Rocket: Robot on Wheels

1999 · Sucker Punch Productions · Nintendo 64

First-time Nintendo 64 developer Sucker Punch Studios jumped onto the scene with a highly original 3D platformer. The design philosophy behind the title is simple -- rather than build the platformer around the main character, the software house opted instead to focus on the interactivity of the 3D environments he travels. To that end, Rocket employs an advanced physics engine which allows the main character, a lovable unicycle-based robot named Rocket, to travel and experiment with colorful, platform-esque worlds with realistic gravity and inertia. Every object has its own set of lifelike attributes that must be "weighed" into consideration when solving puzzles.