Another genre tag topic/question. I wondered how to classify a game like "Ghosts 'n Goblins".
If we look at Wikipedia article for this game it is categorised as "run and gun platform video game". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghosts_%27n_Goblins
But when you look at the Wikipedia article for platformers, it is explicitly stated that games like Ghosts n Goblins or Mega Man are NOT run and gun platforms and that this would only apply to games like Contra en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platformer
Now we have the tag runandgun as sub-genre of shooter, which is correct. Run and gun could be side-view platformers like Contra or top-view games like Commando or Ikari Warriors. If we only use it for Contra-like games then its already ok with gametype shooter and platformer in combination with runandgun genre tag. We would not need a runandgunplatformer.
Should we make a tag runandgunplatformer nonetheless? I could say yes because Wikipedia has this term as platformer subgenre. So it seems to exist. But I really wonder where this starts and stops. Wikipedia puts Turrican in the Mega Man, Ghosts'n Goblins category of non runandgun platformers. Because of the exploring. This is wrong in my opinion. For me its clearly a runandgun. However I can understand that Ghosts n Goblins might not be a typical runandgun. But what platform subgenre is it then? Nothing else fits.
Subgenre Run-and-Gun platformers
I've read the paragraph on Run-and-gun platformer a few times, and something isn't quite adding up. The games listed fall somewhere in between to different degrees, but that's maybe obvious as each game has its own peculiarities.
I feel that Turrican is a run and gun too, and Contra is platformer only due to the "vertical" section, but not in the horizontal section and the "3D" section ... Same for Metal Slug actually.
Ghosts 'n Goblins is also quite e platformer, there are so many points where you have to jump perfectly to survive.
All these are "run and gun" anyway, to me.
As stated here en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoot_%27em_up#Run_and_gun they are just R&G with platform elements.
The only pro of creating runandgunplatformer is that we have that genre clearly listed and can easily searched.
I feel that Turrican is a run and gun too, and Contra is platformer only due to the "vertical" section, but not in the horizontal section and the "3D" section ... Same for Metal Slug actually.
Ghosts 'n Goblins is also quite e platformer, there are so many points where you have to jump perfectly to survive.
All these are "run and gun" anyway, to me.
As stated here en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoot_%27em_up#Run_and_gun they are just R&G with platform elements.
The only pro of creating runandgunplatformer is that we have that genre clearly listed and can easily searched.
Ok. I will keep "Ghosts n Goblins" in my head as being a platformer/shooter gametype mix with runandgun as genre. Being the most borderline case. If a game is similar or even more "bam bam bam" then it qualifies as runandgun.