Environments in Platform Games

The environments used in a game are an important part of what a player will base their initial impressions upon. When it comes to the mascot platformer, the environments, like the characters and other assets, are often bright with diverse themes.

I feel, however, that there seems to be a formula of environments that platformers sometimes fall back onto. This can be a negative thing for individual franchises or the mascot platformer genre as a whole because the environments may seem to lack originality, meaning audiences can get sick of seeing the same - or at least similar - environments over and over again.

To prove this theory I have looked into some of the common themes for platform game environments with examples, as well as themes that are perhaps less utilised which I'd like to explore. This is by no means a definitive list and is judged in part from personal experience, but it is a good estimation of the tropes found within the genre.

Very common themes

Grass/Jungle

Grassy and jungle-themed environments are a staple for platform games, they are often the very first level and they tend to have a shallow difficulty curve as they introduce the player to the game's mechanics, story and setting.

Examples:

Desert/Ruins

Sandy levels or tombs adorned with predominantly Egyptian or Arabian imagery like pyramids, Sphinxes, Hieroglyphs and ruins are another popular trope. Levels like this tend to introduce hazards such as quicksand and crumbling platforms. 

Examples:

Ice/Snow

Environments covered in a blanket of snow and frozen lakes are a common theme, especially later into a game. Often these environments are coupled with ice-based physics, making the character more challenging to control, as well as falling icicles to stop the player in their tracks. 

Examples:

Lava

Lava levels frequently signify the very end of your adventure, but even when they don't, they introduce a steady difficulty curve - "Don't touch the floor, it's lava!". Jumping fireballs, meteorites and lava waterfalls are all commonly seen here.

Examples:

Underwater

Levels that take wholly or partially underwater present their own challenges, they once again change the physics of the player character and include hazards like puffer fish, sharks and other marine creatures. 

Examples: 

Underground Cave

Dark, underground caves with plenty of stalactites and stalagmites, sometimes there are also bodies of water around. Underground caves tend to be early in a game since they don't often introduce many new threats.

Examples:

Haunted House

The token spooky level - riddled with ghosts, zombies, mummies and more! These tend to take place in thundery, rainy or otherwise dark conditions when outside, or inside of rickety old houses, cursed shipwrecks or grand, abandoned mansions. Enemies in these environments are much more likely to chase the player down.

Examples: 

Other common themes

Metropolis/Industrial Factory/Sewerscape

Anything that involves skyscrapers, buildings in abundance, turning cogs, mechanised platforms and over-sized pipes belongs in this category. Lots of games use a general 'mechanised' aesthetic for a level or sometimes more. These levels sometimes combine smaller elements of other environment styles (like underwater segments for example) so as not to run too bland. 

Examples:

Casino

Slot machines, pinball tables, roulettes, playing cards, comically large poker chips and lots of neon lights make casino levels a treat for the eyes - they're usually over-the-top which helps break them up from more mundane environments. 

Examples:

Sky/Space

Heavenly skies, space stations and other outer space themed levels are a great excuse to diversify the physics and mechanics of a platformer, as well as adding a (quite literally) otherworldly environment for the player to roam around in.

Examples:

Swamp

Murky swamps teeming with protagonist-eating plants and pools of muddy water that will likely damage or kill a player. Luckily there are often stepping stones or lily pads to guide the player along vast bodies of swamp water.

Examples:

Other themes I'm interested in

Crystal Cave

Similar to the Underground Cave environment but 100% more sparkly! Rock structures formed from crystalline glass, which can sometimes act as a spike or icicle-type hazard.

Examples:

Fake Asia

These environments are inspired by Japan, China and other East Asian countries. This style of environment relies heavily on the exaggeration of pre-existing architecture, such as temples, bridges and Torii shrine gates.

Examples:


Toys/Food

These kinds of levels will make the player feel really small, as they platform along giant versions of usually tiny items - things like building blocks, kiddies instruments and bouncy castles within the toy category; then a whole manner of edible goods like gingerbread, burgers, cakes, lollipops and more for food.

Examples:

Eternal Autumn/Cherry Blossoms

These levels are usually forests or grassy plains with lots of trees - the state of these trees never changes and always reflects a particular theme or season. Falling orange and yellow leaves, sometimes used as platforms, signify an autumn theme, while pink cherry blossom trees adhere more to spring and give a general oriental theme to a level.

Examples:



Amusement Park/Carnival

A derivative of the casino themed levels, these environments have a greater focus on funfairs, circuses and parades, but retain the wacky and colourful nature of casino levels. There's often an automated roller coaster section in these environments.

Examples:



Music

Environments that feature musical themes, like instruments, notes and sheet music. They can include platforming challenges based around collecting individual music notes.

Examples:



Hybrid Environments

In my opinion, the strongest and most interesting environments are those that combine elements from more than one theme. This is the kind of route I'd like to go for my own environment ideas.

Examples:

Ice/Snow + Cherry Blossom

Haunted House + Amusement Park