One Button Bob

There is an entire adventure going on in this game and all you need to do is press the left mouse button. You help Bob, a classic adventurer, get safely out of trouble. There are a couple of level types which are repeated throughout the game, but each time the challenge is bigger. The game is very fun and intuitive, as the only instructions are "click the left mouse button". The whole experience lasts for a short time, but it will put a smile on your face.

+ pixelated graphics
+ nice music
+ very good use of a single button

- could have had more diverse levels

Play it on NinjaDoodle

Umbrella Adventure

Umbrella Adventure is a beautifully animated hand drawn platformer. You play as a cat-like creature whose family and cakes have been stolen mysteriously. All the elements of a good platformer have been used: jumping, grabbing ropes and hooks, wall jumping... The graphics are black and white, but the quality of the drawings helps create a wonderful atmosphere. Everything is very well polished and the game is also quite lengthy. 

+ beautiful graphics
+ nice atmosphere
+ lengthy

- slows down sometimes

Download it from YoYoGames

VVVVVV

I know the title sounds weird, but this is in fact a fun game. It's a unique platformer, with great music and long entertaining levels. You play as a smiling creature that has lost his friends in an accident. The tunnels you are in are very, very spikey. You must make your way to the exit by shifting gravity and avoiding getting hurt. Only a demo is available for free, but the two levels provided are enough to give you a taste of the full experince. There are hidden places, collectable objects placed in almost impossible spots and all sorts of other things. VVVVVV is challenging and very engaging.

+ simple but very good graphics
+ intense and fun gameplay
+ nice music

- it's only the demo

Download it here
Play in online on Kongregate

Paradox Embrace

Puzzle platformers combine mindless jumping with careful thinking. Paradox Embrace does exactly that, in a nice and refreshing way. You play as a guy who has the ability to change himself when near a special pole. This change will take him in one of three worlds: the Nature, Technology or Supernatural one. The worlds look almost alike, except some minor details that really make the difference. In some worlds there are flames, in others there are no bridges, and sometimes a statue can turn to life in another world. Your goal is to reach the prize in each level. To get to it you'll have to open many doors with special keys or dissolve walls with potions. It's a hard and enjoyable game!

+ good concept
+ nice graphics

- the ending makes no sense

Play it on Newgrounds

Bubba Time

In Bubba Time ideas from two games are merged and the result is impressive. As its creators confess, they put together ideas from Solomon's Key and Braid. This doesn't mean that this puzzle platformer feels in any way like a rip-off. There are 4 level packs, each relying on a different strategy: Slow Motion, Simon Says, Slow Me and Return. The puzzles are fun and challenging, but unfortunately the walkthrough isn't working at the moment.

+ interesting combination of features
+ nice puzzles
+ cute graphics

- no walkthrough

Play it on Kongregate

Blasting Agent

This old style platformer is really what all platformers should be. Blasting Agent is a Duke Nukem 2D clone, but it is entertaining and very challenging, so you won't be disappointed. You are an agent, your goal is to collect money and to get out of the level alive. There are enemies all around you and boss fights from time to time. Exploring the level can be rewarding, because you can find hidden doors. The fact that a level can be finished in more than one way is a big plus. So, don't always follow the signs; they might not lead you to the best exit. The enemies are very diverse and the music suits the game perfectly.

+ many enemies and bosses
+ more than one exit
+ pixelart!

- a bit too hard

Play it on Gimme5Games

Run.Don't.Stop

This game combines perfectly platformer elements, strategy and alert gameplay. You control a guy who has crashed on a planet, his rocket broken and out of fuel. Like that wasn't enough, your landing disturbed the planet's core and now it's rising. Your only chance of survival is running in order to make the planet bigger. On your way you have to collect money, speed boosts and ice cubes, at the same time avoiding a small gap in the ground, which gets bigger with every lap. Don't forget to upgrade your speed or ship....and don't run in the wrong direction.

+ fun and addicting
+ nice gameplay

- a bit too hard on normal mode

Play it on Kongregate

R.I.F.T

R.I.F.T is a cute puzzle platformer. You control a robot that is eager to please his hungry creators. In each level you go through a lot of trouble to get a tasty looking cake and feed it to the scientist. The robot can move, jump and grab things with his arms. Besides the usual platforms, electric fences and bolt shooting devices you will also encounter portals. That's right - portals, just like in Valve's game. Through the blue ones you can enter and you'll come jumping right out of the yellow one. It is great as a platformer and the puzzle elements are fitted just right. The only downside to it is that  there is only one free level pack, the others you have to buy from Mochi.

+ nice graphics
+ fun gameplay
+ extra levels on CandyStand

- you have to pay for new level packs
- the controls don't feel quite right

Play it on CandyStand

Obey The Game

This is another game with the blue elephant, just as fun and unusual as the others. The game consists of a set of mini-games whose rules have to be obeyed, or not. At the start of each mini-game you will be told either to obey the rules or not. This is very easy for the first 10 stages, but afterward the game speeds up and you have to react really fast. There are 5 game modes, each of which is unlocked if you pass a certain number of levels in the previous mode.

+ addicting gameplay
+ fast thinking is required

- maybe there should have been more minigames...

Play it on ArmorGames

Continuity

Continuity is a very ingenious platformer. The basic purpose of each level is to get to the exit. This, however, is really demanding when your level is divided into many movable sections. Every section can be moved with arrow keys and the hero can move from one square to another if the 2 are completing each other. There are levels that can be completed in a matter of seconds, others you'll finish by sheer chance and some really involve deep thinking. The concept is really nice, the graphics pleasant and the game overall is worth playing.

+ interesting concept
+ many levels

- it's not for those with little patience

Play it here

We Want You

Ever wanted to be a soldier? To defend your country ever with the price of your life? In this game you have exactly this opportunity! You are a worthless soldier and you wonder around the battlefield killing everyone else. If you play long enough you'll notice that time goes by - you get statistics of the "past year". There are 10 guns available and you can get them from supply tents or crates. If you start bleeding the first aid tent should fix you right away. However, some guns kill you instantly, and then you become a well-remembered soldier. Enjoy the war!

+ pixelart!
+ procedurally generated platforming fun
+ fun gameplay (you can even get a fat kid to follow you)

- you can't win (except if you count death as winning)
- it gets repetitive after a while

Download the game here

Dale & Peakot

This is a pretty nice platformer. You play as a crazy farmer and his chicken friend who go to rescue stolen poultry. The farmer has a big gun, but you will be amazed of how useful Peakot can be. She can open switches, make the enemies dizzy or ever make a branch grow. The cartoonish style is charming, the levels contain many hidden areas and there are also some achievements you can get. What more can you ask of a game?! The best part is that this is only the first episode - more chicken-fun is on the way.

+ fun story and characters
+ good graphics

- team work can be difficult

Play it on NewGrounds

The Company of Myself

This is a sad and beautiful platformer. The game tells the story of a lonely man who did everything by himself. You have the ability to create shadows of yourself, creatures which basically mimic your movement. This comes in handy in most of the levels. The graphics are nice and simple and the music suits the story. The Company of Myself combines action with puzzle and storytelling.

+ nice graphics
+ good story

- a bit too short

Play it on NewGrounds

Focus

Focus is a really hard game. You are a white blob who is trapped in a weird cave. The game starts as a normal platformer, with jumping and avoiding obstacles but pretty soon you learn the focus skill and everything changes. With focus you can teleport anywhere inside a blue bubble that forms around you. Inside the bubble time goes very slow, which is a big advantage. As you advance you'll encounter all sorts of robotic enemies, each faster and more powerful than the other. The game gets really addicting really fast.

+ great concept
+ nice graphics and effects

- it can be a bit frustrating, but that's the cost of for being a challenging game

Download it here

Level Editor

Level Editor is like any other platformer, except the fact that you have to build certain parts of the level while playing it. You control a stick figure and you have to take it to the exit. You can place blocks with different properties to help you. The game looks pretty nice and it has a good concept.

+ 50 complicated levels
+ flash walkthrough

- can get boring
- sometimes requires timing

Play it on King.com

Revert to Growth

Revert to Growth is a really nice game. It was first created in 22 hours for a competition in which it got first prize. The more polished version is very good. You play as a robot which crashed on a weird planet. You have to get back missing parts of your ship. To do that you'll need the help of plants. Depending on the type of soil you can grow taller or smaller plants that will act as platforms. The puzzles are challenging and if you get stuck (you surely will) there is a very good walkthrough available.

+ colorful graphics
+ nice concept
+ level editor

- you can get stuck too often
- some minor bugs

Play it on King.com

Orphan Feast

I'm sure that as a child you've heard many stories about evil men who will kidnap you if you're not a good kid. Now, you can play as the bad guy: you are a villain who snatches orphans from the streets and puts them in a cage. The townsfolk don't like you and they usually hit you, but killing them is easy. Every orphan you collect goes first in your bag and it can escape when you are attacked. To send kids to your lair you have to find black umbrellas and use them. The game has beautiful graphics and the story is original.

+ nice graphics
+ entertaining levels
+ sort of happy ending

- orphans can escape too easily
- you can't really tell on which rooftops you can walk on

Play it on Adult Swim Games

Globby

Globby is a nice-looking platformer. You play as a red globb and search the levels for the boss. Other globbs will attack you, but don't worry: you have a strong punch and if that's not enough, you can steal abilities from defeated foes! Globby is in fact a Kirby copy, but a very good one. Most of the game's apeel is in finding new enemies and new powers. If you'll pay attention you might spot references to other games - like Zelda. The only sad thing about this game is its length: it only has 4 levels and an arcade mode.

+ many different enemies
+ long levels

- too short
- not perfect attack scheme

Play it on NewGrounds

Drakness The Cage

A game with a very nice concept. You are a black ball in a level that is always white. Your goal is to reach a black inky spot. To do that you must make your way through the invisible ledges and crates. You have an ink gun to help you paint parts of the level, so that  you can get a feeling of where you're heading to. However, there is no such thing as infinite ink, so use it wisely. The simple graphics suit the game perfectly. I can't wait for the sequel!

+ great concept
+ neat graphics and music

- there is at least one frustrating level
- as a platformer, the game could have been way longer and more complicated

Play it on King.com

The Fantasy of the Sord

This game was created for the 6th Casual Gameplay Design Competition. It is a classical platformer with a vast world to explore. You start outside, in the open and you can get underground or far, far away... Everything is made in pixelart and the music completes the old-game feeling. You can choose between several characters, but the only thing they have different from each other is their looks. You'll encounter many enemies and also bosses. You can upgrade your magic and get new, more powerful weapons, just as in a RPG.


+ huge world to explore

+ you can't really die

- too few spells
- different characters should have had different powers

Play it on Jayisgames