Best Platforming Games of 2018

best platforming games, 2018

Best Platforming Games of 2018

Recommended Videos

It’s award season here at Twinfinite! We’re taking a look at the best platforming games of 2018, honoring the titles that have shone brightest and crowning one the year’s best. Voted on by our editors, the following games stand tall as exemplary titles that pushed storytelling in the medium forward this year.

Second Runner-up: The Messenger

Reviews Editor Zhiqing Wan: For the first five or so hours of the game, The Messenger is a delightfully witty —if slightly predictable— platformer game. It’s a clear throwback to the original Ninja Gaiden games, and players take control of a cool-looking masked ninja while saving the world. Fairly typical stuff.

But once you get past those first five hours, The Messenger peels back its layers to reveal one of the most innovative and best platforming games we’ve seen this year.

As a platformer, The Messenger isn’t all that challenging. The game is fairly lenient with the lives you get, though it does make sure to throw a snide jab your way whenever you miss a jump. But as a Metroidvania-style game, The Messenger is absolutely charming. The core mechanic is tied in with time travel, where the titular messenger passes through these dimensional rifts to go back and forth in time. Sounds like a pretty straightforward concept, but the execution is totally killer.

Going back and forth in time completely changes the way the game looks and sounds, as you’ll be flipping back and forth between 8- and 16-bit graphics and music. It’s a completely trippy experience that never gets old, especially when you consider how sharp the writing is and how well the story itself plays around this concept.

Best Platforming Games of 2018

First Runner-up: Mega Man 11

Mega Man, Mega Man 11, Capcom

Staff Writer Keenan McCall: Being the latest entry in one of the most iconic platformer series of all time, Mega Man 11 had a lot riding on it. Not only had it been years since the last release in the mainline series, but the title had to walk the line of expanding the series’ gameplay without damaging its tried and true formula.

When all was said and done, though, it succeeded with flying colors. Mega Man 11 provides all of the quick reflex platforming the series is known for alongside new mechanics like the Dual Gear system, which allows players to slow down time or boost their attack power for a short time.

Throw in a new array of difficulty settings to make the game more accessible, along with music and and a 2.5-D art style that’s right at home with the series’ art style, and you’ve got a title that shouldn’t be missed by fans of the series or the platforming genre.

Best Platforming Games of 2018

Winner: Celeste

best single player nintendo switch games, nintendo switch, best, single player, celeste

Editor-in-Chief Ed McGlone: Much has been made about Celeste’s classy portrayal of mental illness and anxiety. However, what sometimes gets lost in the shuffle though is that Celeste is also one of the tightest, creative, and just all-around best platformers released so far this generation.

Celeste’s levels masterfully build on one another. Each new stage introduces a slightly more complicated mechanic from the previous, and then, at the climax of the story, all of it gets put together and it comes out as perfect as peanut butter and jelly.

The ride is enjoyable throughout of course, but the last few levels and the bonus world, are some of the most rewarding platforming sections I’ve ever experienced. Because death kicks you instantly back to your last checkpoint with no load time, Celeste’s difficulty rarely frustrates.

I could reply the same section literally 20, 30, or 40 times, and never get discouraged. It just serves to make that eventual triumph so much sweeter, and that’s why it tops our list of the best platforming games of 2018.


Twinfinite is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more
related content
Read Article Top 10 Shortest-Lived Live Service/Online Games of All Time
live service games that failed
Read Article 10 Coolest & Strangest Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creations We’ve Seen So Far
10 Coolest & Strangest Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creations We've Seen So Far
Read Article 9 Shounen Tropes Created By Akira Toriyama
Akira Toriyama black and white on shounen anime background
Related Content
Read Article Top 10 Shortest-Lived Live Service/Online Games of All Time
live service games that failed
Read Article 10 Coolest & Strangest Dragon’s Dogma 2 Character Creations We’ve Seen So Far
10 Coolest & Strangest Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creations We've Seen So Far
Read Article 9 Shounen Tropes Created By Akira Toriyama
Akira Toriyama black and white on shounen anime background
Author
Ed McGlone
Ed McGlone was with Twinfinite from 2014 to 2022. Playing games since 1991, Ed loved writing about RPGs, MMOs, sports games and shooters.