The PlayStation’s library of games is no stranger to bright and artistic titles, though none in recent years have been quite as vibrant as the action-adventure title Concrete Genie. Although developer Pixelpus have only developed one other game, 2014’s Entwined, they managed to knock it out of the park with their follow-up title and have created a truly beautiful experience for gamers.
Unfortunately, not everyone has access to a PS4, meaning gamers will have to look elsewhere if they want a similar experience. Thankfully, there is no shortage of artistic action-adventure titles on PC and consoles that are easily accessible to the majority of gamers.
10 Hob
A somewhat underrated game, Hob takes elements of the Legend of Zelda series but displays it in a vibrant, though somewhat infected, world alongside silent storytelling reminiscent of games like Journey. Hob has many gameplay elements that are common among both platformers and action games, such as a multitude of various puzzles that need to be solved and a variety of enemies that require different tactics in order to defeat, but the most striking aspect of the game is how the world seems to rise from the ground with every new puzzle you complete.
9 Contrast
The launch of the PS4 didn’t see many particularly breathtaking games, with the indie title Resogun being the main standout until the library grew over the course of the following months. Another game that released around the same time was Contrast, a puzzle platformer that saw the player take control of a girl who could interact with shadows and merge with flat surfaces in order to progress through the game. This concept has been used in several titles before and since, but none have managed to do it quite as well as Contrast.
8 Max: The Curse of Brotherhood
Originally released on the Xbox 360 in 2013 before finally moving to the PS4 and Nintendo Switch in 2017, Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer with similar artistic elements to Concrete Genie, though with different powers and a lot more running from giant monsters.
Early in the game, the titular Max is granted a magical Sharpie that can alter the world around him in order to save his brother. The entire game plays out like a Pixar film, both in terms of story and in the art style.
7 Unravel
One of EA’s less controversial releases in recent years, Unravel and its sequel, Unravel 2, see the player control an animated bundle of yarn that slowly unravels as they traverse through the world, limiting the player’s movement if the yarn gets tangled over certain objects. What makes this platformer so unique, however, is that the player can use the yarn to swing from objects, grapple to higher vantage points, or create tight-ropes to walk across perilous drops without dying.
6 Rime
Rime takes some heavy inspiration from games like Journey and The Witness, with gameplay focused on puzzles, platforming, and exploration rather than combat. While the game does have a distinct lack of difficulty that may turn some players away from it, the cartoonish art style and brilliant music do wonders for Rime. It’s a game worth looking into if players are in the market for an atmospheric game that doesn’t require too much of their attention.
5 Child of Light
Child of Light is a strange blend of 2D sidescrolling platformer and turn-based RPG that sounds like it shouldn’t work on paper, but in practice, it is one of the better instances of a real-time battle system. The game follows Aurora, a girl who died of a mysterious illness and must reclaim the sun, moon, and stars in order to return home. All the while she befriends several inhabitants of this strange land who all speak in rhymes, giving Child of Light a narrative that feels like it is straight out of a children’s book.
4 Knack
Although Knack isn’t the most well-loved or well-known PlayStation platformer, there is still a lot to love about the series. Players take control of the titular Knack, a strange autonomous being made of relics that grows in size and strength the more ancient pieces are added to his body. This makes gameplay feel like a mix between Katamari Damacy and platformers like Crash Bandicoot or Super Mario.
Both Knack and its sequel haven’t been as well-received as other platforming mascots. The games suffer from overly predictable plots and some convoluted gameplay elements, but what is here is likely to engage with anyone who is a fan of action platformers in general.
3 Ratchet and Clank
While Ratchet and Clank started out as a much more crass series full of innuendo and anti-capitalism undertones, it has gone on to be a much brighter and more exciting action series about heroism and finding one’s self, alongside some truly bizarre weapons. The most recent entry in the series, a remake of the original PS2 title, takes inspiration from all across the series, including several weapons that appeared in later titles returning for the Ratchet and Clank remake. Recurring villain Dr. Nefarious is shown front and center as the main antagonist, despite not appearing until the third game in the series.
2 Jak and Daxter
The PS2 had three main contenders for the role of PlayStation’s new platformer mascot: Ratchet and Clank, Sly Cooper, and Jak and Daxter. Developed by Naughty Dog after the rights to Crash Bandicoot passed on to Activision, Jak and Daxter has much more open environments than their previous series and was made in close proximity to Ratchet and Clank developers Insomniac. In fact, both companies would constantly swap ideas and advice with one another in order for both titles to be the best they could be, with each main character appearing in the opposing game in some form or another.
1 inFamous: First Light
If there was any game on the PS4 that captured a similar neon aesthetic to Concrete Genie’s world, it’s the inFamous: Second Son spin-off, First Light. Rather than following new protagonist Delsin Roe, First Light follows the backstory of one of his allies, Abigail ‘Fetch’ Walker in her life before being taken in by the DUP. It concludes with the opening sequence of Second Son. Unlike Delsin, who can use Smoke, Neon, Video, and Concrete powers, Fetch plays much closer to how Cole McGrath originally did, focusing on one power, Neon, in order to make her feel more powerful than Delsin ever did.
