A strange little side quest
Heart Star may feel immediate, but the ideas around platform games have been evolving for a very long time. Donkey Kong arrived in 1981 with a character called Jumpman, who would later become one of gaming's most recognizable figures: Mario. The surprising part is how quickly the next milestone followed. By 1987, fantasy role-playing had become a major computer-game direction, with Zelda, licensed Dungeons & Dragons games and other story-led adventures expanding the form. Grombi files that under: small game, surprisingly large backstory.