Best games
Best Platformer games of 2014
The 27 best Platformer games released in 2014, ranked from 9,844 critic and player ratings.
The best Platformer game of 2014 is Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, with a critic score of 91/100 — updated September 2026.
How this ranking is built
- Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
- A game only enters the ranking with at least 80 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
- Each game is ranked in one genre only, the one that defines it best, so the same title never tops two different genre charts.
- Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
- Release window covered: 2014.
- 27 games are listed on this page, carrying 9,844 ratings between them.
- Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 28 September 2026.
Top 27
01
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove
91
/100
02
Shovel Knight
Shovel Knight is a sweeping classic action adventure game with awesome gameplay, memorable characters, and an 8-bit retro aesthetic. It's a hot mashup of new and old! You play as the eponymous Shovel Knight, a small knight with a huge quest. Shovel Knight has come to this land with two goals: to defeat the evil Enchantress and quest for his lost beloved. He wields a Shovel Blade: a multipurpose weapon whose techniques have now been lost to the ages. Always honest and helpful, Shovel Knight is a shining example of the code of Shovelry: Slash Mercilessly and Dig Tirelessly! But, between Shovel Knight and his beloved stands a cadre of villainous knights. These terrible foes, known as The Order of No Quarter, have been dispatched to prevent Shovel Knight from reaching the Enchantress, and will pursue their mission at any cost. If you love games with perfect platforming, beautiful art, infectious music, crazy bosses, humor and levity, and real heart… Shovel Knight is for you!
89
/100
03
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty is a faithful remake of Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee where the pre-rendered sceneries are recreated in real-time 3D without changing the original gameplay. It also replaces the single screens linked together of the original version into a true 2.5D side-scrolling game. While there are various enhancements and details to the character and the scenery, the basic gameplay is still largely similar in a side by side comparison. The GameSpeak system Abe uses to command and talk to other characters start with the same commands, but can later be expanded. This version of the game supports leaderboards for the completion time of each mode and the overall game. There are three difficulty levels and the game. It includes the original cooperative function of the original game when another player can take over when the first player dies, taking turns controlling Abe.
87
/100
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove
91
/100
02
Shovel Knight
Shovel Knight is a sweeping classic action adventure game with awesome gameplay, memorable characters, and an 8-bit retro aesthetic. It's a hot mashup of new and old! You play as the eponymous Shovel Knight, a small knight with a huge quest. Shovel Knight has come to this land with two goals: to defeat the evil Enchantress and quest for his lost beloved. He wields a Shovel Blade: a multipurpose weapon whose techniques have now been lost to the ages. Always honest and helpful, Shovel Knight is a shining example of the code of Shovelry: Slash Mercilessly and Dig Tirelessly! But, between Shovel Knight and his beloved stands a cadre of villainous knights. These terrible foes, known as The Order of No Quarter, have been dispatched to prevent Shovel Knight from reaching the Enchantress, and will pursue their mission at any cost. If you love games with perfect platforming, beautiful art, infectious music, crazy bosses, humor and levity, and real heart… Shovel Knight is for you!
89
/100
03
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty is a faithful remake of Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee where the pre-rendered sceneries are recreated in real-time 3D without changing the original gameplay. It also replaces the single screens linked together of the original version into a true 2.5D side-scrolling game. While there are various enhancements and details to the character and the scenery, the basic gameplay is still largely similar in a side by side comparison. The GameSpeak system Abe uses to command and talk to other characters start with the same commands, but can later be expanded. This version of the game supports leaderboards for the completion time of each mode and the overall game. There are three difficulty levels and the game. It includes the original cooperative function of the original game when another player can take over when the first player dies, taking turns controlling Abe.
87
/100
04
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is a re-release of Tomb Raider, developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square-Enix for the Playstation 4 and the Xbox One. The game is optimized for next-gen consoles, with the help of outside developers including United Front Games and Nixxes Software. Definitive Edition includes several visual and game play enhancements, and is packaged with all available downloadable content for the game. The game was released on January 28th, 2014.
86
/100
05
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
All the challenging ground-pounding, barrel-blasting, side-scrolling mine cart action from the Donkey Kong Country series is back along with a bushel of new game-play elements and features. And now, there are four playable characters! Dixie Kong is back to join the adventure as a playable character alongside Diddy Kong, and for the first time in Donkey Kong Country, bearded old hero Cranky Kong joins the adventure with his bouncy cane. Any of the three can buddy up with Donkey Kong, and each character offers a different gameplay experience. On their journey to reclaim Donkey Kong Island, Donkey Kong and his friends travel across five islands with a variety of stages that include underwater areas and frozen environments.
84
/100
06
Duck Game
Enter the futuristic year of 1984, an age where ducks run wild in a frantic battle for glory. Blast your friends with Shotguns, Net Guns, Mind Control Rays, Saxophones, Magnet Guns, and much, much more. This is DUCK GAME. Don't blink.
83
/100
07
Sunset Overdrive
The city’s overrun with mutants. Problem? Not for you. Sunset Overdrive is an open-world playground of post-apocalyptic possibilities. Vault, grind & wall-run while using a deadly & unconventional arsenal. With hyper-agility, unique weapons, & customizable abilities, it rewrites the rules of shooters while delivering an irreverent adventure.
82
/100
08
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
The intrepid Captain Toad sets off on his own adventure for the very first time through a wide variety of tricky, enemy-infested, maze-like stages to find hidden gems and nab elusive gold stars.
81
/100
09
Velocity 2X
This critically acclaimed sequel to Velocity Ultra weaves together two classic game formats into one seamless adventure, featuring puzzle-platforming action alongside award-winning top-down shoot 'em-up gameplay!
80
/100
10
C
inFAMOUS Second Son
Infamous: Second Son, a PlayStation 4 exclusive , brings you an action adventure game where surrounded by a society that fears them, superhumans are ruthlessly hunted down and caged by the Department of Unified Protection. Step into a locked-down Seattle as Delsin Rowe, who has recently discovered his superhuman power and is now capable of fighting back against the oppressive DUP. Enjoy your power as you choose how you will push your awesome abilities to the limit and witness the consequences of your actions as they affect the city and people around you.
80
/100
11
The Expendabros
80
/100
12
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
80
/100
13
LittleBigPlanet 3
79
/100
14
Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones
79
/100
15
Xeodrifter
79
/100
16
Valiant Hearts: The Great War
76
/100
17
The Fall
76
/100
18
Chariot
76
/100
19
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
75
/100
20
inFAMOUS: First Light
73
/100
21
A Story About My Uncle
73
/100
22
Never Alone: Kisima Ingitchuna
71
/100
23
Octodad: Dadliest Catch
69
/100
24
Worms Battlegrounds
66
/100
25
Lovely Planet
61
/100
26
Back to Bed
57
/100
27
Eets Munchies
50
/100
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is a re-release of Tomb Raider, developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square-Enix for the Playstation 4 and the Xbox One. The game is optimized for next-gen consoles, with the help of outside developers including United Front Games and Nixxes Software. Definitive Edition includes several visual and game play enhancements, and is packaged with all available downloadable content for the game. The game was released on January 28th, 2014.
86
/100
05
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
All the challenging ground-pounding, barrel-blasting, side-scrolling mine cart action from the Donkey Kong Country series is back along with a bushel of new game-play elements and features. And now, there are four playable characters! Dixie Kong is back to join the adventure as a playable character alongside Diddy Kong, and for the first time in Donkey Kong Country, bearded old hero Cranky Kong joins the adventure with his bouncy cane. Any of the three can buddy up with Donkey Kong, and each character offers a different gameplay experience. On their journey to reclaim Donkey Kong Island, Donkey Kong and his friends travel across five islands with a variety of stages that include underwater areas and frozen environments.
84
/100
06
Duck Game
Enter the futuristic year of 1984, an age where ducks run wild in a frantic battle for glory. Blast your friends with Shotguns, Net Guns, Mind Control Rays, Saxophones, Magnet Guns, and much, much more. This is DUCK GAME. Don't blink.
83
/100
07
Sunset Overdrive
The city’s overrun with mutants. Problem? Not for you. Sunset Overdrive is an open-world playground of post-apocalyptic possibilities. Vault, grind & wall-run while using a deadly & unconventional arsenal. With hyper-agility, unique weapons, & customizable abilities, it rewrites the rules of shooters while delivering an irreverent adventure.
82
/100
08
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
The intrepid Captain Toad sets off on his own adventure for the very first time through a wide variety of tricky, enemy-infested, maze-like stages to find hidden gems and nab elusive gold stars.
81
/100
09
Velocity 2X
This critically acclaimed sequel to Velocity Ultra weaves together two classic game formats into one seamless adventure, featuring puzzle-platforming action alongside award-winning top-down shoot 'em-up gameplay!
80
/100
10
C
inFAMOUS Second Son
Infamous: Second Son, a PlayStation 4 exclusive , brings you an action adventure game where surrounded by a society that fears them, superhumans are ruthlessly hunted down and caged by the Department of Unified Protection. Step into a locked-down Seattle as Delsin Rowe, who has recently discovered his superhuman power and is now capable of fighting back against the oppressive DUP. Enjoy your power as you choose how you will push your awesome abilities to the limit and witness the consequences of your actions as they affect the city and people around you.
80
/100
11
The Expendabros
80
/100
12
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
80
/100
13
LittleBigPlanet 3
79
/100
14
Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones
79
/100
15
Xeodrifter
79
/100
16
Valiant Hearts: The Great War
76
/100
17
The Fall
76
/100
18
Chariot
76
/100
19
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
75
/100
20
inFAMOUS: First Light
73
/100
21
A Story About My Uncle
73
/100
22
Never Alone: Kisima Ingitchuna
71
/100
23
Octodad: Dadliest Catch
69
/100
24
Worms Battlegrounds
66
/100
25
Lovely Planet
61
/100
26
Back to Bed
57
/100
27
Eets Munchies
50
/100
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Platformer game of 2014?
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove currently tops the ranking with a score of 91/100 across 322 ratings. Ranking updated September 2026.
How is this ranking built?
Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.