What's the difference between action-adventure games and platformer games?

They seem like they're basically the same thing. Someone told me that platformer games focus more on jumping which I thought was too simple and didn't make sense because Prince of Persia is thought of as a action-adventure game and there's a lot of jumping there.

Care to enlighten me? Thanks.

The best and simplist example of a platform game is Crash Bandicoot (original). Thats where jump does almost everything, from killing baddies to manuevering over obsticules. This is a game where you choose your level from a selection of levels and jump around from platform to platform. I think the difference of action-adventure is the adding of weapons+other various features that help you get past stuff. it could also be the idea of more than one path to the end. Im not quite sure.

Sorry, its kinda vague, but i hope it gives you a general idea of a platform game.

Yeah I do understand what you mean. Would you also agree that games like Super Mario 64 is platformers at it's best and simplist?

Although I do understand what you mean, I'm now confused as to why games like Ratchet and Clank and Jak 2/3 are thought of as platformers when you use guns throughout most, if not all, of the game.

Well the main difference is that most of the games, that are considered as s "platformers" is that the main character is a mascot(animal). And they don't have super bloody, heavy atacks, or combos, just one spin or kick or punch. And for me the platformers seems more unreal on the psysics... i mean when you Jump it's like more cartoony, and it's like flying..it's more fun. Like the prince of persia looks realistic, and ofcourse it has lots of combat in there.

My opinion is that the platformers are simplified action adventures, but there are also one hell of fun, despite that sometimes is difficult to discern what is a true platformer, or action/adventure.

Yeah, plus I just relized that most platformer game characters can double-jump.

It's kind of obvious. Action - adventures games is just a wider classification than plataform games. I explain: all plataformers are action-adventure games, the only thing that difers is that in an action adventure game you go, mainly, on foot from one place to another, and in plataformers you usually use some kind of vehicle or transport.

For example, when you're playing Mario you're playing an action adventure game, but when you get onto Yoshi, then you're seeing a plataformer. Same thin with the Contra series; it's all good till you climb onto that truck-like vehicle.

Nah, just messing with you. Plataformers is a classification that was born with 2D games such as Mario or Adventure Island. When those games transformed into a 3D world, then a new classification was born, as the action didn't happen onto this plataform like world, that was the one of the 2D games, and so they started to call it action-adventure, being in the essentials, almost the very same thing. This has nothing to do with how jumps the most or who uses batons/hammers/guns or anything to kill the bad guys, its just a question of time.

3-D Platformers aim for other things than gore, gameplay is less complex and it focuses more on getting from point A to point B. This sounds like platformers are inferior but much of the time they're more addictive due to the ease of slipping "into" the game.TheGamesWePlay

Come again? 3D plataformers? Can you name one 3D game that's a plataformer and not an action-adventure game? Mario, Crash Bandicoot and such are all action-adventure game (focused on the "adventure"), same as God of War or Devil May Cry (focused on the "action"). Real plataformers are 2D games, when the world was a huge lineal plataform.

Ok, so let's just agree to call 3D platformer games action-adventure games. 2-D platformers are the only platformers. This will be the revolution.

Man, I wish I could be there when someone from gamestop labels the game either an action-adventure or a platformer.

Ok, so let's just agree to call 3D platformer games action-adventure games. 2-D platformers are the only platformers. This will be the revolution.

Man, I wish I could be there when someone from gamestop labels the game either an action-adventure or a platformer.

Lyphe2k

XDDD... Now that you mention it, I've seen some rare labels on games sometimes. For example, I once saw Okami being selled as FPS... O_o... One month later, Okami´s place had been taken by Guitar Hero 3, wich was labeled as "racing". Man, I think those guys are on drugs when they label stuff.