Blackthorne Truly Nailed the Cinematic Platformer
Blizzard’s pre-WARCRAFT history is quite interesting. Its handful of games released prior to its meteoric rise through the mid to late 1990s are a pretty diverse bunch. From RPM RACING (1991) to LOST VIKINGS (1992) and even THE DEATH AND RETURN OF SUPERMAN (1994) and JUSTICE LEAGUE TASK FORCE (1995), much of Blizzard’s early history is made up of interesting nuggets before their status as a major video game industry player. An oft-forgotten game from this era is BLACKTHORNE (1994), a phenomenal take on the “cinematic platformer” subgenre.
As far as I can tell, PRINCE OF PERSIA (1989) instigated this classification. Defined by more “realistic” physics, refined art styles, and unique narratives, cinematic platformers are ultimately pretty stiff, difficult puzzle games more than they are SUPER MARIO BROS. or something. Other games in the genre include ANOTHER WORLD (1991), FLASHBACK (1992), and HEART OF DARKNESS (1998). And look, those games are fine; they’re just ultimately very, very frustrating. They’re really cool facets in the platforming medium, but experiencing them once is the extent of my appreciation for them. I don’t know if I’m necessarily going to return to BLACKTHORNE any time soon, but I was incredibly impressed by how much it refined the subgenre’s characteristics.
Cinematic platformers have in common a sort of “grid” system; move forward with one press of a button, and a relatively slow, unstoppable walking animation progresses to a sort of column that the entire screen is made up of. This contributes to the stiffness of these kinds of games. Turning around is a whole ordeal; running and jumping require some conscious effort and it can be pretty inaccurate. Again, this isn’t Mario. BLACKTHORNE still retains these qualities, but the game surrounding it is much more forgiving, and its level design more intriguing.
Don’t get me wrong, BLACKTHORNE is still a pretty hard game. But there’s a bit more nuance in the control of its main character, Kyle “Blackthorne” Vlaros. It’s clunky, but easier to anticipate. The combat is also a more accessible puzzle. It’s gun-based, and Kyle can “dodge” simply by holding the up button; you can “dodge” for as long as you want, blending a bit into the background and avoiding enemy fire. The challenge comes from dodging just quickly enough to catch your enemy while he’s out of cover but late enough that you don’t get hit too. It can be frustrating, especially with specific enemy types, but it’s a neat mechanic that lends a bit more fluidity to the game.
Running and jumping, too, is more accurate and dependable than BLACKTHORNE’s contemporaries. As I said, the level design is, on the whole, better, especially from the similarly exploratory PRINCE OF PERSIA. The puzzles repeat, sure, but the increasingly circuitous routes to solve them adds a layer of challenge to the game. And while they are termed “cinematic platformers,” these games are never incredibly amazing stories. But in the context of its compatriots, BLACKTHORNE also has an interesting sci-fi world and striking art style.
At the end of the day, BLACKTHORNE nails the cinematic platformer by doing what nearly every other significant game in its genre doesn’t do: it makes its gameplay accessible. As mentioned, it’s not an easy game, but one that is much easier to play. And the through line of these games is still seen in more recent releases like LIMBO (2010) and INSIDE (2016); and with the subgenre’s innovation of ledge climbing and more complex platforming techniques, in the newer PRINCE OF PERSIA games, the ASSASSIN’S CREED series, and many action adventure and open world games. BLACKTHORNE just might be the best cinematic platformer of its era (when the subgenre was truly in existence), and it’s perhaps the earliest example of Blizzard moving a bit past the bounds of a still nascent gameplay style. And to be fair, WARCRAFT: ORCS & HUMANS would release only a couple months later in 1994.
