Retro Arena: Classic 16-bit era platformers

[Team Andromeda]

I think there can be a fine line between 'action' 'run-'n-gun' 'hack & slash' and 'platforming'.

The thing with 'action' games is almost 99% of games have action in them, otherwise, they'll be crap and boring. To me Castlevania IV is Platform game and just because one throws or kills enemies with a projectile, doesn't mean, it's not a platform game (well for me) . I still class Yoshi Island as a Platform game, never mind if one needs to shoot stuff

But there you go, I classed the original Tomb Raider game as a Platform game and then it can get confusing when games like Popfulmail and Landstalker are classed as RPG's but play more like Platform games to me

[Leon Retro]

The thing with 'action' games is almost 99% of games have action in them, otherwise, they'll be crap and boring.

Platformers are full of all sorts of action, but people always appreciated that they are different to games like Shinobi, Contra, Castlevania.

I think you have to trace the roots of game categories back to the '80s. There were clear nuances when it came to defining what category games were part of. Journalists influenced that way of thinking, so you had magazines clearly labeling game categories.

There's definitely an old school gaming lexicon that retro gamers appreciate. Maybe young gamers today wouldn't recognise the subtle differences between genres. Genre cateogries(with all the nuances) are something instilled in me, so I will stick by them. It's why I felt Rocket Knight/Sparkster wasn't a 'platfomer' so didn't include it. But opinion will vary on something like that.