The Best 3D Platforming Games on Modern Systems

So you’ve got your shiny modern console and maybe you feel like walking down memory lane to relive some of that childhood joy of collecting a bunch of arbitrary stuff, but you aren’t sure where to start?
Or maybe you’re new to the genre and want to see why others are so desperate to see a full revival of these kinds of games? Or maybe you’re just looking for a fun time to play with your kids, these are 10 of the best and most accessible 3D Platformers playable on modern games consoles!

Banjo Kazooie

As part of the Rare Replay bundle of Rare’s incredible achievements in game development, these classic Nintendo 64 games are included and have been polished up and outputted in higher resolutions with some added quality of life improvements such as better camera input and more responsive controls. Back in the 90s Rare pretty much defined what the collectathon genre should be and has been the template for quality ever since. Even games releasing today are taking from what Rare laid down before them. If you don’t already know, Banjo Kazooie sees you take control of the titular Banjo and Kazooie as you learn new abilities to collect Jiggies and a plethora of other collectables to fight your way through the evil witch Gruntilda’s base to save Banjo’s sister whilst the witch cackles and insults you as you progress through the game. You’re very much motivated to take down Gruntilda through this dialogue and the short form levels are bursting with collectables and secrets but none of them overstays their welcome with very little backtracking needed from the player.

Spyro Reignited Trilogy

The original Spyro trilogy offered some of the best collectathon platforming gameplay of any PlayStation title at release. Now with the Spyro Reignited Trilogy, you can enjoy these classics in a tuned-up HD experience. With a unique, catchy soundtrack from the legendary Stewart Copeland (drummer for The Police) and the magical fantasy aesthetic you’d expect for a treasure collecting dragon, there is a lot to love about Spyro’s unique gameplay and feel.
Plus, let’s face it, who doesn’t want to play as a sassy yet adventurous purple dragon helping out a colourful cast of characters with their ridiculous requests and trials?

Crash N Sane Trilogy (All systems)

Crash Bandicoot is a name that needs no introduction, a PlayStation and gaming icon back in the ’90s. He’s seen his time in the spotlight and is back now with a fantastic collection of remakes of those classics. Created with amazing accuracy and a lot of love for the originals, the effort put in here into developing the best remakes they could be really paid off.
Crash Bandicoot is a precision-based platformer where the timing and length of your jumps are key to progress, it’s fun to master and see your skills grow whilst you try and complete the levels breaking while all the boxes.
If you’ve already dipped your toes into the trilogy and want something new, Crash 4: It’s About Time is a good place to look too!

A Hat in Time

Originally funded through crowdfunding, A Hat in Time has managed to capture the hearts of all that play it with its cute presentation, memorable characters, and Mario Sunshine-esque presentation and stage progression. You jump into acts of a level, complete the objective and return again to complete a new one with the levels changing with the developing story and world elements like weather and bridges adjusting to meet that need. Now is as good as time as any to jump into the super cute platformer as they have just released the DLC on PlayStation and Xbox!

Sonic Forces

A controversial pick, but Sonic Forces receives a lot of negativity for its short length and bland levels, however, what’s often missed is the Avatar system, the challenges and the ease of time trial levels. If you aim for completion and try and master all the games’ stages you will learn about the hidden depth of the gameplay and easily quadruple your time spent with the game. From completing particular requirements to getting the best time, some of the challenges presented in Forces offer a worthy challenge and the avatar levels offer different routes and options to master depending on the item equipped to your avatar. If you’re on the fence, Sonic Forces is almost always on sale and is worth getting for a smaller price just to play through at least once to judge for yourself.

Yooka Laylee

Another crowdfunding success story, Yooka Laylee is created by much of the team that made Banjo Kazooie in the ’90s, now reformed as Playtonic Games. Yooka Laylee is far more than just a throwback to classic collectathons. The game features expansive worlds that the player can make even larger by expanding them with the game’s main collectibles and a growing arsenal of abilities you can learn throughout the game, exploring these worlds with new abilities only opens up more possibilities for collectibles.

Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy

After losing Crash Bandicoot to Universal Interactive (now owned by Activision), Naughty Dog decided to step into the collectathon genre with a new IP and whilst the sequels took a massively different direction, the original game holds up as one of the best platformers of the era and has been ported to each generation since. Unlike Naughty Dog’s newer outings, Jak and Daxter follows two unlikely heroes through the usual conventional levels whilst wielding the power of Ico to solve different puzzles and problems for the world’s inhabitants to earn collectables. Whilst it doesn’t seem likely that we’ll ever see a follow up to the series, the first entry is definitely worth playing at least once.

Ratchet and Clank (2016)

If you are unaware, Ratchet and Clank(2016) is a “remake” of the original 2002 PS2 title, Ratchet and Clank, taking on and improving its gameplay while the plot instead follows the 2016 movie. Don’t let this deter you though, the story may not be the best and not directly tied to the events of the main series but it has the best gameplay in the franchise (as of writing). The games feature fast-paced gun-play action with a plethora of ridiculous weapons that makes the enemies dance, explode or even turn into sheep. This game has been free on several occasions so you likely already have it in your library and its short length makes it easy to digest and is perfect for beginners to the series,

Ty the Tasmanian Tiger Remastered

Originally released in 2002, Ty the Tasmanian Tiger takes you through the serene view of Australia’s outback as you battle to collect the rare Talismans to stop Boss Cass and his army of lizards from destroying Ty’s home. The first game is a short and sweet collectathon with a few extra challenges sprinkled in to keep the gameplay varied and offers a surprising amount of visual variety in its setting and the visuals have seen a sizeable face-lift with some quality of life features like motion control aiming and better loading times included too. The sequel is due to release soon so it’s the perfect time to adopt Ty into your library!

SpongeBob Squarepants: Battle For Bikini Bottom Rehydrated

A remake of the cult classic licenced game, Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated is a colourful and delightful collectathon bursting with personality and references to the first few seasons of the kids show that any fan of the sponge will adore and appreciate. But even if you’re not a fan of the show, the game boasts a colourful range of levels that would fit into any 3D platformer with ease and are bursting with challenges, collectables and dialogue exchanges to keep you entertained throughout. The remake has lost a little bit of the charm of the original and can feel a little too polished at times but if you have yet to experience the PS2 title it is a great time that is worth completing.

So there are my picks for accessible 3D platformers on modern systems, if you’re interested in purchasing any of these titles there is an affiliate link to a wishlist with most of them here!
Were there any hidden gems I missed? Let me know either here or on Twitter so I can check them out too!