| The most common movement options in the genre are walking, running, jumping, and climbing. Jumping can be categorized as either "committed" or "variable"; w in the trajectory of a committed jump cannot be changed mid-air, that of a variable jump can. Depending on the game, falling from considerable heights may cause fall damage, possibly leing to death. Many plat games also have seemingly bottomless pits or other features within the game world that kill a character immediately were they to fall into them. Beyond these elements, the components of a plat game can vary greatly, including various ditional movement options, combat, or other features. Plat games originated in the late 1970s - early 1980s. Most, but not all, early examples of plat games were confined to a static playing field, generally viewed in profile, and were based on climbing mechanics between plats rather than jumping. Space Panic, a 1980 arce release by Universal, is sometimes ed as being the first plat game, though the distinction is contentious. While the player has the ability to fall, t is no ability to jump, so the game does not satisfy most modern definitions of the genre. However, it clearly influenced the genre, with gameplay centered on climbing lders between different floors, a common element in many early plat games. A difficult game to l, Space Panic remained obscure as an arce game, but the 1981 unauthorized clone Apple Panic was a hit for computers. Another precursor to the genre from 1980 was Nichibutsu's Crazy Climber, which has the player scaling vertiy-scrolling skyscrapers. Donkey Kong, an arce game created by Nintendo and released in July 1981, was the first game to allow players to jump over obstacles and across gaps, making it the first true plater. It introduced Mario, a modern icon of the genre, under the name Jumpman. Donkey Kong was ported to many consoles and computers at the time, notably as the system-selling pack-in game for ColecoVision, and also a handheld version from Coleco in 1982. The game helped cement Nintendo's position as an important name in the video game industry internationally. The follog year, Donkey Kong received a sequel, Donkey Kong Jr. and later Mario Bros, a plat game that ed two-player cooperative play. This title laid the groundwork for other two-player cooperative platers such as Fairyland Story and Bubble Bobble. |
