into place in Super Castlevania IV I can’t help but love the fact that Konami focused on refining the classic formula in this release. There aren’t a lot of new features here because, as I said, Konami focused on what works. You guide Richter Belmont through a variety of different horror scenes as he does battle with many different classic baddies. The game makes great use of the CD format with redbook audio and animated sequences. Did I mention that Rondo of Blood has one of the single best soundtracks of all time? That’s important, because this is a game I had to get the soundtrack to.

#18. – Drill Dozer

Game Freak is known almost entirely for their Pokemon games. The Game Boy Advance is the only handheld in Nintendo’s history that has only one generation of pocket monsters. I fully believe that this is because they took a chance on an original title named Drill Dozer. I love Pokemon but I have to admit I’m not disappointed with their decision here. The stages here are absolutely massive and you’ll be forced to get acquainted with the main character’s abilities right away. This is because the stages play out more akin to a puzzle game. You have to figure out how to get past obstacles using the drill’s powers. The shoulder buttons spin the drill in different directions, and this comes into play in some significant ways. It has mostly been forgotten but Drill Dozer should have been more popular.

#17. – Mega Man 2

It’s hard to believe that the original Mega Man was planned as a one off attempt by Capcom to penetrate the home console market. Now that we’ve had over ten sequels, that is. Mega Man 2 took everything that made the original good and kicked things up several notches. The levels are an absolute treat to explore. The robot masters in particular have seen significant upgrades. I can’t think of a weak link among them (except Flash Man, because he sucks). The abilities you have here are the cream of the crop in the franchise. It’s also worth noting that Mega Man 2 has one of the best soundtracks of any NES title. Wily’s stage 2 does things in the audio department that you wouldn’t think is possible on the hardware. Mega Man 2 holds up, and should absolutely still be played.

#16. – Kirby’s Adventure

Kirby began life on the Game Boy with the first Dream Land title. Let’s forget that though because it was pretty terrible to be honest. Kirby’s Adventure is where the titular character gained his most trademark ability; to suck enemies up and gain their powers. That’s why this game is so great. You’ll find great joy in just experimenting to find out what you can use. The level designs are an absolute delight here. You can choose to fly over most of them using Kirby’s hover ability but that would do the game a great disservice because it’s just so darn fun to play. Kirby’s Adventure is a late release for the original Nintendo, but it was outclassing 16-bit platformers at the time by a great degree.

#15. – Klonoa: Door to Phantomile

The first Klonoa is what introduced me to 2.5D gaming. Before it I thought the concept was just a gimmick. Klonoa however uses this technique in some very creative ways. Here you have to pay close attention to what’s happening in both the background and foreground because they have profound effects on gameplay. This is especially true during boss encounters. Besides this the way the paths move in 3D space is still impressive to this day. Klonoa’s ability to grab foes and use them to either throw or use as an extra jump is really interesting. Klonoa: Door to Phantomile is still the best 2D platformer on the original PlayStation console.

#14. – MC Kids

I’m not going to sugarcoat it. This is a McDonalds licensed game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Normally that introduction would be the kiss of death, but not in this case. The developers not only made great use of the license, but made a downright worthwhile game out of it. MC Kids lets you choose between two young boys to play as, and uses the standard platform conventions. You can’t jump on enemies heads, but your character can pick up items to throw at them. What really sets this one apart however is that you have to find special tickets in each stage. These are used to progress in the game. It’s like Super Mario 64 but before that title was even released. The level design is insanely good here.

#13. – Sonic the Hedgehog 2

This was the title Sega pushed out to compete with Super Mario World and the Super Nintendo launch. While it clearly didn’t match up it did give Sega fans something to fight off the jealousy. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 absolutely destroys the original in terms of level design. It also introduced the now iconic character Tails to the mix. The level design is peak Sonic the Hedgehog. The first few stages encourage you to rush through them to reach areas where you’re just zooming around with no controls. The biggest upgrade here is the boss encounters. These are surprisingly dynamic and transcend the simple basis of the franchise. If you’re going to play just one Sonic the Hedgehog title this wouldn’t be a bad choice.

#12. – Super Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins

The first Mario Land title was too simplistic. Part 2 however is one of the best titles in the entire franchise. Super Mario Land II still has some weird elements to it (that’s commonplace for portable Mario games of this time) with some off-key themes. I do like that there’s a stage based on the horror genre, and I also enjoy how flamboyant things get when Mario goes to outer space. Super Mario Land 2 also introduces one of my most favorite power-ups to the franchise. This is the carrot. When you snag this item Mario dons rabbit ears and he can hover as he falls. It sounds simple but it’s really neat, and this one hasn’t returned in any installment since. Wario is also the best villain in the franchise in my opinion, and I absolutely love the final encounter with him. It’s the most interesting final boss in any Mario title.

#11. – Kirby Super Star

Let’s face it. The third Dream Land game didn’t equal up to the franchise’s quality. HAL focused mostly on the graphics engine with that release. That’s why Kirby Super Star is so strange. It was released before the latter, and instead of pushing the hardware they instead focused on the standard gameplay. Kirby Super Star seems odd at first because it’s under the guise of being different games. It’s true that they have separate objectives, but the entire package comes together as one single entity when you really dive in. The games Super Star has are disguised as separate levels. With that in mind this is one single title and it’s surprisingly cohesive. Kirby Super Star has some of the best level designs in the entire series, and the level of polish here is off the charts. This is without a doubt the best Kirby game.