What is a 2D game? 2D stands for "2D" in games. In detail, it can be described as typical "flat" games. They are "two-axis movement" games that you can do up, down, right and left. For example, Celeste is a 2D game. Also, many 2D games are linear, meaning your main goal is to complete the level.
2D games often have simpler mechanics than 3D games because they don't have many options to move around. Also, the controls in 2D games are usually relatively simple. Because your character lacks full 3D movement, they have less chance to move and interact with other objects. Therefore, controlling the characters is also much easier. Tilting the joystick or game key to the right in a 2D game moves your character in that direction. But in a 3D game, tilting the joystick to the right moves your character's camera based on what they're currently looking at.
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The camera for 2D games is also quite simplified. It usually looks directly at the game from the side, so it doesn't have the perspective of 3D games. Some 2D games use an effect called "parallax" that moves the background from the foreground at different speeds to create the illusion of depth.
A Brief History of 2D Games
What is a 2D game? Early video games were incredibly primitive, so it's not surprising that they had to use a 2D graphic style. On the other hand, text-based games were popular in the 1970s and relied entirely on reading and typing text to interact with the game. But when video games started using real visual graphics, 3D was not yet possible. Even as video game consoles became more sophisticated, 2D graphics became the norm until the mid-1990s.
The first 2D game ever made was Tennis For Two, a simple tennis game that preceded the better-known arcade classic Pong.
2D Games
- Hollow Knight (2017)
- Limbo (2010)
- Super Meat Boy (2010)
- Terraria (2011)
- Stardew Valley (2011)
- Light Blue (2018)
- Cuphead (2017)
- Ori Series (2010-15)
- Shovel Knight (2014)
- Factorio (2016)
- Dead Cells (2017)
- Inside (2016)
- Undertale (2015)
- Katana Zero (2019)
- Starbound (2016)
- Webbed (2021)